tgif top 10: sisters

Tomorrow is my big sister's birthday, so here's a list for her. For some reason, childhood shows dominate this list. Perhaps because I watched them with my sister.

Top 10 Favorite TV Sisters

1. Roseanne and Jackie (Roseanne)


2. Teddy, Frankie, Alex, Georgie and Charley (Sisters) - I did that from memory!


3. Julia and Suzanne (Designing Women)


4. Laura and Mary Ingalls (Little House on the Prairie)


5. Stacy and Renee (Kids Incorporated)


6. Sondra, Denise, Vanessa and Rudy (The Cosby Show)


7. Jennifer and Mary Anne (Perfect Strangers)


8. Betty and Hilda (Ugly Betty)


9. Marie, Cindy, Wendy, Connie and Sherry (Just the Ten of Us) - Sadly, that was not from memory.


10. Marsha and Jan (The Brady Bunch) - I never took to Cindy. Whiner.

visit to my summer house

We're in the thick of the summer drought right now. Summer series that started back in June have either run their course or are pittering down to their last episodes. The second string (i.e. Project Runway and Mad Men) are so close we can taste them. In the meantime, I feel like I'm watching six hours of America's Got Talent per week, and that is never a good thing.

I miss my quirky dramas. Although I'm hanging tight with Leverage - one of my new favorites -I'm ready for Bones and House to come back into my life.

In the meantime, fun scoop from Michael Ausiello on the new season of House. The enduring House debate over the last two seasons: new kids vs. old kids? Did they pull off the switcheroo banishing Chase and Cameron to recurring status and bringing in some new blood? With the fabulous Cut Throat Bitch and solid contributions from Cutter (R.IP.), I'm leaning toward yes. But the tired Huntington's Hottie had me wishing for more Cameron and Chase.

Looks like I'm getting my wish. With House in a mental institution for the first portion of the fall season, Jennifer Morrison (Cameron) is reporting that we'll be seeing a lot more of the newlyweds this season. The two are back in their old jobs - for the time being anyway - which I assume means Foreman is the boss man. Should be interesting... and also infuriating for House. Anyway, I'm happy to chase after a few crumbs while we wait for September.

don draper countdown: 10 days!

rockford redo

Although the show technically aired before my time, I know Rockford Files by name, reputation, and late night reruns. Face facts, James Garner was the original McDreamy.

Variety is reporting a new Rockford Files pilot from NBC and Steve Carell's Carousel Television. The best part? David Shore, creator-executive producer of House, is on the case. With new bodies at the helm of NBC, let's hope this doesn't go in the tragic direction of the unfortunate Knight Rider remake.

If you were in diapers in the 70s or don't have cable, here's the basic premise of the original: Jim Rockford is an ex-con granted pardon for an armed robbery he didn't commit. He lands as a private investigator living in a trailor in Malibu who prefers a quiet life, but his cases are usually more than he bargins for.

I'm trying to cast the new Rockford in my head... he needs to be 45ish, slightly rough around the edges, tough, but also dapper with some comedy chops. I wouldn't mind seeing Damian Lewis (Life), but that would basically be a lighter version of Life, and I need to let go of that dream. Chris Noth? Too polished. Matt Dillion? Probably to cool for TV. Michael Rapaport! Non-traditional, but that might be right up David Shore's alley.

Any thoughts?

bye bye ben

Pardon me while I analyze some industry news today. NBC has announced that Ben Silverman is leaving his post as co-chairman to head InterActiveCorp (IAC) a production and multimedia company.

Silverman has only been with NBC for 2 years, becoming perhaps the most public network executive (a frequent offender on Ryan Seacrest's radio show). He developed a reputation for shaking things up but never doing much to pull NBC out of the number 4 spot to which it tragically fell. Ben's probably most noted for more aggressive advertising strategies leading to more product placement and sponsorship (Chuck's love for Subway), but not so noted for successful new programming during his reign. The most recent decision to place The Jay Leno Show in the 10pm timeslot being the most controversial decision among fans of NBC shows of yesteryear.

To be fair, Silverman is also responsible for some good in this world. Prior to NBC, he founded a production company called Reveille, created to bring international formats to the U.S. audience. At Reveille, he brought us such gems as The Office, Ugly Betty, and The Biggest Loser.

It's was obvious pretty quickly that he was brought into NBC to make money for the struggling network, and he made some big changes to the ad strategy, so it's not surprising that he's heading to IAC to work on ad strategies for new media projects.

Silverman will be replaced by Jeff Gaspin, current president and chief operating officer of the company's cable entertainment group. Don't know much about him, but it will be interesting to see if he assumes an equally public role.

tgif top 10: so you think you can dance

HOW have I never before watched So You Think You Can Dance? As an avid Idol fan, there is really no excuse. The Katie Holmes performance caught my curiosity (well done promoters), so I tuned in last night for what turned about to be a special episode because it was their 100th. Sweet Mary Poppins. I'm in love. And I'm turning this revelation into this week's top 10 list.

Top 10 Things I Love About SYTYCD **

1. The Host: Cat Deeley completely sets the tone for the program - possibly more than any other live show I've seen. She's obviously a huge fan of the choreographers and performances, but also plays mother hen to the dancers. It's an elimination show, so she's charged with generating the "suspense" on results nights, but she does it in such non-patronizing way. You just don't feel the ugly awkwardness as in other shows. How does she not have an Emmy nomination yet? I love her!


2. Production: Although they are both executive produced by Nigel Lythgoe (also a SYTYCD judge), this show's production seems of much higher quality than American Idol. Sure, Idol is dealing with a much larger stage and audience, but the transitions, cutaways, and montages seem so much more fluid and cohesive.


3. Audience: What love coming from this audience! They really cheer the great moves in each performance and keep the energy up quite well.


4. Choreography: The show's choreographers have received a number of Emmy nods, and rightfully so. Their work is really amazing, and I only saw a handful of performances. I like how they receive accolades with the dancers come judging time.


5. Music: Already I found a few songs to download, a good mix of genres.


6. Judges: Last night, I saw Nigel, Mary and Mia. I'm not sure if others rotate in or if that just happens during the audition round, but these three have great chemistry and a good mix of providing technical critique and just plan geeking out.


7. Set: The set design and camera angles work really well for this format. The stage seems small and intimate, but the dancers make it look huge somehow. I don't pretend to know anything about this. I just like how it looks.


8. Dancers: How amazing are these people? Super talented and hardworking. They also seem to generally support and enjoy performing together. That brings me to the last point...


9. Love: I don't know if this was just a special episode, but the everyone was just oozing with love. The dancers seem to actually like each other and admire the choreographers. The judges are huge fans of dance, as well as successes in their own right. And Cat is either a really good actress or she genuinely cares for and supports the contestants. It's a love fest!


10. Cute boys.

** after one episode

ugly meadow!

Jamie-Lynn Sigler, a.k.a. Meadow Soprano, has been cast in the recurring role of Daniel's new assistant "Natalie" on Ugly Betty. Natalie is described as "sexy, spiritual, and funny".

I'm excited about this news. I really liked Jamie-Lynn's Entourage stint, and her guest appearance on How I Met Your Mother was hilarious. This lady has some comedy chops, and Ugly Betty seems like a good fit for her.

Here's hoping this generates some buzz to remind fans of Betty's unfortunate move to Fridays. I would love to see the writers breath some new life into this season and comeback with a bang. It seems as though the actors are better than ever, but the plot is flailing just a little a bit. More murder mysteries, funny Suarez family, Mark and Amanda. Less cancer, lovesick Willy, and Betty love triangles.