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TV Squad
TV Squad
- MTV Video Music Awards' It-Girl: How Does Chelsea Handler Stack Up?
Filed under: Features  Between performances by chart-topping pop artists and obligatory reaction shots of famous people in the audience, MTV's Video Music Awards might not seem like it's taking any risks when it airs live on Sept. 12 (9PM ET).
The music won't be making a radical shift: Billboard staples like Kanye West, Eminem and Justin Bieber are all slated to rap, sweat and make teenage girls swoon. The location won't be exceptional, either: The show traditionally opts for venues in either New York or Los Angeles, with this year landing again back in the City of Angels. And the presenters, per the usual, will include a range of well-known stars, such as Ne-Yo and Ashley Greene, alongside some promo-savvy up-and-comers, like Ke$ia and Nicki Minaj.
Instead, the chance for something fresh in this year's awards rests on the shoulders of a blond woman named Chelsea Handler, whom MTV announced last week will host the proceedings.
By all accounts, including MTV's, Handler was an unusual choice to take the reins of the network's 27th annual ode to all things young and corporate-sanctioned music. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- What to Watch: TV Picks for September 6-12
Filed under: TV Previews  MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 6
'Hoarders' (9PM, A&E) season 3 premiere
Prepare yourself now: A&E celebrates Labor Day with an all-day (beginning at 8AM) marathon of 'Hoarders' episodes, and if you actually sit through a whole day of shows, you're probably going to feel like purging your house of everything but your bed and clothes by the end of the day. And if that doesn't inspire you to weed out your own belongings, the season premiere just might, as we meet Adella, whose decades of hoarding is so extreme that she lost a marriage and alienated her daughter. But the really sad case is that of Teri, whose husband is threatening divorce and whose two children are suffering from severe asthma because of the filth they live in. In fact, when Dr. Zasio gets a peek inside Teri's house, which she calls the worst she's ever seen, she immediately decides that she has to call Child Protective Services.
'Dirty Jobs' Marathon - What better reminder on Labor Day that maybe your own job isn't so bad, than this 18-episode marathon with Mike Rowe (9AM, Discovery)
'The Office' Marathon - A Labor Day countdown of 20 fan fave episodes includes gems like 'Diversity Day,' 'Casino Night,' 'Office Olympics' and 'Goodbye, Toby' (10AM, TBS)
'Little People, Big World' - Amy and Matt get serious about their health after he collapses during a vertigo attack (8PM, TLC) season 6 premiere
'MAD' - If Alfred E. Neuman would put it in the mag, it's likely to end up on TV in this animated sketch comedy series based on the classic print magazine (8:30M, Cartoon Network) series premiere
'Secret Life of the American Teenager' - Oh boy, George ... Anne and Amy think big daddy is up to his cheating ways again (8PM, ABC Family) season 3 summer finale
'Giuliani's 9/11' - Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, in fresh interviews, recalls his experiences on Sept. 11, including the split decisions he had to make, and how emotional he became once he finally had a chance to stop and think about the day's attacks (9PM, NGC)
'Real Housewives of New Jersey' Reunion, Part 2 - It's tough to imagine how this will top last week's wild Part 1, though the network's hinting that one of the Housewives quits ... frankly, at this point, Caroline's the only one who isn't either totally nuts (Danielle, Teresa) or totally boring (Jacqueline), so let the quitting begin (9PM, Bravo)
'VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time' - The five-night (Monday-Friday, 10PM) countdown of the best musicians of all time kicks off with numbers 100-80 (10PM, VH1)
'Witness: DC' - News coverage, home videos and fire, police and rescue footage make up this special, which reconstructs the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon (10PM, NGC)
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- Why Robert Schimmel Was Never the Wacky Sitcom Neighbor
Filed under: Features, TV News  Robert Schimmel had a few chances at TV. The 60 year-old comic, who died this weekend from injuries he received in a car accident Thursday, wrote for 'In Living Color' early in his career. He appeared frequently on Conan and the Howard Stern Show, which made him a favorite among his fellow comics, who appreciated his honesty about everything from his sex life to his health. And there was a laundry list of maladies there that ranged from a heart attack to lymphoma.
That kind of honesty, and Schimmel's blunt approach to it, is hard to translate into sitcom success. Schimmel had sitcom pilots, but they never made it to television. He came closest in 2000, when Fox ordered a run of 'Schimmel,' which would have opened with Schimmel getting an anal exam at the proctologist's office. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- What's On Tonight: 'Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon,' 'Rubicon,' 'Jerseylicious,' 'All American Handyman'
Filed under: TV Previews  Here's tonight's lineup of new shows and events (all times Eastern). Check your local TV listings for additional information.
* = Series/Season Premiere
** = Series/Season Finale
Tonight marks the 45th annual 'Jerry Lewis Telethon for Muscular Dystrophy' (starting at 9 p.m. -- check your local listings). Last year the broadcast broke a record with $60 million dollars in pledges and contributions. If Lindsay Lohan appears and the 84-year-old Jerry can smack her in the mouth, like he said late last week, perhaps they'll break a new donation and ratings record.
7:00 to 8:00
CBS: '60 Minutes'
8:00 to 9:00
CBS: 'Big Brother'
DIY: 'DIY Dominator'
HGTV: 'Holmes: Lien on Me'
Style: 'Jerseylicious'*
The rest of the schedule after the jump.
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- TV Comeback Hopefuls Include Matt LeBlanc, Andie MacDowell and More
Filed under: Features, Fall TV  Looking over the cast lists of TV shows airing this coming season, you'll find a lot of familiar names that have been lying low of late.
Some are returning just before becoming a "whatever happened to ..."; others seem to be virtually emerging from witness protection. And we're not talking 'I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here,' either. These comeback stories are lined up with some of the hottest projects headed our way.
Matt LeBlanc
The 'Friends' spinoff 'Joey' was primetime's highest profile flop of the '00s (OK, maybe it was 'The XFL'). Now we find LeBlanc thousands of miles away from Hollywood, but that might be a very good thing. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- What's On Tonight: 'America's Most Wanted,' 'The Dish,' 'Antionio Treatment'
Filed under: TV Previews  Here's tonight's lineup of new shows and events (all times Eastern). Check your local TV listings for additional information.
* = Series/Season Premiere
** = Series/Season Finale
I haven't suggested catching up on your DVR shows in awhile. However, time to bring that idea back for this evening.
8:00 to 9:00
ABC: 'Saturday Night College Football'* -- LSU vs. North Carolina
Style: 'How Do I Look?'
TLC: 'Dateline: Real Life Mysteries'
9:00 to 10:00
FOX: 'America's Most Wanted'
CNBC: 'The Suze Orman Show'
Discovery: 'Soul Survivor'
HGTV: 'Antonio Treatment' -- 9:30 start
NatGeo: 'America's Wild Spaces'
Style: 'Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?'
TLC: 'Dateline: Real Life Mysteries'
We: 'The Cupcake Girls'
10:00 to 11:00
CNBC: 'Til Debt Do Us Part' -- Two episodes
Discovery: 'Surviving Death'
FOX News: 'Geraldo: Celebrating 40 Years'
MSNBC: 'Lockup Special Investigation'
Style: 'The Dish'
TLC: 'Dateline: Real Life Mysteries'
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- Soap Round-Up: Nancy Dies on 'As the World Turns' ... and More
Filed under: Recaps  Welcome to the Soap Round-Up, our weekly recap of all the soap action this past week. Each week, we sum up all the best stories from each and every soap, from 'All My Children' to 'The Young and the Restless.'
If you don't want to know what aired already, consider this a SPOILER ALERT. ... Oh, one last thing, please comment and join the conversation.
For instance, did you watch 'As the World Turns' and how they handled Nancy Hughes' death? It was incredibly emotional, especially the classic clips from the 1950's and beyond. Helen Wagner was truly a soap legend. What did you think of how her death was portrayed on the soap? Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- Happy Birthday, 'Xena'! Our Favorite 15 Episodes
Filed under: Features 
Fifteen years ago, the world was introduced to a television treasure: 'Xena: Warrior Princess.' Yes, 'Xena' is a treasure, because despite what some people may think, despite its over-the-top cheesecake factor and despite its blatant disregard for history, it was a gem of a TV show. Plus, it introduced us to Lucy Lawless and Renee O'Connor.
'Xena' was a trailblazer. 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer,' 'Alias' and even newer shows such as 'Covert Affairs' and the new 'Nikita' remake owe a certain something to the beloved Warrior Princess. The series helped reshape the leading lady on TV for good, and for that reason alone, we as an audience should be eternally grateful. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- Kara DioGuardi Officially Out on 'American Idol'
Filed under: TV News  Kara DioGuardi is departing 'American Idol.'
After months of speculation of whether or not the 'Idol' judge would return for a third season, Fox issued press release late Friday stating DioGuardi is leaving.
"I feel like now is the best time to leave 'Idol,''' said DioGuardi in the release. "I am very proud to have been associated with 'American Idol -- it has truly been an amazing experience.''
DioGuardi's work on 'Idol' was praised by Fox executives and 'Idol' producers alike in the release.
"Kara was a great addition to our 'Idol' family," said Mike Darnell, President of Alternative Entertainment, Fox Broadcasting Company, in the release. "I've been fortunate to get to know her well, and have always been amazed by her eye for talent and her commitment to developing and mentoring artists. She will be missed, and we wish her continued success." Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- News Roundup: 'Steven Seagal: Lawman' Returns, 'CSI: NY' Taps 'Melrose Place' Star and More
Filed under: TV News  Steven Seagal is back on the job! According to the Live Feed, A&E will air eight episodes of 'Steven Seagal: Lawman' that were previously shot starting Oct. 6 at 10PM.
In April, the martial arts star was accused of sexual harassment and production was stalled and he was suspended from the force. The charges were dropped in July. There's no word on whether A&E will produce more episodes of the series.
In other TV news ...
o. TV producers McG ('Chuck,' 'Nikita') and Paul Scheuring ('Prison Break') are developing a private investigator series for ABC. The P.I. learned everything he knows from his childhood shows like 'Magnum PI' and 'Simon & Simon'
o. Nielsen is predicting that 40 percent of new TV homes will be Hispanic. According to the data measurement company it's a 3 percent increase compared to last season. [Live Feed]
o. 'Top Gear' season 15 will premiere on BBC America on Sept. 27. Look for Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz to guest. [BBC America] Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- EXCLUSIVE: Ken Jenkins of 'Scrubs' to Play Courteney Cox's Dad on 'Cougar Town'
Filed under: TV News, Celebrity Interviews  Fans of 'Cougar Town' haven't seen much of the family of Courteney Cox's character of Jules Cobb, outside of her son Travis and always-there ex-husband Bobby. But that will change during the show's second season, according to creator Bill Lawrence... and fans of 'Scrubs' will see a familiar face in the role.
"I hired Ken Jenkins this morning to play Courteney's father," Lawrence told me earlier today. "Because I only work with the same 20 actors, Joel, you know that."
Jenkins played crusty hospital administrator Dr. Bob Kelso on 'Scrubs' for nine seasons, the last two of which showed Kelso having to deal with a forced retirement. Lawrence hopes that Jenkins will stick around the ensemble for a while.
"To me what was fun was casting somebody that hopefully will be in the world too and poke his head around. He's such a great actor... the guy's funny as sin." Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- Bizarre Iraqi TV Show: Like Punk'd, But With Fake Car Bombs at Military Checkpoints
Filed under: TV News  Talk about black comedy: There is a television show currently airing in Iraq that pranks celebrities by planting bombs in their cars, then films them via hidden cameras as they are stopped at a security checkpoint and accused of terrorism.
We're not kidding. This show actually exists. They wrote about it in The New York Times. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- Behind the Scenes of Unilever's Retro 'Mad Men' Ads
Filed under: Features 
Maybe this happened to you: You're watching 'Mad Men,' and zipping past the commercials on your DVR. All the sudden, it looks like the show has started up again. Except, this isn't the offices of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, and these well-coiffed gentlemen are not ones that you have seen before. In fact, you're not watching 'Mad Men' at all -- you're watching a Dove ad.
Or maybe it's a Breyers ad. Or Suave, or one of half a dozen Unilever-owned products. Unilever, a multi-national corporation, owns over 400 brands. For this season of 'Mad Men,' they have chosen six to feature in minute-long retro vignettes. These vignettes take place in fictional ad agency, Smith Winter Mitchell, a slightly less-drunk version of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce.
Recently, TV Squad spoke with Stacie Bright, the communications marketing manager for Unilever, about how these vignettes came about, and what we can expect to see during future episodes. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
- Forget 'Frasier:' Five New Ideas for Kelsey Grammer
Filed under: Features  Based on the news story earlier this week that Kelsey Grammer is seeking advice about doing a 'Frasier' redux, a sequel to the hit NBC sitcom which earned the actor four Emmy awards as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy, it seems like there are some other -- perhaps better -- suggestions for what Kelsey should do next if he comes back to television.
Here, then, are five prime time ideas that could bring luster back to Grammer's career after the disappointing 'Back to You' and the truly dismal, 'Hank.'
1. Take a Tip from the 'Modern Family' Model
Instead of looking for a star sitcom, Kelsey needs to become part of an ensemble cast. We know he's a star, but he doesn't have to be the star of whatever he does next. If he can, he should learn from his co-horts on 'Modern Family,' the producers and writers who did 'Frasier' with him, that right now big casts are in. Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
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