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American Morning
90-Second Pop, Culture Watch
Aired November 06, 2003 - 07:44 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: It's time once again for "90-Second Pop," our regular look at pop culture.
Joining us this morning is humorist Andy Borowitz, Amy Sohn joins us from "New York" magazine, and B.J. Sigesmund is a staff editor for "US Weekly."
Good morning to all of you.
AMY SOHN, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: Good morning.
ANDY BOROWITZ, HUMORIST: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: Let's get right to it. Let's start by talking about television. Andy, I want you to start. "Skin" canceled. That was on Fox, right?
BOROWITZ: That was a shocker actually, because that's Jerry Bruckheimer who produced that, and he never fails.
O'BRIEN: Apparently not.
BOROWITZ: Apparently -- well, you know, he's still got that "CSI" franchise. His "CSI, "Shaker Heights" is coming up soon. But, you know, I think America was not ready for a show about a porn king in primetime. And, you know, call me old fashioned, but I'm happy to see porn off the air...
O'BRIEN: In primetime.
BOROWITZ: ... and back on our home computers where it belongs.
O'BRIEN: NBC's "Coupling" got ditched, as well. And do you think that it sort of sends the message that people really want to watch the Joe show, you know, the "Joe Millionaire", average Joe, that people just aren't ready for sort of the hard-core sex stuff in primetime, especially when it's not well-written either?
BOROWITZ: I think people want good stuff. I mean, the new "Joe Millionaire" isn't doing all that good either, the one with all the foreign -- he is filthy rich. I love that one.
B.J. SIGESMUND, "US WEEKLY: I think that a lot of people think the OC got a lot of that energy from Fox, and people weren't ready for another show that was big on sex and sex appeal. The problem right now, the reality of television is no matter how much hype you put behind these shows, if the second or third episodes of these shows decrease in viewership, the network execs cut the losses right there.
O'BRIEN: Like (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
SIGESMUND: You know, with Fox and "Skin," it's a case of saving $2 million a week. That's how much that show costs. So, they'd rather put that money toward something else and see if that sticks.
O'BRIEN: Let's talk a little bit about movies. "Matrix Revolution" has opened, the third one. So, remember, we talked about this the other day. What's been the reaction? People love it, people don't love it aren't watching it?
SIGESMUND: Mixed. Yes, you know, if you were confused by the second one, you're going to be just as confused...
O'BRIEN: That was me. I had no idea of what was going on.
SIGESMUND: ... by the third one. It's just as much of a mind game. You know, it picks up right where the second one left off. I think it's still going to be a huge hit. There is such a huge following for that movie based on the first one. So, "Matrix 3" is going to make a ton of money this weekend.
BOROWITZ: Well, they also -- they have a built-in audience of people who don't have a life, and they're always waiting for the "Matrix" films.
SIGESMUND: Hello!
O'BRIEN: Ouch!
BOROWITZ: I'm sorry.
SOHN: No, but that's what makes the "Matrix" so good is that he's a complete dunce and yet he can save the world, which gives us all faith that you know, we can, too.
BOROWITZ: Right.
SIGESMUND: Right.
O'BRIEN: For all of us.
SOHN: Yes.
BOROWITZ: They seem to like that.
O'BRIEN: Can I ask you about two other movies?
SIGESMUND: Please.
O'BRIEN: "Elf" with Will Farrell, who I love. Is the early buss on that great?
SIGESMUND: Yes, this is actually -- Soledad, this is an amazing weekend. This is a weekend where there's something for the guys, the "Matrix," something for women, "Love Actually," and something for the kids, which is "Elf." "Elf," I've seen. It's very sweet. Will Farrell plays this human at Santa's North Pole place with elves, who only discovers when he's, like, 30 years old that he's actually a human. And he comes down to New York City to meet his dad, who's this publisher high on Mr. Clause's naughty list and they get to know each other. It's a very sweet film.
O'BRIEN: Now, how about the movie, "Love Actually, which you're saying is a chick flick?
SIGESMUND: Right, right, terrific.
O'BRIEN: If Hugh Grant goes on TV one more time to say how he's never doing another romantic comedy again...
SOHN: Right, right.
O'BRIEN: ... I mean, I'm...
SIGESMUND: But that's really where he's most successful.
O'BRIEN: Of course it is.
SIGESMUND: And that's where people, especially women, really want to see him. He's back as a romantic lead. He plays the prime minister of England, who falls in love with his receptionist the very first day in office. And it's just one of eight or so interwoven plot lines about love and loss throughout England.
BOROWITZ: There is so many (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who will go to any movie that has words like lift and flat in it. You know, they'll just immediately -- if they say (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
O'BRIEN: We're not talking about shoes at all.
BOROWITZ: No.
O'BRIEN: All right, let's, Amy, talk about Rosie, because, wow! It's getting ugly so fast.
SOHN: It's pretty crazy, yes.
O'BRIEN: OK, first, we've got the trial overall, which is basically about a breach of contract, but it's all really about personalities and who said which snippy and mean comment to who.
SOHN: And sexuality, too. I mean, I think she is on trial for her sexuality. And I think she's a woman of many contradictions. Because she's sort of a lesbian soccer mom, and yet at work, you know, she's rumored to be this uber (ph) (EXPLETIVE DELETIVE), and then she's got this musical going which represents her own, you know, sexual awakening as a teenager.
O'BRIEN: But let's back through, then, each of those things. There's word that Boy George has sort of played an important role in Rosie O'Donnell's... SOHN: He inspired her, because they're about the same age but they had very, very different childhoods.
O'BRIEN: And so, what sort of triggered the big change that everyone saw in Rosie O'Donnell after her show completed, as opposed to just not having to be on TV five days a week, was that she really felt that Boy George thought she was suburban?
SOHN: Yes, which I love. They were talking on the phone one night, and she heard the noises of this nightclub that he was at. And she said, you know, you're at this nightclub and I'm at Target buying clothes for my kids. And he called her suburban, and supposedly very shortly after that, she started sporting her butch haircut and her butch look.
O'BRIEN: No one wants to be called suburban apparently.
BOROWITZ: I guess not.
O'BRIEN: We have five seconds left to talk about "Taboo," which is the musical that Rosie is putting on Broadway. Early word is?
(CROSSTALK)
SOHN: Yes, yes.
O'BRIEN: Early word is bad.
BOROWITZ: You know, although I hang with a group of lesbian soccer moms, and they're very excited about it. They really are. They think it's going to be a good show.
O'BRIEN: That demo, two thumbs up.
BOROWITZ: Yes, really.
O'BRIEN: Well, you guys...
SOHN: I think everyone's going to like watching it crash and burn.
BOROWITZ: We enjoy that -- we enjoy that in New York.
O'BRIEN: Ouch! Exactly. All the critics maybe in New York, but everyone else would be cheering for it -- maybe. You guys, as always, thanks so much. We're out of time this morning. I appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired November 6, 2003 - 07:44 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: It's time once again for "90-Second Pop," our regular look at pop culture.
Joining us this morning is humorist Andy Borowitz, Amy Sohn joins us from "New York" magazine, and B.J. Sigesmund is a staff editor for "US Weekly."
Good morning to all of you.
AMY SOHN, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: Good morning.
ANDY BOROWITZ, HUMORIST: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: Let's get right to it. Let's start by talking about television. Andy, I want you to start. "Skin" canceled. That was on Fox, right?
BOROWITZ: That was a shocker actually, because that's Jerry Bruckheimer who produced that, and he never fails.
O'BRIEN: Apparently not.
BOROWITZ: Apparently -- well, you know, he's still got that "CSI" franchise. His "CSI, "Shaker Heights" is coming up soon. But, you know, I think America was not ready for a show about a porn king in primetime. And, you know, call me old fashioned, but I'm happy to see porn off the air...
O'BRIEN: In primetime.
BOROWITZ: ... and back on our home computers where it belongs.
O'BRIEN: NBC's "Coupling" got ditched, as well. And do you think that it sort of sends the message that people really want to watch the Joe show, you know, the "Joe Millionaire", average Joe, that people just aren't ready for sort of the hard-core sex stuff in primetime, especially when it's not well-written either?
BOROWITZ: I think people want good stuff. I mean, the new "Joe Millionaire" isn't doing all that good either, the one with all the foreign -- he is filthy rich. I love that one.
B.J. SIGESMUND, "US WEEKLY: I think that a lot of people think the OC got a lot of that energy from Fox, and people weren't ready for another show that was big on sex and sex appeal. The problem right now, the reality of television is no matter how much hype you put behind these shows, if the second or third episodes of these shows decrease in viewership, the network execs cut the losses right there.
O'BRIEN: Like (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
SIGESMUND: You know, with Fox and "Skin," it's a case of saving $2 million a week. That's how much that show costs. So, they'd rather put that money toward something else and see if that sticks.
O'BRIEN: Let's talk a little bit about movies. "Matrix Revolution" has opened, the third one. So, remember, we talked about this the other day. What's been the reaction? People love it, people don't love it aren't watching it?
SIGESMUND: Mixed. Yes, you know, if you were confused by the second one, you're going to be just as confused...
O'BRIEN: That was me. I had no idea of what was going on.
SIGESMUND: ... by the third one. It's just as much of a mind game. You know, it picks up right where the second one left off. I think it's still going to be a huge hit. There is such a huge following for that movie based on the first one. So, "Matrix 3" is going to make a ton of money this weekend.
BOROWITZ: Well, they also -- they have a built-in audience of people who don't have a life, and they're always waiting for the "Matrix" films.
SIGESMUND: Hello!
O'BRIEN: Ouch!
BOROWITZ: I'm sorry.
SOHN: No, but that's what makes the "Matrix" so good is that he's a complete dunce and yet he can save the world, which gives us all faith that you know, we can, too.
BOROWITZ: Right.
SIGESMUND: Right.
O'BRIEN: For all of us.
SOHN: Yes.
BOROWITZ: They seem to like that.
O'BRIEN: Can I ask you about two other movies?
SIGESMUND: Please.
O'BRIEN: "Elf" with Will Farrell, who I love. Is the early buss on that great?
SIGESMUND: Yes, this is actually -- Soledad, this is an amazing weekend. This is a weekend where there's something for the guys, the "Matrix," something for women, "Love Actually," and something for the kids, which is "Elf." "Elf," I've seen. It's very sweet. Will Farrell plays this human at Santa's North Pole place with elves, who only discovers when he's, like, 30 years old that he's actually a human. And he comes down to New York City to meet his dad, who's this publisher high on Mr. Clause's naughty list and they get to know each other. It's a very sweet film.
O'BRIEN: Now, how about the movie, "Love Actually, which you're saying is a chick flick?
SIGESMUND: Right, right, terrific.
O'BRIEN: If Hugh Grant goes on TV one more time to say how he's never doing another romantic comedy again...
SOHN: Right, right.
O'BRIEN: ... I mean, I'm...
SIGESMUND: But that's really where he's most successful.
O'BRIEN: Of course it is.
SIGESMUND: And that's where people, especially women, really want to see him. He's back as a romantic lead. He plays the prime minister of England, who falls in love with his receptionist the very first day in office. And it's just one of eight or so interwoven plot lines about love and loss throughout England.
BOROWITZ: There is so many (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who will go to any movie that has words like lift and flat in it. You know, they'll just immediately -- if they say (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
O'BRIEN: We're not talking about shoes at all.
BOROWITZ: No.
O'BRIEN: All right, let's, Amy, talk about Rosie, because, wow! It's getting ugly so fast.
SOHN: It's pretty crazy, yes.
O'BRIEN: OK, first, we've got the trial overall, which is basically about a breach of contract, but it's all really about personalities and who said which snippy and mean comment to who.
SOHN: And sexuality, too. I mean, I think she is on trial for her sexuality. And I think she's a woman of many contradictions. Because she's sort of a lesbian soccer mom, and yet at work, you know, she's rumored to be this uber (ph) (EXPLETIVE DELETIVE), and then she's got this musical going which represents her own, you know, sexual awakening as a teenager.
O'BRIEN: But let's back through, then, each of those things. There's word that Boy George has sort of played an important role in Rosie O'Donnell's... SOHN: He inspired her, because they're about the same age but they had very, very different childhoods.
O'BRIEN: And so, what sort of triggered the big change that everyone saw in Rosie O'Donnell after her show completed, as opposed to just not having to be on TV five days a week, was that she really felt that Boy George thought she was suburban?
SOHN: Yes, which I love. They were talking on the phone one night, and she heard the noises of this nightclub that he was at. And she said, you know, you're at this nightclub and I'm at Target buying clothes for my kids. And he called her suburban, and supposedly very shortly after that, she started sporting her butch haircut and her butch look.
O'BRIEN: No one wants to be called suburban apparently.
BOROWITZ: I guess not.
O'BRIEN: We have five seconds left to talk about "Taboo," which is the musical that Rosie is putting on Broadway. Early word is?
(CROSSTALK)
SOHN: Yes, yes.
O'BRIEN: Early word is bad.
BOROWITZ: You know, although I hang with a group of lesbian soccer moms, and they're very excited about it. They really are. They think it's going to be a good show.
O'BRIEN: That demo, two thumbs up.
BOROWITZ: Yes, really.
O'BRIEN: Well, you guys...
SOHN: I think everyone's going to like watching it crash and burn.
BOROWITZ: We enjoy that -- we enjoy that in New York.
O'BRIEN: Ouch! Exactly. All the critics maybe in New York, but everyone else would be cheering for it -- maybe. You guys, as always, thanks so much. We're out of time this morning. I appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
