All the tube news that’s fit to surf …

– New York magazine’s Vulture blog says Best Week Ever with Paul F. Tompkins may be canceled. VH1 says: it ain’t so.

– The Adam Lambert Rolling Stone cover hits newsstands this week, and yes, he confirms it.

– Liam Neeson as Hannibal, Bradley Cooper as Faceman? Bring on The A-Team movie!

– David Letterman is probably sticking around CBS beyond the 2009-2010 season.

– Rachael Ray will be yakking about EVOO for a few more seasons.

– And My Name Is Earl might not be done just yet, either. TBS may greenlight 13 new episodes.

– Jimmy Fallon‘s Webby acceptance speech: “Thank God Conan got promoted.” Clever.

– And you’ve got to hand it to Fallon and crew for getting Mark-Paul Gosselaar to don his Zack Morris duds. With that crazy ’90s cell phone, even!

– Who’s the adorkable kid in this photo? Ryan Seacrest. No, really.

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• Filed in Boob Tube to Big Screen, TV News
• Tags: A-Team movie, Adam Lambert, American Idol, Best Week Ever, Bradley Cooper, David Letterman, EVOO, Jimmy Fallon, Liam Neeson, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, My Name Is Earl, Paul F. Tompkins, Rachael Ray, Rolling Stone, Ryan Seacrest, Saved by the Bell, The A-Team, VH1, Zack Morris

All the tube news that’s fit to surf …

– What if Hurley, John Locke and Ben from Lost, Dwight Schrute and Craig Ferguson were Simpsons characters? It would be awesome, that’s what.

– VH1 is planning a Hills-ish reality series revolving around the rich and not-so-rich folk who frequent Aspen.

– Bravo reps are suggesting next week’s episode of The Real Housewives of New Jersey will shed further light on the alleged criminal past of scene-stealer Danielle Staub.

– The next issue of Rolling Stone will reportedly feature a cover in which American Idol runner-up (sigh) Adam Lambert announces he’s gay. Inside, there will be stories where Miley Cyrus admits she can’t really sing so well and John Mayer confesses he’s in love … with himself.

– Kris Allen, future governor of Arkansas? Crazier things have happened.

– A Shot at Love star Tila Tequila is reportedly preggers. What are the chances this isn’t going to unfold on reality TV?

– Could Chuck return earlier than March 2010?

– And the next cast of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew will include a former Real World-er, Dennis Rodman, Heidi Fleiss and One Day at a Time star Mackenzie Phillips.

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• Filed in American Idol, Celebreality, Chuck, Comedy, Drama, TV News
• Tags: A Shot at Love, Adam Lambert, Aspen, Ben, Celeb Rehab, Celebrity Rehab, Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, Chuck, Craig Ferguson, Danielle Staub, Dennis Rodman, Dwight Schrute, Heidi Fleiss, Hurley, John Locke, John Mayer, Kris Allen, Lost, Mackenzie Phillips, Miley Cyrus, Real Housewives of New Jersey, Rolling Stone, Simpsons, The Hills, Tila Tequila, VH1

If you’re in New York City next Tuesday night (May 19), the only place to be is the Best Week Ever Tweetup at Professor Thom’s (219 2nd Ave at 13th Street in the East Village). BWE host extraordinaire Paul F. Tompkins announced the event via Twitter, and the invitation at Best Week Ever.tv promises appearances by Tompkins, Doug Benson, Chuck Nice and “some fancy surprise guests” (as if they weren’t enough!), as well as drink specials and Best Week Ever swag. BWE swag, people! Eeeeeee.

Oh, and NY1 anchor and World Series of Pop Culture host Pat Kiernan RSVP’d via Twitter that he’ll be stopping by the Tweetup, too. I’ll say it again: It’s like Christmas, a birthday and the season premiere of 24 all rolled into one fantastic pop culture dream day. So be there, or be … somewhere where the cool kids aren’t.

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• Filed in Comedy, I Love TV!, TV News
• Tags: Best Week Ever, Chuck Nice, Doug Benson, NY1, Pat Kiernan, Paul F. Tompkins, VH1, World Series of Pop Culture

41. Psych
How cool is Psych? So cool that among its many very diverse pop culture references has been Al B. Sure!, The Peanuts Christmas pageant dance, Drew Lachey and The Mentalist, a show that, as any Psych devotee will point out, came after our beloved Psych.

42. Best Week Ever – Best Pop Culture Wrap-Up Show Ever. Almost makes me forget how much I miss the Greg Kinnear and John “Skunk Boy” Henson days of Talk Soup.

43. The Sopranos reruns on A&E
The show’s still so good and so layered that you’ll find new things you didn’t catch the first time around, and I find I’m not missing the naughtier words at all.

44. Desperate Housewives
Was good, sucked there for a season or two, then bounced back. Despite the skepticism about the jumping-five-years-ahead storyline this season, I think it works, and has managed to freshen up a show that could have jumped into jumping the shark territory quite easily.

45. Boob tube to big screen adaptations
There’s the good (The Fugitive, The Adaams Family, The Brady Bunch Movie, Starsky & Hutch and most definitely the new Star Trek flick), the bad (Wild Wild West, Bewitched, The Dukes of Hazzard, Lost in Space and Scooby-Doo) and the what the hell were they thinking (The Honeymooners), but I always get excited about a TV show being made into a movie (or vice versa) and the possibilities of how some of my faves might be reimagined.

46. VH1’s Top 20 Countdown
Relying on VH1 videos to find new music? Yep, and I don’t care if that’s unhip. The fact is, I don’t remember the last time I saw a video on MTV, and though I often hear new tunes I like during The Hills or The City or The Real World (already admitted I’m still watching it), VH1’s weekend countdown of the top 20 videos is one of the best places to not only hear, but see new bands. It’s how I first discovered the pop/rock goodness of John Mayer‘s debut CD (after he had the bad luck to release the album on September 11, 2001), and I’d argue that American Idol “loser” Chris Daughtry owes a goodly portion of the success of his debut CD to his videos’ constant presence on the VH1 countdown.

47. Pat Kiernan on NY1
Those of you outside the NYC area may be unaware of the soothing morning goodness of hearing the delightfully smooth-voiced Kiernan tell you what’s in the newspapers every day, but if every city had Kiernan reading what’s In the Papers for them, it would amount to a better start to their day. Those outside NYC may also remember him as host of VH1’s World Series of Pop Culture, and you can also catch him on Twitter.

48. Malcolm in the Middle
Loving the FX repeats, especially of the later seasons, which I’d stopped watching when the show originally aired. But in the latter years, it’s all about Reese and Dewey and Hal (the comedic genius that is Bryan Cranston), as, apparently, the writers figured out what most viewers knew all along – Malcolm was a dud. The rest of the family rocked.

49. Breaking Bad
Bryan Cranston, comedic genius (see above). Turns out he’s a damn fine dramatic actor, too.

50. Saturday Night Live
Yep, still watching it, every episode, every season, even when it’s not the must-see show during an election year. Love the Target Lady, love Kenan Thompson, love Andy Samberg‘s digital shorts, love the Justin Timberlake appearances. Most of all, love the history of the show … one of the coolest things I’ve gotten to do as a TV writer was attending a live show (last season’s Jonah Hill-hosted ep). I was sitting there the whole time thinking about how I used to sneak out of bed to watch Eddie Murphy performing on that very stage. Back when Eddie Murphy was a comedic genius. Sigh.

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• Filed in I Love TV!
• Tags: A&E, American Idol, Andy Samberg, Best Week Ever, Breaking Bad, Bryan Cranston, Chris Daughtry, Desperate Housewives, Eddie Murphy, FX, John Henson, John Mayer, Jonah Hill, Justin Timberlake, Kenan Thompson, Malcolm in the Middle, Pat Kiernan, Psych, Saturday Night Live, Star Trek, Talk Soup, The Hills, The Sopranos, TV shows to movies, VH1

Another 10 things I love about TV …

11. FX
Sons of Anarchy is one of my favorite new shows of the last few seasons, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is the funniest show to revolve around mostly repulsive characters since Seinfeld. Throw in Rescue Me, Damages, The Shield, Nip/Tuck, not to mention reruns of The Bernie Mac Show and Malcolm in the Middle, and it’s no exaggeration that FX’s recent history of shows is right up there with HBO.

12. Michael J. Fox
Here’s my theory on why there are so many talented, funny thirtysomethings and fortysomethings in Hollywood: They grew up watching Saturday Night Live, Bugs Bunny cartoons and Michael J. Fox as Alex P. Keaton on Family Ties. Of course there’s also the Back to the Future flicks, but Fox as Reagan-loving Ohioan Alex, who was rebelling against his hippy ‘rents, was a genius of comic timing, and one of the most endearing TV actors, playing one of the most endearing sitcom characters, of all time. And it’s a pure treat to see him back in action, and playing very much against type, as Tommy’s salty, bitter romantic rival on Rescue Me, as well as his on his new TV special, Michael J. Fox: Adventures of an Incurable Optimist, which airs May 7 on ABC (10:02PM).

13. The Real Housewives of … Anywhere!
The Atlanta ladies were the ones who got me hooked on the franchise, the New York City women have turned out to be the feistiest, most dramatic, and I’ve even come around to enjoying the spoiled shenanigans of the Orange County chicks (well, except for Vicki … oooh, that Vicki!), but the bottom line is, they’re all guilty pleasure goddesses. Can’t wait for the Real Housewives of NYC reunion special next week (May 12, Bravo, 10PM), which is so full of catfighting that they had to split it into two episodes, as well as what may turn out to be the best spin-off of all, The Real Housewives of New Jersey (season premiere May 12, 11PM).

14. The Biggest Loser
It’s a feel good show, and a testament to the amazing things people can do, often starting from a pretty hopeless place, when they put their minds and bodies to it.

15. VH1 reality shows
Rock of Love, Tough Love, I Love Money, Flavor of Love, Breaking Bonaduce, Celebrity Rehab, Charm School, My Fair Brady, The Surreal Life … I’m not proud, but I’m even watching Daisy of Love.

16. Simon Cowell
Yes, sometimes he’s a tool, and yes, sometimes you might even disagree with him (though less and less frequently with each season). But the bottom line is that, no matter who wins American Idol each season, Simon is always the star of the show. American Idol without Simon is like … American Idol with only Randy and Paula. See what I mean?

17. The Cottonelle puppy commercials
I know, some people hate them, and hate that Zach Braff is voicing them, but puppy on a treadmill, puppy in a hot tub, hundreds of puppies on a staircase … cuteness gold.

18. The Bad Girls Club
From the same producers who gave us The Real World comes this reality series where several strangers are picked to live in a house, work together and have their lives taped, to find out what happens when people stop being polite and start getting real … real skanky, real trashy, real potty-mouthed and real prone to smacking each other and dousing each other with various liquids. It’s good stuff.

19. Regis Philbin
He’s a great storyteller and charming host, but Regis’ best moments are the ones when he’s interviewing a guest he doesn’t know, or whose project he doesn’t know, and he doesn’t bother to pretend he does. He’s Regis damn it, and really, why would Regis know about some reality TV show Nick Lachey is producing? Reeg has earned the right not to know.

20. DIY Network
Still doin’ the NYC apartment thang, but when the hubs and I do buy a house, we’ll know how to regrout it, install cabinets and flooring in it, feed and water its lawn and be experts on its retaining walls, all thanks to the DIY Network. And, thanks to DIY Net’s arts and crafts shows, I’ll also know how to knit things for it, bead jewelry to wear in it and scrapbook the photos I take of it.

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• Filed in I Love TV!
• Tags: DIY Network, FX, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Michael J. Fox, Real Housewives, Regis Philbin, Rescue Me, Rock of Love, Simon Cowell, Sons of Anarchy, The Bad Girls Club, The Biggest Loser, VH1