Weekend “To Do”, etc. 05-31-07

Hi:

Thought I’d write weekend stuff a little early since tomorrow I will be doing “Dance” and “Next Best Thing.”

OK… don’t forget, RESCUE ME starts on FX on Tuesday, June 10th. When last we saw Tommy Gavin, he was in that house in FLA where the girlfriend, at first, left him. Then felt guilty and went back to pull him out and got stuck herself! All kinds of stuff goin’ on this season!!!!!

FYI: A new law series will start later this summer on FX. It is called DAMAGES and stars Glenn Close and Ted Danson. I’ll keep you posted.

RUMOR: GRINDHOUSE (the Tarantino/Rodriguez collaboration) was such a box office disappointment that it has put SIN CITY II on hold.

Wait a minute… I just read that reasons for SIN CITY II on hold are that Sin City creator Frank Miller and director Rodriguez (both pictured to the left-Rodriguez is in the cowboy hat) are doing other flicks – (40’s comic strop character) Will Eisner’s THE SPIRIT and BARBARELLA (each pictured below) plus Rodriguez’s pending divorce (and philandering with Rose McGowan) hasn’t helped either….however, SIN CITY II will definitely be made.

 

DVDs

Not much this week. HANNIBAL RISING is in stores.

FILMS

Carly Schroeder will star in a film named GRACIE. It is about the Schue family (Andrew and Elizabeth). It’s a family movie about soccer. Reason I write this is because I remember when Carly (who is now 16) was just a little girl and was on the Soap Opera: Port Charles which was a spinoff of General Hospital. She played Scottie Baldwin’s daughter. Probably won’t mean anything to anyone unless you’re a GH fan/watcher!

Zooey Deschanel (sister Emily is on BONES) will star, along with Mark Wahlberg, in a thriller named THE HAPPENING. Filming starts in August and it is about a family that goes on the run after a natural crisis threatens to end the world. Now, I ask you, where the heck are they going to run to???

Another ‘oldie Classic’ movie is being remade. THE WOMEN (which originated in 1939) which tells the story about cheating husbands, etc. and stars Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Eva Mendes, Jada Pinkett Smith, Debra Messing (who, by the way, stars in The Starter’s Wife which is already getting terrible reviews), and Candace Bergen (love Candace in Boston Legal!). Start date on this movie is: August 6th.

TV:

Just read that the BBC Series, LIFE ON MARS, is being adapted by David Kelley and the same group who gave us Boston Public, The Practice and Ally McBeal - for ABC. If they follow the same premise as the BBC series, which was about a cop in the present, who is sent back to the 70’s and has to find his way back ‘home’. Apparently he is in a coma and gets these flashbacks. A really cool show! Hopefully it will be on the Fall Schedule.

(note from Jamie: The show references several over the top 70’s British Cop shows, including The Sweeney and The Professionals... so the US version would have some American equivalent… Starsky & Hutch?)

MUSIC:

OK, I ’stumbled’ on these 2 CD box sets and they not only sound wonderful, I ordered them!

The first is called: Back to Mono (1958-1969).

Phil Spector, who may now be ‘off the deep end’, back during these years, he owned the music business. He invented the WALL OF SOUND and gave us so many wonderful artists and terrific songs. You can buy this 4 disc boxed set plus book for only $18.98 on amazon.com. It originally sold for $75.00 when it first came out years ago.

And, while I was looking over the information on this boxed set I found another one: Stax 50th Anniversary Celebration

When Concord Music bought Fantasy Records in 2006, the Stax catalog was part of the package and what a package it is! This is a 2 CD box set from the 70s. Each song is better than the next and it only cost: $14.97 on amazon.

Shared Info:

Memorial Day weekend found me on the couch (where I usually am on the weekends!). I watched a LOT of TV some of which was:

The Good Shepherd starring Matt Damon. This was based on the true story of Edward Wilson, one of the founders of the CIA. Robert DeNiro appeared in this movie as well as directed it. Angelina Jolie also starred. It ran 168 minutes! I recommend it but you really have to concentrate on it because there’s a lot of espionage and bouncing back and forth. This Wilson guy was one COLD person! Trust me…

Invincible Starring Mark Wahlberg. This is based on a true story about a 30 year old who tries out to become a member of the Philadelphia Eagles. It was very inspirational Greg Kinnear does a good job as the coach too.

Over The Hedge: Really cute animated movie starring people like Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, Steve Carrell, William Shatner. Really cute story plus you can pick out the stars’ voices which, sometimes frustrates the heck out of me!

A&E has this series called: Sons of Hollywood which ’stars’? Randy Spelling, David Weinberg and Sean (please put your pants on) Stewart! Crazy stuff happens… episodes run only 23 minutes, which, in many cases is more than enough!

No Sopranos/Tudors/Entourage this past weekend. I was VERY disappointed!

I guess that’s it for now. Talk to you later.

Joanie

This week’s Amazon.com suggestions
(just click on the title to go to the Amazon product page!)

Stax 50th Anniversary Celebration

Back to Mono (1958-1969)

Sin City – Unrated (Two-Disc Collector’s Edition)

Rescue Me – The Complete First Season

The Good Shepherd (Widescreen Edition)

Invincible

Barbarella: Queen of the Galaxy

So You Think You Can Dance 05/30/07

Goodaye Everyone:

Just want to let you know that I taped The Next Best Thing (or, as I would have called it:  You Think You Look Like WHO?).

I’ll do a review tomorrow along with my Weekend “To Do” List.

Last night on “Dance” we had a sundry group of contestants:

By the way, the First Place Prize is: $250K!  Not bad.  I remember the first year you received a condo in NYC FREE for a year…that was the year that Nick won.  I thought it would be Blake but he was just too full of himself.  The 2nd year the winner was Benjy and he was wicked sweet.

OK, let’s see what I can critique from last night.  They spent a couple of days in Hollywood and then moved on to Chicago.

The Judges were Nigel, Mary and ‘hip-hop’ Judge Wade Dropson.

First up was Lauren – 18  a big “yes” from the Judges

Then came Jessie -24   another big “yes”

Good start to the day….you’d think, then came EJ – 28

He’s a hairdresser, big (actually fat) and wore leotards – get the picture?

This guy was flaming (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) but he was soooo pitiful.  He actually, though, had a few moves that no big person could possibly do but he was so bad.  Nigel was really nasty to him saying that he was ‘insulting’ everyone else who came to compete because a lot of them had real talent as opposed to him who was just plain fat!  By the way….that was a “NO” from the Judges.

Then came Colin Wheeler - 26.  We thought EJ was weird.  This dude was in a planet by himself.  He said that Anna Nicole came to his 25th birthday party and hugged him.  He was soooo emotional!  Have no idea what the heck he was trying to express in his dancing…another NO!!!!

Olivia - 18 What a pretty girl.  Her mom asked her to please try out even though she was having a breast biopsy that day.  Olivia hadn’t danced in 3 years because of her health but she was still very good.  The Judges asked if she would stick around for the group dance at the end of the day.

Next came another ‘weirdo’ – Golden Ferno – this nut case actually wore a gold mask because he didn’t want people to know who he was (not that I blame him).  He said he was the Champion of JUMP (his own title by the way!).  Nigel actually got  a boot out of him and asked if he would come back for group at the end of the day.

Amanda - 18 – a quick “NO”

Ballroom dancers Kurt – 23 and Dia – 26

Now their ’schtick’ is that he has had hiccups for like 7 years and she actually ‘winks’ while she dances. – Group at end of day

Day One Group:

Kurt - Yes       Dia – Yes       Golden Ferno - NO

Olivia – Yes             18 in all went thru to Vegas the first day.

Day Two: LaLa Land

Chuy - Handsome kid – 23 – He competed in Season Two and made it part of the way thru.  Anyway, he’s thru again – YES

Hok – 22 Also from Season Two.  He had to drop out because he did not have a work visa….got one this year though and it was a big YES

Dominic - another handsome dude – 22 -  Did a great job. YES

Commercial:  Hey…there’s NANCY DREW (I remember reading her books a longggg time ago!).  Anyway it’s Emma Roberts (Eric’s kid) who plays Nancy.  A lot of people like to say Julia’s niece but I like to to say, Eric’s girl!)

Back to the show:

Brianne – 18 she seems very well trained.  Has done cruise work.  Go to Group Brianne.

Joshua – 18 — What the heck was that?????   NO

Benjy came back to support his sister Lacey who is 18.  She was going to compete last year but you have to be 18.  She was wonderful and, of course, he was great.  YES for Lacey (Nigel said she has to stop the face and neck movements though.  Benjy has them too and it worked for him; not her.)

Group – Day 2

Brianne - YES plus 14 others

On to Chicago:

WHOA!!!  Here’s a Fantastic Four trailer that I hadn’t seen before.  This movie looks really cool.  Hope it doesn’t disappoint.  June 15 opening

OK, back to the show:

Shane - who also is a hip-hop Champ. was the Judge today.

Morgan - 18 YES

Phillip – 18 a BIG YES – this guy looks like a chubby Jon Cryer and boy could he hip-hop/crimp.  WOW!!!!

Here’s a preview of NEW AMSTERDAM – Can’t wait for this show.

Brother/Sister Isami – 27 NO        Yessie 23 – go to Group  then YES

DAY Two

Mike and Evita 26 and 27  YES

Janet - 26 was talented and was asked to stay for Group

Quincy – from Season One.  This guy was such an inspiring story.  He was in a terrible car accident and lost part of his right leg and his left one had pins in it.  He tried his best but wasn’t able to dance.  The Judges gave him a ’standing o’ though because of his courage.  Beautiful kid and what a great attitude.

End of the day, the Judges said “Yes” to Janet who, come to find out, has a prosthetic arm!

OK, 14 went thru to Vegas in Chicago.

It’s on to Atlanta tonight so I’ll do another review tomorrow.  It’ll be shorter because it’s only on for an hour.

Talk to you then.

Joanie

So You Think You Can Dance – 05-24-07

Hi Everybody:

Hope you all had a nice Memorial Day weekend.

This review is a  little ‘late’ but I thought I’d do it anyway.  For those of you who watch the show, it is in it’s 3rd season.

You have 3 judges; Nigel Lithgow (who is always there) and 2 dance judges who will be working in the group sessions, once we get there.  You also have a female host, Cat Deeley, who is almost as annoying as Samantha Harris on Dancing With The Stars!

The contestants that the Judges choose receive a ticket to Las Vegas for the next stage of the judging.

This week, the first of the 3rd season, we have Mary Murphy (who has taken off quite a bit of weight in the last year) and Dan Garrity(?).

The auditions are taking place this week in New York City.  (by the way, this is run by the same people who do AI).

Thousands were lined up outside Radio City Music Hall to audition.  The first contestant is named “Dancing Derrick” who is 22 and thinks he’s the greatest….guess what….he’s NOT!  Bye Bye Derrick.

Next is Jessica who does a “Jesus” dance (her explanation, not mine).

Terrible….NO!

Next we have Pasha and Anja who are terrific.   Both – YES!

Heather – 25 (she has tattoos!) – She’s good – that’s a YES

32 moved on in Day One

Day Two:

Jenna, 21 – No.

Chasmor, 18 – Don’t think so.

Melissa, 21 – a definite No. She looked like Ugly Betty – not that that’s a bad thing!

Hanna Lee, 22 from Israel.  Now this girl had a heckuva background story.  She broke her back in a horrific accident when she was younger and they told her she would never walk again, never mind dance.  And here she was auditioning for the show.  She was very good but they wanted to see her later in a ‘group’ danceoff.

Then we had a couple of kids from Boston.  Enock and Jamal.  The judges liked them but were hesitant with Jamal cause he was a big kid.  They asked if he could do a swing dance and he wasn’t quite sure what they meant by it but was willing to give it a shot.  They sent him off to find a partner and, when he couldn’t, he came back later with Enock to do a swing dance.  The Judges had a great time even though Jamal wasn’t all that good.  Not a problem…they said, come back later in the day for the ‘group dance’.

Ashley, 18 – was a YES

Katie, 25 (was Ashley’s teacher), also got a YES

We then had a brother and sister dance.  The brother, Stanislav, had been on another season.  They were terrific.  For some reason, they just picked the sister?

We then had one of those horrible moments (like from AI) where someone tries out who shouldn’t be on the same stage as these other people.

His name is “SEX” (of course, he’s anything but..).  His name is Simon (can you believe it?) and his mom is there with him.  Mind you he’s 33!

The guy is just absolutely pitiful and after the Judges ‘beg’ him to get off the stage, his mom starts in with Nigel telling him to go back to the UK (you know, the usual stuff!).  He says, “I was trying to be kind by telling your son that he couldn’t dance and try a different profession.  Now, I’m telling YOU, go away and DO NOT come back next season!”  They were shocked by all of this because they thought Simon was so good!!!!!

OK, group dance:

Enock – No

Jamal – a definite YES

Hanna Lee – YES

59 people were chosen over the two day period.

They will be in LA next week.

Soooo, what do you think?

• Do You Think You “Want” To Dance some more?  or…
• do you want me to pick something else?
• How about the show where people think they look like someone famous???  That looks funny.

Talk to you later in the week.

Joanie

Weekend To Do List – 05-24-07

Hi:

This will be short this week which is good, I’m sure, after the ‘novel’ I wrote you last week!

Movies:

Pirate of the Caribbean 3 is opening today with Johnny Depp. I heard that this may NOT be the last Pirates’ movie. Why doesn’t that surprise me? Because, so far, this franchise (The Curse of the Black Pearl, and Dead Man’s Chest) has made over $1 BILLION dollars!!! Of course they want it to go on. Also, can I be the first one to say that, if Jerry Bruckheimer ever gets lonely and wants an ‘older’ woman to bounce projects off of’ I’m more than willing to volunteer! How successful is this dude, huh? – By the way, Pirates may be too intense for little children.

Bug – Starring Ashley Judd and Harry Connick, Jr.

As a rule, I’m not big on scary movies but the ‘buzz’ on this one is that it is very good. I’d probably be screaming all over the place! Don’t even get me started on PET CEMETARY!!!!

DVDs:

Memory – This one went straight to DVD but that doesn’t mean it’s wicked bad (or does it?). It stars Billy Zane, Ann Margret and Dennis Hopper.

It’s listed as Drama/Horror/Thriller Sounds like something you may want to give a try on this long weekend… It’s the story of a Dr. in Brazil who gets exposed to a deadly substance that unlocks bad things that run thru his mind BUT it’s another guy’s thoughts… hmmmm.

Letters from Iwo Jima with Ken Watanabe (of Batman Begins and the Last Samurai) is also out. Director Clint Eastwood does NOT make a bad movie!

Just wanted to let you all know that I watched 2 movies ON DEMAND on Comcast last weekend.

The Last King of Scotland – Starring Forrest Whitaker and James McEvoy It was awesome. I don’t know how many of us remember Idi Amin or how cruel and destructive this man was. Talk about BIPOLAR! The young guy who plays his doctor, James McEvoy, was really good too. He has a movie coming out late this year named ATONEMENT and he’s also signed on to play Dr. Bones McCoy on the new STAR TREK movie.

Notes on a Scandal – Starring Cate Blanchett and Dame Judi DenchBilly Nighy is also in it. Filmed in England, it tells the story of a young woman who teaches at a high school and gets involved with a 15 year old and Judi finds out… no revenge like a woman’s!!!!

OK, here’s some rambling notes:

Dexter on Showtime – will be back in October.

Big Love, also on Showtime, will return June 11th

Weeds - once again on Showtime, will be back on Aug. 13th.

Deadwood on HBO – We’ve been waiting a long time for David Milch to finish the scripts on the ending of Deadwood. (did you notice that Powers Boothe was in ‘24′ this past season?) Now we find out that we probably will have to wait until 2008 for the 2 two-hour ending movies. Not fair! David has a new show on HBO called John From Cincinnati which starts on June 10th.

And, last but not least, I’ve been searching all over the place to try and find out when Brotherhood will be back on Showtime. No luck as yet but I’ll keep you posted.

Joanie

DVDs recommended this week available on Amazon:

Pirates of the Caribbean The Curse of the Black Pearl

Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest

Letters from Iwo Jima

Memory

The Last King of Scotland

Dexter – Complete First Season

Weeds – Season One

Deadwood – The Complete First Season

Big Love – The Complete First Season

Brotherhood – The Complete First Season

AI Final Show – “Season 6″ Winner 05-23-07

Hi There Everybody:

Well, I can’t believe it’s the end of the season for AI. It seems like just yesterday that we were all glued to our TVs watching the auditions!

We started off the show with Blake and Jordin singing a classic Beatles‘ song: I SAW HER STANDING THERE. It was a lot of fun. You could tell that they were relaxed and were just enjoying every minute of this night.

We then ‘flashed on the big screen’ to Gwen Stefani who sang her new song. She’s touring so she had her audience wherever she was, clapping and singing along with her.

Then we had Kelly Clarkson come on stage and sing her new hit, NEVER AGAIN. Boy, has she changed since winning Season 1! I saw Justin in the audience cheering her on. She looked really punk and did a great job on this song. It was a little ‘harsh’ for me but she did a good job.

Saw Jennifer Hudson in the audience. Boy, wouldn’t it be great if she sang her big song from Dreamgirls??!!!

We then had the first “Golden Idol” statue of the night. It went to the ‘chicken lady’. Boy did she ‘pin the make’ on Ryan. What a KISSSSSS!

The Top 6 Guys were up next and sang, Ooo, Baby, Baby (by Smokey Robinson). It was really cool. They then brought out Smokey to the stage and he sang, BEIN’ WITH YOU. He’s still got a great voice and the guys had a great time singing along with him. He also sang, TEARS OF A CLOWN and the guys each sang with him.

Of course, you know in between all of this, we had commercials!

Ryan then talked about Blake Lewis and his beat-boxing and how everyone wanted to hear him do more. Soooo, they had Doug E. Fresh (remember, he had hit songs years ago with Will Smith) and a guy named Barry B.? (who was the DJ) come out on stage and beat-box with Blake. It HAD to be the highlight of the night. It was absolutely AWESOME!

Ryan then did another Golden Moment Award – this one for the original vocal. I thought that guy that looked scared to death would win but it was someone else….moving on.

The Top 6 Girls came out on stage and sang Gladys Knight’s song:

“HEARD IT THRU THE GRAPEVINE”. They all looked beautiful and sang great. Of course, Gladys then stepped out on the stage and sang with the girls. Here’s another gal in her 60s who’s still ‘got IT”!!!

Hey….is that Constantine I see in the audience???? His new CD is supposed to be coming out in July. You’ll be able to buy it on amazon.com

At some point, we had Carrie Underwood sing her big hit? Wasn’t paying attention for a few minutes but she looked absolutely beautiful! (I was clicking on to the Red Sox game)

So, after I calmed down from the rush, here comes Tony Bennett who sang “FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE”. I tell ya, for a guy whose 80 years old this year, he is still in top form. What a joy to see him.

Another Golden Moments Award: This one for ‘Best Buddies” It went to Jonathan and Kenneth. Kenneth is the kid that Simon said had eyes like a ‘bush baby’! Ryan then showed a picture of a ‘bush baby’ on the big screen and said that were giving one to a local zoo and naming it SIMON!

After that we had BeBe and CeCe Wyans (very popular gospel singers) come on stage with Melinda and sing, HOLD UP THE LIGHT. They were all terrific. She used to sing back up for them…..no more!

Ryan called Blake and Jordin out on the stage and handed them keys to their new 2007 Mustang convertibles!!!! How awesome is that?

Clive Davis came out (he’s another one who’s gotta be close to 80!)

and talked a lot and gave Carrie an award for her CD that sold 6M copies!

The African Children’s Choir then sang and were adorable. What beautiful smiles they have. How brave these children are.

We then had a ‘tribute’ to Sanjaya and he sang, YOU REALLY GOT ME GOIN’ with Joe Perry from Aerosmith…..Shoot Me Now!!! Just when you thought it was safe, he’s back!

Green Day sang and they did a tribute to Darfur in Africa where genocide is still going on… every day.

Taylor Hicks came out next and sang his new single, “Heaven Knows”. I can’t get the ‘lick’ out of my head but I know it’s a melody from an old, very popular song. He did a great job and he hasn’t changed a bit. Didn’t see Katherine McPhee in the audience?

We then had Rueben and Jordin sing, “YOU’RE ALL I NEED TO GET BY” and they were terrific. It’s good to see Rueben again. He’s still struggling with his weight but it’s an ongoing thing for him. He looked wonderful and his voice is strong and pure….great job!

Bette Midler came out next and sang, “WIND BENEATH MY WINGS”. I love Bette but I have to say that this was the biggest disappointment of the night. Her voice sounded very strained. She must be rehearsing night and day because she is going to take Celine Dion’s place in Vegas soon.

Still love Bette though…she’s a great gal.

We then had all 12 Finalists plus the former Idols, come out on stage to sing a “Sgt. Pepper’s Tribute”. While this was cool, a lot of people haven’t seen the movie or probably even heard the music from it so it was kinda strange. The movie tells a story and the music is intertwined into it….those of you who haven’t seen it, should rent a copy. The Beatle’s wrote the music but it’s the BeeGees who perfom in the movie.

(note from Jamie: If you’re going to see it, see the version by the Bee Gees… and my mom)

It is now 9:58 and we go to a COMMERCIAL!!!!! Do these people think this an Oscar show????

We come back and Ryan calls Blake and Jordin to the center stage.

There were 74M votes cast on Tuesday night.

The winner of Season 6 AI is: drum roll please… JORDIN SPARKS

She then sang that horrid song, THIS IS MY NOW which is way too old for her. She did a terrific job (where’s the choir that they always have???).

Confetti, cheering, screaming, crying, etc. Another season finished.

It is now 10:04!!!!!

Soooo, in conclusion, I have to say that Season 6 was not the best of the Idols. After the Sanjaya fiasco, I would love to see the show figure out a different way to vote but we’ll see in January.

Have a great summer everyone. I’m taking tomorrow off but I’m thinking of doing a review on: SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE which starts tonight on FOX and is produced by the same people who do Idol.

You can let me know how you feel with a comment.
I’ll try and do my “Weekend Update” later today.

Happy Memorial Day… Happy Summer.

Joanie

AI Top 2 Finals 05/22/07

Goodaye Everybody:

Well here we are, from 100K+ auditions, to the Top 2:  Blake and Jordin.

I didn’t realize that both of the finalists auditioned at the Seattle venue.  I remember the judges going crazy because everyone was so bad!!! Then came Blake and Jordin.  And remember the rain?  It POURED!

Ryan said that, once again, it was the ‘battle of the sexes’!  1st Season it was Kelly and Justin, 4th Season it was Carrie and Bo, 5th Season it was Taylor and Katherine and now…..it is Blake and Jordin.

Each Finalist will sing 3 songs.

Blake went first and sang Bon Jovi’s You Give Love A Bad Name and he was awesome!  His beatboxing was unbelievable and Simon said that he was very entertaining.  The other judges liked it too.

Blake chose Maroon Five’s She Will Be Loved for his second song and his voice was very good.  I think of Blake joining a band like any of the new ones out there and singing mellow, cool songs which will give him a chance to do his beatboxing.

His third song was the contest winner, This Is My Now

I gotta tell ya, PEOPLE:  isn’t there a decent song out there that someone can write for these finalists?  At least this song was a tad better than, “Do I Make You Proud?” from last year.  I think the Kelly Clarkson song, “This Moment In Time” has been the best one so far.

Anyway, Blake did a decent job with it even though he was clearly uncomfortable.  Not his type of song.  The judges told him he did the best he could.  Simon told him that he looked kinda ‘odd’ up there.

Then we had Jordin, who sang:

Her first song was Fighter by Christina Aguillera(?).  She did a great job.  Love her hair!  She has a good, strong voice.  The judges liked it too.  Especially Simon who said that he was glad she chose a song appropriate for her age.

Her second song was A Broken Wing by Martina McBride.  Now I didn’t care for this song.  I thought it was boring but the judges LOVED it.  Her outfit was really cute.  She’s a very talented, young girl with a truly great voice.

The third song was her version of:  This Is My Now

Ironically, this song was written by two people from Seattle where Jordin and Blake auditioned!!!  Interesting.

Anyway, Jordin hit it outta the ballpark.  This song was truly made for her to sing.  Liked the ‘teardrop’ at the end.  Nice touch.  The judges thought she was terrific.

Soooo, best entertainer:  Blake

Best Vocals:  Jordin

Winner????:  It’s gotta be Jordin but Blake will definitely go far.

OH MY GOD:  Is that Constantine in the audience????  I know there were other celebrities and the other finalists were cheering Jordin and Blake on BUT I had eyes for only him.  By the way, did you know that he is on the soap, The Bold and The Beautiful????

We’ll see tonight as they stretch out for 2 hours what could be a 15 minute Finale!!!!  I’m sure they’ll have all the past 12 finalists on the stage.  Let’s hope the Choir comes out to back Jordin on her ‘BIG’ song!!!!!

Joanie

————————————————————————————

Dancing With The Stars

OK, I’m going to admit that I did NOT watch last night’s show.  I was taping it and will catch it tonight but I thought, since everyone knows the winner, that I’d just throw in my comments on Monday nights dances.

Laila and Maksim:  Danced the Pasa Doble and were awesome.  For a girl who is ‘not’ the usual type for this dancing venue, she’s terrific.

Judges:  10-9-10 = 29

2nd dance was the freestyle and Laila and Max came out ’swinging, literally!  Loved the ripping of Max’s shirt off!  That was fun.  The judges were a little picky on this one:  9-8-9 = 26   Total of 55 for the night.

Apolo and Julianne first danced the Rumba and were they ’smoking’.  I swear if they’re not a couple, they should be!  Great dance steps, completely insync with each other.  Len and Bruno got into a little fight over their opinions.  9-9-10 = 28

Apolo and Juliane’s second dance was the freestyle and they were picture perfect.  He was spinning around and standing on one hand.  You name it, they did it:  10-10-10 = 30  Total:  58

Joey and Kym first danced the Cha Cha Cha.  She really worked him hard all season and it’s paid off.  I think he’s dropped like 30 lbs and looks terrific.  (Joey pointed to the camera and said, “Mom, this one is for you!”)  The judges weren’t all that thrilled though:  9-8-9 = 26

Joey and Kym’s freestyle was absolutely AWESOME!!! Loved the jumps and the LIFTS were unreal.  I just LOVE Joey!  Len said that he wished he could give more than a ‘10′ to them!  10-10-10 = 30  Total:  56

And, when all was said and done, it was Apolo and Julianne who took home the “Glitter Ball”!!!!

Another season finished…

Weekend To Do/News

Hi:

Here are a few new series coming in the Fall on TV. I didn’t really write about any of the comedies. I just concentrated on the dramas for now.

ABC

Dirty/Sexy/Money Wed. 10PM
Stars: Peter Krause, Donald Sutherland, William Baldwin, Jill Clayburgh. Story about a very wealthy family..The Darlings. They have a great lawyer who has taken care of the their personal business for years. When he unexpectedly dies, they turn to his son, an up and coming attorney who goes by the ‘books’ and ask that he become their personal attorney and handle all of the family business….will he?

Grey’s Anatomy Spinoff: Private Practice Wed. 9PM
Stars: Kate Walsh, Taye Diggs, Tim Daly and others. We saw a sneak peak a few weeks ago when Kate went to LA to see her friends and talk about having a baby. Now she will go back to LA and settle in the clinic they run and work as an ob/gyn with the group.

NBC

There seems to be a better ‘crop’ of dramas on this station.

Journeyman Mon 10PM
Stars: Kevin McKidd. A romantic mystery about a guy who travels thru time and alters people’s lives. – That’s all I needed to say…it sounds good. Besides, Kevin McKidd was so good in the HBO drama series ROME, I’m sure will do a good job on this show.

Bionic Woman Wed 9PM
Stars: Michelle Ryan. They tried to ‘update’ the story instead of going back to the ‘Jamie Sommers’ days which starred Lindsey Wagner! This is the story of a young girl who is in a horrific car crash and when she starts to get better, she notices she has ‘powers’. This show will premiere on NBC and then jump over to the SCI FI network.

Life (forgot when it’s on)
Stars: Damien Lewis (of Band of Brothers) This is the story of a complex cop who is given a second chance after coming out of prison after serving many years for a crime he did not commit. This show will premiere on NBC and then jump over to the USA Network.

CBS

Without A Trace is returning to it’s old timeslot of Thursdays at 10.

Cane – 10PM (not sure which night)
Stars: Jimmy Smits (didn’t you miss him?), Hector Elizondo (Pretty Woman) and others. Story about a very affluent Cuban/American family in Southern Florida making their money in rum and sugar. It sounds very intriguing and different…

Also, midseason brings: Swingtown
This show is set in the 70s in a Chicago suburb and centers around a group of families’ lives and how they intertwine with each other.

FOX

K-Ville – Mon 9PM
Stars: Anthony Anderson, Cole Hauser. Set in New Orleans, this is about a standup cop (Anderson) who is trying to keep order in a city that is still torn by Hurricane Katrina from 2 years ago. His new partner is Cole Hauser.

New Amsterdam Wed 9PM
This one sounds really good. It’s the story about this detective who has a secret…he’s immortal! Back in 1642, he stepped in front of a sword to save the life of a young Native girl and ‘dies’. She puts a spell on him, bringing him back to life. He will NOT age until he’s found his one, true love. This one has great Exec. Prod./Writers. It is set in New York City (which used to be New Amsterdam….)

Back To You Tue 8PM
This is the only comedy I wrote about because it stars Kelsey Grammar and Patricia Heaton. It’s the story about 2 news reporters who just do NOT get along. What happens to them each week. Director: James Burrows (need I say more?)

Canterbury’s Law Thu 9PM
Ex. Prod.: Denis Leary stars Julianne Margulies as a DA who moves to Providence, RI with her husband, a Law Professor, after the disappearance of their son. She sets up there and is very unorthodox about the way she tries cases!

Sarah Connor Chronicles – Sun 9PM
This is based on the Terminator movies and follows Sarah and her son, John (whose 15 now) and what happens to them when they stop running from the future.

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DVD Releases

The Fountain – Complicated fantasy/thriller starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weiz.

Pan’s Labyrinth – Drama/Horror/Fantasy/Thriller from the director of Hellboy, Guillermo Del Toro. This has it all.

Seraphim Falls – Action/Thriller, stars Pierce Brosnan and Liam Neeson. Set after the Civil War is over. Raw brutality of First Blood and the savage beauty of Cold Mountain. Will leave you on the edge of your seat.

 

Movies:

SHREK THE THIRD opens Friday – looks just as funny as the others!

NEWS:

Elijah Wood is going to play Iggy Pop in a biopic on the legendary rocker called THE PASSENGER. Filming will take six months and be out in the Summer of 2008.

Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino have just announced they will be making a movie together called: RIGHTEOUS KILL It’s the story of 2 cops,

Pacino/DeNiro, who chase down a serial killer. You will recall they did HEAT together but were in only 2 scenes. They will be in this entire film together! Filming begins on August 8th in Conn. and then move to Chicago. This is a $60M+ movie.

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Well that’s certainly a lot of information to digest. Sorry if I went on too long. Lots of stuff to report this week….and I just touched the surface!

Have a great weekend everyone.

Joanie

Top 3 Results Show 05-17-07

Goodaye Everyone:

Well last night started with Homer Simpson starting the show for us! It was cute.

Ryan then talked about the Tour.

Ryan then went to the couch to talk to Melinda, Blake and Jordin. He asked the 3 about their trips home.

He called Jordin up to the stage and they watched footage of her trip home to Arizona. Must have been mighty hot that day cause she kept saying she couldn’t believe the amount of people who were outside waiting to see her. She’s a real sweet kid and was truly overwhelmed by all of the attention. Loved the bit about her best friend too.

Ryan started to say something about the results and then, natch, told her to sit down. We’d get to them later in the show.

He then called Blake up to the stage and they watched footage of his trip home to Seattle. Boy is his dad emotional (he’s very proud of his son). His mom is too but it’s dad who kept on weeping. Blake even sang the Star Spangled Banner at the Mariners game. He was syched!!! Once again, back to the couch…tell ya later.

Then we had Elliott Yamin sing. OK, here’s my take on this. When he stepped out on the stage all I could think of was Clay Aiken last year, when he surprised us on the Final Show and had the new ‘do’. Elliott’s is all curly kinda like Chris Sligh but not as bushy. And look at those teeth! Elliott certainly has had work done. The song he sang, from his new CD, seemed almost like a rap song. Didn’t care for it. I thought he was more of a bluesy/jazzy type singer. That’s when he sounded best.

Anyway, I still like the kid a lot so go out and buy his CD or order it here!

We then had the Ford Commercial. This is the last of the 4 and the song was Billy Squire’s ‘Everybody Wants You.’ Not as cute as others but fun to watch.

Then Ryan called Melinda up to the stage and he showed footage of her trip home to Nashville. She seemed very grateful for everything they did for her… even naming a street afer her! She’s a very sweet girl. Obviously, Ryan said for her to sit down… this is getting a little ‘old’.

We then had a ‘plug’ for the new reality series on finding a BAND.

Maroon 5 sang, “Give Me Something To Believe In”. It was good. They’re a very talented group. A little edgy but good.

OK….here we go.

Ryan called up all 3 and then told Jordin to step forward. 60 million votes were cast last night, by the way.

Jordin – sit down – YOU are in the finals!!

He then asked Blake and Melinda to step forward. Then asked Melinda to come to him…..and those words were spoken that we hate to hear,

“Melinda, you are going home tonight.” She was very gracious and did NOT cry. She shouldn’t cause she’s going to have one heckuva career!

The judges were all very gracious with her..Paula the most. They all feel she will be a star. Simon said that it was a joy to have her and she has a wonderful voice.

Soooo, there you have it. It will be Blake and Jordin in the Finals next week and, unless Jordin completely falls apart, she should be the IDOL!

Talk to you later.

Joanie

Top 3 Finalists 05/15/07

Goodaye Everyone:

First of all… let me say HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to my son Jamie (who helps me with this website) and his lovely wife Jen who celebrated their 2nd anniversary yesterday!

OK, before we start the review, I have to ask…’What Was With Ryan Last Night’?  He was downright nasty to Simon.  Simon took it in stride though.  However, I don’t think, if I were Ryan, I would want to meet up with Simon in the parking lot after the show!  Also, have you noticed how Simon will NOT leave poor Paula alone?  He is constantly poking her… just thought I’d throw that out there.

Last night the 3 Finalists were asked to sing 3 songs.

•  First choice was from a Judge
• Second choice would be the Producers (which, in past years, would be Clive Davis of Jive Records) and the
• Third choice would be their own.

First Up was Jordin and Simon chose Wishing On A Star by Rolls Royce

I thought she looked beautiful and really liked the jazzy rendition of this song.  (For you New Englanders, Dale Dorman the DJ has used this song as his ‘theme song’ for years).  It was a great start to the show!

Paula and Randy loved it but Simon didn’t care for the rendition.  Ryan went into a rant that went something like, “YOU chose this song and now you’re saying that you didn’t like it.”  Simon said, “That’s NOT what I said,”  Then when he tried to explain it was the rendition, not the song, and that Jordin did a great job…Ryan cut him off.

Then came Blake and Paula chose Roxanne by The Police for him to sing.  It was another great job.  Just missed Blake’s be-boxing.  Other than that, everyone loved it.

Next up was Melinda and Randy chose I Believe In You and Me by Whitney for her to sing.  She sounded great.  The Judges gave the First Round to Melinda!

Second Songs Chosen by Producers

Jordin sang She Works Hard For The Money by Donna Summer

Now we know that Donna is a ‘Boston/Dorchester’ gal so I was hoping that Jordin would hit it outta the park.  She was good but, in my estimation, fell a tad short of great.  Expected a few more high notes I guess.  The Judges loved it.

Blake sang This Love by Maroon 5 and it was great.  He did everything he could to win over the Judges.  He felt very comfortable with this song too.  You could tell.  Did the be-boxing stuff too!

Melinda sang Nut Bush City Limits by Ike and Tina Turner.  This choice seemed a little odd to me.  First of all, it’s not a very well known song.  I wish they had just chosen a Tina, or even, Chaka Khan song for her.  She did a very good job though.

Second Round was a ‘tie’ in the Judges’ estimation.

Third Round – The Finalists choose their own song.

Jordin chose I Who Have Nothing (forget who sang this one).  I thought she did an awesome job and, once again, looked beautiful.  She certainly looked and sounded like an IDOL tonight! Simon said it was an ‘old’ song and wished she had sung a song more suited for her age.  Jordin tried to say the song he chose for her was… like from the 70s… but was cut off.

Blake sang Robin Thicke’s (LOVE Robin) When I Get You Alone

I liked it a lot.  Once again, he was grooving away and was having a fun time with it.  Simon said as much and Blake agreed that this whole experience has been a great time for him.

Last song of the night went to Melinda who chose I’m A Woman

She had sung this song earlier in the competition.  (Actually, here’s a thought:  too bad LaKisha didn’t make it this far. She could have sung her BIG song from Dreamgirls and blown everyone away again!).

She did a wonderful job.  Not the best I’ve heard her sing but nevertheless, a great job.

Well it’s anyone’s guess as to who will ‘go home’ tonight.  They were all fabulous.  –  My thought, if I had to give a guess — It would be Melinda.

You know they will all have careers after this so no one should be crying tonight…..

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Dancing With The Stars

This week the Top 4 Finalists chose their own dances.

First up was Apolo and Julianne who danced a Quick Step

Can these two get any better?????        30 points for them

Second dance was the Cha Cha Cha

WOW! Again Not much to say except Len thought part of it was a little too sexy for him                                          29 points fo them

This killed Apolo who wanted all 10s tonight…and should have got ‘em.

Ian and Cheryl chose the Tango

Good job too.  Len loved it.                    28 points for them

Second dance was the Jive

(Didn’t watch this one but he was dressed as Elvis so that can’t be all bad!)

Apparently they did a great job cause:     30 points for them

Laila and Maksim first danced a Quick Step

They were soooo terrific.                         30 points for them

Their second dance was the Cha Cha Cha

Such a dance you didn’t wanna miss!       30 points for them

(this gave them the 60 that Apolo was looking for)

Joey and Kym first danced the Foxtrot

I can NOT say this enough….I LOVE Joey.  I think it’s his ’showmanship’ and the personality doesn’t hurt either.  He’s worked sooo hard and has taken off like 30 lbs.  Good for him.          30 points for them

Their Second Dance was the Jive

This, to me, was the BEST dance of the night.  It had everything you want.

30 points for them

(which ALSO gave them 60 points…Apolo must have been crushed!)

Anyway, fast forward to last night and you find Ian and Cheryl going home.  Guess Cheryl won’t get a THIRD trophy in a row!

They’ve all done a great job and, as with the AI Kids, it’s reallllly hard to pick just one now.  They’re ALL winners.

Talk to you tomorrow.

Joanie

AI Top 4 Results 05/09/07

Mornin’ Everyone:Another beautiful day here in New England! Except for what it cost me for gas and my lovely cold… I’m a happy camper!!

I noticed that Ryan had his beard again last night. Usually he shaves it for the Wed. show… hmmm.

First of all we had a review of last night’s performances. Then Ryan went out to the Farmer’s Market to ask people who they liked/didn’t like. Same ole’ stuff every week. Nothing more than fillers!

45 million votes this week!

Talk about the Live Tour (the group will be in Manchester, NH on 9/22).

Tickets will go on sale week ending May 19th. Ryan said, “Sanjaya will be performing with the group. Parents, lock up your daughters!”

Pink performed ‘Who Knew.’ She had “Billy Idol” hair for those of you old enough to remember him!

Then we talked about the Idol Challenge where you guess whether “A”, “B” or “C” did something…puhleez.

Moving on to the Ford Commercial: You Really Got Me was the song. The whole concept reminded me of The Beatles’ movie A Hard Day’s Night (<-click here to order a copy on Amazon)!

Then the four finalists did a tribute to Barry Gibb (and The Bee Gees). It was fun. A lot of memories with those songs. (I guess Bill Maher was lipsynching from the first row!)

Ryan goes to sit on the couch…talk, talk, talk.

The four go to see a sneak preview of the Fantastic Four(<-click here to order a copy on Amazon) sequel, Rise of the Silver Surfer and Tim Story, the director talks to them about the movie. They show the trailer and it looks awesome. Then we come back to Ryan who is sitting in the audience with the Fan 4 and they tell us that the premiere is June 15th.

He then showed backgrounds of the Top 4. You saw baby pics, where they grew up, and a little bit about themselves. Here’s something that could be a ‘trivia’ question: 3 out of 4 are only children. That’s interesting.

He then lines up the kids and immediately sends Melinda to the couch. (I liked the fact that they formed a circle and didn’t want to break it!)

Then we have Barry sing To Love Somebody. Oh My God! I had goosebumps. He may be close or even over 60 but he’s still GOT IT in my book. He even had the ‘warble’ at the end. You’re the greatest Barry!

Then Ryan says that the producers are looking into forming a band. Blah, blah, blah. Obviously another reality series!

OK, enough already:

Jordin – OK, go sit down.

LaKisha and Blake were left standing and then Ryan said those dreaded words, “LaKisha your journey ends here. You are going home tonight.”

It was sad but remember, Chris Daughtry was sent packing last year in 4th place and he’s done pretty good for himself!

So there you have it… your Top 3… Melinda, Blake and Jordin.

Let’s see who is left standing next week!

Talk to you soon.

Joanie