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Tom Gilbert 4,032 Entries
Tom Gilbert

Director Zieff Dies

Film and television commercial director Howard Zieff died, the Associated Press reports. He was 81. Zieff, who directed films such as “Private Benjamin,” also created slice-of-life TV commercials such as his “Spicy Meatball” ad for Alka-Seltzer, the news agency says….

Asa Aarons Resurfaces at NY1

Asa Aarons, a former reporter from WNBC-TV in New York, is resurfacing as an employment correspondent for New York 1 News, New York Daily News reports. It’s his first full-time television gig since getting cut from WNBC in 2007—an experience…

Comcast to Create Web VOD

Comcast said it will start a Web-based video-on-demand service by the end of the year, TVPredictions.com says, citing an article in Home Media Magazine. Comcast said the service would include programs and movies from TV networks and Hollywood studios, the…

Leibowitz Seen for Trade Commission

U.S. Federal Trade Commission member Jon Leibowitz is expected to be appointed the next chairman of the agency, Bloomberg News reports, citing an administration official. Before joining the FTC, he served as a lobbyist for the Motion Picture Association of…

Barkley Pleads Guilty to DUI

Charles Barkley pleaded guilty to charges of driving drunk and will serve jail time, the Associated Press reports. Barkley, who works as a TV analyst for TNT, will begin a five-day jail term on March 21, the news agency reports….

Snoop Dogg Confident About Show

Snoop Dogg is confident viewers “will definitely be entertained” with his new MTV variety show, “Dogg After Dark,” the Los Angeles Times reports. It’s a format that hasn’t always worked for other stars, including Rosie O’Donnell with her “Rosie Live”…

Nick Takes a Page from Disney

Nickelodeon President Cyma Zarghami is taking a page from the Disney Channel’s playbook, the New York Times says. Next month it will debut “Penguins of Madagascar,” an animated series with some characters from the “Madagascar” movies, which was brought to…

‘Top Model’ to Return on Short Side

The next cycle of the CW’s “America’s Next Top Model” will return with a height restriction of 5 feet 7 inches, meaning that aspiring models can’t be taller than that measure, the Los Angeles Times reports. “There have been top…

Judge OKs Falk, Daughter Meeting

A Los Angeles judge granted Peter Falk’s daughter a meeting with her father, who, the daughter stated, has Alzheimer’s disease, although the judge barred anyone from publicly discussing the meetig afterward, the Associated Press reports. Catherine Falk has filed to…

CW Orders ‘Melrose’ Pilot

The CW has ordered a pilot of a “Melrose Place” update, with Oscar winner Davis Guggenheim directing, the Hollywood Reporter says. Separately, Fox drama pilot “Masterwork” will be directed by filmmaker Jeffrey Nachmanoff, the trade paper says. —Aimee Picchi