Television Random, Random Scripted/NonScripted

[Kirkus]

I kinda figured that - but didn't think it important enough to bother correcting you.

Thank you.

Had several others around here noticed it they would have me.


I really liked the premier. I'm an Aaron Sorkin fan anyway. This reminded me so much of Sports Night.

[skatingfan]

Yes, it did have the Sports Night feel - what I really like about Sorkin's shows is that they aren't afraid to be realistic while at the same time talking about how things should be better and then working to make things that way - can't wait to see how they tackle news events moving forward. Really interesting how they set the show two years in the past so that they can rewrite history with each episode.

[winston]

How much do I love Aaron Sorkin shows? For the first time since HBO stopped broadcasting Wimbledon, I added HBO to my cable package. (I used to sign up for HBO every May and discontinue it in August.)

[Kirkus]

How much do I love Aaron Sorkin shows? For the first time since HBO stopped broadcasting Wimbledon, I added HBO to my cable package. (I used to sign up for HBO every May and discontinue it in August.)

I loved Wimbledon on HBO. Especially Martina Navratilova. We used to cancel HBO when Real Time with Bill Maher wasn't being broadcast then pick it up again for that. Now, with The Newsroom, it looks like HBO has a new year-round customer.

The American President has been my favorite movie since I first saw it. Then Sports Night became my favorite TV Show. It wasn't until after I fell in love with West Wing that I discovered all three were from Aaron Sorkin. (I never did like Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.) The Newsroom came with really high expectations from me, and the premier certainly lived up to them.

[tobiasfunke]

I only thought it was ok. In fact, I found it a little cheesy. I don't know, I'm indifferent about Sorkin. I'll keep watching, though.

It should have been about the behind the scenes of Hoda and Kathie Lee's 4th hour of the Today Show.

[Edmond Dantès]

HBO have made the 1st episode available on youtube.

I do like Sorkin (even Studio 60). Quite a few critics seem to have gone to town on him for this show though.

[Ti-Amie]

It’s become conventional wisdom that there’s more vital work taking place these days on television than in movies.

At some point, goes the story, a bunch of TV writers tired of the usual small-screen fare and started stretching their creative muscles. (And strangely, lots of them were named David: David Milch did "NYPD Blue," David Chase did "The Sopranos," David Simon did "The Wire"…)

But how long has it really been going on? And how is it reflected in the awards picture? If one were to compare the Emmy-winning drama series and the Oscar-winning movie from each year, which medium would consistently deliver the more significant achievement?

I did just that, and the results aren’t pretty for Oscar, at least not lately. Since 2000, we’ve had 11 Best Picture winners and 11 Emmy drama-series champs—and by my reckoning, the TV shows have been more substantial, and more impactful in the culture, nine of those 11 years.

Here’s the rundown:

I’d say "The Hurt Locker," because of the significance of Kathryn Bigelow’s Best Director win, is the one film that can make a strong case for being more significant than a season of "Mad Men." And "The Return of the King," the culmination of an enormous achievement by Peter Jackson, gets my vote over "West Wing" in 2003. But while I love "No Country for Old Men," is it more substantial than "The Sopranos"? Nope. ("Million Dollar Baby" certainly isn’t.)

As a sometimes infuriating but always intriguing pop-culture touchstone, "Lost" wipes the floor with "Crash." And I’d argue that Jack Bauer on "24" is a significantly more compelling character than Billy Costigan in "The Departed." I mean, you probably don’t need me to tell you that Kiefer Sutherland played Bauer, but who hears Costigan’s name and remembers Leonardo DiCaprio?

Unquestionably, Emmy voters get it wrong at least as often as their Oscar counterparts do. (Hey, those third or fourth "West Wing" Emmys, or that first "Mad Men" one, really could have gone to "The Wire.") But in this century, at least they’ve more frequently honored achievements that have made a mark in the culture.


It wasn’t always so. When I went back further, I gave the decided edge to Oscar winners in the 1990s." Law & Order" lasted for decades but didn’t shake the culture the way James Cameron’s "Titanic" did; "Picket Fences" was an amusing Emmy winner in '93 and '94, but I wouldn’t pick it over "Schindler’s List" or even "Forrest Gump" (which I hated, but which supplied a catchphrase—”Life is like a box of chocolates”—more enduring than anything from David E. Kelley’s smalltown fantasia).

In the '80s, shows like "Hill Street Blues" and "L.A. Law" at least held their own against movies like "Driving Miss Daisy," "The Last Emperor" and "Chariots of Fire," but earlier than that the edge goes resoundingly to the big screen.

I mean, the ‘70s slate of "The French Connection," "The Godfather," "The Godfather II," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest" and "Annie Hall" takes no prisoners when you put it up against "The Bold Ones: The Senator," "Elizabeth R" and three seasons of "Upstairs, Downstairs."

And while you could argue that '60s TV shows like "Mission: Impossible" and "The Fugitive" had an impact (even on future movies) more profound than Oscar-winning fluff like "Oliver!," the further back you go the clearer it is that TV was the puny little brother.

But we’re not talking about 1969 ("Midnight Cowboy" vs. "NET Playhouse") or 1962 ("Lawrence of Arabia" vs."The Defenders") or 1953 ("On the Waterfront" vs. "The U.S. Steel Hour").

We’re talking about 2012, when the momentum’s all with the little screen. I’ll be back on the Oscar beat come September, and let’s just say that I’d really like to see a few films that have the muscle to step into the ring with "Breaking Bad."

http://www.thewrap.com/awards/articl...45186?page=0,0

[Ti-Amie]

Ann Curry may not be perfect, but you could argue she deserves better than to be shivved by her NBC bosses in the New York Times twice in four days.

She got it for the second time on Sunday, when an anonymous NBC executive singled out the “Today” show co-host for being too empathetic, in a major take-out by TV critic Mike Hale.

“When she relates to people one on one, there’s a real empathy she has,” said the executive, winding up for the kill. “Sometimes in the studio that seems overwhelming. It’s like, come on now, we’re talking serious issues.”

Nice. Curry’s fate was sealed last week when the Times’ Brian Stelter broke the news that Curry was going to be replaced at the top-earning show which hired her to replace Meredith Vieira and has seen declining ratings since.


(NBC continues a long-standing tradition of leaking major news to the Times, though in the Jeff Zucker era it was consistently under Bill Carter’s byline.)

It appears that Hale’s take-out might have precipitated things. The West Coast print edition did not have the news that Curry was on her way out; it would not be the first time that scrutiny by a major news outlet started a chain of events.

Regardless, the conclusion of the take-out was pretty clear. Hale examined Curry on the “Today” show for a month and the anchor came up wanting.

Oddly, Hale actually criticized her for the opposite of empathy: according to him, Curry is too distant.

He writes: “Sometimes a reporter’s doggedness shows through in situations where a more complicit, reassuring tone is probably what the morning audience, and the show’s producers, would prefer.”

So what’s wrong with Curry? Is she too cuddly? Or too removed?

Hale points out that Curry seems uncomfortable sitting next to the charismatic, relaxed Lauer. He makes a random reference to Curry’s part-Japanese cultural roots, without drawing any direct conclusion as to how that might figure in her seeming distant.

In the nuclear family of “Today” show talent, says Hale, “Ms. Curry, 55, should figure as the sensible older sister, along the lines of Ms. Vieira, who grew up and moved out… But as you watch the show, there’s an inescapable sense that Ms. Curry is outside the group in a subtle but unmistakable way, like the stepsister Cinderella without a prince.”

And now without a job. The petition to save Ann Curry on change.org has now ballooned to 17,000 signatures since Friday.

But the Times says she’ll be out this week. And so far NBC is not denying it.

http://www.thewrap.com/media/column-...whelming-45381

[Ti-Amie]

Ann Curry, in an interview on Wednesday with USA Today, confirmed the news everyone said was imminent: She's leaving the "Today" show.

In a 40-minute phone interview with a reporter from the newspaper, Curry said she expected Thursday to "be a bit of a tough day ... I'm going to have to tell our viewers. That's what makes me more emotional than anything. I don't want to leave them. I love them. And I will really miss them."

The move comes after days of non-stop speculation -- and acute embarrassment to NBC -- about Curry's future on the morning show, which has slipped in the ratings since she replaced Meredith Vieira a year ago.

In the interview, Curry rejected the notion that she was responsible for the ratings decline.

"I know I am not to blame for the ratings worries," she said. "And my bosses have said to me there are many factors involved. There is no doubt that the rating wars have become meaner and less focused on our responsibilities as journalists," though she says some at "Today" do "brilliant work."
(...)
In her new position at NBC, she will lead a seven-person unit with a mandate to cover major news stories, such as the uprising in Syria and "the plight of the poor in America," Curry told USA Today. As anchor-at-large and NBC News national/international correspondent, Curry will produce network specials and pieces for NBC News and fill in as anchor on the Nightly News and elsewhere.

Many media observers have said that Curry was ill-suited to the host position on "Today" and would be better out in the field as a reporter.

http://www.thewrap.com/tv/article/an...day-show-45896

[Ti-Amie]

Savannah Guthrie (left) takes a seat next to "Today" co-host Matt Lauer just a day after Ann Curry announced she was leaving the show.


The “Today” co-host saga took an almost surreal turn Friday morning, with Savannah Guthrie slipping into Ann Curry’s old chair and everyone around her, including the network, acting as if nothing had changed.

Curry had reluctantly left the show Thursday, and Guthrie has been widely reported to be her successor as NBC attempts to reinvigorate a show that has been losing ground to ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

Guthrie took over the co-hosting role Friday, sitting next to Matt Lauer and trading off with him on the top stories, including the Colorado wildfires and fallout from the Supreme Court’s ruling supporting President Obama’s health-care plan.



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertain...#ixzz1zCYNWrHB

[JTContinental]

Aaaaaah!

[Ti-Amie]

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UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. - Veteran program executive Pearlena Igbokwe has been named Executive Vice President, Drama Development for NBC Entertainment, it was announced today by Jennifer Salke, President of NBC Entertainment, to whom Igbokwe will report. She is replacing Laura Lancaster who will segue into a consultancy role to help with the transition through drama development season.

In her new role Igbokwe will oversee the development of all NBC dramas.

“Pearlena has forged an impressive track record over her successful career that has earned her the admiration of the creative community,” said Salke. “She will bring a unique perspective to development that will help us reach our goal of once again making NBC the home of some of the best and most respected dramas on television.”

Igbokwe comes to NBC from Showtime, where she worked closely with Robert Greenblatt, Chairman of NBC Entertainment, for seven years.



“Pearlena is hands-down one of the best creative executives I’ve ever worked with and I’m thrilled she is coming to NBC,” said Greenblatt. “She will be instrumental in reinvigorating our drama slate and making the network a haven for the top creative people in our business.”

During her 20-year tenure at Showtime, Igbokwe was involved in developing the pilot and overseeing every season of “Dexter,” Showtime’s most popular hit ever. She also developed the pilot to the upcoming new Showtime series “Masters of Sex” starring Michael Sheen. She also supervised the Emmy Award-winning and critically-acclaimed original series “Nurse Jackie” and “The Big C,” as well as shepherded “Tracey Ullman’s State of the Union,” “Damon Wayans’ Underground,” Kirstie Alley’s “Fat Actress,” and the television adaptation of the hit feature film “Barbershop.” She was additionally instrumental in the five-season run of the hit Showtime series “Soul Food,” a two-time NAACP Image Award winner for Best Drama Series. (*bowing* - OP)

Igbokwe also has mined success from a number of original movies she developed for Showtime, including the Humanitas Award-nominated “Jasper, Texas,” starring Academy Award winners Jon Voight and Louis Gossett Jr.; the Emmy Award-nominated “Bojangles,” starring the late Gregory Hines; and the Peabody Award-winning “Strange Justice,” to name just a few.

She began her career at Showtime as Manager of Direct Response, Television Marketing, where she was responsible for all media planning and spending, agency creative development, video production and telemarketing for a $13 million general and Hispanic market acquisition campaign.

Igbokwe most recently was featured in industry trade magazine Multichannel News’ 2010 “Wonder Women” issue and previously in Hollywood Reporter’s “Top 35 under 35,” as well as in Ebony and Black Enterprise’s “Top 50 Showbiz Players.”

http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowand...a-black-woman#

[Ti-Amie]

Savannah Guthrie's debut as co-anchor was not enough to give "Today" a ratings victory on Monday.

Early numbers show that ABC rival "Good Morning America" beat "Today" in both total viewers and the coveted key demographic on Monday, kicking off the weekly ratings rat race.

The Monday win is a notable one for the morning shows, since NBC was likely hoping to get a boost from the interest surrounding Guthrie's first day. Guthrie ascended to the spot a little more than a week after she replaced former co-host Ann Curry following a year that saw the NBC show fall from its perch as the number one morning show on television. "Good Morning America" beat "Today" in April 2012, ending the NBC morning show's 16-year ratings winning streak.

Although "Good Morning America" beat the "Today" show's Monday ratings, either network can still win the week.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...m_hp_ref=media

[Moose]

Chloe Sevigny stars in a Brit import that debuts on DirecTV tonight - show is called "Hit Or Miss". She plays an Irish transgendered hit man/woman, who suddenly ends up with three children to raise. Don't have DirecTV, which is a shame, because she's among my couple of favorite actresses, and while I have friends that can't stand her, I'd pretty much pay to watch her do anything.

She is also being added to the cast for the 2nd season of "American Horror Story"

[Ti-Amie]

Modern Family‘s first Season 4 table read, scheduled for today, was cancelled at the last minute for fear that contentious contract talks would keep several cast members from showing, sources confirm to TVLine.

Multiple cast members of the ABC comedy are re-negotiating their salaries with the show’s production company, 20th Century Fox TV, and Deadline.com reports that the talks aren’t going smoothly. Modern’s adult stars – including Sofia Vergara, Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Eric Stonestreet – allegedly have pooled their negotiation powers to achieve a desired salary increase, similar to what the Friends cast successfully did prior to Season 3 of that sitcom. And all of the adults — save Ed O’Neill — filed suit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court to void their contracts, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Today’s gathering, a regular occurrence at which the cast would have run through an upcoming episode’s script for the first time, would have been difficult to make happen without those adult cast members in attendance.

The change in schedule is making news because although contract negotiations are often difficult, they rarely interfere with a show’s production. (As Deadline points out, Everybody Loves Raymond and Malcolm in the Middle are notable exceptions.)

http://tvline.com/2012/07/24/modern-...ations-season/