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Friday, November 7, 2025

Carol Burnett Donates All Her Awards — 140 Emmys, Globes, a Tony, Grammy and More — to UCLA, Where She’s Endowed a New Scholarship


Carol Burnett has been brewin’ something big with the Bruins. The UCLA alum and Hollywood icon has announced two major gifts to the school: An endowment to establish a scholarship at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, as well as a donation of the more than 140 industry awards and honors that Burnett has received over her seven-decade career. 


Among those awards are seven Emmys — ranging from outstanding performance in a variety or music program in 1962 (“The Garry Moore Show”) to outstanding variety special—pre-recorded (“Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter+Love”) in 2023. She’s also won six Golden Globes, a Grammy, a Tony, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Kennedy Center Honor, multiple Peabody Awards, a Stephen Sondheim Award, a 1976 Creative Circle Award (shaped like a golden typewriter), the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award, the Globes’ first Carol Burnett Lifetime Achievement Award for Television and much more.

As part of the donation, Burnett also included ephemera such as hand drawings of her in costume from “The Carol Burnett Show,” a still-boxed doll of her in the CBS variety show’s iconic Scarlett O’Hara curtain hanger costume, and other photos and memorabilia. A rotating display of Burnett’s honors will be shown in the lobby of UCLA’s Freud Playhouse.

Read more here.

Wednesday, November 5, 2025

‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ Holds Food Drive As Trump Administration Threatens to Halt SNAP Benefits for Millions of Americans


With the Trump Administration threatening to withhold SNAP benefits to Americans in need, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” has launched a food drive to support the Los Angeles Food Bank and the St. Joseph Center. The LA Food Bank’s mission is to “mobilize resources to fight hunger in our community,” while the St. Joseph Center helps “working-poor families and people experiencing homelessness to achieve stability and self-sufficiency.” 


As the Trump Administration’s government shutdown is about to hit 36 days — marking a new record — there’s still uncertainty over whether the 42 million Americans who rely on food stamp payments will receive any of those benefits moving forward.

Wrote the show on its Instagram account: “Cutting SNAP benefits creates uncertainty for American children, seniors and families. To support our community members in need, we’re starting a donation center in our Hollywood backlot to benefit the @LAFoodBank & @StJosephCtr. Details below. If you are in LA, please come by to donate food and if you are not, please consider supporting your local food banks.”

Dubbed “The Jimmy Kimmel Live Big, Beautiful Food Bank,” the donation hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.. at 6901 Hawthorn Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90028.

According to the show, the most needed foods are low-sodium soups/chili/stews, tuna/chicken/salmon (cans or pouches), nut butters, low-sugar cereals, protein bars, whole grain pasta and rice.

Also requested are crackers, trail mix, fruit snacks, 100% juice boxes, dried fruit, UHT milk, cereal boxes, wipes, diapers, facial cleanser, deodorant, soap, lotions, oral hygiene items and feminine products.

Read more here.

Wednesday, October 29, 2025

Mike Lands Eight LA Press Club National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards Nominations


Variety
reporters, photographers and designers scored 107 nominations for the Los Angeles Press Club‘s 18th National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards, and I am proud to reveal that I have landed eight of them! Here are the categories where I've been nominated -- for several stories, as well as host/producer of the Variety Awards Circuit podcast:

G4. Business, TV/Streaming 

*  Michael Schneider, Variety, “Inside the Cable TV Hospice: Can NBCUniversal’s 

Divorce From MSNBC, Syfy, E! and More Prolong the Life of Once-Popular 

Channels?” 

G26. Commentary Analysis/Trend, Film 

*  Michael Schneider, Variety, “A24’s Doc ‘The Sixth,’ About the Terror of Jan. 6, Is 

Essential Viewing. So Why Are the Directors Struggling to Get It Seen?” 

J1. Anchor/Host  

*  Michael Schneider, Clayton Davis, Jazz Tangcay, Emily Longeretta, Jenelle 

Riley, Variety, “Variety Awards Circuit Podcast” 

J5. One-on-One Interview, TV/Streaming Personalities

*  Michael Schneider, Variety, “‘The Daily Show’s’ Ronny Chieng on Recently 

Becoming a U.S. Citizen: ‘It’s a Weird Time to Do It’” 

J9. Best Arts or Entertainment Regular Podcast 

*  Michael Schneider, Clayton Davis, Jazz Tangcay, Emily Longeretta, Jenelle 

Riley, Variety, “Variety Awards Circuit Podcast” 

K2. Hard News, TV/Streaming

*  Michael Schneider, Variety, “L.A. Reporters Cover Devastation in Their Own 

Neighborhoods During Wildfires: ‘Feels Like a Nightmare’ and ‘Fatigue Is Setting In’” 

K23A. TV/Streaming Feature, Creatives 

* Kate Aurthur, Michael Schneider, Variety, “Variety TV Editors Recount What It Was Like Shooting a Cameo for the ‘Hacks’ Premiere: ‘I Went Into a Fugue State’” 

K31. Commentary Analysis/Trend, TV 

*  Michael Schneider, Variety, “The L.A. Fires Proved the Urgent Need for Local News in an Age of Social Media Conspiracies and Outright Lies” 

The Arts and Entertainment Awards gala is set for Dec. 7.

‘Married With Children’ Stars to Gather at the Wiltern Theatre In One-Night-Only Cast Reunion That Won’t Be Televised


The stars of hit 1980s Fox sitcom “Married…. With Children” are reuniting in January for a live event that will serve as a benefit for the Race to Erase MS organization.

“Married… With Children” stars Ed O’Neill, Katey Sagal, Christina Applegate and David Faustino are set to gather on stage at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theatre on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, to celebrate and reminisce about their 11-season sitcom, which ran from April 1987 to June 1997, ultimately filming 259 episodes.

According to the announcement for “An Evening with The Bundys: The Married with Children Cast Reunion,” attendees “can expect never-before-heard stories, rare behind-the-scenes moments, and plenty of laughs as the Bundys relive their most outrageous and iconic memories together.” There are no plans to film the reunion, which means the only chance to see the Bundy clan gathering will be in person at the Wiltern.

Race to Erase MS, which is dedicated to the treatment and cure of Multiple Sclerosis, will receive $2 from every ticket sold. Applegate revealed in 2021 that she had been diagnosed with MS, said in May 2023 that she likely wouldn’t appear on-camera anymore due to the autoimmune disease. Last year she spoke to Good Morning America about the news.

Tickets for the reunion, which is being produced by Live Nation Concerts with Blunt Mgmt.’s Ben Brucato, begin Thursday, Oct. 30 at 10 a.m. PT at ticketmaster.com.

Read more here.

Thursday, October 23, 2025

KCRW Announces New Batch of DJs

A week after KCRW pink slipped long-running DJs Jason Kramer, Jeremy Sole, José Galvan, Travis Holcombe and Valida in a cost-cutting move, the station has announced shows from three new hosts.

Joining the station are Luxxury, John Tejada and Peanut Butter Wolf, who premiere the weekend of Oct. 31. “They’re not just incredible DJs; they’re artists with their own creative worlds and communities, and they’re bringing that energy straight to KCRW,” said KCRW music director Alejandro Cohen in an email to listeners.

Luxxury — real name Blake Robin — hosts the popular podcast “One Song” with Diallo Riddle. (He’s also known for whispering “INTERPOLATION” on TikTok.) The artist, producer and DJ is “known for blending classic songwriting with modern production,” KCRW noted. His show will air on a more rock-focused Friday night, which also includes a continuing show from legendary rocker Henry Rollins.

Tejada is described as “a globally respected DJ, producer, and composer” who “brings decades of influence in techno and electronic music. His refined style bridges the experimental and the familiar, connecting underground innovation with sounds that move listeners.” His show will air on Saturdays, along with DJ Silva and Jason Bentley’s “Metropolis,” as that night focuses on dance music.

Peanut Butter Wolf, real name Chris Manak, is the founder of Stones Throw Records. His show will air on Sunday nights, which will be focused on soul, R&B, hip-hop and jazz. Manak’s Sunday show will air along with one from LeRoy Downs.

Holcombe had hosted the weeknight show “Freaks Only”; with his departure, the station said Monday through Thursday nights will include rebroadcasts of some of the weekend shows mentioned above.

KCRW president Jennifer Ferro had hinted at a change in another email to listeners last week: “These decisions were made after careful consideration of how best to position us against the twin challenges of needing to adapt to how people consume media today as well as the loss of federal dollars. You’ll notice some programming changes too,” she said. “Look for a new on-air music schedule in the coming weeks with new DJs and a new lineup.”

Read more here.