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Bravo's 'Being Bobby Brown' and Whitney Houston...
Photo credit: AP
Sort of surprising that no one (best I can tell) has yet made much mention of Whitney Houston's sole TV credit "Being Bobby Brown." Bravo's 2005 tragic-comic reality series that was supposed to clear up Brown's image (and career) following assault-and-battery charges.
The series was fascinating, as train wrecks can be, introducing the world to Whitney's favorite phrase -- "hell to the no" -- and offered a behind-the-scenes look at a troubled marriage as the cameras rolled. There was some question as to whether Houston -- who had been fiercely protective of her image through the '90s -- would ever consent to this intrusion, but she eventually did. The show was a success for Bravo, which wanted a second season; Houston did not, and so it ended after one.
What the series portrayed was a couple aimlessly drifting around Atlanta, attempting to get their lives back in order, with their children as witnesses. But it also revealed a Houston that no viewer (or fan) had ever seen or would ever see again on TV. She seemed brooding, ill at ease throughout - her voice hoarse, or jagged, her eyes behind shades. Here's a representative clip . . . She first appears just over two minutes in. The quality of the clip is inferior, but the show has been lost to time. This is the best I could find.
'Saturday Night Live:' Cage on Cage
Photo credit: AP
Maybe all film stars promoting a big release should style an "SNL" segment this way, providing they are all Nicolas Cage and have pretty good twin (certainly in voice) in Andy Samberg. This one is inspired by the release of "Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance."
Oprah looks back at Whitney Houston
Photo credit: Getty Images
OWN this Thursday at 9 has one of the more notable tributes to Whitney Houston -- a rewind, with perspective added, of Oprah Winfrey's 2009 interview.
The interview -- a sprawling two-parter -- opened the 2009 season of "Oprah" accompanied by numerous headlines. It was a skillful interview, as O addressed the drug and alcohol issues repeatedly with O's own special (and patented) non-accusatory tone, but a tone nevertheless that pretty much also said, "what are you thinking girl?"
This interview followed Diane Sawyer's also famous 2002 sit-down, and Bravo's painful/intimate look at her marriage during, "Being Bobby Brown," in 2005. But she seemed in pretty good form here, even though her voice has a sand-papery rasp.
Here's the top of the interview. Worth another look:
Madonna raps M.I.A. flip
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Madonna had plenty to say about plenty of things this morning on Ryan Seacrest's show, but the one that will stand out -- a rap on that idiotic finger malfunction by M.I.A. during the Super Bowl halftime show:
"I didn't even know about it -- didn't know until I left. I had no idea ...so when I left, I found out in the elevator on the way down to the car ... I wasn't happy about...
Is Craig Ferguson the next David Letterman?
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There are multiple reports this morning that Craig Ferguson is poised to sign a new deal that will keep him as host of "Late Late Show" through 2014 and move him out of that closet to a much larger space at CBS Television City.
In other words, it's all good for Ferguson, who seemed in limbo as recently as three weeks ago after a New York Times piece said David Letterman was...
Don Cornelius memorial Wednesday
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"Soul Train" creator Don Cornelius, who died Feb. 1 of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, was memorialized Wednesday at Chicago's Museum of Broadcast Communications, in what is probably the first of several such tributes. (Chicago, because that's his hometown, and where "Soul Train" originated so many years ago.)
The WLS/7 story...
More: Don Cornelius dead in suicide
Ch. 5 anchor Greg Kelly returns to the air
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And he's back. WNYW/5 and "Good Day New York" anchor Greg Kelly returned to the air a few minutes ago with a smile and morning anchor nonchalance that pretty much belied everything he's gone through the past two weeks -- an accusation of rape followed by a Manhattan DA investigation that did not lead to charges.
"So you're back," his co-anchor Rosanna Scotto, said, turning to him with a big smile of her own, after both introduced a couple of top-of-the-hour stories.
"Folks," he said, "thank you. This has been a tough couple of weeks, obviously for a lot of people. I'm very very grateful for all the support I got here, at Fox 5, to family, friends, and the viewers, just great people watching this show and who weighed in through social media, all positive. It's great to be back and I'm especially grateful to this lady sitting next to me. You ready to get back to work?"
"I'm so ready," said Scotto.
And that was that: A bizarre, dramatic episode involving the son of the city's top cop thus comes to an end -- almost as if nothing had ever happened. WNYW/5 acknowledged yesterday that Kelly's statement would be brief -- indeed it was -- and that he would not address the accusations or the accuser -- and indeed he did not.
It is truly back to business for the 43-year-old ex-Marine and Fox anchor since 2008. He took a leave of absence from the show after allegations surfaced late last month that a woman he met on a street in lower Manhattan last October told police that after drinks they had both gone to her office where she said he assaulted her, and that she had been too drunk to consent to sex. Kelly has denied the allegations. Prosecutors said Tuesday that they hadn't found cause to charge Kelly with a crime.
'House' to end in May
Photo credit: FOX
"House" - along with "The X Files" and "24" one of the signature series in Fox history - will end in May.
The news, just announced, was pretty much expected, but (well) news like this is still significant indeed. Lead actor Hugh Laurie has long hinted the end was near, and with ratings off (way off) from the glory years, it was just a matter of time....
Kimmel: Giants stars tomorrow
Basking in Super Bowl XLVI glory some more, Mario Manningham and Ahmad Bradshaw wil be on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" tomorrow night,. (Don't fret if you miss; will be sure to post Frdiay.)
Pauly D's MTV show gets a date
Photo credit: MTV
Pauly D has another date with destiny -- this time in late March. MTV just announced that his spinoff show, "The Pauly D Project," will land on the schedule on March 29.
In addition..."Punk'd" -- the remake -- starts that night at 10.
These are big deals for MTV -- certain numbers-generators, even though those numbers may largely be generated by the...
