Androgyny at Its Best

Okay, this post is absolutely premature as I haven't even seen the movie yet, but holy wow, the BOB DYLAN biopic I'M NOT THERE looks great. And its most interesting element? The fact that my uber-favorite thespian CATE BLANCHETT will be playing the rocker during perhaps his most infamous years. Just from viewing the preview clips, you get a sense that Blanchett's performance is simply SPOT ON. I can't wait. Other actors that will be depicting Dylan in this highly impressionistic and unconventional docudrama are Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Richard Gere, Ben Whishaw, and young African American newcomer Marcus Carl Franklin. A truly innovative look at casting a biopic indeed, I only hope that this fantastical look at the life and works of Bob Dylan still carries with it the same heart and introspection as some of the famed documentaries of the singer, including my personal favorite No Direction Home, directed by Martin Scorsese.

See a sneak peek of Cate Blanchett's soon to be infamous performance as Bob Dylan below:

The Next LEONARDO DICAPRIO...

EMILE HIRSCH

I was utterly floored by Emile Hirsch's performance in Sean Penn's critically acclaimed film Into the Wild. His depiction of real-life determined American adventurer Christopher McCandless is nothing short of amazing. Considering that nearly 80% of the film has little to no dialogue, all eyes are literally on Hirsch throughout the bulk of the film. He manages to switch easily between a sensibility of humor and enlightened reverence, giving the film both a heart-warming and heart-wrenching feel. Certainly inspired by the work of fellow thespian Leonardo DiCaprio, it seemed to me that there were clear glimpses of DiCaprio in Danny Boyle's (Trainspotting) THE BEACH throughout Hirsch's introspective performance. Who knew the cute kid from The Girl Next Door would grow into such a skilled and complex thespian? I should have gotten the hint with his spot on performance in the dark comedy The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys. Anyhow, I have been thoroughly impressed and look forward to his future work, even if his next big movie is based on a cartoon (Speed Racer). Could there be an Oscar nom in Hirsch's future? I definitely don't think its beyond the realm of possibility.

Songs of Praise

SONGS OF PRAISE
These two young performers are just on the cusp of what I imagine to be a lucrative entertainment career. They both got their start in the biz early, and quickly became notable for their ability not just to act, but to carry quite a tune also.

ANNA KENDRICK was the 2nd youngest person ever to be nominated for a Tony Award, which she garnered for her performance in the original "High Society" on Broadway. She continued her work with musical theatre until 2000, when she landed the lead in the feature film Camp. Most recently she was seen in the indie fave Rocket Science as fast-talking Ginny Ryerson. While she was also on the short-lived CBS series "Viva Laughlin," you can catch her in an upcoming film The Marc Pease Experience opposite Ben Stiller and Jason Schwartzman.

JIM STURGESS is a British actor whose career spanned many London television shows and movies. Recently, he starred as the troubled artist of Julie Taymor's Across the Universe that was out this year, helping to launch the film's soundtrack to the top of the charts thanks to his Ewan McGreggor-esque voice. Look for him in a series of much-anticipated films due out next year like The Other Boleyn Girl, Crossing Over, and 21 (the story of the MIT students that card-counted their way through Vegas).

I'M BACK!!

Hey guys-- So I'm putting this blog back online. However, updates will focus specifically on actors that inspire me to post, so posting will likely be less consistent. If you wish to keep up with updates and have anything new that I've added sent straight to your inbox, please feel free to subscribe to my blog. Thanks!!

-CastingKat

TEMPORARY HIATUS

Hey Ya'll!! So you've probably noticed that the blogspot here has been slacking a bit lately. Well, I'm officially announcing a temporary hiatus while I launch a new website targetted at a slightly different subject. Please check it out and let me know your thoughts on both. Thanks!!

TALKING 'BOUT MY GENERATION

Love, CastingKat

The Girls of Comedy

Superbad was certainly a summer comedy targeted at a mostly male audience with its leading actors the kinds of goofy oddballs most guys were in their awkwards teen years. And what better way to tell a tale of boys becoming, well, older boys, than with some lovely young women as the objects of their affections. In any case, we have some extremely talented young actresses who are just coming up in the acting world and who are taking on roles in these kinds of comedies. Check them out below.

Emma Stone
Emma (or should I say Emily) got her start on a little known Partridge Family reality show from Sony, where she gained a small following. From there she became bit by the acting bug, and before long she landed a starring role in the FOX series "DRIVE." While the series itself was short-lived, Emma's talents shined through and before long she was starring in Superbad. Be sure to catch her in two movies due out next year: I Know What Boys Like (Anna Faris/Colin Hanks) and The Rocker (Rainn Wilson/Christina Applegate). I told you guys she was someone to know here...

Kat Dennings
While Kat wasn't actually in Superbad, she is no stranger to Judd Apatow comedy, starring as the rebellious teenage daughter in cult fave The 40-Year-Old Virgin. You might also recognize her as 13-going-on-30-year-old Jenny Brier from a memorable episode of "Sex and the City." This girl has certainly got a great comedic flair that has a real sense of heart. She'll appear alongside Emma Stone in the forthcoming I Know What Boys Like.

Martha MacIsaac also stole some hearts as off-beat and sweet Becca in Superbad. She was joined by Aviva, playing the hot and shallow Nicola who Christopher Mintz-Plasse's Fogell wins over in the end, and newcomer Carla Gallo, who makes the movie's most memorable scene as "Period Blood Girl."

What's great about all of these girls is that they're young, fun, quirky, and most importantly, they really look like high school students. Sure, they're no Megan Fox, but they certainly bring their own style and beauty to the screen and its really refreshing to see.

Seacrest Drowns the Emmys

HAHAHA...I told ya so, FOX.

As to be expected, the Seacrest-hosted Emmys tanked in the ratings this year. It was the 2nd least-watched Emmy telecast EVER. Ryan Seacrest just does not appeal to the adult public, so instead of drawing viewers in, it pushed them away with a vengeance. Ratings in the 18-49 demo were down by 17% from last year. Ouch. I hope Seacrest's ego isn't bruised too much...

For some really fun reading, check out the "Ryan Seacrest Awkwardness Meter" here, brought to you by PATRICK HUGUENIN of the New York Daily News.

my muse

Special Shout-Out to SUNNY "like the weather" LEE for inspiring so many of my posts this week!! She keeps me thinking :)

Celebrities: Untouched

It never ceases to amaze me the wonders that photoshop can unfold. In today's image obsessed society, I find it more and more important for people to see the face BEHIND the magazine cover or fashion photo shoot. Dove has done a great job of this with their Dove Real Beauty campaign as seen in the video below. For a closer look at the retouching of some of our favorite celebrities, please visit this site and click on "Portfolio." Scroll through the almost two dozen celebrities and see the real photos and the final printed product. With images like these, its no wonder young girls are starving themselves as young as 8-yrs-old to be beautiful. Beauty of this caliber is a truly unreachable goal. It really does not even exist in the natural world and yet people are still struggling to achieve it. It makes me sad.

MySpace TV Goes Online

While internet series have been taking off in a big way for awhile (with "Lonelygirl15" and "Sam Has 7 Friends"), MySpace's new series "Quarterlife" is the social networking site's first series to launch. While the previous internet series have been kinda fly by night endeavors, "Quarterlife" will mark the first series to be backed by a well-established set of Hollywood Producer/Creators: Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz ("My So-Called Life," The Last Samurai, and Blood Diamond). The series, which began as a pilot for ABC called "1/4 Life," was presumed dead after the network passed on it almost 3 years ago. MySpace has fully revived the series, hoping to bring it to life on Nov. 11th. It will consist of short 8-minute episodes to be aired weekly during a 24-hour window for a total of 36 episodes overall. The show will be available on the series' signature site www.Quarterlife.com as well. Due to the popularity of MYSPACE and its current status as a well-oiled marketing machine, the series is expected to do well. I guess we'll have to wait and see how it pans out come November. I have to admit, it looks pretty good. It feels a lot like My So-Called Life, which I just adored.
Quarterlife Trailer

Add to My Profile | More Videos
Oh, and did I mention that my little favey "frat boy" from GREEK Scott Michael Foster is starring in the series alongside the title character played by Bitsie Tulloch. Yay, Scottie!

**UPDATE 11/19/2007** NBC has just completed negotiations to air the "QUARTERLIFE" internet series on NETWORK TV starting sometime in early 2008 (once the series has aired on the internet in its entirety). It will be put together in the form of 6 one-hour episodes, a form its producers had originally intended for it to be aired in the first place.

Quirk, Kitsch, and You

There has been a bit of a backlash against American popular culture lately that I find to be highly entertaining. Last week famed designer Marc Jacobs sent fashions down the runway that produced an astonished and almost disturbed response from the fashion community. His fashions, always forward-thinking if not a bit odd, were particularly unique this season as they were inspired by the most popular characteristic of American culture at this time: Quirk. So quirky were his designs that some clothing appeared backwards, patterns mismatched, shoes slightly too small for its models, and the whole show done in reverse. This may have shocked the fashion community and even brought forth some unfavorable snickers from the audience, but I get what Jacobs is selling and I appreciate his momentum. He's able to embrace the kitschiness of our present culture while still working to perpetuate something new and interesting into the fashion world. This, you have to respect.

So what is Quirk and why has it rubbed so many people the wrong way? The Atlantic Monthly produced a fascinating article this month (found here) on the merits (or lack there of) of this American phenomenon. The contributing editor for this publication, Michael Hirschorn defined "quirk" as: “an embrace of the odd against the blandly mainstream. It features mannered ingenuousness, an embrace of small moments, narrative randomness, situationally amusing but not hilarious character juxtapositions...and unexplainable but nonetheless charming character traits. Quirk takes not mattering very seriously. Quirk is odd, but not too odd. That would take us all the way to weird, and there someone might get hurt." I have to say I love this definition b/c it captures that kind of American sensibility and tendency towards the strange yet sincere. There is certainly a sweetness to quirk that makes it resonate most with American audiences. Quirk is "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Flight of the Conchords." Its the newest YouTube sensation "Leave Britney Alone" and "Arrested Development" and "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zizzou." Its comedy, its oddity, its fun, its heart-warming while still maintaining a little roughness around the edges. Its not American reality, but rather a play on American sensibilities and culture.

The problem I think people are having lately with "Quirk" is not that they themselves lack an understanding of its charm. Rather, it is the fact that this previously counter-culture-esque movement has now found its way into the mainstream. Nearly everyone has "Napoleon Dynamite" listed as one of the favorite movies on facebook these days, proudly dawning their "Vote for Pedro" tees. Nearly every college-aged minion can drop "Anchorman" quotes like its their job. This transition should come as no surprise as nearly every counter-culture movement finds it way into the mainstream eventually. Even the goths and punks of the world find most of the wardrobe that defines them at the billion-dollar franchise that is "Hot Topic." "Urban Outfitters" is another perfect example of this. Its always this notion of "selling out" that gets people all riled up over any elements of our culture, but that's just the way it goes I guess.

I have to say I embrace the heart-warming qualities of Quirk and am not so quick to write it off as the latest pop cult phase of our generation. Sure, it'll continue to gain momentum until it so saturates our culture that even I will be ready for something new. But for now, let's just enjoy it, shall we? Its better than the infamous mindless reality tv phase of only a few years before, don't you think?

Marie Digby...Traitor.

Marie Digby is a fake! A liar! A cheater!

She's the farthest thing from an inspiration or a testament to the magical qualities YouTube posesses in enhancing the American Dream.

Ugh, I feel so betrayed. Am I really surprised? Not at all. But it really sucks when someone successfully pulls the wool over your eyes. So I was shouting praises about this young lady here, and come to find out it was all an elaborate ruse perpetuated by her record label Hollywood Records. I'm too disappointed to elaborate, so please check out this Wall Street Journal cover article here and legendary music business afficionado Bob Lefsetz's response here. Both are very imformative, and overall very disturbing. This is what happens when I jump out of my area of "expertise" and into the fast-changing and ever complicated world of music.

SATC Movie

So as I'm sure you've heard by now, the new "Sex and the City" movie begins filming this week in NY. While my anticipation for this has been a long time coming, I have to say recent reveals have made me a little uneasy about the whole thing. If they're gonna do, they sure as hell better do it right. This show holds such a place in women's hearts having had such a lasting impact on how female television is made. This movie better live up to the same standards and innovations that its precursor did and that's all I've got to say about that. So what sparked this rant? Everyone's favorite shoe-obsessed waif Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) has a personal assistant...and she will be played by the lovely and talented Jennifer Hudson. This has commercialization written all over it...

A Virtual Documentary

A few things: I adore documentaries. In general, I am completely freaked out by the whole phenomenon that is "Virtual Worlds." Now, some brilliant film-maker named Douglas Gayeton has actually combined the two! And I'm not talking about your usual documentary about people who are engaged in virtual worlds looking from the outside...oh no, Gayeton takes us INTO the virtual world of Second Life, working to create an entire documentary in the world itself through his virtual avatar. Absolutely amazing. The documentary, entitled "Molotov's Dispatches in Search of the Creator: A Second Life Odyssey" follows Gayeton's avatar Molotov Alva as he traverses through the Second Life world. This will be like watching an animated film, but will show "real" human interactions happening through online avatars. So much more than just chatting goes into these virtual worlds. Second Life, started in 2003, is already home to over 9 million users, many of whom make a real life business off of their virtual retail stores and real estate. The whole process is genuinely fascinating, slightly terrifying, and should really be a joy to watch. HBO has picked up the 35-minute documentary to air sometime next year. I'm definitely intrigued.

The Fall's Hottest New TV Stars

So after viewing nearly all of this Fall's hottest new network shows, I've decided to assess which aspiring stars seem to have the most breakout potential. The following actors are those that I feel really captured my attention throughout this whole pilot season. It was hard this year b/c you have so many "name" actors in the starring roles. Still, these relative unknowns really pulled out an awesome performance and really brought something new, fresh, and exciting to the screen. Could there be the next Hayden Panettiere or Adam Brody among them? I think so. These young hopefuls could easily become a household name by the end of the Fall Season if they play their cards right, so take note now:

The Girls
Anna Friel (Pushing Daisies)--Anna is just lovely, she has a real every girl quality about her and a true sweetness that makes her likeable all around.
Yvonne Strzechowski (Chuck)--Definitely the bombshell of the bunch, I was pleasantly surprised by Yvonne's acting talents as well. With such a sexy secret agent type role, she's sure to make waves.
Taylor Momsen (Gossip Girl)--I just adore this girl, and watching the pilot she certainly pops right off the screen. While much younger than the other girls, I certainly think she captures your attention the most, much like Hayden Panettiere on "HEROES."
Michelle Ryan (The Bionic Woman)--While Michelle is already a bit of an established name, I really think this role could help to push her career to that next level. There's definitely an exposed vulnerability and yet strength to her character that works much like Evangeline Lilly on "LOST."

The Boys
Seth Gabel (Dirty Sexy Money)--So sexy with flowing charisma, this young man was by far my favorite this pilot season. I mean it caught me off guard how immediately taken by him I was. He has the weight and sense of danger that Josh Holloway had when he burst on the scene with "LOST."
Thomas Dekker (Sarah Connor Chronicles)--So young, innocent, and just plain adorable, Dekker's sweet romance with Hayden on "HEROES" definitely made waves. I hope he can grab as much attention on his own as well.
Tyler Labine (Reaper)--Everyone's all "ooh...Bret Harrison" (who I do love and respect), but I have to say, Tyler Labine really steals the scenes. I mean the guy is just so darn funny, and with a higher profile show the the previous "Invasion" I really think he can make a name for himself here.
Penn Badgley (Gossip Girl)--The next Adam Brody if he plays his cards right, Penn really caught my attention with his striking good looks and goofy charm. Hopefully he can maintain it throughout the series.

There's also the obvious picks: Bret Harrison on "REAPER," Lee Pace on "Pushing Daisies," Zachary Levi on "Chuck," Blake Lively and Leighton Meester on "Gossip Girl," the cast of "Private Practice," etc. Instead, I purposely picked a few people whose characters are a bit more under the radar, but who definitely popped right off the screen.

Subscribe to My Blog!!

Hey Guys--here's a little note from your author. My blog now offers an email subscription service!! Your days of having to check back each day to see if there's anything new are over. You can simply type in your email address, and an email of blog updates (if there are any) will be sent directly to your inbox each morning! Simple and Easy! Just fill out the info in this box on the top right of the page, and follow the prompts to sign up. I promise I won't spam you with forwards, etc. Feel free to let me know your feedback on this service also so I can adjust it to suit your needs. Thanks!!

It's Always Funny in Philadelphia...

I'm loving all the "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" Season 3 teasers going around. Aside from the myspace preview, this little beauty just cropped up on the popular humor site FunnyorDie.com. Definitely NSFW... this little gem made me laugh out loud (as I watched it at work...haha). Enjoy!

*UPDATE* I love them so much!! Awesome new commercial :)

Marie Digby, on her way!

MARIE DIGBY
I'm trying not to talk about too much music stuff overall because its a genre I know very little about (For real music knowledge head on over to Music Ramen blog), but I just have to mention this girl b/c I know she's gonna grow. Only a few short months ago, Marie (pronounced Mari-eh) posted her cover of Rihanna's "Umbrella" on YouTube. That video was seen by quite a few people and next thing we know it is the featured song on the premiere episode of this season of "The Hills." Now, Marie is sure to be taking off in a big way. She's adorable and young and really talented. I wouldn't be surprised if that little cover of hers launches not only a lucrative music career, but also one in film or tv as well. I hear she's already taking meetings all over Hollywood...

Its amazing what one can accomplish in 3 short months. See the video that started it all below:

Why SC...Why?

Being originally from South Carolina (Charleston!!), this hurts me. There's not one coherent thought in the whole 45 seconds. I just love that she managed to bring South Africa and Iraq into her ramble...because that was SO related to the question. Gotta love those US Americans! Poor girl...

Ew...Ryan Seacrest.

So FOX has just announced that RYAN SEACREST will be hosting the 59th Annual Emmy Awards on September 16, 2007. I mean, Ryan Seacrest, really? This is the same guy that has a contest every year where YOU can host red carpet arrivals with him. I mean, that is seriously amateur stuff. Yeah, he hosts "American Idol," but people aren't watching that show b/c of his appeal, I can tell you that much. I must have missed something here. I mean instead of pulling in viewers, they're pushing them away...I'm not about to watch Ryan Seacrest's smarmy face for 3 hours.

Oh, and PS, this is just for fun, but a friend of mine overheard this amazing line from Ryan that is just too funny not to share: "I could be being raped in the closet right now!" (this was apparently his astonishing reaction to about 6 fire trucks showing up across the street for a stopped elevator). Where is your mind at, Ryan? Just thought I'd share!

In the YouTube files, I pulled up this hilarious clip to give us a taste of whats in store. John Mayer (who can barely hide his contempt for Ryan) answers his question in fluent Japanese. I knew I like that guy.

"I Got a Crush...on OBAMA!"

I just love it when Politics and Entertainment merge together. At the very least it shows that people our age are acknowledging that there's more out there than just the latest Britney gossip. Lately, there have been a whole slew of Political Candidate themed YouTube parodies. It all started with "The Obama Girl," who launched this love letter to Barack in early June.
Now, personally, I TOO have a crush on Barack Obama. Ever since reading his book "The Audacity of Hope," I've been a thorough supporter. He's such an amazing and fascinating man, really this book is a must read for anyone who is concerned about the future of our country (and that should be ALL Y'ALL, so READ IT).

Now, back to the YouTube parodies...there have been Guiliani Girls and McCain Mamas, but so far my favorite parody is the ode to Hilary Clinton entitled "Hott 4 Hill," featuring one of my favorite up-and-coming young actresses Taryn Southern. Taryn is a lovely actress and I love how she wrote and executive produced this little clip as well. You go girl :)
Ha, I see that this clip was co-produced by an actress named Meg Cionni who was in my office this very morning...such a small world.

The best thing about these clips is the intense political debates that ensue underneath the videos in the YouTube comment section. Who knew YouTube would turn into such a heated political marketplace? LOVE IT!

Rugby on ESPN.com

Random again, but I'm a huge Rugby fan b/c my dad used to play internationally when he lived in Qatar (he's gonna love me for mentioning that).

ESPN just announced its plans to give the sport more of a presence on ESPN.com. In order to accomplish this, they recently purchased Scrum.com, which currently provides rugby news, scores, and other info about the sport. I assume this means they'll integrate the content from that site into ESPN.com's main site. I'm glad ESPN is taking an interest in international sports that might not be as popular in the US. They have also taken steps to expand upon Cricket (by purchasing Cricinfo.com) and Soccer (launching foreign language websites for the sport). All of this helps make ESPN more of a world superpower when it comes to Sports and not just an American phenomenon.

Heroes Hiring Frenzy

Man, "Heroes" is hiring like crazy these days, tapping into all kinds of talent for upcoming arcs on the popular NBC Series. The biggest addition lately is the lovely and talented Kristen Bell of "Veronica Mars" fame. Since the cancellation of the cult series, its been a tv feeding frenzy for Miss Bell...its even been rumored that LOST producers were seeking her out for an arc as well. She'll join the cast of "Heroes" as a young, mysterious woman named Elle who is very actively involved in a lot of the character's lives even though her true intentions remain unclear. According to Michael Ausiello at TVguide.com, she'll be doing a whopping 13 episodes. Should be interesting. Bell is also rumored to be in the works to star as another Elle--Elle Woods, that is--in the broadway musical version of "Legally Blond," replacing current lead Laura Bell Bundy in the Spring.

Other cast additions are:
Janel Parrish (Bratz: The Movie)--the head cheerleader in Claire's new high school

Dana Davis ("The Nine")--a new humble hero and series regular

Dania Ramirez (X-Men: The Last Stand/"Sopranos")--a series regular hero with unknown powers

Nick D'Agnosto (Rocket Science)--Claire's new boyfriend with a "very cool superpower"

Barry Shabaka Henley (The Terminal)--Detective working for the NYPD

Holt McCallany ("CSI: Miami")--ring-leader to a group of Irish thugs

David Anders ("Alias")--ancient samurai warrior Takezo Kensei, Hiro's hero

Eriko Tamura ("The Nine")--Japanese Princess

Lyndsey Fonseca ("The Young and the Restless")--nice cheerleader

Dianna Agron ("Veronica Mars")--mean cheerleader

How are all of these people going to recur on one series that is already known for its prolific ensemble cast? Mighty ambitious, Tim Kring...mighty ambitious indeed. Check out what's in store for the new season, starting Sept. 24th on NBC.

Happy Birthday, Hayden!

She's legal ya'll! Young starlet Hayden Panettiere celebrates her 18th birthday today, but not before she made this adorable appearance on Letterman last night in NY. I don't know why, but I believe in Miss Hayden. I think she's got a strong head on her shoulders and won't throw her life away like so many other young stars (**cough*Lohan*cough**). And hell, she's spending her 18th birthday working with "Declare Yourself," where she is an official spokesperson spreading a strong political message for people her age to go out and VOTE in the upcoming 2008 presidential election. Go Hayden!

HSM2 Mania!

Disney Channel's "High School Musical 2" broke all kinds of records over the weekend with the highest cable premiere of ALL TIME. It just goes to show you that the tween audience is a force that cannot be denied.

A whopping 17.2 million people tuned in to see what Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and the rest of the gang had to offer. Simply amazing. It was the most watched Friday night telecast in more than 5 years, not to mention the most watched basic cable movie ever, pulling in almost 38% MORE viewers that the previous record holder.

It hit Disney Channel's key demographic perfectly, proving itself to be an incredible marketing machine (most watched TV telecast ever in kids 6-11, and 2nd most watched in tweens 9-14). Now I've been expecting this, having seen firsthand the crazy popularity "High School Musical" garnered. I mean the soundtrack alone last year was the NUMBER ONE SELLING ALBUM OF THE YEAR. This auspicious debut really should come as no surprise to anyone. I'm awaiting the numbers on the encore premieres on Saturday and Sunday night, assuming that it too was capable of breaking all kinds of records.

Congratulations, my friends!! You deserve it!!!

**UPDATE** I was right, the rebroadcasts of "High School Musical 2" (A Sing-A-Long) on Saturday and Sunday averaged a whopping 8.44 and 7.54 million viewers respectively, making Saturday's broadcast the 4th most watched telecast ever and Sunday's the 9th. That's a grand total of 33.22 million viewers in ONE WEEKEND for the made-for-TV movie. Think about that...if this had been a theatrical release with ticket sales averaging around $8, it could have grossed over $265 MILLION. That's significantly bigger than the opening for Spiderman 3, which had the highest opening to date with $151 million. Craziness. Needless to say, this movie bumped cable channel Disney Channel into the No.3 network spot for the week, averaging more viewers than basic cable networks NBC, ABC, or the CW.

Fantasy Football Rocks My Socks!

This is SO COMPLETELY UNRELATED to anything else on my site, but I'm really excited about my team, so I wanted to share. Sorry I am such a nerd. Please forgive me.

"Sunny" Returns...on Myspace!

"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" is an amazingly under-rated sitcom on the FX network. Since FX is known for its dark and edgy programming, it might seem a little odd that it would have a comedy thrown in the mix, but believe me, "Sunny" is no ordinary sitcom. Its a brilliant social satire that presents some pretty controversial subject matter in a way that is just scandalous and hilarious all at the same time. Its tagline "Its Seinfeld...on crack" says it all really. You wouldn't believe some of the escapades this "gang" of egocentric and judgemental young twenty-somethings and their father who own a bar in Philadelphia get into. With titles like "Dennis and Dee go on Welfare" and "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom," you've just gotta love it. The cast is amazingly talented, not only starring in the series itself but working to create, produce, and write it as well. Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, and Rob McElhenney (the shows male stars) really do an amazing job of capturing an American attitude of comedy, selfishness, passion, and political correctness that really characterizes our generation. Kaitlin Olsen's character "Dee" is nothing like the typical leading female character you see on TV, and its so refreshing to see. She's one of the guys yet still a strong female character who's storylines never revolve around a latest love fling (This isn't TBS's "My Boys"). The edition of Danny Devitto to the cast as Dee and Dennis's crass father who is anything but paternal is really fun too. "Sunny" is so great because it has a sense of raw realism to it that it just so relateable even though it is so over-the-top. I mean the pilot was supposedly made for less that $100 dollars by the boys, and the entire first season with a meager budget of only $400,000. That's amazing! I just can't say enough great things about this show.

So what sparked this rave? Well, "Sunny" is set to premiere on September 13th, and the creators decided that that was just too long to make the viewers wait (I couldn't agree more). Therefore, they have decided to stream the newest episode "Mac is a Serial Killer" on MYSPACE Aug. 16th-23rd. You've gotta love a network that goes out of its way to appease it fans. I'm so excited. Check it out at www.myspace.com/sunnyfx starting tomorrow!!

PS, I love Mac...like woah. :) This scene is beyond amazing also:

**UPDATE** "Mac Is A Serial Killer" is my favorite episode yet!! Its amazing!! Please check it out on their myspace above and watch all 4 parts. The PepperJack scene is awesome...I mean "PepperJack love Fraggle Rock." Genius. If you haven't seen this show, you're missing out big.

Oh Mandy!

There will always be a soft spot in my heart for Mandy Moore. She started out as just another teenage pop star with her single "Candy" back when Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, and Christina Aguilera's bubblegum pop was all the rage. Back then I wasn't too keen on the blond teenage queen...but then she did something interesting. She went back to her natural hair color and landed herself the starring role in the Adam Shankman directed A Walk to Remember. Now, I hate chick flicks, but this one in particular has an undeniable pull, and there's something about Mandy that just radiated off the screen. She then abandoned her popstar status for a more lucrative film career. While she sticks mostly to the romantic comedy genre, I think her amazing on-screen presence could really lend herself to a strong role someday. Plus, I can honestly say that I think she is the nicest celebrity I ever met. Back when I interned at a boutique PR firm I got stuck with wrangling talent onto the red carpet (some of those guys are pretty sneaky). Mandy was so friendly and sweet, chatting with me casually while waiting for her turn with the press flashes. There are so many likeable qualities about Mandy in general... she never "rebelled" as a young teen actress, she never "sluts it out," she is always the epitome of elegance and class, charity and warmth. And she's always SMILING!! Plus, she had a huge arc on "Entourage" playing the former love of Vincent Chase's life, a fitting part indeed. Anyway, I just wanted to shower her with praise b/c its a crime she hasn't already been mentioned on my site.

On another note entirely (no pun intended), Mandy has turned back to singing and released an album "Wild Hope" earlier this year. She is currently on a national tour with Paula Cole and Rachel Yamagata. She, like so many singers this summer, has just released a cover video of the ever-popular Rihanna Song "Umbrella." Mandy's cover of the instant classic song is just lovely. See below:

Dirty Sexy Money Gossip Ads

I'm all about advertising creativity, and being an entertainment blog junkie (Perez/Pink/TMZ), I have been loving the way ABC has been advertising my favorite of their fall dramas: "Dirty Sexy Money." Since the show revolves around New York's most affluent and powerful family The Darlings, the marketers have chosen to put faux gossip posts alongside real ones on some of our favorite blogs. You can learn about Juliet Darling's latest petulant slant while reading about Britney's most recent disgrace or Amy Winehouses last cancelled concert. Its all so very Allegra Coleman (for those of you who don't get the reference, I'll post on it later)! Check out one of the ads I pulled from Perez Hilton featuring my favorite of the Darling clan....don't get mad ABC, its free advertising!

Are You Ready for Some FOOTBALL?

Its that time of year again!! Preseason has gotten under way and my fantasy team has been drafted. I can't wait for the 2007 football season to really get going!! Here's a little teaser to get everyone as excited as I am, featuring my man Reggie Bush and Peyton Manning. Yummy!

The Indie Prince: Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (famous for his late 90's roles on "3rd Rock from the Sun" and teen cult flick 10 Things I Hate About You) is coming back in a big way, and he's doing it with style. His first recent big break came with Mysterious Skin in 2004, followed shortly after by the indie hit Brick, where he plays the troubled hero Brendan in this modern teenage take on the Film Noir genre. The film is just beautiful and Joseph really shines in its title role. His stunning performances here helped to launch a full fledge indie career, starring in other films like The Lookout alongside Jeff Daniels, as well as the upcoming films Killshot and Stop Loss. He may have really found his niche with indies because most recently he's landed himself back to back starring roles in two more developing films. The first is Siegel/McGehee produced Uncertainty, and the second is the Darren Star directed film The Frog King. I would expect his career to really gain some momentum in the next few years...we may even see some serious thespian awards coming his way in the not too distant future.

OneRepublic Rock.

Okay, so I don't normally do music posts, but I had to write this up for our company newsletter (!Nerd Alert!) because our usual music guy is chilling on the beach in Hawaii (Side Note, music guy is actually the real Douchbag McGee featured here in this entertaining and popular blog post by Sunny of SillyPipeDreams). Anyhow, I think this band is worth a mention.
OneRepublic
Music Spotlight on... OneRepublic, a pop-rock band from Colorado consisting of Ryan Tedder (lead vocals/guitar/piano), Zach Filkins (guitar/vocals), Eddie Fischer (drums), Brent Kutzle (Bass/Cello/Vocals), and Drew Brown (guitar). Tedder is a grammy-nominated song-writer and producer, responsible for many popular tracks on the albums of superstars like Natasha Bedingfield, Jennifer Lopez, Bubba Sparxxx. OneRepublic is the perfect product of the online age: despite never having released an album, they have gained tremendous notoriety and popularity through the MYSPACE online community. They have been ranked in Myspace Music's Top Artists since summer 2006, and are currently the #1 ranked unsigned band. Myspace users aren't the only ones taking notice of this band, Timbaland featured a remix of their most popular song "Apologize" on his 2007 album Timbaland Presents: Shock Value. Most recently, they performed live on Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance? after "Apologize" was featured in one of the dances (contemporary routine w/ Danny and Anya). Their self-titled album OneRepublic is set to release this fall.

Here is the video for the remix version of "Apologize" featuring OneRepublic and Timbaland:

JustSomeRandomGuy is Awesome

"Hi, I'm a Marvel…and I'm a DC." by JustSomeRandomGuy
We've all seen the popular and witty Mac vs. PC commercials with funny guy Justin Long (j'adore.)and John Hodgman, but you might have missed the popular YouTube parody that focuses on the two comic book giants. The series of now 16 clips hosted exclusively on YouTube appear to be written, directed, and produced by "JustSomeRandomGuy." Who are you JustSomeRandomGuy? Put some more info out there on yourself so us network peeps can discover you and make you work for the man! The clips themselves are really quite impressive--extremely witty and well-made--and the skits are "acted out" by action figures...Genius. Yes, I am a nerd, but it's really funny stuff. Apparently there are a lot of fellow nerds out there because the original clip has had almost 2.5 million views. Check it out below:

JustSomeRandomGuy is one clever dude. Check out this precious video he made to apologize for not sticking to the delivery date. Love it.

Notes on Emmy Noms

So I've finally gotten around to delivering my notes on my Emmy picks like I promised. Sorry for the delay, but its been a turbulent week. I got to pitch a few ideas I had to the President of the network and some other high-ranking execs and it went really well. Hopefully it'll bring about some really great things in my not-so-distant future. Send me well-wishes, will ya? Haha, anyway, let's take a glance at my thoughts on the Emmy Noms this year:

OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES: This is my favorite category each year, and I think all the choices are really strong contenders for the most part...the only show I don't watch (and Love) regularly is "Two and a Half Men."
"Entourage," HBO--So good...such a great representation of the LA/hollywood lifestyle. Plus its so well-written and Jeremy Piven (while predominantly absent this season) really breathes an amazing life into this series along with the rest of the cast. I'm so happy to see it finally acknowledged here...it really merits some recognition.
"The Office," NBC--It deservingly brought home the win last year, and continues to be a standout comedy series. Everything Steve Carrell and Rain Wilson do on this show has me in stitches...I love it so much.
"30 Rock," NBC--Best breakout comedy of the year I think. Alec Baldwin is a comic genius, no question about it, and his performance is peppered with an amazing cast. I really think this series could have what it takes to win this.
"Two And A Half Men," CBS--Given I've only seen one episode, but I really don't get what all the fuss is about. Maybe its just not my genre...
"Ugly Betty," ABC--This comedy really has that feel-good aspect going for it, and breakout star America Ferrera really shines. Again, another amazing cast with pretty exceptional writing.

OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES: My second favorite category...naturally. No real surprises here either.
"Boston Legal," --Really funny show, really well-written...I just don't really watch it.
"Grey’s Anatomy," ABC--I used to love this series, but somewhere in the middle of this season when I just couldn't take Ellen Pompeo for one more second, I bailed out. If it was enough to push me away from my favorite series, then its enough to keep it from winning...I'm sorry.
"Heroes," NBC--If you had asked me which series I thought should win the emmy before the last three episodes of the season, I would have picked this one hands down. I don't think I've ever been so crazy obsessed about a show before. But it let me down...badly...and I'm still pretty bitter.
"House," Fox--Another strong contender. Hugh Laurie really is an amazing actor, creating a character so human and so inhumane all at the same time. I love the cast and I love this show, but I'm not religious about it, so I place my vote elsewhere. I'd be happy if it won though, of course.
"The Sopranos," HBO--I think its another big Sopranos year. The Sopranos might have gone out in one controversial bang, but the magic this show creates is undeniable. The clear front runner in my opinion.

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A COMEDY: Thank goodness Tony Shaloub wasn't nominated again this year, since he seems to have a monopoly on the category. Am I really the only one that doesn't see his appeal, AT ALL? There's something shady going on with the USA Network and the Emmy Committees in general...I'm just saying.
Ricky Gervais as Andy Millman, "Extras," HBO--Funny man, funny show. I get it.
Steve Carell as Michael Scott, "The Office," NBC--HILARIOUS man, who should have one hands down last year. I'd still be ecstatic to see him pull out the win this year too. I just love to see him as the "World's Best Boss."
Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy, "30 Rock," NBC--Seriously, I don't think I've ever felt like someone nailed a comedic character as well as Alec does as Jack Donaghy. Truly amazing performance each and every episode...I think he could even beat Carrell.
Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper, "Two And A Half Men," CBS--yeah yeah yeah...okay. Not nearly up to par with the other nominees, but sure, he's a funny guy.

ACTRESS IN A COMEDY: gotta love the power comedy females!
Felicity Huffman as Lynette Scavo, "Desperate Housewives," ABC--I do love her, but I've stopped watching Desperate completely so I don't even know what she did this season to warrant this award.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Christine Campbell, "The New Adventures Of Old Christine," CBS--To my surprise, she took this award last year. This show is actually pretty funny though, just not twice in a row funny.
Tina Fey as Liz Lemon, "30 Rock," NBC--She really does a great job on the show and as the writer, also, I'm even more impressed.
America Ferrera as Betty Suarez, "Ugly Betty," ABC--I really think she's gonna steal the show here... everyone just loves and adores her and her performance is just so organic.
Mary-Louise Parker as Nancy Botwin, "Weeds," Showtime--Another great actress, but not quite as standout as some of the others here.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY: Again with the "Two an a Half Men"...clearly I'm missing something here. All the others are clear choices for me though.
Kevin Dillon as Johnny Drama, "Entourage," HBO--Who would have though Kevin Dillon would be nominated for an Emmy? He got the role b/c he WAS the character...but he does a PHENOMENAL job with it really. I'm very happy to see him nominated.
Jeremy Piven as Ari Gold, "Entourage," HBO--Oh, Super-agent Ari Gold has created his own empire of superfans...Jeremy Piven is undeniably genius in this role, but he did win last year.
Neil Patrick Harris as Barney Stinson, "How I Met Your Mother," CBS--Neil is so great as womanizer Barney, and I do really enjoy this show.
Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute, "The Office," NBC--Oh my gosh, hands down my favorite tv character ever. Rainn is amazing amazing amazing.
Jon Cryer as Alan Harper, "Two And A Half Men," CBS--meh.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA
William Shatner as Denny Crane, "Boston Legal," ABC--I get it.
T.R. Knight as George, "Grey’s Anatomy," ABC--oh Grey's...you make me sad. I do love TR Knight though and am happy to see him here.
Masi Oka as Hiro Nakamura, "Heroes," NBC--Best breakout star of the year certainly. So adorable as clueless and determined Hiro on HEROES.
Michael Emerson as Ben, "Lost," ABC--Another amazing Lost surprise, NO ONE had any idea whether he was truthful or lying at first, and he maintained the same creepy sense of mystery throughout. What a surprising talent.
Terry O’Quinn as John Locke, "Lost," ABC--Another strong actor, but I'm not sure he really has what it takes to win this category either.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDYJaime Pressly as Joy Turner. "My Name Is Earl," NBC--Hilarious and really lovely actress... I'm a fan.
Jenna Fischer as Pam Beesly. "The Office," NBC--So easy to love, and that speech by the fire!! She easily won over my heart and my vote.
Holland Taylor as Evelyn Harper. "Two And A Half Men," CBS--Who? I need to watch this show more I think...
Conchata Ferrell as Berta. "Two And A Half Men," CBS--see above.
Vanessa Williams as Wilhelmina Slater. "Ugly Betty," ABC--Good casting, good performance...not outstanding for me.
Elizabeth Perkins as Celia Hodes, "Weeds," Showtime--Same as above.

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA
Rachel Griffiths as Sarah Whedon, "Brothers & Sisters," ABC--I can't watch this show, I'm sorry. no opinion.
Katherine Heigl as Isobel "Izzie" Stevens, "Grey’s Anatomy," ABC--Her heart-wrenching performance at the end of the 2nd season stole my heart, and she's kept it ever since. I really hope she wins this.
Chandra Wilson as Dr. Bailey, "Grey’s Anatomy," ABC--nothing but love for this woman and her acting ability. She's great.
Sandra Oh as Cristina Yang, "Grey’s Anatomy," ABC--Always an amazing actress, but she didn't really grab me this season on Grey's.
Aida Turturro as Janice Soprano, "The Sopranos," HBO--Strong contender.
Lorraine Bracco as Dr. Jennifer Melfi, "The Sopranos," HBO--Another strong contender.
OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE IN A VARIETY OR MUSIC PROGRAM
Ellen Degeneres, "79th Annual Academy Awards," ABC--I put this category in here just so I could express my undying love for Ellen...what an amazing person and comedian. I want her to come back and host many many other awards shows!!
Stephen Colbert, "The Colbert Report," Comedy Central
Jon Stewart, "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart," Comedy Central
David Letterman, "Late Show With David Letterman," CBS
Tony Bennett, "Tony Bennett: An American Classic," NBC

OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A DRAMA
"Battlestar Galactica: Occupation/Precipice," Ronald D. Moore, Sci Fi Channel--I frakking LOVE this show...I think its hands down the most under-rated show on tv and I really hope that it wins this category like it deserves!
"Lost: Through The Looking Glass," Damon Lindelof, Carlton Cuse, ABC
"The Sopranos: Kennedy And Heidi," Matthew Weiner, David Chase, HBO
"The Sopranos: The Second Coming," Terence Winter, HBO
"The Sopranos: Made In America," David Chase, HBO

CHOREOGRAPHY: Since my obsession with "So You Think You Can Dance" on FOX continues...you can just guess where my loyalties lie here...it was a tough call between the two, that's for sure.
"Dancing With The Stars: Episode 303A," ABC, Louis Van Amstel--Rock, my favy fave Monique was in this dance!!! Go Mo!! But DWTS is no SYTYCD...
"So You Think You Can Dance: Ramalama (Bang Bang)," Fox, Wade Robson--I just loved and adored this dance. It was so amazingly cool and innovative, and that's why I chose Wade's dance.
"So You Think You Can Dance: Calling You," Fox, Mia Michaels, Choreographer--Mia is such an amazing choreographer; nearly every single one of her pieces are so emotional and lovely, but this one really stood out from the rest.
"Tony Bennett: An American Classic, NBC," Rob Marshall, John DeLuca

Chyler Goes "Grey"

I just confirmed that actress Chyler Leigh (mentioned here) has been filming episodes for the upcoming fourth season of "Grey's Anatomy." She was added to the cast earlier this month as a series regular, reprising her role as LEXIE GREY, Meredith's half-sister, who sparks a little Mc-chemistry in the finale episodes of last season. Chyler's character Lexie will be joining the staff at Seattle Grace Hospital as their newest intern and is expected to bring with her some spicy storylines. Similarly, they are planning on adding a little Mc-Mystery Man to the cast as well to throw another wrench into the ever-evolving relationship that is Meredith and McDreamy. Chyler on the cast might just be enough to bring me back over to the dark side and start fresh as a regular Grey's Mc-viewer. Okay, I'll stop "mc-ing" everything... it was fun for a Mc-second. Mc-ha.

Worst Interviewer Ever.

Who the hell did this chick sleep with to get on TV? I mean really, its New York for crying out loud, not St. George, Utah. The city breeds good-looking well-spoken people. I just feel bad for Holly Hunter. The interviewer Merry Miller is practically unintelligible. Could she say "I love..." anymore? And who says "true true true" on the air? Just awful. This tape should be presented to all aspiring newscasters as the perfect example of what not to do in an on-air interview. Wow.

Indian-Americans Hit Their Prime!

Primetime, that is. Looking over the cast lists for the upcoming series, I couldn't help but notice an increase of Indian-American actors in starring and major supporting roles in Primetime Network Television Shows. I think this is a huge step in moving away from token diverse characters and really acknowledging the abilities and depth a diverse actor can bring to a character. Ethnicity aside, its about the creation of a person who the audience can relate to and be entertained by during their time on the screen. Indian-American actors have been making huge strides on American television shows, showing up all over in a wide variety of important roles. While Indian culture is known for being rich in Entertainment (Bollywood), I'm excited that American culture is finally about to integrate their ever-present talents in the mainstream. Those Indian-American talents that are at the forefront of this transformation are listed below:

Parminder Nagra
Parminder stole the hearts of American movie-goers in 2002 with the indie hit Bend It Like Beckham, which was the first major movie to put Indian culture at the forefront of a western film. Her next big starring role was saving lives as Dr. Rasgotra on NBC's hit series "ER."

Sendhil Ramamurthy
Sendhil proved that Indian-American actors can be totally sexy as the smart professor Mohinder Suresh in NBC's latest hit "HEROES." While the role was originally written as a 60-year-old man, once the casting directors saw Sendhil, he popped so much that they reworked the part just for him.

Mindy Kaling
One of the geniuses behind NBC's "The Office," Mindy is phenomenal as ditzy, talkative, and romance-obsessed Kelly. While Indian-Americans are often stereotyped as either nerdy doctor/scientist types or convenience store owners, Mindy proves that they are no different from the rest of us; afterall, a true valley girl can come in all shapes, sizes, and colors.

Padma Lakshmi
Padma is the face of Bravo's hit series "Top Chef." Aside from the host spot on this popular series, the gorgeous model and actress has also written a popular cookbook entitled "Easy Exotic: A Model's Low-fat Recipes From Around The World."

Maulik Pancholy
Maulik plays the obedient assistant of Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) on NBC's critically acclaimed series "30 Rock." It appears as though his character might have a man-crush on his boss, which adds some depth and comedy. Maulik has a whole slew of film projects coming up soon also.

Navi Rawat
Of both Indian and German descent, Navi is best recognized as the pregnant home-wrecking ex-girlfriend of Ryan Atwood on Fox's "The OC." These days she's landed herself a starring role on CBS's "Numb3rs" as brilliant mathematician and FBI Consultant Amita, proving that you can be young, sexy, and a genius all at once.

Kal Penn
Kal is perhaps one of the most recognizable Indian-American comedic actors, starring in feature hits Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle and Van Wilder. He's now hitting the primetime tv circuit as a series regular on Fox's hit "House," where he plays a young doctor under Hugh Laurie's title character.

Sunkrish Bala
Sunkrish stars as one of the title characters on ABC's midseason sitcom "Notes from the Underbelly," which was recently renewed for a second season. He plays the dutiful young husband to his pregnant wife.

Ravi Kapoor
Ravi plays Dr. Bug on NBC's series "Crossing Jordan." He began his role as the brilliant but shy forensic entomologist and has developed the role into a full blown love interest for another title character, showing the more human relationship sides to his scientific character.

Indira Varma
Indira played devoted Niobe on HBO's hit series "ROME" until her suicide at the end of the first season. She also starred in the short-lived CBS drama "3 lbs" until its premature cancellation.

Dilshad Vadsaria
Dilshad plays the cold priviledged freshman sorority pledge in ABC Family series "Greek." A senator's daughter, her character makes a nice rival to the sorority princess Casey.



The New Class:

Adhir Kalyan as title role of Pakistani Muslim exchange student Raja Musharaff in the CW's half-hour sitcom "Aliens in America"


Kunal Nayyar as Koothrappali, one of the pack of science geeks that befriend the gorgeous young woman living next door in CBS's comedy "The Big Bang Theory"


Vik Sahay as Victor, one of the major supporting roles in NBC's upcoming series from Josh Schwartz "Chuck"



And some other up-and-comers to keep your eye out for in the feature and television worlds:

Noureen DeWulf, Samrat Chakrabarti, Kavi Ladnier, Sheetal Sheth

Fall 2007 New Series

So in case you were all interested, below is a list of the networks new shows for the fall, when they're airing, and who the stars are. I've taken the liberty of highlighting the shows I have any interesting in watching based on my opinion of the pilots and what their scheduling is. Some are shows that I think I'm gonna love to hate like "Gossip Girl" and "Chuck." We'll have to wait and see once everything airs b/c that an awful lot of tv on top of my current faves "Lost," "Heroes," "The Office," "30 Rock," "Cold Case," etc.

NETWORK NEW ORIGINAL SERIES—FALL 2007

ABC
Big Shots—Thurs/10 (Michael Vartan, DylanMcDermott, Christopher Titus, Joshua Molina, Nia Long, Paige Turco, Peyton List, Wendy Moniz, Jessica Collins, Amy Sloan)

Carpoolers—Tues/8:30 (Jerry O’Connell, Fred Goss, Jerry Minor, Time Peper, Faith Ford, Allison Munn, T.J. Miller)

Cavemen—Tues/8 (Nick Kroll, Bill English, Sam Huntington, Kaitlin Doubleday, John Heard, Stephanie Lemelin)

Dirty Sexy Money—Wed/10 (Peter Krause, Seth Gabel, Glenn Fitzgerald, Samaire Armstrong, Zoe McLennan, Natalie Zea, Billy Baldwin, Donald Sutherland, Jill Clayburgh, Laz Alonso)

Eli Stone—MS (Johnny Lee Miller, Natasha Henstridge, Victor Garber, Loretta Devine, Sam Jaeger, Laura Benanti, James Saito)

Miss/Guided—MS (Judy Greer, Brooke Burns, Krostoffer Polaha, Jonathan Sadowski, Earl Billings)

Private Practice—Wed/9 (Kate Walsh, Paul Adelstein, Amy Brenneman, Tim Daly, Taye Diggs, Audra McDonald, Chris Lowell)

Samantha Who?—Mon/9:30 (Christina Applegate, Jean Smart, Jennifer Esposito, Barry Watson, Melissa McCarthey, Tim Russ, Kevin Dunn)

Cashmere Mafia—MS Tues/9 (Frances O’Connor, Miranda Otto, Lucy Liu, Bonnie Somerville, Peter Hermann, Julian Ovenden)

Women’s Murder Club—Fri/9 (Angie Harmon, Paula Newsome, Laura Harris, Aubrey Dollar)

Pushing Daisies—Wed/8 (Lee Pace, Anna Friel, Chi McBride, Swoosie Kurtz, Kristen Chenowith, Jim Dale)

NBC
The Bionic Woman—Wed/9 (Michelle Ryan, Chris Bowers, Miguel Ferrer, Molly Price, Will Yun Lee, Lucy Hale)

The IT Crowd—MS (Joel McHale, Richard Ayoade, Rocky Carroll, girl TBD)

Life—Wed/10 (Damian Lewis, Sarah Shahi, Adam Arkin, Melissa Sagemiller, Robin Weigert)

Lipstick Jungle—MS (Brooke Shields, Kim Raver, Lindsay Price)

Journeyman—Mon/10 (Kevin McKidd, Moon Bloodgood, Gretchen Egolf, Reed Diamond, Charles Henry Wyson)

Chuck—Mon/8 (Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strzechowski, Adam Baldwin, Joshua Gomez, Sarah Lancaster)

FOX
Canterbury’s Law—MS Thurs/9 (Julianna Margulies, Linus Roache, Ben Shenkman, Trieste Dunn, Jocko Sims)

Back to You—Wed/8 (Kelsey Grammer, Patricia Heaton, Fred Willard, Josh Gad, Ty Burrell, Laura Moreno)

K-Ville—Mon/9 (Anthony Anderson, Cole Hauser, Maximiliano Hernandez, Blake Shields, Tawny Cypress, John Carroll Lynch)

New Amsterdam—Tues/8 (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Zuleikha Robinson, Alexie Gilmore, Stephen Henderson)

The Return of Jezebel James—MS Wed/8:30 (Parker Posey, Lauren Ambrose, Scott Cohen, Michael Arden, Ron McLarty)

Unhitched—MS (Craig Bierko, Rashida Jones, Johnny Sneed, Shaun Majumder)

The Sarah Connor Chronicles—MS Sun/9 (Lena Headey, Thomas Dekker, Summer Glau, Richard T. Jones)

The CW
Aliens in America—Mon/8:30 (Dan Byrd, Adhir Kalyan, Amy Pietz, Scott Patterson, Lindsey Shaw)

Life is Wild—Sun/8 (Leah Pipes, K’Sun Ray, Andrew St. John, Mary Matilyn Mouser, David Butler, Calvin Goldpink, Tiffany Mulheron, Atandwa Kani, Jeremy Sheffield, D.W. Moffett, Stephanie Niznik)

Reaper—Tues/9 (Bret Harrison, Allison Hossack, Andrew Airlie, Kyle Switzer, Missy Peregrym, Ray Wise, Tyler Labine, Rick Gonzalez, Valarie Rae Miller)

Gossip Girl—Wed/9 (Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Penn Badgeley, Taylor Momsen, Connor Paolo, Chace Crawford, Ed Westwick, Kelly Rutherford, Sam Robards, Matthew Settle)

CBS
Cane—Tues/10 (Jimmy Smits, Hector Elizondo, Nestor Carbonell, Paola Turbay, Rita Moreno, Eddie Matos, Polly Walker, Lee Tergesen)

Swingtown—MS (Molly Parker, Jack Davenport, Grant Show, Lana Parrilla, Miriam Shor, Josh Hopkins, Shanna Collins, Aaron Howles, Brittany Robertson)

Viva Laughlin—Sun/8 (Lloyd Owen, Madchen Amick, Hugh Jackman, D.B. Woodside, Eric Winter, P.J. Byrne, Ellen Woglom, Carter Jenkins)

Moonlight—Fri/9 (Alex O’Loughlin, Shannyn Sossamon, Jason Dohring, Sophia Myles)

Big Bang Theory—Mon/8:30 (Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar)

Pilot Re-Cast Alert

Oh, the inevitable re-cast. Once pilots are picked up and its stars excited at the prospect of network tv stardom looming around the corner, the networks jump in and rip the magic carpet out from underneath them. Oh, its not all tragedy... sometimes its the stars themselves that want out and other times the actor just wasn't right for the role or the role is being reworked so its best for the rest of us if someone new takes their place. Still, you can't help but feel sorry for the ones that don't make the cut. I mean, they are just people afterall. Now that my sympathies are expressed, I'm gonna be completely hypocritical and judge them. Yes, judge them against their shiny new replacements. See below:

"The Bionic Woman" (NBC)
Mae Whitman replaced by
Lucy Hale
I already talked about this below. I love love Mae and thought she was great, but I'm happy for Lucy to have the opportunity. I'm hearing rumors that the character is being completely reworked to be no longer deaf and have amazing computer hacking abilities. Hopefully it was Mae walking away from the series herself to go on to do bigger and better things.

"Private Practice" (Grey's Anatomy Spinoff)(ABC)
Merrin Dungey replaced by
Audra McDonald
I like Merrin, but I have to agree with ABC here that she brought a disconnect to the budding series. I just didn't buy her and Kate Walsh as bff's. The chemistry just wasn't there. Besides, Audra has won like 4 Tony Awards...clearly the better choice :)

"Reaper" (The CW)
Nikki Reed replaced by
Missy Peregrym
So I wasn't in love with Nikki at all in the pilot, and I definitely felt like she was the weak link. That being said, I've never been all that sold on Missy either. I felt like her character in "Heroes" this past season fell kinda flat. I guess she's the prettier choice. Hopefully she can pull it out for this Kevin Smith series.

"Aliens in America" (The CW)
Patrick Breen replaced by
Scott Patterson
Boo. I don't really support this decision. I think Patrick is a solid comedic actor and was happy with the dynamic he brought to the series. While I am a fan of Scott's, I am not pleased at the prospect of sexy-ing the dad up, which places more of a focus on him and away from the kids. Changes the series completely. Oh well.

"8 Days a Week" (The CW)
Johnny Lewis replaced by
Justin Hartley
I still can't believe this series got picked up...I mean Mario Lopez is a series regular. Anyway, they definitely sexed the role up like 5 notches with Justin. Yes please, I'll take 2. Johnny was sweet, but not really star material. Still, I've heard Justin a pretty horrific actor. I guess we'll see how it all comes to together. I love how the CW's solution to everything is "More Sexy." Fabulous.

"Cavemen" (ABC)
Dash Mihok replaced by
Sam Huntington
Perhaps Dash realized this show was career suicide, I'm not sure, but he's out and adorable Sam is in. As long as fellow caveman Nick Kroll sticks with it, I'll give this show a few more episodes...he's hilarious. Hopefully Sam can add some more depth to his caveman...what am I saying here? I mean, this show is based on a Geiko commercial for crying out loud...its gonna die a fiery death.

"Moonlight" (CBS)--PILOT OVERHAUL
Rade Serbedzija replaced by Jason Dohring, Amber Valletta replaced by Shannyn Sossamon, Shannon Lucio replaced by Sophia Myles
Clearly they're going in a different direction since they dropped about 50 years off of the character Josef b/w Rade and Jason. Both Amber and Shannon are cute, but that's about where their talents ended here. I'm a huge Shannyn fan, so I'm stoked to see her as an ass-kicking vampire, I think. I'm not familiar with Sophia at all, but she has a strong vampire movie background, so I'm sure she had a kickass reel for this. The real question is, why didn't they recast Alex O'Loughlin in the title role...wasn't a big fan.

Other recastings include the parents on The CW's "Life is Wild" (Brett Cullen and Judith Hoag) being replaced by D.W. Moffet and Stephanie Niznik. Jessica St. Clair's character on NBC's comedy "The IT Crowd" is also rumored to have a replacement in the works.

Also, Victoria Pratt (the lip-purser who I hated from Dirty Sexy Money) is being left out of announcements for the show...I hope this means there's a re-cast in her future...