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The CAPTION THIS Contest For May 23rd!

via Cheezburger

Salesforce.com Meets First Quarter Earnings Expectations, Revenues Up 29%

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Pandora Stock Jumps As Revenue Beats The Street, Grows 58% To $128.5M; Mobile Ad Revenue Hits Record High

Pandora has had a busy quarter. In March, the social radio company saw its long-time CEO Joe Kennedy abruptly step dow , leaving the board to scramble to find a replacement. On the bright side, Kennedy’s exit, while likely a result of stress, followed relatively good times for Pandora. And it’s continued to push forward since. Pandora launched an ad-free version for Windows 8 in March, surpassed 200 million users (with over 140 million accessing Pandora via mobile) in April, then launched a “Premieres” station for U.S. users and deepened its Facebook integration with a new Timeline App. Today, Pandora’s first quarter earnings reflected this flurry of activity, as the company saw GAAP total revenue increase 97 percent year-over-year to $83.9 million (with non-GAAP mobile revenue of $86.7 million), which outpaced mobile listener hour growth at 47 percent year over year. Meanwhile, total revenue came in at $125.5 million, representing 55 percent year-over-year growth and non-GAAP total revenue of $128.5 million. What’s more, share of total U.S. Radio listening for Pandora grew to 7.33 percent in April — an increase from 5.86 percent in the same period last year. This news followed a strong earnings report from Pandora for the fourth quarter as well, thanks chiefly to mobile revenue growth of 111 percent year-over-year (to $80.3 million), which caused the company’s stock to jump for joy. Based on this performance, Wall Street expected the trend to (mostly) continue for Pandora in the first quarter, with forecasts pegging revenue at $123.9 million (on losses of $0.10 per share) for the quarter, compared to a loss of $0.09 per share for Q1 last year — and revenue of $123.5 in Q4. And so it did. Of his company’s performance, Kennedy said: Mobile listening hours and mobile ad revenue reached record highs, with growth in mobile ad revenue exceeding growth in mobile listening hours. During the quarter, we successfully implemented a mobile listening limit, enabling us to manage our content acquisition costs with minimal impact on listenership or revenue growth. Pandora’s subscriber base surpassed 2.5 million, adding more net new subscribers in the quarter than in all of fiscal 2013, giving Pandora the largest US streaming subscriber base of any music service. It’s also interesting to note that Kennedy resigned after last quarter (as mentioned above), yet Pandora’s release today names him as Chairman and CEO. It seems either Pandora’s copy editors need

Open Post: Hosted By Morgan Freeman Falling The Hell Asleep During An Interview

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Striking ‘Fashion Police’ Writers to Picket E! Headquarters Today

The real police were not needed when the fake fashion ones -- or at least their writing staff -- picketed on Thursday.

Writers from E! TV's "Fashion Police" led an hour-long picket and rally at the channel's mid-Wilshire headquarters. The peaceful demonstration drew about 200 supporters and no one from the E! network.

Nine of the 12 Los Angeles-based writers for "Fashion Police" have been on strike since April 17, protesting what they see as E!'s unfair labor practices and violations of California wage and hour law. Writers on the highly rated show, who lack health care and pension benefits, are demanding to be covered by a Writer's Guild of America West contract.

Also read: 'Fashion Police' Strike: Both Sides Dig in on Eve of Rally

The network is insisting that a National Labor Relations Board election be held first, which the writers call a stall tactic.

On Wednesday, E! had the following in a statement: "Requiring an NLRB administered election is a fair and important part of the process. E! went so far as to take the unprecedented step of filing the petition with the NLRB ourselves a couple months ago to accelerate the process on the 'Fashion Police' writers' behalf. If the writers had participated we could have been well into negotiations if not done by now."

Bryan Cook, a writer for "Fashion Police" and employee of E! since last August, said that the main beef stems from the fact that the writers are only paid for eight hours per week, regardless of how long they actually worked producing the hour-long show. Cook estimates that on average, the writers worked 32 hours a week. They worked even longer days and nights when churning out 90-minute episodes during awards season.

Cook described E!'s strategy as "basically bullying writers into thinking they're lucky to even have a job and paying them as little as they possibly can."

Cook told TheWrap that there were several nights during the Oscars where the staff worked from 3 p.m. until 6 or 7 a.m. the following morning. He explained that because the writers typically work from home, E! "can say whatever they want and claim that's how long it took us [to produce the material.]"

As far as Cook knows, the "scabs" -- which includes the three non-striking staff writers -- writing the show now are receiving the same $620 per week that the picketing staff writers were being paid.

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Taylor Swift Lookalike Suffers Broken Jaw for Looking Like Taylor Swift

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Netflix’s ‘Arrested Development,’ ‘House of Cards’ Change the Primetime Emmy Game

Primetime television shows are eligible for the Primetime Emmy Awards, of course. So are programs that don't air during primetime, and commercials, and webisodes and apps, and Netflix's "House of Cards" and "Arrested Development" which are not by most standard definitions a television series.

Just as the face of television has morphed over the past decade, so has the face of the Emmy Awards. "Back in 1977, when the Academy was formed, we began with network broadcast, syndication and PBS," John Leverence, the senior vice president of awards at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, told TheWrap. "But that has changed significantly."

The new landscape is reflected in the TV Academy's mission statement: "The mission of the Academy is to promote creativity, diversity, innovation and excellence through recognition, education and leadership in the advancement of the telecommunications arts and sciences."

Also read: "Arrested Development" New Season Trailer Released

"It's no longer the television arts and sciences, but the telecommunications arts and sciences," said Leverence. "We now have stuff above and beyond where we began."

With the caveat that definitions are fluid, the landscape is changing and the field is so vast that we can't cover every possibility, here are the types of programming eligible for Emmys:

Programs that originally aired on broadcast television between 6 p.m. and 2 a.m. during the eligibility period, which this year is June 1, 2012, through May 31, 2013.

Netflix's "Arrested Development" just made it under the wire, debuting on the streaming service this coming Sunday.

Shows on basic cable or premium cable during the same period.

Shows available via interactive cable. This is where the potentially game-changing "Development" and "House of Cards" come in.

Programs that receive a limited theatrical release before their television debuts. Shows are supposed to have "originally aired on television," but there's some wiggle room for things like HBO documentaries that quietly pay for Oscar-qualifying theatrical runs before their television debuts. Seven-day, two-city awards-qualifying runs are allowed, as are seven-day, 10-city runs to satisfy a distributor or financier.

International productions, if they are the result of a co-production between U.S. and foreign partners and have a commitment to air on U.S. television.

Short-form animated and live-action programs that originally aired on television or on the internet. The categories are typically dominated by short-form work from Comedy Central, the Disney Channel and the like on the animated side, and webisodes on the live-action side, but Leverence said that YouTube and Funny or Die videos also qualify.

Interactive media productions of all kinds--webisodes, apps, etc.--that are tied to a television program or series, and original interactive productions. The interactive Emmys expanded from one to two awards this year, and the official rules detail four specific areas in which the jury can single out programming in the Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media category.

Commercials between 30 seconds and two minutes in length that originally aired during primetime to more than 50 percent of U.S. households or the potential television audience.

Shows that air during the daytime or don't air at any specific time, because they're internet- or on-demand-based, if they have the characteristics of a primetime program. "When we switched over to internet eligibility, we lost our temporal distinction between Primetime and Daytime Emmys," Leverence said.

"For atemporal mediums like Netflix and the internet, we drop back into our generic identifying mode." In other words, if it has the characteristics of a primetime program--a police procedural, a drama series, a comedy of the short that typically airs in the evening -- it qualifies.

"Usually, awards are very reactive," said Leverence of the rules that anticipated shows like "House of Cards" and "Arrested Development." "But now, it looks like for once in our life, we were a little bit ahead of the curve."

A&E Cancels ‘Intervention’

A&E is canceling its long-running docu-series "Intervention."

The cable network announced on Thursday that it will begin airing the show's Season 13 with five final episodes on Thursday, June 13 at 9 p.m./8c.

"As 'Intervention' comes to an end, we're proud to have paved the way for such an original and groundbreaking series," said A&E and BIO Channel's executive vice president of programming David McKillop in a statement. "We're honored to have been a part of the 243 interventions since its premiere in March of 2005, leading to the 156 individuals that are currently sober to this day."

Addiction specialists, and fan favorites, Jeff Van Vonderen, Candy Finnigan and Donna Chavous each return for the series' final chapter, along with Ken Seeley who comes back for one of the most difficult and dramatic episodes in the series' history.

Addiction specialists Jeff Van Vonderen, Candy Finnigan, Donna Chavous and Ken Seeley return for the series' final run, which the network promises will include some of its most intense episodes surrounding addicts whose family and friends stage an intervention.

Produced by GRB Entertainment for A&E Network, the series won an Emmy for Outstanding Reality Series in 2009 and five PRISM Awards.

Hitman Drama ‘Salvo’ Wins Critics’ Week Prize at Cannes

"Salvo" has won the top prize in Cannes' International Critics' Week sidebar, a selection of seven films from first- and second-time directors.

The story of a hitman for the Sicilian Mafia whose life changes after he spares the life of the blind sister of one of his victims, "Salvo" was directed by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, and is an Italian and French co-production. In addition to the main award, the Nespresso Grand Prize, it also won the France 4 Visionary Award, a second honor given to one of the Critics' Week features.

The Grand Prize carries a 10,000-Euro prize, and the France 4 Visionary Award an additional 4,000 Euro.

Daria Belova's "Come and Play" ("Komm und spiel") won the Critics' Week Discovery Award for short film from a field of 10 that included one American film, David Lassiter's "The Opportunist." Sponsor CCAS will give Belova 8,000 Euro to write a debut feature. Ninja Thyberg's "Pleasure" took the Canal+ Award for a short, which includes a deal for European distribution.

The Society of Dramatic Authors and Composers Award, the 4,000-Euro SACD Prize, went to the screenplay for Sebastien Pilote's "Le Demantlement."

Special out-of-competition screenings from Critics' Week included David Lowery's "Ain't Them Bodies Saints" and the Peter Greenaway/Jean-Luc Godard/Edgar Pera collaboration "3x3D."

International Critics' Week is the oldest competitive sidebar at the festival, with its past discoveries including Guillermo del Toro, Gaspar Noe and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu.

The main Cannes awards, including the Palme d'Or, will be announced on Sunday.

 

J.J. Abrams Shows Deleted ‘Star Trek’ Benedict Cumberbatch Shower Scene on ‘Conan’ (Video)

J.J. Abrams said on "Conan" that he didn't intend to be sexist with a scene in "Star Trek: Into Darkness" in which Alice Eve appears in her underwear -- then showed a deleted shower scene of Benedict Cumberbatch to illustrate that he's equal opportunity when it comes to showing off his actors.

One of the film's writers, Damon Lindelof, said on Twitter this week that we "should have done a better job of not being gratuitous in our representation of a barely clothed actress" in the scene with Eve. But he noted that the "Star Trek" films have also shown Capt. Kirk (Chris Pine) shirtless.

Talking to Conan O'Brien on Wednesday, Abrams also noted Pine's shirtlessness. He said the point of the Eve scene was that Kirk, a serial womanizer, was checking out his colleague, and that perhaps he should have edited the scene differently.

"The intent was, it's Kirk. Who was always a sort of womanizing character," he said. "The idea was, have a beat like that in the midst of all this action and adventure. ... I don't think I quite edited the scene in the right way. To me it was a sort of balance. There's a scene earlier where he's not dressed, either. So it felt like it was a sort of tradeoff. Some people did feel like it was exploiting her, and while she is lovely, I can also see their point of view."

Then he showed the shot of a glowering Cumberbatch in the shower.

"He's not enjoying that shower very much," O'Brien noted.

"No, that was a shower of evil," said Abrams.

At that point, O'Brien added some new music to the scene, and things started to feel blatantly exploitive.

Watch the video:

Scott Thorson: How Liberace Protected His ‘Big Secret’ in the Homophobic ’50s

The '50s, like the decades leading up to them, were an intensely homophobic period. Muscle cars and macho men were the order of the day. Although Lee knew that many of Hollywood's most famous and desirable men were gay or bisexual, none of them dared reveal the truth.

Lee confessed to me that he began dating women to suppress the growing rumors about his own sexuality. If anyone dared to question his masculinity, he needed to be able to flaunt pictures of his latest girlfriend.

Also read: 'Behind the Candelabra' Review: Sex, Lies & the Closet at Cannes

He had no trouble getting all the dates he wanted and he gloried in escorting well-known entertainers to parties, getting his picture taken with Susan Hayward, Gale Storm, Rosemary Clooney, Mae West, and Judy Garland. Mae was the only one of his so-called lady friends I actually met. As they say in Texas, Mae was a hoot! She and Lee were an unpredictable twosome who enjoyed trying to outdo each other's outrageousness.

The girl he almost married didn't compare to Mae when it came to nerve. JoAnn Del Rio, a Las Vegas dancer, had good looks and a sweet personality. Undoubtedly the entire Liberace family heaved a sigh of relief as they watched her relationship with Lee progress. For a while, it must have seemed as if Lee would finally settle down to a "normal" life and have a family.

(At left, Liberace with Mae West, his brother George and singer Johnny Ray.)

Lee and JoAnn became engaged in 1953 and even set a date for a wedding -- a year away. From all reports, Lee liked JoAnn a lot, a first for him when it came to women. He courted her with gifts of flowers and perfume, gifts that foreshadowed the truly extravagant presents he would later give his male lovers.

When it came to JoAnn, the problem was not that he didn't like her; it was that he still loved men. After Lee's death, JoAnn's father was reported to have claimed responsibility for ending the engagement because he knew Lee was gay. But Lee told me he never planned to walk down the aisle, with JoAnn or anyone else. His engagement served to squelch the rumors about his sexuality --period!

Many homosexual men enjoy relationships with women. There are a few who even come to love them, as friends or as temporary sexual partners. Not Lee! He had to forcibly control his dislike and distrust of most of the women he dated. He complained that all of them were too demanding, an opinion of females that he'd formed in childhood.

Also read: 'Behind the Candelabra': First Trailer for Soderbergh's Liberace Film (Video)

When I asked if he'd ever had sexual relations with a woman he told me he'd had a couple of experiences, but complained that the way women smelled revolted him. While dating JoAnn publicly, he confessed that he continued to have secret dates with young men. By the end of 1955, JoAnn Del Rio was just a footnote to Liberace's history.

(At right, Liberace with Thorson)

The older Lee got, the more younger men appealed to him. In that regard, he was a Dracula who never wearied of the taste and touch of youth. By his 50s he preferred dating boys in their teens.

There have been rumors that Lee had an affair with Rock Hudson early in their careers. But Rock wasn't any more Lee's type than Lee was Rock's. The supposed affair never happened. In the years we were together, Lee never mentioned knowing Rock. Although hundreds of celebrities came to Lee's shows, Rock never made an appearance. The two men moved in completely different circles, socially and professionally.

However, the books I've read about Hudson's life reveal startling parallels to Lee's. Both men had been abandoned by their fathers and dominated by their mothers. As adults the two of them devoted a great deal of time and energy to creating a fictional personal history for public consumption.

Neither man could deal with anything distasteful -- an argument, the illness of a parent, getting rid of a lover -- and both used others to do their dirty work.

Lee never used male prostitutes. He was an intensely romantic man who preferred the thrill of the chase rather than the cold reality of a cash transaction. Young men eager to make a connection with a big show-business personality usually jumped at the chance for a date with him. He used his success, his fame as foreplay. If they pleased him he would keep them around for a while -- a week, a month, a year or two. If not, he would send them on their way with a gift, generous to friends who granted him favors.

(At left, Liberace with Sonja Henie)

During those first years of fame, he became even more skilled at leading a double life. Onstage he smiled sweetly and flirted with his fans. In private he built an enormous and expensive collection of pornography that he shared at all-male parties. Although the family never discussed Lee's sexual identity, they had to know he was gay. His mother may have known, too. But she undoubtedly thought there was nothing wrong with her son that the right woman couldn't cure.

Touring abroad gave him an occasional break from his problems. He said he felt safer, more free to be himself in countries where his name was not yet a household word. In the mid-'50s he was invited to play the famed London Palladium and he jumped at the offer. To be asked to perform there signaled Lee's arrival as a star of international magnitude. He would have other, greater thrills, but that first show at the Palladium ranked right up there with his first appearance in the Hollywood Bowl. London, he said, sounded like heaven. Before he returned to the States it was to feel more like hell.

Lee's enthusiastic British audiences were very much like the ones he attracted in the States -- mostly middle-aged, working- class housewives. He enjoyed a huge box-office success in Britain, but the critics united in attacking him. One columnist for the London Daily Press launched an all-out war, describing Lee as a "deadly, sniggering, snuggling, giggling, fruit-flavored, mincing, ice-covered heap of mother love."

For the first time in his career Lee was publicly branded as gay, and it devastated him. He imagined himself stripped of his fame, success, wealth, and power -- all the things he'd worked so hard to achieve. He burned with impotent rage for days. In Vegas, where he had connections, he'd have known exactly how to handle the situation. He'd have used his influence, his power, or his dangerous friends. But in London he felt helpless. So he struck back in the only way he could. He sued.

Lee didn't care what the lawsuit cost in time, effort, or money. Money was surely no obstacle to the highest paid performer in the world. In the past he'd used his wealth to attract friendship and love. In England he used it as a tool to buy vindication and revenge.

Lee made up his mind to prove, for all time, that he wasn't gay, even if it meant bringing another woman into his life. This time she would be far better known than JoAnn Del Rio.

Sonja Henie (see photo above) had been the world's premiere figure skater in the 1920s and '30s. She'd parlayed 10 world championships and three Olympic gold medals into an enormously successful show-business career. Blonde, blue-eyed, she had an attractive figure and, more important, a celebrity name.

Sonja was seven years older than Lee and her fame was waning when they met. I think mutual need drew them to each other. Together, they generated more publicity than either one could separately. The aging skater merited a lot of space in movie magazines and tabloids when she became the woman Liberace spent his evenings with.

Lee's acquaintances describe Sonja as a motherly type; but Lee told me they had an affair. If he was being honest -- and with Lee you could never be sure -- it would be his last relationship with a woman. After the London court case came to an end, Lee never again felt the need to camouflage his true nature by dating ladies.

In 1959 Lee was completely vindicated and his name cleared. On June 9, the New York Daily News ran an article under the headline, "I'm No Homo, Says Suing Liberace." Before the year ended he was completely vindicated; his name and reputation were freed of any blemish.

Lee's lawyers had managed a miracle. They'd actually convinced a judge and jury that black was white. Lee was awarded a $22,500 settlement. He gave every penny of it to charity.

From 1959 on Lee turned to the courts whenever he failed to get his way by other means. His lawyer soon found that handling Liberace's considerable legal affairs provided a lucrative livelihood. Given Lee's stubbornness, his power, and his money, he usually got what he wanted by simply wearing his opponents down. When Lee and I finally confronted each other in a court of law, the bitterly contested case dragged on for five years.

In the coming years Lee's vindication in the British courts would have one penalty. As America's social climate became increasingly liberal, other gays came out of the closet. Lee felt compelled to keep his silence.

"I can't admit a thing," he said, "unless I want to be known as the world's biggest liar."

Adapted from "Behind the Candelabra: My Life With Liberace" (Tantor Media; May 2013) by Scott Thorson with Alex Thorleifson, now with an afterword written by Scott Thorson.

Pam Veasey Signs Development Deal With Jerry Bruckheimer TV, Warner Bros. TV

EXCLUSIVE: As CSI: NY just ended its nine-season run, the series executive producer/showrunner Pam Veasey is staying in business with CSI: NY production company Jerry Bruckheimer TV. Veasey has signed a two-script development deal with Warner Bros. TV-based Jerry Bruckheimer TV. Additionally, she has joined the upcoming WBTV drama series for the CW The Tomorrow People, which is slated for the post-Arrow Wednesday slot, as a consulting producer. Veasey, repped by CAA and Nina Shaw, was with CSI: NY for its entire run. During the 2011-12 season, she juggled running the CBS forensic crime drama and the CW’s Ringer. Her series credits also include The District and In Living Color.

On-Demand Delivery Startup Postmates Is Preparing For Launch In New York City

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Kim Kardashian Goes To Paris As Kanye Leaves Paris For Milan

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Lionsgate Shares Rise On Growing Optimism About Earnings Report

The stock is up about 4% in mid-afternoon trading after Piper Jaffray’s James Marsh raised his price target for Lionsgate this morning by 18.5% to $32 ahead of the studio’s financial report next week for the quarter that ended in March. The analyst says that investors may be impressed by DVD and VOD sales for Twilight, which he figures generated about $150M in revenues for the quarter. In addition The Impossible, a film about the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, “largely slipped under the radar,” grossing just $19M at domestic theaters but $154M overseas. He expects Lionsgate’s TV operation to impress with results from Mad Men, Anger Management, and Nashville. Looking ahead, Marsh says that he’s “comfortable that management will find a way to extend the Twilight franchise” while Hunger Games could could do better than expected “driven by international box office and high margin merchandising opportunities.” On Monday Stifel’s Benjamin Mogil also upped his price target, in his case by 16% to $29. He says Lionsgate is “tracking materially ahead” of its financial guidance.

Breakup Fee for Rythym & Hues Stalking-Horse Bidder Approved (Exclusive)

A U.S. bankruptcy court judge approved a settlement Wednesday between Rhythm & Hues and JS Communications, ending at least one contentious legal issue stemming from the March sale of the Oscar-winning visual-effects studio. 

As part of the agreement, South Korea-based JS Communications will receive a $300,000 breakup fee for agreeing to be the stalking-horse bidder during the auction of Rhythm & Hues. That settlement is a win for JS Communications, though the figure is less than the $425,000 the company was promised as part of its initial deal with Rhythm & Hues.

"We are pleased to see the matter resolved, the objecting parties acknowledge that JS Communications performed at all times in good faith, and a reasonable compromise on the technical issues regarding the break-up fee," Evan Jones, an attorney for Rhythm & Hues, told TheWrap. "We wish the new company well."

Rhythm & Hues now has five days to pay the fee. Both companies have dropped all claims against each other as part of the deal.

Lee Berger, president of Rhythm & Hues' film division, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rhythm & Hues received an Academy Award this year for its work on "Life of Pi," but in a cruel twist of fate, it was forced to file for Chapter 11 protection just as it was receiving honors and acclaim. It was sold to an affiliate of Prana Studios after a whirlwind bidding process that saw JS Communications pull its offer and sue Rhythm & Hues.

In bankruptcy cases, a stalking-horse bidder is selected from a pool of bidders so a financially distressed company can ensure that its assets are not undersold at auction. The stalking-horse bid represents the lowest acceptable offer.

In its suit, JS Communication said it was unjustly denied its money and accused Rhythm & Hues of attempting to shut it out of the bidding process.

In particular, the company alleged that Rhythm & Hues had changed the terms of the auction, so bidders would be encouraged to submit a lower cash component while assuming more of its liabilities. Under the terms of the stalking horse bid, the breakup fee was triggered if JS Communications was outbid by at least $525,000.

Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.

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Jon Favreau, Giancarlo Esposito Team Up for Much-Hyped ‘Destiny’ Videogame Trailer (Video)

Not that it needs it, but the highly anticipated videogame "Destiny," from the folks behind "Halo" and "Call of Duty," have pulled out all the stops for the game's first trailer.

Not only does the 60-second teaser mix live-action with graphics -- unusual for a videogame -- it's got some big names behind it.

"Iron Man's" Jon Favreau directs, and Giancarlo Esposito -- best known as Gus Fring from "Breaking Bad" -- is seen reading "the really important part" of "The Law for the Wolves" by Rudyard Kipling, presumably to his son.

Also read: Activision, 'Call of Duty' Creators Settle a Day Before Trial Begins

The Activision and Bungie collaboration is scheduled to be released next year, and the connection to the latter developer is not subtle -- the in-game content looks suspiciously similar to "Halo."

Activision plans to release an additional trailer for "Destiny" during Sony's press conference at E3, on June 10 that features actual gameplay.

Here's the trailer:

‘Fashion Police’ Writers Chant On Picket Lines: “Give Us Back Our Paycheck B****”

Ross Lincoln is a Deadline contributor UPDATE, 12:25 PM: The protest just wrapped up around its scheduled 12:30 PM target. Among the speakers was writer Bryan Cook, who addressed the picketers that reached about 150 in number and generated notice from passersby on foot and in cars along Wilshire Boulevard. He touched on why the writers are seeking union representation. “We’ve worked hard to make Fashion Policeone of E!’s top-rated shows, and we don’t even get health care benefits…” he said. “It can be hard to get how hard this work is. Its not like were working in a coal mine — you can’t get black lung from writing jokes, but rest assured, E! will try to find a way”. Said fellow writer Ed Rice to Deadline as the event was breaking up: “I don’t know what’s specifically next on our part. To a certain extent, its a stand-off — the balls really in their court. What we want is a phone call from the network to our representative at the guild saying they accept them as representation and would like to offer us a guild contract. That’s the only next step from the network we will accept”. PREVIOUS, 11:43 AM: Striking writers from the Joan Rivers-hosted series Fashion Police are protesting in front of E!‘s headquarters on the Miracle Mile in LA today. Among the chants overheard from the 100-plus on ... Read More »

FX Drama ‘The Bridge’ Gets Premiere Date

FX‘s newest original drama series The Bridge will debut on Wednesday, July 10 at 10 PM. Based on the European series Bron, which was set on the border of Denmark and Sweden, The Bridge is a crime thriller exploring the tensions on the U.S.-Mexico border. When an American judge known for her anti-immigration views is found dead on the bridge connecting El Paso and Juarez, Sonya Cross (Diane Kruger) from El Paso PD must work with her Mexican counterpart from Chihuahua State Police, Marco Ruiz (Demian Bichir), to catch a serial killer operating on both sides of the border. The case quickly pulls them into a string of murders on the border, a scene already consumed by illegal immigration, drug trafficking, violence and prostitution. Meredith Stiehm and Elwood Reid adapted The Bridge for American television, with Shine America producing.