matt.mitovich

Short Cuts: Angelina Loses Her Mother, and More

Marcheline Bertrand, the mother of Angelina Jolie, died of cancer on Saturday, Jolie announced in a news release. In lieu of flowers, Jolie asks that donations be made to the Women's Cancer Research Institute at Cedars-Sinai.... The Natural: Director's Cut, featuring 15 minutes of restored footage and a newly edited first act, arrives in video stores April 3.... Indian actress Shilpa Shetty won the U.K.'s Celebrity Big Brother on Sunday, having bested the likes of Jermaine Jackson and Dirk "The A-Team" Benedict, and enduring alleged racial bullying.... The syndicated newsmagazine Extra has been renewed through 2010.

Mon, Jan 29, 2007

ABC Moves to Help Knights' Prosperity

With an eye on American Idol's strong second hour, especially as coupled with Criminal Minds, ABC is shaking up its Wednesday Knights. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the new schedule, in which Jim Belushi and Donal Logue trade places, goes like this:8 pm/ET: George Lopez8:30 pm: The Knights of Prosperity9 pm: According to Jim9:30 pm: In Case of EmergencyIn other words, David Arquette forgot to shake someone's hand at the ABC Christmas party.Oh, and with Knights now in the 8 o'clock hour, I'm guessing that any future instances of a vinyl-catsuited Esperanza will be pixelated, out of deference to the kiddies. [Grumble]

Sat, Jan 27, 2007

I, Deux: Housewives Throws Two Weddings

In an interview with MediaVillage.com, series creator Marc Cherry says that Desperate Housewives fans can expect to RSVP for not one but two marriage ceremonies in the weeks to come. "One is a quickie wedding," he shares. "The other is a big, legendary, soap-opera wedding, the kind that folks are hopefully going to tune in for."Quiz: What do you think Cherry means by a "soap-opera wedding"?A) Elizabeth Taylor shows up as a curse-wielding Greek megalomaniac.B) The exchange of vows will be interrupted by a feminine-hygiene commercial with a mom and daughter playing Frisbee outdoors.C) Bo Brady, despite being an NBC character, kidnaps the bride-to-be.D) The episode will only draw two million viewers.

Sat, Jan 27, 2007

Will Crash Keep Kidman Out of Oscars Special?

As reported here weeks ago, Oprah Winfrey's inaugural pre-Academy Awards ABC special will tweak the format by having a trio of Oscar winners  Nicole Kidman included  Q&A other also-acclaimed peers. As such, TVGuide.com was curious as to whether Kidman's recent on-set mishap, though minor, might keep her from engaging fellow Aussie Russell Crowe in a one-on-one. Says an ABC rep, "Nicole's segment was shot several days before the accident," an as such, the Wednesday-night scare "shouldn't have an impact on her participation in the special," which premieres Feb. 22.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

"Oh, Yeah... ": Katie Remembers She's an Actress

Has there been a security breach in Sector 7 of the Cruise compound? Nine months after delivering unto thee baby Suri, Katie Holmes is in talks to star in her first movie since... well, that whole Tom/Kate/"glib"/It's Not Chris Klein's/Italian wedding thing. As reported by Variety, Mad Money, a comedy about three female Federal Reserve employees who plot a grand theft, would find Kate looking for laughs opposite Queen Latifah, for one, and directed by Thelma & Louise scribe Callie Khouri. Holmes, need you ask, will not be reprising her Batman Begins role in its follow-up, The Dark Knight, though it's up for debate who Bale'd on whom.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

Cops, Film Studio Can't Agree on Kidman Crash Injuries

In a statement cited by Reuters, Warner Bros. says that Nicole Kidman was the only actor involved in the car accident that occurred late Wednesday night during the shoot for The Invasion, a sci-fi thriller. "No other actors were involved," says the studio, adding that two crew members sustained minor injuries as a result of the collision. A Los Angeles Police spokesperson, however, reported earlier on Thursday that seven crew members went to local hospitals complaining of injuries. Or so the aliens would have us believe.And no, it is not lost on me the connection between today's first two news items. That's just how newsblogging plays out sometimes!

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

Pilot Talk: Alias Cutie Goes from APO to CEO

 Michael Vartan has been tapped to topline an untitled ABC drama pilot about four friends who are either high-powered CEOs or CEOs-to-be, says the Hollywood Reporter. Gabrielle Union, last seen on The Night Stalker, will play a model-turned-recording artist and fiancée of a star wide receiver in ABC's adaptation of the U.K.'s Footballer$ Wives. Sleeper Cell's Melissa Sagemiller is a married lawyer drawn to Damian Lewis' falsely imprisoned cop in the NBC pilot Life. Spike Lee is on board to direct NBC's pilot about the mayor of New York City, says Reuters.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

This Time, a C$I Duo Are $hown the Money

In seperate eight-figure deals that will cement their status among television's best-paid showrunners, exec producers Carol Mendelsohn (CSI) and Ann Donahue (CSI: Miami) have signed to stay on at CBS through spring 2010. "They're both fantastic writers and great showrunners, a rare combination to get," CBS Paramount prez David Stapf tells Variety. "They engender a lot of loyalty from their cast and crew."Plus, neither lady gets all squeamish watching the dailies of any icky scenes.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

In the Works: FX Makes a Date with Eddie Izzard

FX has announced a March 12 premiere for The Riches, a drama starring Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver as grifters from rural Louisiana who assume the identity of a wealthy family and move into the posh suburbs.... Also per Variety, feature film producers Randall Emmett and George Furla (Home of the Brave, 16 Blocks), along with Playboy Playmate Stephanie Heinrich and Miami Dolphin Jason Taylor, are shopping around The Real Deal, a sports-themed reality show in which NFL stars are forced to confront their fears. Like math.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

At the Movies: Braugher Plays Misty for Stephen King

Per the Hollywood Reporter, Andre Braugher and Laurie Holden have been cast in The Mist, director Frank Darabont's adaptation of the Stephen King chiller about a small Maine town marauded by deadly creatures in the wake of a strange storm. (Wasn't that a Dean Koontz story, too?).... Harvey Keitel is in final talks to join The Ministers, a crime thriller about a female NYPD detective (One Life to Live alumna Florencia Lozano) out to avenge her father's murder at the hands of what sounds like a cult. Keitel would play another cop  and hopefully one who keeps his pants on.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

Musical Notes: An Idol Freebie, and More!

American Idol finalist Chris Daughtry will perform a free concert on March 23, in downtown Greensboro, North Carolina, says the AP. Between 6,000 and 7,000 people are expected to attend.... Legendary bluesman B.B. King, 81, was hospitalized for undisclosed reasons on Thursday night, but was reported in good condition Friday morning.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

One Today at a Time: NBC Lands Rehab'd Miss USA

Fresh out of rehab, semi-shamed and tiara-retaining Miss USA Tara Conner will grant her first interview to Today's Matt Lauer on Feb. 1  the first day of sweeps, coincidentally. Conner will also recount her saga on the Feb. 3 Dateline.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

Reality Bites: ABC Thinks Its Nanny Is Still Super

ABC has granted early pickups to not one or two but three reality series: America's Funniest Home Videos, which will return for an 18th season of dogs sniffing crotches, and Supernanny and Wife Swap, both of which are currently in their third cycles.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

Aw, Heck, Just Some Random Thoughts....

Is anyone else thoroughly enjoying Doonesbury's current stabs at Donald Trump? Sure, the Rosie feud angle is a bit dusty (blame the newspapers' lead time), but the Tab A/Slot B-esque combover styling is a pissah!.... Does WCBS-TV 2's Kate Sullivan have the best hair in the history or morning news, or what? Sssexy.... The new Ad Age skewers some TV ad's "resurrection" of Orville Redenbacher. I haven't seen it, have you? As horrific/unsettling/shoddily executed as it sounds?.... Any other newsstand groupies unsettled by the similarity between the new covers of Maxim (NSFW if your boss isn't cool) and Discover ?

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

Short Cuts: Smallville, Liz Loves Hillary, and More!

Last call for your burning questions for Smallville exec Al Gough. Post 'em here, by noon/ET.... Elizabeth Taylor was among the first to contribute to Hillary Clinton's presidential run, chipping in the maximum allowed.... Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson plays himself on an upcoming episode of Disney Channel's Cory in the House.... Toon Disney premieres its "Great Toon Weekend Getaway" programming block Saturday at noon.... If you're in the vicinity of Grand Central Station on Monday morning, Bravo's Top Designer Jonathan Adler will be there at 10:30 am to unveil a transformed 42nd Street shuttle platform. Do bamboo shades go with hobos, though?

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

SAG's Got Spunk, Staging a Mary Tyler Moore Reunion

This just in:"The cast of the landmark TV-newsroom comedy, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, including Mary Tyler Moore, Edward Asner, Georgia Engel, Valerie Harper, Cloris Leachman, Gavin MacLeod and Betty White, will reunite to present the [award] for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series at the 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards."I imagine Ted Knight, if not Chuckles the clown, will be there in spirit, as well.TNT and TBS will simulcast the SAG Awards Sunday at 8 pm/ET.

Fri, Jan 26, 2007

To (Almost) Die For?: Nicole Kidman In On-set Car Crash

Nicole Kidman and three other actors, including 10-year-old Jackson Bond  whose credits, I must note, include In Case of Emergency and the "Collision" episode of CSI: Miami  were involved in a car accident on the set of the film Invasion, shortly after midnight Wednesday in downtown Los Angeles. According to Extra, which will have more on the incident this evening, everything was going well with a vehicular stunt until the third attempt, when the Jaguar spun out of control and crashed into a light pole at about 45 mph. Sources tell Us that Kidman was taken to Cedars Sinai Medical Center, released within two hours, and resumed filming later in the night. And that, folks, is why Nic is filmdom's highest-paid working actress.UPDATE: The Associated Press' accounting suggests that Kidman was in the car with a stunt person, and perhaps not Jackson Bond. An official statement from Warner Bros. is expected Thursday afternoon.

Thu, Jan 25, 2007

Hard-partying Lindsay Is Now "Under Control"

Though but a few days into her stay at the Wonderland Center addiction-treatment facility, Lindsay Lohan is already reaping results. "She's been sending text messages from rehab saying she's the happiest she has ever been," a pal tells People. "She seems under control right now." As Lohan bids to stop her binging, production on her film I Know Who Killed Me, for which she was training as a pole dancer, has stopped, and she has even scratched plans to hit the Sundance Film Festival swag-and-swig circuit.

Thu, Jan 25, 2007

$VU $tars $ign New, Big-bucks Deals

Although NBC is mum on the financial particulars, Variety reports that Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni have signed on for two more years of Law & Order: SVU, inking deals that provide them each with $6.5 million-plus salaries, and in Hargitay's case, makes her (at the very least) one of network television's highest-paid actresses. As L&O creator Dick Wolf says he is happy "that Chris and Mariska have decided to stay with a show that theyve made an indelible stamp upon," Hargitay's 7-month-old son, August, issued his own statement saying he is happy to now use $100 bills for baby wipes.

Thu, Jan 25, 2007

Trees a Crowd: Anne Heche Drops Hubby... for Costar?

Stop me if this starts sounding vaguely familiar to faithful readers of the Ausiello Report: Anne Heche has split from her husband of five years, Coley Laffoon, her rep confirms for ET  and supposedly as the result of an affair she has been having with her hunky Men in Trees scene partner, James Tupper. A rep for Tupper confirms that he and his wife split in November, but would not comment on the rumored on-set romance.Well, at least this diverts some attention from Isaiah, right, ABC? Right...?UPDATE: Will this news make you less or more inclined to watch Men in Trees? Vote here in TVGuide.com's new poll.

Thu, Jan 25, 2007

Ratings: From American Idol to American Ideals

This Tuesday's Bush-whacked ratings: American Idol (31.17 million) dominated at 8 pm, albeit with nearly three million fewer viewers than it had last Tuesday in the same hour. That said, it should be noted that Idol was up eight percent versus the same State of the Union night a year ago, and is up five percent season-to-date. While NCIS (14.33 mil) was down a mil and a half, Gilmore Girls (3.65 mil) plunged a mil from Dec. 5, its last fresh eppy, and easily hit a season low, by a good 700,000 viewers. At 9, little ol' Veronica Mars fought the good fight, mustering 3.29 million viewers (down 200K from its Nov. 28 season high) against the State of the Union address, which 34.46 million tuned in to (mostly on Fox).And that's all she wrote.UPDATED to note that this was, in fact and by far, a season low for Gilmore Girls.

Wed, Jan 24, 2007

Casting About: Alias' Spydaddy Serves More Justice

Victor Garber, who was last seen heading up a high-priced law firm on Fox's Justice, is joining Jonny Lee Miller in Eli Stone, ABC's drama pilot about a San Francisco attorney (Miller) who finds out he might be a prophet. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Garber will play the father of Miller's fiancée, and the senior partner at his law firm.For more casting news, including the exciting scoop on which Everwooder is joining a hit ABC series, and the latest on Grey's Anatomy's new arrival, visit the Ausiello Report and today's fresh Ask Ausiello.

Wed, Jan 24, 2007