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Wednesday, May 13, 2009

No more Utahns "Dancing With the Stars"

The last Utah pro dancer has been eliminated from ABC's "Dancing With the Stars."

Utahn Chelsie Hightower and her celebrity partner, rodeo champ and Jewel's boyfriend Ty Murray, were booted from the reality-competition show Tuesday night.

That leaves three celebs - actor Gilles Marini, Olympian Shawn Johnson and "The Bachelor" reject Melissa Rycroft - competing in next week's finals.

Utah dancer-turned-singer Julianne Hough and her dance partner/boyfriend, country singer Chuck Wicks, were eliminated a few weeks ago. Julianne's brother Derek and his dance partner, rapper Lil Kim, were voted off last week.

Labels: Chelsie Hightower, Reality show

Dancers' dilemma

Utah dancers are flexible - but can they be in two places at once?

Fox has announced dates for national auditions for the sixty season of its reality-competition "So You Think You Can Dance" - and Salt Lake City is one of the audition cities.

Here's the rub: The Salt Lake City auditions are scheduled for July 24 - which is, as locals know, a state holiday.

The auditions start at 8 a.m. that day, at a location to be determined (EnergySolutions Arena might be open, since the Days of '47 Rodeo is moving to the E Center). But the Days of '47 parade starts at 9 a.m. that day - and you have to figure that many of the dancers who would be auditioning are members of the drill teams or other parade participants.

Labels: Pioneer Day, Reality show

Thursday, April 2, 2009

BFFs no more

There have been stories of relationships that began at the Sundance Film Festival - for example, the actor Tim Roth met his wife, Nikki Butler, at the '92 festival.

Alas, this is a story of a relationship that, according to insiders, ended at this year's Sundance Film Festival: That of socialite Paris Hilton and her "BFF" (best friend forever, for those not up on the lingo), Brittany Flickinger.

Flickinger became Hilton's BFF the way most people become friends - through the rigorous vetting process of a reality show on MTV. What could go wrong?

According to this item from the Gossip Girls blog, Hilton came to believe that Flickinger wasn't really her BFF - and that, according to a source, "all that girl wanted was the free trips, the goodie bags, staying at Paris’ mansion and the parties and clubs."

Hilton had this epiphany at Sundance, when "Paris realized everything everyone was telling her was the truth."

I guess BFF doesn't mean forever any more. Who could have predicted it?

Labels: Reality show, Sundance

'Idol': Megan's final 'caw'

Megan Joy seemed to know - from mugging for the camera to her overdramatic pop-eyed look during Ryan Seacrest's announcement - that this "American Idol" episode would be her last.

Joy, the 23-year-old single mom from Sandy, Utah - she of the tattooed arm and quirky hip swivel - was eliminated on Wednesday night's results show, with a gratuitously cruel flourish from lead judge Simon Cowell.

In shutting down hopes of a "judges' save," even before Joy re-sang her rendition of Bob Marley's "Turn the Lights Down Low," Cowell seemed upset that Joy didn't care about the judges' criticism.

"Megan, with the greatest respect, when you said that you don't care, nor do we," said Cowell - the judge who, more than any of the four, championed Joy's offbeat singing style in the early rounds.

Cowell's disaffection for his former favorite is another indication of "Idol's" central paradox: The judges demand originality from the singers - but when confronted with a singer who breaks the mold, the judges seem determined to shove that singer right back into the mold. (Take, for example, judge Kara DioGuardi's suggestion that Joy should have chosen "Chasing Pavements," a recent hit by Adele, rather than the Marley number.)

Now Joy gets to come back home to Utah and her little boy, and prepare for the "American Idols" tour this summer. Then she can go about applying that original voice, away from Cowell's disapproving stare.

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

'Idol': Ruining reggae

Oh, for the love of all that's holy - Bob Marley?!?

On a week when the nine remaining "American Idol" contestants could choose pretty much any song they wanted (under the vague corporate-happy umbrella of top iTunes downloads), Sandy, Utah, singer Megan Joy - the perky blonde with the smoky jazz voice - picked Marley's "Turn Your Lights Down Low" and bombed with the judges.

"It was like watching paint dry," declared Randy Jackson. "Boring, indulgent and monotonous," said Simon Cowell. Kara DioGuardi said Joy was in trouble.

Expect Joy standing at center stage tonight, awaiting the bad news from Ryan Seacrest. My picks for joining Joy in the Bottom 3: Scott MacIntyre, for his screechy rendition of Billy Joel's "Just the Way You Are"; and Anoop Desai, who gave a funk-free version of Usher's "Caught Up."

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Friday, March 27, 2009

'Idol': Megan survives again

Maybe Megan Joy is right - her fans will see her through.

Enough of them saw her through to the next round of "American Idol," as callers and text-message senders gave the boot to oil-rigger Michael Sarver - confirming Simon Cowell's brutal assessment that "you're not going to win this competition."

In fact, Joy wasn't even in the bottom 3 - an all-guy trio that included Sarver, Matt Giraud and Scott MacIntyre. Maybe somebody finally figured out how boy-heavy this year's line-up is.

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Thursday, March 26, 2009

'Idol': Megan's last stand?

Get ready for the montage of Megan Joy's "journey" to the Top 10 of "American Idol."

Joy (the 23-year-old from Sandy, Utah) fired up a rendition of Stevie Wonder's "For Once in My Life" during Motown night on Wednesday night's "Idol" episode - and the judges' appraisal was particularly harsh.

Randy Jackson called it "a trainwreck." Kara DioGuardi said she should have sung another song. Simon Cowell said it was "atrocious" and that Joy was "in trouble."

Paula Abdul tried to compliment Joy's looks: ''Your stunning beauty takes my breath away.'' This prompted Cowell to mutter, "It's not 'Top Model.' ''

Joy's only hope is that the voting public - "my fans," to whom she gave a somewhat desperate shout-out - knock either Michael Sarver (who bulled through "Ain't Too Proud to Beg") or Scott MacIntyre (who did his piano-man thing to "You Can't Hurry Love") first.

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Monday, March 23, 2009

'Idol': The porn connection

When you try to make the most wholesome show on TV - as the folks at "American Idol" do, as they try to satisfy teeny-boppers and their grandmas at the same time - even the most tangential link to pornography is going to get some attention.

In past years, contestants Frenchie Davis and David Hernandez got the boot after word of their extracurricular activities - respectively, topless photos on the Internet and stripping in a gay bar - came to light.

Expanding the Top 12 to a Top 13 this season presented a dilemma for "Idol" producers, because they had only secured 12 phone numbers for voting - and the numbers above and below the 12 secured numbers were owned by phone-sex companies. The show found an extra phone number to use, just in time for the first week of voting.

Now, contestant Megan Joy Corkrey - the tattooed divorced mom from Sandy, Utah - has stumbled into another small problem. The singer last week dropped her married name, Corkrey, and is now billed as Megan Joy.

Alas, there's already a Megan Joy out there: A porn star whose credits (according to E! Online) include "Sorority Sex Kittens: Kappa Kappa Sex" and "Cheerleader Auditions 6" (for those who thought the stories of "Cheerleader Auditions" 1 through 5 weren't thoroughly explored).

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Thursday, March 19, 2009

'Idol': Megan's going on tour

Whether America liked her bluesy rendition of Patsy Cline's "Walking After Midnight" or felt sympathy for her bout with the flue, Utah's "American Idol" contestant Megan Joy survived another week on our nation's communal karaoke show.

Joy wasn't even in the bottom three, in spite of predictions from some blogs that she'd be sent home. Instead, little Alexis Grace (pictured) - dinged for a generic rendition of Dolly Parton's "Jolene" - was eliminated. (Grace's departure goes counter to the rumors, fostered by this New York Daily News item, that the fix was in and Grace was already chosen for the final four.)

The good news for Joy is that, because she's in the Top 10, she'll be part of the "Idols" tour this summer.

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

'Idol': Megan fights the flu

Megan Joy - the pride of Sandy, Utah - wasn't just singing a country song on Tuesday night's "American Idol." She was living one.

Joy - notice that the recently divorced 23-year-old mom has dropped her married name, Corkrey, adopting her middle name as a stage name - was on the bubble last week, and has been roundly criticized by "Idol" wags on the Internet. (The notorious VoteFortheWorst.com - the folks who lobbied for Sanjaya Malakar in an effort to take down "Idol" from within - has chosen Joy as their favorite this season.)

On Tuesday, Joy fought off a bad case of the flu - which put her in the hospital on an IV bag, and forced her to miss the show's dress rehearsal earlier in the day - to sing a passable rendition of Patsy Cline's "Walking After Midnight."

The judges were impressed with the effort. "You should have flu every week," said Simon Cowell, "because you were better this week than last week. And you look gorgeous."

(Cowell was also right that whoever is styling Joy is detracting from her tattoo-flavored quirkiness. She needs to wear something with a bra - the halter-top gown she was wearing does not pass the "pencil test.")

Of course, the strangest performance of the night was Adam Lambert's ill-advised attempt to turn Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" into a Depeche Mode song. Cowell again called it right: "What the hell was that?" (Randy Jackson, on the other hand, should be ashamed for his positive comment that it sounded like "Nine Inch Nails doing a Johnny Cash song." Randy should be forced to listen to Cash's late-career cover of Trent Reznor's "Hurt," to be reminded of what a Cash/Reznor collaboration really sounds like.)

If Joy survives tonight's results show - a big if, though Scott MacIntyre's uncanny ability to turn everything into a Bruce Hornsby song makes him a prime candidate for dismissal - she'll be in the Top 10, which means she'll go on the "American Idols" tour his summer.

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Thursday, March 12, 2009

'Idol': Megan survives

The "American Idol" producers decided to send a message to Megan Joy Corkrey on Wednesday's results show: You're on the bubble, so get better or go home.

Host Ryan Seacrest called Corkrey - the 23-year-old single mom from Sandy, Utah - down to the main stage to stand alongside Jasmine Murray (who, like Corkrey, was a judges' wild-card choice for the Top 13) to learn which of them would be eliminated. After a moment of tension, Seacrest told Corkrey she would be safe, and that Murray was going home.

(To add to Murray's misery, she was also told the judges - who now have the power to "save" one eliminated contestant - wouldn't be exercising that power with her. The same thing happened to Jorge Nunez, who got sent packing.)

The good news for Corkrey and her fans: If she survives next week (with the theme ''songs popularized by members of The Grand Ole Opry''), she'll be in the Top 10 - which means she'll be part of the national tour.

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

'Idol': Megan's round 'Robin'

Can we all agree with Simon Cowell that "Rockin' Robin" was an atrocious song choice for Sandy's favorite tattooed single mom, Megan Joy Corkrey, on last night's "American Idol"? (Why couldn't she have done "The Way You Make Me Feel," instead of Lil Rounds?)

But not everyone thought Corkrey's performance was that bad. Michael Slezak, recapping "Idol" for Entertainment Weekly, wrote that she "interpreted the fusty old number with enough swing and sass that it wouldn't have sounded all that odd sandwiched between cuts from, say, Duffy and Nellie McKay."

Corkrey has got to work on her stage moves, like actually moving around on the stage. Right now, if a hurricane swept through the "Idol" studio, Ryan Seacrest and the others should tie themselves to Corkrey - because when she sings, she's as rooted as a tree.

Tonight we find out how America voted - and we learn about the mysterious new format change, which I suspect will have the judges taking the final decision out of the voters' hands.

While you're waiting for tonight's results show, consider this excellent column by Los Angeles Times' pop music critic Ann Powers, who urges "Idol" producers get over the homophobia that forces contestants to submerge their identities. (Consider Clay Aiken, who came out five years after his "Idol" season.) Powers' commentary is a reasoned call for the overly homogenized "Idol" to be as diverse as America itself.

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Monday, March 9, 2009

Megan's tattoo

It's been the burning question all the nation has been asking, apparently: Just what is tattooed on Megan Joy Corkrey's right arm?

The "American Idol" finalist - and 23-year-old single mom from Sandy, Utah - explained it in a Q-and-A session (which MTV.com dutifully transcribed here) after securing her spot in the top 13:

"It's a castle, and there's a night sky above it. And the glass is stained glass, and it's my fairy tale. And there's a king and a queen, and that's me and — who knows? And then there's a fairy godmother, my mom; a wizard, my brother; and a prince, my son. Then there's roses growing up the castle."

Corkrey has seven tattoos in all: Her son's name on her wrist, two stars on her back (representing herself and her mother), her middle name on her hip, and "a jumble of things I love" on both feet.

(Photo: Getty Images)

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Friday, March 6, 2009

'Idol': Megan moves forward

"American Idol" finalized its Top 13 (not 12, but 13, in a "surprise" twist) Thursday night, and Megan Joy Corkrey - the 23-year-old single mom from Sandy, Utah - made the cut.

Unfortunately for Corkrey, her big moment of triumph was upstaged by another singer's hissy fit.

Corkrey impressed the judges with a fiery cover of KT Tunstall's "Black Horse & the Cherry Tree." Simon Cowell, while saying it wasn't the best vocal ever heard, heaped praise on Corkrey.

"What I like about you is that you're current," Cowell said. "Sometimes this show can get a bit karaoke, and I don't get that from you. You've got originality, you're quirky, you've got your own thing."

(Cowell's comment drew this rebuke from Michael Slezak, who's recapping "Idol" for Entertainment Weekly: "What is it about her that's so current? The fact that she's going to need serious help from Auto-Tune when she goes in to cut her debut album?")

When Corkrey got the word in the episode's final minutes that she would be moving on to the Top 13, she had to share the stage with drama queen Tatiana del Toro - whose meltdown in front of the judges when she was eliminated stole Corkrey's thunder. (On the plus side, Corkrey is almost guaranteed a supporting role on tonight's episode of E!'s "The Soup," when Tatiana's crying fit gets played over and over again.)

Also, did you notice that when Corkrey tried to give a high-five to fellow Top 13 pick Jasmine Murray, she got left hanging? Welcome to Hollywood, indeed.

(By the way, Corkrey has her own website now. Here it is.)

Labels: American Idol, Megan Joy Corkrey, Reality show

Monday, March 2, 2009

Kelsey's off the bus

Salt Lake's own Kelsey Lee did herself and her hometown proud on VH1's "Rock of Love Bus" Sunday night - getting so drunk she could do little more than giggle when she was eliminated from the show.

After her first date with rocker Bret Michaels (achieved when her team won something called the "Truck Stop Olympics," thanks in part to Kelsey's wet t-shirt skills), Kelsey and big-breasted teammate Farah got plastered (a common occurrence on shows like this). Kelsey and Farah sloppily made out in the VIP area during Michaels' concert in Alabama - to the point where Big John, Michaels' right-hand man, exiled the pair to the bus to sober up.

Instead (as the clip below shows), Kelsey - the 23-year-old Huka Bar server - had a meltdown. She laid on a speed bump, sobbing and complaining she wanted to go home. Big John talked her down in time for the elimination ceremony.

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

"I can't be the only girl that's gotten drunk and laid on a speed bump," Kelsey said before the elimination.

But Michaels, saying "I am just not sure that the road is the place for you and me to even attempt to try and find love," sent Kelsey packing back to Salt Lake City.

"The next guy I find," Kelsey said in closing, "definitely won't be 44, and probably not a rock star."

Labels: Kelsey Lee, Reality show, Rock of Love Bus

Thursday, February 26, 2009

A "Race" of his own

If you see a bicyclist trudging east across southern Utah in April, don't be surprised if you recognize the guy.

Phil Keoghan, the rugged host of CBS' reality series "The Amazing Race," will bike cross-country, starting in Los Angeles on March 28 and ending in New York on May 9 - the day before the season finale of "The Amazing Race."

According to USA Today, Keoghan is aiming to encourage people to pursue a healthy life. He's also raising awareness of the fight against multiple sclerosis.

He'll average about 100 miles a day, and will stop in several cities along the way - including Las Vegas and Denver (meaning his most direct route probably will skirt southern Utah).

Labels: Amazing Race, Reality show

Monday, December 8, 2008

Speidi alert! Hide the children!

No, that looming sense of doom you felt over the Wasatch Mountains this weekend wasn't the apocalypse - it was Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt.

The villainous couple of MTV's "The Hills" (a show I have never seen, but receive weekly updates from watching "The Soup" on E!) was skiing and "canoodling" (as they say in the tabloids) at Deer Valley over the weekend.

Apparently, nothing this just-married couple does happens outside of camera range, as evidenced by the numerous photos (posted here) for which they posed.

Labels: Reality show

Friday, December 5, 2008

Salt Lake, meet "The Real World"

MTV's "The Real World" is back in January - and two Salt Lakers are among the roommates.

And, according to their official MTV bios (posted on the blog Real Television), they couldn't be any more different:

Baya, 21 – Salt Lake City, UT
Raised by hippie parents, Baya’s laid-back granola vibe hides a deep passion for the hip-hop culture, especially when it comes to dancing. A very friendly and positive person, she continually feels like a fish out of water, which stems from growing up as a non-Mormon in a predominately Mormon Salt Lake City society. Baya, who is a DJ, aspires to be a professional hip-hop dancer and is determined not to allow her severe panic attacks to stand in her way as she searches for the best place to develop her craft. When she is not sweating to funky grooves or spinning music, Baya is dedicating her time and energy to social and environmental causes.

Chet, 23 – Salt Lake City, UT
Chet is not the typical punk rock party boy. Despite his tight jeans and affinity for neon clothing, this University of Utah frat boy is one of ten children in a devoted Mormon family. Recently single, Chet’s flamboyant style and energetic personality always make him the life of the party. However, this doesn’t mean that he will compromise his firm beliefs – no alcohol and no premarital sex. Chet may not chug beer with his fraternity brothers, but he will take care of them when they get drunk – and sometimes play a prank or two. A strong conservative Republican, he is not one to shy away from voicing his opinions or standing up for what he believes. Chet’s goal is to become a television host.

The new season, set in Brooklyn, starts Jan. 7.

Labels: MTV's The Real World, Reality show

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

The other Hough wins

Park City's Derek Hough has done what his sister Julianne has done twice: Guided a B-list celebrity to victory on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars."

Hough and his celebrity partner, model/actress Brooke Burke, took the top prize on Tuesday night's show - winning out over retired football player Warren Sapp and former 'NSync pretty boy Lance Bass.

Julianne, who took the trophy with Olympic speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno and Indy car racer Helio Castroneves, announced last week she was quitting "Dancing With the Stars" (after she and her partner, "Hannah Montana" co-star Cody Linley, were eliminated) to concentrate on her country-music career.

Labels: Derek Hough, Julianne Hough, Reality show

Friday, November 21, 2008

Hough hangs up the dancing shoes

Utah's own Julianne Hough won't be dancing with any stars next year.

Hough, the professional dancer who guided both Apolo Anton Ohno and Helio Castroneves to victory on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars," on Thursday announced she's done with the popular show.

"I really, really want to focus on the music and, you know, kind of be taken seriously a little bit," she told Ryan Seacrest on his radio show.

This season was rough on Hough (pictured here on her final appearance Tuesday). She had an emergency appendectomy during the show's run, and this week was eliminated with her celebrity partner, "Hannah Montana" actor Cody Linley. (Her brother, Derek Hough, and model Brooke Burke are one of the three pairs in the finals.)

Hough has released two CDs this year - her debut country album, "That Song in My Head," and a holiday collection, "Songs of the Season" - and she says "music is where I want to be."

(Photo: ABC)

Labels: Julianne Hough, Reality show

Monday, November 17, 2008

Allie's in "The Soup"

It's always good to see old friends who have done well for themselves.

Take Allie MacKay, the always-bubbly morning features reporter who used to work at Salt Lake City's Fox13 News (and, briefly, at KUTV, Ch. 2).

MacKay does the same job, presumably for a lot more money, at Los Angeles' KTLA. Last week, she was doing a remote from a silk-screening shop in Los Feliz, Calif., where she had a T-shirt made emblazoned with her picture and a picture of Joel McHale, host of E!'s "The Soup."

Of course, McHale played the clip on "The Soup" on Friday night. But he did so to slam MacKay for violating one of his pet peeves: Getting the name of his show wrong. (MacKay and the KTLA anchors referred to it as "Talk Soup," which is the predecessor of the current E! show.) Here's the clip from "The Soup":

Congratulations, Allie, all of us back home in Utah knew you'd make it big someday. All you need to do now is throw your beret in the air, Mary Tyler Moore-style, to show that you're gonna make it after all.

Labels: Reality show

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Hough in surgery

Utah ballroom dancer and country singer Julianne Hough may have to drop out of ABC's "Dancing With the Stars," as she's scheduled for surgery today.

Hough had complained of stomach pains last week, and was replaced by Edyta Sliwinska as dance partner to "Hannah Montana" co-star Cody Linley on Monday night's competition. According to this Associated Press report, Hough, 20, has been diagnosed with endomitriosis, in which tissue from the uterus lining grows outside the uterus. If untreated, it can cause painful cysts and possibly infertility.

To battle the condition, Hough will have her appendix moved in a minor surgical procedure today, she said on her web site. She plans to be back dancing on next week's show.

Labels: Julianne Hough, Reality show

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Utah dancer, down but not out

Utah's own Julianne Hough is the latest to be stricken with a health problem on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars."

According to this account from E! Online, Hough (pictured here with her current dance partner, "Hannah Montana" co-star Cody Linley) was rushed to the hospital with stomach pains after Tuesday night's elimination show. She said she had been suffering them all day, but they became too much to handle.

Hough isn't the first person on "Dancing With the Stars" to have a health scare this season. Actress-model Brooke Burke hurt her foot practicing the jitterbug with partner Derek Hough (Julianne's brother), and Olympic beach volleyballer Misty May-Treanor had to drop out after rupturing her Achilles tendon.

Labels: Derek Hough, Julianne Hough, Reality show

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Plans for tonight: Hot blooded, check it and see

- Get your metal on with Bullet For My Valentine at Saltair, 12408 W. Salt Air Drive, Magna. Bleeding Through and Black Tide fill out the bill, starting at 6:30. Tickets are $23, at Ktix or at the door.

- The "So You Think You Can Dance" national tour, featuring the Fox reality show's top 10 finalists - including three Utah dancers: Gev, Chelsie and Thayne - pops and locks at 7:30 at the E Center, 3200 S. Decker Lake Dr., West Valley City. Tickets are $35 to $55, at Ticketmaster.

- '80s power-balled mavens Foreigner - whose current "Feels Like the First Time" tour is being sponsored by, I kid you not, the AARP - plays at 8 at The Depot, 400 W. South Temple. Tickets are $35, at SmithsTix.

Labels: Chelsie Hightower, Reality show, Tonight's schedule

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Back to the "Runway"

Salt Lake City fashionista Keith Bryce returned to Bravo's "Project Runway" last night, two weeks after his elimination - and he still brought the drama.

The challenge for the eight remaining contestants was to design an avant-garde dress inspired by a sign of the zodiac. Each of the eight was paired with one of the eight designers who were previously cast off.

Bryce (once again wearing a T-shirt advertising his Salt Lake store, Filthy Gorgeous) was teamed with Terri Stevens, the headstrong designer from Columbus, Ohio. But aside from choosing to adapt Bryce's astrological sign - Leo - the collaboration ended there.

The camera picked up several moments of Bryce and Stevens arguing, mostly about whether Bryce could do anything more than pin up a piece of fabric for Stevens' "vision." (In a priceless moment, fashion adviser/den mother Tim Gunn had to wake up Bryce, in self-exile in the "Project Runway" lounge, in time for the runway show.)

Stevens' gaudy "vision" (pictured at right) turned out to be a loser, as both she and the "tanorexic" Seattle designer Blayne Walsh got the "auf Wiedersehen."

Labels: Keith Bryce, Reality show

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Bye-bye, Kittens

So, let me get this straight - the ZOOperstars, a bunch of oddballs in inflatable animal costumes, got more votes from the viewing public than a burlesque troupe in all-American red white and blue?

Sure enough, that's the way the cookie crumbled for Salt Lake City's Slippery Kittens Burlesque, who were eliminated last week from competition on NBC's "America's Got Talent."

The troupe will be back at their home base, Bar Deluxe at 666 S. State St., on Sept. 20. Welcome them home, Salt Lakers!

Labels: Reality show, Slippery Kittens

The "glam rock" Salt Lake City guy

My cubicle neighbor, Tribune TV critic Vince Horiuchi, always fears the arrival of a new reality show, because there may be a Utahn on the show that he'll have to write about every week.

Brace yourself, Vince - here comes another one.

Gawker.com is following the new season of "MTV's The Real World," now being filmed in Brooklyn, N.Y. - and, sure enough, there's a guy named Chet Bannon, a Mormon from Salt Lake City (with a fiancee at home here), whose virginity is, apparently, a topic of much discussion.

Here's how the New York Press describes an encounter with Bannon, at a club where the band Semi Precious Weapons was performing:

MTV had the kids well trained. "I’m sorry I can’t divulge that," the cast members would tell me when I pressed them for any details on life in the Pier 41 house. But Chet Bannon, the Mormon who the producers are trying to have de-flowered, was too nice not to talk. By far the most suave of the yahoos, he was wearing an H&M scarf, Elvis Costello glasses and had his short blonde hair spiked. Best of all, he admitted that they were indeed the cast of 'The Real World.'

"I love glam rock," Chet told me as he sipped a Shirley Temple, "you just don’t see anything like it in Salt Lake." As if on cue, Justin Tranter, the mascara-wearing, teased, peroxide-haired frontman of the Weapons, put a medallion around Chet’s neck, whispered something in his ear, then strutted off.

Good luck with that one, Vince.

(Hat tip to Bill Frost, on the City Weekly blog.)

Labels: LDS, Reality show

Friday, August 29, 2008

Utah's "Runway" guy run over

The blogs were not kind to Keith Bryce, the Salt Lake City fashion designer who got booted from Bravo's "Project Runway" this week.

This comment from the blog Nonsense Upon Stilts: "During the episode, I almost felt really really bad for him, what with the self doubt and the Utah and all, but then he started talking about how much more he wanted this than everybody else, and I remembered why I used to find him insufferable.

Karla Peterson, writing on the San Diego Union-Tribune's TV blog, summed up Bryce's departure thusly: "After blaming his boring ensemble on the model and last week's meanie judges who sapped his confidence, Keith packed his scissors and went back to Utah. But not after crying first. And I have to confess that the thought of a gay man going back to Utah made me sad, too. Maybe he could live in one of Rachel Zoe's gigantic purses."

Labels: Keith Bryce, Reality show

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Reality roundup: Bryce crashes

Salt Lake City designer Keith Bryce got the "auf Wiedersehen" on last night's episode of Bravo's "Project Runway" - and if you watched the episode, you could see the car crash coming.

The challenge was to make an outfit out of recycled parts from a Saturn Vue Hybrid (cha-ching - product placement!). Bryce turned leather car seats into a mini-skirt. The skirt came apart at the seams when his model sat down, and the cargo netting that held the top together was - to paraphrase Christian, last season's catchphrase-spouting winner - a hot transmission mess.

As he was making the dress (pictured at right), Bryce complained that it wasn't the style he liked - and that he made a tailored dress only to please the judges, who had ridiculed his fringe-dripping designs in previous episodes. (He had been in the Bottom 3 twice, though he won the "Lipstick Jungle" challenge two weeks ago.)

It didn't help that Bryce, in front of the judges, dissed his model for sitting down and complained that judge Michael Kors' criticisms were insulting. (There's more complaining, and some introspection, on Bryce's exit interview, here - which begins with "I feel like I'm leaving too soon.")

Also Wednesday, Salt Lake City's own Slippery Kittens Burlesque had their turn in the semi-final round of NBC's "America's Got Talent" - and their patriotic striptease, going from military-khaki dresses to star-spangled bras and panties (to the tune of "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy"), didn't exactly win over the judges.

Judge Piers Morgan was the toughest, hitting the "X" buzzer (this show's version of "The Gong Show's" gong) and declaring that, "when you started taking the clothes off, I wanted you to put them back on." Ouch!

But the judges are not the decision-makers here - the viewing public is. Watch for yourself.

Labels: Keith Bryce, Reality show, Slippery Kittens

Monday, August 25, 2008

Kittens hit the big time

Warm up your TV for Tuesday and Wednesday night, when Salt Lake City's very own Slippery Kittens Burlesque takes to the nation's airwaves as a semi-finalist on NBC's "America's Got Talent."

In a clear violation of the "local media blackout" that exists solely in the conspiratorial mind of the City Weekly's Bill Frost, I profiled the Kittens in Sunday's The Mix section - along with onstage and backstage photos of these lovely ladies of burlesque by the Tribune's James Urquhart.

"From now on, it's up to America to love us and vote for us, and take us all the way," said the Kittens' founder, Lorrie Ann Dohoney - a k a Miss Lorrie Ann.

Good luck, ladies - you're carrying the hopes of all of Utah with you.

(Photo: NBC)

Labels: Reality show, Slippery Kittens

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Bryce survives again, barely

Boy, you'd think a gay man from Salt Lake City - where garish parade floats are a point of community pride every July 24 - would know how to dress a drag queen.

But no, Keith Bryce - owner of Salt Lake boutique Filthy Gorgeous - found himself in the bottom two on last night's edition of Bravo's "Project Runway," once again creating a dress that looked like it had gone through a paper shredder. (There it is at left, on his model, Sherry Vine.)

Bryce (who won the previous week's challenge) survived the cut though, as New Yorker Daniel Feld - he of the self-proclaimed impeccable taste, who never met a challenge he couldn't turn into a cocktail dress - got Heidi Klum's "auf Wiedersehen."

But Bryce's penchant for layering bits of hanging fabric had the judges shaking their heads (though guest judge RuPaul liked the dress). Even his rival designers were whispering, "Keith's doing swatches again." Dude better mix in a hemline, pronto, or he's outta here.

Labels: Keith Bryce, Reality show

Thursday, August 14, 2008

From "Runway" to the "Jungle"

Salt Lake City designer Keith Bryce finally broke from the pack on Bravo's "Project Runway," winning a challenge that will put one of his designs on prime-time TV.

On Wednesday night's show, the 12 remaining contestants were challenged to design an outfit for Brooke Shields' character on the NBC series "Lipstick Jungle" - a professional woman who works both in the boardroom and in the evening social scene. Each of the 12 presented their sketches to Shields, who chose six designs to be sewn - including Bryce's.

The six chosen designers then paired up with the remaining six to produce the dresses. Bryce was paired with Bettie Page-lookalike Kenley Collins to create a chocolate-colored layered skirt with a floral-print top (pictured at left).

Bryce's dress won the round, and the dress will be worn by Shields in an upcoming episode of "Lipstick Jungle." (Yes, Bravo is owned by NBC Universal - how did you guess?)

Bryce - who owns the Salt Lake boutique Filthy Gorgeous - shouldn't rest on his laurels. As host Heidi Klum points out, "in fashion, one day you're in, the next day you're out." The designer who got eliminated, Kelli Martin, won the season's first challenge of designing an outfit based on supermarket products.

Labels: Keith Bryce, Reality show

Friday, August 8, 2008

Reality roundup: Marcus loses out

Now Marcus has something else in common with David Archuleta besides being from Utah: He, too, knows the sting when the host calls the other person's name.

Marcus - the guy with one name but many tattoos - took the silver on Thursday's finale NBC's "Last Comic Standing," losing the viewers' vote to the show's first female winner, Iliza Shlesinger.

But Marcus didn't leave without first getting a comment from Triumph the Insult Comic Dog: "I predict Marcus will sell many more CDs than Dane Cook - because he will end up with a job at Virgin Records."

Also on Thursday, the Salt Lake burlesque troupe Slippery Kittens moved into the semi-final round on NBC's "America's Got Talent." If you left the room at the wrong moment, though, you would have missed it - the Kittens got exactly 12 seconds of screen time to show off their prison-themed striptease routine.

And Salt Lake designer Keith Bryce (pictured with his model, Alyssa) was in the middle of the pack on this week's "Project Runway." The task was to design a stylish opening-ceremonies uniform for the U.S. Olympic team. Oddly enough, the show's producers never interviewed Keith about what it was like living in the city that held the last Olympics in North America.

Labels: Keith Bryce, Marcus, Reality show, Slippery Kittens

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Is tonight the night for Marcus?

Marcus, Utah's very own one-named and many-tattooed stand-up comedian, will find out tonight - along with the rest of America - whether he will be the "Last Comic Standing" on NBC's reality-competition show.

If Marcus prevails over his four remaining competitors, he wins $250,000 and a talent contract with NBC. But no matter what, as the Tribune's David Burger wrote today, he will be part of the "Last Comic Standing" tour this fall - and he will perform at his home grounds, Wiseguys in Ogden and West Valley, this weekend.

Marcus also got the royal treatment in this week's City Weekly (which hit newsstands late Wednesday) - a cover story by the alt-weekly's TV writer Bill Frost. In the profile, Frost again lamented how Utah's mainstream media has ignored the homegrown talent:

Too bad about the local-media blackout conspiracy against Marcus, huh?

OK, that might be an overstatement—but compared to the months-long (and still going!) Utah media orgasm over "American Idol’s" David Archuleta, the cute Mormon teen from Murray who eventually took the silver, Marcus might as well be competing on the Food Network. No, wait: Kelsey Nixon got more coverage, too. Aside from some radio and City Weekly’s print and blog reports about Marcus’ progress on a major network reality show, the Salt Lake City media has virtually ignored one of its own.

OK, let's do a tally of the City Weekly's coverage of Marcus: Frost mentioned Marcus in his "True TV" column on May 29 and July 3, and the "Lake Effect" feature, also on May 29 - as well as in three blog posts - but this is the alt-weekly's first full-fledged interview with the guy. Frost has repeated the "media blackout" line, or some variation of it, nearly every time.

Meanwhile, the Tribune's Burger has interviewed Marcus twice, and written two blog posts about him, here and here. I've mentioned Marcus in this blog five times (OK, now it's six). The Deseret News' TV critic Scott D. Pierce wrote on Monday that he's rooting for Marcus to win, even though Pierce doesn't like the show much. And KSL - the station that carries "Last Comic Standing" - has done stories on Marcus twice, on July 3 and July 31.

As media conspiracies go, this one isn't going too well.

Labels: Marcus, Reality show

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Donny heading to the jungle?

Marie did it, and so did Jimmy. Now it appears Donny Osmond may follow his siblings' path into reality TV.

Britain's Daily Star tabloid is reporting that Donny is close to signing a deal to join the British series "I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!" The show throws a group of B-list and C-list celebs into an Australian jungle, to see if "they cancope without the trappings of fame."

Brother Jimmy appeared on the same show in 2005, and Marie had her memorable run last year on "Dancing With the Stars."

Labels: Osmond, Reality show

Monday, August 4, 2008

No love for Marcus

Utah's favorite one-named, many-tattooed stand-up comedian, Marcus, isn't getting the love nationally from his appearances on NBC's "Last Comic Standing."

This from the always snarky Defamer.com:

In a startling example of accidental domestic terrorism, the CDC announced today a major breach of its "Dane Cook Cloning" program, begun in 1997 when weaponized anthrax was found "simply not annoying enough." Clone DC-01 escaped his holding cell two weeks ago (distinguishable from his progenitor only by his tattooed sleeves), finally appearing in public to try his hand at terrible, terrible stand-up comedy during last night's episode of Last Comic Standing. The experiment was a success. We are all doomed.

Marcus is still in the running on "Last Comic Standing." The final is Thursday night. Until then, here's Marcus' last performance on the show, courtesy of NBC:

Labels: Marcus, Reality show

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Roadkill on the "Runway"? Nearly

If you're a regular viewer of Bravo's fashion-forward reality show "Project Runway," you know that when one contestant gets a lot of camera time to get biographical, that contestant is probably a goner.

So when Salt Lake City designer Keith Bryce, owner of the Filthy Gorgeous boutique, talked on Wednesday night's show about life in Utah - and uttered the words, "being gay in Salt Lake City is really difficult" - things weren't looking good for him on this week's challenge of making an evening dress inspired by a New York City street scene.

Later, when he told a competitor, "I'm not even close to being done," it was like hearing a cop in an action movie say he's two days from retirement. (Even worse, Bryce learned at the last minute that his model had dropped out of the competition.)

Sure enough, when Bryce's design (pictured at left) - suggested by a torn-up magazine he spotted on a New York sidewalk - hit the runway, it got trashed. "Like toilet paper caught in a windstorm" is how judge Michael Kors described it. Bryce was in the bottom 3 competitors facing elimination.

But, somehow, Bryce avoided host Heidi Klum's "Auf Wiedersehen," so he lives to sew another day. Instead, Emily - a 27-year-old designer from Sacramento, Calif. - was eliminated.

Labels: Keith Bryce, Reality show

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

The kid stays in the picture - barely

Melanie Denos learned a lesson in how TV works - and how being pretty isn't always enough - outside EnergySolutions Arena on Tuesday morning.

Denos (at left), a 17-year-old from Bluffdale, Utah, was among the 4,000-plus people who auditioned for "American Idol" - and she seemed to have guaranteed herself at least a second or two of TV time before the auditions even started.

When Fox producers were setting up a crowd scene, during which hundreds of screaming auditioners cheer for the camera, Denos was in a prime position: Standing on the corner of the bottom stair outside the arena, the tip of the wedge of humanity being captured by the jib-mounted camera swooping overhead (pictured at right).

After a few preliminary passes, TV esthetics came crashing down. A production assistant moved Denos from the front spot, and two other young women were moved in front of her. Now the corner position (as the picture at top shows) was held by a taller, leggier blonde - 16-year-old Lauren Sater of Sacramento, Calif. - wearing a short skirt and high heels. When the Salt Lake City auditions air on "Idol" next winter, it will be Sater, not Denos, who will be the first smiling auditioner America sees.

That's showbiz.

(Crowd photos by Al Hartmann/The Salt Lake Tribune; Denos photo taken by me.)

Labels: American Idol, Reality show

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

"American Idol": Faces in the crowd

"Bread and circuses, man," a photographer friend said as we circled EnergySolutions Arena this morning, watching the estimated 4,000-to-6,000 people auditioning for "American Idol." (Read my colleague Vince Horiuchi's story on the madness.)

But everybody has a reason to think they are America's next singing sensation. Here are a few of them:

Name: Arianna Rowley
Age: 20
Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
Why she's here: "I've been performing ever since I was a little girl."
Audition song: "Fame" by Irene Cara

Name: Andrew Nadon
Age: 27
Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
Why he's here: "I've never had the chance to audition, and this is the last year I can try it."
Audition song: "Summertime" by George Gershwin

Name: Taylor Lawrence
Age: 17
Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
Why she's here: "I've wanted it for a very long time, and it's my time to shine."
Audition song: "Take Me or Leave Me" by Idina Menzel, from "Rent"

Name: Janet Eicher
Age: 25
Hometown: Kirkland, Wash.
Why she's here: "I've been singing since I was six. Now is my time. All my students [third-graders at Bennett Elementary] told their parents I was quitting teaching."
Audition song: "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" by Stevie Wonder

Name: Liu Vakapuna
Age: 23
Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
Why he's here: "Polynesian's the new thing. You don't see too many Polynesians singing professionally." (Actually, Liu was too cool to speak. His buddy, who did not give his name, spoke for him.)
Audition song: "Ordinary People" by John Legend

Name: Juliet Christensen
Age: 27
Hometown: West Valley City, Utah
Why she's here: "Just for fun. Maybe I'll get on TV." (By the way, she's due to give birth to her second child on Sept. 29.)
Audition song: "Unchained Melody" by the Righteous Brothers

Name: Mikayla Dewar (left)
Age: 20
Hometown: Nampa, Idaho
Why she's here: "I've been wanting to be a singer since I was a year old. I want to be the next American Idol."
Audition song: "Fighter" by Christina Aguilera

Name: Carna Peach (right)
Age: 24
Hometown: Orem, Utah
Why she's here: "I want to be the next American Idol. I'm the whole package. Do you want my autograph?"
Audition song: "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" by Marvin Gaye

Name: Katie Clark
Age: 28
Hometown: Magna, Utah
Why she's here: "I had a lot of friends and family tell me, 'You've got to do this.' "
Audition song: "Independence Day" by Martina McBride

Name: Melanie Denos
Age: 17
Hometown: Bluffdale, Utah
Why she's here: "I just wanted to try out, to see what I could do."
Audition song: "The Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss)" by Betty Everett (later covered by Cher)

Name: Emily Peach
Age: 21
Hometown: Tucson, Ariz.
Why she's here: "I want to see if my dream should remain a dream. You can't win the lottery unless you buy a ticket."
Audition song: "Amazing Grace"

Name: Lauren Sater (right, with her mom, Sue)
Age: 16
Hometown: Sacramento, Calif.
Why she's here: "I want to be the next American Idol. It's always been my dream, since I was 11, to be on the show."
Audition song: "Always Be My Home" by Rachel Lampa

Name: B.J. Oldroyd
Age: 24
Hometown: Lindon, Utah
Why he's here: "I've been singing most of my life. A bunch of my friends in a choir I'm in [Latter-Day Celebration Choir] decided to come out. I love to sing."
Audition song: "Everything" by Michael Buble

Name: Katelyn Gallagher
Age: 19
Hometown: Pleasant Grove, Utah
Why she's here: "I've been singing or performing or entertaining since I was little. I absolutely love it."
Audition song: "I'm a Woman" from "Smokey Joe's Cafe" (a hit for Peggy Lee in 1963, and used as a jingle for Enjoli perfume in the 1970s)

Name: Mikalene Ipson
Age: 25
Hometown: St. George, Utah
Why she's here: "I've been singing for a long time, professionally since I was 13. ... I have been waiting to audition forever, and my little girl's potty-trained now."
Audition song: "Let's Hear It for the Boy" by Deniece Williams, from "Footloose"

Name: Kristen Back (holding a poster of her 6-month-old daughter Alexa)
Age: 21
Hometown: Nephi, Utah
Why she's here: "I've always wanted to do it, but it's just never been a convenient spot for me."
Audition song: "God-Fearing Woman" by Martina McBride

Name: Desirae Bronson
Age: 25
Hometown: Emmett, Idaho
Why she's here: "It was just a really good opportunity."
Audition song: "You Don't Know Me," a song covered by Patti Page, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles and countless others

Name: Cory Ferdinand
Age: 24
Hometown: Murray, Utah
Why she's here: "I thought it would be fun."
Audition song: Not sure, possibly something from "Aladdin"

Name: Brenden Heywood (left)
Age: 19
Hometown: Payson, Utah
Why he's here: "I think I have a lot of talent, a lot more talent than a lot of people. My coworkers [at Starbucks] took my shifts and made me come up to audition."
Audition song: Either "Swing Life Away" by Rise Against or "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" by Queen

Name: Shari Short (right), who made friends with Heywood in line
Age: 23
Hometown: Bonners Ferry, Idaho, recently relocated to Redondo Beach, Calif. (She's a singer-songwriter, with her own website.)
Why she's here: "It's a great opportunity. You just have to try it once in your life."
Audition song: "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" by Celine Dion

Name: Fehi Latu (left, with his wife Lani)
Age: 24
Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
Why he's here: "My wife and a lot of my family members said I should do this." (Lani: "It's been a dream of his.")
Audition song: "Sharing the Night Together" by Fiji, a Polynesian singer (covering a Dr. Hook song)

Name: Meredith Silver (left)
Age: 16
Hometown: Chicago
Why she's here: "This was my chance, this is my year. Maybe America will love me."
Audition song: "Mercy" by Duffy

Name: Ryan Silver (right), Meredith's brother
Age: 19
Hometown: Chicago
Why he's here: "It's just an awesome opportunity. It was one of the auditions that worked with my schedule."
Audition song: "Your Smiling Face" by James Taylor

Name: Andy Hulka
Age: 18
Hometown: Cottonwood Heights, Utah
Why he's here: "I just heard about it on Sunday, and I thought it would be awesome. Maybe I can get interviewed by the newspaper."
Audition song: "Proud to Be an American" by Lee Greenwood

Name: Amanda Arbon (left)
Age: 17
Hometown: Logan, Utah
Why she's here: "I've been waiting, like, ever to be old enough - and it's finally in Salt Lake."
Audition song: "At Last" by Etta James

Name: Dyson Morgan
Age: 16
Hometown: Garland, Utah
Why he's here: "She [Amanda, his cousin] was going to do it. My mom talked me into doing it."
Audition song: "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz

Name: Christi Cox
Age: 22
Hometown: Boise, Idaho (originally from Texas)
Why she's here: "It's an awesome opportunity. It's something I want to do, and [my mom] sees it in me."
Audition song: "Walking After Midnight" by Patsy Cline

Name: Morgan Lolar, the absolutely last person in line
Age: 17
Hometown: Chandler, Ariz., relocated six months ago to Wetumpka, Ala.
Why she's here: "I've been singing since I was 10, and last year I had cheer camp so I couldn't audition ... and I hate Alabama."
Audition song: "Broken Wing" by Martina McBride

Labels: American Idol, Reality show

Friday, July 25, 2008

Reality watch: Three survivors

Three Utah residents are still in the running on their respective reality shows.

- Marcus, the many-tattooed comedian, won the challenge on NBC's "Last Comic Standing" to tell a funny bedtime story to "The Girls Next Door" - Hugh Hefner's girlfriends Holly, Bridget and Kendra. That win gave Marcus immunity, and a free pass into the Final 5.

- Pleasant Grove's Chelsie Hightower survived another week on Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance," making it into the final six. (By the way, the touring show for the Top 10 - which includes Hightower and Salt Lake breakdancer Gev Manoukian, will hit West Valley City's E Center on Sept. 23.)

- And Keith Bryce, the director of Salt Lake's Filthy Gorgeous boutique, was in the middle of the pack on this week's eco-friendly challenge on Bravo's "Project Runway." Style guru Tim Gunn described Bryce's creation (pictured) this way: "Keith designed a halter mini-bubble-dress using the champagne silk/hemp blend textile. You may know that I am not a fan of anything "bubble," but he made it work. His execution of the garment was excellent, the proportions were good, and his model Runa knew how to give it runway appeal. Bravo, Keith!"

Labels: Chelsie Hightower, Keith Bryce, Marcus, Reality show

"Idol" pursuit

This is the weekend that many Utah singers - and would-be singers - have been waiting for: To start the audition process for "American Idol."

Registration for "American Idol" auditions begins Sunday morning at EnergySolutions Arena, with the real auditions beginning Tuesday morning.

Anyone can enter - well, not anyone. According to the audition rules, you have to be a U.S. citizen or legal U.S. resident, between 16 and 28, have never been an "Idol" semi-finalist, not already signed to a record label or similar contract, and not related to anybody who works for Fox or Coca-Cola or any company related to or sponsoring the show.

The idea is that you register to get a wristband and ticket into the audition, so everybody will be ready to go when auditions start Tuesday morning. You can also get ahead of the game by downloading the "American Idol" release form and guardian form (if you're under 18) and signing them ahead of time.

You should read the release form carefully before signing it, though, if only to appreciate the purity of the legalese. Here's just one example, detailing how the show can use your image:

I understand that I may reveal, and other parties may reveal, information about me that is of a personal, private, embarrassing or unfavorable nature, which information may be factual and/or fictional. I further understand that my appearance, depiction and/or portrayal in the Program may be disparaging, defamatory, embarrassing or of an otherwise unfavorable nature which may expose me to public ridicule, humiliation or condemnation. I acknowledge and agree that Producer shal l have the right to (a) include any or all such information and appearances, depictions or portrayals in the Program as edited by Producer in its sole discretion, and (b) broadcast and otherwise exploit the Program containing any or all such information and appearances, depictions or portrayals in any manner whatsoever in any and all media now known or hereafter devised, or for any other purpose, throughout the universe in perpetuity.

In other words, once you sign up, Fox owns your Celine Dion-warbling butt forever - and can show you in any demeaning way it wants.

Are you sure you want to be famous? If you still do, you better spend the weekend rehearsing.

Labels: American Idol, Reality show

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

"HSM": A dose of reality

Maybe this "High School Musical" bandwagon is slowing to a crawl - or maybe it's not the same without Troy and Gabriella singing and swooning.

Overnight ratings for Sunday's debut of "High School Musical: Get in the Picture," an ABC reality show based on the popular Disney movie franchise (and shot at Utah's Murray High School), drew just 4 million viewers, according to Neilsen estimates.

It came in third in its time slot, behind CBS's "Big Brother" and a rerun of NBC's "America's Got Talent." And it drew fewer viewers than the show before it - a rerun of "America's Funniest Home Videos."

"High School Musical: Get in the Picture" did score well with viewers in the 6-to-11 age range. If the show sticks around, expect more commercials for sugary breakfast cereals and bad computer-animated cartoons.

Labels: Reality show

Monday, July 21, 2008

Dance 10, mouth 3

The political columnist Michael Kinsley once said that "a gaffe is when a politician tells the truth." The definition also applies, apparently, to reality-show judges.

Mia Michaels, judge and choreographer on Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance," had to do some serious backpedaling last week after she gave this explanation for the prevalence of Utahns on her and other dance competitions: "Because they have no social life. ... It's the Mormon thing: No sex, drugs, drinking. So dancing becomes a great outlet."

(Four Utah dancers were among the top 20 finalists of "So You Think You Can Dance," and Pleasant Grove's Chelsie Hightower is still in the top eight.)

Michaels also talked about the culture shock of visiting Salt Lake City. "I remember going there once and you can't have a glass of wine after rehearsals because nothing is open," Michaels said. "And then in the morning, you say, "OK, I need coffee." And they say, 'Um, no, it's Sunday.' I was like, 'What?' "

On Friday, Michaels issued a statement praising the talent and work ethic of Utah dancers, adding "I totally apologize if what I said came out wrong, because putting down their way of life is not what I meant, at all. I think it's so admirable, what they do. I respect their way of life. I should take their advice. My sister and her husband are going to build a home and retire in Deer Valley, Utah. It's gorgeous there."

Labels: LDS, Reality show

Friday, July 18, 2008

Reality roundup: Gev's out

Salt Lake City breakdancer Gev Manoukian was eliminated from Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance" on Thursday night - the third finalist from Utah (out of four) to get cut so far.

According to this recap from Entertainment Weekly, Gev (pictured at right) never fully recovered from an early mistake in his solo routine. That leaves Chelsie Hightower, from Pleasant Grove, as the only Utahn left among the eight remaining competitors.

Meanwhile, West Jordan comedian Marcus survived another week on NBC's "Last Comic Standing." And Salt Lake boutique owner Keith Bryce made it through his first challenge on Bravo's "Project Runway," even though he was one of several designers who went for the easy option - a tablecloth - when choosing supermarket items from which to make a dress. (His design is pictured at left.)

And the fate of Rhiannon, the Logan singer who is one of the three remaining finalists on MTV's "Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods," will be decided on Monday night's big finale.

Labels: Keith Bryce, Marcus, Reality show, Rhiannon

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Fashion forward in Utah

Add Keith Bryce to the swelling ranks of Utahns on TV reality shows.

Bryce (at left), a 26-year-old Salt Laker, is one of the 16 contestants who will show off their fashion-design skills on Bravo's "Project Runway," which starts its fifth season Wednesday (at 10 p.m. on Salt Lake City's cable systems).

Bryce studied at Salt Lake Community College, but calls himself a "self-taught designer" with a background in marketing and advertising. He is executive director of Filthy Gorgeous, a fashion collective with a boutique (pictured at right) in downtown Salt Lake City that really needs to fix its web site.

For those of you keeping score at home, Bryce is the fifth Utahn now competing on a reality show. (That's not counting the recently eliminated Kelsey Nixon from "The Next Food Network Star" and "So You Think You Can Dance" outcasts Thayne Jasperson and Matt Dorame.) The others still in competition are:

Marcus, the much-tattooed West Jordan comedian on NBC's "Last Comic Standing."
Rhiannon, the 19-year-old Logan native who's on MTV's "Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods."
Gev Manoukian, the 21-year-old Salt Laker on Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance."
Chelsie Hightower, the 18-year-old from Pleasant Grove who's on Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance."

(Thayne Jasperson, by the way, will be back in Utah this week - teaching in Odyssey Dance Theatre's Dance Utah! workshop, which starts Wednesday at Utah Valley University in Orem.)

Labels: Reality show

Monday, July 14, 2008

Kelsey's a bride, but not a star

It was a good news/bad news weekend for Kelsey Nixon.

The bad news was that Nixon, a 23-year-old North Ogden native and one-time intern for The Salt Lake Tribune's food section, was booted from the competition on "The Next Food Network Star," which aired Sunday on the cable channel. (If you missed it, the rerun is on Thursday.)

Nixon came up short among the four finalists in a cooking challenge inspired by chef Bobby Flay's program "Throwdown," in which two chefs go head-to-head cooking their own and their opponent's signature dishes. The judges thought Nixon's chicken parmigiana and pork tenderloin were too dainty and high-end, considering her frequent emphasis on back-to-basics cooking.

The good news for Nixon came Friday, when she and fiance Robby Egan got married in the Bountiful Temple. Among the guests at the reception: Aaron McCargo, the New Jersey chef who pummeled Kelsey in the "Throwdown" challenge. (That's him with the happy couple, photographed by the groom's uncle Rick, a Tribune photographer.)

Labels: Kelsey Nixon, Reality show

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Marcus at the movies

I ran into an increasingly familiar face at last night's promo screening for "Hellboy II: The Golden Army": Marcus, the one-named and many-tattooed Utah comedian who's a finalist on NBC's "Last Comic Standing."

Marcus sat in press row with some of his friends from KXRK-FM's "Geek Show" podcast, and riffed a bit about movies.

"What are we seeing? 'Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2'?" Marcus asked. "You know what they should call that? 'Sisterhood 2: The Pantsening.' " And he went on like that for about five minutes.

OK, so maybe you had to be there.

Labels: Marcus, Reality show

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Catching some rays

Them Hollywood paparazzi are everywhere - even in Utah.

The celebrity web sites JustJared.com and Splash News Online published photos of Nick Lachey (former boy-band member and Jessica Simpson's ex) and Vanessa Minnillo (former host of MTV's "Total Request Live") poolside at a Salt Lake City hotel.

Lachey's in Salt Lake City this summer, as host of ABC's reality show "High School Musical: Get in the Picture." Minnillo's here because Lachey's here.

You have to wonder, though, about how much the folks who run these celeb web sites really hate their jobs - or hate themselves - based on the snarky commentary accompanying the photos. Take this from Splash News:

Why Salt Lake? No, they haven't converted to Mormonism (evidenced by the beer Vanessa drinks from) but Nick has actually been working. Seriously. A real job. Not just appearing somewhere or presenting the most expensive "Hot Wheels" car but a proper job hosting ABC's reality show "High School Musical: Get In The Picture."
Well, at least it's a proper job for the ex-boybander and current Z-list residing Nick. The sad part is, with "High School Musical" in the title, a chimpanzee could be hosting this show and the ratings would be through the roof.
Actually, I think the chimp would be more charismatic.

Really, if your job was spending all day writing snide comments about people you hate, wouldn't you be hitting the want ads?

(Photos: JustJared.com)

Labels: Paparazzi, Reality show

Marcus still "Standing"

My colleague David Burger today profiled Marcus, the single-named West Jordan comic who's competing for one of the 12 finalist spots on NBC's reality-competition "Last Comic Standing."

Marcus' specialty is impressions, but he says he's got more than that in his repertoire. "I loved guys who could do it all, like Sammy Davis Jr," he said.

His limited exposure on TV so far has netted Marcus a year and a half of bookings. But he's performing one last show for his home-state fans Saturday at Wiseguys in Orem.

All of this does leave one question: Will Bill Frost, the City Weekly's TV critic, finally shut the heck up about the Trib not doing a story about Marcus?

Labels: Marcus, Reality show

Monday, June 23, 2008

Nixon reels one in

North Ogden's own Kelsey Nixon could be making you dinner tonight, if you dine at Red Lobster.

Nixon, one of the contestants on "The Next Food Network Star" (and a one-time intern at The Salt Lake Tribune) made a Macadamia Crusted Tilapia with White Chocolate Beurre Blanc that wowed 30 Coast Guard servicemembers and the judges - including Michael LaDuke, the senior executive chef for the Red Lobster chain.

Not only did Nixon win the challenge (a nice change of fortune, considering her "annoying" perky personality nearly got her booted the week before), but LaDuke announced her recipe would be put on the Red Lobster menu starting today.

(Here's the recipe, and here's video of LaDuke and Nixon cooking up a batch.)

Labels: Kelsey Nixon, Reality show

Archuleta watch

David Archuleta the "noisy one"?

That's what "American Idol" winner David Cook said to his hometown TV station about his fellow "Idol" contestants, predicting who will take what roles when they tour the nation.

"I think Carly [Smithson] will be the mom, Michael Johns will be the prankster, and I think David Archuleta will be the noisy one," Cook told Fox 4 in Kansas City.

Meanwhile, Archuleta hit his first Hollywood movie premiere, walking the red carpet at L.A.'s Greek Theater Friday night for the debut of "Wall-E" - where at least one Disney executive mistook him for Bashful, one of the seven dwarfs.

(Photo: JustJared.com)

Labels: David Archuleta, Reality show

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If you have any hot tips - interesting art exhibits, weird experiences at the theater, unusual billboards, sightings of “High School Musical” stars at Crown Burger, whatever - send them along to me at vulture@sltrib.com.