Monthly Archives: July 2012
AGT’s First Night of Live Performances: How did they Stack Up?
Edon
America’s Got Talent began its live shows last night and there really wasn’t much to be excited about. This season has clearly been a disappointment. Subpar talent got through Vegas and is now performing for America’s vote. Some of the acts were mildly entertaining, but I don’t know if four of them deserve to go through. Acts that would face a tough elimination against serious talent in past seasons are now simply the best of the mediocre. The show opened with an unnecessary half hour “countdown” with audition footage and outtakes. It served to remind the viewer just how lackluster this season has been. The performances didn’t start until 9pm.
Distinguished Men of Brass
The group performed a marching band style rendition of “Crazy In Love.” Once again, they were sloppy and disorganized. Howie said they had to take it beyond a marching band or a halftime show. Unfortunately for them, the act is pretty much a marching band and not much more. There is no way they can win the competition and I’m surprised they got through Vegas. Then again, the selection in Vegas was never good anyway. This act is not horrible enough to eliminate, but the competition is probably over for them.
Andy Griffith Dead at 86
Griffith as Sheriff Taylor
Andy Griffith died today at the age of 86. He is best known for playing Sheriff Andy Taylor in The Andy Griffith Show and Ben Matlock in Matlock.
The first time America met Andy Taylor was on The Danny Thomas Show, which served as a backdoor pilot to The Andy Griffith Show. In honor of Griffith, below is the opening scene of that episode of The Danny Thomas Show.
What is your reaction to Andy Griffth’s death? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Anderson Cooper is Gay
Anderson Cooper has officially confirmed what the internet already suspected: he’s gay. Cooper came out in an email sent to Andrew Sullivan of The Daily Beast.
In the email, he wrote,
“Recently, however, I’ve begun to consider whether the unintended outcomes of maintaining my privacy outweigh personal and professional principle. It’s become clear to me that by remaining silent on certain aspects of my personal life for so long, I have given some the mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something — something that makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid. This is distressing because it is simply not true.”
The full email can be read at The Daily Beast’s website.
NBC’s Remaking the Sound of Music
Craig Zadan and Neil Meron
For some bizarre reason, NBC Entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt has decided to approve a live broadcast of The Sound of Music play. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Greenblatt says, “There used to be a tradition of broadcasting musicals live back in the 1950s, and we’re thrilled to do it once again with a musical that has been a family classic for five decades.”
Smash executive producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron will produce the live play. Zadan and Meron say they do not intended to remake the film version of The Sound of Music because that would be “artistic blasphemy.” No word yet on who will be in NBC version of The Sound of Music or when it will air.
Weekly TV Update: July 2
Each week we bring you stories from around the Internet that you might have missed.
MTV has a recap of last night’s BET Awards performances. Entertainment Weekly has a full list of winners.
Dexter fans will be disappointed. Executive producer Sara Colleton confirmed that Dexter is definitely ending after season 8.
Erin Andrews leaves ESPN. She will now host her own show on Fox Sports.
If you’re still interested in The Newsroom, Vulture has a review of the latest episode.
Seth MacFarlane’s Ted topped the box office this weekend. How similar is it to Family Guy?
Episodes Returns Without the Sophomore Slump
The second season of the Showtime original comedy Episodes premiered on Sunday night and the show continues to be fantastic. The production of a low quality television show generally serves as only a minor plot point, but that’s okay. The main driving force remains the character interaction.
The show opens with a scene of Pucks! being shot. After the scene wraps, Sean and Beverly Lincoln exchange some witty banter and it almost seems like all is forgiven. Then, they say goodbye and head off in separate cars. This was a very cleverly written scene. It kept the viewer guessing and then revealed what appears to be the main conflict of this season: that there is still a struggle for everyone to coexist as colleagues.
The next scene features Beverly and Head of Programming for the network Carole Rance. Beverly still needs to vent about her situation with Sean. The situation is hard for her because it is Sean’s birthday. It is their first one apart and it feels weird to her. Sean has gone from her husband to “some boy who may or may not still like [her].” The interaction between Beverly and Rance is very enjoyable. As much as Beverly hated the idea of Pucks!, she still finds a friend in the process. The relationship is an effective contrast between a neurotic person in crisis and a no-nonsense perspective. Beverly adds that “if [she’s] ever feeling like the craziest person on Earth,” she should have dinner with Rance. The rapport between these two will probably get stronger as the season goes on.
Watch The Newsroom on YouTube
If you missed the premiere of The Newsroom and want to catch it before tonight’s episode at 10pm, you can watch the full first episode for free on YouTube.
First Season Recap of Episodes
The Showtime original comedy series Episodes is returning for a second season tonight and there’s a lot to look forward to. The first season was excellent. This series follows husband and wife comedy writing team, Sean and Beverly Lincoln. The couple comes to Los Angeles to remake their hit British sitcom Lyman’s Boys. The problem is they lose control of the show along the way. The network retools the premise without their permission.
Assuming the star of their British show will continue to perform the role in America, the Lincolns offer him the part. He is asked to audition anyway in an American accent and fails miserably. With no star lined up, the network goes a completely different direction by getting Matt LeBlanc to play the lead. Instead of following a headmaster at an elite prep school like the original, the U.S. version follows a smooth-talking hockey coach and is retitled Pucks!. The pilot gets worse every day. This show has done a great job of satirizing how difficult it is to work with a television network, but that isn’t what makes the show. It’s the characters’ chemistry.
Wait! What's A Dial? 