AMC Animates ‘Better Call Saul’’s ‘Squat Cobbler’

Norman Weiss April 20, 2016, 9:43 pm

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AMC animates Better Call Saul’s “Squat Cobbler”

The Better Call Saul’s podcast explanation on how the famous Episode 2 scene came together this season can now be viewed in cartoon form, with animation of the Squat Cobbler act in progress. PLUS: Rhea Seehorn talks about Kim Wexler’s breakout season, and a Better Call Saul writer’s first writing credit was the Season 2 finale.

ESPN fires Curt Schilling for his anti-transgender Facebook posts

The Monday Night Baseball analyst and former MLB star, who was suspended last year for comparing radical Muslims to Nazis, has been terminated for posting an anti-transgender meme.

Kelly Ripa won’t return to Live until at least Tuesday

ABC says Ripa’s absence through at least Monday is due to a “previously-scheduled vacation.” According to Us, she and husband Mark Consuelos went on a long-planned 20th-anniversary vacation. Live has enlisted Erin Andrews and Pretty Little Liars star Shay Mitchell to fill in during Ripa’s absence. According to People, Ripa is not upset that Strahan is leaving, but that he chose to reveal his exit without “courtesy and respect and decency.” People also reports that Ripa is “not on good terms with Gelman.” PLUS: Oprah is backing Ripa, and Strahan is expected to sit with Ripa when she returns and until he departs.

“Didn’t I tell you this was going to happen?”: Kelly Ripa was reportedly worried about Michael Strahan’s GMA side gig 2 years ago

Ripa expressed concern when Strahan first joined Good Morning America in 2014, the NY Times reports, adding that the news of Strahan’s exit following Tuesday’s show left her angry because she felt that GMA was being given priority over Live. “Didn’t I tell you this was going to happen?” Ripa said to WABC’s general manager after learning of Strahan’s departure on Tuesday, according to The Times. “I told you two years ago this was going to happen.” PLUS: How Ripa’s absence could hasten Live’s death.

The Biggest Loser’s first female winner has gained back much of the weight she lost

Ali Vincent, who shed 112 lbs. in 2008 on Season 5 of the NBC reality show, wrote on Facebook: “”On April 16th I did one of the hardest things in my life I joined Weight Watchers and weighed in close to the weight I started at on The Biggest Loser.”

Empire’s Bryshere Y. Gray joins BET’s New Edition biopic

He’ll play Michael Bivins in the three-part New Edition: The Movie.

What is it with Tina Fey’s obsession with Asian people on Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt?

As Alex Abad-Santos points out, Fey has a history of painting “Asian people, specifically Asian women, as crappy characters.” Following the Season 1 Dong controversy, Kimmy Schmidt is now being criticized for trying to be ironic with the fake outrage group Respectful Asian Portrayals in Entertainment, or “RAPE.” “The members of RAPE are portrayed as idiotic and ignorant,” says Abad-Santos, “complete with an on-the-nose acronym. One of them actually vanishes into thin air when she can no longer find something to be offended by. The plot feels like a pointed, ironic response to anyone who has criticized Fey’s past projects for being lazy and racist.” PLUS: Kimmy Schmidt is part of the sitcom pushback against “PC Culture.”

Neil Gaiman tweets a pic from the American Gods set

“Oh yes,” he tweeted from the set of the Starz adaptation of his 2001 fantasy novel. “It’s happening. It’s really happening. #f*ckyes.”

Claim: Nathan Fillion bullied Stana Katic on the Castle set

According to Us Weekly, two sources say the tension between the future former co-stars was so palpable that she would cry.

Jon Stewart is happily ignoring the crazy presidential election

“I don’t follow it. I’m living my life, petting pig’s bellies,” the former Daily Show host said Tuesday at a benefit for military vets.

Disney Channel announces its next original movie: The Swap

Peyton List will swap bodies with Jacob Bertrand on the Original Movie premiering this fall.

Samantha Bee hopes to add correspondents to Full Frontal

Bee has already used a writer on her show, Ashley Black, to discuss how white people have tarnished Black History Month. Bee also hopes to attend the political conventions this summer, but all the hotels are booked, so “we are going to be living in a Winnebago in a Walmart parking lot.” PLUS: Bee has proven late-night needed Full Frontal.

Deon Cole has proven to be a Black-ish asset

Cole, previously known for his work on Conan, “plays Charlie with such a mixture of spontaneity, innocence and deft physical humor that, as good as season two of Black-ish has been, he’s really been missed,” says Maureen Ryan, noting he’ll be back starting next week. “Cole reminds me of John Belushi, another performer who brought essential sweetness to his unpredictable characters, and who could make you laugh just by looking a certain way at another person on screen.”

Why did Crazy Ex-Girlfriend succeed where other TV musicals fail?

Unlike musical shows like Smash, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend created songs that were character-driven. “At their best, songs in a musical use their heightened emotional heft to increase empathy for their characters,” says Constance Grady. “The songs give the audience a chance to live in a character’s head and understand how and why they think and feel the way they do.”