James Sims

Television

  • Dalton Trumbo is an American Master

    —

    by

    James Sims

    There’s a scene in the 1960 film Spartacus that captures the mindset of screenwriter Dalton Trumbo – a man that had just suffered years of persecution after being listed as one of the Hollywood Ten. Defeated by the Romans Spartacus and his rebel army’s lives are threatened unless they give up their fearless leader. With…

  • Disney & Marvel’s Latest Creations

    —

    by

    James Sims

    As news broke Monday that the Walt Disney Co. would purchase Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion the Internet flared up with speculation and wonderment. Could Pixar team up with Marvel and produce a string of eye-popping action films? After all, the deal will bring upwards of 5,000 Marvel characters under the Disney umbrella. A Mickey…

  • Fighting For an Emmy with ‘Family Guy’

    —

    by

    James Sims

    “Family Guy” has taken Emmy campaigning to a brand new level thanks to a string of viral videos showcases extreme brutality. First it was a knock at “The Office” and now the animated show is attacking fellow nominees “Entourage” and “Flight of the Conchords.” If you haven’t been keeping up on your YouTube chatter lately…

  • MTV Takes on West Side Story

    —

    by

    James Sims

    Broadway’s latest revival of the classic musical West Side Story might be a clunker, but that isn’t stopping MTV from using it for inspiration. MTV has fallen off the pop culture relevance scale over the last decade or so, so it came as a shock to find video promos for the network’s upcoming Video Music…

  • Mad Men and Me

    —

    by

    James Sims

    As the summer season comes to a close prime-time programming is beginning to ramp back up. Lifetime welcomes the refurbished Project Runway on Thursday while its old home, Bravo, kicks off another season of Top Chef on Wednesday. The big rollout will come next month as nearly all of the networks will launch their fall…

  • William Shatner Makes Sarah Palin a Poet

    —

    by

    James Sims

    The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien might be losing the ratings war to the Late Show with David Letterman, but not when it comes to the 18- to 49-year-old age demographic.  Conan’s humor skews younger.  CBS shouldn’t be so proud of hanging onto a demographic that already has a foot in the grave. And now…

  • Remembering Walter Cronkite

    —

    by

    James Sims

    This blog was first created for the purpose of entertainment reporting and opining, however, with the passing of Walter Cronkite, I felt it necessary to pay respect to one of the most honorable news reporters to grace television screens.  He was not an entertainer — unlike many delivering the news today.  Cronkite told the news…

  • Emmy Nods, Twitter Reaction

    —

    by

    James Sims

    Hollywood was abuzz this morning as the nominations for the 61st annual Emmy Awards were announced. It should come as no surprise that a cable channel, not broadcast, took the most nominations. HBO snagged the most nods for the ninth year in a row.  Big Love and Entourage will compete for best drama and comedy…

  • Reality TV Kills CA’s Budget (HuffPo)

    —

    by

    James Sims

    Reality television guru, Mark Burnett, recently talked with The Hollywood Reporter’s James Hibberd about his upcoming series Shark Tank, set to premiere this Fall on ABC. Throughout the chat, Burnett touted his TV offerings as “high-quality” programming, going so far as to say his new show “belongs up there with great dramas.” Judging by Hollywood’s…

  • The Wrap: ABC Family’s ’10 Things’ Takes on CW Demographic

    —

    by

    James Sims

    Just last week, I stumbled upon an email invitation from my high school reunion committee. It has been 10 years since I departed Saugus High, a mostly white-bred school in an innocuous Los Angeles suburb. I’ve yet to decide if I’ll be making a trip back to California for this little shindig. There isn’t much…