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Happily Divorced Fran Drescher Working on TV Pilot With Gay Ex-Husband

Annie Scudder — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:15:55 PDT

Fran Drescher and her ex-husband, Peter Marc Jacobson, are happily divorced, so much so they're working together on a TV show by the same name. The former couple co-created The Nanny, and Fran will also star in their new project, this time based loosely on her life.

Happily Divorced is about a woman who tries to start her life again once she finds out her husband is gay. After 21 years of marriage, high school sweethearts Fran and Peter divorced in 1999, and Peter later came out as gay. Despite that, they managed to stay friends and campaign for gay rights together, and Fran even sets up her ex with eligible bachelors. All that sounds like great sitcom fodder.

Considering the success of Modern Family, which suggests unconventional family dynamics are the new normal, this 21st-century take on divorce sounds like a promising hit. Expect to catch it on TV Land, the network planning to pick it up.

Link Time - Jennifer Lopez Will Not Be an Idol Judge

BuzzSugar — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 13:31:16 PDT

Jennifer Lopez reportedly out of the running to be an Idol judge - People
Neil Patrick Harris gets an additional, last-minute Emmy nomination - TV Squad
MIA releases her video for "XXXO" - Vulture
This 10-year-old's voice from America's Got Talent just blew my mind - Flavorwire
The teaser for the alien flick Skyline loads up on special effects - Film School Rejects
Ashton Kutcher plans a "generational" version of Beauty and the Geek for TV Land - PopWatch
This new clip from Burlesque showcases Christina's pipes - Movieline
Ryan Murphy wants Bieber for Glee - Zap2it
Scarlett Johansson and Blake Lively are up for the same role in Gravity - MTV Movies Blog
New photos from the set of Gossip Girl - PopSugar

Link Time! Conan O'Brien Close to Inking a Deal With Fox

BuzzSugar — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 13:30:57 PDT

Conan O'Brien is working on a late-night agreement with Fox - TV Squad
Also in Coco news, his new live show may become a documentary - MTV Movies Blog
Blockbuster is headed toward bankruptcy - Vulture
Television's most underrated hot men - TresSugar
The music portion of SXSW kicks off today! - Music Mix
Betty White lands a sitcom - Zap2it
A satire about suicide bombers? This trailer is sure to cause a ruckus - The Playlist
Sigourney Weaver to play a vampire queen for Amy Heckerling - Moviefone
Tracy Morgan returns as host of Scare Tactics - The Futon Critic
Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with these top 10 TV bars (Moe's!) - TV.com

What's Your Favorite Show to Watch in Reruns?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:30:00 PST

Curb Your Enthusiasm is coming to cable: The TV Guide channel and TV Land have both just acquired the show in a joint effort to run old episodes. Larry David and the gang will first appear on TV Guide starting in February, and TV Land will pick up the show from them starting in 2013. Now, I can feed my rerun addiction and catch up on those seasons of Curb that I missed when I didn't have HBO! Not that I need yet another program to watch in syndication.

I don't know how it happens, but I always get sucked into back-to-back on TBS or Comedy Central's Scrubs marathons. I've seen most of the storylines at least twice - Sex and the City episodes at least three times - but I still watch them again and again.

I know I'm not alone here, so tell me: What's your favorite show to watch in reruns? Seinfeld? Everybody Loves Raymond? The Office?

Buzz In: What is Your Favorite Old-School TV Show?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:30:23 PDT

TV Land, home to classics like The Brady Bunch, Three's Company, and Bonanza, is branching out into original comedies. The network just announced that they're developing two scripted shows, titled Hot in Cleveland and Retired at 35. But will people actually flip to the channel to check out this new programming?

Personally, the older shows are the only reason I'd tune into TV Land. I used to be obsessed with I Love Lucy as a kid - I even had a Lucy calendar hanging up in my room. Thanks to Nick at Nite, I could watch it on a regular basis, along with Bewitched, The Dick Van Dyke Show, and Mary Tyler Moore. (I live for Rhoda!) Now, Nick at Nite plays mainly 90s favorites like Home Improvement and Family Matters, so TV Land has become my vintage channel of choice. Hopefully they won't go the way of MTV with music videos and make the older shows completely obsolete - that would just be sad.

Admittedly, I'm a bit of a dork when it comes to classic TV, but tell me, what is your favorite old-school show?

Buzz News Roundup, 4/23

BuzzSugar — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 13:30:45 PDT

Showtime's The Tudors has been renewed for a third season, USA Today reports.
Variety has news that Ang Lee's next directorial project will be Taking Woodstock, the autobiography of Elliot Tiber, a Catskills motel worker who played a pivotal role in making the Woodstock concert happen.
Naomi Campbell will guest-star on the season finale of Ugly Betty, the Associated Press reports.
Virginia Madsen has joined the cast of the Amelia Earhart biopic, which already included Hilary Swank and Richard Gere, writes ComingSoon.
Mariah Carey had her best album debut ever this week, easily landing at the top of the charts, Billboard reports.
TV Land will be airing a modeling competition focusing solely on women 35 and older; details are at The Futon Critic.
Tom Cruise's 13-year-old son Connor will have a minor, nonspeaking part as the younger version of Will Smith's character in the drama Seven Pounds, the AP reports.
Contestants from the VH1 game shows with "love" in the name (Flavor of Love, etc.) will compete in a new show called For Love or Money to win cash prizes, TV Guide reports.
Variety has the just-announced lineup for this year's Cannes Film Festival, which will include Clint Eastwood's 1920s thriller The Changeling starring Angelina Jolie, Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona . . . and Kung Fu Panda.

Photo courtesy of Showtime

TV Tonight: The 50 Greatest TV Icons

BuzzSugar — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 07:30:22 PST

We've been debating the merits of the 50 greatest TV icons list compiled by TV Land and Entertainment Weekly. Tonight, we'll get to see many of the icons in action when the 50 Greatest TV Icons special premieres on TV Land.

The show includes clips of some of the iconic performances and interviews with stars about what makes an icon. I'm curious to hear how some of the honorees ended up on the list, and I also can't wait to hear them talking about each other (one preview shows Kermit praising Lassie for paving the way for TV animals, for example). In addition, Entertainment Weekly has released its take on the list, complete with recommendations for checking out each icon's work on DVD.

The special premieres at 8 p.m., but check your local listings to be sure. In the meantime, to watch a couple of clips explaining why Jon Stewart made the list - he's No. 41 - just

Who are the Top TV Icons of All Time?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 05:30:00 PST

What names come to mind when I say the words "television icon"? Dick Clark? Mary Tyler Moore? Kermit the Frog?

Those three - and 97 others - have made the list of the 100 greatest TV icons of all time, as declared by Entertainment Weekly and TV Land. The top 50 will be counted down in a TV Land special that premieres this Friday.

At first glance, the list - especially the top 10 or 15 - looks pretty good. I can't argue with Johnny Carson getting the No. 1 spot, and I'm pleased that the top 10 is almost perfectly balanced between the genders: five men, four women, and one cartoon (Homer Simpson).

But there are a few curiosities. John Stamos hits the list at No. 90, but Bob Saget doesn't rate a mention despite his years as both Danny Tanner and the host of America's Funniest Home Videos? No Big Bird or other Sesame Street characters? No Star Trek faces, not even Leonard Nimoy or LaVar Burton (whom, I'd argue, deserves a spot for Reading Rainbow alone)? It also seems like a bit of a cop-out to lump the casts of In Living Color and the original Saturday Night Live together while limiting themselves to one cast member from Melrose Place, Friends, and Beverly Hills, 90210. And I wonder how Miss Piggy feels about being passed over for Kermie.

Which icons do you think deserve spots on the list - and which of these choices would you kick off to make room for yours? The full list is over here, and you can see the top 50 if you

read more 50. Larry Hagman 49. Calista Flockhart 48. Jimmy Smits 47. Simon Cowell 46. Lassie 45. Sarah Michelle Gellar 44. Susan Lucci 43. Flip Wilson 42. James Gandolfini 41. Jon Stewart 40. Sally Field 39. Jennifer Aniston 38. Bea Arthur 37. George Clooney 36. Diahann Carroll 35. Michael J. Fox 34. Bob Barker 33. Ellen DeGeneres 32. Henry Winkler 31. Sarah Jessica Parker 30. Alan Alda 29. John Ritter 28. Howard Cosell 27. Regis Philbin 26. Farrah Fawcett 25. Heather Locklear 24. Michael Landon 23. Barbara Walters 22. Milton Berle 21. Kermit 20. Carroll O'Connor 19. Andy Griffith 18. William Shatner 17. Bob Newhart 16. David Letterman 15. "Not Ready for Primetime Players" 14. Ed Sullivan 13. Jackie Gleason 12. Dick Van Dyke 11. Roseanne 10. Dick Clark 9. Homer Simpson 8. Jerry Seinfeld 7. Mary Tyler Moore 6. Carol Burnett 5. Walter Cronkite 4. Bill Cosby 3. Oprah Winfrey 2. Lucille Ball 1. Johnny Carson Source and Source

Sexism, Stereotypes, and the Super Bowl: Recent Ads That Sexualize Women

Anna Monette Roberts — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 13:05:00 PST

Sex sells - especially for Super Bowl ads - and year after year, major companies try to get away with the raciest, steamiest ads possible, often at the expense of women. Cars, food, technology - it doesn't matter what the product is; these ads throw in a hot, skin-baring woman for distraction and buzz. Ahead of the big game tomorrow, let's look back at some of the most scandalous ads in the last few years. And maybe one day we'll see more Super Bowl ads that show women some respect.

Skechers: "Kim Kardashian For Shape-Ups"

Kim teases her trainer by telling him he's "the best she's ever had, but it's not working out," and she prefers her Shape-Up Skechers over him. This 2011 ad is confusing and mismarketed, because it's eye candy for men, yet targeting women. Plus, no woman in her right mind would pass up that smokin' trainer for a pair of sneakers.

Click here to check out more sexualized Super Bowl ads.

Pirate Rock! Disney's Sharky and Bones Open Up About Pirate Culture, Jake, and Peter Pan

Rebecca M Gruber — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 08:37:27 PST

Can you talk like a pirate? If your lil one is between 2 and 5 years old, chances are he'll know exactly what we're talking about!

Since its launch last February, Disney's Jake and the Neverland Pirates has become the top-ranking series among kids in that age group. The animated show - about a new crew of pirates who work together to outwit Captain Hook and Smee around Pirate Island - is about to embark on its second season with a prime-time special Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Peter Pan Returns (airing Feb. 13), where the little boy who won't grow up enlists the minipirates to help him find his lost shadow. As with the daily show, the special will feature original pirate rock songs written and sung by Sharky and Bones of The Never Land Pirate Band. I spoke with Loren Hoskins and Kevin Hendrickson, the men behind Sharky and Bones and the stars of the live-action music videos featured at the end of each episode, about the popularity of pirate culture and what it can teach tots today.

LilSugar: Obviously you two are well versed in little kids' obsessions with pirates. How did it start for you two?
Kevin Hendrickson (Bones): It started before our kids. Loren and I met maybe 12 years ago, and we both just had a love of pirates and the old Disney records we grew up listening to. We decided to make a pirate album for kids, even though we didn't have kids.
Loren Hoskins (Sharky): We were pirates before pirate was cool. We had an affinity for pirate and pirate culture and the old Disneyland rides - you know the old Pirates of the Caribbean attraction - and we combined all those into a rock album for kids of all ages. We say "for buccaneers of all ages" because we had a lot of fans that were not kids and a lot of fans that were kids and then families that were fans. We just decided to not be a children's band, but a band for all buccaneers!

LilSugar: It's been almost 60 years since Disney released Peter Pan, and unlike other Disney flicks, it hasn't received a rerelease or a 3D upgrade. Why do you think the pirate obsession remains so strong today?
Loren Hoskins (Sharky): I have always maintained that what pirates represent for play is all the best things about play. That's imagination, adventure, being bold-hearted, silly voices, and fun dress-up costumes. You put all that together and you get classic kid play. It's like pirates and dinosaurs. Dinosaurs were huge for a while, and I think for the same reason – you can just go "roaar," and play all these great games, and they were bold and adventurous and from exotic locations. Pirates are the same thing. They're one of those classic play building blocks

Keep reading for more of our talk about pirate rock and the show's educational value.