The Star Online: Entertainment: TV & Radio

'30 Rock' closes its doors with a sentimental farewell

Posted: 31 Jan 2013 09:02 PM PST

LOS ANGELES: Emmy-winning TV comedy "30 Rock" bowed out after seven seasons on Thursday with bittersweet farewells but giving all its zany characters a happy ending.

The satirical show-within-a-show about the inside workings of a fictional television sketch series saw Tina Fey's hapless writer Liz Lemon try to round up her unruly cast for a last hurrah.

Along the way, unpredictable sketch star Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan) causes chaos, self-centered actress Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) attempts to find her true calling on Broadway, and producer Pete Hornberger (Scott Adsit) finally achieves his dream to disappear without a trace.

The show's simpleton page-turned-janitor Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer) finds himself in his element with his sudden promotion to head of television network NBC.

But under the jokes, the cast showed some real emotion in Thursday's hour-long series finale. "There's a reason people don't say honest goodbyes.

It's because when stuff is coming to an end, people freak out and they act crazy," Liz tells Tracy. Despite small audiences, "30 Rock" became a cult favorite, while Liz has been a hero for single geeky women as she tackled the male-dominated world of network television, with phrases such as "what the what," "blerg" and "I want to go to there" becoming popular.

The show's finale comes after perpetual unlucky-in-love Liz finally got her happy ending earlier in the season with her marriage to hot dog vendor Criss Chross (James Marsden) and they adopt two children.

But after grappling with the trials of being a stay-at-home mother, Liz and Criss agree to swap roles and she returns to work. Liz also finds peace in her dysfunctional relationship with suave, egotistical network executive Jack Donaghy (played by Alec Baldwin).

Thursday's show also saw the return of guest stars Julianne Moore and Salma Hayek as Jack's ex-girlfriends, Conan O'Brien as one of Liz's ex-boyfriends, along with appearances from "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" stars Ice-T and Richard Belzer and Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader in the U.S. House of Representatives, as herself. "30 Rock" was inspired by Fey's stint as head writer for "Saturday Night Live."

It has won multiple Emmys since its 2006 premiere but has always suffered from low audience ratings. In the show's prime in 2008-2009, an average of 7.5 million viewers tuned in each week, but the final season has garnered an average of 4 million viewers per episode.

In honor of the show's finale, ice cream brand Ben & Jerry's announced a new flavor, the "Liz Lemon Greek Frozen Yogurt," which will be available this spring. "30 Rock," which is aired in more than 20 countries around the world, has skyrocketed Fey's career, and she has appeared in films including "Baby Mama," "Date Night" and the upcoming "Admission."

Both Fey and Baldwin won the best TV comedy actor and actress accolades at the Screen Actor's Guild awards last Sunday, with Baldwin tweeting, "What a nice note for @nbc30rock to end on." - Reuters

The Grammy adventure

Posted: 01 Feb 2013 12:41 AM PST

Red FM rewards plucky engineer with a trip to the 55th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.

NOT many can say they have been part of the biggest awards night in music. But soon Rosalina Rashidi will be as she jets off for the 55th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb 10. The young talented engineer won Red FM's 60 Seconds To The Grammys while on-air with The Red Breakfast Show last Friday.

The lucky 23-year-old beat two other contestants to grab her seat at the Staples Center in Los Angeles for the glitzy Grammy night.

Her creativity, showmanship and passion made her standout amongst the hundreds of videos submitted to red.fm for the competition.

The competition, which started on Jan 7, was a big highlight with Lil' Kev and Sarimah on The Red Breakfast Show.

Rosalina was picked as best of the bunch not only for her charisma but for her quirky rapping and her energetic dance moves to Michael Jackson's Billie Jean.

She shared a bit of what made her take part in this competition. How did you come up with the idea for your video submission?

My mind is always running wild with plenty of ideas. I'm currently loving Maroon 5's Daylight, the chords were easy to learn.

My brother taught me to play it on the guitar and I decided to change the lyrics to dedicate the song to Red FM. To mix it up, I decided to showcase my love for Michael Jackson and move like him while rapping. What was the first thing that popped into your mind when deejay Jeremy Teo announced you as the winner?

I didn't think I was going to win but I kept hoping and praying. So when I heard my name, the first think I thought was thank God! This trip is going to allow me to do what I have been longing to do, which is work in the entertainment industry.

Who are you looking forward to seeing at the awards?

I can't wait to be in the same place with Foster The People and Logan Lerman. Part of the prize includes a day trip to either Disneyland or Universal Studio, which one is your choice?

Universal Studio! There is no thinking twice about this. I'm very passionate about movies, film-making and I want to be a movie producer and director.

I have written lots of movie scripts, ranging from a big budget two-hour movie to low budget movies. During my university years, I wrote, filmed and starred in my own short movies.

To follow Rosalinda's Grammy experience, head over to red.fm. She will document her trip, who she meets and and where she goes from Feb 7 to Feb 12.

Join the Red FM Malaysia Facebook fan page on facebook.com/redfm.my and follow us on Twitter @iloveredfm.

Red FM is owned and operated by The Star.

> Red FM's Station Frequencies: Taiping, Kedah, Perlis & Pulau Langkawi: 98.1FM, Georgetown & Seberang Perai: 107.6 FM, Ipoh, Perak: 106.4 FM, Klang Valley, Negeri Sembilan & Tapah: 104.9FM, Kuantan, Pahang: 91.6 FM, Batu Pahat and Melaka: 98.9FM, Johor Baru and Singapore: 92.8FM.

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

Khamis, 31 Januari 2013