Wondering where TV's big anniversary boom came from? You may thank (or blame) Carol Burnett — who set network suits to salivating last November when her outtakes special, The Carol Burnett Show: Showstoppers, earned stellar ratings. "Oops, sorry!" she chuckles. "I was as surprised as everybody else. When we were talking about doing it, it was just a silly, fun thing to do."
On Saturday, she hosts CBS... 50 Years from Television City (airing 8-10 pm/ET). The special looks back at classic TV series shot at L.A.'s Television City, the oldest TV production facility in Tinseltown. What's with the clip-show craze? "I think we're calling these programs 'comfort television,'" says exec producer Jeff Margolis. "Everybody likes nostalgia and trivia. It sure is n
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Sheryl Crow's new CD, C'mon C'mon, debuted at No. 2 on Billboard's album chart with 185,000 copies sold. R&B singer Ashanti's self-titled disc held on to the No. 1 spot with sales of 190,000. Celine Dion's A New Day Has Come dropped to No. 3.
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What drew Willem Dafoe to his dual role in Spider-Man (opening May 3)? "In my Green Goblin mode, there's lots of toys to play with," the actor smiles, "and in my Norman Osborn mode, it's an interesting character." Well, "interesting" sure says it. The comic-book crackpot reminds us more of Norman Bates!
Here's the sitch: His mad-scientist laboratory snafu gives Norman superhuman powers — and a psycho alter-ego with a grudge against Spidey (Tobey Maguire). In a few solo scenes, the script called for Dafoe to have kooky two-way conversations all by himself. (Just like timid Bates and his bloodthirsty Mother!) "[The part's] written in two vo
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Yun Kyeong Sung Kwon — the woman who accused Celine Dion's husband, Rene Angelil, of rape and slapped him with a civil suit last month — has been arrested for check forgery. Angelil's lawyers are suggesting the criminal charge calls Kwon's credibility into question.
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It took eight years, but Noah Wyle is on the verge of becoming ER's new chief of staff. With Anthony Edwards checking out on May 9, Wyle soon will be the show's longest-running cast member.
"I've been very curious to see what it will be like to carry the show the way Tony's been carrying it for [eight] years," the 30-year-old tells TV Guide Online. "To find myself having incrementally climbed up the call sheet and now arriving at the number-one spot... I'm very excited at the challenge of being at the center of the ensemble that I've given a third of my life to."
Contractually, Wyle is committed to ER for two more years — through the show's tenth season. After that, he'll most likely look to be discharged. "There's something nice about ten years in my head. It's a nic
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First Ted Koppel and now this! Variety reports that ABC newsman Peter Jennings — who makes $10 million a year — could be facing a salary reduction as a result of World News Tonight's declining ratings. Jennings isn't alone: ABC News correspondents reportedly have already been asked to accept 25 percent pay cuts.
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Tonight's documentary-style episode of The West Wing features interviews with real-life White House insiders. George Bush — the 41st prez and daddy of Dubya — isn't one of them. "George Bush Sr. said no to us," reveals exec producer Thomas Schlamme. "In all fairness to President Bush, none of the presidents jumped on quickly — justifiably so."
According to Schlamme, the ex-commanders-in-chief all echoed similar concerns: "'What's this about? Who else is doing it?' We asked [Bush] early on, and then we were able to get Presidents Carter and Clinton and then Ford." After racking up those nifty A-listers, the show didn't bother to push for Bush. Schlamme insists this was due to time constraints, "not because our feelings were hurt" about Bush's initial refusal.
Hopefully, this turns out better than West Wing's last reality-based episode, "Isaac an
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Robert Iler, who plays pot-smoking troublemaker Anthony Jr. on HBO's The Sopranos, has pled guilty to mugging two youngsters for $40. In exchange for copping to misdemeanor petty larceny, the 17-year-old got three years probation. He was also granted youthful offender status, which means his criminal record is sealed. (Not that it's exactly a secret!)
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A lot has been said about Val Kilmer, whose reputation for clashes with crew and cast members — on such films as Batman Forever, The Island of Dr. Moreau and Red Planet — is among Hollywood's most colorful. And while the actor is quick to offer his own viewpoint on the oft-told tales, he also will admit that he's made some mistakes in his career.
"I'm old enough to be able to see patterns in my own behavior and [I can tell if I've] done something awful," Kilmer shares with TV Guide Online. "It's embarrassing, but I pretty regularly turned down work with really fine directors, of which there just aren't that many.
"I would never do that again," he asserts. "If Ang Lee (
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