New episode of "South Park," entitled, "Major Boobage

The boys are worried when Kenny starts experimenting with the newest way to get high in an all-new episode of "South Park," entitled, "Major Boobage," premiering on Wednesday, March 26 at 10:00 p.m. (ET/PT) on Comedy Central.

Kenny is skipping school and the other boys are sure it's because he's hooked on the latest drug craze that's popular with the junior high and under crowd. Meanwhile, Kyle's parents become concerned that their son is getting high when they find contraband in his room. To illustrate just how high you can go, "South Park" pays homage to the 1981 movie, "Heavy Metal."

Launched in 1997, "South Park," now in its 12th season, remains the highest-rated series on Comedy Central. "South Park" repeats Wednesdays at 12:00 a.m., Thursdays at 10:00 p.m. and 12:00 a.m. and Sundays at 11:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m.

Paramount Pictures is in negotiations with Sam Raimi to spearhead a franchise revival of Jack Ryan, the Tom Clancy-created CIA analyst character who drove four hit movies for the studio.


The intention is to generate several films Raimi would develop and direct, featuring Ryan at a younger, more formative point in his career than previously depicted. One invention the studio is considering is to set the film in the present, with the action triggered by a global threat.


Par will draft a scribe to write a Ryan movie that Raimi would shoot after he completes the Universal horror film "Drag Me to Hell." Paramount wants the Ryan movie ready for release in summer 2010.


Ryan is the cerebral CIA analyst who climbed the political ladder and became an Everyman action hero star in a quartet of films spearheaded by producer Mace Neufeld. Alec Baldwin originated Ryan in 1990's "The Hunt for Red October" and when Baldwin famously jumped ship to do "A Streetcar Named Desire" on Broadway, Harrison Ford replaced him in 1992's "Patriot Games" and 1994's "Clear and Present Danger." Ben Affleck played Ryan in 2002's "The Sum of All Fears." The four films grossed $781.5 million worldwide.

Warner Bros. Pictures today announced that the screen adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, will be released in two parts. The announcement was made by Jeff Robinov, President of Warner Bros. Pictures Group.


Robinov also announced that director David Yates, who earlier helmed the 2007 summer blockbuster “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” and is currently in production on “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” will direct “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” This marks the first time any one director will helm more than two releases in the Harry Potter film franchise.


In addition, David Heyman, who first brought the project to Warner Bros. in 1997, will be completing the film franchise as the producer of all of the Harry Potter films. David Barron will also continue as producer. “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” will be adapted by screenwriter Steve Kloves.


In making the announcement, Robinov stated, “It has been an honor for our studio to be entrusted with bringing J.K. Rowling’s extraordinary book series to the screen, and we have always felt a great responsibility to be true to her vision. In concluding the film franchise, we recognized that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is packed with vital plot points that complete the story arcs of all of its beloved characters. That said, we feel that the best way to do the book, and its many fans, justice is to expand the screen adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and release the film in two parts. We could not imagine the final chapter of the film franchise being in better hands than those of David Yates.”


“This is a very special moment for us, as it is the final episode in the great journey that J.K. Rowling undertook more than a decade ago,” said Alan Horn, President and COO, Warner Bros. Entertainment. “It has been a journey for all of us at Warner Bros. as well, and we are confident that our filmmakers will finish our series of films as a fitting complement to Jo’s completion of Harry’s story on the page.”

COMEDY CENTRAL has once again partnered with Jon Stewart's Busboy Productions for its bi-annual live on-air special event, "Night Of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit For Autism Education." On Sunday, April 13, at 8:00 p.m. ET, live from the Beacon Theatre in New York City, the benefit for Autism education programs will feature Stewart hosting an evening filled with live performances, sketches and short films from a roster of comedy all-stars. Tickets for the "Night Of Too Many Stars" go on sale on Monday, March 10, through www.ticketmaster.com or www.beacontheatre.com. Guests may also purchase VIP Benefit tickets by emailing nightoftoomanystars@eventassociatesinc.com . All VIP Benefit tickets, which begin at $1,250 per person, include access to the after-party with talent.

Performers raising money to help ease the severe shortage of effective schools and education programs for autistic children and adults, include Will Arnett, Matthew Broderick, Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Susie Essman, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill, Kevin James, Rosie O'Donnell, Amy Poehler, Conan O'Brien, Adam Sandler, Sarah Silverman, Triumph The Insult Comic Dog and many more talent to be announced.

Beginning on Monday, April 14, "Night of Too Many Stars" will be available for download on iTunes and xBox Live Marketplace for 30 days. All proceeds from the $1.99 download will go directly to the charity. In addition, comedycentral.com will stream the entire broadcast online on Monday, April 14. Users will have the opportunity to donate to the charity via the Web site.

The October 2006 "Night Of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit For Autism Education" raised more than $2.5 million.

South Park: Major Boobage

S12E03) To begin, for those unaware, South Park Studios has started to offer full episodes of the show on their official site with limited commercial interruption. I originally reported this in November.

I'll say this: when the South Park team put their minds to it, they can come up with some fantastic animation. When you watch the crudity of the animation in standard episodes, it's easy to forget that they're pretty damn talented at their craft.
This episode was all over the place. There were the references to the movie Heavy Metal, of course. There was the after-school special theme and the nod to The Diary of Anne Frank. And, of course, at the end was the reference to the Eliot Spitzer scandal. All bits were individually funny but they seemed haphazardly put together like pieces from different puzzles.

I really dug the music of the Heavy Metal animations. It made me want to watch the original movie again. They really captured the essence of the movie: an acid trip with bright colors, psychedelic imagery and lots of tits.

My favorite phrases were "the Breastiary in Nippopolis" and the "Itty Titty Fairies of Mammary Mountain".

Let's face it, the boobs were everywhere. On buildings, on people, on weapons, on vehicles. Hell, they were even on the women. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this is the first time the series has shown a naked animated female ass (one that was well drawn to boot).

This episode was also the first time in a while that Kenny was the featured kid of the episode. It got to the point where I was wondering if he even existed anymore. I do find it kind of disturbing that the South Park kids are supposed to be about 10 years old and despite this Kenny is something of a pervert.

The paranoid, fear mongering nature of the Fox News broadcast captured the style of the network perfectly in my opinion. It is also very much like South Park to use something as harmless as cats as an analogy for addiction. I laughed when Gerald Broflovski brought out the cat in the cellophane bag.

The Holocaust analogy and irony of Cartman saving the cats was a theme that was somewhat hammered into the audience, particularly at the end. Naturally, the lesson was lost on him. But if he could learn and grow, he wouldn't be Cartman. It may just be that Cartman likes cats more than people.

For someone who hasn't snorted cat pee in ten years, Mr. Broflovski sure kept a lot of the equipment in his basement. I'm wondering how such an overbearing woman as his wife didn't notice it earlier. Perhaps she was just too absorbed in keeping the children safe.

I thought the show had a good premise but lacked in the execution. The season feels like the creators are losing their steam. Granted, it's tough to top Imaginationland. However, I find that even the mediocre episodes of South Park have more genuine laughs and more heart than the majority of the shows out there.