Here's the Scoop...
I'm not one for this revival series trend that's spreading like wildfire, but with that said, I'm kinda looking forward to 'Roseanne' coming back. And I only have to wait a few months for it!
The highly-anticipated revival of Roseanne will premiere on ABC in March.
The network announced the news in a tweet Friday alongside a short teaser for Season 10 of the beloved sitcom.
The promo shows a shot of the Conner family living room. It opens with the Roseanne theme song and ends with the sound of star Roseanne Barr's laugh.
"Roseanne premieres March 27," the video reads. "Same couch, same cast, same laughs."
Variety reported the revival will premiere with a special hour-long episode, with nine episodes to air in total. The original show had a nine-season run on ABC from 1988 to 1997.
Barr will return as Roseanne Conner, with John Goodman as Dan Conner, Laurie Metcalf as Jackie Harris, Michael Fishman as D.J. Connor and Sara Gilbert as Darlene Conner-Healy. Johnny Galecki will also reprise David Healy.
"We have got our Johnny Galecki back on 'Roseanne' this episode - what a joy to work with such a deeply empathetic actor," Barr tweeted in November.
Are you going to tune in?
Be Well,
Steve
Comments? Questions? Nooz?
Email Steve
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Disney buys Fox TV, film studios as part of major $52B deal
The Walt Disney Company announced Thursday it will acquire entertainment assets from 21st Century Fox in a deal worth more than $52 billion in stock.
As part of the all-stock purchase, Disney will acquire the 20th Century Fox film and television conglomerate and assume nearly $14 billion in Fox debt.
The total value of 21st Century Fox's assets is estimated at $66.1 billion, Disney said.
Twenty-first Century Fox was established in 2013 in a spinoff venture by Australian businessman Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation.
Disney announced the major deal in a transaction call Thursday morning.
"We're honored and grateful that Rupert Murdoch has entrusted us with the future of businesses he spent a lifetime building, and we're excited about this extraordinary opportunity to significantly increase our portfolio of well-loved franchises," Disney CEO Robert A. Iger said in a statement. "The deal will also substantially expand our international reach, allowing us to offer world-class storytelling and innovative distribution platforms to more consumers in key markets around the world."
Under the agreement, the Fox Broadcasting Network and its stations, Fox News Channel, Fox Business Network, Fox Sports 1 and 2, the Big Ten Network and Fox's Hollywood film lot will spin off into a separate company, which is expected to have revenues totaling about $10 billion.
"I firmly believe that this combination with Disney will unlock even more value for shareholders," Murdoch said. "I'm convinced that this combination ... will be one of the greatest companies in the world."
Also as part of the deal, Iger will remain Disney chairman and CEO through the end of 2021.
Disney said it expects to save about $2 billion within two years through the combination of overlapping businesses with Fox.
Oprah Winfrey to receive Cecil B. DeMille Award at Golden Globes
Oprah Winfrey will be honored with the prestigious 2018 Cecil B. DeMille Award at the upcoming 75th Annual Golden Globes.
Morgan Freeman, who received the award in 2012, announced that Winfrey would be receiving the award Wednesday during NBC's airing of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association's Golden Globes 75th Anniversary Special.
"Let me be the first to congratulate you because you're in for an incredible night," Freeman said to Winfrey.
The award is given each year at the Golden Globes to someone who has "made an incredible impact on the world of entertainment."
"As a global media leader, philanthropist, producer and actress, she has created an unparalleled connection with people around the world, making her one of the most respected and admired figures today," HFPA president Meher Tatna said in a statement.
"Holding titles such as Chairman, CEO and Founder, Oprah is one of the most influential women of our time, and this honor is well deserved especially in this 75th anniversary year of the Golden Globe Awards," she continued.
Winfrey commented on being nominated on Twitter writing, "What an honor."
Winfrey was previously nominated for a Golden Globe in 1986 for her role in The Color Purple. The 63-year-old will be joining a class of past recipients that includes Audrey Hepburn, Barbra Streisand, Denzel Washington, George Clooney, Harrison Ford, Jodie Foster, Lucille Ball, Martin Scorsese, Meryl Streep, Michael Douglas, Robert De Niro, Robin Williams, Sidney Poitier, Sophia Loren and Steven Spielberg, among others.
The Golden Globes will be airing live, Jan. 7 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on NBC.
LOOSE LIPS:
"We had the read-through a while ago and at the end of it, we were all on our feet, applauding and crying."
--Sophie Turner, on reading the Game of Thrones finale script, to Entertainment Weekly
??? Guess Who ???
Which star of stage and screen is to headline the stage adaptation of 'Death Becomes Her'?
Kevin Hart reflects on cheating scandal: 'I'm a better man'
Kevin Hart says he's "a better man" in the wake of his cheating scandal this year.
The 38-year-old actor and comedian said in an interview with Power 105.1's The Breakfast Club that he's changed since he was unfaithful to wife Eniko Parrish in Las Vegas during her pregnancy.
"It's beyond irresponsible," Hart confessed. "There's no way around it. The best way to do is just address it right on."
"That's Kevin Hart in his dumbest moment," he added. "That's not the finest hour of my life. With that being said, you make your bed you lay in it. You can't say what you were thinking, because you weren't thinking."
Hart apologized to Parrish for a "bad error in judgment" in September after a person came forward with a video of the actor and another woman in bed. Parrish was pregnant with their first child at the time, and gave birth to son Kenzo in November.
"The real positive in this, I swear to God on my kids, on all my kids -- Heaven, Hendrix, Kenzo -- I'm a better man," Hart, who shares daughter Heaven and son Hendrix with ex-wife Torrei Hart, told The Breakfast Club.
"I'm telling you man, the past is the past," he added. "I'm still Kevin Hart, I am still very much myself. The changes that are coming are changes for myself to make me better. I am very happy at the [expletive] that has happened 'cause it made me better."
Hart and Parrish married in August 2016 after a two-year engagement. The actor shared the first photos of Kenzo on Instagram in November, calling the infant "a little miracle."
ABC fires Batali, pulls 'Baking Show' amid harassment allegations
ABC fired celebrity chef Mario Batali and cut ties with The Great American Baking Show judge Johnny Iuzzini following accusations of sexual harassment against the two men.
Batali was fired from his role as host of ABC's The Chew after four women told Eater New York he touched them inappropriately during the past two decades.
"Upon completing its review into the allegations made against Mario Batali, ABC has terminated its relationship with him and he will no longer appear on The Chew," an ABC representative wrote on the show's Facebook page. "While we remain unaware of any type of inappropriate behavior involving him and anyone affiliated with our show, ABC takes matters like this very seriously as we are committed to a safe work environment and his past behavior violates our standards of conduct."
Batali, 57, issued an apology and didn't deny any of the allegations while stepping away from The Chew and the day-to-day operations of his restaurant empire.
ABC also cut ties with The Great American Baking Show judge Johnny Iuzzini and decided not to air the remaining episodes of the series after eight women accused him of sexual misconduct, including touching female employees' rear ends with items in the kitchen.
"In light of allegations that recently came to our attention, ABC has ended its relationship with Johnny Iuzzini and will not be airing the remainder of The Great American Baking Show episodes," an ABC representative said. "ABC takes matters such as those described in the allegations very seriously and has come to the conclusion that they violate our standards of conduct. This season's winner will be announced at a later date."
Iuzzini, 43, said the allegations are false and issued a statement saying he was upset at ABC's decision to pull the remaining episodes of The Great American Baking Show.
"While I understand ABC felt pressured to make this difficult decision, I am extremely disappointed and saddened that the show will not continue to air as scheduled," he said. "I feel terrible for the bakers, fans of the show, the cast and everyone else involved in the production. I stand by my apology for some unprofessional behavior 8-10 years ago, but the sexual harassment allegations and many other reports against me were sensationalized and simply not true."
??? Guess Who ???
Which star of stage and screen is to headline the stage adaptation of 'Death Becomes Her'?
Universal Theatrical Group is developing a stage play based on the 1992 film Death Become Her that will star Kristi Chenoweth in a lead role.
Death Becomes Her was directed by Robert Zemeckis and starred Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn as two rivals who drink a potion that promises eternal life but instead turns them into living corpses.
Chenoweth will appear in the stage adaptation as Madeline, the character Streep played in the film, Variety reported.
The stage version has no creative team set or production timeline in place.
Chenoweth is known for starring in stage productions such as Wicked, Promises and On the Twentieth Century among others and recently appeared in television series American Gods.
Universal Theatrical Group has produced plays that include Billy Elliot and Bring It On. It is also working on a new musical based on the Bee Gees.