MTV's "Unplugged" reborn with Police, Bon Jovi
NEW YORK (Billboard) - MTV's on-again, off-again "Unplugged" program will return in a big way this summer, with new episodes featuring the Police, Bon Jovi, Kenny Chesney, Mary J. Blige and John Mayer.
This time around, however, the show will be rolled out on a variety of related channels and platforms, including VH1, CMT and MTV.com.
Bon Jovi will usher in the 2007 edition of the series beginning June 22 on MTV. The next two evenings, VH1 and CMT will air a version of "Unplugged" specifically tailored to those channels' audiences.
Bon Jovi is credited with inspiring the "Unplugged" format after its stripped-down performance on the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards. The group's appearance coincides with its new country-tinged album, "Lost Highway," due in stores June 19.
No information has yet been unveiled about the other tapings, although the Police will reportedly hold their "Unplugged" show in mid-July in Miami.
Ed McMahon wants DVD gifts for troops
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - Former longtime "Tonight Show" sidekick Ed McMahon is urging people to donate DVDs for U.S. troops in Iraq, saying movies offer a safe and comforting escape from wartime realities.
"This program accomplishes two things: the troops are entertained and they know that citizens at home care and support them," McMahon, 84, said Wednesday during ceremonies at the Palm Springs Airport's USO facility.
Operation DVD collects new and used DVDs to distribute overseas to U.S. military personnel. The year-old program has already collected more than 250,000 DVDs.
"This war in Iraq is unusual because soldiers never know where the next attack will come from. They need a safe mode of recreation since they become potential targets playing soccer or softball outdoors," said McMahon, a retired Marine officer who flew artillery-spotting missions in the Korean War.
Operation DVD began when a soldier approached the Rev. Scott Dryden in Kansas last May requesting parishioners donate books and DVDs for fellow troops overseas. The group American Veterans — AMVETS — then signed on to the project.
Robert Boots, California spokesman for Operation DVD, said the goal is to eventually have 1 million DVDs distributed to U.S. troops with more than 200 titles in rotation at each base.
"The least we can offer them is some DVDs for entertainment so they can escape their realities for a while," Boots said.
Collection boxes are located nationwide at schools, retail stores, churches, and government offices.
Heigl: Washington apologized for slur
NEW YORK - Katherine Heigl says castmate Isaiah Washington apologized to her on the set of "Grey's Anatomy" after she publicly denounced his use of an anti-gay slur.
"Isaiah thanked me, which I didn't understand," the 28-year-old actress tells Entertainment Weekly. "He was almost grateful. I don't know Isaiah well, but he takes his work seriously and he loves his character."
Washington came under fire for using the epithet at the Golden Globe Awards in January while denying he'd used it previously against fellow "Grey's" star T.R. Knight. Heigl, who plays outspoken Dr. Izzie Stevens on the hit ABC medical drama, says she was "furious and frustrated" at the time, so she leapt to Knight's defense.
"He made a big mistake, and it was thoughtless and boneheaded, and I think he's very sorry and embarrassed," she says in the magazine's Friday issue. "This is something that will have changed the scope of his life."
Heigl, who stars in the new Judd Apatow-directed comedy "Knocked Up," speaks out in the interview, too, about her protracted contract negotiations with ABC. The bottom line, she says, is that she wants "the same respect they're showing the other actors."
And she says she doesn't like the label that seems to go along with a woman who stands up for what she wants.
"In this town, women who don't just snap and say, `Okay, yessir, yes ma'am,' start to get a reputation for being difficult," she says. "But within the last five years, I've decided it's not worth it to me to be pushed around so much."
Heigl, who calls "The Notebook" one of her "all-time favorite movies," says she'd rather laugh than get too serious when it comes to movie roles.
"I just want to play happy people," she says. "I'm a commercial kind of gal, and yeah, I would love to do a `Monster,' but I don't have any grand aspirations to do my Academy Award-winning movie. I love Kate Winslet, but I know I couldn't have her career."
Disney sets "Lost," "Desperate," "Anatomy" DVD releases
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Disney wants to breathe some excitement into the TV-DVD business, which after several years of explosive growth is beginning to lose some of its luster.
The studio is taking the unusual step of announcing all its upcoming marquee TV-DVD releases at once and packing into them a wealth of novel extras, from Spanish-language audio tracks to a virtual fashion show, extended and bonus episodes and unaired story lines.
The highlight: Season 3 sets of top-rated shows "Lost," "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey's Anatomy." Breaking tradition, each set gets a special name, similar to special editions of movies.
"Desperate Housewives: The Complete Third Season -- The Dirty Laundry Edition" will arrive in stores September 4. The six-disc set includes all 23 episodes along with such extras as a behind-the-scenes look at the season finale, a Spanish audio track, a conversation with series star Eva Longoria in which she shares stories from some of her favorite bloopers, a collection of creator Marc Cherry's favorite scenes and several unaired story lines, deleted scenes and outtakes.
A week later, on September 11, comes "Grey's Anatomy: The Complete Third Season -- Seriously Extended Edition," a seven-disc set with all 25 episodes, four of them extended exclusively for the DVD release. Other bonus features include a one-on-one with series star Ellen Pompeo, a visit to the race track with star (and race-car enthusiast) Patrick Dempsey, cast and crew members' favorite scenes and audio commentaries.
"Lost: The Complete Third Season -- The Unexplored Experience" follows December 11 on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. The 23-episode, seven-disc set comes with a one-on-one with star Matthew Fox, a featurette on "The Others," a documentary chronicling 24 hours in production and a selection of never-before-seen flashbacks. Also included are behind-the-scenes looks at 10 episodes, audio commentaries, deleted scenes and bloopers.
Also in the pipeline are three new series that never before have been available on DVD.
"Ugly Betty: The Complete First Season -- Bettyfied Edition" will be out August 21. The six-disc set contains all 23 episodes as well as an exhibit of some of the first season's best and worst fashions, a Spanish audio track, a discussion with the cast on the show's origins and a behind-the-scenes documentary with the show's production, costume and set designers.
"Brothers & Sisters: The Complete First Season," also a six-disc set, is scheduled for a September 18 release. On September 25 comes "What About Brian? -- Seasons 1 & 2," a five-disc set.
The Disney announcement comes at a time when the pace of TV-DVD releases is slowing. Just 158 multi-disc TV-DVD season sets came to market in the first four months of this year, according to the DVD Release Report, down 12.2% from the same period last year.