Jeridoo Blog

Box Office: 'Toy Story 3' to $109 million and beyond!

2010-06-20T23:08:44+00:00

"Toy Story 3" is looking like another Pixar hit, as estimates have its opening weekend box office earnings at $109 million, easily good for first place. It also keeps the string of Pixar opening weekend No. 1s intact at 11 in a row.

"The Karate Kid" remake with Jaden Smith is in a distant second at $29 million. "The A-Team" is the only other movie to break into double-digit millions with $13.8. Rounding out the top 5 movies are "Get Him to the Greek" with $6.1 million and "Shrek Forever After" with $5.5 million.

Interestingly, "Jonah Hex" was in the Top 5 after Friday night but fell all the way to eighth after Saturday, being passed by "Greek", "Prince of Persia" and "The Killers." "Persia's" $5.3 million was good for sixth place and "The Killers" $5.1 million was good for seventh. "Hex" just trailed "Killers" at $5.08 million for eighth place.

The complete top 12 looks like this, with weekend totals followed by overall totals:

"Toy Story 3"                 $109 M, $109 M
"The Karate Kid"            $29 M, $106.3 M
"The A-Team"                $13.8 M, $49.8 M
"Get Him to the Greek" $6.1M, $47.9 M
"Shrek Forever After"     $5.5 M, $222.9 M
"Prince of Persia"          $5.3 M, $80.5 M
"The Killers"                  $5.1 M, $39.4 M
"Jonah Hex"                  $5.08 M, $5.08 M
"Iron Man 2"    $2.7 M, $304 M
"Marmaduke"                $2.7 M, $27.9 M
"Sex and the City 2"      $2.4 M, $90.2 M
"Robin Hood"                $1.3 M, $102 M

Darth Vader's Diagnosis

2010-06-11T23:15:15+00:00

Darth Vader's Diagnosis

by Mike Krumboltz · June 9, 2010

His enemies and underlings are painfully aware that Darth Vader is highly irritable and prone to bursts of anger. But until now, we don't think anybody knew that the Dark Lord of the Sith may have suffered from borderline personality disorder.

According to a popular blog over at CNN, French researchers have concluded that Mr. Vader (aka Anakin Skywalker) has, at various times, exhibited six of the nine criteria for borderline personality disorder. To be diagnosed with BPD, you need only showcase five of the behaviors.

Just what are these traits? Well, there are the unstable moods that Vader suffers. One minute he's happy because he sliced Obi-Wan Kenobi in half. The next, he's all huffy that his subordinates let the Millennium Falcon escape. And when Vader ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.

There are also his unstable relationships to consider. Over the course of the "Star Wars" movies, Vader has tried to kill his son, Luke Skywalker, multiple times. However, he also saved Luke's life from his boss, the impossible-to-please Emperor Palpatine. The researchers write that Palpatine had a "dark and destabilizing influence" on Vader and likely contributed to his borderline personality.

And the issues don't stop there. Vader blew up his daughter's planet, and froze his future son-in-law, Han Solo, in carbonite. And Vader's mother? Oy vey, don't even get him started with the abandonment issues.

A related piece from LiveScience explains that the Darth Vader example may help teach students of psychology. A well-known fictional character is easy for people to understand and diagnose. And Vader is nothing if not well-known. He's perpetually in the public eye. Heck, the guy even endorses shoes.

Could anything have saved this troubled half-man, half-machine? Researchers feel that "psychotherapy would have helped" Vader and may have stopped him from turning to the dark side. "Using the dark side of the Force could be considered similar to drug use: It feels really good when you use it, it alters your consciousness and you know you shouldn't do it," says Eric Bui, a psychiatrist at Toulouse University Hospital in France.

Of course, all this is rather ridiculous, as The Los Angeles Times points out. Borderline personality disorder is a very serious problem for many people, mostly young women. Still, we suppose that Darth's diagnosis raises awareness of the condition. About time Vader did some good.

The Last Great 'Lost' Debate: Falling sideways

2010-05-31T23:29:00+00:00

Great disussion about the final show of "Lost" posted on Zap2it/Jeridoo. I thought it's great to pass it on.

As we enter the final week of new content here on the "Lost" blog, I wanted to touch base once again with my Zap2it colleague, Rick Porter. He's been kind enough to offer his thoughts on the series throughout the course of Season 6, and I'd be remiss if I didn't check in with him one last time. He's been busy with a million different things here on the site, but he was generous to share some thoughts about the finale, the sideways world, and the series as a whole.

Ryan McGee: OK, Rick, we're a week out from the "Lost" finale, and clearly, the debate around the sideways world's true nature hasn't died yet. In fact, I'm pretty sure that most future discussions about the show will HAVE to include some mention of this reveal as part of their overall analysis of "Lost" as a whole. I've spent the better part of the week trying to flesh out my interpretation of what I saw, but before getting into our debate about how the sideways-world-as-psychic-holding-ground will ultimately define the show, I was hoping to hear your perspective as you watched on Sunday night.

Rick Porter: I've said in these debates, in other writing I've done about the show, to friends and to the wall that my primary hope for the end of the series was that it be true to its characters, and I think the finale hit that mark extremely well. So I left the show largely satisfied -- if a little confused by the final images of the Oceanic 815 wreckage over the credits (which, we've since learned, was a bad call on ABC's part and not anything intentional by Cuse and Lindelof). I share the general concerns about plot holes vis-à-vis the sideways world, but so far they haven't overtaken (or really come close to overtaking) my appreciation for the emotional weight of what we watched.

But yeah -- it feels like it's important to hash out those gaps. My semi-formed notion about the purpose of the sideways world for the characters is that, however it came into being, it was a way to get everyone to see how much they meant to one another. Whether it did that for us in the audience is, naturally, up for discussion, but that's where I am at the moment.

RM: As I soak in the finale more and more, I find myself thinking more about those still in that spiritual weigh station far more than those that sat in the church at the end. After all, the sideways world didn't end with that white light for those outside the church. To me, that speaks volumes about two central tenets of the show: atonement and community.

Let's start with atonement: having Ben outside the church gave us two achingly lovely moments, one with Locke and one with Hurley. The first one gave something to Ben that he desperately needed: forgiveness. It wasn't enough to make him feel ready to move on, but it was a step in the right direction. The everyday struggles that these characters subconsciously put themselves through were related to the amount of guilt and unfounded desires with which they died. For instance, Sayid decided to punish himself, taking everyone's "you're a killer" opinion to heart even into the afterlife. For his part, Ben took care of his ailing father in the sideways world, itself a type of penance that made up for his guilt over his father's murder in Dharmaville that simultaneously ensured a lack of happiness in his own sideways existence. But even doing that wasn't enough to make up for the genocide that was The Purge, never mind a host of other atrocities committed during his time as Island Leader Pretend.

Now, to the second part: community. So much of what we know about Ben Linus stems from his consummate position as outsider, even while ensconced within large social groups. Not to bring up The Episode That Should Not Be Named, but I have to think that the message on Jack's tattoo ("He walks among us, but he is not one of us") equally applies to Ben as well. What does he want, above all else? A family. But he raises a daughter that's not his own while surrounded by people who fear, rather than love, him. His father figure, Jacob, won't speak to him. And he's willing to side with The Man in Black because, "He's the only one that will have me." So for Hurley to give Ben a seat at the table during his Island reign is important, and clearly heals a lot of Ben's wounds. But not all of them.

All this leads to something I think intrinsic to the sideways world: You cannot leave it alone. Maybe you don't need the love of your life, but you need the love of another to fully let go. What does Ben do now? Eloise? What do these brokenhearted, yet fully awake, people do after the Lostaways have gone?

RP: You make an excellent point. One of the big questions about the final scenes was, "Why wasn't [Michael/Walt/Ana Lucia/insert character name here] in the church?" But the more I've thought about the sideways world, the more I've come to believe that it wasn't just Jack's life passing before his eyes. Because A) that part of the story was told from multiple points of view, and B) and more important, I don't think it's that narrow a construct. Ben's sitting outside the church means he's not ready to go yet, and so maybe he'll go back to being Dr. Linus, continuing to take care of his dad and keeping tabs on his prized student Alex, maybe even continuing a relationship with Danielle. Maybe that's his way out.

I think that interpretation of Sidewaysland also explains why Eloise Hawking was so desperate to keep the others (if not the Others) from waking up. She's not ready to face up to what she did to her son -- not just the fact that she shot him on the Island, but for the way that she raised him and the things she did to him as an adult. So of course she would want to hold onto this idealized existence, one where Daniel's (more or less) happy and well-adjusted and she can push her guilt down. If she can't get past that, she may never move on, but if she can -- which is to say, she'll have to forgive herself before seeking the love of any others -- then maybe she can move on. Or maybe not. I haven't really thought of that place as a type of purgatory, but for some of these characters, that may be just what it is.

The other thing that's been occupying my mind since the finale was Desmond's reaction to NOT getting to the sideways world after he unplugged the Cave of Light. That, for me, was one of the more intriguing twists in the finale as it suggested that the Desmond in the Island world, like us in the audience, didn't quite know what to make of the sideways world. I don't think that detracts any from his "specialness"; rather, my feeling is that Island Desmond saw it as a place where nothing would interfere with his relationship with Penny, whereas the Island represented nothing but interference. He needed that community -- Hurley and Ben, in this case -- to help him "move on" in his own life, and his presence in the church indicated that he got there eventually.

I could probably, in fact, go all fanfic on how Des got off the Island and got back to Penny and little Charlie, but I won't (at least not here). But it's nice to think that once those who survived did get home, that they were better for their time on the Island, isn't it?

RM: See, I LOVED that Sideways Des and Island Des were actually trying to accomplish two very different things. It's almost as if Island Des was suddenly in "Flash Forward," only it was a version of "Flash Forward" that wasn't terrible and didn't make me want to beat my head against a wall. He had a vision, but didn't have the full picture. If anything, it made him less of a narrative shortcut and more of a human being for me, and I'm perfectly fine with that. We've talked in the past about the "Des ex machina," effect, and in some ways, having Island Des actually have the wrong idea played off audience expectations in a nice way.

My take on Eloise: something woke her up, but she's so scared of what lies beyond her current status that she's happy to maintain a fragile, false existence in the sideways world rather than risk losing him again. I love the idea of Daniel forgiving her at some point, but that's something that can linger in my mind as opposed to ever be answered in a future article, book, panel, or DVD extra.

In fact, I'm ready to do something that the characters in the show did in the final episode: let go. Maybe more "answers" will come in some ancillary form, but for me, "Lost" consists of the sum total of episodes aired on ABC between 2004-2010. It's over, and while it's nice to think about interpretations at this point as opposed to theories, interpretations are intensely personal. We've watched "Lost" together, but in some ways, we can only determine what the show means (as a whole) alone. Any final thoughts on the show as a whole before we end this final debate?

RP: So what you're saying is "Watch together, think alone"? I think I can get behind that, actually. One of the things that made "Lost" special outside of its creative heights was the community of devoted fans it created. That's not unique in the Internet age, but over six years I got a ton of enjoyment out of talking about the show with you and other Losties -- and the ideas and thoughtful responses the show provoked in others added to my own enjoyment of it

I'm pretty well ready to let go too -- and exceedingly glad that "Lost" got to end on its own terms. (Let's give a note of thanks for that to, yes, "Stranger in a Strange Land," which Lindelof and Cuse have said provided ABC with motivation to accept the end-date idea.) This is a show that goes into my personal pantheon, and I'm walking away with a lot of good memories of it.

RM: And I'll be walking away with a lot of good memories of these debates over the course of the final season. On behalf of the readers, namaste, Rick!

Credits: Zap2it, Ryan McGee, Rick Porter

Brought to you by www.jeridoo.com where smart people trade, swap and exchange their DVD movies. GET LOST on www.Jeridoo.com

Edited: Guido Baechler
Photo credit: ABC

'Lost': 'The End' of the show finally arrives in the series finale

2010-05-24T08:52:06+00:00

'Lost': 'The End' of the show finally arrives in the series finale

By Ryan McGee

May 24, 2010 12:37 AM ET

So here's the deal: this will not be a complete recap of the series finale of "Lost." To try to make complete and coherent sense of what just dropped our way would be 1) impossible, and 2) be a disgrace to what just happened. Because what just happened isn't something you instantly react to, but rather mull over during the course of a few days, weeks, months, or years. After all, that was the final episode. We have all the time in the world to think about its implications until we "move on."

And yes, I use the phrase "move on" specifically due to the use of the phrase by Christian Shephard in the sideways universe, which we know now to be real only in the emotional sense of the world. All throughout the season, the producers of the show have assured us that what happens over there had stakes and meanings, and this is still completely true in the most basic of senses. Neither the pro-epilogue camp nor the pro-Island timeline had it exactly right, even though both camps had valid perspectives to bring to the table and pieces of the puzzle in hand. What "Lost" brought instead was a third perspective, one that nobody really saw and one that I bet made a core section of its audience completely and utterly insane with anger.

Looking at the finale from a perspective of mythology isn't the best way to go about it. (I started to jot down "So who put the stone in the devil cave in the first place?" before slapping myself silly.) Looking at the finale from a perspective of plot probably isn't the best ay, either. (Waaaaay too much time spent on getting Ajira 316 up and running again, especially considering the sideways resolution. And there are enough holes in the overall plot as a whole to dig a few dozen wells down towards the light inside all of us.) But looking at it from an emotional perspective, I thought the finale was a masterpiece.

In a sense, "The End" was a love letter from the show to itself and, hopefully, to the audience as well. But it didn't pay off donkey wheels and Dharma Initiatives but the core characters of the show themselves. The sideways universe did offer a second chance, but not in the way that those that saw the sideways world as a chance to live their lives free from the Island. Instead, it offered each character a tremendous grace note, one felt both by the characters but also the audience at home. When these people "flashed" to their Island lives, they didn't flash to epic moments in Island history: they flashed to empty jars of peanut butter and freshly picked flowers and all the small moments that make up a relationship.

If the show had to get one of three aforementioned elements right (character, mythology, plot), then it absolutely focused on the right one. As of this moment, writing in the immediate aftermath of what I just saw, I could care less about what happened to Kate and Company once they left the Island. The point of the show seems to be that what you do is less important than the meaning behind what you do. And moreover, if you live those lives in the correct manner, then the specifics are null and void. In the end, you arrive at the same destination. (In Richard's case, you arrive there with newly graying hair, and the chance to actually buy the eyeliner you've long been accused of using.)

Now, let's talk about that sideways destination itself. If put on the spot, here's what Ithink we're supposed to take away from it: As Island Protector, Hurley envisioned a way to give a gift back to those with whom he shared his time on the Island. Mother had her style, Jacob had his style, and Jack had his extremely interim style. But placing Hurley in ultimate charge of the Island? Brilliant, and not just because I predicted this last Fall and am happy I got at least SOMETHING right.

He's the absolute perfect person to take the Island from what it was (something to be protected) into what it should be (something to be shared). In a show full of selfish people, Hurley is the epitome of unselfishness. Go back to the pilot episode: he's distributing food on the first night (including a double dose for Claire, eating for two at the time). In "Everybody Hates Hugo," he once again institutes a massive redistribution of foodstuffs. In both the Island timeline and sideways one, he uses wealth as a means to help others, giving away his cash rather than hang onto it. So having him established as the final Protector of the Island that we see (though, I imagine, not the final one by any means) worked for me.

What I imagine did not work for a LOT of you is the fact that we've spent one-half of the final season of the show watching events that would have been solved in "LA X" had Haley Joel Osment been on the flight. It's a feeling that I have sensed coming for a while: the sideways world was doing such a damn good job of providing emotionally resonant moments that it eventually turned into an overwhelming attractive option for both the characters and the viewers. In fact, it turns out that the major players had absolutely no problem moving on once they made their emotional connections/breakthroughs, and instead willingly moved onto whatever lies on the other side of that white light.

As such, I look at the sideways world now as something created by Hurley (with Ben's help, and maybe the leftover mental residue of each Lostaway past and present) as a stopping ground for all major players in the "Lost" universe to meet at once, irrespective of when or how they died. As Christian says, there is no "now" over there. Time is just a relative construct created by people who are used to seeing events progress in a linear manner. What does Hurley ever want? For his friends to be happy! So what does he do? Well, he doesn't build a golf course, he builds a space for them to somehow connect after shuffling off their mortal coil and all end up getting the moments of happiness that eluded them, making connections that had been previously missed, and getting forgiveness once thought impossible. They don't have to be alive to have these things matter once achieved in the sideways universe, which is why I was behind the ultimate explanation 100%.

In the end, electromagnetism had nothing to do with the sideways world. There was no Faustian bargain between Eloise Hawking and The Man in Black. I've spent the second half of the season (ever since "Happily Ever After") arguing that theory, and I'm delighted to be wrong. Why? It's easier to buy "Hurley's gift" as a reason as opposed to trying to throw Schroedinger's cat as a reason for the sideways world. And that "gift" yielded scene after scene in the sideways world that reminded us all why we care so much about this show: its characters. I'm sure everyone had their particular favorites: for now, I'm putting Sawyer/Juliet in the pole position with Charlie/Claire as a surprising second. I'll take scenes like this over lengthy exposition of the true nature of the glowing cave any day.

It's obviously easy to say, "Well, the characters are happy, so we should be happy." But clearly it's not that simple. After all, these characters are fictional, constructs of the writing staff, whom I am sure went into hiding knowing that there would not only be questions but flaming torches/pitchforks aimed their way once this episode dropped. If we didn't care about these characters, then there wouldn't be such anger. Either you read interviews and now feel deceived, or you're generally displeased that our characters are all dead. I'm not going to tut-tut you from that perspective, since it's your perspective and you're totally welcome to it.

To me, anything in the sideways world ended up being something of a bonus, both a meta-level and a narrative level. The show didn't do the one thing I prayed it wouldn't: negate the sacrifices and deaths on the Island timeline for some sort of reboot/do over in the sideways timeline. So, we got to see really interesting combinations and remixes of existing characters in unusual settings, with those settings driven by a combination of subconscious psychological desires and latent psychological holdups. (Kate sees herself as the innocent victim, rather than an actual killer, but is still on the run. Sawyer fashions himself a do-gooder, but is still unable to shake the memory of his parents. Jack invents a domestic life he never had, inserting a new body in his life in the form of a son to replace the father he could never find.)

On a character level, the sideways world allowed these characters the chance to let go in ways that they were unable to do in their actual lives. To fault the show for creating such a space when we have so often lamented the unfairness or abruptness of their deaths seems a bit hypocritical to me. For example, let's take Sun/Jin. Many howled when they died, unable to believe two seasons apart boiled down to one episode; many others noted that it didn't move them, due to the couple being alive in the sideways world. Turns out, the sideways world gave them another chance to "be together," as the latter group suspected, but also honoring the sacrifice that tore up the former. I'd love to call this win/win, but I'm not sure I'd get many takers on this.

Let's take another example: John Locke. Here's a man that died a potentially pitiful death in "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham," only to have his life honored and vindicated in the finale. Without inspiring Jack, the good doctor doesn't return to the Island, and never becomes Protector, and never stops The Man in Black, and never passes off the torch to Hurley who in turn creates a special world in which Locke not only gets to have the relationship with Jack they never had on the Island, but also gets to forgive his murderer. I could give a flying fig about the other people on the outrigger if I get payoffs such as this instead.

And, as many of us suspected, the show closed on a familiar image, in a familiar place. Some might find fault with the heart of the Island being so near the place where the show started, but if The Island has taught us anything, it's that looking and seeing are two different things. Charlie couldn't "see" his guitar until he chose to give up his drugs. The cave is no different: Jack couldn't see it until he was ready to see it. That's the work he had to do all along. By bookending the series around a man opening up his eyes to the unknown and closing them as a man who learned what it meant to truly live, "Lost" encapsulated its' primary thematic concern: what it means to live and learn through other people. They lived together, and none of them died alone. Not in the end. Perfect.

I've tried to thematically address the biggest issues/ideas of tonight's episode. I realize I am short on specifics, but I also realize that there's probably a huge need on your part to talk about this episode as quickly as possible. So I'm going to end things here, but know that this is just the beginning. Over at Zap2it's Guide to Lost, we're going to spend all week looking back at this episode, and by extension, the series itself. Next week, we'll be continuing our look back at this ambitious, epic, emotional, imperfect, messy, glorious, unique show. I look forward to hearing your comments below, and I look forward to continuing the discussion with you further over on the blog throughout the week.

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Ryan writes about "Lost" over at Zap2it's Guide to Lost. He invites you to join the hundreds already in Zap2It's Guide to Lost Facebook group. He also encourages you to subscribe to the Zap2It's Guide to Lost Twitter feed and Zap2it's main feed for all the latest TV, movie and celebrity news.

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50 Most Shocking TV Moments

2010-05-23T20:38:52+00:00

50 Most Shocking TV Moments

Deaths, season finale cliffhangers, scorned housewives, more deaths, reality show twists, lovesick celebrities, still more deaths, provocative kisses and mind blowing series finales ... we've got 'em all in our list of the 50 most shocking moments in TV history.

From Oprah's wagon of weight loss and Sue Hawk's snakes-and-rats speech to a certain couch-jumping action star and the granddaddy of all cliffhangers, take a trip down primetime memory lane and prepare to say, "Whoa!" all over again.

50. The Sin of the Father
'The X-Files' -- 'One Son' (Feb. 14, 1999)
More shocks regarding Jeffrey Spender (Chris Owens) were to come -- that he had survived and that his father had subjected him to disfiguring experiments, for example -- but none were more jaw-dropping than when his Cigarette Smoking Man papa (William B. Davis) shot him in season 6, after finding out Jeffrey knew what CSM had done to the ex-Mrs. CSM.

49. A Woman Scorned
'Desperate Housewives' -- 'Bang' (Nov. 5, 2006)
While Carolyn Bigsby (guest star Laurie Metcalf) was seeking revenge on her adulterous, grocery store manager hubby, she ended up taking the entire supermarket hostage. Completely unhinged, Carolyn snapped when she heard Lynette's (Felicity Huffman) rival Nora (Kiersten Warren) had tried to steal Lynette's hubby, Tom, and she killed Nora. But the drama wasn't over, nor the hostages released, until Carolyn shot Lynette and was killed herself when a quick-thinking hostage grabbed her gun and turned it on her.

48. Look at the Wagon She's Draggin'
'The Oprah Winfrey Show' -- 'Diet Dreams Come True' (Nov. 5, 1988)
The Big O had starved herself for months, ingesting nothing but liquid protein shakes, to fit into a pair of size 10 Calvin Klein jeans. But sporting the skin-tight jeans wasn't enough proof of her weight-loss success: She came out on stage, wheeling a wagon packed with 67 pounds of globby fat, representing the amount of globby goo she'd dropped from her frame. Despite the display's impact, Oprah later called it a huge mistake. "Two hours after that show, I started eating to celebrate," she said. "Of course, within two days those jeans no longer fit!"

47. Punch Drunk Hate
'Jersey Shore' -- 'Fade to Black' (Dec. 17, 2009)
As preview clips had teased, there were going to be throwdowns on the 'Jersey Shore,' and some of them were going to involve the female cast members. But seeing the short-statured, tall-haired Snooki getting socked in the face by a burly dude in a bar? That was shocking. And so disturbing that, even though MTV had been airing the clip of the punch since the show's Dec. 3, 2009 premiere, the network declined to air it again during the episode that dealt with the situation, and followed the episode with a PSA about violence against women.

46. Sipowicz, You Crack Us Up
'NYPD Blue' -- 'The Final Adjustment' (Nov. 22, 1994)
Amy Brenneman's butt? Okay. Sharon Lawrence? Check. Even David Caruso's ... alright. But no one was prepared for the dumpy derriere of one Det. Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) when it was bared for all to see as Sipowicz prepared to take a steamy shower with his girlfriend Sylvia (Lawrence). At least two full on shots of the nekkid Sipowicz not only shocked viewers, but also provided plenty of fodder for Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien and, later, 'Family Guy.'

45. "Chloe ... Edgar ..."
'24' -- 'Day 5: 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.' (March 6, 2006)
David Palmer and Michelle Dessler had already died earlier in the season, but neither of those deaths were sadder than the shocking ending met by lovable CTU geek Edgar Stiles (Louis Lombardi), who was off checking on a fellow employee and just missed making it into the safe room after the office was exposed to the deadly Sentox gas. He said pal Chloe's name as he fell to the ground, leaving Jack Bauer, Chloe and Audrey Raines to helplessly watch him die.

44. Snow Job
'St. Elsewhere' -- 'The Last One' (May 25, 1988)
You can't talk about great series finales without mentioning 'St. Elsewhere,' the NBC medical drama that featured stars like Denzel Washington, Mark Harmon and Howie Mandel, and tackled provocative story lines like AIDS, rape and sex in the morgue. The show's series ender, though, topped all that, as viewers were left with the impression that six seasons of hospital activity were really just the imagination of Dr. Westphall's (Ed Flanders) autistic son, Tommy (Chad Allen), who, in the last scene, is fascinated by a snow globe with a replica of the series' hospital inside.

43. The Family That Drinks Together ...
'Rescue Me' -- 'Drink' (Sept. 1, 2009)
The show's returning for another season, so we're guessing Denis Leary's Tommy Gavin will make it, but it was still a good season-ending cliffhanger, and a shocker of one at that, when Uncle Teddy (Lenny Clarke) shot Tommy at the bar, and held everyone hostage so they had to let Tommy bleed out. Why? Teddy's wife was killed in a car accident after Tommy had cajoled the whole family (most of them alcoholics) into drinking.

42. Snakes and Rats
'Survivor' -- 'Season Finale' (Aug. 23, 2000)
Sue Hawk didn't win the first season of 'Survivor,' but, while casting her jury vote for who should take home the $1 million prize, she made what remains the most memorable, and one of the most shocking, speeches in reality TV history. Explaining why she was voting for sneaky Richard Hatch, instead of her former friend and ally Kelly Wiglesworth, Hawk said, "This island is full of, pretty much, only two things: snakes and rats. And in the end of Mother Nature, we have Richard the Snake, who knowingly went after prey, and Kelly, who turned into the rat that ran around like rats do on this island ... I believe we owe it to the island spirits we have come to know to let it end in the way that Mother Nature intended: For the snake to eat the rat."

41. Madonna Kissed Two Girls ... And They Liked it
'2003 MTV Music Video Awards' (Aug. 28, 2003)
Missy Elliott won video of the year honors, 50 Cent was named best new artist in a video and Justin Timberlake's Britney Spears-mocking 'Cry Me a River' won multiple VMAs. But what you most likely remember from the 2003 VMAs: That opening number smooch between Madonna and Britney ... and Madonna and Christina Aguilera.

40. Mama of Anarchy
'Sons of Anarchy' -- 'Albification' (Sept. 8, 2009)
We knew nothing good was going to come of "white separatists" Ethan Zobelle (Adam Arkin) and A.J. Weston (Henry Rollins) coming to town, especially as far as SAMCRO was concerned. But the season 2 premiere ended with one of the most brutal, stunning moments in the show's history, as Weston and two of his cronies (and with the help of Zobelle's daughter) kidnapped, beat and raped SAMCRO mama Gemma (the Emmy-deserving Katey Sagal), who still defiantly ignored their demand that she warn SAMCRO from selling guns.

39. Every Rose Has Its Thorn
'The Bachelor' -- 'After the Final Rose: Part One' (March 2, 2009)
In 'The Bachelor' 13th season finale, single dad Jason Mesnick asked Texas sales rep Melissa Rycroft to marry him, and she accepted his ring. But less than an hour later, in the post-finale 'After the Final Rose' special (which, in real world time, was two months after the show was filmed), Mesnick dropped the bombshell that his feelings had changed. Well, his feelings for Rycroft, anyway. He no longer wanted to be with her. But the runner-up, Molly Malaney, the one he'd sent packing? He wanted to start things up with her again, and she was game. And though many who'd been charmed by Mesnick now thought of him as a cad, less than one year later, he and Malaney were married and the ceremony aired on ABC as 'The Bachelor: Jason and Molly's Wedding' in March 2010.

38. Watch That Last Step ...
'L.A. Law' -- 'Good to the Last Drop' (March 21, 1991)
Rosalind Shays (Diana Muldaur) was certainly not the most well-liked attorney, and she had already been part of a big surprise for viewers when she and enemy Leland McKenzie were revealed to be secret lovers. But no one, most unfortunately, Rosalind herself, could have seen this one coming: She and McKenzie were standing in front of an elevator, chatting and waiting for the elevator doors to open. The bells rang, signaling its arrival, and Rosalind turned and immediately stepped through the doors ... and down an empty elevator shaft, where only her screams signaled that she was on her way to her deadly fate. One of primetime's more twisted deaths, made more so by that (admittedly clever) episode title.

37. The Slap
'The Real World: Seattle' -- 'Irene Calls It Quits' (Sept. 22, 1998)
More than a decade before Snooki's reality world abuse, MTV fans were shocked by the infamous 'Real World' slap, in which Irene, who was leaving the 'RW' house and the show, told her roommate Stephen that she thought he was gay. Offended, Stephen tossed her favorite stuffed animal into the water, then ran down the car she was in, opened the door and slapped her. He nearly got kicked off the show (his roomies voted that he could stay if he attended anger therapy sessions), Irene continued her departure and, flash forward a decade to the 'Real World Awards Bash' in 2008, where Stephen revealed that he's happily engaged ... to a man.

36. The Voice GERD Around the World
'Saturday Night Live' -- 'Jude Law/Ashlee Simpson' (Oct. 23, 2004)
Busted! The only one more shocked than the studio audience and at-home viewers when Ashlee Simpson was caught using a vocal track during her performance on 'SNL'? Simpson herself, who jumped around the stage awkwardly for a few minutes, then exited, stage right even. The singer at first blamed her band for playing the wrong song, then later claimed she'd used a guide track because of her acid reflux.

35. Boob Tube, Indeed
'The Price Is Right' -- (Sept. 14, 1977)
The lesson that should have been noted by all future contestants of 'The Price Is Right': Maybe a tube top isn't the right attire for this show. It sure wasn't for Yolanda Bowsley, who began her run to Contestant's Row after announcer Johnny Olson called her name. Unfortunately, just as she "came on down," so did her tube top, exposing her chest and prompting editors to cover them on screen with a big blue bar. Host Bob Barker's response: "I know you truly love me, but you don't really love me this much, do you?"

34. Strange Bedfellows?
'Thirtysomething' -- 'Strangers' (Nov. 7, 1989)
There were calls of protest to ABC (and a $1.5 million loss of pulled ad dollars), as well as letters of support, for what, despite being a relatively low-key scene that lasted less than two minutes, was also a pivotal one: When artist Russell (David Marshall Grant) and new boyfriend Peter (Peter Frechette) were shown chatting in the afterglow of sex, it was the first time a gay couple had been seen in bed together in primetime. Future tie-in: Grant once again works with 'thirtysomething' star Ken Olin, as both are producers (and Grant a writer) on ABC's 'Brothers & Sisters,' which also prominently features gay characters.

33. Death Notice
'M*A*S*H' -- 'Abyssinia, Henry' (March 18, 1975)
It was no secret that McLean Stevenson was leaving the show, so, though his 4077 colleagues would miss him, they were also happy that Stevenson's Col. Henry Blake had gotten his discharge and was headed home from the war. A going away party and hugs and well wishes sent Blake on his way, but at the end of the episode, Radar (Gary Burghoff) delivered heartbreaking news to the staff in the operating room: "I have a message. Lieutenant Colonel ... Henry Blake's plane ... was shot down ... over the Sea of Japan. It spun in. There were no survivors." Backstory: Producers wanted to capture genuine shock at the news, so the actors were given the script pages that contained Blake's death right before the ending was filmed. And the plot worked: Viewers were so surprised and outraged by the death that they wrote letters to the network, and Stevenson, who was unhappy with his character's demise, made a cameo on an episode of 'The Carol Burnett Show,' where his Col. Blake was floating on a raft, screaming "I'm OK! I'm OK!" The death also sparked a shift in the show's tone, from straight situation comedy to a frequently more serious dramedy.

32. The S-Word Happens
'South Park' -- 'It Hits the Fan' (June 20, 2001)
In a hilarious episode that mocked everything from curse words and the FCC's confusing standards on indecency to 'NYPD Blue' and network censorship, 'South Park' creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker had Cartman and company utter the word "sh*t" more than 160 times, which we know because the counter in the corner of the screen kept track throughout the episode. Most surprising fact: Stone and Parker say Comedy Central didn't agree to air the episode uncensored when they planned on saying the s-word a handful of times. It was only when they went for the hundreds of utterances that the network agreed it was obvious parody and gave the thumbs up to let, well, sh*t unfold unexpurgated.

31. With a Friend Like This ...
'The Wire' -- 'Middle Ground' (Dec. 12, 2004)
Drug business partners (and childhood friends) Avon Barksdale (Wood Harris) and Stringer Bell (Idris Elba) betray each other in this episode, and it seems pretty clear that only one of them will survive the actions they've taken against each other in the end. Bell is the less bloodthirsty of the two, with his economics classes and desire to turn his business interests legitimate, while Barksdale's main commitment is towards keeping himself in power as Baltimore's top drug man. In this shocking instance, Barksdale wins, turning Brother Mouzone (Michael Potts) and Omar (Michael K. Williams) against Stringer, who they shoot and kill inside the condo development Stringer saw as the beginning of his future as a real estate mogul.

30. Lucy Is Preg ... Uh, With Child
'I Love Lucy' -- 'Lucy Is Enceinte' (Dec. 8, 1952)
It's difficult to imagine now, but in 'I Love Lucy's' day, TV shows weren't even allowed to use the word "pregnant" on air (hence the French word for pregnant being used in the episode title). But Lucille Ball was indeed enceinte in real life (with son Desi Jr.) and on the show, as Lucy, with son Ricky, marking only the second time a TV character had been pregnant on air (the first was Mary Kay Stearns on the 'I Love Lucy'-ish 'Mary Kay and Johnny'). And Lucy's big reveal to TV hubby Ricky (real-life hubby Desi Arnaz): She requested that Ricky sing 'We're Having a Baby' at the club.

29. Valentine's Day Massacre
'ER' -- 'Be Still My Heart' (Feb. 10, 2000)
Med student Lucy Knight (Kellie Martin) had had her share of problems fitting in at the ER since joining the show in season 5, but, after clashes with Romano, Hathaway and pal Carter (Noah Wyle), finally seemed to be more comfortable by season 6. So, of course, that's when she ran into schizophrenic patient Paul Sobriki (David Krumholtz), whom while in a delusional state, sneaks up behind Lucy -- on Valentine's Day -- and uses a knife meant to cut a Valentine cake to stab Lucy in the chest, neck and abdomen. Sobriki would also attack Carter before he was done, but it was Lucy who died from her wounds, in the next episode, 'All in the Family.'

28. You've Just Been Kanye-d!
'2009 MTV Video Music Awards' (Sept. 13, 2009)
Who wasn't happy that Taylor Swift became the first country artist to win the VMA for Best Female Video? Rapper Kanye West, who jumped on stage, interrupted Swift's acceptance speech, took her microphone and expressed his displeasure that Beyoncé's 'Single Ladies' video didn't win the Moonman. "Yo Tay, I'm really happy for you, and I'mma let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time. One of the best videos of all time." Swift, who was scheduled to perform live just moments later, looked stunned, the crowd booed West and Beyoncé, who won Video of the Year honors later in the show, invited Swift on stage to finish her speech. West, meanwhile, went on 'The Jay Leno Show' to apologize, was called a "jackass" by President Obama and gave us a permanent entry in the pop culture slang dictionary: to get "Kanye-d" is to get interrupted.

27. Two for the Death of One
'Lost' -- 'Two for the Road' (May 3, 2006)
There had already been shocking deaths on 'Lost' -- Boone, Shannon, the poor Oceanic 815 pilot -- but this episode raised the bar, with not just one, but two major characters biting the dust, and at the hand (or more specifically, hand with a gun in it) of another major character. Michael (Harold Perrineau) was being blackmailed by The Others: If he freed Henry Gale (Michael Emerson), they'd release his kidnapped son Walt (Malcolm David Kelley). Michael's plot to spring Henry involved shooting Ana Lucia (Michelle Rodriguez). But just as he pulled the trigger, Libby (Cynthia Watros) walked in, and Michael had to shoot her to cover up shooting Ana Lucia (which in itself was to cover up his release of Henry).

26. A Fowl Ending
'M*A*S*H' -- 'Goodbye, Farewell and Amen' (Feb. 28, 1983)
The 'M*A*S*H' series finale remains the most-watched non-sports event in TV history, and, at 2.5 hours long, it was an event-packed episode. But the most shocking, and heartbreaking, moment came when 4077 doc Hawkeye (Alan Alda) remembered what had led to his earlier nervous breakdown. Hawkeye was riding on a bus full of people when gun-toting enemies were rumored to be in the area, and he initially remembered yelling at a woman to keep a chicken quiet so the enemy would not discover them, prompting the woman to kill the chicken. But when a sobbing Hawkeye finally remembered what had actually happened, the source of his breakdown was clear: The woman had been carrying a baby, and, fearing its crying would lead the enemy to find and kill everyone on the bus, she smothered her child.

25. Out of the Closet
'Ellen' -- 'The Puppy Episode' (April 30, 1997)
Viewers knew it was happening, and stars like Oprah Winfrey, Billy Bob Thornton, Laura Dern, k.d. lang, Melissa Etheridge, Demi Moore and Dwight Yoakam lined up for guest gigs, but the way that Ellen Morgan (Ellen DeGeneres) came out as a lesbian still managed to be surprising and hilarious. After meeting and clicking with Susan (Dern), Ellen recognized the truth about her sexuality and went to the airport to tell her new friend. But as she was saying the words "I'm gay," Ellen realized she was talking into the intercom system, and that she was telling the entire airport about her news. The episode, which had drawn protests from anti-gay groups, also drew more than 40 million viewers and coincided with DeGenres' real-life coming out in Time magazine.

24. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
'Twin Peaks' -- 'Arbitrary Law' (Dec. 1, 1990)
FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) spent a season and a half (and ingested a lot of damn fine coffee and pie) trying to find out who had killed Twin Peaks homecoming queen Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), and after all that time, the revelation of the big baddie came with shock after shock: It was her dad, Leland Palmer (Ray Wise)! Who'd molested her throughout her teens! Because he was possessed by the demonic BOB! Who had probably molested him when he was a child! Leland also killed Laura's lookalike cousin! And after Cooper arrested Leland, BOB forced Leland to kill himself!

23. Roe v. Wade v. Maude
'Maude' -- 'Maude's Dilemma, Part 2' (Nov. 21, 1972)
The 'All in the Family' spin-off never shied away from controversial topics, tackling mental health, drugs and menopause during its six-season run, but 'Maude's' most memorable and polarizing moment came in the show's premiere season, when 47-year-old Maude (Bea Arthur) found out she was pregnant. Unhappy with the idea of becoming a new parent at her age and fearful of the risks, Maude, with the support of her hubby Walter (Bill Macy), decided to have an abortion, two months before Roe v. Wade made abortion legal nationwide (it was legal in New York, where Maude lived, already).

22. A Family Affair
'The Shield' -- 'Family Meeting' (Nov. 25, 2008)
Plotting bad cop Vic (Michael Chiklis) was always confident that he'd continue to weasel his way out of trouble, but his fellow Strike Team member (and dirty cop) Shane (Walton Goggins) believed he was out of options in the show's series finale. His wife was likely headed to jail, he was on Vic's hit list and likely to end up dead or in jail and there would be no one to raise Shane's son Jackson. Shane's desperation was palpable when he bought flowers and a toy for his wife and son and then returned home, where he spoke to a neighbor. The neighbor called the police, who arrived at Shane's house just as he was putting a gun to his head. With their former co-worker dead by his own hand, Claudette (CCH Pounder) and Dutch (Jay Karnes) were still in for another shocker when they looked in the bedroom, where Shane's wife, Mara, and Jackson were also dead, presumably also killed by Shane.

21. A Kiss Is Not Just a Kiss
'Star Trek' -- 'Plato's Stepchildren' (Nov. 22, 1968)
This is another of those shocking moments that seems like no big deal today, but when TV's first interracial kiss on a scripted program happened in 1968, network executives were concerned that it would spark a very negative viewer reaction. The buss in question: It was between Capt. Kirk (William Shatner) and Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), and NBC and 'Trek' producers were so concerned about potential reaction to the kiss that it unfolded in the story as something the characters were being forced to do by Parmen, leader of the Plutonians, who was holding them hostage. In her 1994 autobiography 'Beyond Uhura,' Nichols says viewer mail response to the kiss was overwhelmingly positive, with girls writing in to ask her what it was like to kiss Shatner/Kirk and guys writing to Shatner to ask the same thing about her.

20. I Take Thee ... What's Your Name?
'Friends' -- 'The One With Ross's Wedding ' (May 7, 1998)
Everyone knew Ross (David Schwimmer) was still in love with Rachel (Jennifer Aniston). Chandler knew, Joey knew, Monica knew, Phoebe knew, Rachel knew and Ross himself probably knew. Okay, there was one person who didn't know, and that was Ross's new fiancée Emily (Helen Baxendale). The whole gang (minus the preggers Phoebe) had flown to London to see Ross take wife number two, but, with Rachel as a last-minute guest and a pre-ceremony conversation with her fresh in his mind, when it came time for Ross to say "I do" to Emily, what he actually said was, "I Ross, take thee ... Rachel." Oops. No surprise that Emily ended up being the second ex-Mrs. Geller.

19. Roseanne Calls a Do-Over
'Roseanne' -- 'Into That Good Night' (May 27, 1997)
Like several other series finales on our list, the 'Roseanne' wrap-up was a game changer. Roseanne Conner (Roseanne) had always talked about wanting to be a writer, and in the finale, we learn that she is. In fact, all the events that had unfolded throughout the show's nine seasons were the work of Roseanne's writing imagination. In reality (in the fictional show's "real" reality), as Roseanne reveals in a monologue, Becky was actually married to David and Darlene was married to his brother Mark, Roseanne's sister Jackie was a lesbian and Dan Conner (John Goodman) had died after suffering a heart attack. And, in a bit of news that erased what was the show's jump-the-shark storyline, the Conner family never won the lottery.

18. Sinéad O'Connor Declares War
'Saturday Night Live' -- 'Tim Robbins/Sinéad O'Connor' (Oct. 3, 1992)
She was singing an a cappella cover of Bob Marley's 'War' when she set off a minor one between her and Catholics. While crooning the tune, Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor changed the lyric "racism" to "child abuse," as a protest against sexual abuse in the Catholic church. But it didn't end there; O'Connor then produced a photo of Pope John Paul II, which she proceeded to tear into pieces and toss at the camera after saying, "Fight the real enemy." 'SNL' producer Lorne Michaels and his staff had no idea what O'Connor planned to do, and in all rebroadcasts of the episode, video of the singer's rehearsal performance was swapped in. In fact, the original performance had not been aired in on TV until the April 23, 2010 episode of MSNBC's 'The Rachel Maddow Show,' which featured an interview with O'Connor.

17. A Bad Romance
'1994 MTV Music Video Awards' (Sept. 8, 1994)
It was no small feat to make this moment we all remember from the '94 VMAs ... Madonna popped up with surprise guest David Letterman, on whose show she had just made a profanity-laced appearance. But the newly-wed Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley managed to top that twosome, taking the VMA stage and being greeted by a standing ovation. "And just think, nobody thought this would last," Jackson said, before grabbing his wife and planting a giant kiss on her. Presley laughed and the pair left the stage, with her later, to no great surprise, admitting that her hubby's publicity team planned the stunt.

16. Mob Rules
'The Sopranos' -- 'Long Term Parking' (May 23, 2004)
Once she admitted to fiancee Christufuh (Michael Imperioli) that she'd been blackmailed by the FBI into giving them information on the Sopranos family mob activity, it was clear that life as she knew it wasn't going to continue for Adriana La Cerva (Drea de Matteo). She begged Christopher to run away with her, but he instead gave her up to mob boss Tony (James Gandolfini), who concocted a ruse about Christopher attempting suicide, which sent a guilty Adriana off in a car with mobster Silvio (Steven Van Zandt) to meet up with Christopher at the hospital. There was no hospital, of course. Silvio drove Adriana into the woods, and as she crawled across the ground begging for her life, he shot and killed her.

15. Mommy, Dearest
'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' -- 'I Was Made to Love You' (Feb. 20, 2001)
It's not like Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) didn't have enough on her plate already, what with the vampire slaying and all. But the universe threw another major curve at her in this episode. Buffy's mom Joyce (Kristine Sutherland), divorced from Buffy's dad Hank, had finally gone on an enjoyable date, and returned home happy and making jokes about getting frisky with the fella. Which made her from-out-of-left field death all the more sad and heartbreaking, as Buffy later that evening found her mom, who had suffered a brain aneurysm, dead on the living room couch.

14. Narm
'Six Feet Under' -- 'Ecotone' (July 31, 2005)
With his second marriage pretty much done in by the fact that he'd just committed adultery with his stepsister, Nate Fisher (Peter Krause) was getting dressed after the fling when he felt numbness in his right arm. "My arm is numb ... numb arm ... numb arm ... narm," Nate slurred as he dropped to the floor. Later, at the hospital, the brain hemorrhage led to a brief coma, but Nate seemed to be on the road to recovery, visiting with his family and making plans to end his marriage. So it was another shock when, with his brother David (Michael C. Hall) sleeping at his bedside, Nate had a final dream and died, with David waking up to find him flatlining.

13. Jumping the Couch
'The Oprah Winfrey Show' (May 23, 2005)
Tom Cruise was enthusiastically (and then some) telling pal Oprah Winfrey about his new girlfriend, Katie Holmes, in this episode, when he suddenly hopped up on The Big O's couch, and pumped his fists in the air. "You're gone ... you are gone," Oprah said of Cruise's giddy behavior, which included pounding his fist on the floor repeatedly, giggling when Holmes' name was mentioned and, finally, dragging the 'Dawson's Creek' star from backstage and onto the set. After effect: "jumping the couch" became the new catchphrase for people, especially celebs, who engaged in "strange or frenetic behavior."

12. Split Screen Sadness
'The View' (May 23, 2007)
It would end up being Rosie O'Donnell's final appearance as a 'View' co-host, and she would later say her decision to leave came down to the split screen the show's director had employed during her heated discussion with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Conservative Hasselbeck had taken issue with O'Donnell's comments about the war in Iraq, and O'Donnell had taken issue with the fact that Hasselbeck, she said, had not defended her right to express her opinions. O'Donnell called her co-worker "cowardly" and the loud discussion, which lasted for more than five minutes, ended only when the director finally went to a commercial break.

11. Like Father, Like Son?
'Dexter' -- 'The Getaway' (Dec. 13, 2009)
When you're a serial killer who murders other serial killers, there's a good chance you're going to make some enemies. Such was the case with Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall), who, in the show's fourth season, had aggressively gone after the wackadoo "Trinity" killer, Arthur (John Lithgow). Dexter got his man, killing Trinity in the season finale, but returned home to a shocking scene: His wife Rita (Julie Benz) had already been killed by Trinity, and Dexter's son Harrison was sitting on the floor in a pool of blood. The scene was reminiscent of how a young Dexter had been left sitting in blood after the murder of his mother, a situation that sparked his serial killer ways.

10. Rocker Shocker
'American Idol' -- 'Elvis Presley Week' (May 10, 2006)
Had fans assumed he was safe? Did they think he'd gotten cocky? Or did they really just not enjoy his performances of 'Suspicious Minds' and 'A Little Less Conversation'? We'll never know exactly why Chris Daughtry was sent packing in 'American Idol's' fifth season, since the "rocker dad" was one of the season's favorites to win. His ouster was a shock to viewers, his fellow contestants, the 'AI' judges and Daughtry himself -- "I'm a little bit in shock," he told host Ryan Seacrest -- but the fourth-place finish certainly hasn't hurt his post-'Idol' career. Daughtry is third in 'Idol' alumni record sales (behind Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson), with his first two CDs each going platinum and selling more than 5 million copies.

9. Bob Newhart: Dreamweaver
'Newhart' -- 'The Last Newhart' (May 21, 1990)
In the series finale of comedian Bob Newhart's second hit sitcom, his Dick Loudon refused, unlike his kooky neighbors, to sell his Stratford Inn to a Japanese businessman who planned to turn the whole town into a golf resort. Dick and wife Joanna (Mary Frann) remained in town, running the Inn, and five years later, were visited by their now-wealthy, still-nutty former employees and friends. The reunion ends with Bob getting hit in the head with a golf ball, and the scene fades to black as he passes out. Next scene: A light is turned on ... by Dr. Bob Hartley, Newhart's character from his 1972-78 sitcom 'The Bob Newhart Show.' Bob Hartley, we see, is talking to his wife Emily (Suzanne Pleshette), and telling her that he just had a crazy dream about being an inn owner in Vermont! Yes, a la the dream season of 'Dallas,' the 'Newhart' series finale cleverly proposed that the entire series had been nothing more than a dream of Dr. Bob's.

8. Crash Into Me
'Alias' -- 'Before the Flood' (May 25, 2005)
The 'Alias' season 4 finale found long-suffering spies Sydney (Jennifer Garner) and Vaughn (Michael Vartan) finally on their way to a much-deserved vacation in Santa Barbara and a much-awaited elopement. Vaughn, heeding Sydney's spy mama's advice to always be honest with her daughter, was driving along when he decided to drop a couple of bombshells on Syd: First, his name was not really Michael Vaughn. Second, it was no accident that he had been assigned to be her CIA handler several years. Third ... actually, there was no third, because before Vaughn could even explain one and two, a car suddenly crashed into his driver's side door and the season came to a sudden, shocking, cliffhanger-y end.

7. Dream a Little Dream
'Dallas' -- 'Blast From the Past' (May 16, 1986)
It has become the symbol for ridiculous TV plot developments (so much so that the aforementioned 'Newhart' series finale was a spoof-y homage): The events of the entire ninth season of 'Dallas' were nullified in the season finale when Pam, who had just married boyfriend Mark -- since ex-hubby Bobby (Patrick Duffy) had been murdered by her sister in the season 8 finale -- woke up the day after her wedding, went into the bathroom and opened the shower door, to find ... Bobby, who bid her a "Good morning!" Yep, he was alive! As we'd learn the next season, Bobby had never died -- season 9 was Pam's dream.

6. Boob Tube, The Sequel
'Super Bowl XXXVIII Halftime Show' (Feb. 1, 2004)
The worst part of the Janet Jackson/Justin Timberlake/boob scandal from Super Bowl XXXVIII? How many times we had to hear the phrase "wardrobe malfunction" afterwards. According to Jackson, that was exactly what had happened when she and Timberlake were performing his 'Rock Your Body' during the live halftime show: He got to the line "I'm gonna have you naked by the end of this song," and pulled off part of her costume, which revealed, for half a second, her nipple shield-adorned right breast. As Jackson claimed, it was a "wardrobe malfunction," an accident, though others charged that Timberlake and Jackson had planned the event to, ahem, titillate audiences. The result: Lots of viewer complaints and an FCC fine against Viacom, parent company of Super Bowl broadcaster CBS, for a total of $550,000.

5. Flashforwards
'Lost' -- 'Through the Looking Glass' (May 23, 2007)
We were used to the flashbacks ... that's how a good deal of 'Lost' had unfolded throughout its first three seasons. And as the third-season finale played out, we once again were treated to glimpses of the island-dwellers' lives off the island.
Jack (Matthew Fox) was at work as a surgeon, but was experiencing a miserable life: Drinking, addicted to drugs and planning to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge ... someone else from the island had died, and Jack was the only person who attended the funeral ... and, in the final scene, Jack met up with his island pal Kate (Evangeline Lilly). But it was this pivotal moment in which we were introduced to a new 'Lost' device, the flashforward. As Jack talks to Kate, he pleads with her to do something that, he feels, they're destined to do: return to the island. That's right: this Jack and Kate we're seeing are in the future, and they've escaped from the island. Mind-blowing enough on its own, but the fact that Jack was now saying they had to go back meant 'Lost' fans were in for a lot more mystery and adventure when the show returned for season 4.

4. Teri Bauer and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
'24' -- 'Day 1: 11:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.' (May 21, 2002)
Teri Bauer (Leslie Hope) had been kidnapped, raped and suffered a bout of amnesia, all while pregnant with heroic hubby Jack's (Kiefer Sutherland) second child. As '24's' first season, and Teri Bauer's bad day, wound to a close, it seemed like the worst was behind the Bauer clan, who'd managed to stay alive and thwart some very bad dudes (and a really bad dudette) along the way. So it was to Jack's -- and the viewers' -- horror when he wandered into a CTU room and found his dead wife's body. The evil, traitorous Nina (Sarah Clarke) had killed her, and the death was just the show's first hint that almost any '24' character was considered to be expendable.

3. Kimberly Wigs Out
'Melrose Place' -- 'The Bitch Is Back' (April 27, 1994)
Relative to other shocking TV moments, this one might not seem all that shocking. But ask any 'Melrose' fan (we're talking the original 'Melrose Place' only, of course) about the most shocking scene in the show's history, the most memorable scene, and invariably they will say this one. When Kimberly (Marcia Cross), who was thought to have died after the accident in which a drunken Michael (Thomas Calabro) crashed his car, returned, seemingly unscathed, to her creep of a boyfriend, then crept out of bed one night and went into the bathroom, stood in front of the mirror and removed her wig (whut?!) and revealed a doozy of a scar across her head. Unscathed she wasn't, physically nor emotionally, as the Melrose dwellers would soon find out.

2. Don't Stop!
'The Sopranos' -- 'Made in America' (June 10, 2007)
It's only several years after the mob/family drama's controversial series finale that we've come to appreciate how smart it was; at the time, we wanted to throw a shoe at the screen just like everyone else.
In the tense episodes leading up to the finale, Soprano family (and "family") head Tony (James Gandolfini) had been one of the few members of his crew to survive the gangster war that had claimed several of his enemies and several of his own cohorts. One of his capos had turned FBI informant, and as Tony, Carmela and A.J. sat down for onion rings in a Jersey diner, a strange man kept staring at Tony. With Journey's 'Don't Stop Believin'' blaring from the tabletop jukebox, the man heads to the bathroom (near Tony's table), Meadow runs toward the diner, Tony looks up and, with Steve Perry singing "Don't stop!" the scene, the episode and the series does. Stop, that is, as the screen cuts abruptly to black. No footnotes, no postscripts ... we either make our own call about what happened to the Sopranos, or we wait for series creator David Chase to make good on those rumors of a big-screen 'Sopranos' movie.

1. The Shot Seen 'Round the World
'Dallas' -- 'A House Divided' (March 21, 1980)
It's not like he didn't have it coming. In fact, there were so many people who'd been wronged by ol' J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman), that it was tough to narrow down the list of suspects who might want to do him harm. Still, J.R. always seemed to come out on top, so it was a shocker when someone crept into the Ewing Oil offices and pumped two shots into the wily oil baron, setting off what remains TV's all-time greatest cliffhanger with the "Who shot J.R.?" guessing game in the summer of 1980. PS -- In case you don't remember, it was J.R.'s sister-in-law, and lover, Kristin (Mary Crosby) whodunit.

Tell us: What television moments shocked you the most?

Credits: by TV Squad Staff

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10 questions that 'Lost' needs to resolve in the series finale

2010-05-22T18:53:48+00:00

10 questions that 'Lost' needs to resolve in the series finale

By Ryan McGee

May 20, 2010 1:13 PM ET

With the end of "Lost" just around the corner, fans are anxiously waiting to see how the show will end. Some are waiting with baited breath, and others are looking through their fingers at the approaching finale, simply (and aptly) titled "The End."

With only two and a half hours to go, there's simply no way for the show to answer every lingering mystery still up for discussion. I'm not entirely sure that's a bug as a much as a feature: after all, were every question answered in the final 150 minutes, we would 1) have nothing but a long, boring, series of expositional downloads coming our way this Sunday, and more importantly, 2) we'd have nothing to talk about once the final curtain closes. Some questions raised by the show are so metaphysical that no one program could ever claim to "answer" it, and some mysteries are in the eye of the beholder at home, not the writer in the studio. So, for the final time, let's push aside any expectation of the show answering everything this Sunday. Like John Locke, we should let go.

That said, rather than go on a rant about "mysteries that need to be answered," I think it's perfectly fair to try and analyze "questions that need resolution." I've long favored the word "resolution" over "answer," since as the woman that raised Jacob and The Man in Black would tell us, answers usually only lead to more questions. For instance: the hieroglyphics that have dotted the Island landscape, even creeping into the countdown timer in the Swan? Most likely simple decoration, meant to allude to as aspect of the Island's history rather than be something to be decoded and applied as a type of Rosetta stone to the show as a whole. Time Magazine's James Poniewozik recently called "Lost" a "TV show with footnotes," and I think the hieroglyphics are one such footnote. Yes, they are interesting, but are they really crucial to the show's ultimate meaning or simply extremely cool window dressing meant to suggest rather than explicitly illuminate?

So here are ten current questions in "Lost" that need to be resolved in the series finale.

1) What is the sideways world?

I mean, that's the biggie, right? It's only THE central question at the heart of Season 6, and perhaps the crucial question in the history of the show. Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse have constructed their climatic season around this complex, "Sliding Doors"-esque universe. They have insisted all along that the events in this world are real and have meaning. Throughout Season 6, we've seen people in this world "waking up" to remember their time on the Island. How are these two worlds connected, and how does that connection feed into the show's endgame?

2) Why is Eloise Hawking so darn insistent that Des stop waking people up in the sideways world?

We've seen the sideways version of our Lostaways slowly realizing that the world around them isn't quite what it seems. But Eloise Hawking seems to remember the Island timeline perfectly well in "Happily Ever After." Did she cut a deal with The Man in Black to create a new timeline in which Daniel Faraday lived? Is the sideways world explained by the guilt of a mother (Eloise) combined the rage of a son (The Man in Black)? Is she, not Jacob, the real reason Charles Widmore returned to the Island this season? All these subquestions lead to the next major one...

3) What is the implication of The Man in Black destroying the Island?

In "LA X," The Man in Black insisted that he wanted to go "home." "Home," we have learned, is an amorphous concept for him, defined not by what it is but rather by what it is NOT (namely, The Island). If he plans to use Charles Widmore's "failsafe" to destroy the energy at the heart of the Island, does that give a hint into the submerged version of the Island in the sideways world? All of this leads to the major question...

4) Is the destruction of the Island actually a BAD thing?

Many fans think that the sideways world shows what would happen if "The Island" didn't interfere with the lives of our Lostaways. On a macro level, it's hard to argue against that. But "Across the Sea" and "What They Died For" complicate (but do not negate) this view. If the energy at the heart of the Island lives inside of us, then the Island might be a geographical, moral testing ground. It's cruel but necessary for human evolution, tempting our basest nature while providing an opportunity to expand our capacity for good. All of which is a way of asking the following query...

5) Would these characters lives have been better having never gone to The Island?

In this week's episode, Jacob suggested a symbiotic relationship between The Island and those that find themselves upon its shores. Both, on a fundamental level, need each other. But it's also a hard place, a violent place, a place that Charlotte Staples Lewis once called "death" incarnate. It's a place in which Charlie Pace died trying to protect Claire and Aaron. It was a noble death, a sacrifice made out of love borne out of his experiences on the Island. But it's also one that might not actually have meant anything should The Man in Black succeed. Over in the sideways world, Charlie is back to being a junkie, but he's still alive, and in the same city as the girl of his literal dreams. Or is he? By which, I mean to ask...

6) Are these familiar faces in the sideways world the same people, or something different entirely?

How the show answers this question will directly inform how the final 2.5 hours play out. Let's look at both scenarios, using the players in the previous paragraph. Option A) Charlie and Claire can meet in Los Angeles, fall in love, raise Aaron, and get the chance to be a happy trio in a way that they didn't get on The Island. Option B) Charlie's flash to his times on the Island showed him just how unreal his life in the sideways world is, and even if he stumbled across Claire in a Sideways Starbucks, he would merely stumble upon someone that looked a lot like the girl in his vision but on a fundamental level is not the same person AT ALL. They were meant to be a trio, but only for a short time, and only that short time. Let's carry this over and broadly apply it by asking the following...

7) In what form(s) will sacrifice occur in the finale?

What's maddening about the two universes in "Lost" this season is also its greatest strength: it's still very difficult to decide as an audience member which one you want to "win," for lack of a better term. It's hard (although not impossible) to imagine the show ending with both timelines continuing into the narrative sunset. Depending on your perspective, both sides offer compelling views on what it means it live a life. But no matter to which viewpoint you subscribe, there will be things that must be given up for that universe to continue. Neither the Island timeline nor sideways timeline will be immune from this. On the Island, we're looking at the literal destruction of what may lie at the heart of humanity. In Los Angeles, Desmond is gathering people to the mother of all cosmic concerts. Speaking of music...

8) Does Mama Cass explain everything about "Lost"?

When talking about all-time great "Lost" sequences, it's hard to omit the opening sequence of Season 2. It's a bravura segment set deep inside the Swan Station, with little to orientate the audience and a little song called "Make Your Own Kind of Music" scoring the whole endeavor. In a subtle yet tangible way, the concert in the sideways world is the most explicit expression of Mama Cass' metaphor. Coupling Mama Cass' song with the revelations in "What They Died For" paints a scenario in which fate and free will are not opposites but simply perspectives. If a simple line of chalk doesn't discount Kate's candidacy, what does that say about the rules (and "The Rules") under which our characters have arbitrarily been living under for their entire lives?

9) Will Bai Ling appear in the finale?

Just making sure you're paying attention.

9) Why can't we find Christian Shephard in either timeline?

What started in "White Rabbit" has kept going, Energizer Bunny-esque, into the finale. Christian's absence has formed a palpable presence in Jack's life in both timelines. An astute commenter recently wondered if Jack's ascension to the rank of Island Protector now means The Man in Black can start shapeshifting again, and, if so, could take the form of Christian in order to confront his new nemesis. It's a pretty powerful thought, but even if that doesn't play out, look for Christian's involvement in the lives of the show's major players to finally pay off this Sunday. And, finally...

10) Are we seeing the start of a new Age of the Island or the start of something else entirely?

In "Across the Sea," we saw protectorship of the Island pass down from Mother to Jacob, in a ceremony that predated them both by possibly tens of thousands of years and countless other iterations. In "What They Died For," Jacob and Jack performed the latest version the ceremony, with the former officially passing the torch off to the latter. Have the passengers of Oceanic 815 been brought to The Island merely to push the cycle into its next iteration, or to create an entirely new scenario altogether. In "The Incident," Jacob told The Man in Black, "It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress." Given the title of the finale ("The End"), and given Desmond's wildcard status in these proceedings, how exactly will "Lost" sound its final notes about the War of the Island? Will things remain status quo with new faces replacing the old ones, or will "the end" give way to the next phase of humanity itself?

Those are our ten burning questions that need resolution in the series finale. What's burning in your mind? Leave your thoughts and predictions below!

Additional Credit to: zap2it

Photo credit: ABC

Pick of Today: Extraordinary Measures [Blu-ray] (2010)

2010-05-16T17:59:19+00:00

Product Details

Actors: Harrison Ford, Brendan Fraser
Directors: Tom Vaughan
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen
Language: English
Subtitles: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Number of discs: 1
Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Sony Pictures
DVD Release Date: May 18, 2010
Run Time: 106 minutes
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
ASIN: B002ZG97JM
Amazon.com Sales Rank: #129 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
Popular in these categories: (What's this?)
#4 in Movies & TV > Drama > Family Life
#41 in Movies & TV > Blu-ray

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movieIQ™+sync and BD-Live connect you to real-time information on the cast, music, trivia and more while watching the movie!
Go behind the scenes of this uplifting movie with interviews of the cast and also the family whose true story inspired the film. Also includes Deleted Scenes.

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Amazon.com

Imagine Harrison Ford as a rogue scientist exploring not ancient artifacts of lost arks, but biochemical research to help cure rare diseases. In Extraordinary Measures, Ford manages to keep some of that wry rebellious Indiana Jones energy as he plays Dr. Robert Stonehill, a fringe researcher whose findings just might help keep alive the two children of John Crowley, played with heart and sobriety by Brendan Fraser. Extraordinary Measures is based on a true story, one chronicled in the gripping book The Cure: How a Father Raised $100 Million--and Bucked the Medical Establishment--in a Quest to Save His Children, by Wall Street Journal reporter Geeta Anand. The cast is excellent, with Ford tamping down his occasional urge to vamp for the camera, and Fraser grounded in his first true adult role. The supporting cast is also strong, including Keri Russell as Crowley's frantic wife, facing the near-certain death of both of her children; Dee Wallace, Jared Harris, and Courtney B. Vance also appear as strong supporting characters. Director Tom Vaughan switches gears from his wildly successful romp What Happens in Vegas to turn in a crisply paced and suspenseful family drama. As Crowley and Dr. Stonehill team up to raise money to support Stonehill's research, Crowley says, "Who's going to be half as motivated as the dad who's trying to save his own kids?" Extraordinary Measures brings to mind similar dramas like Lorenzo's Oil, but its heart and drive are unique to the story of the Crowleys, a very special family indeed. --A.T. Hurley

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Summer Movie Preview: 25 Films of Note

2010-04-18T19:00:27+00:00

Summer Movie Preview: 25 Films of Note

Iron Man 2, Prince of Persia, The A-Team, and 22 more!

"Iron Man 2" (2010) - Paramount Pictures

The Verdict: Star Wars: The Sitcom? and Sigourney Weaver Cries Oscar Sexism

2010-04-18T18:36:21+00:00

The Verdict: Star Wars: The Sitcom? and Sigourney Weaver Cries Oscar Sexism

Plus Joss Whedon Circles The Avengers, and the South Park guys' Mormon musical.

Jabba the Hut, a character in Lucasfilm's 'Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi' - Lucasfilm

'Growing Pains' star Andrew Koenig missing, confirms sister

2010-02-21T10:28:46+00:00

Andrew Koenig, the actor and comedian best known for playing Boner in "Growing Pains" is missing. He was last seen in Vancouver, Canada on Sun. Feb. 14.

"He went up to [Vancouver] to visit friends who last saw him on the 14th," the actor's sister Danielle Koenig tells jeridoo.com. "Any information we can get on his whereabouts would be helpful."

Burlesque dancer Jenny Magentastated on Facebook that Koenig stayed with her in Vancouver and said that his parents told her he was "severely depressed." She also says there's some evidence he was in the Stanley Park area of Vancouver.

As we reported earlier, Sarah Silverman, Alyssa Milano, Dave Holmes and other celebrities have been tweeting and blogging for information leading to the whereabouts of the actor.

VH1's "Best Week Ever" star, Doug Benson tweeted, "On a serious note, my buddy Andrew Koenig was last seen in Vancouver on Feb 14. If anybody knows where he is send me a message."

Radio host Jesse Thorn posted additional details about Koenig's disappearance on his blog:

"[Andrew Koenig] Didn't make his flight back to the US on 2/16. The Vancouver Police are involved, and lots of people are looking."

If you've seen Andrew Koenig since February 14th, his family asks that you contact Detective Raymond Payette of the Vancouver Police Department at 604-717-2534.

Det. Payette has not returned Zap2it's request for more information. We spoke to their public affairs office, but they could not offer any additional details at this time.

My Bloody Valentine 3D [Blu-ray] (2009)

2010-02-14T13:12:15+00:00

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4.0 out of 5 stars Forget the machete or razor glove, the pickaxe will f**k you up, March 15, 2009

By	Monkdude (Hampton, Virginia) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This horror fan had a blast with the remake of 1981's My Bloody Valentine. Go check out the new uncut version of the original. Talk about added "lost" footage making a decent slasher flick really, really good. Back to the 2009 MBV. The cast is pretty good (lots of people you might recognize, but no big names), the dialogue is a little better than your average slasher and most of all the kills are very creative, with the gore taken to the extreme at times. The miner is an intimidating killer and looks scary, but sadly the movie really isn't (just some minor suspense moments). Oh, I almost forgot to mention that there are a few hot chicks and one of them runs around buck naked for nearly 5 minutes in 3-D. This flick is just sounding better and better right?

The digital 3-D presentation is a must for horror fans. The picture is crystal clear and it gives the film so much depth you really feel like you are part of the story. If buckets of blood, body parts and one mean pickaxe flying at you sounds like a good time, then go see this one before it leaves theaters. Now the regular 2-D version might be a different story.

Just to let some of you know, the DVD and Blu-ray version won't be digital 3-D like in theaters (can't wait until they perfect that), so you will get four multi-colored glasses for regular 3-D. You will also have the option of just watching it in 2-D.

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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Shameless but Extremely Entertaining, January 23, 2009

By	Kasey Driscoll - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: My Bloody Valentine 3D [Theatrical Release] (Theatrical Release)

I'm rating this four stars as a theatrical experience alone. 3-D technology looks great here and although at times used shamelessly, it is also used to control atmosphere and build suspense. My Bloody Valentine is a remake of a mediocre 1981 slasher film. This one probably deserves a two or three star rating without the 3-D, so the impact of the visuals alone was pretty substantial in my view. I get the impression we will see much more from 3-D in the near future.

For those who don't know, this is a slasher film so we get all kinds of body parts flying at us throughout the film. I literally felt like I may have got some blood sprayed on me while watching, so take that for it is. I laughed and was thoroughly entertained from beginning to end. There was even plenty of nudity in an attempt to harken back to slasher movies of yesteryear. The nudity was so gratuitous I had to believe they were joking. The actress was literally full body naked for five or so minutes onscreen. I'm oddly pleased to see the film not earn an NC-17 rating for that but I'm not sure what else there is to say. It is what it is I suppose. Two years ago the film would not have made it through with an R. Three cheers for Kirby Dick!

My Bloody Valentine follows a group of friends living in a small mining town that experiences several violent tragedies; including a cave-in followed by the loan survivor being accused of killing everyone else, a massive killing spree after that, and then another killing spree ten years later. The latter of those events making up most of the film we see here. There is very little attempt to make the story or events believable but this is exploitation horror we are talking about here. Not to say that makes it somehow forgiveable, just that those are typically the expectations. To actually credit some of the actors and perhaps even the writers, I actually cared about the scooby-doo-esque kind of ending by the time we got there.

Anyway, amazing effects here, and a whole new level of 3-D visuals. If that sounds good to you see it in the theater before it's gone. If you miss it, let's all keep our fingers crossed that we get some good 3-D technology for our home cinemas.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a fun time made better by 3-d, May 20, 2009

By	The Movie Man (GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Bloody Valentine 3D (2-disc special edition) (DVD)

For those of you wondering how the DVD would carry over from the theater, dont fear...obviously the technology doesn't exist to make the crystal clear 3d image that you saw in theaters, but for the most part I felt that the 3-d in the DVD was fairly solid...I will say that I do have a LCD flat screen HDTV so that obviously helps...not sure how it would look on standard tube sets...the branch scene, the pick axe and the bullet scene were the most notable jump scenes from the movie...overall not a bad movie in its own right, fairly solid for a scary movie, and a pretty good ending...I do think that the 3-d did ultimately save this movie though

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Percy Jackson and the Olympians Paperback Boxed Set (Books 1-3)

2010-01-30T12:05:58+00:00

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Product Description

Humans and half-bloods alike agree--Percy Jackson and the Olympians is a series fit for heroes! Re-live the adventure from the beginning with this boxed set of the first three books.

The Lightning Thief Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. When his mom tells him the truth about where he came from, she takes him to the one place he'll be safe--Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island). There, Percy learns that the father he never knew is actually Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon Percy finds himself caught up in a mystery that could lead to disastrous consequences. Together with his friends--a satyr and other the demigod daughter of Athena--Percy sets out on a quest to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.

The Sea of Monsters After a summer spent trying to prevent a catastrophic war among the Greek gods, Percy Jackson finds his seventh-grade school year unnervingly calm. But things don't stay quiet for long. Percy soon discovers there is trouble at Camp Half-Blood: the magical borders which protect Half-Blood Hill have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and the only safe haven for demigods is on the verge of being overrun by mythological monsters. To save the camp, Percy needs the help of his best friend, Grover, who has been taken prisoner by the Cyclops Polyphemus on an island somewhere in the Sea of Monsters--the dangerous waters Greek heroes have sailed for millennia--only today, the Sea of Monsters goes by a new nameL: the Bermuda Triangle. Now Percy and his friends must retrieve the Golden Fleece from the Island of the Cyclopes by the end of the summer or Camp Half-Blood will be destroyed. But first, Percy will learn a stunning new secret about his family--one that makes him question whether being claimed as Poseidon's son is an honor or simply a cruel joke...

The Titan's Curse When Percy Jackson receives a distress call from his friend Grover, he immediately prepares for battle. He knows he'll need his powerful demigod allies, Annabeth and Thalia, at his side; his trusty broze sword Riptide; and... a ride from his mom. The demigods race to the rescue, to find that Grover has made an important discovery: two new powerful half-bloods whose parentage is unknown. But that's not all that awaits them. The Titan lord, Kronos, has set up his most devious trap yet, and the young heroes have unwittingly fallen prey. Hilarious and action-packed, this third adventure in the series finds Percy faced with his most dangerous challenge so far: the chilling prophecy of the Titan's curse.

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4.8 out of 5 stars (89 customer reviews)

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63 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A true joy for children and adults, and the only other series that even comes close to Harry Potter, April 24, 2009

By	Shane Byrne "Byrnie" (Iraq) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am a 24 year old married woman, and like many Harry Potter fans I have been reading unfufilling series after unfufilling series for the last few years trying to find something to fill that void. Percy Jackson and the Olympians is fantastic. I have to say I did like the second and third books a little more than the first. They were more colorful and funny than the Lightning Thief. Everything that you loved about Harry Potter is in this book, but not in the haphazard, copycat, money-maker way that some other series have tried (*cough cough Charlie Bone and Septimus Heap to name a couple). This is totally original and you will find yourself with the same love of Camp Half-blood that you had for Hogwarts. While this book is for children it is meaty. It has substance, thoughtful characters, interesting plots, and an intricate world I cant get enough of. I had a hard time putting the books down. I cant wait for the next book to come in so I can start right back up again. My cousin recommended this to me and I just cannot thank her enough. Thanks again Debbie!

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25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, even for reluctant readers, September 28, 2008

By	L. Jos (RI) - See all my reviews

My 4th grade son who does not love to read absolutely loves this series. I can't get him to stop reading; he is reading instead of TV, video games, outside, etc. I read a few chapters of each of the 4 and they are well written, funny, and full of action/adventure. Great books!

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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Entertaining for Both Kids & Adults, January 6, 2009

By	CrimsonGirl "homeschooling mom" (S.F. Bay Area, USA) - See all my reviews

I bought this set for my daughter, who's a fan of Greek mythology, and ended up enjoying them myself as well. Like the "Harry Potter" and "Narnia" series, these books appeal to readers of all ages. I also appreciated the prominent featuring of strong female characters.

Some of the plot twists I did find a bit on the predictable side but I still thought the books were highly entertaining.

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Zombieland [Blu-ray] (2009)

2010-01-30T11:18:21+00:00

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Amazon.com

If there's been a zombie apocalypse and you're road-tripping alone though the wasteland, you could do worse than run into Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a bourbon-swilling bad-boy butt-kicker with a really cool car. This is where the careful hero of Zombieland, a kid nicknamed Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), finds himself early in the film, and you can hardly blame him for hitching a ride with this swaggering Alpha Male. Still, they have their hands full not only with gibbering zombies but also with two sisters (Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin) who will stop at nothing to reach a Disneyland-like amusement park in L.A. Although Zombieland gets off to a rocky start with Columbus's overly-cute narration (he's got a list of rules for surviving in the zombie world), it settles into an amusing comedy, regularly interrupted by bouts of blood-letting. The road-trip stuff is enough fun that when the movie does arrive at its version of Disneyland, the air goes out of it a little; sure, there's a giant zombie blowout, with entrails flying, but it's not quite the same. Director Ruben Fleischer keeps the gags coming, although the movie is often funnier in its odd little asides (both Eisenberg and Harrelson are expert at this) than in its official jokes. Comic high point: an interlude at the home of a very famous movie star, who plays himself--and we'll leave the spoiler unspoiled, in case anybody hasn't heard about this funny extended cameo.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Evil Dead II + Shaun of the Dead = Zombieland, September 18, 2009

By	Nick Wagner "MovieManiacX" (Maryland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zombieland [Theatrical Release] (Theatrical Release)

Let me start off by saying that I'm a huge zombie fan. Whether they're Romero's slow-moving shamblers or the fast-moving runners from Return of the Living Dead / 28 Days Later, I will give any zombie movie a try. Enter Zombieland, which when I heard about it, I instantly thought of that direct-to-DVD drivel you see on the rental store shelf that can barely pass as a B-movie. After watching the trailer however, I was genuinely intrigued. Luckily, my friend managed to get her hands on a few preview passes and what I saw was one of the most fun and enjoyable movies I've seen in years.

I'll say it now: This movie is NOT scary. If you go in expecting scares and frights, you're in the wrong place. While there's the occasional "boo" scare, Zombieland is a horror-comedy in the vein of Evil Dead II,The Return of the Living Dead, Shaun of the Dead, etc. As a matter of fact, the director was inspired by Shaun of the Dead to make Zombieland. The horror-comedy mixture is is a very hard thing to pull off, but this movie does it pretty well, leaning more towards the comedy.

The cast is great, with Woody Harrelson being the stand out. He is such a great tough guy and delivers some truly great one-liners that it brings back memories of his Natural Born Killers days. Jesse Eisenberg is the "goofy dorky guy" that keeps popping up in movies these days. He does a good job, but is nearly indistinguishable from someone like Michael Cera, who plays the exact same role every time. I liked this guy better because frankly I'm sick of seeing Michael Cera these days. Emma Stone (aka Jules from Superbad) plays a good tough girl and looks exactly like she did in Superbad, which isn't a bad thing. Abigail Breslin is fine, but she felt slightly out of place. There's also a bigger-than-a-cameo role by one of the funniest actors of all-time, but I don't want to spoil it here. Trust me, it's hysterical.

That's about it for the cast, except for the zombies themselves, which are very well done. They're gross, gooey, and vicious and the make-up and special effects look fantastic, especially now in the age of CGI crap. The movie does not skimp on the gore, so be prepared for a healthy serving of blood, guts, and zombie bites. The post-apocalyptic scenery looks amazing and really pulls you into the film. Zombie fans, you will not be disappointed.

The comedy is executed quite well. While whether something is funny depends purely on personal taste (pun intended), I think this movie balances gross-out humor, sight gags, witty banter, black comedy and plain-old "Number 2" jokes perfectly. One of the funniest bits is when Woody Harrelson's character rides a roller coaster while simultaneously wielding a shotgun and shoots zombies that follow him around the track. It was clever and a blast to watch. Think of your favorite comedy; Zombieland is probably not as funny as that, but it will definitely make you laugh. It's not the funniest movie ever, but it does an admirable job.

Other than that, I can't think of anything else to say. I have minor nitpicks, but most of them are standard horror clichés that didn't really take away from my enjoyment of the film itself. Do yourself a favor and check this one out, it's a great horror-comedy.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Blood, Guts, and Humor oh my, October 3, 2009

By	Jason T. Fetters "Horror Fanboy & Japanologist" (Tampa, FL The Sunshine State) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zombieland [Theatrical Release] (Theatrical Release)

Right from the start Zombieland is in your face. The opening sequence alone is just great and recalls Max Brooks' The Zombie Survival Guide. Also, it doesn't try to copy Romero's Dawn of the Dead or any of the other countless zombie movies.
It's a very direct film that doesn't waste time with needless character buildup, that would only slow the pacing. Characterization is achieved in between humor and action sequences and that approach works well.
Zombieland starts by introducing the overly cautious and neurotic, Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) who reminds me of Woody Allen back in Allen classic comedy films of the 70's.
Columbus is the quiet geeky guy who probably spent his high school years over thinking every detail and was quite possibly bullied by jocks. Now in a zombie infested world, he is forced to become more manly and athletic when taking on the undead.
Then there's Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) who is the gung ho bad ass. I think every zombie movie needs a Tallahassee type because they are so much fun to watch. Harrelson really steals the show in Zombieland. I don't think I've seen him this good since Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers. He looks like he could have fun in any situation in life pre or post zombie infected. I like the scene where Tallahassee is standing next to a bright yellow Hummer and just randomly firing a machine gun.
Next up are the manipulating sisters, Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) and Wichita (Emma Stone) who are both cute and annoying. I was annoyed with their characters at first and as their characters developed they became a little more tolerable. You also need sisters like this in a post zombie world because they will keep you on your toes. They are fun in their own ways and have both survived tough times together. Their strong bond makes them believable and you accept them for who they are.
With all the wonder characters and backgrounds aside, this is really about killing zombies. Who doesn't want to roam America's highways shooting zombies?
It's the ultimate road movie, as the four travel together and fight hundreds of zombies along the way.
As much fun as that is, the ending sequence at the amusement park, cranks up the fun a lot higher. The combination of rides, amusement park games, and shooting zombies is very entertaining.
Director Ruben Fleischer does a tremendous job directing action in the last half of Zombieland.
That's what these movies are all about to me. The cheap thrills of just going for it and taking out all that pent up aggressive shooting, stabbing, running over, hammering, and beating the undead any way you can.
Overall Zombieland is a lot of fun and a good way to kick off this Halloween season. I hope more horror movies come out this good in Halloween.
Some of my favorite Zombie movies are Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Zombi 2, Undead, Shaun of the Dead, Return of the Living Dead, Cemetery Man, Tokyo Zombie, Braindead, and The Dead Pit.
Zombieland deserves its place in the upper echelon of the Zombie movie canon.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Fast Paced and a Lot of Fun, November 5, 2009

By	thornhillatthemovies.com (Venice, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Zombieland [Theatrical Release] (Theatrical Release)

"Zombieland", the new film starring Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin as four of the few remaining humans living on planet Earth, is one of those movies that almost looks too good when you are watching the trailer. The Coming Attractions make you laugh and laugh and you suspect all of the funny bits were included to get some butts into seats. After watching the trailer, I feared the film would be a let down. There is no way it could live up to this two-minute clip reel.

Happily, I was wrong.

"Zombieland" begins with Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) giving us a brief recap of what has happened to this point. Short story even shorter, zombies have overrun the planet. As Columbus is one of the few remaining humans, he has developed a list of rules he uses to survive. He quickly recites the rules, such as "#7 Avoid Public Bathrooms", the rule appearing onscreen in large block letters as we watch a vignette illustrating the same rule (Mike White in an amusing cameo). We also learn that he is on his own and trying to get home, living on the hope that someone in his family might still be human. He quickly meets Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) when his Escalade complete with a modified cowcatcher careens through a freeway of abandoned cars, almost hitting Columbus. The two men learn they have very different purposes in life. Columbus just wants to stay alive and Tallahassee is searching for Twinkies. He simply wants to find as many Twinkies as he can, the golden snack cake, his favorite treat. The next day, they enter an abandoned supermarket and meet Witchita and Little Rock (Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin, respectively) two sisters who are trying to survive. Because they are all loners, they decide to try to remain as impersonal as possible and refer to each other by the name of their hometowns. They decide to work together and make their way to the West Coast. Along the way, they make two more very memorable stops. They also kill a lot of the zombies standing in their way.

I almost get the feeling that someone involved with this film turned on a stopwatch and mandated everything had to keep moving and the film would nor run more than 90 minutes. Generally, I sort of revel in films that allow the characters to grow and breath, provided they actually grow and breath, but "Zombieland" keeps things moving and the film benefits from this extremely fast pace. It moves so fast it doesn't have time to make mistakes, to seem slow and boring. Because everything keeps moving, you feel like you have experienced a fuller, longer, more fleshed out film.

As soon as we meet Columbus, we are thrust into the middle of this landscape, this story, we meet these characters. The film doesn't waste time setting everything up, explaining what has been happening. We learn this later, through some remembrances and as illustrations to some of Columbus' rules.

Because the film starts with these rules, we immediately learn two things about the story. First, zombies are running amuck. Second, Columbus is the type of guy who would be very comfortable making lists of rules. Later, we learn a little about Columbus' last and first experience with a girl and this also helps to illustrate why he is the type of guy who would go around making rules, lists, things to keep his life running smoothly and efficiently, to keep some order in his life.

But Columbus has learned to adapt to the new world order and has become quite adept at survival. He has learned how to shoot a gun, and what to do with it (related to one of his rules) and has learned how to keep a few steps ahead of the marauding zombies.

When he comes across Tallahassee (Harrelson), the two couldn't be more different. But this also makes them a good pair. Tallahassee is amused by Columbus and willing to give him a few pointers. And Tallahassee is so different from Columbus, the young man likes the dichotomy.

And Tallahassee's quest, to find as many of the remaining Twinkies left on the planet is amusing and continues to provide comic relief as his search becomes more and more desperate.

Emma Stone ("Superbad", "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past") and Abigail Breslin play the two sisters who will do anything they can to stay alive and stay together. Initially, they are reluctant to open up to the two men, but they quickly realize they need their help and can provide something to the group. Wichita also realizes Columbus is extremely interested in her, constantly flirting, and she enjoys the attention.

As they make their way across the US, they decide to make a funny, and very memorable pit stop leading to an incredibly funny extended cameo by a well-known comedian.

"Zombieland" is a lot of fun and plays like a roller coaster ride filled with laughs and chills and thrills.

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2010 Golden Globe Winners List

2010-01-18T12:51:08+00:00

2010 Golden Globe Winners List

By Brill Bundy

January 17, 2010 7:17 PM

* Denotes winners.

Best Television Series (Comedy or Musical):
"30 Rock"
"Entourage"
* "Glee"
"Modern Family"
"The Office"

Best Actor in a Television Series (Comedy or Musical):
* Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock"
Steve Carell, "The Office"
David Duchovny, "Californication"
Thomas Jane, "Hung"
Matthew Morrison, "Glee"

Best Actress in a Television Series (Comedy or Musical):
* Toni Collette, "The United States of Tara"
Courteney Cox, "Cougar Town"
Edie Falco, "Nurse Jackie"
Tina Fey, "30 Rock"
Lea Michele, "Glee"

Best Television Series (Drama):
"Big Love"
"Dexter"
"House"
* "Mad Men"
"True Blood"

Best Actress in a Television Series (Drama):
Glenn Close, "Damages"
January Jones, "Mad Men"
* Julianna Margulies, "The Good Wife"
Anna Paquin, "True Blood"
Kyra Sedgwick, "The Closer"

Best Actor in a Television Series (Drama):
Simon Baker, "The Mentalist"
* Michael C. Hall, "Dexter"
Jon Hamm, "Mad Men"
Hugh Laurie, "House"
Bill Paxton, "Big Love"

Best Director for a Motion Picture:
Kathryn Bigelow, "The Hurt Locker"
* James Cameron, "Avatar"
Clint Eastwood, "Invictus"
Jason Reitman, "Up in the Air"
Quentin Tarantino, "Inglourious Basterds"

Best Screenplay for a Motion Picture:
Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, "District 9"
Mark Boal, "The Hurt Locker"
Nancy Meyers, "It's Complicated"
* Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, "Up in the Air"
Quentin Tarantino, "Inglourious Basterds"

Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical):
"(500) Days of Summer"
* "The Hangover"
"It's Complicated"
"Julie & Julia"
"Nine"

Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical):
Sandra Bullock, "The Proposal"
Marion Cotillard, "Nine"
Julia Roberts, "Duplicity"
Meryl Streep, "It's Complicated"
* Meryl Streep, "Julie & Julia"

Best Actor in a Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical):
Matt Damon, "The Informant!"
Daniel Day-Lewis, "Nine"
* Robert Downey Jr., "Sherlock Holmes"
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, "(500) Days of Summer"
Michael Stuhlbarg, "A Serious Man"

Best Motion Picture (Drama):
* "Avatar"
"The Hurt Locker"
"Inglourious Basterds"
"Precious"
"Up in the Air"

Best Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama):
* Jeff Bridges, "Crazy Heart"
George Clooney, "Up in the Air"
Colin Firth, "A Single Man"
Morgan Freeman, "Invictus"
Tobey Maguire, "Brothers"

Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama):
Emily Blunt, "The Young Victoria"
* Sandra Bullock, "The Blind Side"
Helen Mirren, "The Last Station"
Carey Mulligan, "An Education"
Gabourey Sidibe, "Precious"

Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:
Matt Damon, "Invictus"
Woody Harrelson, "The Messenger"
Christopher Plummer, "The Last Station"
Stanley Tucci, "The Lovely Bones"
* Christoph Waltz, "Inglourious Basterds"

Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture:
Penelope Cruz, "Nine"
Vera Farmiga, "Up in the Air"
Anna Kendrick, "Up in the Air"
* Mo'Nique, "Precious"
Julianne Moore, "A Single Man"

Best Animated Movie:
"Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs"
"Coraline"
"Fantastic Mr. Fox"
"The Princess and the Frog"
* "Up"

Best Original Song in a Motion Picture
"Cinema Italiano," "Nine"
"I See You," "Avatar"
"I Want to Come Home," "Everybody's Fine"
* "The Weary Kind (Theme from 'Crazy Heart')," "Crazy Heart"
"Winter," "Brothers"

Best Original Score for a Motion Picture
* Micahel Giacchino, "Up"
Marvin Hamlisch, "The Informant!"
James Horner, "Avatar"
Abel Korzeniowski, "A Single Man"
Karen O and Carter Burwell, "Where the Wild Things Are"

Best Miniseries or Made-for-Television Movie:
"Georgia O'Keeffe"
* "Grey Gardens"
"Into the Storm"
"Little Dorritt"
"Taking Chance"

Best Actor in a Miniseries/Made-for-Television Movie:
* Kevin Bacon, "Taking Chance"
Kenneth Branagh, "Wallander: One Step Behind"
Chiwetel Ejiofor, "Endgame"
Brendan Gleeson, "Into the Storm"
Jeremy Irons, "Georgia O'Keeffe"

Best Actress in a Miniseries/Made-for-Television Movie:
Joan Allen, "Georgia O'Keeffe"
* Drew Barrymore, "Grey Gardens"
Jessica Lange, "Grey Gardens"
Anna Paquin, "The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler"
Sigourney Weaver, "Prayers for Bobby"

Best Supporting Actor (Television):
Michael Emerson, "Lost"
Neil Patrick Harris, "How I Met Your Mother"
William Hurt, "Damages"
* John Lithgow, "Dexter"
Jeremy Piven, "Entourage"

Best Supporting Actress (Television):
Jane Adams, "Hung"
Rose Byrne, "Damages"
Jane Lynch, "Glee"
* Chloe Sevigny, "Big Love"
Janet McTeer, "Into the Storm"

Best Foreign-Language Film:
"Baaria"
"Broken Embraces"
"The Maid"
"A Prophet"
* "The White Ribbon"

'24's' Mykelti Williamson: Jack Bauer's different this year

2010-01-17T10:46:59+00:00

'24's' Mykelti Williamson: Jack Bauer's different this year

By Korbi Ghosh

January 16, 2010 1:22 PM

There's a new sheriff at CTU, my friends, and you're about to get acquainted with him.

"24" busts back into our living rooms with a brand new season this Sunday (Jan. 17) and the man now running the show is Mr. Brian Hastings.

Mykelti Williamson, who plays Hastings, says his character is a hard nut to crack and a total control freak.

In fact, as you'll see in the clip below, Hastings' compulsion to control manifests itself in the design of the new CTU Headquarters... easily the coolest CTU set we've seen to date.

What else should you know about Hastings?

Well, he and Jack are not friends. But Williamson says Brian Hastings has a reason for butting heads with Jack and insists that the audience, too, will be questioning Mr. Bauer this season: "[Hastings] is pretty aggressive and he and the Jack Bauer character don't really see eye-to-eye. They don't really like each other, but they're forced to have to do things together, which is very interesting... because Jack Bauer's different than people thought he would be this year. So do you trust Bauer? Do you trust Brian Hastings? Who do you trust?"

Watch the clip and try to make a judgment call...

Pick: Doomsday 2012 DVD (documentary)

2010-01-16T19:01:08+00:00

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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Doomsday 2012, December 12, 2009

By	Donald W. Skaien - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

The disappointment here was the Amazon didn't put any notice that this was a History Channel program and I ended up with something very much less than what I wanted. I hope that if your reading this that you take heed to the warning that this is something off the tv and not a movie.

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2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars documentry, December 26, 2009

By	Teresa M. Booth "tmbooth" (wayne, wv) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

doomsday
a documentry abount the end of the calendar of the myan indian who are now extinct

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2 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars viral art against tragedy, December 12, 2009

By	Kenneth B. Updike Jr. "Archangel Idiotis" (individuatechurch.50webs.com) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

this is the end, the warning couldn't easily be transmitted. Esoteric babble's only rational purpose: the defeat of censorship.

the transmission is inhibited, but it is two clicks away: name then address

- the Word

This movie had its ups and downs. The special FX could have been better. one thumb up, one thumb down.

just kidding, well worth watching.

no, it was actually just ok.

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Conan O'Brien deal: NBC reportedly paying out $30 million

2010-01-16T18:51:32+00:00

Conan O'Brien deal: NBC reportedly paying out $30 million

By Andrea Reiher

January 15, 2010 5:04 PM

The Conan O'Brien problem at NBC is reportedly over.

The Wrap is reporting that NBC has worked out a deal with Conan O'Brien wherein he vacates the 11:35 pm "Tonight Show" in exchange for a $30 million payday.

The deal has yet to be officially signed but is most likely going to be announced late Friday (Jan. 15).

Meanwhile, Deadline is reporting that the deal is closer to $40 million and that Conan is insistent NBC take care of those close to him.

Rumors have been swirling all day that Conan O'Brien would be taking a buyout in exchange for NBC not enforcing the non-compete clause in his contract -- which would have kept Conan off the air until 2013.

Is it a fair deal? Conan gets dumped by NBC for $30-40 million?

And where will Conan land? FOX? A spot on "Sons of Anarchy?" We're sure the offers will come pouring in.

Jerry Seinfeld set to take Jay Leno's 10 o'clock Thursday slot?

2010-01-14T22:08:45+00:00

Jerry Seinfeld set to take Jay Leno's 10 o'clock Thursday slot?

By Korbi Ghosh

January 13, 2010 9:15 PM

Oh, NBC, what a mess. Not yelling at you. Merely speaking the truth.

Let's review: You gave up on scripted television at 10 o'clock, moved Jay Leno into that hour five days a week, watched this idea tank and then decided to bump Conan O'Brien's 7-month-old "Tonight Show" to 12:05 so Leno could return to 11:30.

And then Conan essentially quit.

And now we're not sure what is going to happen.

But word is, you are.

NBC Universal TV chairman Jeff Gaspin told reporters on Sunday (Jan. 10) at the Television Critics TV Press Tour that no decisions had been made and he planned on taking as much time as possible to solidify the schedule.

The network could potentially wait until mid-February when "The Jay Leno Show" goes off the air and perhaps even until early March after the 2010 Winter Olympics to announce its new 10 o'clock shows, but it sounds as though we could be hearing far sooner than that.

Insiders tell Jeridoo that NBC has already decided what will fill the 10 o'clock time slots Leno is vacating and could make an announcement as early as this week.

NBC says that they cannot comment at this time, but sources tell us that the Jerry Seinfeld-produced reality series "The Marriage Ref" is already set to take 10 o'clock on Thursdays and the other four nights of the week have been tentatively scheduled as well.

It seems fitting for "The Jay Leno Show"'s first guest, Seinfeld, to not only take over one of the hours "Leno" is vacating, but to return to his old Thursday night stomping grounds.

With NBC getting pummeled left-and-right by both media watchers and its own talent pool, Seinfeld took the rare approach of actually defending the network.

"I think ['The Jay Leno Show'] was also the right idea at the wrong time, and it was not a bad idea. And I'm proud of NBC that they had the guts to try something so different and original," Seinfeld told reporters on Sunday at a press panel for "The Marriage Ref." "And, you know, now you go on and do something else. That's show business. You just got to try things."

Golden Globes 2010: jeridoo predicts 'Glee' for best comedy

2010-01-14T01:57:43+00:00

Golden Globes 2010: jeridoo predicts 'Glee' for best comedy

By Rick Porter

January 13, 2010 3:10 PM

Could the reign of "30 Rock" at awards shows be at an end? If we're right about Sunday's Golden Globes, it might be.

The reigning Globe winner for best comedy series, actor (Alec Baldwin) and actress (Tina Fey) is no longer a clear-cut favorite to sweep the 67th annual awards Sunday (Jan. 17). A renaissance in TV comedy in the past year means a much more crowded field -- newcomers "Glee," "Modern Family," "Nurse Jackie" and"United States of Tara" are all nominated.

Taking into account the best of what TV had to offer in 2009 -- and the fact that Golden Globes voters tend to favor both big stars and new shows -- we offer our predictions for how the awards for TV comedy and TV movies and miniseries will (and should) go come Sunday.

Best comedy series
(Nominees: "30 Rock," "Entourage," "Glee," "Modern Family," "The Office")

Will and should win: "Glee." FOX's musical comedy has been one of the breakout shows of the year (and also has three other Globe nominations), and the Globes like to use their position as the first big television awards of the year to honor newcomers.

Best actor, comedy series
(Nominees: Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock"; Steve Carell, "The Office"; David Duchovny, "Californication"; Thomas Jane, "Hung"; Matthew Morrison, "Glee")

Will win: Baldwin. It was a close call over Duchovny, but the jeridoo team favors the man who's won two of the past three years.

Should win: Duchovny. He won in 2008 for "Californication," and his work on the show this season was even better.

Best actress, comedy series
(Nominees: Toni Collette, "United States of Tara"; Courteney Cox, "Cougar Town"; Edie Falco, "Nurse Jackie"; Tina Fey, "30 Rock"; Lea Michele, "Glee")

Will win: It's a toss-up between Cox, a well-known star making a strong return to TV comedy, and Collette, who gets to play multiple roles in "Tara."

Should win: Falco. "Nurse Jackie" isn't as out-and-out funny as the other shows in this field, but she gives a knockout performance.

Best TV movie or miniseries
(Nominees: "Georgia O'Keeffe," "Grey Gardens," "Into the Storm," "Little Dorrit," "Taking Chance")

Will and should win: "Grey Gardens." The fictionalized portrait of Big and Little Edie Beale -- distant relatives of Jacqueline Kennedy whose squalid life was the subject of an unblinking 1970s documentary -- was surprisingly sympathetic and evoked its period extremely well. HBO's moving "Taking Chance" is a dark horse.

Best actor, TV movie/miniseries
(Nominees: Kevin Bacon, "Taking Chance"; Kenneth Branagh, "Wallander: One Step Behind"; Chiwetel Ejiofor, "Endgame"; Brendan Gleeson, "Into the Storm"; Jeremy Irons, "Georgia O'Keeffe")

Will win: Bacon, whose portrayal of a Marine colonel who escorts a dead soldier's body home from Iraq was one of the best performances of his career.

Should win: Gleeson. His Winston Churchill in "Into the Storm" was every bit as formidable as Albert Finney's award-winning portrayal in "The Gathering Storm" in 2002.

Best actress, TV movie/miniseries
(Nominees: Joan Allen, "Georgia O'Keeffe"; Drew Barrymore, "Grey Gardens"; Jessica Lange, "Grey Gardens"; Anna Paquin, "The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler"; Sigourney Weaver, "Prayers for Bobby")

Will win: Kind of a tossup here, but we're going with Barrymore on the theory that Globes voters will be charmed by the actress as well as her performance.

Should win: Barrymore and Allen are neck-and-neck.

Coming Thursday: Our picks for TV drama and TV supporting actor and actress.

Who do you see taking home the Globes on Sunday?

UNL expertise helps power Wied project

2010-01-11T23:26:35+00:00

UNL expertise helps power Wied project

Sep 18th, 2008 | By admin | Category: Research, September 18, 2008

BIO SCIENCES ADVISER – Robert Kaul, curator of botany with the University of Nebraska State Museum, flips through the first volume of the translation of Prince Maximilian of Wied’s journal

Robert Kaul is following in the footsteps of Prince Maximilian of Wied, a German explorer and naturalist.

Kaul, curator of botany for the University of Nebraska State Museum and emeritus professor, is the biological sciences adviser on a Joslyn Museum-led project that is publishing a three-volume translation of Wied’s journals.

Wied was a wealthy count interested in natural history and anthropology. Between 1832 and 1834, Wied traveled from Boston, down the Ohio River, up the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, through Nebraska to central Montana.

“Wied recorded everything he saw, in vastly greater detail then Lewis and Clark did 30 years earlier,” said Kaul. “This is a major historical document, the first detailed descriptions of what was west of the Missouri.

“Lewis and Clark brought back a lot of information. But, Maximilian recorded more.”

The Joslyn obtained the Wied journals in the early 1960s. The collection includes Wied’s journals and more than 400 drawings and watercolors by Karl Bodmer, a Swiss painter hired by Wied to record images of the trip.

“The Bodmer images are beautiful and glorious,” said Marsha Gallagher, director of the Maximilian journals for the Joslyn. “But, the are becoming more historically important with the translation of Max’s journals.”

The actual translation from German was completed by two UNL emeritus professors of Modern Languages and Literatures – Paul Schach (deceased) and Dieter Karch. Karch has worked on the project for almost five years, building upon the translation completed by Schach.

WIED JOURNAL – A photo of a page in one of Wied’s field journals featuring Sauk and Meskwaki Indians he met in St. Louis.

For his part, Kaul is working through those translations, trying to identify the flora and fauna Wied described.

“Wied provided some images of what he saw,” Kaul said. “But, for the most part, I have to go by what he wrote. And, he often used European names for birds that looked alike. It’s up to me to try and figure out the modern names.”

A career botanist, Kaul has had to expand his zoology knowledge to assist with the translation. He has also turned to other museum employees – including Tom Labedz and Mary Jameson – to help identify Wied’s descriptions.

“It’s been fun tracking down information on the animals and birds Wied described,” Kaul said. “He saw so many things. It’s amazing to be sitting here reading and realize that he is talking about an extinct species, like the passenger pigeon or the Carolina parakeet.

“He really was meticulous and took the time to record everything.”

PRINCE MAX – This painting of Prince Maximilian of Wied and Karl Bodmer is featured on the inside cover of “The North America Journals of Prince Maximilian of Wied, Volume 1: May 1832-April 1833.”

That included the weather.

“Wied really liked to complain about the heat,” Kaul said. “What we think is pleasant, Europeans think is a scorcher. When it was in the 90s, Wied though he was going to die.”

Gallagher said those personal entries are what make the translation interesting.

“This project is important from historical and biological standpoints, but it’s also something for people who enjoy reading first hand accounts of another time, another place,” said Gallagher. “He can be dry, but he was an unbiased observer who made some really interesting observations.”

The first of three volumes, “The North America Journals of Prince Maximilian of Wied, Volume 1: May 1832-April 1833″ was published earlier this year. And, in total, 13 individuals with direct ties to UNL have helped with the project to date.

“It’s been a blessing for us to have this core of expertise right here in Nebraska,” said Gallagher. “Everyone has been great to work with.”

In particular, Gallagher praised Kaul’s work – which has carried on to the second volume, with the third on the horizon.

“Bob has been a joy to work with,” Gallagher said. “He has probably had the most work to do for us, simply because of the vast number of species observations Max recorded.

“It’s been almost 200 years since the expedition, but Bob has been able to track down each species of plant or animal described.”

For Kaul, the work has been an adventure.

“I like to say I got on the boat with Max when he left Holland for the United States,” said Kaul. “It has been a wonderful experience walking with Max.”

– Story and photos by Troy Fedderson, University Communications

Tracing the footfalls of Prince Max

These individuals with ties to UNL have helped with the translation of the Prince Maximilian of Wied journals:
• Stephen Witte (editor) 1997 graduate, lecturer in history 2001-2004
• Dieter Karch (translator), emeritus Modern Languages and Literatures (deceased)
• Paul Schach (translator), emeritus Modern Languages and Literatures
• Gary Moulton (senior adviser), professor of history
• Robert Kaul (biological sciences adviser), botany curator University of Nebraska State Museum
• Hugh Genoways, emeritus, University of Nebraska State Museum
• Mary Jameson, research associate professor, University of Nebraska State Museum
• Thomas Labedz, collections manager, University of Nebraska State Museum
• Marie-Chantal Kalisa, assistant professor, Modern Languages and Literatures
• Kenneth Winkle, chair of history
• Victoria A.O. Smith, assistant professor of history
• Nathan Sanderson, graduate student, history

'Glee' picked up for a second season

2010-01-11T18:44:06+00:00

'Glee' picked up for a second season

By Hanh Nguyen

January 11, 2010 8:42 AM

Everybody sing! "Glee" will be back for more musical adventures.

FOX has ordered a second season of its Golden-Globe nominated comedy, it was announced Monday (Jan. 11) at the Television Critics Association Press Tour.

"We've loved 'Glee' ever since it was a pilot script, so it's been an incredible thrill to watch the show take root and see audiences embrace these characters in such a huge way this season," said FOX entertainment president Kevin Reilly. "The show is a true and rare gem in television. We couldn't be more proud of what Ryan Murphy and the 'Glee' team have created so far, and can't wait to see what they come up with for Season Two."

It was also announced that the show is launching a nationwide search in February to fill three new roles for the upcoming season. The search will be chronicled in a multi-part special. The new Gleeks will be revealed on the second season premiere episode.

"'Glee' has always been about finding new fresh exciting voices," said creator Ryan Murphy. "Anybody and everybody now has a chance to be on a show about talented underdogs. No matter who you are -- a Broadway talent or a struggling singing waiter with a dream in the Midwest -- you now have an opportunity to make that dream come true by posting your talent video and showing us what you can do. All the roles will be chosen form the video audition process, which is exciting and unprecedented."

In December, "Glee" received Golden Globe nominations for best TV comedy and for its stars Lea Michele, Matthew Morrison and Jane Lynch. In addition, the show has received nominations from the Screen Actors Guild, the Directors Guild of American and the Writers Guild of America.

Recently "Glee" was named favorite new TV comedy at the People's Choice Awards and was named one of the Top 10 TV programs off the year by the American Film Institute.

"Glee" returns for the second half of its first season on Tuesday, April 13 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on FOX.

Eva Longoria Parker, Alec Baldwin weigh in on 'The Marriage Ref'

2010-01-11T13:12:34+00:00

Eva Longoria Parker, Alec Baldwin weigh in on 'The Marriage Ref'

By Rick Porter

January 10, 2010 6:20 PM

NBC's upcoming show "The Marriage Ref" has lined up a roster of celebrity panelists for its initial run -- and NBC is hoping to give the show a boost by previewing it at the tail end of the Winter Olympics.

The Jerry Seinfeld-produced series, a comedy-reality hybrid with the trappings of a sports show -- including announcer Marv Albert -- will get a half-hour preview on Sunday, Feb. 28, following the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics. It will move to its regular home at 8 p.m. ET Sundays starting March 14.

The show will take squabbles between married couples -- the kind of thing you'd carp about over dinner with friends, Seinfeld told reporters Sunday (Jan. 10) at NBC's press tour sessions -- and settle them once and for all via the Marriage Ref, comedian Tom Papa. A panel of celebrities will also watch the taped arguments and try to sway Papa's decision.

Among the panelists for the first run are "30 Rock" stars Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey, Eva Longoria Parker of "Desperate Housewives," Seinfeld's old friend Larry David and NBA legend Charles Barkley. Albert will serve as announcer and hand out small, argument-appropriate prizes to the winner of each argument.