So You Think You Can Dance Premiers

One of my favorite summer reality shows premiered last night, So You Think You Can Dance. Although it's not Maks TV, it should fill the gap nicely for now. The folks at TV Guide magazine sat down with the hostess with the mostest, Cat Deeley, to get the skinny on what we can expect this season.

TVGuide.com: Hi, Cat. We're all excited for So You Think You Can Dance to return. Should we expect anything different this season?
Cat Deeley: Basically, it's everything you know and love, but bigger and better. I think people really understand the show now, they understand the concept, they understand the level of talent that's required, and they understand that the tricks have got to be more spectacular, even more outlandish. The characters have got to be even bigger and quicker to come to the surface. I think people now understand that there's no point in finally showing your personality Week 4; it has to be out there and people have to see it warts and all. Quite often that's what makes America fall in love with these dancers. It's the trials and tribulations that someone goes through, as much as the happy, jokey stuff, that people are attracted to. That's something we can all relate to, whether we're dancers or not.

TVGuide.com: Are there any returning dancers who didn't make it last season?
Deeley: Well, you might want to sit down for this: "Sex" [aka last year's most delusional wannabe from New York] is back. You might want to have a cold shower on standby for afterwards.

TVGuide.com: Did the producers call him up and ask him to return?
Deeley: No! It didn't take any persuasion for either him or his mother. There have been a couple of other people who've come back, and some have even made it through. I can't tell you any more than that. It's very interesting.

TVGuide.com: Are we going to see some tear-jerking stories?
Deeley: I think you will. There was one lady who was so incredible and such a lovely woman. She had been in a horrendous accident in Israel — it was on the news. There was a wedding and the whole floor dropped and fell through three floors to the parking structure. I think she was in a coma for months and months. They had to rebuild her face. This is the thing about dancers: They can dance through any injury that would make us cry in pain. They somehow just manage to pick themselves up off the floor and get on with it.

TVGuide.com: Generally speaking, dancers are not like actors, and are not the most verbally expressive people. What do you do to bring out their personality for the camera?
Deeley: You're absolutely right. The other thing is that normally dancers are part of an ensemble, they're team players, not the star. That's what's really interesting about this show — it's their chance to step into the spotlight and shine.

TVGuide.com: Do you have a trick to make them talk?
Deeley: Not really, just to make them feel as comfortable as possible. Above and beyond anybody else, I am completely and utterly on their side. Basically because I can see just how talented they are and just how much effort goes into it, and I'm not a dancer myself, so to me, whatever they do is spectacular, whereas a choreographer might go to them and say, "Well, your lines weren't quite even and... " blah-blah-blah.

TVGuide.com: Are you seeing any new trends in the people trying out?
Deeley: There are more breakers this year. They've learned that you have to do different styles, so you have to go take a class in ballroom or contemporary. Just a class, so they can get through the choreography. If you haven't had that technical training, it's very difficult to get through that 15-minute dance class and be able to perform the routine at the end.

TVGuide.com: You keep saying you're a terrible dancer, but you have to have picked up something while hosting this show.
Deeley: This is a bit of a sore point. Every once in a while, I'll mention to Shane Sparks, "Oh, I'd really love to do something." And then the subject just gets changed and never brought up again. So maybe I'm beyond help. I'm not entirely sure.

TVGuide.com: They've all seen you dance?
Deeley: If you want to call it "dancing." You can, if you're just trying to be polite. I do a bit of a shoulder shimmy. But you know, somebody's got to make the dancers look good. I could spin on my head if I wanted to....

TVGuide.com: At least you are surely becoming a more educated observer of dance. Are you able to guess what the judges will say about some of the performances?
Deeley: Sometimes, a little bit. Or because I know the backstory. Maybe one week, a breaker has struggled to learn the fox trot, I'll be looking out for whether they've improved. But it's interesting, you can tell the people who have star quality, too. That "x" factor, or charisma or whatever that thing is, you can tell it just from them walking on the stage. And you cross your fingers and go, "God, I hope you can dance brilliantly, too." It's like last year, Travis [Wall] and Benji [Schwimmer] were our final two, and Travis was an amazing dancer and had a great personality, and Benji was a great dancer but had an amazing personality. It was the personality that won at the end of the day.

TVGuide.com: Especially since it is a popularity contest.
Deeley: It is "America's Favorite Dancer," not the best dancer, not the best technical performer.
TVGuide.com: Neither Benji nor Season 1 winner Nick Lazzarini has taken the complete prize. [Nick declined a year of rent-free living in New York City, and Benji didn't take the contract with Celine Dion's Las Vegas show.] Are they going to offer something more enticing this year?
Deeley: It hasn't been announced yet. But I know it's bigger.

TVGuide.com: Have you kept up with what some of last year's dancers are doing?
Deeley: I know some have been auditioning for movies. Benji was in the Christina Aguilera video. Natalie [Foutopoulis] was out choreographing SYTYCD in Greece. They've been doing great stuff.

TVGuide.com: How about getting a girl to win this time?
Deeley: Well, that could very well happen. We actually have a girl breaker this time, too. It's about time, I think.

TVGuide.com: I'm saving my best question for last: What are you going to do to top last year's wardrobe?
Deeley: A-ha! Put it this way: I have a black skirt that's entirely made of feathers. It's kind of wild.

TVGuide.com: You have to dance in that!
Deeley: Even if I just did Swan Lake. I love the fact that people watch and go, "What is she wearing this week?!" It's part of the show now. I'm in the process of putting together outfits as we speak.

TVGuide.com: I think the dancers' costume designers have their job cut out for them to keep up with you.
Deeley: That's the thing. If I went out there in jeans and a vest, and I stood next to someone doing a salsa or a paso doble, I'd just look ridiculous. They're all there in their sparkly outfits, with flowers in their hair and all the rest of it. A girl's got to put up a bit of a show to stand next to these kids!

Photo from TV Guide.

Rewind: Dancing with the Stars Finale

I'll miss you, Maks! At least he made it all the way to the end. Sigh. How much longer till we get to see sparkles and see through shirts (and that's just on the men)? It was an eventful week, full of outstanding performances. Wouldn't you agree this was the best finale ever? I'd say so.

The freestyle performances were a fun way to end the show. I was convinced it was down to Joey and Apolo after Laila and Maks pretty much failed to impress during their freestyle (and you know it pains me to say that). Apolo ended up winning and I think it was definitely well deserved after the progress he made and the performances he gave.

'NSYNC fans go two little hellos during Joey's performances. If it was a ploy for votes, it worked on me. In the cha-cha, we got the marionettes from No Strings attached (I couldn't help but think that the ruffles weren't doing Joey any favors, by the way). In the freestyle, we got the little stomping/lasso move from the choreography to It's Gonna Be Me. I know, I have issues. I think their freestyle was the best DWTS performance I have ever seen.

Maks and Laila Free Style - Yes! The Kid n' Play! Thank you, Laila, for ripping Maks' shirt off (twice). I didn't know I had been waiting for it all season until it actually happened.

After watching this week's shows, Annie is convinced there's a little something something going on between Apolo and Juilianne. There was some "almost kissing" and petting moments during their performances and she did recently call off her engagement. I think I'm going to have to keep my eyes on those two.

Here are some clips for you to treasure until next season:

Joey Fatone and Kym Johnson dance the Freestyle:



And the Cha-Cha:



Laila Ali and Maksim Chmerkovskiy dance the Paso Doble:



And the freestyle:



Apolo Anton Ohno and Julianne Hough dance the Rumba:



And the freestyle:



A fitting way to end this season? The hilarious Jimmy Kimmel DVD commercial:

All You Could Ever Want to Know About Pirate Master

The Glitter and Gossip Office has a weekly reality tv show addiction support group meeting and the topic of new shows comes up quite often. This week, we're excited about Pirate Master. We've discussed it here before, but now those smart little devils set up a Pirate Master Wiki. That Mark Burnett, what will he think of next?

They have all the stuff us addicts need to fill our unsatisfiable need for information. You can read about the history the show is based on, watch a preview, meet the host, and meet the cast. Once the show starts, you'll be able to root for a winner and criticize the losers in the forums.

I know I should have used Arrrgghhh! at least once in this post, but I just couldn't work up the energy. The show premieres Thursday, May 31, 2007, at 8 PM on CBS.

Blake Skunked His Hair for You

Good lord, reality TV watchers yield too much power. You may have noticed that Blake's hair went dark last week and this week it had some skunk stripes running through it. According to TMZ, complaints from viewers on blogs and websites, and Rosie O'Donnell on The View, resulted in the new stripes in Blake's do.

TMZ learned that the show wanted to take him back to all blonde, but he refused and added the highlights as a compromise. I don't like any of his hairstyles so far, so I guess I'm no help at all.

Photo from TMZ.

Rewind: Dancing with the Stars, Week 7

This was the first week of Dancing with the Stars that I have been upset with America's choice on who went home. Does anyone think Billy Ray Cyrus should still be there? Or is this a Vote for the Worst kinda thing? Maybe he's got the Tween vote since he's on the Disney show Hannah Montana? Who the heck knows.

TV Guide went behind the scenes this week and found out some good dish on Carrie Ann Inaba's notes from the judging. Here are some excerpts of the choice pieces:

Laila Ali: "I‘m so happy that Laila showed us the beef!" says Inaba. "She finally let loose. I knew she had it in her. And it wasn't in the way I thought she would do it. I thought it would be this very powerful and dramatic thing. But it was very light and elegant and graceful."

Apolo Anton Ohno: "Apolo had a rough night tonight," says Inaba. "I think Len was a little hard on him for the first round [the fox trot]. But Len is the ballroom expert, so maybe he saw things that Bruno and I didn't. But I think that critique rattled Apolo a little bit. Tonight, he had a bit of the Ian syndrome, in that he was in his head. And then he was off rhythm, he was dancing ahead of the beat, and he and Julianne weren't connecting. They were out of sorts with each other."

Joey Fatone: "Joey decided he was going to leave Apolo and Laila in the dust. He finally realized we're getting close to the end and now he's giving 100 percent. It's amazing he's done so well up until now. I feel like he's only been giving 85 percent."

Ian Ziering: "Ian finally came out of his shell," says Inaba. "Authenticity reads so well on this show. When Ian's not comfortable, it shows. Tonight he decided, ‘You know what? I have nothing to lose.' He had a few missteps. But we're going to see a lot of growth in him. And he saw how the people reacted, so I think it's going to be a little addictive for him."

I pretty much agree with Carrie Ann, but I didn't think Apolo did that bad this week! Poor Julianne had the front of her dress fall off on national television, leaving only a sheer layer with her white bra showing through. Give them a break!

Sadly, my favorite thing about the the episodes was looking at who was in the crowd. There was a little 90210 reunion, with Tori Spelling, Jason Priestley and Jennie Garth. Mario Lopez, who is still dating Karina Smirnoff, and his mom were there to cheer her on. Shandi and Brian were there, too. When do you think Justin Timberlake will show up to cheer on Joey? Can't he get his priorities straight and put his tour on hold to be there?!

Here's some video from this week's episode.

John Ratzenburger and Edyta Sliwinksa do the foxtrot:



And the rumba:



Billy Ray Cyrus and Karina Smirnoff do the waltz:



And the samba:



Joey Fatone and Kym Johnson do the foxtrot:



And (my favorite of the night), they did the jive:



Ian Ziering and Cheryl Burke to the tango:



And the mambo:



Apolo Anton Ohno and Julianne Hough perform the foxtrot:



And the mambo:



Laila Ali and Maksim Chmerkovskiy perform the quickstep:



And the samba:



The professionals dance while Meatloaf performs Bat out of Hell:



Junior Champions perform:

Pussycat Dolls Say Buh-Bye to Anastacia

I admit it. I got suckered into CW's Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll. Last week, we said good-bye to contestant Anastacia McPherson. With her height and her deep throaty voice, she definitely stood out from the pack. TV Guide recently sat down with her to get some behind-the-scenes dish the other girls and the whole experience.

TVGuide.com: Did you have a good experience?
Anastacia McPherson: It was amazing. It was unbelievable, but it was really stressful, too.

TVGuide.com: You were learning choreography on a bus and crazy stuff like that, all in a short period of time.
Anastacia: It was insane the amount of time that we had before we would perform. It was really stressful, but at the same time it was so amazing being a part of everything.

TVGuide.com: Why did you want to do this show?
Anastacia: I've always really loved the Pussycat Dolls. I bought their first album, and I knew about them when they were a show on the Sunset Strip [in Hollywood]. I really liked the fact that they've got these hot songs but they are real dancers, and that's something I can appreciate. I always thought I should audition for the Vegas show.

TVGuide.com: So you must have loved this week's "traditional" Pussycat Dolls performance.
Anastacia: That was my favorite show, and ironically that's the one where they booted me. That was the best part, getting to do the old-school stuff.

TVGuide.com: You mentioned several times that you felt bigger than the other girls, but is it just because you are literally taller?
Anastacia: I am bigger in the sense that I am taller and more muscular, and I have big hair. Some of the girls are naturally on the slimmer side, so it was awkward being in this reality bubble around such tiny girls all of the time and performing with them. I wanted to feel like part of the group, but I was different, obviously different.

TVGuide.com: And you have that deep, sexy voice.
Anastacia: Yeah, my voice is in a lower range. I think it is cool and it does set me apart, but it can be limiting. But I look at it as a good thing.

TVGuide.com: Judge Ron Fair seemed to be a fan of your voice.
Anastacia: He was! He was a big supporter and I appreciated that. It was such an honor to have someone like Ron Fair even know my name, let alone give me high remarks. It was incredible.

TVGuide.com: I'm very envious of your big, curly hair.
Anastacia: It is so funny, because it is very hit-or-miss. People either love it or they hate it. Thank you, I've gotten into it. I didn't always like it.

TVGuide.com: What do you think was the hardest challenge?
Anastacia: Vegas. I was not only going through my inner turmoil, but the whole dress-fitting thing was real. We were being fitted on a bus, and none of [the dresses] fit me and the wardrobe people weren't being shy about telling me that. Learning the routine on the bus, the moving bus, was crazy. Then just performing right there on the spot with the audience waiting? I couldn't believe that was the challenge.

TVGuide.com: Do you think your troubles with that challenge were still in the back of your mind when you were rehearsing for a chance to go on stage with the actual Dolls?
Anastacia: I think I was psyching myself out in a way. But I also think I just move differently. I wasn't moving the way that [PCD founder] Robin [Antin] wanted me to. I think I have really good dance skills, but I wasn't picking up the slinkiness of it when we were auditioning in front of the tour bus....

TVGuide.com: Was that actually on the street?
Anastacia: Yeah, on the street! There was a crack in front of me and I was in heels. It was rough. That was a lot of pressure.

TVGuide.com: How hard was it sitting on that bus with Chelsea while the others performed?
Anastacia: Oh, my god! I was so mad! It might have been better if I was just by myself.

TVGuide.com: She seemed to try really hard to make it positive.
Anastacia: Yeah, that's Chelsea, she's a talker. She talks when she's nervous. From Day 1, even before we got cast as finalists, I remember her from the hotel and she never stopped moving and she never stopped talking. I need to get in my head space before performing. It was just totally the wrong mix for me to be on the bus with her.

TVGuide.com: How'd you avoid all of the drama?
Anastacia: When you have girls from different parts of the United States who are relatively in the same age group competing for the same thing, there's definitely going to be friction. Especially when it is entertainment-related. I tried to be at peace with everyone and at least try not to start any drama.

TVGuide.com: Are you rooting for any one person in particular?
Anastacia: I think all of the girls are talented in their own ways. I wish them the best of luck and hope that it goes to the girl who can fit into the group well and really manage everything.

NBC Releases Summer Schedule

Variety informs us that NBC released its summer TV schedule early this year. The peacock network will air the following shows this summer:

May 29 - The second season of "America's Got Talent" begins. It will begin with a two-hour premiere from 8-10 p.m., run at 8 p.m. on Tuesdays. The new host of the show will be Jerry Springer, who replaces Regis Philbin.

June 13 - "Last Comic Standing" will air Wednesdays at 9 p.m., with a two-hour premiere. Bill Bellamy is the show's new host, taking over for Jay Mohr.

June 18 - "Age of Love," whcih is the only new reality show being aired by NBC this summer. It will be hosted by Kelly Ripa's hubby, Mark Consuelos, on Mondays at 10 p.m. All we know is that it is a romance themed reality show. Although, being mysterious certainly worked for Paradise Hotel.

No firm premiere date - "The Biggest Loser" will premiere in late summer. We do know that the show's new host will be soap star Alison Sweeney who will replace Caroline Rhea.

Papa Smurf Says So Long to Survivor

Gary Stritesky left the Survivor: Fiji camp last week, after experiencing dizziness and shortness of breath for days. He finally blew out his torch and headed for the hospital. TV Guide got a chance to talk to the lovable, 55-year-old contestant.

TVGuide.com: How are you feeling?
Gary Stritesky: Good. We've gotten back in the groove here, everything's going good.

TVGuide.com: They patched you all up?
Gary: Yeah, it was more that I had them bug-bite deals....

TVGuide.com: What were those bugs?
Gary: Looking back at it, I think we had a problem with ants on the deck where we were sleeping, and they might have been fire ants. The wife looked it up on the Internet, and I totally had classic symptoms of fire-ant bites. They can cause a shortness of breath and all the symptoms I had. If you don't treat it, sometimes you can have an allergic reaction, and you end up dying, so it was good that we got it taken care of.

TVGuide.com: How come you had thousands of bites, and it didn't look like anybody else had so many?
Gary: I think the reason is probably that I was sleeping on the outside, because I've got a bit of a snoring problem, and I didn't want to be rumbling the whole place. [Laughs] So, I kind of tried to stay to the outside, and [the ants] just attacked me. They had a heyday.

TVGuide.com: Did your fall on the slip-and-slide challenge contribute to your physical woes?
Gary: No. I think it rattled my cage a little bit, but I'm kind of a tough old bohunk, and I probably rattled the ground when I hit my head on it. [Laughs] I can take a pretty good bounce.

TVGuide.com: Any regrets about leaving?
Gary: Ohhh, it was the hardest thing I had to do, but I just could absolutely not function. From the time when the medics first came out, when I fell on the slip-and-slide, there was about a three- to four-day difference in there, but the cutting and editing [made it] seem like it was almost instantaneous. I knew something was going on because I had the bites starting on my ankles and then in about two days, they went all the way up to my hips. I looked like a goalie in a dart game who didn't wear padding. When it got to the arms, the dizziness got so bad.

TVGuide.com: Right, and it's not like you're eating and drinking.
Gary: Right, yeah. They drew blood and I wasn't dehydrated — everything was cool there, and the heart was good and the blood pressure was good. It was just an allergic reaction to them stinking bites.

TVGuide.com: Well, I think it's better that you took the safer route and left when you did.
Gary: Yeah, it got taken care of, but once you go off the island, you're done. And that's only fair, because otherwise people would be going off just for nothing. I lugged it for about three and a half days, and by the fourth day, it was to the point where I couldn't function. I couldn't even sit up.

TVGuide.com: Did you heal pretty quickly after you left the island?
Gary: I was in the hospital for about two days, where I got about four or five IVs, and then when I finally got the antitoxin stuff, it took a while. It was about a week before my head actually quit spinning.

TVGuide.com: I still think it was a bit harsh seeing Lisi say she had to, like, "babysit" you.
Gary: Yeah, if there is karma out there... I'm a firm believer that life is just a big, round table and you put food on it. If you put crap on it, you better be ready to eat it, because it's going to come back. It's just a matter of time. You know, we weren't on the beach maybe a few hours when she comes running up, "Papa Smurf, we have to form an alliance." I said, "We don't even have teams, how can we do that?" She was sucking up to everybody right from the get-go, so those five, they're not going to be real strong for real long. [Laughs]

TVGuide.com: What did you think when you saw Moto's decision to stay in the cushy place and give up immunity?
Gary: Not a good move. I mean, you've got the advantage from the get-go, you've won just about every challenge, so go to a beach where you don't have quite the luxuries. You're going to keep winning if you're still strong and together. But now you've lost two and you've voted out one of your stronger ones, Liliana, which was another really dumb move — two dumb moves in one motion — so what are you going to do now? Do you want someone like Lisi, who doesn't contribute that much physically and, if you notice, put her hand up real quick to get out of the challenges, or do you want someone like Liliana, who will go out there and break her back for you?

TVGuide.com: Why did you want to go on the show? Were you a fan?
Gary: I have watched it since day one, [the season with] Richard Hatch. I have a daughter who applied twice, and she made it out to California here for the semifinals. She was No. 13 when they picked eight out of 13 for Africa, so she almost went there and she kind of got into it, and I thought, "Well, we've got to represent the old buggers here." I can still physically go with most of them.

TVGuide.com: Exactly. How did you prepare for the game?
Gary: My daughter has a good friend who's a trainer, and I went with him a couple of times a week before I went on there, because at that time of the year, we're not out building, so you get a little lazy, you pack on a few pounds.

TVGuide.com: Where did the "Papa Smurf" nickname come from? Is that something you came in with?
Gary: No, when they dropped all 19 of us off, we were standing there probably five minutes when Boo comes up to me and says, "I'm going to call you Papa Smurf." [Laughs] I said, "All right, I can live with that." I've been called a lot worse. [Laughs] Most of those people can associate with Papa Smurf, because that was the "in" toy in the '80s. I've got four kids, and we had Smurfs around our place, Smurfettes, Smurf cups... everything.

TVGuide.com: What's next for you? What's on your agenda?
Gary: I'm going back to driving the bus, and I'm going to be looking at the possibility of getting a Harley this spring.... The wife and I are going to go out traveling and spend some time with my grandkids.

Photo from TV Guide.

New Reality Show in the Works

The TV Guide Channel and Project Runway producers are joining forces for the channel's first reality competition. The winner will receive $100,000, their own production office in Hollywood and a first-look deal with TV Guide Channel. Not too shabby!

AMERICA’S NEXT PRODUCER is a reality competition series seeking Hollywood’s top producer who will create the next generation of hit TV shows. It will feature contestants from diverse backgrounds and varying levels of TV production experience who will compete each week to survive elimination rounds during a 10 episode competition. In each show, the vying competitors will face innovative challenges that will put their creative skills to the test.

Want to get in on the action? You can apply to be on the show right here.

Where Are They Now: Top Chef Edition

We all know Ilan won Top Chef (yawn) but one of the most fun contestants on the show has found a bit of success too, according to New York magazine's Grub Street.

Josie Malave was voted off the show in the early weeks, but now she has been named Executive Chef at the Island Café Bar and Lounge. She was previously a sous chef at Marlow & Sons. Here's what Grub Street has to say about her new gig:

The two-floor, 220-seater, set to open in March, will serve locally farmed, Mediterranean-themed tapas. We believe Malave when she tells us that she’s "actually happy" to have escaped Top Chef when she did.

Photo from Bravo.

Is Hef Getting Hitched?

Like Annie, I have to grudgingly admit that I watch the Girls Next Door. I don't know what it is about that show, but I just find it addictive. Looks like this new season might be its last. Page Six is reporting that the buzz during the Oscar parties last weekend was that Hugh Hefner and his "number one girlfriend," Holly Madison, will be getting married before the end of the year.

Apparently, the wedding will be part of the E! show, but Hef doesn't want to ruin the surprise or have people stop watching. Apparently Kendra is never at the mansion and Bridget is only still around because she's very friendly to Holly.

After this article earlier this year, a wedding to Holly would certainly make sense.

Dont Forget! ANTM Debuts Tonight!

Set your TiVos people - America's Next Top Model, Cycle 8, debuts tonight on the CW. You can check out a video teasing the premiere right here. Tyra Banks discusses many of the contestants (and makes fun of some of them, too).

Tyra says that there are two plus models this year, partly because that way the usual one plus model will have someone they relate to in the house. Looks to me like they went more for odd looking girls than pretty looking girls. Judge for yourself!

Here are this year's contestants:

Dancing with the Stars Loses Contestant

The competition must be really rough this year. Zap2It "Sopranos" star Vincent Pastore has already dropped out of Dancing with the Stars. The 60-year old went through one week of training then left the show, citing "the physical rigors of the 10-week competition as his primary reason."

When I read that his partner was Edyta Sliwinksa (Joey Lawrence's partner from last year), I was worried that she'd lose her spot on the show, but ABC says the show will announce a replacement soon. They better do it real soon so that Edyta isn't at too much of a disadvantage when it comes to training a new partner.

Here are more details on what Pastore had to say about his departure:

"When I initially committed to joining 'Dancing with the Stars,' I didn't realize just how physically demanding it would be for me," says Pastore, who played mobster "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero on "The Sopranos." "Unable to put forth my best effort, I felt it appropriate to step aside and give someone else the opportunity."

Photo from Zap2It.

Bye Bye Caroline Rhea

Sniff, sniff. I'm gonna miss Caroline Rhea in next season's Biggest Loser. Variety reports that she has been replaced by "Days of our Lives" star Alison Sweeney. The fourth season begins taping this spring.

NBC says that Rhea left The Biggest Loser "to pursue other interests." That's Hollywood code for "she got fired" isn't it?

Sweeney will continue to play Sami Brady on Days of Our Lives, as she has done since 1993.

Photo from Variety.

Rewind: Beauty and the Geek Finale

I'm sorta sad to see Beauty and the Geek go, aren't you? It seems like this season just started, but unfortunately, the finale aired last night. I was glad to see that they didn't do an entire recap episode (like they do on the Bachelor). Instead, we had a mini-recap of how the final two couples made it there.

Nate pouted a little bit after his love interest headed out of the mansion. Then Ceecee pouted because Nate was pouting. Turns out, Ceecee was probably jealous of Jennylee, since she called her a distraction and mentioned that Nate should be getting to know her instead of Jennylee.

My favorite thing about the finale episode of Beauty and the Geek is the "share what you love with your partner" segment, where each person learns something new about their partner. Megan shared her love of tennis and Ceecee shared her love of pop dancing. Apparently, Ceecee has been dancing for seven years, but I thought she sucked. She reminded me of a high school cheerleader instead of someone who has been dancing for seven years.

Scooter took Megan hiking and brought along a little picnic. Yawn. Nate showed Ceecee his Star Wars band, which had traveled all the way from Nate's school, Harvard. They performed a song called "Stormtrooper." I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried. And they sucked, too. I should have known that Nate and Ceecee sucking at their respective talents was an omen.

Final elimination time. Megan studied in her cherry halter bikini top and red short shorts, of course. Instead of a quiz or silly challenge to determine the winner, this time the show threw us a curveball and had all the previous contestants decide who had made the largest transformation. It was a Survivor-esque jury, but all the previous contestants were there. Ceecee looked pissed, as she should be, since she was an uber-bitch and bragged that she hadn't changed at all during the show.

So, at this point, with half an hour left in the episode, the results of the show were pretty much a done deal. They all had one night together to help the jury make their decision. Even Ceecee's own partner, Nate, thought that they shouldn't win and said as much when asked.

Each jury member had their own vote and not surprisingly, Scooter and Megan won. Good for them!

Filming Has Started for The Bachelor 10

Andy Denhart at Reality Blurred reports that The Bachelor 10 is currently in production in Los Angeles. You may recall that we in the Glitter and Gossip offices are already devoted to Andy Baldwin, so it's good to see that the show is actually going to happen (you can never tell when the Bachelor is just going to go kaput).

Andy heard the news from the New York Daily News’ Ben Widdicombe. He reports that filming is taking place at the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel, where the women participated in a mock triathalon. Andy's a triathelete - get it? So this means that ABC hasn't given up on cheesy, mindless stunts for the show. Would we expect any less?

Rewind: Beauty and the Geek

I know the highlight of this episode of Beauty and the Geek should have been the Jennylee and Nate romance angle, but it wasn't. I LOVED the Snob/Bitch/Goldigger Intervention by the guys for CeeCee. It was like they wanted to change her and thought she deserved more than the kind of guy who wants to have a little blonde trophy girl. Turns out, it didn't work. But they tried. E for effort.

On to the challenge. They headed out to a ranch, where of course funny animal scenes ensued. Moving hay bales does not make for interesting television, but geeks and beauties milking cows, now that's interesting. And even more interesting? Girls in bikinis getting dragged around a ring by sheep. Oh, yeah. Megan kicked some serious ass on that challenge and secured the challenge win for herself and Scooter. That means either Nate and Jennylee were going home, since their two teams were heading to elimination.

I'm not even going to touch the soft core porn boys-hosing-each-other-off and "a Scooter massage" thing. Even I have limits.

Everybody got their questions right during the elimination challenges made the whole thing kinda anti-climactic. Then Niels miss his question and it was all over. Nate and Ceecee moved forward after a random speech by Ceecee just before Neils and Jennylee were sent home. She said some odd thing about how hard they worked and Jennylee called it "inappropriate."

Nate escaped from the mansion to give Jennylee one last kiss during her interview, which was a sweet way to end the episode.

The CW was also kind enough to have Jennylee answer some of our questions and you can check out the video here.

Chenbot Returns!

Zap2It reports that my favorite Summer timewaster, Big Brother, will be returning for its eighth season. Thw show will return this summer and luckily for all of us and for the folks over at Tvgasm, so will Julie Chen.

Lots of other folks who have been with the show from the start are also returning, such as executive producers Allison Grodner and Rich Meehan. Arnold Shapiro will no long be an executive producer, but will serve as a creative consultant.

And I can officially now call that I will waste 3 nights a week for the entire run of Season 8. Damn you, Big Brother!

Photo from Zap2It.

Ilan Wins Top Chef

Ilan Hall, 24, was named Top Chef last night on Bravo's hit show, but it turns out some idiot at Food & Wine magazine's website spilled the beans hours before the episode aired, according to E! Online. Of course, this gaffe was discovered by a blog, Eater LA. The offending post was up at the Food and Wine site for about 15 minutes, but that was enough for a good blogger! Plus, Ilan's MySpace page featured "Money in the Bank" for a couple weeks and he quit his job at Mario Batali's Casa Mono on January 23.

E reports that Hall has only been cooking professionally for three years, but beat out the other contestants for "$100,000 in cash, a spread in F&W and a trip to the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen."

Didn't you know Ilan was going to when when Marcel forgot that fish? Hello! So obvious, Bravo! That took all the fun out of the episode for me.

Photo from E! Online.

Donny Osmond is Back!

Donny Osmand is jumping into reality tv by hosting a new show called The Great American Dream Vote. According to TV Guide, the show is "a new unscripted series in which eight people vie to have their grandest wish fulfilled, by courting favor with a ballot-casting studio audience."

Osmond's own site provides a few more details:

The show, from Warner Horizon Television and Mike Fleiss' studio-based Next Entertainment, features eight contestants who reveal a lifelong dream to the studio audience, explaining why they think it deserves to be fulfilled. Contestants will square off, and the studio audience will cast votes, eliminating entrants over several rounds.

By the end of each show, two finalists will remain. Then viewers at home will have the opportunity to vote on which of the two most deserves to have his or her dream realized, with the results being disclosed at the opening of the following week's episode.

The show is still waiting for its premiere date.....