The National Enquirer ran a story over two years ago that Jenny McCarthy was in talks with Oprah for a talk show deal. It’s wasn’t just The Enquirer, either, The Hollywood Reporter ran a similar story in May, 2009 claiming that McCarthy had “inked a multi-year overall deal with Winfrey’s Harpo Prods. to develop projects on different platforms, including a syndicated talk show that the actress/author would host.” Supporting these stories was a new blog that Jenny started that was hosted on Oprah’s website. Only that was just about the last we heard about a McCarthy Oprah collaboration apart from some rumors.
I was honestly just thinking about this a couple of weeks ago when I wrote about how Neil Patrick Harris might get a talkshow with Oprah. According to Bill Zwecker at the Chicago Sun Times, Jenny’s talks with Oprah stalled and she eventually pulled out of the potential deal. After over two years that sounds pretty reasonable. Zwecker has “a number of sources” who have told him that Jenny is now trying to work with NBC to get something off the ground.
Apparently due to those old “creative differences,” South Side native Jenny McCarthy pulled the plug on her development deal for a talk show on Winfrey’s new network — and reportedly will take the concept to NBC.
Now, I want to stress that the Peacock Network’s representative would not admit any McCarthy tie to NBC, saying only, “We do not comment on projects in development.”
However, a number of sources have confirmed the actress, autism advocate and Mother McAuley High School grad believes her talks with NBC will get her show on the air quickly — and showcased to a far larger audience than she would have had at OWN.
The Winfrey-owned network did issue a curt confirmation that “OWN does not have a show in development with Jenny McCarthy.”
I also understand that Winfrey and her OWN team are deeply disappointed by McCarthy’s impatience with the rate of progress in developing the new program.
“OWN clearly needs a big infusion of compelling programming if it’s going to begin to build a decent-sized audience, but Jenny should have thought twice — or three or four times! — before burning a bridge with Oprah,” said a veteran TV exec, very knowledgeable about OWN, Winfrey’s organizational process and her production team.
[From The Chicago Sun Times]
That’s probably pretty smart of Jenny. Yes no one should burn bridges with The Mighty O, but really how well is OWN going to do? Jenny is better off going to an established network where she’ll have a wider viewership. NBC isn’t very skilled at promoting or giving its best shows a fighting chance, but surely it’s better than OWN. As for how well Jenny will do as a talk show host that remains to be seen. She’s a goof ball with some pretty controversial ideas about healthcare to say the least. She’s entertaining though and she seems to be able to hold her own.
Photos are from April and May of this year. Credit: WENN.com
Her talk show would probably fit in best on the SciFi channel.
I find her so boring.
Oprah’s network is bombing and she is going to be getting rid of a few more “shows” I’m sure. Oprah is not used to failure. I bet the wheels are just achurnin’ in the Oprah offices, these days.
Truly cannot stand this b!tch. I hope she goes down in flames. She is responsible for the spread of so much misinformation, so much stupidity, so much damage to some of the most important and lifesaving public health initiatives out there…
Also, who wants to watch some relic from 1997 who hasn’t done anything interesting except dump Jim Carrey (who is also a has-been relic). She is fake and un-funny (seriously–has anyone read her books? She makes fart jokes and thinks she’s the funniest thing ever in the whole world). Jenny: go away. No one wants to watch you.
@Lindy–exactly what you said. She is spreading misinformation and it makes me sick.
love her!
Didn’t Jim Carrey give her 20 million dollars as a gift instead of a wedding? Did she get to keep those millions? Can we hear something about that?
They announced that in a bid to “re-tool” (read save) OWN, they will start airing re-runs of O’s now defunct talk show.
So she’s adding even more repeats to a network that is already drowning in them. WTH…
Plus her “original programming” consists of people who are mostly remembered for having media relevance or ONE or TWO good episodes on her show YEARS ago (Judds, O’Neals, Fergie) or her already media-saturated “friends/experts” (McCarthy, Drs. Phil & Oz, Orman, friggin’ Gayle?!?). Again, WTH…
Oprah needs to cut Oprah from her cable station.
@Lindy, here, here. Co-sign everything you said 100%. As a person who went to medical school, teaches college anatomy and physiology, and authors anatomy and physiology textbooks, I am acutely aware of the damage her misinformation has caused. It’s shameful, really.
@ Lindy and the others:
Sadly it’s not only Jenny and Jim Carrey who were (are still?) ardent followers of Andrew Wakefield but also someone like Robert Kennedy Jr, whom people seem to respect just because of his surname, who was allowed to publish his ill-informed drivel in the Huffington Post.
Although Andrew Wakefield had his license to practice medicine revoked by the General Medical Council in the UK, he still talks (mainly in churches) in states like Texas. Yay for free speech! 😉 People continue to follow him like the children followed the Pied Piper of Hamelin in that fairy tale.
I read her book “Belly laughs” during my pregnancy. I thought it was a bunch of overly exaggerated drivel. Wasnt she bragging about “curing” her son of Autism a while back?
Sign on lindy and #8 – a dehydrated prune is more interesting than this 1997 relic – not a fan of Oprah so I’m glad her network is bombing – there is only such much bad boring tv you can half watch before you realize the brain rot that is occurring and then you turn the tv off and reach for a decent book.
Cannot stand JMC. What exactly of quality has she ever produced? Her uneducated, anti-science campaign is also arrogantly misguided and probably responsible for dumb parents making harmful decisions for their children based on her ‘advice.’
Geekchic,
I’ll spare everyone all my diplomas, but I work with spec needs kids (including autism) and it is widely known and accepted that vaccinations cause autism.
I don’t agree with everything Jenny McCarthey says, but I applaud her for shining the light on what can only be called generational terrorism.
@ mimi: i don’t think it is “widely accepted” that vaccinations cause autism; i think it is a theory, along with other theories. and let’s not forget the main study that “proved” vaccinations cause autism is not authentic. the doctors admitted to falsifying information and had their medical licenses revoked. the autism movement folks have been strangely quiet on this development even though it has been all over the news lately.
as for jenny, she is truly a moron. everything she says is stupid and juvenile. who wants to watch her mugging, farting, burping and picking her nose for an hour?
Original Kate,
It is widely accepted among the parents of autistic children. And considering the trifecta of guilty parties — the CDC,Big Pharma, and the American Pediatrics Assoc, I am not surprised Wakefield had his license revoked. And research that is not funded by any of the guilty trifecta, have found a link. Have you ever read “Evidence of Harm” by David Kirby? Read it, then comment. Just because you heard the results of a study on T.V., doesn’t mean they’re valid.
@mimi, It was also widely accepted among family members of individuals with epilepsy that it was due to demonic possession. Just because they believed it, didn’t make it true. There are no good studies that prove a link between autism and vaccines. The commonly blamed alleged culprit, thiomerosal, has been shown to have zero impact on autism rates, as demonstrated by the decades-long Dutch study. I wish the people who are so vocal about vaccine opposition would refocus their energies on finding the actual cause of autism. I’m sure most are well-meaning and passionate, but unfortunately they are wasting precious resources by continuing to pursue an avenue that is demonstrably false. Let’s put those resources toward finding the real cause so that we can find a real treatment.
And by the way, “Big Pharma” makes no money off of the majority of childhood vaccines. Indeed, governments have to subsidize the cost of vaccine production because the pharmaceutical companies would have no incentive to produce them otherwise. And the belief that the American Pediatrics Association is somehow involved in a conspiracy to get kids to develop autism is cynical at best and ridiculously laughable at worst.
She is definitely controversial. But I also think that anyone who strays from the mainstream is vilified.
The medical community knows what they know. Meaning, right now, chemotherapy is the best cancer treatment. In 20 years we’ll probably look back and this chemo was crazy.
So are just supposed to blindly follow what they say, or it is OK for us to seek alternatives if that’s what we think is best. Who knows, in some time, the alternative may be mainstream…
Geek chic,
Please don’t discount or ridicule (?) a parent’s knowledge of their child. I had a parent show me a pic of their child before vaccinations — and after. Tragic just doesn’t even come close to describing it. Nobody knows a child better than their parents. Thimerasol is mercury. And you don’t need 5 diplomas to know it should not be injected into a baby. Can you tell me more about the “Dutch study” – other than it “proves” that injecting one of the most toxic substances on the planet into a baby is safe??? The mere fact that you need a study to evaluate this practice is crazy and troublesome given your chosen profession. Does common sense not matter??? Do I think all pediatricians are involved in a conspiracy? No..but they are being brainwashed into believing what they are doing is safe. Do I believe there are some high level people in these organizations that are trying to cover their ass? Absolutely. The lawsuits would decimate them otherwise. To believe otherwise is naive.
“Have you ever read “Evidence of Harm” by David Kirby? Read it, then comment. Just because you heard the results of a study on T.V., doesn’t mean they’re valid.”
@ mimi: don’t you dare tell me or any other poster when and how we can comment. and i did not see this on TV (which i rarely watch) i read about this in several different newspapers. but way to avoid the point. so you are saying that the doctors who admitted falsifying data are lying about falsifying data? and FYI, just because some parents of autistic children believe vaccinations did this does not equal “widely believed and accepted.” furthermore, widely believed and accepted does not always equal truth. it was once believed that women’s uteruses made them hysterical.
Original Kate,
I didn’t mean to anger you — but Evidence of Harm is a very detailed unbiased book about all of the “research” and political maneuvering that has involved thimerasol and autism. Reading study results in several newspapers (which usually just copy one another or reprint the same information) is not
very in depth knowledge. To truly investigate, one has to read up on the financing of research, the subjects, timeline, were the results replicated..etc etc. Evidence of Harm has done this superbly. But again, who needs studies to investigate injecting mercury into babies???????!!!
I, too, work with children with autism. Some of them didn’t receive vaccinations for religious reasons.
I guess those kids just don’t have “real” autism.
@ mimi: i never claimed to have “in-depth knowledge” of autism or its causes. i’m not that interested in the subject, to be honest. i simply posited an opinion, just like several other people did, yet for some reason you decided to attack me. i’m not certain why you are so threatened by my opinion but you need to pull your head out of your ass and try to have a civilized discussion, otherwise you will only continue in making yourself and your cause look foolish.
ETA: i see you are still dodging acknowledging the false study.
I really have no dog in this fight, but I have a question: how many children each year get autism from vaccines, and how many would die from childhood diseases without those vaccines?
Nothing in medicine is guaranteed (I am no doctor, so those who are, please feel free to correct me), and medical personnel and patients must always ask if the risk of side effects outweighs the benefit of the medicine, vaccine, treatment, etc.
Opinions are fine for movie reviews. But when you’re talking about the lives of children, don’t you think more time and effort is warranted? Yes, I have heard of children not being vaccinated and still have autism. Do their mothers have a mouthful of mercury fillings? Did any of these kids get mercury fillings? Regarding treatment for autism..there is a protocal developed by Andy Cutler that involves low dose chelation. There are many successful cases of autism being reversed and/or significantly reduced using this protocal. Admittedly, it doesn’t help all children. But its a start. Better than sitting around waiting for the cause to be “discovered”
Also, are you all aware that newborns are immediately vaccinated with Hepatitus B? Do these religious parents know this? I don’t have all the answers..but there is overwhelming evidence that thimerosal/mercury is involved.
Original Kate, what false study are you referring to? Can you provide more info than a provocative statement?
REgarding which is worse — to vaccinate or not? I would say vaccination. Children can recover from measles, mumps, whooping cough. Autism is a form of insanity that is horrifying to witness.
@mimi-your funny
@Mimi-all newborns in the U.S. are not automatically vaccinated against Hepatitis B. Like all childhood vaccines, a parent has to give consent-you can opt out of your child getting the Hep B vaccine after birth if you want.
Also, measles, mumps and whooping cough can be deadly. Many children died of these diseases prior to vaccines.
Although there are numerous theories, no one really knows for sure what causes autism. From what I’ve read, there are many possible causes-I highly doubt that they’ll ever find the “one thing” that triggers it. My concern is that Jenny McCarthy is out there spouting her opinions as though they are fact and that there are people who for whatever reason believe her (a former Playboy Bunny who as far as I know has no medical education) over physicians and researchers. That’s scary. I don’t doubt that she truly believes vaccines triggered her child’s autism (and I can’t say for sure that they didn’t-what do I know) but I think it’s scary that she presents herself as a medical expert.
Mimi, I sincerely hope that you’re lying and aren’t actually in a position of authority concerning children with autism. The sludge coming out of your mouth is only holding back credible autism research and wasting time.
Goodbye for now. Time to get some rest so one of us can actually help children with autism learn to communicate and carry out daily life skills and academic skills, using a therapy (ABA) that’s actually backed up by credible studies.
Geekchic: Your name dropping of all of your creditials is laughable. I’ve talked to many doctors and other erudites who don’t dole out their creditials and are humble people. What are you doing on this mindless website? Personally, I doubt if vaccines cause autism, however, I’m not a fan of pharmaceuticals. If that’s Jenny’s belief about vaccinations, I applaud her for speaking out and her conviction even though I probably do not agree with her.
Mimi, whooping cough can kill a baby. What mother would sit there just hoping it might recover?
And what Becky said. 🙂
“Original Kate, what false study are you referring to? Can you provide more info than a provocative statement?”
@ mimi: what’s the point? i obviously have no right to an opinion according to you -nor do any of us who don’t agree with you, including doctors. and any study i cite you will say it isn’t valid. go back to your bubble.
oh what the hell. here it is. so go on, mimi, tell us how the british medical community is wrong.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/01/06/132703314/study-linking-childhood-vaccine-and-autism-was-fraudulent
Autism is a form of insanity?! @Mimi, you need to shut the hell up! As the mother of a wonderful, accomplished young man who happens to have Autism, the only thing I am horrified to witness is jerks like you mouthing off and claiming to have all the answers. How dare you!
@ Original Kate it seemed to be me that there were soon Design Flaws, also, not properly vetted subjects. Another uncontrollable variable that the type of (IV ?) needs to have a similar time fran where either the participant is inlcuded or excluded. Thank all I got out of maybe it would help some people quickly
I have some questions for Mimi or anyone else who can answer them:
–I thought thimerosal got taken out of the vaccines recently?
–Is it possible to space out the vaccines over time so as not to overwhelm the kid’s body?
–And what about autistic children who have NOT had any vaccines?
–Hasn’t thimerosal been in vaccines since like the 70s or 80s? If so, how come there are so many more autistic children NOW?
I’m not being snarky; I genuinely want to know.
DethHammer,
The pharmas,docs decided to “phase out” the vaccinations with mercury. There would be no admission of guilt..However, who knows what / how many bottles with mercury were left on the shelves. And just because they say they took it out…??? Also, the number of vaccines that kids receive has tripled (approx.) since the 70’s. Also, they’re loading up one jab w/3 vaccines now. Way too much for some babies to handle. I don’t claim to have all the answers..just know that there is credible research tying vaccines and autism. Sorry about the insanity comment. I was referring to the most severe cases where the kids scream, bite themselves or attack their caretakers.
Well my God–that just described every spoiled two year old in America! It’s laughable that you think these are autism’s most severe symptoms and that you assume my child must be high functioning–of course you weren’t referring to my kid, just the insane ones who scream and stuff!. Your “insanity is screaming, biting, attacking” comment tells me how little real world experience you have with autistic and neuro-atypical people.
Ruddy,
You sound like one of those parents from hell that we all dread dealing with at school. Your anger even comes through in a gossip site. Therapy may help you deal.
Glad you caught that, Mimi. Ignorance and prejudice this close to home send me over the edge. And you’re right–a gossip site is a completely inappropriate place to attempt discussion of so serious a topic. Parent from hell? Not even close, because our teachers are professionals who are trained to interact with and educate kids with special needs without branding them “insane.” Makes for a great relationship. … And a dig about therapy, really? I guess that was supposed to sting, but you truly must not know anyone with special needs kids.