I Am A TV Junkie

Video -- Jane Lynch Subs for Rupert Murdoch at Tech Conference, Hilarious Truth Ensues

This should cement Lynch as front runner for Emmy hosting duties. She's amazing. If she does get the gig she'll be only the second blonde lesbian comic to host the show.

Yes I was being ironic.

Video -- Hugh Laurie Covers Leadbelly's You Don't Know My Mind in Paris

Those of you who saw Hugh on The Graham Norton Show this past week in the US and two weeks ago in the UK also know that he just released a blues record that he recorded in New Orleans.

It's not available in the US. At least that's what Amazon says. If I'm wrong get back to me. You can pick it up from Amazon UK, however, and with no worries b/c CDs don't have region codes like visual media.

Watch Hugh perform from Paris at a gig that happened right after the Norton appearance in this clip (LINK) courtesy YouTube user frenchbluesygirl.

Watch Hugh talk to Graham Norton at this link.

Watch Hugh talk about making this album in a promo clip that includes recording studio footage at this link.

Oh, and on House's penultimate episode of the season the crazy SOB is gonna try to perform surgery on himself. I don't think that's gonna go over very well. See three preview clips of tonight's episode which are posted after the jump.

Once again, for the record, I prefer the funny British Hugh Laurie. This musical British Hugh Laurie comes in a solid second.

Idol's Pia Toscano Might Have Already Made More Money Than Taylor Hicks

I know, I suck for slinging crap at Taylor Hicks. It's not his fault, really. He just should have never been chosen by a group of American teenage girls to be a pop star.

Having said that I betcha with the $100K that Pia will pull in for singing at a private party next weekend in Los Angeles (check this Hollywood Reporter story) is probably more than Hicks made on his debut album.

Maybe she'll sing Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me again. But if she doesn't, those partygoers and you can hear her sing it again in the clip after the jump. She's wearing a dress no doubt inspired by J.Lo's Grammy Awards dress, worth the click.

UPDATE: The Soul Patrol is swarming around me on Twitter. It was a joke! Get over it. And ... made ya look!

Video -- FX Burning Off Running Wilde Eps from Fox in May

 

Doesn't Will Arnett just look all kinds of sexy draped across a faux Louis XIV desk? And this Joe Namath inspired pose is saying all kinds of dirty, nasty body language things.

Sorry, every now and then I enjoy objectifying a straight guy. It's good for the circulation.

His show that got canned, Running Wilde, never shot its complete load on Fox so FX is doing it for them. In fact, they did so last night but no one told me. Sorry.

They sent a memo that elaborates:

Did you accidentally miss the brand new episode of Fox’s Running Wilde that aired last night on FX? Let’s fix that!

Please tune to FX for never-before-seen episodes of Running Wilde that will air at 10:00 PM ET/PT on Thursday, May 5, 13 and 20. Then, be sure to stick around for encore plays of previously aired episodes at 10:30 PM, 11:00 PM and 1:30 AM ET/PT.

Watch the last episode aired on Fox back in (oh, I'm too tired to look) by clicking this. The last five are at Hulu if you wanna do some catch up.

My Return to (Watching) American Idol -- Top 6: What a Motley Looking Crew!

The annual tradition continues.

I check in each year on American Idol the week the top six perform. I hate the audition rounds, the weeks of humiliation ... the crazies they bring on just make me sad as I guess I don't have that thing that lets me laugh at other people's misfortune.

(Having said that I'm sure I'll be out today and will see a nun slip on a banana peel.)

Look at 'em, though. What a motley crew, these six: Skinny country crooner with an Alfred E. Newman thing going on and twang for days; a Compton guy who you just wanna see get outta Compton; two young women who (I'm sorry but they) are interchangeable; rocker guy with satellite dish ears; and, finally, an extra from Yentl's yeshiva scenes.

And the rabbinical student will probably win it all. AND ... he's ginger! He has a great stage presence but ... well, the pop music world isn't usually populated by someone who wandered over from the 1985 Harrison Ford movie Witness.

(I'm accepting more Casey Abrams movie-related zingers in the comments below.)

About the judge's panel? Apparently the show DOES survive without Simon, and very well in fact. I like that the judges now enter from offstage, which I'm sure was done to showcase J.Lo's legs and her clothes. Tyler is fine, maybe a little too inside baseball with his quotes about presentation. Randy continues to be Randy despite his move into Simon's chair, he's "all good."

Seacrest, however, is really rockin' the Mad Men look this season. I like it.

So, after the jump, watch Casey sing the Carole King-penned Hi De Ho (which he nailed like he was raising a barn -- see what I did there? Another Witness reference?) and duetting with Haley on I Feel the Earth Move.

Video : Glee's Chris Colfer is One of the Time 100 for 2011

For those of you who question the inclusion of Colfer in this rarified group, think about this: He's just a kid who by virtue of doing the thing he loves is changing minds, changing attitudes and not cowtowing to anyone in the process.

He is totally, completely, unabashedly himself.

Here's what his costar Dianna Agron said about him her introductory remarks at this link:

The honesty that he infuses into his Glee character, Kurt, leaves you reeling. Our cast is blessed to hear things like "Your character has helped me through this, or helped me do that," but none more so than Chris. To witness the power he gives to his audience firsthand? It's wonderful.

After the jump watch Colfer talk about the show and this honor.

Video -- Leonard Nimoy on His Animated Fringe Return & Anna Torv Playing Bill Bell

It's Nimoy, you have to watch. And he knows from where he speaks on this topic, it's not the first time a character of his that dies has come back.

Probably won't be the last, either.

Fringe -- Just Released Pics of Animated Cast & Watch Broyles Gets High Again

So it turns out that there were only a few of us that noticed the animated aspect of Friday's episode of Fringe from the promos that ran on Fox. Sorry to anyone for whom that was spoiled, I thought it was common knowledge.

In any event, here are the rest of the animation images released by Fox after the episode aired. And then, after the jump enjoy that great scene with Astrid and a very wacked out Lt. Broyles, which I loved.

That clip is after the jumperoo.

Clip Bonanza -- Fringe Super Preview & Prop Giveaway Details

I am wondering if I should be trying to glean something from the fact that there are no episodic photos from tonight's episode posted at the Fox press site.

What are they hiding? (Some of you have of course seen the Fox promo that offers more visual evidence of Bill Bell, but I'm not spilling here for the sake of this others who haven't.)

Of course when you have an acid freak as a character, you can tease lots of stuff in a promo and it just ends up being a drugged delusion. As this week's episode is called Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, that's entirely possible.

Here's a preview:

With the show now renewed for a fourth season you and I might be a little more relaxed about the events leading up to the season finale, but that might be folly for us from what I've read. Producers are promising that all questions of season three should be resolved in the season finale curently scheduled for May 6th.

Aaaaaand ... Walternate will get that doomsday machine operating.

Aaaaaand ... someone will die.

Die? Yes, die.

Click over the jumperoo for more.

Video -- Cleveland Brown Interviews Fringe Star Jasika Nicole? Yes, What's So Strange About That?

Do I need to say anything about this? Other than that it's the best thing ever? Cuz it is!

After the jump I have a Fringe episode preview for you for Friday at 9 eastern, which is the first of a run of four new eps.

Idol Fans Said, "See Ya, Pia," Reports Say She Signs Deal With Interscope

My favorite  comment on Pia Toscano's elimination from Idol comes from my cousin Joe's wife Anne-Marie (yes, the one that was a member of the NY Jets' Flight Crew) who said on Facebook, "So Pia got kicked off American Idol....what was the problem, she too hot 'n' too good a singer? C'mon America!! Ugh."

Anne-Marie will be happy to know that according to this Us Magazine report, Jimmy Iovine from Interscope was thinking the same thing and has already signed the lovely Toscano to a record deal.

Here's the excerpt from the mag that's making the rounds ...

"Pia is being signed to a deal with Interscope Records who are rushing her into the studio to record an album ASAP," a source familiar with the contract talks tells Us. "Starting [Thursday] night after the show, Interscope told her they wanted her and first thing [Friday] morning Interscope brass started calling every top songwriter and producer in town to get an album together and rush release it."

Rush release? Oh, just hold on their Iovine, you know it doesn't work like that, artists need time, and I'm sure Interscope wants an album that is somewhat reflective of who Pia is as a singer and a young woman.

If these reports are true she will join another Italian-American New York woman on the label, you might know her as Lady Gaga. And for those of you not up to speed on your recording industry execs, you might remember Iovine from an episode of Family Guy. Click here for more on that.

I'm wary about this report from Us because 1) It's Us Magazine and I don't really trust them, and B) I was under the impression that the touring crew (Top 10 or 11 or whatev) couldn't sign or record for anyone else until the tour was finished.

Re: Fox's Terra Nova Pushing Premiere Date from May to September

News today in the LA Times' Showtracker blog (still don't understand why they have TV bloggers and not full staffs overseas, but that's another story for another time) on the big Spielberg/Fox project Terra Nova, they are pushing their premiere date from May sweeps to September. The plan was to pull off a Glee-like opening to then prime the pump all Summer in advance of a big September official first season.

Apparently there are a lot, a LOT, of FX shots that need to be completed and it won't happen by May. That's fine, bring it complete.

However, the question at the end of that LA Times blog post was: "Will you watch the show whenever it does appear?" To which I said (reprinted here because it may never show up in their moderated comment thread):

I'll watch the show but that doesn't mean it won't fail. I watch Fringe, I watched Dollhouse, love them both. Just b/c Spielberg has his name on it doesn't mean it won't meet the same fate. Americans don't seem to have interest in a large scale scifi epic adventure.

Personally I don't think most Americans are smart enough or pay attention enough to get these shows. Most of them are eating, scratching and farting or kind of paying attention while they quip on Twitter.

I opened up Entertainment Weekly the other day to find out that the third most popular show on iTunes was Kourtney and Kim Take Manhattan. This is the America we live in, Americans only care if you've been in a sex tape or you have a big rear end.

TV's the best, except when it sucks. Still looking forward to it, still wary, still glad I didn't waste more time than I had to this season watching The Event as I did the previous season with Flash Forward.

Can you believe that crap V is still on? ABC drama dept. must have a strong gag reflex.

Watch some video in support of the show by clicking this or this.

Alexander Skarsgard, Sounding Only Slightly Like Those Foreign Guys from Family Guy

Warning: If you watch the Skarsgard clip that will pop up when you hover your cursor over the filmstrip graphic or click the link RIGHT HERE you will hear spoilers about the upcoming season of True Blood, returning in June to HBO.

If you don't click it, you'll never truly know how much Skarsgard sounds like those vaguely European guys that Seth MacFarlane uses occasionally on Family Guy, which are in the clip linked HERE.

Part of this blog's initiative to include more clips and less writing by me. Because the clips are what you really want.

Glee Video -- Kurt and His Dad Talk About Sex

 

The only version I can find is this one from a Canadian YouTube user who posted the clip in it's mirror image, I'm guessing in an attempt to thwart copyright rules.

(Apparently Hulu no longer lets one define a clip from a full episode and post it. I don't know why.)

I'm working with someone at Fox to try to get an official version, as it's the first time anything like his has been on television. I think it's invaluable to people with gay kids, and everyone else, too. The fact that "you matter" in issues of sexuality, the idea that hooking up is so much easier when it's two humans with testosterone running through them, his tone ... a great tool for parents.

I'm sure there will be plenty of naysayers. They're wrong. This is great. Mike O'Malley deserves an Emmy, I hope this scene helps him get one.

There was also a great scene between Brittany and Santana, Naya Rivera acting up a storm, Heather Morris providing excellent support for her, great dialogue.

And there was Gwyneth Paltrow, too? Best episode of Glee yet.

Simon Cowell: Elton John Too Grumpy for US X Factor, How About George Michael?

Joshua Weinstein at The Wrap is reporting that George Michael is on Simon Cowell's short list for X Factor judge.

So is Paula Abdul.

And Nicole Scherzinger and Mariah Carey.

But not Elton John, who Cowell says is just too grumpy these days for the gig:

The famously blunt Cowell also said that Katy Perry and Elton John are not on his list.

Cowell said that Elton John is "so grumpy nowadays, I mean, it would be like, he’d just be moaning the whole time."

Perry isn't really a good option for the gig in my opinion, either. Better than Perry? The man who's made her pop music career possible, Andy Hildebrand.

More on him at this link.

Elton, of course, is busy now raising an adopted son, an adoption, btw, that would no doubt be opposed by Rush Limbaugh, the guy who John sang for on his wedding day. No, I'm not letting it go, I'm never gonna let it go and Elton can, as SNL so gingerly says it, "S my D."

(Or he can't. Whichever upsets him more.)

Carey on the show? I have a feeling it would devolve into something like this from a recent HSN appearance.

And what happened to all the heat surround Scherzinger? She was so golden a while back, now all the talk is about her doing stuff other than singing. Also, the acting thing is not for her, imho. Saw her do a couple guest appearances on TV and she just doesn't have it. It's okay to just be a great singer, you know.

Gotta wonder what the fallout to Cowell's remarks about the US having the best talent in the world are gonna be in his native England. I'd be pissed. You?

After the jumperoo, check out a clip with Simon telling you his five tips for the best audition and the latest release from Fox regarding auditions. Also, look forward to some more WGA protests of this show, another Fremantle show that doesn't acknowledge the work of writers in the reality competition genre.

If George Michael can put himself together (and I haven't heard about a new "ride in the car" from him in a while) it would be a great place to reintroduce him to a US audience. And when he's on he's one of the best, as per this very famous clip for Father Figure.

Fox Renews American Dad, No Word on Scheduling

Lately, American Dad has looked like the bastard stepchild of Fox Sunday night. Airing at 7:30 eastern has not been a good thing for the show, their lead in is ... wait, I gotta look ... a Simpsons rerun. Plus, at 7:30 some people are still doing dinner related things and that cuts audience also.

And, let's face it, a Seth MacFarlane comedy probably shouldn't air before 8 pm, but then what do you do? Fox only programs till 10 so Family Guy and Cleveland taking up the 9 pm hour shuts everything else out.

So I was surprised when I read just now in B&C that the show was renewed for its seventh go-round.

I've always thought Fox should program four hours on Sunday, but mostly so that the local Fox stations don't have to do Sunday night news. Because every local stations Sunday night news is pretty lame, but imagine it at a Fox local station with a news director who wants to stock the show with Chris Wallace clips from Fox News Sunday.

No one wants that.

Because you missed it, probably, last Sunday's full episode when you click this, from Hulu.

Still funny, still more political than the other MacFarlane shows, still worth a half-hour of your time.

Video -- Powerful New Abortion Rights Ad from House's Lisa Edelstein and MoveOn.Org

At this link.

More, from HuffPo, at this link.

Glee Preview Clip -- Tonight, "Think About the Power of Four Biebers!"

Sam (Chord Overstreet), already sporting the hairstyle, is the character that you can thank/blame for bringing the Biebs to McKinley High with his one-man band The Justin Bieber Experience.

Once he does the rest of the guys finally comprehend the power that comes apparently from singing very simple pop songs that don't challenge one's vocal range but have a simple message about the opposite sex.

(See what I did there? I just boiled the whole phenomenon down to one paragraph. That's all it is ... simple songs with simple messages sang earnestly by a nice kid that I'm starting to think might actually be as earnest as his lyrics. Having said that, of course, if you are an adult and you're walking around singing "Baby, baby, baby, oh ..." call the gang at the TV show Intervention and tell 'em to get a move on.)

There's a great Angry Birds (now available even for the PC!!!) joke in the clip. Those birds have reached a level of ubiquity not often seen by a game you play on your phone.

Clip from tonight's episode after the jump.

Video -- Katie Couric and Glee's Chris Colfer

I got nothing else, I just thought there might be someone who wanted to see this clip Katie tweeted.

Watch some behind the scenes stuff from tomorrow's post Super Bowl ep of Glee (I'll just never understand the thinking behind that) with Katie in another clip after the jump.

I can't get more excited about this. No, seriously, I can't get more excited. I can't.

Video -- Idol's Bikini Girl Katrina Darrell Has a Single/Music Video

It's way overproduced, she's way overcostumed and the song is a dance version of Hey Big Spender from Sweet Charity. Having said that, it's ... well it's terrible of course but you didn't expect too much so that's ... okay.

Hey, her 15 minutes seem to be lasting a little longer than expected. That's, uh, something.

The idea to dance-ify this particular song isn't such a bad idea. Darrell should have taken some of that personal appearance coin she's been making (video link) and had someone construct some decent beats for it.

Her vocal is actually not too bad, but then again it's not a challenging song. Watch the clip after the jump.

Simon Cowell Watchers, Here's the Insider Stuff You've Been Wanting to Know

I think I know why Simon Cowell is a constant source of fascination to Americans, or at least THIS American. I think it's because Cowell makes an enormous amount of cash and no one quite understands why.

If you ask people what Cowell does, they'lll tell you he's a judge on a talent competition. Go a little deeper, ask them why he's judging singers. What qualifies him to decide who becomes a pop music star? Does he sing? Write music? Read music even?

Looking in from outside, it seems Simon Cowell is a guy who gets by on saying yes or no to people. But that's not all he does. Richard Rushfield has a new book, American Idol: The Untold Story (goes on sale tomorrow at your local bookseller or Amazon, see below) about the show and the people behind it, which you can pick up by clicking directly below.

Newsweek has an excerpt from the book posted and after the jump, read a little taste of that, or click over to Newsweek now and read the whole thing. It's a look into the relationships that created the show, the people who were left back when the show took off and friction caused when money is involved.

Shocking News About Fox's Bones -- Still No XXX Parody

C'mon porn industry, the thing just writes itself after you title it Boners.

Forensic anthropoligical sexologist Virtuous Brendon works at the Madisonian Institute where she identifies bodies based on the size, shape and alignment of those bodies' rigor mortis-caused boners.

She teams up with an FBI agent names Stall (not Booth but Stall) and they solve sexy crimes along with the Madisonian staff ... chock full of hot chicks, horny interns and ... Hodgins. It's always fun to have a conspiracy theorist around, imagine his take on Brendon's vaunted penile vascularity theories.

I haven't quite figured out the science part of it. I would imagine if it got to the production stage the company would just hire a technical consultant, someone who could tie together all the loose ends re: rigor mortis, penises ...

I haven't seen any other XXX parodies of TV shows (they're not as big a deal in the gay porn biz) but I'm sure there's not a high threshold for scientific accuracy.

Still, I'm sure that this XXX parody (call me, Vivid Pictures) would give a whole new meaning to the Gormogon storyline, and would probably limit his diet to one specific bodypart.

Hey, maybe this SHOULD be a gay XXX parody.

Porn Parody 3Dots -- There are a lot of them, but it seems most of the XXX parodies come from a company called New Sensations and you can click this to see their site (certainly not suitable for work) ... At YouTube you can see some trailers from the company, click this or this for that ... The most noted actress in this sub-genre might be Lisa Ann, star of Naylin' Palin, NSFW website at this link, and she might also be the one woman out there who could pull off the role of Virtue Brendon.

Bones 3Dots -- One of the joys of finding a show later in its run is having lots of episodes available to watch. Between my local Fox station, WGN and TNT I've managed to consume about a third of the series since about Thanksgiving ... As difficult as it is to keep timelines straight (you might not wanna try this with Lost, for example (which is also the reason you don't see stations clammoring for that show in syndication) it's much easier with a procedural, albeit a procedural with prominent character arcs (Zach, for example) ... The one thing about watching Bones on TNT that really pisses me off it that TNT doesn't have the HD version of the show, they just widen out the 4:3 ratio print. That sucks. You shouldn't be able to call yourself an HD channel if you cheap out like this.

The One Thing You Need to Watch Tonight -- I cordially invite you to skip the People's Choice Awards (Latifah, what the hell are you doing involved in this, did they give you a piece of the action?) and enjoy the fine comedies on ABC, or at least the two of them that air after 9 pm, since I don't consider the others fine at all. If I was forced at gunpoint to whittle it down to one show I'll pick Cougar Town every time, which I find much more fun that the also quite good Modern Family. I realize this places me in the minority but I'm used to being there so it's okay.

Fox X Factor News -- "Hmm. Cheryl Cole. And You Are ..."

The very attractive woman in the photo above (from her L'Oreal photo shoot) is Cheryl Cole. No, you aren't expected to know who she is.

Yet.

She's allegedly a pop star in Britain. I only know of her because ...

a) She's a judge on X Factor in the UK on ITV

b) She's been through a messy divorce with an athlete that it seems to me all parties are milking for all the PR value they can

And now it seems we'll all know her because Cowell is bringing her over to judge the US version of the show coming in 2011 to Fox.

One question for you to ponder this morning. If Cole actually knew what this alleged "x factor" was, wouldn't she have found a way to get it and have broken the US pop music market already?

Aren't there plenty of Americans that have tenuous pop music careers that could do this job? Leann Rimes comes to mind, so does Vanessa Carlton. And when was the last time you heard Avril Lavigne on the radio?

Watch the first trailer for the series (all 10 seconds of it) in a clip that I've posted past the jump. Or don't. If it motivates you, there's no Cowell in the promo and some fun CGI work on the Brooklyn Bridge.

Video/Pics -- First Look: Gwyneth Paltrow Next Week on Glee

I give you next week's preview even before I get to watch this week's show? I'm such a mensch.

Pics are past the jump. Click over for them.

Like The Simpsons? Like Doctor Who? Then You'll Like This

See this? It's cool, right? Wanna see more? Click this! Or this!

All 11 doctors above are from Andy Davies at Deviantart (this link). Let's thank Rob Buckley for posting about this today by visiting his blog and while you're there get involved in the Sitting Tennants contest. I played this week, see my entry by clicking here.

The rest of the Simpsonized Doctors and cast are hand drawn by Dean Fraser, and many of your fave villians and companions are represented, though I don't immediately see a Rose Tyler.

Dean, I'm formally requesting a Rose Tyler and a Martha Jones. And a Sarah Jane, you know, for the kids.

You are a talented guy.

Glee's Dianna Agron Responds to PTC/GQ Photo Controversy

We've talked about Dianna's Tumblr blog before, she mostly posts photographs of her own and some lovely prose and occasionally a poem. This is very different for her and it seems a somewhat difficult task to discuss one of the many situations that arise when an actor works on a series and is asked to do promotion for the show.

(I found the blog through Dianna's Twitter acct., which you can follow by clicking here.)

I don't think she would mind that I posted the entire text of her post here, so I have and it's after the jump.

I'm sure you know how I feel about this. Yes, they play teens on TV but these people are hardly underage, Cory Monteith is almost 30, in fact.

Glee will always be a show in the crosshairs of the conservative watchdog groups. It illustrates a worldview that is in direct opposition to theirs. That it's so popular with kids makes it even more dangerous to these people. They'll make every attempt to knock the show down. I encourage them to keep trying, I think it does wonders for the ratings.

Case in point ... I wouldn't have even known that the Dianna and castmates Monteith and Lea Michele were on the cover of GQ without the Parents Television Council telling me they were.

Dianna's comments after the jump. But please, after that click over to her Tumblr site and enjoy her other stuff, too. She has a very nice sensibility to her prose and her photos are lovely.

Oh, one more thing ... I guess it takes the ridonkulous folk at the PTC to get me interested in blogging again. Who's next? Sarah Palin? Ben Silverman? Someone on my "list?"

And, one more other thing ... do you think the PTC ever thinks about the the performers caught in the middle of these controversies and what they then have to deal with in their personal lives once they start with the torches and pitchforks? Apparently Dianna Agron could have done without their stomping around. In that aspect the PTC becomes a bit like the Westboro Baptist Church protesters.

I'm just sayin'.

Glee -- Watch Last Night's Britney Numbers Here Right Now (and that one from Paramore)

As I post this image from the Fox press site (by Miranda Penn Turin) I wonder how fast someone will photoshop their friends and themselves into it. Send them to me when you do, okay?

All the Britney numbers from last night's show, right here, just for you because I love you all.

Except you, yeah you with the ... I don't even know what that is on your ... oh, that's so wrong, turn off your damn webcam.

(Didn't know I could see you there, did you.)

They're all after the jump via Hulu. Though some of the clip windows use the same thumbnail (the default one) you can be assured all the clips are different.

Glee -- Heather Morris Trending at Twitter

Duh.

I'm all kinds of on the nose these days. I should be ready for a humbling just about ... now.

One more pic I haven't used yet and I'm out.

Her legs look a million miles long in this pic. Damn.

I expect a lot of jumping on the Heather bandwagon by tomorrow. Deserved, yes.

Remember where you heard it first. Tomorrow, after they post the show at Hulu I'll try and put together the musical clips in a post.

UPDATE: Wanna see one of the Britney cameos sprinkled throughout? This is my favorite one. This link.

Preview Video -- Glee's Brittany/Britney Episode

Two clips for you to consume after the jumperoo.

I know, I'm all about Heather Morris lately. Her body's amazing, huh? It's a shame that the California Legislature passed a bill preventing me from dancing, even alone in my room (they got webcams in there, spies under the bed, the whole shebang), it keeps you in amazing shape.

Preview the Hour of Television That Makes Glee's Heather Morris a Star

Right? RIGHT? RIGHT?

Of course I'm right.

One more pic, just 'cuz. 

Gotta wait til Tuesday for the Britney episode, is it killing you?

 

American Idol -- It's JLo and It's Official

The press release below:

GLOBAL SUPERSTAR JENNIFER LOPEZ JOINS FOX FAMILY, 

LAUNCHING FIRST-LOOK DEAL WITH FOX FILMS

AND JOINING FOX BROADCASTING’S “AMERICAN IDOL” AS NEW JUDGE

Golden Globe-nominated actress, platinum-selling recording artist, movie producer and entrepreneur Jennifer Lopez has entered a new deal with both Twentieth Century Fox Films and Fox Broadcasting Company, creating a “first-look” film agreement for her company Nuyorican Productions, and joining AMERICAN IDOL as a judge during its milestone 10^th season, which begins January 2011 on FOX.

“Jennifer is a true entertainment powerhouse who has made a tremendous impact on pop culture,” said Jim Gianopulos and Tom Rothman, Chairmen and CEOs, Fox Filmed Entertainment. “Whether as an actress, singer, songwriter or producer, she is a fantastic creative talent, and we’re thrilled to be in business with her.”

“We’re incredibly excited to have Jennifer join the Fox family,” said Peter Rice, Chairman of Entertainment for Fox Networks Group. “From the worlds of dance and music to television, films and fashion, she is a global superstar with iconic and captivating style, along with impressive insight on how to reach and move audiences worldwide.”

“As an artist and producer, I am excited to call Fox my home, and I am looking forward to working with Tom, Jim, Peter and the entire Fox team to create and produce the kinds of film and television projects that reflect my passion for entertaining audiences and telling great stories,” said Lopez.

ABOUT JENNIFER LOPEZ

Actress, singer, producer and entrepreneur Jennifer Lopez has sold over 55 million records worldwide and starred in multiple box office No. 1s, including “Monster-In-Law” and “The Wedding Planner.” In 2001, “The Wedding Planner” was the nation’s top-grossing film, while her album, “J.Lo,” was No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart. The two simultaneous No. 1 honors made Lopez the first woman in history to have a No. 1 movie and album in the same week. Lopez recently starred in CBS Films’ New York-set romantic comedy “The Backup Plan.” Prior to taking time off to have children, she had last been seen in the feature films “El Cantante,” a drama about the life of salsa legend Hector Lavoe; and “Bordertown” opposite Antonio Banderas – both of which she produced. In December 2010, Lopez will release her latest album, “Love?,” on Island/Def Jam Records. Along with partner Simon Fields, Lopez’s production company, Nuyorican, is in development on several film and TV projects, including the romantic comedy “Taming Ben Taylor,” in which she will star as a top-notch real estate agent who wins over a rugged vintner; “Nannyland” at ABC ; “Sweet Little 15” for Fox Searchlight, which tells of a young Mexican girl’s coming-of-age story as she plans her Quinceañera; and the teen television comedy and book series, “Amigas Sweet 15 Club,” which will follow five teens in Miami who run a Quinceañera (Sweet 15) business. Nuyorican is also working on notable film projects, including “The Governess” with CBS Films and a remake of “Overboard” with Sony. Lopez made her feature debut in the highly acclaimed “Mi Familia,” which garnered her an Independent Spirit Award nomination for her role as the young mother “Maria Sanchez.” Lopez earned widespread acclaim for her work in the title role of “Selena,” which brought her a Golden Globe Award nomination. In 2002, Lopez was awarded ShoWest Female Star of the Year, and in 2006, Lopez received the Women in Film: Crystal Award. Additionally, the National Council of La Raza, the largest Latino advocacy group in the nation, named her Entertainer of the Year at the American Latino Media Arts (ALMA) Awards. Her other film credits include Lasse Hallström’s “An Unfinished Life” with Robert Redford and Morgan Freeman; Oliver Stone’s “U-Turn”; “Maid In Manhattan,” co-starring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, Bob Hoskins and Natasha Richardson; “Money Train” with Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes; Francis Ford Coppola’s “Jack” with Robin Williams; “Blood and Wine” opposite Jack Nicholson; Luis Mandoki’s “Angel Eyes”; “The Cell”; Steven Soderbergh’s “Out of Sight” with George Clooney; Michael Apted’s “Enough”; and “Anaconda” with Jon Voight, Eric Stoltz and Ice Cube. Via Nuyorican, Lopez made her foray into the role as television producer with her dance-reality show for MTV entitled “Dance Life” as well as the UPN drama “ South Beach .” Lopez also heads a best-selling line of fragrances and was awarded with the ACE Fashion Icon of the Year award in 2006 for her contribution to accessories and the fashion industry. Lopez continues to demonstrate a commitment to making a difference through her various philanthropic endeavors. Her passion for making this world better is highlighted through her work with children via The Maribel Foundation, a not-for-profit she started with her sister, Lynda. The Maribel Foundation’s mission is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of women and children and raising the level of medical care available to them. The foundation is currently working with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles on a telemedicine program that will help underserved communities around the world to be treated by top doctors.

In Vanity Fair, Photos of Glee's Dianna Agron, At Tumblr Photos BY Glee's Dianna Agron

Very nice set of pics of Glee's Quinn at this link at VF (I was there for my previous Boardwalk Empire post).

But more important is Dianna Agron's Tumblr blog where she posts her images. I like them, I like her eye, I like that her pics tell you something about her and her interests.

Oh, and she takes pics of her co-stars. Are you in now? I thought so.

I'm stealing this one image and the text from her because I figure that I'm doing a good deed by posting it and she won't mind too much. Dianna, if you do just gimme a shout on Twitter (it's how I found your blog) and I'll take it down.

Her Twitter link here. That image after the jump

Glee Video -- This Season, a Very Formidable Female Nemesis for Sue

Uh oh, there's a new woman at McKinley High and she takes no shit from anyone. Not even Sue Sylvester.

And ... she's the new football coach. Yeah, football coach. And she is not Goldie Hawn in that Wildcats movie. Not at all.

Meet her on video, it's after the jump. But first ...

They really chose well, huh? They could be brother and sister. Or even more related to each other than that.

Gleeks, Especially Gay Gleeks, Best Photo Ever Right Here (via Rolling Stone)

Is there an Emmy for outstanding performance by an actor in a still photographic? Chris Colfer would totally win that award.

Rolling Stone photograph by Robert Tractenberg. More images from his Fall TV feature at this link. The header on the slideshow says, "Fall TV Special: Meet the season's best characters and most memorable scene-stealers."

Starts at this link with Chelsea Handler. Yeah, I know, she's not on my list of best anything. She's spewing fire from her sizeable mouth, just like Godzilla!

Why is that lunatic Minesota Congresswoman Michelle Bachman part of the group? She is a character, I'll give you that. She's also a bigot and a batshit insane.

Better photo? Handler and Bachman stuck in an elevator together with a bottle of vodka and a bible.

Fox and Foxx (the network and Jamie) Bring Affion Crockett Sketch Series to Primetime

What was the last sketch comedy show that made it to the primetime schedule? I seriously have no idea. I can't remember. I can't think of one since In Living Color.

Jamie Foxx (the Oscar winner) was on that show. He's executive producing this one, which Fox (the network) says today it's bringing to their schedule sometime during the upcoming TV season.

Foxx brings along with him a writer/producer/actor named Affion Crockett. From looking at the available YouTube selections it's apparent that his stock in trade is rap parody videos like this one where he spoofs Jay-Z and John Mayer and the whole LeBron goes to Miami thing.

I'm all for more sketch shows in primetime, and this is the way to do it. It's kind of a UK construction, find a comic with a strong viewpoint, let them control the writing process and hire the supporting cast.

I hope Fox can keep their hands off enough so that Foxx can clear the way for Crockett to make it work. Gotta give the guy with the strong viewpoint a chance to show it or it won't work. I figure that's where the Oscar winner with the clout and the history with the network comes in, to prevent the suits from watering down the show.

Press release is after the jump. Crockett's YouTube channel at this link.

Glee Season 2 Photo Album: Get Slushied!

Slushied? No. No, no no. Oh, no. You click that link at your own peril.

Anyhow, I've been told that no Slushies (the drinks that come out of machines at convenience stores) were harmed in the making of the above photographic collage.

More of Glee's season two photo gallery after the jumperoo. Photos by Miranda Penn Turin/FOX.

Includes Chord Overstreet, the guy that purportedly will play Kurt's boyfriend this season.

Gleeks! Check Out This Twitpic From Britney and Brittany!

I'm now so much more excited about seeing Brit and Brit on Glee.

Man, Heather Morris is gonna blow up this season.

Idol Winner Debut Album November 16

Fast, who was the American Idol winner? Yup, I thought you might have forgotten.

That person's album will drop on November 16th. Still can't remember their name, huh? Don't worry, you weren't gonna buy it anyway.

C'mon, sitting here waiting for you to remember that name of this last Idol champion is like watching paint dry.

That was a clue.

November 16th. Just show up at a retailer or click your iTunes icon that day and you'll figure it out.

Or just click here.

On Idol, J.Lo or Shania? Or Does It Matter?

Seriously, does it? I don't think so. Both women were pop powerhouses. Both aren't very active musically lately. Both are very pretty.

I don't think either of them makes or breaks the show.

Is there anyone out there that fans of the show would like to see sitting at the judge's table?

Here's an idea ... how 'bout a former contestant? It's as good a choice as either Lopez or Twain, and less costly. Find someone the kids liked a lot and who knows, the weekly appearances might boost a music career that for some reason didn't hit.

Leave suggestions below in the comments if you have a former Idol wannabe you think would be right for the judge's dais.

Okay, before you rank on me for this consider that the show isn't gonna live past another two years anyway, not when you'll have X-Factor's premiere in 2011. No one's gonna keep watching a music competition show without Simon Cowell when there's a perfectly good music competition show WITH Simon Cowell to watch.

Not that I'm a big fan of his. I'm not. But apparently a lot of you are. Will you be after looking at the Bullseye page in this week's Entertainment Weekly (no link, you have to buy the issue, or at least sneak a peek at the store)? Can you be a fan of a man with such pendulous breasts? I still say they're implants. His legs are so tiny, so strangely out of size with the rest of him, I can't imagine he's ever been inside a gym. I could be horribly wrong, however.

All the latest Idol stuff for you at AINow.org and EW's Idol section.

Idol -- J.Lo Out! Five Completely Untrue Possible Reasons Why

1. Fox said no to the diva fan.

2. "No, Jennifer, Marc can't be a contestant on the show. No, that can't be part of your performance rider."

3. They didn't care about the rocks that she's got ...

4. Lythgoe was jealous of her hair.

5. Even with just three judges there's only so much room at that table.

Actual facts from Ausiello at Entertainment Weekly at this link.

Video -- Glee's Chris Colfer, Emmy Nominee, Gets Around!

You might even say that Chris is a little bit of a celebration slut.

That's right, I said it!

I mean, he talks to The Hollywood Reporter about his Emmy nomination (LINK) and then ... he turns around and does the same with the Los Angeles Times (LINK).

And ... E! News' Kristin Dos Santos (LINK).

And TV Guide, but at least this time it's part of a group thing ... wait, a group thing? Like I said, SLUT! See that one at this link.

More, including a Kurt Hummel lookbook, after the jump.

Overnight American Idol Developments: Now It's Kara Out and Steven Tyler In?

Wow, is this stuff coming fast and furious from 19 and Fox or what? Randy (above, with former workmates and the Seacrest) seems to have won some sort of competition.

TMZ is reporting that Kara DioGuardi is out at American Idol following on the heels of Ellen Degeneres' announcement that she was leaving yesterday.

And they're reporting that Steven Tyler of Aerosmith (though they have been having unit cohesion problems) will fill that chair, leaving Randy "Yeah Yeah Yeah" Jackson as the only original Idol judge left standing.

Yesterday's news at this link (Ellen out) and this link (J.Lo in).

They missed an outstanding opportunity here, they could have had some sort of competition between all these people and the ones previously mentioned, like Harry Connick Jr. and Bret Michaels, and shot that for a show that ran in the Fall before Idol starts.

Damn, I'd love to see a bunch of them locked in a house and fed nutritious slop and encouraged to work out and make out with each other, but I think CBS would make a copyright claim.

I'm sure Mike Darnell (Fox's alternative and unscripted guru) could have come up with a twist that would have made this doable. I could have been the best TV show EVER!

Just last week Tyler gave an interview to Nekesa Mumbi Moody at AP where he said:

"The band has never been better, I'm singing better," said an energetic Tyler. "It's been beautiful and I realized when I was taking care of my problems that the band is all I really care about."

When asked if he could see him self doing this 10 or 15 years from now, he said, "I'll be doing this 20 years from now. I'll be doing this as long as sound comes out of my mouth."

Okay, but maybe not for big swaths of time when he'll be traipsing around the country with Ryan killing the dreams of thousands of oblivious tone deaf kids and then in Hollywood doing the same with kids that sing a little better.

One thing they could do to improve the show that they haven't thought of yet? Make sure the better singers make it to the top 10. Stop looking for inspirational stories and find those unique musicians, then find their story.

Because everybody has a story, you just have to find it.

Reported: J.Lo Next American Idol Judge

Deadline Hollywood is reporting that it'll be Jennifer Lopez, former Sony recording artist (dropped recently) and star of recently unpopular movies like The Back-Up Plan will be the new American Idol judge.

Don't worry, she's still a fashion mogul and certainly not hurting for cash. She's just not flavor of the month anymore.

(And yes, in her spare time she also tours in a live-action Wayland Flowers tribute show as Madame.)

The web conventional wisdom for the last couple hours has been that the Ellen announcement cleared the way for a new judge to be named during the upcoming Fox Television Critics Assn. presentation.

Read the breaking news from Nikki Finke and Nellie Andreeva at Deadline Hollywood at this link.

Breaking News: Ellen Leaving Idol Effective Immediately

And the changes continue.

I would link to the Variety article that broke this story but alas the paywall prevents me from doing so.

All right, I'll link to it, but if you've looked at one other Variety story today and you don't subscribe you're SOL. 

Nothing at the Fox press site yet nor at 19 Entertainment.

ABC News has an AP story posted at this link but it's all of one sentence.

The Variety story basically says that Ellen was the one to pull the trigger, claiming it happen "months ago," and that she didn't like critiquing singers and "hurting their feelings."

Whatev, I didn't think it was a good fit from the get go.

Previously ... Elton as judge? How about he explain the Limbaugh wedding thing first.

More as it becomes available. And much more on this right now from AINow.org at this link.

UPDATE: The complete text of Fox's press release after the jump.

Your Guide to Glenn Beck's Goldline Problem, Handy Infographic (that even you home-schooled types can understand)

I thought there might be a problem with having a TV show where you scream and cry about the end of civilization and then tell people to protect themselves by buying gold from "your trusted source" that may or may not be sending you down the road to financial ruin.

I dunno, just a hunch.

Then again, most fans of Beck don't even know what's happening to them. They see an earnest guy looking out for them. Then again, not as many people as a few months ago are seeing him at all, ratings are dropping on his Fox Noise show precipitously.

If you've heard about this Goldline controversy but you didn't really know what it was all about and you want to, click over the jump for a great graphic that explains it all from Ritholtz.com's The Big Picture, and it's also posted with additional information at this link.

Video -- Fringe at the Con: Anna, Josh, John, Lance, Blair, Jasika, Producers, (and JJ Abrams as the Beaver)

First of all, all the pics here are from Fox's Kristian Dowling. Thanks.

The show returns on September 23, which isn't that far away now, but there are scads of burning questions from fans about the second season finale, the alternates (esp. the Walternate) and ... that Peter/Olivia kiss that rocked us up one side and down another.

Now, you can tell the image at the top of the post is from this year's Con and not last (or the year before) because of Anna Torv's bangs. I like the altOlivia hair, much better than that hyper-blonde that she was sporting last season (though now I understand why, what with altOlivia having a touch of the ginger.

The panel itself? All I've got is these clips from YouTube's iluvivana (and I hope that doesn't mean Ivana Trump, got nothing against the woman but she has fans? Really?) which are fine, and thank you iluvivana, but they're from the giant projection screens and not close up, the sound is a bit iffy and the camera a bit shaky. The moderator is Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker, who's a fan of the show.

Still, it's all I got so ...

Part one  Part two  Part three Part four Part five

Fox had cameras rolling around the Con as well, and this clip (LINK) might be better for you.

And, if you haven't seen it, Hulu has a great clip where the cast and creators talk about the season finale and look forward to the coming season at this link.

Also coming next season, even more opportunities for John Noble to show the Emmy nominating committee that they keep screwing up by not acknowledging his performance here. Maybe next year as we get to know Sec'y of Defense Walternate there will be more will to place this man on the ballot.

If they know what they're doing. 

More on Fringe's day at Comic-Con from Buddy TV at this link.

Finally, JJ Abrams wasn't on THIS panel, but he did spend some dais time with his pal Joss ... uh, Joss ... oh yeah, Whedon, and you can read about that at UGO.com at this link. Not much Fringe-y stuff but it wouldn't be a con without the defacto gods of scifi TV/moviedom.

If Elton John DOES Get This American Idol Judges Seat ...

... I say none of us watch until he explains what the fuck he was doing singing at Rush Limbaugh's wedding.

He still hasn't talked about it. At all. And I'm sure someone other than me is asking, he's just not talking.

Has he heard the things that Druggy Limbaugh has said about people with HIV? About the Ryan White Care Act?

Has Jeanne White-Ginder, Ryan's mom (image left), made any public comment about this?

How about Lady Gaga?

Does Elton get a free pass.

This to me all smacks of the Whoopi Goldberg/Mel Gibson thing, that there is a class of people out there for whom ethics just don't matter. Like they're better than us and live by a different set of rules, which of course they do ... until their lives and ours intersect in that area that's known as commerce.

I just can't believe that he still hasn't stood up in front of his adopted America (he lives in Atlanta with David Furnish a lot of the time) and explained why he would take money to perform from such a pariah as Limbaugh.

Anyone interested in threatening a boycott? I want answers. It seems like the only way to get answers from people with money is to find a way to withhold said money.

And in Just Minutes Now on The Good Guys ...

... Dan Stark goes undercover ... as a guido!

Where's Snooki when you need her, huh?

I don't know what the numbers are on this show and I really haven't taken the time to gauge the buzz (what with the being sick and it being Summer and ... but I digress) but the thing you need to know if you're not watching is that the Bradley Whitford enjoyment level is just off the charts.

Steady and focused are Whitford's usual TV character's traits, but this show gives him carte blanche (but ya are, Blanche, ya are!) to just go wild and I don't think I've seen an actor have more fun on camera this year.

Colin Hanks is solid (watch him and co-star Jenny Wade talk about their characters' relationship at this link) and has the sometimes thankless straight man job here but Whitford is all snarl and body language and comic misogyny and a throwback to the 80s when of course Stark was a hero Dallas cop who saved the governor's son ... from something ... somewhere ... and I'm sure we'll find out what it was and what happened after, what really happened that shot his star clear out of the sky and into the bowels of the Dallas PD.

I don't have a preview of tonight's episode for you (no clip, bad bad Fox YouTube admin) but it's an hour of your Monday, starting at 9 eastern, and it's good stuff. Plus, if you've ever wanted to watch creator Matt Nix's other show but you are averse to stick figure women (I'm talking to you, Gabrielle Anwar from Burn Notice) this show will work out just great for you.

Video/Pics -- Who Looks Great With Glee's Heather Morris on Their Arm? EVERYONE!!!

No, Heather is not an accessory for your next circuit party, but she'd certainly be a great one if you could get her. You could dance for hours with the former Beyonce backup dancer who struck gold this year on Fox's Glee and who's star will shine even brighter (than those be-you-tee-ful blues) this season as we get more Brittany per exec prod Ryan Murphy.

Here, Heather and Naya Rivera talk about Brittany's and Santana's chemistry from their panel (LINK).

Fan clip from the autograph sessions at this link. More after the jump.

(Pics from Kristian Dowling and Frank Micelotta/FOX.)

Video -- My Gleeks, Here's Amber Riley Last Night at the All-Star Game

So, I'm not really sure why she sang Beautiful as well, but she did, and I'm sure the Gleeks don't mind but it was kinda like singing a Sarah McLachlan song before a tractor pull.

Click here to see her do both songs.

Note: Amber wore an American League jersey. National League won the game 3-1.

Coincidence?

Upcoming, one of those opera singing wannabees from a previous season of The Bachelor singing at your kid's T-ball game.

And, she's singing Baby Got Back.