GMMR’s TV Mix CD: Vol. 1

Sometimes I’ll be driving in my car and I’ll hear it, and it brings me back. It’s that one song that will forever be equated with that special TV moment. You know what I’m talking about, right? When you hear it you are just brought back to a place and time and it stirs up all kinds of memories.

Well, I thought I would share just a few of my favorite TV-music moments, and then ask you to share a few of yours. When I could find it, I included a link to the scene so you could relive the moment. There were countless to choose from, but here are just a handful to get us started – I didn’t even begin to scratch the surface, but I plan on adding to it and if you all like it, maybe we could add more TV Mix CD’s in the future.

Title: “Hide & Seek”
Artist: Imogen Heap
Show: The O.C.
The haunting “Hide & Seek” was featured twice during S2’s “Dearly Beloved”. We first heard it during the funeral procession for Caleb Nichols, and then later it was the song that broke through the moment Marissa shot Ryan’s brother Trey. “Hide & Seek” was used just this past season on an SNL digital short (‘Dear Sister’), a parody of The O.C.’s infamous shooting scene.

Title: “Daydream Believer”
Artist: Marybeth Maziraz
Show: Dawson’s Creek
Marybeth Maziraz made many musical contributions to The Creek during its run, but none more important than her beautiful remake of The Monkees “Daydream Believer.” For me, whenever I hear that song I can’t but think of the moment that Joey & Pacey finally realized they couldn’t deny their feelings for each other…you remember, it was at Aunt Gwen’s during “Stolen Kisses”. As Dawson’s Creek is my favorite TV show of all time, there were many other memorable music moments. Runners up include the theme song,”I Don’t Want to Wait” by Paula Cole, Decisions – “I’ll Be” by Edward McCain, Beauty Contest – “On my Own” from Les Mis, and “Fall from Grace” by Amanda Marshall

Title: “How to Save a Life”
Artist: The Frey
Show: Grey’s Anatomy
Ok, so I don’t equate this song with a specific episode of “Grey’s Anatomy” but rather with that awesome montage that played as the teaser for S3. I remember laying on my bathroom floor, crying for hours after I saw that video. Oh wait, that was Izzie. But I did shed a few tears. The emotion of that song/video never left, and so when The Frey took the stage to perform “How to Save a Life” during the ABC Upfronts earlier this month, well let’s just say that it got very dusty in there. Another teary Grey’s song is “Breath” by Anna Nalick which was used brilliant during S2’s post-Super Bowl bomb episode. Come back to me Grey’s Anatomy…make me cry again in S4.

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Silverman In…Reilly Out at NBC (UPDATE)

UPDATE: According to this report, it’s official…Kevin Reilly is out and Ben Silverman is in over at NBCU. Silverman will even have a better title than Reilly as rumors have him coming in as NBC Universal West Coast Chairman. The announcement is expected on Tuesday.

Originally posted on May 25, 2007: The watercoolers over at NBC are boiling today. Rumor has it that NBC Entertainment President, Kevin Reilly might be voted off the island today (oh wait that’s CBS)…let’s try that again. It might be Deal or No Deal for Kevin Reilly (yes!) as the head honcho at NBC TV might just hear his boss Jeff Zucker say “you’re fired” (oh I’m on a roll now) as early as today. With NBC ratings taking a serious hit this year, Reilly is rumored to be out, and the head of Reveille, Ben Silverman – in. Silverman’s Reville is behind the US version of THE OFFICE, THE BIGGEST LOSER and UGLY BETTY.

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Catch up on FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS on Sunday Nights on NBC

Missed FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS this season and want to know what they hype is all about?  Well you’re in luck.  Starting tonight, NBC will be reairing episode from the first season of FNL on Sundays at 9/8c.  So make sure you tune in tonight to get to know Coach Eric Taylor, his wife Tami, the Panthers, and the town of Dillon, Texas.  You won’t be disappointed.As always, you can catch the entire first season of Friday Night Lights for free on NBC.com

Rosie Not Returning to THE VIEW

The revolving door at THE VIEW swings once more. Rosie O’Donnell has opted not to return to THE VIEW despite having three weeks left on her contract. Rosie’s decision is of course due to the very heated, on-air argument she had with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck earlier this week.

In a statement released this afternoon, THE VIEW’s Barbara Walters said: “I brought Rosie to the show. Rosie contributed to one of our most exciting and successful years at The View. I am most appreciative. Our close and affectionate relationship will not change. ” Rosie released her own statement saying: “I’m extremely grateful. It’s been an amazing year and I love all three women.” Well she might love Barbara, and she certainly loves Joy, but who is this third woman she is talking about?

So here we go again. Let the search for a new co-host commence. Hey, I wonder if this week’s brouhaha and her early departure means Rosie won’t be returning next season as a guest co-host and to do the segments she had talked about…hmmm.

Aussie’s BIG BROTHER Shocker!!

A contestant on the Australian version of BIG BROTHER is in for quite a shock when she finally leaves the house she has been sequestered in for the past month. Emma Cornell, 24, has no idea that her father died of cancer last week. At the request of her family, Emma is not being told of her father’s passing as her family fears she will want to leave the Big Brother house and eliminate herself from the competition. Yes, leaving the Big Brother house, even for one day to attend her father’s funeral would mean her immediate ousting from the show. God forbid!

The decision to not tell Emma of this tragic news was not the call of Big Brother producers, but rather by her family. Cornell’s boyfriend Tim Stanton said that “Her Dad didn’t want her to be upset, or to feel like she had to leave the house to come to his funeral. He didn’t want to ruin the experience for her. She might be upset when she comes out and finds out what has happened, but I think she’ll understand.”

You think she might be upset? Really? I mean I guess her family knows her best, but this one came as quite a shock to me? Is this taking reality television a bit too far? And as one naysayer pointed out…how will the show handle the reveal? Will it be live on air for ratings? Probably.

Mary-Kate Olsen on WEEDS

Mary-Kate Olsen will be joining the cast of the Showtime hit WEEDS. MK will be playing the girlfriend of Silas, the son of Mary Louise Parker’s character. A dark, adult comedy like WEEDS is a pretty big departure for Mary Kate who has always put forth a squeaky clean image in movies such as “To Grandmother’s House We Go” and “The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley: The Case of the U.S. Space Camp Mission”…well at least she did, when she was 8.

This is one of Mary-Kate’s first roles where she won’t be co-starring with her twin sister Ashley. I still don’t know which one is Mary-Kate. Is she the super skinny one that is always drinking Starbucks and looks like a bag lady or the blonde super skinny one that is always drinking Starbucks and looks like a bag lady? I always get those Olsen twins confused.

An inside source tells me that Mary-Kate had a rough first few weeks. It seems she held up production often by randomly stopping in the middle of a scene, looking towards the camera and saying “You got it, Dude”. But a quick meeting with director Kimmie Gibler seemed to work wonders and filming has resumed.

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE Recap – NYC Auditions

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE returned last night, and it was fantabulous!! We saw some incredible dancers, some horrific people moving around on stage (sorry, can’t call them dancers), Mary Murphy got in a few yells, Nigel tried to keep his inner-Simon in check but failed, and a guy from my neck of woods had the judges on their feet and me crying my eyes out with tears of laughter…all from a swing routine. Sooo excited for the season to be back.

Long time GMMR readers know that very often DuckyxDale and I share the same brain (as scary as this is)…and we also share our love for SYTYCD. Between the two of us we will keep you caught up all season long. So if you’re looking for SYTYCD news and it’s not here, make sure you head over to Ducky’s site because he’ll be all over it.

So for the first week, let’s check out Ducky’s take on last night’s season premiere and find out just what happened at the NYC auditions:

“Once again, parents I urge you to take your children to trained dance professionals for lessons because if this show has taught us anything over the last two seasons its that jerkoffs who can barely balance on their own two feet let alone twirl or dance a real techical dance are out there training people. I swear if one more idiot tells Nigel and Mary that they’re a dance instructor, one of them might kill that person. How is it possible? They have to just be from these podunk towns in the sticks, right? Do you think people are saying they’re dance” instructors when really they teach the homeless or some underpriviledged after school program of something?

Read a full recap of last nights SYTYCD

Whatchoo Bloggin’ About Willis?

T.G.I.F. people…T.G.I.F. It’s been a long week, but we made it through, well almost. It’s going to be a scorcher here in Boston today, so I’m glad I work from home where my AC is already doing it job. Speaking of jobs, mine is going to be keeping me pretty busy today, and since you are undoubtedly sick of hearing from me, I thought I would let you know what some of Give Me My Remote’s favorite blog friends are talking about.

Bravo’s SHEAR GENIUS is down to the final episodes of the season. Just who will live to cut hair another day (Buzz Sugar)

The LOST finale was pretty frakkin’ spectacular, but that doesn’t mean there still aren’t questions to be answered. In case the producers lose track of what still needs to be explained before the show ends, here’s a started list (The TV Addict)

Nigel Lythgoe is the man behind American Idol and SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE. So he’s rich and knows something about making great reality TV. Read what Nigel has to say about this season of SYTYCD. (Maureen Ryan)

Matthew McConaughey is a little, um, well bizarre. The very funny JIMMY KIMMEL tried his best to analyze Matthew’s interesting rituals in this laugh out loud vid (Seriously?OMG!WTF?)

While I bitched and whined like a two year old in my assessment of the VERONICA MARS season finale, Pajiba’s Dan Carlson put together a beautiful and damn near perfer obit for our favorite martian. A must read for any Mars fan. (Pajiba)

Staying with the theme of saying goodbye to our favorite shows, check out this great montage of shows that we had to say goodbye to during 2007. There were many. (Seat 42f)

Apolo Anton Ohno and his dance partner Julianne Hough (now THAT is a good last name) not only won DANCING WITH THE STARS this week, but they also landed their very own milk mustache ad. Um, Congratulations? (Glitterati Gossip)

Heidi from THE HILLS is supposedly engaged to her boyfriend, co-star Spencer Whocares. So new boobs and a new diamond? Way to make your ex-BFF, LC jealous. I give this marriage 2 months. Any takers? (I’m Bringing Blogging Back)

R.I.P. Charlie Pace. LOST star Dominic Monaghan talks openly about leaving the show, who he will miss the most, and what he plans on doing now that he can actually leave Hawaii. (Watch with Kristin)

Ausiello is reporting that GILMORE GIRLS creator Amy Sherman-Palladino is considering a Gilmore 2-hour reunion movie to tie up loose ends. This was falls smack in the category of “Much Ado About Nothing”…this will never happen (Ausiello)

Dawson’s Creek creator (and in turn one of my personal heroes) Kevin Williamson has another show for us in the fall. HIDDEN PALMS will air on The CW and stars Oliver from The O.C.. He was once so loved by many…lol. Check out a sneak peek clip of the show. (MeeVee)

I was never an X-FILES fan (ducks for cover) but I hear that some of you ladies (and gents) have a thang for David Duchovney. If so, you might enjoy these pics of David in his skivvies. Because it’s normal just to drop your pants in a parking lot, right? Maybe it’s an alien thing. (Just Jared)

Comedy Central is roasting Flava Flave. But why? Isn’t he roasting himself just by waking up each day? (TV Squad)

Why STUDIO 60…Why?

Last night STUDIO 60 returned to NBC with the first of its six remaining new episodes.  I was pretty vocal about my appreciation for STUDIO 60 early on in the season.  I enjoyed the glimpse behind the curtain of a major network TV show.  At times the show was a bit heavy handed and the liberal soapbox Sorkin was writing from often took me out of the episode all together (even when I agreed with him), but when the show was firmly grounded in the happenings or mishaps of putting together a live show, I thought it was some incredible TV.

Of course the critics and audience didn’t agree.  In turn Sorkin seemed to reinvent STUDIO 60 and we were left with a an irksome romantic comedy with a TV show as a backdrop. The inner workings of Studio 60 were sent to the backburner as Sorkin shoved couples with zero chemistry like Matt and Harriett down our throats.  This is about the time I jumped ship and pulled out my West Wing and Sports Night DVDs to remind myself that Aaron Sorkin is a great writer…sad that I needed the reminder.

But last night the show returned to what I believe to be its original intent…and guess what?  It worked.  It worked really well.  I must say that I was a bit bewildered that neither Bradley Whitford, Matthew Perry or Amanda Peet, the stars of the show, made an appearance, but if I’m being honest, I didn’t miss them.  Timothy Busfield did an amazing job as the director who kept his “the show must go on” spirit despite the fact that a strike left them without prop masters or cue cards minutes before the went live on the air. Oh and of course there was that pesky bomb threat he had to contend with.  Allison Janney, playing herself, was fantastic as Studio 60’s guest host for what was affectionately known as ‘the disaster show’.  Don’t get me wrong, there were some problems.  Simon Styles (D.L. Hughley) plot about asking two women to vacation with him in Hawaii was completely unoriginal, and Harriet’s (Sarah Paulson) self absorbed whining about her relationship with Matt had me reaching for the TiVo fast forward button a few times.  Enough already!!

I can’t help but wonder if STUDIO 60 would have survived the season if they had more episodes like last night’s.  No preaching from the liberal pulpit, no forced romantic pairings, just the inner workings of a weekly live show…there’s enough drama in that alone.

First Look: Gossip Girl

Shhh, don’t tell anyone but I think I’ve found my guilty pleasure of the Fall season. GOSSIP GIRL, the new drama from The O.C. creator Josh Schwartz looks, on first glance, to be angsty, snarky, and a tad bit salacious. Just how I like it.

GOSSIP GIRL takes a look into the lives of a group of teens living the socialite life on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. As you can imagine, they think they are wise beyond their years and spend far too much time in the world of sex, drugs and rock and roll…or maybe hip hop…so hard to tell with kids these days. All of their exploits are tracked by Gossip Girl, an anonymous blogger (voiced by Kristen Bell) who seems to always be in the right place, at the right time and keeps everyone in the know of everyone else’s business. It’s like “Cruel Intentions” meets “Perez Hilton”.

Once I get my hands on the pilot episode, I’ll be able to dish more, but for now check out this preview.

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SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE Premieres Tonight

Move aside “Dancing with the Stars”, the REAL dance competition is BACK!! Tonight is the Season 3 premiere of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE. For those of you who are new to GiveMeMyRemote.com, last year I found myself deeply, deeply in love with this show. I mean we are talking about watching episodes over and over again, scouring the web for clips of the performers…hell DuckyxDale and I even went to the SYTYCD tour. Oh yes, I was obsessed!

Tonight the show is back for the 90 minute premiere starting at 8/7c on Fox. I’m almost nervous. I loved the show so much last season that I’m afraid that this season could never compare. But really, can there ever be another Jailbait Ivan, BF Travis, or Cousin Heidi? I think not. The new kids will have their own style and maybe, just maybe I’ll love them like I do my Season 2 contestants.

If you’ve never watched SYTYCD you should give it a shot tonight. I’m going to be talking about it a lot on GMMR so you might as well come along with me for the ride. And if you want a taste as to the level of talent you can be prepared for in the coming weeks, then take a look at some of the lightlights of Season 2.

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LOST Season Finale Redux (SPOILERS)

SPOILER ALERT! This post contains MAJOR spoilers for the season finale of LOST.

What in holy hell did I just watch? I think it was the season finale of LOST but I’m so stunned it’s hard to say. That was…wow…just wow. Talk about a show coming full circle and returning to the greatness of its roots. I mean, everything we know about Lost just got turned upside down in a brilliant 2 hours of television.

I’ll be honest, it’s about 2am and I’m not even going to pretend to write a recap, because what I’m feeling right is so beyond tired that I probably won’t make any sense. But here are some OMG….WTF moments and questions from tonight’s season finale (in no particular order).

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Sparks Fly for AMERICAN IDOL Finale

We use the word “awesome” so much that it has lost some of its meaning. But tonight’s AMERICAN IDOL finale was truly an awesome television event. The eclectic mix of musical genres from different eras gave everyone in Idol’s vast and diverse audience something to smile about. From performances by past Idols, to today’s hottest stars and musical legends, the night was something special. With all the amazing performances I almost forgot that we were there to crown the 2007 American Idol. And to be honest, the way the producers just threw in the announcement at the end of the show it seemed like they almost forgot too. But after a record high 74 million votes JORDIN SPARKS was named this year’s American Idol.But really, I could care less who won tonight…it was all about the show. Here were some of the highlights and lowlights for me:

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Go Ahead…Ask GMMR

As the summer months approach, and our regular season TV takes a bit of a breather you and I will have a little more time to chit chat. Don’t worry, we’ll still be talking about all the new summer shows while we gear up for the Fall season which will be here before you know it. But it’s the summer…let’s relax and have a little fun.

To that end, I thought I would take the time to answer any TV related questions you may have. Want my take on my favorite show or better yet YOUR favorite show? Ever wonder about how GMMR is run behind-the-scenes? Do you have questions for any of the GMMR recappers? Anything you want to know feel free to go ahead and ask. I’m going to be posting some of your questions along with my answers every so often. Next week I’ll be adding a permanent callout on the GMMR main page so I’m always a click away.

So let’s bring it people….in the immortal words of Pat Benatar “hit me with your best shot”.

CLICK HERE TO ASK GMMR

VERONICA MARS Series Finale and Why I HATE The CW

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WARNING! The following is a rant from a emotional and irate Veronica Mars fan.

Really? I’ve been a dedicated fan of VERONICA MARS since Day One and THAT is the finale I’m left with? Seriously Dawn Ostroff? Seriously? I’m so utterly disappointed, and I am in no way blaming Rob Thomas or the writers for this one. I don’t know…maybe I should be, but the way I see it at the time they wrote what they hoped to be the season finale, word of the cancellation had not yet come down. I know Rob Thomas said he was going to write the final episode of the season in such a way that is was hard for The CW to not renew it, and that he did. But Ostroff was the ONE who had the foresight to see that the show was most likely going to be canceled and should have asked if not demanded that the writers revised the final episode so it could stand as the series finale if it needed to be. And before you tell me that she didn’t have the power…I assure you as the head of the network she did.

Yes, I’m being overly emotional here, but I have invested years in not only watching Veronica Mars, but talking about it and writing about and encouraging others to watch…which, and let’s be honest here, is a lot more than I can say for The CW. As a fan of television I’m so utterly disappointed that the network is so far removed from the fan base that they though last night’s series finale was acceptable.

As for the final two episodes themselves, they would have been magnificent as SEASON finales. It was classic Veronica Mars. Drama, comedy, inside jokes (finally a Rob Thomas/Matchbox 20 joke) and callbacks to yesteryear (I mean I gasped when I saw the painting of Lilly Kane). But again as series finale it was beyond disappointing. I still can’t believe THIS is where the journey ends for the characters that we have come to love. I cry foul.

I don’t know what else to say. Since I just got around to watching the finale today, I’ve tried pretty hard to avoid reading any commentary by my favorite TV columnists, but I skimmed E! Kristin Veitch’s VM finale post and saw her comment about wanting to boycott other CW programming out of spite (not that she will, because she’s a professional reporter). I on the other hand am NOT. And since The CW doesn’t seem to really care about their fans I think I’m just going to skip their programming all together next season. Their loss. (Now if I can only find a way to get Josh Schwartz to send me “Gossip Girl” on DVD).

Goodbye Veronica Mars – you will be missed.

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