Philly Flower Show Lost $1.2 Million, And Leader Blames TV

The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society usually makes about $1 million in profits from the Philadelphia Flower Show.

But not this year.

The 2013 show actually fell short about $1.2 million, not an unprecedented event in its 184-year history but a short-term disaster for the many urban “greening” programs it supports.  PHS president Drew Becher is now scrambling to cut costs – and to raise $1 million for programs and $200,000 for Flower Show expenses from PHS members and an insurance policy.

For all this, he blames local TV and radio stations.

With unusual bluntness, Becher accuses them of “hyping up” a major snowstorm during Flower Show week that never materialized – but led to scores of canceled tour buses and visitors, and the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars in ticket and merchandise sales.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/20130519_Flower_Show_lost__1_2_million__and_leader_blames_TV.html#Gok7XbSLiFH34U2D.99

Pittsburgh Native Zachary Quinto Revels In Spock Role

English: Zachary Quinto greets a soldier’s daughter on the phone following a screening of Star Trek at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

At one point during “Star Trek Into Darkness,” Kirk fumes, “Sometimes, I just want to rip the bangs off his head.”

But Kirk doesn’t do that, which is a good thing considering the amount of time consumed by the workday ritual of transforming Pittsburgh native Zachary Quinto into Spock, the half-Vulcan, half-human with a high-maintenance look.

By the time the movie finished shooting, the makeup artists had shaved a whopping 30 minutes from their application of the signature swooping ears, angled eyebrows and other facial flourishes.

Not a big deal? It started as 3 hours and 15 minutes — plus another 30 minutes in hair — so even an extra half-hour can be a luxury when you have to report to the set 2 1/2 to three hours ahead of everyone else who may be arriving at 6 a.m.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/ae/movies/pittsburgh-native-zachary-quinto-revels-in-spock-role-687961/#ixzz2TZUrYou9

Club Operator Who Fleeced John Bolaris Is Sentenced

The South Beach club operator who orchestrated the “bar girls” scheme that fleeced former Philadelphia weatherman John Bolaris out of $43,000 and eventually cost him his job was sentenced to 12 years in prison today.

According the Miami Herald, operator Albert Takhalov cried as he was sentenced.

Also sentenced today were Isaac Feldman, an investor in two of the clubs implicated in the “bar girls” ring, who received eight years, and Stanislav Pavlenko, will be sentenced later this month

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/entertainment/celebrities_gossip/Club-owner-who-fleeced-Bolaris-is-sentenced.html#Z64Gm19j6VUFVsVD.99

NBC Cancels Several Series

Last fall it appeared that NBC might finally be making inroads in its quest to return to its former frontrunner status in the Nielsen ratings.  But appearances turned out to be deceiving.  NBC’s success was built on the slender shoulders of just two series, reality competition “The Voice” and freshman drama “Revolution,” and when those shows took a break between December and March, NBC’s ratings again collapsed.

NBC is poised to end the 2012-13 TV season later this month in fourth place among total viewers behind No. 1 CBS, No. 2 Fox and No. 3 ABC.  (NBC will likely rank third place among adults 18-49 behind No. 1 CBS and No. 2 Fox; when it comes to the audience demographics advertisers crave, ABC is arguably in worse shape.)

With an abundance of low-rated series, the pink slips were bound to fly and they did.  NBC canceled “Deception,” “Go On,” “Guys with Kids,” “The New Normal,” “Rock Center,” “1600 Penn,” “Smash,” “Up All Night” and “Whitney,” adding these series to a refuse pile that already included the 2012-13 shows “Animal Practice” and “Do No Harm.”  (NBC has not yet made a decision on the futures of “Hannibal” and “Celebrity Apprentice.”)

NBC will replace these programs with three new dramas and three new comedies this fall, and the network ordered an additional five dramas, three comedies and three reality shows to also air during the 2013-14 TV season.  Previews of these programs will be unveiled to advertisers today in New York as part of the annual “upfront” week when advertisers buy commercial time in programs up front before the start of the fall TV season.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/ae/tv-radio/nbc-cancels-several-series-687406/#ixzz2TBauZcNR

Fans Flock To Scranton, Pa., For ‘The Office’ Fete

Lackawanna County Courthouse, Scranton, Pennsylvania, USA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SCRANTON (AP) — The actors who play Pam, Jim, Dwight and other beloved characters from the popular NBC show “The Office” bade farewell on Saturday to the northeastern Pennsylvania city of Scranton that served as the TV setting for their fictional paper company.

The NBC mockumentary about a clan of quirky cubicle-dwellers at the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Co. wraps up May 16 after nine seasons, and a crowd estimated at 10,000 attended a “Wrap Party” in Scranton to show their appreciation.

Jenna Fischer, John Krasinski, Rainn Wilson and other stars rode in classic convertibles and posed for hundreds of photos as fans thronged around them. The stars later took the stage in front of the Lackawanna County Courthouse and played a concert with The Scrantones, the band that performed the show’s theme song.

Steve Carell, who played office boss buffoon Michael Scott, wasn’t expected to make an appearance but surprised fans at a celebration later outside the city at PNC Field, home of the New York Yankees’ Triple A affiliate, The (Scranton) Times-Tribune reported.

Read more: http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130505/ENTERTAINMENT01/130509628/fans-flock-to-scranton-pa–for-the-office-fete-#full_story

Hysterical Interview Of Ryan Lochte On Good Day Philadelphia

The interview is funny but after Ryan is done watch Sheinelle Jones laugh so hard she cries, snorts and they go to break.  Ryan has a new reality show on E! which he is promoting, hence the interview.

Click here:  http://www.myfoxphilly.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8787217

Jonathan Winters, Funny Man And Comedic Inspiration, Dies At 87

Jonathan Winters as a truck driver (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Jonathan Winters, the rubber-faced comedian whose unscripted flights of fancy inspired a generation of improvisational comics, and who kept television audiences in stitches with Main Street characters like Maude Frickert, a sweet-seeming grandmother with a barbed tongue and a roving eye, died on Thursday at his home in Montecito, Calif.  He was 87.

His death was announced on his Web site, JonathanWinters.com.

Mr. Winters, a rotund man whose face had a melancholy basset-hound expression in repose, burst onto the comedy scene in the late 1950s and instantly made his mark as one of the funniest, least definable comics in a rising generation that included Mort Sahl, Shelley Berman and Bob Newhart.

Mr. Winters was at his best when winging it, confounding television hosts and luckless straight men with his rapid-fire delivery of bizarre observations uttered by characters like Elwood P. Suggins, a Midwestern Everyman, or one-off creations like the woodland sprite who bounded onto Jack Paar’s late-night show and simperingly proclaimed: “I’m the voice of spring.  I bring you little goodies from the forest.”

Read more:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/13/arts/television/jonathan-winters-comedian-dies-at-87.html?hp&_r=0

Annette Funicello, 70, Dies; Beloved As A Mouseketeer And A Star Of Beach Movies

Publicity photo of Annette Funicello and Richard Tyler as guest stars on The Danny Thomas Show. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Annette Funicello, who won America’s heart as a 12-year-old in Mickey Mouse ears, captivated adolescent baby boomers in slightly spicy beach movies and later championed people with multiple sclerosis, a disease she had for more than 25 years, died on Monday in Bakersfield, Calif. She was 70.

Her death, from complications of the disease, was announced on the Disney Web site.

As an adult Ms. Funicello described herself as “the queen of teen,” and millions around her age agreed.  Young audiences appreciated her sweet, forthright appeal, and parents saw her as the perfect daughter.

She was the last of the 24 original Mouseketeers chosen for “The Mickey Mouse Club,” the immensely popular children’s television show that began in 1955, when fewer than two-thirds of households had television sets.  Walt Disney personally discovered her at a ballet performance.

Read more:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/09/movies/annette-funicello-mouseketeer-dies-at-70.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Tuned In: Super Bowl Ads Largely Disappoint

With no team to cheer for in the Super Bowl, sometimes it really can be the commercials that are the draw. But the spots during this year’s big game didn’t leave viewers with much to discuss.  Fortunately, the third-quarter blackout — and the game itself — should fill the void around workplace water coolers this morning.

This year’s ads cost about $3.8 million per 30-second spot, and even with all that money it’s unlikely a commercial from last night’s Super Bowl XLVII will emerge to stand the test of time.

The usual trends — animals, children, ads for big-budget movies — continued and were joined by spots that encouraged viewers to: Vote for a sequel ad online (Coke), sign up online to get a free soft drink (Pepsi Next) and visit online promo sites (many, many ads).  Viewers who don’t watch TV while on the computer simultaneously surely felt left out.

Although viewers may disagree on the best ad during the Super Bowl, it seems likely Americans will come together to declare the Bud Black Crown ads the worst.  The ads, set in a club with supposedly hip people — “the loud, the savvy, the famous” — made it look like anyone who consumes this beer will instantly be transformed into one of these pompous, poser jerks.  Who wants that?

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/ae/tv-radio/tuned-in-super-bowl-ads-largely-disappoint-673351/#ixzz2Jy5AFqpm

Comcast Plans To Hike Rates, Start Charging For Adapters

Comcast Building new (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In the spring of 2010, Comcast Cable required Lancaster and Elizabethtown subscribers of the “expanded basic package” (channels 25-78) to get digital TV adapters, and the first two adapters were free.

The cable provider, however, never said the adapters were free forever and, effective March 1, Comcast will charge Lancaster-area subscribers $1.99 per digital television adapter or digital transport adapter.

The price remains unchanged for “limited basic” (channels; 2-7, 9-13, 20-24 and 96) customers, who can get up to three adapters at no additional cost. The DTA price is unchanged.

The company previously charged subscribers $1.99 a month for each adapter beyond two.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/809857_Comcast-plans-to-hike-rates–start-charging-for-adapters.html#ixzz2Jf6eUFDP

Philly TV Icon Sally Starr Dies At 90

Sally Starr, 90, the vivacious blonde TV cowgirl who served as a surrogate parent for the Philadelphia region’s baby boomers, died Sunday morning.

Starr died peacefully in a South Jersey nursing home shortly after 6 a.m., according to Michael Yip, a close friend of Starr’s.  She had been in poor health for years, both from various natural causes as well as from the effects of a 2005 car crash.

Read more: http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/Philadelphia_TV_legend_Sally_Starr_dies_at_90_.html#ixzz2JEfFgQ7I
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Hellertown’s Dolce Patisserie Owner, Alan Pitotti, Wins $10,000 On Food Network’s ‘Sweet Genius’

English: Logo for Food Network (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Chef Alan Pitotti, owner of Hellertown‘s Dolce Patisserie, won $10,000 on the Food Network on Thursday night and proved what his customers already know: He is a sweet genius.

Ron Ben-Isreal, host of the show that’s also called “Sweet Genius,” told Pitotti, “You are like me and belong in my world of desserts.”

It was high praise for Pitotti, who has watched the program since it began and admires Ben-Israel’s work.

But winning that $10,000 wasn’t easy for the pastry chef who revealed a side as sweet as his creations.  He told viewers he left a budding career in the pastry world’s limelight to return home to be with his mother after his father died unexpectedly.  It has been nearly five years since he began creating extraordinary chocolates and cakes in quiet little Hellertown.

Read more:  http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-chef-wins-10000-20130118,0,4267715.story

‘American Idol’ Ratings Plummet In Season 12 Premiere

The Mariah Carey-Nicki Minaj feud might not be enough to rescue “American Idol”s” ratings.

Fox‘s singing competition entered its 12th season Wednesday with three new judges and sharply lower viewership.  An average of 17.8 million total viewers tuned in to the two-hour premiere, slumping 19% compared with last season, according to Nielsen.

Read more:  http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/la-et-st-american-idol-ratings-plummet-20130117,0,4166712.story

Presence Of ‘Amish Mafia’ Felt In Lancaster City

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lancaster County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In Discovery Channel’s popular television show “Amish Mafia,” the lead character, Lebanon Levi, is portrayed as a sort-of Amish Vito Corleone.

“Lebanon Levi is the cops,” another character, Esther, says in one of the episodes. “He is the courthouse, he is the bank and he is the insurance company.”

Karin Meacham is making the most of her Lancaster city store’s 15 minutes of fame — delivered in an unmarked envelope by “Amish Mafia.”

Visitors to Art & Glassworks, 319 N. Queen St., are greeted at the front door by a sign bearing a photo of Levi and the faux warning — “This store is protected by Lebanon Levi.”

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/796915_Presence-of–Amish-Mafia–felt-in-Lancaster-city.html#ixzz2GIZXGlas

‘Hell’s Kitchen’ Chef To Sizzle At Roma Ristorante

English: City of Allentown from east side (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

While farm-to-table is a notable dining trend, Roma Ristorante is about to introduce TV-to-table fare to the culinary lexicon.  A special dinner hosted by the Allentown restaurant on Jan. 21 will feature a live demonstration by chef Clemenza Caserta, an alumnus of Fox Broadcasting’s popular “Hell’s Kitchen” series.  Caserta, who hails from Staten Island, was among the contestants in this year’s 10th season of the cooking competition that stars fiery-tempered celeb chef Gordon Ramsay — the sole judge of the show.

Eighteen initial contestants, chosen from 200,000 applicants, according to Caserta, are divided between two teams, with one chef eliminated each week.  The final six compete individually and receive a coveted black chef’s jacket.  Caserta withstood the blistering harangues of Ramsay to enter this elite group of finalists, exiting the show in the number four spot.

Read more:  http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/restaurants/blog/mc-hells-kitchen-chef-to-sizzle-at-roma-ristorante-20121227,0,2815477.story

Christmas Eve Special On Reading Airs Tonight

A 1947 topographic map of the Reading, Pennsylvania area. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Reading PA – The one-hour CBS Christmas Eve special focusing on Reading’s hopeful holiday spirit amid poverty will be broadcast tonight at 11:35 pm without commercials in the “David Letterman” time slot.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=438823

Lancaster County Residents Find ‘Amish Mafia’ Debut Fun, Entertaining

English: Discovery Channel logo, used 1985-1995 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Wednesday night’s premiere showing of Lancaster-based “reality” show “Amish Mafia” was as outrageous as advertised, locals agree.

Many locals who watched the series debut — allegedly based on the unseen workings of Amish law enforcement here — found the show entertaining and fun.

Most said they’ll watch the next episode, which, according to Discovery Channel’s trailer, will feature a clash between rival Amish men from separate families.

But how much of the show is actually legit?

Depends on who you ask.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/792549_Lancaster-County-residents-find–Amish-Mafia–debut-fun–entertaining.html#ixzz2EzUfhqic

‘Dallas’ Star Larry Hagman Dies In Texas

English: Publicity photo of Larry Hagman and Barbara Eden from I Dream of Jeannie. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

.R. Ewing was a business cheat, faithless husband and bottomless well of corruption.  Yet with his sparkling grin, Larry Hagman masterfully created the charmingly loathsome oil baron — and coaxed forth a Texas-size gusher of ratings — on television’s long-running and hugely successful nighttime soap, “Dallas.”

Although he first gained fame as nice guy Capt. Tony Nelson on the fluffy 1965-70 NBC comedy “I Dream of Jeannie,” Hagman earned his greatest stardom with J.R. The CBS serial drama about the Ewing family and those in their orbit aired from April 1978 to May 1991, and broke viewing records with its “Who shot J.R.?” 1980 cliffhanger that left unclear if Hagman’s character was dead.

The actor, who returned as J.R. in a new edition of “Dallas” this year, had a long history of health problems and died Friday due to complications from his battle with cancer, his family said.

“Larry was back in his beloved hometown of Dallas, re-enacting the iconic role he loved the most.  Larry’s family and closest friends had joined him in Dallas for the Thanksgiving holiday,” the family said in a statement that was provided to The Associated Press by Warner Bros., producer of the show.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20121124/ENTERTAINMENT01/121129678/-dallas-star-larry-hagman-dies-in-texas

Television’s Fall Season Endures

For years, Alan Wurtzel, the head of research for NBC, has questioned the enduring validity of a television season — the ritual competition of network series, which begins again Monday night.

“I’ve been saying the idea of a television season is an anachronistic artifact,” Mr. Wurtzel said. “It’s a 52-week-a-year business. We never take a night off.”

The tradition of the fall season, originally tied to the start of the model year for new cars, is now more than 60 years old. It is defined arbitrarily and rather arcanely by the Nielsen Company as 34.5 weeks between mid-September and mid-May. The season doesn’t account for the increasing number of viewers who watch shows on their own schedules and it hasn’t stopped cable networks from introducing hit shows all through the year.

And yet, the idea persists, in large part because it still works. In defiance of diminishing ratings, attention on the new network shows seems only to have increased, as more blogs and social media sites offer breakdowns of the lineups and predictions of successes and failures.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/24/business/media/television-changes-but-the-fall-season-endures.html?_r=0

Lack Of Presidential Ads Signals Pennsylvania Less Of A Swinger

Not so long ago, Pennsylvania stood unquestionably as a swing state, one presidential candidates of both major parties thought they could win.

Democratic candidates knew they had to win the state to get elected. Republican candidates knew that if they won it, they would likely be president.

Maybe Republican nominee Mitt Romney still really believes he can win Pennsylvania, but with the decision by the presidential campaigns and their affiliated super PACs to stop advertising on television in Pennsylvania after Labor Day, the state is President Barack Obama’s to lose.

As a result, the Keystone State is second-tier in importance behind states such as Florida, Ohio, Colorado, Virginia and even Wisconsin, which hasn’t voted for a Republican for president in even longer (1984) than Pennsylvania (1988).

Read more:

http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/lack-of-presidential-ads-signals-pa-less-of-a-swinger-1.1374266