While I am VERY excited for Season 6 of Project Runway to debut on Lifetime TV, I’m just about as excited to see the All-Star Challenge as well. Lifetime managed to cull together some of my all time fave designers and I cannot wait to see them go at it again. After the jump, check out individual promo photos of each of the 8 designers who will be competing in this new challenge …

I cannot get over how great everyone looks … but do they still have what it takes to bring the fabulous to the design table? OMG, I can’t wait to find out. I’m kinda bummed that the challenge is just a one-ep thing … I wouldn’t mind a special series of eps where these contestants get weeded out over time. Man, I’ve been dying for Project Runway for so long … I’ll take everything I can get! I’m SOOO excited!! August 20 can’t get here soon enough for me!

[Source]

Kicking off its sixth season, Project Runway will welcome back eight superstar designers from years past, including Santino Rice (pictured), Jeffrey Sebelia and Sweet P, for a special two-hour “All-Star Challenge.” Prior to Lifetime’s Project Runway season premiere and the series premiere of Models of the Runway on Aug. 20, the Runway alums will match wits and fashions to compete for a $100,000 cash prize. Lifetime’s entire release, after the jump. Unprecedented Special Event to Air at 8:00PM ET/PT and Feature Designers from Previous Seasons Special to be Followed by the Season Six Premiere of PROJECT RUNWAY at 10PM ET/PT and the Debut of the All-New Companion Series MODELS OF THE RUNWAY at 11PM ET/PT

Here is the official press release: For the first time in Project Runway history, eight former fan favorites and Project Runway superstars are returning to the catwalk to compete against one another in the two-hour special, Project Runway: All-Star Challenge. The spirited competition premieres Thursday, August 20, at 8PM ET/PT and will be followed by the highly anticipated premiere of the sixth season of Project Runway at 10PM ET/PT and the debut of the all-new companion series, Models of the Runway, at 11PM ET/PT. The announcement was made today by Lifetime Television and The Weinstein Company. At stake for the designers are not only the ultimate bragging rights, but also a $100,000 cash prize. Will the designers be up to the challenge of returning to the workroom, working under the “Gunn” (as in Tim Gunn) to create a successful fashion line? Are they ready to, once again, face the critiques of Heidi Klum, Michael Kors and Nina Garcia, as they showcase their creations?

Daniel Vosovic, Season 2
Santino Rice, Season 2
Jeffrey Sebelia, Season 3
Uli Herzner, Season 3
Mychael Knight, Season 3
Chris March, Season 4
Sweet P, Season 4
Korto Momolu, Season 5

Wow!! What a great idea! I’ve always thought that PR should do an All-Star Challenge and I finallly got my wish. How amazing do Uli, Korto and Sweet P look? I think Jeffrey could do without the porn’stache and WTF? is up with the spelling of Michael Mychael Knight’s name? That’s new, right? Oh … who cares?! I am so in love with this idea. I can’t wait to see it! We’ve got SO MUCH Project Runway awesomeness to look forward to. Thus far, I’m very impressed with what Lifetime is doing with my fave competitive reality TV show. My confidence in their ability to do right by Project Runway continues to grow each day. Are you as excited as I am?

[Source, Source]

I do love the poster … but it is the stills that are most interesting to me. I love them … and I think longtime fans of Project Runway will love them as well. After the jump, check them out …

The thing that struck me the most about these stills from the new season of Project Runway is how much everything looks like the older seasons of Project Runway. Lifetime is not yet ready to show off what the designers look like but these are familiar faces that we all know and really love. Host Heidi Klum, mentor Tim Gunn and fabulous judges Nina Garcia and Michael Kors. If these stills are any indication, then the new season of PR will still have the same feel of the previous seasons that we all adore so much. I am very much heartened from this first look at the new season. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for Project Runway when it premieres on its new network Lifetime on August 20th!

[Source]

The site also features a new promo video for the show which attempts to hype up fans for the show … but IMHO, falls well off the mark. The video features “regular people” talking about how much they love the show and only features brief appearances by hosts Heidi Klum and Time Gunn. There are NO appearances by any of the contestants or any footage from the upcoming season. It’s not a great promo video, in my estimation, but something is better than nothing I suppose. After the jump, check out the promo video in full and judge for yourselves …

NBC Universal, The Weinstein Company and Lifetime have resolved their disputes. The Weinstein Company will pay NBCU for the right to move Project Runway to Lifetime. All of the parties are pleased with the outcome. Harvey Weinstein added, “I want to personally congratulate Jeff Zucker and NBCU on their success in the litigation and thank Jeff for resolving this in a professional manner. We look forward to working together on our ongoing projects.”

I realize that in my excitement and in my haste to pass along this information I could be falling for the cruelest of pranks but the statement was sent to me by an NBC Universal employee and I can’t (well, don’t wanna) believe that something like this would be used as a joke. I will update with any news from confirming sources as soon as I can. I have to believe that this matter has finally been resolved ‘cuz I am dying for another season of Project Runway. It remains to be seen when we will be able to see the show on the air again but I’m crossing my fingers that it will be soon. We shall see.

UPDATE: The LA Times confirms the story, the disputing parties have settled to let Project Runway make the move to Lifetime:

According to a statement issued by NBC Universal today, the dispute is over because the Weinstein Company has agreed to pay NBCU for the right to move the popular reality series to Lifetime. “All of the parties are pleased with the outcome,” NBC Universal said in a statement. Harvey Weinstein, co-chairman of the Weinstein Company, added: “I want to personally congratulate Jeff Zucker and NBCU on their success in the litigation and thank Jeff for resolving this in a professional manner. We look forward to working together on our ongoing projects” … Andrea Wong, president and CEO of Lifetime Networks, who fought hard to land the show, issued the following statement: “I couldn’t be more excited that Lifetime will bring its viewers an amazing, all-new season of ‘Project Runway’ this summer. As the highest-rated cable network for women, Lifetime is the perfect home for this outstanding program as well as its companion series Models of the Runway. All of us at Lifetime are thrilled to move forward with Heidi, Tim, Nina, Michael, The Weinstein Company and the entire ‘Project Runway’ team. We are proud to add these shows to our growing slate of original programming, including the hit series ‘Army Wives’, the all-new upcoming series Drop Dead Diva and our top-rated original movies. Weinstein also added the following: “We’re thrilled to be launching our relationship with Lifetime with this groundbreaking cable deal that includes the next 5 years of ‘Project Runway,’ our new spin-off show ‘Models of the Runway’ and the development of ‘Project Pygmalion,’ along with a package of our movies. With these upcoming shows and the success of our new series ‘The No. 1Ladies Detective Agency’ on HBO, we are very excited about the continued growth of The Weinstein Co’s television division. We are also looking forward to working with NBC Universal on the upcoming theatrical release of ‘Inglourious Basterds’ and the continued development of other projects together.”

YIPPPPPPPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!! BEST.NEWS.EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOT!

[Source]

Jennifer Lopez might have been forced to skip “Project Runway’s” season five finale due to a foot injury, but the hit reality design show will return in 2009 on Lifetime with Lindsay Lohan sitting in the guest judge’s chair for the season premiere. Access Hollywood has learned that the actress will help the judges decide whose fashion is fiercest for the show’s first episode on its new network. The 22-year-old actress, who has been in New York recently shooting episodes of “Ugly Betty,” filmed the premiere episode on Thursday. A source told Access the tentative premiere date for “Runway” on Lifetime is January 20, while the season five finale airs October 15 on Bravo.

IEEEE! While I still may have concerns over the new incarnation of the show that I love so dearly, I am really excited by this news. I knew that the contestants for season 6 had already been cast and I heard that filming was already underway but this is the first concrete news that we’ve gotten thus far. It’s interesting that the the premiere ep of season 6 for Lifetime was filmed one day before the season 5 finale ep for Bravo was filmed. Even tho there has been much talk about the new version of Project Runway moving to LA, I’m comforted by the fact that the season 6 premiere ep was filmed here in NYC. It’s still too early to make any judgments … but I’m pleased with this development and am really looking forward to seeing Linds as guest judge next season.

UPDATE: Pink reader Drew gives me the head’s up that Project Runway has begin filming in LA this week, the show has taken over the third floor of one of the buildings at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, he writes:

The rumors about Project Runway filming in LA aren’t rumors anymore. They’re
filming as we speak over at FIDM in downtown LA. They’ve taken over the 3 story in one of FIDM’s buildings. It’s exciting, but students are already passing around a petition stating how irritated they are. PR took over the newest addition to the school and have prevented the students from using the good equipment and supplies. They’re now stuck with hand-me down mannequins and machines and they are PISSED! Good public relations for FIDM, bad news for the students who are paying $25k a year to go there.

Interesting. It should be noted that The Hills also films at FIDM in LA … I wonder how they actually go about with all the teaching with all that filming going on. Also interesting, former Project Runway contestant Nick Verreos is now an instructor at FIDM … small world.

[Source]

Yeah, it’s nothing fancy or elaborate but it’s a nice tribute to the amazing Estelle Getty, especially since the network airs eps of The Golden Girls 6 times per day (9, 9:30AM, 4, 4:30PM and 1, 1:30AM).

[Source]

Friday, July 25, from 12 noon to 5 pm et/pt, see a special on-air tribute to Estelle Getty, who played the cantankerous Sophia Petrillo on “The Golden Girls.” Ms. Getty passed away on Tuesday, July 22, at age 84. We’ll air 10 episodes showcasing the actress’s character, Sophia, in all her blustering, sarcastic splendor. The final episode shown will be one picked by the fans, so vote for your favorite Sophia moment now.

Click HERE to cast your vote, my pick is for the episode entitled Old Friends … I think that ep would be the most poignant episode to end the marathon (additionally, Old Friends is on my Best Of list of Golden Girls eps). I’m actually surprised that NBC (the network that originated The Golden Girls) hasn’t offered any public tributes to Estelle, at least, none that I could find (not even a mention on their website). The Golden Girls formed the foundation of their Must See TV line-up in the mid-80’s and did much to help the network soar to success. I think it would’ve been nice if they offered some sort of tribute to her.

PS: I don’t know if this t-shirt by Glen Hanson is still available but HERE is info from his site about the shirt.

[Source, thanks Cindy]