TVSquad

In a move that has me shaking my head, Freddy Prinze, Jr. will be working behind the scenes at World Wrestling Entertainment for both their television product and pay-per-views. I recognize that wrestling is a big industry and Freddy's movie career hasn't been exactly stellar as of late (I'm sure he's done movies, but none I've heard of), but wrestling?

"Bringing on board an experienced Hollywood writer, actor and producer like Freddie Prinze Jr. will only increase the level of entertainment to millions of viewers and passionate WWE fans every Monday on USA," said Chris McCumber, Executive Vice President Marketing Digital and Brand Strategy at USA Network.

As I said in my post about the 90210 panel, CW entertainment president Dawn Ostroff doesn't like to give us definitive answers. For some reason, she doesn't feel she has to. Problem is, that doesn't make the critics very happy. We don't like it when someone isn't being forthright with us, and we can sense it.

In her executive session, Ostroff avoided saying anything definitive on two major topics: the lack of "urban" shows on the schedule and the mechanics of the network's deal with Media Rights Capital to produce the network's entire Sunday block of shows.

American Gladiators announced a new cast member today -- "The Beast." He'll be there for the semi-finals. The final 12 contenders will have to deal with this "monster" (that's the term from the press release) to get to the ultimate prize.

Those of you who have watched the show know it's really the reverse treadmill thingie that poses the biggest obstacle between any contender and his/her victory. But The Beast should terrify a few of the hopefuls. He stands at seven-feet-tall and weighs 318 lbs. From the picture, you can see that 200 of those pounds are in his neck.

Never fear all you wrestlemaniacs. While WWE has abandoned renegotiations with The CW to bring Smackdown back to the network, it has announced that it is already in negotiations with other networks to carry the long-running Friday night staple. Smackdown has delivered solid ratings for The CW (and UPN before it) since 1999, but has at times been an awkward fit for the demographics and perception the network has wanted to put out there.

(S04E10) In one of the classiest moves in Project Runway history, the designers faced the challenge of creating outfits for the WWE Raw Divas to wear in the ring. When I heard the angry grunts and sounds of lady-violence behind the door, I thought they were going to face roller derby girls or something. The Divas were cool anyway, offering the designers a chance to get really crazy and maybe a little sleazy.

The designers seemed rather horrified when they saw their new clients, which was quite amusing, but not as amusing as the reactions (or lack thereof, save for Tim Gunn's polite chuckle) to the sex kitten ripping open her robe. I couldn't stop myself from mumbling, "Your goods have no power here, sweetheart."

By the way, the Blockbuster Total Access placement was real subtle, Bravo. Maybe next time they should have Tim pop in to share an exclusive coupon code.

Monday, WWE Raw will be celebrating 15 years with a special three-hour episode. On the eve of this celebration, Reuters tells us that the wrestling program's contract has been extended another two years, guaranteeing more chair smashing, smack talking through 2010. The overall deal includes a continuation of the twice yearly NBC Saturday night specials, the A.M. Raw weekend USA show, as well as a Spanish-language edition for the growing Telemundo networks.

After fifteen years, Raw remains one of cable's strongest programs, currently averaging 5.1 million viewers weekly. And since it doesn't go into reruns, that's strong programming year-round, which at this time has to look pretty enticing to the network. If things continue with the strike, we might even see more WWE programming come to NBC proper.

Well there are two words you don't see in the same sentence that often, "CNN and "WWE."

Last week, CNN aired a special investigative special about pro wrestling titled Death Grip. At one point during the show, wrestling star John Cena is interviewed. The WWE claims the interview was edited, and now they've posted the proof on their site. Not only were CNN's cameras rolling during the interview, but so were the WWE's, from a different angle. The interviewer asks Cena if he's ever used steroids, and he answers "absolutely not," but in the CNN version that immediate denial isn't heard. All you hear is the rest of Cena's answer, which makes his answer sound vague. The Baltimore Sun has a good take on the controversy.

No word from CNN yet.

After it premiered last night, Fox has abruptly canceled Anchorwoman. The reality show only received a 1.0 rating in the adult 18-49 demo. Instead, the network will air reruns of 'Til Death in the 8 pm Wednesday time slot for the next three weeks.

Anchorwoman fans will be happy to know that the remaining episodes will be available through the Fox On Demand website.

I am a little disappointed because I wasn't the only one who was really rooting for the star, Lauren Jones. She's a former WWE diva and swimsuit model who gets hired to anchor for a small television station with measly ratings in Tyler, Texas. Yes, it is a reality show. While Lauren is not the smartest girl, she surprisingly comes off looking better than her catty coworkers who claim to be journalists.

The news world is all abuzz (and generally horrified) by Anchorwoman, a reality show that premiered on Fox last night. The premise of Anchorwoman is that a station in Tyler, Texas brings in a former professional wrestler/swimsuit model to anchor in order to boost their pathetic ratings.

The true tragedy of Anchorwoman is not Lauren Jones, a former WWE diva with no journalistic experience, but her coworkers who claim to be journalists. The News Director and the other anchor, Annalisa Petralia, are the ones who are making a mockery of local news which--let's face it--is really easy to do these days. Both people call themselves 'journalists' and talk a lot during the first two episodes about their journalistic integrity, yet they agreed to be on a reality show. There are a handful of people in that Tyler, TX newsroom who obviously did not want to be on a reality show because a whole bunch of faces are blurred out. They have what I like to call "self respect".

TMZ is reporting that WWE wrestler Chris Benoit is suspected of killing his wife and 7-year old son before committing suicide. Benoit and his family were found dead in their Atlanta home on Monday afternoon, the same day he was supposed to appear in a "memorial" episode for Vince McMahon's WWE character. TMZ reports that Atlanta police suspect Benoit strangled his wife on Saturday and then smothered his son in bed the next day. Benoit was apparently text messaging friends as he watched Vengeance, a WWE Pay-Per-View program, on Sunday.

I do not watch wrestling, but everything I read says he was very popular among fans. His signature move was the "Crippler Crossface". WWE quickly changed up its programming last night so it did not focus on the "death" of McMahon's character. McMahon made a brief statement to fans about the tragedy, saying Benoit was "one of the greatest WWE superstars of all time."

*UPDATE: Atlanta PD says Benoit killed his wife on Friday, his son on Saturday, and hanged himself (possibly) on Sunday. Sick.

When a man gets older and he finds himself vulnerable to mortality, and that which affects his heart and his mental health, there are no proper words to describe the fear and anticipation.

By now, the news has been announced that Regis will be leaving the show to undergo bypass surgery. Although you might have read articles about the situation, there really isn't anything like watching the exact moment he describes it. Something about the delicate nature and his soft spoken voice that reminds you of how fragile life is, it really tugs at your soul. No one ever wants to see anything bad happen to Regis.

On a completely opposite spectrum...

Hey, Brigitte here with TV Squad Daily. I'll be covering the TV stories I find interesting each day, Monday through Friday, in this video blog.

Today on TV Squad Daily:

• Oh, Britney Spears. We thought K-Fed was your problem, but maybe he was the only thing holding you together?
  
• Maybe Britney got the idea to shave her head from Donald Trump. He and WWE owner Vince McMahon have a bet going, and the winner gets to shave the loser's head.
  
• Ray Liotta was arrested for suspected D.U.I. over the weekend. Why did cops "suspect" him? Well, he did hit two parked cars with his SUV...

The video's embedded below, or you can download the file directly (Quicktime required). You can also subscribe to this vodcast via our feed.

Hey, Brigitte here with TV Squad Daily. I'll be covering the TV stories I find interesting each day, Monday through Friday, in this video blog.

Today on TV Squad Daily:

• Forgotten boy band members may be joining together to form a new pop group for a VH1 reality series in spring 2007.
  
• Rapper "The Game" challenged WWE wrestler "The Game" to a fight (a real one) over their shared name.
  
• A letter writing campaign is convincing stores to stop selling Drinko, a drinking game inspired by The Price is Right's game Plinko.
  

The video's embedded below, or you can download the file directly (Quicktime required). You can also subscribe to this vodcast via our feed.

I went through a brief professional wrestling phase in junior high. This was when Hulk Hogan was in his prime and you could also see the likes of Rowdy Roddy Piper, the Iron Sheik, and Hillbilly Jim, among others. Eventually I got over watching men in tiny pants strutting around the ring and gesticulating, but professional wrestling kept going on without me, turning into a huge phenomenon and becoming, as one friend of mine put it, "a male soap opera."

He's right. The storylines have become more complex, and sometimes downright silly. This time, however, Vince McMahon may have topped himself. On April 30, during the WWE pay-per-view special "Backlash," Mr. McMahon will wrestle God. Wrestling fans already know that this is the culmination of an ongoing storyline which involved the sinister McMahon getting beat by Shawn Michaels, a born again Christian. I don't have pay-per-view, so I won't be able to watch, but here's what God had to say:

Oh yea brother, after a mere 13 year hiatus, the WWF WWE returns to NBC's Saturday night to wreak havoc. Throughout the '80s and early '90s, in wrestling's hey-day, NBC carried the WWF's Saturday Night Main Event on an almost weekly basis, showcasing the top talent at the time-- Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Andre the Giant, and the immortal Hulk Hogan. While none of them are "scheduled" to return tonight (9/8c), you can always count on Vince McMahon and company to put on an entertaining show and pull off a couple of surprises. Tonight will see the likes of John Cena, Triple H and a bevy of WWE Divas take the ring. I'm an unabashed wrestling fan, and the Saturday Night Main Event is one of the crystal clear memories I have of my grandfather, who was also a wrestling nut, so to say that I'm excited about this is an understatement. Although this is only scheduled to be a one-time event, wrestling's popularity (which is always like a roller coaster) has been on the upswing of late, and if the ratings are well enough to warrant it, I'm sure we'll see a return appearence. Say your prayers and eat your vitamins, because tonight, the WWE is going to go wild on you!