BuzzSugar

Are These the 10 Best TV Pilots of All Time?

BuzzSugar — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 05:30:18 PDT

About this time last year, I asked you to tell me which TV shows you thought had strong first episodes. This year, TV Guide has named its 10 favorite pilots of all time, and . . . let's just say I respectfully disagree.

Well, I can't quibble much with the magazine's No. 1 choice of Lost, a pilot many of you brought up last year. It's completely true that from the first minutes the show sucked viewers in (as TV Guide puts it) "like that dude who got too close to the engine." After that, though, things get a little wonky. Like, is it fair to put a pilot that never aired on the list, like the editors did with the Football Wives pilot (No. 7)? I know networks make mistakes, but if the show never made it to TV, the pilot couldn't have been that great.

Also sticking out to me: the 30 Rock pilot (decent, but that show didn't get really hilarious till about episode six) and Saturday Night Live (does that even count as a pilot?). I also think I'd put ER up further on the list and consider adding Grey's Anatomy, Twin Peaks, The West Wing, and/or Six Feet Under. What are your quibbles - and where do you agree? To see the whole top 10 list, just

Lost

24

The Shield

The Sopranos

30 Rock

Football Wives

Desperate Housewives

Saturday Night Live

ER

Alias

Source

Real Talk With TV Broke Girl Beth Behrs

LearnVest — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 11:59:07 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart LearnVest story here on Savvy!

Since when is being broke funny?

Since CBS released its new sitcom 2 Broke Girls, in which actress Beth Behrs plays a recently humbled heiress, Caroline, who moves to Brooklyn to hide out after her father loses their family fortune in a Ponzi scheme.

Caroline winds up living with her perpetually poor fellow waitress, Max, played by Kat Dennings, and the two hatch a plan to save their wages and start a cupcake business.

Recession-era cupcake businesses have been all the rage lately (see: Bridesmaids), but shows addressing personal finances - or lack thereof - with humor and honesty is something we don’t see very often. Caroline and Max manage to plan for their future while hustling for their present - and survive on a shoestring with admirable grace. We love that these characters live richly, even on a tight salary: After all, that's what LearnVest is all about.

And, of course, any show where the leading ladies discuss interest rates is right up our alley.

Check out our exclusive talk with Behrs on her penny-pinching past, her first pair of Louboutins - and why she still chooses to live with a roommate in real life. It turns out that we can learn something from celebs about money.

LearnVest: As a 26-year-old in Hollywood, how much of Caroline and Max’s financial struggle can you relate to?

Beth Behrs: Literally up until we shot the pilot, I was working as a nanny five days a week and then as a bartender and concierge at The Geffen Playhouse on the weekends. So, I can definitely relate to being broke, right out of college and working tons of odd jobs to just pay the rent.

Real-life waitress stories and more from Behrs.

Everything You Need to Know About Buying a Nintendo 3DS

Kristy Korcz — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 11:36:44 PDT

It's almost time - the Nintendo 3DS launches this weekend! I've had a few days to get to know the unit, and while I'm admittedly a Nintendo kind of gal, it's definitely exceeded my expectations with this console. Find out more about it below!

Price and Availability
The new Nintendo 3DS will hit stores this Sunday, March 27 for $250.

Trade-Ins and Credits
Want to trade up for the newest version? Here's what you need to know:

Walmart - Starting this Sunday, you can trade in a used Nintendo DS model for up to a $100 credit toward the 3DS at authorized Walmart locations.
Target - Starting on Sunday, you can trade in any used Nintendo DS system for up to $50 in credit toward the purchase of a 3DS, or any other purchase in Target stores.
GameStop - Trade in your used Nintendo DSi XL for $100 in reservation credits, your DSi for $75, and your DS for $50 to put toward the purchase of a new 3DS.

Find out more about the games, the 3D quality, and whether or not you should buy after the break.

10 of Today's Hottest Jobs

Kiplinger — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 00:15:12 PDT

We're thrilled to present this smart Kiplinger story here on Savvy!

Believe it or not, even with the unemployment rate stubbornly high and many industries reluctant to staff up, there are employers out there who still can’t find enough qualified applicants. Some are offering six-figure salaries to the right job seekers. The trick, of course, is unearthing these hidden opportunities.

We started by asking CareerBuilder to mine its vast employment database to identify promising occupations that are experiencing an under-supply of qualified applicants relative to the number of available jobs. The resulting ratio is a good indicator of hiring demand - the lower the ratio, the greater the need for applicants. A ratio of 10.0, for example, means there are ten job seekers for every open position. A ratio of 0.5 means there are two open positions for every job seeker.

We also took a hard look at pay and growth prospects, based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Annual salary ranges reflect the rates in the 25th and 75th percentiles. Ten-year growth projections are based on BLS's expected change in the number of positions between 2008 and 2018. Finally, we filtered our choices to represent a range of industries and educational requirements. Check out our list of ten of today’s hottest jobs.

1. Nurse Practitioner

Hiring demand: 0.25 active job seekers for every open position

Annual salary range: $52,980-$79,020

10-year growth projection: 22%

Job description: A picture of health. The first baby-boomers are reaching retirement age at a time when there’s a shortage of primary-care physicians. Nurses are needed to close the gap. They perform many duties, from medical histories to disease management, previously handled by doctors. While hospitals are the largest employers of nurses, the fastest growth - and best pay - can be found in physicians’ offices. At minimum, you’ll need to complete a formal training program. Some nursing positions call for an associate’s, bachelor’s or even master’s degree.

Read on for more hot jobs.