She can turn the world on with a smile, but can she turn more viewers on to a sophomore-season drama? Seven-time Emmy winner Mary Tyler Moore has been booked for a multi-episode arc on NBC's Lipstick Jungle, playing mom to Brooke Shields' Wendy. Moore's alter ego, Joyce, is a retired high-powered executive who forces Wendy to question the ideal of "Having it all." And then a clown named Chuckles dies and they attend the funeral together. — Matt Mitovich
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No awards system is perfect, and the TCA Awards is no exception. But arriving two days after the often-inexplicable results of the Emmy nominations, Saturday night's low-key, good-time TCA Awards ceremony at the Beverly Hilton was a welcome course correction to several especially egregious Emmy oversights. (And, lo and behold, nary a mention of Boston Legal anywhere.)First up: Michael C. Hall, ignored by the Emmys but cited by the TCA for “Individual Achievement in Drama,” for his mesmerizing performance in Showtime's Dexter as a serial killer targeting Miami's lowest forms of criminal life. (Other contenders in this category included Friday Night Lights' Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton, also shamefully snubbed at the Emmys.)Friday Night Lights, a near shutout at the Emmys despite its status as a first-year critics’ darling (and recipient of Peabody and AFI awards), was later named Outstanding New Program. (The field also included 30 Rock, Dexter, Heroes and Ugly Bet...
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From Barney Fife to Barney Miller, cops and comedy have made hysterical bedfellows. Comedy Central's cult hit Reno 911! is proof that the bumbling-police shtick remains in fine hands. The mostly improvised series plays its Cops-like parody for plenty of white-trash gags and silly sexual innuendos. Comic Carlos Alazraqui, who plays dim-witted deputy James Garcia, took a few moments away from World Cup action to lay down the law with TVGuide.com about his screwy series arriving on DVD this week, what the new season promises, and what's up with these modern Keystone Kops hitting movie screens. TVGuide.com: So, Reno 911! — The Complete Third Season is here on DVD.Carlos Alazraqui: Yeah, and fans will love the
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Question: It seems a given, in the many questions about network scheduling that you receive, that Saturday night is where TV shows go to die, so no one schedules a potential keeper on Saturday. Yet within living memory (mine, at least), CBS had a killer Saturday lineup that would put any recent "must-see" night to shame (All in the Family, M*A*S*H, Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett). I know we went out on Saturday night in the '70s (and with no TiVo, or even VCRs). It can't just be due to the fracturing of cable — if the audience is really too small on Saturday, then it's too small whether your share is 15 percent or 35 percent. I've been looking back trying to find the tipping point, but I can't see when the landscape changed. What in the business has caused this change in perception? On a completely unrelated note: I have fallen in love with Slings & Arrows. Has there been, or is there going to be, a third season? I need more of New Burbage!
Answer: First off, I'm thrilled
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Question: I read a question-and-answer that was originally published in September 2005. The question was about Laura Petrie's maiden name on The Dick Van Dyke Show. The answer was Meehan. I recall one episode in which her maiden name was Meeker, and then in subsequent episodes it was Meehan. I remember reading an explanation, but I don't remember what it was.
Answer: No problem, Laura — luckily, I do. Mary Tyler Moore, who played Laura on the legendary show, divorced husband Richard Meeker and didn't want to keep his name as her character's maiden name. So via the magic of TV, it changed. Want to make a fortune? Invent a machine allowing us to change the past without any other ill effects in real life, too.
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