Greener Pastures?
Tom Green has done plenty of shocking things on TV, from
painting his parents' house plaid to throwing up in his own
scuba mask. But will his next stunt be a disappearing act?
Sources close to Green's self-titled show say the kooky
host — who's been on hiatus recovering from testicular
cancer — doesn't want his MTV anymore and plans to leave the
series to focus on a budding movie career. (After Road Trip,
he'll star in The Monster and Freddy Got Fingered — plus he's
shot a cameo for girlfriend Drew Barrymore's Charlie's Angels.)
But Green's manager, Howard Lapides, dismisses rumors that his
client wants off the show. ''We're not negotiating him out of the
contract, we're trying to find a way to work with MTV within the
contract,'' he says. ''Does he want to stop doing TV? No. Can he
physically do the week-to-week grind? His doctors have asked
that he doesn't.'' That could mean a limited number of episodes
or specials, but an MTV spokeswoman would only say, ''We fully
expect him to live up to the terms of [his] contract.'' At the
very least, he'll be back on the net May 23 with The Tom Green
Cancer Special.
More Gore on TV
Gore in 2000! That's what they're saying on the set of Futurama.
Sources say Kristin Gore, the Vice President's Harvard-grad
daughter, is joining the writing staff of Fox's animated comedy
(on which the VP will guest May 21) come fall. Word has it Gore
had already piqued Spin City's interest when Futurama stepped up
to the plate. Her qualifications: a King of the Hill spec script
and a stint on the Harvard Lampoon. ''The Lampoon, historically,
has been a good breeding ground for many comedy writers who have
gone into prime-time animation,'' says one source familiar with
the negotiations. But that's not the only lure in hiring the
presidential hopeful's daughter. Says one talent rep: ''She's got
access to the White House, baby!'' Oh yeah, that Al Gore is a
veritable vault of hilarious jokes.
And So On...
Say goodbye to cable's infamous butt-kicker La
Femme Nikita. The USA Network has decided to scrap the
four-year-old action series, which helped establish it as a
viable home for original programming. The studio wouldn't
comment, but insiders say the Peta Wilson-starrer had simply
''run its course.'' Wilson plans to move to New York City to
pursue theater and movie opportunities.... Meanwhile, CBS has
its eye on the TV movie prize: Besides telefilms on O.J.
Simpson's defense team, Elian Gonzalez, and Jacqueline Onassis,
the net has also greenlit the Holocaust miniseries Haven,
starring Natasha Richardson.
