Armchair Commentary

"Mr. CSI" Shares Some Inside Stories ... and His True Feelings About Caruso's Shades

If he had it to do over again, would the creator of CSI: Miami let David Caruso wear the sunglasses that have become such a defining element of the show? Anthony Zuiker, aka “Mr. CSI,” shares some behind-the-scenes stories about the immensely popular TV franchise he created in our exclusive interview.

Hear more of our interview with Zuiker on the Amazon Studios blog, where he talks about the Vegas influence, how CSI has grown and changed, and making it in Hollywood. And on the Amazon books blog, Omnivoracious: Zuiker talks about his two new books: a memoir called Mr. CSI: How a Vegas Dreamer Made a Killing in Hollywood, One Body at a Time and the crime novel Dark Revelations.

Humorist Andy Borowitz on Hollywood, Happiness and John Hughes

Twitter star and bestselling author Andy Borowitz had what some would consider a charmed run in Hollywood: He started out working with TV legend Norman Lear, created Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (the sitcom that made Will Smith a megastar), and produced the movie Pleasantville, starring Reese Witherspoon and Tobey Maguire. And then he walked away — not unlike late director John Hughes, whom Borowitz admires greatly, and included in his new bestselling book, The 50 Funniest American Writers: An Anthology of Humor from Mark Twain to The Onion. Hughes is best known for movies like The Breakfast Club, but he also wrote short stories, including "Vacation ’57," which as you may have guessed, served as the basis for the 1983 movie starring Chevy Chase.

I talked with Borowitz, and asked him about Hollywood, happiness and his advice for people who want a career in showbiz:

For Borowitz's thoughts on who didn’t make the 50 Funniest cut and what Mark Twain would have thought of Twitter, check out the rest of my interview on the Amazon.com books blog, Omnivoracious.

"Cold Souls": Paul Giamatti on Being Stalked, Playing "Himself," and His Essential Movie

Paul Giamatti in person is about what you expect him to be: extremely humble, eloquent, uncomfortable with fame (prior to our interview he had to stand for a photo shoot, and looked about as at-ease as a kid in the dentist chair). And now the guy who memorably threw a hissy fit over drinking merlot in Sideways and pretty much steals every film he's in (heck, I still remember him as Bellhop Who Shares a Smoke With Julia Roberts in My Best Friend's Wedding) and still doesn't have an Oscar (though he now has an Emmy and a Golden Globe thanks to his starring role in HBO's John Adams), is famous to the point of playing himself in a movie.

Though not exactly: In his newest film, Cold Souls (which played at Sundance before opening in limited release last year) Giamatti plays an actor named "Paul Giamatti," who is so stressed over his preparation for "Uncle Vanya" on Broadway that he literally sells his soul; he takes his agent's suggestion and visits a lab in which he can put his soul in storage, renting another's soul in its place. If that's not strange enough, it turns out his soul is the size and shape of a... chickpea.

Giamatti and director Sophie Barthes, directing her first feature film, discussed with Amazon how she stalked him at a film festival to pitch him her script (how many drinks she'd had beforehand is debatable, they say); the challenges of playing your own, soulless self; and finally, Giamatti's pick for a Paul Giamatti Essential DVD. Listen to the interview below.--Ellen

George Feltenstein Blu-ray interview: "The Wizard of Oz," "Gone with the Wind"

We recently had the pleasure of speaking with George Feltenstein, Senior Vice President of Theatrical Catalog Marketing for Warner Home Video. He's well-known on sites like highdefdigest.com for being the guy in charge of what films from the huge Warner catalog get released on DVD and Blu-ray, and the guy who knows what's coming up. He talked to us about the Ultimate Collector's Editions of The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind, including how they were restored for Blu-ray and the various bonus materials in each set. He also gives us some tips on what to expect in 2010.  --David

Our Interview with the Man in the Yellow Hat

It’s not even Halloween yet, but it’s already shaping up to be a curious holiday season. Curious George is back with a new DVD, Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas, and we caught up with George’s friend and roommate, the Man in the Yellow Hat, to find out all about the new movie, what it’s like living with a primate, and perhaps most importantly: Why yellow? Listen below, or in our Curious George Store.

Our New Interview with Barbie

Barbie is back with a new movie, Barbie and the Three Musketeers, and we caught up with the busy Malibu babe to talk about her BFFs, her fashion icon status, and more. Listen below, or on Amazon.com. --Leah

Interview: Tina Fey and Jack McBrayer

I'm very fond of saying "This is the best show on TV".  In fact, I'm very fond of decisive, poorly thought out but emotionally true statements in general - for example, "The Fray is the worst band of this decade" or "Jon Hamm is the most attractive man on the planet" or "Dead Alive is the best movie ever".  It's a pretty annoying habit actually, but in the moment that I'm watching/listening/reading/describing or simply thinking about said television show/movie/book/band/album/etc, I actually believe this statement wholeheartedly. The point here is that I'm prone to hyperbole; it is both my curse and gift.  Having provided this preface, I now must formally declare, hyperbole be damned: 30 Rock is the funniest show on television. 

I repeat: 30 Rock is the funniest show on television. Hands down, always (and this from someone who loves The Office like I love my own mother).  I recently had the opportunity to host a casual conversation between Tina Fey (creator, writer, producer, star "Liz Leeeeeemmmmmmmmmon") and Jack McBrayer (hillbilly genius Kenneth the Page)*.  They dish on all the fancy guest stars in Season 3, hip summer attire and what to look forward to from Season 4 (Kenneth joins the cast of TGS?!?). ---Kira

Pre-order Season 3, check out our Amazon Exclusive Seasons 1-3 bundle, or watch your favorite Season 3 episodes now on demand.

Shop more TV Shows here

*Apology in advance: I am the biggest nerdy fan-girl when it comes to this show, and try as I might to maintain my normally super-cool composure (ha!), nerves and awe got the best of me here. Try not to judge too harshly... 

Our Interview with Oscar from "The Office"

What's Dunder Mifflin’s greatest asset? Customers? No, we say! It’s their crack team of Scranton-based accountants, including Oscar Martinez--a character some might describe as one of the saner inmates at the asylum. Oscar Nuñez, who portrays and helped create the character, recently talked with us about being cast on the show, behind-the-scenes hijinks, and the future of the inmates… er… employees at Dunder Miff.  Listen below, or in our Office Store. –Leah

The Office: Season 5 hits DVD and Blu-ray on September 8. Find more TV series coming to DVD and Blu-ray in our TV Shows Store.

Our Interview with Edward James Olmos

Sci-fi fans know him as Bill Adama, the Old Man, or simply Gaff. We recently got the opportunity to chat with EJO regarding the end of Battlestar Galactica and BSG: The Plan (which is now, coincidentally, available for pre-order on Amazon.com, and which we are sure will be totally awesome--so say we all!!). Listen below, or in our Battlestar Galactica Store.  --Leah

Our interview with Jon Voight for "Lookin' to Get Out"

Jon Voight gave us a call the other day to talk about a comedy he made in 1982 called Lookin' to Get Out, directed by Hal Ashby (Voight's collaborator on Coming Home) and making its DVD debut on June 30. He talks about how the new cut of the film was discovered, his experiences working with Ashby,  Angelina Jolie's acting debut, and an essential film from his career. Listen below or here. --David