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Photos of Playboy Playmate Jaime Faith Edmondson naked are now online

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 21:49:22 -0500

For everyone who complained about the lack of naked photos of January Playmate Jaime Faith Edmondson, the Amazing Race 14 runner-up, Playboy has posted some photos from the magazine. An even more revealing photo is on the site's subscription page.

Have fun.

Oh, and there's the PG-rated video below, in which she says, "my turn-ons are big men, big trucks, men who are athletic, tattooed, and can fix anything," and says that, as far as sex is concerned, "I'll take quality over quantity. So, I will trade great sex once a month for sub-par sex seven days a week. It's just not worth me taking my clothes off for, sorry."

Clearly, she has no idea what "quality" and "quantity" mean, but I'm not quite sure anyone cares.

Jaime Faith Edmondson: Miss January 2010 [Playboy]

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Next week: Survivor Samoa ends and Christmas brings marathons of A Christmas Story, Dirty Jobs, Supernanny, and more

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:22:03 -0500

Hanukkah is coming to an end and Christmas is a week away, and TV is settling into its winter nap. I, for one, welcome the break, because 2010 brings Idol and a whole lot more.

The Past

The third week in December included a Playboy appearance by an Amazing Race cast member, more gay porn from a future reality star, and the death of a porn star that was filmed by a reality camera crew. We learned that a loser got out of jail, even bigger people will try to lose weight, watched a loser of a reunion, and learned some losers may be returning to New Orleans. Also this week, an injured dancer was healed after he was named favorite dancer and everyone's favorite beard won the fan favorite money on Top Chef.

The Forward

Sunday, Dec. 20 Survivor Samoa takes three hours to conclude [CBS, 8 p.m.], an episode that includes a live reunion following Jeff Probst's live vote reading. Although it was cheesy, I miss the days when they attempted a seamless transition from Tribal Council to the studio set. Also tonight: Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew concludes [VH1, 10 p.m.], and the first footage of Kendra Wilkinson's baby Hank Baskett IV will be part of the special Kendra: Here Comes the Baby [E!, 9 p.m.]. What must one's life be like to have a camera crew standing by as you give birth?

Monday, Dec. 21
The Nick Lachey-hosted a capella singing competition The Sing Off concludes just a week after it began [NBC, 8 p.m.].

Wednesday, Dec. 23
Mega-Tsunami: Five Years Later, a documentary about the 2004 tsunami that uses only amateur video footage, debuts tonight [TLC, 8 p.m.]. Also, Dog the Bounty Hunter airs a special one-hour episode [A&E, 9 p.m.] called "The Hunt for Santa" that A&E says is "a very special holiday hunt full of surprises" that he sets out on because his son doesn't believe in Santa. Please don't let him tackle and tase Santa Clause.

Thursday, Dec. 24
On Christmas Eve, there's a Deadliest Catch marathon all day [Discovery, 9 a.m. to 3 a.m.], and if the kids are going crazy, make them watch a marathon of Supernanny [Style, 6 a.m. to 3 a.m.] to see what'll happen if they're bad: a British woman and a camera crew will invade the house to punish them. The fat white man with coal was so last century. At the end of the day, the marathon of the best Christmas movie ever, A Christmas Story, starts its 24-hour run [TNT, 8 p.m.].

Friday, Dec. 25
Christmas Day brings the rest of TNT's 12 airings of A Christmas Story, and another present in the form of a Mythbusters marathon [Discovery, 9 a.m. to 3 a.m.]. Also, there's a Clean House marathon [Style, 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.].

Saturday, Dec. 26
Instead of returning the crap people bought you that you don't want, stay home and watch Dirty Jobs all day [Discovery, 9 a.m. to 3 a.m.]

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Prayer warriors get snubbed by God as Shambo dumped by Foa Foa, has "no ill will"

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 11:34:01 -0500

God was busy with reality shows this week: After being given all the credit for Russell's SYTYCD win, he had to pick sides in Survivor Samoa's reward challenge. But how does one choose between prayer warriors and someone who's praying?

Picking sides was the theme of the episode: Choosing teams for the reward challenge may have moved Foa Foa toward fracturing, because Natalie chose the last remaining true Galu, Brett, and then prayed with him and Mick throughout the challenge, causing Russell to question their alliance and consider voting off Mick.

Ultimately, though, after Brett won immunity, Russell thought about the endgame, which means eventually getting rid of saintly Brett, and that means having more physical players who can actually win challenges (unlike, say, Russell). Thus, Mick was spared and Shambo left, and Shambo was okay with that. More on that in a minute; first, to the prayer warriors!

At the reward challenge, Natalie joined hands with new cast member Brett, and said, "Brett, you're a prayer warrior, aren't you?" When it was his turn to pull a rope to see how many coconuts would fall, "Let God's hand guide Brett." Alas, they lost, perhaps because on the other reward challenge team, Shambo was also communicating with a higher power: "You rock, God," she said after her team inched closer to winning a reward. All of this was very amusing and very annoying.

Having faith is one thing, but it's so arrogant and obnoxious to assume a higher power would interfere in a stupid reality show game and then a few months later let a bunch of people die as a tsunami destroys the very land used for the challenge. What, the dead and affected Samoans weren't prayer warriors? Please.

That challenge, by the way, took four hours to complete, which Jeff Probst writes was "simply too long" in his "final Samoa "blog" for Entertainment Weekly. He adds producers considered changing the reward challenge because of the way that would affect the rest of the production. (There's a lot of insight in his column this week, and he even disclaims his predictions by writing, "Even though I do know the outcome of who makes it to the final, I am still going to give you the same predictions I felt at this point when we were shooting the show." Clearly, Jeff made my prayers come true.)

Anyway, Shambo's clairvoyant dreams haven't ever really worked out, but she did--incredibly--predict exactly the number of coconuts that would drop out at one point in the challenge (58), a nice point on which to exit the show, because it made her seem slightly less crazy than usual. Or it was just creepy.

In my conversation with her a few minutes ago, Shannon "Shambo" Waters was the upbeat, positive person that we didn't always see on TV, although not quite as annoyingly exuberant as she was when we talked pre-season. For example, I asked her what she thought of Russell saying, hilariously, that she has "ass breath" and that "she should shave that whole head" because "her hair is funky" and "she sneaks food" and "puts it in her hair. She puts bananas in there, and pieces of coconuts, peanuts."

Shambo laughed at that, and said "Russ is pretty much an open book" and "nobody was off his radar" in terms of "anything nasty or disparaging" that he had to say. She says they have a "great, great friendship," and "nothing that he said last night that didn't just make me laugh. It's just Russ, man." She also noted, "Russ was great at causing hate and discontent and manipulating people" to serve his own purposes.

In her exit confessional, Shambo didn't seem angry at all that they voted her off, and she's still not, even though she was the reason they're in power. "I don't think that it was disloyal at all" to vote her off, she told me. "Who else in the real world was going to go home? I think they absolutely had my back to the extent that they could without voting one of their own off." She added, "nobody owes me anything."

On the jury, Shambo said, "I absolutely, positively voted with my heart" for "the person that I thought played the best game." That jury is composed of several people who didn't exactly get along with Shambo, and who still aren't happy with her now.

When I read Dave's comments to me that "Shambo's world is clouded by fear, mental and emotional illness, Shambo said, "Wow. Did he really say that? That is unbelievably inaccurate. I'm dying laughing right now. That's hysterical to me. I'm absolutely shocked." Shambo said that she hasn't followed any of the conversation about the season, so that's the first time she's ever heard such criticism. "I'm not on the Internet, I haven't been reading people's interviews."

"Everybody is entitled to his opinion," she said, noting that his comments were "borderline hilarity. Was I emotional? Absolutely. Am I an emotional person by nature? You bet I am. She said if someone is "mistaking me being high strung and incredibly ADD for being emotionally unstable, I think they are sadly mistaken. My life is absolutely fabulous," and she said, "I hold no ill will." She said her lingering memory of Dave Ball is that "the guy gave me a big hug" when she wasn't feeling well.

That's also true of her conflict with Laura, who said that not only did she not go after Shambo, Shambo "would constantly come after me." Shambo told me, "I'm not going to go there because it's over and done with. We all know what happened out there." Shambo added, "I'd be really curious to hear the interviews that will follow mine" because "the five people that are left" could offer insight. But she also said "let's just bury the hatchet, because it's over and done with," and pointed out that having people who are malnourished and dehydrated "are going to go off on each other."

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Simon Cowell might leave American Idol for US version of X Factor

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:25:58 -0500

Simon Cowell wants to bring his show X Factor to the US, and persistent rumors that he'd leave American Idol for that show are back.

Simon "is considering standing down as presenter of American Idol, which appears on the Fox network in the US, after its next season," The Times reports. However, the paper says "The X Factor is due to begin filming in Los Angeles in September 2011, to be shown on Fox and presented by Cowell."

While Simon's contract expires after American Idol 9, if the show did indeed start filming in fall of 2011, it'd be possible to do season 10 of American Idol, too, unless he wants to take a break or needs a year to prep.

Simon confirmed that he's committed to bringing the show he created to the US. "I think the show will go to America. It has to go to America. There has to be an American version of the show. To not make The X Factor in the biggest market in the world would be crazy," Simon Cowell told BBC News earlier this week, and although that quote has been floating around, MJ's Big Blog attributed it to the BBC interview.

Simon Cowell's one-man band to take X Factor to America [The Times] Extended Simon Cowell interview [BBC News]

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Teacher who punched Snooki apologizes, MTV didn't air the punch despite history of violence

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:04:05 -0500

Gym teacher Brad Ferro has apologized for punching Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, and his act of violence was not broadcast as part of MTV's Jersey Shore last night, despite the network's previous willingness to show violence.

Earlier in the week, MTV said in a statement, "What happened to Snooki was a crime and obviously extremely disturbing. After hearing from our viewers, further consulting with experts on the issue of violence, and seeing how the video footage has been taken out of context not to show the severity of this act or resulting consequences, MTV has decided not to air Snooki being physically punched in the face."

Of course, it was MTV's fault that it was taken out of context, because they wanted to sensationalize it in their promos. But during last night's episode, as Zap2it notes, "viewers saw a black screen for a few seconds, followed by footage of Snooki crying and Ferro being led away by police."

Brad says he told Snooki, "I'm very sorry for what happened. I deeply regret what happened. Nobody deserves that. That was not the real Brad Ferro," he told the New York Post. He said that he was drunk when it happened, so "When I saw the video, I was sick to my stomach. I couldn't believe that I'd ever do anything like that. I was raised to act in a respectful manner to women. I remember very little from the time of the incident. It's all fuzzy. I remember a punch -- I don't remember who or why and I remember being arrested."

As two separate stories point out, MTV has a history of showing violence--heck, the Challenge shows thrive on it.

Vanity Fair reports that "MTV has never before shown much compunction about airing objectionable material" and lists six "other things that MTV Networks has broadcast on its reality shows" and asks, "Are they any less objectionable than the Snookie punch?"

Movieline has a more comprehensive timeline, and asks, "would MTV really reverse its standing on a little excessive violence after spending over a decade building its empire around macho reality personalities smacking each other around?"

Teacher who punched 'Jersey Shore' girl apologizes [New York Post] Gee, MTV, When Did You Get Standards? [Vanity Fair] MTV's History of Violence: A Movieline Timeline [Movieline]

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Kevin Gillespie wins Top Chef Las Vegas fan favorite, adding $10,000 to his $45,000

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 09:42:45 -0500

At long last, we know who the Top Chef Las Vegas fan favorite is: Kevin Gillespie and his very popular beard. He received $10,000 for beating fan favorite runner-up Bryan Voltaggio, and with the $45,000 that he received during quickfire challenges, third-place Kevin was rewarded for his work on the show.

Both Kevin and Bryan appeared via Skype on Bravo on Andy Cohen's horrific Watch What Happens early this morning. But it took nearly a half-hour to get to that, because Andy ignored my Twitter plea to announce it at the top of the hour. At first, I was actually somewhat engaged by the show, as I was focused on trying to figure out how the hell Andy Cohen got Sarah Jessica Parker to be in-studio with him, but as she sat and giggled while he talked about Tara Reid's breasts looking like a butt, I realized they're soulmates in annoyingness. I thought listening to them talk about Sarah Jessica Parker's hair was intolerable, but then she started opening Hanukkah presents and gushing over them and I had to put it on mute.

Anyway, Andy actually explained why the announcement of fan favorite didn't come during the long, boring reunion on Wednesday, and it wasn't (entirely) Bravo attempting to jack up the ratings of Andy's show. He responded to the backlash by explaining that they taped the reunion six weeks ago because voting ended this week. I'm not sure why he couldn't have mentioned that during the reunion, because that makes sense. But making us sit through 29 minutes of Watch What Happens? That's just cruel.

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Duncan Roy: Dr. Drew "knows very little" about sex addiction, Kari Ann failed drug tests

Andy Dehnart — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 08:56:02 -0500

Duncan Roy, a cast member on Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew, which ends its first season on Sunday night, says Dr. Drew didn't know anything about sex addiction, and instead would repeat what a real sex therapist said. In an essay about his experiences, Roy also claims that one cast member, Kari Ann Peniche, failed a drug test but was allowed to stay.

On The Daily Beast, Roy writes that he initially "decided that a public rehabilitation was not for me" but changed his mind eventually; while he was deciding, he met and talked to renowned sex therapist Dr. John Sealy, who "confided in me that the producers of Sex Rehab had very different intentions from his. He genuinely wanted to shine a light into the shaming world of sex addiction, while Irwin Entertainment seemed hellbent on drama and titillation." But Sealy isn't a major figure because "Sealy's involvement on the show was minimal because he was awkward in front of the cameras."

Roy says the he "found out that all of the women on the show" were "represented by a man named David Weintraub" who Roy calls "a reptilian creature feeding off of the demi-fame of people like Sean Stewart, Rod's wayward son, who had been on a season of Celebrity Rehab." Roy says that Kari Ann, specifically, "was constantly vile to staff and residents, demanding to all, and verging on racist" and worse, "failed every one of the mandatory drug tests and yet was not thrown out of the Pasadena Recovery Center." Roy writes that he thinks "she was doing this largely at [Weintraub's] behest so that she could appear on the next Celebrity Rehab and advance the company brand." She has been cast on that next season

As to Dr. Drew, Roy writes, "It was immediately apparent that while Drew may be an astounding drug and alcohol specialist, he knows very little, or anything, about the precise science of sex addiction. ... He would recycle Jill's lines when he began to founder--and in the edited broadcasts, we see her thoughts and insights come out of Drew's mouth. It comes as no surprise that Drew writes about narcissism because he genuinely wrestles with his own."

I Am a Sex Addict and I Play One on TV [Daily Beast]

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Adam Jasinksi posts $200,000 bail, goes into drug treatment

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:48:15 -0500

Big Brother 9 winner Adam Jaskinski is out of jail after almost two months, having been granted release with conditions: He "has been released for inpatient substance abuse treatment after posting bail," The AP reports. Adam's "parents also have agreed to be responsible for him as he receives the treatment as a condition of his release. Jasinksi's $200,000 bond was secured by his parents' home and his own three Florida properties."

'Big Brother 9' winner released for drug treatment [AP]

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Real World may be returning to New Orleans 10 years after its first season there

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:14:26 -0500

MTV's The Real World is likely heading back to a city that hosted it 10 years ago: New Orleans. The show's ninth season was filmed there and was broadcast in 2000, and based on job listings, it looks like it will be returning.

The 10th anniversary seems to be an excellent excuse to return to the city, and could help distract from the obvious criticism that the show has run out of cities, having filmed in New York three times. Conveniently, they'd be filming during Mardi Gras.

Vevmo's Bacchus found job listings for PAs needed from December through May, and those job listings are identical to ones production company Bunim-Murray posted in Washington before filming the 23rd season. The ad says the nameless company is "shooting a documentary style show in New Orleans."

There's also ajob listing for PAs and assistant camera crew members on the New Orleans Office of Film and Video's web site; they need people from now until May.

The Real World: Back to New Orleans [Vevmo]

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A second look at Survivor Samoa's final six and the jury's pre-season interviews

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 12:45:54 -0500

Survivor Samoa airs its final Thursday episode tonight, and concludes with a two-hour finale and a one-hour reunion on Sunday. It's time, then, to look at the remaining contestants, and see how they lived up to the strategies they outlined to me pre-season, and how much their likeablity was a predictor of their success.

First, my pre-season rankings held up really well. My favorites--Betsy, Russell Swan, and Erik--were great players and characters. While Russell might have self-destructed had he not been tragically forced from the game, I still mourn Betsy, and wish she was still in the game. At the bottom of the list, Ben proved himself to be awful, so no surprises there. Toward the end, I might move John up the list and Shambo down a bit. Russell Hantz was my one big misfire; he was my second-least favorite, and although I doubt I'd be best friends with him, he surprised me as a player (more on that below). Of the others, their edited selves pretty much matched their real-life 30-minute interview selves.

How will the jury vote? It's hard to know since we don't know its final composition, nor who it will have to choose from, but one jury member revealed her thought process to me. Perhaps their pre-game interviews have some insight. Read them here: Dave Ball, Monica Padilla, Laura Morett, Kelly Sharbaugh, John Fincher, and Erik Cardona.

Here's a look back at the final six; click on their faces to read--and listen to--their pre-game thoughts:

Mick Trimming
Despite being apparently flawless and having a name like Dr. Mick Trimming, Mick managed to do exactly what he predicted he'd do: "to start off under the radar a little bit" and "be sort of the dependable guy who is not going to try to control things right at the get go." He managed to do that despite being elected leader (remember that?), and by letting Russell control the game. Somehow, he also seems like less of a threat than Jaison or Brett, so Dr. Mick Trimming might be able to add another mark of perfection to his resume.

Brett Clouser
The only way I can explain Brett's absence from the game is that a) he'll be eliminated well before making the final three (I'd guess tonight), and b) he gave bad interviews. While Brett's a nice guy, his answers to my questions were convoluted at best, but he did predict his invisibility: "I don't think people will necessarily see the brain behind the operation, but see my ability to connect with people and ability to manipulate conversations and so forth to really move in the direction that I want," he said.

Natalie White
I found Natalie White to be one of the friendliest contestants this season, and she promised "I do want to make new friends," and her strategy was "to read people and build relationships as well." It appears she's done just that, and it might take her right to the end. Ironically, though, she's gotten there thanks in part to Russell, and before the game, she told me, "I hope people just aren't malicious."

Shannon "Shambo" Waters
Oh, Shambo. After meeting her, I found her to be annoying and enthusiastic, and that's what she's delivered. She told me, "I can't completely be myself because I will rub people the wrong way," but I kind of think she's rubbed people the wrong way by being herself. Interesting, she's become a power player despite being so unpredictable, and despite telling me,
"I'm so not here to win." Yes, she actually said, "I don't give a shit about the million dollars, I care about touching people's lives in a positive way." Actually, I kind of think that she has a better shot at the million than touching people's lives right now, considering at least one of the jury members thinks she's mentally ill.

Jaison Robinson
Jaison said he was drawn to the game because "I want to see how I react in an environment that clearly is absolutely nothing like what I would have planned for myself or put myself in that sort of situation." At first, he didn't seem to react well, and almost seemed to withdraw. But that was one of his strategies, too: He planned to "kind of withdraw and let the game play out in front of you instead of trying to move straight through it," though he also said he wanted to create a "scheming brain trust", and that's basically what Foa Foa--with Russell's help--has done. He also said that he was scared of being blindsided, which hasn't happened yet.

Russell Hantz
What a surprise Russell Hantz has been. Although his prediction that viewers are "going to think I'm the worst thing to ever make TV" was probably right at first, he's grown on a lot of people, despite being ugly in many respects. Then again, he makes no apologies for who he is: "I didn't ask to be the villain. This is is me. This is exactly how I am as a person." He's played better than anyone else, and perhaps more creatively than anyone since Richard Hatch, though his social game will probably cost him the game. Besides discussing the reality show he was almost cast on instead of Survivor, Russell and I also discussed his plans for various kinds of alliances, including one with "a strong guy" alliance he wants to have so he can "bring three guys that are the strongest" to the end. That may just happen; Coach will be proud.

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Amazing Racers Jeff and Jordan photographed in Mexico

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 10:51:40 -0500

Former Big Brother houseguests and current Amazing Race 16 contestants were photographed in Mexico, and the photo may reveal just how successful they were in their second CBS reality competition series.

The photo, published by a Jokers' contributor, shows Jeff and Jordan in t-shirts and jeans in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico. The caption says "they were watching a parade," and another post says the photo "was taken around a week or so ago" and "they were being filmed."

While it's possible they're at a pit stop, or participating in some kind of challenge, it seems highly unlikely. They are not in what one would think of as race attire, nor do they have bags or fanny packs. They also look calm. In other words, they're likely out of the race, in the sequester location, which just happened to be in Mexico, too (Acapulco). No camera crew is visible, but if they were being filmed, as one post says, it's likely for the CBS.com sequester series.

If they are in sequester, just how far they made it in the race isn't clear. The show started taping Nov. 28, about 19 days ago, and if the photo was taken a week before that, they may have stayed in for around 12 days. Season 14's production spanned 21 days, so it means the race will probably be ending in the next few days somewhere in the US.

At the very least, Jeff and Jordan fans now have something to look at as they declare their love for the couple.

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Injured Russell walks again after he beats Jakob to win So You Think You Can Dance 6

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 10:06:35 -0500

A newly injured Russell Ferguson won $250,000 and the title of America's favorite dancer on the finale of So You Think You Can Dance 6 last night. He beat runner-up Jakob Karr. Kathryn McCormick came in third, Ellenore Scott fourth, Ashleigh Di Lello fifth, and Ryan Di Lello sixth.

The show almost fell apart about 45 minutes in, when Cat Deely tried to bring out the top six. Her mic wasn't on, and the finalists weren't on stage. As Cat stood there looking bewildered, Nigel Lythgoe said they were on their way, and Russell came out hanging on to Ryan. Russell told Cat, crying, "I messed my knee--I mean, my leg up." At first, Cat seemed more concerned about lining them up and doing the elimination: "If you can stand here for me for one second, that would be fantastic," she said. But once she caught on, she said, "We'll get you some help, okay? Have you seen the medic? Hang in here for one second for me and we'll get you off as soon as possible."

She eliminated Ryan, but didn't drag it out, and then went over to Ryan to interview him, saying, "I'm not going to move anybody because [Russell] can't walk well." After the show, Russell told People, "I went to jump back up onstage during my three-man piece and I came down on my leg a little wrong and it got real numb and swollen and it felt like something maybe got sprained. I was fine enough to walk. I felt like I could dance. After they tested me backstage, they told me I couldn't dance. That was the worst feeling."

Although Russell was injured all night, helped onto the stage by his fellow dancers and sitting on a stool to hear most of the results, winning caused him to walk again, tear off his shirt, and fall to the ground, prompting Cat to work hard to get him to stand up as he started doing the "it's God, it's God, it is God" thing. "It's all about God," he said twice before Cat ended the show. (So great when God gets his priorities straight and helps people win all-important reality shows.)

Russell's injury meant that a lot of the encore dances weren't live, but rebroadcasts of the original. Jennifer Lopez lip-synced even her spoken dialogue at the start of her routine, and was pretty much shown up in the singing department by Adam Lambert, who had dramatic eye makeup but otherwise just did what he does best: sing ("I'm a freak/but thanks for loving me").

Before the winner was announced, Nigel Lythgoe decided to argue for how amazing his own show is. "The true winners are this program, dance, and America," he said. But did we really win?

Two seasons back-to-back gave me So You Think You Can Dance fatigue, and I zoned out mid-season too much to accurately assess the season as a whole. Although I think the show is better than American Idol in many ways, Idol has been smart with the once-a-year thing, which allows us to recover.

Add to that the condensed fall season, which was interrupted by Thanksgiving and the World Series, and you have a season during which, as A Television Without Pity writer suggested, "the public has been largely shut out of the entire process this time out." Keeping So You Think You Can Dance in the fall isn't a bad idea, but it should take a nine-month break starting now so it can ensure it stays great.

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Top Chef Las Vegas reunites chefs who think Padma hates them, doesn't do much more

Andy Dehnart — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 08:52:29 -0500

Was there a lamer hour of TV on this week than the Top Chef Las Vegas reunion last night? And I say that knowing that The Sing-Off has already aired six full hours.

Sweaty Andy Cohen spent most of the hour introducing clips. How did the producers know that what I really wanted to see more than anything else in the whole world was more bickering between the Voltaggio brothers, who already wrecked the season? I don't need an hour-long recap; I just watched the season. How about some insight? But there wasn't much of that: The questions that were asked were either softballs or got quick, lame answers that seemed to be heavily edited.

It got a little interesting in the last five minutes with some outtakes, including Padma holding a product-placement cookbook upside down, and a couple minutes of discussion on Robin-bashing; clips of that were followed by Eli eventually apologizing for his "terse interactions" with her, and presumably for her comments about her cancer, although since he hadn't apologized previously and was pushed into it by Toby Young, it didn't seem like much of an apology.

Besides Eli and Kevin arguing in the stew room while Padma stood at the doorway, trying to get their attention, the single most interesting moment came when Andy asked Ash about his comments that Padma hated him, and then our host asked, "How many people here think Padma doesn't like them?" Nearly all the chefs raised their hands. Awesome. Padma said something like, "It's not true," and said she knows them only through their food, and not as people. But as always, we got no follow-up from Andy Cohen, like the obvious question: "So, why did you hate their food so much?"

The worst part is that a commercial said Bravo was saving some never-before-seen footage for its latest attempt to duplicate Project Runway Launch My Line, and reserving the fan favorite announcement for a special hour-long edition of Andy Cohen's midnight chat show tonight. But at least the reunion managed to include some product placement in for Top Chef wine.

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Reality shows led in product placement in 2009, while Idol and Dancing led in the ratings

Andy Dehnart — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:45:42 -0500

Reality shows dominated the top 10 shows in the country this year, although not in the ratings, but in product placement. The top 10 shows in the country, the only list Nielsen has released publicly so far, were led by American Idol and Dancing with the Stars, but no other reality shows cracked the top 10. And zero reality shows were on the list of most-DVRed shows.

As to shows that had the most product placement, every show except the top two, Jay Leno and WWE Raw, were reality shows. That is unsurprising, although it's kind of amazing that anyone beat The Biggest Loser, which was number three. Here's the full list from Time magazine:

1. The Jay Leno Show (1015 placements)
2. WWE Monday Night Raw (787)
3. The Biggest Loser (704)
4. American Idol (553)
5. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (483)
6. The Celebrity Apprentice (428)
7. Top Chef: Las Vegas (412)
8. America's Next Top Model (380)
9. Project Runway (350)
10. Dancing With the Stars (331)

As to overall ratings, American Idol's results show led the list, with 14.4 percent of households watching, followed by the performance show, Dancing with the Stars' performance show, and then its results show (which had significantly fewer viewers so it was #5). Here are Nielsen's lists, as reprinted by Eric Deggans, who also has the list of most-time-shifted shows and largest single telecast audiences:

2009's Top Rated TV Series

1 American Idol-Wednesday FOX 14.4% of homes with TV
2 American Idol-Tuesday FOX 13.8
3 Dancing with the Stars ABC 12.0
4 NBC Sunday Night Football NBC 11.7
5 Dancing with the Stars - Results Show ABC 9.9
6 NCIS: Los Angeles CBS 9.8
7 NCIS CBS 9.4
8 NFL Regular Season L ESPN 8.8
8 Sunday Night NFL Pre-kick NBC 8.8
10 The Good Wife 8.5

Jay Leno Is #1! [Time] Nielsen reveals most of top watched TV programs in 2009 were sports or reality shows [St. Petersburg Times]

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Amazing Race 14's Jaime is Playboy's January Playmate; Cara said no

Andy Dehnart — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:05:46 -0500

Jaime Faith Edmondson, a cast member on The Amazing Race 14, will be Playboy's centerfold in January, but her partner on the race, Cara Rosenthal, refused Playboy's offer.

Cara "said no. She's in law school and hopes to be governor someday," Jaime told the New York Daily News. But Jaime, obviously, said yes to being a Playmate. "I never saw this coming down the road. Here I find myself going to be on newsstands on my 31st birthday."

She won't be visible on newsstands, though, because Jaime isn't even mentioned on the cover, which features Tara Reid. While pictures from her (presumably naked) pictorial haven't surfaced online yet, Jaime signed autographs at the Playboy Store in Las Vegas last weekend.

On the race, former cheerleader Jaime behaved awfully by doing things like unapologetically calling 911 for directions. As part of her Playboy appearance, she's also been on E!'s Girls Next Door this season, although at least in this ridiculous clip, she's just background.

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