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TV Notes: Johanson ending Oxygen's 'Talk Sex' after six seasons
Thursday, May 08, 2008

Sunday night is getting less steamy.

Oxygen's "Talk Sex" call-in show with colorful septugenarian educator Sue Johanson is ending its run after six seasons, the network announced Tuesday.

The final show airs at midnight Sunday.

"I'm going to miss it terribly," Johanson said. "It's been part of my life and I just love it. I'm going to miss writing scripts. I'm going to miss having to read books. I'm going to miss playing with sex toys."

Her final show will count down the year's top 10 sex toys.

Her show, derived from a Canadian radio program that began in 1984, offers practical advice and the latest information on sexually transmitted diseases.

It was all the more colorful hearing it from a Toronto-based nurse who looked and sounded like your grandmother.

Now 77, Johanson said she had to recognize that 1 a.m. (when her shows ended) was not her finest hour. Since it's a call-in show, taping the show earlier didn't make sense. She said she enjoyed working with Oxygen and wasn't pushed out.

The only editing Oxygen ever did was to urge her not to use a particular slang for penis.

"Talk Sex" is Oxygen's most-popular late-night show, and its ratings among young viewers this season were the best ever, the network said. (David Bauder, Associated Press)

Producers end talks

Hollywood producers on Tuesday temporarily broke off contract talks with the Screen Actors Guild, calling its demands regarding DVD sales and online content "unreasonable."

The guild responded in a statement by saying the producers' decision to end talks after 18 days was unfortunate.

Both sides have said they sought to avoid a repeat of the 100-day writers strike that ended in February. The union's contract for films and prime-time TV shows expires June 30.

On Wednesday, the smaller actors union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, took its turn at the bargaining table, and it is expected to reach a deal quickly. Its contract also ends June 30.

SAG and AFTRA had negotiated together on the theatrical movie and prime-time TV contract with studios for the past 27 years but split in March when AFTRA accused SAG of trying to entice actors in the soap drama "The Bold and The Beautiful" to abandon the federation.

The Screen Actors Guild has 120,000 members, while AFTRA represents about 70,000 people. The two unions share 44,000 dual members. (Ryan Nakashima, AP)

Taylor hangs on

It was the 100th episode of "Dancing With the Stars" -- but the last for Mario.

The 21-year-old R&B singer and his professional partner, Karina Smirnoff, were eliminated during Tuesday's results show, which also served as a special celebration of the ABC dancing competition's 100th episode.

De la Fuente, NFL player/Pittsburgh native Jason Taylor, Olympic figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi and Broadway star Marissa Jaret Winokur remain and will compete in next week's semifinals. (Derrik J. Lang, AP)

MTV nominees

"Superbad" has supergood chances of winning a trophy at the MTV Movie Awards.

The buddy comedy starring Michael Cera and Jonah Hill leads the awards ceremony with five nominations in categories such as "Best Comedic Performance" and "Best Movie," MTV announced Tuesday.

Other multiple nominated films included "Juno," "Enchanted," "Transformers," "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" and "Knocked Up."

Viewers can vote for all winners online through May 23. They can also submit online movies parodying films from the past year in the user-generated category, "Best Movie Spoof."

The live ceremony will be broadcast on June 1 from the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, Calif.

VH1 loves 'Money'

VH1 is nothing if not thorough in exploiting its original series to their fullest degree.

So it will be with the newest cog in the "celebreality" machine, a summer show called "I Love Money."

As the title indicates, the series will be about the pursuit of cash -- and extending the franchise of other VH1 shows with "Love" in the title.

"I Love Money" will bring together 17 former contestants from the various seasons of "Flavor of Love," "Rock of Love" and "I Love New York" to battle for a $250,000 grand prize.

Details about both the show and its contestants will roll out on the VH1 Blog over the course of this week.

Monday the network announced four guys from "I Love New York" -- season one's 12 Pack, Heat and Mr. Boston and season two's The Entertainer -- as the first contestants. (Zap2it.com)

First published on May 8, 2008 at 12:00 am
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