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Grey's TR Knight outed because of co-star's "F" word

Last year TR Knight (George in "Grey's Anatomy") came out as a gay actor.

This week on an Ellen appearance he admitted this was as a result of his co-star Isaiah Washington (Dr. Preston Burke) referring him a "Faggot" on set. The word came out during Washington's brawl with Patrick Dempsey.

You'd think this story had died down but no, at a post-Globes party Katherine Heigl (Izzy) reckons Washington was overheard making another homophobic comment about Knight. And she's fighting back in defence of her bestest pal,
"T.R. is my best friend. I will throw down for that kid. I will beat you up. I will use every ounce of energy I have to take you down if you hurt his feelings." Go Izzy!

Presumably this places producers and writers of the Golden Globe hit in a tenuous position. The show has a huge female following, many of whom wouldn't view Washington's attack kindly.

Expect his character to be written out, hopefully with some sort of downfall, like being hit by a truck, rather than a gracious exit.

And George, behind the wheel!
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Thank God You're Sold

Hot on the heels of NBC piloting Kath & Kim comes the announcement that the network has commissioned 6 eps of Thank God You're Here. The show by the Working Dog gang is already on air in The Netherlands, Germany, Russia, Sweden, Britain, Portugal, Belgium, Norway, Israel, and Denmark. It's a more significant move by NBC than the K&K; announcement as that show is still in pilot development.

The American TGYH will feature Dave Foley ("Newsradio") as the judge and the first ep will feature Jennifer Coolidge ("American Pie"), Bryan Cranston ("Malcolm in the Middle"), Joel McHale ("The Soup") and Wayne Knight ("Seinfeld").

2007 is certainly kicking off rather well in some sectors.
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Axed: Passions

Passions, that spooky melodromatic soap (aren't they all?) has been axed in the US after 8 seasons. In Australia its on in the dead of night but as repeats only. Oddly its first-run episodes ended after the price was deemed too much...something to do with music royalties if my memory serves me correctly. It was always a camp time in Harmony, with Juliet Mills as the 300 year old witch and Timmy, her doll-turned human. However the show is popular with a female audience (must be all those hot guys?) and may shift to new platforms including the internet. Read more...

Thu Jan 18

[Nine/11:30am] The Drew Carey Show. Series Return. Eye Of The Leopard. 2004 episodes!

[Ten/6:30pm] Neighbours
Janae accuses Pepper of staging a hate campaign against her own mother.


[Ten/7:30pm] Letterman.
With Terri and Bindi Irwin. In primetime! Go Ten!

[ABC/8:30pm] In the Shadow of the Palms: Iraqis the only documentary filmed in Iraq prior to, during and after the fall of Saddam's regime, and has been described as a humane and profoundly authentic portrayal of the struggles of that country's people. It provides an intimate insight into their lives under Saddam, as they prepare for the rapidly approaching war.As the war raged, and despite numerous arrests by the Iraqi Government, the production continued to film, documenting life in Baghdad not yet seen in the media. With a new government in place, the film takes audiences back into Iraq, and documents the changes in the lives of these individuals and Iraqi society since Saddam's fall. In the Shadow of the Palm: Iraq presents the everyday realities for Iraqis living through this controversial war - the war that is shaping the political future of the region and the world.

[ABC/12:20am] Movie: The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
(PG, 1939, B&W;, Rpt) Based on Victor Hugo's classic novel about the piteous bell ringer and how he achieves dignity by rescuing a girl who was once kind to him. CAST: Charles Laughton, Maureen O'Hara

[ABC/2:15 Fri/] Movie: Morning Glory. (CC, G, 1933, Rpt) Innocence is lost when a naive country girl goes to New York with aspirations of becoming a Broadway star. CAST: Katharine Hepburn, Douglas Fairbanks Jr

[SBS/8:30pm] Storyline Australia: Making 10 Canoes
The film Ten Canoes tells the story of the people of the Arafura swamp, in their language, and is set a long time before the coming of the Balanda, as white people were known. Dayindi (played by Jamie Gulpilil, son of David Gulpilil) covets one of the wives of his older brother. To teach him the proper way, he is told a story from the mythical past, a story of wrong love, kidnapping, sorcery, bungling mayhem and revenge gone wrong. Making Ten Canoes is an engaging “behind-the scenes” documentary on Ten Canoes, the film that has recently won several AFI Awards and the Special Grand Jury prize at the 2006 Cannes International Film Festival. Celebrated director, Rolf de Heer speaks about the extraordinary challenges he faced during the making of his eleventh film. “For all of us, the challenges are unexpected, the task beyond anything imagined. For me, it is the most difficult film I have made, in the most foreign land I’ve been to...and it is Australia.” – Rolf de Heer. (Commissioned by SBS Independent, in English) PG (Rpt) CC WS

[SBS/10:00pm] The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Global Edition


[SBS//10:30pm] Movie: 7 Dwarves – (7 ZWERGE) – This is a unique and funny take on the traditional fairytale written by the Brothers Grimm. The seven dwarves, all of whom are unusually tall, have retired to a fairytale wood to live a female and hassle free life. However, their lives are disturbed one day when Snow White (Cosma Shiva Hagen), on the run from the wicked queen (Nina Hagen), seeks refuge. The dwarves cannot help but become smitten with Snow White and when the evil queen kidnaps her in a tupperware coffin, the not-so-small men resolve to free her. Directed by Sven Unterwaldt, this film won Best Feature Film at the German Comedy Awards and also stars Otto Waalkes, Heinz Hoenig and Boris Aljinovic. (From Germany, in German, English subtitles) (Comedy) (2004) PG WS Sounds hilarious, could be dodgy!

[31/10:30pm] Studio Q. Bent Bingo pt1 rpt.
[World Movies/10:55pm] Movie: Madame Sata (Brazil 2002) A story inspired by the life of one of the most remarkable figures in Brazilian popular culture, João Francisco dos Santos (1900-1976). In turn, bandit, transvestite, street fighter, brothel cook, convict and father to seven adopted children, dos Santos--better known as Madame Satã--was also a notorious gay performer who pushed social boundaries in a volatile time. The story begins in 1932, in Rio de Janeiro's bohemian Lapa district, when João Francisco is about to achieve his dream: becoming a stage star. In the sordid yet lively world of Lapa--populated by pimps, prostitutes and other denizens of Rio's underworld--João battles the streets and presides over a surrogate family that includes the charming prostitute Laurita, and her baby daughter whom everyone dotes on; the flamboyant hustler Taboo; João's teenage lover, Renatinho; and Amador, the owner of the Blue Danube club which is their second home. It is at the Blue Danube that street tough João begins to sing, and the mythic drag artiste Madam Satã is born.

[Ovation/8:30pm] Naked World. Spencer Tunick.
[Ovation/9:50pm] The Vagina Monologues
. Eve Ensler
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Here come the timeslots

We are just weeks away from the official ratings season (Feb 11) and the networks are finally leaking info on timeslots for their new shows.

As in 2005 / 06, Seven will launch some new big guns in the 2 weeks between the end of tennis and the start of ratings.

Here are the shows imminent.

Mon 29: 7:30pm. The Rich List (7),
Ocean's Deadliest (Irwin's last doco, 9), 8:30pm 1 vs 100 (9), 8:45pm Desp Hwives season 2 finale rpt (7), 9:30pm Justice (9)

Tue 30: 8:30pm 24 double ep (7)

Wed 31: 8:30pm Heroes (7), Medium (10), 9:30pm Prison Break (7)

Thu 1: 7:30pm Will & Grace finale (7), 8:30pm 24 double ep (7), Law & Order SVU (10).


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Eddie to be boned?

Cmon Nine....why is it taking so long to:

1) Announce Eddie as host of 1 vs 100
2) Clarify if he is staying or going as CEO?

We all know he was in Melbourne yesterday and the recording of the episode is today.

I can't help but feel this will be a troubled start to the year for Nine. The message that a CEO hasn't fired isn't a great message to the audience when you want to kick the year off with a bang. Especially when Seven has a war-chest of great shows.

Doubtless the spin will be that Eddie is back where the audience wants him. There's some truth in this, he is a good performer and will be a boon for a zippy game show. But methinks its where the PBL executives want him more....

Update: Well I was right and wrong. Eddie's officially hosting the new show, and says he's staying put as CEO. At least it gives Nine a cleaner start to 07.
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Vale: Darlene Conley, Yvonne de Carlo

In the last week we've lost two legendary ladies.

Darlene Conley played the matriarch Sally Spectra on The Bole and the Beautiful. Reminding me of a camp "Bea Smith" she was the show's big, brassy, loud lady. Think big hair and then some. Darlene always seemed to emote for the cameras long after the dialogue stopped, adding another four or five facial expressions just for the editors I reckon. She died of stomach cancer aged 72.

Yvonne de Carlo, aka The Munster's Lily, also passed away this week. De Carlo managed to add a dash of class and elegance to this classic horror sitcom. This followed a long history in Hollywood films, including The Ten Commandments. She was lmost the same age as Al Lewis who played 'Grandpa' her father in the show. She died aged 84 of natural causes.

We'll look for them in the Oscars and Emmys "In Memoriam" sequences.
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