Ox Notes: November 15, 2007

Marie Osmond's 16-year-old son entered rehab last week. So Marie's going through a divorce, she fainted on live television, her dad died, and now she has a teenage son in rehab. Isn't it about time to stop voting to keep her on Dancing with the Stars so she can spend some time with her family?

TV Guide has an interview with Survivor's Jean-Robert, who blindly defends his terrible game strategy. Survivor host Jeff Probst will spin the wheel for charity on tonight's episode of Wheel of Fortune.

TLC is giving Trading Spaces a makeover courtesy of the producers behind Hell's Kitchen. Part of that makeover is bringing Paige Davis back as host.

In other home makeover news, the casting director of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition says the show tries to cast families who can afford to keep their home once the show is over, rather than saddling a poor family with a mountain of debt.

Networks have been working to trim their budgets in case revenues decline due to a prolonged writers strike. Fortunately, they're starting with cutting back on travel expenses and business lunches rather than laying off employees.

Part of the reason for the strike, one writer explains, is that the sale of a $19.99 DVD only earns the writer $.04.

For an inside view of the strike from a writer's point of view, check out this blog by one of the writers of the series Moonlight (who also happens to be Greg's friend, Kira). It sounds like food deliveries really are crucial to keeping the strikers' spirits up, and they give fans a rare opportunity to interact with the people behind their favorite shows. This might be a good time to take a trip to L.A.