Every time Tim Gunn uttered the words "make it work" during the first season of Project Runway, he was paid precisely this amount: $0. And during the second season? Just $2,500 per episode. That's according to his testimony in New York State Supreme Court, where proceedings are underway between NBC Universal and The Weinstein Company, which ripped Runway away from NBC's Bravo for Lifetime. Other tidbits from the ongoing trial? NBC chief Jeff Zucker has instructed Bravo to air marathon repeats of Runway during the same timeslot Lifetime will air new episodes of the show's sixth season. Did we mention Zucker is BFF's with Harvey Weinstein?
What's a post-Sex and the City Sarah Jessica Parker to do? Go behind the camera and produce! She's been shopping around the reality series American Artist for a few months and, in Bravo, has finally found herself a buyer.
This is good news for Parker. And bad news for Bravo. CONTINUED »
Though it's pretty clear that Project Runway is headed to Lifetime for the show's sixth season, NBC Universal isn't taking Harvey Weinstein's bull sitting down, which explains why Jeff Zucker was in a New York court yesterday trying to convince a judge that they lost the show on Bravo because of the Hollywood mogul's shadowy ways. The Weinstein Company wants NBC's breach of contract suit — which claims Weinstein didn't give NBC right of the first refusal option that was promised — dismissed, while 30 Rock wants an injunction to keep the series from going to Lifetime until the trial is over with. Us? We just want this trial to continue forever and ever! Also, photographers in the courtroom. CONTINUED »
We will miss Portfolio's napkin math sessions when the magazine eventually closes. Last month, they calculated the net worth of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven," supposedly the most profitable song ever recorded, which earned an estimated $572 million. Now, they've moved on to other pop culture fare: Project Runway. Just how much is the fashion reality show franchise worth? Well, The Weinstein Company's new deal with Lifetime pits the show at $150 million over the next five years. But if they were to sell the show? $243.5 million — the insurance policy on Heidi Klum's legs not included.
Ever since NBC Universal execs learned they would officially be losing Project Runway on Bravo, they've been working overtime to tear the brand apart. Why should they bother promoting a show that Harvey Weinstein ripped away from them to take to Lifetime, where he's set to bag a bigger payday from production and product placement fees?
At first, the negativity was subtle. Bravo execs kept quiet as they stole Runway's brilliant production team, Magical Elves, away from the show in an exclusive deal. And then the more obvious signs arrived.
Project Runway's fifth season, and the last for Bravo, premieres on Wednesday. And by the time it arrives, and certainly by the time it wraps, its varnish will be worn, damaged, or gone altogether.
So just how is Bravo systematically sabotaging the Project Runway brand? CONTINUED »
Of the 16 contestants on the fifth season of Project Runway, eight are men, and six of them are out gays. This compares to last season's four openly gay contestants and, when the show moves to the network for women and gay men, Lifetime, next season's 100 percent homo roster.
How do you let the execs behind your show know that you're pissed about all the sweeping changes that they're making? If you're Cindy McCain critic Tim Gunn and have the uncertainty of what lies ahead for Project Runway, you start sniping away at the brand any opportunity you get. CONTINUED »
You might not be aware, but the fifth season of Project Runway, and the last for Bravo, kicks off just one short week from today. Even we, usually so adept at knowing when these sorts of cultural phenomenon are making their return to the horizon, have been caught off guard. So too, television critics — because Bravo hasn't sent out any screeners of the upcoming season, nor do they plan to. And they haven't even unveiled the upcoming cast of contestants, and won't do so until Monday, just 48 hours before the season premieres, even though it's been the network's practice to tell all weeks in advance.
"A representative for the network said it was part of an effort to 'protect the secrecy' of the fifth season," blogs Maureen Ryan. HAHAHAHA, please. You know the reason. CONTINUED »
Though it's losing Project Runway to Lifetime, Bravo is still home to the most robust, and formulaic, set of reality shows out there. Top Chef is a runaway hit with legions of fans; Make Me A Supermodel, though featuring the annoying Tyson Beckford and equally plain Nikki Taylor, was a drama-filled vamp-fest; Step It Up & Dance, the So You Think You Can Dance knock off, was decent (we're told); the new season of Shear Genius promises more haircare drama; and Top Design is coming back with new producers.
The format for all these shows goes like this: Line up a trio of industry experts to act as judges (there must be at least one Simon Cowell character); employ an attractive, personable, and mostly vanilla host(s); then roll out casting calls to New York, Los Angeles, and anywhere in between where wannabe actors can mingle with genuine talent in a house where cameras roll 24/7, all in an effort to win a modest cash prize and an industry gig where you won't become too famous to overshadow the next season's cast.
So what are Bravo execs going to do now that nearly every niche — yes, even real estate — have been covered? CONTINUED »
Last night's Bravo A-List Awards, hosted by Kathy Griffin and whose subway station ads have been defiled all over town, was worth watching for Lauren Hutton's acceptance speech alone. But it's online! Right here on your screen! So, um, no need to watch the actual broadcast. Like the reason for this awards show, Ms. Hutton, who claims to have gone without sleep for 46 hours, does not make any sense.
Homosexual Bravo programming chief Andy Cohen, who blogs gay things on homosexual website BravoTV.com, outs Good Morning America weatherman and homosexual Sam Champion while writing about his uppity gay Hamptons weekend. [Gawker]
Lesbian fitness lady Jackie Warner is feeling the wrath of disapproving sponsors.
Warner and one of her staff came under fire last week after having a laugh about a client’s breast, which was made worst when people learned that the breasts in question had beat breast cancer. The incident led many homos to label her a “negative icon.” Now Gatorade’s pulling out from Warner’s Bravo show, Work Out:
With so many lady properties, NBC Universal has decided to stick Oxygen, Bravo, and iVillage under a single umbrella, Women and Lifestyle Entertainment Networks, or Women@NBCU for short/cuteness. Also in the mix: the "Green is Universal" campaign, the Today show, and specific shows like The Biggest Loser and Lipstick Jungle. Heading things up is none other than Lauren Zalaznick [MP], who took over Lisa Gersh's job when NBCU bought Oxygen last fall, someone who, unfortunately for the gossips, we actually hear nice things about.
Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz of production company Magical Elves are the duo responsible for turning Project Runway into ratings and publicity gold. That's why NBC was angling for 'em, and now they've got 'em, signing the twosome to an exclusive deal, effectively stealing them away from the Weinstein Co.'s fashion franchise just as they're moving from Bravo to Lifetime. Cutforth and Lipsitz will remain producers for Bravo's Top Chef and NBC's Last Comic Standing.
Oh, what's that? NBC owns Bravo? Yeah. It was basically Jeff Zucker's way of brushing the top of his hand underneath his chin at Harvey Weinstein. CONTINUED »
Lifetime, not content to serve just one historically oppressed group (womyn), is now going after the gays. By stealing Project Runway from Bravo and commissioning projects like Carson Kressley's How to Look Good Naked, it's clear the channel is finally catering to the audience of homothethuals it always managed to attract. Except as the Observer points out, the channel is a bit too earnest, a bit too P.C., a bit too Middle America. Army Wives, anyone? It's everything that isn't Bravo, the sassy and smarter channel.
And as if to show they've got something to prove, Lifetime is making the biggest mistake of all: They're bailing on Golden Girls and Will & Grace – the show for those who still find Sex and the City too edgy – which is the only excuse our DVR ever had for tuning in.
Editorial Director
