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ESPN360.com will broadcast live coverage of 70 matches from 11 women’s professional tennis events over the next six months as they reached an agreement with Sony Ericsson WTA Tour on May 8, 2008. ESPN began with the coverage of The Qatar Telecom German Open in Berlin and will end with the Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha. “ESPN360.com exists to serve the passions of sports fans, and there are few groups of fans as passionate as the tennis community,” Damon Phillips, vice president, ESPN360.com said in a statement. “Adding such a robust schedule of events that feature the world’s top women’s tennis players will deliver a huge value to millions of tennis fans, as well as to ESPN360.com affiliates.”

CBS College Sports Network is available in high-definition in major satellite operators like DIRECT TV and on cable. The network is producing major games which also include five Navy games to be presented in HD this fall. CBS College Sports Television Network will provide 2008 NCAA Division I men’s basketball championship and SEC football games in high-definition. BS College Sports Network executive vice president of distribution Bob Rose said "Fans now demand their sports in high -definition and we’re thrilled to bring the HD experience to viewers nationwide, CBS College Sports Network continues to grow across all platforms, and the conversion to HD further demonstrates our commitment to providing fans and distributors with relevant and compelling content on the screens they want to watch it."

I'm counting down the days until the premiere of the new season of American Gladiators. The show will have 2 new Gladiators making their debut and it's none other than Evan Dollard and Monica Carlson, the champs from last season. Evan will now be known as Rocket, which given his speed is definitely appropriately. Monica was given the name of Jet which I'm assuming is because she was so quick out of the gate, which enabled her to crush her opponents.

The new season will open on Monday, May 12th with a 2 hour premiere. All sunsequent episodes of American Gladiators will settle into the shows Monday night prime time slot of 8:00p.m. on NBC. The show which will run for 90 minutes promises to be bigger and better than before. It's said that their will be seven new events, a taller Wall and a newly redesigned Eliminator.

I personally can't wait for the new season to begin. When the show first aired in January of 2008, I pretty much scoffed at it. After viewing several episodes (when there was nothing elses on worth watching) however, I was hooked. While I enjoyed all the fast packed action my favorite part of the show is when the competitors hit the bullseye in the Assault event and sent the Gladiators catapulting into the water. That was great.

If you're looking for a show that's fast paced and shows true grit, determination and fierce competitiveness than be sure to watch American Gladiators.

Fox Soccer Channel is to cover Toulon International Tournament 2008 live and exclusively from May 20-29. The tournament to be held in southern France to be participated by world’s top under-23 national teams. This will take place prior to the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. The tournament will see top teams of 2008 Olympic qualifiers like United States Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan and the Netherlands. Peter Nowak, head coach will select U.S. Under-23 Men's National Team, which will include Major League Soccer and European-based players. Fox Soccer Channel will present the coverage with Netherlands vs. Japan game on Tuesday, May 20 at 12:00 p.m. ET. The final is to be played on Thursday, May 29 at 2:30 p.m. ET.

The Discovery Channel is the reigning king of the hill when it comes to non-fiction tv shows. Their non-fiction shows such as Mythbusters, Deadliest Catch, Dirtiest Jobs and Cash Cab to name just a few, are not only entertaining but educational as well. 

If you haven't experienced Discovery Channel in a while my questions to you are, Why Not? and What Are You Wating For? With the wide diversity in their programming line-up there is sure to be a "gotcha" show (you know, those shows that when you watch them for the first time, so pique your interest that you can't wait for the next episode. That's why I call them "gotcha's") for even the most discriminating home viewer. There is definitely something for every age group.

The shows that I previously listed are my personal "gotcha" favorites. The characters or rather hosts (although some of these hosts truly are characters) of these shows are what gives them that extra something in addition to the shows footage. You know, that extra special zing that makes you want to tune in each week.

So if you find yourself with some time on your hands then why not give the Discovery Channel a chance to open you eyes, expand your knowledge and help you rediscover the world around you. I'm pretty sure you won't be disappointed. 

Gospel Music Channel will compliment most-popular performing moms on the Mother's Day from May 5-11 and will feature “maternal” episodes from Faith & Fame from May 5 at 7.30 PM. On the Mother's Day on May 10 Gospel Music Channel will present “Moms Named Grant." The Channel will wind up the celebration on May 11 at 7:30 pm, with Faith & Fame: Nicole C. Mullen. Faith & Fame will present intimate look into the lives of gospel artists with special concert performances.

While I don't watch too many movies on Cinemax ( I personally prefer Starz as they have a greater movie selection) I decided to watch a movie the channel was airing called "The Marine",mainly because I had never seen it before. After watching it, I can definitely say that had I been the one  to bankroll this movie I would either be asking for my money back or hoping that I could get a major tax break for lost revenue (if any) on this (quite probable) box-office bomb.

The story line was so thin that had it been ice, it would have been unsafe to skate on. The acting and dialogue left a lot to be desired. I can't believe that any movie studio, individual or group of individuals with money to burn actually thought this movie would be a smash hit. The only thing worth watching in this movie was all the explosions that took place and that's only if you're into that stuff.

A quick plot synopsis is that a soldier is discharged from the Marines, though not willingly. Gets fired from a security job. He and his wife decide to get away from it all for awhile. While at a gas station they cross paths with a group of diamond thieves who knock him out, take his car, kidnap his wife and blow up the gas station all in a matter of minutes. Guess you can figure out where the story line goes from here as it's so predictable.

This movie was sooo.. boring that I probably could have just watched the first and last ten minutes and taken a nap in between without missing a beat. Don't get me wrong, I like action movies, but this one was definitely no where near on the same par as a Steven Segal or Chuck Norris movie. This movie, at least in my opinion, should have either been left in the film can or never even been made.

Lifetime Movie Network yesterday aired back to back showings of the movie "You Belong to Me" which starred actress Shannon Elizabeth as Alex Wilson, a woman who is being stalked by an angry spirit. 

While I am only familiar with Shannon Elizabeth because of her time as a competitor on this seasons Dancing With the Stars I thought I would give her movie a look see. The movie was desribed as a mystery/suspense movie. Being an avid mystery/crime & suspense buff with regard to movies I was extremely disappointed with this movie. It was so predictable that even a 5 year old could have figured out who the angry stalker spirit was going to be after maybe the first 15 minutes or quite possibly less. I wasn't really timing it.  

A well written and produced script for a worthwhile and memorable mystery movie should have the viewer constanly revising their educated guess about who the villian is until the very end. Multiple twists, turns and the unexpected are what mystery buffs crave when watching a mystery movie. Who among us (mystery buffs) doesn't like to think we have the deductive reasoning of Sherlock Holmes when it comes to solving crime in either movies or books. 

You might want to give this movie a pass if you're a die hard mystery fan. I'm wishing now that I did. Truth be told however there was nothing else worth watching on tv at the time and that's how I came to be watching "You Belong to Me". Next time I'm faced with this predicament I think I'll just read a mystery book.

Oh yeah! The acting, if you can call it that was so blase and wooden that it did nothing to enhance the movie or give any credibility or realism to any of the characters. I've seen a sleeping dog show more facial expression than any of the actors did.

 

 

Walt Disney has announced on Thursday that they will release a new Spanish-language magazine for Latino parents called "Disney En Familia" in July. Disney’s vice president of multicultural marketing and publisher of Disney En Familia said that the magazine will provide Latina moms the inspiration and support they need to raise a happy, healthy family in the U.S. The magazine will be filled with party ideas, travel tips, recipes and advice on preserving cultural traditions and the magazine will target the children between the ages of four and 12.

ABC Family is too solicit customers two things most advertisers desire eagerly are original programming year-round and viewers who pay attention to commercials. ABC Family has introduced "Nikki in the City" a fashionable female urbanite portrayed by actress Jaime Coates, is he star of a series of shorts, which ABC Family is looking to create. Designed to air during commercial breaks, Advertisers will be able to place their products in the shorts, which are designed to help keep viewers tuned in while spots air. Last year, the network began airing sponsored “Tease and Reveal” vignettes with that goal.