Times Square Gossip

Chavez Robinson AKA Chartistic Chavez Robinson AKA Chartistic On Friday auditioned for the hit television show "Americas Got Talent".  Chartistic has been performing all summer long for the residents of Hunters Point South at the LIC Restaurant COFFEED in Long Island City. Frank Raffaele the owner of this famed dining mecca on the water in Hunters Point South Park, has had Chartistic serenading park visitors who dine on great food with stunning views of Manhattan. Hey we know talent here!

**** WILL MACY'S FORTH OF JULY BE FAKE? Story By: James Edstrom **** Flo Rida Macy's Dress Rehearsal For Forth Of July Being at ground zero for the Macy's Forth Of July in Long Island City on the East River, tonight I watched Flo Rida bring filmed on the East River. Not only did it appear that Rida was lip Syncing, it also looked like Macy's and NBC were staging a pre taped show to air on the Forth Of July. Even the Empire State Building was in on it when they lit up the building in Forth Of July Colors, only to turn them off when the taping was done. I have been in this business for many years and was the photographer for many television shows, so I can spot when something is being faked. The crowds started forming in front of the set up stage and they were being handed lights with flags on them. Directors on stage would tell them to yell or scream and the cameras were rolling as they filmed the audience. They played Rida's song time a...

**** THE GLORIOUS CORNER Story By: G. H. Harding **** Meredith Viera SOCHI SOCIAL --- So, what’s been the #1 story of this year’s Winter Olympics? Bob Costas’ crippling pinkeye. As the 11 days of events begin to wind down, the biggest stories besides the anchor’s optical mishaps, were Matt Lauer and Meredith Viera’s double-duty; as both pinched in for the ailing sportscaster, and, alpine skier Bode Miller crying after being prodded about his dead brother by the network’s Christin Cooper. Also, NBC’s solid viewership has also shown signs of fatigue, lagging 13% behind the Vancouver games in 2010. An inside source at the network admitted, “It’s been very underwhelming.” The source continued, "The lack of really dramatic American performances is a big part of it." Two blows to NBC's coverage has been the scarcity of Winter Games stalwarts Lindsey Vonn and Shaun White. "Sometimes it's just the dynamic of the sport. Gabby Douglas broke o...

Welcome To The Family Chicago-born Puerto Rican actress Justina Machado, best known for playing Taye Diggs’ girlfriend ‘Stephanie Kemp’ on “Private Practice,” and Freddy Rodriguez’s wife ‘Vanessa Diaz’ on “Six Feet Under,” returns to primetime TV this fall on NBC’s new comedy WELCOME TO THE FAMILY (Thursdays, at 8:30PM) as ‘Lisette Hernandez,’ with Ricardo Chavira (“Desperate Housewives”), Mike O’Malley (“Glee”) and Mary McCormack (“In Plain Sight”). WELCOME TO THE FAMILY is a comedic look at the culture clash between an Anglo and Latino family brought together by a pregnancy. In addition to her work on-screen, Machado lends her voice as “Rosa Sachez” in the FOX midseason animated series MURDER POLICE from “Family Guy” producer David A. Goodman and starring Will Sasso, Chi McBride and Phil LaMarr. The show expands the boundaries of the cop show genre as only animation can, following a dedicated but inept detective and his colleagues- some perverted, some cor...

**** DAYTIME TALK **** The rumors are true! After months of speculation about former TODAY show co-anchor Meredith Vieira being considered for her own talk show, the veteran journalist has moved on to shooting the proposed series, sources confirm exclusively to Us Weekly . Insiders tell Us that Vieira, 59, is currently filming the pilot for her NBC show, which is in the vein of Katie Couric's ABC daytime talk show. The series has not yet been picked up, but if and when it is, it would air sometime in 2014. New York Times journalist Brian Stelter -- author of the controversial morning show tell-all Top of the Morning: Inside the Cutthroat World of Morning TV -- first reported in his Media Decoder blog in January that the Dateline NBC contributor was "in talks" with NBCUniversal for a syndicated talk show to premiere no sooner than September 2014. NBC declined to comment on the rumors at the time, but Vieira hinted earlier that month that...

**** NBC TELEVISION NEWS **** Bear Grylls NBC has given the green light to “Get Out Alive” (working title), a new, larger-than-life and extreme adventure reality-competition series headlined by world-renowned adventurer Bear Grylls, to be co-produced by Bear Grylls Ventures and Ben Silverman’s multimedia studio, Electus. The move to NBC for “Get Out Alive” marks the first time the international television star will debut on network television. The show will test teams of two beyond their most extreme imaginations in the wild. NBC has ordered eight episodes of the series, with additional creative details to be revealed at a later date. “Get Out Alive” is set to air in primetime in Summer 2013.  “To meet Bear is to meet a force of nature,” said Paul Telegdy, President, Alternative and Late Night Programming, NBC Entertainment. “He is a magnetic and charismatic talent, whose infectious enthusiasm for adventure inspires people to push themselves beyond...