TV with MeeVee

Tim Russert Dead at 58

NBC News and the New York Times are reporting that "Meet The Press" host Tim Russert collapsed and died at work this afternoon. A heart attack was the apparent cause. Russert was also NBC's Washington bureau chief and had moderated debates during primary season. A former Democratic political operative for Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Gov. Mario Cuomo, he joined NBC in 1984. He had hosted "Meet The Press" since December 1991. Tom Brokaw announced the news on the air, and he and Brian Williams, who is in Afghanistan, both provided tributes.

RIP Harvey Korman

We don't do obits here, really, and other writers are perhaps better suited to limning Harvey Korman's contribution to comedy. Most have mentioned "The Carol Burnett Show," where he did sketches with Burnett, Vicki Lawrence, and his longtime comedy wingman Tim Conway. He was also very funny in "Blazing Saddles" as the corrupt, pompous, horny Hedley Lamarr. But what I most remember him for, from when I was a kid watching the Burnett show, is losing it. He and Conway cracked each other up, and it was a regular occurrence to see one of them add an extra little comic fillip to a bit, and the other's lip would begin to quiver, and the next thing you knew they were both falling into the scenery they were laughing so hard, with Burnett right behind. The picture I think shows you the moment just before it happens. Both men seem to be suppressing a grin, Korman by biting on his pipe, Conway by turning down the corner of his mouth. But look at their eyes and you can see it coming. I've seldom seen guys so enraptured with the simple fun of performing. Don't see that much today, because, well, "Saturday Night Live" just isn't all that funny.

RIP Earle Hagen

No more fishing poles, no more ottoman. The veteran trombonist and composer Earle Hagen died Monday at 88. Perhaps few reading blogs today will know or much care about his work with Tommy Dorsey and Benny Goodman or even that he composed one of the great jazz standards, "Harlem Nocturne." But anyone who calls themselves a TV fan will grieve when they learn that Hagen composed the effortlessly evocative theme song to "The Andy Griffith Show," which played while Andy and Opie walked down to the fishing hole, and Hagen did the whistling himself. It set the atmosphere for the show perfectly, a last nostalgic rural idyll for a nation moving into the chaos of Vietnam, race riots and the Woodstock Generation. He also wrote the "Dick Van Dyke Show" theme song with the sudden pause to allow the star his pratfall over the ottoman. His many other compositions for television included the "I Spy" theme, and he wrote music for many movies as well. But the "Griffith" theme guarantees him a small but secure niche in the cultural history of post-World War II America, and in the emotional memories of nearly all the Baby Boom generation.

Stanley Kamel, 65, Found Dead

"Monk" actor Stanely Kamel was found dead in his home Tuesday. He played Dr. Kroger on the show, which stars Tony Shaloub as an obsessive-compulsive detective. Few details are available at this time, but Access Hollywood promises to reveal them as they emerge.

Fox Reality A Breeding Ground For Despair

We know that reality TV shows picks emotionally unstable people to create more tension and drama. We know that they put these unstable people into unhappy situations for our entertainment. Just look at "Moment Of Truth," which got top ratings when a woman confessed to infidelity on air.

And yet, it's still surprising when Nathan Clutter (right) gets kicked off "Paradise Hotel 2" and jumps off a cell tower shortly thereafter.

Of course, it's entirely possible the poor guy would have done this without the intervention of television, but it's very hard not to point a shaky finger of blame at Fox, reality TV in general, and ultimately at ourselves as viewers.

What gets me is that Nathan died back in October, shortly after filming wrapped. For the past five months, Fox Reality has been prepping the show, and now it's going to air, with a short note on his bio (click around for it, the site's all Flash and you can't link to anything specific) about how sad it is that he "passed away."

I don't know if that's cold, or sensible, or a noble tribute to a young man who wanted fame and hot chicks, but apparently his family was involved in the decision to keep all his scenes intact, so I guess it's OK.  Still, I don't know how anyone involved in the show - producers, contestants, and viewers - can help but feel somehow complicit in his death.

Polly Williams, Eating Disorder Advocate, Dies At 33

Access Hollywood is reporting that Polly Williams, one of the eating disorder patients profiled in the HBO documentary "Thin," died this week at the age of 33. Sources say that the cause of death appeared to be suicide. Since leaving the rehabilitation program where she participated in the documentary, she had been working as a lobbyist for the National Eating Disorders association and practicing photography, but also continued to struggle with eating disorders and depression.

Barry Morse: June 10, 1918 – February 2, 2008

Two obituaries in one day. Ugh. At least the second one got more time: Barry Morse died this week at the age of 89.

He was best known for playing the Lt. Gerard on the television series "The Fugitive," which was later remade into a movie starring Harrison Ford, but he played hundreds of other roles in the US, the UK, and Canada.

Shell Kepler, October 5, 1958 – February 1, 2008

Shell Kepler, who played busybody Nurse Vining on "General Hospital," died this week of renal failure. She was 49, and had played the same role on the daytime soap from 1979 to 2002.

She also had roles in other long-running shows including "Three's Company" and "CHiPs."

Merv Griffin: Post-Mortem Tributes For $500, Alex

While some of us are still fixated on TMZ's farewell to Merv Griffin, it's worth noting that another three-consonant entity, GSN, is offering its own perhaps more appropriate sendoff: 10 hours of classic game shows he created. On Saturday from 10-3 ET, GSN will run 10 episodes of "Wheel of Fortune" including Vanna White's debut appearance. Sunday during the same hours GSN will run "Jeopardy," including the big million-dollar extravaganza. In the wee hours Sunday night, GSN will also offer up some classic Merv during its B&W hours. Griffin was one of the celebs who helped with GSN's ceremonial switch-on in 1994.