Say halo to ABC’s inferior ‘Angels’
Not every beauty can be an angel.
Part of the retro movement sweeping prime time, ABC’s remake of the 1970s hit needs all the prayers it can get.
Before becoming private investigators, Abby (Rachael Taylor, “Grey’s Anatomy”) was a Park Avenue socialite who became a first-class thief. Kate (Annie Ilonzeh, “General Hospital”) was a crooked cop on the take.
In “Angel With a Broken Wing,” the two seek to avenge the death of one of their own by apprehending her killer, a trafficker of humans (Carlos Bernard, “24”), with the help of a biker (Minka Kelly, “Friday Night Lights”) with a dark past.
There are sleek cars, tight dresses, explosions, sprays of gunfire, mixed martial arts and dialogue that falls like granite.
The women never sparkle on camera.
Drew Barrymore, who starred in the two big-screen versions, serves as executive producer alongside original series producer Leonard Goldberg. Writers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar (“Smallville”) seem to have generated their script from a Mad Libs exercise.
The angels now operate out of the Townsend Agency, located in a swanky Miami complex. The speaker box has been replaced with a desktop model out of “Star Trek.”
The most radical change in this reboot?
Bosley — in the form of Ramon Rodriguez — has been hunkified, a slab of beefcake who is an expert hacker. It’s a cagey move on ABC’s part. Why shouldn’t the women at home get some eye candy?
Whether the ladies were disguising themselves as magician’s assistants or going undercover as prisoners on a chain gang, the 1970s “Charlie’s Angels” had a sense of playfulness. The actresses (original stars Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson and especially Jaclyn Smith) knew they were filling a silly hour and seemed to be winking at the camera.
Their series was a bundle of contradictions: It marked the birth of “jiggle-vision” and yet was a feminist statement (three independent women investigating crime), but not a threatening one (they all still answered to the invisible Charlie).
This viewer didn’t recognize the voice of Charlie in the rough cut. Robert Wagner was set to step in to replace the late, smooth John Forsythe (“Dynasty”) but reportedly bowed out due to scheduling issues. ABC declined to respond to a request for clarification, and it’s unclear if the show will be able to secure a name actor in time to dub the dialogue for the premiere.
Whoever reads those stilted lines, it won’t make a difference.
These angels never take flight.
A New Shoe Store To Love In Larchmont
There’s a new shoe store in town and it’s one that women and children alike are guaranteed to love—and not just because that’s a part of its name. Love Shoes—which opened on Aug. 20 in Larchmont—carries many items in addition to shoes, including handbags, jewelry and scarves, with more to come, according to owner Ellie Devito.
A brightly lit, airy atmosphere greets customers as they browse the merchandise. Witty quotes from Marilyn Monroe and Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw referencing shoes line the walls. The new, completely renovated store occupies the space of longtime children’s shoe retailer Plaza Bootery, which closed in April after 40 years. Love Shoes also fills the void left by women’s shoe store Plaza Too, which closed last year after 26 years in Larchmont.
Devito, 35, and a resident of Crestwood, also owns clothing and accessories boutique Love by Bella Fiora, located next door to her new store. “Everyone was joking with me that I had to open a shoe store after Plaza Too went out of business, because after that there was no place local to buy women’s shoes,” she said via a telephone interview.
“I really wasn’t interested because I was busy with my clothing store. Then, Plaza Bootery closed and the location was perfect. My husband, William, is the one who really encouraged me to open a shoe store, mainly because I know and have good relationships with lots of the women in town and their families.”
Love Shoes carries brands for women that include Stuart Weitzman, Michael Kors and Cole Haan. “We also carry rain boots by Hunter and dress boots—La Canadienne being one brand— as well,” she said. Price points range according to make and style. “We have ballet flats that start at $60 to boots for $695,” said Devito. “We carry the better brands but there’s something for everyone price-wise.”
The store carries shoes from over 40 different designers. “The next two weeks we’ll be getting in more stock,” she said.
Devito also brought in Plaza Too’s longtime shoe buyer as a consultant. “I never feel like I know everything—I am always learning—so I want good people to help me pick the best products.”
Count Love Shoes’ women’s shoe buyer Vanessa Seide, 33, among those people. “I come from the design end, so it’s good to be on the retail side and use my experience to help people pick the right shoe,” she said. “Everyone is excited by what we have to offer.”
Store Manager and children’s shoe buyer Carolina Lopez, 32, and a resident of Harrison, agrees. “We have a gorgeous selection, and everyone knows and trusts Ellie,” she said. “We have styles that are trendy and current yet appeal to many tastes.”
The younger set can also enjoy an array of footwear, with more to come for back-to-school. “We carry the European lines—Naturino, Umi and Primigi among them—as well as Stride Rite and Skechers,” Devito said. “We’ll also be getting kids’ socks in soon.”
Devito will also begin to expand Love Shoes’ line for tweens, a burgeoning market. “Michael Kors and Stuart Weitzman have juniors’ brands that we plan to carry,” she said. The store also offers children’s boots and raincoats.
What would footwear be without the right accessories to compliment it? Love Shoes covers that question as well. “We have lots of fun and trendy jewelry styles,” said Devito. Baubles range from $28 to $98. Handbags can be found in a range of styles. “We sell a lot of clutches for evening, plus we have handbags by designers such as Michael Kors and Cole Haan,” she added. Scarves range from $40 to $78.
Devito is clearly ready for what Love Shoes has to offer customers. “I really enjoy working with clientele and building relationships with them,” she said. “I have existing customers who come from my other store as well and I am getting lots of new people, which is great. I encourage people to go outside the box and try new styles that will flatter them and look good.”
NBA, Referees Agree on Five-Year Deal
The NBA and its referees approved a new five-year deal Thursday, just two years after a contract dispute nearly caused the league to open the season with replacements.
A person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that the referees voted on the deal last week. The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because those details were confidential.
Owners ratified it at their meeting in Dallas on Thursday, and terms of the contract were not disclosed.
The agreement heads off the potential of two NBA lockouts. Players and owners still are working on a deal to replace the one that expired June 30.
"We did not get everything we wanted, but given the current economic climate and the continuing players' lockout, we are satisfied that this deal was in the best interests of our members," National Basketball Referees Association general counsel Lee Seham said in a statement.
The referees' contracts traditionally have been for five years, but they sought a two-year deal in 2009, hoping they could quickly renegotiate when the economy had improved.
Those negotiations went poorly, with the league locking out the referees on Sept. 18, a little more than two weeks after their contract had expired. Replacement referees were used during preseason games, to the criticism of many coaches and players, before the sides agreed to a deal in time for the regular season.
These talks also had some rocky moments.
NBRA executive board member Thomas Washington called them a "long and arduous process."
Seham said the referees' union intended to withdraw all pending contract grievances and charges before the National Labor Relations Board.
Ex-NBA player accuses restaurant of discrimination
The retired NBA All-Star and a friend claim they were ousted from the bar of a ritzy Atlanta restaurant because they were black. The restaurant says they weren't the victims of a discriminatory policy, but a long-standing practice rooted in Southern hospitality that allows women a seat at the bar when the place is packed.
Those arguments were made Monday at the start of the weeklong federal trial of a lawsuit filed by Joe Barry Carroll and attorney Joseph Shaw. The two say they were humiliated when a security guard escorted them from the Tavern at Phipps when they refused to give up their seats to a couple of white women, an action they say was part of a broader pattern of discrimination against blacks.
"You're probably thinking: Two black gentlemen go to a bar - this is a joke," Jeffrey Bramlett, an attorney for the men, told the jury during opening arguments. "But it's no joke. The evidence will show a serious civil rights violation."
The restaurant's lawyers said the men were asked to give up their seats as part of a long-standing "good manners" practice that's been in place at the restaurant for 20 years. Attorney David Long-Daniels said thousands of men have complied with those rules, from stars like Michael Jordan to the other men at the bar the night of the incident.
"Chivalry is not dead," he said. "And it's not a civil rights violation to give up your seat to a woman."
The standoff over the seats took place on a Friday night in August 2006 when Carroll, who played parts of 10 seasons in the NBA starting in the 1980s, and Shaw sat and the end of a bar and ordered a few beers, a few appetizers and some liquor. As the crowd grew thicker, a bartender offered them complimentary drinks to move, but they declined.
ESPN scores deal with NFL; games to come to iPad
Just hours before the opening kickoff of the new NFL season, ESPN reached a $15 billion-plus deal with the league to continue airing its popular "Monday Night Football" program through 2021 - and also for the first time bring those games to Apple Inc.'s popular iPad tablet.
The eight-year agreement will cost the Walt Disney Co.'s sports network $1.9 billion a year - up a whopping 72 percent from what it is currently paying, according to a person familiar with terms of the deal. Such a significant increase underscores the growing value of live games in attracting television audiences, as well as the importance of emerging digital platforms.
Analysts predict that ESPN will use its expanded NFL programming to justify future rate increase from cable and satellite distributors - which ultimately could translate into higher fees for consumers.
"ESPN has the bulk of their affiliate agreements coming due in 2012 and 2015," wrote media analyst Michael Nathanson of Nomura Securities Co. "We would expect ESPN to use the NFL again for another round of price increases."
David M. Carter, director of the Sports Business Institute at the University of Southern California, said that while some might experience "sticker shock" when they look at the magnitude of ESPN's sports rights payment, the network has the ability to wring value from the NFL programming by distributing it on television, radio, print, online and mobile platforms.
"Nothing related to the NFL will hit the cutting room floor," Carter said. "They are able to take all of that NFL content and spread it across all its business units ... to ensure they will be able to make money from this deal."
Under terms of the deal, ESPN will gain rights to an additional 500 hours of NFL programming - enabling the network to expand some of its existing shows, including the pregame "Sunday NFL Countdown," and launch new ones such as "NFL 32" and "NFL Kickoff," which debut this week.
ESPN also gained expanded rights to carry game highlights on TV and online, and to air the Pro Bowl, the NFL draft and an option for one postseason wild card playoff game.
Enhanced international rights clear ESPN to televise "Monday Night Football" and other regular season games, playoff contests and the Super Bowl to 30 million households in such overseas markets as Brazil, the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand, and continental Europe.
"The scope of the digital rights we have, the length, the international expansion - it really fuels our company 24/7," said ESPN President George Bodenheimer. " 'Monday Night Football' is obviously a TV icon and drives substantial viewership every Monday night."
The other networks that carry the NFL will similarly face increases when they renew their deals. News Corp.'s Fox shells out $730 million annually, and CBS ponies up $625 million for its Sunday afternoon games. Each of the three could end up joining ESPN in paying 10 figures per season by the time their contracts expire.
Sports rights have become so expensive, in part, because ratings for just about everything else on TV have diminished. Live events still draw big numbers, particularly NFL games, each of which attracted an average of 18 million viewers last season.
Last year, "Monday Night Football" drew an average of 14.7 million viewers, receiving the highest ratings among men ages 18 to 49. Advertisers pay a premium to reach those viewers.
Moreover, viewers watch the events live - an increasingly rare phenomenon, as more than one-third of American households have access to digital video recorders that allow people to delay viewing (and skip commercials).
"It has all of the obvious benefits," said Craig E. Moffett, an analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. "It doesn't lend itself to ad-skipping or latent viewing. It's programming that people are willing to pay a premium to see in high definition, on a large screen, in real time."
Ex-fullback Evans brings bruising style to NFL Network studio
As a bruising fullback in the NFL for 10 seasons, Heath Evans always made an impact on defenders, and it didn't take him long to make an impact in his new career as an NFL Network studio analyst.
Evans' lukewarm opinion of Matthew Stafford's performance as the Detroit Lions quarterback on Monday's edition of "Around The League" has drawn some jeers in the Motor City, according to MLive.com.
Seems that the folks in Lions country took notice of the heated exchange between Evans, who joined NFL Network in late August after retiring from the Saints, and former NFL front office executive and current NFL Network analyst Michael Lombardi.
The two men were giving their opinions on the best division in the league, and things were going smooth enough until Lombardi explained his choice of the NFC North was based on the strength of the division's quarterbacks, including Stafford. Evans chose the NFC South, insisting that those four quarterbacks were better, including Panthers starter Cam Newton, the No. 1 overall pick in this year's NFL Draft.
Lombardi then heaped more praise on Stafford, but Evans wasn't buying it, sticking with his man Newton.
"He brings a lot of things to the table that Matthew Stafford will never bring to the table," Evans said of Newton.
"Heath, are you kidding me? Matthew Stafford doesn't bring it to the table?" responded Lombardi, his volume rising noticeably. "I don't mind debating with you, but you gotta get real. Watch Matthew Stafford play before you talk about it ... it's not even close."
Things got even testier from there. Evans said he wasn't strictly equating the two as quarterbacks, but he did point out that Stafford, the No. 1 overall pick in 2008's NFL Draft, has yet to make it through a season without missing significant time due to injuries.
Detroit News columnist Terry Foster was another observer who disagreed with Evans' take, even accusing the Auburn alum of favoritism in comparing Stafford with Newton, who won the Heisman Trophy for the Tigers last season.
Where did Stafford play his college ball? Oh yeah, Georgia.
Kevin Durant begins new web series called ‘35th Hour’: A fan’s take
Kevin Durant(notes) just can't seem to rest. Maybe he is wired that way, where down time drives him nuts and he always has to find something to do to keep himself occupied. Whatever the reason, while the NBA owners choose to lock the players out and threaten to cancel the entire 2011-12 season, Kevin Durant has become a beacon of spotlight for the face of the NBA players.
Forget about the fact that Kevin Durant has played in exhibition games all over the world, dropping 66 at Rucker Park and scoring 59 against LeBron James(notes) on August 30. Now, Durant is putting his face out there for the world to see both in movies and on his own Internet show, "35th Hour."
Durant's movie will be filmed in Baton Rouge instead of Oklahoma City due to Louisiana's tax incentives. This cripples the chance for the Oklahoma City area to benefit from the money that would be pumped into the economy thanks to the film production and proves why Baton Rouge is miles ahead of Oklahoma when it comes to economic growth. However, Durant is not stopping with just a movie.
"35th Hour" is Durant's new web show that is hosted both on his own personal website kevindurant35.com as well as his YouTube channel at OfficialKevinDurant. The debut video begins with text explaining that the web series exists to prove to fans that Durant is just a normal guy and he shows what he does on a regular basis. That includes playing video games, hanging out with his friends and cruising around town. Of course, in the first video he also signs autographs, plays basketball and wins an MVP trophy.
But the fact is that Kevin Durant is setting himself up for his fans to get to know better. Durant wants to prove that he is not one of the spoiled millionaires that this NBA lockout paints many of his contemporaries as. He loves to play basketball and has been playing all summer for free. He says in the video that he feels basketball is the greatest game in the world and explains that is proven because even the Earth is shaped like a basketball.
That is what you will get with these videos. Kevin Durant is a charismatic and funny guy. He wants his fans to get to know him and when they do, it will be hard to view him as a villain during this NBA lockout mess.
Tom Coughlin pleased with rookies
The New York Giants team on the practice field Monday morning was significantly smaller than when the team last convened on Friday.
The Giants sliced their roster from 80 to 53 players on Saturday evening, and after an off day on Sunday, the team began their preparation in earnest for their regular season opener in Washington on Sunday.
Of the 53 players on the current Giants roster, a whopping 10 of them are rookies -- seven draft picks, plus three undrafted free agents. Coach Tom Coughlin was asked after Monday's practice if having that many rookies is a good thing.
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"It's gonna be a good thing -- it's gotta be a good thing," Coughlin said, laughing. "They bring vitality, they bring energy. I just hope we can last through it, chain it all down and get it going in the right direction."
What's more unusual is that the Giants retained four rookie linebackers, among their seven already on the roster. That means, at least as the roster is currently constructed, four players with zero NFL experience will be backing up the starting trio of Michael Boley, Jonathan Goff and Mathias Kiwanuka.
All four newcomers said that things felt different at practice on Monday.
"Everything picks up," said Mark Herzlich, the undrafted rookie out of Boston College. "Speed picks up a little bit. You saw it even just today in the walkthrough, there was a little bit more sense of urgency, in terms of getting things done right, getting things done fast. ... This week it's all about business."
Herzlich is the biggest name among the four first-year linebackers -- a former ACC Defensive Player of the Year, who has overcome a rare form of bone cancer in his left leg to make his NFL dreams come true.
Herzlich admitted that he was on pins and needles on Saturday waiting for the 6 p.m. deadline to find out whether he was going to be cut. He spent the morning having breakfast at IHOP with fellow rookies Spencer Paysinger, Tyler Sash and Henry Hynoski, and then the afternoon in Chili's by himself watching the Boston College-Northwestern game.
When 6 p.m. came and went, Herzlich hadn't received a phone call from the Giants -- meaning he had made the team. "It was the most anticlimactic happy ending that you can think of," he said.
But Herzlich is not satisfied with just making the team, or with being a heartwarming story because he has recovered from cancer.
"I wanna try to go from being a feel-good story to making an impact on the field," Herzlich said.
All four rookie linebackers want to make a big impact on the field. And the four of them have bonded, both on and off the field -- in fact, Herzlich said they're all planning to live near each other.
"In a way it's nice, only because we all know where we came from," said Greg Jones, a sixth-round draft choice out of Michigan State. "We all worked our butts off to get to this point, and we all have a lot of mutual respect for one another. So I think that's important. We take that and we use it."
"We definitely got used to knowing each other and understanding how we all are," said Jacquian Williams, also a sixth-round pick, from South Florida. "And we just push each other. We're doing pretty good."
"All of us individually, we have some different things that we can bring to the team," said Spencer Paysinger, the other undrafted free agent, from Oregon. "Mark's a bigger guy, he can run down the field. Jacquian can cover people. Greg is really good inside the box. I can do a couple things. We all bring something to the table."
For now, these four will mostly be contributing on special teams. But it's a long season. And the way the injury bug has bitten the Giants already during the preseason, they better be prepared to see some action on defense as well.
And they better not take their roster spots for granted. The Giants could certainly make some personnel moves over the course of the year. When Coughlin was asked about the state of the roster on Monday, he replied, "Well, it's our team, but we're constantly looking to upgrade and improve."
But after talking to the young linebackers on Monday, you didn't get the impression that motivation will be a problem.
"It's a great feeling to make it this far," Herzlich said. "I just gotta keep working and working and working, to try to stay on the team.
"I've officially made it for a day. I got through today, and I think at 12:30 we're done here, so that's one day. I don't think anybody tries to make the NFL for a day."
Payton revved up for Thursday night's opener vs. Pack
In a not-so-typical move for a coach, the New Orleans Saints' Sean Payton refuses to play down Thursday's regular-season opener at Green Bay, saying the prime-time meeting between the last two Super Bowl champions is more than enough to get him excited.
"To open the season in a prime-time game against last year's Super Bowl winner, and it happens to be in Lambeau Field, those are a lot of things that get your competitive juices flowing," Payton told the The Times-Picayune on Friday. "And it'll be a tough environment. It'll be a real good challenge. And then, really, take into account that you're playing a team that won the Super Bowl last year. All those things we'll feel and see and recognize as being a big challenge."
Payton talked up the game, but downplayed his influence over the result.
"I think, especially early in the season, it's going come down to blocking and tackling. It's going come down to protecting the football and the execution," Payton told the newspaper. "That's typically what's gonna win or lose games, especially a game like this that's first on the schedule in early September ... as opposed to these fancy new ideas that are gonna be the reason a team wins or loses. It's gonna come down to the basic things."
Payton is 1-1 in Thursday night NFL Kickoff games, losing 41-10 to the defending Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts in 2007 and beating the Minnesota Vikings 14-9 last year as defending champions.
The NFL's previous Super Bowl winner has hosted the last seven Thursday openers and won them all.
Break from NHL gave Fedoruk chance to beat demons
You have to give Todd Fedoruk credit; he isn’t shy about discussing his drug and alcohol addictions which he says were the real reason he was bought out in Tampa, ending his NHL career unless he should happen to catch on with the Vancouver Canucks this fall.
The winger says he’s been clean for nearly 18 months, is in terrific shape and is ready to drop the gloves as part of the role he has to play if he’s going to be a regular in the league as he has been for nine seasons, most of those with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Fedoruk has had many legendary fights, the most devastating being the shattering of his face by the late Derek Boogaard in October 2006 when the prospective Canuck was in Anaheim. It had to be rebuilt by doctors.
He was also knocked unconscious for nearly four minutes by Colton Orr in another exchange of fists, but he says he’ll still be willing to throw them if necessary, although skating and hitting are going to be his main focus.
“The doctors tell me that the guys are so big now and hit so hard that it (your face) is going to be broken whether it’s been rebuilt or not,” says Fedoruk, 32. “I know that’s something I’m going to have to do every now and then, there’s just times when it needs to be done. It’s part of my game.
“I think I got a little bit away from that when I was in Tampa. I had this sense of entitlement there, that I’d somehow earned the right not to have to do it anymore. And I used the facial injuries I’d had as an excuse not to have to do it anymore. But the game doesn’t work that way.”
Fedoruk was out of hockey all last year and he says the lack of interest shown by NHL teams was the best thing that’s happened to him. The year away from the game allowed him to assess his priorities and repair the relationship with his family — wife Theresa, son Luke, 7, and daughters Sienna, 5, and Sloane, 10 months.
Being a good father and husband are now priorities.
“I needed the time away to mend myself, get to know myself better as a person, and realize the relapse happened because I got away from the disciplined things I’m always going to have to do to stay right mentally once it’s a part of your life. I thought earlier in my career I hid it pretty well, but Tampa was where it all started to relapse and being out of the game really let me take a look at myself.
“I had serious drug and alcohol problems. Alcohol was the drug of choice I suppose but I wasn’t particular, I’d go for pretty much anything that was in front of me, the whole array. I wasn’t shy and didn’t say ‘no’ to much.
“I spent a year focusing on the things I need to do and it was a long time before I was even interested in hockey or even watching it
“I’d been keeping myself in decent shape, but not to the point where I could play, until July when I started to get the itch to play again. I talked it over with my wife and some friends who are close to me and they said they thought it would be all right. I asked my agent (Brad Devine) to see if there was any interest. I wasn’t expecting a contract of course, but I was hoping for a tryout and I was actually a little surprised at how quickly Vancouver showed some interest. It was only about four days after I spoke to Brad that they called.
“But I’m a long shot I guess. I’m going to have to open some eyes and I’m going to have to do that by being quick enough to make some hits and be responsible defensively. I don’t think getting there will be a problem. I’m skating here with the Flyers kids and staying up to them.”
Fedoruk began training with Jim McCrossin near his home in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and if the forward can play at anywhere near his top level, he’d have a chance to catch on with the Canucks given their lack of toughness up front. Fedoruk has racked up more than 1,000 penalty minutes in 545 career games with Philadelphia, Anaheim, Dallas, Minnesota, Phoenix and most recently Tampa.
“The time away gave my body a chance to heal and now that I’m back in shape it turns out Vancouver could be a great fit. But as I say, I’ve got to get noticed,” says Fedoruk. “I’m no good to any team unless I’m hitting and doing it clean. I think I have a good reputation with the officials that I want to hit but do it the right way. You can’t be taking penalties.”
Meanwhile, the death of Boogaard in May from a deadly cocktail of painkillers and alcohol hit home for Fedoruk. The two fulfilled the same roles in the game and Fedoruk knows full well that could have been him; Fedoruk had an alcohol addiction by the time he was 20 and thought he had it under control only to find out the booze, and a few other substances, were controlling him.
But hopefully what has been such an unhappy outcome for one family will turn out differently the Fedoruks. He says players who do his role don’t always feel they fit in on a team which is why they may have the problems off the ice that so many of them seem to be experiencing.
“When you make a big hit or you’ve got somebody’s back on a team there’s no better feeling, you fit in and you’re helping,” says Fedoruk. “That’s the feeling you’re looking for.”
