Saturday Night Live parodied Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live last night, which is a pretty significant challenge considering Andy Cohen’s nightly talk show/hot mess is pretty much an unintentional parody by itself–and even of itself. But it worked. Andy Cohen was, unsurprisingly, thrilled by the attention, tweeting, “OMG the one night I go to bed… continue reading
Unfair reactions to Bravo’s terrible new shows
Before their upfront presentation to advertisers, Bravo announced seven new shows that they called an “aggressive development slate”–and collectively, they seem like aggressively awful shows. I’m judging, of course, based on a few dozen words in a press release, and that’s it, so of course I’m being ridiculously unfair. These shows might end up being… continue reading
Bravo, Oxygen, Style boss Lauren Zalaznick’s ridiculous argument about why people watch her shows
Former Bravo president and current NBC executive Lauren Zalaznick is undoubtedly very smart and responsible for much of what I love on television. She also made a ridiculous argument that suggest she has very different relationships to her shows than viewers do. “I reject easy slams like ‘train wreck’ and ‘guilty pleasure. It’s just not… continue reading
Andy Cohen gets five nights a week for the well-watched disaster known as Watch What Happens Live
Bravo is expanding its chat show Watch What Happens Live, hosted by its executive-turned-blogger-turned-host-turned-TV personalty Andy Cohen, to five nights a week. It will air Sundays to Thursdays starting Jan. 8 thanks to the fact that Andy has higher ratings than fellow cable chat show hosts Chelsea Handler and Conan O’Brien. But it also means… continue reading
Reviews of summer food competitions: Rocco’s Dinner Party, Extreme Chef, Chopped, more
Food competitions have multiplied across network and cable channels, and summer seems to be the time when they proliferate. While we wait for the return of Top Chef Just Desserts later this month, I thought I’d look at some new and returning food competition series and give them brief reviews. Let’s start with Hell’s Kitchen… continue reading
Bravo renews five shows, gives Jeff Lewis and Tabatha Coffey new series
Bravo has ordered 11 new reality series, and renewed four others, including the awesome Top Chef Just Desserts. Also renewed: The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (only a minor surprise here), The Real Housewives of Atlanta, Tabatha’s Salon Takeover, and whatever they will call Bethenny Frankel’s third season. The network is also giving two of… continue reading
Chad Rogers insists his decision to leave Million Dollar Listing wasn’t “mutual” by having his lawyer threaten a TV critic
Chad Rogers has left Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing, something we first learned last April, but the terms of his departure are so important that his lawyer has threatened a TV critic–even though the critic’s reporting is based on something Bravo’s president said. In addition, his lawyer also claimed “Chad enjoys extremely positive publicity.” The Pittsburgh… continue reading
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 From The Bottom To The Top, the network’s executives insist that is not true and will never happen, even though they are casting and developing shows with groups of gay… continue reading
Second day of reality TV: Two dog bites in the vagina
Yes, it only took until day two of the 12 Days of Reality TV to get to genitalia, but it’s not the normal kind we’re used to reality stars exposing for the whole world to see. Instead, it’s the stand-out moment from the short-lived but awesome 2005 Bravo series Showdog Moms and Dads, one of… continue reading
Bravo stars Jeff Lewis, Kelly Cutrone going to daytime TV
Two Bravo docudrama stars will soon be appearing on daytime TV shows: Flipping Out‘s Jeff Lewis will co-host a Will & Grace-style daytime talk show with Tori & Dean star Tori Spelling, and Kell on Earth‘s Kelly Cutrone has joined Dr. Phil as a contributor. Kelly Cutrone “has signed on as a special correspondent” and… continue reading
Kara DioGuardi resurfaces as judge for Bravo’s songwriting competition Going Platinum
Former American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi will be the head judge for Bravo’s Going Platinum, which will be hosted by Jewel. The show, a renamed version of the singer/songwriter competition Hitmakers that the network announced last spring, is more Top Chef than Idol. The series will debut next year and Bravo says it will “follow… continue reading
Jackie Warner: still unlikeable despite having editing control on Thintervention
Jackie Warner’s second Bravo series, Thintervention, ended last night after eight episodes of working with a group of people to help them lose weight. Although we’re used to hard-core trainers on reality TV now, thanks to The Biggest Loser, Jackie seems especially unlikeable. That’s weird because she’s an executive producer and now has editing control… continue reading
The Rachel Zoe pregnancy video that’s more entertaining than reality
Rachel Zoe’s third season ended with the stylist talking about giving birth, and now she’s the subject of pregnancy rumors. Judging by how awful season three was, if there is a fourth season, and if she is pregnant, and if cameras film during her pregnancy, it won’t be anywhere near as entertaining as this hilarious… continue reading
Brad Goreski quits Rachel Zoe, which means her Bravo show should now die
Brad Goreski, the weeping assistant who starred in Bravo’s The Rachel Zoe Project since the first season, is leaving the stylist’s employment, and thus presumably will no longer be featured on the series–if it even returns for a third season. Brad told People, “I love Rachel and she’s taught me everything I know. But there’s… continue reading
Bethenny Getting Married is Bravo’s best debut ever despite its title, her dull fiance
Despite its nonsensical title, Bethenny Getting Married? drew viewers to Bravo and became its highest-rated debut ever. Bethenny Frankel’s show was “the highest rated series premiere in network history with 2.10 million total viewers and 1.35 million adults 18-49,” according to a Bravo press release. I’m surprised by that–but also by how watchable the show… continue reading
Bravo is “very research-oriented,” uses social media to plan reality show plot lines
Bravo’s success is no accident, as the cable network uses extensive, almost insane amounts of research to develop its programming, and as part of that, how you react to Bravo shows online may impact what happens on those docudramas. That’s according to a New York Times report that details the way Bravo “finds and tests… continue reading
Bravo promotes Frances Berwick to president, acknowledging her incredible track record
Frances Berwick has been promoted to president of Bravo Media, up from executive vice president and general manager. She has been with Bravo since 1996, and has developed and produced everything from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy to Top Chef and Project Runway, plus more recent shows such as My Life on the D-List… continue reading
Chad Rogers leaving Million Dollar Listing; producers casting for New York version
One of the three stars of Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing is leaving the series, and producers are now casting for New York City real estate agents, perhaps for a spin-off of the L.A.-set series. Chad Rogers, whose attempts to cause drama couldn’t overcome his awkward acting and stilted delivery last season, is leaving, according to… continue reading
Bravo announces series renewals and new shows, some baffling, some obvious
Bravo has announced a number of renewals and series orders, including some scripted series, and also said it will add 20 percent more programming this year and add a fifth night of new shows. Most notably, the network will spin off The Real Housewives yet again with The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, which has… continue reading
Chef Academy’s Emmanuel Delcour getting his own cooking show
Emmanuel Delcour, the former porn star who was a cast member on Bravo’s Chef Academy, is getting his own series, although he would not reveal the network nor its content, saying only, “I’m doing my own cooking show. … Pretty soon you’ll know.” I talked to him as part of my story on the increasing… continue reading