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Buzz News Roundup, 10/8

BuzzSugar — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 13:30:34 -0700

According to Zap2It, Queen Latifah will have "a mysterious cameo" in the Ashton Kutcher-Cameron Diaz romantic comedy What Happens in Vegas.
The folks behind Half Nelson are prepping to make a romantic drama titled Blue Valentine, Variety reports.
The New York Times writes that advertisers are finally flocking to "Kid Nation" - just in time for viewers to flee.
Bruce Springsteen's latest album Magic made it to No. 1 on the charts, writes Billboard.
TV Guide reports that Joss Whedon is directing another episode of "The Office."
Oscar winner Forest Whitaker will produce and direct a pilot for FX focusing on arms dealers, Zap2it reports.
Dana Carvey taped comic riffs on films for the online show "Down in Front With Dana Carvey," which will play on Netflix this Friday and Saturday, the AP reports.
"Law & Order: Criminal Intent" did pretty well - by cable standards - in its first outing on USA, writes the Hollywood Reporter.

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Link Time! 9/20

BuzzSugar — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 15:35:27 -0700

Pop Candy wonders how you feel about blogs by TV characters.
Cinematical lists the top 7 "cinematic trendsetters" of the '80s, including Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Risky Business and She's Out of Control.
Popwatch is relieved to learn that Paddington Bear's love of orange marmalade remains intact.
TV Squad has a picture of the crazy "Star Trek: The Next Generation" box set that's being released in October.
Rolling Stone's Rock and Roll Daily has some interesting quotes from Mick Jagger regarding his upcoming solo album.
Vulture lists 10 child actors they'd like to send to "Kid Nation."
ScreenGrab has Part 1 of their top 15 all-time worst athletes-turned-actors.
Meanwhile, Spinner asks Juliette Lewis to list the top five best live performers.

TV Tonight: Welcome Back, TV!

BuzzSugar — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 09:30:47 -0700

Finally! At long last, it's starting to get hard to decide what to watch on TV. While many shows don't start till next week, three networks have new shows premiering tonight, and most of them are worth a look:

Fox has the premiere of its new comedy "Back to You" and Gordan Ramsay's "Kitchen Nightmares," with a new episode of "'Til Death" sandwiched in bewteen.
CBS has the much-ballyhooed premiere of "Kid Nation"
The CW kicks off the new season of "America's Next Top Model," then follows it up with the first episode of "Gossip Girl."

Throw in a special on ABC about the character of Addison and the live finale of "Last Comic Standing" on NBC, and it's quite the night for the major networks. Me, I'll be checking out "Kid Nation," "ANTM" and "Gossip Girl." You? To watch video clips of each of the four brand-new shows making their debuts tonight, read more
"Gossip Girl":

"Kid Nation":

"Kitchen Nightmares":

"Back to You":

Photos courtesy of CBS, The CW and Fox

Buzz News Roundup, 8/31

BuzzSugar — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 13:00:40 -0700

NBC is streaming full episodes of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," Broadcasting & Cable reports - but, on the down side, the New York Times reports that NBC won't renew its contract to sell shows through iTunes. (Apple says NBC wanted to charge $4.99 per episode)
According to Variety, Sony is releasing a Bob Dylan concert DVD filled with footage from his Newport Folk Festival performances later this year.
Drew Lachey has signed on to host "Dance War," ABC's midseason "Dancing with the Stars" spinoff, the Futon Critic reports.
ComingSoon says that Jim Belushi will take a stab at directing his first film, a sports movie titled The Catch.
The LA Times has the latest "Kid Nation" scandal: The children were sometimes told what to say.
It's official: Victoria Beckham will play one of Wilhelmina's bridesmaids on "Ugly Betty," Zap2it reports.
TNT has canceled "Heartland" but is looking into a pilot about a band of high-tech thieves, Variety reports.

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What's Your Take on the "Kid Nation" Controversy?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 16:26:41 -0700

It seems like every day this week, there's been a new story about possible misdeeds on the set of "Kid Nation." Today's development involves a complaint that the show about kids trying to build their own society overworked its adult crew.

But most of the allegations have involved the treatment of the children, saying they were in physical danger or working so much they violated child labor laws. Some observers have even said the show should be canceled in light of the controversy. CBS may have launched an internal investigation into the show, and late last week, the Smoking Gun revealed the contract parents had to sign which removed their right to sue CBS if something bad happened to their kid. CBS has acknowledged that a couple of kids drank bleach and one was burned while cooking (all are fine now) - but, on the other hand, couldn't kids get into that kind of trouble while horsing around at a neighbor's house or at camp? Do you think CBS should be in hot water over "Kid Nation"?

Photo courtesy of CBS

Buzz News Roundup, 8/24

BuzzSugar — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 13:30:53 -0700

NBC is offering 1,000 "Friday Night Lights" fans a chance to throw a house party with a sneak preview of the show's second season, and the Futon Critic has the details. You have to enter by today, so hurry!
The movie based on the TV series "Dallas" will be a comedy directed by Betty Thomas and starring John Travolta as J.R. Ewing, Variety reports.
"Anchorwoman" has been canned after just one airing, Broadcasting & Cable reports.
"American Idol" runner-up Blake Lewis has just scored his own record deal, says E! Online.
The Smoking Gun has the contract parents had to sign before their kids could be on "Kid Nation."
Zap2It reports that Mummy director Stephen Sommers will direct the G.I. Joe movie.
Comedy writer Buddy Sheffield is suing The Walt Disney Co. for allegedly stealing his idea for the series "Hannah Montana" and never compensating him, the AP reports.
According to Variety, Ang Lee's fall espionage thriller Lust, Caution has received an NC-17 rating.
Drew Carey's first episode as "The Price is Right" host will air Oct. 13, according to TV Guide.

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Controversy Abounds Before "Kid Nation" Debut

BuzzSugar — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 16:41:21 -0700

When CBS decided to film a reality show by putting 40 kids in the desert to create their own society, controversy was certain to follow. And the news stories slamming "Kid Nation" certainly have hit a fever pitch in the past few days. Two major articles have appeared questioning whether the children were abused or exploited during their 40 days in a New Mexico ghost town, one in the New York Times and one in the LA Times.

A mother of one participant who was burned in a cooking accident has alleged that the children were put in harm's way during the taping. There's also been a fuss over whether the production broke New Mexico's child labor laws. CBS responded to the criticism on Tuesday, saying the children were in good hands at all times and no laws were broken in the process, even as another New York Times story said the show was warned that it could be in violation of labor guidelines.

Maybe it's the skeptic in me, but I wonder if any publicity is good publicity for the show; the dust-ups certainly make me want to tune in when the show premieres Sept. 19. In the meantime, CBS also released a new promo for the show, which you can watch if you read more

Photo and video courtesy of CBS

TCA News Roundup: "Jericho" and More

BuzzSugar — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 16:45:12 -0700

While I couldn't be in LA myself to cover the CBS portion of the TCA press tour, I've been keeping an eye on the news coming out of the sessions. Here are some of the best bits so far:

"Jericho" producers promised their rabid fans a big-time payoff in the new season's first episode, wrapping up the cliffhangers left during the battle in the finale. And, if you were wondering, CBS did serve nuts at the session; they also gave out T-shirts emblazoned with a powerful peanut.
CBS has been selling "Kid Nation," its fall reality show about a town completely run by kids, with the tagine "40 days, 40 kids, no adults." But that's not entirely true: A pediatrician and a child psychologist were among the grownups around.
Do you ever get annoyed with the networks when live sports programs run into primetime, pushing out your favorite shows and throwing off your TiVo? CBS thinks it has the solution: Viewers can register with the new Eye-lert service to be notified by e-mail or text message when games run late.
This TV Guide live blog includes some of the other tidbits from the sessions, including the "Survivor"-themed lunch (no, you didn't have to complete a challenge before eating) and some unintentionally funny bits from the "Viva Laughlin" panel.

Are You Excited For Another Vacation Sequel?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 09:30:54 -0700

Hollywood may be taking a Couples Retreat this Friday, but we all know that Chevy Chase and National Lampoon put trip-themed films on the map with the Vacation series.

Now the Griswolds are back for another sequel, but this time Clark's son Rusty will be the dad commandeering the adventure. Ethan Embry played Rusty in the most recent Vegas Vacation, but a variety have actors have played the kids over the years and I'm sure we'll get a new pair this time. David Dobkin (one of the masterminds behind Wedding Crashers will produce and possibly direct, and of course the door is open for Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo to make appearances as the original Mr. and Mrs. Griswold. The Vacation movies will always hold a special place in my heart, but are you excited for the sequel?