New TV Season In 2nd Week
Did anyone watch anything?
Any opinions?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
No New Shows debutting tonight.
Season Premiere of 'Charmed' on WB,
and
a 'teaser' for 'Survivor: Countdown To Africa', on CBS, which debuts next Thursday.
Fresh episodes of 'CSI', and 'The Agency' on CBS;
and
'Friends', 'Inside Schwartz', 'Will & Grace', 'Scrubs'
and 'ER' on NBC;
and
2 episodes of 'Whose Line Is It Anyway' and a 'Who Wants To Be A
Millionaire on ABC;
and
Lots of 'Guiness World Records' on Faux.
Still looking for opinions on any (or all)!
(Hint, Hint!)
E-Mail Marty
And, Thanks! to all who have responded.
Reader Response
'Enterprise'
Kencarman1
My wife and I watched "Enterprise" and will watch the second episode tonight. The
first one, we agreed, dragged. It did, however, set up the show as a possible
slow starter, headed towards excellence. We shall see. We hope Scott improves.
While we enjoyed him in "Quantum," where blandness could be just confusion
caused by attempting to adapt to yet another "leap," we have never felt he is an
actor capable of much passion otherwise.
Star Trek demands passion. Shatner, Frakes and, to a lesser extent Stewart,
express themselves orally, facially and with other physical mannerisms in more
of a Trek manner. When convincing a creature of energy to give up Zephrame
Cochrane or confront Q you can't look like an accountant rattling off figures
during a ritual weekly audit.
Scott is more like David (Duchovny) of X-files. If either had to give a
passionate monologue to get themselves out of a plastic grocery bag you'd never
even notice all their pain as they suffocate.
~~ Ken
Reader Response
'Enterprise'
Samantha L.
I bailed on episode 2 of 'Enterprise' at the half hour -- will someone
please throw that Vulcan out the nearest airlock? The linguist and the
Brit-whose-name-I-still-haven't-caught show some promise, and Bakula is
doing a competent enough job, but while every series takes time to find
its sea legs (or space legs as the case may be), I get the feeling that
'Enterprise' has only a few more episodes left before the natives of
Fanland start getting restless; while arguably 'Voyager' didn't really
get going until its third season or so, about when Seven of Nine joined
the crew (and Kes left... Hint. Hint.), one fears that the franchise may
have used up its ninth life pulling Janeway's bacon out of the blender.
But I like the dog. Sounds stupid maybe, but at this moment in our
history when our fourfooted allies are proving their own sort of heroes
in the ruins of the WTC, I think it's kind of interesting to see the
ultimate techno space-man guy up there with one of his fellow Earth
animals right alongside him. I'd like to see if the little guy
eventually develops into a plot point himself...
My Miss Cleo prediction: the Vulcan's gone within a few episodes of
whatever's currently before the camera, as the reactions percolate in.
She is DAMN irritating (they're emotionless, not completely affectless),
and the producers would do well to remember that 'Voyager' needed some
cast retooling to get off the ground. Otherwise, I don't see this
installment running more than a season or two. The writing is, well,
it's Trek, which is to say it's very dependent on the acting ability of
the cast; some unevenness is to be expected at first, but I get the
impression that it would take more smacking around the head and neck
than is quite legal to get an appropriate performance out of the actress
playing the Vulcan.
~~ Samantha L.
Reader Response
'The West Wing'
Ben
We watched 'Enterprise' again tonight, and still think it has the suckiest theme
song - ever.
The Vulcan babe shows too much emotion, and appears to have collagen
injected in more than one body area (noted by the male half of the equation...LOL)
That's when we got into a debate as to whether it was 'Star Trek: The College Years'
or 'Star Trek: The Collagen Years'.
And I still can't seem to get into 'The West Wing'...watched tonight, and it still
isn't my cup of Pepsi.
Entertainment News
Alex's Entertainment Report
Alex
The spotlights fell on Robert De Niro and a very pregnant Uma Thurman on Monday night in Manhattan.
The occasion, which also brought out Famke Jansse, Edie Falco, Marcia Gay Harden, Glenn Close, Martin
Scorsese, Diane Sawyer, Steve Buscemi and others is the Independent Feature Project's 11th annual
Gotham Awards, honoring independent movies. De Niro, 58, received the lifetime achievement award,
while an acting award went to Thurman, 31.
`````
Former "Top Gun" star Kelly McGillis has added fuel to Hollywood rumors about her sexuality with her
controversial new film. In the shocking flick, the beautiful 44-year-old actress plays a sex-mad English
professor who embarks on a steamy relationship with a lesbian detective, played by the 22-year-old
Australian actress Jill Fitzpatrick. Titled "The Monkey's Mask", the film contains a number of explicit sex
scenes between the two stars, which a crew member claims "leave little to the imagination." Kelly has been
dogged with Hollywood rumors concerning her sexuality throughout her career, despite the fact that she's
been married to California millionaire Fred Tillian for 13 years and has two children. But although the sexy
star is well known in the gay district of Florida's Key West, she denies the accusations that she is secretly a
lesbian and says she was very apprehensive about filming the steamy sex scenes.
`````
Chris Rock has joined the line-up of comedians taking part in Jerry Seinfeld's
comedy fundraiser for the victims of the terrorist attacks on New York. The show has already attracted
stars such as Bill Cosby, and is due to take place at Carnegie Hall on October 8th. It will be organizer and
resident New Yorker Jerry Seinfeld's first headline show in three years. Speaking about the aims of the
benefit, Seinfeld says, "We're not laughing at what happened. We're just laughing, which is how people
survive."
`````
Alex's "Buffy" review:
I admit, I have never watched a single episode of "Buffy - The Vampire Slayer". But with all the
ruckus about Buffy dying at the end of last season, and the show moving to a new network,
yesterday I decided to tune in.
Well, I was very quickly hooked on the story, and watched the entire 2 hour season premiere. I must
say, the show isn't for everyone (with demons, withces, and warlocks), but it is an exciting and
entertaining program to watch. Unlike "The West Wing" and "Law and Order" (2 best shows on
television by the way), you don't have major dialogue to listen to or to follow, real life problems to
deal with, stories taken out of the headlines, played out right in front of you. With "Buffy" you
escape to an imaginery world (might be the same place Mr. Bush Jr. is in all the time). Things don't
have to make sense, they are there just for the purpose of entertaining. So, if you haven't seen Buffy
before, I recommend you catch an episode on Tuesdays, at 8pm, on UPN.
And so you are caught up, in the season premiere, her friends resurrected her from the grave, so she
is once again alive. And if withces, and warlocks, and demons don't attract you, check out Sarah
Michelle Gellar kicking some major ass!
~~ Alex
Alex's Site
TV Ratings
MNF Is Tanking
While NFL ratings for the first two weeks of this season are a mixed bag - CBS
is up, Fox is down - ABC's "Monday Night Football" has really felt the effects
of the terrorist attacks.
Ratings for "Monday Night Football" are down 12 percent from last year - and the
drop is even more drastic on a week-to-week basis.
The Giants-Denver game on Sept. 10, the day before the attacks, averaged
13.7 million households - a number that dropped to 11.7 million households when
football resumed two weeks later.
And initial figures from this past Monday's Jets-'49ers matchup indicate an
additional 11 percent ratings drop from the previous week.
NFL ratings on ABC, CBS and Fox combined are down about 4 percent from last year.
Fox is down about 8 percent in households, but has more viewers because it has
aired several double-header telecasts.
Monday Night Football
Background On Letterman's Return
Dave!
David Letterman's somber return to television on Sept. 17—the night that Dan
Rather broke down and the host came close a few times himself—has been praised
as one of the great public healing moments in the aftermath of the World Trade
Center and Pentagon attacks. Normally a smart-assed master of the irreverent and
glib, Mr. Letterman located a pitch-perfect tone that night and convinced his
audience—not to mention fellow television performers—that it was O.K. to
reflect, laugh and try to move toward recovery.
Not surprisingly, Mr. Letterman struggled mightily to prepare that Late Show,
much of which was cobbled together at the last minute and wound up almost
entirely ad-libbed. People close to Mr. Letterman and the Late Show describe the
scene around the office that day as delicate and sad, with staffers unsure of
how to proceed in the wake of the attacks—a feeling that persisted for the next
couple of weeks. But they also say it was Mr. Letterman himself who took charge
of the effort to get back on the air, assembling a small, loyal band of longtime
staffers to plan what would be the most difficult shows of his life.
The Late Show was in reruns the week of Sept. 10. But soon after the attacks in
New York and Washington, Mr. Letterman was in contact with executive producers
Rob Burnett and Barbara Gaines—first to check on the staff, but also to make
sure that potentially uncomfortable or distasteful material be taken out of any
of the planned repeat episodes. Not long afterward, Ms. Gaines and fellow
executive producer Maria Pope reviewed the repeats in the Late Show offices.
However, it soon became clear that the repeats wouldn't run, as CBS News
broadcast for more than 90 consecutive hours and the network preempted all of
its scheduled entertainment programming. The next decision would be whether or
not to go back on the air on Sept. 17. By the weekend, some of the network's
entertainment shows were running, and it looked possible that Mr. Letterman
could come back that Monday night—if he wanted.
At first, Mr. Letterman was unsure. But then the Mayor's back-to-work directive
made him think it might be important to return, to show that the city continued
to press forward. "Dave had first thought he couldn't possibly do the show,"
Mr. Burnett told The New York Times. "But by the end of Sunday, we all felt it
was not only possible but maybe even a responsibility that we go back on the air."
Dave Letterman
This article is pretty long, but wonderfully written. Do yourself a favor &
read the whole thing.
Old TV
Bonanza
If you are of a certain age, the theme from the TV show "Bonanza" is, no doubt,
embedded in your brain. But did you know the song has words?
On Sunday, Pax-TV will air the uncut first episode of the famous Western series
that had its debut on Sept. 12, 1959, with the happy Cartwright family singing
the words to the theme. This — after 42 years — is a first.
Bonanza
Update
Sharon Stone
Actress Sharon Stone will undergo further testing, her publicist said on
Wednesday, after the 43-year-old star of ``Basic Instinct'' was diagnosed with a
more serious brain hemorrhage than originally thought.
Stone was diagnosed with subarachnoid hemorrhage, after initial tests showed
minor bleeding on the brain apparently caused by a tiny aneurysm, a statement by
spokeswoman Cindi Berger said.
The condition, which involves bleeding into the space between the brain and the
arachnoid membrane, the middle of three membranes covering the brain, causes 5
to 10 percent of all strokes.
Doctors said the condition can stem from a brain aneurysm, but they still have
not pinpointed a cause and Stone will remain hospitalized through the week for
further testing, the statement said.
Stone was resting comfortably on Wednesday and was expected to undergo another
angiogram Friday. ``That should be the final determination, at which point every
part of my anatomy will have been photographed in detail,'' Stone said in the
statement. ''At last, the mysteries will be resolved.''
The episode comes nearly four months after Stone's husband. San Francisco
Chronicle Executive Editor Phil Bronstein, was attacked at the Los Angeles Zoo
by a 7-foot Komodo dragon, and nearly had his big toe bitten off, during a
V.I.P. zoo tour arranged by his wife.
Sharon Stone
New! Updated!
BartCop Astrology
Check it out at BC Astrology.
"Guitar Greats" is still on hiatus, but, this week, it's a look at 'The Birth of
Aviation', and a relevant USA horoscope courtesy of Marc Penfield.
Very interesting reading!
Programming Note
Jon Bon Jovi & Ally McBeal
Jersey rocker Jon Bon Jovi has postponsed shooting his nine-episode arc on
Fox's "Ally McBeal" in order to play some benefit concerts for the victims of
the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
"I want to lend my name and support to as many of these [benefits] as I can, so
I told them, 'Either delay it a month, or I have to withdraw,' " Bon Jovi told MTV.
"David E. Kelley [the creator of 'Ally McBeal'] was really wonderful, because he
completely understood and supported my decision wholeheartedly."
Bon Jovi's nine-episode arc is scheduled to begin airing in early January.
Details on his "Ally McBeal" character haven't been released.
Jon Bon Jovi
Radio News
Howard
Howard Stern has picked his replacement for Jackie (The Jokeman) Martling. We
hear that Artie Lange, who has been on "Mad TV" and "Norm," has triumphed over
Gilbert Gottfried and others who auditioned. ...
Howard
Jackie's Replacement
Artie Lange
Artie Lange
New!
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
Don't worry about the HTML, just send text, or rich text, or a Word document, photos, video, whatever you have, and Michele will take care of the rest. Don't hesitate to write with any questions you may have and bring on the recipes!
To check out 'Train Station Chicken', and more (like 'Cranberry Autumn Tea'),
In The Kitchen With BartCop
Sentenced To 'Civic Gardening'
Shannon Doherty
A Southern California judge has ruled former Charmed star Shannon Doherty must
serve five days in a work-release program as part of her punishment for a
drunken-driving arrest last December. And yes, the ever-popular roadside trash
collection is a definite possibility.
The sentence--the minimum possible--was handed down Tuesday by Ventura County
Judge Charles Campbell, who could have had Doherty locked up for two days in the
county jail but instead went easy on the 30-year-old actress.
Doherty was not present in court for the sentencing. She and the county
probation department will hash out the precise terms of her work-release chores,
but "she will perform light- to medium-duty work," says Deputy District
Attorney Ian Morse, "that could include trash pickup, weeding or some type of
gardening program."
The Tuesday ruling did not affect the rest of Doherty's original sentence, which
included three years' probation, $1,500 in fines and court-ordered
alcohol-awareness classes.
Doherty was arrested on December 28 after allegedly weaving across a Southern
California highway in the wee hours of the morning.
Now that Charmed's off her schedule, Doherty has more free time to complete her
road work. In May, she announced she was leaving her hit WB series after three
seasons amid reports of dissention on the set between her and costar Alyssa
Milano. (Rose McGowan was later tapped to replace Doherty.)
That marked the second time Doherty ejected from an Aaron Spelling show. She was
booted from Beverly Hills, 90210 in 1994.
Shannon Sentenced
Emmy Update
No Joan Rivers
Joan and Melissa Rivers will sit out this year's pre-Emmy Awards show on
E! Entertainment Television as the channel opts for a more serious,
news-oriented approach to covering the events leading up to Sunday's awards ceremony.
E! is cutting back its customary 10 hours of Emmy coverage to seven hours and
modifying the format of its pre- and postshow coverage in recognition of the
somber mood of the country in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The most conspicuous change in this year's coverage comes in its signature
red-carpet preshow and fashion review. The Rivers duo typically take a sarcastic
approach to reviewing what Emmy celebrity attendees are wearing.
Instead, this year the preshow will be covered as a news event by E! anchors
Steve Kmetko and Jules Asner.
"In respect to the more sensitive tone of this year's Emmy telecast, we have
decided to alter our programming plans," E! president and CEO Mindy Herman said.
Joan Rivers said in a statement, "Because of the recent tragic events and the
solemn nature of this year's telecast, Melissa and I felt that it would be
inappropriate to take the traditional places on the red carpet this year."
Herman said E! will bring back Joan and Melissa Rivers for a red-carpet preshow
at the Golden Globes Awards in January.
Following the Emmys, E! will premiere the one-hour "2001 Live Emmy Award Post
Show" at 11 p.m. ET.
Hosted by Melissa Rivers and Todd Newton, the show will feature live interviews
with this year's winners.
No Joan
BartCop TV!
Visit the site at BC TV
The 'Vidiot' is now updating daily!
For an amazing variety of information on an astounding array of tv programs check out
BC TV!
Radio News
DC PD Doesn't 'Get' Harry
After a mere nine weeks, WAMU-FM has canceled Harry Shearer's "Le Show." The
hour of weekly current-events satire has been airing nationwide for the past
17 years, but only recently in Washington. Since the terrorist attacks, WAMU has
instead broadcast news programming in Shearer's Friday 10 p.m. slot.
"It's simply that our audience is very, very disappointed with the show and has
told us so overwhelmingly," program director Mark McDonald told us yesterday.
Carried by approximately 70 stations elsewhere, "Le Show" features Shearer's
caustic musings and uncanny gift for mimicry as displayed in sendups of Dan
Rather and Jesse Jackson and phone calls in which George Bush the elder
purportedly gives advice to his presidential son. The cancellation "had
absolutely nothing to do with bad taste or anything of that kind," said
McDonald, who arrived at WAMU from New York's WNYC on Sept. 10.
Shearer -- a "Saturday Night Live" alum best known for his comic turns in such
movies as "This Is Spinal Tap" and TV shows like "The Simpsons" -- was surprised
by McDonald's decision. At his home station in Los Angeles, "Le Show" airs
Sunday mornings at 10, but WAMU delayed broadcast until the following Friday.
"They've done nothing to deal with the fact that they're running a topical show
on a six-day delay," Shearer said. "It's my mistake for ever allowing that to happen."
McDonald is a native of Liverpool, England, and a former BBC staffer with a
master's degree in journalism from University College in Cardiff, Wales. "This
is just another reason for us to tighten our borders," Shearer quipped.
McDonald informed Shearer of his decision in an e-mail.
"I have serious doubts that there is enough original humor in 'Le Show' to
justify continuing to air it," McDonald wrote. "I will continue to monitor its
progress and I am happy to talk with you or your team, now or in the future,
about its development."
Shearer e-mailed back: "Please, I'd love to have you share with me any thoughts
you have on 'Le Show's future 'development.' I'd especially appreciate you
pointing me in the direction of more original humor."
Maybe the "age of irony" isn't dead, after all.
Harry Shearer
Update
Bonnie Raitt Pleads Guilty
Bonnie Raitt has pleaded guilty to trespassing charges from an anti-logging
protest at a wood products company.
The singer and 16 other activists from the Rainforest Action Network were
arrested on disorderly conduct charges after refusing to leave the parking lot
of Boise Cascade Office Products in Itasca on July 25.
The San Francisco-based environmental group has accused Boise Cascade of logging
ecologically vital old-growth timber.
On Tuesday, the activists negotiated a deal to plead guilty to less serious
trespassing charges. DuPage County Judge George Sotos then fined each activist
$150 and sentenced each to 90 days of court supervision.
Bonnie Raitt
Impending Nuptials?
Carmen Electra and Dave Navarro
They're both famous, but Dave Navarro and Carmen Electra met on a blind
date - and were instantly attracted to each other. This past summer, they got engaged.
``The moment she walked into the restaurant I thought, `I'm a dead man, it's
over. I'm done,''' guitarist Navarro told Jane magazine for its November
issue. ``Carmen was ... much more beautiful than I expected, in a very classical
way. I was very surprised and moved by her charming vulnerability.
``She had on this white fur coat, her hair down, and her eyes pierced my heart
from 20 yards away. The first thing I did was buy her 1,200 pairs of sunglasses
to cover up those eyes. I couldn't risk anyone else having the same reaction.''
The former ``Baywatch'' star, who was married to Dennis Rodman, said she
realized her attraction to Navarro while watching a Red Hot Chili Peppers
special on television.
``My hairdresser knew him really well and wanted to introduce us. A year later,
when I was starting to heal from my divorce, we went on a blind date,'' she
said. ``He's smart and funny and because he's gone through hard times, he
doesn't live in fear.''
Carmen & Dave
The most memorable Red Hot Chili Peppers video (at least to me) had the lads
finding a new use for their socks. ; )
A Proper 'Gentleman's Gentleman'
Puffy
Sean "Puffy" Combs has taken another step in his metamorphosis into a
high-society gentleman. Combs has hired himself a proper butler nicknamed
Fonsworth, reports London's Daily Mail.
"You know how Sinatra had a butler?" says Combs. "He drank with him, he hung out
with him, but he was still his butler." The rapper added that Fonsworth "knows
what I need. He's like my assistant, almost my sidekick, but not in a demeaning way."
Fonsworth
More Music News
Napster Clones
Music and motion picture companies filed suit Wednesday against a trio of online
file-swapping sites that enable users to download copyrighted music, movies and
other files for free.
A wide range of music labels and film studios filed the suit with the hopes that
a California federal court will shut down Grokster Ltd., MusicCity.com Inc.,
MusicCity Networks Inc. and Consumer Empowerment BV, which operate services that
enable users to trade a wide variety of digital media files.
The services, which go by the names Morpheus, Grokster and Kazaa, have grown
rapidly since pioneering music-swap site Napster went dark in early July.
Backers of industry ventures MusicNet and Pressplay plan to introduce their
services within the next two months.
But unlike Napster, which eventually agreed to purge its system of copyrighted
files in March after a long court battle, Morpheus, Grokster and Kazaa could
prove harder to shut down.
Consumer Empowerment, which operates the Kazaa portal, is based in the
Netherlands, while Grokster Ltd. is incorporated in Nevis, a 36-square-mile
island in the Caribbean. Music City, operator of Morpheus, is based in Tennessee.
Users of all three services tap into one network developed by Consumer
Empowerment, called Kazaa.
Napster users were no longer able to trade music when the company shut down its
central server in July. But FastTrackusers would still be able to use their
proprietary software to trade music, movies and other files even if all three
companies went out of business, Griffin said.
``The network is self-sustaining,'' he said.
Napster Clones
'Youthful Indiscretion'
LA Style
Screen Actors Guild (SAG) presidential candidate Melissa Gilbert has admitted to
what she characterizes as a youthful indiscretion in violating the guild's ban
on performing non-union work -- a dozen years ago.
The infraction came when the former ``Little House on the Prairie'' star helped
finance and star in ``Ice House'' with then-husband Bo Brinkman. After the 1989
feature flopped at the box office, Gilbert was brought up before a SAG trial
board, admitted her guilt and agreed to attend orientations of the guild's Young
Performers committee.
Gilbert, 37, who joined SAG at the age of two and has become chair of the young
performers panel, said the incident convinced her of the need for the union to
do a better job of making certain that young guild members know about the ban,
known as Rule One.
``Nobody bothered to stop me,'' she said. ``We all do silly things when we're young.''
The incident has not yet been mentioned as a campaign issue, but Gilbert said
she was not surprised that it had emerged, partly because she has mentioned it
repeatedly in committee meetings at the guild.
Gilbert and Valerie Harper (''Rhoda'') are among the candidates seeking to
replace William Daniels who is not seeking a second two-year term as president.
Voting takes place this fall.
Melissa Gilbert Boxleitner
First Person Diary
Ray Berry
Ray has temporarily (I hope), suspended 'Bush-Toons'. In its place, he has put
his daily diary of life in Manhattan since Tuesday.
Ray has great observational abilities, and a wonderful way with words.
To visit & read, www.bush-toons.com
Finally!
Rose Marie
Actress Rose Marie (C) poses with co-stars Dick Van Dyke (L), and Carl Reiner
during ceremonies to honor her with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in
Hollywood October 3, 2001. Although she began her long career at age 3 in motion
pictures, then moving to the stage and television, she is probably best known
for her co-starring role in the classic television comedy "The Dick Van Dyke
Show". Reiner conceived and also acted in the show.
Photos by Rose Prouser
Rose Marie
Still MISSING
Marc Chagall's "Study for 'Over Vitebsk'"
