As Joan Jett sings, "You don't know what you got till it's gone." That's how I've been feeling about TV lately — new episodes seem so very precious because you know each one could be your last.

Yes, I'm exaggerating, and even if there were no strike, I'd be eagerly anticipating 30 Rock. Tonight, Edie Falco makes her last appearance as Jack's Democratic dish.

Meanwhile, on Ugly Betty, "real women" take to the runway and Annie Potts (Designing Women) plays a psychic. … continue reading

Writers strike or not, November heralds in sweeps. And sweeps heralds in guest stars. And guest stars herald in ... OK, I'm officially out of stuff to herald. But I do know that when it comes to sweeps month, the very special guest star is trumped only by the lesbian kiss as the most popular sweeps stunt. So, let's rate the ratings stunts, starting with the big guns.

Note: A few of these guest stars are showing up tonight, so set your DVRs!

Al Gore on 30 Rock (tonight!): Former vice president. Oscar winner. Nobel Peace Prize winner. Rightful Almost next president of the United States.
Stunt Wattage: 10, but we should dial it down to 8.5 to conserve energy.

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I just read that Angela Bassett has joined the cast of Nothing but the Truth, a political drama loosely based on the Valerie Plame scandal.

Bassett is busy these days. According to IMDb.com, she has two movies (Gospel Hill and Of Boys and Men) in post-production, two (Truth and Meet the Browns) currently filming, and one (Toussaint) in pre-production. And I couldn't be happier. As Siege noted recently on the blog, smart women are hot — and Yalie Angela Bassett is both very smart and very hot. I first noticed her as Katherine Jackson in The Jacksons: An American Dream, which used to play on VH1 every 20 minutes or so. And I kept noticing her as her career took off. … continue reading

Nothing but the Truth sounds worth seeing even without Bassett — although it might feel a little too “ripped from the headlines.” Written and directed by Rod Lurie (The Contender), the movie focuses on a reporter (Kate Beckinsale) who is jailed for outing a CIA agent. In a nice bit of optimistic casting, Bassett plays the editor-in-chief of the Washington D.C. newspaper for which Beckinsale writes. How many real-life major-market newspapers are helmed by African-American women? And the ensemble cast is pretty impressive, as well.

I know you have an opinion on the Ellen brouhaha. So do I. So does, well, everybody. But I believe that in the midst of the most heated controversy, we can find common ground. Women. We all love women. And where you find women who love women, you find women who love animals. In the spirit of unity, then, let's look at women we love and their pets. OK, yes, it's an excuse to post pictures of cute women. Starting with Joss Stone and Dusty.

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When I read the news that Fox planned to do a drama based on Cathy Lanier, I had only one thought. Who?

Turns out that Lanier has made quite a splash in Washington, D.C., where she's the new chief of police for the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia (MPDC). Lanier's story certainly sounds like the stuff of television drama — she's a 39-year-old single mother who dropped out of high school in ninth grade because she was pregnant. As any good protagonist would do, she pressed on, got her GED and eventually obtained a B.A. and M.A. from Johns Hopkins, earned an advanced degree from Naval Postgraduate School and attended the JFK School of Government at Harvard. She also graduated from the FBI Academy and the DEA Drug Unit Commanders Academy. Whew.

Lanier is MPDC's first permanent female police chief, leading a 3,800-member department that is predominately black and male. Staying on the job hasn't been easy, especially in the early '90s when she joined the force. She endured "unrelenting harassment from male officers," eventually filing a sexual harassment suit — which she won. … continue reading

What is it about Tina Fey that has all of Hollywood wanting to appear on her show? Notable appearances have been or will be made by many a LaLa Land celeb, including Isabella Rossellini, soon-to-be View co-host Sherri Shepherd, Rip Torn, Stephanie March and Jerry Seinfeld, who will appear in this season's opener. And now this news: Carmela Soprano alter ego Edie Falco has been added to that illustrious list.

It will be Falco's first TV gig since The Sopranos faded to black and her first network guest appearance since 2004, when she popped in on Will & Grace. So again, I ask you, what has Tina Fey got that keeps enticing such talent to sit through anything with Alec Baldwin?

OK, you're right. I already know the answer to that question. … continue reading

As you've probably heard, earlier this week TheEnvelope.com leaked a short list of Emmy nominations. The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has made no comment on the list's accuracy, choosing instead to remind academy members that they have signed a confidentiality agreement (the Academy will mess you up, Emmy voters!) and also reminding the public that nominees won't be officially announced until July 19.

I don't know why it matters, really — we're used to hanging chads and other forms of disenfranchisement in the U.S., so what's a little spilled ink among TV fans? Plus, who really tunes in for the nominee announcements anyway? (There's a motivating factor this year, though: Kyra Sedgwick will be one of the announcers. Won't it be weird if she has to announce herself?)

Anyway, whether these nominees are guesses or sure things, I'm happy to post some photos. The Emmy Awards ceremony airs Sept. 16 at 8/7c on Fox. (Visit TheEnvelope.com for the full, unverified short list.)

1. Possible nominees for Best Comedy Actress:
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures of Old Christine
America Ferrera, Ugly Betty
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Teri Hatcher, Desperate Housewives
Felicity Huffman, Desperate Housewives
Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds

America Ferrera … continue reading

As is my wont on Mondays, I woke up thinking about two things: coffee and The Sopranos. Usually there's a lot for me to ponder as I grind the coffee beans — plenty of themes, whacks and pop culture references to get the blood flowing, almost as effectively as if Carmela herself were making me breakfast.

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But now it's over. And what are we left with? [Warning: Spoilers ahead.]

Actress and undeniable (but possibly unwitting) lesbian icon Edie Falco will grace Late Show With David Letterman tonight.

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She'll no doubt be touting the final season of her long-praised HBO show The Sopranos, on which she plays endearingly put-upon mob wife Carmela Soprano, who tolerates her lovable thug of a husband and his immoral, illegal actions — not to mention his goomahs.