Television

The television world announced the nominations for its highest honor early this morning, showering praise on several new television shows, a rarity for the academy that typically favors established shows (even long after they have reached the pinnacle of their success).  The biggest change this year to the categories…they’ve expanded the nominees to six (up from the typical 5).

Overcrowding aside, without further adieu, here are the nominees for the 2010 Primetime Emmy Awards!

Drama Series

Lost, Breaking Bad, Dexter, Mad Men, True Blood, The Good Wife

Glad that the Academy decided to finally show some love to HBO’s cult fave True Blood and also managed to include the underrated CBS drama The Good Wife. Bad news for 24 – the Academy ignored its final season.

Actor in a Drama Series

Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Hugh Laurie (House, M.D.), Michael C. Hall (Dexter), Matthew Fox (Lost)

FINALLY!!  Kyle Chandler does some of the best work to ever grace the small screen and now he finally has an Emmy nomination to prove it.       

Actress in a Drama Series Julianna Marguiles (The Good Wife), Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: SVU), Glenn Close (Damages), Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer), January Jones (Mad Men), Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights)  

Just like her on-screen partner, Britton has previously been passed over for her excellent work but they finally corrected that this year.  Hargitay and Close are former winners in this category but you have to go with the return of Marguiles as the early favorite to win.

Supporting Actor in a Drama Series John Slattery (Mad Men), Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad), Martin Short (Damages), Terry O’Quinn (Lost), Michael Emerson (Lost),  Andre Braugher (Men of a Certain Age)

Braugher broke through with his Homicide: Life on the Street role and here he is again for his low-key yet powerful role on the new TNT drama.  He actually stands a great shot in this category with the Lost duo most likely splitting the vote. 

Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Sharon Gless (Burn Notice), Christine Baranski (The Good Wife), Christina Hendricks (Mad Men), Rose Byrne (Damages), Archie Panjabi (The Good Wife), Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men)

Obviously The Good Wife and Mad Mensupporting ladies ruled this category, possibly opening the way for a win for Byrne or Gless.  Shockingly, my two fave ladies from Grey’s Anatomy – Sandra Oh and Chandra Wilson – were overlooked.

Comedy Series   

Glee, Modern Family, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Nurse Jackie, 30 Rock, The Office 

Quite predictably, Glee – this season’s breakout hit – landed in the big category as did newbie Modern Family.  HBO’s dark comedy Nurse Jackie was also a welcome addition to this usually stale category.

Actor in a Comedy Series

Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Matthew Morrison (Glee), Steve Carrell (The Office), Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory), Tony Shalhoub (Monk)

This was probably one of the most predictable categories of the morning with all but Morrison returning as nominees.  Morrison took the spot of Two and a Half Men’s Charlie Sheen whose rollercoaster year in the tabloids may have hurt his votes.

Actress in a Comedy Series

Lea Michele (Glee), Tina Fey (30 Rock), Toni Collette (The United States of Tara), Julia Louis-Dreyfuss (The New Adventures of Old Christine), Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie), Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreation)

I am fuming that America Ferrerra was passed over for Ugly Betty’s final season and shocked that Courteney Cox Arquette was ignored her work on Cougar Town.  Desperate Housewives’Eva Longoria Parker is another glaring omission.  I am glad to see Poehler whose dry sarcasm continues to win me over.

Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Chris Colfer (Glee), Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother), Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family), Jon Cryer (Two and a Half Men), Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family), Ty Burrell (Modern Family)

Wow – Modern Family scored 3 nods in this category, the first time any show has done that in ages.  However, voters ignored family patriarch Ed O’Neill in one of the jaw dropping moments of the announcements.  With potential vote splitting imminent, my fave is Harris.

Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Jane Lynch (Glee), Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live), Jane Krakowski (30 Rock), Julie Bowen (Modern Family), Sofia Vergara (Modern Family), Holland Taylor (Two and a Half Men)

Once again, Family dominated the supporting category but with near universal praise, Lynch appears to be the lock for this one. And how dare they ignore Vanessa Williams’ final year on Ugly Betty?

The Primetime Emmys air live on NBC on Sunday August 29, at 8pm, hosted by the zany Jimmy Fallon.

I’m excited to see that the Academy finally broke away from their “old guard” tendencies and embraced some new blood but it seemed like the overdose of love for Glee and Modern Family was a tad bit overboard.  No acting nominations for True Blood?  Weird.  And no love at all for the venerable but still high rated CSI or Grey’s Anatomy?  Inexcusable.

Trump – This Week’s Winners

Ace- Chris Brown’s Michael Jackson tribute at the BET Awards.  Long considered an industry pariah after Rihanna-gate, Brown seemed like yesterday’s news when it came to awards shows and never seemed to be a contender for a spot on the performance schedule.  All of that went soaring out of the window when BET tapped him to do an official tribute to his idol, the late King of Pop.  Introduced by MJ’s big brother Jermaine, Brown glided and hopped around the stage with great ease; but it was his attempt at singing “Man in the Mirror”  that had him emotional and in overwrought state, capturing viewers’ hearts all over again.  Welcome back, Chris!

King - Rap isn’t as dead as the industry predicted.  Eminem scored the #1 debut on the Billboard 200 Albums chart this week with Recovery, selling almost 800,000 copies.  Last week’s top debut, Drake’s Thank Me Later, hung in there at #2.  With Em scoring the biggest first week sales of any artist in almost two years, and new albums on the horizon from Big Boi, Young Jeezy and Nicki Minaj, rap appears to be back at the forefront of the music industry.

Queen – Jennifer Hudson.  The Academy Award winning actress and Grammy winning songstress finally opened up about the horrific deaths of her mother, brother and nephew on the latest installment of VH1’s Behind the Music.   The newly svelte leading lady says she was “pretty much secluded” and had lost herself.  However, after taking some time for herself, she’s now back on top of her game, playing Mommy to a new son, scoring an endorsement deal with Weight Watchers (hence her new, slim body) and gearing up to play Nelson Mandela’s infamous ex, Winnie Mandela in a biopic due next year. 

Jack- Elena Kagan.  The new Supreme Court Justice nominee came out swinging this week for her confirmation hearings, teetering between hilarious and super serious.  She handled herself with great ease while fielding tough questions centered around her supposed barring of the military from recruiting students during her tenure at Harvard University and her seeming lack of experience as a judge.  Cheers to her for handling it with grace, intelligence and patience.

10 -  Twilight: Eclipse.  Whether you’re Team Edward or Team Jacob, moviegoers turned out in droves for midnight showings of this much anticipated film, shooting it to $30 million from midnight showings alone!  Toy Story 3 may have to watch out – this could be the biggest grossing film of the summer.

Trick – This Week’s Losers

5- Venus Williams.  After leaping back up the rankings to sit comfortably behind her top ranked sister Serena, it looked like Venus was ready to dominate the tennis scene once again, especially at her beloved Wimbledon where she’s won the title 5 times, appearing in 8 of the last 10 finals.  Well, it was not to be.  She crashed out in the quarterfinals to unheralded Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova.  Now, retirement rumors are dogging the 30 year old elder sister of tennis’ First Family.  Can she pull her act together this summer and make a strong run at the US Open?

4 – Supermodel Naomi Campbell.  Campbell can’t catch a break.  Now after a year of dogging court officials, she’s been called to testify in a major case against former Liberian President Charles Taylor.  Taylor has been accused of possessing and selling conflict diamonds and the prosecution feels that Campbell’s testimony will help their case greatly.  Unfortunately for her, she’s officially been summoned and has no other choice but to take the stand.  Models in the Court Room?  Could be a good idea for a new reality series! 

3 - Miley Cyrus.  The supposed “Teen Queen” couldn’t score her previous album’s top debuts, as Eminem stole that title from her.  To make matters worse, the album barely sold over 100,000 copies, a steep decline from her previous Hannah Montana efforts.  Maybe if she started establishing her own identity and refrained from the “reinvention” of recycled traits of the Britney/Christina era, she may be able to score some more sales.  Just a thought….

2 - John Edwards.  The former presidential hopeful was back in the news again this week, with his estranged wife touting the paperback release of her best selling novel that detailed his tawdry affair with Rielle Hunter and his former ”right hand man” Andrew Young (aka the fall guy for the whole love child plot) explicitly detailing how maniacal and dishonest he could be.  Edwards’ once spotless reputation is now officially ruined and it looks like he’ll be attempting to live down his mega mistakes for the remainder of his life.  

Joker -  BP. With Hurricane Alex gearing up to tear through Texas, the oil spill recovery effort took a major blow landing BP in the joker spot for a second week in a row.

Tia and Tamera Mowry are returning to television…together…albeit temporarily.

The Style Network will premiere a new half-hour reality TV special entitled Tia and Tamera Take 2 on July 17.  The network is currently only planning to air this special, but it has indicated that if ratings are favorable, the famous twins could be extended an offer to do a full-on reality TV series. 

Since wrapping their hit sitcom Sister, Sister which aired from 1994-1999 on ABC and then the WB network, the sisters have featured prominently – and separately – on other hit television shows.   Tia appeared on the cult fave sports dramedy The Game (and will remain a part of the show when it returns with new epsidoes on BET early next year) and Tamera starred on Lifetime’s Strong Medicine and ABC Family’s Roommates.

Larry King Live used to be my staple program on CNN for many years. Mr King sparked an interest for me in pop culture and current political events that always left me informed and educated.  His impending retirement is both saddening yet well-deserved after an accomplished career.  Larry King is a LEGEND and will be missed.

Wonder who will replace him?

From CNN

Los Angeles, California (CNN) — Larry King, the iconic TV interviewer, will step aside from hosting of his prime time CNN show later this year, he said Tuesday.

King, 76, made the announcement with a short posting to his Twitter account, citing his desire to spend more time with his wife and young children.

“I want to share some personal news with you. 25 years ago, I sat across this table from New York Governor Mario Cuomo for the first broadcast of Larry King Live. Now, decades later, I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end Larry King Live, the nightly show, this fall and CNN has graciously accepted, giving me more time for my wife and I to get to the kids’ little league games,” King wrote.

“I’m incredibly proud that we recently made the Guinness Book of World Records for having the longest running show with the same host in the same time slot. With this chapter closing I’m looking forward to the future and what my next chapter will bring, but for now it’s time to hang up my nightly suspenders.”

“He will end his run with Larry King Live on his own terms, sometime this fall,” said Jon Klein, president of CNNUS. “Larry is a beloved member of the CNN family and will continue to contribute to our air with periodic specials.”

King’s decision followed months of media speculation as his once-dominant ratings declined. The decision also came after weeks of personal turmoil, including a divorce filing and later reconciliation with his wife.

King was hosting a nationally-syndicated overnight radio talk show when CNN founder Ted Turner convinced him in 1985 to try his interviewing skills on cable TV.

“All I had to do was everything I’d been doing since I was a kid,” he wrote in his best-selling 2009 autobiography, “My Remarkable Journey.”

His gentle but persistent interview style drew big-name guests, and “Larry King Live” became a place for major personalities to break news. Billionaire Ross Perot used the show to announce he was running for president in 1992. And the show was the setting for the historic NAFTA debate between then-Vice President Al Gore and Perot in 1993, a debate that for more than a decade was the highest-rated program in cable history.

To continue reading click here…

“Best of both worlds” is a phrase that has probably been overused the most in the world of entertainment.  However, when describing the newest music sensation – Canadian born Drake – I can’t help but use it.  His official debut album, Thank Me Later,  just debuted at the top of the Billboard 200 Albums Chart, selling 477,000 copies and marking the biggest first week sales for any solo act this year.  With music sales on a shocking and quick decline, his album defied the trend and showed that there’s still a place in the stratosphere for a new superstar.

Aubrey Drake Graham (yes that is his real name) originally hit the entertainment industry in 2001 when he starred on the teen soap opera, Degrassi: The Next Generation.  His exotic look can be attributed to his African American father and his Jewish Canadian mother, who raised him in Toronto.  Unlike many rappers who remind everyone of their project upbringings, Drake actually grew up privileged, living with his mother in a posh neighborhood following his parents’ divorce when he was 5.   On Degrassi, Drake played a high school basketball player who was wheelchair-ridden after being shot by a classmate.  He actually stayed with the show until 2009 when his character graduated from high school.

During his Degrassi stint, Drake began to develop his interest in music, releasing his first mixtape in 2006 titled Room for Improvement.  Sensing a chance to move into the big leagues, he posted the entire album on his MySpace page .  After getting decent reviews, he released another one in 2007 entitled Comeback Season and headlined by the single “Replacement Girl” featuring Trey Songz, another up-and-comer.   That single lead to his official big music break as BET’s 106 & Park showcased the video for “Replacement Girl” as the New Joint of the Day.

Drake’s mixtape caught the eye of megaseller rapper Lil Wayne and, in 2008, after hearing some of Drake’s work, Wayne invited him to accompany him on his tour.  During this time, Drake became an official member of Wayne’s new rap crew Young Money but Drake still did not have a recording contract.  In February 2009, Drake released yet another mixtape So Far Gone featuring his newfound mentor Lil Wayne, Omarion, Bun B, Lloyd and Songz.  The mixtape received over 2,000 downloads within its first 2 hours of availability on Drake’s MySpace page.  Two of the album’s singles – “Successful” and “Best I Ever Had” – popped up on both urban and pop radio and suddenly Drake’s name on the lips of everyone in the industry AND the listening public, a rarity in the hip hop world for a debut artist. That summer, ”Best I Ever Had” and “Every Girl” (a single with Young Money) entered the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, making Drake just the second artist (and the first male artist) to have his first two singles both land in the top 10 simultaneously.

An intense record label bidding war ensued but Drake stayed true to his mentor and signed with Young Money Entertainment.  He joined his new record family on the America’s Most Wanted Tour and continued rapping with them even after he tore a ligament in his knee during a performance.  So Far Gone was re-released as an official EP in September 2009, debuting in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.  

Thank Me Laterwas initially supposed to hit stores in late 2009 but it was postponed until March of this year and then postponed again until this month, inciting rumors that maybe Drake would not live up to the hype that was surrounding him.  Yes, doubts existed even though he had worked with such industry heavyweights as Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys and Mario.  The album’s first single “Over” peaked at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100.  The latest single “Find Your Love” sits comfortably in the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 with hopes of hitting the top spot despite intense competition from established acts like Katy Perry and Usher.  Drake has also released “Miss Me” featuring Lil Wayne which is well inside the top 20.  The album features appearances by Nicki Minaj, T.I., Alicia Keys and Lil Wayne.

Drake is nominated for four BET Awards, including Best Male Hip-Hop Artist.  He is also performing on this Sunday’s ceremony.  In addition, thanks to “Best I Ever Had,” he has two Grammy nominations under his belt.  After listening to Thank Me Later, I completely agree that Drake is here to stay – his style is very reminiscent of a male Lauryn Hill as he effortlessly switches between rapping and singing, capturing true emotion and rawness (rare in a hip hop world saturated with fake thugs and gangsters trying to perpetuate an image that is not even them).   I’m sure he’ll get a ton of Grammy love next year and look forward to seeing what else this REDHOT artist has up his sleeve.

Grammy-award nominated artist Trey Songz is preparing a media onslaught in support of his next album.  The album has been set for release on September 14, almost a year after his last CD Ready hit shelves.

Beforehand though, Trey will headline a new BET reality show about his experience on Jay’Z’s hot BluePrint III tour.  He’ll pair with rapper Young Jeezy for the show which is set to debut on June 27 , the same night as the BET Awards.  Songz is also performing at the BET Awards.

The much celebrated artist known for such raunchy hits as “I Invented Sex” and “Neighbors Know My Name” is also preparing a theater-type concert tour for early this fall.  He recently taped an episode of MTV’s Unplugged series which is set to air sometime this fall as well; the taping sold out almost instantly with all 3,000 tickets going in a matter of minutes.

Ready, has been certified gold (selling over 500,000 copies) and currently sits at #77 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.  It received a nomination for Best Contemporary R&B Album at this year’s Grammy Awards but he lost to Beyonce’s I Am…Sasha Fierce.

After getting ridiculed and written off for the trashy awards show last year, BET is readying a stellar show for this year.  It’ll be the show’s 10th anniversary so expectations are higher and the organizers seem totally prepared for the challenge.

Firstly, this year’s nominees include a who’s who of the hottest artists in the business right now.  Drake, Jay-Z and Nikki Minaj are the front runners with 5 nominations each.  Alicia Keys, Beyoncé and Trey Songz are also in the hunt for major prizes.

Secondly, the show has decided to switch up its host once again and invited Oscar nominee Queen Latifah – perennial host of the People’s Choice Awards – to serve as mistress of ceremonies this year.  I’m sure Latifah’s wit, humor and experience in the music industry will serve as assets throughout the course of this year’s show.

Thirdly, the announced list of performers has the music industry salivating!  Kanye West will make his first live performance since the MTV Music Awards debacle with Taylor Swift last year.  In addition, Eminem, Trey Songz, Keys, Diddy & Dirty Money, Usher, Minaj, Drake, Ludacris, Rick Ross, T-Pain, T.I., DJ Khaled, and Drake will take to the stage.  Want even more performances?  The show is apparently trying to apologize for last year’s hot mess of a tribute to the King of Pop himself by organizing a stellar one year anniversary tribute for Michael Jackson.

If ALL of that wasn’t enough, Prince will receive the network’s Lifetime Achievement Award, joining the ranks of Chaka Khan, Whitney Houston and Diana Ross.  The network has hinted that Prince’s tribute will be “a different kind of tribute…as his unique style deserves a unique honor.”

So it’s all set…some performers will most likely be kept under wraps to add to the shock value of previous BET Awards.  Who can forget the surprise reunions of the Fugees, New Edition, SWV and En Vogue?  Or MJ’s performance during the James Brown tribute?  Or the Good Times cast (including Penny!) on stage for the first time in ages?!

The show airs on Sunday, June 27 at 8PM from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.  Make sure you come back to XIMAGONLINE for a complete recap!

When the fall 2010 television season lineup was announced, many bemoaned the fact that there were few series starring minority actors, save for the return of Fox’s controversial animated hit The Cleveland Show and NBC’s new spy caper, Undercovers (starring Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw).  However, apparently cable TV appears ready to remedy this shocking and confusing trend. 

The Lifetime network, home to such female friendly shows like Army Wives and Drop Dead Diva, has tapped film star Gabrielle Union to headline their Wives spinoff.  The spinoff – still untitled – will get its unofficial launch on this upcoming season of Army Wives when the spinoff’s main character Pamela, played by Brigid Brannagh, will be filing for divorce from her husband, a Delta Force soldier.  Union will play Brannagh’s police partner, Detective Gina Holt. 

Union is no stranger to the TV series. In addition to film roles in Tyler Perry’s Daddy’s Little Girls, The Perfect Holiday and Cadillac Records, Union was recently on the just cancelled ABC drama Flash Forward and CBS’ City of Angels. 

The series is expected to hit the airwaves sometime in 2011.

D.L. Hughley is the latest celeb to be tapped as host for a new game show on NBC.  The game show is called “Who’s Bluffing Who?” where contestants must try to bluff their way into winning $500,000.  During each episode, the seven contestants will have to use their knowledge and deceptive talents – and even steal one another’s money – in order to advance in the game, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

Best known for being an “Original King of Comedy,” Hughley has also written, produced, and starred in the UPN/ABC comedy “The Hughleys,” and recently had a stint on CNN and was a correspondent on the defunct “The Jay Leno Show.”  This maybe the actor/comedian’s first game show hosting job, however, it’s not his first hosting gig.  He served as the original host of “ComicView” on BET during the 1992-93 television season.

It’s great to see the funny man is still getting jobs.  Proving that Steve Harvey isn’t the only one who gets work!

Grammy award-winning music phenomenon Kanye West will be returning to television and the stage.  BET announced today that West will be perform on the June 27 awards telecast.

This will be the first appearance at an awards show for West since his now infamous rant against Taylor Swift at last year’s MTV Video Music Awards where he remarked that Swift wasn’t deserving of the Best Female Video award over Beyonce.  Shortly after that incident, he appeared on the premiere episode of the now defunct The Jay Leno Show where he attempted to show remorse for his actions until Leno asked West how his late mother would feel about his actions.

He will most likely perform his newly released single “Power.”  West has been in exile in Hawaii working hard on his new album that is expected to be released in late 2010.  All I can say is expect great things!  And the BET Awards can expect mega ratings!