Obsessed with TV?

If you're a fan of TV and trivia, you might want to check out the new book "Obsessed with TV" ($29.95, Chronicle Books) by David Hofstede ("What Were They Thinking: The 100 Dumbest Events in Television History").

It's an interactive trivia book with a built-in digital display that selects a random question number. You flip to that multiple choice question in the book and then push the A. B, C or D button on the digital display. The gizmo tells you if you're right or wrong.

Let's give it a try. The first random question it picks for me is #315:

Which veteran jazz singer played the father of Claire Huxtable on "The Cosby Show"?

A. Billy Eckstein.

B. Joe Williams.

C. Tommy Edwards.

D. Cab Calloway.

I'm awful at music so I'll have to guess B. (I could look it up on IMDB, but I'm not cheating.) Miracles happen, i get it right!

Next question: #1890

What over-the-counter medicine is believed to cure every type of illness by the family in the sitcom "Everybody Hates Chris"?

A. Castor oil.

B. Robitussin.

C. Pepto-Bismol.

D. Vicks VapoRub.

I don't know this one either but I'll go with D because it seems like the most comedic choice. Wrong, it was B.

Anyway, "Obsessed" is a fun little book for wasting away a rainy day or as a gift for the TVphile in your life.

'Assistants' disappoints

Sometimes shows arrive in the mail on DVD that I'm eager to see just because of what the Hollywood folks call "the creative auspices" (AKA the creators).

That was the case with The N's "The Assistants" (8:30 p.m. Friday), which was created by Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi. The pair created Nickelodeon's "The Adventures of Pete and Pete," one of my favorite kids' shows that came along long after I was a kid. But it was a brilliant series regardless of a viewer's age.

Curiously, McRobb and Viscardi did not write this week's premiere or next week's episode, which turns out to be a relief since the show is not that good.

First, there's the Hollywood-centric premise, which is starting to get old, especially in a comedy that's not all that funny. Aspiring filmmaker Gillian (Britt Irvin) barges her way into a job as assistant to producer Zach Del Toro (Zak Santiago), a power mad jerk, who tasks Gillian with selling his old, junker car.

Rigby (Meaghan Rath), another worker in the Kinky Bunny Pictures office, sneaks her way onto a set where a director bellows, "I thought they were bringing over seltzer! This water is flat!"

Now, I don't doubt that some Hollywood folks have an overdeveloped sense of entitlement and can behave like jerks, but it's just such an obvious cliche for any La-La Land-set series to induldge in. Maybe it would be forgiveable if funny but "The Assistants" barely amuses.

Another concern: The N targets an older teen audience but the sexual innuendo and language in this show is still beyond what should be on a teen channel. At least "Secret Life of the American Teenager" on ABC Family is more circumspect with its frank conversations about sexuality; here everything is just played for  attempted laughs that it fails to conjure.

Sonni Abatta: She's going to Disney World!

Not really, but she'll be close. Abatta is bound for Orlando, Fla., where she'll anchor newscasts at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. Here's the release from WOFL:

SONNI ABATTA JOINS WOFL FOX 35 NEWS

ORLANDO - Sonni Abatta has been named co-anchor for the FOX 35 newscasts at 5:00, 6:00 and 10:00 p.m., announced Stan Knott, Vice President and General Manager, WOFL-TV.  Effective July 20^th, Abatta will join Cale Ramaker and Amy Kaufeldt for "FOX 35 News at 5:00 p.m." and "FOX 35 News at 6:00 p.m."  She and Ramaker will co-anchor "FOX 35 News at 10:00 p.m."

In making the announcement, Knott stated, "We're excited to have Sonni join the FOX 35 News team. Her warm personality, combined with her passion for news made her the ideal choice for this position."

Before joining WOFL-TV, Abatta spent six years with KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  She began her career there as a reporter trainee and for the last four and a half years served as an anchor for the station's morning and noon newscasts.  Prior to this, Abatta spent four years as a freelance sports reporter for FOX Sports Net in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

A graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, Abatta holds a Bachelor of Humanities and Arts in Writing and Drama. 
For more information, please visit www.MyFoxOrlando.com.

WOFL FOX 35 is part of the Fox Television Stations, one of the nation's largest owned-and-operated network broadcast groups, comprising 27 stations in 18 markets and covering nearly 37.34% of television homes in the U.S.  This includes six duopolies in the top 10 markets: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Washington, D.C. and Houston; as well as duopolies in Minneapolis, Phoenix and Orlando.

I'll have more from Abatta on why she's making the move soon.

'Entourage' anachronisms

HBO's "Entourage" (10:30 p.m. Sunday) returns for a new season and my enthusiasm for the show continues to dissipate.

Last season actually turned out better than the one prior but the comedy about movie star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his buddies has still worn out its welcome. There are only so many times you can tell the same stories about a celebrity on the rise of on the decline before it gets old. I keep watching because I do enjoy the characters and the setting but the plots lack originality.

Actually, last season the show started to go in a new direction when agent Ari (Jeremy Piven) almost landed a job running a studio. That would have been interesting: A new realm, conflicting loyalties with Vince, etc. But then the show chickened out and Ari didn't get the job, sending things back to square one.

In the first two episodes of the new season, all eyes are on Vince's career resurrection as the Martin Scorsese remake of "The Great Gatsby" gets ready for its premiere but the show's focus is more squarely on Vince's manager, Eric (Kevin Connelly), and his attempts to win back former girlfriend Sloane (Emmanuelle Chriqui) while fending off the advances of a stalkerish new neighbor.

When "Entourage" does set its sights on Hollywood it fumbles by presenting two out-dated scenarios. In the first, Vince appears as a guest on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," which producers would have known would be off the air by the time "Entourage" premiered. Less easy-to-predict but no less anachronistic, Ari crows over partner Andrew (Gary Cole) landing "My Name is Earl" creator Greg Garcia as a new client. "Earl" was canceled in May so in reality there'd be less likelihood for an agent to link a new client with a show that's been flushed down the toilet.

Are you still watching "Entourage"? If so, what keeps you tuning in? Sign in (or register to sign in) and comment below.

Live blog: Covering Michael Jackson's memorial

I spent the weekend in Nashville visiting family and got bombarded with media coverage there of the murder of retired NFL quarterback Steve McNair, which pushed Michael Jackson's death off the radar. But today I'm back in the thick of it as Jackson's memorial airs live on the broadcast networks, prompting seemingly every elderly viewer in SW Pa. to call me and ask what happens to "Young & the Restless," "Guiding Light, etc. (Why these people never call the TV stations that air the programs is a Pittsburgh phenomenon I will never understand.)

I'll be live blogging TV coverage of Jackson's funeral through the afternoon. For those who miss it, TV Guide network will re-air the memorial in its entirety tonight at 8. Several networks will also have highlight programs, including CBS (10 p.m.) and NBC (10 p.m.).

Check back for updates throughout the afternoon...

12:07 p.m.: Jeffrey Toobin on CNN compares potential finances for Michael Jackson's song book royalties to Elvis Presley, "who made more dead than when he was alive." Nice place to dip into memorial service coverage: Money.

12:14 p.m.: Shepard Smith on Fox News Channel: "It was widely reported that Liz Taylor and [Jackson] shared some of the same dependencies and some of his dependencies on prescription drugs and alcohol may have been similar to hers and she might have been an enabler. I can't confirm that but is there anything to that?"

12:21 p.m.: Shades of O.J.: Chopper shots follow Jackson's hearse as it travels through the streets of Los Angeles as it travels to Forest Lawn Cemetery to the Staples Center.

12:39 p.m.: Important news from TMZ: Jackson's body is in the casket!

12:41 p.m.: Viewer contribution (H/T Lin): I'm watching TMZ's feed, which jumps from station to station. I don't know which station was on (at this point), but an anchor was listing the famous celebrities that are buried in Forest Lawn and will be Michael's "neighbors" (should he actually be buried there). The guy went "Clark Gable is there, Humphrey Bogart, Carole Lombard, Jimmy Stewart, Ed McMahon, [other celeb names] ......and Benji"  BENJI???????  Sorry, but that just struck me as pretty funny!

12:44 p.m.: CNN shows Jesse Jackson on the equivalent of the red carpet at the memorial, posing for photos in front of a backdrop that identifies it as the MJ memorial, just like a movie premiere!

12:49 p.m.: MSNBC shows a skywriting plane drew a heart in the sky over the Staples Center. Nancy O'Dell describes it as "a circus-like atmosphere" with people hawking memorabilia.

12:52 p.m.: Found a Pew Research Center report that says people are sick of all this coverage that I'm now watching. Report even ranks public interest in celeb deaths. MJ falls behind: 1) Princess Diana, 2) President John F. Kennedy; 3) Steve Irwin, "The Crcodile Hunter."

1 p.m.: NBC's Brian Williams begins coverage defending the hoopla, saying "750 million to a billion people around the world" will watch the memorial in part or whole.

1:03 p.m.: Nancy O'Dell was prescient: CBS shows tape of elephants entering the Staples Center for MJ's memorial!

1:08 p.m.: What is up with ABC's shaky picture of a reporter inside Staples Center? Looks like it was shot on cell phone from a war zone.

1:09 p.m.: ABC's Robin Robers: "No one's moonwalking around here. People are dressed respectfully."

1:12 p.m.: Ceremony has begun. ABC somehow missed the start. Smokey Robinson is already reading letters from famous figures.

1:16 p.m.: And now there's a lull. Williams talking about how cost of this will impact the Calif. budget.

1:22 p.m.: CBS reporter in London says "excuse me" to a child (or small person) who cross in front of him and mostly out of camera shot during a live report. You can hear Katie Couric giggle.

1:27 p.m.: CNN's Anderson Cooper: "People felt connected to Michael Jackson because of his vulnerability."

1:31 p.m.: More vamping. Guy on CNN says 2,200 journalists credentialed for the service.  Much as I'm tired of all this stuff, I kinda like the song in the video from Jackson's final rehearsal. Not sure if it's new or old but it's catchy.

1:33 p.m.: Choir sings, ceremony resumes. Pallbearers bring casket in to the tune "We are going to see the king." (Double meaning intended?)

1:36 p.m.: There's a lull. Audience member screams, "We love you Michael!" More people scream similar things.

1:38 p.m.: Jackson family pastor: "As long as we remember him, he will be there forever to comfot us."

1:40 p.m.: Mariah Carey singing "I'll Be There." Now that the anchors have stopped chattering (at least on CNN), it's a much better broadcast.

1:43 p.m.: CNN and MSNBC are not running a news ticker along bottom of screen but Fox News is. Tacky. HLN has viewer e-mail about MJ, which is at least related.

1:45 p.m.: Queen Latifah says she's there to represent all the fans. Gives a shout-out to Pittsburgh in a litany of places where people are missing MJ. She rhymed Johannesburg with Pittsburgh.

1:52 p.m.: Lionel Richie sings. Berry Gordy of Motown Records speaks. And speaks and speaks and speaks... Finally, the applause line: "He is, quite simply, the greatest entertainer who's ever lived."

2:08 p.m.: Steve Wonder is at the piano.

2:16 p.m.: Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson eulogize MJ. CNN slow to post lower-third IDs. Are people there scratching their heads the way I am? I don't know music or sports people, so I was stumped. Johnson tells amusing story of eating KFC with Jackson.

2:21 p.m.: Jennifer Hudson sings "Will You Be There."

2:23 p.m.: I wish the networks would just let the focus stay on the ceremony and not go out to show reactions in churches or street corners -- especially during the performances. Those are actually entertaining, unlike some of the speechifying.

2:25 p.m.: Speaking of speechifying.... now here's The Rev. All Sharpton! Uh-oh, he's getting really worked up: "Michael out-sang the cynics... every time he got knocked down he got back up! Michael never stopped! Michael never stopped! Michael never stopped!"

2:30 p.m.: My stomach sank when I read the subject line on an e-mail from PBS's "NewsHour": "JUDY WOODRUFF ANCHORS PBS SPECIAL COVERAGE..." Et tu, PBS? Nope. Not MJ coverage: "... OF SUPREME COURT NOMINEE SOTOMAYOR'S HEARINGS BEFORE SENATE - Starting July 13, 2009"

2:34 p.m.: CBS's Katie Couric just can't let a little silence pass. She begins narrating the down time. Time to switch channels. John Mayer performs "Human Nature." Does he have a connection to MJ I'm unaware of (entirely possible; again, not the music guy)?

2:38 p.m.: Charles Gibson is talking too. BE QUIET! Brooke Shields, looking teary, discusses being labeled part of an "odd couple" when they were photographed together in public. "We had a bond. Maybe it was because we both understood what it was like to be in the spotlight from a very young age," Shields says, tearing up. She comes across as quite genuine.

2:42 p.m.: Shields: "This was the night before Elizabeth Taylor's wedding..."

Barb Vancheri and I in unison: "Which one?"

2:47 p.m.: Which is worse, the news ticker on FNC, which doesn't have any anchors chattering between speakers, or watching on a network with blathering anchors?

2:48 p.m.: Jermaine Jackson, along with the other pallbearers, wears one glittering glove. He sings "Smile," referenced in Shields' remarks.

2:50 p.m.: Still waiting on that Bubbles and/or Macaulay Culkin cameo. Maybe Emmanuel Lewis? Nope, but we do get Corey Feldman, dressed as Jackson!

2:52 p.m.: Martin Luther King III quotes his father. Woman in green suit looks on. Turns out she's Bernice King. OK, so let's add the children of political figures to the list of those Rob will not recognize (joining athletes and musicians).

2:59 p.m.: Thank you, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee for identifying yourself up front! I wouldn't have been able to ID you either. Oh, she went there with the whole "innocent until proven guily" bit. Audience applauds. House Resolution 600 will proclaim Jackson as an American icon, Lee says. Can that resolution maybe get in line behind health care, confirming a new Supreme Court justice, repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell, important stuff like that?

3:08 p.m.: Usher performs. Approaches and touches MJ's golden casket. Usher's choking up seemed a little too perfectly timed for when it hit in the song.

3:13 p.m.: Smokey Robinson jokes about MJ stealing his song. This is a Hollywood funeral.

3:19 p.m.: Some kid is singing. No idea who he is. FNC IDs him as Shaheen Jafargholi. Ah, now it makes more sense.

3:23 p.m.: Choreographer Kenny Ortega says Jackson had invited Shaheen to join him in London on his world tour that was supposed to have begun soon.

3:25 p.m.: "We Are the World." Many people on stage. Don't recognize most of them. MJ's kids may be up there. Not sure.

3:30 p.m.: "Heal the World" is the closing number. Jermaine and other brothers offer final words. Family has a final group hug. Daughter Paris speaks: "Ever since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine, and I just want to say I love him so much." All craziness of the day aside, the scene of MJ's daughter in tears was terribly, terribly sad. That's the moment newscasts will replay ad nauseum.

3:41 p.m.: Jermaine: "Thank you and good night.

Creating 'Three Rivers' (part three)

In earlier blog posts, "Three Rivers" creator Carol Barbee discussed the genesis of the series and its Pittsburgh setting. She also talked about how she managed to get some Pittsburgh flavor into the pilot that was shot locally.

As happens with many pilots, ideas get tweaked after the fact. In the case of "Three Rivers," it means several roles will be re-cast and scenes will be re-shot.

Barbee said the writers are "re-tooling the hierarchy of the hospital.

"It's about figuring out what roles we need in the show as opposed to anything else. Probably what we're looking at is an authority figure who looks a little different than what we had."

(My guess: Julia Ormond's mish-mosh of an accent helped inspire the search for a new authority figure.)

In addition to "Three Rivers," Barbee was listed as an executive producer on The CW's fall drama "Beautiful Life" (about a house full of models), but she said she's dedicated to the Pittsburgh-set medical drama.

"I'll be on 'Three Rivers,'" she said. "I'm still involved with 'Beautiful Life' and Mike Kelley, who is producing that show and is one of my best friends, asked me to supervise but I don't want to kid anybody. 'Three Rivers' is a huge amount of work and Mike is doing an amazing job on 'Beautiful Life.'"

Of course, no discussion of "Three Rivers" would be complete without bringing up "Heartland," the bland 2007 TNT medical drama, which was also set in a Pittsburgh organ transplant center. Barbee said she hadn't heard of or seen "Heartland" when she pitched "Three Rivers."

"After I sold the pitch, people started saying 'Heartland,' so I heard about it afterwards," Barbee said. "One thing we did get from 'Heartland' was the prop woman who worked on 'Heartland.' She came in with knowledge and the ability to say 'these are the [medical] machines you need.'"

***

Thanks to readers who have sent e-mails noting their appreciation of our coverage of "Three Rivers." Other than some re-casting notices, I don't anticipate having more on the show until the "Three Rivers" press tour panel on July 31.

Abatta leaving KDKA-TV

On vacation, so I don't have all the details, but KDKA morning anchor Sonni Abatta will leave the station for a new job in Florida. Her last day on the air will be sometime this week. About to dash to the airport to catch a flight. Will update this post as I am able.

Staged reality

You'd have to be really naive at this point to believe that many of Bravo's reality shows are in any documentary sense "real."

Even so, it's interesting to find evidence of just how staged some of these programs are. The light, comedic "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List" (10 tonight, Bravo) seems especially rigged and pre-planned this season as Griffin just happens to get invitations from and meet up with other celebs, from Bette Midler to Paris Hilton. Gone are the days of simply following Griffin around to tour dates and in her supposedly real life. Now the whole show feels plotted. Even the sub-plots -- last week's Griffin's cute elderly mother was tasked with operating her daughter's Facebook page -- come off as calculated and nearly scripted.

But don't take my word for it. Even the participants are talking. A model named Tyler Bachtel was in last week's episode when Griffin and Hilton chatted poolside. The camera lingered on him long enough to make his presence seem anything but accidental. So it was no shock when Hilton just happened to ask him to take her picture with Griffin. Sure enough, Bachtel even blogged about filming the scene and it's clear he was a plant intended to be part of a staged scene:

They started placing people into different locations by the pool. Lucky for us, they placed us directly behind where Kathy and Paris were sitting. While filming, Paris turned to me and said in her baby voice, "Hey handsome! Can you come over and take a picture of us?" SWEET! Naturally, I agreed and walked over, talked to them for a bit and took a picture of her and Kathy on her phone. After, the film crew came back to take close ups of us. It was nice to have had the opportunity to talk and plug my name on Kathy's show.

Look, it's not that I expect reality shows to be real. But there was a time that they at least felt semi-natural. With calculation so obvious, the show's seams are showing and it's a distraction.

Happy 4th of July!

Celebrate with a look back at footage from ABC News coverage of July 4, 1976, festivities:

'Millionaire' returns

Fans of ABC's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire," take note: The network is reviving the game show for a prime-time run in August and beginning Monday you can audition for a chance to be on the program via telephone. Here's the release:

"WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE" ANNOUNCES HOW TO QUALIFY TO BE A CONTESTANT ON THE 10^TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

Phone Game Returns July 6-16^th; Video Submissions Being Accepted Now at www.abc.com

Who wants to be a contestant on "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" Here's how to apply for the highly-anticipated 10^th anniversary edition hosted by Regis Philbin and running for 11 nights in August, Sundays-Thursdays at (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) from August 9 to August 23 on the ABC Television Network.

There are multiple ways (see below) to become a contestant on "Millionaire," including the original phone game that was used when the show premiered in 1999 and video submissions - an all-new method that will enable people to upload videos of themselves directly to the show's producers. Would-be contestants can use more than one method to try to get on the show but will only be selected one time. No former "Hot Seat" players are eligible, and you must be at least 18 years old, a legal U.S. resident and meet all eligibility requirements.

THE PHONE GAME  

1-800-999-7878

Phone lines are open for 10 contest days from 7 p.m. ET to 3 a.m. ET, starting at 7 p.m. on July 6^th and ending at 3 a.m. ET on July 16^th. Call the 800 number and attempt to answer general knowledge questions by putting the 4 answer choices in correct order.  People who correctly answer all 5 questions will select one of the 6 available tape dates.  A random drawing will be held from among all the people who selected the same tape date to receive an eligibility call to qualify to become a finalist on the program. If a person meets all eligibility requirements they will be flown to New York City with a companion for the opportunity for the chance to play in the hot seat.

Call Limit:  One call per person per contest day.

Alternate Entry for Phone Game

A computer game has been established for persons who have physical disability that prevents them from using a telephone to participate in the Phone Game. Go to www.abc.com keyword Millionaire for details.

VIDEO SUBMISSIONS

Effective immediately, up until 3 a.m. ET on July 16, people can submit a 2-minute video explaining why they would make a good contestant and what they would do with the $1 million. The Producer will select people from among all videos submitted to advance to an online test, which is held July 17. Producer will select from among those who received a passing score on the online test to receive an Eligibility Call to qualify to become a finalist on the program. If a person meets all eligibility requirements they will be flown to New York City with a companion for the opportunity for the chance to play in the hot seat. People can go to www.abc.com keyword Millionaire to submit videos.

REGIONAL AUDITIONS

"Millionaire" producers hit the road during the month of June to conduct contestant auditions in Nashville, Charlotte, Indianapolis, Tampa and Kansas City, Missouri.  Auditions will also be held in Houston, Texas on Wednesday, July 1. No advance sign up is required for road auditions but space is limited, people are seen on a first-come, first-served basis and not all people may be seen. For audition information, go to www.abc.com keyword Millionaire or www.millionairetv.com.

"Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" is produced by Valleycrest Productions Ltd. Michael Davies is executive producer.