TV Newsy Bits - Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Okay, it's official. I've given up on On the Lot. I still haven't watched last week's show I taped and didn't bother taping it this week.

I've gotten myself hooked on America's Got Talent. Tonight was the NYC auditions and there were some great ones! My personal favorite was a rabbit who took over the act from his handler. And, shocking as it is, I actually know one of the acts who appeared this evening.

Well, I don't really know him, per se. He's a street performer I've seen around the fountain at the 72nd Street entrance of Central Park for years now. I used to go to the Skate Circle nearby (Central Park Skate Dancers - check out the video, then you know why my knees are shot now) and he was there more often than not. I'm talking Thoth... the dude in Native American garb with the odd opera and violin. And, yes. He's that weird... um... unusual, unique. If you're in Central Park on a weekend, walk on by Thoth and follow the music to the Skate Circle. You'll be entertained very well there. If you skate, bring your skates - inline or old school. It's all free.

In other real TV Newsy Bits:

• I have watched my screener of Saving Grace due to premiere on TNT in just a few weeks. I'm suitably impressed and will be writing more about the show soon. But I received a press release from TNT today - the premiere date for Saving Grace has been changed from July 18 to July 23. It will be following The Closer on Monday evenings at 10 PM ET/PT. Heartland will be seen for the next three weeks following The Closer, then will move to Thursday evenings. I personally think it's a good move. Saving Grace is good and TNT will build a nice block with those two shows every Monday night.
• Reality Check by Gina has an interview with Vinnie Fama, last night's boot on Hell's Kitchen. If you want to learn to cook via Vinnie, check out his own website. Yikes.
• The Idol Thoughts site lists the dance styles chosen for the couples on tomorrow evening's So You Think You Can Dance.
• My favorite Survivor 14: Fiji guy, Yau-Man Chan, recently appeared at a local (to him) food bank's fundraiser and there's a nice write-up in the Vellejo Times Herald.

That's all for now. Is it hot enough where you live?

'Hell's Kitchen' - A Quick Take on Episode 4

Remind me to never visit the restaurant which receives a chef from this season's show. Each season it's a comedy of errors, but this season takes the cake. Oh, and said cake will probably have too much pepper in it or something else odd.

The show opened with Vinnie continuing to harp on Jen's using pasta from the trash bin. Yeah, that struck a nerve with me, too. But Vinnie, on a people skills level, should learn when to stop. Although Gordon Ramsay is no poster child for people skills, they do count for the contestants on the show.

The chef wannabes first experienced a blindfolded taste test to check out those determining palates. Most of the foods seemed like they should be rather simple. I know I would have had problems with a few, but I'd certainly recognize boiled carrot and hard-boiled egg yolks!

Once again, the women (Red Team) won the challenge. As a reward, they went with Ramsay to dine at Opaque. Now, Opaque is one of those "dining in the dark" restaurants similar to the Dark Dining Projects here in the NYC area. As I understand it, the sense of taste is heightened in the dark. But for me... I'd probably miss my mouth and wear my dinner.

Meanwhile, the losing team (Blue men, but not to be confused with Blue Man Group), had to work on their palates by suffering through large amounts of variety meats and other not-so-popular dishes. After eating what looked like a few meals each, they then had to prep both their own kitchen and the Red Team's kitchen, too.

Then came the service... or, once again, the lack thereof. This time around, the winning team would be determined by the comment cards filled out by the patrons. Both teams were in trouble. From what I could see, the only "stable" one on the Blue Team was Rock. Had Julia not burned the scallops, she would have been best on the Red Team. Bonnie and Vinnie were both bimbos although Ramsay only called Bonnie a bimbo.

"____ me senseless!" screamed Ramsay.

So, they did.

Tonight's episode was yet another night where the kitchen was shut down and the service wasn't complete. The patrons said that what food they had was good. But 65% percent said they wouldn't return because of the time spent waiting. That's not good, not at all.

Ramsay declared there was no winning team. He chose Rock and Jen to choose a lamb (goat, whatever) to be led to his slaughter. Well, okay... just to be a candidate to be booted from the show.

I knew Rock would make the wrong choice. He's really not surrounded with any talent -- Josh, Vinnie, and Brad. Out of those, Vinnie is the one who screws up most consistently. But Rock has it out for both Josh and Brad more than he does for Vinnie. He's more interested in eliminating the competition he may face rather than the worst chef. He chose Josh.

I don't think I can ever have any faith in Jen since she took the pasta out of the trash to serve. Julia's name didn't come up in her decision, which I felt was right for this week. Her choice had to be between Bonnie and Melissa. I could tell that Bonnie was upsetting Ramsay more than Melissa. Thinking more with her heart than her mind, she chose to nominate Melissa.

Ramsay overruled both choices and replaced them with Vinnie and Bonnie. (Can I say I told you so now?) I figured he'd kick out Vinnie because of his attitude. Oh, Bonnie will go soon enough. She's to the point where she realizes she's out of her league and even wants to go home. But she's not surly to Ramsay when Vinnie comes across as surly and sneaky.

But it wasn't Bonnie's choice to make. Ramsay booted Vinnie.

As I said, though, none of these "chefs" seem worthy of any fine dining establishment.

That said, tonight I had steak with onions, baked potato, steamed asparagus, and cantaloupe for dessert. I gave myself a good comment card, but mentioned the wait staff was a bit lacking.

The New Latest News as We Wait For 'Big Brother 8'

The supposed cast "leak" that I mentioned in this entry was apparently a rumor. Both Jokers and WeLoveBigBrother.com have a note from the casting director, Robyn Kass, stating she's never heard of the folks on that list and they are not the cast we'll see. However, it is noted that we can expect the cast announcements to be made this week.

Remember, Julie Chen's appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman will take place this Thursday evening, not tonight as originally announced!

That's where we stand at this time.

I'm ready.

Has the 'Big Brother 8' Cast Been Leaked?

This could all just be rumors or even outright falsehoods for all I know. But I feel obligated to bring you the latest buzz on the 'net.

Over on one of my personal favorite websites for the Big Brother summers, JokersUpdates.com, a poster has posted his "inside peek somehow unexplained" of the houseguests we can expect to see this season.

The poster is a first-timer for Jokers, yet has a track record for accurately posting pre-release cast information over on the SurvivorSucks site. So, it's possible that this information, albeit a bit sketchy, may indeed be right.

Here's what he has to say:
Cast list leaked from a call sheet. I only got a few minutes glance at the list but this is what I got from it. no pictures sorry. short bios were underneath their pictures. and for anyone that doesn’t know POSSIBLY spoilers follow.

Tara Bourke - young good looking has an extremely nice body --- youngest houseguest

Tiffany Dalton - oldish black woman

Rodger (No last name)- older Asian male. Teacher at some school.

Carol Ricardi - older woman (mother figure)

Gabby Ngyugen - young Asian girl. huge smile.

Amanda Adams - late twenties blonde woman. looks like some celebrity. Former cheerleader apparently?

Mitchell “Mitchy” Vance- Good looking younger male.

Robby Williams or Wallace - young very young. apparently is apart of some organization group for gay teens.?

Jared Pfifer - good looking....Spanish?

David Mertz - Good looking man in his fortiesAndi (no last name) - blonde girl early twenties

Morgan (no last name) -older gay male...possibly not gay?

Melanie (no last name) - no information. I’m not even sure if she was a final houseguest as she had no number just a name and a location where she lives. Florida.

Unidentified male - Couldn’t find anything about this guy (possibly no 14th houseguest?) There was a blank spot for him on the sheet with a number....but nothing else.

some houseguests know each other from high-school. some listed the same high school that they attended. from what I remember

David and Carol know each other or did...
Robie and jarred know each other or did....
Mitchell and Amanda know each other or did...
Gabby and Tara know each other or did

That's all! Dont ask how I got it...just passing on the information i got. I’m a long time Survivor cast spoiler and usually get it right each time...post a sucks under ghostie....take this list for what it is. Never know what could happen in the next fourteen days.

********************************
Okay, this is me again. I found a few of the names listed on various sites (not BB-related) on the web and what little information here seems right. Gabby make actually be spelled wrong as this site fits a bit to profile. If the information leaked is right, then there could very well be a high school "bully" type theme this season. Tied in with the promo in which Janelle says, "What comes around goes around" and Julie Chen's emphatic agreement... it's beginning to look more and more like that's the case.

I'm having nightmares of Carrie and the prom scene...!

Share Those Pants! - This Week on 'The Late Show with David Letterman' - June 25-29, 2007

Dave had his week off, but he'll be back full-force on Monday. Hopefully, his broken nose is feeling up to snuff and he's learned a lesson about rough-housing with a three-year-old. The kid always wins against the "old guy."

Here's the guest list for the upcoming week:

• Monday, June 25: This is the show of the week for me. Bruce Willis (always a lot of fun when he's on with Dave), diving dogs out on 53rd Street, Morrissey, and... although I don't see her name listed on the official show website, Julie Chen (the host of Big Brother 8) was originally scheduled for the show.
• Tuseday, June 26: Paula Abdul, John Krasinski promoting License to Wed, and Bryan Ferry.
• Wednesday, June 27: Claire Danes (Evening), Keith Obermann & Dan Patrick, and Ryan Adams.
• Thursday, June 28: Robin Williams also promoting License to Wed
• Friday, June 29: Senator Dennis Kucinich, Shia LeBoeuf (Transformers), and comedian Brian Kiley.

Uh-oh... we have a big discrepancy here! I see on the Yahoo TV Listings that they have Julie Chen listed for Thursday night with Robin Williams. For some odd reason, I can't get AOL TV Listings to show after Wednesday night, so I can't confirm it there. Onto the TVGuide.com listings... yep, they also have Julie Chen listed for Thursday night. The official Late Show website only has Robin Williams listed, but he can't be the only guest on the show.

So, it should be Thursday night for Julie Chen instead of Monday. Oh, well... what's a few more days, eh?

Argh.