Ox Notes: May 28, 2009

ABC has the cure for Dancing with the Stars fans already experiencing Tom Bergeron withdrawal. The DwtS host will emcee tonight's primetime finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee at 8 ET.

American Idol contestant Danny Gokey is campaigning for a spot on Dancing with the Stars 9. I don't think it's gonna happen, Danny. The only reality show talent ABC poaches from FOX are contestants from So You Think You Can Dance.

TV Guide recapped last night's episode of SYTYCD.

Tonight at 8 ET, CNBC will air a special on the vast influence of Oprah Winfrey called The Oprah Effect. The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan reviewed the special, which deals with the hidden dangers of Oprah's public approval.

TLC announced that Jon & Kate Plus 8 isn't going away anytime soon. The current season is 40 episodes long, and nearly 10 million people watched Monday's season premiere.

EW has the scoop on the new season of Project Runway.

This interview with Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, the creator of Designing Women, is pretty interesting for what she reveals about how the TV industry has changed since the 1980s.

Variety has an article about how the current recession has shaped the fall 2009 TV season.

Last night marked the return of my beloved Wipeout. An intrepid MSN reporter ran the course for a piece she wrote about the show. Here are the results:

Ox Notes: May 26, 2009

It's summer in TV land, which means there's not much TV news to write about. Therefore, I'll be posting new Ox Notes only on Tuesdays and Thursdays until we get closer to the fall TV season.

You can keep tabs on summer series premiere dates with Zap2It's Premieres and Finales Calendar. The website posted reviews of two new shows premiering tonight, Mental on FOX and Hitched or Ditched on The CW.

A new season of Jon & Kate Plus 8 debuted on TLC last night, and critics weren't impressed with the latest episode in the increasingly uncomfortable-to-watch series.

Fans of The Bachelorette will want to read host Chris Harrison's blog for his take on last night's episode.

Zap2It's Harper's Island recapper, Andrea Reiher, seems positively gleeful about all of the show's gory deaths. So am I.

While flipping through the channels this weekend, Greg and I wondered exactly what Ion Television is. The answer: a broadcaster in financial trouble.

My brother will be outraged to learn that Disney is planning to remake its 1986 live-action sci-fi flick Flight of the Navigator.

In other sci-fi remake news, ABC released a promo trailer for its remake of the '80s alien invasion mini-series V. While the promo clip below looks cool and stars Lost's Elizabeth Mitchell, I'm not they'll be able to improve on this scene from V: The Final Battle.

Ox Notes: May 21, 2009

Ox Notes is back from vacation; did anything happen while I was gone?

Catching up on the most important Dancing with the Stars 8 commentary, here's a link to the final Yahoo! Buzz Sessions of the season (the excellent post-Finale episode is at the bottom of the list). Judge Carrie Ann Inaba blogged about the season finale for EW.

Survivor: Tocantins also ended while I was away, so here's a link to host Jeff Probst's final EW blog post. Reality Blurred interviewed Survivor's Stephen, Erinn and Taj.

So You Think You Can Dance premiere's tonight on FOX at 8 ET. Judges Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy talked to TV Guide about the new season.

As soon as this summer season of SYTYCD ends, a new one begins in the fall, putting FOX's dance show into direct competition with Dancing with the Stars.

The networks have all announced their fall schedules. EW has a cheat sheet that lists the fates of current shows, while Zap2It posted cool grids of the night-by-night schedules for NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX and The CW.

NBC's I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! couldn't cast indicted former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich because a judge wouldn't allow him to leave the country to film the show. So, naturally, they cast Rod's wife, Patti. Wait, huh? I live in Illinois, and even I don't know enough about Patti Blagojevich to want to watch her on TV. Why does the network think anyone outside The Land of Lincoln will care?

With another season of DwtS in the books, it seems fitting to end this post with a vid of Season 8 champs Shawn Johnson & Mark Ballas on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Ox Notes will return on Tuesday, May 26.

Ox Notes: May 14, 2009

If you want to know why the Dancing with the Stars finalists seem stressed during the last weeks of the season, it's because they get stuck doing dumb things like photo shoots about what kinds of food they like for In Touch, which are then filmed by Entertainment Tonight. Sorry, Melissa & Tony.

Catching up on some other DwtS news, Us chatted with Ty Murray, Gilles Marini spoke with OK! and People filed a What You Didn't See report from the set of Tuesday's Results Show.

In Carrie Ann Inaba's latest blog post for EW, she wrote, "I'm not saying that Melissa doesn't work hard." That sentence, placed within a rambling paragraph about how talented people sometimes have bad work ethics, can mean only one thing: Carrie Ann thinks Melissa doesn't work hard.

Tuesday's DwtS Results Show was watched by 14.06 million people, though its ratings among 18-34 year olds were only slightly better than those of The CW's 90210.

OK! Magazine is giving you the opportunity to workout with Lacey Schwimmer on May 30.

Reality TV World posted lengthy interviews with The Amazing Race teams Victor & Tammy and Jamie & Cara that I'll get around to reading later.

Friday night's episode of Storymakers on AMC features director Judd Apatow talking about just how much male frontal nudity moviegoers are willing to sit through before walking out of the theater.

The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan argues that NBC's new Amy Poehler comedy, Parks and Recreation, is actually less funny than Joey, the network's Friends spin-off starring Matt Le Blanc. Wow.

Ox Notes: May 13, 2009

After last night's Dancing with the Stars Results Show, the contestants chatted on camera with ET, The Insider and Access Hollywood. Print outlets OK! and People were also backstage.

Gilles Marini was especially chatty, telling OK! about his new acting role and revealing too much to E! about his, um, extracurricular activities.

Former DwtS contestant Paulina Porizkova was reportedly fired from America's Next Top Model for having a big ego. There's only enough room on that set for one big ego, and that ego belongs to Tyra Banks.

Interviews with The Amazing Race 14 contestants continue to hit the Web. TV Guide has interviews with Jamie & Cara and Luke & Margie, who also did an interview with AfterElton.com (thanks for the tip, Jen C).

FOX has renewed Lie to Me for a second season and picked up two pilots for the fall.

While you may be sick of the profusion of Jon and Kate Gosselin affair/break up stories, it is interesting to think of all the money and free stuff they stand to lose if they split up and force the cancellation of Jon & Kate Plus 8. Will $75,000 an episode and free Disney World tickets be enough to keep them together?

Finally, here's a clip of Ty Murray & Chelsie Hightower's farewell appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live:

Ox Notes: May 12, 2009

If it wasn't for the MOIB chatroom and the Yahoo! Buzz Session, I'm not sure I'd be able to endure all of the filler that comes with Dancing with the Stars. This week's Buzz Session highlight is Joey Lawrence's claim that Gilles Marini cries tears of Evian.

The Insider and ET had cameras backstage after the DwtS Performance Show. The contestants also chatted with Us, OK! and People. People wants to know who got screwed worse by the judges last night, Melissa Rycroft or Shawn Johnson.

Between DwtS rehearsals, Gilles & Cheryl had to attend the opening ceremony for a new Cheryl Burke Dance studio in Laguna Niguel, California.

In other celebrity TV news, AMC's Storymakers announced its guest list, which includes Cameron Diaz and Judd Apatow. And CBS announced airdates for the remaining episodes of Million Dollar Password.

This past Sunday night, Tammy & Victor won The Amazing Race 14. The siblings talked about their victory with TV Guide and People, and host Phil Keoghan blogged about the finale for EW.

Sorry, Lauren Graham fans. NBC isn't picking up her pilot, Legally Mad.

Believe it or not, American Gladiators: The Movie is coming to a theater near you. I say it's about time. I mean, how am I supposed to appreciate the athletic prowess of behemoths like Wolf and Nitro without knowing their backstories?

Ox Notes: May 7, 2009

Julianne may not be the only Hough absent from Dancing with the Stars 9. Derek Hough and Mark Ballas may skip next season to promote their band. There's also a chance that Derek may land a role in the upcoming Footloose remake.

ET has a video of DwtS pros Jonathan Roberts, Anna Trebunskaya, Dmitry Chaplin, Karina Smirnoff, Louis van Amstel and Elena Grinenko rehearsing for an upcoming charity performance.

Bravo's Project Runway substitute, The Fashion Show, debuts tonight. The Chicago Tribune's reviewer says the show has a few problems.

Tonight's episode of Bones features a cameo by cartoon character Stewie Griffin.

Ahead of tonight's new episode of Survivor: Tocantins, here are links to interviews with ousted castaway Sierra by People and TV Guide.

People and TV Guide also interviewed Jen & Kisha of The Amazing Race.

ET posted a gallery of the men competing to win the heart of The Bachelorette this summer.

A computer glitch has delayed the publication of Nielsen's TV audience numbers for several days. Networks are understandably upset, as they need the data to determine which shows to bring back next season.

Ox Notes will return on Tuesday, May 12. Until then, enjoy this video of Lil' Kim & Derek Hough performing on this morning's episode of Regis & Kelly:

Ox Notes: May 6, 2009

After last night's shocking elimination of Lil' Kim & Derek, the cast of Dancing with the Stars 8 chatted with Access Hollywood, The Insider, ET, E!, OK! and People.

In next week's semifinal round, Melissa & Tony will dance the Quickstep and Cha Cha, Gilles & Cheryl will dance the Waltz and Salsa, Shawn & Mark will dance the Argentine Tango and Jive, and Ty & Chelsie will dance the Viennese Waltz and Samba.

Carrie Ann Inaba blogged her thoughts on this week's performances for EW, and People filed a What You Didn't See report from the set of Tuesday's Results Show.

If last night's edition of Dance Center left you pining for Kenny Mayne, check out his ESPN.com page.

In other DwtS news, Karina Smirnoff is already freaking out over preparations for her wedding to Maksim Chmerkovskiy, even though it's more than a year away.

The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan interviewed Jim Beavers, one of the stars of Supernatural and my beloved Harper's Island.

While Wipeout is ABC's most talked about summer game show (deservedly so), here's a reason to watch the new season of its sister program, I Survived a Japanese Game Show: it just won an international award for best reality show.

EW's Michael Ausiello has fall TV cheat sheet with the probable and official fates of network shows.

Fellow geeks, rejoice with me! HBO has hired Tom McCarthy to direct Game of Thrones and Peter Dinklage to play Tyrion Lannister. Huzzah!

Finally, here's video Lil' Kim & Derek's appearance on last night's episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live:

Ox Notes: May 5, 2009

After Monday's DwtS Performance Show, ET special correspondent Maksim Chmerkovskiy asked Jewel about her controversial blog comments regarding Melissa Rycroft. Jewel wrote a second post last week claiming that her original comments had been "mangled" by gossip sites, even though her words were quoted directly in most cases. Is that egg on your face, Jewel?

Other media outlets backstage included The Insider, Access Hollywood, OK! and People. In this week's Yahoo! Buzz Session, Joey Lawrence made a Nell Carter joke (for those of us old enough to remember Joey on Gimme a Break).

Catching up on some older DwtS 8 news, TV Guide recently interviewed Shawn Johnson and Steve-O. Last week, Denise Richards sang a tone-deaf version of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at Wrigley Field.

Yesterday, Phil Keoghan blogged about the latest episode of The Amazing Race for EW. Who knew the redheads had it in 'em? CBS posted a new Elimination Station video featuring the ousted teams arriving in the final destination city.

The guy who plays The Haitian on Heroes is trying to raise money for kids in Haiti.

The CW is canceling all of its Sunday night programming, which means that local affiliates will have to find new sources of ad revenue in a field that's already running low on money.

NBC announced some of the shows its picking up for fall, including Joel McHale's new comedy Community. Based on this preview, which also stars Chevy Chase and John Oliver, I'm really looking forward to it:

Ox Notes: May 1, 2009

Last night's episode of Survivor: Tocantins didn't go down exactly how I expected it to, but it was still great. Host Jeff Probst blogged about the episode for EW. Check out the latest Ponderosa videos if you want to see a great impression of Coach.

Dancing with the Stars 8 spouse Jewel is stirring up trouble with a post she made on husband Ty Murray's MySpace blog. Jewel said she didn't like that Melissa Rycroft was judged on her rehearsal footage on Monday night's show because: "If you're too hurt to compete then you can't compete." She added that she might feel differently about the rule if she was competing on the show. I'm guessing she'd be all for it if it saved Ty.

DwtS pro Julianne Hough will definitely skip Season 9.

ABC and Disney shows will soon be available on Hulu.

A recent study confirmed that people find comfort in TV shows. They'd feel even more comfortable under this Star Trek blanket.

The Futon Critic has a massive Fall 2009 Schedule Grid, including all the shows that have gotten official pickups as well as those still on the bubble.

Reality Blurred has a list of dates for upcoming reality show season finales. The list starts tonight with the finales of Supernanny and Wife Swap on ABC.

Ox Notes will return on Tuesday, May 5. Have a great weekend!