matt.mitovich

All "Mel" Breaks Loose on Law & Order

Just as it presented a dramatization of a Britney and K-Fed-esque couple in last week's season premiere, Law & Order's next shamelessly ripped-from-the-tabloid-headlines outing, airing Nov. 3, will guest-star Chevy Chase as a celebrity who, when pulled over for drunk driving, launches into an anti-Semitic rant. Then, veering away from even what Mel Gibson stands accused of, Chase's character's shirt is found to be stained with the blood of the Jewish producer behind his failed sitcom. Can Fletch join in on this investigation?

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

"Oh, Mr. Belding! Screech Did a Sex Tape!"

The first Saved by the Bell vet to star in a sex tape ? Showgirls excluded ? is neither cutie "Zach" nor beefy "Slater," but Dustin "Screech" Diamond. According to the New York Daily News, the now 29-year-old actor/punch line engages in a kinky three-way with two women in a 40-minute vid tentatively titled (avert your eyes now) "Saved by the Smell" and being shopped around by celebrity-skin kingpin David Hans Schmidt. Diamond's manager, who has yet to see the actual tape, tells the News, "He has been trying to escape the Screech typecast, so this may help me get more bookings." Sure, but on what?

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

Steve Irwin's Wife: His Death Will Never Air

In the first interview she has given since her husband's sudden death, Terri Irwin tells ABC's 20/20 that Steve's final moments, caught on film by the cameraman covering his ill-fated Sept. 4 expedition, will never be seen on television. "It won't be, no. No. What purpose would that serve?" she says, adding that she herself has not seen the footage. Traveling in southern Australia with their kids, ages 8 and 2, when she got word of the tragic incident, Terri says, "It was an accident so stupid, like running with a pencil. It was a risk he was taking. And I couldn't fall to pieces because the children were there."

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

Nip/Tuck + Brad Pitt = Transexual

Nip/Tuck creator Ryan Murphy is at work on 4 oz., a drama that will follow the journey of a married sportswriter who is a transsexual. Sketching out the arc of the series, which he will exec-produce with Brad Pitt and Dede Gardner, Murphy tells Variety, "The first season deals with the revelation of his secret. In the second, he begins dressing like a woman. The third covers his surgery... and by the fourth, he's living as a woman and attempting to find love." The series' title comes from the average weight of the body part a fella must forfeit to become a female. (That's all my wallet weighs?)

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

From Lachey to Mizrahi: The Celebrity Jep List

TVGuide.com first gave you a hint of the list two weeks ago, but here now is the complete roster of stars who will be strainin' their craniums during the sweeps week of Celebrity Jeopardy!, kicking off Nov. 8: Martin Short, Susan Lucci, Nancy Grace, Soledad O'Brien, Regis Philbin, Rachael Ray, James Denton, Doug Savant, Christopher Meloni, Sam Waterston, Drew Lachey, Carson Kressley, Neil Patrick Harris, Jane Kaczmarek, Joely Fischer, Dana Delany, Mario Cantone, Steve Schirripa, Bebe Neuwirth, Paul Shaffer and Isaac Mizrahi.

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

Musical Notes: Latin Grammys' Nods Don't Lie

Shakira (which I understand is Spanish for "she of the hypnotic hips") tops this year's Latin Grammy nominations with five, including album of the year (Fijacion Oral Vol. 1, naughty-sounding in any language) and song of the year ("La Tortura").... Jewel will host Season 5 of USA Network's Nashville Star, premiering Jan. 11.... Jimmy Kimmel will host for a third time the American Music Awards, airing Nov. 21 on ABC.

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

At the Movies: Fey and Poehler, Together Again

Per Variety, Tina Fey (who just yesterday during a 30 Rock conference call was saying how busy she now is) and SNL-WU sidekick Amy Poehler will costar in Baby Mama, a comedy about a career woman who hires a surrogate mother to bear her child.... Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon are in final talks to star in Tsotsi director Gavin Hood's Rendition, about a CIA analyst who witnesses something he shouldn't have.... Jim Caviezel will star in Outlander, a sci-fi adventure pic about a man from another galaxy who must help a Viking tribe ward off an alien predator. Kinda sounds cool!

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

Short Cuts: Pete Rose, Anna Nicole and More

Pete Rose is a guest on Late Show on Monday, Oct. 2, marking his first sit-down with David Letterman in 15 years. The over-under was 13.5.... Shocking nearly no one, lawyer Howard K. Stern stepped forth on Tuesday to claim that he is the "proud father" of client Anna Nicole Smith's newborn daughter.... ReelzChannel, a network dedicated to all things movies, launches today in 28 million homes, mostly satellite-TV subscribers.... Ralph Story, a TV and radio broadcaster for three decades and host of The $64,000 Challenge, died on Tuesday after a long battle with emphysema. He was 86.

Wed, Sep 27, 2006

Is It Last Call for Fox's Happy Hour?

We may have a winner ? meaning an expedient loser ? in the dubious race to be the fall season's first canceled series. Fox is bumping this week's episode of Happy Hour (trust me, it's an actual show) in favor of a 'Til Death repeat, meaning the sitcom isn't scheduled to return to the airwaves until Nov. 2, following the network's October baseball coverage. A Fox rep, though, insists to Variety that "no shows have been canceled." Similarly but less forebodingly, Fox's Justice has had its Oct. 4, last pre-baseball outing scratched, lest it face off against the season premiere of Lost.

Tue, Sep 26, 2006

Casting About: X-Files Guys Find Their Gal

TVGuide.com has learned that Sarah Joy Brown (Cold Case) has been tapped for the female lead in Amped, Spike TV's much-anticipated drama pilot about cops battling humans mutated by a mysterious virus, and penned by The X-Files' Frank Spotnitz and Vince Gilligan. Click here for more on the project, which starts filming next week.... Not only is Coupling's Rena Sofer appearing on 24 this coming season (as scooped last week by the Ausiello Report), but she has also scored a recurring role on NBC's Heroes, playing the wife of Adrian Pasdar's ambitious politician.... An Everwood reunion on ABC's Brothers & Sisters? Check out the Ausiello Report's fresh entry for more.

Tue, Sep 26, 2006

Big Stink for Inked Runway Contestant

Citing a published report, the New York Post says that for the second time this season, a Project Runaway contestant

Tue, Sep 26, 2006

Coming Soon: More David E. Kelley, and the Coreys!

Per Variety, Fox has made a pilot commitment to We, The Jury, a single-camera comedy from David E. Kelley (Boston Legal) about the sequestered jury in a high-profile trial.... FX is developing an untitled legal thriller about a tough-as-nails female attorney, from scribes Todd A. Kessler (The Sopranos), Daniel Zelman and Glen Kessler.... A&E has greenlit The Coreys: Return of the Lost Boys, a half-hour series about the grown-up lives of Mr. Feldman and Haim, to debut early next year, and ordered 13 episodes of Paranormal U, a look at Penn State's paranormal-research society.

Tue, Sep 26, 2006

Clooney vs. Oprah in '08?

Appearing at a Monday event where California governor/Batman and Robin costar Arnold Schwarzenegger signed legislation aimed at stopping genocidal violence in Darfur, George Clooney scoffed at talk that he himself might run for political office

Tue, Sep 26, 2006

Simon Spills Talent 2's Secrets

In a Monday teleconference with reporters, producer Simon Cowell revealed that a big tweak for the new round of America's Got Talent is that in order to level the playing field a bit, nonsingers will be sent to a mid-season "boot camp." "For a two-week period, we'll bring in experts ? vocal coaches, stylists, people from Vegas ? to work with these acts and find out how good they really are," he explains. Season 1's 12-year-old champ, Bianca Ryan, has signed a deal with Cowell's recording label and has her first album due out Nov. 14.

Tue, Sep 26, 2006

News News: Emmy Wins and Ratings Winners

CBS, fueled by a trio of wins for 60 Minutes, and PBS led the pack at Monday night's News & Documentary Emmy Awards, taking home five statues each. Also of note: ABC's Iraq: Where Things Stand series, hosted by Peter Jennings just 71 days before he revealed that he had lung cancer, was honored with a pair of Emmys.... This weekend, Fox News Sunday enjoyed its highest ratings since the December 2003 capture of Saddam Hussein, thanks to the tense face-off between Chris Wallace and former president Clinton.... NBC Nightly News reclaimed its No. 1 title last week, ending Katie Couric's two-week streak.

Tue, Sep 26, 2006

"Law & Order: Comical Intent" for Dick Wolf

According to Variety, Law & Order uber-producer Dick Wolf is looking to be criminally funny, as evidenced by a pair of sitcom projects he has lined up at NBC. One is a single-camera, politically themed series about a bumbling congressman, and the other is a medical sitcom revolving around EMTs and paramedics ? to be called "Law & Disorderlies"?

Mon, Sep 25, 2006

Where Is This Fall's Big Breakout Hit?

If the new TV season boasts a Prison Break-esque, insta-popular newcomer, that show has yet to announce itself. To date, no new series has finished higher than second in its time slot, leaving the title of "Next Big Thing" still up for grabs. While NBC's otherwise-excellent Kidnapped has the dubious distinction of being the lowest-rated premiere thus far, Jericho, Variety notes, is perhaps the strongest-performing newbie, giving CBS a 42 percent improvement in key demos in the Wednesdays-at-8 hour. Still as yet to hit the airwaves: NBC's Heroes (bowing tonight at 9 pm; see related feature) and Friday Night Lights, and ABC's The Nine, Ugly Betty and Help Me Help You.

Mon, Sep 25, 2006

Casting About: Virgin Star Joins Stiller's Sitcom

Funnylady Jane Lynch (of The 40 Year Old Virgin and Christopher Guest-movies fame) will play mom to Christine Taylor's small-town-girl-turned-Hollywood-superstar in CBS' untitled comedy pilot being exec-produced and directed by Taylor's husband, Ben Stiller. (It just hit me: Lovespring International's riotous Jennifer Elise Cox included, Lynch will have worked with both "Jan" and "Marcia Brady").... Sara Paxton (Aquamarine) will star in The Party Never Stops: Diary of a Binge Drinker, a (as if it needs to be said) Lifetime movie about a smart and ambitious college freshman who... turns into a typical college freshman. Nancy Travis plays Paxton's mom.

Mon, Sep 25, 2006

Weekend Box-Office Champ Is a Real...

Can a horseman of the apocalypse be a donkey? Jackass: Number Two claimed the top spot at the weekend box office, siphoning $28.1 million from the wallets of people apparently desperate to get out of the house and/or blow off temple. Rounding out the top five were Jet Li's Fearless (bowing with $10.6 million), Gridiron Gang ($9.7 mil), Flyboys (a $6 mil opening) and Everyone's Hero ($4.75 mil), while Sean Penn's widely slammed All the King's Men placed seventh with $3.8 mil.

Mon, Sep 25, 2006

Steven Tyler Reveals Hepatitis C Battle

In an interview airing Tuesday on Access Hollywood, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler cops to being diagnosed with hepatitis C three years ago, but says that after a year of interferon treatments, which "about killed me," the viral infection "is nonexistent in my bloodstream.... It's like a complete cure." For more from tonight's Two and a Half Men guest star, check out TVGuide.com's Interviews & Features.

Mon, Sep 25, 2006

At the Movies: 24 Alum Fronts Alien Sequel

Per Variety, Reiko Aylesworth (24) and Steven Pasquale (Rescue Me) have grabbed the leads in Alien vs. Predator 2, to start filming next week in Vancouver.... Ron Howard is on board to direct a film adaptation of Frost/Nixon, a play currently earning raves on the West End about the famed 1977 television interviews between David Frost and Richard Nixon.... Per the Hollywood Reporter, Cate Blanchett is set to star in Cancer Vixen: A True Story, based on the memoir of Marisa Acocella Marchetto, a fashionista cartoonist for Glamour and the New Yorker.

Mon, Sep 25, 2006

Pop Star Calls Off Publicity Stunt Engagement

Aaron Carter, who just last week popped the question to onetime Playmate Kari Ann Peniche, is already in the pages of Us explaining why he has opted instead to continue on with bachelorhood: "I got caught up in the moment [and] then realized it was a hasty thing to do. I am not ready for marriage quite yet." Amidst all this headline-grabbing, Carter ? coincidentally, I assure you ? has a reality series about to premiere on E! Isn't the timing on these things always so funny?

Mon, Sep 25, 2006