TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Oh, Brother! Another Season Of Reality Series About Shameless Housemates Starts Sunday

ADVERTISEMENT

By WALT BELCHER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 11, 2008

More proof that the end of civilization as we know is at hand comes up Sunday, when CBS rolls out yet another edition of "Big Brother."

On this reality train wreck, 13 of the most obnoxious people on the planet are locked away in a house, and we get to watch them self-destruct.

Among the contestants is a gay bull rider, a Hooters waitress, a 75 year-old former Marine, a real estate agent and a bartender (excuse me, he prefers "mixologist").

Wow! This is the 10th installment, so that calls for a celebration. Maybe not. Let's have a moment of silence for the death of shame and good taste.

TCA TOUR: By the time you read this, I should be setting up shop in a ballroom at the Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. Soon I'll be blogging away with vidbits from the 14th or 15th news conference that should be under way. Check it out now at TBO.com, keyword: Walt TV.

Only 130 more interview sessions and a dozen parties to go before it's over.

Oh, yes, I am back at the semiannual Television Critics Association tour, an event where broadcast and cable networks roll out stars and producers - especially those associated with new shows - for TV writers from across North America.

On tap today is CNN, TBS, TNT, the Cartoon Network and Lifetime. I start the day with Wolf Blitzer and end it with Kyra Sedgwick and Holly Hunter.

In between, I'll hear from a diverse group such as Dennis Hopper, Shirley MacLaine, Timothy Hutton, Tony Curtis, Jane Kaczmarek, Valerie Bertinelli and Don Cheadle, all of whom have TV projects in the works.

Before this promotional carnival is over, I'll have met the cast of the new "Beverly Hills, 90210"; mingled with the dudes from "Mad Men"; checked out J.J. Abrams' new spook show, "Fringe"; and shared some quality time with the cast of HBO's hot new vampire drama, "True Blood."

This event is where the mind gets stretched in so many ways. We even have a little Shakespeare (PBS has "King Lear"), and ABC is offering dance lessons with the professionals from "Dancing With the Stars."

While it sounds like fun and games, well, it is. But there's gloom and doom hanging over this tour, too. Our ranks have been thinned by layoffs, buyouts and staff reductions at newspapers throughout the country.

Those of us lucky enough to be here are feeling guilty about leaving behind colleagues struggling through tough economic times. Many wonder if this tour will be the last.

CHANNEL FLIPPING: Coming up Sunday night on HBO is "Generation Kill," the first of a seven-part miniseries about the invasion of Iraq in 2003. This gritty, all-too-realistic look at war is based on a book written by Rolling Stone journalist Evan Wright, who was embedded with a Marine battalion. He gained respect by staying with the Marines in battle, often riding in the lead Humvee. In the cast is Sean Brosnan, son of actor Pierce Brosnan.

•TNT's dramas with strong women, "The Closer" and "Saving Grace," return for new seasons on Monday night.

"Closer" star Kyra Sedgwick's Brenda Leigh Johnson will have a new antagonist during this fourth season. Soap opera actor Stephen Martines has a recurring role as a Hispanic news reporter assigned to dog her on cases.

In a recent telephone interview, Sedgwick says she has never identified with a character as much as she has with this quirky Southerner who is addicted to sweets and uses her charm and guile to get confessions out of criminals.

She says she feels like she has given away parts of her heart and soul to Brenda, "but she's dear to me and I adore her."

TUNE IN TONIGHT

Monk Marathon, 11 a.m. to

11 p.m., USA

USA offers 12 hours of Tony Shalhoub's likable goofy detective, Adrian Monk, before the new season begins July 18. You may need therapy after this.

Queen Bees, 9 p.m., The N

On this new reality series, seven bratty teenage divas are challenged to change their ways and become nice girls to win a $25,000 prize.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT