The Morning Fix: Oscar going downtown? Hanging with Mark Wahlberg.
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After the coffee. Before seeing if I can find a Morning Fix sponsor.
The Skinny: I can tell that the Morning Fix is popular in the industry by the types of questions I’ve gotten at this week’s TV press tour. Yes, my stomach is feeling better and my neighbors really are annoying. Thanks for reading! Thursday’s headlines include a potential move for the Oscars, YouTube’s big push into professional video and a meeting with Mark Wahlberg.
Not so fast. It seems there is no shortage of potential owners for the Dodgers. Now another has surfaced that has big blue fans (at least the ones who tweet at me) nervous. There is speculation that News Corp.’s Fox, which used to own the Dodgers and famously got rid of fan favorite Mike Piazza, has interest in a minority stake in the team. One thing that some people may have forgotten: Fox already owns a chunk of the Colorado Rockies and can’t have stakes in two teams at the same time. Fox would take a piece of the Dodgers in return for cable TV rights to the team. A more likely scenario (to me anyway) is a new owner selling TV rights to Fox in return for part of one of their sports cable channels.
Hope the parking is better. The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences is looking for a new home for the Oscars and may move the show from Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre to downtown’s Nokia Theatre, which is about twice as big. On the downside, folks going to the Oscars will have a longer drive to the post-show parties. More from the Los Angeles Times and Hollywood Reporter.
Hot market. The Wrap says spec scripts -- written without a deal in place, kind of like my stories -- are hotter than usual. So pull out that half-finished murder mystery or sexy comedy you’ve got stuffed under the mattress and get cranking.
New money. USA Today looks at some of the early projects that YouTube is backing as part of its $100-million plan to make the video site into another place for commercial content. YouTube, still best known as the place to find dancing cats and kids doing goofy things, wants more professional content to boost ad revenue. One new program, a talk show, actually operates full time out of Beverly Hills’ Four Seasons Hotel.
Let the negotiations begin. While ratings have dropped since the September premier, CBS’s ‘Two and a Half Men’ still remains a strong show with Ashton Kutcher on board and Charlie Sheen gone. Now CBS and the show’s producer have to cut a new deal with Kutcher to bring him back next season. Wonder who has the upper hand in this one? More from Variety.
So much for friendly drinks. Fox News correspondent Geraldo Rivera posted a recap of a get-together he had recently with former ’60 Minutes’ producer Lowell Bergman, who often does work for PBS. Turns out, per Rivera, Bergman is working with PBS and nonprofit news outfit Pro Publica on a probe of Fox News parent News Corp. Rivera seemed less than amused. More from TV Newser and Rivera himself from his Facebook page.
Inside the Los Angeles Times: Mark Wahlbeg holds court at the Polo Lounge.
-- Joe Flint
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