Ox Notes: February 29, 2008

Oddsmakers are predicting ice skater Kristi Yamaguchi to win Dancing with the Stars 6. Marissa Jaret Winokur and Steve Guttenberg are considered the longest shots to win.

ABC announced yesterday that DwtS will be back for a seventh season this fall.

ABC is also reportedly interested in picking up Scrubs after it ends its run on NBC.

The Futon Critic has a list of development updates, included news on a new project by writer Shaun Cassidy called Inseparable.

Fox is working on a Family Guy spinoff starring Peter Griffin's pal, Cleveland Brown. Don't get me wrong, I love Cleveland and have been known to spend long periods of time imitating his voice. But sometimes peripheral characters are best left in the periphery.

NBC's recently axed Quarterlife is making a stop on Bravo before heading back to the Internet.

If you've filed your taxes and received your refund already, head over to Clothes Off Our Back to bid on one of their many celebrity auction items donated for charity. I'm considering bidding on a gift bag donated by Kate Walsh just to so I can find out what mint chocolate chip ice cream-scented shampoo smells like.

Last night's episode of Lost was my favorite since the first season, probably because it touched on a theme used in many episodes of Star Trek.

And I think I finally have a favorite member of the Fans tribe on Survivor: Micronesia. Tracy preyed on Joel's paranoia and managed to manipulate him into doing exactly what she wanted, and he didn't even have a clue.

Now her alliance with Kathy and Chet, neither of whom are physically or mentally well suited for the game, is in a position to call the shots for the Fans tribe. Good on ya, Tracy.

Ox Notes: February 28, 2008

Survivor's Yau-Man Chan told TV Guide that he's rooting for Jonathan, Ami, or Ozzy to win, now that he's been eliminated from the game. What, no love for Eliza?

Dancing with the Stars 6 contestant Kristi Yamaguchi told the Modesto Bee that the hardest part about participating in the show is going to be leaving her two young daughters at home in Raleigh, North Carolina.

I'm totally bummed that Red Sox pitcher Jonathan Papelbon turned down an invitation to compete on DwtS. I mean, look at these moves:



It's back to the Internet for Quarterlife after a terrible debut performance on NBC on Tuesday.

CBS has plans to air four mixed martial arts specials on Saturday nights throughout the year.

Speaking of Saturday nights, there are plans for a Saturday Night Live stage show in Las Vegas, starring former cast members like Jon Lovitz and Martin Short.

Tyra Banks and Ashton Kutcher have teamed up to produce a new reality show.

Project Runway will start casting designers for Season 5 in March. PR star Tim Gunn is one of the celebrities who've taped a public service for NBC's "The More You Know" campaign. The new PSA's roll out on March 1, and the Futon Critic has the complete list of celebrity participants.

America's Ballroom Challenge 3 Grand Finale

Unlike the current Democratic Presidential primaries, the voters rewarded experience in the finale of America's Ballroom Challenge 3.

The final four couples each performed two dances, a short routine and a long routine. Tomas Mielnicki & J.T. Thomas' Argentine Tango was my favorite of the short routines, followed by Arunas Bizokas & Katusha Demidova's Standard Tango. The performances by Jose Decamps & Joanna Zacharewicz and Andrei Gavriline & Elena Kryuchkova were good, but not thrilling.

Arunas & Katusha's long routine was my favorite of the second round. All of the other second round performances were entertaining and polished, but Standard routines seem to really stand out in the finale because the style is so different from the other three disciplines.

Andrei & Elena's long routine was my favorite performance of theirs in three seasons of America's Ballroom Challenge, if only because it's the only one I can recall where they didn't use clothing as props -- her skirt converts from short to long, she's wrapped up in his coat, she's wrapped up in his suspenders, etc. I find them much more enjoyable when they drop the Cirque du Soliel stuff and stick with ballroom.

The judges ultimately rewarded first place to Andrei & Elena, in part, as co-host Ron Montez stated, because they've been together much longer than the other couples. Arunas & Katusha finished in second place, followed by Thomas & J.T. and Jose & Joanna.

The finale included a number of exhibition performances as well. Valentin Chmerkovskiy & Valeriya Kozharinova performed a Jive, although Val's penchant for flashy solo moves makes me wonder if he'd be happier if he didn't have to share the spotlight with a partner.

Tony Dovolani & Elena Grinenko gave a farewell performance in which they eschewed their signature Rumba for the Robot, of all things. I'll be disappointed if Tony doesn't work some pop-n-lock into his routines with Marissa Jaret Winokur on Dancing with the Stars.



But the highlight of the night were the two farewell performances by Max Kozhevnikov & YuliaZagoruychenko. The performed an exciting Matrix-inspired showdance, and they reprised their "Hip Hip Chin Chin" routine. Max & Yulia, you will be missed.

Ox Notes: February 27, 2008

Dancing with the Stars pros Cheryl Burke and Julianne Hough told People that the biggest challenge rehearsing for this season is compensating for the tall stature of their new partners, Cristian de la Fuente and Adam Carolla, respectively. If they're having trouble, I can only imagine what Kym Johnson must be going through working with the 6'6" Penn Jillette.

Perhaps Louis van Amstel's new instructional DVD set, Learn to Dance Like the Stars, might have some tips for Cheryl and Julianne. The 8-disc set will retail for $119.99 when it's released on April 8.

ABC will air a Bachelor "Where Are They Now?" special for March 10, one week before the season premieres of DwtS and The Bachelor. The network hopes to give a boost to new comedy Miss/Guided by airing a sneak preview of the show after DwtS' second night of competition on March 18.

The Emmys are considering adding an award for Best Reality Show Host. DwtS host Tom Bergeron is my pick, but I wouldn't blame them for giving the inaugural award to Jeff Probst in honor of his 16 seasons of service on Survivor.

The final episode of America's Ballroom Challenge 3 airs tonight on PBS. The top four couples will each perform a short and long routine to determine the winners, and retiring couples Tony Dovolani & Elena Grinenko and Max Kozhevnikov & Yulia Zagoruychenko will give farewell performances.

Yesterday, on the same day that the writers officially approved their new contract with the studios, CBS chief Les Moonves said that the strike may have ultimately saved the networks money by forcing them to change the way they develop new shows.

Reality Blurred has a recap of how last night's episode of Big Brother dealt with the recent hospitalization of two contestants. Meanwhile, justice prevailed outside the Big Brother house: slur-spewing contestant Adam has been fired from his job with the United Autism Foundation.

Finally, more news about the making of Jimmy Kimmel's "I'm F---ing Ben Affleck" video. Kimmel told People that the car sporting the "Honk If You're F---ing Ben Affleck" bumper sticker driven by Harrison Ford in the video is Ford's actual car.

Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz, who was as amused as I was by Huey Lewis' cameo in the video, explained to MTV why participating in the shoot was a no-brainer: "Who would [turn] down the chance to do some homoerotic song that has Brad Pitt in it?"

Ox Notes: February 26, 2008

Sunday night's Oscars were the lowest rated in the awards show's history, drawing fewer viewers than the premiere of this season of American Idol.

A spokesperson for the Academy told Us Magazine that actor Brad Renfro's omission from the list of industry folks who died in the last year was an "editing decision." Posters in the article's comments thread mentioned several other big names left out of the montage, including the great Robert Goulet.

TV Guide has the scoop on how Jimmy Kimmel managed to get so many stars to appear in the video for the song "I'm F--king Ben Affleck," which debuted on his post-Oscar special. Rebecca Romijn, who appears in the video, told Us, "It was so exciting to help celebrate their love for one another. They make a beautiful couple."

One of Penn Jillette's preparations for competing on Dancing with the Stars 6 includes getting Botox treatment, at his wife's request. Marlee Matlin will be wearing a special hearing aid during the competition.

DwtS host Tom Bergeron says of the upcoming season, "I don't have a clue how this is going to play out."

Former DwtS contestant and occasional professional boxer Floyd Mayweather is getting paid $20 million by the WWE to wrestle a man 16 inches taller, and who outweighs Floyd by nearly 300 pounds.

The judges for Lifetime's dance competition, Your Mama Don't Dance, are Ben Vereen, Cris Judd, and Vitamin C.

The Futon Critic has a list of yesterday's TV development news, including updates on the status of Lipstick Jungle and Women's Murder Club. Also in the works is a new Paris Hilton reality show, in which she auditions potential new best friends.

Online series Quarterlife makes the jump to network TV tonight, debuting on NBC at 10 ET. The premiere episode goes on sale today at iTunes, as well.

Ox Notes: February 25, 2008

Three weeks to go until the premiere of Dancing with the Stars 6, and Monica Seles sounds a little nervous: "I'm a tennis player. I don't know a tango from a mango."

Just as I feared, there's a good chance that Penn Jillette's routines with Kym Johnson may include magic tricks.

On the other hand, I couldn't be more excited about one of this season's Results Show performers: Def Leppard!

If you'd like to own a bit of DwtS memorabilia, designer Randall Christensen has the ladies' dresses he created for seasons 2, 3, and 4 available for purchase at his website. Just be prepared to shell out about $3000 per dress.

The Futon Critic has a handy list of all of TV development news from last week, including Jesse L. Martin's departure from Law & Order.

As if the houseguests' penchant for offensive comments wasn't enough reason to detest Big Brother, the producers just added a new reason. When hypoglycemic contestant Amanda knocked on the production crew's door to report feeling sick after being forced to eat nothing but gruel for a week, producers ignored her. She eventually had a seizure, and it was a fellow contestant who pressed the emergency button to summon paramedics. The cameras, of course, continued broadcasting live on the Internet.

A few weeks ago, Sarah Silverman debuted a video on Jimmy Kimmel Live in which she confessed to boyfriend Kimmel, in song form, that she's been "f**king" Matt Damon behind his back. If you haven't seen the hilarious video, it's available here.

Last night, as a part of his post-Oscar special, Kimmel debuted his own retaliatory video. The absurdity of the video is heightened by the fact that tons of A-list celebrities were in on it. The language is censored, but the video's content may make it unsafe for work. Enjoy.

Ox Notes: February 22, 2008

CBS is following NBC's lead and will make episodes of classic TV series like Star Trek and Melrose Place available for free on the Internet.

Despite the promise of an acting career after her popular run on Dancing with the Stars, Season 2 finalist Stacy Keibler is still stuck making guest appearances on ABC shows. This time, she shows up in the season finale of October Road.

HBO has nabbed the rights to the Iraq war documentary Taxi to the Dark Side after the Discovery Channel announced plans to shelve the film until 2009. HBO will premiere the doc in September, just ahead of the presidential election.

China has extended the primetime ban on the biggest threat to Chinese culture: SpongeBob SquarePants.

A reporter for the Village Voice went undercover to a taping of Iron Chef America and discovered that there's a lot of smoke and mirrors involved in the show. Well, mostly just smoke.

This afternoon, Anthony Bourdain will announce the winners of the first Golden Clog Awards at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. Bourdain and his pal, Michael Ruhlman, created the awards for achievement, or lack thereof, in a variety of food-related categories.

Saturday at noon ET, MTV turns its network over to the guys from Jackass for 24-hours of stunt-themed programming. Jackass ringleader, Johnny Knoxville, has recovered in time for the event after tearing his urethra trying to back-flip a motorcycle.

Zap2It has a recap of last night's episode of Survivor: Micronesia. I wasn't expecting the vote to go down the way it did, and I'm not sure Cirie made the right strategic move. She went from swing vote to agenda-setter in no time, which should make everyone on her tribe nervous. The fact that she's not an asset during challenges makes it that much easier to eliminate her.

The challenges this week were fantastic. Mud pit pseudo-capture-the-flag was exciting to watch, and nature timed a downpour perfectly to highlight the consequences of losing a Reward Challenge and being the tribe without a tarp to sleep under. The coconut basketball Immunity Challenge was also fantastic because it allowed Jonathan to do some hilarious trash talking. The longer Penner sticks around, the happier I'll be.

Ox Notes: February 21, 2008

ABC announced its spring plans, which include five new episodes of Lost debuting on April 24.

Variety reports that the networks are eager to get hit programs back on the air, as new scripted shows haven't performed well recently.

Critical darling Friday Night Lights is on the chopping block again, but NBC is working with other networks and cable outlets to share broadcast rights for a possible third season of the show.

CBS plans to trivialize divorce with a new game show called Splitsville, in which divorcing spouses compete against one another to win pieces of their communal property.

Survivor: Micronesia's most recent castaway, Mary, spoke with People and TV Guide about the tribe of Fans and her romance with Ryan from Survivor: Pearl Islands.

If you didn't catch the special Dancing with the Stars episode of Oprah this morning, you didn't miss much. All of the former champs, except Apolo, performed with their partners, and Derek Hough taught a housewife who looked like Jennie Garth how to dance like Jennie Garth.

The Season 6 cast came out for the last ten minutes of the show, and Oprah only spoke with Priscilla Presley, Kristi Yamaguchi, Marlee Matlin, Penn Jillette, Jason Taylor, Mario, and Steve Guttenberg.

The highlight of the brief Q & A period was Steve Guttenberg feigning surprise that he'd be expected to dance, saying that ABC told him he'd signed on for The Bachelor.

People has a clip from the episode, as well as an interview with Marlee Matlin in which she says essentially the same stuff she said on Oprah.

Priscilla Presley is understandably garnering more media attention than the other cast members at this point. But, based on the brief interviews she's given this week on Oprah and Good Morning America, I'm not sure that's going to last. She's been soft-spoken and boring, and that doesn't work in the short-answer style of interviewing that most shows employ.

Priscilla's going to have to get enthusiastic and funny real fast if she expects DwtS viewers to vote for her for reasons other than nostalgia. Those qualities might even be more important than her dancing.

America's Ballroom Challenge 3: International Latin

This was an episode of America's Ballroom Challenge even Optimus Prime would love.

The International Latin round began with a farewell performance by Max Kozhevnikov & Yulia Zagoruychenko. Max dressed as an Indian brave, and Yulia dressed as a turkey -- a very sexy turkey. It was a terrific final performance that made me even more sad that they won't be competing together anymore.

Then it was time for the group dance round. Co-host Ron Montez praised Anna Trebunskaya & Pavlo Barsuk as up-and-comers to watch, and Anna's dress was fabulous. But the judges awarded them sixth place, and named Andrei Gavriline & Elena Kryuchkova the winners.

Things got interesting in the showdance round. Vaidotas Skimelis & Jurga Pupelyte did an authentic disco-era cha cha that was my favorite performance of the night. But the judges gave them second place, and awarded first to Ilya Ifraimov & Nadia Goulina for their Transformers routine. I'm not sure what was funnier, the clips of Optimus Prime saying, "Transformers, roll out" that peppered Ilya & Nadia's music, or Ron Montez saying, "It looks like they're going to attempt to do a little paso doble...robot style."

Because of their first place finish in the group dance round and their fourth place finish in the showdance round, Andrei & Elena will represent the International Latin division in next week's America's Ballroom Challenge finale.

I don't want to get my hopes up until I see something official on pbs.org, but there was a clip of Max & Yulia performing another dance in the finale preview. A second farewell performance? Could I be so lucky?

Ox Notes: February 20, 2008

People has a special feature on the Dancing with the Stars 6 contestants, along with some well-chosen quotes from the participants. Steve Guttenberg, on his love life: "No girlfriend. No wife. We gotta hook the Gutt up. The Gutt needs a date!"

When DwtS returns on March 17, former contestant Mel B will serve as a guest correspondent for Access Hollywood.

There's no need to wait until next month to watch ballroom dancing on TV. Tonight's episode of America's Ballroom Challenge features the International Latin championship. DwtS pro Anna Trebunskaya is one of the competitors, and Max Kozhevnikov & Yulia Zagoruychenko give a farewell exhibition performance.

Also on TV tonight, Discovery has a special 100th episode of Mythbusters, in which Adam & Jamie test some of MacGyver's most creative escape methods.

Ahead of this evening's Project Runway reunion special, TV Guide interviewed the four remaining contestants.

Fox updated its spring schedule to make room for new episodes of Bones and House. And NBC said that it will be changing to a 52-week programming schedule in order to offer season and series premieres throughout the year, instead of concentrating them in the fall.

I've never watched the MTV sketch comedy show Human Giant, but with list of guest stars that includes Will Arnett and David Cross, I'm inclined to check out the second season when it debuts on March 11.

Variety's Brian Lowry blasts TV news outlets for acting as though they're merely commenting on the presidential elections, and not influencing them by endlessly repeating gossip about the candidates and speculating on their electability.

NBC announced its plans to offer free episodes of vintage TV shows online on several websites. At last, I'll be able to catch up on TekWar.

Ox Notes: February 19, 2008

The newly revealed cast of Dancing with the Stars 6 will be featured on Oprah this Thursday, February 21.

DwtS pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy explained to Extra that he asked producers to sit out of Season 6 so that he could focus on his dance studios, but said he'll likely perform on a Results Show.

Wendy Wilson of the soft-rock trio Wilson Phillips gets parenting help from Jo Frost on this week's episode of Supernanny, premiering Wednesday night on ABC.

Fox is enlisting the help of some former rock stars as well, only they'll be singing on Don't Forget the Lyrics. Thursday night's episode features Boyz II Men, while Bret Michaels of Poison and Kevin Cronin of REO Speedwagon are scheduled to appear on future episodes.

Drummer Marky Ramone might not be appearing on TV this week, but he may be headlining a bedroom near you. Well, not Marky himself, but his limited edition signature condoms.

Smallville's Kristin Kreuk has a role in the upcoming film adaptation of the video game Street Fighter.

Reality Blurred explains why CBS won't cancel Big Brother, despite complaints from autism groups outraged at contestant Adam's boneheaded comments.

Martha Stewart expanded her empire by purchasing the Emeril Lagasse franchise. Martha gets the rights to Emeril's cookbooks and TV shows, but he retains control of his restaurants.

Ox Notes: February 18, 2008

When the cast of Dancing with the Stars 6 is announced tonight during the Dance War finale, magician Penn Jillette's name may be on the list. Penn's partner, Teller, had no comment.

I'm going to be pumped if this next rumor proves to be true. Steve Guttenberg says he'll be dancing during Season 6.

One name that definitely won't be on the list is Maksim Chmerkovskiy. An ABC spokesperson told People, "He just needs a break."

TV Guide's After the WGA Strike episode chart has the return dates for several CW shows. Smallville is on hiatus until March 13, and Gossip Girl returns with new episodes on April 21.

An article at Variety examines why networks are still interested in importing successful cable shows, even after production has resumed on network shows.

Variety's Brian Lowry writes about how the Internet played a part in making strike negotiations more hostile and less productive than they should have been.

Advocacy group Autism United wants an apology from CBS after Big Brother contestant Adam said he wanted to open a hair salon for people with developmental disabilities "so retards can get it together and get their hair done."

If you can believe it, Adam says that he currently works for an autism group. Just a hunch, but I bet he'll have to look for a new job once he's evicted from the Big Brother house.

Ox Notes: February 15, 2008

The networks have decided to hold a scaled-down version of their upfronts in May, where they will debut pilots for the upcoming season. The demand for pilot scripts, as well as new scripts for shows that got additional episode orders this season, mean that many writers will be working non-stop for the next few months.

NBC announced that Heroes, Life, and Chuck will definitely be back for the 2008-2009 season. CBS picked up 11 shows for next season, but has yet to decide the fates of several shows, including How I Met Your Mother and Moonlight.

Plans for the Oscars telecast are on track for the February 24 ceremony. I plan to watch the show just to see Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova perform "Falling Slowly" from Once, my favorite film of the year.

Tina Fey will host the first new episode of Saturday Night Live, which returns on February 23. Ellen Page, star of the movie Juno, will host the following week.

David Attenborough's final nature documentary series, Life in Cold Blood, is currently airing on the BBC. The famed naturalist has decided to retire at the age of 81.

Survivor: Micronesia wasn't a big waste of time for the first two ousted castaways, Jonny Fairplay and Mary Sartain. When they returned to California after the taping, Fairplay introduced Mary to Ryno, his buddy from Pearl Islands. The two friends of Fairplay hit it off and are planning to get married.

Looks like Rami isn't the only Project Runway designer who can't take criticism gracefully. In an interview with People, Sweet P should've stopped after she said that Roberto Cavalli's criticism was "a bummer." Instead, she continued: "Cavalli isn't really my aesthetic. He's a great designer, but there are other people I like better."

You might want to set your Tivo now to record Dance War on Monday night. That way you can fast forward through all of the singing to get to the Dancing with the Stars 6 cast announcement.

Greg is getting a jump on his three-day weekend and sent me this video collection of stupid Wheel of Fortune contestants, which is a great way to kill time on a Friday. If you can solve the puzzle "E_clusi_e Nightclub," you're way ahead of these poor saps.

Ox Notes: February 14, 2008

Now that scripted shows have gone back into production, CBS and NBC announced return dates for some of their hit shows. Fox likewise announced its plans for the summer, included a May 22 premiere for the fourth season of So You Think You Can Dance.

About 100 writers who had contracts prior to the strike are currently out of work because their projects were terminated by the networks during the strike.

Zap2It has bios of the cast members of Bravo's Step It Up & Dance, which premieres April 3.

TV Guide has an interview with the first castaway booted from Survivor: Micronesia, Jonny Fairplay.

TV Guide also interviewed DJ Lance Rock, host of Nick Jr.'s Yo Gabba Gabba. I'd only seen clips of the show on The Soup, so in the interest of journalistic integrity, I watched part of an episode this morning. Holy crap, the show is mesmerizing.

Last night's episode of Project Runway was mesmerizing as well, particularly when Chris decided to take a nap during the middle of the competition. That really annoyed Tim Gunn, who dropped an "I can't want you to succeed more than you do" on Chris in his latest blog post.

Rami, in the Burning Questions blog, said that he's not a fan of Roberto Cavalli's work because he thought Cavalli was mean to him. Rami also admitted that PR is just a way to expose his work to a wider pool of celebrity clients. Based on the number of photos of stars wearing his clothes at his website, I'm not sure that Rami needs much help. Go Jillian or Christian!

Mark Burnett is adapting a Japanese game show for American audiences, and calling it The Shark Tank. Sadly, it's not actually about competitors swimming through a tank filled with sharks. It's a business show that sounds like a rip-off of The Apprentice. I can guarantee that it won't be as cool as Hole in the Wall.

America's Ballroom Challenge 3: International Standard

International Standard is always one of my favorites rounds on America's Ballroom Challenge, and this season's competition didn't disappoint.

The costumes worn during the group dance round were classically glamorous, and added to the drama of the couples nearly crashing into each other at every turn. Arunas Bizokas & Katusha Demidova won the group dance round.

For the showdance round, most of the couples steered clear of traditional standard routines, opting instead for combinations of standard and Latin moves. After Mikhail Avdeev & Anastasia Muravyeva's performance in Shrek costumes, Ron Montez muttered, "Oh, boy. That was something different, for sure."

All of the performances were good, although I think the judges were generous in rewarding the Shrek routine 4th place. But it was Arunas & Katusha's elegant performance to "Rhapsody in Blue" that won the showdance round. They'll compete in the grand finale in two weeks.

All of this episode's exhibition dances were enjoyable, too. Jasmine Guy was especially impressed with Maxim Kozhevnikov & Yuk Chun: "Oh, he's hot. Yeah, I like him."

Next week's penultimate episode is the International Latin competition.

Ox Notes: February 13, 2008

Finally, the strike is officially over. Saturday Night Live will be the first scripted show to feature a new episode when it returns to the air on February 23.

The return of the writers isn't necessarily good news for every series. While CBS ordered more episodes of Shark and Rules of Engagement, ABC has put the brakes on Women's Murder Club and Big Shots.

Meanwhile, E! is giving Denise Richards her own reality show.

The CW is keeping the Green Arrow (Justin Hartley) on retainer.

Send your sweetheart a Lost, Grey's Anatomy, or Ugly Betty e-card for Valentine's Day.

I don't know why it's taken so long, but Fox is finally bringing the game show Hole in the Wall to the US. Regular YouTube users already know this Japanese game show by its nickname, Human Tetris. I confess that nothing makes me laugh as hard as these videos.

Ox Notes: February 12, 2008

TV Guide has a report from the last stop on the Dancing with the Stars Tour. Thanks to MOIB reader Notaverygoodfan for providing a link to an ET article debunking the rumor that Sean Hayes will join the Season 6 cast.

Now that showrunners have gone back to work, networks are announcing their plans for the rest of the season. USA Today got the scoop from several showrunners on why certain decisions -- such as holding new episodes of 24 until early 2009 -- were made.

CBS is waiting to see how quickly its scripted shows can get back on air, and if the turn around is fast, Big Brother 9 may only get eight episodes.

The New York Post explains how another of CBS's strike-filler shows, Dexter, is being made suitable for network TV.

Even though American writers are ready to go back to work, that hasn't stopped networks from importing show concepts from Britain.

To celebrate the 20th season of The Real World, MTV is asking viewers to vote online for their favorite cast members. The voting results will be announced during a televised awards show/roast, during which the former cast members in attendance will get drunk and make asses of themselves.

Ox Notes: February 11, 2008

With the strike nearing its official end, the picket lines are over and showrunners have gone back to work. Once the contract is signed, the writers will return to a world in which the pilot development system has been turned on its head.

Even though the new contract puts WGA members in a better position, many long-time writers say the biz ain't what it used to be.

To keep the identities of the Project Runway finalists secret, all five remaining contestants exhibited collections at Fashion Week. Salon has video from the runway show and descriptions of the collections, so only click on the link if you just can't wait for the finale. I'm choosing to wait, at least for another day or two.

People has a screen capture from Dancing with the Stars' Maksim Chmerkovskiy's recent appearance on All My Children.

Some news outlets are reporting that the cast of Dancing with the Stars 6 will be revealed during tonight's episode of Dance War. Nothing on ABC's site confirms that, and it seems more likely that the announcement will be made during the February 18 Dance War finale. That would give the couples exactly four weeks to train, as was the case last season, not to mention giving the pros a week to recover from the Tour, which just ended.

Star Magazine reports that Hairspray's Marissa Jaret Winokur and Will & Grace's Sean Hayes will be two of Season 6's stars.

And a couple of posters at Dance-Forums have posted the names of the professional dancers supposedly confirmed for DwtS 6. I can't verify its accuracy, but here's the list:

Edyta Sliwinska
Anna Trebunskaya
Karina Smirnoff
Julianne Hough
Kym Johnson
Cheryl Burke
Louis van Amstel
Tony Dovolani
Jonathan Roberts
Derek Hough
Mark Ballas
Fabian Sanchez

Fabian is the only new dancer on the list, which is interesting for who's back (Louis) and who's not (Maks and Alec). I'm excited to see if this information proves accurate, and I'll post the date of the announcement as soon as I can find confirmation.

Ox Notes: February 8, 2008

The WGA is expected to agree on contract terms with the studios today, which means the writers might finally get to stop picketing and start writing again.

TV Guide's Michael Ausiello complied a list of production plans for shows once the strike ends. Some shows, like Moonlight, won't produce any new episodes until fall, while others, like Gossip Girl, will get right to work on new episodes that will hit the air in April.

Ausiello also posted his two big problems with last night's episode of Lost, and I have to agree with him, although I was happy to see The Lawnmower Man join the cast.

Despite the fact that its ratings numbers are up, NBC says that its reality-heavy schedule is only a response to the strike and not a long-term programming strategy. But if the strategy is working, why tamper with it?

ABC has picked up a new, primetime animated series by Mike Judge, the creator of Beavis and Butthead and the movie Office Space.

The CW is parting ways with the WWE after ten years together, right after the Divas got those snazzy outfits made for them on Project Runway.

Twelve of the designers from Project Runway 4 will compete in an online competition called Sew Not Over starting February 21. Viewers' votes will determine the winner.

MSN has a list of 10 Great Dance Movies. I would've swapped Bring It On for Center Stage.

I could not have been happier when my favorite Survivor: Micronesia Favorites -- Jonathan, Eliza, Yau-Man, and Amy -- formed an alliance during last night's premiere. Now they need to pull in Cirie and Micronesia is theirs for the taking.

Reality Blurred posted a brief recap of the episode that focused on the at-least-somewhat successful image makeover orchestrated by Jonny Fairplay. As RB's Andy Denhart said, "Well played, asshole, well played."

Ox Notes: February 7, 2008

TV Guide's Michael Ausiello recently dropped by the Dancing with the Stars Tour, and he interviewed the pros for his vodcast. He also broke the news that Cheryl Burke and Matthew Lawrence are no longer dating.

DwtS pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy is scheduled to make a guest appearance on All My Children on February 26.

Ahead of tonight's debut of Survivor: Micronesia, Jeff Probst revealed that the cast spent most of the season battered by storms. CBS also announced that they've expanded their Survivor branding to a line of sunflower seeds and a "Survivor Fitness Program," in which participants compete in challenges seen on the show. I'm glad the Fitness Program is debuting in Chicago this spring, because it sounds like fun.

Also, in advance of tonight's new episodes of Smallville and Supernatural, TV Guide has an interview with a superhero making his return to Smallville, and Supernatural creator Eric Kripke answers fans' questions.

With only 18 days until the Oscars, organizers still don't know if any of the stars will actually show up.

Due to a contractual conflict, Val Kilmer has replaced Will Arnett as the voice of K.I.T.T. in the Knight Rider TV movie. Arnett voices commercials for GMC Trucks, and K.I.T.T. is a Ford Mustang.

The Project Runway 4 finalists, whomever they may be, are scheduled to debut their collections this Friday as part of Fashion Week. Ousted Season 4 contestants Victorya and Elisa presented their own collections earlier this week.

Bravo's Project Runway blogs are unexpectedly candid this week. Tim Gunn provided his usual astute observations about last night's designs, but Michael Kors let loose on Ricky for being a cry baby. Christian even called Ricky a liar.

Ricky, Sweet P, and Christian all contributed the Burning Questions Blog, and all of them sounded as though they thought the wrestling challenge was beneath them. While Christian thinks that most challenges are beneath him, Sweet P and Ricky sound like they're making excuses. They need only look at the outfits made by Chris, Christian, and Jillian to see how precise execution of a good concept can make any outfit look chic.

America's Ballroom Challenge 3: American Rhythm

With the retirement of reigning champs Tony Dovolani & Elena Grinenko, competition in the American Rhythm division was fierce.

Tony & Elena gave a farewell performance to kick off the second episode of America's Ballroom Challenge 3.

All of the couples looked strong during the group dance, including married couple Felipe & Carolina Telona. I wasn't impressed with Carolina's outfit, which looked like something you'd find in the Frederick's of Hollywood catalog. The group dance round victory went to Jose Decamps & Joanna Zacharewicz.

Jose & Joanna shined again during the showdance round, and their mambo to music from West Side Story earned them a second victory and a chance to compete again in the season finale. Their dance was my favorite, although I also enjoyed the performance by Emmanuel Pierre-Antoine & Julia Gorchakova. One of Emmanuel's booty-slap moves prompted host Jasmine Guy to mutter, "Drop it like it's hot."

Jose & Joanna's win was well deserved, but I hope that Jose watched tonight's episode and saw how unprofessional he looked making faces as they waited for the results to be announced. As the saying goes, act like you've been there before.

Ox Notes: February 6, 2008

PBS.org has the list of couples who'll be competing in the American Rhythm division on tonight's episode of America's Ballroom Challenge. A pair of Dancing with the Stars pros is scheduled to perform an exhibition routine.

Given how careful politicians have to be when mingling with Hollywood folk, I'm guessing Hillary Clinton won't accept this invitation to dance at one of the remaining DwtS Tour shows.

Craig Ferguson has been tapped to entertain at the annual White House Correspondents Dinner, just weeks after becoming an American citizen.

Comedy Central announced that it plans to roast Willie Nelson. Expect lots of jokes about weed and tax evasion.

As part of its new development strategy, NBC has skipped filming a pilot for Kath & Kim, and picked up the series for six episodes.

So You Think You Can Dance's Cat Deeley will host Lifetime's new dating show, The Big Match.

CBS announced the cast for the new season of Big Brother, which will feature a twist. Each contestant will be paired with another contestant the network has deemed their "soul mate." The pairs will sleep in the same bed and compete together, and be eliminated together as well.

All but one of the contestants are in their twenties, with the lone exception being a 45-year-old single mom. Nice of the producers to humiliate both the mom and the man she's paired with, who'll no doubt be confused as to why he wasn't paired with a young, childless vixens.

Ox Notes: February 5, 2008

According to TV Guide, the WGA is set to review the terms of the new contract on Saturday. George Clooney is optimistic that the strike will be over soon.

In other news of unfair employment practices, there's reason to believe that Montel Williams' talk show was canceled after he suggested during an appearance on Fox and Friends that the media should spend less time talking about Heath Ledger and more time talking about U.S. soldiers who've died in Iraq.

I'm having trouble fathoming that the Super Bowl averaged nearly 100 million viewers.

While it didn't draw near the number of viewers as the Super Bowl, Survivor: China's strong ratings helped save the series from cancellation.

The Travel Channel is holding a contest where fans of No Reservations can win the chance to travel with Anthony Bourdain for a special episode of the show.

ABC announced that the next Bachelor is a British guy named Matt Grant. Why couldn't they have found someone with a more British sounding first name, like Basil or Alastair?

Ox Notes: February 4, 2008

It looks as though the strike might be coming to an end. The writers and studios have apparently reached agreement on the most contentious issues, and a final contract could be issued as early as Friday. The WGA will email its members when it officially signs the new contract.

Once the strike ends, ABC plans on shooting new episodes of popular shows like Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty, and Brothers & Sisters to be aired in April or May. And NBC plans to get right to work filming the comedy pilot The Man of Your Dreams.

Fox has ordered 13 more episodes of the reprehensible game show The Moment of Truth.

When Discovery launches the Planet Green channel in June, one of its flagship shows will no doubt be Supper Club, an eco-friendly celebrity chat show hosted by Tom Bergeron.

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette interviewed Dancing with the Stars pro Cheryl Burke ahead of the DwtS Tour's show in Massachusetts.

DwtS 6 cast rumors are coming fast and furious these days. Reality Blurred mentions Donald Trump's ex, Marla Maples, as a possible contestant. And Entertainment Weekly reports that ABC is courting deaf actress Marlee Matlin for a spot on the show.

Reality TV World quotes an article in the February 10 edition of TV Guide in which Louis van Amstel says that Paula Abdul told him that she'd like to compete on Dancing with the Stars. While she would obviously be unable to participate in Season 6, she is presumably available for Season 7. I'm hoping that ABC wants to avoid the circus that is Paula Abdul, and would tell her a polite, "Thanks, but no thanks."