TV
Chelsea Houska Is Leaving Teen Mom 2
Chelsea Houska is saying goodbye to Teen Mom 2. “MTV’s Teen Mom 2 has been a big part of my life for almost 11 years,” the soon-to-be mother of four captioned the Instagram post above. “After much thought and discussion with my family and friends, Cole and I have decided that this season will be our last. We are forever thankful to MTV and our crew, who are like family to us. We’re parting on the best of terms and will stay in touch long after this. She continued: “We’re proud to have been able to share our story and are so grateful to the fans who have followed our journey from the beginning. Our next chapter in life will focus on developing our brand and taking things to the next level with new endeavors and expanding family businesses. Please tune into our last m...
The Queen’s Gambit: How to Dress Like Grandmaster and ’60s Babe Beth Harmon
You don’t have to like chess to fall in love with Beth Harmon’s captivating genius, which often shows itself in her slick personal style. The chess prodigy and ’60s babe, played by Anya Taylor-Joy in The Queen’s Gambit, has a mind that’s only matched by her fashion sense. Beth’s timeless wardrobe, designed by French costumer Gabriele Binder, was inspired by Audrey Hepburn and Edie Sedgwick — and we’re showing you how to dress like the grandmaster herself in 2020. Beth Harmon’s wardrobe has a very distinct colour palette. She wears black, white, jewel tones, pastels, and check prints, with a pop of a primary colour like yellow or red every so often. You’ll find Beth wearing A-line silhouettes — tops with Peter Pan collars, boatnecks, and...
R.I.P. Ken Spears, Scooby-Doo Co-Creator Dead at 82
Ken Spears, the cartoon producer and writer who co-created Scooby-Doo, has died at the age of 82. His son, Kevin Spears, confirmed the news to Variety, saying his father passed on Friday, November 6th from complications related to Lewy body dementia. Spears’ death comes just over two months following that of his longtime collaborator, Joe Ruby. Spears initially befriended the son of William Hanna while living in his Los Angeles hometown. That led to a sound editing job at Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1959, where he met and befriended Ruby. The two became writing partners, co-creating Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! in 1969. They also came up with other classic Hanna-Barbera series Dynomutt, Do Wonder and Jabberjaw. Their success continued outside of Hanna-Barbera, as well, including workin...
Alex Trebek Made Jeopardy! Just By Showing Up
A decade ago, Alex Trebek had been hosting Jeopardy! for 26 years, a full six longer than I’d even been alive. I had no car or job, and it was summer vacation, so I began watching the show as something to do, a way to kill 30 minutes between dinner and whatever suburban sojourn I’d scuttle off to that night. But it quickly grew into a disciplined routine. I’d keep a spreadsheet tracking how many answers I got right as I watched at home, hoping to impress my family (and myself) with my vast knowledge of global geography and classical literature; after a few weeks, I realized I wanted to impress Trebek, too, should I ever make it onto the show as a contestant. He had become a fixture in my life, a steady presence whose warm wit made a trivia game show feel like a nightly fireside chat. Trebe...
The Crown Season 4 Belongs to Princess Diana: Review
The Pitch: November 15th marks the return of Peter Morgan’s opulent biopic about British royalty and its current sovereign, Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman). The new season picks up with the IRA assassination of Lord Mountbatten (Charles Dance) and spans Margaret Thatcher’s (Gillian Anderson) 11-year tenure as Prime Minister. Season 4 also prominently features the long-awaited appearance of Diana, Princess of Wales (Emma Corrin), and explores the majority of her troubled marriage to Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor), having finally reached an era that many of us remember from personal experience, rather than history books or documentaries But this season does not rest on its exciting historical events, shaping the narrative to present its most pointed examination of the monarchy as an institut...
Moonbase 8 Is a Charming But Weightless Astronaut Comedy: Review
The Pitch: NASA’s astronauts are the best of the best, lifelong professionals who dedicate their intellect and resolve to boldly going where no man has gone before. Before they can do that, though, they have to go through extensive training in the Arizona desert, simulating life on the moon in all its isolation and resource scarcity. For Cap (John C. Reilly), Rook (Tim Heidecker), and Skip (Fred Armisen), it’s a responsibility they take with the utmost seriousness; unfortunately, they might not be the best people for the job. The Wrong Stuff: Space-themed comedies are all the rage this year, between HBO’s droll Avenue 5 and Netflix’s execrable Space Force. Moonbase 8 sits somewhere between these two on the scale, funnier than the latter and less incisive than the f...
R.I.P. Alex Trebek, Jeopardy! Host Dead at 80
Alex Trebek, the host of Jeopardy! for more than three decades, has died at the age of 80 following a battle with pancreatic cancer. In a statement, a spokesperson for Jeopardy! said Trebek passed away peacefully at home early this morning (November 8th), surrounded by family and friends.” Born in Sudbury, Ontario, on July 22nd, 1940, to chef George Edward Trebek and Lucille Lagacé, George Alexander “Alex” Trebek wore his Canadian heritage as a badge of honor, staying in the country throughout his formative years and receiving a degree in philosophy from the University of Ottawa. Trebek’s aptitude for on-camera work was apparent early into his post-graduate career. In 1961, the year of his graduation, he began to work for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, headquartered in Ottawa....
Stand-Up Comedy Is Bringing a Much-Needed Edge to SNL
One of the stranger modern-day quirks of Saturday Night Live is how the show still draws some of its talent from the stand-up scene. This wasn’t necessarily the case for most of the aughts, but in the last few years, the late-night program has reverted to its ’90s strategy of throwing stand-up comedians in with all of the veteran improvisers and writers-turned-performers. Despite this tradition and its variety-show bona fides, Saturday Night Live isn’t especially built for stand-up. Instead, performers who want to flex those muscles traditionally have to head to Weekend Update, where Pete Davidson and Leslie Jones have found a stage in recent years. This season, though, a whopping four of the six hosts so far have been stand-up comedians, and their performances are subtly toying with the s...
Alex Trebek Continued Filming New Episodes of Jeopardy! Up Until His Death
Even as he neared death following an intensive battle with pancreatic cancer, Alex Trebek continued to film new episodes of Jeopardy!. In announcing his death on Sunday, Jeopardy! producers revealed that Trebek had been taping in the studio as recently as October 29th, and new episodes with him as host will air through December 25th. “Working beside him for the past year and a half as he heroically continued to host Jeopardy! was an incredible honor,” said the show’s executive producer, Mike Richards, in a statement. “His belief in the importance of the show and his willingness to push himself to perform at the highest level was the most inspiring demonstration of courage I have ever seen.” For his part, Trebek said working on Jeopardy! gave him the succor that treatment som...
Dave Chappelle: “You Have No Problem Wearing Them at the Klan Rally, Wear Them to Walmart Too”
Nearly four years to the day of his first time hosting Saturday Night Live, Dave Chappelle returned to Studio 8H to once again headline the sketch comedy show’s post-election episode. As to be expected, the comedian’s opening monologue proved to be the highlight of the evening. Chappelle began his monologue by noting how the events of the day had him reminiscing about his great-grandfather — a former slave who taught himself how to read and who then committed himself to a life of education, civil rights, and religion. “It was a pretty amazing story my great-grandfather had, and I thought about him all day because I wish I could see him now,” Chappelle remarked. “And I wish he could see me. Because I wonder what he would say.” In particular, Chappelle predicted how his great-grandfathe...
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions Lose Luster Without Live Element: Review
It’s been a strange year for the music industry. Case in point: we’re finally watching the 2020 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions in November, it’s all being done remotely by tape, and there are no musical performances. Nothing about this is normal, of course, and fans will surely miss the who’s who of rock royalty that can usually be seen rubbing shoulders at the ceremony, not to mention the opportunity to see our heroes climb on stage together — sometimes for the first time in years — to accept hardware and even take a stab at performing our favorite songs. Obviously, the raging COVID-19 pandemic made a normal induction ceremony impossible, and those who produced or took part in Saturday’s telecast deserve credit for finding a way to safely honor the best of the music industry. <i...
Al Roker Diagnosed with Prostate Cancer
Al Roker, who’s been a steadfast presence on NBC for more than 40 years, has revealed his diagnosis of prostate cancer. During a November 6th segment on The Today Show, Roker told viewers he would be taking time off for treatment. The veteran broadcaster said he learned of the diagnosis after “a routine checkup in September,” and is set to undergo surgery at New York City’s Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center next week. “It’s a good news-bad news kind of thing,” Roker said of his prognosis. “Good news is we caught it early. Not great news is that it’s a little aggressive, so I’m going to be taking some time off to take care of this.” With his usual openness and candor, Roker interviewed his own doctor, who spoke about the difficult decision to “remove the prostrate,” in light of th...
