On TV Envy: Fall 2008 Television Programming Schedule

Bonnie Hunt Talk Show in the Works?

Posted by Wendy Michaels
Categories: Daytime, Talk Shows, NBC, Syndication

Bonnie HuntThis is great news for Bonnie Hunt fans (which I count myself among)… she’s currently working on developing a talk show. Anyone who’s ever seen Hunt as a guest on talk shows knows she gives great interviews. Then again, I’m not sure how this will all turn out. Yes, Hunt has appeared in many films and been great (okay, I’ll forgive her for Cheaper by the Dozen 2), but she’s also tried time and again to get a variety of television series off the ground only to be canceled—remember Life with Bonnie or The Bonnie Hunt Show? Nope, didn’t think so. So, how will a talk show work for the actress? Will she flourish a la Ellen DeGeneres or wither away like Megan Mullaly? I think she’s got the chops to do it (after all, she’s filled in for David Letterman without incident), but I’m not sure she has the huge appeal of an Ellen. Not even sure she can compete with the powerhouse that is Rachael Ray—although I’d much rather see Hunt interviewing the stars than Ray with her super grin and cheesy questions. Bonnie Hunt’s show is expected to hit the air waves in 2008 on NBC. I know I’ll check it out and I hope others will give it a chance as well.

Read More | Yahoo! News

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Rosie O’Donnell Creates Controversy on The View

Posted by Wendy Michaels
Categories: Daytime, Talk Shows, News

Rosie O'Donnell Is Rosie O’Donnell more than Barbara Walters can handle? First there was the big stink O’Donnell made over Kelly Ripa’s conflict with Clay Aiken when he co-hosted Live With Regis and Kelly. Now come O’Donnell’s remarks that have offended the Asian-American community. In response to the Danny DeVito drunken appearance, O’Donnell said, “The fact is that it’s news all over the world. That you know, you can imagine in China it’s like: ‘Ching chong. Danny DeVito, ching chong, chong, chong, chong. Drunk. The View. Ching chong.’ “ Ugh. Can you imagine why people are offended? Of course, she is quick to smooth the waters, posting on her web site, “It was not my intent to mock.” She also said that it was “comedy” and that she does “many accents and probably will continue to.”

New York City councilman John C. Liu sent a letter to View executive producer Barbara Walters and told FOXNews.com, “The ‘ching-chong’ bit is not a trivial matter. It really hits a raw nerve for many people in the community – many like myself, who grew up with these kinds of taunts. We all know that it never ends at the taunts.”

The group UNITY: Journalists of Color, issued the following statement: “By allowing O’Donnell’s cheap jab at Chinese Americans to go unchecked, the network is essentially condoning racial and ethnic slurs. It’s a practice that should not be tolerated in today’s diverse society. That’s our view.”

Read More | People Magazine

The View: Barbara’s Talking Dog, Rosie’s Production Number

Posted by Wendy Michaels
Categories: Daytime, ABC

The ViewOK, I happened to tune in briefly to The View and heard some discussion that Barbara Walters’ dog tells her “I love you.” Apparently, I missed the complete discussion on a show that aired earlier in the week. Walters said of her loving dog’s trick, “You all know I’m a sensible person. I do not exaggerate. I try not to lie. I was standing at the elevator… I said to Cha Cha, ‘I love you, Cha Cha,’ and Cha Cha said to me, ‘I love you.’” Now, I have seen that in funniest videos or stupid pet tricks or the like, and a Hollywood dog trainer supports the possibility that dogs can learn to “talk” and mimic human speech. That didn’t strike me as all that weird, but then…

A Keebler Elf shows up on the stage and Rosie brings out guys in white tuxes holding big cookie cut-outs for a full-out production number. I don’t even understand it. And Rosie, the tux guys and the puffy Keebler Elf all blocked out the other View ladies to sing some obnoxious song about cookies. What is up with that? That was commonplace on Rosie’s daytime gabfest, but this is a whole new venue and it has me wondering what the other co-hosts think about it. It was all very strange. And does Elisabeth Hasselbeck bother anyone else? I thought she was cute on Survivor, but her interviewing skills leave little to be desired. I’m just not sure about the future of this show.

Read More | Access Hollywood

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