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TV News Tidbits: Amy Sedaris, Jada Pinkett Smith, and More

BuzzSugar — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 14:29:18 -0800

It's that time again! The twice-yearly Television Critics Association press tour kicked off in Los Angeles this week, which means the TV news is going to flow fast and furious for the next week or so. PBS and cable take the stage this week, and then the network portion kicks in early next week, when Molly and I will be flying down to LA to blog and Twitter this tour ourselves!

Until then, I'm keeping an eye on some of the TV news coming out, both from the networks that are presenting and the others that are just making announcements. Some of the highlights so far:

TNT has picked up two new drama series, including Jada Pinkett Smith's project, Time Heals. The other series is The Line, a cop drama starring Dylan McDermott.
Unsurprisingly, Amy Sedaris had the crowd in stitches at the PBS panel yesterday. She's narrating a new PBS miniseries called Make 'Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America, which airs starting Jan. 14. Oh, and apparently Amy does not like the internet very much, but the internet still loves her.
If you like Discovery Channel shows, then get a load of this: The network has at least seven new shows coming soon, including Out of the Wild, in which suburbanites are dropped into the Alaskan wilderness and have to find their way back to civilization. (I'm not kidding - I'd totally watch that.)
Ian McKellen will not be nude for the PBS version of King Lear. So uh, you can cross that off your calendar, I guess.

Source

Jada Pinkett Smith Makes Time For TNT Series

BuzzSugar — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 10:31:58 -0700

More proof that TNT is the official network of strong women: it's lured Jada Pinkett Smith back to television. She'll be starring in - and executive-producing - the network's new drama pilot called Time Heals.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the show "centers on Nancy Hawthorne (Pinkett Smith), a strong but caring director of nursing at Charlotte Mercy Hospital in North Carolina, a single mother who always puts the pain of others first." That sounds like it could be a meaty role - and a show that will fit well on the network that also recruited Holly Hunter for Saving Grace and Kyra Sedgwick for The Closer.

Frankly, I'm happy anytime a TV network turns out a show with a powerful woman at its core, and it's about time we had another show with a woman of color in the lead. I'll be interested to hear more about this show as it moves forward. How about you?

Source

Buzz Interview With the Cast of Precious, Part 2: Lee Daniels

BuzzSugar — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:30:17 -0700

Last week I shared with you my interview with Precious actress Paula Patton, but now it's time to hear from the director himself, Lee Daniels. I asked the Sundance-award winner - the film took home the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize - how it feels to hear Oscar buzz, and what it's like when Oprah is on your speed dial. Plus, he opened up to me about how the movie helped him overcome from his own dark past. Ready for his incredibly candid responses?

On all the hype surrounding Mo'Nique's performance: I'm not the least bit surprised. It's magic onset. People are talking about this buzz, but she and I laugh it off, because we got a movie made, and there were no arrests! Seriously, the cops came, but they didn't shut us down. They said, 'OK, we'll give you five minutes.' There were no arrests, and no one got in any trouble, so for us, the win was finishing the film.

To hear more from Daniels, read more.

On how he felt when Oprah and Tyler Perry jumped on as producers: Tyler calls and says, "Hey, it's Tyler." Huh?! Oprah calls, "Heeeey." It's crazy! It gave me hope that people would see the film.
On the Oscar buzz: Why do people say that? What happens if you don't?! Then your feelings are so hurt. You teeter on wanting so desperately for it, but dare not dreaming for it, because your feelings are so crushed if it doesn't happen.

On why he wanted to make Precious: To heal. Some horrific things have happened to me [in my past], not only at home, but outside of my home life, [like] being openly gay. Being gay is nothing like it was when i was a kid - back in my day, you were literally stoned, a dislocated arm, teeth knocked out. So I try to see the light often. It's hard, because we all have hard lives, and some of us have it harder. What I like to find is people who have had lives just a little harder than mine [like Precious] so I can feel that mine wasn't as bad as it was.
On what he learned from making the film: I look at [the film] as a process. This was not a beautiful journey, because I learned so much about myself. I had been holding on to so much anger from the past, and it was making me an ugly person. It was making me judge people like Precious, because of who I was. How sad was that to find out at 50, that I would've lived such a better life if I had just let go of the hostility. [But once I let go] it felt beeautiful! Liberating!

I was so moved to hear Daniels talk about his own healing through the film - hopefully, it will have the same effect on others when it arrives in theaters next week.

Before the release, I'll be running my interview with Gabourey Sidibe, the newcomer that's making headlines for her Precious performance. Be sure to check back for that later - you're going to love her.

Photos courtesy of Lionsgate and Source

House Rundown, "Brave Heart"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 08:30:12 -0700

Wasn't this week's House incredibly satisfying? There was no sign of Thirteen - bring her back! - but House helped resurrect a man from the dead, heard voices in his head (crazy), and made goo-goo eyes at Cuddy. It doesn't get much better than that. I especially enjoyed the sweet friendship moments that played out between the hard-hearted doc and Wilson.

I'm ready to dissect it all - how about you? Let's start with the question portion (and a few spoilers) when you read more.

I loved seeing Wilson and House interact as roommates. (How about that scene where Wilson catches House fishing underneath the blankets, and he uses the excuse, "I'm picking lint out of my belly button"? Hilarious.) They're sort of like a warped version of Oscar and Felix from The Odd Couple. How long do you think until House moves out?
This week's case of the cop with the heart phobia really kept my interest, but I think my jaw literally dropped when they cut him open on the autopsy table and he opened his eyes. It was freaky in a fun, scary movie way. Did you see it coming?
Chase continued to harbor regret for killing off Dibala two weeks back, but this time it manifested itself in constant flashbacks, followed by a trip to a priest. I'm worried that he's going to sink into a major depression/insanity - and obviously destroy his marriage in the meantime. Do you think Chase will heed the priest's advice and turn himself in for the dictator's murder? I think he might - the guy's about to crack.
You probably feel mixed on this, but I'm sort of excited about the Cuddy-House romance that's a brewin'. The hints were everywhere this week - I especially liked his line about getting "hot for teacher!" Looks like those sexy hallucinations from last season may turn into something real after all. What do you make of the setup?
House started to wonder if he was going crazy (again), because he heard voices coming from Wilson's house. While I don't exactly wish insanity upon House, I thought the is-he-or-isn't-he question was fun to watch play out - except for the part where he has to admit to Cuddy that he may not be ready to be a doctor again. He looked so sad and defeated. This begs the question, do you think House really is 100 percent healed?
Chase has to stop being such a jerk to Cameron. No wonder she's leaving him soon.
Foreman really stood up to House in the episode by telling him that he couldn't perform the autopsy "without a medical license." Ouch. Still, I think it may actually earn House's respect in the long run, and I'm curious to see if their dynamic starts changing.
The final scene where House listens for Wilson's voice and then calls out to him from bed was so great. We really got to see House's soft side. Mainly, I just hope that the writers introduce someone for Wilson, don't you? He's so distraught over his girlfriend's death, and I want to see him happy.

Think you can shed light on any of these thoughts? What do you make of the whole Cuddy-House romance? Let me know in the comments, and to gossip more about the show, check out the House! group in Community.

Photos courtesy of Fox

Grey's Anatomy Rundown, "I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watchin' Me"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 07:00:31 -0700

This week on Grey's Anatomy, the doctors are (mostly) done grieving for George and have moved on to the newest preoccupation: the merger. With their jobs on the line, everyone can't get enough hospital time in as they fight off paranoia in the midst of a new batch of patients.

Can't get enough Grey's? Check out the Grey's Anatomy Junkies group in the Buzz community. To see what I thought of this week's episode, just read more.

Each of the doctors has his/her own way of reacting to the merger. Derek and Mark seem to be the only ones who are keeping their cool. Though Meredith also kept it together, her optimism is so out of character that it can only be chalked up to the crisis, and even she recognizes it.
Christina has never had an ego problem, but she's suddenly worried that none of the doctors "has her back." She decides to suck up to Arizona and head to peds, where she couldn't be more out of place. Her Mr. Bear voice was priceless.
Izzie tries to pretend that everything's fine, showing off a new wig and heading back to work so she won't get fired. (Sadly, we already know how this one ends). Alex tries to micro-manage Izzie and her illness, which at first seemed super annoying but was pretty sweet by the end of the episode.
Lexie is the most panicky of the bunch, talking a mile a minute and landing face down in blood. She proves her worth in the end by suggesting side-by-side surgeries for a paranoid schizophrenic and his overprotective mother. The parallel between the paranoia of the doctors and the paranoid schizophrenic was obvious to say the least. I have to admit though, his mother's "growth" could totally pass for an alien baby.
Speaking of babies, how awful is the doctor who nearly slices off a newborn's arm? I love that Arizona kept everyone together and saved her.
The Chief hides out in his office until the end of the episode, where he makes a round of layoffs via email. Among the goners are 3/4 of the interns and the syphilis nurse.
Yay for Arizona standing up for herself at the end of the episode. Not only does she give Christina a piece of her mind for using her, but she orders Callie to try to get her old job back. Love it.
In the end, Izzie realizes that she's still battling cancer and still healing from George's death. I'm happy she and Alex ended on a sweet note instead of a sour one, but it won't be long before she loses her job.

What did you think of this week's episode? Did you think schizophrenic Tom was going to wreak more havoc than he did? Did any of the main doctors deserve to get the boot?