Mini Hot Topic: Star Jones' website

What is the deal with Star Jones' website [www.StarJones.com]? It requires all visitors to provide their email address before gaining access to the site. What's with the security? I'm a little offended she doesn't trust me. Reminds me of the time she confiscated Joy's camera at her wedding to Al Reynolds.

All she offers is her personal statement: "I am the author of the only dictionary that defines me." Ok...

Lets all hold hands (part 1 of 3)

I thought I'd take a trip down memory lane and look at some of the more tense moments in View history. In a three-part special we'll travel back in time as we peer through the Viewing Glass (trademark pending)...

"Did you see the fight?" [May 24th 2007]
Based in the aftermath of another tense moment, Kathy Griffin co-hosted the day after the The Feud and refused to ignore the elephant in the room. Whilst Barbara tried to move on from the previous days events, Kathy took every opportunity to mention "the fight with Rosie and Elizabeth". Ok so maybe this really wasn't that tense an episode. But it was pretty funny to watch Barbara squirm. Kathy kept mentioning what had transpired, leading Barbara to complain "I really don't want to rehash yesterday". When Kathy excitedly said she did, Barbara 'playfully' asked "Do you want to be on this show again?". It didn't stop Kathy though. In the following interview with Anton Apollo Ohno and his partner from Dancing With the Stars she interjected, "I have a question about that last dance...um...did you see that fight with Elizabeth and Rosie yesterday?" The heartburn expert in the proceeding health segment was faced with the big question too. It left Joy to proclaim that Kathy was beating a dead horse. Watching it live we were left to wonder if Kathy was going to push the other ladies to breaking point. Not so much tense as funny. To see the highlights of this episode watch the clip at YouTube.

"Homophobic? No, it's cold and flu season [November 21st 2006]
Ok, so there was a whole scandal about Kelly Ripa dissing Clay Aiken when he co-hosted with her on Live With Regis and Kelly. Many people - including Rosie - felt that Kelly made a homophobic slur when she bitchily commented about not knowing where Clay Aiken's hand had been. After Rosie accused Kelly of making a homophobic slur the View producers got Kelly Ripa on the line - to the surprise of Rosie. Kelly called her claims "downright outrageous" and said her comments were in regard to the fact Clay had been shaking everyone's hands and it was cold and flu season [how long did it take you to come up with that one Kelly?] Guest co-host Sherri Shepherd then stepped in and backed Kelly against Rosie. The fact of the matter is, if you've seen the Kelly and Clay episode you know Kelly was being a bit of bitch. The discussion itself wasn't so tense but reports say Rosie was not at all happy with the producers for springing the Kelly phone call on her. You know, considering she just accused the woman of making a homophobic comment. Oh to have been a fly on the wall back in the days of Rosie. Kelly's phone call during Hot Topics can be seen at YouTube.

Bill Paxton...Pullman...Paxton? [March 8th 2006]
Early last year the cast of "Big Love" came on to promote their series which focuses on the life of a mormon polygamist and his three wives. Joy couldn't resist the opportunity to ask actress Chloe Sevigny about her role in the controversial film "The Brown Bunny". In the film she performs oral sex on her then real-life boyfriend Vincent Gallo. Bill Paxton (or is that Pullman? I never can tell) took great offense to Joy's query and stepped up to defend Chloe's honour. You could cut the tension with a knife! The interview was broadcast live on the east coast but was mysteriously edited when broadcast on the west. Reports said that Paxton/Pullman "went ballistic" after the interview and vowed he would never appear on the show again.

Coming soon: Ultra-conservatives, power-lesbians, and she who will not go quietly into the night (aka Star Jones). Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3.

[Note: the above graphic is an illustration by Jillian Tamaki and has been borrowed from cbc.ca]

The View come September?

Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Kathy Griffin, Barbara Walters and Joy Behar.

Barbara lets loose

Barbara has been firing off some interesting statements lately. A couple of months ago she referred to Rosie's mother-in-law as a "bigot". That's a strong word which really shouldn't be thrown around lightly. Then she went and did it again, calling Kathy Griffin a bigot when she said that the Republican party wasn't interested in women or minorities. Using that word so off-handedly once is a slip, twice - now it might be time to drop it from her vocabulary until she learns how to apply it fairly.

Her mind seems to be firing off in all sorts of directions too. Last week she showed interest in having Paris Hilton on as a guest co-host. It was only when Bill Geddie put the kibosh on the idea that Barbara backed away from it. Now of course things have changed, and having a chat with Paris is "beneath" her. Guess she let her head go there for a while.

Now for the kicker. What would you imagine Barbara might say when asked how things have changed since Rosie left? Here's what she told Ryan Seacrest on his KISS-FM radio show a couple of weeks ago:

"The Hot Topics have been fun. There are some things that we were able to discuss that we weren't able to discuss with Rosie, like heterosexual sex. Because, you know, Rosie's lifestyle is different, being an open lesbian...We are perhaps not quite as political [or] vocal about [things], but the Hot Topics have been very fun, and the ratings are up, so we're quite happy. Obviously, the audience is very loyal." [Yes, she said that. They can now discuss heterosexual sex.]

Except of course ratings are down 13% and they were able to - and did - speak freely about heterosexual sex whilst Rosie was on The View. So what's going on Babs? You can't just throw a statement like that out there. It leaves you looking very out of touch.

But is this really the case? Or is it that she's pandering to the conservative audience they're now trying to court? Lets just hope that with Barbara having a tight hold on the reigns she doesn't lose her grip on reality.

It's said with love Barbara. Honestly.

The View in print

The latest issue of Australia's Foxtel magazine features an interview with Joy Behar entitled 'View from the top'. It's a pretty standard interview, nothing too startling, but there are a few pics I thought I'd put up here on the blog...






"Elisabeth's an absolute right-wing conservative and she's not going to budge!" says Joy, who insists they are all friends. "We wouldn't be able to argue the way we do if we weren't getting along."

Surviving through reruns

The View is on hiatus during the weeks of June 25th, July 2nd, August 6th, 13th, 20th and 27th. Which basically means 2 weeks off, 4 weeks on, 4 weeks off. Still a week and a half to go. Too bad they missed out on the whole Paris-gets-released thing. Here's a couple of interesting clips that recently appeared on Access Hollywood to help tide us over:


Clip 1: Matt Lauer, Meredith Vieira and Star Jones after learning Rosie would not be renewing her contract with The View. [I'm sure Star must have smiled to herself at some point considering how things played out.]


Clip 2: Elisabeth's input on the potential replacement co-host candidates. [And who will be replacing Elizabeth while she's on maternity leave? Is that Star Parker on the line? Don't answer, don't answer!]

Barbara goes wawa

Barbara's new gal pal Paris Hilton is finally free from jail. After three weeks in captivity she has emerged to take on the reigns previously held by Mother Theresa. God help us.

Barbara has been sucking up and blowing wind on this issue for over a month now. First she badmouths Kathy Hilton, then she backpedals - how unusual (insert sarcasm) - then she becomes Kathy's media mouthpiece and finally she brings Paris's message of rebirth to the world. Fucking great. What a tool Barbara, seriously.

Then Paris calls Ryan Seacrest and Barbara doesn't look so special. Barbara appeared set to do the first post-lock-up interview until money came into play. Seems Babs is a cheapskate. Barbara lost out when a bidding war ensued, leaving Larry King the victor. Sidenote: how sad is it that Barbara had Kathy and Nicky Hilton attend her unveiling on the Hollywood Walk-of-Fame? Smells like desperation to me. "Suddenly we're best friends...can I interview your recently jailed daughter?"

Well Barbara thought she was Babs-almighty there for a minute, being Paris's media person of choice. Now that Paris wants to be paid $1 million for her story suddenly Barbara's all above it. From the woman who asked Ricky Martin if he was gay - great journalism Babs - comes the statement that she's above interviewing the hottest name in pop culture (sad as it is) all because she wants to be paid for the story...hmmm, just like everyone else. Advertisers pay big bucks to get spots during big primetime interviews. Guess the networks want all the profit and don't want to share with the media-whore whose bringing them the bucks. Whatever. Here's what Babs had to say today:

"Look, I've done prison interviews before, but people like the Menendez brothers were really important news stories - this wasn't." She continued, "And even though I'd already written my questions, when all that pay-for-play stuff happened, I suddenly felt this was not up to my standard...the whole thing somehow was beneath me." [It's beneath her? Oh my. Looks like she's off the guest-list at the next Hilton dinner party.]

To read the full article which examines the Paris bidding war of 2007 and the recent tarnishes to Barbara's reputation click here.

The ViewMaster

Longtime viewers remember the days when Bill Geddie, executive producer of The View and Barbara Walters collaborator, sat in the studio audience. He would regularly appear on camera and chat with the ladies. Of course when Rosie joined the show she felt it would be better if his presence remained offscreen and we have seen little of him since. Mr. Geddie himself has acknowledged that Rosie's input and changes to the show have proven successful. But his looming presence behind the scenes is still felt. So here is a little insight into the man they call...the ViewMaster:

He's the main person responsible for hiring and firing (or not-renewing as the case may be) and making all the major decisions. In the past Rosie has mentioned on her blog that she and Bill Geddie did not get along so well. He was also a figure in the argument that erupted backstage when Rosie blasted Barbara for not defending her against Trump. In order to shed some light on the enigma that is Bill Geddie I tracked down a couple of interviews he has done. The links to these can be found below. Here's a sample of some interesting things he had to say in regards to the show (keep in mind this is from December 2006, pre-the Rosie fallout)...

Longevity: "I can tell you this, and this is something I said to Meredith Vieira and I said it to Star Jones and I've said it to any woman who's ever been at that table. The View is a franchise. It's designed to be around when we're all gone."

Popularity: "I think Rosie has energized the show. I think she's the perfect fit at that table. I think it helps that Star Jones is not at that table. I think that was also a part of the puzzle." [Ouch!]

Diversity: "I think it’s important to have an African American voice at the table, and I still feel that way."

For the full articles and a deeper insight into the man that pulls the strings at The View visit Broadcasting&Cable and DimwitedMusings.

Kathy Griffin has my vote

Kathy Griffin isn't letting the fact she's in the running for the co-host job interfere with her act. In a recent stand-up routine she described Elizabeth as "living in 1952" and in several interviews has made mention of Oprah's "boyfriend" Gayle King (who of course is considered a front-runner to take on the moderator seat). It will be interesting to see if Kathy's no-holds-barred comedy alienates or entices the decision-makers at The View. If they have any head for business they should snap her up quick smart. Kathy is sure to be ratings gold.

How interested is Kathy in joining the show anyway? Here's what she had to say in a May 27th interview with Access Hollywood:

"Oh, I would do it, it's a blast. I love those girls, it's a very fun show to do, and you know it would be a huge change for my life of course, but it would be a blast." [For the complete interview visit AccessHollywood.com]

And now for of bit of nostaligia - courtesy of YouTube - here is a clip from Kathy's "Allegedly" special in which she recounts a previous appearance on The View. This is from back in the days when Lisa Ling was still co-hosting...

The Tale of Star Parker: right-wing...nut-job

OMG. OMG. What the hell happened? On June 19th The View's guest co-host was a woman named Star Parker. Part of a conservative think-tank, she was the most infuriating co-host they have ever had. Clearly a case of stunt casting, she spewed forth her hard-right opinions and dominated the entire episode. In a nutshell she's anti-abortion (even though she's had four), anti-evolution, anti-socialism, anti-gay marriage, pro-Republican and pro-Christian fundamentalism. Okay so basically she was full of crap. Her stance on issues was infuriating enough, but then she made the entire show about her. Even Barbara couldn't keep her in line. Too bad too because I was really looking forward to the Michael Moore interview. The way he handled her was good though.

Her appearance started me thinking, is the show headed in a more right-wing direction? I certainly hope not, given that the audience seems to be mainly comprised of people with left leaning or centrist views. Certainly someone as hard right as her is taking it too far. Even Elisabeth couldn't bring herself to agree with Ms. Parker. Lets hope she was an abberation. Rosie has said on her blog that executive producer Bill Geddie is in charge of choosing co-hosts and guests, so hopefully he will have learned from this. The appearance from Star Parker was truly painful to sit through.

For a highlight of her appearance check out this clip from YouTube:



Note to Bill Geddie: Please don't bring her back. I'll be a good boy, just give me this one thing for Christmas.

Pre-Rosie, post-Debbie and plus-sized-Star

Here's a look back at the cast in a Vintage View moment. I'm totally trademarking that: 'Vintage View' brought to you by Crest Whitestrips.


Now why is Star holding a champagne flute?

Law & Order: Star Jones Unit

Everyone remembers Elisabeth Hasselbeck's outrage last year when a "fictional" character on Law & Order: SVU - baring the name 'Elisabeth Hassenback' - was raped and murdered. The obvious attack on the real Elisabeth lead to her calling the executive producer of SVU to demand an answer and an apology. When he was less than apologetic, chalking it up to coincidence, Elisabeth vented about it on The View. This article from E! Online sums it all up and details some of Elisabeth's other personal dramas.

You can see the video of Elisabeth on YouTube as she tells her harrowing story of being fictionally raped - twice none the less - and murdered. Btw, how funny is it that Mariska Hargitay (SVU's Olivia Benson) described Elisabeth's upset with one simple word: 'stupid'. She's not the first one to say so. Anyways...



The reason I bring up the whole fictionalized rape and murder thing is because who should have recently guest-starred on SVU? Star Jones Reynolds of course. Playing herself...what a stretch. Here is how Star - who is looking like a much gaunter version of her former self - described her role in SVU:

In guest starring on SVU, Reynolds said, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, is my favorite show on television, I have never missed an episode since its premiere. When I was asked to appear on the show I immediately accepted the honor without hesitation. I am very excited to work alongside the incredibly talented cast and crew of Law & Order: SVU as well as the brilliant Dick Wolf." [Source]

To witness Star's...starring role, check out the video at YouTube. And is it just me or is she a bit wooden? How hard is it to play yourself?

Kathy Griffin does Larry King

Or is that 'did' Larry King? Whatever. It's past tense.

Kathy Griffin's interview with Larry King on June 21st is now available online. A highlight is up at CNN. Or you can check out the entire interview on YouTube starting with Part 1 of 5.

It's a fantastic interview - Kathy is hilarious - and she addresses the talk of her joining The View. Apparently Barbara recognises they have a good chemistry together which sounds promising. Check it out and post your thoughts and comments here on the blog.

Rosie remembers the good times

On June 15th - the day of the Daytime Emmy Awards - Rosie O'Donnell posted a poignant video on her blog. Set to the sound of Cyndi Lauper's "I'll Be Your River" were photos commemorating Rosie's time on The View. The whole tribute was charged with emotion, in particular the final two images, one of which is shown below. To view the video on Rosie's blog click here.


Speaking of turned backs, Rosie was recently misquoted when joking about her time on The View. This is the full comment she made as a joke...

"I got to tell you, I've been hanging around with those heteros for a full year and it's not fun. Turn around one minute and they'll stab you in the back with a high heel. They will." - Rosie O'Donnell, Sunday night at the Columbia, MD, stop of the True Colors tour. [PerezHilton.com]

Is The View going gay?

There has been speculation that the producers of the show may be considering a permanent gay male co-host. Whilst this is a departure from the original concept of the show - "Different women, different views" (very different women indeed) - it seems to have some support. Personally I like me an all female panel with occassional gay male appearances. As a guest co-host I think it will work fine. As a permanent thing, who knows. Out of the three contenders that have been named - Mario Cantone, Ross Mathews and Perez Hilton - Ross is my pick.

Here's what former co-host Debbie Matenopoulos had to say on Larry King Live on May 23rd 2007: "I think if they want to do something as groundbreaking as they did the first time around ten tears ago when they started this show they need to do something different and they need to change it up. It's the 21st Century - hire a gay man. Cause that's never been done before on a network television daytime show."

To hear what else Debbie has to say, including her thoughts on Rosie and potential replacement hosts check out the video at YouTube.



But would they really add a permanent gay male co-host?

This is what Bill Geddie said to People magazine last week about the recent and upcoming guest co-hosts: "We are open to trying a variety of guest co-hosts who bring a unique voice to the show. As I have said before, some are friends of the show, some are people we thought could mix it up, some are stunts and some are potential candidates."

In the same People magazine article Debbie contributed: "It is high time they put a gay man on that panel...They've said 'We can't put a man here.' I disagree. Why does it have to be guys against girls? I have a better time and solve more problems sitting with my gay guy friends than my girlfriends!"

To read the full People article click here here.

CelebTV.com also has a story on the gay male contenders. You can watch their video here.

To share your thoughts post a comment response to this blog :P

A little more insight

The continuing thoughts of me...


Former Co-Hosts
Rosie O'Donnell: She was fantastic for the show and it's a shame she moved on. She brought a lot of important issues to the forefront and a lot of attention to the show. That being said, considering the way things developed it seems that it was better for her own well being that she went her own way. The day of the Rosie/Elisabeth fight was the worst day I can recall in View history. I agree with her on many things - maybe 95% - and at least she still has a forum to express herself on her blog [http://www.rosie.com/].

All the others: Meredith Vieira was a fantastic moderator. I didn't know if the show would be the same without her, and it's not, but it has continued to evolve and become something even better. Star Jones, like Rosie, departed in spectacular fashion. It was a shame after 9 years she was shafted the way she was. She kind of annoyed me sometimes when she was on, but in hindsight I miss her being on the panel. I started watching when Lisa Ling was a co-host. Can't really say that much about her. She's probably in a jail somewhere right now interviewing criminals for NatGeo. Whatever. And Debbie, ah sweet Debbie. The original 'young woman' component. Debbie Matenopoulos, now on E!, probably has more to say now than she did all those years ago. I hear Barbara used to kick her under the table when she didn't like what Debbie was saying. What a bitch. (We love you though Barbara.)

Btw Barbara's constant championing of the Hilton family is SO ANNOYING. I remember when Kathy Hilton played "herself" when Paris and Nicole re-enacted their reunion (badly) for the Simple Life Goes to Camp. Yeah she's a class act Babs.

Are You My New Co-Host?
Whoopi Goldberg: I originally thought she would be good. Turns out she's kind of a dull co-host. Then they put her in the moderator chair and she just didn't pull it off. Too bad. Maybe they should bring her on as Delores Van Cartier.

Roseanne: I love her and from what I know of her I love what she stands for. She's put her hat forward, but I don't think she would be a good fit for the show. Sorry Roseanne. Plus she's already said she doesn't give a shit about celebrities so she's hardly gonna be into Hot Topics.

Kathy Griffin: I want Kathy to be a permanent host so bad. She's so funny and she's got a lot of valid things to say about social/political issues. Clearly Babs is easily irritated by Kathy and I wonder if she's a front runner with the decision-makers. It seems clear she is with the fans.

Sherri Shepherd: Originally I thought she was just a funny woman. Turns out she's an evolution-denier. I'm sorry, I can't get over that. It's an insult to intelligence. They already have one Elisabeth on the panel, they don't need another one. Maybe she could fill in for Elisabeth when she goes on maternity leave. Other than that, thanks but no thanks. How can they have someone on the panel who is encouraging the rest of society to be unintelligent? We're living in an age of unreason. Wake up! Unfortunately she seems to be a very popular choice with the decision-makers.

Gayle King: I didn't think much of her before. I could only think of her as "my best friend Gayle". Turns out she's got a lot of valid views and she made a fantastic guest moderator. She's got my vote.

My pick for the new panel? Gayle King (moderator), Kathy Griffin, Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselback and Barbara Walters.


Coming up soon - my thoughts on the latest happenings at The View. Including Paris Hilton, Star Parker (God awful), a potential gay male co-host, the looming presence that is Bill Geddie and plenty more.

Whilst I'm away here's something to ponder... Am I the only one who misses the old living room set? Hmmm

A little insight

I figure I should start by giving a little intro about myself and my thoughts about The View so you know where I'm coming from...

Greasy Weasel Bio: I'm a 24 year-old guy who lives in Australia. I'm currently at University studying Info Tech and I'm a View enthusiast.

The Co-Hosts
Barbara: Hmmm well she's got that whole pioneer thing going on, so you gotta give her that. Sure she's a good host but I'm bothered by the way she treats people. After hearing Star Jones on Larry King it's pretty clear Barbara screwed her over. And when Trump revealed that Barbara equated working with Rosie to being 'in the mud with pigs' I wasn't really surprised that she could be such a bitch, though I was disappointed. When Barbara's on 5 days a week and moderating the conversation she dominates too much so I'm looking forward to the new moderator being appointed soon. I do like me some Babs in small doses though.

Joy: She who does no wrong. Okay maybe that's stretching it, but you gotta love her. I'm with her on 99% of what she says. Without her the show is lost. She brings a strong liberal voice of reason which is much needed and appreciated. Behar is my idol. Totally with her on Al Gore too. Gore in 2008! Maybe a Gore/Behar ticket? Ok, maybe not.

Elisabeth: OMFG. Where do we start? I'll put this in a compliment sandwich. Firstly she's a very natural TV presenter. Second she's an extremely misguided, Bush-apologist, evolution denier who holds out-dated views and ideals. Third she sits on the end. Ok, so you all know what's right and wrong about Elisabeth. We'll leave it there. Truth is, I like her on the show. I don't agree with most of what she says, but she brings a kind of balance and at her core she's not a bad person.

In upcoming posts I'll share my views on previous hosts, potential new co-hosts and the latests happenings on The View. Btw how tragic is it that there are no new episodes for 2 weeks? They should totally make a patch.

Welcome message

Hello and welcome to The Greasy Weasel. It's Monday June 25th and I'm the only person here. This is the place where I'll be blogging about the latest happenings on The View. Who will replace Rosie? Will Barbara continue to reign supreme? And most importantly, when will Elisabeth join us in the 21st Century?

Here in Australia The View is broadcast an amazing 34 times a week (5 new episodes broadcast by satellite from the US and 29 repeats) on Foxtel's W Channel.

I'll be linking to all of the latest clips online, interviews and any other news related to the show and it's hosts (past and present) whilst offering my own insights on the machinations in front of and behind the camera. Stay tuned Viewers (a term which stangely has yet to be taken on as the moniker for die-hard fans of the View). You're about to enter the Greasy Weasel Zone (btw Bill O'Reilly? ewww)