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TV Tonight: The Celebrity Apprentice

BuzzSugar — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 06:30:00 -0800

The Donald is back - and this time, he's bringing a bunch of quasi-celebrities with him. Donald Trump's The Celebrity Apprentice premieres tonight on NBC, marking the seventh season of the show and the first since Trump said he was quitting back in the spring.

The 14 candidates came by their fame (or, in some cases, "fame") in a host of different ways: Two are Olympic gold medalists, several are actors, and a couple made their names on other reality TV shows - including Omarosa, the brash contestant from the first season of The Apprentice. Each has picked a charity to sponsor throughout the season's challenges, and the winner will get $250,000 for their organization of choice. In tonight's episode, the candidates will be hawking hot dogs, and they won't hesitate to put their status to use in the process. I'm probably most curious to see Gene Simmons, but TV executive Nely Galan seems like a force to be reckoned with.

Can the famous faces revitalize a franchise that tanked in the ratings last season? One thing's for sure: I can't wait till SavvySugar gets here, because she'll be sharing all the dirt on what happens in the boardroom. In the meantime, to watch a preview for the season, just read more.

Photo courtesy of NBC

Link Time! 11/20

BuzzSugar — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 13:26:04 -0800

TV Filter is stunned at The Bachelor's actual surprise ending.
Kenneth Branagh tells MTV Movies Blog that he'd hoped his character in the Harry Potter series would have turned out to be Harry's dad.
Popwatch wonders who has the catchier commercials: iPod or Zune?
TV Squad wonders if there will really be a Green Acres remake.
Cinematical dissects the news that Jennifer Garner will join Ricky Gervais in the comedy This Side of the Truth.
Color me jealous: TiFaux saw 30 Rock's live show.
Over on Stereogum you can enter to win 2007's 50 best CDs
The TV Addict has an interview with Sarah Strange from Men in Trees.
You Ain't No Picasso has a hysterical playlist of songs for Pushing Daisies.
Give Me My Remote is livid over the Thursdays-at-9 time slot for The Apprentice.

TCA News Roundup: NBC Shuffles Shows, Adds Trump

BuzzSugar — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 16:54:06 -0700

In addition to all-fantasy Mondays, NBC announced a few more changes to its schedule during Monday's TCA presentation. On Tuesday nights, "The Singing Bee" will lead in to a 90-minute edition of "The Biggest Loser." "Friday Night Lights" will shift to 9 p.m. on Fridays instead of 10 p.m., with "Deal or No Deal" as a lead-in and "Las Vegas" following it at 10.
It's official: "The Apprentice" is back with a special celebrity edition. The idea is for celebrities who have a business focus to duke it out, and apparently Donald Trump is encouraging Rosie O'Donnell to sign up. The involved celebrities will be raising money for charity, so at least there's something redeeming about this project.
Jerry Seinfeld will star as himself in the season premiere of "30 Rock," going toe-to-toe with Alec Baldwin's character, the bullish Jack Donaghy. Seinfeld's quip in NBC's statement: "I think it's going to be so refreshing for me to be playing myself in a show that has nothing to do with neurotic, dysfunctional New York characters." Tina Fey, meanwhile, said she was happy to have Seinfeld drop by so the rest of America would learn that "30 Rock" exists.
NBC entertainment co-chairman Ben Silverman believes the network has "the next great reality format" in "Phenomenon," which will feature Uri Geller and Criss Angel searching for the next great mentalist. Geller and Angel will judge contestants' abilities in weekly challenges, with viewers at home voting for the ultimate winner.
Norman Lear, the mind behind "All in the Family" and other classic sitcoms, will be returning to TV, working as a producer on a one-hour comedy focused on a single mother battling sexism on Wall Street.

Which NBC Reality Show Would You Renew?

BuzzSugar — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 04:30:00 -0700

Just when we thought we might be free of "The Apprentice" forever, there's this: Sources say that NBC is about to announce at least one, and possibly two, more seasons of the show.

I'm trying to look on the bright side here; it could be worse. Maybe another NBC reality show could have been renewed instead - say, "The Real Wedding Crashers" or "Grease: You're the One That I Want." So here's my question for you. If one of these NBC reality shows had to stay on the air, which would you renew? ("None" is not an option!)

Source

Buzz News Roundup, 7/9

BuzzSugar — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 13:27:51 -0700

Forbes confirms that Jane magazine is shutting down.
Rupert Friend has been cast as Prince Albert alongside Emily Blunt in The Young Victoria, says Hollywood Reporter.
Recently ousted NBC entertainment president Kevin Reilly could be hired by Fox, which would reunite the team that developed "Nip/Tuck" and "The Shield," TV Week reports.
MTV News warns that there may not be a new Outkast album for two years, while Andre 3000 and Big Boi pursue solo projects.
Bestselling novel Water for Elephants will be adapted for the big screen, Variety reports.
It sounds like we're in for at least one, if not two, more editions of "The Apprentice," Reuters says.
Billboard says The Cure is working on a double album due in October.
Lance Bass will join the cast of the Broadway musical "Hairspray" on August 14, reports the AP.
The Hollywood Reporter says ABC is retooling "Cavemen," adding a new character, ditching the caveman played by Dash Mihok, and shooting a new first episode to go deeper into the characters' back stories.
This year's ComiCon schedule of events has just been released.
In TV casting news, two Kevins - Alejandro and Pollak - are joining the cast of "Shark" on CBS, while TV Guide says Michael Cassidy of "Hidden Palms" will be the new editor of The Daily Planet on "Smallville."

Buzz News Roundup, 5/21

BuzzSugar — Mon, 21 May 2007 14:24:25 -0700

"The Apprentice" wasn't on the schedule NBC unveiled last week, but Donald Trump refused to be fired - he quit instead, Reuters reports, moving on to "a major new TV venture."
Julia Roberts is set to produce and star in a movie about Joan Root, a wildlife conservationist who was murdered in Kenya last year, says the BBC news.
Let's just say it wasn't exactly "National Bingo Night" after all - the ABC game show limped to a third-place finish on Friday, writes Zap2it.
"Studio 60"'s expensive, grand set has been torn down, says the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Variety tells of an Overboard! reunion: Goldie Hawn has signed on to direct and star in the comedy Ashes to Ashes with Kurt Russell joining her.
"On the Lot" contestants will have to feature Ford and Verizon products in their films, writes the Hollywood Reporter.
Fiona Apple and Nickel Creek will team up for a summer tour, Billboard reports.
The LA Daily News brings us news that Anthony Michael Hall (yes, the geek from The Breakfast Club!) will be joining the cast of The Dark Night.

Source

TV Tonight: "The Apprentice: Los Angeles" Finale

BuzzSugar — Sun, 22 Apr 2007 14:15:23 -0700

"The Apprentice" wraps up its first trip to Los Angeles tonight, with either Stefani, Frank, James or Nicole getting to hear the magical words - "you're hired" - from Trump himself. I've got to ask: Is anyone still watching? It seems like the show, which was once one of television's biggest hits, finally oozed into irrelevance this season, with its worst premiere ever and lackluster ratings ever since. The show doesn't seem to be going anywhere, though, with creator Mark Burnett insisting that he'll take the show to another network if NBC doesn't renew it.

Tonight's finale is being filmed live from LA's famed Hollywood Bowl; the final challenge, in which the candidates had to make commercials for an air freshener company, aired last week. I'm just floored that Frank, who I thought should have been the first one fired, could still win this thing. NBC has a video preview of the episode on the show's official site. If you've been following the show this season, which candidate do you think will win?

Source

Link Time! 1/9

BuzzSugar — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 12:44:11 -0800

As a church examines the morality of "Grey's Anatomy," PopWatch drafts The Ten Commandments according to Grey's.
M. Night Shyamalan will also direct an Avatar movie, Defamer says, but not the James Cameron kind.
The Modern Age finds out how Alicia Keys feels about being name-checked by Dylan.
TVGasm gives us an early "American Idol" fix with footage from the Pasadena auditions.
TV with MeeVee interviews Ed Begley Jr. about what it's really like to live with him.
Stereogum somehow makes me care about folk-rockers America covering My Morning Jacket very earnestly.
Best Week Ever lets us vent our pop-culture frustration with the Rosie vs. Donald Street Fighter game.
BuddyTV talks with Martin Han Clarke, the first fired "Apprentice."
TV Squad has the scoop on new DVDs: the last season of "NewsRadio" and 1970s classic "Maude."
Idolator challenges the Village Voice Pazz & Jop list with its Jackin' Pop poll.
Filmrot.com finds a hilarious silent film version of Star Wars, complete with piano accompaniment.

Source

"The Apprentice" Premiere Tanks

BuzzSugar — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 14:38:37 -0800

Donald Trump made headlines recently by fighting with Rosie O'Donnell and shaming Miss USA, but all that publicity still couldn't get anyone excited about the premiere of "The Apprentice: Los Angeles."

Sunday night's episode was the series' worst premiere ever. It got whupped in the ratings by "Desperate Housewives" and "Brothers & Sisters" on ABC and "Without a Trace" on CBS. Perhaps worst of all, it lost 20 percent of the audience that tuned in earlier for "Grease: You're the One That I Want".

Apparently not even adding Ivanka - and throwing in that twist where the losing team sleeps in tents - could get people buzzing about the new season. What happened? Did Trump's bizarre bickering with Rosie turn people off? Or are we just finally sick of looking at his hair?

TV Preview: "The Apprentice: Los Angeles"

BuzzSugar — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 06:00:24 -0800

The Donald returns this Sunday for the sixth season of "The Apprentice." This time around, he and the wannabe apprentices (apprenti?) are in Los Angeles, and the twist is that the contestants have to earn the right to sleep in Trump's mansion. The team that loses each challenge has to sleep in tents and pee in portapotties. The winning project manager also has a say in deciding who from the losing team gets fired.

If that's not enough to tantalize you into watching Trump's bad hair for another three months, NBC has released a 25-minute preview of the first episode. You can watch at the show's official site or at Yahoo! TV, which also has each of the 18 contestants' audition videos. In the clip, the contestants split into two teams and have a few hours to make the most money running an LA car wash. I've gotta say, Frank looks like a prime candidate to get fired first.

To the see other great "Apprentice" goodie I found online, read more

Whether or not you're planning to watch "The Apprentice" this season, you should check out this bobblehead battle game featuring the Dwight Schrute bobblehead from "The Office" taking on Trump. It's worth it just to see nerdy Dwight punch The Donald's head off.