A Limited Series About Cabbage Patch Dolls? That Hits Close to Home!
I have great respect for Laura Dern (Big Little Lies) and Issa Rae (Insecure), so I’ll have to give their HBO project in development a chance. But really, a limited series called The Dolls, inspired by the real-life 1983 riots over Cabbage Patch Dolls? How are they going to sustain that one over several episodes?
The personal connection comes through my husband’s dad. He was an original Mad Man—had a small advertising agency in Manhattan. The campaign that made him and kept them afloat? You guessed it—the Cabbage Patch Dolls.
Well, that and Action Jackson, one of the first action figures (dolls) for boys. That rollicking ditty was written, sung and produced by my hubby, James Mandell, himself. This video will rocket you back down memory lane:
Breaking Up is Hard to Do: One of the Most Watched Show on Netflix is Leaving
Who would have guessed with all it’s slick new programming and the billions budgeted for original new content, one of the most watched shows on Netflix is a Baby Boomer fave: Friends.
So you can imagine how stressed the Netflix programming execs were when they realized their licensing deal with Warner Bros. TV which owns the show, had run out. Under the previously negotiated terms, they’d lose the sitcom come New Year’s Day. A deal was quickly negotiated, of course and Neflix retained the right to run Friends, but only through 2020.
At that point, Friends will likely move to WarnerMedia’s upcoming streaming platform, launching towards the end of 2019. Like the streaming platform Disney will be launching, Warner’s is expected to gradually pull their content from Netflix. It will be interesting to see how Netflix fares without Disney and Warner Bros.
Read all about it at TheHollywoodReporter.com.
Michelle Yeoh Ho! Many Good Things in the Works
Fabulous ‘The Good Fight’ Casting News for Season 3
While we’re on the subject of my favorite shows on CBS All Access, (Star Trek Discovery and The Good Fight), there’s great news that Michael Sheen is on board for The Good Fight season three. He will play (what else?) a brilliant and conniving lawyer.
Sheen, who was so fabulous on Showtime’s Masters of Sex, recently completed work on Neil Gaiman’s Good Omens miniseries for Amazon, another series that I cannot wait to see. Sheen
Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant to be Married—in a New HBO Series
Hugh Grant and Nicole Kidman are teaming up for HBO’s The Undoing, based on the Jean Hanff Korelitz novel You Should Have Known. The six-episode limited series tells the tale of Grace Sachs (Kidman), a successful therapist with a devoted husband (Grant) and a young son. But of course, nothing is as it seems.
This is the second collaboration at the premium cable outlet between Kidman’s Blossom Films and David E. Kelley’s production company. Kelly wrote the script.
Paging Dogtor Feldman: Your ‘New Amsterdam’ Hospital Scrubs are Here
NBC’s new hospital series, New Amsterdam, sent journalists a very sweet thank you gift for covering their show: New Amsterdam Hospital scrubs, a real stethoscope, and an official name/access badge, with my name on it.
So of course I replaced my name with Frankie Feldman’s and dressed him up like a New Amsterdam surgeon on Halloween. It’s way better promotion for the show than my wearing it would have been. Frankie has a much bigger social media presence. Besides, they’re his color.
BTW, Hubby, who has a penchant for hospital dramas, LOVES this show.
Chip and Joanna Gaines Make Like the Big O With Network of Their Own
I knew their hiatus from television wouldn’t last long. Friday night on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Chip announced to his mom (and the world) that they were returning to TV in a big way, and later, Magnolia spokesman John Marsicano clarified:
“We’re excited to share that we are currently in the early stages of talking with Discovery about a lifestyle-focused media network for Magnolia,” he said. “The details surrounding this opportunity remain a work in progress, but together, our hope is to build a different kind of platform for unique, inspiring and family-friendly content.”
Discovery recently purchased HGTV’s parent company, in case you were wondering about the connection.
Shaq and Ken Jeong to Star in “Unqualified” TV Series
TBS is making an unscripted a comedy pilot titled Unqualified (working title) which will star Shaquille O’Neal and Ken Jeong taking on different odd jobs.
You might be wondering how that pairing came to be. It the result of their insanely popular showdown on the network’s rap battle series Drop the Mic, where their chemistry was undeniable.
They’re both Renaissance men, with Shaq shifting from court to courtside commentary and Jeong, a medical doctor in real life, also playing one on TV. But can they be scuba instructors? Line cooks? Dental hygienists? Nude art class models? All in one day?
Summoned to temporary employment by unsuspecting people via a digital portal, Unqualified follows their antics as they try their hands at jobs that have always intrigued them, along with a few they’d rather avoid.
“We are built to hustle.” said O’Neal and Jeong. “We’re thankful to TBS for giving us the opportunity to embrace any challenge that comes our way and we hope to surprise everyone with our ability to learn the ropes on the fly.”
Deadwood the Movie Coming to a Theater Near You
I was never a huge fan of HBO western Deadwood. But those who are will be thrilled to find out that they’re making a movie of it, and that most of its stars are returning.
That would include Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, Molly Parker, Paula Malcomson, John Hawkes, Anna Gunn, W. Earl Brown, Dayton Callie, Brad Dourif, Robin Weigert, William Sanderson, Kim Dickens and Gerald McRaney.
The movie, written by series creator David Milch, takes place 10 years after the events of Deadwood‘s third season, with the characters reuniting to celebrate South Dakota’s statehood. Former rivalries are reignited, alliances are tested and old wounds reopened, with everyone trying to deal with the new, “modern” world.
Get more info at HollywoodReporter.com.
The Latest on the Brady Bunch House
The Brady Bunch kids reunited for the first time in almost 15 years to kick off HGTV’s upcoming series, tentatively titled A Very Brady Renovation.
Barry Williams, Maureen McCormick, Christopher Knight, Eve Plumb, Mike Lookinland and Susan Olsen checked in for an on-camera walk-through of the Studio City house that was used in the sitcom’s exterior shots and will be getting a ‘70s-inspired redo.
Lookinland is actually a skilled builder, and I’d love to see him have a hand in the restoration. Also, Property Brothers Jonathan and Drew Scott have also expressed an interest. I’d watch them renovate an outhouse.
The limited Brady Bunch house renovation series is scheduled to premiere in September 2019.
Cate Blanchett Moves to the Small Screen to Star in ‘Mrs. America’
It seems that all the A-List movie stars are signing up for TV these days. Now Cate Blanchett has been cast as Equal Rights Amendment opposer Phyllis Schlafly, in a nine episode limited series entitled in Mrs. America.
The series, to air on FX and was created and written by Dahvi Waller of Mad Men fame. Blanchett will also executive-produce, along with Stacey Sher, Waller and Coco Francini. Production will begin next year.
Gear Up for a Huge Week in Television
It’s time to set your DVRs and make sure your subscriptions are up to date. Check out this amazing roster of shows starting new seasons this week:
Sunday:
Ray Donovan — Burned out in California, Ray et al are taking a bite out of the Big Apple this season. And the studio exec played by Susan Sarandon is paying him to do it.
Outlander — Season 4 finds Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) in antebellum America,
Monday:
A Very Wicked Halloween: Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth reunite to celebrate 15 years of Wicked on Broadway (10 p.m. Monday, NBC). The concert special also features Ariana Grande and the current Wicked cast.
Friday:
Homecoming: This is Julia Robert’s first TV series-regular role. She stars as a counselor for veterans transitioning back to civilian life. Something goes terribly wrong, and the show moves back and forth in time to track what happened. Find it on Amazon.
The Romanoffs — Also on Amazon, a new episode of that fabulous series from Matthew Wiener, drops, as it does each Friday for the next month or so.
House of Cards The final season, in which Claire Underwood (Robin Wright) become President and deals with a power couple played by Diane Lane and Greg Kinnear, premiers on Netflix.
See more on The HollywoodReporter.com.
