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5/15: More “House of Payne” on the way, B98.5’s Kelly Stevens still out
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
TBS has given Tyler Perry the green light for 26 more episodes of “House of Payne” on top of the 100 they already committed to and have been airing since last summer. The show regularly draws 2 million-plus viewers a week.
Perry turned the syndication model upside down. He paid for 10 pilot episodes out of his own pocket, gave them for free to networks in 2006 to prove the show’s worth, then sold the 100 to TBS upfront. So instead of airing 22 episodes a year for four or five years, he taped an incredible 100 episodes in less than a year. And TBS is airing them in a year’s time, two a week. Critics haven’t been too kind but the show is successful for what TBS is looking for.
Atlanta-based TBS and TNT are both adding more and more original programming. TNT has three upcoming dramas, all with big names: law drama “Raising the Bar” created by Steven Bochco of “NYPD Blue” fame with Mark Paul Gosselaar and Jane Kaczmarek; modern-day “Robin Hood” called “Leverage” starring Timothy Hutton; and “Truth in Advertising,” starring Eric McCormack (“Will & Grace”) and Tom Cavanagh (“Ed”).
TBS plans to flip its current 80% acquired content vs. 20% original content to 80% original and 20% acquired. The network, which focuses on comedy, has no choice. The pipeline of broadcast sitcoms of any note has dried up.
-Kelly Stevens, who has been off the air for more than five weeks from B98.5’s lame duck morning show, was supposed to come back last week after grappling with some unspecified personal problems, according to his boss Paul Ciliano. Now Ciliano is not offering a return date and declined to comment further. With Steve & Vikki taking over in six weeks, we may have heard the last of Kelly, since Alpha Trevette and Will Gara are holding the fort in the interim.
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5/14: 11 p.m. newscast lead story comparison
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
For kicks, I checked how each 11 p.m. newscast opened their first five minutes:
Three of the stations — WAGA, WSB and WGCL — started with the evacuation of the Marriott Marquis last night due to some chemical release. It ended up being minor but nobody knew that at the time. WXIA waited until the fourth minute and its third story to get to the Marquis story. WGCL definitely was the quickest paced. WSB worked hard to focus on “breaking news.” WXIA felt the most laid back.
- WGCL, which prides itself on stuffing the top 5 minutes with lots of news, had video and teased to an upcoming later report, then jumped to an exclusive story about two teens were charged with gang-related offenses at Lovejoy High School after WGCL found the video on YouTube. Joanna Massee interviewed the police, a random school parent and a student unrelated to the fight. Stephany Fisher did a quick review of a gun bill and Sunday alcohol sales. Bill Gaines then talked about an allegedly racist Obama T-Shirt being sold in Marietta. Tony McNary reported on a couple that kept its water bill to $7 over two months through various water conservation methods. At minute four, Dagmar Midcap gave a quick weather forecast. McNary came back live with the Marriott Marquis evacuation and noted the chemical fire location and thinks it’s chlorine, which was the case.
— WSB-TV had Richard Elliot live on the scene of the Marriott. He didn’t have the information McNary had about the fire and chlorine at that time (just a “chemical event”) but talked about how the hotel guests were moved to down the street to another hotel temporarily. Another live report: Tara Jones did a piece on an HGH drug raid in Roswell, with WSB missing the homeowners’ getaway. WSB then announced “breaking news” out of White County, where a dam failed and a “flash flood” warning issued. Pruitt mentioned an election to replace Ron Sailor Jr. Monica Pearson referenced the West Virginia Hillary Clinton primary victory.
— Fox 5’s “News Edge” with Tom Haynes opened with the Marriott story. Denise Dillon was shown live and she had the electrical closet fire information. She is the only one who interviewed hotel guests, who didn’t seem to disturbed. Haynes asked about any injuries. (There were none.) Haynes then goes to a Devon Fehely story about women blatantly stealing from a liquor story. Fehely uses some footage of himself from the security camera moments after showing tape of the alleged roobers. They then updated the guy whose dead wife’s rings were stolen at Grady — a suspect has been found but no details. Chris Shaw (they identify him wrong on the graphic on the screen as “Shephard Smith”) then did a live story about the HGH drug rain Roswell. WXIA caught the couple on camera (which WSB missed.).
— I DVRed the re-broadcast of the WXIA newscast in the middle of the night and I’m not sure if it opened at the very top of the broadcast. The DVR opened with a very soft story about why Lake Lanier’s lake levels are not rising very fast. Ted Hall then does an update on the tornadoes from Sunday. He and Brenda Wood talked about the flash flood warning in White County, giving meteorologist Paul Ossmann the spotlight, then a weather forecast. In the third minute, Wood referenced the “chemical spill” at the Marriott Marquis with Steve Adamson live. He said he had heard about the chlorine that WGCL also mentioned but the other two stations did not. (I’m not sure if the word “spill” is correct in this context but the story was developing). The fourth story: Wood reported that a former Georgia Tech worker has pled guilty to using work credit cards to buy personal items. The fifth story: a quick update on the Kathryn Johnston drug raid trial.
Then Keith Whitney did a story on foreclosed, abandoned new homes off Hamilton Homes with some nice turns of phrase: “For years, the mantra of many developers in Atlanta was if you build it, they will come. But some divisions like this are anything but a field of dreams. The only thing missing in this ghost town of broken glass and promises are tumbleweeds.” I only wish he had been more specific where this story was coming from up front because I’m sure most folks don’t necessarily know where Hamilton Homes are.
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5/14: CBS’s new fall lineup includes more comedy, the CW cobbles its lineup, too
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Comedy has been in retreat for years. Each network has reserved just one night for sitcoms this past season.
But CBS, which has the top-ranked sitcom “Two & a Half Men,” added a Wednesday block of sitcoms on top of Monday night.
“We’ve been looking to expand our comedy lineup, and we now have the depth and development to make the move,” said Nina Tassler, President, CBS Entertainment in a press release. “Monday is already television’s signature night for comedy and we think we can make the case that CBS is the signature network for comedy overall.”
Eighteen existing shows survive for the fall: the three CSI shows, “60 Minutes,” “Survivor,” “Amazing Race,” “NCIS,” “The Unit,” “Ghost Whisperer,” “Numb3rs,” “Criminal Minds,” “Without a Trace,” “The New Adventures of Old Christine,” “How I Met Your Mother,” “Two & a Half Men,” “The Big Bang Theory” and “48 Hours Mystery,.” “Rules of Engagement” comes back midseason.
“The Unit” gets moved to 10 p.m. Sundays while “Without a Trace” gets the dreaded 10 p.m. Tuesday slot, a place that has been the death of many recent CBS dramas. This is the third time “Trace” has moved in three seasons but it still pulls in solid numbers.
CBS is adding three new dramas, two new comedies, no new reality shows. It’s mostly steady as it goes for a network that, like the others, is seeking some fresh blood as most of its hits are starting to feel a bit arthritic.
CBS has been using the 9:30 p.m. Monday slot to launch new sitcoms and the network will place “Worst Week” there. Its description of the show’s premise:”a comedy about Sam Briggs, an entertainment magazine editor who will do anything to please his girlfriend’s parents … but instead becomes a one-man wrecking crew whenever he’s around them.”
On Wednesday, Jay Mohr (now on “Ghost Whisperer”) gets his own sitcom called “Project Gary.” It will open at 8:30 p.m. after “New Adventures of Old Christine.” Here’s the CBS spin: “a comedy about Gary Barnes, a recently single painting contractor, and his controlling ex-wife, Allison, who face post-divorce mayhem after 15 years of marriage as they each embark on new relationships. He’s the fun parent and she’s the strict one.” They have two kids so this isn’t exactly like “Old Christine,” just complementary.
CBS’s new ••”The Mentalist”** takes the Tuesday 9 p.m. slot reserved last fall for “The Unit.” Golden Globe Award nominee Simon Baker (“The Devil Wears Prada”) plays Patrick Jane, a detective and independent consultant with the California Bureau of Investigation (CBI), who has a remarkable track record for solving serious crimes by using his razor sharp skills of observation. (Monk would be proud!)
Jerry Bruckheimer’s “The Eleventh Hour” gets the 10 p.m. Thursday slot against the aging “E.R” and the new ABC show “Life on Mars.” Dr. Jacob Hood (Rufus Sewell, “The Illusionist”) plays a brilliant biophysicist and special science advisor to the government, as he investigates scientific crises and oddities. (This would seem to be work well after “CSI.”)
Finally, the show that takes over for “Moonlight” on Fridays at 9 p.m. is “The Ex List.” This has the silliest premise and implies “dramedy:” Bella Bloom (Elizabeth Reaser, “Grey’s Anatomy”) is a single, 30-something, successful business owner who is surprised to learn from a psychic that she’s already dated her future husband AND there’s a catch: if she doesn’t find him in the next year, she’ll remain alone forever.
And given that the CW has become increasingly irrelevant, here’s a very brief summary of its 2008-09 schedule, featuring two new dramas, one new reality show and zero new comedies.
The Monday night combo of its buzzworthy (if not ratings-worthy) “Gossip Girl” and “One Tree Hill” remains.
Tuesdays features the remake of “Beverly Hills 90210” followed by another show about rich people, “Surviving the Filthy Rich,” starring JoAnna Garcia (“Reba”) as the live-in tutor to wild and wealthy teenage twin sisters in Palm Beach.
Wednesday is reality night with aging “America’s Next Top Model” and a new series “Stylista” in which 11 fashion enthusiasts view for a job at a fashion mag. (Bye, bye for now, “Beauty & the Geek” and anything to do with the Pussycat Dolls.)
Thursday is still “Smallville” and “Supernatural,” though midseason, “Reaper” will take over for the presumably retiring “Smallville.”
Friday night, now that “Smackdown!” has moved to MyNetwork, the remnants of the comedy block from Sunday will air at 8: “Everybody Hates Chris” and “The Game,” followed by a repeat of “Next Top Model.”
The CW has sold off its Sunday night time slots to an advertising company. We don’t know what they will conjure up. “Aliens in America” and “Life is Wild” didn’t make the cut either while “Girlfriends” retires after eight seasons.
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5/14: Atlanta couple vying for free wedding on Today Show
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
An Atlanta couple is battling four others for a free wedding, courtesy of “The Today Show.”
Darnell Suggs and LaDonna Bradford, both engineers, were chosen to be in the final five. They started competing Wednesday morning and each week, someone gets eliminated by public vote. The video they submitted was a spoof on the Today Show. LaDonna played Meredith Viera and Darnell played Matt Lauer.
Bradford, 24, who lives in Midtown, said the couple got engaged in Egypt on New Year’s Day. The proposal video is here:
And here’s the Today Show profile.
“We have a no-bounds relationship. There are no limits on what we could do. He’s everything I ever dreamed of,” LaDonna said.
Darnell, who lives in Lithonia, noted: “We inspire each other. She makes me want to go above and beyond for her.”
Darnell said they have a wedding set (budget $5,000 to $10,000) for April, 2009. But they’re willing to let NBC and the Today Show do it for them in Rockefeller Center June 25 if America votes for them.
If you want to vote for the local couple, you can go here at the “Today” Web site..
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5/14: WXIA’s Clarence Reynolds leaves, CBS cancels “Moonlight,” “Shark,” saves “Old Christine,” “Rules of Engagement”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Clarence Reynolds, an anchor at WXIA-TV for three years, has left the building.
His last day was last Thursday. Reynolds was the morning news anchor with Jill Becker from October, 2005 until January 2008 but switched to weekends earlier this year while Karyn Greer took his morning spot. He said Karyn wanted more time with her kids on weekends and he had no problem not having to wake up at 2 a.m. anymore. But alas, after two and a half years as an anchor, Reynolds wasn’t really enjoying the job and decided to leave on his own. Though his contract isn’t up until October, he was able to get out of it.
At age 44, Reynolds said he has a new game plan for himself and has a choice of two unidentified jobs outside broadcast television to choose from. He eventually wants to start his own business again. (He ran a bakery earlier in his life.) He’ll update me on his future once he decides. In the past, Reynolds has hosted a Fox morning show in Indianapolis, done executive production work at BET and hosted public affairs programming at PBS affiliates in Indianapolis and Orlando before coming to Atlanta in 2005.
Since WXIA-TV added several more hours of news programming, mostly on weekends and on WATL-TV, without adding much staff, existing employees have expressed various levels of burnout. And some on-air and off-air staff have been leaving, with some positions being left unfilled. Among recent departures besides Reynolds: meteorologist Flip Spiceland (who briefly worked in PR at Facility Group) and reporters Blair Meeks (now in PR) and Elaine Reyes (still job hunting).
-Despite a rabid following, Friday night freshman vampire drama “Moonlight” has bitten the dust. And CBS also slayed James Woods’ “Shark.” Both were getting passable, if not spectacular, ratings in their respective time slots. (Those “Moonlight” fans might end up sending vials of blood to CBS in protest or perhaps big wooden stakes.)
But all the sitcoms that have aired on Monday nights will be back (“Big Bang Theory,” “Rules of Engagement, “Two & a Half Men,” “New Adventures of Old Christine” and “How I Met Your Mother.”)
-In other renewal news, ABC has given “Boston Legal” a final 13 episodes. David E. Kelley will write all of them.
-And surprisingly, Oprah decided not to do another “Oprah’s Big Give.” Ratings were borderline disappointing but ABC had been willing to give it another shot, according to Hollywood Reporter.
-Plus, MTV”s “The Real World” has passed on Atlanta again for its 21st incarnation, opting for Brooklyn. And instead of 26 half-hour episodes, they will instead do 13 one-hour episodes.
-And yes, that second appearance by Britney Spears Monday night on “How I Met Your Mother” felt a bit forced and while mildly amusing at points, felt glommed onto the rest of the plotlines. The ratings bump the second time was more modest, too, as the show hit 9 million viewers compared to 10.6 million the first time she showed up. Let’s just say that’s the end of that. Or we can only hope so.
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5/13: ABC’s fall schedule features only two new shows
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With the 100-day-old writers strike crimping development of new shows earlier this year, ABC has opted to keep it safe this fall with just two new shows. Typically, the network would introduce at least six but several shows that might not have made it otherwise got a break thanks to the strike i.e. “Boston Legal,” “Eli Stone” and “Dirty Sexy Money.”
The first and only scripted new series, “Life on Mars,” is a actually a remake of a BCC series. The second, “Opportunity Knocks,” is a reality show produced by Ashton Kutcher.
Otherwise, familiar names this fall are “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” “Boston Legal,” “Brothers & Sisters,” “Dancing With the Stars,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Dirty Sexy Money,” “Eli Stone,” “Extreme Makeover,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Private Practice,” “Pushing Daisies,” “Samantha Who?” “Supernanny,” “Ugly Betty,” “Wife Swap,” and “20/20.”
ABC is also picking up NBC’s “Scrubs” for midseason along with a show called “Goode Family” and another reality show that Kutcher and Tyra Banks are working on.
Midseason will also feature the return of “The Bachelor,” “Lost,” “Primetime: What Would You Do?” and inexplicably, “According to Jim,” the show that won’t die.
This fall, shows are sticking to their old time slots. “Eli Stone” is set to air at 10 p.m Tuesdays while “Opportunity Knocks” nabs Tuesday at 8 p.m. and “Life on Mars” at 10 p.m. Thursday after “Grey’s Anatomy.”
“Life on Mars” revolves around Sam Tyler, a modern-day detective, who lands in 1973 after a car crash.
“Opportunity Knocks” invades people’s homes and they will be quizzed on their lives for prizes.
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5/13: More TV production coming to Atlanta, Cumulus Media deal falls apart
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s a story I wrote for the print edition today about a new tax incentive package to encourage more TV, film and videogame production in the state of Georgia. This doesn’t directly impact the average TV viewer but Georgians might end up seeing more film crews floating around in the coming months:
By RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com
Lights, camera, tax breaks!
Gov. Sonny Perdue signed a tax incentive bill that will give Georgia’s film, TV and videogame production companies as much as a 30 percent tax credit, matching or exceeding many other states trying to lure movies and TV shows.
To qualify, businesses need to spend at least $500,000 in Georgia. So a fictional company who expends $10 million in a given year and owes $3 million in taxes won’t pay a penny in Georgia taxes as long as they embed an animated, logo-bearing Georgia commercial within the project. If not, they would get a 20 percent break and owe $1 million. Here’s a copy of the bill if you want to read it in full.
The previous incentive plan, passed in 2005, provided a 9 percent break so this theoretical company will save $2.1 million under the new law. On the flip side, it means $2.1 million less in the tax coffers.
But Perdue said more production work equals more jobs and more potential tax money from other sources.
“It means hotel rooms are booked,” Perdue said at a press conference at Turner Studios Monday. “It means catering companies have work. It means money flowing to Georgia businesses big and small alike.”
Bill Thompson, deputy commissioner of Georgia’s Film, Music & Digital Entertainment office, said 30 to 40 projects were waiting in the wings for this bill to pass. Most of them, he said, would have gone elsewhere without the added incentives.
Anthony Morris and his partner John Gibson are working on a film version of their hugely successful local play “Peachtree Battle.” These incentives, Morris said, “will make the sale of Atlanta as a site for the film much easier.”
Dan Darling, Turner’s chief information officer, said Turner Studios has already doubled its studio space in Atlanta over five years, adding 40,000 to 50,000 square feet. “This will help continue our growth here in Georgia,” he said.
Georgia was a popular spot for films in the 1970s and 1980s, but projects began drying up in the 1990s when Canada and states such as Louisiana began offering financial incentives.
The 2005 tax incentive package helped revive some production in Georgia, including the Matthew McConaughey film “We Are Marshall” and the ABC TV drama “October Road.” But actor Ric Reitz, who helped design the latest bill, said states such as New Mexico, Louisiana and South Carolina upped the ante once again in 2006, causing business to slow again last year.
Reitz said if states continue to throw even more money to film and TV production companies, he doubts Georgia will go any further than this bill. “We do have to draw the line in the sand,” he said.
Some active production companies that already do plenty of business in Georgia, such as those run by Tyler Perry and Alton Brown, will benefit greatly from this bill.
-In another business-related move, efforts by Atlanta-based Cumulus Media, which owns Q100 and Rock 100.5, to go private fell through yesterday.
Its CEO Lew Dickey and Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity could not complete the $1.3 billion deal, which was first announced last July. More details here.
Blame the credit crunch, which has helped hurt several leveraged buyouts. Cumulus has the second most radio stations in the country with about 344 stations in 67 markets.
“Our business remains fundamentally sound and we intend to continue to operate it aggressively and explore opportunities to create and deliver value for our shareholders,” Dickey said in a statement on Monday, without providing details.
-The winner of the Q100 “Who Do You Know?” contest in which the person who got a big name to call in to the Bert Show won $10,000 and the celebrity got $5,000 for the charity. The winning celebrity, after an extensive debate, was Justin Timberlake. He beat out Muhammad Ali, who was favored by Bert and Jeff Dauler, while the women favored Timberlake. The argument was that Justin is more of a current pop culture icon while Ali is more a legend. Others seriously considered were Sean Connery, Morgan Freeman and Jimmy Carter.
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5/13: “Survivor” winner Parvati Shallow interview, Boortz, nixed & renewed TV shows
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Parvati Shallow, her voice hoarse from talking all day with media, checked in with me at about 5 p.m. EST today, about 19 hours after she was crowned the winner of “Survivor: Micronesia.”
Shallow, a graduate of Sprayberry High School (2000) and the University of Georgia (2004), now lives in Los Angeles. She gave kudos to her fellow players, who she dubbed “fierce competitors.” She herself was a fierce competitor, a tough cookie with a cute smile who left her real emotions at home and played to win.
Why do you think Amanda lost to you?
I think they thought she was faking [when she cried before getting rid of Cirie.]. She had just pulled off an Academy Award winning performance [the week earlier to save her own hide.]
Honestly, do you think Amanda was faking the crying?
No, I think she was genuine.
How come she didn’t just point out to the jury that she had gone 78 days back to back in two consecutive “Survivors” and make that a selling point?
I don’t think she was thinking straight. She wasn’t clearheaded. She was ready for it to be over.
How about you? Were you clearheaded at that point?
My head was in the game all the way until that final question Ozzie asked. Then as soon as it was done, I went all to pieces… I was walking down that bridge and at the camp, they give you water and candy. I just started bawling. Every emotion that had been pent up in me came pouring out. I don’t even remember what candy I ate. I was just shoveling it in my mouth.
And what was it with Natalie’s question about your sex life?
I was so confused. It was a weird game. I don’t know what she was trying to do. I couldn’t tell if she was trying to shake me up or ask me on a date!
Why did they cut out the fact you found the immunity idol on Exile Island but didn’t bother to bring it back?”
They had so much to put in that one episode. It was such a huge episode with Erik and the [immunity] necklace. It didn’t work with the story.
How did it all play out that you came up with that ridiculous story to bamboozle Erik?
We were all sitting around. Natalie was saying you guys will tell me if it will be me. We knew if Erik hadn’t won immunity, he’d be gone. Cirie said, what if Erik gave Natalie the necklace. We all put in our two cents and came up with this elaborate plan. Natalie at first thought we were making fun of her. We said, if anybody could pull it off, it’s you. Natalie could sell ice to an Eskimo! Once she was given a chance to play, she really pulled through. I give her a lot of credit.
You said you felt you had no choice but to play a more aggressive game than you did on Cook Islands. Why?
If I hadn’t, I would have been the first one voted out! Jonathan was trying hard to get me out the second we landed in Micronesia. We had played together in Cook Islands adn he had an alliance. I convinced his alliance to vote him out before me. He wanted to outlast me and get me out. He knew I was good at convincing people to do things.
You were lucky Jonathan had to leave because of that knee injury!
I told him yesterday in New York when I saw him that I voted for him to win the $100,000. [James got that prize again!] He would have made my life so much more miserable if he had stuck around. He was out to get me. He was a fighter. It was hard to see him out that way.
Same with James, right?
I was super upset when James got taken out. It was so out of nowhere with his infected finger.
I spoke with your friend Kelly Basinger [she dated him at UGA and they’re still friends.]. He said you had a much harder time in Micronesia compared to Cook Islands.
It was so much worse [in Micronesia.] Cook Islands was beautiful. Micronesia was nasty. There were bugs, bats, rats. It was raining all the time. You could never be dry. It was much harsher.
We saw your legs got pretty beat up!
It was disgusting. They showed a shot of me on Exile Island panning up my leg. That was so gross. It was not sexy seeing that puss coming out.
How do your legs look now?
There are still scars from all those bug bites. Battle scars! I’m proud to show them off.
Any clue what you’re going to do with the $1 million, or $550,000 after taxes?
I don’t now yet.
Did you think you were going to win?
I thought I had a chance. I had calculated the odds. I thought it might have ended up as a tie. [She beat Amanda 5 to 3.]
It was close with Amanda. Did you have any idea what would happen if it had been a tie?
I don’t know. They keep that a secret. I have no idea!
Let’s get back to Erik. You said at the time that this was the biggest blunder in Idol history. Still believe it?
Absolutely! The guy made some blunder! He took the cake. It was way worse than Ozzy.
So who voted for Amanda?
Ozzy, James and Eric. She was a lot closer to Ozzy and Eric than I was. And James, too, because they both were on China. [That’s “Survivor: China” last fall.]
But you were close to James until you ousted Ozzy, right?
James honestly felt a kindred spirit in Amanda. He felt he owed it to vote for her.
You got all the girls!
I think those girls appreciated that I played a very aggressive game. I didn’t make any apologies for the moves I made: outwit, outlast, outplay. That’s how I worked.
Any boxing for you since the taping ended?
I’ve been doing PR for the boxing charity I helped start. We provide scholarships and boxing training for underprivileged girls. I haven’t been training very hard myself. I’ve been kind of taking it easy.
Can you blame her?
In other radio/TV news:
-Neal Boortz is being harassed.
-Fox cancelled Kelsey Grammer’s sitcom “Back To You.”. Grammer believes the show was on the wrong network. Indeed, it should have been on CBS. And “New Amsterdam” gets no new life either.
-On the CW, “Aliens in America” is cancelled but “Reaper” was renewed..
-CBS has renewed “How I Met Your Mother” and “The Unit.”.
-On ABC, “Miss Guided” joins “Cashmere Mafia” and “Women’s Murder Club” on the nixed list. Too bad about “Miss Guided” though I was no fan of “Cashmere.”. Good news for “Eli Stone:” the sweetly strange drama featuring a prophet-lawyer got a renewal, along with David E. Kelley’s “Boston Legal.”.
-“The Electric Company” is coming back!.
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5/12: Former Atlantan Parvati Shallow wins “Survivor: Micronesia”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sprayberry High School and UGA grad Parvati Shallow Sunday night won “Survivor: Micronesia,” the first person with local ties to win the long-standing CBS reality show. She pockets a neat $1 million.
This was arguably the best “Survivor” season in years, thanks to a series of strategic blindsides during tribal council, more than any other series to date. This culminated in what is now known as the dumbest move in the show’s history, as Parvati noted: doe-eyed Leif Garrett lookalike Erik Reichenbach believed that giving up his immunity idol would help him gain respect with the ladies when in fact it simply exposed him to being voted off last week.
Parvati, 25 and now living in Los Angeles, came in sixth during “Survivor: Cook Islands” in the fall of 2006. She was known as the flirt and was popular among viewers.
So when producers were compiling a list of “fan favorites” to compete against “Survivor” fans, she made the final list and came back, planning to play a more aggressive, strategic game.
In the end, she did. She quickly set up an alliance with two other favorites: “Panama” fourth-place finisher Cirie Fields and “China” third-place finisher Amanda Kimmel. And she stuck with it, although she also hooked up with two popular, physically imposing players James Clement and Ozzy Lusth.
Partway through the game, though, Parvati realized Ozzy and James were real threats to her making it to the final three. So when the opportunity came to get rid of Ozzy, she ran with it and Ozzy was blindsided — with an immunity idol tucked in his bag, unused. She had done the flirt-thang with James but was also ready to throw him over the boat when necessary. Fortunately for her, James had an infection in a finger and had to be medically taken off the show.
Near the end, Parvati helped orchestrate the infamous Erik blindside. And though she made some enemies, her moves ultimately helped her win five of the eight votes from the tribal jury over Amanda, despite the fact Amanda won the last two immunity challenges. I personally thought Amanda had the votes but was wrong. Clearly, her weaker ability to socialize and connect with the other players compared to that of Parvati hurt her in the end. It’s the same problem Amanda had in China when she only got one vote from the jury.
UGA fans had to love the fact she wore a Georgia cap for much of the final episode. There, she was a broadcast journalism major, class of 2004, with a specialty in public relations. She was part of the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority. She became a boxer and waitress in Los Angeles afterwards and has since become a charity organizer, according to her label on the show. She moved to the Atlanta area at age 11 after growing up on a commune in Vero Beach, Fla. and graduated Sprayberry High in 2000.
Here’s Parvati’s MySpace page..
Amazingly, “Survivor” has been on eight years and gone through 16 incarnations, spawning dozens of imitators, from “The Apprentice” to “Big Brother” to “The Amazing Race.” Ratings have been drooping in recent years with this season averaging about 13 million viewers, down from 21 million three years ago. But CBS has given the show a green light for another two cycles in 2008-09 and it’s still a top 15 show.
I plan to interview some of her friends and hopefully, Parvati herself, in the next couple of days and will post their reactions.
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5/9: Real Housewives coming to Atlanta?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tthere have been rumors galore that camera crews are floating around Atlanta for a possible spinoff of Bravo’s “Real Housewives” reality show. So far, the show has focused on rich women from Orange County and New York, with New Jersey forthcoming. Bravo’s publicists haven’t been terribly forthcoming though they say they do test out shows by shooting material that may or may not become an actual show.
R&B singer Monica is possibly one of the housewives, according to Mediatakeout.com..
If anybody has seen or heard anything, email me at rho@ajc.com.
-WSB-AM’s Neal Boortz is recovering from knee surgery and says he’s now “hopped up” on pain meds. Boortz joked that callers are wondering if they can help him get him more pills.
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The show is terrible, horrible writing and acting; but the show is clean and kid friendly which is definitely needed. If the aforementioned improves I would tune in regularly.... read the full comment by Chris | Comment on 5/15: More "House of Payne" on the way, B98.5's Kelly Stevens still out Read 5/15: More "House of Payne" on the way, B98.5's Kelly Stevens still out
I did not like the show at first, but it’s ok. I’m not a Tyler Perry fan, but if I had kids I would let them watch it. The acting is not that great, but neither are they on other shows. I really don’t think it’s that bad.... read the full comment by monique | Comment on 5/15: More "House of Payne" on the way, B98.5's Kelly Stevens still out Read 5/15: More "House of Payne" on the way, B98.5's Kelly Stevens still out
Congratulations Tyler! I read about this a few weeks ago! I’m so proud of him. I love the ‘House of Payne’ and - good Lord willing - I will stay tuned to EVERY SINGLE episode! God Bless You Tyler!... read the full comment by Pandora | Comment on 5/15: More "House of Payne" on the way, B98.5's Kelly Stevens still out Read 5/15: More "House of Payne" on the way, B98.5's Kelly Stevens still out
Congratulations! I hope you guys win!!..... read the full comment by Jana | Comment on 5/14: Atlanta couple vying for free wedding on Today Show Read 5/14: Atlanta couple vying for free wedding on Today Show