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Next week: give thanks for Jon and Kate Plus Eight's finale, and Mythbusters, Deadliest Catch, Dirty Jobs marathons

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:49:06 -0500

Next week is Thanksgiving week, and while I'll update with breaking news for the first part of the week, I'll be taking some time away from the TV, so there will be a double Amazing Race post on Nov. 30. Here's what to watch if you need to get away from family or friends during the holiday week: The Past There was lots of conflict this week, on screen and off: Tabloid TV went afterkeep reading »

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Tie vote leads to Laura being voted out during an episode that was "good shit," as Erik said

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:57:07 -0500

At the end of last night's Survivor Samoa episode, jury member Erik excitedly whispered, "Man, this is good shit." He was thrilled that Galu was getting its comeuppance, but he could have also been talking about the whole episode. There was a lot of great stuff, like a tie vote, Natalie dangling by her legs during the reward challenge, and Russell finding a third hidden immunity idol (though this time with a video clue, atkeep reading »

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Lifetime's Project Runway 6 finds a winner, and it's not viewers

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:09:39 -0500

Seven months after the three finalists presented collections at Fashion Week, Project Runway 6 ended, with the win going to Irina Shabayeva. Although Heidi told her the judges were "disappointed in [her] lack of color," Michael Kors said Irina had "the best sense of showmanship." After she won, Heidi told her that her collection was "sleek, modern, and cohesive, and it told a story. And you knew what kind of woman you were designing for."keep reading »

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Heather: Hell's Kitchen sponsors "not going to completely trust someone they saw on TV"

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:59:09 -0500

It's no surprise that Hell's Kitchen doesn't have a great track record of awarding its prizes to its winners, but its winners have rarely discussed that. In an interview with the New York Post, season two winner Heather West--who worked as a sous chef during season six but was pretty much invisible the entire season--mentions not getting her own restaurant like the show said she'd receive. "Honestly, they're really not going to completely trust someonekeep reading »

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NBC's United Plates of America's prize called "biggest ever": a restaurant chain

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:07:45 -0500

NBC has announced a new series that will award what it calls "arguably the biggest prize in reality show history," which is "a new restaurant chain in four cities across America." United Plates of America is a competition judged "by a panel of real investors who fund the chain of restaurants with their own money," according to an NBC press release. Exactly how the show will work is somewhat ambiguous, but NBC says "the investorskeep reading »

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Top Model has its shortest, youngest winner yet in Nicole Fox

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:49:32 -0500

Nicole Fox is America's next next next next next next next next next next next next next top model, winning the short model cycle of America's Next Top Model. She joined other winners in near-immediate obscurity and non-top model status after beating Laura Kirkpatrick in a final runway show involving wind, rain, and other elements, such as previously eliminated models and a few seconds of Eddie Murphy, whose daughter Bria was a model in thekeep reading »

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After being beaten up by Insider panel, Spencer apologizes, Heidi will try to be "more positive"

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:57:26 -0500

The Insider's panel of pseudo-journalists and C-list celebrities may be establishing itself as the go-to jury for taking down reality stars who need to be challenged. As ironic as it is, a tabloid TV show--a genre that usually revels in publicist-fed fluff or sensational non-news--is doing the work journalists should do. After taking down Jon Gosselin, The Insider's panel went after Heidi and Spencer yesterday, and were challenged on Spencer's attack on Al Roker andkeep reading »

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HBO's Terror in Mumbai and PBS' Mumbai Massacre docs use audio, interviews from terrorists, victims

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:46:28 -0500

One year ago on Thanksgiving, Nov. 26, 173 people were killed and hundreds were wounded in Mumbai as a result of 10 simultaneous terrorist attacks. Two documentaries debuting on TV in the next week examine those events from the perspective of both the terrorists and the victims. Tonight at 8 p.m. ET, HBO debuts Dan Reed's film Terror in Mumbai, which the network calls "a 360-degree view of a terrorist act, recounting in harrowing detailkeep reading »

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Survivor starts casting for seasons 21 and 22, which would tape next summer

Andy Dehnart — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:45:13 -0500

Survivor is now casting for seasons 21 and 22, although it has not yet been officially renewed by CBS, nor has Jeff Probst announced whether or not he's returning as host, since his contract expires at the end of season 20. However, it's typical for the show to start casting before being officially renewed, and if the show is renewed, pre-production would likely begin in January. The application [PDF] is for both seasons 21 andkeep reading »

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Chef Academy's Emmanuel DelCour is porn star Jean Val Jean

Andy Dehnart — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:07:04 -0500

Bravo tells us on-screen that Chef Academy cast member Emmanuel DelCour is a "graphic artist," and on its web site says he "has acted in commercials and television series and worked as a personal trainer" and "enjoys swimming cage free with Great White Sharks, drawing and graphic design." But guess what else he likes to do? Let's turn to always-reliable Wikipedia's entry for Jean Val Jean, who's "the premier straight porn practitioner of analingus onkeep reading »

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A&E previewing Steven Seagal: Lawman online tonight; "this is not Hollywood; it's for real"

Andy Dehnart — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:55:58 -0500

The most anticipated celebrity-doing-a-job-that-seems-wildly-inappropriate-yet-somehow-perfect series has to be A&E's Steven Seagal: Lawman, although he faces heavy competition from Tony Danza teaching high school English for his A&E series. Anyway, the network is previewing Seagal's series tonight online, competing with prime-time TV on the east coast by showing the first episode two weeks before its Dec. 2 debut. It starts at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on A&E's site. Here's an extended preview in which hekeep reading »

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TLC and Kate make Jon look better by trying to make him look bad

Andy Dehnart — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:28:37 -0500

Monday night's penultimate Jon & Kate Plus Eight was composed of "never before seen footage," and it was titled "Broken Dreams, Broken Promises, Broken Episodes." From the opening moments, when Kate made dinner for a charity and said it should be signed "love from Jon and Kate plus eight--minus Jon," it was clear that it should have been titled "Kate and TLC beat up on Jon." Even non-Jon focused segments, like Kate at a bookkeep reading »

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Dancing with the Stars 9 has its final three

Andy Dehnart — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:43:23 -0500

Dancing with the Stars 9 is down to three, um, stars and their professional partners: Donny Osmond, Mya, and Kelly Osbourne. Joanna Krupa and Derek Hough were eliminated last night, surprising people who are actually still watching the show, who surprise me. The season ends next week with a 90-minute performance show on Monday and a two-hour finale on Tuesday.keep reading »

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Julianne Hough won't return for Dancing with the Stars 10

Andy Dehnart — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:23:28 -0500

Julianne Hough won't return for Dancing with the Stars 10 next season after skipping season nine, which means her second attempt at quitting seems to have stuck. This morning, she was on Ryan Seacrest's radio show, and said she's currently working on the Cher and Christina Aguilera film Burlesque, which she'll follow with Footloose, and she's also still working on her music. Julianne told Seacrest--who literally said to her, "I was Binging you" (Ryan, youkeep reading »

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Adam Lambert to Out: "refrain from projecting your publications' agenda onto my career"

Andy Dehnart — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:07:11 -0500

Adam Lambert responded to Out magazine's editor's claims that Adam's management and publicists didn't want him to appear "too gay" in the magazine's coverage of him by addressing Out editor Aaron Hicklin on Twitter, writing, "Chill! Guess ya gotta get attention for the magazine. U too are at the mercy of the marketing machine." He followed that by writing, "Until we have a meaningful conversation, perhaps you should refrain from projecting your publications' agenda ontokeep reading »

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19 Entertainment didn't want Adam Lambert to appear "too gay" in Out magazine

Andy Dehnart — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:39:54 -0500

Although Adam Lambert talked to Out magazine with refreshing honesty about his sexuality and other subjects, but 19 Entertainment, his management and record label, don't want people thinking he's "too gay," and would only let him be on the cover since he appeared in the photo with a straight woman. Out editor-in-chief Aaron Hicklin wrote his editor's letter [PDF] in the issue as an open letter to Adam, and pointed out, "It's only because thiskeep reading »

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Heidi, Spencer get book-release headlines by shopping reality show, attacking Al Roker

Andy Dehnart — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:53:57 -0500

Heidi and Spencer Pratt's "insipid" book is being released today, and they're all over the news. How amazing. First, they're making headlines thanks to an AP interview in which they claim to be shopping a reality series that would also include how famous they are. Despite the lack of details, that's made headlines today, including here. Damn then for being such effective self-promoters. (If only they'd share their fame.) Meanwhile, they were going to appearkeep reading »

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Numb3rs compares Survivor players to prisoners

Andy Dehnart — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:14:11 -0500

A day after Padma's appearance on 30 Rock, another prime-time scripted series had a guest appearance by a reality show, though only in the form of footage. It was part of Friday's episode of CBS' Numbers, which up until Lie to Me and The Mentalist debuted, was my favorite procedural drama, perhaps because it romanticized teaching while elevating the procedural beyond all the CSI clones. It's probably in its final season right now. Anyway, onekeep reading »

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Phil Keoghan was "pleased" with conflict from gay brothers, Globetrotters, who were "cool"

Andy Dehnart — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:08:22 -0500

Watching this outtake from last night's The Amazing Race 15 episode, I was kind of disturbed. While the episode ended with Sam and Dan, and Flight Time and Big Easy, fighting and arguing, in reality, they all resolved their nearly non-existent conflict--despite Phil Keoghan's attempt to goad them. First, while the episode shows Big Easy essentially making a mild threat--"I'm 6'10, 260, so we going to do what we got to do"--in response to thekeep reading »

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Adam Lambert worried gay photos would "fuck things up" for him on American Idol

Andy Dehnart — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:05:28 -0500

Adam Lambert is part of Out magazine's Out 100 for 2009, and in an interview, he addresses what he thought when photos of him making out with guys appeared online in the middle of his time on American Idol 8. He's covered some of this ground before, but talks about it in greater detail here, and is, as always, remarkably honest. "When those pictures came out online, I got freaked out. I was like, 'Great,keep reading »

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Ethan Zohn undergoing radiation, stem cell transplant, is still "focused" and "positive"

Andy Dehnart — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:49:13 -0500

Survivor Africa winner Ethan Zohn is now is now halfway through 25 days of radiation for his stage two Hodgkin's lymphoma, and that will be followed by and then have a stem cell transplant--which requires a month-long hospitalization. His first two rounds of chemo were unsuccessful and his cancer actually spread. In addition to periodic video diaries on People.com--the latest was filmed behind-the-scenes at a People photo shoot, while an earlier videos showed him gettingkeep reading »

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Jon Gosselin sues TLC for $5 million over "great anguish" and "financial losses"

Andy Dehnart — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:38:45 -0500

In response to TLC's lawsuit against him, Jon Gosselin has sued the network for $5 million. His attorney Mark Heller told People that TLC's "behavior has caused Jon great anguish and it has caused him financial losses." His suit claims TLC "damaged his reputation and career by preventing him from working with other media outlets" and "also claims the network breached its own contract with Gosselin and owes him $175,000 for shows that already aired.keep reading »

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CBS' censorship of Amazing Race teams calls attention to what it tries to hide in Estonia

Andy Dehnart — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:08:35 -0500

As the remaining Amazing Race 15 teams raced through Estonia, there was drama, physical conflict, and blurred bulges. Yet it was also painfully obvious how weak the leg was overall. The first seven minutes--about one-sixth of the episode--focused on all the teams getting to a ferry, which was an equalizer. The Speedbump Gary and Matt faced was quick, easy, and seemed to be located right next to the Roadblock. The Detour was right next tokeep reading »

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