reality blurred + archives + January 9 to January 15, 2011

week of January 9, 2011

Jersey Shore returns with MTV's highest ratings ever, Snooki products, a GTL Foursquare badge
The return of Jersey Shore Thursday night drew 8.45 million viewers, which MTV said was its "most watched series telecast ever." So, yes, Nicole "Snooki"...
James Gandolfini watches Real Housewives, and other insight from the cast of HBO's An American Family movie
In a few months, HBO will once again fictionalize the creation of a famous work of nonfiction, although this time it's the reality series that...
Maksim Chmerkovskiy will star in Ukraine's Bachelor, says he was offered ABC Bachelor
Dancing with the Stars pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy will star in the first Ukrainian version of The Bachelor, and said he rejected ABC's offer to be...
Harry Connick, Jr., was asked to be an American Idol judge
Popular American Idol mentor Harry Connick, Jr., was asked to be one of the new judges for the show's 10th season, but said that talks...

Survivor Redemption Island cast revealed as CBS (almost) finally confirms two returners
CBS has confirmed what we've known since last summer, that two former Survivor cast members will return for Survivor Redemption Island, but has decided to...
Richard Hatch found guilty of violating probation
The ongoing saga that is original Survivor winner Richard Hatch's legal drama has a new chapter: He's been found guilty of violating his probation that...
ABC exec "hope[s]" for a bachelor of color, says Bachelor is "deeply romantic"
ABC's relatively new president faced TV critics this morning, and when he was asked about The Bachelor, praised the show for being "romantic" and said...

Children of Haiti follows three teenage orphans pre- and post-earthquake
Tonight at 10 p.m. ET, PBS' Independent Lens airs Children of Haiti, a film that follows three orphaned teenage boys over a period of three...
Big Brother's Matt McDonald pleads guilty to conspiring to distribute drugs
Big Brother 9 houseguest Matt McDonald has pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute oxycodone as part of a drug ring Adam Jasinski . Matt initially...
Mary Murphy returning to So You Think You Can Dance (cue scream)
As expected, choreographer Mary Murphy will return after a season-long absence to So You Think You Can Dance, replacing Mia Michaels, who quit and won't...
Survivor winner Fabio/Jud stars in homoerotic horror movie 1313: Nightmare Mansion
Survivor Nicaragua winner Jud Birza, aka Fabio, is starring in a new 1313: Nightmare Mansion, a movie directed by David DeCoteau, whose low-budget horror and...
Ryan Seacrest uses placenta, not Botox, on his face
During Fox's panel with American Idol talent and producers in Los Angeles today, Ryan Seacrest admitted that he stays youthful by applying something to his...

American Idol's big change: it's now about contestants as artists, not karaoke singers
With all the conversations American Idol's changes for its 10 seasons, the big one seems to be that season 10 will focus on developing contestants...
Mary Murphy had cancer surgery for tumor in her throat: "I can't scream"
Returning So You Think You Can Dance judge Mary Murphy had surgery for a tumor in her throat in December, and at least right now,...

TV comedy stars discuss reality TV's impact on the resurgence of TV comedy
During a panel discussion of sitcom stars from How I Met Your Mother, Raising Hope, and Modern Family, actor Jason Segel said comedies came back...
Breaking! Shocking! Rob Mariano and Russell Hantz returning to Survivor for "one last shot"
The worst-kept secret in reality TV casting has finally been announced by CBS: Rob Mariano and Russell Hantz are cast members on Survivor Redemption Island,...
Ryan Buell leaving Paranormal State beacuse "we need some freedom to be and to grow"
The A&E reality series Paranormal State will lose its star and subject after five seasons of following Ryan Buell and his Pennsylvania State University Paranormal...
Curtis Stone will host Top Chef Masters 3, replacing Kelly Choi
Top Chef Masters will return for a third season this year, and its worst part, host Kelly Choi, will be gone, replaced by Celebrity Apprentice...
Bravo will "never" do a gay Housewives, but may have show with "a group of gay guys"
Despite reports that Bravo had already cast a The Real Housewives spin-off featuring gay men, sort of like Logo's obnoxious The A List but called...
Kara DioGuardi won't talk about American Idol but is writing a book about it
Kara DioGuardi is writing a book about being fired from--or quitting--American Idol, which explains her disingenuous refusal to answer questions about the Fox show while...

A second season of Skating with the Stars may happen, ABC president suggests
Addressing the failure of Dancing with the Stars spin-off Skating with the Stars, ABC's entertainment president threatened/teased us by calling its premiere season its "first...
Celebrity Apprentice's "stellar celebrity lineup" of former reality stars announced
The cast of The Celebrity Apprentice 4 has been officially announced, although it's been known since last fall, as the contestants competed rather publicly in...
Beyond Scared Straight's screaming inmates draw a record number of viewers
A&E and Arnold Shapiro's new reality series Beyond Scared Straight, which follows kids kids got in trouble as they go prison to get the shit...
San Francisco Giants will be followed for a Friday Night Lights-like Showtime reality series
Pay cable network Showtime has teamed with Major League Baseball's production company to follow the San Francisco Giants, the 2010 World Series winners, for a...
Next week: Top Chef all-stars face restaurant wars, RHOBH ends, and Idol returns
Lots of headlines in the reality TV world this week, from a Survivor winner starring in a homoerotic movie (it has a hilarious preview that...