The Red Road Series Premiere Review: Why So Serious?

TV is so good right now that it’s getting harder to distinguish actual achievements in the medium from something that only seems like envelope-pushing drama. The bar has been raised by the likes of HBO, AMC, and FX, and in addition to a certain level of production value, a show must also have a unique voice in order to stand out. Television can look and sound respectable, but that’s basically all TV these days, so there’s got to be something extra to attract modern viewers such as ourselves. Sorry, we've evolved. Otherwise, why not just watch Mixology? Sundance’s second foray into original programming forces a Native American ex-con and a white-man cop into each other’s worlds as part of an illegal cover-up. On paper, The Red Road is a show about family troubles, cultural prejudice, and moral ambiguity in the name of a greater good. And even though it's perfectly watchable, the execution could benefit from a more specific, creative point of view and further portrayal of the modern-day Ramapo Mountain peoples.So the basic set-up is this: In the lands between New York and New Jersey, former Khal Jason Momoa plays Phillip Kopus, the aforementioned ex-con with ties to both the tribal world of the Lenape people and the criminal world. Kopus is tasked with keeping his screw-up "brother" (Longmire’s Zahn McClarnon) in line after the dude commits a murder. Meanwhile, investigating police officer Harold Jensen (New Zealand’s own Martin Henderson) has to deal with an alcoholic wife (Julianne Nicholson) and rebellious teenage daughter Rachel (The Lying Game's Allie Gonino) while also solving crimes. Things get a little murky though, when Rachel refuses to end her relationship with her Native American boyfriend Junior (Kiowa Gordon), sending her mother on a rampage that leaves a Native American boy dead on a rural road. Will Kopus make good on his offer to keep witnesses quiet, or is he up to something more sinister? So goes the central conflict between The Red Road’s main duo.  More at

News Briefs: Supernatural: Tribes Is Hiring Everyone Who Used to Be On The Vampire Diaries

FORMER MONSTERS APPLY INSIDE
... Hey! Everyone who's ever appeared on The Vampire Diaries, listen up! Now is the time to call your agent because Supernatural: Tribes wants you! The spin-off of the The CW's long-running Supernatural has already cast three former TVD guest-stars: Nathaniel Buzolic (Kol) plays shape-shifting series regular David Hayden; Sean Faris (that guy from the first season who died) plays Julian Durant, a werewolf from a wealthy family who hates the Haydens (I'm secretly hoping David and Julian have a secret love affair, à la the leads in Star-Crossed); and now the show has cast Stephen Martines, who played a character named Frederick for three episodes of TVD in 2010 and 2011, but I'd completely forgotten about him. Martines will take on the role of Detective Freddie Costa, a mentor to lead character Ennis Roth (Lucien Laviscount). See! Now's the time to break out that resume and highlight your performance as Extra Dead Body #3 from Season 1! [E! Online] More at

From Hero to Zero: The Sudden Decline of Parenthood's Joel Graham

I've often been accused of being too hard on Julia Braverman-Graham (Erika Christensen). For years, I thought of her as a harpy with a heart of gold, someone who wasn't necessarily one-dimensional or incorrigible, but definitely unaffectedly selfish and quick to minimize the feelings of anyone who wasn't her. I want to believe that it's because she's a Braverman, because she's part of the Bay Area clan whose members are no strangers to jackassery, and not because she's some kind of conditioned misanthrope with hackles raised, a byproduct of being a career-minded, type-A woman in an occupation dominated by boys.
But the more I've thought about it, the more I've come to realize that my opinion of Julia probably wasn't so much a result of my crippling male gaze as it was her husband, the superhuman Joel Graham (Sam Jaeger). Standing next to him must be like understanding what martyrdom is about. Though everyone who's married into the Bravermans can be described as long-suffering—you know, since they don't have the blood of Zeek running through their veins and can't understand the innate self-importance that comes with living for years on the family's Berkley compound—Joel managed to rise above the rest of the rabble. He was a realized domestic demigod, someone who listened, who was compassionate, who ran a home with such alacrity, competence, and sensitivity that it was hard not to love everything he did and marvel at the unending patience he had for a wife who tended to make appearances rather than participate and a daughter whose goal was to be every kid you ever hated in elementary school. Why don't you tattle some more, Syd? Let's really make some friends. More at

Community "Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality" Review: Who Let a Season 4 Episode in Here?

Community is no stranger to pulling on our heartstrings until they bleed, and with its absurd sense of humor anchored by a solid emotional core, the show actually benefits from the breakneck speed at which it can shift from silly to sensitive. Take "Geothermal Escapism" (a.k.a. "Buh-bye Troy"), for example. That episode started out as a game of school-wide, Mad-Maxian Hot Lava, but before we knew it, we were being hit with the devastating reality of Troy moving away. It was an extreme example of Community's heart because it focused on Troy and Abed, the show's bestest of buds, but the reason it was so successful was that the emotion was earned after years of build-up.
This is just a warning for you diehard Community fans: Steel yourself, because I did not like this episode. "Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality," which might be my least favorite Community episode title EVER, tried to land an emotional punch and took a swing at our sensitive spots, but missed badly and gouged out our eyes instead. And yes, I am being a little melodramatic. But dammit, we've seen Community do touchy-feely so much better than this. The main problem was that "Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality" assembled some odd character pairings—Britta and Duncan, Abed and Hickey—in an attempt to create weird bonds between regular favorites and recurring characters, instead of keeping the action within the group. It says something that, in an episode that was meant to be so heartwarming, Abed staring at an empty chair for half a second was the most emotional moment BY FAR.

But that's not to say the episode didn't try. In fact, it tried too damn hard, and that's probably why it faltered. Britta and Duncan were on a crash course after Duncan asked Jeff for directions to get into her pants. The group ended up at a charitable event for some Save-the-Whatever cause that Britta would be interested in, and Britta ran into the anarchist group she used to run with. But her old "friends" were horrible, horrible people who one minute were toasting Britta as the best darned activist they knew, and the next minute they were laughing her off because she wanted to reignite some of their crazy anarchist past and they claimed they had too much to lose after achieving some degree of success. Crushed by rejection, Britta got sad and took Duncan up on his offer to give her a ride home, but Duncan felt too bad for her to dip his crumpets into her tea, so he offered her advice on how to handle an existential crisis instead. To put some sort of cherry on top of the whole situation, Duncan and Jeff then enjoyed a good night out after Britta made the point that they didn't seem like friends at all.
Elsewhere, in a somewhat more understandable storyline, Abed crashed Hickey's late-night cartooning session while clad in a full cosplay getup on his way to see the Kickpuncher reboot. Abed became a clumsy character cliché and shot a bunch of foam onto Hickey's drawings, leading Hickey to handcuff Abed to a filing cabinet so that Abed would miss his movie and Hickey would teach him a lesson because Abed never faces repercussions for anything he does. They argued, then they came to an understanding, and then they bonded, but the whole thing felt like such a standard sitcom plot that it never felt like the non-sitcom stylings of Community at its best, or even its decentest. More at

Ratings: Mixology Premieres Low; Survivor Returns Up

  Another day, another low premiere for ABC.

Mixology bowed Wednesday to 5.2 million viewers and a 1.8 in the adults 18-to-49 demographic, making it the lowest-rated premiere following Modern Family  ever. It also posted the worst retention rate (58 percent) out of Modern Family (8.6 million, 3.1) since The Neighbors.

ABC opened the night with The Middle (7.1 million, 1.8) and Suburgatory (5.1 million, 1.5), which hit season and series lows, respectively. Nashville (4.7 million, 1.2) dipped to a series low.

13 TV characters that need to die

Fox won the night with American Idol (10.6 million, 2.6), which held steady.

CBS' two-hour Survivor: Cagayan premiere (9.8 million, 2.5) was up a tenth from last spring's debut. Criminal Minds (9.5 million, 2.3) was down two tenths from last week's episode. More at

The Vampire Diaries 5x15 Extended Promo | The Vampire Diaries

The Vampire Diaries Fansite: Vampire Diaries Episode 5x15 "Gone Girl" Synopsis....

The Vampire Diaries Fansite: Vampire Diaries Episode 5x15 "Gone Girl" Synopsis....: The CW released the official synopsis for TVD episode 5x15 "Gone Girl." It seems the gang will learn of Katherine's wrong doin...



The CW released the official synopsis for TVD episode 5x15 "Gone Girl."
It seems the gang will learn of Katherine's wrong doings after all and
began the race to save Elena's life. The episode airs March 6th at 8pm
on The CW.

FLASHBACKS TO NADIA’S SEARCH FOR KATHERINE — While Nadia (guest star
Olga Fonda) remembers her centuries-long search for her mother, Stefan
(Paul Wesley), Caroline (Candice Accola) and Matt (Zach Roerig) come up
with a desperate new plan to save Elena’s (Nina Dobrev) life.  For the
second time, Bonnie (Kat Graham) and Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) must
turn to Liv (guest star Penelope Mitchell) for help.  Damon baits Tyler
(Michael Trevino) into a nasty confrontation, then takes off to seek
revenge on Dr. Wes (guest star Rick Cosnett).  Caroline and Tyler come
to a new understanding.  Finally, Bonnie learns of a terrifying secret
that will threaten the lives of all her friends.  Lance Anderson
directed the episode written by Melinda Hsu Taylor (#515).

The Vampire Diaries 5×15 Episode Stills + Synopsis. Does everyone learn about Katherine?

FLASHBACKS TO NADIA’S SEARCH FOR KATHERINE — While Nadia (guest star Olga Fonda) remembers her centuries-long search for her mother, Stefan (Paul Wesley), Caroline (Candice Accola) and Matt (Zach Roerig) come up with a desperate new plan to save Elena’s (Nina Dobrev) life.  For the second time, Bonnie (Kat Graham) and Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) must turn to Liv (guest star Penelope Mitchell) for help.  Damon baits Tyler (Michael Trevino) into a nasty confrontation, then takes off to seek revenge on Dr. Wes (guest star Rick Cosnett).  Caroline and Tyler come to a new understanding.  Finally, Bonnie learns of a terrifying secret that will threaten the lives of all her friends.  Lance Anderson directed the episode written by Melinda Hsu Taylor (#515). - See more at: http://nina-dobrev.us/#sthash.mlMDnwbI.dpuf More at

Candice Accola Talks Damon and the Travelers

“The Vampire Diaries” is ready to dive deeper into the new mythology of the series on CW, and now fans are being given new inside scoop on what is coming next from a member of the cast. On Feb. 11, TV Guide shared the latest comments made by Candice Accola. She stars as Caroline Forbes on the series.
On the last episode, Wes managed to give Damon the vampire feeding virus, and now Damon is now a vampire on the hunt for other vampires to feed on. Caroline will be more involved with Damon during this new story line. Candice Accola teased the following about the virus and the travelers:

Caroline will focus her attention on finding out what this virus is capable of. We’re [also] going to have a big wake-up call to the new mythology we’ve slowly gotten to learn about over the season with the Travelers, as well as the who, the what and the why of it all. More at

'The Originals': Joseph Morgan on Rebekah's 'Deepest Betrayal' and Revenge Plots

Things are about to get worse for Klaus and Rebekah.

The Originals returns Tuesday after a brief Olympics break with brother and sister incapacitated -- thanks mainly to Celeste's witchy master plan to take over New Orleans. But what Klaus doesn't know is that his own sister, Rebekah, colluded with his former protege, Marcel, to bring Klaus' father to New Orleans, causing him to flee decades ago.
"Klaus and Rebekah have both been captured. They're not able to immediately deal with issues that they may have with each other," Joseph Morgan tells The Hollywood Reporter. "But I think the secrets she's kept from him for a hundred years, when the truth about that comes out, he will certainly be needing some sort of revenge. That will not bode well for their relationship." More at

The Originals Sneak Peek: Elijah Shocks Hayley...by Removing His Shirt?! Watch Now

 Elijah. Is. Stripping. Down.
Oh sorry, did you actually need more information than  that to watch The Originals all-new episode on Tuesday, Feb. 25 after its mini-break for the Olympics. (Ugh, sports, are we right?!)
We've got an exclusive sneak peek from the episode, "Long Way Back From Hell," that finds Elijah (Daniel Gillies) removing his shirt, but before you get too excited, it seems like we may not like what's underneath it if Hayley's (Phoebe Tonkin) shocked expression is anything to go by! (Then again, we'd be shocked, too, considering it's Elijah's first shirtless appearance. Not that we've been keeping track or anything...) In the last episode, Elijah's siblings Klaus (Joseph Morgan) and Rebekah (Claire Holt) were kidnapped by Genevieve (Elyse Levesque), a witch seeking revenge on the Mikaelson family. In Tuesday's episode, Elijah will team up with Hayley and Marcel (Charles Michael Davis) to save his brother and sister. More at

Brooklyn Nine Nine - Season 1 | 1x18 PROMO - " The Apartment"

A diverse group of detectives at the very edge of New York City.

Sherlock Series 3 Promo #4: "Fire and Ice"

Synopsis: Because something has to be done during hiatuses.

The Big Bang Theory Season 7 Episode 16 The Table Polarizati

"The Table Polarization" [Taped January 28, 2014] is the sixteenth episode of the seventh season of the American sitcom The Big Bang Theory. The episode will air on February 27, 2014.

Leonard buys a dining room table which causes Sheldon to reevaluate the changes in his life. Meanwhile, Howard is offered a chance to go back to space and Bernadette struggles with whether or not to encourage him.

The Client List ~ NEW Promo Music Video "I'm a W.O.M.A.N."

Jennifer Love Hewitt is back and is ♫"SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE"♫!
Check out her new music video "I'm A Woman" produced by Randy Jackson.
Tune in for an all new season of #TheClientList SUNDAYS March 10th at 10/9c on Lifetime to see her as Riley Parks.

BUY NOW the complete version of "I'm a W.O.M.A.N." on iTunes

The Vampire Diaries 5x14 Canadian Promo - No Exit [HD]

The Vampire Diaries Season 5 Episode 14 Canadian Promo/Preview "No Exit"

The Originals - Le Grand Guignol Preview

Klaus will stop at nothing to get revenge. The Originals is all new Tuesday at 8/7c!

The Tomorrow People - Enemy of My Enemy Trailer

Jedikiah is looking beyond Stephen to get the job done this time. The Tomorrow People is all new Wednesday at 9/8c!

AppAdvice App Of The Week For Feb. 24, 2014

Every week, our staff will handpick an app from the past two weeks that we believe is a must-download for your iPhone or iPad. These apps will always be from various categories, but they are chosen because our own staff members love it and have been using them daily. So here are this week’s picks! Enjoy!

 

Tidy – Photo Album

 

Want a more efficient way to manage your Camera Roll photos on the iPhone? Then you need our App of the Week: Tidy – Photo Album.
This gorgeous and sleek app will make organizing all of your Camera Roll photos a breeze. The interface is especially appealing to the eyes, making it a joy to use and fiddle around with until all of your images are just how you want them. Tidy also makes use of fantastic multitouch gestures for navigating and tidying up, and it’s very intuitive to use.
When you launch Tidy and grant it access to your images, it will have them all in the “Untidy” group. You can filter through your images in different ways, such as by time, location, and even by shape. Each one is customizable too, so you can pick a specific time interval or distance to separate your images into. The Shapes option is unique, because you can view all of your panoramas, landscapes, portraits, and square images in their own group.
When viewing a group, by default, every image will be selected. You can quickly select or deselect all of the images, or manually select a few at a time. Then, by swiping to the left, you can Archive these images, or swipe right to create a new album with the selected images, or add them to an existing album. Tap-and-hold on a thumbnail will take you to a full screen view, and you can move that image to an album or add it to the Favorites album. Images can also be quickly shared with your social networks. The albums you create in Tidy can be customized with a cover photo (a.k.a. “key image”), a name, and one of three layout options.
We’ve been getting some major use out of Tidy over the past week to organize our Camera Roll photos, and if you need to tidy up too, then make sure to grab this now. You can get it absolutely free in the App Store for your iPhone.More at

The Vampire Dairies "No Exit Clip"

Matt was clearly hoping for an empty house. #TVD is all new Thursday at 8/7c!

The Tomorrow People all new episode Brother's Keeper

Long Way Back from Hell Clip Rebekah's woken up into a nightmare. #TheOriginals is all new TOMORROW at 8/7c!

iTunes Festival Coming to SXSW

The Apple iTunes Festival will make its U.S. debut March 11–15 at SXSW in Austin, Texas. The Festival features five nights of free concerts by amazing artists like Coldplay, Imagine Dragons, Pitbull, Keith Urban, Willie Nelson, ZEDD, and more. Performances are available to watch live or on-demand via iTunes on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV, Mac, or PC. And songs from the concerts will be available for download only on iTunes. “The iTunes Festival in London has become an incredible way for Apple to share its love of music with our customers,” said Eddy Cue, Apple senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “We’re excited about the incredible lineup of artists performing and SXSW is the perfect place to debut the first iTunes Festival in the U.S.” More at

FileMaker Go for iPad and iPhone Apps Surpass 1 Million Downloads

FileMaker Inc. announced today that its FileMaker Go for iPad and iPhone apps have surpassed 1 million downloads from the iTunes App Store. FileMaker Go is a free app that allows users to remotely interact with FileMaker databases. “Businesses are using the FileMaker Platform to create solutions that manage everything from sales contacts and inventory to medical data on iPad and iPhone,” FileMaker’s Ryan Rosenberg said. “With the recent launch of FileMaker 13, customers will find it easier than ever to design innovative mobile solutions.” More at

The Pen, Phone, and iPad: Obama’s Tech Push in U.S. Schools

On a recent visit to a middle school in Maryland, President Obama “wielded an iPad to help make a point about how he hopes to do more for schools without more funding from Congress,” according to a Reuters report. Obama plans to modernize classrooms with technology, and Apple and other private companies have pledged to provide $750 million in tech products and services. Apple’s commitment includes donating free iPads to disadvantaged schools. Obama said technology like this “makes vivid and real math and science, in a way that is more interesting to the students.” More at

iPhone App Helps Fans Get More Yardage Out of Super Bowl Weekend

Fans can use iPhone and iOS to personalize their Super Bowl weekend experience, reports The New York Times’ Nick Wingfield in an article about the NFL’s iBeacon integration with the NFL Mobile app. At Times Square and MetLife Stadium, mobile technology can lead fans to the nearest stadium entrance, the closest place to buy merchandise, or where to view the Lombardi Trophy. Mobile announcements and alerts based on location are not new, but the article notes that experts say, “Apple is further along with its version of the technology, which is why most alerts of this kind are now sent to iPhone users.” Manish Jha, the NFL’s general manager of mobile, says, “The power of this is it really is able to connect the real world, the brick-and-mortar world, with the virtual world with a level of granularity that hasn’t existed before. More at

Apple Reports First-Quarter Results

Apple has announced financial results for its fiscal 2014 first quarter ended December 28, 2013. The company posted record quarterly revenue of $57.6 billion and quarterly net profit of $13.1 billion, or $14.50 per diluted share. The company sold 51 million iPhones, an all-time quarterly record, compared to 47.8 million in the year-ago quarter. Apple also sold 26 million iPads during the quarter, also an all-time quarterly record, compared to 22.9 million in the year-ago quarter. The company sold 4.8 million Macs, compared to 4.1 million in the year-ago quarter. “We are really happy with our record iPhone and iPad sales, the strong performance of our Mac products and the continued growth of iTunes, software, and services,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We love having the most satisfied, loyal, and engaged customers, and are continuing to invest heavily in our future to make their experiences with our products and services even better.”More at

Apple Devices Flow Into Corporate World

In The Wall Street Journal, tech reporter Daisuke Wakabayashi describes how Apple is expanding its reach into the business market. “The iPhone has replaced the BlackBerry as the mobile phone of choice, as the iPad assumes tasks once reserved for PCs,” Wakabayashi writes. He notes that “Apple is going mainstream” when it comes to the corporate world, and he profiles multiple large enterprises — including SAP, Nordstrom, and Cisco — that have rolled out iOS and other Apple devices to their employees. In fact, according to Good Technology, “More than 90 percent of all business apps were deployed on Apple’s iOS mobile-operating system in the third quarter. More at

Apple Expands Worldwide Access to Educational Content

iBooks Textbooks & iTunes U Course Manager Now Available in Over 50 Countries

CUPERTINO, California—January 21, 2014—Apple® today announced iBooks® Textbooks and iTunes U® Course Manager are expanding into new markets across Asia, Latin America, Europe and elsewhere around the world. iBooks Textbooks bring Multi-Touch™ textbooks with dynamic, current and interactive content to teachers and students in 51 countries now including Brazil, Italy and Japan; and iTunes U Course Manager, available in 70 countries now including Russia, Thailand and Malaysia, allows educators to create and distribute courses for their own classrooms, or share them publicly, on the iTunes U app.

“The incredible content and tools available for iPad provide teachers with new ways to customize learning unlike ever before,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “We can’t wait to see how teachers in even more countries will create their new lesson plans with interactive textbooks, apps and rich digital content.”

iBooks Textbooks offer iPad® users gorgeous, fullscreen textbooks with interactive animations, rotating 3D diagrams, flick-through photo galleries and tap-to-play videos. iBooks Textbooks don’t weigh down a backpack, can be updated as events unfold and don’t need to be returned. With nearly 25,000 educational titles created by independent publishers, teachers and leading education services companies, including new educational content from Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press and Hodder Education, iBooks Textbooks now cover 100 percent of US high school core curriculum and the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) core curriculum in the UK. More at

Yahoo Tech Reviews the New Mac Pro

Yahoo Tech’s David Pogue looks at the all-new Mac Pro, calling it an “insanely powerful” computer designed for professional creative and scientific users. He’s impressed with its horsepower, noting that “every wire, every circuit, every chip has been designed for speed,” and he says the desktop’s “ace in the hole is two top-of-the-line graphics cards.” Pogue points out that the Mac Pro handles pro apps like Final Cut Pro X, Photoshop, and Mathematica “faster than any Mac ever tested,” saving professionals time and money. “The Mac Pro, in every possible way, is a bet on the future,” writes Pogue. More at

App Store Sales Top $10 Billion in 2013

Record-Breaking December with Over $1 Billion in Sales

CUPERTINO, California―January 7, 2014―Apple® today announced that customers spent over $10 billion on the App Store℠ in 2013, including over $1 billion in December alone. App Store customers downloaded almost three billion apps in December making it the most successful month in App Store history. Apple’s incredible developers have now earned $15 billion on the App Store.

“We’d like to thank our customers for making 2013 the best year ever for the App Store,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “The lineup of apps for the holiday season was astonishing and we look forward to seeing what developers create in 2014.”

With the introduction of iOS 7, developers were able to create stunning apps that took advantage of the redesigned user interface and the more than 200 new features and APIs. Developers such as Evernote, Yahoo!, AirBnB, OpenTable, Tumblr, Pinterest and American Airlines re-imagined the user experience, bringing content to the forefront while increasing the overall efficiency and performance of their apps. More at

iPad Can Be Another Pair of Eyes in Operating Room

Liver surgery is a very complex operation, requiring extensive planning and research before a doctor ever enters the operating room. To help improve the process and minimize the risks of this delicate operation, doctors in Japan teamed up with a German research institute to develop an iPad app for use during liver surgeries. The app shows three-dimensional surgical data, helps pinpoint the exact location of blood vessels, and assesses potential risks in real time. “The visualization of liver blood vessels puts surgeons at ease, and it helps to ensure that the right incisions are made at the right time,” says Dr. Itaru Endo of Yokohama City University. The number of doctors using iPad apps during surgery is growing — the apps not only help save lives, they save money. “Augmented reality and other features of the app can replace equipment that costs half a million dollars,” Endo says. More at

iPad Transforms Napa Winery’s Production Process

At Palmaz Vineyards in Napa, California, iPad has improved the way the facility operates, from its vineyard to its tanks. Winemaker Christian Gastón Palmaz uses iPad to manage the vineyard and gather data that helps him make informed vine-tending decisions. iPad also has replaced complex industrial controls inside the winery. Palmaz uses an enterprise-level app that automates the labor-intensive, conventional fermentation process. “iPad removes the burden of data collecting and frees up our brilliant winemakers to focus on the art of winemaking,” says Palmaz. More at

All-New Mac Pro Available Starting Dec. 19

Apple has announced the all-new Mac Pro will be available to order starting Thursday, December 19. The Mac Pro features the latest Intel Xeon processors, dual workstation-class GPUs, PCIe-based flash storage, and ultra-fast ECC memory. Designed around a unified thermal core, the Mac Pro packs unprecedented performance into an aluminum enclosure that is 9.9 inches tall and one-eighth the volume of the previous generation. The Mac Pro is available starting at $2,999. More at

Beyoncé Album Shatters iTunes Store Records

Best First Week Album Sales & Number One in 104 Countries

CUPERTINO, California—December 16, 2013—Apple® today announced that BEYONCÉ has become the fastest selling album ever on the iTunes Store® worldwide with an unprecedented 828,773 albums sold in just its first three days. BEYONCÉ also broke the US first week album sales record with 617,213 sold and proved to be a global success going to number one in 104 countries.

The self-titled, BEYONCÉ, is the fifth solo studio album from Beyoncé, which was made available exclusively worldwide on the iTunes Store on December 13 by Parkwood Entertainment/Columbia Records. The self-titled set is the artist’s first visual album. BEYONCÉ is infused with 14 new songs and 17 visually stunning, provocative videos shot around the world from Houston to New York City to Paris, and Sydney to Rio de Janeiro, all before the album’s release. The album represents Beyoncé’s biggest sales week ever.  More at

iPad Helps Broadway Director Stay in Step

To stage a Broadway show, director and choreographer Jeff Whiting has to keep track of dozens of dancers and thousands of steps. He’s found that iPad is the best tool for the job. Whiting uses a “show bible” to chart and organize every step of a production. “Before iPad,” Whiting says, “we had to document all the choreography and staging manually, by drawing on pieces of paper.” This could add up to thousands of sheets of paper. Whiting developed Stage Write, an exclusively iOS app that digitizes the entire process. “iPad frees me up to focus on the creativity, rather than the practicalities, of staging a Broadway musical,” he says. More at

Wind Turbine Technicians Use iPad to Keep Blades Spinning

To keep wind turbines running smoothly, Siemens Energy-Wind Service technicians work in tight spaces high above the ground, and often in extreme weather conditions. Now iPad makes their job a lot easier. Before iPad, technicians needed over a thousand pages of binders, manuals, and electrical plans to help them perform repairs. All these documents are now stored on iPad, which makes accessing information much simpler. Technicians also use iPad to troubleshoot, take photos, and collect data. “What wind service technicians do is critically important to the wind power industry,” says Jennifer Dillon, Siemens manager of business improvement. “We want to make their work as effective and as easy as we can. iPad helps us do that.” More at

The Hour of Code Is Here

As a part of Computer Science Education Week (December 9-15), code.org is organizing a worldwide campaign to get 10 million students of all ages to participate in the Hour of Code. It’s a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and show that anyone can learn the basics of programming. “The ability to code and understand the power of computing is crucial to success in today’s hyper-connected world,” says former Vice President Al Gore. Apple Retail Stores will also host one-hour workshops for children and teens throughout the United States on Dec. 11. Find a store and sign up today. More at

Apple Unveils iBeacon to Assist Shoppers

Apple has rolled out iBeacon technology at its 254 Apple Stores in the U.S., enabling shoppers to receive iPhone notifications about products and services via the Apple Store app. As the Associated Press reports, iBeacon transmitters use Bluetooth wireless technology to sense a shopper’s exact location inside an Apple Store and send messages based on the aisle or product a user is near. For example, customers walking by an iPhone table could receive messages offering to help them check their upgrade availability or see if they can get money for trading in an old phone. iBeacon technology is moving into other venues as well. The AP reports that Major League Baseball plans to use it next year to offer features like coupons and videos based on a user’s location in a ballpark. More at

TV Broadcaster Speeds Up Telenovela Production With Final Cut Pro X

Mark Post, the owner of Riviera Racing, uses iPad to get up to speed for thousand-mile off-road endurance races such as the Baja 1000. Preparation is complicated, and logistics can be daunting. During the race, the MotionX GPS HD app on iPad keeps the team’s support crew coordinated without the need for paper maps, charts, and checklists. An endurance race is a huge team effort, Post says. “There’s no chance to get the race right again. There’s no hitting replay. That’s why using iPad for our prerace logistics is critical.” More at

iPad Assisting Speedskater Bridie Farrell in Comeback Bid

After an almost decade-long absence, world-class speedskater Bridie Farrell is preparing for a comeback, and iPad is helping her in a big way. Farrell’s coaches are using iPad and the Dartfish Express app for in-depth video analysis of her performance. They evaluate her form, aerodynamics, and body language, and provide frame-by-frame feedback. iPad also simplifies the video recording process. “We’d have to lug around a laptop and camcorders, and so many wires and connections,” says trainer Robyn Mason. “With iPad, you don’t need to worry about any of that. It’s so much easier, so much more accessible.” Read more: More at

The Vampire Diaries’ Nathaniel Buzolic to sink his teeth into new Supernatural spinoff

By Mail Online Reporter
Nathaniel Buzolic is yet another Australian actor on the way up in Hollywood, after scoring a part in a spinoff of the CW’s Supernatural.
The Vampire Diaries’ actor will star in Supernatural: Tribes, in the upcoming U.S. pilot season.
The 30-year-old is set to play the role of David Hayden, a shape-shifter from one of Chicago’s ruling monster families.








Show us your teeth: Vampire Diaries star Nathaniel Buzolic is delighted to reveal that he has been cast in a spin-off of the Supernatural series

‘The Originals’ spoilers: Series bosses on big episode for Claire Holt, Daniel Gillies

Are you excited for “The Originals” to come back on the air? Well, the good news here first and foremost is that the wait is almost over. New episodes of the show are going to start airing on Tuesday night, where it will be camped for at least a good chunk of the spring moving forward (even if there is at least one other hiatus on the way).
As for what you can see coming up specifically, that is what the video below is for! In it, executive producers Julie Plec and Michael Narducci guide you through what are many of the finer points of this episode, whether you are talking about the attempts from Elijah (Daniel Gillies) to rescue his family to what Rebekah (Claire Holt) is up to in an effort to try and save herself now from a whole chorus of werewolf bites. She and Klaus (Joseph Morgan) are in for quite a bit of pain and suffering, and for Elijah, this is going to largely be a journey of him trying to get past the guilt and the pain that he may be suffering from via his previous decisions.  More at

Jennifer Lopez cop drama gets NBC series order

American Idol‘s Jennifer Lopez is going to play an undercover cop on NBC.
The network has given a straight-to-series order to the drama Shades of Blue starring Lopez as a single mother and detective recruited to work undercover for the FBI’s anti-corruption task force.
The 13-episode order is from writer Adi Hasak (3 Days to Kill), who executive produces with Lopez and her fellow Idol colleague Ryan Seacrest, along with Nina Wass, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, and Benny Medina.
Her character, Harlee McCord, is further described as “part of a close-knit unit known for its conviction record, Harlee has become compromised by her colleagues — all of whom also pitch in to help her raise her daughter — and finds herself faced with the moral dilemma of working against her cop brothers in order to redeem herself.” More at

Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake bring ‘History of Rap 5′ to ‘Tonight Show’

he setting might have been new, but the beats were strictly old-school when Justin Timberlake dropped by pal Jimmy Fallon’s new home at The Tonight Show to team up for the latest installment of “The History of Rap.” That would be Chapter No. 5 for those of you scoring at home.
From NWA to the Beastie Boys up through Jay Z and Kanye West, Timberlake and Fallon dropped the proverbial science on an audience that’s seen Jay Leno’s successor pull out all the stops in his first week as the new host of NBC’s long-running late-night institution. The bit came a couple of nights after Fallon partnered up with guest Will Smith for “The Evolution of Hip Hop Dancing” and his inspired edit of Brian Williams’ stentorian “Rapper’s Delight.” More at

‘Franklin & Bash’ invites Mike Tyson into the ring this summer — EXCLUSIVE

You know it’s worth watching when they’ve got a Mike Tyson cameo.
Franklin & Bash returns for a fourth season this summer, and in one episode the boys will have Mr. Face Tattoo to reckon with. The amazing John Michael Higgins (Pitch Perfect, Best in Show) will also star in the episode as Gordon Derringer, a restauranteur and rival of Stanton Infeld (Malcolm McDowell), the head of the law firm. As a power play, Derringer hires Iron Mike to rough up Infeld, but Franklin and Bash take him on instead. Tyson will play himself. Word is out on the tiger; I hope she’ll be playing herself too. More at

‘Fantastic Four’ actor cast in ABC immortal pilot

Fantastic Four‘s Ioan Gruffudd is taking the starring role in ABC’s drama pilot Forever.
Gruffudd will play New York City’s star medical examiner who is secretly immortal.  Through his investigative work with a police detective and his relationship with his best friend the show will “peel back the layers of Henry’s colorful and long life.” More at

NBC’s ‘Heroes’ to Return as Miniseries in 2015

NBC is re-engaging the “Heroes” team, ordering 13 episodes of an event miniseries to air next year with series creator Tim Kring at the helm.
NBC teased the plan to revive the franchise with a promo spot that aired during Saturday’s telecast of Olympics coverage (watch above).
The brief spot featured a fade-in on the “Heroes” logo with the word “Reborn” added along with “Coming 2015.”
There had been rumors last year that the Peacock was looking to revive the mystery-fantasy drama that aired from 2006-2010. Kring is set to exec produce 13 new episodes.
Details of the storyline are being kept under wraps. It’s described as a stand-alone arc. A digital series will bow prior to the TV return to introduce (or perhaps re-introduce) fans to the characters that will be the focus of “Reborn.” More at

‘Blue Jasmine,’ ‘Hunger Games’ Among Costume Design Winners

Elaborate designs and covetable fashion were the focuses of the 2014 Costume Designers Guild Awards on February 22 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where winners included “Behind the Candelabra’s” Ellen Mirojnick, “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’s” Trish Summerville, “House of Cards’” Tom Broecker, and “Blue Jasmine’s” Suzy Benzinger. More at

Vampire Diaries – Episode 5.14 – No Exit – Preview Clip

The CW has released a preview clip for next week’s episode “No Exit”.

‘The Originals’ season 1, episode 14: All you need to know about ‘Long Way Back From Hell’

It’s been a long 3 weeks of Olympic interruption from our beloved Original siblings, but The Originals season 1 continues this Tuesday with “Long Way Back From Hell.”
Just a few short weeks ago we saw Celeste’s plan move into action as Papa Tunde sacrificed himself, Genevieve and Bastiana kidnapped Klaus and Rebekah, and Elijah was forced to choose amongst saving the woman he cares for or one of his immortal siblings. He chose well, saving the mortal werewolf girl carrying his brother’s love child and buying himself valuable time to find both Rebekah and Klaus.
The preview we last saw showed that this next episode will show Klaus and Rebekah being mentally tortured by the witches, and we may just walk a few steps down the always dangerous memory lane as Rebekah is forced to remember a painful time. More at

Q&A with Rachel Boston, Part 2

The Season 1 Finale cast a spell on audiences. Rachel Boston chatted with me exclusively about the funniest behind-the-scenes moments, the major plot points throughout the season, the crazy cliffhangers, and what she hopes for future episodes of “Witches of East End!”
Throughout the season, several characters reveal themselves as evil or as having less-than-honorable intentions, and there is a lot of loss (Adam dies from a spell, Penelope is the shifter, Mike is insane). How will Ingrid continue to cope with this disappointment, and how will it affect her as a woman and a witch?
I was reading a poem called “Good Timber” while we filmed the episode where Ingrid lost Adam, and I love this line: “Good timber does not grow with ease; the stronger the wind, the stronger the trees.” Through all of Ingrid’s tragedies and disappointments, she grows stronger. Through the loss of love, she uses her magic to bring Adam’s spirit back and begins to understand her heart and the power of love inside. Through the shifter and her past life dream, she learns about betrayal. Through Mike she painfully learns the truth about who she is and that she is the key to another world. Her heart continues to be broken open as she develops into a strong witch and woman. Life lessons and love become very complicated and powerful when you find out you are a witch. More at