New ‘Iron Chef’ Joins Cooking Ranks

Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Food & Home, Prime Time, Reality, Cable, Gossip

It all started with an article in the New York Post. First, they reported that Iron Chef and Food Network darling Mario Batali (of Molto Mario fame) was being kicked off the network, stripped of his Iron Chef rank and forced to watch as none of his shows were renewed for another season. Next, they reported that Batali would still be seen on the network from time to time, perhaps. Now, Batali has teamed with none other than Gwyneth Paltrow (how did that happen?) to host a new cooking show for American Public TV.

Batali’s departure left a hole in Food Network’s Iron Chef America, sparking an eight-episode search for the Next Iron Chef. Sunday night, under the watchful eye of the remaining Iron Chefs (Bobby Flay, Cat Cora and Masaharu Morimoto – my favorite) and the chairman, chefs John Besh and Michael Symon competed under the klieg lights of Kitchen Stadium. The mission? Make five course in 60 minutes. The secret ingredient? Swordfish.

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Read More | Broadcasting & Cable

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Hulk Hogan Scheduled to Host ‘American Gladiators’

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Reality, Sports, NBC

As I reported several weeks ago, NBC will be introducing an updated version of American Gladiators.  At the time, I said the classic series reminded me of Iron Chef+Battle of the Network Stars+WWE.  Well, apparently wrestling wasn’t such an original analogy; word has it a former wrestler will now be hosting it.

According to TV Week, Hulk Hogan has been tapped for the emcee duties.  The WWF WWE celebrity and Hogan Knows Best star is reportedly committed to the project and is currently finalizing the deal.  As for the Gladiators who will terrorize the naive competitors, those roles are still being cast.

Be looking for the reality competition sometime mid-season.

Read More | TV Week

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The Return of ‘American Gladiators’

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Action, Prime Time, Reality, Sports, Cable, NBC, Renewals

The sick voyeur in me has always loved seeing Average Joes fight for their lives—which probably explains why Schwarzenegger’s The Running Man still remains a guilty pleasure for me to this day.  This fascination also fueled my enthusiasm for the horribly addictive show from the 90’s known as American Gladiators.

The series pitted male and female contestants against the Gladiators who reigned over their arena.  The poor souls would do their best to score points by navigating various obstacle courses.  They would also try and avoid being taken down along the way.  I would compare the show to Iron Chef+Battle of the Network Stars+WWE.

Gladiators, which ended its run in 1996, is now being resurrected by NBC as a mid-season addition.  Unfortunately, the show will be subject to an ‘updating’....which could mean just about anything.  (Having tried to watch Battle of the Network Reality Stars, I’m hesitant about anything that’s tweaked).

Here’s to hoping that some of my favorite challenges like The Assault and Breakthrough & Conquer will return.  If not, I may have to turn to the re-runs currently airing on ESPN Classic.

What were your favorite challenges?  How about your favorite Gladiators?  Let us know!

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Read More | Variety

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