REPORT: BRIAN GRAZER TO REPLACE BRET RATNER AS OSCAR CO-PRODUCER

Just one day after Brett Ratner resigned under pressure as co-producer of next year’s Oscar telecast, the motion picture academy has struck a deal with Brian Grazer — himself an Oscar winner for 2001’s A Beautiful Mind — to replace him, TheWrap.com reported today (Wednesday). An official announcement is expected to be made on Thursday, […]

TRACY MORGAN UNDER FIRE FOR GAY REMARKS

An anti-gay tirade by 30 Rock costar Tracy Morgan during a stand-up performance in Nashville has set off a firestorm of controversy that could cost Morgan his job. “‘Born this way’ is bulls**t. Gay is a choice,” Morgan reportedly told the audience. Homosexuality, he went on, is “something kids learn from the media” and if […]

FEY/PALIN IS BACK

Tina Fey returned to Saturday Night Live as Sarah Palin this weekend, participating in a skit modeled after the first Republican presidential debate hosted by Fox News earlier in the week. “It’s so great to be back on Fox News, a network that pays me and shows me the questions ahead of time,” Fey’s Palin […]

BOOK REVIEWS: BOSSYPANTS BY TINA FEY

Tina Fey is garnering some of the most admiring reviews since her take-off on Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live during the 2008 election campaign. Only this time, they’re coming from book reviewers, who are praising her comedic writing skills

PBS DENIES POLITICAL AGENDA IN CUTTING TINA FEY’S PALIN REMARKS

PBS claimed on Tuesday that it had no political agenda when it removed Tina Fey’s remarks about Sarah Palin from its taped broadcast Sunday of the Mark Twain Awards at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. In her acceptance speech, Fey quipped: “Politics aside, the success of Sarah Palin and women like her is good […]

MATT DAMON TO GUEST STAR IN LIVE EPISODE OF 30 ROCK

Matt Damon is scheduled to make a return appearance on NBC’s 30 Rock Thursday in a telecast that will air live on both the East and West Coast, according to Entertainment Weekly. The episode will be broadcast from NBC’s Saturday Night Live stage at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, familiar territory for 30 Rock exec producer/co-writer/co-star Tina […]

DATE NIGHT TOPS HOME VIDEO CHARTS

The Steve Carell-Tina Fey-Mark Wahlberg comedy Date Night grabbed the No. 1 spot on the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert DVD and Blu-ray sales charts and Home Media magazine’s rental chart for last week. Another comedy, Death at a Funeral, came in at No. 2. But appearing to reflect consumers’ lack of interest in paying premium […]

“SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE” TOPS SATURDAY RATINGS

Primetime players were not ready for Saturday Night Live this weekend. The show, featuring Tina Fey as host — and as Sarah Palin — and teenage sensation Justin Bieber as the musical guest, drew a bigger audience than any show that aired in primetime on that night — 9.2 million viewers, according to preliminary Nielsen […]

STUDIOS WRANGLE OVER WHICH MOVIE FINISHED IN FIRST PLACE

In what appeared to be one of the tightest box-office finishes in memory, Date Night claimed to be the weekend winner Sunday with an estimated $27.1 million. But, according to the unofficial studio figures, the second week of Clash of the Titans was right behind with $26.88 million, while the third week of How to […]

MOVIE REVIEWS: “DATE NIGHT”

Date Night, a modest comedy starring Steve Carell and Tina Fey, is challenging three 3D blockbusters at the box office this weekend, and several industry observers are predicting a David-vs-Goliath result. Certainly the critics, on the whole, are giving it far better treatment than they did the Goliaths. Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times loves […]