The Star Online: Entertainment: TV & Radio
The Star Online: Entertainment: TV & Radio |
| 'Storage Wars' rigged, charges ex-contestant Posted: 11 Dec 2012 08:44 PM PST LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The popular TV show Storage Wars - in which treasure hunters bid to buy unseen items in abandoned units - is rigged, with producers sometimes planting valuable items among the junk, a former contestant said in a lawsuit on Tuesday. David Hester, one of the reality TV show's longest-serving cast members, said producers buried a BMW Mini under trash in one unit featured in the A&E cable series, and a pile of newspapers announcing the death of Elvis Presley in another. "A&E regularly plants valuable items or memorabilia," Hester charged in his lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday against the cable channel and the show's producers. When he complained, Hester was fired from the show. He is claiming fraud, wrongful dismissal, breach of contract and unfair business practices, and asking for at least US$750,000 in damages. A&E declined to comment on the lawsuit on Tuesday, saying it did not comment on pending litigation. Storage Wars, which made its debut in 2010, is the highest-rated non-fiction program on U.S. cable television, and draws about 5 million viewers per episode. It is also broadcast in Canada, Australia, Britain and other countries. The show follows a group of modern treasure-hunters who compete at public auctions of abandoned storage lockers in the hope of finding valuable items which they can re-sell for a profit. Hester said that "nearly every aspect of the show is faked." He said producers regularly place in the lockers "valuable or unusual effects to add dramatic effect" and sometimes stage entire units, according to the lawsuit. Hester, who lives in Orange County, California, has been featured on the show since 2010. He was fired in October 2012 shortly after a meeting in which he complained about rigging in a meeting with producers, the lawsuit says. A&E Television Networks is a joint venture of the Hearst Corporation and Disney-ABC Television - a unit of Walt Disney Co. |
| Posted: 12 Dec 2012 01:45 AM PST Destination Weddings ties it all up for wedding traditions in different cultures. WHO doesn't like weddings – be they simple or lavish? In Asian circles, you can add age-old tradition, the family factor and superstition to the wedding equation. With that in mind, comes the new programme entitled Destination Weddings which airs on Travel Channel (Hypptv Ch 145) on Thursdays at 7.30pm. The show features weddings centred on traditional as well as contemporary ceremonies. In Destination Weddings, former beauty queen Deborah Henry is the traveller who "accompanies" these soon-to-wed couples on their joyous adventures. "I have never known how much there was to learn about weddings and so much to do in preparation until I did this programme," said Henry about this new series. Destination Weddings is a juxtaposition of the old with the new that aims to showcase, contrast and compare two kinds of nuptials: the ones that are held on home ground and the ones that defy the norm by being held in a location away from the home country. For the uninitiated, each episode will feature two weddings. The first is a destination wedding which features a foreign couple who have come to an Asian country for an exotic wedding. The second wedding highlights a local affair. "Covering a dozen wedding ceremonies in six countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand – has been an educational experience on the different values and practices. In the Philippines, they even have a monkey ring-bearer, and in Bali, there was a teeth-filing ceremony to even the teeth to ward off evil spirits during a traditional Balinese Hindu wedding," she added. With a laugh, Henry added that after six months spent on the road with Destination Weddings, there were two important things she picked up while doing this series. "First, remember to hire a wedding planner as it will make your life easier, and the second is to get married only once, if you can manage it!" This is also the first time that Travel Channel commissioned a programme in Asia. Red Communications director Lina Tan, who is also the producer of Destination Weddings, said they looked across Asia to find a host for the series and Henry's intelligence struck them. "We did the usual casting/ audition process but she struck us as being the perfect traveller for the programme. And a pretty face is a bonus," she added. Tan also explained that not all the couples and families were keen to be part of the show, and there were several instances where the shoot had to be cancelled because the parties involved backed out. However, things worked out well in the end, with big dramatic moments such as runaway brides ... or grooms. Destination Weddings airs on Travel Channel (HyppTV channel 145), Thursdays at 7.30pm. |
| Posted: 12 Dec 2012 01:41 AM PST The new animated series Tron: Uprising struggles to live up to the legacy of the cult movie. If you strip away the much talked-about special effects from the 1982 film Tron and the more recent Tron: Legacy, then what remains is the good ol' fashioned plot of good versus evil (with both the good-you and the evil-you looking the same). In the new animated series within the Tron saga entitled Tron: Uprising, the story is taken a step further. The animated series takes place after the 1982 film in which the inhabitants (programmes in the form of humans) of The Grid find themselves fighting against a dictator with an unstoppable army. The programme Clu (having defeated the hero Tron, and triumphing against his programmer Kevin Flynn) has started an invasion on The Grid. One of the affected places is the previously idyllic City of Argon, where mechanics make and maintain those cool motorbikes with lights and amazing speed. One such young mechanic is a programme called Beck (voice of Elijah Wood), who finds himself surpassing his programme when Clu's main man – General Tesler (voiced by Lance Henriksen) – arrives to terrorise the citizens of his city. Refusing to stand by, Beck advances from his job description and makes Tesler's men work a little harder by creating a symbol of freedom. In the process, the renegade programme also catches the attention of Tron (Bruce Boxleitner) who many thought was dead. Tron, in turn, recruits Beck and trains him to become the next defender of The Grid, in other words Tron 2.0. At this point, Tron: Uprising is supposed to pick up with Beck discovering what it means to be a hero every week. He learns that there is more to becoming a symbol than just zipping around on the bike and taking down the bad guys. Against the odds, he has to persevere and make correct judgment calls even when the outcome may lead to terrible personal loss. Beck does struggle and he is often filled with so many doubts. In fact, he does sound like he is whining. Thankfully, he does make the right call in the end, but the journey that takes him there is quite unbearable. If the challenges are supposed to add weight to the character, they are not working at all. It doesn't help that Tron has been relegated to a one-dimensional mentor role – the babbling sounds an awful lot like lectures. It would be totally understandable if Beck decides to sever his ties with this former hero. But of course a hero's path has to be a difficult road with many setbacks. Tron: Uprising points out the fact that no matter what one is destined to do, he or she can step out to do something more meaningful. Beck might be programmed to tune up engines, but he exceeded his programme all on his own to right a wrong. Add themes like oppression and rebellion to colour up the stories. However, most of the plot gets a little lost – no thanks to the annoying hero and his equally annoying friends. It doesn't help that his nemesis is a caricature – a girl who fell in with the wrong crowd. Similar themes like these have been dealt with more depth in other animated series, including Avatar: The Last Airbender. There are some innovative ideas within this Tron: Uprising series (loss of identity and the value of friendship), but nothing that keeps you interested in the long run. As far as the animation is concerned, the Tron world has never looked this good. Yes, the horizontal and vertical lines, the clever use of light, the buildings, trains, landscape ... all these elements add to the cosmetic value. The action sequences are also simply amazing, especially when the infamous Game is held. If anything, Tron: Uprising is visually amazing. Too bad about the storyline, though. Tron: Uprising is aired every Sunday on Disney XD (Astro Ch677) and Disney HD (Astro CH637) at 2pm. |
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