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Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie spoke very candidly about their experience in the public eye during an interview with Glamour.

The celebrities have been close for years and recently reunited for a new reality special called The Encore. Ahead of its premiere this month, they looked back on their original reality series The Simple Life.

They also opened up about their experience being fixtures in the media and dealing with “traumatizing” negative coverage over the years.

Keep reading to find out more…

About The Simple Life, Nicole said that they understood that the show “had a formula.”

“They would drop us off at our jobs, they would leave, we would mess it up, they would get mad, we would laugh, we were in skirts. It was entertainment. Both Paris and I are from LA. We understand,” she explained.

Paris added that she was “definitely” playing a character.

“When Nicole and...

The spinoff concept is as old as television itself, but its origins were humble.

Spinoffs began as creative experiments, allowing networks to capitalize on popular characters and extend the success of a hit show.

The idea was simple: take a beloved character, place them in a new setting, and hope the magic of the original show followed.

(Ollie Upton/HBO)

One of the first examples of this was The Andy Griffith Show (1960), a spinoff of The Danny Thomas Show.

Audiences quickly fell in love with Sheriff Andy Taylor’s small-town wisdom and charm, and the show became a hit in its own right.

Its success even spawned its own spinoffs, like Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., which followed the lovable but bumbling Gomer as he joined the Marines.

These early spinoffs were often straightforward, focusing on quirky characters and simple premises.

(CBS/Screenshot)

In the same era, The Beverly Hillbillies...

Paramount’s free streaming service, Pluto TV, has revealed its December highlights. The Pluto TV December 2024 lineup includes the “Season’s Greetings” category, which features festive TV and movies all month long on channels like Pluto TV Christmas, Hallmark Movies and More Holiday Favorites.

Special programming, like a Hanukah Menorah and Kwanzaa Kinara on the service’s Crackling Fireplace channel, will also be available. Be sure to check out new channels such as Dinos 24/7 and The Twilight Zone as well.

Pluto TV is the leading free streaming television service, delivering hundreds of live, linear channels and thousands of titles on-demand to a global audience. The Emmy Award-winning service curates a diverse lineup of channels in partnership with hundreds of international media companies.

The Most Streamable Time Of The Year

This December, Pluto TV is serving up a sleigh-load of Christmas classics, holiday episodes, movies and more. Don’t miss their “Season’s Greetings” category,...

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For a generation of TV-watching Americans (or two), "Gunsmoke" was can't-miss programming. Adapted from an already wildly popular radio show of the same name, the 1955 TV series got in on the ground level of the newly ubiquitous medium and quickly became a household staple. A Western made at a time when the genre dominated the big and small screens alike, "Gunsmoke" starred James Arness as U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon, a duty-bound public official living in Dodge City, Kansas sometime after the Civil War.

"Gunsmoke" broke plenty of records in its time, thanks in large part to its impressive 20-season run on CBS. Couple that with the radio show that started three years before the TV drama, and for decades, Marshal Dillon and Dr. Galen Adams (Milburn Stone) were the fictional characters with the longest continuous run in an American TV-based franchise.

I have a few bones to pick with the pilot in this Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage Season 1 Episode 1 review, but overall, it turned out to be a better show than expected.

Pilots are always tricky to judge because the show hasn’t fully found its voice yet, but Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage had potential once it got past its first five minutes.

Getting to know Georgie better made the show work, though there were a few things that needed to be ironed out.

(CBS/Troy Harvey)

More of Georgie, Less Stupid Meta Comedy, Please

The opening was rough because the series insisted on sticking in an unnecessary meta joke about laugh tracks in the first scene.

I don’t like laugh tracks, so I didn’t need commentary on how great it was that this show had one.

Georgie: Fraiser is a laughing show. I like laughing shows.

Alan Hale, Jr. became a performer as part of his family's legacy. His mother was actress Gretchen Hartman who appeared in dozens of films in the 1910s, while his father, Alan Hale (real name: Rufus Edward MacKahan) racked up hundreds of credits in the silent era, typically as a reliable sidekick to Errol Flynn. Hartman retired from acting in 1929, and Hale, Sr. continued to work until his death in 1950. Alan Hale, Jr. first appeared on the screen as an infant, "starring" opposite his mother. Hale made his Broadway debut in 1931, when he was only 10, appearing in a very, very short-lived show called "Caught Wet" (it opened and closed in the same month). In 1933, Hale played uncredited role in William Wellman's Depression-era drama "Wild Boys of the Road," and it may be the first movie a casual observer would recognize him in. 

Staring in 1941, Hale began his acting career in earnest,...

"Petticoat Junction" was the unofficial second part of the Paul Henning Hooterville trilogy, a trio of 1960s sitcoms about the clash between city slickers and country bumpkins. In 1962, Henning created "The Beverly Hillbillies," a series about hillbillies who, when they strike oil, move to Beverly Hills. In 1965, he inverted the formula with "Green Acres," a show about millionaires who move to a farm to learn about country living. Sandwiched in between the two was "Petticoat Junction," which debuted on September 24, 1963. "Junction" took place at the Shady Rest Hotel, overseen by the lovable widowed hayseed Kate Bradley (Bea Benederet). She and her uncle Joe (Edgar Buchanan) would run the hotel and oversee the shenanigans of her three daughters Betty Jo, Billie Jo, and Bobbie Jo. 

"Petticoat Junction" takes place in the same universe as "Green Acres," as both shows make constant references to common fictional cities that the characters visit. There were a few supporting crossovers,...

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The 1962 sitcom "The Beverly Hillbillies" was the first in show creator Paul Henning's unofficial Hooterville Trilogy, a triune that also included 1963's "Petticoat Junction," and 1965's "Green Acres." These three shows were among the most popular of their time and reflected a cultural clash between a growing class of cosmopolitan urbanites and "down home" rural Americans. Working thematically backward, "Green Acres" was about a pair of New Yorkers who move onto a farm, "Petticoat Junction" was about rural hotel owners who often butted heads with a rich railroad executive, and "The Beverly Hillbillies" was about rural characters moving to Beverly Hills. The Hooterville Trilogy was as sure a sign as any that schisms were forming in American society, and Henning was eager to address the injustice of the class divides, often sympathizing with his hillbillies and lambasting the wealthy.

Joe Camp, the writer, director and producer who taught that old dog Hollywood new tricks about animal movies as the creative force behind the 1974 franchise-spawning Benji, has died. He was 84.

Camp died Friday morning at his home in Bell Buckle, Tennessee, following a long illness, his son, filmmaker Brandon Camp, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Camp also directed and co-wrote the comedies Hawmps! (1976), about the U.S. Cavalry replacing horses with camels in the 1850s, and The Double McGuffin (1979), which revolved around kids trying to thwart a terrorist (Ernest Borgnine) and featured lots of in-jokes about Hitchcock movies.

Other than serving as an extra on the Robert Mitchum-starring Home From the Hill (1960), Camp had no Hollywood experience when he raised about $500,000 to make Benji, a story about a stray mixed breed — not a fancy pure breed like Lassie! — who helps rescue two youngsters from kidnappers.

Crucial to the movie’s success,...

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You would never want to hang out with Caroll O'Connor's Archie Bunker from "All in the Family" in real life. Still, golly if it wasn't enjoyable watching the cantankerous, intolerant family man butt heads with his outspoken progressive son-in-law Michael (Rob "The Meathead" Reiner himself) and his loving but equally liberal and often flustered daughter Gloria (Sally Struthers), all while being doted on by his seemingly naive wife Edith (Jean Stapleton), who was really far wiser than Archie ever gave her credit for. Across nine seasons, audiences tuned in time and time again to watch Archie get his comeuppance, only to learn his lesson on Norman Lear's trailblazing 1970s sitcom.

Looking back in the wake of Lear's passing at the ripe old age of 101, it's all the easier to appreciate just how important "All in the Family" was...

Usually, if you’re a news organization that deals in entertainment, you have material prepared in advance to honor icons of your industry – an obituary, an appreciation, something. But I didn’t prepare anything about Norman Lear even as he passed his 100th birthday last year and then his 101st this past July because it seemed inconceivable he could ever die. He would just glide around beneath his signature porkpie hat forever, reassuring the masses that everything was right with the world because he was still in it.

But now that Lear is gone – he died Tuesday night in his sleep – it’s time to give the man who produced “All in the Family,” and “Sanford and Son,” and “The Jeffersons,” and “Maude,” and “Good Times,” and “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,” and “One Day at a Time” his due. The thing is, it’s not really possible to adequately describe...

Norman Lear, the writer, producer and citizen activist who coalesced topical conflict and outrageous comedy in such wildly popular sitcoms as All in the Family, Maude, Good Times, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and The Jeffersons, has died. He was 101.

Lear died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles surrounded by his family who, according to a statement on his official Instagram account, sang songs until the very end.

“Norman lived a life in awe of the world around him. He marveled at his cup of coffee every morning, the shape of the tree outside his window, and the sounds of beautiful music,” read the post. “But it was people — those he just met and those he knew for decades — who kept his mind and heart forever young. As we celebrate his legacy and reflect on the next chapter of life without him, we would like to thank everyone for all the love and support.

It’s Frasier Week at IndieWire. Grab some tossed salad and scrambled eggs, settle into your coziest easy chair, and join us. We’re listening.

Finish these sentences. (1) “Now, this is a story all about how…” (2) “They’re creepy and they’re kooky, they’re all together…” (3) “Mom and Dad and Vicky always giving him…” (4) “Who’s that girl? It’s…“ (5) “Hey baby, I heard the blues a callin’…”

The best TV theme songs simultaneously stick in our brains and serve as chapter markers for the shows we love, both compelling us to keep knocking back more episodes and subtly organizing our thoughts about the many stories in the series they anchor. Some themes hang with us for the worse; what ’90s parent didn’t have “Elmo’s World” burned into their brain? Some others are memorable for their intensely enjoyable earworm qualities; see “I Dream of Jeannie” and “Green Acres” for details.

Phyllis Coates, who became television’s first Lois Lane when she was cast in the classic Adventures of Superman series starring George Reeves, died yesterday of natural causes at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills. She was 96.

Her death was announced by daughter Laura Press to our sister publication The Hollywood Reporter.

Born Gypsie Ann Evarts Stell in Wichita Falls, Texas, on January 15, 1927, Coates and her family later moved to Hollywood. Along with some vaudeville-style performances, Coates launched her showbix career as a chorus girl during the 1940s, often touring the the Uso. Later in the decade, she landed small roles in such pictures as Smart Girls Don’t Talk and My Foolish Heart (1949), and appeared in a series of “Joe McDoakes” comedy shorts as Alice MacDoakes.

In 1951, Coates was invited to audition for the role of Lois Lane in the low-budget...

Phyllis Coates, the first actress to play Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane on television, only to leave the Adventures of Superman after just one season, has died. She was 96.

Coates, who also appeared in Republic Pictures serials and in such films as I Was a Teenage Frankenstein, died Wednesday of natural causes at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, her daughter Laura Press told The Hollywood Reporter.

A native of Wichita Falls, Texas, Coates first portrayed the headstrong Lois opposite George Reeves as the Man of Steel in the dark sci-fi movie Superman and the Mole Men (1951).

The success of that Lippert Pictures film — the first full-length theatrical feature starring the comic-book hero — led to the quick decision to start production on a syndicated show for television.

Coates segued to the series and got into jams as Lois in all 26 episodes of the first season...

Fans of classic TV sitcoms, sci-fi, and dramas are about to have even friendlier live TV streaming options as the skinny-bundle streaming service Frndly TV announced on Tuesday that it had entered into an agreement that will bring the Weigel Broadcasting Co.’s MeTV+ network to all of the company’s subscribers next month.

7-Day Free Trial $7.99+ / month frndlytv.com

Beginning in October, Frndly will become the first national TV provider to offer this channel, which is currently only available in select local markets. The live streamer already carries the channel’s sibling MeTV network. The spinoff channel will serve as a companion to MeTV, which is one of the country’s most popular networks focusing specifically on classic television from decades gone by. Both the original channel and the new MeTV+ serve as homes for beloved westerns, iconic sitcoms, groundbreaking sci-fi series, and timeless dramas. Every week, MeTV airs...

Along with rival NBC, CBS found success in radio before adding on the new medium of television in the 1940s. With the creation of ABC a few years later, the “Big Three” networks dominated the small screen for half a century before receiving competition from Fox network, cable stations and, later, streaming services. In the earliest days of TV, CBS and NBC vied for top spots in the ratings; by the mid-1950s, CBS commanded the lead with pioneering and groundbreaking programs across multiple genres — a trend that would continue for decades.

Like NBC, CBS transitioned radio programs over to television. One successful radio series they wanted to convert was “My Favorite Husband,” but the star refused to commit unless her real-life husband was allowed to be her lead. However, her husband was from Cuba, and CBS executives didn’t think Americans would believe an American woman would marry a hispanic.

Along with rival NBC, CBS found success in radio before adding on the new medium of television in the 1940s. With the creation of ABC a few years later, the “Big Three” networks dominated the small screen for half a century before receiving competition from Fox network, cable stations and, later, streaming services. In the earliest days of TV, CBS and NBC vied for top spots in the ratings; by the mid-1950s, CBS commanded the lead with pioneering and groundbreaking programs across multiple genres — a trend that would continue for decades.

Like NBC, CBS transitioned radio programs over to television. One successful radio series they wanted to convert was “My Favorite Husband,” but the star refused to commit unless her real-life husband was allowed to be her lead. However, her husband was from Cuba, and CBS executives didn’t think Americans would believe an American woman would marry a hispanic.

Just days after the report that Amazon was working towards introducing an ad-supported tier of Prime Video, the company is reassuring users that it has no plans to shutter its free ad-supported streaming service Freevee. Just the opposite, as according to The Hollywood Reporter Freevee is adding a total of 33 free ad-supported TV (Fast) channels.

30-Day Free Trial $8.99 / month amazon.com

Many of the channels come to Freevee from MGM, which Amazon acquired last spring. MGM channels soon to be available on Freevee include offerings dedicated to classic shows like “The Pink Panther,” “Stargate,” “Green Acres” and “The Outer Limits.” The timing for the introduction of these channels is notable, as recently it was reported that Amazon is working to create new titles based on some of these franchises.

Joining these channels will be content from Discovery, the cable channel owned by Wbd. These channels will be heavily geared towards the...

MGM and Warner Bros. Discovery channels are coming to Amazon Freevee, adding to the free ad-supported streamer’s growing slate of programming.

The studio will launch 12 Fast channels focused on individual titles including “The Pink Panther,” “Stargate,” “Green Acres,” and “The Outer Limits,” alongside branded channels such as “MGM Presents,” “MGM Presents: Action,” and “MGM Presents: Sci-Fi,” which will be programmed with premium movies and series including “Capote” and “Red Dawn.” The MGM Fast channels join “Paternity Court,” “In the Heat of the Night,”“The Addams Family” and“Teen Wolf,” which are already live on Freevee.

Meanwhile, Warner will launch 11 Fast channels in June featuring Discovery and Wbd studio content such as “Cake Boss,”“Extreme Couponing,” “Ghost Brothers,”“Paranormal Lockdown,” “Say Yes to the Dress,”and “Long Lost Family.”

Also Read:

Amazon Plans to Launch Ad-Supported Prime Video Tier (Report)

Freevee has rapidly expanded its Fast offerings over the last...

Having sitcoms crossover is a long-time staple of network synergy. Sometimes it works organically, but often it feels forced, like an obvious and cynical marketing ploy. Syndication usually exacerbates the issue, as many times, a successful show will do a crossover with a fledging program to build an audience that didn't last more than a season or two and was immediately forgotten. Still, there has been much success and enjoyment from sitcom crossover episodes, and the concept hit its zenith in the 1990s.

The first known sitcom crossover came from the original gold standard of the genre, I Love Lucy when George Reeves as Superman from Adventures of Superman comes to save the day. They struck again the following year when I Love Lucy hosted the cast of The Danny Thomas Show in 1958 and then returned the favor when Lucy and Desi guest-starred as their characters in an episode of...

The Beverly Hillbillies was one of the most popular sitcoms on the air during its nine-season run, but the show was unceremoniously canceled in 1971. Debuting for CBS in 1962, The Beverly Hillbillies followed the simple Clampett family as they came into a fortune and moved to the lavish neighborhood of Beverly Hills in Los Angeles. Its popularity inspired a slew of rural-themed programming that helped elevate the network CBS straight to the top of the ratings for most of the 1960s. Its humorous cast of characters and open-ended premise ensured the show could have gone on much longer, but its ninth season was its last.

Despite capturing the hearts of viewers for almost a decade, the Clampetts were taken off the air without a series finale, and it wasn't until a 1981 television movie that fans got any sort of closure. Though some jokes on The Beverly Hillbillies aged poorly, the heartwarming...

Hey, Kenan Thompson: Before you step foot on the Emmys stage this year you may want to take a look back at Ellen DeGeneres‘ two times hosting the ceremony in 2001 and 2005. Why? Because she just topped our readers’ list as their favorite Emmys host of this century. See the complete poll results below.

The talk show queen is one of just two women to serve as solo ringleader of TV’s biggest night throughout the past two decades, the other being Jane Lynch in 2011. DeGeneres’ inaugural gig was quite memorable (watch above), as it was postponed twice due to the 9/11 attacks and then the war in Afghanistan. She struck the perfect tone throughout the evening when it finally aired on November 4, 2001, with one of her iconic lines being, “What would bug the Taliban more than seeing a gay woman in a suit surrounded by Jews?”

See 2022 Emmy nominations: Complete...

Bill Pitman, a guitarist and bassist in the legendary Wrecking Crew of Los Angeles session musicians, has died at the age of 102.

The New York Times confirmed Pitman died Thursday at his home in La Quinta, California. While no cause of death was revealed, the musician recently fractured his spine in a fall, and spent the last month of his life recovering from that accident.

As a member of the elite Wrecking Crew, Pitman was deployed on albums by artists like Sam Cooke, Nancy Sinatra, the Monkees, James Brown, and the Beach Boys.

Bill Pitman, a guitarist whose work as part of the legendary recording session group The Wrecking Crew made an invaluable contribution to countless radio hits, TV series and films, died yesterday at his home in La Quinta, California. He was 102.

His death was announced to The New York Times by wife Janet Pitman, who told the publication her husband died after four weeks of hospice care following a fall that fractured his spine.

Pitman’s guitar playing was ubiquitous, if largely anonymous, for decades beginning in the 1950s. Just a sampling of the songs he played on: The Beach Boys’ “Good Vibrations,” Frank Sinatra’s “Strangers in the Night,” Barbra Streisand’s “The Way We Were, The Ronettes’ “Be My Baby” and The Monkees’ “Papa Gene’s Blues.” He played the ukelele on the B.J. Thomas hit “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head” from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,...

(L to R) Ashton Kutcher as Quentin Sellers and B.J. Novak as Ben Manalowitz in Vengeance, written and directed by B.J. Novak and released by Focus Features. Credit: Patti Perret / Focus Features

As Summer begins its transformation into Fall, the studios are still offering virtual getaways at the local multiplex. This newest “travel tale’ also combines the popular theme of the “fish out of water” with a protagonist in very unfamiliar surroundings. Now, the movie marketing folks are hitting this aspect hard in the trailers and TV spots, making it appear to be an edgy modern spin on the cult fave TV sitcom “Green Acres” where a “city feller'” was flummoxed by the simple “country folk” (who often got the better of him). Oh but don’t be misled. There’s a lot more going on in this film since it comes from one of the busiest creative minds in the media today.

Tommy Morgan, a harmonica soloist who contributed to hundreds of movie and TV shows including “Roots” and “Dances With Wolves,” died June 23. He was 89.

Morgan played on film soundtracks and record dates going back to the early 1950s. His estimated 7,000 recording sessions, according to statistics on his website, suggest that more people have heard his harmonica work than that of any other player of the instrument.

That’s Morgan’s harmonica on Quincy Jones’ “Sanford and Son” theme, Mike Post’s “Rockford Files” theme and the scores for numerous shows including “Maverick,” “The Waltons,” “The Dukes of Hazzard,” “China Beach,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Family Guy.”

He played on the Emmy-winning score for “Roots” and its sequel, “Roots: The Next Generations.” And his bass harmonica was the signature sound of Arnold Ziffel, the pig on “Green Acres.”

In addition, Morgan played on dozens of classic films including “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,...

Maggie Peterson, an actress who made a lasting impression as the sweet-natured, occasionally flirtatious mountain girl Charlene Darling on The Andy Griffith Show in the 1960s, died Sunday, May 15, in Colorado, her family has announced.

“It is with great sorrow that we report that our dear Aunt Maggie died yesterday afternoon,” the family posted on Facebook today. “She passed peacefully in her sleep with her family present.”

Although she appeared on only five episodes of the classic rural sitcom in the Charlene role, Peterson was among the show’s most familiar and memorable recurring cast members, often joining her onscreen family The Darlings in singalongs.

Peterson developed a catchphrase with her repeated entreaties about the sentimental impact of outrageously titled song suggestions, as in an the following exchange with Pyle’s character:

Briscoe: “How...

With its fresh air and farm livin', Hooterville was the setting of the hilarious fish-out-of-water sitcom Green Acres. As an uptight New York lawyer and his wife attempt to adjust to the small-town life, they find that their lives are turned upside down by the denizens of their new hometown.

Related: 10 Best Sitcoms Of The 1960s, Ranked According To IMDb

Stuffed to the gills with memorable characters, both human and animal, Green Acres was a beloved piece of 1960s popular culture. While many of the show's episodes are beloved classics, some earned much higher scores on IMDb.

The television landscape was changing when the 23rd Emmy Awards took place at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood on May 9, 1971, with Johnny Carson as host. History was made in more than one way that night.

NBC’s “The Flip Wilson Show,” the first comedy-variety series hosted by an African-American, won the genre and writing awards. Wilson shared in both victories. And Mark Warren became the first black helmer to win an Emmy for his direction of NBC’s “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In.”

George C. Scott, who had declined the Oscar just 24 days earlier for “Patton,” didn’t attend the Emmys either. However he didn’t turn down this award for his leading role in NBC’s “Hallmark Hall of Fame” presentation of Arthur Miller’s “The Price.” Jack Cassidy accepted on his behalf. David Burns, who had died two months earlier of a heart attack during a stage performance of the musical “70, Girls,...

On December 18th, 2016, the Hungarian-American actress Zsa Zsa Gabor (Sári Gábor) passed away at the age of 99. Here we are five years later and she is just now being laid to rest. So why five years later is she just now being buried? Well in true Zsa Zsa fashion...she had to take a little trip first.

Something that would make Robin Leech a little jealous. When Zsa Zsa passed away, the Hollywood icon was cremated and her ashes were placed in a very lavish urn. But that wasn't all, and certainly not enough for this Hollywood superstar. Unlike most people, her ashes got to go for one last first class joy ride that was fitting for the late actress's fancy lifestyle. The ashes were flown first class on a multi-stop international flight complete with champagne and caviar.

Zsa Zsa Gabor's ninth Frédéric Prinz von Anhalt told Reuters about the trip,...

"I just adore a penthouse view, darling I love you but give me Park Avenue," sang Lisa Douglas (Ava Gabor) in the theme song of the classic TV show Green Acres. Who would have thought it was the writing on the wall for Gossip Girl?

At first blush, it was yet another teen drama; this one set in NYC, where it followed privileged high schoolers - who we never actually saw attend class - around the Upper East Side of Manhattan, in fabulous outfits, going to events with the word "gala" tacked on to them.

Related: Gossip Girl Characters Ranked From Least To Most Problematic

But it was really about so much more, like power. The kind that comes with money, social status, and having a last name that opens doors for one's self, relatives and friends (and slams them in the faces of enemies.) But even among those who have it,...

Before “All in the Family” debuted, there was a profound gap between real life and what was being depicted on TV series.

In his autobiography “Even This I Get to Experience,” Norman Lear wrote, “Until ‘All in the Family’ came along, TV comedy was telling us there was no hunger in America, we had no racial discrimination, there was no unemployment or inflation, no war, no drugs, and the citizenry was happy with whomever happened to be in the White House.”

When Lear and Bud Yorkin pitched “All in the Family” to CBS, that network’s executives were looking for something different — but maybe not That different.

A week before the un-publicized sitcom debuted on Jan. 12, 1971, Variety’s Les Brown summed up the first four months of the new season for the three networks. Brown wrote that CBS had a lock on “the rural middle-American viewership” with its “rustic sitcoms,...

“Frasier.” “Friends.” “ER.” “The X-Files.” It’s amazing how just the mention of a TV show can take you back in time, and with this list it’s no surprise that we’re offering our flashback 25 years to 1995, remembering the 47th Emmy Awards. It was a night with no one big winner among several now-classic series, a new Egot recipient, some sentimental moments and a memorable homage to TV theme songs. Jason Alexander of “Seinfeld” and Cybill Shepherd of “Cybill” led the festivities on September 10.

Perennial favorite “Frasier” held on to its title of Best Comedy Series for the second year, a streak it would continue until 1999, winning for each of its first five seasons. It beat out popular sitcoms “The Larry Sanders Show,” “Mad About You,” “Seinfeld” and newcomer “Friends.” Kelsey Grammer won his second of four Best Comedy Actor Emmys for playing the title character, while his onscreen brother,...

She still loves game shows. She still answers questions with Rose Nylund’s exclamation points. She’s won six Emmys and hosted three different series titled “The Betty White Show” during her eight decades in television.

At 98, Betty White has many gifts, including her unique perspective on the evolution of television. The Los Angeles native starred in her first experimental TV broadcast in Hollywood a few months before NBC pulled off its broadcasting feat at the 1939 New York World’s Fair in Queens. Her long list of accomplishments include co-starring in three enduring sitcoms: CBS’ “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” NBC’s “The Golden Girls” and TV Land’s “Hot in Cleveland.”

In a recent email correspondence with Variety, White shared observations on her career, starting with her days as the record-spinning sidekick on the five-hour daily talk show “Hollywood on Television,” hosted by popular disc jockey Al Jarvis, for...

I’m one of those people who believes that a home is not complete without a pet (I have four cats myself), and love it when a favorite TV character or family has a loyal companion who can add to the adventure or the comedic antics of a show. Some of these adorable animals have become as famous, if not more so, than the human actors of a series.

SEE40 best TV mothers; greatest moms ranked

Animals tend to make a television program more family-friendly, and TV executives have used them to draw in this demographic, despite the fact that working with a non-human actor can be challenging. In the very early days of the medium, American families gathered around their sets to follow the adventures of such noble creatures as “Lassie” and “Flipper,” or to laugh at the ridiculousness of a talking horse in “Mister Ed” or the antics...

I’m one of those people who believes that a home is not complete without a pet (I have four cats myself), and love it when a favorite TV character or family has a loyal companion who can add to the adventure or the comedic antics of a show. Some of these adorable animals have become as famous, if not more so, than the human actors of a series.

Animals tend to make a television program more family-friendly, and TV executives have used them to draw in this demographic, despite the fact that working with a non-human actor can be challenging. In the very early days of the medium, American families gathered around their sets to follow the adventures of such noble creatures as “Lassie” and “Flipper,” or to laugh at the ridiculousness of a talking horse in “Mister Ed” or the antics of the “human” pig Arnold on “Green Acres.

As the “year from Hell” Aka 2020 continues to drag on and on, we can all agree that the oppressive tension of our current state could be deflated by a good dose of humor. In other words, we can all use a “big laugh”. Really. And so, amongst the somber “indie” premieres streaming on-demand, comes a flat-out, “Lol” comedy that leans heavily on satire. And just what is it taking on? Well, you wouldn’t think this topic would lend itself to laughs at this date. No, it’s not set in the arenas of death and disease. nor the “racial struggle’ (but it does get a few “jabs” in). Hard to fathom, but this farce is set squarely in the world of politics. And before you groan or sigh, a big bonus is the reuniting of two giants of topical TV comedy who have not worked together in nearly 15 years...

“Irresistible” is the second film written and directed by Jon Stewart, but unlike the first, the deadly serious and surprisingly accomplished true-life Iranian prison drama “Rosewater” (2014), this one comes straight out of Stewart’s satirical-political wheelhouse. Set shortly after the 2016 presidential election, it’s a close-to-the-bone tall tale — slightly exaggerated but still basically plausible — of what happens when America’s two ruling political parties descend upon the rural heartland of Deerlaken, Wisconsin, to take over a small-town election for mayor.

At the center of the movie is a cynical sharpie of a campaign consultant, Gary Zimmer (Steve Carell), who combines the philosophy of a liberal, the high-maintenance fussiness of an East Coast lifestyle elitist, and the do-what-it-takes amorality of a corporate sociopath. He’s just coming off his time as “the grand consigliere” of Hillary Clinton’s failed presidential bid, and like most Democrats he’s in a slight state...

Actor Tom Lester, primarily known for his role of Eb Dawson on the ‘60s sitcom Green Acres died on Monday in Nashville, Tennessee at age 81. Lester died of complications from Parkinson’s disease. Lester was the last surviving actor of the original Green Acres cast. Lester’s brother Michael announced his death on his Facebook account […]

The post ‘Green Acres’ Star Tom Lester Dies At 81 appeared first on uInterview.

Tom Lester, the actor who played the guileless, brighter-than-he-seemed farmhand Eb Dawson on CBS’ 1960s sitcom Green Acres, died Monday in Nashville of complications from Parkinson’s disease, his family announced. He was 81.

Born Thomas William Lester in Laurel, Mississippi, Lester set out for Hollywood after graduating from the University of Mississippi. He studied acting with teacher and Petticoat Junction actress Lurene Tuttle, soon coming to the attention of the show’s creator Paul Henning, who was casting another rural comedy within The Beverly Hillbillies-Petticoat Junction universe.

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The show was Green Acres, an alternately hokey and surreal comedy starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a sophisticated...

Tom Lester, the actor known for the 1960s television series “Green Acres,” has died. He was 81.

Lester was in Nashville at the home of his fiancee, Jackie, at this time of his death Monday, which was due to complications from Parkinson’s disease, according to TMZ.

He played the wide-eyed, friendly farmhand Eb Dawson on the sitcom who was known to say “Golly, Mr. Douglas.” The Mississippi native began acting in plays after moving to Los Angeles, and is said to have beat out 400 other actors for the part of Eb because he actually knew how to milk a cow in real life.

Lester was also known to be a fan of the simple life. According to a 1969 newspaper article, Lester was living “in an apartment above a garage in the San Fernando Valley” even at the height of his “Green Acres” fame. He continued to farm later in life, and won the award for Mississippi’s “Wildlife Farmer of the Year,” where he owned a large timber farm.

Tom Lester, best known for his role as the smart-aleck farmhand Eb Dawson on the ’60s sitcom “Green Acres,” died Monday in Nashville, Tenn. from complications related to Parkinson’s disease. Lester, who was 81, was the last surviving actor of the original “Green Acres” cast.

His death was confirmed by his brother Michael on Facebook and in local media reports.

Born Sep. 23, 1938 in Jackson, Miss., Lester grew up working on his grandfather’s farm. He earned a degree in chemistry at the University of Mississippi and taught in Oklahoma for a few years before making the move to Hollywood. Lester landed his role in “Green Acres” in 1965, beating out the competition because he was the only actor who could actually milk a cow.

He went on to star in “Green Acres” until the show’s end in 1971, also appearing in the two related series “Petticoat Junction” and “Beverly Hillbillies.” Lester and co-star Eddie Albert,...

Tom Lester, the gawky Mississippi native who starred as the friendly Hooterville farmhand Eb Dawson on the madcap CBS sitcom Green Acres, has died. He was 81.

Lester died Monday of complications from Parkinson's disease in the Nashville home of his fiancee and long-term caregiver, Jackie Peters, his family announced.

Inspired by Andy Griffith Show star Don Knotts — who like Lester did not come off as your typical leading man — Lester pursued a career as an actor after earning degrees in chemistry and biology from the University of Mississippi en route to becoming a doctor.

His friends told him,...

Tom Lester, the gawky Mississippi native who starred as the friendly Hooterville farmhand Eb Dawson on the madcap CBS sitcom Green Acres, has died. He was 81.

Lester died Monday of complications from Parkinson's disease in the Nashville home of his fiancee and long-term caregiver, Jackie Peters, his family announced.

Inspired by Andy Griffith Show star Don Knotts — who like Lester did not come off as your typical leading man — Lester pursued a career as an actor after earning degrees in chemistry and biology from the University of Mississippi en route to becoming a doctor.

His friends told him,...

Here are many more movies to watch when you’re staying in for a while, featuring recommendations from Steven Canals, Larry Karaszewski, Gareth Reynolds, and Alan Arkush with special guest star Blaire Bercy from the Hollywood Food Coalition.

Please support the Hollywood Food Coalition. Text “Give” to 323.402.5704 or visit https://hofoco.org/donate!

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Master of the Flying Guillotine (1976)

Groundhog Day (1993)

Kung Fu Mama a.k.a. Queen of Fist (1973)

Ali: Fear Eats The Soul (1974)

Portrait Of A Lady On Fire (2019)

In The Mood For Love (2000)

Hunger (2008)

The Sweet Hereafter (1997)

Fargo (1996)

Night of the Lepus (1971)

Dolemite Is My Name (2019)

Soylent Green (1973)

Silent Running (1972)

Canyon Passage (1946)

McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)

The Professionals (1966)

Ride Lonesome (1959)

Carrie (1952)

The Heartbreak Kid (1972)

Hello Down There (1969)

The Brass Bottle (1964)

The Trouble With Angels (1966)

Pollyanna (1960)

Tiger Bay (1959)

The Parent Trap (1961)

Endless Night (1972)

The Family Way (1966)

Take A Girl Like You (1970)

Freddy Got Fingered...

Mexican-born actor Jaime Camil is incredibly humble. As he tells it, “You have to be thankful to the audience…that people are requesting your services and you’re being hired to do something.” Camil burst onto the scene, for U.S. audiences at least, playing the gregarious and charming Rogelio de la Vega on five seasons of The CW’s “Jane the Virgin.” Now, with “Jane” having concluded its run last year, Camil is transitioning to a new role as an actor and executive producer for the CBS multicamera sitcom, “Broke.”

“Broke,” akin to classic sitcoms like “Green Acres,” follows struggling single mom Jackie (Pauley Perrette) and what happens when her once wealthy sister and brother-in-law (played by Natasha Leggero and Camil) come to live with her after going broke. Camil has deep connections to the property, which initially started out as a Colombian television production. Camil played the title...

Fred Silverman never stopped pitching.

He never stopped thinking about television and analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of the networks he once ran, as well as the dozens of outlets that came to prominence after his storied run as a top executive ended in the early 1980s.

Silverman, a seminal figure in TV who died Jan. 30 at 82, knew that the first line of his obituary would identify him as the only person — so far — to have served as head of programming for ABC, CBS and NBC.

But after scaling the heights, he made a successful shift into producing at a time when that path was not as nearly common as it is today for former senior executives. His success in the 1980s and ’90s as a producer of such series as “Matlock” and “In the Heat of the Night,” and later “Diagnosis Murder,” was a testament to his instincts and experience,...

Fred Silverman, the executive who became the only person in TV history to have headed programming for each of the Big Three broadcast networks, died on Thursday at his home in the Pacific Palisades, Calif. He was 82.

Silverman died with his family by his side.

During his prolific career, Silverman was credited with helping to launch some of the most successful shows and miniseries of all time, including “All in the Family,” “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “Happy Days,” “The Waltons” and “Roots.”

After turning both CBS and ABC around in the ratings, Silverman failed to work his magic at NBC in the late 1970s and early ’80s. Once he left the Peacock net to branch out on his own with the Fred Silverman Co., Silverman forged another career as a producer, turning out a number of successful series, including “Matlock,” “In the Heat of the Night,” “Jake and the Fatman” and “Diagnosis Murder.

Paris Hilton has been a public figure for the better part of two decades, but the former reality star and tabloid staple says she’s ready to finally introduce the world to her real self in the YouTube documentary “This Is Paris.”

Hilton is the subject of the upcoming doc, which will grapple with the public perception of her as a world-famous heiress and socialite — a perception she once willingly helped perpetuate — and “uncover the hidden past of the international icon.”

“This is completely different than anything I’ve ever done. This is a real film,” Hilton said at the Television Critics Association press tour on Saturday, promising that “This Is Paris” won’t resemble her short-lived reality series “The World According to Paris” or the ostensible “reality” show that made her a household name, “The Simple Life.”

Also Read: Paris Hilton Shoots Down Rumors of a 'Simple Life' Revival:...