There's a reason why they call Mike Darnell the "dark prince" of reality TV. Darnell, who on Friday announced his exit as the president of alternative entertainment at Fox, is still best known for his in-your-face fare like Joe Millionaire, Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction, The Swan, When Animals Attack and Man vs. Beast.
Some of those shows, like Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire and Temptation Island, led to juicy TV scandals. (It's why the New York Times once billed him as TV's "point man for perversity.") But Darnell also oversaw the biggest TV phenomenon of the past decade: American Idol, a show that was unbeatable in its prime...
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Fox's longtime head of alternative programming Mike Darnell, who helped launch American Idol and Joe Millionaire, is leaving his post after 18 years, he announced Friday.
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Fox's dark prince of reality TV, Mike Darnell, is dusting off a few of his old tricks. The network has ordered new summer dating game show The Choice, which uses spinning chairs reminiscent of NBC's The Voice and applies it to romance — with celebrities thrown in for good measure.
Hosted by Cat Deeley, The Choice, which debuts Thursday, June 7 at 9/8c, is a mash-up of The Voice and The Dating Game. Four single celebrities (to be announced later) will sit in...
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Jeers to Mark L. Walberg for hitting a new low with Moment of Truth. Whatever credibility the ex-Temptation Island pimp — er, emcee — sought by hosting PBS' Antiques Roadshow got flushed down the old commode with his participation in Fox's ultra-sleazy lie-detector game show. I've got a few queries I'd like Walberg to answer honestly: Are you filled with self-loathing when you ask humiliating questions like whether former football player Ty ever sneaked a peek at a teammate's privates in the shower? Were you telling the truth when you told 46-year-old Hair Club for Men member George that he looks 35? And have you ever tried to pass yourself off as the other Mark Wahlberg to get a table at a restaurant? You know the other Mark, right? He's the one who won't do anything for money.For another take on Moment of Truth, read Matt Roush's newest Dispatch.• Read and react to Bruce's opinions on Larry King's flubbed Heath Ledger tribute, Breaking Bad's premiere and more!•...
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(Warning: Do not read if you haven't watched the Shield finale and intend to do so.)
Easily the most shattering episode of this TV week came from a show that has delivered the goods for the last 11 hours of what has been arguably The Shield's best season yet.
I'm talking about the cliff-hanger finale of The Shield's split season (10 more episodes are scheduled to air early next year), which really seems to me more like a season finale. The producers have yet to declare the back half of this fifth season The Shield's series finale, but given the enormity of what transpired in this latest episode, my gut tells me that the best creative decision would be for them to wrap the show in these next 10 episodes and go out on a dramatic high.
The dramatic stakes have rarely been more intense as poor Lem (the excellent Kenneth Johnson
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