NOTES OF INTEREST
Two Men Arrested After “Dancing with the Stars” Altercation with Ryan Lochte
Two men were arrested last night after Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte’s debut performance on “Dancing with the Stars” with partner Cheryl Burke. Los Angeles police spokesman Officer Mike Lopez said 48-year-old Sam Sododeh and 40-year-old Barzeen Soroudi were detained by security on the set until officers arrived to take them into custody after rushing to the stage in anti Lochte T-shirts on the ABC dance competition while Lochte and his parter Cheryl Burke were being critiqued by judge Carrie Ann Inaba.
The two men were handcuffed and removed from the audience as well two women who were sitting behind the men in the audience. The women were also wearing shirts that had Lochte’s name with a line through it.
During the episode, Lochte performed a foxtrot routine to “Call Me Irresponsible.” They received a combined score from the judges of 24 out of 40.
Lochte and various teammates, of course, were involved in an early-morning drunken encounter during the Olympics last month at a gas station in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. They later claimed they were threatened and robbed. United States team officials banned Lochte for 10 months, requiring him to forfeit $100,000 in bonuses and miss the 2017 world championships.
ABC claims Lochte’s participation on “Dancing With the Stars” was planned before the incident in Rio.
“Family Ties” Adapted as a Stage Play
NBC sitcom “Family Ties,” which aired from 1982 to 1989 and was set in Ohio, is being adapted as a stage play and will debut at the Human Race Theater in Dayton, Ohio in June. “Family Ties” the play will draw on elements from the seven-season run of the 1982 series, which centered on the Keaton family and often involved the political disagreements between two ex-hippie parents (played by Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter) and their conservative son (Michael J. Fox). Araca Group, the production company behind such well known plays as “Wicked” and “Book of Mormon,” will lead the project. They’ve already signed on Kleban Award winner Daniel Goldstein to write the script.
Goldstein, known to Broadway audiences as the director of the 2011 revival of “Godspell,” recently wrote the book for the musical “Unknown Soldier,” which premiered in summer 2015 at the Williamstown Theater Festival. His upcoming projects include a version of “Hansel and Gretel” in Buffalo and a Harry Potter Death Eater Experience at Universal Studios Japan.
“Family Ties” the stage play will run from June 1-June 25, 2017.
“Saturday Night Live” Adds Three Featured Players
NBC has confirmed that Mikey Day, Alex Moffat and Melissa Villasenor will added as featured performers for the upcoming season of veteran “Saturday Night Live.” Mike Day, from Orange County, California, joined “SNL” as a writer in its 39th season and was a co-head writer and cast member on this summer’s “Maya & Marty.” Alex Moffat is from Chicago and was a regular performer at iO Chicago and The Annoyance Theatre. And Melissa Villasenor of Whittier, California is an impressionist and stand-up comedian who’s appeared on the club and college circuit nationwide.
“Harley and the Davidsons” Most-Watched Cable Miniseries in Over Three Years
Discovery is reporting 4.4 million viewers and 2.0 million adults 25-54 for three-part scripted miniseries “Harley and the Davidsons,” making it the most watched single-network cable miniseries since “The Bible” on History in April 2014.
Airing three consecutive nights from Monday, Sept. 5 to Wednesday, Sept. 7, “Harley and the Davidsons” was the #1 cable program – excluding sports – in men/adults 25-54 and men 18-49. The miniseries featured Michiel Huisman (“Game of Thrones”) as Walter Davidson, Robert Aramayo (“Game of Thrones”) as William (Bill) Harley and Bug Hall (“The Little Rascals”) playing the role of Arthur Davidson. Other cast members included Stephen Rider (“Daredevil”), Jessica Camacho (“Sleepy Hollow”), Daniel Coonan (“EastEnders”), Annie Read (“Awkward”), Wilson Bethel (“Hart of Dixie”), Dougray Scott (“Mission: Impossible 2”), Gabe Luna (“Matador”), Alex Shaffer (“Win Win”) and newcomers Essa O’Shea and Sean Scully.
MeTV Announces MeTV Music Streaming Service on MeTV.com
MeTV, the destination for nostalgic programming, has announced the new MeTV Music streaming service now playing on MeTV.com. MeTV Music is a free music companion to MeTV, showcasing the best in timeless and memorable popular music.
MeTV Music, launching in association with AccuRadio, is the first ever music-streaming companion to MeTV and will be programmed with the same emphasis on timeless appeal. With a library that is thousands of tracks deep, featured will be hits, hummable favorites and many songs that traditional music outlets have long forgotten about. As a dedicated streaming music player, MeTV Music will allow listeners to log on from the MeTV.com homepage and enjoy music on their personal computer or laptop. Listeners can skip or pause songs, rate tracks and get detailed information on each song as it plays. And unlike traditional radio, MeTV Music will stream songs with limited commercial interruptions.
The collection of musical artists will include Billy Joel, Carole King, Aretha Franklin, Elton John, The Carpenters, Diana Ross and The Supremes, Simon and Garfunkel, Chicago, Hall and Oates, The Four Seasons and The Eagles. |