'Simpsons' studio says show cannot continue without cutting costs

Is Homer about to utter his final ‘D’oh!’? The producers of The Simpsons and the voice actors are currently at an impasse in negotiations for a new deal that would allow for new episodes of the animated Fox comedy beyond the current season. 20th Century Fox Television, the studio that produces the series — which, in its 23rd season, is the longest running prime-time comedy in TV history — has asked the voice actors to take a 45-percent pay cut to renew their contracts for additional seasons. 20th Century Fox issued an ultimatum to the actors — Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria and Harry Shearer — to take a 45 percent pay cut or the show will end. Per the report, the offer was made Monday evening after the sextet, who each make $8 million a year, last week proposed a 30 percent pay cut in exchange for a small percentage of the show's back-end profits, which includes syndication and merchandising. Contract negotiations between the show and the voice actors have turned tense on several occasions; in the late ’90s, the studio warned that it would replace the actors before a new deal was ultimately reached. "Fox is taking the position that unless they can cut the production costs really drastically, they'll pull the plug on new shows," a source says. "The show has made billions in profits over the years and will continue to do so as far as the eye can see down the road. The actors are willing to take a pay cut of roughly a third, but that's not good enough for Fox. ... Fox is basically saying, 'If you don't take this deal, we'll shut down the show,' and they'll continue to make a ton of money." If the actors accept the offer, they would each make about $4 million.

Pink to Make Acting Debut as a Sex Addict

No stranger to performing, Pink is honing her acting chops to star as free-spirited sex addict Dede in Thanks for Sharing. Pink (real name Alecia Moore), 32, did have a cameo in Charlie's Angels Full Throttle in 2003 and another small role in Catacombs in 2007, but this is the singer's first leading role. Spotted filming in New York City's West Village Tuesday, she is set to star alongside such pros as Gwenyth Paltrow, Mark Ruffalo and Tim Robbins. Her character shares a bond with Book of Mormon's Josh Gad, who, as Neil, is another of three characters undergoing 12-step treatment for sex addiction.

Meet Kailani Merizalde Phillippe Knapp. "So Undercover" actress Alexis Knapp, 21, shared a photo of her 3-month-old daughter with ex-boyfriend Ryan Phillippe, 37. Knapp announced her pregnancy at an industry event in mid-February -- five months after she and the "Lincoln Lawyer" actor officially ended their on-and-off relationship. (Phillippe was dating Amanda Seyfried at the time. They have since split.)

Kat Von D recording her first album

Paris Hilton. Kim Kardashian. Heidi Montag. These are reality TV stars who released albums. Using rudimentary skills in logic and pattern making, we can determine the following, irrefutable law: Reality TV stars make terrible music. However, this newly coined scientific law is not deterring "LA Ink" tattoo impresario Kat Von D. Von D is in the middle of recording her first album. "I've been passionate about music all my life...I've been playing classical piano since I was six. So I understand the form, but it will be fun to able to translate a message." "I think it's much like tattooing or the TV show or makeup, my clothing line, fashion...All those things, they're just different outlets to be able to be creative. So music, I think it's going to be one of those things."

 It was a giant jam session," Shannon Tweed-Simmons says about her Oct. 1 wedding to KISS bassist Gene Simmons. The couple, who have been together for 28 years, celebrated with 400 guests. Among them were daughter Sophie, 19, who served as maid of honor and even crooned the song for the first dance, Etta James's "At Last," and son Nick, 22, a groomsmen who also took the stage to perform. Even the family dog, Snippy, joined in the celebration – serving as the ring bearer.

 

Hank Williams Jr. Apologizes for 'Dumb Statement'

Hank Williams Jr. issued an apology Tuesday for comparing President Obama to Adolf Hitler during a TV interview. "I have always been very passionate about Politics and Sports and this time it got the Best and Worst of me," Williams, 62, said in a statement on his website. On Monday's Fox and Friends he likened the President's recent golf outing with Republican House Speaker John Boehner to "Hitler playing golf with [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu." In response, ESPN quickly dropped the country star's iconic "Are You Ready For Some Football?" promo from this week's Monday Night Football broadcast.

 

Blake Lively, Leonardo DiCaprio Break Up

Their summer romance is over. Blake Lively and Leonardo DiCaprio, linked since May at the Cannes Film Festival, are no longer dating, a source close to DiCaprio says. "It's amicable. They're friends," the source says, adding that distance and DiCaprio's work commitments contributed to the breakup.

Throat troubles cause Adele to cancel shows again

Adele is again canceling concerts because of throat troubles. Her 10-city U.S. concert run was to kick off in Atlantic City, N.J., on Friday and take her to Miami, Nashville, Tenn., and elsewhere. But in a statement released Tuesday, those performances were canceled, blamed on a hemorrhage in her vocal cord. The "Rolling in the Deep" singer canceled some U.S. concert dates in April because of laryngitis.The best-selling British soul singer says she's "truly devastated" and annoyed. She says in the statement she has no choice but to rest and recuperate properly or risk permanent damage to her voice. She adds that she's going to start vocal rehab soon. She apologizes to her fans.

Hungry Muppet to appear on "Sesame Street"

A new poverty-stricken Muppet will highlight the issue of hunger struggles on an episode of "Sesame Street", the show said in a statement. Pink-faced Muppet Lily, whose family deals with food insecurity, will join Big Bird, Elmo and other favorites on a one-hour prime-time special featuring country star Brad Paisley and his wife Kimberly Williams Paisley called "Growing Hope Against Hunger," to air Oct 9.The new Muppet will bring awareness to the ongoing hunger struggles that families face in the United States, the show said."Food insecurity is a growing and difficult issue for adults to discuss, much less children," the Paisleys said in a statement. "Sesame Street" is seen in either the U.S. or local TV versions in more than 140 nations and has won multiple awards for its educational content for pre-schoolers. The special will see children tell personal stories of their families struggling with hunger, and will also show how some families find innovative and community-driven solutions, including food drives and assistance programs. Recent U.S. Department of Agriculture data estimates that 17 million American children have limited or uncertain access to food. And 9.6 million of these children are under the age of 6, which prompted Sesame Workshop, the non-profit organization behind "Sesame Street," to launch a "Food For Thought: Eating Well on a Budget" initiative.



TV NEWS
The first official cancellation of the 2011-12 TV season is… NBC’s The Playboy Club! The Peacock net announced Monday that it was pulling the low-rated, period drama off the air after three low-rated episodes. Prime Suspect repeats will take over the Monday at 10 pm perch until Rock Center with Brian Williams debuts on Oct. 31. This drama, starring Eddie Cibrian and Amber Heard, chronicled the goings-on at the infamous Playboy Club in 1960s Chicago. 



NBC has ordered Up All Night and Whitney for full seasons.



Following Dexter’s biggest premiere to date last Sunday, contract negotiations between Michael C. Hall and Showtime have reportedly come to an impasse. talks broke down after the two sides were unable to bridge a $4 million gap in Hall’s proposed new salary. (The new pact would be for two years.)  Hall recently said that he doesn’t “have any reason to believe that this sixth season will be [the show's] last.”



Alfre Woodard (True Blood, Memphis Beat) has landed a guest appearance on Grey’s Anatomy‘s. The veteran actress will play a famous novelist who is under Derek and Lexie’s care at Seattle Grace in this season’s eighth episode.



Grey’s Anatomy‘s Jason George will appear in The Closer’s winter finale (airing Dec. 26) as a businessman with ties to the neighborhood where Turell Baylor was killed last season.



True Blood‘s Chris Bauer has landed a guest spot on CBS’ Hawaii Five-0 this fall. The True Blood star will play the “manager of an off-shore oil rig who finds himself coming face-to-face with Danny and McGarrett when one of his men is murdered.”



Deadwood‘s Brad Dourif will guest star on ABC’s fantastical new series Once Upon a Time this fall as a beggar who befriends Rumpelstiltskin.