Sherri Shepherd on The Huffington Post

Oprah's Replacement: Who Should Be The Next King/Queen Of Daytime TV? (POLL)

2009-11-20T15:15:44Z

Oprah's announcement that she will give up her syndicated talk show in 2011 after 25 years on the air leaves an enormous hole: who will be the next king or queen of daytime TV?

Below are some of the names that immediately come to mind as potential heirs to Oprah's throne:

Tom Gipson Is The View 's Ultimate Volunteer

2009-10-19T13:43:01Z

Over the last few months, The View asked its viewers to nominate Americans for their Ultimate Volunteer award. The winner, named last week, is Tom Gipson, noted for his selfless efforts building over 1,000 homes nationwide for the homeless.

Gipson appeared on The View today as part of iParticipate's week of volunteerism. He appeared with Michael Troy, director of marketing for Starwoods Hotels and Resorts, who awarded him with one million "Starpoints," which he can use toward any number of fancy Hawaiian vacations. That would explain why they're wearing those leis.

WATCH:

Tom Gipson Is The View 's Ultimate Volunteer

2009-10-19T13:43:01Z

Beverly Wettenstein: No Women Featured in NY Comedy Festival! No Joke!

2009-10-11T13:38:57Z

We're With The Banned: Cracking The Crass Ceiling

The New York Comedy Festival ad features ten men and no women.

Broadly speaking, comedy is, obviously, still a male-dominated bastion within the entertainment business. The Primetime Emmy Awards showed that women writers on a comedy or variety series are a rare and endangered species. Only seven of the 81 writers were women. There are no women writers on Leno (of 19), Letterman (of 14), and O'Brien (of 16). Colbert has two women of 14 writers. The Daily Show has one of 16. Samantha Bee is a busy worker bee and a "correspondent." "Saturday Night Live" has five women of 22 writers.

LOL: Larry Summers School for the Advancement of Women

Historically, some men have difficulty accepting women comedians. The Larry Summers School for the Advancement of Women should hire Tom Shales, Christopher Hitchens and Jerry Lewis, to teach "Why Women Aren't Funny." The three wise men opined as much in the Washington Post, Vanity Fair and at the Aspen Comedy Festival, respectively.

Shales, Washington Post TV critic, wrote that ex-SNL "Michaela Watkins may have been just too classically pretty to be hilarious." Lewis told the Aspen audience in 2000, "I don't like any female comedians" and couldn't think of one who was good. He only viewed women as baby-making machines.

SNL announced two new women for the 35th season to much press attention: Jenny Slate and Nasim Pedrad. Just hours later it was reported that Casey Wilson and Michaela Watkins were gone. Does SNL have a female quota? Is their comedy calculus: addition = attrition? The two new women are "featured performers," rather than full repertory players.

Kristin Wiig was SNL's MVP Iron Man last season, earning the most screen time of any cast member, with 124 sketch appearances. She is currently the only official woman cast member.
Plus, she has seven feature films in development. And she is beautiful. Please explain, Mr. Shales.

Having joined as a staff writer in 1997, Tina Fey's term as SNL's first woman head writer (1999-2006), coincided with the most women cast members in regular performing roles in its history: Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph and Rachel Dratch. Much to her credit, Fey teamed with Poehler, to create the groundbreaking "Weekend Update" all-women anchor team in 2004. The dynamic duo proved they were not "Mean Girls" and sparked no cat-fight messages in the media. When Fey started on "Update," there hadn't been a woman anchor since Jane Curtin in the late 1970s and she was not afraid to promote her BFF Poehler. In fact, the two newest women are troupers from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, co-founded by Poehler.

Kudos to Fey and Poehler for empowering women, following decades of male-dominated sketch comedy. Fey and Poehler know that women succeed when they are responsible for their own material. They play comedic roles, perform standup and write and direct films and TV shows. Fey's "30 Rock" was nominated for a record 22 Emmy awards. She was named the AP Entertainer of the Year in 2008 for the greatest impact on culture and entertainment. Poehler is the lead star on "Parks & Recreation."

Timing is everything in comedy and in life. SNL mirrors the advances of women in society. In 2002 Ana Gasteyer was their first on-air pregnancy. The TV management "suits" have matured since the 1950's when the word "pregnant" was forbidden and Lucille Ball was asked to hide behind furniture, which she refused to do. The fact that nine-months pregnant Poehler posed as Hillary Clinton was a non-issue. Her absence and baby's birth were announced on "Update."

Now that SNL has accepted the pregnant pause, perhaps they may consider hiring a Black woman to play Michelle Obama and other women newsmakers and celebrities? Do they think it adds to the levity to dress men in drag or is there a women shortage? I don't communicate with Eleanor Roosevelt very often. But I do think of her and her personal equal opportunity employment act when I see a man playing a woman on SNL. Upon learning that women reporters were not admitted to the National Press Club where newsmakers spoke, Roosevelt held regular news conferences exclusively for women reporters and photographers, thus creating jobs for women. You go, girl!

Actually, in the first season in 1975, the original SNL cast was equal with three women (Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman and Gilda Radner) and three men (John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd and Garrett Morris) and Chevy Chase was promoted to "Update" anchor from writer. By 1993, the ratio was three women to eight men. Janeane Garafalo quit halfway through the '94-'95 season because of the male writers who "didn't write for women."

Chicago's Second City improv-sketch troupe, an SNL talent feeder incubator, only allowed two women on a six-person improv team into the '90s. Fey and Poehler are alumnae.

This is Wanda Sykes' banner year. Her HBO special just aired and "The Wanda Sykes Show" will debut in November, at 11 PM, against SNL. Sykes was the featured entertainer this year at the White House Correspondents Association dinner. This annual event honoring the president is a prestigious gig with the nation's dignitaries.

Traditionally, even though women were fully-accredited White House reporters and members of the association, they were barred from attending the dinner. Prompted by Helen Thomas, for the first time in 50 years, women were finally admitted in 1962 when President John F. Kennedy agreed not to attend unless the women did. Thomas was inducted as the first woman WHCA president in 1975.

The old boys club network is alive and, well, begrudgingly coming into the 21st century at The Friars, the premiere club for professional comedians and entertainers. Founded in 1904, Liza Minnelli was admitted as the first official woman member in 1988. This followed the Supreme Court upholding a New York City statute that barred discrimination at large private clubs. Previously, women couldn't join or enter the Townhouse before 4 PM to attend the notorious stag roasts.

Sally Jessy Raphael was the first officer (Prior) in 1999. Previously, women were honored but could not join. Sophie Tucker was the first woman roasted, in 1953; followed by Martha Raye, 1954 and Lucille Ball, 1961.

Joy Behar was the first woman Roastmaster, at a tribute for Danny Aiello in 1997. Rita Rudner was the first woman performer at a Roast for Chevy Chase in 1980. Phyllis Diller, dressed as a man in a suit, wig and mustache, attended the 1983 Sid Caesar Roast, because women were not allowed. She was outed at the end of the event and honored at her own roast in 1985. Diller was the first woman inducted into the California Friars Wall of Fame in 2001. Last year, at the behest of Behar, the Friars named one of its chambers for a woman, Lucille Ball. Currently, women comprise 20 percent of the Friars membership.

Women need to showcase their talent to survive and succeed in the comedy business. Barbara Walters first saw Joy Behar at a benefit for Milton Berle's 89th birthday at the Waldorf Astoria. Walters then invited her to audition for The View. Behar just debuted her nightly talk show on HLN. Her co-hosts on The View include comediennes Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd, who stars in her own show on Lifetime. Goldberg was the first woman and fourth honoree to win the Kennedy Center's Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2001; Lily Tomlin won in 2003.

More Than Chick Shtick: "Seinfeld" Without Elaine? Get Out!

Imagine Seinfeld without Elaine. Get out! Actually, Elaine was not in the first show but executives insisted they add a woman to the cast by the second episode. Would an all-male cast have become the same audience success story without her? Not!

Liz Lemon told Oprah on 30 Rock that she hates her feet. Nora Ephron told the world that she hates her neck. It took Elle Woods' life experience in Legally Blonde to solve the murder case. Her Harvard Law colleagues didn't have a clue about women's hair treatments. Chris Rock parlayed that message into a feature film. Maybe the sexes can learn to live together and better understand each other through humor and women comedians?

One of the challenges for women comics is that society expects good girls to be well-behaved and to act lady-like. Comedians have to be aggressive and take control of the audience. The boys who were the class clowns and spent more time in the principal's office than the library are now making big bucks for their antics. Not to pooh pooh Winnie-the-Pooh, but the first new authorized female character believes that everyone should follow the correct etiquette. Lottie the Otter will be more like Martha Stewart than Martha Raye.

It's easier for women to get to the moon than to get a network late-night talk show. Conan O'Brien and Craig Ferguson had no experience as late-night talk show hosts when they were given their shows. Ferguson had not performed stand-up for ten years and had a strong Scottish brogue. O'Brien was an unknown SNL comedy writer with little performing experience. Joan Rivers was the first and only permanent host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. When Rivers learned that she wasn't on the list to replace Carson, she accepted the offer to host her own late night talk show to launch the Fox Network in 1986. She was fired six months later.

The talk show format is a cheap alternative to scripted TV and yields self-contained YouTube-friendly takeout promos. As viewers migrate away from appointment network TV, cable should create new opportunities for women. But the old boy network ways persist. The Daily Show was co-created by Lizz Winstead and Madeline Smithberg in 1995. Winstead was also the head writer. Then host Craig Kilborn made an offensive remark about her in Esquire in 1998. He was suspended for a week. She left the show soon after. Chelsea Handler has her own late night talk show on E!

Only two women comedians were listed on the Forbes "100 Celebrity" list: Ellen DeGeneres, Power Rank #40, $35 Million Pay and Tina Fey, #86, $7 Million Pay.

She Who Laughs, Lasts: "50/50 in 2020"

Last month more than 200 women met to hear a panel address and outline a "50/50 in 2020" initiative to advance women in the theater business. Three sponsors are taking the lead: the League of Professional Theatre Women, the New Perspectives Theatre Company and the Women's Project.

In 2007 Oxygen presented the "50 Funniest Women Alive." There are women who are ready, willing and able to perform at comedy festivals. They can turn the world on with their smile... and spunk.

Stand Up For Women In Comedy! Parody and Parity Proposals

1. Action! Organize a meeting during the New York Comedy Festival, November 4-8, to focus on "The State of Women in Comedy Today," to become part of the media coverage and raise public support. Since there is no professional organization for women comedians, create one or develop a Comedy subcommittee of the "50/50 by 2020" project or another industry-related association.

2. Produce a counter "Funny Femme Festival" during the New York Comedy Festival to showcase talented women comedians, become part of the media coverage and raise public support.

3. Distribute this treatise and contact the New York Comedy Festival.

4. Submit your comments and suggestions here.

5. Stay tuned. Watch this space for announcements and progress reports. Thank you.

See Beverly Wettenstein's PBS interview on youtube.com.

See Beverly Wettenstein's Letter in the NY Daily News, Sept. 4, 09
nydailynews.com/opinions/

See Beverly Wettenstein's Letter in the NY Times Science Times, July 21, 09

_________________________________________________________________________

"Celebrate Women Every Day!"

October 13

B. 1901 Edith S. Sampson First Black woman elected judge, in Illinois, 1962.
First Black woman named UN delegate.

1905 English suffragists Christabel Pankhurst and Annie Kenney arrested.
Women over 30 got the vote 12 years later; all women in 1928.

B. 1925 Margaret Thatcher First woman Prime Minister in England and Europe, 1979-1991.

B. 1969 Nancy Kerrigan Olympic silver medalist, 1964; Oksana Baiul, 16, won gold medal.

1986 Rita Levi-Montalcini earned Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Source: Beverly Wettenstein's "Women in History and Making History Today
- 365-Days-A-Year Database"

Sherri Shepherd: Evolution Is Not An Absolute (VIDEO)

2009-10-01T11:56:27Z

Kirk Cameron's plan to widely distribute an edited version of Darwin's 'Origin of Species'--with an introduction outlining the Hitlerian nature evolutionary theory--prompted a lively conversation on The View Thursday morning. There were some differences of opinion!

Joy Behar pointed out that Cameron wouldn't like it very much if Christopher Hitchens wrote an intro to the Bible. Guest host Heidi Pratt predictably defended the teaching of creationism and Whoopi Goldberg explained to her that when you go to college, no one forces you to take any classes you don't want to take. Sherri Shepherd tried and failed to appear diplomatic.

"Evolution is not an absolute," she said.

WATCH:

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Mark Pasetsky: Sherri Shepherd Lost 41LBS, Alyssa Milano Wedding, TomKat Fight: The New Celeb Weeklies!

2009-08-19T08:42:07Z

Diets, weddings and big fights!

The all new celebrity weeklies hit newsstands today -- and there is something for everybody.

Which is your favorite cover of the week? The worst?

Sound off below in the comments section!

We kick it off with OK! Magazine* - which features Sherri Shepherd's dramatic weight loss. The View star shows off her new bathing suit body. She lost 41lbs and went from a size 16 to a 6. Plus, she did it without surgery!

In other news, Jon Gosselin's ex is calling him a dirtbag, according to Life & Style**. Apparently, Jon took this mystery ex out on cheap dates to fast-food restaurants and used her for sex. Making matters worse? He dumped her by text - which is so 2009.

In happier couple news, Alyssa Milano tied the knot this weekend -- and her striking wedding photo is the cover of People Magazine.

Visit CoverAwards HERE for this week's UK and Australia tabloids.

Making a return to the celebrity weekly cover spotlight? It's Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes on InTouch Weekly, which is reporting the once happy couple is happy no more. They're even fighting in public.

Meanwhile, the latest Us Weekly cover is good news and bad news for Jennifer Aniston. The good news? Angelina Jolie is not on this cover. The bad news? Renee Zellweger is -- and even she is now capable of stealing Jen's boyfriends. Poor Jen. She can't catch a break.

Star Magazine's latest effort features Jennifer Love Hewitt and other stars who beat cellulite. The tab is serving up 5 fixes and says you don't have to diet or go through lipo. (I still don't get why anybody would play tennis in a bikini.)

Visit CoverAwards HERE for this week's UK and Australia tabloids.

Mark Pasetsky is the editorial director of CoverAwards, which is best known for featuring the latest magazine covers from the U.S. and around the world.

*Mark Pasetsky is an editorial consultant for OK! Magazine and **the former Editor in Chief of Life & Style Weekly.

Visit CoverAwards HERE for this week's UK and Australia tabloids.

Janice Taylor: How Much Does Whoopi Goldberg Weigh?

2009-08-15T07:40:24Z

Taking a break from my grueling home-work schedule, I plopped on my bed, remote in hand, and hit the "on" button. Serendipitously, The View popped up on the screen at a most delicious moment. As "fat" is my issue, my subject, my expertise, I was mesmerized by the topic. The "girls" were talking about an obese couple that wanted to adopt but were turned down by the adoption agency because they were too fat! The man, as I remember, had a BMI of 42, and 40 was the adoption agency's limit.

A heated conversation ensued about weight and Whoopi, bless her heart, trying to shed light on the emotions attached to the numbers on the Scales of Injustice, said that it's just a number and that she doesn't have a problem saying what her number is... and so she offered it to the audience: "174 pounds!" Cheers, claps, hooray Whoopi.

She then turned to Joy Behar and invited her to toss her number out there. But Joy and the rest, including their big-boy producer, sadly blew Whoopi's succulent invitation off. They moved on...but I didn't.

Here follows some vital information that can finally give you a new perspective on the Scales of Injustice and your number!

What does the scale really measure?

Do you know what the scale measures? Scientifically, that is?

Every object in the universe with mass attracts every other object with mass. (Some more massive than others!) Therefore, there is a pull, a force -- an attraction (even better) -- between you and the earth.

Your bathroom scale measures that force of attraction, and that force is called your weight. If you look at it in those terms, it takes the emphasis off fat and puts it on gravitational pull.
Nowhere in scientific data -- that I could find -- does it state that the scale measures hideous fat. It is only a number. There's no reason that we have to be in a twist over the attraction between the earth and us.

How attracted is the earth to you?

To Whoopi, I'd like to say, thank you for courageously tossing your number out there. Feel free to pass this happy spin on the scales of injustice to your friends at The View, Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Sherri Shepherd, Barbara Walters and Susan Solomon.

Read more from Janice on her Beliefnet.com weight loss blog
or visit her Our Lady of Weight Loss website.

Write Janice for a complementary Weight Loss Coaching consult.

Sherri Shepherd Opens Up On New Lifetime Sitcom

2009-08-12T11:14:16Z

"It's what Lifetime is all about -- friendships between women and how you overcome problems," Shepherd told The Post yesterday.

"It's based on my standup act . . . and I like that they're not trying to change my age and make me 22.

Sherri Shepherd's Bathing Suit Reveal! (VIDEO)

2009-08-06T16:26:19Z

Thursday was a big day for Sherri Shepherd of "The View": the culmination of her months-long quest to get into shape for the summer and show off her bathing suit body on TV.

Sherri's come a long way from when she first vowed that "by the end of this season [she would] get into a bathing suit live on 'The View,'" undergoing a program that included dieting, exercise and, last week, an on-air bikini wax.

However, today's reveal did not disappoint. With her co-hosts, nutritionist, trainer, endocrinologist and stylist on hand, she emerged from backstage wearing a black-and-pink one-piece.

As a reward for her success, her co-hosts presented her with a tray full of ribs and other treats she was forbidden to eat as part of her effort to slim down.

Watch the video:

Sherri Shepherd Gets Bikini Wax On "The View" (VIDEO)

2009-07-30T17:19:11Z

Sherri Shepherd is gearing up to show off her bikini body on "The View" next week, and in anticipation of the unveiling she went for her first bikini wax.

In a "View Video Album" segment, Sherri took the audience through the experience with her as she went to New York's Paul Labrecque salon for the Brazilian wax.

She was shocked to know there was no pain medication available for the wax, and she squirmed and screamed throughout the video as wax therapist Mina went to work.

"This is worse than having a baby!" she said. "Oh, God! Please, Lord!"

Watch:

THE 12 SEXIEST COMICS IN AMERICA (SLIDESHOW)

2009-05-28T16:22:15Z

This week we asked you who the sexiest comics were on the scene, mostly because we have a thing for funny people. We chose 15 men and 15 women and after days of voting we found that our readers love the women of "SNL" and the men of the "Daily Show." Who knew? Of the top six women, four were cast members of "Saturday Night Live" at some point. Of the top six men, four are currently on the "Daily Show" and another (Colbert) started out there.

In all fairness, there are some people that should've been on these lists in the first place but we ran out of room/forgot to include them: Mindy Kaling, Wanda Sykes, Janeane Garofalo, Jason Jones, Craig Ferguson, David Letterman, we are truly sorry and think you're all seriously sexy. Also, Sherri Shepherd and Zach Galifianakis, you are amazing, don't let your last place finishes tell you anything except that there are some jealous haters out there.

Here are our top 12 reader picks...

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Funny & Fine: Who's America's Sexiest Comedienne? You Decide! (SLIDESHOW) (POLL)

2009-05-26T18:41:28Z

We've selected 15 of the sexiest funny ladies we know for a HuffPost poll of ridiculous proportions. They're all hilarious, they're all more comedienne than actress, and they're all smarter than you. Think we're missing someone? Complain about it in the comments section! Want the guys list? Click here and vote for them too!

Lifetime Picks Up Sherri Shepherd Sitcom!

2009-05-19T08:59:37Z

Lifetime has ordered 12 episodes of a multicam comedy starring "The View" co-host Sherri Shepherd that emerged from the network's own production arm.

"Sherri," in which Shepherd's character will juggle being a single mom, paralegal and actress, will mark the first self-owned comedy to air on the cabler

Stefan Sirucek: Honey, The View Shrank My Brain

2009-05-07T06:57:30Z

"What you just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points. And may God have mercy on your soul."
- Billy Madison

The View always hurts my ears, but this segment hurt my brain. In case you couldn't make it through the whole two minutes, it consists of inane jabbering and of the hosts flinging around the non-word "Darwinism", as if evolution were an exotic opinion or a cult and not the foundation of biology. (For why the term "Darwinism" is wrong see Olivia Judson's excellent piece in the Times For why it's stupid, re-watch the video.)

Everything in science is open to challenge -- yes, that's critical -- but evolution is not "just a theory," as its opponents are so fond of proclaiming. It's a paradigm -- as accepted among serious scientists as the "theory" of gravity. As our professor told us in college: Nothing in biology makes sense without evolution. Its ideas guide us when we think about and practice science. In the century and a half since Darwin published On the Origin of Species, his ideas too have evolved -- into a way of thinking about the natural world that we can thank for a large share of the discoveries and breakthroughs, medicines and vaccines of the last 150 years.

But to hear Sherri and Elisabeth quack on and on about "Darwinism", you'd think it was just the latest fad -- like skinny jeans or the Atkins diet - something to be amused by but skeptical of -- something that might be nice and all but just isn't for everyone.

The biggest failing of our ratings-driven media is that it treats everything as a matter of opinion -- equating emotional arguments with fact-based ones. In truth, Sherri and Elisabeth's religious beliefs are neither here nor there. Some things are matters of opinion or belief, but other things are demonstrable, testable -- provable.

We have a name for those things and for the process of finding them.

It's science.

Sherri Shepherd, Oprah Agree: No One Would Dance At TIME 100! (VIDEO)

2009-05-06T13:22:57Z

Sherri Shepherd may have freaked out when Oprah winked and blew her a kiss at Tuesday night's TIME 100 gala in New York, but the co-host of "The View" has more in common with the queen of talk than she might think: both of them were upset that there wasn't more dancing at the party!

Tuesday night, Oprah tweeted her frustrations that the stuffy TIME 100 crowd wasn't dancing for John Legend's performance:

John Legend is everything Q wrote about and more in TIME. great performance. But hard to get INFLUENTIALS to dance in public.

Wednesday morning on "The View," Sherri echoed Oprah's sentiments, saying, "You can't get rich and influential people to dance to save their lives!"

Elisabeth Hasselbeck recounted how Sherri was "the only one dancing" to Legend's performance, and when Barbara Walters tried to say that you "weren't supposed to dance during his performance," the ladies shot her down.

"He said, 'Get up and dance!'" Sherri said as the other ladies nodded in agreement.

Whoopi Goldberg then defended herself against Sherri's claim that no one else was dancing.

"Not everybody sat there like that," Whoopi said, prompting Sherri to admit that Whoopi was, in fact, dancing along with her.

Watch:

The five co-hosts of "The View" were honored as part of TIME's celebration of the 100 most influential people in the world.

"The View" Argues About "Darwinism" And Creationism (VIDEO)

2009-05-05T12:47:27Z

The ladies on "The View" got into a heated debate on Tuesday about whether or not "Darwinism" and creationism should be taught in schools.

Elisabeth and Sherri are all for creationism being taught in public schools, and Sherri said that as a Christian who follows the Bible, she is teaching it at home to her four-year-old Jeffrey. "If Darwinism is taught, just do it with respect." She later said she will teach Jeffrey about Darwinism so he can have a conversation about it, but implied she will teach him evolution is incorrect.

Joy Behar, however, wasn't having it. "It's not a religious fervor thing. There's proof! Scientific proof! You want your children to go into the world and be ignorant? That's child abuse in my opinion."

Elisabeth bit back about evolution being "your way" before Whoopi cut in with, "it's science."

See the tempers flare below.

WATCH:

Sherri Shepherd's Twitter-Crazy Weekend (VIDEO)

2009-05-04T18:24:22Z

Sherri Shepherd had a crazy weekend in the Twitter-verse.

The "View" co-host, who joined Twitter in March, accidentally posted a Tweet that she specifically didn't want us to see and got into her first Twitter-fight!

"It's 11:36 & I just sent out a Public Tweet that should've been a Private Tweet!!! Don't want all my business on the Huffington Post! Crap!!" Sherri tweeted late Sunday night.

Last month, we posted that Sherri would be getting braces based on one of her Tweets.

A Twitter search reveals that Sherri's mistaken tweet, since deleted, referenced a date she went on over the weekend:

"wow... rare to hear that one coming from the female... usually that's what the guy says. Just went on a date & he said the same thing 2 me"

Screenshot of the deleted, errant tweet:

Last summer, Sherri spoke about how she hadn't been on a date in 11 years. She split up from her husband, Jeff Tarpley, in 2007, and subsequently imposed a vow of abstinence upon herself.

Monday morning on "The View," Sherri said that she'd gotten in her first Twitter-fight over the weekend, after one of her followers chastised her for not following all of the almost 70,000 Twitterers who follow her.

"A few people were mad at me because I don't follow them," she said. "It's physically impossible to follow 67,000 people and keep up with what 67,000 people are doing! I was tweeting back and forth. And the lady who was the maddest at me, she only has 32 followers and she follows 64 people. She said, 'You should follow 67,000 people!' And I'm like, 'I DON'T WANNA FOLLOW 67,000 PEOPLE! SIT!'"

Watch:

The founders of Twitter will appear on "The View" Wednesday.

Sherri Shepherd Getting Braces

2009-04-14T14:51:36Z

Sherri Shepherd is getting braces!

The "View" co-host Tweeted after Tuesday's show that she was off to the dentist to get braces:

Finished show... I think I need to stop staying up past midnight. So tired; could barely read the prompter. Going to dentist-getting braces

She later tweeted her rationale for getting braces:

Got this gap in teeth that I'm HATING! Don't want veneers or caps - might try invisalign or braces behind my teeth-anyone experience either

"I get paid to talk so if it affects my speech I might be better off w/ invisalaign," she followed-up.

In addition to co-hosting "The View," Sherri also is set to star in a Lifetime comedy pilot, so it may behoove her to fix her teeth now before her career takes off any further.

An up-close zoom of a Getty Images photo of Sherri when she co-hosted the Daytime Emmys last June reveals (in addition to some lipstick on her teeth) the space between her two front teeth that Sherri tweeted about:

What do you think? Does Sherri need braces? Vote in the poll below:

Ethan Imboden: We've Come a Long Way, Barbara

2009-03-24T17:10:44Z

It's 2009, and we're living in a changed world. I'm not talking about recessions, bailouts, the yawning abyss that is the stock market, I'm talking about Barbara Walters, Sherri Shepherd, Joy Behar and Elisabeth Hasselbeck recommending vibrators on The View.

In case you missed the back and forth, it started with a vibrator joke (and accompanying joyful jig) from Barbara on Monday, followed by disapproving commentary from Mika Brzezinski on Morning Joe today, with an immediate and unanimous response from all of the hosts of The View on their broadcast later this morning.

A reasonable stance on all this might be summarized thusly: "Who cares?"

But we live in a strange world where this is a momentous occasion and accordingly, the blogosphere is all a-Twitter. There seems to be as much interest in The View's proposed vibrator bailout for Mika as there is in the ongoing fiscal black hole that is AIG.

And I care, and here's why: After years of dedication to Jimmyjane, I'm still astonished by the media's hesitation to touch the subject matter of sexuality and, yes, vibrators. It's fascinating to observe that everyone is so worried about what everyone else will think, particularly given that everybody's thinking the same thing - vibrators are a-ok, and there's nothing wrong with enjoying a little sex every now and then.

Here's some more breaking news for you (spoiler alert): Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Lucky Charms Leprechaun and the Tooth Fairy don't exist. Oh, and one more thing - we aren't air-freighted to our parents by storks. We're all here because someone somewhere had sex.

Allow me to provide a reassuring report from the front lines of the booming Sexual Wellbeing market - you aren't alone. Everybody does it differently, but trust me, everybody's "doing it."

Barbara Walters was the first female co-anchor of network evening news. She'll be 80 this year, and her monumental career includes interviews of Yeltsin, Jiang Zemin, Thatcher, Qaddafi, Indira Gandhi, Chavez and, of course, Obama. She's a straight shooter, and after all these years in the service of the news industry, you'd think she's earned the right to call a spade a spade - or a vibrator a vibrator, for that matter.

Tina Brown was a guest on Morning Joe when Mika expressed her dismay, and I applaud her for interjecting, "Barbara Walters is allowed." I'll take that a step further and posit that, in fact, we're all allowed.

Sherri Shepard's suggestion that the women of The View should send Mika a vibrator is a good one. Imagine my delight when Elisabeth Hasselbeck proposed that it be accompanied by a note reading, "To Mika, love Barbara. Just a Little Something..."

When that happens, we'll really know it's a changed world.

Sherri Shepherd Wants To Buy Mika Brzezinski A Vibrator (VIDEO)

2009-03-24T11:47:14Z

It's a sex toy morning TV showdown!

"The View" cohost Sherri Shepherd wants to buy "Morning Joe" cohost Mika Brzezinski a vibrator.

It all started Monday when Barbara Walters cracked a vibrator joke on "The View," as seen here. Then, Tuesday morning, Willie Geist featured the clip during "News You Can't Use" on "Morning Joe," during which Mika pulled pained faces while saying, "that's just not right." The Mika clip can be seen below.

Well, Walters was watching.

On Tuesday's "View," Walters recounted watching in her bathroom Tuesday morning as "Mika has a face like she has just eaten the most sour apple and she is plainly disgusted with me..."

Sherri's response? "Maybe we should send Mika a vibrator!"

Elisabeth Hasselbeck agreed. "To Mika, love Barbara. Just a little something..."

The sex toy talk wrapped up with Walters talking directly to the camera. "Mika, I still think you're wonderful, even if I disgust you."

WATCH "THE VIEW" FROM TUESDAY:

THE 'MORNING JOE' CLIP:

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Sherri Shepherd To Star In Lifetime Comedy Pilot

2009-03-04T08:14:59Z

Sherri Shepherd may be pulling double duty.

Lifetime has ordered a pilot for an untitled multicamera comedy to star the comedian and "The View" co-host.

The project, loosely based on Shepherd's experiences, was originally developed for the CW during the 2007-08 development season. Dave Flebotte penned the script about a woman who contends with her husband's infidelity and his illegitimate child when she allows the child and mother to move in with them.

"The View" Debates Rush Limbaugh's CPAC Speech (VIDEO)

2009-03-02T11:50:41Z

Rush Limbaugh's long and fiery speech at CPAC, which was filled with political insults against President Obama and Democrats and where he doubled down on wanting Obama to fail, has everybody talking. The ladies of "The View" waded into the thicket when Barbara introduced the topic by playing devil's advocate, saying that perhaps Limbaugh means he wants Obama to fail because his success would ruin our modern capitalist system.

Elisabeth asked if there was anything wrong with what Limbaugh said, and Sherri replied that there was. Sherri lamented that Limbaugh's comments are causing a lot of divisiveness and referred back to 9/11 when even though not everyone agreed with Bush's response, the country still came together to support him at the beginning. Shepherd said "the man has only been in office 31 days*; I don't think anyone is giving him a chance."

Elisabeth disputed this, at which point Walters broke in to say that if Republicans hoped Obama would fail they needed to offer up their own plan for success.

Elisabeth and Whoopi then got in on the action, with Elisabeth asking why is it wrong to hope that a system you believe is wrong will fail. Whoopi responded that Limbaugh's comments are a "crappy" thing to say after 31 days: "if in a year, you know, you feel this way, that's cool, but to say you want it to fail before we've even tried it seems crappy to me."

The ladies reminded Hasselbeck that comments like Limbaugh's could easily get one tagged as unpatriotic during the Bush years.

Watch the clip of the ladies getting heated below.

The segment ended on a lighter note when Joy snickered "did anyone think that black shirt made him look thin? I don't think so." Sherri disagreed: "I like a man with a black shirt and a black jacket. I think it looks kinda hot." An Incredulous Joy asked Sherri if she is a "chubby-chaser."

*Note: Obama's 31st day was February 19 or 20, depending on when you start counting.

UPDATED: Sherri Shepherd's Tense Flight With Jeremy Piven, Piven's Response (VIDEO)

2009-01-05T23:57:21Z

UPDATE:

On Tuesday's "The View" Sherri Shepherd read aloud from a lengthy text message that Jeremy Piven sent her late Monday, following her story from Monday's show about being on a flight with an annoyed-seeming Piven (as recounted in second video clip below).

Piven wrote Shepherd, who had been on the flight with her boisterous 3-year-old son Jeffrey, that he was so sorry he did not recognize her and looks forward to seeing her soon.

Piven is quoted as writing, "I felt so foolish for not recognizing you... The last thing I would want to was offend you or your adorable son Jeffrey... I could tell... what an incredible mother you are."

After reading it, all the ladies let out an, "Awwwwwww...."

WATCH:

PREVIOUSLY:
Monday "The View" returned live after two weeks for the holidays. Over the break, co-host Sherri Shepherd recounted, she flew home to Los Angeles with son Jeffrey, 3 1/2, on the same plane as a mercury-poisoned Jeremy Piven. Shepherd first recognized Piven when she boarded as the "a guy with the fedora, a little short guy."

She then imitated her son's vocal excitement at being on a plane.

"I don't know if that irritated look that he had was the mercury running through his veins or my son... He was just on the show, normally I would go 'hey, I'm Sherri Shepherd from The View!' But had this look on his face!"

"We just avoided each other."

She then apologized if her son had bothered the actor.

WATCH:

Sherri Shepherd Sobs Over Obama Win (VIDEO)

2008-11-05T11:08:10Z

Sherri Shepherd broke down in tears on "The View" Wednesday talking about Barack Obama's victory. The mother of a young son with special needs, Sherri related to Sarah Palin and had been openly undecided. But with Obama's victory, she broke down over the historic win of an African American. Speaking of the Civil Rights Movement and the limitations she was told she had had growing up, Sherri said in part, "To look at my baby and go, you don't have to have limitations..." and she broke down in tears.

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Sherri Shepherd's Sex Scene Crush On Alec Baldwin (VIDEO)

2008-10-30T14:43:07Z

Sherri Shepherd doubles as Tracy Morgan's wife on "30 Rock," and on Thursday's "View" she talked about filming a recent sex scene when Alec Baldwin stepped in. After Morgan flung her on her back multiple takes, Alec stepped in to show him how it was done, carrying her, settiing her on a couch and laying on top of her. Sherri recounted, "I ran and LEPT up on Alec Baldwin.. He straddled me... I got a little crush on Alec Baldwin!"

WATCH: