andPOP » Fox

Create Your Own Simpsons Character

Sara Harowitz — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:30:47 +0000

Tired of seeing the same-old characters on The Simpsons? Well, now you’ve got the chance to add a fresh face to the town of Springfield.

In honour of its 20th season on the air, The Simpsons is celebrating by allowing fans the chance to create their own Simpsons character, according to myfoxboston.com.

The Simpsons Character Contest gives viewers, who must be at least 18 years old, the chance to create their very own yellow cartoon and have it featured on the show.

Entrants will be given the chance to create the character’s basic traits, including name/nickname, age, physical appearance, occupation, and catchphrase.

The winning entry, which will be selected by the show’s producers, will be animated into an episode of The Simpsons set for late January, 2010.

The grand-prize winner will also receive a tirp to Los Angeles to meet the show’s producers and an animator, and will be able to work with the team to bring their character to life on the small screen.

The deadline for submissions is 11:59 PM ET on Oct. 24, 2009. All entries are to be submitted to thesimpsons.com.

As it says on the website, the team behind The Simpsons want you to “unleash your yellow.”

“For 20 years, the artists and writers of The Simpsons have loving laboured to create a parade of hilariously memorable characters beloved by the whole world,” it says on the site. “Well, that’s all over now. The simple fact is, we’re tired. Tired and, frankly, too rich to care anymore. That’s where YOU come in! While we coast on our long ago achievements, you have the chance to shame us off our lazy butts by designing your very own Simpsons character!”

The blurb wraps up with one final plea: “Come on, people, show us how it’s supposed to be done. You’ll have the satisfaction of creating a character seen by millions. And we’ll have the satisfaction of not having to do our jobs.”

Full contest rules and guidelines can be found at thesimpsons.com.

Glee Cast Banned From Thanksgiving Parade

Vanessa Baker — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 02:27:41 +0000

NBC has banned the cast of Fox hit Glee from appearing in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, reports TMZ. Macy’s reportedly invited the cast to perform in the parade, but when executives at NBC, the network that airs the parade, found out, they put their foot down.

Playboy Gets First Cartoon Covergirl

Vanessa Baker — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 23:09:37 +0000

Marge Simpson is about to become the first cartoon character to grace the cover of Playboy, reports CBC. Simpson will be featured in the November issue of the magazine, which hits newsstands next Friday.

The magazine reports a three-page spread will “imply nudity,” but the matriarch won’t bare all.

Scott Flanders, the new chief executive at Playboy, says he hopes the move attracts more readers in their 20s. Currently, the average reader’s age is 35.

Fox Network Chooses Lie to Me Over Obama

Jeremy Singer — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 14:50:59 +0000

Oh the priorities of the Fox network.

According to E! News, the network has decided to nix the airing of President Obama’s prime-time press conference on Wednesday timed to mark his 100th day in office, and instead continue with the regularly scheduled program of “Lie to Me”- a show about a man who can read liars.

The network did however say in a statement yesterday, that it would “alert Lie to Me viewers to the press conference with an onscreen graphic.”

Other competitors such as ABC, CBS and NBC, have all booked the 8 pm Wednesday slot for President Obama.

Littlest Franco Gets a Gig

andPOP Staff — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 02:52:52 +0000

James Franco better watch his back – his little brother, Dave, is hot on his heels.

The littlest Franco has just been cast in a new Fox pilot, “Do Not Disturb.” He’ll play Gus, a regular in the comedy set in a hotel. The Hollywood Reporter described the role as “a roadie for a rock band who gets deserted at the hotel and taken in by the gang.”

Jerry O’Connell and Niecy Nash will star.

Dave Franco has been practicing his comedy skills and endearing himself to the public with hilarious videos he made with James on the FunnyOrDie.com.

Seth MacFarlane Seals $100 Million Deal

andPOP Staff — Tue, 06 May 2008 03:01:50 +0000

Peter Griffin is now a millionaire.

Seth MacFarlane, the creator and voice behind the “Family Guy” anti-hero, has just signed a deal with 20th Century Fox which makes him the highest paid writer-producer in television.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, MacFarlane could be making up to $100 million for his work on “Family Guy,” its new spinoff “The Cleveland Show” and “American Dad.” He also has a multicamera comedy in the works.

“I get a lot of pleasure out of making shows,” MacFarlane said. “It’s a bonus to be getting paid well for it, and it’s a double bonus to be getting paid exorbitantly for it.”

The pact keeps MacFarlane at Fox until at least 2012. Though none of parties involved would release exact details of the deal, a Fox chairman commented that “no one will ever have to offer Seth a handout of any kind.”

That’s not the only thing MacFarlane has going for him. He is reportedly dating “Buffy” hottie Eliza Dushku.

Fox Under Fire – Arcade Fire Song Controversy

andPOP Staff — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 09:47:46 +0000

Did the Fox network super rip off the Arcade Fire?

The band was reportedly surprised to hear their song, “No Cars Go” in a commercial that aired during the Super Bowl. According to PitchforkMedia.com, “Fox never even asked the band if they could use their song, and they certainly weren’t given permission to do so.”

Reportedly, the band’s reps are looking into the matter, and there is the possibility of a lawsuit.

The song was featured in a montage ad for NHL on Fox that appeared during the halftime show. Some fans have pointed out that the song has been used “on NFL on Fox ads throughout the football season.”

‘Buffy’ is Back! …Sort Of

andPOP Staff — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 12:50:45 +0000

Buffyverse fans never lost their Faith, and now creator Joss Whedon has returned with a new show starring “Buffy” and ‘Angel’ co-star Eliza Dushku.

Entitled “Dollhouse,” it will be just as bizzarre and wonderfully creative as tales of the vampire slayer. This is what Fox has to say on the plot:

“Echo (Dushku) [is] a young woman who is literally everybody’s fantasy. She is one of a group of men and women who can be imprinted with personality packages, including memories, skills, language – even muscle memory – for different assignments. The assignments can be romantic, adventurous, outlandish, uplifting, sexual and/or very illegal. When not imprinted with a personality package, Echo and the others are basically mind-wiped, living like children in a futuristic dorm/lab dubbed the Dollhouse, with no memory of their assignments – or of much else. The show revolves around the childlike Echo’s burgeoning self-awareness, and her desire to know who she was before, a desire that begins to seep into her various imprinted personalities and puts her in danger both in the field and in the closely monitored confines of the Dollhouse.”

Seven episodes have already been ordered. With any luck, the show will take off, unlike Whedon’s previous offering, “Firefly.”

Fox Offers Much of the Same Next Year

andPOP Staff — Thu, 18 May 2006 14:32:28 +0000

The Fox network introduced its fall schedule today, and the schedule is looking familiar.

?The Bernie Mac Show? fell victim to the cancellation axe, but most of FOX?s schedule remains as it is this season ? right down to the nights and times of its shows.

Returning shows include ?Bones,? ?Prison Break,” ?24,? ?American Idol,? ?House,? ?The Simpsons,? ?The O.C.,? “Family Guy,” “American Dad,? “King Of the Hill” and ?The Loop.?

New shows include ?Vanished,? airing Mondays at 9 p.m., ?Standoff,? ?Justice,? from ?CSI? executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer, ?Til Death? starring Brad Garrett, and ?Happy Hour.?

Mark Burnett?s new reality show ?On the Lot? will also air on Fox this fall. It brings 16 aspiring filmmakers to Hollywood. The winner gets to meet Steven Speilberg and gets an office at the Dreamworks lot. Sounds an awful lot like ?The Apprentice? except without the hair.

The 2 American Idol Finalists Are…

andPOP Staff — Wed, 17 May 2006 22:49:34 +0000

Elliott Yamin is the third place finisher of this season?s ?American Idol.?

In an hour-long results show where viewers were kept on the edge of their seats for what seemed like forever, host Ryan Seacrest actually showed the voting numbers. Grey-haired fan favourite Taylor Hicks was in first place, but only by less than a per cent from the other two contestants.

Katherine McPhee, who most people think should have gotten the boot last week instead of rocker Chris Daughtry, was in second place.

The numbers were so close together — not even a percentage point between them — that many fans in online forums wondered if they really were the true numbers.

If they are, and if they remain that close between Hicks and McPhee in the finale next week, it will be the closest contest since season two when Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken went head to head in the second season.

The finale airs next week on Fox.