Kitty Purry

Yes - that IS the name of Katy Perry's cat.(Note: NOT kitty purri on the left)  When I learned this, I laughed uncontrollably for about 2 minutes.  Then I used my brain and realized a few things.  First, she might be really self-centered.  Second, shes a little crazy. And third, its still fricken hilarious.  I just really wanted to share this with the EBuzz world and get some feedback.  If anyone out there wants to share your thoughts, please comment!!!

Zac Efron cuts "Footloose"

Everybody cuts, everybody cuts. Everybody cuts, everybody cuts. Everybody cuts Footloose!

Apparently "Everybody" includes tween heart throb Zac Efron. EW is reporting that the star has pulled out of the project in an attempt not to get pigeon-holed into the musical genre. Ok, does anyone else think that sounds like a load of B.S.? Zac you've got a good thing going for you. Don't pull a Hilary Duff and bite it in the but. Duff tried to untie herself from her Disney image. After disasterous movie after disasterous movie it looks like "Lizzie McGuire" might have been better off doing a sequel.
It would be one thing if Efron signed on to do ANOTHER High School Musical. But this was going to be a remake of a class (if you can call a Kevin Bacon film a classic). This wasn't a Camp Rock, or some other stupid Disney franchise development deal.
Zac assumes that he has the range as an actor NOT to get pigeon holed. I'm not so sure. Good looks can only take you so far. I suppose I'll have to see "17 Again" to discover whether or not the kid has the talent to make it in other genres. I sort of hope that someone else snatches up the now vacant role and makes a huge name for himself...

Matt Lauer hit by deer=HILARIOUS

So Today show hunk (yes I said hunk, and I've seen him in person so it's not just the TV lights that get me) Matt Lauer will be undergoing surgery for a separated shoulder after a reported bike-deer accident. I hope you are laughing as hard as I am right now at reading that.
Lauer was supposedly riding his bike when a deer ran out in front of him causing him to slam on his breaks, flip off the bike, and separate his shoulder. Ryan Seacrest reports that Matt will undergo surgery sometime today as a result.
I come from a town where the deer practically outnumber the people, so hearing this put a smile on my face. I feel bad that Lauer got hurt, but the fact that he suffered his injury as a result of dodging a deer makes for an AWESOME story. How many people do you know have had a bike-deer accident? That's what I thought.

Ashlee Simpson Casting follow up

So I mentioned how Ashlee Simpson-Wentz is heading back to the teen television set thanks to a new role in the CW spin-off of Melrose Place...well her guest spot on the hit CBS show "CSI:NY" this past week made me even more nervous about her new stint.
Ashlee's character was involved in a drug heist and at one point she was taken hostage. If you had a gun to your head don't you think you'd be a little nervous? Ashlee looked like she was bored.
Ashlee has changed quite a bit since her last TV gig, though ("7th Heaven"). Not only is she no longer a blonde...her voice has also changed. She no longer slices through the air with her nasaly high pitched squeal. I'm thinking her nose job had something to do with that (I believe Ashley Tisdale had a similar procedure she claimed fixed a "deviated septum"). Whatever the reason, thank God. It may be the only thing that makes her tolerable in her new role.

Gossip Girl Spin-off Gets interesting

So earlier on this blog I bitched about the potential CW Gossip Girl spin-off that is slated to center on a young Lily Vanderwooden's life. I retract much of that bitching. Word on the street (read: Internet reports) claim that American Dreams and John Tucker Must Die star Brittany Snow has been cast in the lead. This in money. I'm a big Snow fan so the fact that she's on-board means good things.
Gossip Girl Insider is reporting that series creators Josh Swartz and Stephanie Savage are also exploring tieing the new storyline in with storylines from Josh's previously successful teen drama the O.C. While I'm not sure I really care to see this...it may bring in some of the fans from that series that were left high and dry after Mischa Barton's departure and the show's demise.
The episode of GG that will serve as the launching pad for the pilot has already been shot which means it should be on the TV schedule in the near future (May 11 to be exact)!
In other spin-off casting news...Krysten Ritter (you know her from Veronica Mars and Gilmore Girls) will play Lily's sister on the series.

LeAnn Rimes the cheater?

Rumor has it LeAnn Rimes can't fight the "Northern Lights," because apparently she got a little to into her latest film role opposite Eddie Cibrian.  Although she told Regis and Kelly that all is hunkey-dorey, Us weekly is reporting that Rimes cheated on her husband with her co-star during filming.(I mean who can blame her if it IS true, Eddie Cirbrian is HOT)  Contradictorily, she wrote on her personal webpage that she's going through a tough time right now, but for some reason her husband has Twittered that he stands by his wife.  Well this is all just pretty complicated.  I love LeAnn Rimes, I think she has a great voice, but I think that her latest acting venture has led to nothing but trouble.  Perhaps this is just a little PR stunt to try and get some press for her new movie, since well, we all know a Lifetime movie aint gonna win her any awards.  She should have just stopped after her cameo in Coyote Ugly. If in fact she is a cheater, I will lose some respect for her, but I'll probably still listen to her music.  I always thought she got married too young, but whatever, nobody asked me.  I do hope that everything works out for her and husband, and if you wanna check out the chemistry between the pair, check out their Lifetime movie which aires this weekend!

The Entertainment Buzz S4E15

The latest episode of "The Entertainment Buzz" is online...and you can watch it here!!!

Melrose Place Casting News

I've got bad news. The CW's new edition of "Melrose Place" just got an a new cast mate. It's been announced that Ashlee Simpson (yes THAT Ashlee Simpson) is going to be joining the primetime drama.
Why is this a bad thing? Oh let me count the ways...
First of all, did you see Ashlee in "7th Heaven"? (I don't blame you if you didn't, the show sucked after Jessica Biel left and Ashlee didn't join until it was into it's ten zillionth season). Ashlee Simpson is one of the worst actresses I've ever seen. The worst part is that you know the CW is going to pull a Disney channel and try to exploit Simpson's "singing talents" (I use quotes because I don't think she can sing either...SNL...). Let me guess...Ashlee plays a character with a "hidden" talent that is exposed in an episode consisting of a big concert of some sort where she suddenly is thrust into the lime light and then wows the crowd with a new single that will immediately appear on iTunes following the show. Pardon my cynicism, I just feel like I've seen that before.
You'd think the CW would have learned form it's predecessor's mistake. Look at the trailer I found for the introduction of Ashlee's character on the WB's "7th Heaven" below. Tell me that didn't blow up in their face...

S4E14

Check out this week's show!

Arrested Development Movie a Go!

***THIS POST WAS CONTRIBUTED BY DANA VREEDE***

Never-nudes, mother-boys, "STEVE HOLT!" and even " Her" can rejoice: Michael Cera, aka George Michael Bluth, the last holdout from the original cast, has officially signed on for the big screen adaptation of the almost-hit television show, Arrested Development.

Taste my tears, Michael! Taste the happy!

I have been a fan of the show since it first debuted on Fox in 2003, and was crushed when the show was canceled after barely 3 seasons. I own all the DVD's and probably have the entire series memorized. I have a poster from the show hanging in my dorm, and the theme song is my current ring tone. Needless to say, I'm obsessed. The show introduced us to such stars as Will Arnett and Michael Cera and Alia Shawkat, and also starred the likes of Jason Bateman, Portia De Rossi and David Cross, not to mention the never-ending stream of A list guest stars *cough* Charlize Theoren, Ben Stiller and Zach Braff *cough*.

Though the show was critically acclaimed and won countless awards, including Emmys and Golden Globes, its downfall came in its audience?or lack thereof. Since being cancelled in 2005, however, the show has gained a sort of ?cult? following of dedicated fans, eager for more of our favorite dysfunctional family.

With Ron Howard, the show?s former narrator, set to direct and Mitchell Hurwitz, the show's creator, working on the script, it?s safe to say that the movie is in good hands. Rumor has it that shooting could begin as early as the end of this year, imdb.com currently has it down for release in 2010 (though this, of course, is subject to change). So, fans of the series, tell me this: What are you most looking forward to in the coming movie?

If you've never seen/heard of the show and have no idea what I've been ranting about, there's no time like the present! Head on over hulu.com where you can watch the entire 53-episode series online for free.

Big Love: The Best Show You're Not Watching on Television

Five million people on average tune in to watch HBO's hit series "Big Love". I bet you're not one of them. That's a shame. You should be.
I am a recent "Big Love" convert. A few weeks ago, at a friend's request, I started watching the series, and ever since I've been a full-on addict. It took me two weeks to catch up on all of the first two seasons, and the six episodes that made up the second. Had there been more hours in a day, I'd have been caught up even sooner.
"Big Love" centers on a polygamist family living in Utah. The concept may sound foreign (then again, most TV concepts are if you really think about them), but the messages often hit painfully close to home. The key to the series is its cast. Bill Paxton, Chloe Sevigny, Ginnifer Goodwin, Jeanne Tripplethorn, and Amanda Seyfried lead the way in an ensemble that makes the Women of Wisteria Lane look tame.
The show is smart, funny, witty, and incredibly well-written. Each 50 plus minute episode will leave you hungering for more, and each additional episode will continue to deliver.
It's a shame that the show is being buried on HBO (then again much of the content in season one would never make it onto cable). The good news is that episodes are longer and commercial free, the bad is that having HBO is like having an Escalade-rare and envied.
I don't know many of my college friends who can claim their cable package (if they even have cable) includes HBO. I certainly can't afford it. The good news is that with the power of the internet (and iTunes) I've still been able to enjoy each episode. As a result I highly encourage you to do the same.
There is a reason it's called Big Love...because five million plus people out there are in big love with it.

Big Bang Indeed a Big Bang

CBS will be ponying up the big bucks in order to secure multiple seasons of their hit Monday night comedy lineup. Both "The Big Bang Theory" (Kaley Cuoco) and "Two and a Half Men" (Charlie Sheen) will be getting multi-season extentions.
While I have never gotten into "Two and a Half Men", I am a huge fan of "The Big Bang Theory" and thus am rejoicing at this news. If you haven't seen it, "The Big Bang Theory" is a comedy that unfortunately was lost in the shuffle of the writer's strike last year, but has come on in full force this season. The storyline revolves around a group of highly intelligent, yet social inept guys who live across the hall from a gorgeous blonde (Cuoco). The show is a mix of whitty banter and incredibly intelligent humor.
"The Big Bang Theory" proves that television can be smart AND successful, which is refreshing in the new age of often dumbed down media.

Some Things Should Just Come to an End...

I know that the Disney Channel is known for milking all of its successes for everything they're worth...but their latest move in the "High School Musical" franchise is pushing it.
Much like TV shows that have survived for too many seasons (I'm looking at you "One Tree Hill") and are now without the original cast that accounted for much of its success, the HSM franchise is moving beyond the roots that made it popular in the first place.
Disney has announced that production for the fourth installment of the franchise will start later this year, and the movie will air on the Disney Channel in 2010. Here are some of the many things wrong with that scenario:
*Going over a year without a movie spells trouble...your market is young and quickly growing, many of the fans may no longer be around...especially when the original film's stars are pulling them towards their new more adult projects.
*The screenwriter of the series may be returning, but without the original cast you might as well have changed the name and attempted to build a new franchise because nothing but the title will work the same way.
*I'm thrilled to see Disney pouring money into musicals...I'm a fan of the arts and love that all of a sudden musicals are cool again. Be careful though. If you over-do something it'll kill it. Don't make HSM into a joke and ruin everything the franchise has already done up to this point.
* Don't make this into a "Bring it On". Just because that franchise has continued to find success doesn't mean it's good. If you have to put the film back on the Disney Channel it means that the audience will be less, the budget will be smaller, and the overall quality will likely be poor. Don't screw over your fans by taking a step backwards in production quality.

T.M.I: Rosario Dawson

There are some things better left unsaid. Take Rosario Dawson's recent comments to the New York Times.

 

"My mom licked me-that was her punishment...If I didn't listen...she'd lick the side of my face, or under my armpit...She'd say, "You came out of my vagina and I own every part of you'."

Really Rosario? Did you need to share that? I can't tell who was on the receiving end of that punishment, Rosario, or her mother who had to lick her!

Really Miley, is This the Best You Can Do?

I first heard Miley Cyrus' new single, "The Climb" on XM20on20... I'll admit that I have ended up liking the vast majority of her music (probably due to the incredible exposure it has received both on radio and in the bars I frequent), and "The Climb" was no different.
It is a catchy tune with a great message. I used to have a tennis coach in high school who always told us, "It's not the destination, it's the journey." "The Climb" reiterates that message, and thus hits close to home for me.
Having seen the trailer for the "Hannah Montana Movie" I know that the song is featured in the film and on its soundtrack. This normally doesn't bode well for a single's music video as producers always attempt to throw in bits of the film for promotional purposes. Still, upon having seen the video for "The Climb" I was flabbergasted. This is quite possibly the worst music video I have seen in years (and I watch CMT).
First of all, Cyrus looks as though she just climbed out of bed throughout the entire thing. I'm not sure if this was done to finally make her look her age (16), or because the hair and makeup budget was non-existent for this shoot. Second, the green screen images are ridiculous. The heavenly aura cast around Miley's head looks retarded. Third, they really didn't feature all that much of the film. They stole a couple of looks from the movie's trailer, but they didn't use it to build on the storyline.
Disney needed to take lessons from "A Walk To Remember". Mandy Moore's single from that film had one of the best movie/music videos ever. It told a story, promoted the film, and didn't make audiences want to vomit. Instead, Miley's latest single is losing credibility with every view the video gets. It's a shame that such a great song got such poor treatment.