Not so Hot

I'm really bummed to find out that Hot In Cleveland has been cancelled after 6 seasons…

It’s the end of an era at TV Land. The network has announced that Season 6 of its signature original comedy series Hot In Cleveland, now in production, will be its last. 

Hot In Cleveland, TV Land’s first original scripted series, was a breakout hit for the network — debuting with 4.8 million viewers — and put it on the original programming map. It reached the 100-episode milestone and was sold into broadcast syndication as well as in 210 territories internationally, a rare feat for a cable sitcom.

I've watched this show from the beginning because I enjoy all of the actresses in the cast, plus they often had great stunt-casting of guest-stars, which was fun.

I hope that Betty White and Wendy Malick end up on a new show soon.

I'm definitely going to miss it.

Hot in Cleveland

It looks like Betty White's career continues to be on an upswing...

TV Land has signed Emmy Award-winning and audience-adored actress Betty White to star in the highly anticipated TV Land PRIME Original sitcom Hot in Cleveland, which is scheduled to premiere in June. White will take on the role of the snarky but lovable Elka Ostrovsky, property caretaker of the home that co-stars Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick rent after their plane makes an emergency landing in Cleveland and they decide to stay.

Besides Betty, I'm really excited that they also got Wendie Malick (always so funny on Just Shoot Me!) and Jane Leeves (Daphne from Frasier). Plus, it's nice to see Jenny Craig alumni, Valerie Bertinelli, back on TV again. Although, she doesn't look quite as bikini-friendly here as she did a few months ago in all the magazine spreads.

But, the fact that she's part of the cast at least dispells the nasty rumor that Kirstie Alley had eaten her.

If the show is half as entertaining as this preview...we may have some must-see TV Land to watch soon.

Dick Van Patten and James Horner

Some very sad news today...



Dick Van Patten, star of the ’80s TV series Eight Is Enough and The Love Boat, among many others, passed away early this morning. He was 86.

Van Patten began work as a child actor (at age seven), primarily on the stage in his native New York before segueing to TV, appearing in more than 30 Broadway shows. His first role was in 1935 in Tapestry In Gray which starred Melvyn Douglas. He was billed as ‘Dickie Van Patten.’ He would latter appear in twenty-seven other Broadway plays.

He moved on to television with the role of Nels Hansen in the 1949 TV series I Remember Mama, which ran from 1949 to 1957, but it was his role as patriarch Tom Bradford on Eight Is Enough (1977-1981) for which he is best known. He also had a long-running stint on The Love Boat from 1978-1984. His other TV credits include The New Dick Van Dyke Show, Happy Days, One Day At A Time. His most recent credits include Hot In Cleveland, That ’70s Show and Arrested Development. Van Patten also starred in the TV series When Things Were Rotten and WIOU.

I never missed Eight is Enough and remember him fondly from SO many of his TV and Film roles over the years. He had a very long and memorable career, something that few actors achieve in their lifetime.



James Horner, who has been scoring movies since 1978, died in a plane crash on June 22nd, 2015. 

His most famous score was likely the megahit Titanic, but he will also be remembered for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Aliens, An American Tail, Apollo 13, Avatar and The Amazing Spider-Man. 

As so many in Hollywood have done, Horner got his start scoring low-budget films for Roger Corman, with 1979’s The Lady in Red being one of his first major film score. In his career he scored over 100 films and nine of his films netted him Oscar nominations — Aliens, An American Tail, Field of Dreams, Braveheart, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, House of Sand and Fog, Avatar, and Titanic. 

Titanic earned him two Oscars: Best Score and Best Original Song for “My Heart Will Go On,” which he wrote with Will Jennings. The hit song was written by the pair in secret since James Cameron didn’t want any song with singing in the film.

James Horner scored so many of my favorite films, especially Star Trek: Wrath of Kahn and, Field of Dreams (one of my favorite soundtracks of all time). An amazingly talented man who made an indelible impact on the emotional core of so many great films over the years.

Both of these very talented men will be greatly missed.

Georgia Engel

Very sad news today...

Georgia Engel, who earned two Emmy noms for playing Ted Baxter’s significant other Georgette Franklin on The Mary Tyler Moore and three consecutive for Everybody Loves Raymond, has died. She was 70.

Engel joined The Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1972 when it was a top 10 primetime series and would appear in nearly 60 episodes over its final five seasons. Her dim but well-meaning Georgette was the love interest of self-important anchorman Baxter (Ted Knight), who courted and eventually married her during the November 1975 sweep — though he didn’t seem all that prepared for it. They went on to adopt a child and later had one of their own.

She joined CBS’ mega-hit Everybody Loves Raymond during Season 7 in 2003 and would score back-to-back-to-back Guest Actress Emmy nominations for playing the mother-in-law of Brad Garrett’s Robert Barone. Engel continued to work in TV post-Raymond, appearing in episodes of such series as The Office, Two and a Half Men, Passions and Neighbours. She also recurred as Mamie in 20 episodes of Hot in Cleveland, TV Land’s first scripted series, and her final credit was a 2018 appearance in Netflix’s Grace and Frankie.

Along with her work on the big and small screens, Engle appeared in four Broadway shows, including a star turn in the musical comedy The Drowsy Chaperone (2006-07). Earlier she trod the Main Stem boards in The Boys from Syracuse (2002), My One and Only (1983) and as a late-run replacement in the original production of Hello, Dolly! in 1969.

She was always entertaining on every show and certainly had a very long and successful career. You couldn't help but love her.



She will be missed, but very fondly remembered by many.

John Mahoney

Very sad news last night...

John Mahoney, who played Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce’s father on the hit NBC sitcom Frasier, died on Sunday. He was 77. 

In 1987 he made his feature film debut in Barry Levinson’s Tin Men. He continued to add film credits to his resume with impressive roles in iconic films such as Say Anything…, Reality Bites, In the Line of Fire, The American President, Eight Men Out as well as the Coen Brothers’ Barton Fink and The Hudsucker Proxy. He also appeared as Steve Carell’s father in Dan in Real Life. 

 But it was his role in Frasier as the titular character’s fussy, unfiltered father Martin Crane that earned him the most recognition. He appeared on the show from the start in 1993 until 2004. The role earned him two Emmy nominations, two Golden Globe nominations and a Screen Actors Guild Award win. In addition to Frasier, Mahoney also appeared on Cheers, Becker, ER, Burn Notice, In Treatment, and Hot in Cleveland.

He was great on Frasier and seemed like a really nice guy all-around.

He will be missed.

Mabel, is the heat on?

Tonight is the premiere of TV Land's first original sitcom, Hot in Cleveland.


It's got a great cast....Jane Leeves (Daphne from "Frasier"), Wendy Malick (the drunk gal from "Just Shoot Me"...the funniest person in that cast), Valerie Bertinelli (she of "One Day at a Time" and her new Jenny Craig body) and, of course...



Betty White.

My DVR is so excited, it's practically ovulating.

Wait...that's just me.

Also...today would have been Frank's birthday.

I hope he's happy and running like a jackrabbit up there somewhere.

Calendar Girl

I bet it sells better than the Jessica Tandy Calendar.

Betty White will be wrapping up her big year by releasing a 2011 Calendar for all of her fans:

Golden Girls star Betty White has created a calendar to raise funds for a wildlife charity in the US. Royalties from the actress's 2011 calendar will go towards the Morris Animal Foundation which White supports.

I love me some Betty White and am so happy that she's gotten all the publicity that she has this year. She's always hilarious, gracious and is one of the funniest women around. If you haven't been watching "Hot In Cleveland" on TVLand, you should start! It really is a funny show and the cast is a hoot to watch.


March looks like a really good month.

All About Betty

As if Betty White isn't busy enough with Hot in Cleveland and her many guest appearances, she's also hosting a new Punk'd-style show with older folks pulling the pranks, called Off Their Rockers previewing on January 16th right after her birthday special Betty White’s 90th Birthday: A Tribute To America’s Golden Girl.



It looks like the perfect thing to watch while eating some of Betty's elaborate birthday cheesecake.

However, I think I'll pass on her dusty muffin.

Too many carbs.