Paula Deen is on a vacation … and going to TOWN on a burger! The Food Network star, who recently revealed she has type 2 diabetes, was photographed eating a burger and fries Monday on a Caribbean cruise ship with her fans. Deen, 65, is taking heat from critics, such as Anthony Bourdain , who say she has profited from her indulgent cooking and recipes while keeping her condition secret . This story is not likely to douse that fire. While diabetes isn’t a sentence to life without burgers, eating a healthy diet is one way to manage it … which makes Deen’s admission all the more baffling to some. As Deen made her announcement, she also partnered with drug maker Novo Nordisk to launch a new site, Diabetes in a New Light, offering diabetes-friendly recipes. Then she turns around and inhales a juicy burger. Nice. Deen says she’s cut back on sugary/fatty foods, and that “I want to try to get across moderation,” she says. If that’s true, shouldn’t she … eh, forget it. Tell us: Does Paula Deen set a terrible example?
NBC considering launching an ‘Office’ spin-off focused on Rainn Wilson’s Dwight Schrute character. By Gil Kaufman Up until now, we’ve gotten just an occasional glimpse at the bizarre happenings at the Schrute family beet farm. But if NBC has its way, we may be seeing a lot more of agritourism hotel owner and Assistant to the Regional Manager at Dunder Mifflin Dwight Schrute. According to The Hollywood Reporter an unnamed source at NBC confirmed that the network is thinking about a spin-off centered on Rainn Wilson’s paintball-loving character and his family’s farm. The show would delve deeper into life at Schrute Farms and include a number of other Schrutes. With “The Office” not yet picked up for a ninth season, the plan is to start testing the concept in an episode later this season. So far, it’s believed that Wilson, as well as actor/showrunner Paul Lieberstein and executive producer Ben Silverman are involved. “Paul and Rainn have been joking for years about Dwight’s life on the farm, his family and how ill-suited he is to run a B&B,” a source told the Deadline Hollywood . “A while ago, it started to feel like a show to them. NBC agreed, it’s been further developed to include multiple generations, many cousins and neighbors. At its base it will be about a family farm struggling to survive and a family trying to stay together.” As the Reporter noted, while Wilson’s quirky character has a devoted cult following — as evidenced by such comprehensive fan sites as Schrute Space — the spin-off concept is not necessarily a slam-dunk. Just as the short-lived, unfunny “Friends” spin-off “Joey” crashed and burned, it’s possible that the shrinking “Office” fan base might not follow Dwight off into the beet fields. “The Office” got a major overhaul at the end of last season, when star Steve Carell left and actor James Spader was brought in as new boss Robert California. So far, the strong ensemble cast has struggled to find its legs without Carell’s outrageously clueless Michael Scott to ground them and average ratings have slipped down by more than a million viewers since last season. Given the show’s legacy and appeal to young male viewers, though, the trade magazine said it was likely “The Office” would be picked up for another season.
Registration at Ontario bank surges after singer tweets about one fan’s need for a lung transplant. By Jocelyn Vena Justin Bieber Photo: Getty Images Justin Bieber is a charitable guy. So when a fan of his reached out to him on Twitter to help spread the word about organ and blood donation, one particular bank quickly saw more and more people in the giving spirit. Belieber Helene Campbell, 20, tweeted the teen star last week about her own struggles (including how she herself needs a lung transplant). Bieber then began tweeting to her and about her, shedding more light on the cause than the fan could have ever anticipated. In the days since the online correspondence, the Ontario-based Trillium Gift of Life Network has seen donations skyrocket to more than 1,200 people, four times the amount the network usually receives. In part it had a lot to do with Bieber, but also the campaign started by Campbell, who suffers from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. “Helene has done an incredible job inspiring and motivating Ontarians to register their consent to organ and tissue donation. On an average day we would expect about 50 new online registrations,” President and CEO Ronnie Gavsie said in a statement on Wednesday (January 25). “Since Helene’s campaign began last Thursday, the average has been closer to 200 per day! There are over 1,500 people in Ontario waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant, on behalf of all them and Trillium Gift of Life Network, thank you Helene and thank you Justin Bieber!” Shortly after his initial tweet, she shared with him, “@justinbieber you have made a huge impact, not only on my life, but for many others in need of the gift of life now and in the future!” His response: “@alungstory glad to be able to help. best part of what i do.” Bieber’s other charity work includes his Believe Charity Drive as well as his participation with the Pencils of Promise foundation . Related Artists Justin Bieber
Joan Rivers and Chelsea Handler are in a major feud and Howard Stern is caught in the middle, having hosted the women on his radio show in successive days. Yesterday, in the same interview in which she recalled dumping 50 Cent , Handler was reflecting on her ongoing feud with Rivers. Chelsea’s take, in a nutshell: “What the f**k do I care about Joan Rivers? I don’t think about her ever.” Joan Rivers on Howard Stern According to Joan, the discord began which she claims Chelsea ignored her efforts to say hello at an E! function and was outright rude to her and her daughter. Handler claims Rivers started the feud by making harsh remarks about her in a speech for no reason, unprovoked. It’s unclear what she said allegedly. In any case, Joan appeared on Stern’s Sirius XM show Tuesday morning with daughter Melissa Rivers and went off on Handler, calling her unfunny and worse. Specifically, she alluded to Chelsea’s relationship with E! CEO Ted Harbert. “Number one, the girl made it on her back f**king the president, we all know that, of the network. Number two, she’s fine, she’s ordinary,” Rivers told Stern. “She’s not a genius,” Joan said. “She’s an ordinary girl that was f**king somebody high up in the industry and they gave her a break and she’s doing okay.” “Whatever she is, she’s a drunk. I don’t wish her good luck, I don’t wish her bad luck. I don’t think she’s funny. But don’t you come after me, you wh*re!” Are you Team Joan or Team Chelsea?
Many conservatives are furious over Newsweek ‘s controversy-bait cover story by Andrew Sullivan, whose headline asks, “Why Are Obama’s Critics So Dumb?” Sarah Palin is taking it particularly personally, though. “Know what’s truly ‘dumb’?” Palin Tweeted . “Giving a cover story to the Trig Truther conspiracy kook writer who thinks I didn’t give birth to my son.” In a play on the “Birther” conspiracy surrounding Obama’s birth certificate, Palin is calling out Sullivan for questioning whether she is Trig’s real mother. In 2008, Sullivan and others theorized that a Sarah Palin pregnancy scandal involving a cover-up of Bristol Palin getting knocked up could be in effect. Bristol was, of course, pregnant with Tripp, not Trig. He hypothesized that Palin “faked the pregnancy to avoid embarrassment for her daughter [ Bristol Palin ] or for political gain or some combination of reasons.” Sullivan’s response to Palin calling him out today? “I have no idea, as I have said time and time again, whether Sarah Palin gave birth to Trig, and have never written such a thing.” “All I ever asked for a person who could become president was some basic evidence for her insane story, like medical records that most candidates have no problem providing.” “She never provided any, and preferred to withdraw from seeking public office rather than do so. Of course, no response to the substance. She doesn’t do substance. Neither, it seems, does much of the rightwing blogosphere. Other conservative bloggers have fired back against Sullivan on political grounds. Andrew Breitbart’s Big Government writes “Why Is Andrew Sullivan So Dumb?” “You’d have to be stupid, fanatical, and dishonest to argue – as Trig Truther Sullivan does – that Barack Obama’s failures are part of an ingenious ‘long game’ destined to succeed,” he wrote. “If this is the best Obama’s supporters can do, Obama’s only hope for re-election is the weak Republican field.” During a Fox News segment on Sullivan’s article Monday night, the network blurred out Sullivan’s name when showing the Newsweek cover. “They are far too afraid to have me on to defend it,” Sullivan wrote. “I’ve been on the blacklist for years. Like Ron Paul , too dangerous for Fox.”
Kaley Cuoco kicked off the 2012 People’s Choice Awards tonight alongside her co-stars from The Big Bang Theory , eventually taking center stage and introducing the only ceremony where the fans are in control. So who benefited from your Tweets, texts and online votes? Read on for a full list of winners and return tomorrow for a fashion and music rundown… Favorite Movie: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Favorite Movie Icon: Morgan Freeman Favorite Action Movie Star: Hugh Jackman Favorite Late Night TV Host: Jimmy Fallon Favorite Movie Actress: Emma Stone Favorite Comedic Movie Actress: Emma Stone Favorite Animated Movie Voice: Johnny Depp as Rango Favorite Movie Superhero: Ryan Reynolds as Green Lantern Favorite Movie Actor: Johnny Depp Favorite TV Competition Show: American Idol Favorite Daytime TV Host: Ellen DeGeneres Favorite Network TV Drama: Supernatural Favorite TV Comedy Actress: Lea Michele, Glee Favorite TV Drama Actress: Nina Dobrev Favorite TV Comedy Actor: Neil Patrick Harris Favorite TV Crime Drama: Castle Favorite Cable Drama: Pretty Little Liars Favorite TV Drama Actor: Nathan Fillion Favorite SciFi Show: Supernatural Favorite Network TV Comedy : How I Met Your Mother Favorite New TV Drama: Person Of Interest Favorite New TV Comedy: Two Broke Girls Favorite Cable TV Comedy: Hot in Cleveland Favorite Album of the Year : Born This Way, Lady Gaga Favorite Comedic Movie Actor: Adam Sandler Favorite Movie Star Under 25: Chlo
‘Elizabeth & Richard: A Love Story’ will follow Taylor’s epic romance with fellow superstar Richard Burton. By Kara Warner Lindsay Lohan and Elizabeth Taylor Photo: Getty Images Nine days into the new year, and we already have our first surprising Lindsay Lohan story. The recent Playboy cover girl ‘s next role might be that of Hollywood legend Elizabeth Taylor in a made-for-TV-movie for Lifetime. According to Deadline , Lohan is in very early talks to play the lead role in Lifetime’s original movie “Elizabeth & Richard: A Love Story.” The TV movie, which was announced at the network’s upfront presentation to advertisers in May 2011, will be a biopic and will reportedly revolve around the epic romance between movie icons Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, whose tempestuous relationship was the most infamous celebrity love affair of its day. In a nutshell, Taylor and Burton were the original “Brangelina.” Lohan’s potential involvement would definitely elevate interest in the project, no matter the production or air date. The problem-plagued 25-year-old could use something positive in her professional career, since the last time we heard from Lohan was via her Playboy interview and court hearings that led to 30 days in jail for violating probation, not attending court-mandated therapy sessions and getting tossed from a community-service gig. Lohan seems to have a thing for misunderstood, old-school Hollywood icons, given the Marilyn Monroe theme in her Playboy spread and her onetime involvement in a Linda Lovelace biopic. Furthermore, Lohan and Taylor have a few interesting things in common, according to a 2010 article from Slate . “Both had domineering stage mothers, little semblance of a real childhood, fame from a young age, substance abuse issues, public emotional outpourings, and copious amounts of tabloid drama,” wrote Slate senior editor Jessica Grose. “The key difference, though, is that Elizabeth Taylor had a true record of achievement before she became the most notorious movie star in America. She had made almost 30 movies by the time she and Burton were making headlines.” There has been no official comment from Lohan or Lifetime yet. Related Photos Elizabeth Taylor: A Life In Photos
Since VH1′s “Mob Wives” reality show has been pulling in millions of viewers, the network has begun filming a spinoff, “ Mob Wives: Chicago .” The original takes place in Staten Island, and the Chicago edition will be produced by the same team. “Our viewers connected so strongly with our New York cast that we were skeptical about trying to repeat that success, said Jeff Olde, Executive Vice President, Original Programming & Production. “But once we met these ladies from Chicago and heard their truly unbelievable stories, we knew that viewers would become just as captivated as we did. These women’s life experiences may be far different from our own, but their current struggles to stand on their own two feet are relatable to everyone.” “The furs, the money, the parties, the respect – it’s all part of the intrigue of the world I grew up in,” said series Creator and Executive Producer Jennifer Graziano of JustJenn Productions. “But at any time, the other shoe can drop and these women find themselves going on prison visits. I have long thought that this was a story that needed to be told, and am so thankful that we can continue this journey with the original “Mob Wives” – as well as expanding the franchise to Chicago. I have always heard the legends about Al Capone and Chicago, but it wasn’t until I actually went to the city that I became enamored with the rich mob history there. These women’s lives are right off the pages of a storybook!” Find out more about “Mob Wives: Chicago” here . RELATED POSTS: T.I. Stays In The Reality Show Business Yandy Accuses Love & Hip Hop Producers Of Setting Up Fights
Gerry Epstein of PERI speaks to the Real News Network about the out of the headlines negotiations on Volcker rule implementation as well as other ideas for bringing major banks to heel. Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : naked capitalism Discovery Date : 06/01/2012 08:54 Number of articles : 2
To promote Game Show Network’s acquisition of Dancing with the Stars reruns, the cable channel recruited some past faves along with reigning champ J.R. Martinez . Pros Maksim Chmerkovskiy, Derek Hough and Lacey Schwimmer joined Ralph Macchio, Mel B, Rick Fox, Gilles Marini, Audrina Patridge and Chaz Bono for a shoot. You can begin catching reruns of DWTS on January 21 at 6 p.m. ET. First up: Season 4 (won by Apolo Ohno). GSN bought repeats through the coming Season 14. Dancing With the Stars returns again this spring in the time slot now occupied by The Bachelor , which kicks off its all-new quest for love/drama/laughs/ratings tonight.
