Ever since Malou Nubla bolted CBS5 (KPIX) and her co-hosting duties on “Evening Magazine” a while back, I’ve gotten occasional inquiries into her whereabouts. The lovely and talented Bay Area native was one of the most popular TV personalities on the local scene and people want to know how (and what) she’s doing.
Well, I’ve got good news on that front: Malou will resurface this Sunday on KTVU with a new show called “Malou Review” (6 p.m., Channel 2). It’s a half-hour program featuring “reviews you could use” in dining, shopping, entertainment, travel, and more.
“I’m super excited and have been working on this for the past year,” Malou tells us. “I’m executive producing, writing, directing and hosting with a production crew I’ve hired.”
Here’s a scary Halloween thought: By midnight tomorrow, the labor contract for TV and movie writers will expire and, unless significant progress is made, we might have a work stoppage on our hands that potentially could leave Hollywood in chaos and audiences out in the cold. For a look at what exactly that means for entertainment consumers, check out my analysis in the Times.
And when you’re done there, be sure to take a look at the above short film created by Moraga native Gregg Rossen and his writing partner Brian Sawyer, both WGA guild members. The film is called “Heroes of the Writers” strike and it presents an amusing scenario of what writers might find themselves doing during a walkout.
Rossen and Sawyer, former Cal students, currently have a deal at Fox for a sitcom called “Model Family.”
When “Nip/Tuck” burst on the scene five seasons ago, I was firmly planted in its rooting section, applauding the show’s brazen, in-your-face attitude and its willingness to examine America’s troubling obsession with body image. It was timely, it was provocative and it was immensely entertaining.
But eventually the plastic surgery drama evolved into a grotesque freak show, becoming self-consciously over-the-top and plagued with ridiculous plotlines and tiresome characters completely divorced from reality.
If any show needed a change of scenery it was “Nip/Tuck” and it gets one tonight when Sean(Dylan Walsh) and Christian (Julian McMahon) flee Miami to set up shop in star-studded Beverly Hills. The makeover doesn’t automatically absolve “Nip/Tuck” of all its creative sins (our memories aren’t that short), but at least over the first couple of episodes it gives the show a welcome jolt of energy and revives its breezy sense of humor.
She got tantalizingly close, but Walnut Creek’s Sheena Stewart won’t be walking away with a rock on her finger from “The Bachelor.”
Having made it to the final four in ABC’s reality smooch-fest, Sheena brought Brad home to Walnut Creek to meet the folks, Greg and Beverly, during tonight’s episode. And after a day of boating on the Delta and an evening dip in the hot tub, things appeared to be going fairly well.
But by the end of the episode, Brad handed out roses to DeAnna, Jenni, and Bettina, leaving Sheena to wonder what went wrong.
“My heart feels like it got ripped in half — like it got stepped on,” she said during a tearful limo ride home.
At a hefty 1,832 pages, the latest edition of “The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows” exerts multi-pronged value. Not only does it have the power to settle whatever TV bar bet you might have, it makes for a great arm-curl workout.
Compiled by Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh, the “Directory” is the must-have book for any avid TV Freak — providing an entire history of prime-time programs in one convenient volume. It alphabetically runs down every show you can think of (and many more you forgot), along with broadcast histories, casts and snappy plot summaries.
And like the medium it covers, it just keeps getting bigger and bigger. The 9th edition, which just landed (with a thud) on bookstore shelves a few days ago, contains more than 500 fresh listings, along with a new section on theme songs, and is nearly as thick as Homer Simpson’s skull.
Couldn’t make it to Scranton this weekend to revel in the first “Office Convention”? Don’t worry, we go straight to the local source with a report from the Morning-Call newspaper.
Despite inclement weather, the convention drew more than 3,000 people to the first day, with the streets of Scranton (Pop. 76,000) playing host to live musical performances, contests and cast appearances.
Said University of Scranton President, the Rev. Scott Pilarz, “For us, (this event) is like winning the NCAA championship.”
Most of the show’s actors and writers showed for the event, but, alas, the big guns — Steve Carell, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer and Rainn Wilson — were all MIA. Hope they had good excuses. If not, shame on them.
If you’re a fan who questioned the wisdom of featuring a stalker/rapist murder plot on “Friday Night Lights” this season, you’re not alone. So did the stalker/rapist.
Or the guy who played him. That would be Matt McTighe, a Martinez native trying to make it as an actor down in Hollywood.
“I had an eerie feeling that the murder twist would be taken by avid fans as a ‘cheap trick’ in order to get ratings — to lure more of an audience, perhaps the ones who are so addicted to crime dramas,” said McTighe, who attended College Park High School and Diablo Valley College. “And I see it is getting some backlash about it.”
What did you love about TV this week? What did you hate? Time to dish on the Weekly Wrap, the portion of the show that I turn over to you.
Just send along your comments and I’ll plop them into the main portion of the post. I’m hoping someone has something to say about Alec Baldwin’s hilarious impression of Redd Foxx on “30 Rock” last night.
OK, take it away …
First up this week is TV Fan:
– Oh, I was hoping you’d ask. I loved “30 Rock!” Alec Baldwin had an amazing performance. How he can go from impersonating Tracy Jordan’s dad to Tracy Jordan’s mom to other random people all within seconds is beyond me. I almost wondered if they faked a voice for him, but I’m pretty sure it was him and he was a riot.
– The end of “Damages” was pretty amazing. Glenn Close is scary she’s so good. Wow. That storyline was a little hard to follow, all the back-and-forth with time, but it was pretty fascinating.
– “Pushing Daisies” is great, although the narrator is starting to get on my nerves. But I love how they’re using Olive and letting her sing. (”Hopelessly Devoted to You” last week, and another little ditty in the car with the Aunts this week.) Kristin Chenowith is an amazing and talented actress, so it’s great to see her starting to shine.
Fox is trying to whip all you “24″ diehards into a frothy lather. Today, the network unveiled an extended sneak-peek trailer of Season 7. Set in Washington, D.C., “Day 7″ opens with CTU dismantled and our pal Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) on trial. His day takes an unexpected turn (Damn, that happens to him all the time!) when former colleague Tony (Carlos Bernard) returns. Meanwhile, President Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones) leads the country alongside White House Chief of Staff Ethan Kanin (Bob Gunton) and First Gentleman Henry Taylor (Colm Feore).
A national security crisis prompts an investigation by a team of FBI agents including Agents Janis Gold (Janeane Garofalo), Renee Walker (Annie Wersching), Larry Moss (Jeffrey Nordling), Sean Hillinger (Rhys Coiro) and security specialist Michael Latham (John Billingsley). Although CTU is no longer, Chloe O’Brian (Mary Lynn Rajskub) and Bill Buchanan (James Morrison) are back for another momentous day of “shocking” events.
So just when I was thinking that we didn’t have any Bruce Springsteen fans among the TV Freak readers, I got an e-mail from Brian In the 707, one of our regular commentators, saying that he’ll be attending The Boss’s concert tonight in Oakland. It’s Brian’s first Springsteen concert since the “Born In the USA” days. The E-Streeters have slowed down just a bit, but they still kick booty, so have a blast, Brian, and report back to us. (Mrs. TV Freak and I will be in the house on Friday).
Meanwhile, viewers of “The Daily Show” learned recently that Jon Stewart is a huge fan of Springsteen. Stewart attended a Bruce show in New York and gushed profusely about it. He also taped a goofy little “Dancing In the Dark” parody, in which he sadly proved that he’s no Courteney Cox. Check it out for your Springsteen moment of zen.
