2010-09-01
BET, a network that has been struggling to fill its primetime schedule with quality programming for years, might finally be cruising in the right direction with a new docu-drama series called Changing Lanes.
The network teams up with NASCAR for this innovative new show narrated by raptor (rapper-actor) Ludacris, beginning tonight at 8 (EST). Although NASCAR drivers have traditionally been white males, Changing Lanes features contestants from all walks of life. They are all part of NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program, which provides opportunities for minorities and women in one of the most popular and profitable sports in America.
While there have been other reality programs showcasing the need for speed, Changing Lanes is the first show to focus exclusively on minority and female racers. Viewers will get an up-close look at what it takes to succeed on the track, as well as the risks and dangers involved.
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2010-08-27
Well, we now know who Vanessa Williams' man will be on Desperate Housewives when the show returns for its fifth season next month on ABC. It'll be Reggie Austin, who had a recurring
role on Life Unexpected on The CW.
He will play Doug, the handsome pro baseball player whose relationship with his wife could best be described in Facebook terms. It's complicated! Word on the street is that Austin, who hails from upstate New York and graduated from Yale, beat out another major contender — Henry Simmons, formerly of NYPD Blue.
Ironically, Williams' real-life ex-husband, former NBA star-turned-actor Rick Fox, will also be working for Alphabet network next season. Fox has earned a spot on Dancing With the Stars. It'll be interesting to see if he can still score...
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2010-08-26
Although he's n
ow a Boston Celtic, Shaquille O'Neal apparently has much love for the Big D.
Dallas, Texas is the setting for Saturday night's Shaquille O'Neal's All-Star Comedy Jam on Showtime. Hosted by Academy Award winner Mo'Nique, the show, which was taped during the NBA All-Star Weekend in February, airs at 11 p.m. EST and features some of the big guy's favorite funny men including: Paul Mooney, Corey Holcomb, George Willborn and Michael Blackson.
This crew will keep it raw and real, ripping into Tiger Woods, President Barack Obama and O'Neal. Hopefully, some of those jokes will still be funny and relevant as Woods is now divorced, Obama's poll numbers are even lower than they were last winter and O'Neal has struggled through his own personal and professional woes.
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It appears that life isn't getting much easier for Fantasia Barrino this week.
After publicly confessing that she had attempted to commit suicide last week on Good Morning America on Tuesday comes news that Barrino's old boss, Oprah Winfrey, is trying to book the woman whose marriage the former American Idol winner allegedly destroyed.
Radar Online is reporting that Winfrey, who produced the Broadway version of The Color Purple that Barrino sometimes starred in, is trying to get Paula Cook, the estranged wife of Barrino's current boyfriend Antwaun Cook, to appear on her show and spill. And she's not the only. Reportedly Mo'Nique wants to chat with Paula, too.
Additionally, Radar says that Paula has been approached about doing a reality show about jilted spouses, has been approached by some publishing companies to do a book and is taking a leave of absence from her teaching gig to mull over all these options.
OK, who is she again and why should we care?
This tragedy — and that's exactly what it is — is one more reminder of how everyday people with everyday issues become celebrities for no plausible reason. My advice to Paula: go back to your day job. Fifteen minutes is just that.
Filling Oprah's void
According to the New York Daily News, Barbara Walters and Bill Geddie, executive producers of The View, are planning a late afternoon spinoff of their Emmy-winning show that would feature unisex hosts and focus more on topics concerning men.
Right now it's all just talk, but it doesn't surprise me that Walters would be eyeing an opportunity to fill the void that Oprah Winfrey's 2011 departure from the daytime arena will leave. Among the names the News reports are in contention for host spots are Bryant Gumbel, who has filled in as co-host several times this year, and former BET news anchor Jacque Reid, who was up for one of the two spots on The View following the exits of Rosie O'Donnell and Star Jones. Alex Mapa, the comedian who was one of the co-stars of Half and Half, is also reportedly is being considered.