television shows

The Halloween Countdown You’ve Been Searching For

October 29, 2008 - 11:49pm
By Samantha Hartzband

There’s no better time to celebrate television than around the holidays. But you don’t have to wait until December, because the television-watching community celebrates literally any special day, from Chinese New Year to Kwanza, and especially Halloween. The Halloween Special is a delicate art that has been poked and prodded for longer than TV executives would like you to believe. To pay tribute to their hard work, Samantha Hartzband has compiled a list of her Top Four Halloween Specials. Get your candy corn ready because this could get messy.

Even the Sex Is Better in London

WTF, Mate?!

October 29, 2008 - 12:03am
By Julie Block

I’m gonna go out on a limb here and just say this: I am not against prostitution. In fact, I think it should be legalized.

There, I said it. Some of you may have gasped, because the idea of anyone selling sex for money sounds preposterous. Some of you probably rolled your eyes, hopefully because you don’t find it all that shocking but think I’m being melodramatic. Some of you probably aren’t really paying attention. Still, there you go. I have put it out there, in print and on the internet. It’s permanent, and it can’t be erased. Luckily, I don’t want to go into politics or be a nun.

Livin' the California Dream, Boobs and All

October 2, 2008 - 11:00pm
By Julie Block

Arts Editor Julie Block is excited about the return of Californication — despite its overdone plotline involving a self-hating but noble writer who has lots of sex while pining after the woman who got away. Intrigued?

The Cornell Connection: Gaye Hirsch '84, CW Executive

September 30, 2008 - 11:00pm
By Julie Block

Ever dream of working in showbiz? Then talk to Gaye Hirsch ’84, Senior Vice President of Current Programming at the C.W. television network. She helped make movies for Tom Cruise’s production company, Cruise/Wagner and held a gig with HBO, before settling down to oversee shows like Gossip Girl and Smallville at the C.W. The Sun had the opportunity to sit down with Hirsch in Los Angeles this summer to talk about her path to show-business:

The Sun: So you’re a pretty big deal. Would you mind explaining what exactly your job entails?

"Mad Men," "30 Rock" Take Top Emmys

September 21, 2008 - 10:58pm
By The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The sleek '60s drama "Mad Men" made Emmy history Sunday as the first basic-cable show to win a top series award, while the sitcom "30 Rock" and its stars Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin also emerged as big winners.

"We're all so very grateful to have jobs in this turkey-burger economy," Fey said after accepting the best comedy series trophy for her satire about a late-night TV show.

"This is the greatest job I've ever had in my life," Baldwin said of his role an a network executive.

He paid tribute to Fey, the NBC show's star and creator, as "the Elaine May of her generation."

How Gossip Girl Changed Marketing Forever (JK!)

September 4, 2008 - 8:55pm
By Peter Finocchiaro

So Gossip Girl is back. And sure, it doesn’t have much of an effect on my life. But it’s back, and people are excited about it. In New York City, banners on top of taxicabs, posters at bus stops and giant billboards hanging from skyscrapers all featured shoulders-up shots of the Gossip Girl characters engaged in various sexually implicit positions — making out in the back of a car, having sex in a pool, and more. One ubiquitous catch phrase was emblazoned over each one of these snapshots: “OMFG.” Whatever you want to say about the show, you’d be kidding yourself if you didn’t admit that it’s pretty great advertising — concise, alarming and memorable. The ads demanded the attention of those walking by, and it got me thinking how marketing people might similarly employ obnoxious Internet vernacular to peddle other products.