The media mogul Oprah Winfrey will end her daytime talk show, “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” in 2011 as she prepares to start a cable channel of her own. A spokeswoman for Ms. Winfrey’s production company, Harpo, confirmed Thursday evening that Ms. Winfrey would make an announcement on her show on Friday. The plans were first reported by WABC, the ABC station in New York City. “The sun will set on the Oprah show as its 25th season draws to a close on Sept. 9, 2011,” Tim Bennett, the president of Harpo, said in a message to affiliates. After her broadcast talk show winds down, Ms. Winfrey will concentrate on her coming cable channel, OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network. OWN will have its premiere in January 2011, according to a person with knowledge of Ms. Winfrey’s decision who insisted on anonymity. Ms. Winfrey, 55, informed her talk show staff of her decision on Thursday afternoon. The television world had expected that she would make a decision about the fate of her program by the end of the year. Ms. Winfrey told her staffers that she will not transfer the show to cable. She is expected to produce new programs for OWN, and may appear on some of them. In a statement, CBS Television Distribution said, “We have the greatest respect for Oprah and wish her nothing but the best in her future endeavors. We know that anything she turns her hand to will be a great success. We look forward to working with her for the next several years, and hopefully afterwards as well.” OWN is a joint venture between her production company and Discovery Communications. Getting the channel off the ground has proved challenging amid management turnover and an uncertain advertising climate. The timeline for OWN will theoretically give Ms. Winfrey about nine months to promote her cable channel on her existing show. Sometimes called the Queen of Talk, Forbes estimates Ms. Winfrey’s net worth to be $2.7 billion. “The Oprah Winfrey Show” is the most successful talk show in syndication, reaching about seven million viewers a day. It has been vital to the success of ABC, whose local station group has been the primary home of the show since it started in syndication in 1986.

Wow!! Rumors of this move have been swirling for a couple of weeks now so this announcement isn’t really a surprise. What is a surprise is that Oprah will not move her wildly popular talk show to her new OWN network … but, to be honest, Oprah has really conquered the world of daytime talk shows and will go out just as popular as she’s ever been. This is but another step forward in Oprah’s quest for world domination … methinks she will do just fine with this new venture. But still … wow … no more Oprah Winfrey Show. Whatever will Oprah fans do with themselves once the show goes off the air?

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On Monday, I said TV Guide Magazine would run Joss Whedon’s recent reveals on the remaining Dollhouse episodes next week, but since the not entirely unexpected news broke of the show’s cancellation yesterday, I wanted to publish the interview from November 4 as soon as possible. Fox will complete Dollhouse’s 13 episode season with three weeks of back to back episodes on December 4, 11 and 18, then single episodes on January 8 and 15 before the series finale airs January 22. Here, Whedon shares scoop about this season’s upcoming episodes before he received the news about the show’s cancellation.

Why do Echo, Adelle (Olivia Williams) and Topher (Fran Kranz) visit the D.C. House?
That involves the D.C. House starting to take action against the Senator, played by Alexis Denisof, who’s targeting them. The corporation [Rossum] sees that there’s a problem there. Why LA gets involved, I can’t tell you.

Mothereffing-Effer!!! Gah … this interview just KILLS me! Hearing from Joss himself how awesome the show will get only to know that it won’t live beyond this half season is … INFURIATING!!! Joss’s chat with TV Guide goes on from here … and it contains a few spoilers about the upcoming new eps that we have yet to see. For those of you who wish to remain spoiled, I put the rest of the spoilery info behind the cut — but you might want to read on to find out what Joss has planned for Alan Tudyk’s Alpha character and Amy Acker’s Dr. Saunders/Whiskey character …

You promised that Alan Tudyk (V) will return as psycho killer Alpha. Does he?
He’s back in a two-parter (Dec. 11) and he comes in with a bang. You don’t bring Alpha back unless you’ve got something really fun for him to do. He has very interesting questions to ask of someone and really appalling ways of asking them.

Where is the Dollhouse storyline heading?
This whole season has been about, and is getting more and more about, the larger conflict, not between Echo and the Dollhouse but between Echo and Rossum. When Echo first decided she wanted to deal with the Dollhouse, she didn’t realize how global it was going to be. What we’re heading for is bigger. We’re going to start getting to the top where the real power is and it’s going to get very, very twisted. That’s not strange coming from me, but even we’re thrown by it.

FML. I love Dollhouse … I am just so pissed it’s ending in this way. It sounds like there may be some resolution at the end of his half season but only because Joss Whedon was wise enough to plan for the worst. This interview, as cool as it is, only makes the sting of losing the show feel worse. I cannot wait to see the final eps when they air next month … but, again, it just sucks that end had to come so soon :(

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“Dollhouse” is closing its doors at Fox. The network has canceled Joss Whedon’s cult fave, which in May beat the odds with a second-season pickup despite low ratings. The sci-fi series, which is filming episode 11, is expected to finish its 13-episode order. After some dismal performance this fall, despite the ratings bumps “Dollhouse” got from DVR viewing, Fox benched the show for the November sweep after four episodes. It is not clear if Fox will air the remaining episodes starting Dec. 4 as planned.

This is a bunch of bullshizz! And now Entertainment Weekly is confirming this report — Dollhouse is dunzo for sure :( First Fox decides to put the show on hiatus, pulling all planned eps of Dollhouse from the airwaves for the entire month of November AND THEN they decide to cancel the show before it is even brought back on the air. To be honest … I’m not at all surprised. Exiling the show to Friday night has kept the show down in the ratings since it debuted last year … I don’t know how they ever thought the show would be able to flourish by keeping it on Friday night. The mothereffers at Fox better allow the already filmed eps to air … it may lessen my hatred of them a little bit … just a little. I sincerely hope that Joss Whedon doesn’t waste his time again with the Fox network. What shitty news ;(

UPDATE: Joss Whedon has posted a statement on the Dollhouse cancellation on Whedonesque.com. After the jump, read his statement in full …

Hmm. Apparently my news is not news.

Thank you all for your support, your patience, your excellent adverts. See you again. -j.

Sucks!!! I hope Joss Whedon knows that his legion of fans love and support him … and we will eagerly await his next endeavor. The man is a genius, he won’t be down for long. Thank YOU, Joss for all your hard work … it is much appreciated.

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ABC has opted not to order additional episodes of “Eastwick,” its rookie supernatural comedy-drama starring Rebecca Romijn. “Eastwick,” a fresh take on the hit 1987 movie “The Witches of Eastwick,” will finish production on 13 episodes; ABC plans to run them all. ABC is also yanking its reality show “Let’s Dance,” which was supposed to premiere on November 23 with Kathy Griffin hosting. Sources said ABC had difficulty casting the series, which is a common problem for networks when developing celebrity-driven reality fare, though usually such projects don’t get so far in the process as to have a premiere date. In its place, ABC intends to air “Find My Family,” in which people get to meet long-lost families or loved ones. The network has six episodes planned. It has also picked up five more episodes of its Tuesday crime drama “The Forgotten,” starring Christian Slater.

I suppose we fans of the series should be somewhat relieved that ABC still plans to finish production of the initial 13 episodes and promises to air them … many shows that get canceled in this manner just disappear immediately and you’re lucky if the unaired eps show up on DVD at some point down the line. Again, I must stress how upset I am that the show is being canceled … folks are saying that Rebecca Romijn is cursed (it is said she is not capable of carrying a successful TV show … do you remember Pepper Dennis? Yeah, didn’t think so), or mebbe it’s Lindsay Price who is cursed (her Lipstick Jungle also got canceled early). Whatever the case may be, I’m gonna miss the show … I don’t know if there is any chance of saving it from cancellation but my gut tells me that there will not be an outpouring of anger over the axing of this series. Boo.

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A shocked Morrissey brought the UK leg of his current tour to an abrupt halt in Liverpool tonight (November 7) when he walked offstage after a fan threw a drink at his head. The star said simply “good bye” at the Liverpool Echo Arena following the incident, exiting in the middle of his second song. He had started with The Smiths standard ‘This Charming Man’ and was in the middle of ‘Black Cloud’ when the incident happened. There are conflicting eye witness reports over whether it was a plastic cup or a bottle that struck. The show was stopped for around 15 minutes as the crowd chanted his name. A little time later a member of the crew announced that the singer had been hit on the head by a bottle and the concert would not continue. Fans jeered and booed at the news. The audience were told they would receive a full refund. The Manc legend is due to travel to Holland to continue European dates on Monday (November 9) in Nijmegen. There is no indication that the Dutch show will be effected by the Liverpool incident.

Insane! I can’t say that I blame Morrissey at all for walking off the stage. He is used to having flowers thrown at him … hell, on occasion he is used to having fans throw themselves at him … but for some asshole to hurtle an object at his face, that is just unreal to me. After the jump, watch video of this incident to see how it all went down …

Now, in order to keep the news as quiet as possible for those of you who wish to remain unspoiled, I’ll keep news of the reported death behind the cut. But I will say publicly that I was very surprised to learn that they are planning to axe one the main O.G.s from the first season. After the jump, find out who it is …

Boo!!! E!’s Kristin Dos Santos is reporting that Nathan Petrelli played by Adrian Pasdar is gonna be dunzo:

As I have been teasing for weeks, Heroes is killing off a major character later this season. The death is a huge twist for the show, so I didn’t want to ruin the surprise for you, but now that another outlet has leaked the secret, it’s time for me to reveal the truth: Adrian Pasdar’s Nathan Petrelli is the major character death happening on Heroes this season, and no, he wasn’t told he was getting fired, he learned about it from a script. But what about reports from fellow Heroes castmembers that the Petrelli brothers were definitely safe? After Heroes star Greg Grunberg recently told a radio station that Nathan and Peter weren’t the Heroes death, I doubled back with my source and he confirmed, “I know Adrian is getting killed off and was pissed about it because they didn’t tell him…Greg could be talking about another death, but I think he’s probably covering and throwing fans off.” And of course, Greg certainly doesn’t want to meet the same fate!

This news is really sad because Nathan Petrelli really is a great character on the show. When it comes to these kinds of death things … the audience could be pulled in to find out who will die OR they could be repelled out of anger. It’s a gamble … one that Heroes is hoping will pay off in huge ratings. What do YOU think about this axing?

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Adam Lambert and Drake LaBry have called it quits. RadarOnline.com saw the end coming when we witnessed a tiff between the two October 9 when they were out partying in Hollywood. Still, it appears that the break-up has been as amicable as these things can be in Hollywood. The American Idol runner-up and Drake, an interior designer, are both extremely well-liked and their relationship was always low-key. Adam’s debut album, For Your Entertainment, has a November 23 release date.

HMMM … there’s not a lot of information here. Perhaps young master LaBry was none too pleased to see his boyfriend posing with a nekkid woman in Details magazine (after all, Adam did put his open mouth on her breast in one photo) or mebbe LaBry was just too embarrassed to be dating a guy who’s debut album cover looks like THIS? Whatever the case may be, the Glambert is now a free agent … I suspect he’ll be using his new found fame to find himself some new company … soon. Get it gurl!!

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]

One day you’re happy as a clam, working as a castmember on a prime-time network drama, and the next day someone’s feeding you a line about changes in your show’s “tone” and shuffling you off to Buffalo. That’s what just happened to departing Melrose Place star Colin Egglesfield, who sums up his rollercoaster Thursday this way: “I’ve had better days, to be quite honest.” We just spoke to Colin exclusively to find out why he’s being pushed out of the show, not to mention where Auggie fits into the show’s big murder mystery, and despite what you may have theorized, Auggie’s not getting killed off, and despite what you may have been told, this exit was not planned from the beginning: “[They said it] was a network decision and obviously the ratings aren’t what they need or want them to be, so they’re going to try things to shake things up.” So what really happened today, and what’s going to happen next on Melrose Place? Here’s what we learned from Colin:

Do you have anything you want to say as a farewell to the fans and the people you’ve worked with?
Todd and Darren are great, I love those guys and they’ve always been straightforward and straight shooters and just great people to work with. I respect the decision that they had to make creatively to do what they need to do, I’m just frustrated that I’m not going to be a part of the show, because it was such a great job and a fun place to go to work every day. I’m disappointed to be leaving because I became really good friends with not only the cast of Melrose Place but many of the crew as well, so that’s sad, to not be able to go see them at work. But hey, I’m still friends with them, and I’d just like to say to everyone out there who’s been watching and supporting, thanks from the bottom of my heart, because this is something that I love to do.

OUCH!! Poor guy … it really sounds like this news came out of nowhere. I absolutely did not believe the bull the producers gave us that the plan all along had been to write these characters out of show from the beginning. As we hear from Colin himself, he just found out yesterday morning … AND, he still has another ep to film on Monday — poor, poor guy. As for Ashlee Simpson, she’s talking about her axing from the show as well. After the jump, check out what she has to say …

From People magazine:

In a statement released after the announcement, Simpson-Wentz said, “Having the chance to play Violet on Melrose Place has been a thrill. Although I always knew her story would come to a final, insanely unpredictable end, playing a creepy, unstable character was something I always wanted to do, so I jumped at the chance. Thanks to the CW and the entire cast and crew of Melrose Place for allowing me this opportunity.”

See … Ashlee knows how to play the Hollywood game better … a statement like this doesn’t anger anyone on the show (primarily because she is toting the party line) and leaves the door open for her return. Honesty, like we got from Colin Egglesfield, lets fans know what’s going on but might make him persona non grata to producers of the show. In any event … at least now we know a bit more of the story … and, again, I’m gonna miss both characters on the show :(

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Two months into its run, The CW’s ratings-challenged (but creatively-smokin’) Melrose Place reboot is about to undergo a major renovation. For starters, Ashlee Simpson-Wentz and Colin Egglesfield have been let go (they’ll last air in January), and the “Who Killed Sydney?” mystery is being wrapped up in December. Then, in addition to Heather Locklear’s Amanda, several new characters will be introduced and the show will take on a lighter, more fun vibe. Here, in an exclusive interview, exec producers Todd Slavkin and Darren Swimmer explain why they’re fixing a series that many (myself included) felt wasn’t broken and tease what’s ahead for Melrose 2.0 3.0.

Is it fair to say that if either of those characters clicked you would’ve found a way to keep them?
SLAVKIN: Well, you never know when you go along. But in the end, we felt like it was right [decision].
DARREN SWIMMER: The nature of soaps is that as things progress along, the story takes on a life of its own and the characters come and go in relation to that.

After the jump, find out how Ashlee and Colin took the news of their axing and read what Slavkin and Swimmer have to say about the possibility of other castmembers getting the axe from the show …

How did Ashlee and Colin take the news?
SLAVKIN: They’re total professionals and they took it like professionals. When you go into a show you never know what’s going to evolve and what the possibilities are. But because they knew ahead of time [that leaving was a possibility], it wasn’t a complete shock.

Can you elaborate on the tonal shift?
SLAVKIN: Now that the characters are no longer suspects, they can have a great time, they can focus on their careers, they can get into bed with each other without having this ominous cloud hanging over the building… But this is still Melrose Place. There’s still going to be intrigue on the show.

Click HERE to read the rest of this EW interview with Slavkin and Swimmer. Aww … I’m bummed. I really love Ashlee’s crazy Violet character … sure, the acting is atrocious but it kinda works with her craziness. I know my very good friend Darion is going to be crushed that Colin Egglesfield is being written off the show … I believe the Auggie character was his fave of the bunch. While I’m very happy to know that we will soon know who killed Sydney, I’m bummed that these two characters have to be axed so early into the season. Ah well … I guess that’s showbiz.

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Rosie O’Donnell has confirmed to Lifeline Live that she and partner Kelli Carpenter, 42, are on the rocks. In an interview at her Nyack, N.Y., compound Tuesday, USA TODAY’s Ann Oldenburg asked if the two had split — she has been hinting at it in her blog — and O’Donnell didn’t deny it, saying, “We’re a family. We will remain a family forever. And we are working on our issues.” O’Donnell, 47, wouldn’t go into detail about whether Carpenter had moved out of their Nyack home and into Manhattan, as the National Enquirer reported in August. (She was not around during the interview.) “We’re a family, we remain a family and we’re working on the issues,” O’Donnell reiterated, noting that there are four children whose well-being comes before anything. The couple married in San Francisco in 2004 and have three adopted children — Parker, 14, Chelsea, 12 and Blake, 9, as well as Vivienne (”Vivi”), 6, whom Carpenter carried. “They’re adorable and wonderful and they are by far a priority,” O’Donnell said. “Kelli and I love each other very much and we are working on our issues. Those are the only words I am ever going to say. Ever. And that is something that has been agreed upon by all parties,” she said, tears collecting in her eyes. “But everything’s fine and everybody’s good and we’re still both raising them together. We will both continue to parent them and we’re friendly and everything’s all right.”

While it’s commendable that Rosie and Kelli are keep their children’s interests at the forefront of their actions, it really does sound like it’s splitsville for the ladies. It’s always such a shame when a couple breaks up … because we have no idea what led to the split, I think it’s best to just wish them well in their endeavors to work on their issues and hope for the best. Still … this is really sad news ;(

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