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The 'Dancing With The Stars' Situation: Florence Henderson Eliminated In Shocker

Posted 10/20/10 7:35 am EST by in Television


Generally speaking, it's usually very easy to predict who will be going home each week on "Dancing With the Stars." The scores are right there for you to see, and there are certain rules that tend to be followed. One of those rules? Unless you're a complete mess (like, for example, Buzz Aldrin last season), your advanced age will usually give you a leg up on your competition. This show loves senior citizens (remember Cloris Leachman's run from a few years back?) and those famous folks tend to gobble up votes faster and better than their younger (and sometimes more famous) counterparts. So it was more than a little bit surprising that Tuesday night's (October 19) edition of "Dancing With the Stars" ended with former "Brady Bunch" star Florence Henderson forced to put away her sequined costumes for good.

While Henderson was hardly a "Dancing With the Stars" heavy hitter, she put forth a reasonably strong effort on Monday night's (October 18th) performance episode and seemed to have the drop on both Bristol Palin (who may have picked up some sympathy votes because of Monday night's gorilla costume) and Kyle Massey. But in the end, it was Henderson who was shown the door, leaving only seven couples behind to compete for the big silly mirrorball trophy. Of the celebs who remain, only three — Jennifer Grey, Brandy and Audrina Patridge — seem like winner's circle possibilities. The rest all have one problem or another, be it performance (Palin, Kurt Warner), popularity (Rick Fox, who has continuously improved and yet can't buy a vote) or both (Massey).

The rest of Tuesday night's show was filled with fake drama (Jennifer Grey was declared "in jeopardy," which was more or less a ridiculous concept) and even faker informercials (the idea of David Hasselhoff having a law firm that focuses on personal injuries is funny, but the execution left a lot to be desired). Musical performances were left to Shakira (who apparently has a new album out) and Jason Derulo (who acquitted himself nicely).

What did you think of Florence Henderson's elimination on "Dancing With the Stars"? Let us know in the comments!

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The 'Dancing With The Stars' Situation: It's Audrina's World Now

Posted 10/19/10 7:30 am EST by in Television


Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino — the star of "Jersey Shore" and the inspiration for this feature — may have shaken his tailfeather for the last time on "Dancing With the Stars," but that doesn't mean there is no longer a reason to watch. In fact, the Situation's exit makes way for a far more compelling story line in the early success of former "The Hills" star Audrina Patridge, who has spent the first few weeks of the competition delivering consistent good (and typically underrated) performances that are extremely technically sound and lacking only in character and delivery. As Monday night's (October 18th) new episode proved, the real battle for supremacy is still between Jennifer Grey and Brandy, but the focus of the rest of the season could be whether or not Patridge is able to step up her performance game and make herself into a force who can win this whole thing.

She acquitted herself well last night, but ran into the same kinds of speed bumps as before. Her rumba was sharp and entertaining enough, but the judges again demanded more passion and performance from her. That has been a consistent complaint from the panel for the entirety of the season so far, and it's quite possible that Patridge is beginning to try their patience. Still, it's hard to argue with her moves, which are fluid and graceful. Plus, her bikini and robe get-up certainly didn't hurt her.

The rest of the show saw two more great performances from Grey and Brandy, while Rick Fox and Kurt Warner represented well for the athlete contingent (Fox seems to be getting especially good and could threaten the top of the heap in a few weeks). At the bottom of the list, Bristol Palin came in as the straggler now that the Situation had exited, and her performance — which featured her dressed as a gorilla for reasons nobody could quite figure out — did her no favors. Though Florence Henderson's delivery was also pretty middling, it seems unlikely that the country will send one of television's favorite mothers home, which means that it's back to Alaska (and motherhood) for Palin.

Who do you think will go home on "Dancing With the Stars" this week? Let us know in the comments!

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'The Talk' Premiere Dominates This Week's 'Late Night Lineup'

Posted 10/18/10 9:30 am EST by in Television


The big news on the talk show circuit this week isn't in late night but rather in the daytime hours, as Monday (October 18th) marks the premiere of "The Talk," the new "The View"-esque show that features Sharon Osbourne, Julie Chen, Sara Gilbert, Holly Robinson Peete, Leah Remini and Marissa Jaret Winokur discussing the news and discussion topics of the day (though with a more particular focus on motherhood and familiy issues). Though their scope will likely be expanding in the coming weeks, their first set of guests includes Christie Brinkley (Monday), Jennifer Lopez (Tuesday, October 19) and Jamie Lee Curtis (Friday, October 22).

It's a good thing there are new things happening in the afternoon, because the late night scene will be strangely quiet. "The Tonight Show," "The Late Show With David Letterman," "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson," "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon," "Last Call With Carson Daly," "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" are all in reruns this week, meaning that your pickings are awfully slim.

But Jimmy Kimmel is still around to save you, and with no other shows to compete with for bookings, "Jimmy Kimmel Live" happens to have a killer lineup this week. Performances this week include MGMT (Monday), Die Antwoord (Wednesday, October 20) and Rod Stewart (Thursday, October 21). He'll also chat with Heidi Klum (Tuesday) and Clint Eastwood (Thursday). If that doesn't satisfy you, there's always "Chelsea Lately" (host Chelsea Handler has "Parenthood" star Monica Potter on Tuesday and former MTV staple Jenny McCarthy on Thursday) or "Lopez Tonight" (Lopez welcomes Shakira on Monday, the "Jackass" crew on Tuesday and John Legend on Wednesday). And you should probably tune in to "Ellen" on Monday, as she'll be talking with Russell Brand, and since every Russell Brand interview is sort of amazing, consider that a can't-miss.

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The 'Mad Men' Finale: The Return Of The Bad Old Don Draper

Posted 10/18/10 7:45 am EST by in Television


Of all the shows on television lucky enough to last as long as it has, no other program has done season finales like AMC's "Mad Men." Remember Don Draper's speech about nostalgia, the panic over the Cuban missile crisis and the series of events that lead to the emergence of Sterling Cooper Draper Price? Those were all end-of-season gut punches that could be counted among the finest hours in recent television history.

That's why Sunday night's (October 17) episode of "Mad Men" — the last of season four — couldn't help but be disappointing. The one major revelation (Don's proposal to secretary Megan) seemed out of context, and all the other major events (Betty Draper firing Carla, Peggy bringing in new business) were anti-climatic. The one bit of business that was actually satisfying and immediately sets up something interesting for next season was the confirmation that Joan did in fact keep the baby (which belongs to Roger, not her husband), something that had been speculated for a few weeks. (Actually, both of the show's best moments came courtesy of Joan, as not only was her phone call to her husband in Vietnam sort of heartbreaking — all he seemed to be concerned about was her increased breast size — but the conversation she had with Peggy over a cigarette and their shared frustration was both sweet and exhilarating, even if it only lasted a minute or two.)

But back to Don Draper, who brought his children to Disneyland with Megan in tow as a caretaker (primarily for his children, but also for himself). This entire season had been about Don finding bottom and then digging himself out, mostly with the help of Dr. Faye Miller (who apparently has been written off the show, which is a real shame). But just when it seemed like Don had evolved a bit and embraced a healthy, adult relationship, he allowed his impetuous side to take over. He offered up the engagement ring that the late Anna had left for him and found himself engaged. His breakup with Dr. Miller got short shrift, but her exit line to him was cutting and true. "You only like the beginnings of things," she snapped before hanging up the phone.

Strangely, there don't seem to be a whole lot of cliffhangers left for next season. The agency appears to be finding its footing again (at least for the time being) and Don is moving on to another chapter in his personal life. Meanwhile, Peggy and Joan remain frustrated, Betty is still an unhappy shrew and the Draper children all seem to be an afterthought. Everybody else appears to be floating in limbo, which suggests that the next season may jettison the cast further into the future than usual. While a bad episode of "Mad Men" is still better than most good episodes of just about anything else, Sunday night's finale couldn't help but feel a little hollow. Everybody is allowed a misstep or two, but it's always disappointing when those miscues come when it counts the most.

What did you think of the "Mad Men" finale? Let us know in the comments!

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Pee Wee Herman Resurrects Large Marge On 'Jimmy Fallon'

Posted 10/15/10 9:00 am EST by in Television


There are few weeks that go by without a piece of video from "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" making its way through the Internet and putting any number of strange pop culture phenomena into the water cooler conversation. On Thursday night (October 14), Fallon welcomed Pee Wee Herman to the show for an interview plugging "The Pee Wee Herman Show," the successful stage show that has made its way from Los Angeles to New York (the show kicks off on October 26).

The interview was great, as Herman (born Paul Reubens) has not lost a step in the years the character has been dormant. And because Fallon has a great mind for pop culture (just look at his "California Dreams" reunion and his Justin Timberlake-assisted "History of Rap" for proof of that), he opened up the interview by re-creating a key scene from the classic Tim Burton-directed 1985 film "Pee Wee's Big Adventure." Fallon tells the story of finding out about Herman getting booked on the show in the style of Large Marge, the creepy trucker from "Big Adventure" whose face gets distorted into a freakish claymation visage while she tells a story about a car accident. (Is Large Marge undead or just a figment of Herman's imagination? It is never resolved, though that didn't stop that moment from being the scariest part of "Pee Wee's Big Adventure.") Not to be outdone, Fallon also punctuated his story with a bug-eyed, clay-assisted distortion of his own face. It's a great moment of bizarre nostalgia that hits all the right notes.

MTV News sat down with Herman earlier this year to discuss "The Pee Wee Herman Show" and to joke around with the comedy icon. Check out his excitement over the "modern" touches in the show.


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'Dancing With The Stars' Gave The Situation A Pain In The Neck: The MTV News Quote Of The Day

Posted 10/14/10 3:00 pm EST by in Television


"Mike didn't storm off after we got voted off. [He'd] been hurting a lot on Tuesday. Not sure what was wrong, but it was in his neck area. He had a doctor come in right after the show. I really hope that the injury isn't from those crazy lifts, especially since they didn't pay off. Either way, of course we would have preferred to stay, but at the same time, we had a blast dancing together."

-Professional dancer Karina Smirnoff, commenting on the exit of "Dancing With the Stars" partner Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino. After three weeks of squeaking by in the competition, the Situation was finally shown the door on Tuesday night (October 12) after bringing in the lowest scores of the week from the judges. Though he disappeared immediately after being eliminated, dance partner Smirnoff explained to MTV News' Jocelyn Vena that the Situation's reasoning was medical, not emotional.

Though that's not to say he wasn't a little bummed by the results. "I think it would be wrong to say [he's] mad. Disappointed, maybe. Mad, no," Smirnoff said. "I think it was very predictable after Monday night. We were given some harsh criticism and the lowest scores of the night. But at the same time, I hoped that we would stay and try our luck in the next week's dance. The good news is now we can both concentrate on our other projects. For one, we both have a fitness DVD coming out. I might actually beat Mike in my release date!"

Smirnoff also defended the Situation's abilities, insisting that the judges didn't take into account the fact that the "Jersey Shore" star was challenging himself. "The difficulty of those lifts was very high, and the judges didn't even mention anything about them as if they didn't even see them!" she said. "The audience was very supportive in ballroom, screaming, applauding throughout the performance. So at least we had the support of the audience."

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'South Park' Takes On 'Jersey Shore'

Posted 10/14/10 7:30 am EST by in Television


The cast members of MTV's hit series "Jersey Shore" have slowly been creeping out of their Thursdays at 10 p.m. bubble and into the outer reaches of the pop culture universe (with the Situation having recently wrapped his run on "Dancing With the Stars" and JWoww appearing on "TNA Impact!" this week, it has been a particularly busy few days). Considering their brush with instant stardom, it was only a matter of time before the parodies started rolling in ("Saturday Night Live" drew first blood last season when cast member Bobby Moynihan appeared as Snooki — "Call me Garfield, because I'm orange and I love lasagna"), and on Wednesday night (October 13), the crew at "South Park" sunk their fangs deep into the show. While not quite as savage as their takedowns of Paris Hilton or Tom Cruise, last night's episode of "South Park" (titled "It's a Jersey Thing") pulled few punches.

The plot posited that New Jersey (and its inhabitants, including send-ups of "The Real Housewives of New Jersey") was slowly expanding and taking over a greater portion of the United States. With their zombie-like siege on the small town of South Park, Colorado, steadily coming, it's up to the inhabitants of said town (specifically Randy Marsh, in this instance) to fight back against the tanned, sleeveless hordes. Snooki especially took it on the chin, as she was depicted as a lumpy, Jabba-like monster capable only of communicating in wailing half-phrases ("Snooki want smoosh-smoosh!"). Kyle also had trouble suppressing his inner Jersey-ite (complete with a "Teen Wolf"-esque transformation sequence) and the kids explored the soon-to-be-ubiquitous term "muff cabbage."

By the time the episode ended (with none other than Osama Bin Laden saving the day), everything was restored back to normal (though the people of the town still couldn't get over why the "Jersey Shore" crew was so famous).

What did you think of the "South Park" send-up of "Jersey Shore"? Let us know in the comments!

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The Situation Exits 'Dancing With The Stars,' Enters Whatever Show He Likes

Posted 10/13/10 1:30 pm EST by in Television


Though he was driven and popular enough to last a few weeks, the fact that Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino was not the greatest technical dancer in the universe finally caught up with him on Tuesday night (October 12). The breakout star of MTV's "Jersey Shore" was sent packing on "Dancing With the Stars," having picked up the lowest scores of the week for his Argentine tango. In his four weeks on the show, the Situation spent a lot of time in the spotlight if only because he was in danger of being eliminated every week, but he did manage to win over his partner (if not the judges, who were pretty harsh on him). He put up a good fight, but he in the end he came up short.

But luckily, we're not anywhere near done with him. "Jersey Shore" still has a few episodes left (plus the entire third season, which returns the group to their original Seaside Heights home) and he still has his own protein-infused vodka, a workout video and a book coming out in the near future. There will be no shortage of the Situation, which will be just fine with the members of the Situation Nation.

In fact, the Situation's exit from "Dancing With the Stars" might be a blessing in disguise, as it opens up his schedule for any number of other reality show opportunities. Considering his physique, the Situation could easily show up on "The Biggest Loser" as a motivational figure. That same athleticism could serve him well on "Survivor" (where he would certainly be able to work on the "T" aspect of "GTL"). The Situation's other great skills lie in the kitchen, which is why he would make a great contestant on "Throwdown with Bobby Flay."

(Click here for more photos of the Situation dropping into reality shows, including "Survivor" and "The Biggest Loser"!)

What show would you like to see the Situation on next? Let us know in the comments!

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The 'Dancing With The Stars' Situation: Goodnight, Sweet Abs

Posted 10/13/10 8:30 am EST by in Television


As predicted, Tuesday night's (October 12) results episode of "Dancing With the Stars" did not go well at all for MTV Newsroom Blog favorite Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino. He was sent packing last night after a middling performance on Monday followed by extremely low scores and a bit of an on-air temper tantrum. The "Jersey Shore" star exits the show after four weeks of competition, where he showed enthusiasm and charisma but just not very much actual skill or comfort with ballroom dancing. It was a reasonably entertaining showing, but ultimately not enough to carry him.

(As an aside, this is definitely not the place to watch if you're looking to place wagers on "Dancing With the Stars," as our favorites from the past two seasons — the Situation and Buzz Aldrin — have lasted a cumulative total of six weeks. Not the best batting average, really.)

Bristol Palin and Kurt Warner were both considered the other contestants "in jeopardy" last night, though it never seemed like anybody but the Situation would be walking through the exit door. The episode also featured some dancing from some professional alums as well as a visit from Florence and the Machine, who put on one of their typically bizarre and brilliant performances. Goo Goo Dolls also showed up for a performance, reminding the world that they have a new album (and while they were solid, they were not as good as Florence and the Machine).

With the Situation no longer lingering at near the basement door of "Dancing With the Stars," the bottom will now be the domain of Bristol Palin. Meanwhile, the other MTV alum on the show — former "The Hills" star Audrina Patridge — finds herself in the hunt for the top spot.

Who do you think is the front-runner on "Dancing With the Stars"? Let us know in the comments!

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Spotted: 'Jersey Shore' Star JWoww Throws Down With TNA

Posted 10/12/10 12:30 pm EST by in Television


Every day a multitude of stars wander through the halls of MTV News to talk about their latest projects and goof around with our intrepid correspondents. But sometimes we catch stars elsewhere, and that's why we put together Spotted!, a daily compendium of stars in the wild.

It has been a particularly wrestling-centric day here on the MTV Newsroom Blog, hasn't it? But there must be something in the air, as while the Situation tries to extend his dancing career on "Dancing With the Stars," fellow "Jersey Shore" star Jenni "JWoww" Farley has found herself involved in a different kind of competition. She made her way to Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida on Monday (October 11) for the first in a series of appearances in the Total Nonstop Action wrestling promotion. She will be featured on the show's weekly "Impact" show (which airs every Thursday on SpikeTV) and will be involved with a new faction of female wrestlers cleverly called "The Shore." The group includes yet another woman in JWoww's life named Angelina (in this case, it's wrestler Angelina Love) and another character named Cookie (who vaguely resembles Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi). There will be at least one physical confrontation on the show, and though she isn't a trained wrestler, JWoww certainly has experience in throwing down with other ladies.

She wasn't the only star getting friendly with the people, as Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider made his Broadway debut in "Rock of Ages" and Sara Bareilles paid a visit to radio station Y100 in Miami. Click here for these photos as well as the entire "Spotted" archive, which features over 500 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Eminem, Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, Jessica Simpson and Madonna!

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