According to our fave girl Kristin over at E!, Sarah Michelle Gellar (or is it Prinze??) is hunting for a good TV script! Yay. How happy Your Mom would be if Buffy returned to our DVRs. (Did we have DVRs when Buffy was on?? Yes, right?)
Also, in case any of you were wondering, SMG and iamyourmom here have the EXACT same birthday (year and everything). Aries shout-out!
Anywho, wouldn’t it be great to have Buffy, Faith and Joss all back on the TV scene at the same time?? FAB.
So, this may not interest the general public (or the teensy-tiny section of said public that reads IAYM) or even most of IAYMers. But I saw this preview and had to post it in honor of non-IAYMer Moe. Moe spent a semester studying in Amsterdam. Whenever anyone learned this fact, that person asked Moe if she was planning to go, nay, insisted that she go to Bruges. It became such a routine that Moe soon refused to go to Bruges. No, not even if it was the most beautiful place in the world (it’s close). Not if it had free Belgian waffles with Nutella on every corner (it doesn’t).
So now there is a movie with Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes called “In Bruges,” in which Colin’s hitman has to spend several days in Bruges waiting to hear from his boss on next instructions. He is even less excited about it than Moe would be. There are several lines in the preview that Miss Moe would get a kick out of, like when 10 people in quick succession say “Bruges.” And with apologies to Jen, Colin Farrell says, “If I had grown up on a farm and was retarted, then Bruges might impress me. But I didn’t, so it doesn’t.”*
Another reason for posting this is that it looks quite good. Maybe Colin Farrell can finally be in a good movie after about 7 craptastic ones. Though, to be fair, The New World was quite a lovely movie. And Phone Booth was good, but that was like 17 years ago. But if you haven’t seen Colin Farrell in Tigerland, then you really should to see how talented he really is. Maybe his only good role where he is faking an accent.
*Regardless of what Moe and Colin Farrell say, Bruges is quite lovely and should be visited by everyone who is in the area. Michelangelo’s Bruges Madonna alone is worth seeing, even if you have to wait through a Mass in Walloon before you can go see it. And even if afterward you are approached by a retired architect who invites you back to his recently-renovated 13th century canal house and plies you with drinks, but fortunately does not kill or maim you. Good times.
I just had to share with IAYMers two hilarious bits from EW.com’s mini-review of this week’s Thanksgiving-themed Gossip Girl:
“Chuck gives thanks with a dime bag in the basement of Scores, duh.”
“Dan’s mom is from the planet Bland, and her whole bit about ‘I focused on transferring my anger into art,’ made my stomach focus on not transferring vomit to my mouth.”
In other news, Serena is a terrible drunk. But why doesn’t my hair look that good when I am forgetting-my-purse-and-running-into-oncoming-traffic drunk?
From today’s New York Times… Your Mom will be making this at her next soiree.
Time: 50 minutes
2 cups unsalted, roasted mixed nuts (or use all almonds or cashews)
1 1/2 tablespoons egg white, beaten slightly
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon garam masala
3/4 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon allspice
Pinch of cloves
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste
3/4 pound sliced bacon
1/2 cup light brown sugar.
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, toss nuts with egg white, coating nuts evenly. Add granulated sugar, spices, salt and cayenne, and toss to combine.
2. Spread nuts on a baking sheet. Roast, stirring frequently and breaking up any clumps, until nuts are nicely browned, 12 to 15 minutes. Break up any remaining clumps while nuts are still warm; immediately transfer to a bowl.
3. Increase oven temperature to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a nonstick liner (or use parchment paper sprayed with nonstick spray). Arrange bacon in a single layer on baking sheet. Sprinkle a thin, even layer of brown sugar over bacon, coating both sides. Bake until crisp and dark golden, 20 to 25 minutes.
4. Transfer bacon slices to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet (or some paper towels) to cool. Cool. Break bacon into bite-size pieces and mix with nuts.
Yield: 2 cups.
The folks at IAYM are big fans of 30 Rock. In fact, we even have our own bizzaro Liz Lemon on our “staff.” If only we had a real life Jack Donaghy in our lives.
So, when we saw “Somebody to Love,”the episode that includes the blatant Verizon Wireless commercial during a Liz/Jack scene, we had to rewind our DVRs to confirm what we’d just seen. It was funnier the second time.
Hollywood Reporter has a story on the integration of ads into the writing of shows. In the age of TiVo, it’s certainly a smart tactic — if you can pull it off like the 30 Rock writers (remember the Snapple plug in season one?).
Rossi declined to disclose how much Verizon paid for the “30 Rock” integration but said that in addition to fees, it provided marketing support for the show with a co-branded ad in Maxim magazine and promotional content on VerizonWireless.com. “We want an integration to be as organic and natural to a show as it can be,” he said. “Certainly with the ’30 Rock’ humor and writing, this type of integration just works well for them and for Verizon Wireless as well.” NBC declined comment on the financial terms of the deal.
Full story after the jump…
Sometimes I wonder why I still watch, obsessively even, America’s Next Top Model. Especially considering that “Gabologist” Tyra Banks should be tried for crimes against humanity. Long after I have stopped watching all other shows where talentless nitwits fighting for a shot at 15 minutes of near fame, a chance to be on another, more embarrassing reality show, followed by marriage to a former teen star, I keep getting sucked into ANTM. Maybe it’s Jay (as in Mr., not Miss, who should be imprisoned on a boat with no communication with the outside world like 19th century British prisoners). Maybe it’s the pictures, which are usually pretty awesome.
I was just reminded of one reason though: I read an entry of EW’s PopWatch blog saying that Twiggy has been replaced by Paulina Pzwskwrkeiwwski as the “former model who isn’t Tyra” ANTM judge. Which didn’t excite me nearly as much as the link to a YouTube video of the Stupidest Contestant on ANTM Ever. Perhaps the stupidest reality show contestant ever. And this is a category that include Trishelle and every person on Temptation Island. Anywhos, below is the excellent video. I mean, animals die just like people, riiight?
In Veronica Mars news, our little lady Kristin Bell has been spotted with man-about-town and Ashton Kutcher BeFri (maybe?) Dax Shepard.
[photo from PopSugar via Flynet]
Who would be a better guy for Ms. Bell? Your Mom’s vote is Peter Petrelli. If we can’t have him… yada yada.
Show of hands — who has watched the Lost webisodes, “Missing Pieces,” airing on ABC.com??
Two have been posted thus far. Though Your Mom hasn’t devoted the time yet, I’m sure she’ll get antsy soon and check them out. But, the cool thing is that not only will they help fellow Losties get through the next month-plus without the show, but apparently they might help solve the writers’ strike, according to the New York Times:
The “Missing Pieces” episodes were written by the regular writers of the television series, a group that includes Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof, executive producers of the series, who also oversaw production of the webisodes. They also feature the show’s regular actors and characters, including Matthew Fox, who plays Dr. Jack Shephard. Mr. Fox appears in the first installment, released last week. The writers, actors and others involved in the production were paid specifically for their work on the Web episodes and will earn residual income, just as they do for the broadcast show.
In an interview Mr. Cuse said that while it took five months to reach an agreement, he believes the “Missing Pieces” deal could serve as a template for resolving at least some of the dispute over payment for online use of material.
Full story after the jump.
Did y’all hear about SNL on Saturday night? No not the (quite funny) repeat with (the surprisingly funny) Brian Williams. It was the live version that was done in a basement in Chelsea. Michael Cera (George Michael) hosted, Yo La Tengo performed, and Fred Armisen had “fake hair applied to his buttocks.” Must have been real.
Last night, a lucky few got to see 30 Rock Live! in the same venue for $20, though scalpers soon took over and some people paid at much as $300. I am very sad I missed it, because who wouldn’t want to have the opportunity to see a “basketball-themed spot for tampons [that] had [Alec] Baldwin laughing so hard he turned crimson.”
Call it a strike-com: On Nov. 19, over 200 wildly excited fans crammed into an underground improv theater in New York City to witness 30 Rock Live!, a benefit performance of NBC’s cult comedy. Getting into the show—staged to raise money for 30 Rock‘s production staff, who’ve been laid off due to the writers’ strike—proved nearly impossible, and star Tina Fey opened the evening by thanking those who had been lucky enough to score the $20 ticket. “If you paid more than that on Craig’s List, you are a sucker,” she told the crowd. “This is going to be on TV for free in a few weeks.”
All of the stars—including Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan, Jack McBrayer, and Jane Krakowski (whose parents were in the audience)—were on hand to perform “Secrets and Lies,” a pre-strike episode set to air Dec. 6. While Fey asked the audience to keep plot details in-house (“Our show is kind of like Heroes,” she explained), what we can tell you is that “Secrets” involves the romance between Jack Donaghy (Baldwin) and Democratic congresswoman C.C. (the absent Edie Falco; her role was performed by SNL writer Paula Pell), GE’s “bros before ho’s policy,” and a popular Japanese street prank called the “shark attack.”
Confining 30 Rock‘s often frenetic, flashback-heavy comedy to a stage the size of walk-in closet is tricky, but the gang managed to make it work, thanks in part to director Don Scardino, who set the scene by reading stage directions from the script. When not reading their dialogue, the cast sat in chairs around the edge of the stage, holding their scripts and stifling giggles. If the pacing was a bit off, it’s only because Fey and company had to pause between each line, as the audience—which filled every available space including the aisles and the floor in front of the stage—howled with glee. Even the commercials, in the form of improvised bits by McBrayer and fellow castmate John Lutz, killed. (The duo’s basketball-themed spot for tampons had Baldwin laughing so hard he turned crimson.)
“It was really fun,” a relieved Fey told EW after the show. But the star hopes the upcoming negotiations between writers and producers will render 30 Rock Live! a one-night-only event. “It’s such a solvable issue and the two sides need to get back to the table and solve it. Not only would I prefer to be working, but I would really like our crew to be working.” Preferably, she added, in a theater that’s not packed to safety-hazard proportions: “I did the maternal thing to make a mental note of where my fire escape route was.”
I am all for the current strikes going on. [Insert your bleeding-heart liberal joke here] However, I am really hoping things end soon. Not for all the striking writers or the unemployed non-writing staff or (god forbid) the uber-riche producers [insert another liberal joke here]. But for me. Me! I don’t want to see any more reality TV on the air! And I have Broadway tickets for next Friday for a play I realllly want to see. So, people [read: evil producers and studio heads], can’t we all just get along? What about the children [read: me]?
Here is some funny and enlightening commentary on the writer’s strike by Daily Show writers:
i-am-your-mom 