Island of Misfit Toys, Day 7: “Rescue Me,” the Osbournes and other “Garbage”
Posted on January 14th, 2009 – 12:49 PMBy Neal Justin
This TCA round has been short on the glam, celebrity-packed parties that have defined past gatherings. Not Tuesday night. Fox threw a bash at the spankin’ new club, My House, and it was crawling with big-name talent, including Denis Leary, Seth MacFarlane, Keifer Sutherland, JJ Abrams, Paula Abdul, Kristin Chenoweth, Will Arnett, Sharon Osbourne, Jon Voight, Omar Epps and Cheri Oteri. Had a lengthy chat with Daniel Sunjata of “Rescue Me” who firmly believes that 9/11 was an “inside job,” joining the ranks of Charlie Sheen and Rosie O’Donnell. I don’t buy it, but it’s always fascinating to hear from those who believe in such conspiracies. Sunjata admitted that a “couple thousand” people would have had to be in on it for his theory to be sound. I don’t even know five people who can keep a secret, so I’m not sure how a couple thousand would be able to keep their mouths shut after such a tragedy. Still, it never hurts to listen.
Also at the party was Shirley Manson, former lead singer of Garbage and now one of the stars of “The Sarah Connor Chronicles.” She told me she had been completely burned out from years of recording and touring and was enjoying her new challenge as an actress. That being said, she said she was finally itching to get back in the studio, most likely as a solo artist, not as part of Garbage.
Sharon Osbourne, one of the hosts of the upcoming variety show, “Osbournes: Reloaded” said she was proud that her family kicked off the the celeb-reality genre, but that “everything else is crap after us.” The secret to their success, she said, was that nothing was ever scripted. “Ozzy was asked this question of who wrote your scripts, and his
classic line is ‘God,’” she said. “You know, that’s what it was. That’s why ours was the best.”
Keifer Sutherland said he’s always trying to inject a little more reality into the “24″ plot. In season 3, he said, he ended one sequence by heading into a restroom. The scene was cut. “It’s not for lack of trying,” he said.
The drop-dead, most hilarious panel of the day? The entire cast of “Rescue Me,” plus former Dudley Riggs writer Peter Tolan, who co-created the series with Leary. Based on clips and conversation, looks like season 5 could be terrific, following what Tolan admits was their weakest season. “I would say most shows have a sophomore slump,” he said. “We just waited until our fourth season to do it. Frankly, it was my fault. I sort of laid back a bit. It was my year of Brazilian hookers.”





