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Four Movie Franchises That Would Make Great TV Shows
by Bob Sassone, posted May 4th 2010 1:04PM

A couple of weeks ago I proposed a TV series based on the James Bond character. That got me thinking about other movie franchises that might make for good TV shows. There have been a lot of TV shows and miniseries based on movie franchises, including 'Sherlock Holmes,' 'Planet of the Apes,' 'Terminator,' and even 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars' if you want to include animated shows. Here are four movie franchises that haven't been TV shows yet but I think they really could be.
1. 'The Bourne Identity.' Of course, 'The Bourne Identity' was a TV miniseries before it was a hit film series, but that was a while ago. I can picture a series based on the Jason Bourne character, especially with the success of shows like '24.' It could work two ways: have Bourne have amnesia and have him trying to figure out who he is and who is trying to kill him (a la 'Coronet Blue,' a show I'm sure inspired Robert Ludlum), or maybe have him already know who he is and have him in hiding, having to fight the bad guys trying to kill him every week.
Possible lead: Ben McKenzie, Wentworth Miller, Jared Padalecki
TV's Joel McHale riffing with Rifftrax on Red Dawn
by Danny Gallagher, posted Jun 27th 2009 3:03PM
Actor, comedian and classically trained suit wearer Joel McHale has taken his talent for riffing to the next level. The star of The Soup and the upcoming NBC sitcom Community has joined forces with Michael J. Nelson's Rifftrax.com to provide a running comedy commentary for the perennial craptastic 80s classic Red Dawn. Nelson announced the guest commentary on the Rifftrax site and his Twitter blog earlier this week.
Rifftrax, for those who may not be familiar with the site and are therefore in no way cool, is the comedy website that provides downloadable MP3s of funny movie commentaries featuring the voices and talents of the minds behind Mystery Science Theater 3000 including Nelson, Bill Corbett and Kevin Murphy. It is the only reason I still own all three Matrix films, that and the fact that my desk is missing part of a leg.
Carl Reiner checking in for House's season finale
by Allison Waldman, posted Mar 31st 2009 9:03AM
I adore Carl Reiner. There. I said it. What are you going to do about it? No, seriously, if there's another actor/writer/director/producer in show business who's made me laugh more than Mr. Reiner, I can't think of him/her right now. He's been one of Hollywood's prime time jewels for six decades. So, the news that Carl Reiner is guesting on the House season finale makes me very, very happy.According to the House powers that be, Mr. Reiner will be a clinic patient at Princeton Plainsboro, and his interaction is slated to be with Dr. Cuddy. Good for Lisa Edelstein!
Bernie Mac dead at 50
by Kona Gallagher, posted Aug 9th 2008 10:20AM
Sad news coming out of Chicago this morning; Bernie Mac has died. Mac had been in the hospital for the past week battling pneumonia. The 50-year-old comedian and star of Fox's The Bernie Mac Show had previously battled sarcoidosis, an immune system disorder that can affect the lungs, but that disease was said to have been in remission.Rumors regarding the severity of Mac's illness swirled around the internet last weekend when a family member reportedly said that his condition was "very, very critical." However, Mac's publicist came out on Thursday and said that her client's condition was "stable."
In addition to his TV work, Mac was probably best known for co-starring with George Clooney and Brad Pitt in Ocean's 11 and its subsequent sequels. The Bernie Mac show ran for five seasons on Fox before it ended in 2006. I always enjoyed his Cliff Huxtable-as-a-movie-star take on The Bernie Mac Show as well as the different comedic sensibility he brought to the table in the Ocean's movies. Mac had a lot of comedy left in him, and I'm sorry to see him go.
TCM to air month long Frank Sinatra tribute starting today
by Bob Sassone, posted May 1st 2008 9:02AM
Besides being the day that the series finale of Seinfeld aired, May 14, 1998 was also the day that legendary singer and actor Frank Sinatra died at the age of 82. I remember spending an entire week listening to nothing but Sinatra songs, watching all the specials that aired that week, reading all of the obituaries and tributes. And now TCM is going to honor the man by airing a month long tribute starting today. In fact, they've launched a special web site for the event, Frank Sinatra: The Man and His Movies.
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