'American Idol' Finalists Invade New York City

They're everywhere! They're everywhere!

Jordin Sparks, Blake Lewis, and Melinda Doolittle have hit Manhattan big time this week. They've been on every morning show, performed in the plaza for the Today show, and more.

Today seemed to be Blake-centric. I think his performance on the FOX morning show wasn't as live as it was set up to be, though. The singing continued after he stopped. He sang the same Maroon 5 song in each appearance I saw. No, I didn't go into the city to see them live -- I've been playing delivery tag with the FedEx guy and had to wait for a package.

Earlier this evening, Melinda Doolittle was on the local FOX 5 news. She seems a lot less nervous and was very upbeat. She'll be performing on tomorrow morning's early FOX show, but I'm unsure if she'll make the same all-network circuit Blake and Jordin did. Alas, even if she does sing live at the plaza tomorrow, I'll be at work.

Sneak Peek: TNT's 'The Closer' - 3rd Season Premiere

The Closer could very well be one of the best crime drama shows you may not be watching. Golden Globe Winner Kyra Sedgwick is Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson of the LAPD Priority Homicide Division. Despite budget cuts, office politics, and official scrutiny... she closes her cases and she does it her way. Oh, I didn't even mention her humorous domestic woes with her boyfriend. They really need a bigger house.

Unlike many shows in the cop genre, this one is a bit quirky and often leaves you guessing "who done it" until Brenda zooms in on the suspect. The writing is very clever with well-crafted mysteries and intriguing characters, as well as decent actors in the roles. The character of Brenda, in particular, is complex. She's a pro at her job, one of the best in the business. But, at home, she's a bit of a mess. All in all, it makes the show's whole premise work very well.

The good folks at TNT were kind enough to send me a screener of the first episode of the third season -- slated to air Monday, June 18, at 9 PM ET/PT. Now, of course, I can't (and won't) give you a recap of the show, but I'll give you few tidbits... dangle that carrot, so to speak.

The Wallace family -- a father, mother, and young daughter -- have been viciously murdered in their home. The teenaged son, high on drugs at the time, is still alive. Suspect? Murderer? Victim? Totally innocent? The story took some twists I never would have predicted. Brenda had to fight budget cut issues with no overtime all the way. "What happens if someone gets murdered on a weekend?"

Even though there were some light-hearted moments throughout the show such as when Brenda decided to take the police jet after being told to control expenses, the ending was a shocker and a bit of commentary on what jealousy and greed can do to a person.

There.

You still could never guess the twists in the episode. But it ain't no Law and Order, for sure. Nothing as straight-laced at that!

If you haven't been watching the show, you can check out some of the season two episodes. Two episodes air each Tuesday evening at 9 and 10 PM ET/PT leading into the week before the third season premiere. That's on cable station TNT - they know Drama, y'know.

Reality TV - A Game Show for a Kidney? Yipes!

I'm a reality television buff. I'm not proud. I'm hooked on Big Brother, Survivor, The Amazing Race, and more. I'm not so into the dating reality show genre, but know folks who enjoy them. I also enjoy many scripted television shows, but reality keeps dragging me back in.

With a show such as Big Brother, I think it's the sociology which catches my interest. I've always been a people-watcher kind of person. I like to sit and watch folks on the streets of Manhattan; I like to watch folks inside the BB House -- and how they interact with each other. Shows such as Survivor or The Amazing Race are basically sociological studies with added twists and pressures which change the human interactions.

But... what if the pressure was an actual life or death situation? Is it right to create what's basically a game show out of a situation where one person will die (not due to the game), one will have his or her life saved from a likely death, and two will lose a chance to win for their lives?

Although it's not against the law, I think it's definitely in bad taste and a moral grey area. It sounds like that futuristic Stephen King novel THE LONG WALK where one person would win, but all the rest would die, doesn't it? Many other novels and movies have toyed with similar ideas, but it hasn't been actually done before. Until now...

The creators of the Dutch Big Brother show will produce a new series on BNN in the Netherlands -- "The Big Donor Show." A terminally ill woman will give a kidney away to one of three contestants who desperately need the transplant to save their lives. Three people are going to die and their personal drama will be entertainment for the masses?

A quote from the local WCBS article about the show:
"Because of the show's shock value, it's expected it will do quite well in the ratings. Still, the Dutch Kidney Association says not everyone is a winner in the game since only one contestant gets the kidney. "Nevertheless there are two losers and what I would like to propose to BNN is ... you've got the publicity you want, now stop the program," said Paul Beerkens, Director of the Netherlands Kidney Association."

Am I really a part of this world? What do you think about this?

TV Newsy Bits - Tuesday, May 29, 2007

So, who's watching On the Lot? This show is surprising me. I wasn't too keen on the concept, but I do believe I'm indeed hooked. Some of the one-minute comedies the wannabe-directors created were a hoot, others just left me saying, "huh?" I think the "Wack Alley Cab" guy and the JT "Nerd" film guys will be gone. I'm watching it to see.

Here are the TV Newsy Bits I found for you today:

• The Houston Chronicle reports that Survivor 13 winner Yul Kwon is likely to receive an Asian Excellence Award.
• We know that Charlie left Lost with honor. But, how is actor Dominic Monaghan taking the cut from the show? The Celebrity Spider reports that he's not too pleased.
• According to this AOL article, tonight's House season finale will shake things up and end with a cliffhanger. Ohhh... a cliffhanger, eh? Who shot JR?
• Speaking of shake-ups, NBC's slumping ratings have caused an executive shake-up at the network. Drama!

'Big Brother 8' (and BB7) News

<--- Obviously not a Zoetawny graphic. Y'see, this is what you get when I do 'em.

Yes!

There's Big Brother 8 news to be had today! According to CANOE -- JAM!, the starting date for the show is Thursday, July 5th.

According to RealityBBQ, Sarah and James from Big Brother 7 are now a couple of the past. All that's said is "she is dating someone new." Um, okay.

In previously released Big Brother 8 news, Arnold Shapiro is stepping away this season and Alison Grodner will be taking the producer reins of the show. They had worked together as executive producers on the show in past seasons.

On the official CBS website, they still have the application link live on the main page, but the deadline was in April. I'm anticipating this season to be at this link once it goes live (if they follow the format from past seasons). Usually the houseguests go into sequester for a period in the latter part of June. Once the show is sure they'll make it (see Brandon Showalter), the cast announcements and website go live. The feeds usually follow the show's premiere although the houseguests are in the house for approximately 4 days before the first show airs.

I'll be doing Live Feed Reports once again this year, most likely on the three times a day format (morning, early evening, late night ET) with the exception of some days which will have additional posts. I'm also thinking of live-blogging the shows as they air here in the NYC area. I previously didn't do show blog entries as most had already been discussed in live feed reports, but live-blogging might fit that in just fine. And, as always, I'll be posting East Coast Updates on eviction nights.

On July 5th, it'll be AWN. (Credit to Monica Bailey)