When the Music Stops

By on Feb 11, 2010 in Tinseltown | 5 comments

For a recent homework assignment, our professor wanted us to watch three consecutive hours of television on any cable channel. Of course I procrastinated and had to pick from the offerings on the last possible day. I chose to watch the midday Wednesday MTV lineup, which were amusing if not insipid episodes of Disaster Date and True Life. When it came time to analyze the programming, I ruminated on MTV’s current situation. But first, here’s a little state-of-the-network address. The channel is operated by MTV Networks, which, along with BET Networks, is a part of Viacom. MTV Networks, in turn, also owns MTV2, mtvU, MTV Tr3s, VH1, VH1 Classic, VH1 Soul, CMT, Logo, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Noggin, The N, Comedy Central, TV Land, and Spike TV. The Viacom website boasts that the singular channel MTV reaches 508 million households across a variety of platforms and that the...

The Everywhere Actors

By on Aug 15, 2009 in Tinseltown |

When you watch as much television as I do, you see familiar faces all the time, and then you have to ask yourself (or IMDb), “Where have I seen him/her before?” For example, I’m watching the first season of House, and I’ve recognized guest stars from elsewhere in thirteen of the first fifteen episodes. And then there are actors like Michelle Forbes and Željko Ivanek who show up on many of my favorite series. The phenomenon came to a head recently when I saw both of them on the same episode of True Blood. Pictured above is Forbes in the roles she’s played in some of my favorite shows. From left to right: presidential advisor Lynne Kresge on 24, Oceanic Airlines representative Karen Decker on Lost, tough-as-nails admiral Helena Cain on Battlestar Galactica, beleaguered wife Kate on In Treatment, “social worker”/maenad Maryann Forrester on True...

An Elegy for the Remote-Free

By on Aug 1, 2009 in Tinseltown |

The following post was originally published on my old blog on April 1, 2009. One of my favorite practices this season was Fox’s “remote-free TV” model, in which the networks aired fewer commercials during each episode of Fringe and Dollhouse—while charging advertisers more for the exclusivity—in an effort to keep viewers watching live, instead of recording the shows and fast-forwarding through the commercials. I liked it because, as a result, each episode’s running time was 49 or 50 minutes, instead of just 42 or 43 minutes. Unfortunately, the experiment had its share of setbacks, according to this article at Airlock Alpha. Even though viewers paid more attention to the ads, many companies were reluctant to shell out the extra bucks. Also, each episode was more expensive to produce—and the extra minutes of each episode would be cut if the show was ever to air on...

Give These Actors a Take Two!

By on Aug 1, 2009 in Tinseltown | 1 comment

The following post was originally published on my old blog on March 29, 2009. The following actors are all alumni of some of my favorite shows, and I want them back on television. Post haste! Merrin Dungey Dungey is one of my beloved Alias actors and probably one of the most under-appreciated. She spent two seasons playing Francie Calfo and then made a couple of repeat performances later in the series. She spent two seasons on the sudsy, frothy mess known as Summerland. And then good news! She was cast as Addison Montgomery’s best friend Naomi Bennett in the backdoor pilot for Private Practice. And then bad news! She was replaced by Audra McDonald for the actual series. Even though McDonald seems perfect for the part of Naomi, Dungey needs a role elsewhere. Gillian Anderson I don’t care if she’s playing Dana Scully or not, Anderson should return to American...

The Sophomore Slaughter

By on Jul 31, 2009 in Tinseltown |

The following post was originally published on my old blog on January 22, 2009. For some reason, I’m always surprised when shows are cancelled in their second seasons or later. To me, cancellation seems like the gauntlet that first-year shows run, and once they’re past that trial, they’ve earned the right to end on their terms—or, at least, end with a little advance notice. No such luck. ABC reminded me of this misconception a couple of months ago with the sudden (and simultaneous) cancellation of three sophomore series: Pushing Daisies, Eli Stone, and Dirty Sexy Money. I hadn’t gotten into Dirty Sexy Money, but I was a big fan of the other two. And this move by ABC—cancelling three series in one fell swoop—struck me as particularly ruthless. At least when shows are cancelled individually, I can pretend like it was a hard decision for the network to make. But when three shows are...