The acclaimed Swedish director has died. One report is here. ...

Tom Snyder is leaning back in his heavenly chair, a cigarette in hand, a big laugh ready to explode when God finishes a funny story ...

A couple of Sci Fi Channel announcements, after the jump ...

Commenter Amy on my "Mad Men" post below has made a suggestion about some possible screenings of TV pilots later this year in Akron. I made a couple of comments of my own, but I thought I'd raise the question in a post. Anyone interested? Daytime or nighttime screenings? Would you be willing to come to the Beacon Journal for them? How many hours of shows could you sit through? I don't know if I could make this work, but I'm willing to discuss. Comment away.

My review of "The Simpsons Movie" is here.

A review of "Talk to Me" is here. More thoughts about Don Cheadle here, and a list of some of his movies worth seeing here.

If you haven't caught up with this AMC show, please do so tonight ...

I'm a day late with these (since time has been short and work has been long), but here goes, after the jump ..

As I've noted, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" was reviewed by at least two newspapers before it was in stores. Now the attempts to keep "The Simpsons Movie" protected have also failed. TVTattle.com found a British review.
(I haven't read the review, since I'll be seeing the movie myself today.)

Cleveland's own Drew Carey is the next host of "The Price Is Right." No truth to talk that he's changing the name of the show to "Dirty Jokes and Prizes." Official announcement of the job and of Carey's announcement on Letterman, after the jump ...

I wrote about the show, premiering tonight, in a previous post called "A Wedding and Three TV Shows." Looking back at those comments, I don't have a lot to add, so I'll just save you backtracking by posting them again after the jump. ...

Before taking a break to read the last Harry Potter, I finally dug into this biography of the great Warren Zevon ...

Richard Corliss's profile of John Travolta in the July 30 begins with Travolta talking about old Hollywood stars and his presenting an honorary Oscar to Barbara Stanwyck in 1982.

"If you'd met Stanwyck," he explains, "she would have crushed you with her ability to adore and adorn you, just like a Southern belle." .... "Oh, you came here to give me my Oscar!" he whispers in a dewy approximation of Stanwyck's purr to Henry Fonda in "The Lady Eve." ... He says in his own voice, "And I'm standing here thinking she's an 80-year-old woman, and I am captivated."

UPDATE: The problem is now corrected.

A small correction to what you may read online ...

I'm done, and more or less content ...

"They're sealed, just like the proficiency test!" a girl declared as a dolly loaded with boxes of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" was rolled down a bookstore aisle. ...

A couple of weeks ago I griped about Wall Street Journal columnist Jeff Zaslow's rip on Fred Rogers, blaming him for people' s sense of entitlement. In a follow-up, Zaslow has admitted some excess. That is:

Many readers appreciated the arguments. But others felt the column was unfair to target Mr. Rogers, who was such a positive influence. I hadn't expected that column to be taken so literally, and I should have articulated the fact that Mr. Rogers also encouraged hard work and mutual respect. It's not his fault if others now misinterpret the "special" language he popularized.

In a little over 12 hours, people will start ripping through their new copies of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." My route to that moment began this morning ...

The New York Times ran a review of "Deathly Hallows" today. (So did the Baltimore Sun, according to Romenesko.) And, as someone who ranted below about being told to hold back information on "The Simpsons Movie," I suppose I should shrug off the Times' move as them pursuing the news, and never mind the spoilers. But I'm not going to read the review, and I'm going to try to avoid every TV news and online discussion of the book that I can UNTIL I GET TO READ THE BOOK MYSELF.

That's a position that goes beyond not wanting to know how it ends. Even more, I want to read how it gets to the end -- to see how Rowling leads us to her conclusion, and tries to make us accept it, whatever that conclusion may be.

List is here I expect to have more to say later, including about "Friday Night Lights" getting shafted ... and what may be my happiest nomination of the day -- for the Andy Samberg/Justin Timberlake "box" song on "Saturday Night Live," in the ''outstanding original music and lyrics" category... Tell you what: Since I've been posting more notes in the comments below, comment on what you like/dislike in the nominations and I'll try to respond ... if I ever get over the "FNL" oversights that is. CONNIE BRITTON! CONNIE BRITTON!

Subject to change, of course, after the jump ...

A coy announcement about some new actors, after the jump ...

After the jump ...

CBS has announced that it "had the week's top four scripted programs with NCIS, CSI, CSI: NY and TWO AND A HALF MEN, in the week ending July 15."

The fine print notes that CBS shows ranked fifth through seventh and ninth. The top shows, by CBS's own announcement: "The Singing Bee," the MLB All-Star Game, "America's Got Talent" and the Thursday version of "So You Think You Can Dance."

"Studio 60" is done, but this near-valentine in the Los Angeles Times indicates that he still doesn't know what he did.

Covering just about any entertainment medium these days can involve some tap-dances, but I really don't like the steps that I'm having to take for "The Simpsons Movie." ...

The peripatetic Mandy Patinkin has once again exited a hit show while in progress..

Premiere dates, new "Apprentice," Jerry Seinfeld on "30 Rock," Norman Lear ..

From today's e-mail ...

So I was talking to Kellie Pickler on Friday ...

I was unable to post Friday because of technical difficulties. Will be back later today, if only to share a Kellie Pickler story...

LOVED it. ...

From Lifetime today:

Saluting the highest-rated series in the network’s 23-year history, Lifetime has ordered a second season of the smash hit “Army Wives,” it was announced today at the TCA Press Tour by Susanne Daniels, President, Entertainment, Lifetime Networks.

Don Cheadle remains an amazing actor in "Talk To Me," the movie "inspired by" the life of Washington, D.C., broadcasting star Petey Greene, with Cheadle as Greene. But beyond that performance is a powerful rumination on race -- not black vs. white, but black vs. black ...

As of Jan. 1, 2008, it's "truTV." Announcement after the jump ...

The smart, scene-stealing actor has died. Obit here, although "Petticoat Junction" fans know that his character's name was actually Homer Bedloe. Nice photo here.

Over the weekend I went through a review copy of the new two episodes of "Rescue Me" and couldn't help thinking that they vindicate Jack McGee ... (Possible spoilers after the jump)

Starting today, you'll be seeing posts around the blogosphere from the Television Critics Association summer press tour in California. But you won't find them here ...

Because it's never too early to plan your September TV viewing ...

Saw it yesterday. You can find my review in today's Beacon Journal here.

The former NBC programmer, rudely ousted there, goes back to the Fox family, where he had great success at FX. Full announcement after the jump ...

Over the weekend I took a look at the first three episodes of the eight-part ESPN miniseries about the '77 Yankees, which premieres tonight -- and, if nothing else, was pleased to see "Rescue Me's" Daniel Sunjata get a chance to show how very good an actor he is ...

Yesterday I went to the wedding of the Black Keys' Pat Carney and Denise Grollmus. You can find a few notes, as well as photos, here.

The evening was devoted to TV viewing in what turned into a tough-women marathon: Monday's new episode of "The Closer," the premiere of the new series "Damages" (starting July 24 on FX) and two episodes of the new series "Saving Grace" (July 23 on TNT, in the post-"Closer" time slot). ...

I meant to post here about the second, third and fourth Harry Potter movies, but I ended up using up most of my limited insights in a Potter overview for today's Beacon Journal. You can find it here.

Jeff Zaslow in today's Wall Street Journal tried to blame some of the ills of modern youth on Fred Rogers. He's full of beans. ...

A good story from CBS, via Jim Romenesko's site. ...

Got an e-mail from NBC regarding a conference call with Victoria Beckham ...

The bride and I are discussing a trip to the cineplex tomorrow for "Live Free or Die Hard." ...

I am sorry Scooter Libby isn't going to prison. I was looking forward to the descriptions of what he wore on the way into the pokey, as well as the televised, post-prison interview where he discussed how he passed the time by reading, and his current spiritual journey. ...

Official announcement after the jump ...

I was in and out of the Concert for Diana telecast on VH1 today. Also recorded it, so I may go back and check on Joss Stone and a few other things. Nice to see Elton stick to his "Candle in the Wind" vow. And I would have been ticked if I had missed Ricky Gervais's appearance. "Freelove Freeway," "Chubby Little Loser," all right! But no "If You Don't Know Me By Now"? Bet he could have borrowed somebody's choir ...