March 3rd, 2010

Gleekdom Giveaway Winners

Attention all Gleeks! The Gleekdom network of sites had such a great response to our giveaway, we decided to double the amount of tee shirts we are giving away! We are giving away 10 tee shirts, and chose 5 from comments and 5 from twitter.

Here is the list of winners:

From the website comments:

Celeste (Gleek Report comment #5)
Julie (WWEPW comment)
Justin (Gleeks United comment)
Steph (Gleek Report comment #41)
Shannon (Glee Dork comment)

From Twitter:

GOLDSTAR_
actingisfreedom
peskenazi
Spencer_barrett
kcmmp13

After we chose T-Shirt winners, we drew five more names to receive the set of Swingle Singers songs of Glee background music from iTunes.

iTunes winners:

ncisgleek4eva (Twitter)
Grgenius (Twitter)
Stephanie (GleeHab comment)
Kathleen (Glee Dork comment)
Daphne (The TV Chick comment)

How to claim your prize:

1. Email us at thegleekdom (at) gmail (dot) com ASAP! We can’t send you your prize if we don’t hear from you!

2. T-Shirt winners, please include your full name, mailing address, and shirt size. We also like smiley faces.

3. iTunes winners, you must live in the US or Canada to receive this prize. In the email, please include the email address to which you would like the songs sent.

Congratulations to all of the winners and thank you to everyone who participated! Look out for more Glee-related giveaways soon!

Please be sure to visit all of the Gleekdom sites regularly for up-to-date news/information/coverage on Glee! You won’t find a better group of Glee-related sites! Yay Glee!!

March 3rd, 2010

VIDEO PREVIEW: The Office Baby

Jim and Pam’s wedding was in my mind, one of the perfect Office episodes in its history. There are a few others I can pinpoint: Booze Cruise, Casino Night and The One Where Jim Proposed (I have deemed it that) that are in that same perfection category, and I think at the end of tomorrow night, the baby episode will rank among my all time favorites. I will admit, this season has had its ups and downs (wedding being a BIG up). I am a loyal viewer, and I still enjoy every episode (except for the clip show–this isn’t 1997!!), but it hasn’t been the most amazing season ever.

However, I think things are about to turn around. Tomorrow night is an hour long episode centered around Pam’s baby being born and I am thrilled to bring you some great video previews of the episode and the cast talking about the big day (no big spoilers).

John and Jenna talk about the Halpert baby:

Preview: “It’s Go Time”

Preview: “Pam’s Distractions”

Be sure to tune in tomorrow night to NBC at 9 pm for an hour long Office special!

March 2nd, 2010

REVIEW: Life Unexpected “Crisis Unaverted”

You had your tissues all ready last night, right? Or perhaps a shot glass? That was how intense last night’s episode of Life Unexpected was, titled “Crisis Unaverted.” Liz Tigelaar (creator) deemed this her favorite episode and I can see why. It centered around family, lies and the aftermath of Baze and Cate sleeping together. Baze seems threatened by Ryan taking an active role in Lux’s life and he decides to stand up for himself. After getting shut down by Cate, he calls the radio show and inadvertently gets entered in a “hands on a hybrid” contest where people compete to win a new hybrid car and whoever keeps their hands on it the longest, wins. Baze decides this will be a good chance to show up Ryan. Meanwhile, Lux thinks she sees Tasha’s mom outside a store. Tasha later comes to Lux and says she’s being sent away to a new foster home 3 hours away. Lux does some research and finds out that it was Tasha’s mom she saw and she lives near by, has kids and has turned her life around. When Lux takes Tasha to visit her, Tasha’s mom seems genuinely happy to see her. It seems like all is well, until Tasha storms out crying. She tells Lux that her mom won’t take her in because she reminds her of her past and she has new kids now and can’t risk the chance of relapsing. Lux offers to talk to her mom but Tasha doesn’t want that. Lux is left to figure out something for Tasha, so she doesn’t have to move away.

The Hands on a Hybrid event begins, with Ryan and Baze each trying to out do the other. When they are on a mandatory break period, Jamie listens to Cate and Ryan’s conversation and tells Baze that he is Ryan’s weakness, and to get up in his face. Baze tries this tactic, and Ryan confronts him about trying to make a pass at Cate. Baze tells him it was mutual and they were both drunk and nostalgic. It’s at this point that things get hot and heavy–Ryan punches Baze in the face and they are both out of the competition (not beacause of fighting but because their hands came  off the car). Ryan runs off and Cate goes to apologize. She thought Baze told him they slept together but instead she is the one who reveals this. Ryan stands up for himself and says he has been patient through everything and he’s not going to be anymore. He declares the relationship over. She begs him to stay, but he leaves anyway. While this crisis is going on, Lux asks Cate to take in Tasha. Cate had previously told Lux she can go to her for anything and she will help her. But this time, Cate tells Lux that it’s too much to ask of her, and she is sorry. Lux says she’s sorry too. She finds Cate later crying and devastated that Ryan left her.

Read more…

March 2nd, 2010

REVIEW: Make It Or Break It “The Only Thing We Have To Fear…”

Last night’s episode was the penultimate for this mid-season of Make It Or Break It, and my Mondays are going to be lacking in drama after next week. This week’s episode titled “The Only Thing We Have To Fear…” centered around the preparation for The Rock’s meet with China. Sasha puts the girls on lock down for a week, where they have to sleep in the gym in order to live like the Chinese do and bond as a team. Lauren explains how horrible the China meet went, and how she choked in the biggest way. She explains that she needs her teammates, and that they have all been there for each other since they were kids. Kaylie and Lauren seem to be on the road to repairing their friendship, as they promise never to let a guy interfere with their relationship again.

Meanwhile, in Emily Kmetko world, she is struggling to land her Yurchenko vault that has a blind landing. Sasha has told her that failure is not an option and she needs to land the vault in order to be competitive with the Chinese. Damon tells Emily he wants to be there for her in every way and they finally say I love you (in the Pizza Shack no less).

However, not all is good at The Rock. The National Team Committee wants to shut down the meet and continues to make threats against Sasha and his team, calling them rogue on several occasions. The Coordinator speaks to Emily, and threatens her scholarship. She also gets MJ involved. MJ tells Kaylie she could lose her endorsement money as well as her National Champion title because of this meet and encourages her to back out. After all they have gone through as a team, Kaylie is incredibly conflicted and goes to Lauren for help. (more on this later).

Read more…

March 2nd, 2010

ADVANCE REVIEW: Series Premiere of Parenthood & Video Preview

A new drama (yes, drama) is coming to NBC tonight. Parenthood is based on the movie of the same name, and has been done before as a short-lived TV series. This new incarnation stars the Lauren Graham, as well as a wonderful, veteran TV cast in Craig T. Nelson and Peter Krause, and the talents of Mae Whitman, Monica Potter, Erika Christensen and Dax Shepard. Maura Tierney was supposed to play Graham’s role but had to step out because of health problems. I never saw the original pilot, but I think Graham is amazing (Gilmore Girls is one of my favorite all time TV shows), and fills her shoes well.

Parenthood follows an extended family and the many issues that plague them. Sarah Braverman (Graham) returns to her home town with her kids (Mae Whitman and Miles Heizer) to move in with her mom and dad. Her kids are none to pleased about the move. She has to re-evaluate her life, be there for her kids, and face people from her past. Her siblings, Adam (Krause), Julia (Christensen) and Crosby (Shepard) are all dealing with parenthood in one way or another. Adam (the oldest) and his wife Kristina (Monica Potter) are dealing with their son’s diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome. Julia is a working mom whose daughter has bonded more with her father, and she struggles to balance her relationships and her career. And Crosby is a mess all on his own who discovers he has a son. Their dad is Zeek (Nelson) the patriarch who never wants to show what’s bothering him. He is super hard on Max (his grandson/Adam’s son) and everyone else in the family.

Parenthood isn’t a typical show in any way. It has been done before, however I think Lauren Graham is special (and so is the rest of the cast). She absolutely played Lorelai Gilmore to perfection (the fact that she got no Emmy love astounds me to this day), and I think she has embraced Sarah Braverman in a way we don’t see very often. I thought at first it would be hard for me to see her as anything else but Lorelai, but I can assure you that’s not true. When she was talking to her kids, I could feel her sincerity, and that is the sign of a brilliant actor. I also really love Mae Whitman, ever since her role on In Treatment. She plays the snarky daughter very well. Erika Christensen was also a pleasant surprise. Her background is mainly in movies, but she was great at her new role. The rest of the cast is very well rounded, and it’s nice to see Craig T. Nelson back on TV again.

That said, I was surprised that it was a drama (and so were many people I spoke with) because it seems to be marketed as a comedy. There are some hilarious moments in the premiere (Sarah sleeping with a guy on her parents’ couch and declaring that they are 38…among others) but it is most certainly a drama. A lot is thrown at you in the pilot. There are a lot of characters and story lines that go along with them. I understand why this is done, but I had to take a while to process it. When all is said and done, I really liked the pilot episode. I plan to season pass this show on my DVR and I am really hoping that NBC throws its support behind new dramas (and maybe even markets them as such). I am excited to see Lauren Graham back on TV–even if it’s not Gilmore Girls: The Next Generation. The rest of the cast is really solid, and I am interested to see where the show goes from here.

Parenthood premieres tonight at 10 pm on NBC (tune in!), but until then, check out these great video previews.

The producers and stars reveal how the new show reflects the laughter, tears, and quirks of real life:

Lauren Graham talks about Sarah:

Inside Parenthood (Video Sneak Peek):

March 1st, 2010

VIDEO PREVIEW: Life Unexpected “Crisis Unaverted”

It’s Monday and that means a brand new Life Unexpected. Tonight’s episode is titled “Crisis Unaverted,” and given how things were left in the last episode, I can’t wait to see what this week brings. Here are some video previews and clips from tonight’s episode!

Episode Preview:

Clip #1:

Clip #2:

Clip #3:

Be sure to tune in tonight at 9 pm to the CW for Life Unexpected “Crisis Unaverted.” I know I look forward to it every Monday night!

March 1st, 2010

INTERVIEW: Lauren Graham, Jason Katims and Ron Howard from Parenthood

Parenthood is a new drama (yes you read that right) coming to NBC tomorrow night at 10 pm. Based on the movie by the same name, and Executive Produced by Ron Howard and Jason Katims (Friday Night Lights), it is a new spin on an old favorite. The show has an incredibly talented cast of TV veterans, and one of my favorites, Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls) in a starring role. I will have an advance review and some video previews tomorrow, so be sure to look out for that. However, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to speak with Ron Howard, Jason Katims, and Lauren Graham. They talked about the new incarnation, Lorelai vs. Sarah, and even Friday Night Lights.

I wanted to ask both the guys I was really impressed with how much you got the pilot film to be kind of lighter and more fun in the second try. And how’s that gone on since then in the future episodes? Are you getting more comedy into the episodes as it goes? And there’s a lot of serious things you’re playing with too so how’s it going so far?

Jason Katims: Yeah, I mean, I think – this is Jason. I think that we have tried to, you know, really, you know, anytime you start a show you’re sort of trying to find that balance and figure out, you know, sort of discover the tone of the show and, you know, how that – what the show wants to be. And one of the things that I’m so excited about – about what I’ve seen as you were saying, you know, the second version of the pilot and then as we’ve gone into episodes is we’ve found more and more humor. But it’s really the humor of life, you know, it’s the humor that you find…in – when you’re, you know, dealing with parenthood and family and being both, you know, a, you know, dealing both with, you know, your, you know, your kids but also in the context of being a, you know, a son or a daughter as well. And, you know, what I like about, you know, that’s what I like about the humor that we’re finding it just feels very relatable and real; it doesn’t feel like – to me it doesn’t feel like it’s too broad or trying to – or going into a place that, you know, is in any way sort of not really relatable.

And just wanted to ask Ron in retrospect I think parenthood is often very funny. We don’t realize it sometimes at the time but we laugh about it afterwards. You’ve done a lot of parenthood in your life; overall is there a lot of room for humor in it?

Ron Howard: Well it’s unavoidable. You know, like Jason was just saying, I mean, it might not feel funny in the moment, you’re right, but, you know, gratefully more often than not, you know, there’s, you know, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel and, you know, and you can personally look back and find the humor in it. Others, you know, can always see the, you know, how ridiculous other people’s lives are. They might not tell them right to their face but, you know, they could see it. And it’s that – it is that sort of elevator ride that is, you know, I think makes stories on the subject of parenting and being a part of a family so relatable and so entertaining. And I’ve loved what Jason has been doing, you know, with the sort of the family that we started 20 years ago. Ever since our first conversation and, you know, from the first script onward, you know, the just has such a fantastic contemporary take on the whole thing that I’ve been, you know, nothing but proud of it.

Question for Ron, what is it about parenthood, the premise, the title, the franchise, that keeps you coming back?

Ron Howard: Well the interesting thing – and I’ve got to include Jason in this because, I mean, I’ll just say that, you know, we – Brian Grazer and I are intensely proud of, you know, the film Parenthood. You know, our friends Ganz and Mandel, did a brilliant job writing it. And it, you know, it remains a movie that people compliment us on. We tried a television series a couple years after it and it couldn’t capture the sort of the – I don’t know the scope of the family; it was a half-hour sort of sitcom approach. And it was frustrating in that way. And we thought that was sort of the end of Parenthood. We would even toy occasionally with trying to do a sequel. But we just – we felt like, you know, another two hours on the subject was not going to be particularly more informative. A series would have allowed the characters to develop but just another movie would probably not, you know, not be, you know, a good creative idea. And then Jason came to Brian and I and of course we know Jason from Friday Night Lights where he does a spectacular job and said, you know, I want to do a one-hour dramatic version of Parenthood. And, you know, and we were thrilled, Brian and I, very open to the idea because of Jason and his talent but – and our experience with him. But also we frankly said in that first meeting, you know, you’re a pretty creative guy why don’t you just make up your own family? And at the time I wanted to take this because at the time the said well, you know, it’s like a book or a play or anything that you can make a strong adaptation from, there’s something in the DNA of those characters and the family dynamics that I think I can build upon. And, you know, lo and behold he has, he’s given every character its own contemporary voice and of course the actors are now going even further with it. But I’m just, you know, incredibly sort of gratified that those characters – that situation, the DNA of that family can evolve. And now I know it’ll continue to in the right way where, you know, you can really understand so much about what it is to be, you know, a family member or a parent. But, Jason, talk about that because, I mean, we had the…

Jason Katims: Right.

Ron Howard: …quick conversation and then we just took yes for an answer and we’re glad. What were you thinking?

Jason Katims: Well, yeah, well, I mean, I think sort of going back and looking at the movie again I felt that, you know, truthfully I felt that it was so rich and that the, you know, that it was – the world was – not only was the movie so wonderful, but the world that was created in that movie was so rich and so ripe with possibilities. And I kept thinking, you know, I want to see more, I want to know more about them, I want to live with these people. And that to me is the key to, you know, it seems like, oh yeah, come up with a TV show it seems like an easy thing to do. But it’s a very hard thing to try to figure out, you know, the ingredients that would make a good show. And I felt like not only was it a wonderful movie but in the movie I just was sort of the perfect sort of foundation for what could be a really wonderful show. And, you know, honestly the show that I would want to watch. That’s why I was really drawn to it; this is the kind of TV show that I would want to watch. It’s the stuff that, you know, sort of most compelling to me right now, it’s the stuff I’m, you know, thinking about most right now in my life. And I think that’s always the thing that you should try to let, you know, let guide you as you try to figure out what you want to write. And of course, you know, the other side of it is I’ve had such a wonderful experience with Ron and Brian and everybody at Imagine on Friday Night Lights. You know, I – you know, also thought this would be – it would be, you know, a good thing for me and hopefully for everyone to sort of, you know, find something else to do, you know, together. And this, you know, the combination of those two things made me feel like this was just too good of a thing to not pursue. And even though it was – I had to, you know, sort of go into Ron and Brian, you know, it was a – I felt kind of humble going into them saying I want to, you know, because I know there had been a show that had been, you know, that had been done already based on it. And, you know, but I was so kind of excited and passionate about the idea of trying to do it that that’s what made me sort of talk to them. And what got me really excited was once I did talk to them that they were really interested in only doing the show if we could re-imagine it. You know, not do to the – not do something which is a copy of the movie but to, you know, to look at, you know, you know, to let the movie inspire something that is new.

Read more…

March 1st, 2010

GLEE Tour Dates Announced

I am so excited about the Glee tour. Ryan Seacrest announced all the details on his show this morning. Here is the info from a press release on his site:

“In an unprecedented live event, FOX and “Glee” co-creator Ryan Murphy are bringing the hit television show to concert stages this spring! Beginning Wednesday, May 18 in Phoenix, Arizona, “Glee” stars will perform in a singing and dancing celebration of the Golden Globe Award winning show.

The four-city exclusive engagement, “Glee Live! In Concert!,” is a unique concert experience conceived by Murphy that will include live performances of some of the show’s most memorable musical numbers including its anthem “Don’t Stop Believin,” fan favorites “Somebody To Love” and “Jump” and hits “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and “Sweet Caroline.”

“This has been such an extraordinary year for ‘Glee’ and I can’t think of a better way to finish up the first season than performing live on stage with the cast,” said Leah Michele, a Broadway veteran. Heart throb Cory Monteith, “This show has changed my life in so many ways. If you had told me a year ago that I’d be performing classic rock songs in concert theaters around the country, I would never have believed you. We are psyched!”

Select tickets will be available to American Express cardholders in an exclusive pre-sale beginning March 5; tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, March 12 at 10 a.m. for the concert in Phoenix, and Saturday, March 13 at 9:00 AM for the concerts in  N.Y.C. and 10:00 AM for L.A. and Chicago.

Tickets will be available via www.ticketmaster.com and prices will range from $89.50-$39.50.”

2010 GLEE LIVE! IN CONCERT! DATES:

May 18 | Phoenix, AZ | Dodge Theatre
May 20 | Los Angeles, CA | Gibson Amphitheatre
May 21 | Los Angeles, CA | Gibson Amphitheatre
May 25 | Chicago, IL | Rosemont Theatre
May 26 | Chicago, IL | Rosemont Theatre
May 28 | New York City, NY | Radio City Music Hall
May 29 | New York City, NY | Radio City Music Hall

Will you be there? I know I will!

February 26th, 2010

NYC by the Numbers: Nurse Jackie Promo

I recently received this video promo for the new season of Nurse Jackie from the lovely people over at Showtime. This promo is so wonderful and unique, I just had to post it. Big shout-out to the Showtime math whizzes who had the unfortunate task of crunching these NYC numbers (you’ll see what I mean when you watch the video), but I’m just glad it wasn’t me.

Hope you enjoy this as much as I did!

And be sure to tune in to Showtime on March 22nd for the 2nd season premiere of Nurse Jackie. Much more coverage to come!

February 25th, 2010

INTERVIEW: Ben McKenzie (Officer Ben Sherman) from Southland

Southland is a wonderful, gritty, in depth look at the lives of members of the LAPD. It doesn’t follow the traditional formula that most procedural dramas adhere to, rather it focuses on the work and home life of all of the characters. It has an outstanding cast, and I was so glad it got picked up by TNT after NBC dropped it. I loved The OC, so I was thrilled at the opportunity to talk to Ben McKenzie. We talked about his former OC persona Ryan Atwood, the many layers to his new character Ben Sherman, and what makes Southland so unique.

Ben is on the brink of moving on to Phase 3, and finishing his probationary period to become a full member of the LAPD. Can you talk a little bit about what that’s been like.
It’s another sort of mini milestone in his experience in the LAPD. I think it’s one of the more gratifying experiences, because everyone who joins the LAPD starts out as a P1 — phase one of their probationary period and then rises through the ranks, as far as they want to rise. But you have to go through the first three phases as a probationary officer to join the force in a full position. It’s like I don’t know — graduating from high school or something or college…or whatever your last educational thing is. You’ve now done all of the homework, and you’ve been given some responsibility, but now you’re out and you’re actually going to do it on your own, as a full member. So it’s cool, and I think it was a nice way to kind of jump in to the new season — he needs sort of one wrap around, bigger event to happen within the episodes — I think that’s kind of a cool one, because it’s kind of nicely juxtaposed at the end of that episode, I’ve just passed a test basically, and I’m celebrating a new phase of my life, where Regina King — her character — is bemoaning a loss of a chapter in her life, with her partner in the hospital. And it’s a nice juxtaposition there of one rookie who’s still a little bit got his head in the clouds, a little kind of on cloud 9 about the excitement and joy over all the possibilities, and a veteran who’s experiencing the opposite.

Absolutely. And Ben has been through quite a journey from the beginning of season 1 until now. What has that been like for you?
It’s been fantastic. I love making the show, shooting it, the actual process of filming it, being out on the streets of LA all over town, working with a fantastic crew. I’ve done a lot of my work really with Michael Cudlitz — 75 percent or more of my work is with him, and he’s really a joy to work with. And then I also like all the other stuff in addition to the shooting of it — the training, the preparation, I don’t know there’s just a lot of aspects of the show that I can relate to and the character that I can relate to. I’ve found it a rewarding experience and I hope it can keep going on.

Are you anything like your character?
Yeah, actually I think I’m quite a bit like my character. I think I’m more like Ben Sherman, than I am Ryan Atwood…far more so. I grew up in a pretty well off family. My father is a lawyer, like Ben Sherman’s father is a lawyer. My father’s a nice guy (laughs) but I grew up a nice upper middle class kind of existence, and there are aspects of Ben Sherman’s personality: his ambition and his intelligence and his work ethic that I would certainly like to aspire to (laughs) I would certainly like to believe I share with him…sometimes I do and sometimes I don’t…but I can definitely relate to him. And I can definitely relate to him seeing stuff on the street and being completely blown away by what’s happening in front of him because I didn’t grow up in Beverly Hills but I was sheltered in the same way that everyone is sheltered, from the realities of being on the street as a cop, you just don’t see this kind of stuff every day. It’s really powerful stuff. Some of it’s very sad, some of it’s very disturbing, some of it’s very inspiring–it’s the whole gamut of emotions–and some of it’s very funny.

You are best known for playing Ryan Atwood on The OC, and Ben Sherman’s a very, very different character. Are there pieces of Ryan Atwood in Ben or are they totally different and you keep them completely separate?
I’m not overly protective (laughs) of my work. I think the reality of acting, particularly acting on film or on screen in television or film, is that you’re always bringing yourself to the character. And you’re always using whatever your natural innate kind of talent and skills and/or just your personality to the part. So you know, it’s not as though I’m playing a one-legged pirate with a lisp. I always bring myself to the part and that’s the only way you can do it I think. Because particularly on our show, we’re shooting with hand-held cameras that’s maybe six inches from your face, if you’re trying to do a [English accent] performance [end English accent], you’re going to look like a freaking idiot. Just keep it natural, and keep it relaxed and stay within what feels reasonable and right to you, while still kind of pushing the boundaries and making sure that whatever your motivations are, whatever your objectives are in the scene, are being played to the fullest of their ability if that makes any sense. I don’t think you have to do a lot of high level, analytical Ben Sherman stands up straighter or walks different from playing football in 3rd grade, you know, it’s me. He’s me, and I’m him, I just happen to be a cop. I happen to have a certain history, psychological profile here, and what he did, and that’s what happened.

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