Archive for February, 2010
“30 Rock” Season 4 Episode 15 “Don Geiss, America And Hope“
03/18/2010 (09:30PM – 10:00PM) (Thursday) : LIZ LEMON (TINA FEY) KEEPS RUNNING INTO WESLEY (GUEST STAR MICHAEL SHEEN), FORCING THEM TO QUESTION THEIR DECISION, WHILE JACK DONAGHY (ALEC BALDWIN) TRIES TO ESTABLISH HIMSELF WITH THE NEW CABLE COMPANY Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) questions her fate when she keeps running into Wesley (Guest Star Michael Sheen). Meanwhile, Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan) is distressed about his reputation when his kids’ former nanny writes a tell-all book, and Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) seeks to secure his own position in the new company. Also starring: Jack McBrayer (Kenneth), Scott Adsit (Pete), Judah Friedlander (Frank), Keith Powell (Toofer), John Lutz (Lutz), Katrina Bowden (Cerie), Kevin Brown (Dotcom), Grizz Chapman (Grizz).
Just in time for the release of her new movie ‘Date Night,’ watch for Emmy-winner and ‘30 Rock’ star Tina Fey to return to ‘Saturday Night Live’ to reprise her Sarah Palin impersonation. Tina told the AP that she expects to be back on ‘Saturday Night Live,’ but hedged her betchas about doing former Governor Sarah Palin again, saying, “It’s inevitable that we’ll try it, at least. We’ll see if it makes it to air.”
Actually, this is the perfect time to bring out the Palin material again, only now Sarah has given Tina Fey and the writers a lot more with which to work. Since the last time Fey did Palin on ‘SNL,’ Sarah resigned from her elected office as Alaska’s governor (for the good of the people since she felt she was a lame duck), prompting a lot of speculation about her future in politics.
She also had her memoir, ‘Going Rogue,’ published, she spoke at a Tea Party get-together using crib notes on her hand, and became a Fox News talking head. Talk about fodder for ‘SNL’! They’ll make jest of what she wrote in her hand, wondering if that’s how she wrote her book!
For Fey, the exposure will be pure gold with the movie coming out in April. She’d be a fool not to use her connection to ‘SNL’ to promote the comedy. And don’t be shocked if ‘SNL’ books ‘The Office’s’ Steve Carell to guest host the week after. NBC stars selling their projects on the network is nothing new, although usually they’re Universal movies. ‘Date Night,’ which opens April 9, is a Twentieth Century Fox film. Hmm… maybe Tina should go on Fox News and let Sarah Palin interview her. All to help sell the film, right?
At least Tina is upfront about how the whole Sarah Palin thing has been a gift for her as an actress/comic. “It was the strangest thing that’s ever happened to me. I’ve never had anything fall in my lap like that. Everything is usually me trying to convince the people of Earth that it’s okay for me to perform.”
Vogue is a fashion magazine, so you know that this Tina Fey interview in the new issue is going to focus a lot on clothes, hair, and weight, but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a lot of good stuff in it for fans of Fey and ‘30 Rock.’
What I like most about the interview is that even though she’s doing poses in front of the New York City skyline and having people fuss over her clothing and her hair, you still get a strong sense of the nerd girl inside of Fey. In the video diary of the photo shoot (after the jump), Fey talks about how it’s funny that the interview for the shoot is being held in the former bathroom of a restaurant, and in the print interview you can tell that while she finds all of it fun, she knows it’s pretty silly, too.
She also talks about how she was treated differently by people over her Sarah Palin impersonation when men like Dana Carvey (who did Bush) weren’t, and discusses everything from the Emmys to Rosemary Clooney to Chicken McNuggets.
So here we have a Valentine’s Day episode of ‘30 Rock,’ where we find Liz without a date, Toofer set up on a date (with an … urban woman), Frank doing his usual Frank stuff, and Lutz talking to the gang about his girlfriend, who no one believes is real. But he says that he has the proof on his web site.
And the web site is real! He insists that she, too, is real, though the pics show Karens Carpenter, Black, Allen, Walker, and whatever the last name of the girl from ‘Frosty The Snowman’ is.
Aw, come on. The appearance of Floyd, Dennis, and Drew was only a figment of drugged-out Liz’s imagination? That’s kind of disappointing. I was hoping we’d have a great scene with the three of them talking to each other about their experiences dating Liz (or maybe even not getting along and fighting over Liz and insulting each other). I wanted more interaction between the three of them, though Jason Sudeikis, Dean Winters, and Jon Hamm impersonating the medical assistants at the end (another hallucination by Liz) was pretty funny. I did enjoy Liz’s story this week, as she found out that even a crappy Valentine’s Day date is better than not even having someone to drive you home from a root canal procedure.
What plot didn’t I like? Jenna’s. God, a stalker plot, really? It’s odd: there were a few really funny lines in this plot (below), but overall I found her missing-her-stalker-on-Valentine’s-Day plot to be rather … icky. And I don’t just throw around words like icky that often (the montage was creepy, not funny). Just when you think Jenna is “vain but she’s OK once you get to know her,” we find out she’s probably insane. Honestly, I want to see more of the human, normal side of Jenna, not this weekly discovery that she’s done something bizarre in her past (or likes something bizarre done to her, like having a stalker for years and years). I mean, Frank was much more normal than Jenna in this episode and even gave Liz some good advice.
Watch ‘Anna Howard Shaw Day’ Episode Online
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Watch Promotional Photos of 30 Rock Season 4 Episode 13 Anna Howard Shaw Day
Watch Sneak Peek of 30 Rock Season 4 Episode 13 Anna Howard Shaw Day
There’s a 1984 episode of ‘Kate & Allie‘ titled ‘New Year’s Eve‘ where Kate and Allie make a bet: Kate has to give up smoking and Allie has to give up eating chocolate (never mind that we never even saw Kate smoke before, but that’s another story). Sound familiar? OK, so Liz had to stay away from all junk food and not just chocolate, but still, that was one of the plots of tonight’s ‘30 Rock.’ It’s an old staple with sitcoms, of course, I just didn’t think that ‘30 Rock‘ would necessarily go there.
I also don’t want to see yet another character have to stay at Liz’s apartment. Pete has stayed there, Tracy, and now Frank. Who’s next, Jack? Kenneth? Luckily, even a couple of creaky plots can’t completely hurt an episode of this show because there are so many great jokes flying at you from all directions.
I did enjoy the visit from Jenna’s mother Verna, and it’s really great to see Jan Hooks again. She was one of my favorite cast members of ‘Saturday Night Live,’ from one of my favorite eras of the show. And it’s good casting. I didn’t really think that Jenna’s mom would have such a thick Southern accent, though. Maybe she and Kenneth should have bonded more.
Of course, Jenna had to go to the only person at NBC who could possibly empathize with her about having a bad mother, and that would be Jack. We didn’t get to see his mom, but we did get to see a picture of a frowning Elaine Stritch during Jack’s slide show presentation to Jenna about how to deal with her mom.
Speaking of Kenneth, I truly loved the series of crazy ideas and observations that he made at the end of the episode, talking to Pete at the table. I saw a little smile on Pete’s face at one point, and I’m going to guess that it wasn’t Pete smiling; it was Scott Adsit. I mean, Kenneth mentioned ‘Jennifer Slept Here!’ That’s great!
Watch ‘Verna’ Episode Online here
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Jan Hooks, who made us roar on Saturday Night Live with her hysterical impressions of everyone from Tammy Faye Bakker to Bette Davis, hit a home run last night with a memorable comeback on NBC’s hit show, 30 Rock, as Jenna’s over-the-top mom, Verna.
Hooks, you may remember, helped SNL regain its popularity, starting in 1986, with two other new cast members, Phil Hartman and Dana Carvey. She left the show in 1991, taking on Jean Smart’s role in Designing Women and later, a recurring role on 3rd Rock from the Sun. She was last seen in 2004’s Jiminy Glick in Lalawood, according to IMDB.
In last night’s episode, in which Hooks guest starred, Verna comes to town to see daughter Jenna (Jane Krakowski), who agonizes over how to deal with her controlling, chain-smoking mom.
Jenna didn’t have a thing to worry about though, it seems. Verna was all sweetness and light, telling Jack (Alec Baldwin) that she was in town to throw a surprise party for her little girl. “It’s at a fancy restaurant, so wear something nice, like a pair of white jeans and a Dan Marino jersey,” she tells the always dapper network executive.
In one of the show’s funniest scenes, Verna stands before the crowd at the party, asking Jenna to join her in a duet. “Honey, I don’t deserve a single thing from you,” Verna says to her daughter. “But I’ve got to ask one favor. And it’s a big one. If you would do me the very great honor of joining me … Hit it!’
With a wide-eyed Jack and Liz (Tina Fey) looking on, Verna belts out a cheesy Captain and Tenille hit, singing to her daughter, “Do that to me one more time. Once is never enough, with a daughter like you….”
Daughter Jenna joins in, singing back to Verna, “Do that to me one more time. I can never get enough of a mom like you, oh-oh-oh…”
The mother and daughter duo raise lots of eyebrows when they sing, “Kiss me, like you just did….”
Now we know why Jenna is so wacky…
Since Hooks was such a hit, we’d love to see more of her on 30 Rock. And some other SNL alums, for that matter. Think of what Dana Carvey and Victoria Jackson could do on that show.
