matt.mitovich

"Now" Hear This: New Idol's First Single Is Revealed

And the winner of the American Idol Songwriter Competition is... Jordin Sparks.OK, not technically, but....After over 25,000 submissions and almost 500,000 votes, "This Is My Now" was selected by Idol fans for Blake and Jordin to perform on Tuesday night, and for the winner to record as his/her first single. For penning the tune, Seattle's Scott Krippayne and Jeff Peabody earn a publishing deal with 19 Entertainment."This song clearly resonated with the American Idol fans," says Idol e.p. Simon Fuller. "[It] speaks to why American Idol is so popular  the pursuit and achievement of dreams and taking advantage of the moment." If not taking advantage of the beat-boxing.OK, it needs be asked: Who is your pick to win Idol? Vote here.

Wed, May 23, 2007

From Page to Stage: The Addams Family Musical

Spider-Man isn't the only illustrated character eyeing the Great White Way. A musical inspired by the Addams Family cartoons hopes to creep out Broadway patrons during the 2009-10 season. The creative team is appropriately kooky: Composer Andrew Lippa previously penned the off-Broadway incarnation of The Wild Party, while librettists Rick Elice and Marshall Brickman earned a Tony nod for their Jersey Boys book. (Brickman also has an Oscar for long ago cowriting a little indie called Annie Hall.) Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch, best known for the gothic Shockheaded Peter, will direct and design the show. The only thing that could ruin this is if they cast it via an NBC reality series.  Reporting by Raven Snook

Wed, May 23, 2007

Angelina to Tackle the Stay-at-Home Mom Thing

Speaking to reporters at the Cannes Film Festival  presumably when she wasn't joining Jude Law in wondering, "Why is Jessica Simpson here?"  Angelina Jolie said that some four months after she wraps her current project, the thriller Wanted, "Then I take a year off" from filmmaking, to focus on family. The announcement drove stock in African orphanages up 45 cents a share.Now if only a certain animated Amy would follow suit....

Tue, May 22, 2007

Dropping Anchor: Dateline Cuts Stone Phillips

In a cost-cutting move, NBC News will drop Stone Phillips from Dateline when the veteran newsman's contract expires at the end of June. "It's been a wonderful 15 years," Phillips says in a statement cited by the AP. "I'm profoundly appreciative of the many friends and colleagues, past and present, who have been a part of the Dateline family. This is a great news division with a bright future. I wish the people of NBC News all the best."Since Phillips won't be replaced, Ann Curry will continue as coanchor, with other Dateline reporters pitching in as on-air hosts.

Tue, May 22, 2007

Dropping Anchor: Dateline Cuts Stone Phillips

Team USA: Criminal Intent Star OK with Cable

Law & Order vet Chris Noth is embracing his series' upcoming move from the Peacock to USA. "Cable is probably the future. They're paying a lot more attention to [the show] than NBC did, frankly," he tells the Associated Press.Considering that Monday night's finale drew three million fewer viewers than last year's season ender, CI is probably better off in less competitive waters. Noth also believes the change will help the series differentiate itself from the rest of the franchise, saying, "We're happy to set ourselves apart." Just as long as that iconic theme doesn't go anywhere.  Reporting by Raven Snook

Tue, May 22, 2007

Team USA: Criminal Intent Star OK with Cable

Ratings: 24 Fans Call It a Day

This Monday's ratings recap: Dancing with the Stars' last dance partnered up with an audience of 19.75 million total viewers, a week-to-week increase of 680K. The season-ender for lead-out The Bachelor (12.85 mil) drew nearly two million more heads than Rome's arrivederci.POLL: Who do you think will win DWTS? Vote here. The two-hour 24 finale averaged 10.19 mil, a 24 percent decline in viewership from the previous "day's" conclusion. Heroes (13.21 mil) went out with a bang, surging 1.8 mil to deliver its best numbers since the March 6 arc-ender. But please tell me we did not just say goodbye to both you-know-who and you-know-who...?! Criminal Intent (9.24 mil) was up 1.8 mil from last Monday, but fell a good three mil shy of last season's finale.

Tue, May 22, 2007

Fall TV Tweaks: House Exec Finds New Life

Per Variety, House executive producer Daniel Sackheim has inked a two-year deal to direct and exec-produce the new NBC drama Life.... Per the Reporter, former ER show-runner Scott Gemmill will run the show at ABC's Women's Murder Club.... Twenty Good Years creator Marsh McCall has been tapped to "direct traffic" at ABC's Carpoolers.

Tue, May 22, 2007

Jessica Simpson Pours Herself into Lingerie

Revealing perhaps a glimpse at the likes of which precious few outside of Nick, John and Bam... and Jared, Adam and Johnny... have seen, Jessica Simpson is lending her name to a line of lingerie "inspired by" her glam lifestyle. In a statement, the blonde bombshell calls Jessica Simpson Intimates "fun, flirty and exactly what I would want to wear"  at least for those first few endless minutes of obligatory conversation.

Tue, May 22, 2007

Simon Says... Hasselhoff's Talent Job Is Safe

Despite the very public custody battle that David Hasselhoff has been waging with his ex-wife Pamela Bach  "highlighted," as it were, by a leaked video showing the Hoff drunk on the floor of his home  America's Got Talent executive producer Simon Cowell stands by his friend, whom he deems, "One of the kindest and most loyal human beings I have ever met." Speaking with Extra, Cowell insists that "not in a million years" would he replace Hasselhoff as a Talent judge, saying, "If he'd gone, I would've gone. We're like that, me and David."TMZ.com reports that in the wake of new testimony that Bach was abusive to her children and has refused drug testing, the Hoff on Monday was awarded full custody for two weeks, until the next hearing.

Tue, May 22, 2007

Roseanne: "I'm Probably Not Right" for The View

"Sometimes I think they're just saying it because we're both named Rosie and fat." That's one of Roseanne Barr's comments to E!'s The Daily 10, with regards to rumors that she might fill the seat-cushion divot left behind when Rosie O'Donnell exits The View. Though Rosie O has told Rosie B it's unlikely Babs will come a-calling  "They want someone they can control," Barr says Rosie told her  Roseanne is open to the prospect, if only to offer the POV of someone "who actually works for a living" and "talk about things that real women want to talk about."For that very reason, however, Barr is bearish on her chances. "I mean, I think the public schools should be talked about every single day. And health care, and jobs. Plus, I don't give a damn about celebrities. So I'm probably not right for that show."

Tue, May 22, 2007

Oprah "Stunned" by Her Father's Planned Tell-all

And here we thought she was omniscient. Oprah Winfrey cops to being caught off guard upon learning  and not directly, but through a New York Daily News reporter's request for comment  that her father is penning a book about her. "I was upset. I won't say 'devastated,' but I was stunned," Oprah tells the News. "The last person in the world to be doing a book about me is Vernon Winfrey. The last person."At age 14 and pregnant, Oprah left her mother's home in Milwaukee to live with her father in Nashville. When her baby died weeks after his birth, Oprah credits Dad with teaching her how to move on. As such, "I would have preferred to have known [he] was working on this. It would have been a nice gesture."

Tue, May 22, 2007

Oprah "Stunned" by Her Father's Planned Tell-all

At the Movies: Grindhouser Reboots Barbarella

Robert Rodriguez has signed on to direct a new film adaptation of the sci-fi comic-book series Barbarella, previously committed to celluloid by Jane Fonda circa 1968.... Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will make its international premiere June 28 in Japan. Why there? "No special reason," a studio rep tells Reuters.... To benefit The Adrienne Shelly Foundation, CharityFolks.org is hosting an auction of Waitress memorabilia, including aprons designed by the likes of Keri Russell, Cheryl Hines, Scarlett Johansson and Tori Spelling.

Tue, May 22, 2007

The Closer Opens Its Doors to Emmy Winner

There certainly seems to be a "No Shrinking Violets" sign posted outside the TNT studios. During a conference call to tout the June 18 return of The Closer, series star Kyra Sedgwick  herself a Golden Globe winner  told TVGuide.com that in addition to meeting Brenda's father (a role as yet uncast), a doctor for the deputy chief will enter the mix, played by Law & Order vet S. Epatha Merkerson, who grabbed an Emmy for her turn in Lackawanna Blues. "She'll be around for a few episodes," Sedgwick told us. "So that's been really exciting."Having screened the new season's first episode, it's not revealing too much to say that when we revisit Brenda Leigh's world, she is under the gun to streamline her squad by at least one detective. But as for whether that has resulted in any cast changes among the PhDers, she said, "No, not yet."Which returning summer series do you most anxiously await? Vote here (bottom right).

Tue, May 22, 2007

The Closer Opens Its Doors to Emmy Winner

Oh, My Nose! Idol's Paula Breaks Her Beak

Amazingly and improbably, this week's American Idol just got even more TiVo-worthy. A spokesperson for Paula Abdul tells TV's Extra that over the weekend, Idol's erstwhile Pollyanna tripped while trying to avoid her chihuahua, Tulip, and as a result, broke her nose. (Aren't you supposed to tiptoe past the Tulip, per the song?)Marcia Brady's backyard football incident just fell to No. 2 on the All-time Silly Circumstances rankings.UPDATE: Speaking to Extra, Paula admits she "screamed like a little baby" after doing the face plant and tearing cartilage in her schnozz. "It hurt so bad!" Idol pal Simon Cowell tells the news mag that upon hearing of the incident, "I genuinely didn't think it was a true story." As for whether Paula's honker will be splinted before TV's largest audience this week, he says, "At this stage, health is more important than the way you look. We'll have a huge bowl of ice just to make sure the swelling isn't too bad."

Tue, May 22, 2007

Ratings: Beating Up on Movies Easy as ABC

Just a few bits, seeing as CBS and NBC took a knee with movies: With 12.26 million total viewers, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition was up two mil versus last week. The Simpsons hour  including episode No. 400  averaged 9.8 mil, a good two mil above typical numbers. UPDATE: It was, in fact, The Simpsons' best showing since Jan. 7. Housewives (18.44 mil) surged 2.7 mil with its season finale, giving the series its best draw since Jan. 8. Jump up and cheer, Edie! Er.... Brothers & Sisters concluded its first season with 12.66 mil, a 760K week-to-week increase and what looks like its largest audience since... November sweeps? Could it be?POLL: As the TV season winds down, which summer series' return are you most looking forward to? Vote here (bottom right).

Mon, May 21, 2007

American Idol Finalists' Garb Up for Grabs

Hot to rock Gina's attire? Think you'd look rad in Blake's plaid? Need one of Haley's skirts for a belt? Beginning today at ClothesOffOurBack.org, the "Kimberley Locke & Idol Friends" charity auction is putting up for bid favorite wardrobe pieces from this season's top-12 finalists and previous players (Carrie, Ruben and Clay included), as well as items chipped in by Ryan, Randy, Simon and Paula. (Despite the host site's URL, however, there is nothing from Antonella.) Proceeds benefit Camp Heartland and other children's charities.

Mon, May 21, 2007

At First "Completely Devastated," Farrah Now Dealing with Cancer's Return

During a routine three-month checkup, doctors told Farrah Fawcett  deemed cancer-free in February  that they had found a malignant polyp, smaller than a pea. "She was completely devastated at first," friend (and Chasing Farrah producer) Craig Nevius tells People. "And then... as was the case last time, she became much stronger and started dealing with it, and she's beginning to make a plan." Farrah, who is finalizing treatment options, had not even had the opportunity to tell some loved ones when news got out via the Enquirer. "It is now clear," says Nevius, "that the tabloids are as invasive and malignant as cancer." Worse, no amount of radiation will make them go away.

Mon, May 21, 2007

At First "Completely Devastated," Farrah Now Dealing with Cancer's Return

Shrek 3 Sees Green with Record Box Office Haul

Shrek the Third topped the weekend box office with $122 million — my and my sons' $15 included — breaking the franchise's own record for the best debut by an animated feature. (And for skeptics like me, it delivered 18 million ticket buyers to No. 2's 17.4 mil.)Rounding out the top five were Spider-Man 3 ($28.5 mil, $282 mil to date), 28 Weeks Later ($5.15 mil), that plucky little Disturbia ($3.7 mil) and Georgia Rule($3.5 mil). Next up: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, which is out to set new records but has two heavyweights already in the ring and will also be hampered by a nearly three-hour running time.

Mon, May 21, 2007

Shrek 3 Sees Green with Record Box Office Haul

At the Movies: Julia as a Killed Conservationist

Julia Roberts will portray Joan Root, an African wildlife conservationist who was murdered in her Kenyan home this past January, in a big-screen biopic.... Audrey Tautou will channel Coco Chanel in a film from French director Anne Fontaine.... Per Variety, Goldie Hawn will star in Ashes to Ashes, a comedy about a woman traveling to Kathmandu to scatter her husband's ashes but she, um, loses them. Kurt Russell will costar (not as the ashes, I hope).... Per the Reporter, producer Emmanuel Benbihy has rounded up several up-and-coming filmmakers  Zach Braff and Mira Nair included  for New York, I Love You, a cinematic Valentine à la Paris, Je T'aime.

Mon, May 21, 2007

Let's Make a Deal: Veteran Producer Returns to L&O

Rene Balcer, who left the original Law & Order several years ago to develop and exec-produce Criminal Intent, is returning to the mother ship as an e.p. In a statement, Dick Wolf says, "Rene's return signals a creative renaissance... that should carry us closer to my ultimate goal of beating Gunsmoke"  which at 20 seasons holds the record for TV's longest-running drama.... Writer-producer Jeff Rake has inked a new deal with Sony Pictures TV under which he will exec-produce and show-run ABC's mid-season entry, Cashmere Mafia. Per Variety, the gig reunites Rake with Darren Star, with whom he created Fox's The Street.

Mon, May 21, 2007

Grey's' Burke: The Doctor Isn't Necessarily Out

The Grey's Anatomy season-ender may have appeared to pave the way for Isaiah Washington to quietly exit stage left, but don't be surprised if MIA Preston Burke scrubs back in come the fall. While an ABC rep would not comment on either the story line or Washington's status, the actor's spokesperson tells the Associated Press, "We fully expect to be back. The deal's not done, but we have no reason to believe he won't be putting on the scrubs." Interestingly, no allusion to blueberries.

Sat, May 19, 2007

Grey's' Burke: The Doctor Isn't Necessarily Out

Previewing the American Idol Finale, Simon Says....

Jordin's got pipes that cannot be beat. Blake rocks a contemporary beat. For that reason alone, Simon Cowell has no prediction to make about the forthcoming American Idol finale. "I can't call it, because I think theyve both got different strengths," he told TVGuide.com during a conference call to tout the new (and totally improved) season of that other AI, ABC's American Inventor (premiering June 6). "One is a better entertainer, and one is a better singer. It will come down to what they do on [Tuesday]."Later in the call, Cowell dissed the dismissal of critical darling Melinda Doolittle, but stopped short of saying it cripples Idol's credibility. "I didnt agree with the vote, but more people should have dialed for Melinda," he said plainly. "When you allow the public to choose, youve got to live and die by the vote. It's as simple as that."Reflecting on Idol's season gone by  one marked by a famously coiffed crooner  Simon confessed, "I like crazy. Th...

Sat, May 19, 2007

Previewing the American Idol Finale, Simon Says....