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The Beginning of the End

The 'Jon and Kate Plus 8' series finale opens with a shot of an error-riddled sign that Jon's legal team posted outside the entrance of their home: "Notice: No film crew or production staff from TLC is permitted on this property under penelty [sic] of trespass. Johnathon Gosselin [sic]"

The spelling errors are something you might expect from one of The Gosselin's 9-year-old twins, Cara and Mady, but by now we know it's the work of Jon Gosselin, putting an end to the TLC show that put him on the map. The Gosselins' struggles to raise their brood of twins and sextuplets, and their reaction to the dissolution of their marriage, has been a dramatic ride that the world has followed both on- and off-camera, but now the saga of Jon and Kate Gosselin is finally coming to a close ... in this particular incarnation, anyway.

Bravo has a hit on its hands with 'Chef Academy,' so the Bravo TV Official News Site has every right to brag about the cast.

Of gorgeous French chef Emmanuel Delcour, the blog brags that in his four years living in Los Angeles, he's been full of commercial and television appearances. They say he enjoys swimming (cage-free!) with sharks, and has even served as a personal trainer.

Yeah, they ain't whistling Dixie. Because Delcour is getting Googled today more for his physical prowess out of an apron than in the kitchen.

We come to find out that Delcour is also said to be former French porn star Jean Val Jean (a Les Miz reference; how cultured!). Though the network is being a bit coy about Delcour's shady past, they are obviously pleased that it's cooking up ratings. And the word is out that Val Jean, ahem, Delcour, will reveal his past in an upcoming episode.

What happened on this week's 'How I Met Your Mother' episode, 'Slapsgiving 2: Revenge of the Slap' -- in 100 words or less.

As thanks for recovering his beloved turkey for Thanksgiving, Marshall gives unto Ted and Robin his fourth of five SlapBet slaps, to be used that day.

Chris Elliot plays Lily's father, who spends more time making ill-conceived board games than he ever did being a father. But after declaring him dead to her, she ultimately learns that forgiveness is the better route.

No one can agree on who should slap Barney, until Marshall declares that to honor the holiday, there will be no slap. He releases Barney from the slap throne ... and then slaps the heck out of him!

'Live with Regis and Kelly' is about to become 'Live With Kelly' for the time being, as Regis Philbin announced today that he is taking a leave of absence from the show.

As reported by Entertainment Tonight, Philbin made the announcement during today's episode of 'Live' and indicated that he will begin his hiatus on December 1 in order to recover from upcoming hip surgery. Philbin, who is 78 years old, injured his hip several months ago when he fell on the set of 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire' while taping a prime time special.

Back in 2004, when NBC promised Conan O'Brien that he'd get to host 'The Tonight Show' in five years, the gig looked like a career-crowning achievement. Today, however, it looks more like an albatross.

O'Brien has the dubious honor of hosting the flagship late-night program on NBC at a time when the network is mired in fourth place, when his own ratings have plummeted, when the desperate cheapness of the Jay-Leno-at-10PM experiment seems to be dragging down both prime time and late-night, and when what's left of the proud Peacock network is about to be sold to a cable service provider.

At least Conan's not the captain of this Titanic; he's more like one of the fiddlers desperately sawing away at "Nearer My God to Thee" as the vessel sinks. But then, he has no obligation to go down with the boat. Maybe, as San Francisco Chronicle TV columnist Tim Goodman suggests, it's time for O'Brien to jump ship.

What started off as one of the sweetest shows on television ended up being one of the biggest tabloid circuses of all time.
In light of tonight's series finale of 'Jon and Kate Plus Eight' on TLC, we look back fondly on the show's best moments.

Watch memorable moments from 'Jon and Kate Plus 8,' after the jump ...

Just this past week, HBO announced the addition of Gretchen Mol to the cast of its upcoming series 'Boardwalk Empire,' starring Steve Buscemi as Atlantic City gangster Nucky Thompson. With a string of respectable supporting roles, Mol's made a career out of not-quite making it, starting with her famous 1998 'Vanity Fair' cover that asked the entirely premature question: "Is Gretchen Mol Hollywood's New It Girl?"

But though Mol didn't exactly fade into obscurity (she earned kudos for her eye-opening turn in the indie 'The Notorious Bettie Page' and co-starred in ABC's short-lived 'Life on Mars'), neither did she become the huge success the industry predicted she would be. What happened? Was it luck, timing, bad choices or simply a case of too much hype? Whatever that case, Mol's casting got us thinking about other "Almost It" girls that Hollywood left behind about as quickly as it tried to make them mega-stars.

As we previously reported, James Franco made his big debut on 'General Hospital' this afternoon -- and we have the full scoop on what went down.

We already know that the movie star's run on the ABC soap opera is going to be loaded with surprises. For starters, although his debut was supposed to be today, regular 'GH' viewers noticed that the Golden Globe winner actually popped up on yesterday's episode (what would a soap be without twists?)

'GH' has done a great job of setting up Franco's introduction. From today's episode, we've gathered that his character, Franco, has photos of Claudia's dead body. Since A.J.'s Sonny's son Michael killed Claudia, the mobster is very interested in silencing the shutterbug/artist.

Read on for an analysis of Franco's official daytime debut.

The Master of the Macabre and Hollywood's Blockbuster King are collaborating again ... for the first time.

As we reported earlier today, Stephen King and Steven Spielberg are joining forces to bring the horror master's brand new book 'Under the Dome' to the small screen as a limited cable series through Spielberg's DreamWorks Television. This will technically be the second time that Stephen and Steven have collaborated, but the first to bear fruit.

It all sounds fantastic, but will these icons of the fantastic knock it out of the park? Let's discuss the pros and cons.

50 Cent proves that 'Before I Self Destruct' is both the title of his latest album and a self fulfilling prophecy. The LA Times is reporting that a scuffle had broken out backstage at last nights taping of 'Jimmy Kimmel Live' between his entourage and legendary sportscaster, Marv Albert.

Albert a guest also booked on yesterday's 'Jimmy Kimmel' lineup and found himself in a scuffle, after 50's entourage and handlers were unable to recognize the renowned announcer. According to the LA Times, "There was shouting ("It's Marv Albert," yelled a Kimmel show guard, a pronouncement that seemed to have no effect on the 50 Cent phalanx.) There were obscenities. A fist or two flying. A "Don't you put your hands on me" pronouncement." Albert was in town yesterday to promote both the LA Lakers hosting the Bulls today and his appearance on 'The Simpsons.'

In fairness, there might be a theory to explain the thuggery that may have occurred backstage, Marv Albert is sporting a new look!