Tony Rodriguez to Participate in Live Reading of Michael Ausiello’s Soap Opera “Beverly Hills”

Tony Rodriguez is preparing for a sudsy experience…

The Latino actor and longtime performer of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theaters in New York and Los Angeles will take part in a live reading of Beverly Hillsa soap opera written by TVLine founder and Spoiler Alert author Michael Ausiello when he was 13.

Tony RodriguezRodriguez, a voice actor on The Simpsons, is part of a cast that includes Ana GasteyerTony Hale, Dulé HillGillian Jacobs, Jim Rash and Sasheer Zamata.

Adding an element of surprise, the actors will get to read the script for the first time when they take the stage on July 16 at Los Angeles’ Hayworth Theater (aka Dynasty Typewriter).

Proceeds from the event, which will be live-streamed, will benefit The Trevor Project.

Per the description: “Back in the ‘80s, when Ausiello was a closeted gay pubescent living in small-town New Jersey, he penned 517 episodes of a daytime soap opera, titled Beverly Hills. Miraculously, he saved every handwritten script. The event on July 16, which has a roughly 80-minute running time, will center on a concentrated, self-contained story arc that found six of Beverly Hills’ most popular characters traveling overseas for a life-or-death adventure. Although some of Teenage Ausiello’s atrocious spelling has been cleaned up for this theatrical experience, the scenes will be performed exactly as they were written all those years ago. For better or worse.”

The cast of the reading also includes Mitch Silpa and newcomer Tristan Michael Brown, who will portray teenage Ausiello.

The performance will be co-directed by Ausiello and LA theater vet Tom DeTrinis and produced by Ausiello and Patrick Cotnoir.

Founded in 1998, The Trevor Project, headquartered in West Hollywood, CA, is a nonprofit suicide prevention organization that provides 24/7 crisis support services, research, and advocacy for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning youth.

Fred Armisen Joins Voice Cast of R-Rated Animated Film “Fixed” 

Fred Armisen is playing Fetch… Literally!

The 56-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor/comedian has joined the voice cast of Genndy Tartakovsky’s upcoming R-rated animated film Fixed.

Fred ArmisenIn addition to Armisen, who will portray Fetch, the voice cast also includes Adam DevineIdris Elba and Kathryn Hahn.

The film, which will be completed in September, is an adult comedy about Bull: an average dog who discovers he’s going to be neutered in the morning. As the gravity of this life-altering event sets in, Bull realizes he needs one last adventure with his pack of best friends as these are the last 24 hours with his balls.

New Line Cinema and Sony Pictures Animation are on board.

Fixed Movie“Some people might get uncomfortable,” said Tartakovsky. “In 2010, when I pitched it to Sony, we still needed a concept. Then, lightning struck. Right in that room, within five seconds, I went: ‘They find out one of their friends will get neutered!’ Everyone laughed and that was it,” he recalled.

“Back then, adult animation was all about The Simpsons, maybe Family Guy. Now, it’s much more popular and accepted.”

Still, the goal wasn’t to shock, he admits, but to make “a classic movie.”

“Like Lady and the Tramp or 101 Dalmatians, but rated R. If you can look past the balls and the buttholes, you will find a very sweet, charming, sincere story of friendship and romance.”

The film’s unique combination of naughty and nice has attracted Adam Devine, who will voice Bull, and Elba, who will take on his buddy Rocco.

They are joined by Bobby Moynihan (voicing Lucky), Beck Bennett (Sterling), River Gallo (Frankie) and Michelle Buteau (Molasses).

“When Kathryn decided to do it, she told us: ‘I want to be just like the guys. I don’t want to be the sweet girl in the background who doesn’t have any depth to her. Make her a little raunchier.’ Hiring her made this character come alive,” admitted producer Michelle Murdocca. Christian Roedel co-produces.

“I have been doing this for 30 years and when you find someone who knows comedic timing as a voice actor, it’s everything. It makes our job so much easier,” added Tartakovsky.

“Also, I like the voices to disappear. When Idris is doing Rocco, you may recognize him, but then you just settle in.”

Despite its contemporary humor, Fixed actually celebrates the glories of 2D hand-drawn animation.

“It has become a lost art. These days, everything is computer-generated. It was my dream to do this,” he says, calling it a love letter to Bugs Bunny or Tex Avery, or even 1950s Disney. Murdocca added:

“It became this homage. We were able to secure animators we never thought we would be able to get. That’s when it became very exciting.”

Still, Tartakovsky – who co-writes with Jon Vitti – also mentions The 40-Year-Old Virgin” and Knocked Up among his inspirations, especially when developing the “camaraderie” between the characters. As well as his own friends.

“One guy is loud, one nerdy, another one is, well, a little slower,” he howled.

“We have known each other since high school, so when we are making fun of each other, everything is exaggerated. These are caricatures of real people and then we adjusted them to be a little more real.”

At the end of the day, he just wants people to laugh.

“Comedy is the hardest thing, always, but in animation, you create it from nothing. It’s why I got into it. I could draw a little stick figure running, my friends would look over my shoulder and laugh. It’s such an amazing illusion,” he admitted.

“We have four layers of humor here: The raunchy stuff, the physicality, some character humor and dog owner humor. We don’t talk about pop culture; we don’t make fun of the Kardashians. It’s only within this one world.”

The world that includes such places like “The Hump House,” where Bull and his friends end up as well. But it’s nothing compared to the film’s explosive ending, which – teased Tartakovsky – is “raunchy, very sexual but also very heartfelt.”

“Most studios would go: ‘Maybe we make the film, but you can’t have that scene.’ But it defines this movie! I said I wasn’t doing the film without it and luckily, we found the right partners,” he said.

“Doing kids television for most of my career, I have a boundary. I will hit it, but I will never cross it. For this movie, everything had to be over that boundary.”

Valentina Garza Signs with William Morris Endeavor (WME)

It’s a new endeavor for Valentina Garza.

The 45-year-old Cuban-American writer and producer has signed with William Morris Endeavor (WME).

Valentina Garza

Garza, whose credits include co-executive producer roles on the CW’s Jane the Virgin and ABC’s The Baker and the Beauty, is currently under an overall deal at Universal Television.

She also wrote and executive produced the Jane spinoff pilot Jane the Novela; the project ended up not going forward. She also has developed for Lee Daniels Productions/20th as well as ABC Studios/ABC.

This most recent development season, Garza sold a Latinx family drama to NBC. It revolved around an explosive incident that brings a woman’s mentally ill mother crashing back into her life. She’s now forced to revisit her family’s painful past and blur carefully constructed boundaries between her mother and the family she’s chosen.

The project explores themes of race, mental health, housing instability, immigration and generational trauma.

Earlier in her career, Garza spent six seasons on Fox’s The Simpsons rising to supervising producer, then served as supervising producer on Fox’s Bordertown.

Daddy Yankee’s “Dura” Gets a Special “The Simpsons” Call Out

Doh! Daddy Yankee’s latest single is a hit in Springfield…

The 41-year-old Puerto Rican rapper’s new song “Dura” has gone viral with the #DuraChallenge, which has prompted fans from around the world to share videos dancing to the Latin hit.

Daddy Yankee

Now, one of television’s most iconic cartoons has jumped on the bandwagon, with The Simpsons surprising Daddy Yankee with their own version of “Dura.”

Homer, Bart and Lisa went to the studio to record their take on the track, and the Latin superstar couldn’t contain his excitement, not one bit!

Watch The Simpsons sing “Dura” below.

🔥🔥🔥🔥😂😂😂 #Repost @simpsonized ・・・ Muchos de ustedes nos lo habían pedido…Así que hablamos con Homero y lo convencimos de hacer el #durachallenge de @daddyyankee , jajajaja. 😂😂😂 ¡Esperamos que lo disfruten! 😜😜 . 🎵Créditos y participación especial🎵 -Voces: @davidcomedia (Homero) @majoestevez1 (Bart y Lisa) -Producción musical: @matheusdiez -Dibujo y animación: @nelsontiapa @isaactiapa . . . #dura #daddyyankee #challenge #durachallenge🔥 #dance #daddyyankeeconcert #thesimpsons #lossimpsons #davidcomedia #majoestevez #nelsontiapa #isaactiapa #tiapa #matheusdiez #homerosimpson #bartsimpson #lisasimpson #duradaddyyankee #daddyyankeedura #simpsonizedart #simpsonized #realsimpsonized #teamsimpsonized #mundoamarillo

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Fox Renews Jimenez’s Comedy Series “The Mick” for a Second Season

Carla Jimenez is still maid for television…

Fox has given an early season two renewal for its new comedy series The Mick, featuring the 42-year-old Latina actress as part of the cast.

Carla Jimenez

It’s the first freshman Fox series to get a pickup for next season.

The Mick, a midseason entry starring Kaitlin Olson, has been a high-profile project for the network. The series was launched behind an NFL double-header on a Sunday, and it received another special Sunday airing behind The Simpsons’ first-ever one-hour episode.

The football-boosted premiere of The Mick on January 1, drew a 3.7 Live+same day rating among Adults 18-49, the highest-rated comedy debut on Fox since New Girl, with the post-Simpsons airing logging a 1.7.

In its regular Tuesday slot, The Mick started with a 1.3 (L+SD) and has settled into the 1.0-1.1 adults 18-49 L+SD range in the past five airings.

Three episodes into The Mick‘s 13-episode freshman run, the network gave the series an order for four additional episodes.

The Mick, which Fox says reaches a multi-platform audience of 8 million viewers, was created by John and Dave Chernin. It’s the first Fox comedy to be renewed for next season, ahead of established series like New Girl, Last Man on Earth and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It joins recently renewed dramas Empire and Lucifer.

“From the earliest stages of development, all of us at Fox had enormous faith in The Mick, and it hasn’t disappointed,” said Fox Entertainment president David Madden. “Kaitlin is a fearless comedic force, and the rest of the cast has just proven to be phenomenal. John and Dave Chernin have a very clear vision of what this show is, and they execute on that vision each week to perfection.”

The Mick is a comedy about an unapologetic degenerate (Kaitlin Olson) who suddenly finds herself stuck raising her spoiled niece (Sofia Black-D’Elia) and nephews (Thomas Barbusca, newcomer Jack Stanton) in affluent Greenwich, CT. It’s pretty much everything she never wanted. Regardless, she’s determined to rise to the occasion and transform these little monsters into honest, hard-working, decent members of society – something she knows absolutely nothing about. The series also stars Jimenez, who portrays Alba, and newcomer Scott MacArthur.

Jimenez’s recent television credits include appearances on Santa Clarita Diet, Fuller House, The Mindy Project and Young & Hungry.

Nickelodeon Renews Hurtado’s “School of Rock” for a Second Season

Ricardo Hurtado has another year of school left…

Four episodes into School of Rock‘s freshman run, the musical comedy series starring the 16-year-old Latino actor, has been renewed for a 13-episode second season by Nickelodeon.

Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 10.45.40 AM

The show, based on the 2003 Paramount Pictures film starring Jack Black, hails from Paramount Television. It marked the first series order for the then-newly launched TV division of Paramount Pictures, and a corporate synergy play between the Viacom companies.

School of Rock, which airs Saturdays, averages almost 2 million viewers a week. The second season, which starts production this month, will continue to mix comedy with cast performances of popular and original songs.

Screen Shot 2016-04-06 at 10.46.11 AM

School of Rock follows a group of rule-abiding students — Zack (Lance Lim), Lawrence (Aidan Miner), Freddy (Hurtado), Summer (Jade Pettyjohn) and Tomika (Breanna Yde) — who learn to take risks and reach new heights thanks to substitute teacher Dewey Finn (Tony Cavalero), a down-on-his-luck musician who uses the language of rock ‘n’ roll to inspire his class to form a secret band. Throughout the school year, the middle-school classmates navigate relationships, discover their unknown talents and learn lessons on loyalty and friendships.

Season 1 featured guest appearances from musical artists like Pete Wentz (Fall Out Boy) and the cast covering hits such as “Heart Attack” (Demi Lovato) and “We’re Not Gonna Take It” (Twisted Sister).

School of Rock is developed by Jim and Steve Armogida, who serve as executive producers with Jay Kogen (The Simpsons). The original movie’s director Richard Linklater and producer Scott Rudin serve as executive producers, along with Eli Bush.

Fox Developing an English Version of Bernal’s Spanish Dramedy “Los Serrano”

Daniel Écija Bernal’s Spanish television dramedy is getting an American makeover.

Fox has put in development an adaptation of the Spanish producer, director and writer’s successful Spanish-language series Los Serrano.

Daniel Écija Bernal

The multicamera comedy will be written by The Simpsons veteran Mike Scully and his wife, former Simpsons writer-producer Julie Scully. 20th Century Fox Television, where Mike Scully has been based for more than two decades, is producing.

Created by Bernal and produced by Globomedia and Mediaset, Los Serrano premiered on Telecinco in 2003 and ran for five years and 147 episodes.

Los Serrano

Echoing The Brady Bunch, it is about a widower with three sons who reconnects and marries his high school sweetheart, a divorced mother of two girls.

The series, which already has been adapted in nine other countries, chronicles the exploits of the blended family, with its seven members adjusting to living under the same roof.

Fox Orders Seth MacFarlane’s Culture-Clash-Themed Animated Series “Bordertown”

Seth MacFarlane is bringing Americans an animated view of life along the U.S.-Mexico border…

Fox has given a 13-episode order to the new animated comedy Bordertown from the Family Guy creator and Mark Hentemann to debut during the 2014-2015 TV season.

Bordertown TV Series

The show, created by Hentemann, takes place in a fictitious desert town in Texas near the border with Mexico. The show revolves around Bud Buckwald, a married father of three and a Border Patrol agent not adjusting well to the cultural changes around him, and his next-door neighbor Ernesto Gonzales, a Mexican immigrant and father of four.

Bordertown takes a satirical look at America’s cultural shifts through the evolving relationships between the two families.

Bordertown has been in development at Fox for several years. In 2009, it was considered to be on Fox’s “hot list” along with Bob’s Burgers, which eventually made it on the air.

Now Bordertown will be getting its turn in the spotlight. Fox has room on Sunday night for a new series as American Dad is set to move to TBS next year.

The network also recently scrapped plans to air Murder Police, which had been given a 13-episode order. That show is now being shopped to other networks.

Fox still has additional seasons of The Simpsons, Family Guy and Bob’s Burgers in the works, and is also developing a wide array of additional animated projects, including one from Flight of the Conchords Bret McKenzie.

Hentemann and MacFarlane will executive produce Bordertown for 20th Century Fox Television.

Vergara to Play Tia Sofia on “The Cleveland Show”

Sofia Vergara is heading to Cleveland this fall…

The 40-year-old Colombian actress—who just earned her third consecutive Primetime Emmy nomination for her role on ABC’s Modern Family—will be lending her voice to Fox’s animated series The Cleveland Show. 

Sofia Vergara

Vergara, currently the highest paid actress on television, will play Tia Sofia, who attempts to convince Cleveland to throw a quinceñera for Cleveland Jr.’s 15th birthday.

In addition, she’ll make a cameo as Peter Griffin’s fantasy love interest in an upcoming episode of Family Guy, according to Entertainment Weekly. In a cutaway gag featuring Peter as a telenovela lothario, Vergara will voice his oh-so-sexy and sassy lover. And that’s not her only role in the episode; she’ll also play a woman selling roses in a restaurant where Quagmire is “wooing” Peter so that Peter will do him a big favor.

Meanwhile, as previously reported, Bruno Mars will appear in the season premiere of The Cleveland Show, along with Kanye West,  Nicki Minaj, The Roots’ ?uestlove and will.i.am. They’ll star as characters in a secret hip-hop society that Cleveland discovers in the season premiere.

A subsequent episode will feature Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz, who recently became the 49th player in major league history to reach 400 home runs.

On The Simpsons, the 24th season of the Fox comedy will feature Portlandia‘s Fred Armisen, while Family Guy will see The Voice’s Christina Milian voice an upcoming role.

Armisen Heading to Springfield

Doh! Fred Armisen is about to get seriously animated.

The 45-year-old half-Venezuelan Saturday Night Live cast member—who currently stars on the IFC’s sketch comedy series Portlandia—and his co-star Carrie Brownstein have signed on to provide the voices for the Simpson’s new neighbors on Fox’s The Simpsons.

Fred Armisen

Armisen and Brownstein’s characters, who will make an appearance in an episode of the animated show’s 24th season, are described “a cool family from Portland.”

Homer will be seen desperately trying to befriend them, but Marge thinks that “being cool isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

“They’re the best thing to come out of Portland since everything our show took out of Portland,” gushed executive producer Al Jean about the casting of Armisen and Brownstein.

The episode featuring the Portlandia duo is titled “The Day the Earth Stayed Cool” and will air next fall.