Scratching that itch you've had since Surf Ninjas, CBS has ordered a pilot of Rob Schneider's new sitcom, most likely for mid-season release. Based on Schneider's life, the show centers around Rob's marriage into his wife's Mexican-American family. The family will be comprised entirely of monstrous women with appetites that only Schneider can satisfy. I'm only kidding about that last part. IF ONLY.
Would you like to hear Paul Scheer read an excerpt from Jim Belushi's book Real Men that gives some explicit and questionable sex advice? Of course you do.
Jewcy has a nice interview with Harris Wittels, writer for Parks and Rec and creator of @humblebrag. Here he is on the positive vibes that Parks and Rec have been throwing off lately: "I attribute it to Mike Schur, who is sickeningly positive all the time. He just grins and eats ice cream cones and watermelon all day. I have never seen him be bothered by anything, no matter what I try."
Have an hour to spare? You should check out The Hollywood Reporter's comedy showrunners roundtable! Featuring Community's Dan Harmon, Modern Family's Steve Levitan, The Big C's Jenny Bicks, Big Bang Theory's Bill Prady, Nurse Jackie's Liz Brizius, and Parks and Rec's Mike Schur, it features these folks talking about their shows, Twitter, and Charlie Sheen. I am only a bit of the way into it now but can say that if you are a nerd about comedies on TV, it is worth checking out. That is all! [via]
I will fight to the death to defend 2003's Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd, so it looks like I should Vaseline up my face now for the rumored Dumb & Dumber sequel. "We're talking about maybe returning to some old characters that everyone has been asking about," Jim Carrey said in an interview about his future cinematic plans, "…There's Bruce Almighty and we're talking about maybe another Dumb and Dumber." Just when Carrey makes Mr. Popper's Penguins, he goes and does something like this…and totally redeems himself!
I hope you aren't tired of long, thoughtful ruminations on Parks and Rec! Sure, there have been like 20 of them over the past couple of months spread across every publication that covers TV (this website is no exception), but what's one more? Here's SF Weekly's take on the theme: "Why Parks and Recreation Might be the Most Important Comedy on TV." Important! You know what you'll be getting with this, but you still can't resist, can you? You weak little baby.
Now that Rep. Anthony Weiner has apparently ruined his life by taking pictures of his dong, an Alec Baldwin New York mayoral run might be in the works for 2013. I could hardly drink my morning shower scotch just thinking about it! [via]
Last night, Jon Stewart interviewed Maziar Bahari, an Iranian journalist and filmmaker who wrote a memoir about his time in Iranian prison. He also took the opportunity to announce that he's working with Bahari on a film adaptation of his memoir, Then They Came For Me. Seeing as Bahari was interrogated about an "interview" he did with a "Western spy" that was actually a Daily Show piece with Jason Jones, Stewart's got a personal connection to this story. Should be interesting to see what comes of it. [via]
The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre just got a weekly show on SiriusXM Satellite Radio, in which they'll broadcast the audio of recent live shows on the "Raw Dog Comedy Channel." The first one hits at 11pm on Saturday. It seems like a fun idea, but also sort of strange to just listen to improv or sketch without the visuals. All those hours perfecting object work, for nothing! Nothing!
Apparently, there are international versions of Saturday Night Live? How did I not know this? There are already Italian and Spanish SNLs, and this weekend marks the debut of Saturday Night Live JPN in Japan. Says Deadline: "Broadway Video Enterprises and Japanese indie producer Yoshimoto Kogyo collaborated on the series, on which Fuju producer Isao Kagari serves in the Lorne Michaels role, pulling cast members from his late-night show Pikaru No Teiri to join a weekly host and musical guest — the same as the American version." Laura Garrison, take note!
Here's Maya Rudolph on how difficult it was to leave SNL: "It's where I feel my heart is the most, the place I feel I gained the most confidence. It's a weekly show, so we had to create all these new characters every week; you really develop yourself there because you're constantly writing, figuring out your voice, producing these pieces. The choice to go was hard. I was raising a family, my daughter was very young at time, and it's an arduous schedule. You're writing constantly, then by the time Monday rolls around you're pitching new ideas, then writing them, blocking, rewriting 'til you get to Saturday, which ends [...]
Pulling what I like to calling "the ol' switcheroodly doo", this Thursday promises a never-before-seen Conan Lopez crossover: Conan guesting on Lopez Tonight, George Lopez stopping by Conan. So many hearty handshakes; so many one-armed hugs. And the smiling, oh the smiling!
Attention, Community superfans: Dan Harmon did an insanely detailed interview with The AV Club in which he walked through every single episode of the second season. It's like director's commentary, but you read it! Part one is up now, so go forth and dive waaaaaaaay deep into Community.
Apparently, it is impossible to enjoy The Office unless all of its characters and jokes have been localized to your country. While the Chinese version is still in the works, yet another has just been announced: Sweden, with Kontoret. I assume it's very similar to the other versions, but instead of a paper company, they all work at Ikea. Although this localization does have one thing going for it, as they've named the Gareth character Viking Ytterman, which is by far the best version of that character's name.
