ABC News was tipped off to Jimmy Kimmel’s Olympic Wolf hoax, but didn’t spill the beans
ABC News did tell some ABC-affiliated shows not to run with the story, but a media ethicist is questioning whether the news outlet should’ve warned others about a story that implied a security problem in Sochi. PLUS: How to spot a Kimmel hoax, Kimmel’s hoaxes are getting old, and that wasn’t a hoax — this was a lie.
Chelsea Handler takes the NY Times to task for putting her in parentheses
A recent profile of Jimmy Fallon mentioned Fallon’s 11:30 timeslot competitors, but Handler was the only one of them written about in parentheses, which she found offensive As Handler writes in The Huffington Post, “I wanted to confirm what a parenthetical suggests, so I looked up the definition. The first few definitions that came up were: incidental, subordinate in significance, minor or casual.”
“House of Cards” Season 3 filming delayed over Maryland tax credit dispute
Production has been pushed back to mid-June as the Netflix series awaits the fate of two separate tax bills.
Parker Posey will head up a mental hospital on Comedy Central
She’ll guest star in the pilot of “Crazy House,” set in an insane asylum.
Coming to OWN: “The Tyler Perry Show”?
Perry this week Instagrammed a photo of him on a “Tyler Perry Show” stage, with a message that something will be announced on Tuesday.
PBS’ “Charlie Rose Show” to delve into the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
Tonight’s show will examine the 50-year history of SI’s swimsuit edition.
Nancy Kerrigan: Why I picked NBC to tell my Tonya Harding story
Kerrigan wasn’t available for ESPN’s “30 for 30” documentary on the same subject, but she’ll break her silence in NBC’s one-hour film airing Sunday. “I trusted them enough to portray my family and the history of this because it is very complicated and long,” says Kerrigan. “It’s 20 years later. I’ve moved on. I don’t revisit this on a daily basis.” PLUS: A writer from “The Critic” on facing Kerrigan-Harding: I got kneecapped.
Jimmy Fallon’s “Tonight Show”: A recess playground where everybody gets a trophy
How much positivity is too much? Fallon’s “Tonight Show” shuns negativity, as Hank Stuever points out: “He is fawning, stuttering, easily distracted and smarmy beyond the call of the duty; he is always telling his guests that their latest whatever (movie, TV show, record, White House initiative) was great, amazing, just amazing, great, so great. That’s how Fallon rolls. His is not to question, but to revel.” PLUS: Is Fallon avoiding political jokes? He delivered only one this week, and Fallon has energized “The Tonight Show,” as promised.
“Downton Abbey” has been too careless with its portrayal of rape
“Downton’s” portrayal is part of a growing trend of shows treating sexual assault insensitively, from “Scandal” to “American Horror Story,” says Saide Gennis, who adds: “It’s time these shows are held to a higher standard and learn to treat sexual assault with the sensitivity and gravitas it warrants. Or at the very least, include a trigger warning at the beginning of the episode.”
“Dallas” gas station is expanding to NYC
Ewing Energies will open a gas station on Monday, the day the TNT series returns for Season 3.
Mike Tyson will pop up on a “Franklin & Bash” episode
He’ll of course be playing himself.
Ioan Gruffudd joins “Forever” on ABC
The “Fantastic Four” star will play the lead in a drama about an immortal NYC medical examiner.
“ET” becomes the 1st media outlet to sign up for Kristen Bell’s “pedorazzi” ban
“Entertainment Tonight” will stop publishing photos of celebrities’ kids.
“Smash’s” Christian Borle returning to NBC
He’ll co-star in odd couple comedy “Lifesaver.”
Is “Downton Abbey” the TV equivalent of the Beatles?
It’s hard to tell if “Downton” is the highest-rated British TV show to ever air in America because PBS hasn’t always kept track of ratings. Plus, the major networks would show British hits like “The Prisoner” and “The Avengers” on network TV in the ’60s.
UK “Pop Idol” duo Ant & Dec are trying to conquer America, again
Ant & Dec — who inspired the Ryan Seacrest/Brian Dunkleman pairing on “American Idol” — already have a failed American game show on ABC. Now they’re contemplating bringing their “Saturday Night Take-Out” to the United States.
The Baltimore Sun is offering a “Which Character Are You From ‘The Wire’?” quiz
How would former Baltimore Sun writer David Simon react to seeing his show reduced to a quiz? PLUS: “Sheeeeeeeeeit”: “Sen. Clay Davis” got McNulty.
What the “Veronica Mars” movie set was like
Here’s a report from Day 3 of filming, with extra comments from Rob Thomas.
Phil Keoghan answers “Amazing Race” Reddit questions — he’s opposed to a behind-the-scenes show
Keoghan says all the good stuff is shown on TV, and he also describes how he spends his down time on the welcome mat. PLUS: Keoghan breaks down the All-Star teams.
Why are all the journalists on “House of Cards” so terrible at journalism?
“‘House of Cards’ has no fewer than four journalists as fairly major characters,” says James Ball. “The problem is, likeable as some of them may be, they’re all awful at their jobs. Seriously, they suck.” PLUS: Is Molly Parker’s character also a war criminal?, “House of Cards” proved to be a great show after Season 2, and does Claire Underwood really make “House of Cards” fully feminist?
Watch the new “Hart of Dixie” promo
The CW is touting the drama’s move to Fridays.
“Friday Night Lights'” Tim Riggins inspires poet to write Riggins-inspired poetry
Poet Nico Alvarado has written four Riggins poems for the University of Houston’s literary journal.
Ranking the “Sex and the City” seasons
In honor of Saturday’s 10-year anniversary since the series finale, here’s how each season ranked.
Seth Cohen falls in love with Blair Waldorf: The Supercut
What if Adam Brody and Leighton Meester’s real-life romance was made on “The OC.” and “Gossip Girl”?
Don’t ever binge-watch “Girls”
The HBO series is not built for binging — it’ll leave you feeling like you’re living the show.
NBC’s “About a Boy” and “Growing Up Fisher”: 2 sitcoms where everybody sounds like a sitcom character
“Most sitcoms are populated either by characters you’d meet in life or characters that only exist on sitcoms,” says Matt Zoller Seitz. “Two new NBC sitcoms, ‘Growing Up Fisher’ and ‘About a Boy,’ fall into the second category. That’s not to say they’re incompetent or otherwise unwatchable; they’re professional bits of work, acted and written and directed with energy. They might catch on with audiences or they might not, and they might improve drastically or they might not. Whatever happens, I’m in no rush to watch either show again, because I’m tired of sitcoms in which everybody acts and sounds like a network sitcom character, talking very quickly and in a peppy and ‘bright’ tone to make you think they aren’t irritating, even outright horrible people.” PLUS: “About a Boy” is NBC’s best sitcom in years, David Walton is good at not being Hugh Grant, the show waters down the book and movie, the pilot is utterly charming, and “Growing Up Fisher” seems like a pale imitation of “The Goldbergs.”