BrilliantButCancelled.com Blogs: NewsWire

Emmy in a Box

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 08:41:17 -0800

The Creative Arts Emmy Awards were held over the weekend, and while many technical awards were doled out on Saturday (who wasn’t biting their nails to see which costume prosthetic would walk away a winner, am I right? It was “House”, by the way), it was the a digital short from Andy Samberg and Justin Timberlake that walked away with the best original music and lyrics award.

Their now-notorious “D*ck in a Box” video, which was seen by millions on the internet, took the award, beating out an all-musical episode of “Scrubs”. Timberlake was not in LA to accept the award, but because he will be in town for the live Emmy broadcast on September 15th, there have been rumors circulating that he will reunite with Samberg to perform their Emmy-winning duet.

When accepting the award, Samberg said, “"I think it’s safe to say that when we first set out to make this...

Your Moment of Zen

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 08:40:31 -0800

A new philosophy book will explore the work and message of “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” as a way to understand our current culture. The book, “The Daily Show and Philosophy: Moments of Zen in the Art of Fake News”, seeks to explore how the show reflects on media, humor, and our understanding of the world around us.

Jason Holt, who assembled a group of seventeen philosophers to weigh in on the effects of the Comedy Central phenomenon, said, “The Daily Show is funny. It provides a unique take on the media and culture. It taps in where other shows don’t – even though this is admittedly a ‘fake news’ program."

Can “The Daily Show” save the American media, or, at least, shame them into doing a better job? No one can answer that, but the writers in this book illustrate why the show is so important these days, and why it’s far...

Fischer Splits

Thu, 06 Sep 2007 09:06:08 -0800

Actress Jenna Fischer, star of NBC’s “The Office”, announced she’s splitting with her husband of six years.

Fischer, who plays Pam Beesly on the hit comedy, was married to writer/director James Gunn. They were introduced by his brother, Sean Gunn, an actor who appeared on “Gilmore Girls”. James Gunn is known for his script for 2004’s “Dawn of the Dead”, as well as last year’s horror film “Slither”.

On a myspace page, both Fischer and Gunn thank everyone for their support. They finish with: “"You might be tempted to make one of us 'feel better' by putting the other one down in a post. Please don't – we still have the utmost respect for one another, and we'd have to delete you."

Shepherd on “The View”

Thu, 06 Sep 2007 09:05:41 -0800

The long and winding road “The View” has taken since the departure of Star Jones looks to be at an end. On Monday, Barbara Walters is expected to make an announcement about the newest member of the cast, making a complete, permanent team for the first time since before the addition of Rosie O’Donnell.

The actress Sherri Shepherd, who served as a guest host on the show more than a dozen times, will fill Star Jones’ empty seat. It was rumored back in July that Shepherd would take the job, but that she asked for payment equal to that of Whoopi Goldberg, and the producers balked.

The details of her contract are not immediately clear, and nothing will be formalized to the public until Monday, but it looks like Shepherd is here to stay.

From ‘Creek’ to Chic

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 08:46:39 -0800

James Van Der Beek, star of “Dawson’s Creek”, will be returning to television this fall as a cast member of ABC’s hit comedy “Ugly Betty”. He will play the owner of a fashion house who has difficulty dealing with ‘Mode Magazine’ and their transsexual employee, Alexis Meade (played by Rebecca Romjin).

Van Der Beek joins a long list of stars lined up to appear on the show this season. Gina Gershon and producer Salma Hayek will make guest appearances, but it’s the presence of Victoria Beckham that has fans buzzing.

Intelligent Idols

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 08:46:15 -0800

Fox’s hit game show “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?”, will be calling on celebs to take on the elementary school kids. Former “American Idol” contestants Clay Aiken and Kellie Pickler will test their knowledge of history, science, math, English, and geography, among other subjects.

Other celebrity contestants will include Regis Philbin, Tony Hawk, and Billy Bush.

Place your bets on which celebrity can rise to the occasion, and which will be humbled by the precocious youngsters. The always entertaining Kellie Pickler better watch her back.

And That’s The Way It Is

Mon, 27 Aug 2007 10:59:18 -0800

Fox’s reality series, “Anchorwoman”, was pulled after only one episode last week. The show, which features a blonde bombshell (formerly of the WWE) trying her hand at news reporting, did not get worthwhile numbers, particularly from the 18-49 year-old set that appeals to advertisers.

The show was meant to pit a beautiful but not-journalistically-savvy woman in the heart of a local news team. To the average viewer, though, this “experiment” may not have looked drastically different from their own local news.

Who’s ‘Hannah’ Is It?

Mon, 27 Aug 2007 10:09:42 -0800

Buddy Sheffield, a comedy writer, is suing Walt Disney Co. for allegedly stealing the idea for their hit television series: “Hannah Montana”. According to him, he came up with the idea of a junior high school student leading a double life as a rock star.

Also according to the lawsuit, Disney Channel executives at first entertained the idea, but ultimately passed on the project, only for a similar show, “Hannah Montana”, to emerge a few years later.

While Sheffield may have a case, the idea of an adolescent leading a secret life as a rock star has probably been thought of before. By every single junior high school student in America, to be exact.

“Nation” Threatened

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 10:04:31 -0800

The controversial series, “Kid Nation”, continues to make daily headlines before the show airs its first episode.

The reality series, which places kids in a remote area of New Mexico, where they must create a society from scratch, is a stretch for the normally conservative CBS, but they had previously claimed they covered their bases. They avoided children labor disputes, problems with a lack of schooling or tutors, even parents of the children. A lawyer for the network even claimed they had received no word from any source that they were violating any laws.

That story, however, has changed.

Pushing Pee Wee

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 09:49:23 -0800

Brilliant but Cancelled all-stars Bryan Fuller and Paul Reubens will be joining forces for this season’s “Pushing Daisies” on ABC, reports TV Guide.

Reubens, better known as Pee Wee Herman, will have a recurring role on the new series, which is generating a ton of pre-season buzz. It was rumored that producers wanted Masi Oka (Hiro from “Heroes”) for the role of a traveling salesman, but NBC put the kibosh on the idea. That’s when the star of “Pee Wee’s Playhouse”, what some consider among the finest brilliant but cancelled shows of recent history, stepped in.

Also starring Lee Pace, “Pushing Daisies” sounds like a mix of “Dead Like Me” and “Wonderfalls”. If that's anywhere near the truth, long may it run.