By Matt Basilo ⋅ 2009-03-04 20:22:37 ⋅
A few people pointed out a huge thing I had missed (nobody’s perfect), which is that Flight 316 didn’t land on THE island, it landed on the smaller island that houses the Hydra station. Here are some comments regarding that: We didn’t see a plane because they were on the main “We crashed flight 815 [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-12-09 22:15:04 ⋅
I do not think I need to elaborate on how upset I was about missing the So You Think You Can Dance Canada finale on Sunday. Unfortunately, because I had to be at the Amazing Race finale in New York (that was also scheduled for Sunday), I could not change my travel plans and [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-11-29 10:03:16 ⋅
Breaking new ground in Canadian reality television again, I was given the opportunity to be the first to witness a So You Think You Can Dance Canada group performance on Wednesday afternoon. The performance was then taped for broadcast as part of Thursday’s results show. I got to the Harbourside Studios at 3 p.m. on [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-11-25 21:38:54 ⋅
Michelle: I’m back here already'! Murtz, are you around' Murtz: Haha. I am right here. It’s Jaime who has been missing for awhile. Have you seen her around' Okay enough with the Carmen Sandiego games! I want to talk about this week’s episode! What did you think about [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-10-30 02:54:15 ⋅
Michelle: Episode 6 and we’re ready to rokk! Murtz' Um… Murtz'! Hey, has any one seen Murtz' Brooke: Michelle! I think Murtz is gone!!! All that’s left is this note…. “To whom it may concern, Eliza and I are living it up in Houston. See you if/when I return. XOXO Murtz.” Michelle: Holy Turtle [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-10-29 18:38:35 ⋅
TORONTO – I have been to many shows in my life. Highlights include the Wonderland stop by TLC, Boyz II Men and M.C. Hammer on the same bill, a couple of Virgin Music Festivals, seeing almost every episode of Canadian Idol live and the American Idol tour stop earlier this year. With all of that [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-10-07 16:38:41 ⋅
I recently had the chance to interview Jolanda Jones from Survivor Palau. Jolanda was the first castaway voted off on her season, and has managed to be quite successful after she did the show. She entered the political sphere in Houston, saved a person’s life and is in the midst of throwing one [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-10-03 18:34:39 ⋅
Eliza: Murtz!! Hey! I’m so excited to be writing this week’s column with you. Damn, now that you have your own reality tv show, I’m not good enough for you, huh' You need ALLLLLLL the ladies surrounding you'! So, what’d you think of this episode' Murtz: Well, well, well. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-10-01 18:04:03 ⋅
Murtz: It’s very rare for me to start off the banter section of a column, but this year is different as there is a major announcement to make. I am happy to announce that for this year’s Ask _______ & Murtz column, we will have four of the hottest Survivors of all-time joining [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-09-30 07:35:07 ⋅
Over the years, I have been to many reality show finales. In terms of sheer attendance, I have been to the Survivor celebration the most times (going to the Marquesas, Thailand, Amazon shows and throwing the parties for Survivor Fiji and China). After that, it’s The Apprentice, where I have been to the [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-09-13 18:53:26 ⋅
Another season is over. It is still hard to believe that the sixth Canadian Idol has been named and that it will be another year before the new one is crowned. When I look back at the songs that I heard, the performances that I saw, and the season that has now culminated in [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-09-01 18:15:46 ⋅
Last week, I had the privilege of checking out Canadian Idol backstage. As part of my experience, I got a chance to talk to the final four contestants hours before they heard the results of who would be moving on and who would be eliminated. My next chat was with Lethbridge Alberta’s Theo Tams. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-09-01 16:56:03 ⋅
Last week, I had the privilege of checking out Canadian Idol backstage. As part of my experience, I got a chance to talk to the final four contestants hours before they heard the results of who would be moving on and who would be eliminated. My next chat was with Lloydminster Alberta’s Earl Stevenson. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-09-01 05:54:48 ⋅
Last week, I had the privilege of checking out Canadian Idol backstage. As part of my experience, I got a chance to talk to the final four contestants hours before they heard the results of who would be moving on and who would be eliminated. My next chat was with Collingwood Ontario’s Drew Wright. Murtz Jaffer: [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-08-31 06:29:58 ⋅
Last week, I had the privilege of checking out Canadian Idol backstage. As part of my experience, I got a chance to talk to the final four contestants hours before they heard the results of who would be moving on and who would be eliminated. My first chat was with Port Hood, Nova [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-08-30 20:09:41 ⋅
Have you ever wondered what happens behind-the-scenes of a Canadian Idol taping' After covering more Idol shows than anyone else in the world, I know that whenever I am sitting in the audience on Mondays and Tuesdays, I am always wondering about what kind of activities are happening backstage. Is it a flurry [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-07-31 05:43:30 ⋅
There is no question that Flashpoint is one of the hottest new shows of the summer season. The CTV-produced series was picked up by CBS and has steadily been climbing up the ratings chart. The show follows the lives of SRU cops, the unit that is responsible for high-risk situations that can include [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-07-31 05:23:16 ⋅
There is no question that Flashpoint is one of the hottest new shows of the summer season. The CTV-produced series was picked up by CBS and has steadily been climbing up the ratings chart. The show follows the lives of SRU cops, the unit that is responsible for high-risk situations that can include [...] Read Full Article >>

By Murtz Jaffer ⋅ 2008-07-29 16:24:33 ⋅
TORONTO – Anyone who watched the last season of American Idol will tell you that it definitely featured a different vibe than the year before. The contestants were older and there was a lot less schtick than the Sanjaya-year as the focus was definitely on artistry. That being said, I was excited to see how [...] Read Full Article >>

By Craig Russell ⋅ 2008-05-28 00:01:28 ⋅
American Idol’s final bow brings another network television season to a close… Monday (5/19/08) Overall: #1 ABC 8.2 #2 FOX 8.1 #3 CBS 7.8 #4 NBC 3.3 #5 CW 2.1 Adults 18-49: #1 FOX 4.5 #2 CBS [...] Read Full Article >>

By Lauren Casteel ⋅ 2009-07-02 15:17:43 ⋅
It’s top fourteen night, and after the elimination of Jonathon and Asuka, we have a new couple this evening. Let’s see how Vitolio and Karla bring on the heat. Mia Michaels is the guest judge and we begin the evening with the question of the year, “Has her opinion changed about any of the dancers'” Well…yes [...] Read Full Article >>

By Sobaika Mirza ⋅ 2009-07-02 15:14:01 ⋅
My summers would never be the same without So You Think You Can Dance and the sublime Cat Deeley. It’s Top 14 night and we have two hours ahead of us. Let’s get it started! JUDGES: Nigel Lythgoe, Mary Murphy, Mia Michaels Cat pointedly asks Mia if her opinions on any dancers have changed in the past [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-30 02:23:33 ⋅
If you’re already preparing yourself for the departure of Lost in the spring of 2010, take heart. The series will go on a little longer than expected. OK, it’s only one hour longer, but we’ll take what we can get. An ABC rep confirmed Monday (June 29) that the final season of Lost will run 18 hours. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-30 02:22:40 ⋅
Noah Wyle is jumping back into the TV pool, signing on to star in a sci-fi pilot for TNT that Steven Spielberg is executive producing. The project will star Wyle as the leader of a group of soldiers and civilians who mount a resistance against an alien invasion force. Spielberg — who also executive produced ER, [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:38:40 ⋅
The fifth season of the Next Food Network Star started three weeks ago. Ten people who love to cook were all trying to be the next “star” on the Food Network and get their own show. The most well-known contestant of the competition is Guy Fieri (Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, Guy’s Big Bite, Guy Off [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:16:46 ⋅
NBC had already announced that The Jay Leno Show would premiere a week before the official start of the 2009-10 TV season. The network will take its time rolling out the rest of the fall schedule, though. Leno’s prime-time show will premiere Monday, Sept. 14 and run every weeknight at 10 ET. Two other nights of [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:14:56 ⋅
CBS will take the concept of “premiere week” very seriously this fall, launching nearly its entire lineup the week of Sept. 21. The only outliers on the Eye’s launch schedule are Survivor: Samoa, which will debut Thursday, Sept. 17, and the new medical drama Three Rivers, with star Alex O’Loughlin, which will premiere Sunday, Oct. 4. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:12:33 ⋅
Jack Bauer is coming to Comic-Con — and he’s bringing Starbuck with him. The stars of 24 — including Kiefer Sutherland and new cast member Katee Sackhoff, late of Battlestar Galactica — will be part of a panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday, July 24. They’ll be part of a pretty hefty presence from 20th [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:10:05 ⋅
The CSI: Miami team will welcome a new member this fall. Former Third Watch and Invasion star Eddie Cibrian will be a regular on the show for its eighth season. He’ll play an officer from Hollywood, Fla., who joins the CSI team in Miami. (Potential spoiler in the next paragraph.) What he won’t be, at least according to [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:07:11 ⋅
FOOD NETWORK OPENS CASTING FOR 2010 SEASON OF THE NEXT FOOD NETWORK STAR Conducting Open-Call Auditions in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, Phoenix, San Diego and Austin   NEW YORK – June 23, 2009 – Food Network has greenlit a sixth season of its highest-rated reality series, The Next Food Network Star, the network announced today. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:00:04 ⋅
FlashForward, having been teased during Lost, rightfully has its share of mysteries and a unique mythology growing. And of course, that means spoilers. Well, the showrunner-approved ones anyway. Journalists were threatened with having their press passes revoked, the silent treatment invoked and other menacing consequences if we were to reveal some of the pilot’s sixth-act surprises during [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-19 00:43:07 ⋅
ABC has put another piece of its fall schedule in place, booking the season premiere of Private Practice for Thursday, Oct. 1. The medical drama was one of a few shows ABC left hanging last week when it announced the bulk of its premiere dates for fall. Still waiting to hear about their debuts are Brothers [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-19 00:42:00 ⋅
The time-traveling Doctor Who’s next destination will be Comic-Con. David Tennant, who’s wrapped playing the tenth incarnation of the Time Lord, and Doctor Who writer/executive producer Russell T. Davies will descend upon the fans in San Diego for the 40th annual Comic-Con on Sunday, July 26. Joining them on the 10 a.m. panel will be executive producer [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-18 00:13:15 ⋅
The fifth season of the Next Food Network Star started two weeks ago. Ten people who love to cook were all trying to be the next “star” on the Food Network and get their own show. The most well-known contestant of the competition is Guy Fieri (Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, Guy’s Big Bite, Guy Off [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-16 23:58:17 ⋅
I’m a Celebrity Get, Me Out of Here/i> puts these “celebrities”: Stephen Baldwin, Janice Dickinson, former NBA great John Salley, Heidi and Spencer from The Hills, Lou Diamond Philips, former American Idol cast-off Sanjaya Malakar, the comedy duo Frangela, new addition Daniel Baldwin, among others in the Costa Rican jungle. They have to avoid being [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-13 21:12:11 ⋅
Fire up your Diet Coke-and-Mentos cannons: The MythBusters are returning to Comic-Con. Joss Whedon and Dollhouse will be there too. Discovery confirmed Friday that MythBusters Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage will make their second consecutive San Diego Comic-Con appearance. Savage and Hyneman will be the stars of a panel at 7:15 p.m. PT Saturday, July 25, [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-13 21:10:50 ⋅
So much for those talks about TBS bringing My Name Is Earl back to life. The cable channel and 20th Century Fox TV, which produced the show, had begun discussing ways to revive Earl earlier this week, following NBC’s decision last month not to bring it back for a fifth season. Thursday, though, the studio took [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-13 21:02:45 ⋅
So we already know that Rachel Melvin will be joining the cast of Heroes next season as Claire’s (Hayden Panettiere) college roommate. We also know that the show is describing their relationship as one where they will “share sleeping quarters (and maybe more).” Call us naive, but we took this to mean that Clarie’s roommate probably [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-09 21:57:32 ⋅
Did Izzie really kick the bucket on the Grey’s Anatomy season finale' You’ll be able to find out for sure on Thursday, Sept. 24. ABC on Tuesday (June 9) announced premiere dates for the bulk of its fall 2009 schedule, and it’s sticking to a fairly traditional rollout. The majority of the schedule will debut the [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-09 21:51:43 ⋅
The question of why former Lost star Dominic Monaghan appears in an ABC promo for next season may have an answer. Monaghan’s appearance in the promo caused a bit of a stir over the weekend, first with speculation that he’d be returning to Lost and then with word that he’s going to be on one of [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-30 02:22:40 ⋅
Noah Wyle is jumping back into the TV pool, signing on to star in a sci-fi pilot for TNT that Steven Spielberg is executive producing. The project will star Wyle as the leader of a group of soldiers and civilians who mount a resistance against an alien invasion force. Spielberg — who also executive produced ER, [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:16:46 ⋅
NBC had already announced that The Jay Leno Show would premiere a week before the official start of the 2009-10 TV season. The network will take its time rolling out the rest of the fall schedule, though. Leno’s prime-time show will premiere Monday, Sept. 14 and run every weeknight at 10 ET. Two other nights of [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:14:56 ⋅
CBS will take the concept of “premiere week” very seriously this fall, launching nearly its entire lineup the week of Sept. 21. The only outliers on the Eye’s launch schedule are Survivor: Samoa, which will debut Thursday, Sept. 17, and the new medical drama Three Rivers, with star Alex O’Loughlin, which will premiere Sunday, Oct. 4. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:12:33 ⋅
Jack Bauer is coming to Comic-Con — and he’s bringing Starbuck with him. The stars of 24 — including Kiefer Sutherland and new cast member Katee Sackhoff, late of Battlestar Galactica — will be part of a panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday, July 24. They’ll be part of a pretty hefty presence from 20th [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:10:05 ⋅
The CSI: Miami team will welcome a new member this fall. Former Third Watch and Invasion star Eddie Cibrian will be a regular on the show for its eighth season. He’ll play an officer from Hollywood, Fla., who joins the CSI team in Miami. (Potential spoiler in the next paragraph.) What he won’t be, at least according to [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:09:15 ⋅
AMC has given the go-ahead for a conspiracy thriller called Rubicon, bringing the number of original dramas on the cable channel to three. Rubicon, which has been in development for more than a year, comes from writer Jason Horwitch (Medical Investigation, FX’s Pentagon Papers movie) and features a cast that includes James Badge Dale, Miranda Richardson [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:08:31 ⋅
Actress and former Deal or No Deal model Meghan Markle is joining the cast of Fringe next season. Markle, who has guested on 90210 and a number of other shows, will have a recurring part on the FOX sci-fi series, according to The Hollywood Reporter. She’ll be playing a young FBI agent who’s described as “attractive, [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:07:11 ⋅
FOOD NETWORK OPENS CASTING FOR 2010 SEASON OF THE NEXT FOOD NETWORK STAR Conducting Open-Call Auditions in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, Phoenix, San Diego and Austin   NEW YORK – June 23, 2009 – Food Network has greenlit a sixth season of its highest-rated reality series, The Next Food Network Star, the network announced today. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:04:18 ⋅
Jessica Simpson is going back in front of reality TV cameras for a VH1 series that examines the global beauty industry. The show, called The Price of Beauty, purports to offer a serious (or at least semi-serious; this is the channel that brings you Daisy of Love and Tool Academy, after all) look at “fashions, dietary [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-26 00:00:04 ⋅
FlashForward, having been teased during Lost, rightfully has its share of mysteries and a unique mythology growing. And of course, that means spoilers. Well, the showrunner-approved ones anyway. Journalists were threatened with having their press passes revoked, the silent treatment invoked and other menacing consequences if we were to reveal some of the pilot’s sixth-act surprises during [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-25 23:58:46 ⋅
The CW has amended the titles of a couple of its shows for next season. That in and of itself is not a big deal — new shows sometimes go through name changes between getting picked up and going on the air. It’s how the titles were changed that is the reason for this post. As [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-25 23:57:56 ⋅
An Oscar winner is joining the NCIS: LA team. Linda Hunt has signed on as a regular for CBS’ new drama NCIS: LA, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The diminutive actress will play the overseer for the “backroom” support staff that provides the Office of Special Projects (which brings down the criminals that threaten national security) with [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-19 00:43:07 ⋅
ABC has put another piece of its fall schedule in place, booking the season premiere of Private Practice for Thursday, Oct. 1. The medical drama was one of a few shows ABC left hanging last week when it announced the bulk of its premiere dates for fall. Still waiting to hear about their debuts are Brothers [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-19 00:42:00 ⋅
The time-traveling Doctor Who’s next destination will be Comic-Con. David Tennant, who’s wrapped playing the tenth incarnation of the Time Lord, and Doctor Who writer/executive producer Russell T. Davies will descend upon the fans in San Diego for the 40th annual Comic-Con on Sunday, July 26. Joining them on the 10 a.m. panel will be executive producer [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-16 00:44:55 ⋅
FOX will start rolling out its fall schedule just a little ahead of the official start of the 2009-10 season, giving shows like Bones, Fringe, Glee and Dollhouse at least one episode before the crush of premieres in late September. The first-ever fall run of So You Think You Can Dance and Glee will kick off [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-16 00:43:31 ⋅
One of the surprise successes of the last TV season, CBS’ special I Get That a Lot, will get some more life on the network. The hidden-camera special, in which celebrities work regular jobs and attempt to convince people they only look like the famous people they are, will be back three more times in 2009-10. [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-13 21:12:11 ⋅
Fire up your Diet Coke-and-Mentos cannons: The MythBusters are returning to Comic-Con. Joss Whedon and Dollhouse will be there too. Discovery confirmed Friday that MythBusters Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage will make their second consecutive San Diego Comic-Con appearance. Savage and Hyneman will be the stars of a panel at 7:15 p.m. PT Saturday, July 25, [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-13 21:10:50 ⋅
So much for those talks about TBS bringing My Name Is Earl back to life. The cable channel and 20th Century Fox TV, which produced the show, had begun discussing ways to revive Earl earlier this week, following NBC’s decision last month not to bring it back for a fifth season. Thursday, though, the studio took [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-13 21:07:05 ⋅
FOX’s full-figured dating show More to Love has found a full-figured host in model and author Emme. The show, which premieres July 28, will follow a single guy “with a big waist and an even bigger heart” as he dates and pares down a field of plus-size women. Emme, who’s probably the most widely recognized plus-size [...] Read Full Article >>

By Josh Clinton ⋅ 2009-06-13 21:02:45 ⋅
So we already know that Rachel Melvin will be joining the cast of Heroes next season as Claire’s (Hayden Panettiere) college roommate. We also know that the show is describing their relationship as one where they will “share sleeping quarters (and maybe more).” Call us naive, but we took this to mean that Clarie’s roommate probably [...] Read Full Article >>