All the tube news that’s fit to surf …

- The Sunday New York Times magazine has a great profile of Conan O’Brien, as he prepares to begin his stint as the new host of The Tonight Show. And yes, he too was surprised that Leno’s getting that nightly 10PM timeslot.

- The next edition of The Real World, The Real World: Cancun, debuts on MTV on June 24. It’s the show’s 22nd season.

- Even reality TV stars are haggling for more money. The New York Post reports that the Real Housewives of New York City want more than the $50,000 per episode they received for season two (up from $5,000 per ep for season one). Whaddaya think? Are they worth it?

- Wanna keep up with all those celebrities are Tweeting about? E! will begin running a crawl of celebrities’ Twitter postings at the bottom of the screen during its programming.

- Just what every desk needs: a Jeff Probst bobblehead.

- TBS might save My Name Is Earl.

- Chuck creator Josh Schwartz says not to worry about those rumored cast cuts; he thinks we won’t even be able to tell where the budget cuts are being made when we watch the show next season.

- MacGruber, the movie, is an idea whose time should definitely come.

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• Filed in Boob Tube to Big Screen, Chuck, Comedy, Drama, Late Night, Reality, TV News
• Tags: bobblehead, Cancun, Chuck, Conan O'Brien, E!, Jay Leno, Jeff Probst, Josh Schwartz, MacGruber, MTV, My Name Is Earl, Real Housewives of New York City, Real World, Real World: Cancun, TBS, Tonight Show, Twitter

UPDATE 2 – Sunday night, 8:35PM ET
Yep, there’s a catch. EW.com’s Michael Ausiello confirms those budget cuts that led to Chuck’s renewal are going to result in two cuts to the writing staff, and less screen time for some cast members, including possibly eliminating one character altogther. Hey, as long as it’s not Jeffster! or Awesome!

UPDATE – Sunday night, 7PM ET
It’s official, says James Hibberd at The Hollywood Reporter: Chuck will be back on NBC for 13 episodes this fall. Woo and hoo.

Potential good news for we Chuck fans: The Hollywood Reporter is, uh, reporting, that NBC could announce as early as today that the show will get that third-season pick-up we’ve all been waiting for (and eating $5 footlongs for).

According to THR, NBC may get a jump on Upfront Week by announcing the greenlight today, after the show’s producers and NBC have worked out a compromise to cut the series budget.

Here’s hoping season three is a go, and that those budget cuts don’t mean bidding adieu to some of our favorite cast members (this means you, Jeffster! and Captain Awesome).

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• Filed in Chuck, TV News
• Tags: Bubble show, Chuck, NBC, Upfront

All the tube news that’s fit to surf …

- Did Izzie and George really die in the Grey’s Anatomy season finale? Meh. I find it more interesting that series creator Shonda Rhimes is living in denial about how ridiculous much of the show has become, including this season’s “ghost sex.”

- Time magazine TV critic James Poniewozik makes an excellent point about how the best comedy on TV is not necessarily always the funniest comedy on TV, using last night’s Alan Alda gem on 30 Rock as a jumping off point. Alda’s quip that referred to the classic M*A*S*H series finale is, hands down, the best, most clever quote of the whole TV season.

- Saturday Night Live airs its 34th season finale – with host Will Ferrell and musical guest Green Day – this weekend, while Fox sketch comedy counterpart MadTV airs its series finale.

- More from SNL: Sunday night’s SNL: Just Shorts special (9PM ET, NBC), a round-up of the show’s most memorable short films, including, of course, “Dick in a Box,” and one of my early favorites, the classic synchronized swimming clip with Martin Short and Harry Shearer.

- And another series finale: tonight’s Prison Break send-off (8PM ET, Fox).

- It makes me love Jonah Hill even more that he riffed on gruesome twosome Heidi and Spencer in a new Harper’s Bazaar interview and photo spread.

- “I want to go to there” is not the only 30 Rock catchphrase that originated with Tina Fey’s daughter Alice, apparently.

- Thanks, Neal McDonough, for spoiling the Desperate Housewives season finale. Oh, okay, the fate of his Dave character wasn’t really a surprise, though he did also confirm in his appearance on The View Thursday that the rumor of a DH spin-off with Mrs. McCluskey (Kathryn Joosten) is true.

- Farrah Fawcett’s documentary on her battle with cancer, Farrah’s Story, is set to air tonight on NBC (9PM ET), but as the Charlie’s Angels star is reportedly on her deathbed, a producer and her on-again, off-again love Ryan O’Neal are fighting over the video.

- USA Today has a good rundown of where the networks stand as they head into Upfront Week next week. Among the shows likely to be on the air next season: The Melrose Place remake, an NCIS spin-off and the return of Scrubs, while the fates of My Name Is Earl, Chuck, Medium, The Unit, Cold Case and Without a Trace are still up in the air.

- And somehow, I doubt Jon Stewart is really worried about Jim Cramer, through Cramer seems to suggest in a new Time magazine interview that he should be.

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• Filed in 30 Rock, Celebreality, Comedy, Drama, TV News
• Tags: 30 Rock, Alan Alda, Chuck, Cold Case, Desperate Housewives, Farrah Fawcett, Green Day, Grey's Anatomy, Harry Shearer, Heidi, James Poniewozik, Jim Cramer, Jon Stewart, Jonah Hill, Kathryn Joosten, M*A*S*H, MadTV, Martin Short, Medium, Melrose Place, My Name Is Earl, NCIS, Neal McDonough, Prison Break, Ryan O'Neal, Saturday Night Live, season finale, series finale, Shonda Rhimes, SNL, Spencer, spin-off, The Unit, Tina Fey, Will Ferrell, Without a Trace

Chuck. You love it, or you’ve never seen it; that’s pretty much the TV viewerverse at this point, with the unfortunate reality that those of us in group one are far outnumbered by those in group two. Having just put forth maximum effort on Chuck’s massive, multi- pronged, cast- supported Save the Show campaign, loyal Nerd Herders remain anxious for any hint of news before NBC makes its official schedule announcement next week. Here’s the latest scoop on the show’s future, courtesy of EW.com’s Michael Ausiello:

Question: What’s the latest on Chuck’s renewal? –Dave
Ausiello: Warner Bros. and NBC are haggling over money. Shocking, I know. If a deal can be worked out – and I have every reason to believe it can (and will) be – it’ll be back for a 13-episode third season.

This, for fans, is horrible news. A 13-episode order is one thing for a new midseason replacement. Sometimes you have too much quality merchandise for the schedule. (And sometimes, not). Regardless, there’s no shame in a new show being given a concentrated opportunity to establish itself, with the fall failures cleared away. Some huge hit shows have started that way – Moonlighting, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The Office , as a few examples.

But that’s not the case for Chuck. Its 2007 starter season was cut short, courtesy of the industry-wide writers strike. The recently-concluded second season gave the showrunners and writers the chance to really hit their stride, showcasing the entertaining action-dramedy blend that inspired such intense fan loyalty. A 13-episode order, bluntly, kills, or at least seriously weakens, the fan commitment.

The way I see it, Chuck returns at the start of the next season, ends after 13 episodes, and leaves a nine-month forget-me gap until it’s renewed (or not). Or, a 13-episode third season doesn’t return until midseason, to the considerably less excitement of fans who’ve had nine months to forget about the show/find other new favorites/decide to move to Hawaii and pursue their dream job of becoming a Benihana chef, thus leaving them less time to watch TV at all. Either way, a nine-month time out – time enough to bring a new life into the world, after all – is also just about enough time to slow walk Chuck to a premature grave.

Anyone disagree?

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• Filed in Chuck, TV News, Uncategorized
• Tags: Benihana, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Chuck, Dramedy, EW, EW.com, Michael Ausiello, Moonlighting, NBC, Nerd Herd, The Office, writers strike, Zachary Levi

All the tube news that’s fit to surf …

- Did Joan Rivers really deserve to be named Celebrity Apprentice instead of Annie Duke, who raised three times as much cash for her charity? Cast your vote at AOL TV. I think Annie should have won, though Rivers’ dedication to and affection for her charity, God’s Love We Deliver, was touching.

- Chef Jamie Oliver and Ryan Seacrest are teaming for an ABC reality series in which they’ll give the citizens of America’s unhealthiest towns nutrition and exercise makeovers. Hmmm … Maybe Seacrest isn’t aspiring to be the next Dick Clark; he’s trying to be the Dude Oprah.

- The ratings for Dollhouse’s season finale suggests the Joss Whedon series probably won’t return to Fox next season.

- Tonight’s episode of Gossip Girl sets up what could be a spin-off series, following the life of young Lily, Serena’s wild child mama.

- More spin-off news: G4 is doing its own take on E!’s The Soup, called Web Soup, a weekly round-up of the best of/worst of viral videos.

- Loooooove 30 Rock and Tina Fey, but have to call BS on the story that last Thursday’s Mamma Mia mentions didn’t amount to a plug. It was a very, very clever tie-in, but both the show and the movie are NBC Universal properties … coincidence? I think not.

- Jon Stewart’s producing a special on the U.S. naturalization process for the History Channel.

- Alex and Hugh are back for the third season of Ice Road Truckers on the History Channel (May 31), and they’ll be joined by the first female driver to be a full-time driver on the show.

- What a great idea: Editing Lost into a “dummies” version that would have events unfold chronologically.

- Al Bundy’s back to be a TV papa again. Ed O’Neill (a fellow alum of Ohio University – go Bobcats!) will play a dad in ABC’s fall 2009 mockumentary-ish sitcom Modern Family.

- And Chuck star Yvonne Strahovksi is certainly keeping busy while she awaits news on whether or not the show will get a third season go from NBC.

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• Filed in 30 Rock, Celebreality, Chuck, Comedy, Drama, Lost, Reality, TV News
• Tags: 30 Rock, Annie Duke, Celebrity Apprentice, Chuck, Dollhouse, Ed O'Neill, Gossip Girl, Ice Road Truckers, Jamie Oliver, Joan Rivers, Jon Stewart, Joss Whedon, Lost, Mamma Mia, Oprah, Ryan Seacrest, The Soup, Tina Fey, Yvonne Strahovski