Hatin’ on Hulu

Well, it was only a matter of time before the
novelty of Hulu got snapped up by the
big greedy guys. That’s right, there’s no such thing as free TV.

Don’t hurl your computer out the window just yet,
there is a $9.99 premium for older shows; but new shows will still be
offered for free.

In other words,
you can watch episodes of your favorite shows that are on TV from
current seasons within a certain time frame. However, with a
subscription you will have access to entire season of both new and old
shows.

So, its not horrible but it
does limit some content. Guess what? I heard FanCast is still free.
The
feature is now available on the computer, iPhone’s and iPad’s but is
rumored to soon be coming to Xbox  360 and Playstation 3.

This essentially helps eliminate the need for
basic cable, no?

Entourage is back...(cue song) Oh yeah, oh yeah!

Hot off their soul searching missions the boys are back and this season is going to be good. Vince is doing his own stunts, E is planning his wedding, Turtle has started his own sexy limousine service and well Drama is being Drama but he is actively searching for a job. Oh and how could I forget, Ari is on fire (lets hope he doesn't have an an aneurysm). Also, Lloyd, my favorite of the crew, is a full fledged agent.

When we left the guys Vince had just landed an action role with an intense director (Nick Cassavettes). Eric proposed to Sloan on the side of a the road. Turtle and Jamie broke up (so sad!). Drama got fired (again).

The first episode of season 7 jumps right into things. Turtle seems to have landed on his feet with his limousine business. Though, I think I'm predicting a sexual harassment case sometime in the future. Vince is having a blast on the set of his new movie except the director really wants him to do his own stunts. Ari must save the day on this one.  Other than that you don't see too much character development and we're all left in a lurch wondering how everyone got to where the are over the Fall and Spring hiatus.

No doubt Ari is about to become the most powerful man in Hollywood and he is taking his boys with him.

'Downfall' may have few

Rumor has it WWE favorite Chris Jericho is on his way out. The pro wrestler debuted as host of the ABC game show 'Downfall' last night (we'll get to the show later).

Jericho has been moving towards the world of hosting and acting and waning from his wrestling career. At a Monday night RAW appearance in Bridgeport Monday night he threatened that if he lost he match he would quit. He won, but this is sure to be his habitual threat until its not. He has been getting less airtime with the WWE, some say because his taping schedule for ABC is taking up time, nonetheless its sparking speculation that they are ousting him. His contract is up in the Fall.

Jericho's hosting skills are sharp. He's super enthusiastic. In an interview he compared his hosting duties on Downfall to his experience in the ring saying they were both 'high energy' situations.

He can be seen in the summer flick McGruber with the SNL gang. He also scored a job as the host on Downfall, a heart, a pumping gameshow, compared to Who Wants to be a Millionaire, only contestants hover above the Street of Los Angeles and watch precious prizes smash to pieces as the clock ticks away.

Contestants have the chance to win prizes and up to a million dollars in a 7 tiered set up. The contestant and Jericho are tethered to a bungee cord. If the player cannot answer the speed round of questions before the money falls off the conveyor belt onto the street below they do are dropped off the side of the building. Also traveling down the conveyor belt are replicas of the prizes they are eligible to win if they don't fall off. The crazy and smashing of these replicas is both a distraction to the audience and the player thus tripping up their game.

The catch, each player brings a partner, who can help them with the answers at the end. If they don't help they get dropped off the side along with the contestant and the prizes. Bummer.

I'll watch. The show is only slated for six episodes as of late and will proceed the every enjoyable Wipeout (inspired by a Japanese gameshow) Tuesdays at 8 p.m.

Another 'Bachelor' break (up)

It's official Jake Pavelka and Vienna Giraldi, who became engaged on the fourteenth  season of ABC's The Bachelor, are done.

Are we surprised? Here, I'll answer that rhetorical question-no we are not. Of the 14 seasons there have been 13 breakups. The only exception: Trista and Ryan Sutter who are happily married living away from the spotlight of Hollywood with their two children. (You go Ryan and Trista!)

Jake recently enjoyed an additional fifteen minutes of fame on the other popular ABC show Dancing with the Stars. Vienna was planted in the front row watching most every night. Jake was the fifth celebrity booted from the competition and gave a tearful adieu to his Canadian fans (insert haha).

Vienna who is 9 years Jake's senior caught flak from and ex-husband and ex-boyfriend who were trying to drum up tabloid fodder. She was also not the favorite to win.

The rumors are hard to sort out. Some suggest Jake dumped Vienna because he believed she was being unfaithful. Others, say Vienna was sick of Jake being such a fame hound. (PS- he is taping a guest spot on Lifetime's Drop Dead Diva).

No matter what story you believe it was not meant to be. The end.

Dear ABC, give it up.

Stars step out to support the Gulf

Tonight Larry King is hosting a 2-hour long show to help support The Nature Conservancy's gulf coast recovery and restoration efforts on CNN.

The show will feature stars such as Justin Bieber, Kathy Griffin, Sting and Robert Redford performing and pleading for money to help save the streams, estuaries and marshes that have been enveloped with oil as a result of the BP spill.

It was only a matter of time before Hollywood stepped up to the plate to make a plea on nature's behalf. Actress Victoria Principal donated $200,000 to the Oceana and the Natural Resources Defense Council to help cleanup efforts. Dennis Quad and actor James Cameron have made attempts to stir support from congress. And, performers such as Lenny Kravitz, Mos Def and John Legend took part in Gulf Aid, a concert which raised $300, 000 for the Gulf Relief Foundation.

The telethon is worth checking out (because its not excruciatingly long). Although I'm not sure how much aid these B-list celebs can manage to drum up (no pun intended, I promise).

Would you donate? Have you donated? Shouldn't BP be footing the bill for all the cleanup efforts?

Mr. Sosa goes to Washington

I love to live vicariously through TV chefs. My palette is limited and probably always will be, however, I wish I could be Giada DeLaurentiis or Gail Simmons and eat complicated dishes and look great doing so.

Season 7 of Bravo's Top Chef debuted last night in the nation's capital. I'm a little extra excited this season because one of the contestants hails from Durham, Connecticut, a place where I have spent a lot of time. Angelo Sosa, 35, grew up in Durham, a 'cow tipping' town as he described it, but he's now owner of Xie Xie and Asian inspired sandwich shop in Manhattan.

The ego's seem exceptionally strong this season including Sosa and Kelly Liken who hails from fancy Vail, CO (another spot I've visited) and Kenny Gilbert another well-established chef out of Colorado(Telluride).

The judges wasted no time getting to the first Quickfire Challenge asking the chefs (and cooks) to peel potatoes (One contestant sliced her palm open and kept going. Gross!), diced the crap out of onions and chop apart a ton of chickens and then make a meal out of it. Kenny took this one.

The big challenge asked the contestants to create a meal that represented where they came from. Our homeboy made some fancy fish dish because he used to fish in Durham. I could see it. The chef's were impressed. He won the challenge.

The not so lucky contestant used store-bought pastry dough as a delivery mechanism for his protein. Tisk tisk! You're out (spoiler alert...) John Somerville.

Anyway, I'm hungry for more. Also, stay tuned for some big guests including Nancy Pelosi.

Isn't she Precious?

Actually...she is the mother of Precious (aka Gabourey Sidibe). Yes, Alice Tan Ridley, who has been performing in subway tunnels for the past twenty years blew the audience and the judges away last night on America's Got Talent on NBC. Ridley performed a stellar rendition of Etta James' 'At Last'.



AGT is different than these other competition shows because it showcases a plethora of talents including dancers, singers, musicians, magicians, acrobats and the list goes on. It's very much like the Star Search.

Host Nick Cannon is a good time. Although, I could do without the cuts to him standing in the wings grooving to the singers or cheering on the dance troupes. Also, glad 'The Hoff' and Brandy are off the judging panel. Sharon Osbourne, Piers Morgan and Howie Mandel are a good mix.

The show, which originated across the pond thanks to Simon Cowell, is most recognized for launching Susan Boyle into the headlines.

The not so secret life of an American teenager....

Kids these days...they're not doing anything we should really be too surprised about (cough cough ABC family). The Secret Life of the American Teenager has started its' third season and just when you think things can't get any worse they do. And yes I'm talking about the ridiculous plot and the third-grade reading level dialogue. This show is pretty much a train wreck but I cannot stop watching.

This season someone else might be pregnant; because apparently one pregnancy wasn't enough. And this character might not choose to 'keep the baby'. Its only a matter of time before the pro life agencies to sound their horns on this one or parents start clambering over this subject mattter.

Although the show is a spawn of Seventh Heaven is much less friendly to the blissful, naive, church going audience of that show.

I can pretty much guarantee teenagers and their parents do not talk like this especially to eachother. I'm only 25 and I'd like to think things have not changed dramatically since my high school hay-day. All these kids talk about is messing around with eachother. Out of curiosity my mom decided to keep a tally of the number of times the characters utter the word sex in a single episode. The final tally 57. That's outrageous! You can bet I e-mailed the FCC. I can see if this show was on MTV or even a regular cable channel but ABC family needs to straighten out their family values.

Gate crasher = Bravo disaster

 Remember these people?

We already knew this but it's making headlines today that White House gate crasher Michaele Salahi (not sure where the exotic name comes from) is slated to appear on the latest installment of Bravo's Real Housewives series in Washington DC.

Gag me with a silver spoon. How do people like Ashlee Dupre and the couple who pop in the president get fame and fortune? What stupid move can I make to make wads of cash and get flown around the states for a press junket?


Anyway, the DC edition will debut Aug. 5.

Why the Tony's are better for you than Frosted Flakes....

Okay, so a lame play on words but did anyone even notice the Tony Awards (aka awards for Broadway productions) were on last night?  No, they didn't, ratings were down 6 percent this year. Although I think Neil Patrick Harris is the ideal host, Sean Hayes, did a bang up job and kept the audience guessing with his diverse slue of costume changes.

I happen to be a huge theater fan and I try to get to New York at the very least once a year and take advantage of the TKTS/ booth in Times Square. You should too. Everyone needs a little theater and culture in their life. The Tony's is a great opportunity to become aware of the wonderful world of theatrics taking place in New York City.

Last year Broadway was forced to close many popular shows as a result of the recession. However, things started to look up this year as the industry was able to open 39 shows.

Another appealing detail of Broadway is the star studding casts currently in place. Last night Catherine Zeta Jones, , Viola Davis (of Doubt fame), Scarlett Johansson and Denzel Washington all took home Tony awards for their performances.

And for those of you who aren't into plays or even bubbly musicals, Green's Day's, American Idiot is getting rave reviews and was nominated for several awards and took home two last night.

Summer TV is slow. We know this. Maybe take a day trip to the Big Apple?

Sidenote: If you loooove 80's rock check out Rock of Ages. It's got all the classic hits and they serve beer in the theater!

Miserable Little Liars....

Yet again ABC Family rolls out a show that is not so family-friendly. Pretty Little Liars debuted last night but I'm not sure if it'll fare as well as the other ABC runaway hit The Secret Life of an American Teenager. The series based on a popular run of books might pick up some Gossip Girl fans since that show is on its summer hiatus and it has really lost its steam.

In a nutshell: The show centers around a group of five friend. The Queen Bee Allie knows everything about everyone and she rules the school. One night at a sleepover Allie vanishes. The click disbands over the summer after this mysterious incident and each of them goes through their own personal struggles.

Allie's body was nowhere to be found and so the case remains a mystery and at the start of the school year each girls begins receiving messages from the grave via text, locker notes and instant messages on their computers. By the end of the show Allie's body is discovered and then the foreshadowing begins.

The various plots are so shrouded in mystery and viewers are easily distracted by the typical teenage behavior of each character smoking, drinking, kissing teachers and even a same sex relationship.

I'll tune in a for a few and see where this goes...only because its summer and the schedule isn't so full.

Have no fear...summer TV is here!

Yes, all the good shows are on summer break, but we still have to watch TV right? Here's a look at some of the shows that are part of the summer TV schedule.

What am I excited for you ask? Too many to choose but probably Entourage and Weeds because I love those real cable shows. And, I'm not feeling any of these cheesy summer time fillers. Seriously, THTORJB, The Gates (no more vampires) and Jersey shore are gonna suck!

June 4
'Whale Wars' (APL)
'Battle of the Wedding Planners' (TLC)

June 6
'The Making of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter' (SPECIAL) (NBC)
'Next Food Network Star' (Food)
'Drop Dead Diva' (Lifetime)
'The Hard Times of RJ Berger'

June 7
'Lie to Me' (Fox)
'Secret Life of the American Teenager' (ABC Family)
'Dance Your Ass Off' (Oxygen)
'Last Comic Standing' (TWO HOUR PREMIERE) (ABC)

June 8
'Pretty Little Liars' (ABC Family)

June 9
'Work of Art: The Next Great Artist' (Bravo)

June 10
'So You Think You Can Dance' (TIME SLOT PREMIERE)
'Penn & Teller: Bullshit!'
'The Green Room With Paul Provenza' (Showtime)

June 12
'Beautiful People' (Logo)
'The Jaquie Brown Diaries' (Logo)

June 13
'Unnatural History' (Cartoon)
'True Blood' (HBO)
'HGTV Design Star' (HGTV)
'Kourtney & Khloe Take Miami' (E!)
'Holly's World' (E!)

June 14
'You're Cut Off!' (VH1)
'Warren The Ape' (MTV)

June 16
'The Fabulous Beekman Boys' (Green)
'Hot in Cleveland' (TVLand)

June 18
'Cupcake Wars' (Food)

June 20
The Gates (ABC)
'Leverage' (TNT)
'Scoundrels' (ABC)
'The Real L Word' (SHO)

June 22
'Wipeout' (ABC)
'HawthoRNe' (TNT)
'Memphis Beat' (TNT)

June 24
'Rookie Blue' (ABC)
'Boston MD' (ABC)
'Futurama' (Comedy)

June 27
'Entourage' (HBO)
'Hung' (HBO)

June 28
'Huge' (Family)
'Make It Or Break It' (Family)

June 29
Downfall' (ABC)
'Rescue Me' (FX)
'Louie' (FX)

June 30
'Raising Sextuplets' (WE)

July 7
'Minute to Win It' (NBC)

July 9
'Eureka' (SyFy)
'Haven' (SyFy)

July 11
'Ocho Cinco' (VH1)
'The To Show' (VH1)

July 12
'The Closer' (TNT)
'Rizzoli & Isles' (TNT)

July 13
'Warehouse 13' (SyFy)
'The Glades' (A&E)

July 14
'Ghost Hunters International' (SyFy)
'Pros vs. Joes' (SPK)

July 15
'Mary Knows Best' (SyFy)
'Paranormal Investigators' (SyFy)

July 16
'The Jensen Project' (Original Movie) (NBC)

July 25
'Mad Men' (AMC)
'My Boys' (TBS)

July 27
'Masterchef' (Fox)

July 29
'Jersey Shore' (MTV)

August 1
'Rubicon' (AMC)

August 9
'Bachelor Pad' (ABC)
 'Dating In The Dark' (ABC)

August 10
'Shaq Vs.' (ABC)

August 15
'Food Trucks' (Food)

August 16
'Weeds' (Showtime)
'The Big C' (Showtime)

August 25
'She's Got The Look' (TVLand)

Thank you for being Blanche

I once took a quiz on Facebook called-Which Golden Girl are you? The result: Blanche. I guess I'll take it as a compliment. At least I wasn't Rose (no offense Betty White. You rock!). Sadly, it was announced today that Rue McClanahan aka, Blanche Deveraux has died at age 76 as a result of a massive stroke. Golden Girls is one of those shows that lives on through countless syndication deals and fans who work third shift.

Lets all pay homage to our favorite sassy, southern cougar with a song:

Thank you for being a friend
Traveled down the road and back again
Your heart is true your a pal and a confidant.

And if you through a party
Invited everyone you ever knew
You would see the biggest gift would be from me
And the card attached would say thank you for being a friend.

You can't dance!

So You Think You Can Dance is in full swing (pun intended) and all us true dance fans are forced to sit through the agonizing, drawn out and downright pathetic auditions.

I don't like this part. The producers either set out to embarrass someone who clearly can't dance, tell someone's heart breaking sob story or highlight a really good dancer. Just bring on the really good dancers! That is what the show is about. It's so very American idol to showcase the losers who march to the beat of their own drum.

SEE THIS: http://entertainment.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/06/03/so-you-think-you-can-dance-hick-hop-malinda-jacobson/

So far they've hit Los Angeles and Chicago. I hope there are better things to come. Competition is stiff this year because 10 amateurs are being paired up with 10 past season competitors! This should be good.

One not so good thing. Mia the wicked witch of lyrical dance is back and sassy, hot tamale Mary Murphy is out. I haven't been able to uncover why Murphy is out but I E! online reports she will make appearances as a guest judge and choreographer.

Click here for a list of returning dancers.

I need a little hip hop, disco and broadway in my life, lets get this show off the road and onto the stage!

Attention Con(an) heads...

Do you miss Conan O'Brien? All us Coco fans do; though me less so because thanks to a sweet hookup I get to go see him at Mohegan Sun on Sunday!

The rest of you can get your Conan fix on June 27 when TBS airs a special tentatively called "Team Coco Presents the Conan's Writers Live" expected to feature footage from the Just for Laughs festival in Chicago as well as appearances by Andy Richter and several writers from the late night show.

Conan's late night show was picked up by TBS and is expected to begin airing in November. George Lopez's show was bumped to the midnight slot with little himming and hawing from Lopez. In fact, he welcomes Conan to the network and even suggested the too are like the same sex versions of Lucy and Desi Arnaz. 

I hope the funny redhead blows the big chin out of the water in the Neilsen ratings!!!!

'Hard Times' for MTV

It's official, MTV has lost it. The once music oriented station has lost its way throughout the years and has introduced a slew of wacky reality shows, gameshows, competitions and situation comedies that have run out of steam faster than a latte in Antarctica. Yet, Jersey Shore is a runaway hit.

Anyway to add to the array of lame attempts at competitive programming MTV is shamelessly plugging The Hard Times of AJ Berger set to debut after the MTV Movie Awards June 6.

The title and the the plot have double entendre written all over it. The show centers around 15-year-old RJ Berger, a well endowed dork who is just trying to survive high school. He has your classic, popularity obsessed best friend sidekick, a friend who is a girl who secretly loves him and a girl who is the object of his every desire and who's boyfriend just happens to be the meanest jock in school.

Some reviews tout the show as 'Wonder Years' meets 'Boogie Nights'. That's quite the combo. I'm sure at first its pretty hilarious; but I'm not sure such a well-thought out show has the stamina it needs to latch on the the sometimes porous, vapid brains MTV's target demographic.

However, unlike the other MTV fluff this show looks to give its tweenish audience a character to relate to other than say the six-pack clad situation or the plastic fembot otherwise known as Heidi Montag.

Keep plugging MTV. We need a little substance.