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MTV Video Music Awards coming to the Barclays Center
Photo credit: Amanda Voisard
In a pretty major first, the Barclays Center has snagged the MTV Video Music Awards -- MTV's signature awards show and along with the Movie Awards, the network's single biggest draw of any year.
Per MTV: Airing LIVE from Barclays Center on Sunday, Aug. 25, this year’s “Video Music Awards” will mark the 30th anniversary of the show and become the first major annual awards show to take place in the borough of Brooklyn.
The first VMAs held back in 1984 -- when, yes, there were videos on MTV -- were held at Radio City Music Hall, though the Nokia or Staples in L.A. have been master of ceremonies in recent years. Radio City last had 'em in '09.
Suffice it to say, this is a huge get for the Barclays and for Brooklyn -- a lot hipper these days than MTV, including the immediate area around Barclays, on Atlantic Avenue, with its huge shopping scene, BAM around the corner, and a high-rise (or two) going up.
Now, some quotes and kvelling from some bigshots:
"Brooklyn is home to icons like the Cyclone in Coney Island and the Brooklyn Bridge, and now it can lay claim to the MTV ‘Video Music Awards,’” said Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. “Bringing the VMAs to Brooklyn will mean hundreds of jobs as crews work on the production and provide a boost to our local economy as attendees stay in hotels, visit local eateries and experience all Brooklyn and our city have to offer.”
“MTV’s ‘Video Music Awards’ are the perfect culmination to an incredible inaugural year for Barclays Center,” said Brett Yormark, chief executive of Barclays Center. “The VMAs are a symbol of pop culture and have created iconic moments worldwide in music and entertainment. Brooklyn has become an international brand and is the perfect setting for these moments. We can’t wait to share our stage with the world.”
Why is NBC messing with Jay Leno again? Theory No. 3: Jon Stewart
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And welcome to my third and final theory in the ongoing TV Zone series, "Why is NBC messing with Jay Leno . . . again?!" Previous theories explored obvious terrain — that Fox is causing trouble again, that David Letterman may retire, that someone else is making a pitch for Jimmy Fallon.
This third and final theory considers this possibility: Jon Stewart.
Admittedly, this...
Read more »Why is NBC messing with Jay Leno? Theory 2: David Letterman
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Why is NBC messing with the highest-rated talk show host on TV, namely Jay Leno, host of "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno?" Ahh, good question, and if you're just tuning into this blog, I'm posting a series of theories that may explain what's going on here. My second theory: David Letterman.
Here's how this theory goes: David Letterman may — one must always use the word "may”...
Read more »Leno pokes NBC again; the long tradition continues
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Jay Leno popped NBC in his monologue again last night — nothing serious, just a mild dig at the network's woeful fourth place, or rather fifth place, status. Jay, as you know, may or may not have a gig there in a year, while NBC Entertainment chief Bob Greenblatt excoriated him in private — according to a New York Times report by Bill Carter over the weekend — because of a string of NBC-is-a-flaming-disaster...
Read more »'Letterman': Did Selena Gomez REALLY make Bieber cry? (Oh come on)
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There's been a vast amount of online chatter this morning Monday night's "Late Show with David Letterman" interview with Selena Gomez, in which she jokes about making former boytoy Justin Bieber "cry." It was a joke; the clip's been everywhere; and is now one of those silly Web things that has taken on a life of its own.
But here's the question: Did Gomez really come out with that quip as effortlessly as everyone assumes she did? My bet is no -- it was fed to her. Here's how it works: Dave tells her backstage that he's going to do a brief lead-in about making JB "cry" at which point -- after two beats -- she is to say something along the lines of "you're not alone."
This does happen in late night -- where something that seems unrehearsed was in fact very much rehearsed. I'm betting this is one of those instances. Take a look:
'Dancing with the Stars' opens soft; D.L. Hughley gone (already)
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Confirming what many fans already knew -- and "Dancing with the Stars" almost certainly did as well -- ABC's biggest hit opened soft with one of the weakest opening nights in terms of scores in a number of seasons. But who saw the rout of D.L. Hughley coming this soon? He's all but gone tonight after the judges slammed him and partner Cheryl Burke (Cheryl?!) with a total score of...
Read more »Why is 'Good Morning America' beating 'Today?'
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After the New York Post's latest salvo in its entertaining campaign to oust Matt Lauer as co-host of "Today" -- I think they've got him anchoring "Sesame Street" when his current contract ends -- I figured it's time to finally come to Matt's defense.
After all, he and NBC are sure doing a winning job of that. Someone had better step up before he does join Big Bird on the...
Read more »A&E's 'Bates Motel' review: Puzzling
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Carlton Cuse, in his first series since "Lost," arrives on a screen near you Monday with his new show, "Bates Motel."
Quick description -- a "contemporary prequel" to Hitchcock's '60 classic, "Psycho."
What do I think? On to the jump! But here's a question that I never get into in the review, and is not addressed in the show itself -- why...
Read more »'Smash' moves to Saturdays, and oblivion
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Starting April 6, "Smash" will move from Tuesdays to Saturdays where it will end its natural life. And so the cruel wheel of TV fate turns. NBC has sort of announced this - mostly to affiliates, who need to make plans. A formal announcement is coming. NBC says the show will air the rest of the season on Saturdays, specifying a total of 17 episodes.
This is a shame in all sorts of...
Read more »Discovery, Robert Redford look back at Watergate
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Interesting program note: The Discovery Channel and Robert Redford will revisit Watergate — pretty much 30 years old now — in an April 21 documentary called "All the President's Men Revisited." The title's a play, of course, off Redford's '76 screen classic, but this film will get into much more than a movie. Here's the description:
ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN REVISITED gains access to the top players, from those directly involved in Watergate to others from politics, journalism and the media. Mr. Redford, who famously portrayed The Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward in All the President’s Men, Mr. Woodward, Mr. [Carl] Bernstein, and actor Dustin Hoffman, who portrayed Mr. Bernstein on-screen, reflect on the events that impacted journalism, the American presidency and the global political culture. How has Watergate changed the presidency? What effect has the scandal had on our political leaders? How useful and productive were the collaborative efforts of the U.S. Congress?
