A NEW TRIP FOR TRAVEL
Too busy to breakaway this summer? You can still vacation vicariously courtesy of the new Travel Channel. The network has ditched some of its older fare in favor of celebrity-heavy adventures featuring a few of our famous local folk. Jeremy Piven picked up a different kind of entourage in recent days as he made his way across India in JP’s “Journey of a Lifetime.” While Jeremy was off enjoying a close encounter of the elephant kind, Drew Carey was getting a kick out of the World Cup.
Travel Channel Vice President and General Manager Patrick Younge says this all-star trek is just getting started. Instead of celebrities merely hosting shows, they’ll follow their hearts. “Drew Carey is nuts about soccer,” Younge explains. “Marisa Tomei is nuts about flea market shopping. Joan Cusack is passionate about travel. It’s wish fulfillment. We look for things that appeal to them.”
In addition to Jeremy’s jaunts and Drew on the soccer scene, TC will boost its celebrity roster with Marisa Tomei’s “Hidden Markets” and Joan Cusack’s “Local Flavor.”
In recent years, the network strayed from its roots, following twisted circus sideshows, covering baby contests and dabbling in dating games. As a result, it began to lose some of its core viewers-travelers.
“Some people had given up on us,” Younge says. “We want to bring them back to the network with people they know.”
In addition to the exploits of A-listers like Piven, Carey, Cusack and Tomei, TC is rolling out new shows featuring its own pack of happy wanderers, including edgy Anthony Bourdain, ever-perky Samantha Brown and funny food guy Marc DeCarlo. So if you’re looking for a little diversion as the dog days grow near, tune into travel, it’s a great escape!
ECO SHOW
Local architecture buff, A-list actor and new dad Brad Pitt is getting on the green machine. BP narrates the new PBS series on environmentally friendly home designs. “Design: e2 The Economics of Being Environmentally Conscious” will focus on sustainable structures in areas throughout the world, including New York, Chicago and China.
Executive producer Karena Albers says the Pitt factor is a big plus. “It allows us to educate more viewers than we ever hoped for about the importance of green building.”
The series looks at innovative and ambitious plans to preserve the planet in a way that is both eye-opening and inspiring. Why should buildings go green? As Pitt points out, “They use 40 percent of the world’s energy and emit 50 percent of its green house gases.”
Put that together with cars, commerce and rapidly developing countries and… well, you get the picture.
So tune in, you’ll discover why being green is not only possible, it’s imperative. Prius anyone?