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After Writers Guild of America waged a protest regarding the Television Academy‘s decision to move the outstanding writing for a variety series or special categories out of the upcoming Emmy telecast, the TV Academy has reversed course.

In a joint release sent out today, the Television Academy, Fox and the WGA said they were “happy to announce they have reached an agreement to include the Writing for a Variety Series category in the 75th Emmy Awards telecast airing live on Fox on January 15, 2024, at 8pm Est / 5pm Pst.”

Because this year’s Primetime Emmys has moved the variety special (live) category into the telecast (it was on the Creative Arts show last year), the TV Academy was likely looking to keep the telecast capped at 25 awards, so something had to fall out. And in this case, it was the variety writing field that originally got pushed to the Creative Arts ceremony.

Tributes poured in Monday after it was revealed that Paul Reubens, the actor who made Pee-wee Herman famous, died after a private battle with cancer. He was 70.

Reubens turned Pee-wee into a one-man franchise, from the influential kids TV show Pee-Wee’s Playhouse through three feature films — 1985’s Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, 1998’s Big Top Pee-wee and the 2016 Netflix pic Pee-wee’s Big Holiday — and even a Broadway play.

He also appeared on everything from Mystery Men (as Spleen) to Murphy Brown, and stole scenes in the likes of Batman Returns and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

“Paul Reubens was like no one else – a brilliant and original comedian who made kids and their parents laugh at the same time,” Jimmy Kimmel wrote today. “He never forgot a birthday and shared his genuine delight for silliness with everyone he met. My family and I will miss him.”

Said Danny DeVito: “Really loved working with him.

The Amber Ruffin Show and A Black Lady Sketch Show have both secured Emmy writing noms for the first time – noticeably helping to improve the diversity of the category.

The Peacock series and the HBO show will compete in Outstanding Writing For A Variety Series against HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and NBC’s SNL.

A somewhat curious note of this category is that Ashley Nicole Black will compete against herself, having been involved in writing on both The Amber Ruffin Show and A Black Lady Sketch Show.

It marks The Amber Ruffin Show’s first Emmy nomination since the weekly show launched last year. However, it is not Ruffin herself’s first nom, having been nominated in this category for her work, alongside her head writer Jenny Hagel, on Late Night with Seth Meyers.

The Amber Ruffin Show is...

Update, with Seth Meyers quote, Jimmy Fallon message Conan O’Brien might be, as Stephen Colbert described him last night, “like a kid who keeps saying he’s running away [but] he’ll be back before you know it,” yet that didn’t stop either the CBS Late Show host or ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel from paying fond and funny tribute to their nighttime brother.

“Conan has had an amazing tenure,” Colbert said of O’Brien, whose final episode of his TBS talk show Conan aired last night. “It started back in 1993, when he began hosting Late Night at the tender age of nine.”

Colbert then described O’Brien as “a dear friend and a lovely fella who has been nothing but a strength and a great source of advice for me as I took over a late-night show, and I want to congratulate him on 24 incredible years and several perfectly fine ones as well.

Conan O’Brien‘s talk show brethren congratulated him on a job well done on Thursday, as his late-night television tenure came to an end.

ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel began his monologue with an acknowledgment of O’Brien’s last show on TBS. “I want to congratulate Conan O’Brien on 28 years of very funny late-night television,” he said. “You know, before Conan, I didn’t even know bears could masturbate.”

More from TVLinePaul Rudd Crashes Conan's Farewell Week, Reveals Mac and Me Origin StoryThe Tonight Show Video: See How Jimmy Fallon and Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway Celebration Came TogetherConan's Farewell...

Having repeatedly broadcast his intent to challenge the presidential election that he resoundingly lost to Joe Biden, Donald Trump is in need of all the lawyers he can get to file frivolous lawsuits making nonsensical claims about alleged voter fraud and not providing any evidence of said claims. And “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” invented just the law firm to help him destroy American democracy and pull off this coup attempt.

Literally. The firm’s phone number is 1-800-coup-coup-cachoo.

This is all a joke, of course, originating in Tuesday’s edition of the cold open sketches that begin each new episode of “Colbert.” The skit takes the form of a local TV commercial, as these often do, with “Colbert” writer Brian Stack starring, as he often does.

Watch here.

On #Lssc tonight: For presidents who want to sue over election results, we have the lawyer for you. pic.

The big story of the week thus far is the New York Times report which finally made Donald Trump’s income tax returns public after the president has spent years bucking convention by not disclosing them. And one of the items from that report that many people have honed in on is Trump’s $70,000 write-off for personal hair-styling expenses while he was on “The Apprentice,” which “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” lampooned to begin Monday’s episode.

“The Late Show” begins each episode with a little skit of sorts from Colbert and his staff — often taking the form of a fake commercial. This skit was one of those, a fake ad for a barber shop that will help you cheat on your taxes with bogus deductions.

You can watch the bit below, or on Twitter.

On #Lssc tonight: Trump’s taxes reveal where he gets his haircuts. pic.twitter.

“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” typically begins with a cold open sketch poking fun and/or insulting Trump and his fellow Republicans.

Tuesday’s opening sketch, which featured “Late Show” writer Brian Stack as a British news anchor on a fake news show, which was a clever setup since “The Late Show” immediately follows local news in many markets.

In the bit, Stack’s fake newsman talked about the large balloon depicting Donald Trump as a baby that will fly over London when he visits the city this weekend.

Also Read: Colbert Hopes Trump Learns the Right Lesson From the Thai Cave Rescue: 'Freeing Children Makes People Like You' (Video)

“Welcome back to the evening news. On the day President Trump embarked on his trip to Europe for the Nato summit, London Mayor Sadiq Khan allowed an unflattering depiction of President Trump and here with his opinion, Nigel Farage,...

Stephen Colbert interviewed Cartoon Trump again on The Late Show on Wednesday. Cartoon Trump is voiced by comedian Brian Stack, but all of his statements were taken verbatim from parts of a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal.

Sometimes the President was wildly nonsensical: "We're the highest-taxed nation in the world. We have – nobody knows what the number is. I mean, it used to be, when we talked during the debate, $2.5 trillion, right, when the most elegant person – right? I call him Mr. Elegant."

Trump also displayed his usual boastfulness.

Stephen Colbert will executive produce a new animated comedy for Showtime about President Donald Trump's White House. The cable network ordered 10 episodes of the half-hour show, which will premiere this fall.

The as-yet-untitled show will be a mockumentary-style workplace comedy that doubles as a character study. Per a statement it will "present the truish adventures of Trump’s confidants and bon vivants – family, top associates, heads of government, golf pros and anyone else straying into his orbit – intrepidly exploring their histories and their psyches, revealing insights into what makes them so definitively Trumpian.

The Writers Guild of America has just announced the nominations for their annual awards for Best Screenplays (by writers who are guild signatories). That’s right, before you get nervous thinking that your favorite may have been left off the list, you must remember that the WGA is the group that is not all-inclusive and leaves out several of the top contenders each year due to them not being part of the guild or not following their very specific rules. For this reason, you won’t see Inside Out, The Hateful Eight, and Ex Machina in the Original Screenplay category or Room, Brooklyn, or Anomalisa in the Adapted screenplay category.

Taking a look at what’s left over for the nominations, we find many that were expected to make a showing, including Spotlight and Bridge of Spies for Original Screenplay, though they apparently had to sink to really low depths...

The Writers Guild of America announced some of its nominees for its 2015 awards on Thursday, including television, new media, and radio, and among the TV nominees are series both new and old, and all beloved.

In the comedy series category, freshman Netflix show "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" scored a nomination for best series, as well as an overall best new series nod. "The Last Man on Earth" also landed in that latter category, and was singled out for its pilot episode writing, too.

On the drama side of the equation, lauded "Breaking Bad" spinoff "Better Call Saul" also got best series and best new series nominations, in addition to a an episode writing nod. Newly-minted Emmy winner "Game of Thrones" also scored a best drama citation, as well as an episodic writing nomination.

The full list of nominees released this week are below. Nominations in the theatrical and documentary categories will...

One of the iconic figures in the storied history of Saturday Night Live, Chris Farley did everything past its limit. The documentary I Am Chris Farley (Spike, Monday, Aug. 10, at 9pm Et/Pt) tells Farley’s hilarious, touching and wildly entertaining story through clips from his most memorable TV and film roles, home movies, photos, and interviews with the people who knew him best and loved him most, including Christina Applegate, Tom Arnold, Dan Aykroyd, Bo Derek, Pat Finn, Jon Lovitz, Lorne Michaels, Jay Mohr, Mike Myers, Bob Odenkirk, Bob Saget, Adam Sandler, Will Sasso, Molly Shannon, David Spade, Brian Stack … Continue reading →

The post Preview: “I Am Chris Farley” documentary premieres on Spike appeared first on Channel Guide Magazine.

State senator and Union City Mayor Brian Stack appeared on CNN on Tuesday where he came out in support of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and said that he has been one of the “best" governors the state has ever had. He added that he thought the mayor of his city’s abutting city, Hoboken’s Dawn Zimmer, was making “far-fetched” allegations against Christie’s administration.

In honor of his twenty years on TV, Conan O'Brien (well, whoever runs his website) is uploading classic videos. Here's one from 1997 starring a still-on-SNL Will Ferrell as Scrub-a-Dub, who's kind of like Mr. Clean, if Mr. Clean were a real D. Longtime Conan writer Brian Stack says it was actually written by frequent Ferrell collaborator and former SNL head writer Adam McKay. If that's not good enough, the bit also features Amy Poehler when she was barely old enough to rent a car. It's a funny reminder of comedy past — like finding a time capsule filled with whoopee cushions.

What do Walter White and Phil Dunphy have in common? They’re both at the center of the TV shows most honored by the Writers Guild of America today. The group just announced the nominees for its annual awards, which will be handed out Feb. 17 at simultaneous ceremonies in Los Angeles and New York. Breaking Bad garnered five nods; Modern Family drew four. Here’s a list of all the primetime and late night series in contention for the event’s biggest prizes:

Drama Series

Boardwalk Empire, Written by Dave Flebotte, Diane Frolov, Chris Haddock, Rolin Jones, Howard Korder, Steve Kornacki,...

British rock stalwart Nick Lowe hadn't made a music video in 18 years, but in producing a video for his new song "Sensitive Man," which premiered today on NPR.org, Lowe went an unusual route -- casting a bunch of American comedians.

Lowe, whose colorful life in rock-and-roll includes producing Elvis Costello's first five albums, marrying a daughter of June Carter Cash and penning the hit "Cruel to be Kind," released his latest album "This Old Magic" to favorable reviews in late 2011.

"Sensitive Man" was directed by Scott Jacobson, who formerly wrote for "Daily Show" and currently works on "Bob's Burgers." Jacobson took a similar route by casting comedians in other very funny, yet quietly sad videos he directed for The National and Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, among others.

This video opens with a conversation between Maria Thayer and Marc Maron (who recently interviewed Lowe on "Wtf"), introducing the idea...

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) has announced the winners of the WGA Awards for outstanding achievement in writing. In the Screenplay category, "Midnight in Paris," written by Woody Allen, took home the Original Screenplay award while "The Descendants," written by Alexander Payne, and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemming, received the Best Adapted Screenplay award.

Winners of the WGA awards were announced Sunday, Feb. 19 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles. Zooey Deschanel and Joel McHale served as hosts of the ceremony.

Here is the full list of winners (highlighted) and nominees of the 2012 WGA Awards (to see winners/nominees of other award-giving bodies, visit our Awards Avenue coverage right here)

Screenplay Nominees

Original Screenplay

50/50, Written by Will Reiser; Summit Entertainment

Bridesmaids, Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig; Universal Studios

*** (Winner) Midnight in Paris, Written by Woody Allen; Sony Pictures Classics

Win Win,...

Midnight in Paris, Young Adult, and the other nominations for the 2012 Writers Guild Awards have been announced. The 64th Annual Writers Guild Awards is “a generic term referring to the joint efforts of two different Us labor unions: The Writers Guild of America, East (Wgae), representing TV and film writers East of the Mississippi. The Writers Guild of America, West (Wgaw), representing TV and film writers in Hollywood and southern California.” The 2012 Writers Guild Awards will be held on February 19, 2012.

The full listing of the 2012 Writers Guild Awards nominations is below.

Screenplay Nominees

Original Screenplay

50/50, Written by Will Reiser; Summit Entertainment

Bridesmaids, Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig; Universal Pictures

Midnight in Paris, Written by Woody Allen; Sony Pictures Classics

Win Win, Screenplay by Tom McCarthy; Story by Tom McCarthy & Joe Tiboni; Fox Searchlight

Young Adult, Written by Diablo Cody; Paramount Pictures

Adapted Screenplay

The Descendants, Screenplay by Alexander Payne...

HollywoodNews.com: The Writers Guild of America, West (Wgaw) and the Writers Guild of America, East (Wgae) have announced nominations for outstanding achievement in television, news, radio, promotional writing, and graphic animation during the 2011 season. The winners will be honored at the 2012 Writers Guild Awards on Sunday, February 19, 2012, at simultaneous ceremonies in Los Angeles and New York.

Television Nominees

Drama Series

Boardwalk Empire, Written by Bathsheba Doran, Dave Flebotte, Howard Korder, Steve Kornacki, Itamar Moses, Margaret Nagle, Terence Winter; HBO

Breaking Bad, Written by Sam Catlin, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Gennifer Hutchison, George Mastras, Thomas Schnauz, Moira Walley-Beckett; AMC

Game of Thrones, Written by David Benioff, Bryan Cogman, Jane Espenson, George R.R. Martin, D.B. Weiss; HBO

The Good Wife, Written by Courtney Kemp Agboh, Meredith Averill, Corinne Brinkerhoff, Leonard Dick, Keith Eisner, Karen Hall, Ted Humphrey, Michelle King, Robert King, Steve Lichtman, Matthew Montoya, Julia Wolfe; CBS

Homeland, Written by Henry Bromell,...

Conan writer and Huffington Post contributor Guy Nicolucci released the first episode of the bizarre Funny Or Die web series The Ghost of Tom Carvel and a Real Topless Woman earlier this week. The first episode, which features a guest appearance by comedian Andy Richter, introduces a show that is exactly what it sounds like: the ghost of legendary ice cream maker Tom Carvel (voiced by Conan writer Brian Stack) hosts a talk show with a half-naked woman (played by actress Dru Mouser). Don't get too excited—her chest is blurred out. Guy told Punchline Magazine, “I bought a friend a Carvel ice cream cake for his birthday and it got me on a two-day jag of talking like Carvel. When I finished annoying my wife and burning my throat out, I found this article that said Carvel might have been murdered. After that the series kind of fell into place.

As hard as it may be to believe sometimes, someone (or someones) actually sits down and writes a movie or TV show before you end up seeing it at your local multiplex or on your favorite TV network. The people who do the sitting and the writing are, surprisingly, called writers and, like the Directors, the Golden Globes and the Oscars, they have their own awards show.

This week, the Writers Guild of America, which is the trade group and advocate for writers, announced its nominations for outstanding achievement in feature film and television, radio, news, promotional writing, and graphic animation during the 2009 season to be honored at the upcoming 2010 Writers Guild Awards on February 20, 2010, in Los Angeles and New York.

We realize that these nominations may not be as glamorous as the Golden Globes or the Oscars, but we kinda like writers around here and think they do a pretty important job.

Awards heavyweights "Mad Men," "30 Rock" and "The Office" and buzzed-about newcomer "Modern Family" led the TV field for the 2010 Writers Guild Awards with three nominations each.

AMC's "Mad Men" and NBC's "30 Rock" and "The Office" are in the running for best drama/comedy series, and each received two nominations for episodic writing. "Family" made the cut for best comedy series, best new series and best episodic writing for a comedy series.

ABC's "Family" was one of two new shows to break into the best series categories along with Fox's quirky high-school dramedy "Glee," which faces "Family" in the best comedy series and best new series fields.

While the WGA Awards are still in its nomination phase, Fox's "The Simpsons" can already uncork the champagne. The veteran series is assured to win the animation category after landing all five nomination slots.

The biggest surprise among the series nominees was HBO's low-key baseball comedy "Eastbound & Down,...

So the 2009 Primetime Emmy Awards took place last night... did you tune in? I hear it was a good show even though a lot of the winners were pretty much a given. 30 Rock and Mad Men both took home the big awards, but the hardware was spread out a bit more among other shows than in previous years. At any rate, just in case you missed it, we've got the full list of major award winners right here for you to review. Do you agree with the majority of the choices? For those who did watch the show, what were some of your favourite moments? What did you think of Neil Patrick Harris as the host? Check out the list of winners after the jump. Comedy Series "Entourage" "Family Guy "Flight of the Conchords" "How I Met Your Mother" "The Office" Winner: "30 Rock" "Weeds" Drama Series "Big Love" "Breaking Bad...

So another year has passed and its time for another round of awards for the people who make the television shows we like to watch.

Television is interesting these days. Never before have we seen such great, creative output. Never before have we been subjected to such drivel. It all gets paraded before us tonight, as we watch the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards (handed out, it should be noted, by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences) on CBS, CTV in Canada.

8:00

Interesting that the Emmys chose to introduce the 2009 edition of the Primetime awards by harkening back to the early days of television. Especially as the business of television has never been closer to a complete collapse. Oh, announcer who is trying so hard to sound like a TV host from the '50s. You don't sound at all like you're a three pack-a-day smoker.

8:01

Okay, here comes Neil Patrick Harris,...

"The Dark Knight," "Slumdog Millionaire," "Doubt," "Frost/Nixon," and "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" are among the nominees in the Adapted Screenplay category for the WGA's (Writers Guild Awards) 61st Anniversary awards show.

Winners will be announced February 7th, and will be held simultaneously between two ceremonies -- West Coast at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, and the East Coast at the Hudson Theatre at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in New York City.

What about "Milk" or "The Wrestler?" Click Read More to see full list of nominees!

Original Screenplay

Burn After Reading, Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, Focus Features

Milk, Written by Dustin Lance Black, Focus Features

Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Written by Woody Allen, The Weinstein Company

The Visitor, Written by Tom McCarthy, Overture Films

The Wrestler, Written by Robert Siegel, Fox Searchlight Pictures

Adapted Screenplay

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Screenplay...