Simpson Watch

After a month of near obscurity, Ashlee Simpson’s latest project, Melrose Place, has come out of the ashes and released a promotional video! And at YouTube nonetheless! Sorry for regressing, but I noticed that nowadays, if you want publicity and want it fast, you go to YouTube.

But anyway, one thing that I noticed in the promotional video is that the longest time that Ash was featured is the one that features her screaming towards the end. Oh, and the fact that she looks alarmingly thin.

Mrs. Ashlee Simpson-Wentz is hard at work at her new gig, which she’s been filming since April. The new CW Melrose Place new promos have no less than Britney Spears’s “Circus” as a soundtrack for the show. With the tagline, “No apartment building has ever been so complex,” the show will make audience see the acting prowess of our talented singer-actress.

Anyway, the show will premiere on the CW on September 8. And for all of you who have been living under a rock for the past decade, this Melrose Place is a remake of the way popular TV show in the 90s of the same name. Ash plays Violet Foster, who, according to People, is a “a small-town girl trying her luck in L.A., who has a “disarming naiveté [that] masks the calculating, shrewd sex kitten within.”

Wow, kinda hard to imagine Bronx-toting Mommy Ashlee being a shrewd sex kitten. But I have to admit that this will be quite interesting to see if she can pull it off. Oh, and by the way, while you’re looking at the promo video, watch out for the hot guys that Ash is lucky enough to co-star with.

After literally hawking her reality TV show, The Price of Beauty, singer/ actress Jessica Simpson can finally say that she has found a home.

VH1 will air the reality show/ documentary, which will follow Jessica around the world as she investigates how different countries, cultures, and people find beauty and why. Personally, I would like to see Jessica try out some of a country’s weird ways to achieve beauty. But that’s just me.

Anyways, when asked about her show, Jessica made a statement of Monday saying that she has always believed that beauty comes from within and that confidence is what makes a woman beautiful. “But I know how much pressure some women put on themselves to look perfect,” she said to Us Weekly.

“I am really looking forward to discovering how beauty is perceived in different cultures and participating in some of the crazy things people do to feel beautiful,” she continued.

The question remains: will Jessica indulge in the unusual beauty regimens that different cultures do to be found attractive?

Would she dare to get scars cut into her stomach, as women do to attract men in southern Ethiopia? Or get her lips or chin tattooed, a beauty ritual among women of Polynesian descent?

And she would have to put on a lot more weight than that to pass for a catch in Mauritania, where roundness is the height of desirability. She’ll have to put more than “mom” jeans to be attractive there, I think.

Filming on the new show is set to begin mid-July.

This fall, brace yourself in seeing Ashlee Simpson-Wentz in the newly revamped Melrose Place.

Ash will make a come-back on the small screen for a new full-time gig on the CW’s new “Melrose Place.” The newly revamped series, based on the hit original from the ’90s, promises to be just as scandalous as the original. The original show starred Heather Locklear, Marcia Cross and Kelly Rutherford of Gossip Girls.

“I play the girl that’s straight-off-the-bus. It’s fun,” the young wife to Pete Wentz and mommy to Bronx Mowgli told MTV News about her character, the enchantingly naive Violet Foster.

“It’s exciting because we don’t get to see the next episode. We don’t get to read the scripts until we’re actually about to shoot it, and everyone is dying to know what’s going to happen to their characters, so it’s fun. It’ll be exciting to play that arc. … It’s got good drama,” she says, which does follow the lines of the drama-filled plot of the original.

“For me, I started off doing ‘7th Heaven,’” she says, which is really a far cry from this new show because there have been glimpses of a dead body and police tape in the preview of the pilot episode.

“I went on to do my music career so now I’m really, really thrilled [to be back on TV]. This is what I wanted to do and this is such a great show. I’m so excited about the show,” she continues.

Acting-wise, Ash recently made a cameo on “CSI” alongside her hubby, Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz.

Looks like the weight issue that Jessica Simpson faced months ago has been a blessing in disguise after all.

After all the bullying and the crying that the country singer has to go through for a relative time due to her sudden weight gain, now may be the time to rise up and make some good out of the bad. Reports have it that Jess is currently visiting TV networks pitching for a reality series that would delve in the society’s fickleness when it comes to women’s bodies.

Entitled, The Price of Beauty, the series’ premise would feature Jessica “and a friend set off on a road trip around the world in search of what people find beautiful and why.” A source shared that Jess will sure be hands-on with the show even thinking to try some of the “shocking things that women do to make themselves beautiful. Picture Fear Factor.”

“Jessica is indeed working on a new show, but network details have not been finalized at this time,” a rep of the singer shared.

Now this is one show I sure would look forward watching. The premise itself promises a life changing experience for its televiewers who in one way or another have been influenced with media’s bias on beauty.

I truly admire Jessica for having been able to come up with this idea and being brave enough to face what we call as social reality. Unlike Paris Hilton’s pathetic reality show of her looking for a best friend, I think this one would be worth-watching.

CW held a pre-upfront party, which Ashlee Simpson-Wentz has attended. Teen network CW will be airing the re-booted ‘90’s series, Melrose Place this fall.

Ashlee went to the party in some trendy clothes. She wore a black and white outfit paired off with black heels with pink bows. Her white, sleeveless polo blouse with black line designs was matched with a plain black pencil-cut skirt that fell just below the knees. She accessorized with a layered necklace and a black wristwatch. What made the outfit standout (for lack of a better term) were her heels. The shoes were black open-toed pumps but designed with three bows that made them look like straps. Confused much? Just go and look at the picture and tell me whether you love the look of not.

Like the original, the new series will focus on a group of young, overly attractive members of the upper class living in a swanky apartment complex, which is Melrose’s Place.

Anyways, the Melrose Place pilot episode will kick start with a murder. Ashlee’s character, violet, is seen in on of CW’s released stills, staring in horror at a pool where a dead body is supposed to be floating. Intriguing, right?

While I don’t remember much about the original Melrose Place show, nor its cast, as I looked at the reviews, it seems to me like the show is rife with sex.

Anyhow, the show is set to be aired on Tuesday nights, following Beverly Hills 90210 (which is also a re-boot). Hmmm, seems to me that Hollywood’s current trend is re-booted programs, or maybe its just CW that’s following it. But whatever, I wish Ash luck in her TV shows endeavors. Best of luck Ash!

Oooohhh…it seems that pop stars Britney Spears and (former pop star in her case) Jessica Simpson may throw away all the rivalry that they had before and join together for a comedy sitcom.

The grapevine has been abuzz with news that the 28-year old Dukes of Hazzard star has approached the year old Circus singer to join her for a new sitcom.

Rumor has it that Jess is trying to convince Brit that the two blondes should team up for a buddy comedy series in the lines of the popular and well-loved series, Laverne and Shirley. Question, who will play Laverne and who will play Shirley?

Well anyway, what did the Pop Princess have to say to the proposal?

(more…)

Aawww…now I’ve come across something that made my heart quite warm.

Ashlee Simpson, new momma to 3-month-old son Bronx Mowgli, and wife to hubby, Pete Wentz, has said that her move to Melrose Place is so that she can be stable enough to be close to her little guy.

“She wanted something stable so she could be close to her baby,” a friend of the singer/actress reveals to People.com.

“She was specifically looking for something in television as her next step, that filmed in Los Angeles, so she wouldn’t have to be away from Bronx,” the source added.

And for those who don’t know yet, Ash, will be playing show’s newest resident, the “sex-kitten” Violet. According to Entertainment Weekly, Violet is a “bright-eyed but shrewd small-town girl and recent L.A. transplant who has come to town with a secret.” Another describes her character as a “small-town girl trying her luck in Los Angeles and will display a disarming naivety (that) masks the calculating, shrewd sex kitten within.”

Ash’s “pal” (Just wondering, why are there so many pals/ friends/ sources out there who are so keen to spill the beans about their so-called-friends?!) also adds that, “Music is still a passion but (Ashlee) felt this was the best thing for her and her family at this point in her life. She’s really excited about Melrose Place.”

Oh Ash! You’ve got your heart in the right place, but once filming starts, it’s quite doubtful that she would still have that much time for her baby. What with the sure-to-be hectic filming schedule and the following exhaustion, the new momma would barely have time-out for herself, much more for Bronx. But hey! It’s the thought that counts, right?

With April Fool’s Day just around the corner, beware of pranksters and practical jokers who would surely revel on that day!

But no fear, CBS is planning a good-natured April Fool’s Day celebration, with a good, old-fashioned celebrity prank show, called I Get That A Lot. Well, the premise sounds quite amusing, because for this show, celebs will attempt to confuse unsuspecting, everyday people, by transforming into everyday people themselves and denying their true identities, and then trying to convince said people that they just appear to be someone who look like a celebrity.

This is the brief description given by CBS on the show:

“I Get That A Lot features celebrities tricking everyday citizens in a case of supposed “mistaken identity.” Working ordinary jobs, these celebrities confuse customers who can’t decide if it’s the actual celebrity or an astonishing look-alike. As these celebrity jesters continue to deny their true identities, various reactions from their customers solicit exasperated and hilarious responses.”

So, can you imagine singer/actress Jessica Simpson as a computer-repair store worker? How about supermodel Heidi Klum taking orders at a pizza shop? Or Mario Lopez selling hotdogs at Central Park?

Not only them, but popular Survivor host Jeff Probst, is also in on the joke, playing a grocery-store cashier, rapper Ice-T will double in as a shoe salesman, and country singer, LeAnn Rimes will try to be a convincing waitress in a Nashville diner.

I Get That A Lot, the April Fool’ Day special, which was taped last summer, will be aired on April 1, 8:00 PM.

Ashlee Simpson will be back on the small screen, and she’s moving into Melrose Place, no less!

The 24-year old mommy to four-month old, Bronx Mowgli, has been tapped to play a lead role in CW’s Melrose Place redux. She will be returning to the television scene after a seven-year hiatus since her breakthrough role on WB’s 7th Heaven.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the cast of Melrose Place and I look forward to being a part of its new generation of residents,” she said in a statement to People magazine.

Wondering what her role in Melrose is? Well, it’s been circulating around that the singer/actress will play the show’s newest resident, the “sex-kitten” Violet. According to Michael Ausiello of Entertainment Weekly, Violet is a “bright-eyed but shrewd small-town girl and recent L.A. transplant who has come to town with a secret.” Apparently, Violet has a sex appeal, and she’s not afraid to use it. Oooohhhh…

Now, if Melrose fans would remember, her role will be quite like Amy Locane’s Sandy Harling, who was the original series’ budding Southern belle blonde. Well, I guess the question now will be what Ash’s hair color should be for this part? Would she bleach it blonde, yet again?

Ash will join Katie Cassidy, of Supernatural fame, Michael Rady of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. While it has been rumored that OCstar, Mischa Barton has been sniffing around Melrose Place, no official statement from the show’s people have been made on whether or not she would be starring in the show.

I guess with this new show, hubby Pete Wentz, might need to spend more daddy-son bonding moments with Bronx. Oh well, it will surely do him good anyway! Go, Pete!

Watch out people, Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz are out to conquer television!

The new parents are rumoured to appear in an episode of CSI: NY. Looks like the couple are leaving the dirty diapers to the nanny and bringing on the scripts. Curious about what kind of role they will be playing? A gangster-like couple, named Chester Byron and Lia Wickfield, who are more in the lines of “Bonnie and Clyde wannabe’s.”

Michael Ausiello, one of Entertainment Weekly’s reporters reveals that, “Sources confirm to me exclusively that ubiquitous real-life couple Ashlee Simpson-Wentz and Pete Wentz just closed a deal to guest star on CSI: NY.”

“A show spokesperson declined to comment, but I’m told the Wentz’ will not be playing themselves in the episode, which is slated to air on March 18,” the excited insider added.

Ausiello closes the article in Entertainment Weekly with, “Question time: Is this cheeky, attention-getting piece of casting a shrewd business decision on the part of CSI: NY producers, or yet another sign of the impending apocalypse?”

People magazine, which gave us their characters’ names, has also reported that Ashlee is set to start shooting this Friday, while Pete hits the sets next week.

So…is anyone other than me, excited to watch the show? I wonder if Pete makes a good actor? I mean, his other half, Ashlee has had her share of TV time, while she played Cecilia Smith in 37 episodes of 7th Heaven. Pete on the other hand, has only show his acting skills in Fall Out Boy’s music videos, and acting as himself in a few shows.