When I randomly ran into recent Super Bowl champion Michael Strahan last Monday, I wish I had known he had recently filmed a cameo on one of my favorite TV shows, "Chuck."

I might have been able to get a scoop about acting from the Giants' recently retired defensive end, whom I spotted wrapping up a [...]

I'll admit it. I've never seen an episode of "Lost."

I know, people tell me it's amazing. I'm also fiercely intimidated by joining a complicated show so late in its run, which is why it took me so long to give "Deadwood" a try—and wow, I'm glad I did. But I'm also unmotivated to catch up [...]

I interviewed Taylor Hicks on Monday, when the "American Idol" Season 5 champ was at Mamaroneck's Winged Foot Golf Club to lend his celebrity to Autism Speaks.

We discussed a variety of topics, whose clips will appear on this site over the next couple of weeks (I'm off for the next few days).

Here, Hicks discusses his [...]

Hopefully "Top Chef" viewers this season had enough foresight (and/or spoilers) to know Stephanie Izard would take home the title, thus freeing themselves to bestow the $10,000 fan favorite award on the infinitely quotable Andrew D'Ambrosi. He was definitely my favorite of the 16, although Stephanie, Richard Blais and Erik Hopfinger were right up there, [...]

With title screens and everything!

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Hicks is a great sport, but the message the singer really wanted to spread at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck yesterday was support for Autism Speaks, which held its 10th annual New York Celebrity Golf Challenge and raised $1 million for the cause. He was a very kind [...]

When I heard last week that "American Idol" champ David Cook sang Foo Fighters' "My Hero" on "The Tonight Show," although Cook said it was a tribute to the Foo Fighters and the group's lead singer, Dave Grohl, three thoughts immediately crossed my mind:

1. No one can outdo Grohl. (I was right.)
2. I bet Cook [...]

In an era in which iconic TV news anchors are becoming less and less common, forgive me if I remain shocked and saddened by the death of Tim Russert. A Sunday-morning staple, "Meet the Press" had become an institution to which he brought his own brand of stability, intelligence and wit.

In the hours after his [...]

For what the "Top Chef" finale lacked in surprise, it made up for with legitimacy.

There was virtually no shock about how the Season 4 wrapped up, unless you count Richard Blais' self-described "choke" that felt eerily similar to that of Casey Thompson last season. Back in Season 3, Casey may have been on track to [...]

Stephanie Izard! Yay!

Considering the girl-power feel of Season 4, and Izard's overall performance, this wasn't exactly a surprise, but I do feel bad for Richard Blais, who was gracious immediately after the announcement but teary-eyed when reacting to the defeat in his testimonial. But he should take solace not only in his brand-new car but [...]

Who's it gonna be? Let's review the pros and cons of finalists Stephanie Izard, Richard Blais and Lisa Fernandes just hours before the season finale.

STEPHANIE IZARD
Pros: Probably as good or better than arguably the previous best female "Top Chef" contestant, Season 1's formidable runner-up Tiffani Faison. Far much more likable than Tiffani. Winner of [...]

It's taken me this long to write about the fact that Lisa Fernandes escaped an Elimination Challenge boot for the SIXTH TIME to make it to the final challenge of the "Top Chef" finale in Puerto Rico.

I'd like to think the delay's entirely due to the shock that the contestant she beat out, Antonia Lofaso, [...]

What do Michael Clarke Duncan (left) and John Larroquette (right) have in common besides random cameos in movies fronted by stars of "Saturday Night Live"?

Well, as you probably already know by now from reading the title of this post, the two will be making appearances on "Chuck" this fall.

As a fan of "30 Rock," I'll [...]

As a worshipper of quality comedies like "30 Rock" and "The Office," I am blasphemous for never having seen a full episode of "Arrested Development." So although it's high on my NetFlix queue and could be viewed even sooner via Hulu, feel free to blame me for its premature demise after you're done critiquing Fox [...]

Who needs Adam Sandler as a street-fighting screen star? (I mean, really!)

Especially when "American Idol" star Clay Aiken isn't messing around with a TMZ reporter, who apparently was too inquisitive for the singer's liking Sunday and was on the receiving end of the singer's shove.

Before you completely slam the paparazzo—well, more than Aiken already did—admit [...]

In the spirit of the opening weekend of the "Sex and the City" movie, Remote Access asked readers which HBO series most deserves the next feature-film treatment.

So much for the Remote Access poll being a race between "Deadwood" and "The Sopranos."

I suspect linkage and some campaigning were responsible for the sudden surge among devout "John [...]

It's the "Top Chef" version of the chicken-and-the-egg, except it involves the scallop-and-the-wherever-scallops-come-from.

Does the blame fall on Evangelos "Spike" Mendelsohn for using unsavory frozen scallops at a critically acclaimed chef's restaurant? Or should guest judge Rick Tramonto have given Spike a break for providing him with an unappealing product?

So moments after I told my TV [...]

Shortly after the end of the opening weekend for the "Sex and the City" movie, Remote Access will close its latest poll, seeking reader input on the HBO series that most deserves the next feature-film treatment.

With "SatC" scoring mixed to tepid reviews, only two of the 65 votes tallied sought a sequel. At this point, [...]

Dubbed "The Dragon" by fellow "Top Chef" contestant Richard Blais, Dale Talde was slayed by the judges for being the executive chef of the losing team in the Restaurant Wars Elimination Challange.

And while he had his share of expletive-laden battles with Lisa Fernandes, Evangelos "Spike" Mendelsohn and Nikki Cascone, he also seemed to bond with [...]

Did David Cook really win "American Idol"? After the judges' over-the-top love-fest for David Archuleta on Tuesday, I can't help but be surprised.

Or can I?

As I wrote Tuesday, I didn't think Archie's performances were superior as the judges would have had you believe. Randy Jackson reacted to every Archuleta song like the Beatles just took [...]

David. Cook. Wins. Holy cow!

NOTE: If you missed any or all of tonight's finale, start from the bottom of this recap and work your way up. Trust me, it will make more sense that way.

10:10 p.m.—Wow, it's going to take a little time to process this all. Final thoughts will be posted tomorrow. Thanks to [...]