I understand that you can turn almost anything into a commercial.

But there is something about this that is wrong on so many levels.

Meat loaf?

Doing a cell phone commercial?

Utterly destroying a cultural icon in the process.

Posted by: Greg at 03:47 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Much less that any network would actually consider hiring her for an hour-long news show.

After two years of record-low ratings, both CBS News executives and people close to Katie Couric say that the "CBS Evening News" anchor is likely to leave the network well before her contract expires in 2011 -- possibly soon after the presidential inauguration early next year.

* * *

One possible new job for Ms. Couric: succeeding Larry King at CNN. Mr. King, who is 74 years old, has a contract with the network into 2009. CNN President Jon Klein, a CBS veteran with close ties to some at the network, has expressed admiration for Ms. Couric's work, and the two are friends. They had lunch in late January, and the anchor attended Mr. Klein's birthday party in March. Time Warner Inc.'s CNN said, "Larry King is a great talent who consistently delivers the highest profile guests, and we have no plans to make a change." Through a publicist, Mr. King declined to comment.

Personally, I think it is simply a matter of Couric trying to find another husband – isn’t it about time for old Larry to trade his current wife in on a newer model? Granted, the old gray mare ain’t what she used to be (if she ever was), but then again, neither is Larry without pharmaceutical intervention.

Posted by: Greg at 09:57 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Yea, how the mighty have fallen!

CBSNews used to be the gold standard for television reporting.

Now it is cut so far that the network is on the verge of cutting a deal to have CNN do its reporting instead.

CBS, the home of the most celebrated news division in broadcasting, has been in discussions with Time Warner about a deal to outsource some of its news-gathering operations to CNN, two executives briefed on the matter said Monday.

Over the last decade, CNN has held intermittent talks with both ABC News and CBS News about various joint ventures. But during the last several months, talks with CBS have been revived and lately intensified, according to the executives who asked for anonymity because of the confidential nature of the negotiations.

Broadly speaking, the executives described conversations about reducing CBSÂ’s news-gathering capacity while keeping its frontline personalities, like Katie Couric, the CBS Evening News anchor, and paying a fee to CNN to buy the cable networkÂ’s news feeds.

Another possibility, these people said, would be for CBS to keep its correspondents in certain regions but pair them with CNN crews.

I wonder -- will the folks at CBS be reporting this as another example of a greedy corporation cutting loose employees in order to make a profit? Or will it instead present this as a strengthening of the news division, especially if the news crews are cut and the high-profile reporters are the only employees kept?

I think we all know the answer -- which chows one more example of CBSNews and its willingness to spin the truth to reach the result it wants.

Posted by: Greg at 09:55 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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My wife loves Project Runway -- and I'll concede that watching it with her is something of a guilty pleasure on my part. I really don't care about the clothes -- the show is simply funny.

NBC knows that they've got a great ratings grabber with their Bravo hit -- which is why they are headed to court to make sure they keep the show.

NBC Universal, the parent company of Bravo network, has gone to court to try to keep “Project Runway,” one of the biggest hits in cable television, from moving to Lifetime this fall.

In a lawsuit filed Monday in state court in Manhattan, NBC accused the owner of “Project Runway,” the Weinstein Company, of violating its rights by making the deal with Lifetime.

The suit asserts Harvey Weinstein, the chief executive of the Weinstein Company, promised NBC that it would have an opportunity to match any offer to the rights of “Project Runway” and that instead, Mr. Weinstein concluded a deal with Lifetime on Feb. 7, even though he continued to negotiate with NBC Universal for two more months.

In a statement, NBC said “NBC Universal has continuing rights related to ‘Project Runway,’ including a right of first refusal to future cycles of the series, which the Weinstein Company unfortunately has refused to honor.”

The Weinsteins, through their lawyer (Al Gore's dishonest shyster, David Boies), claims that there is nothing to the NBC suit -- but that strikes me as a bit of a stretch. Assuming the claim of a February agreement with Lifetime followed by two months of sham negotiations with NBC is an accurate one, it is clear that the Weinsteins were not acting in good faith.

Besides -- I'd rather see this show move off the boutique channels and run on NBC itself.

Posted by: Greg at 09:48 PM | Comments (28) | Add Comment
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Charlton Heston -- 1923-1958

Few faces or voices were as easily recognizable in cinema during the first half of my lifetime. If not the voice of God, Charlton Heston was certainly the voice of God's messenger, Moses. I won't begin to list his many great roles, except to mention his well-loved performances in Ben-Hur, The Agony and the Ecstasy, and Planet of the Apes.

Heston was an ardent believer in America and the rights of Americans -- leading him to both march for civil rights with Dr. Martin Luther King and to head America's largest civil rights organization, the National Rifle Association.

And now the voice is stilled forever.

Posted by: Greg at 10:00 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Remember when Renee Zellweger and Kenny Chesney split up after their very brief marriage? Well, there was a ton of speculation about her wanting kids and him not being interested – or even gay (given the “fraud” grounds for annulment)? Looks like that wasn’t it.

Hollywood singleton Renee Zellweger, who turns 39 this month, has revealed she harbours no plans to be a parent.

The actress, who showed off her stylish new look as she arrived for an appearance the Late Show with David Letterman in New York City, has said: “Motherhood has never been an ambition. I don't think like that.”

So much for that tabloid rumor.

Posted by: Greg at 09:57 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Is it a Brett Favre comeback?

Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre, who announced his retirement last month after 17 seasons, reportedly could be weighing a comeback with another team.

Favre's agent has quietly inquired with teams about their interest in trading for the three-time NFL most valuable player, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.

Favre, 38, has yet to give written notice of his retirement to the league or the players' union. According to the Times, it's also not uncommon for players to delay in doing so, particularly if they are not in immediate need of their pension money.

Favre's agent denies he is interested in playing for another team -- but that could be a ploy to deflect speculation. But in the end, I doubt we'll see the comeback happen -- after all, would any team really be willing to give up what the packers would want for one of the greatest quarterbacks of the last two decades?

Posted by: Greg at 10:32 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I always visit the Washington Post over lunch, just to check the headlines

Today I found myself frightened by what I saw.

I then thought, “Did they unwrap a mummy at the Smithsonian?”

“Or maybe there's an exhibit of one of those ancient Celts they pull out of the peat bogs?”

“Could it be an Andean mummy from the Inca Empire?”
more...

Posted by: Greg at 11:11 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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