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BBC's "Have I Got News For You" |
Norm is developing a game show based on the British series "Have I Got News for You," which tests comedians on their knowledge of current events. "The British version was hysterical, but all the British comics are super-smart. They know everything about the news," he said. "So, this won't be like that because we'll have, like, American comics." ABC hopes to have a pilot episode shot in September for a possible mid-season start. In the new season of "Norm," Our Hero will be delivering some tongue-in-cheek advice at the top of each episode. It's a way of comically explaining the parental rating - TV-PG, TV-14, etc. - for that week, especially now that the show is moving to an earlier time period. Norm says, "I don't think a lot of people know what the ratings mean, so we're just going to say, 'Hey, it's dirty. It's dirty, dirty sex' . . . so if there's any children [watching], you don't want them to see dirty sex." He's serious, sort of. "Well, I mock the ratings system because I don't understand them. But I really believe in telling people what's going to be on. I don't like tricking kids into watching. I have a kid."
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"Norm" cast swells this season. |
ABC has announced three hefty additions to the "Norm" cast: Our Hero's "Dirty Work" partner in crime, and real-life pal, Artie Lange ... plus, get this, The Amazing Breasts of Nikki Cox. Fans will remember Nikki as the "huge whore" from the sitcom's premiere. She'll return as that character, who returns to Social Services, this time as an office assistant. According to the network, Nikki will stay with the show for just one season before moving to her own sitcom for The WB, which will be produced by "Norm" executive producer Bruce "The Genius" Helford. Norm will also get a girlfriend, though the role hasn't been cast yet. As for Artie, well, he'll play Norm's half-brother ... Artie. Clever, eh? Norm has always wanted him involved with the show, but a few things stood in the way of that happening last season. First off, Artie was really busy with his movie career ("Lost & Found," "Mystery Men," "The Bachelor" and "The Fourth Floor.") But the biggest obstacle was his contract to be involved in future projects at NBC. Apparently, that's been resolved, and we all have at least three new reasons to tune in this fall.
First it was "The Norm Macdonald Show." Then "The Norm Show." Now, it's simply "Norm." On Friday, Our Hero made a slight mention of the change by stating only that they "had to." So, there's been a fair amount of speculation about the switch, but the reason is fairly simple. Turns out cartoonist Michael Jantze holds "The Norm" trademark for his strip by the same name. Jantze tells The Fake News that he, in fact, contacted Warner Bros. Television (producers of Norm's sitcom) about their infringement of his copyright. But Jantze did not feel comfortable commenting any further, because they are in "the final stages" of rapping up the details. ABC has already adopted the new moniker in their press material for the fall season.
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"I vant to suck your blood!" |
Jay Leno actually did something cool. Imagine that. Fans have often heard about Norm's dismal reception on international "Star Search," which was one of his first TV appearances as a young comedian. After coaxing Our Hero into retelling the story, Leno surprised everyone with a clip from that performance (courtesy of Ed McMahon). In it, Norm looks like a young Count Dracula in an ill-fitting, 1980s sportcoat -- truly a sight to behold. Beyond that, Norm momentarily riffed on the return of Pee-Wee Herman to public life and talked about his own summertime activities. Mostly he's been "doing a lot of celebrity stuff." He's played softball with other stars, during which his buddy Artie Lange suffered a broken ankle. And Norm recounted an embarrassing round of "celebrity" golf, where he had to explain WHO he was. He also said that "The Norm Show" had to change its name, and will now be called "Norm." He didn't elaborate, so we'll investigate. Norm hung out during the rest of the show, and was rather well behaved -- only making Leno uncomfortable once by referring to virginal "cherry pie" during Jason Biggs' account of filming the now famous "American Pie" scene. Check out audio clips.
The nominees are in, and there are no real surprises ... as "The Norm Show" received zero nods. It was a long shot at best, but fans can take solace in the fact the sitcom has returned for summer reruns. Here are the main categories in which "TNS" could have placed: Outstanding Comedy Series: "Ally McBeal," "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Frasier," "Friends" and "Sex And The City." Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: Michael J. Fox ("Spin City"), Kelsey Grammer ("Fraiser"), John Lithgow ("3rd Rock From The Sun"), Paul Reiser ("Mad About You") and Ray Romano ("Everybody Loves Raymond"). Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: Kristen Johnston ("3rd Rock From The Sun"), Lisa Kudrow ("Friends"), Lucy Liu ("Ally McBeal"), Wendie Malick ("Just Shoot Me") and Doris Roberts ("Everybody Loves Raymond"). Leading the pack with 16 greatly deserved nominations is HBO's "The Sopranos." Click for a complete list of nominees.
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