News
Fill out this form to email this article to a friend
'Last Call' crossing picket line; new episodes planned
Associated Press
Published November 28, 2007
NEW YORK - NBC's Last Call with Carson Daly is about to become the first late-night talk show to defy the writers strike and resume production.
Daly, who is not a member of the Writers Guild of America, will begin taping new episodes this week for airing next week, an NBC spokesperson said Tuesday.
The half-hour Last Call, taped in Burbank, Calif., airs at 1:35 a.m. weeknights. Exactly when Daly's first new episode would air was not clear. No guests were announced. Writers Guild spokesman Gregg Mitchell declined to comment.
Daly is not the first talk-show host to go back into production. Union member Ellen DeGeneres has continued taping her daytime syndicated talk show after shutting down the first day of the strike, Nov. 5. But Last Call becomes the first to break ranks among the late-night shows, which all had chosen to air repeats rather than tape new shows.
Last Call's return will let members of its staff who would otherwise be laid off collect a paycheck. NBC has said it would pay employees of its late-night shows through the end of this month, but there are no guarantees beyond that.
'Emeril Live' tossed
The Food Network is kicking Emeril Lagasse down a notch.
The celebrity chef's Emeril Live, which has been on the air for 10 years, will cease production Dec. 11, Food Network publicist Carrie Welch said Tuesday.
"However, Emeril is under contract with Food Network," Welch said. "We love him, we support him and look forward to a long partnership with him."
Asked why the show was canceled, she said, "The only reason would be that it hit a ton of television milestones, and, you know, all good things come to an end."
In September 2006, Food Network vice president of programming Bob Tuschman told the St. Petersburg Times that Lagasse was one of the personalities who attracted significant viewership.
"Emeril is 8 p.m.," he said, referring to Emeril Live's weekday time slot at the time. But since then, Live has been moved to 7. Shows airing from 8 to 9 now include Alton Brown's Good Eats, Throwdown with Bobby Flay and Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.
The network will continue producing Lagasse's The Essence of Emeril, and he will take part in "specials and other development opportunities in the future," Welch said. The network will also air reruns of Emeril Live.
"I am deeply appreciative to all the unbelievable staff, many who have been with the show since the beginning, and all the loyal viewers, and the many talented guests who have appeared on the show through the years," Lagasse, 48, said in a statement Welch provided.
Times staff writer Janet K. Keeler and Zap2it.com contributed to this report.
[Last modified November 28, 2007, 00:45:03]
Share your thoughts on this story
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
News
Fifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.
Print
Email story
Comment
Letter to the editor