day 25

reid rocks it to rehab

former actress and club and bar staple tara reid has gone and checked herself into rehab.  reid's spokesperson said that the wacktress checked herself into promises malibu on tuesday.  promises has such famous alum as lindsay lohan and robert downey junior.  hopefully the american pie and taradise star will be able to pull herself out of the hole she dug and get back to work.  reid most recently said she was staying out of the game until the writer's strike was over; however, the strike ended nearly half a year before she released the statement.  reid's latest movie, land of canann, is set to be released sometime next year - most likely straight to dvd.  

idol giveth, idol taketh away

american idol's eighth season kicks off in january with a new judge (kara dioguardi) and a new look.  the show will give equal screen time to the stage and behind the scenes - viewers will get an inside look at the house the contestants are living in and what all happens there.  the new direction is said to be very big brother-ish, minus the crazy competitions.  in addition to the reality show within a reality show element, the singing show is getting rid of the two year old "idol gives back" special, which raises money for different charities through viewer donations.  in the past, idol winners like carrie underwood and kelly clarkson have come back to perform, in addition to acts like heart, fergie, miley cyrus, and more.  the show is usually relatively boring and, with economic conditions the way they are, it makes sense to lose the show.  

a gilmore girl heads back to the tube

lauren graham, aka lorelai gilmore, is headed back to tv on the alphabet net.  abc has ordered a pilot starring the under-appreciated actress as a self-help guru who can't seem to help herself in the department of love.  sounds a lot like men in trees, a show abc recently dropped from their schedule.  graham, who has filled her time since gilmore's may 2007 end with guest star roles on shows like scrubs and in movies like evan almighty, as well as a few stage productions. i don't know about you all, but lorelai's return makes up (just a little) for pushing daisies being pulled off the air.  no other casting has been done, but i would say hire lee pace and kristin chenowith to star in the show too.  

a big change for a little man named oscar

the 2009 academy awards won't be hosted by a stand-up comic, as the tradition has been since the 80s.  instead, actor hugh jackman will helm the awards show.  this is the first time, as far as i can think, that an actor who could possibly be nominated (for australia) is hosting the show, too.  while jackman probably won't do any jokes, he's bound to do a song and dance number.  the people of the academy are apparently trying to move away from the era of billy crystal, the host of hosts of the show.  this could either go very well or end quite tragically.