( Lea Michele of ‘Glee’ on Her Emmy Nomination (and Playing Fanny Brice) )

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( a nice (but long) op ed/interview from the Telegraph abroad-- I think they refer to Puck as a sexual predator which kind of really really amuses me )

Now, now! Before you go drawing mustaches on half of the Glee cast’s yearbook photos because some of the show’s biggest stars won’t be attending Comic-Con next month, perhaps you should read why that’s the case: They weren’t asked to!

A Twentieth Century Fox Television rep explains: “Last year, we brought down Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Matthew Morrison, and Dianna Agron. Because we have such a large cast and we can’t bring everyone every year, this year we decided to bring down some of the cast who didn’t get to go last summer.

“So this year,” the spokesman continues, “Chris Colfer, Amber Riley, Jenna Ushkowitz, Kevin McHale, Mark Salling, Heather Morris, and Naya Rivera will get to experience the convention, as well as co-creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk.”

And what about Jane Lynch? Comic-Conventioneers sure as hell wanna hear how Sue sees it. According to the rep, she had a scheduling conflict.

So, to sum up, no, the stars aren’t dissing the fans. The producers are just spreading the love. And since Colfer, Riley & Co. will be bringing some never-before-seen clips to their July 25 Q&A, maybe we can do the same. What do you think?

Source

WOW, so Heather and Naya really are officially bumped up to being full-time stars of the show now! Poor Dijon and Harry though... This is why I really wish they'd flesh out the current characters' storylines before bringing in new kids, even though it would certainly make sense that the glee club would gain new members. :(

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Several weeks ago Fox Home Video issued a press release officially announcing the September 14th release of Glee - The Complete 1st Season on DVD and high-def Blu-ray Disc. These releases bring you all 22 first-season episodes, plus a ton of bonus material (which we detailed in our report last week). For fans who bought last December's DVD release of Glee - Season 1, Volume 1: Road to the Sectionals, Fox is offering a $10 "GleeBate" (rebate) when you upgrade to The Complete 1st Season on DVD or Blu-ray.

But for fans who already own that Volume 1 set, and only want to buy the "back nine" episodes of the show's first season, Fox has had a plan all along for you. Glee - Season 1, Volume 2: Road to Regionals will also be available on September 14th (the same day as The Complete 1st Season set). This will be a 3-disc package, ONLY available on DVD format (no Blu-ray, just like the Volume 1 release). It won't have any bonus material on it either: it will be a bare-bones release of JUST the 9 episodes to complete the first season of the show: Hell-O, The Power of Madonna, Home, Bad Reputation, Laryngitis, Dream On, Theatricality, Funk, and Journey. Package art is below.

Just as it was for Season 1, Volume 1: Road to the Sectionals, the list price of Glee - Season 1, Volume 2: Road to Regionals will be $39.98 SRP. Buying that title does NOT make you eligible for the $10 "Gleebate" mentioned above; that rebate is only usable with purchase of The Complete 1st Season on either DVD ($59.98 SRP) or Blu-ray ($69.99 SRP). Amazon.com is taking pre-orders right now - at a discount, of course - for the Volume 2 set, and also for The Complete 1st Season on DVD or on Blu-ray Disc.

Source

Depending on how big a glutton for punishment you are, tonight's "Glee" just might be your favorite yet. The first season has already bared witness to a handful of uber-emotional moments but by all accounts, tonight's will steamroll each and every one.

"Dream On," not only features Neil Patrick Harris, but an Artie-centric storyline that sees the wheelchair bound virtuoso longing for a life on two feet. In anticipation of the waterworks I rang up Kevin McHale to see if he could sneak me any tear duct drying tips.

Sadly, he could not. What Kevin did share was some scoop on the season finale (more tears), what the last year of his life has been like and how "Boy Meets World" factors in to "Glee!"

( cut for length. not really any spoilers )

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Producers of Glee have confirmed that they have a second Madonna episode of the hit show in the works.

“We’re doing a sequel to the Madonna [episode],” producer Ryan Murphy told Access Hollywood.

On speculation the Material Girl may appear, Murphy commented: “I can’t say. But she’s sort of the muse of our show. She loves the show and has supported it. She gets that the show is about arts education and so she’s very supportive about that.”

Source

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The Glee on-again/off-again flirtation with Britney Spears is back in the "on" position this week. At least according to creator Ryan Murphy. The super-producer was in New York yesterday to celebrate the FOX Upfronts (where Glee received prominent placement, including a showing post-Super Bowl), where he revealed that an all-Britney episode is very much on his mind.

"We love Britney, we're talking to Britney. I think you have to be very careful on the show not to do too many tribute episodes. but she certainly has a huge body of work to pull from and the kids grew up with her so that is a consideration, they love her." Sounds good to us! Once again: Puck singing "Womanizer" must happen. (Sorry, Matthew Morrison, but we like the idea of a Britney ep.)

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I love Lea. I don't even care about the Lea haters.

( It was written for her. )

Interview here -- link-only by request so please click through!

These videos are all hosted on the Entertainment Weekly website so you'll have to click to watch but they're so worth it.

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This just in: While delicious villain Sue Sylvester has yet to break into song on Glee, almost-certain future Emmy nominee Jane Lynch tells me she is “campaigning strongly” for a musical moment in a future episode of Fox’s freshman sensation. And what song is in her character’s heart right now, you might ask?

EW.com

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Sad that you have to wait until next Wednesday night for a fresh episode of Glee? The fine folks at Fox hope to ease your pain by offering up a couple of behind-the-scenes videos about the hit musical dramedy. Did you know that the producers saw 2,900 hopefuls during the casting process? Or that Lea Michele slapped the casting director during her audition for the role of Rachel? Or that Cory Monteith scored points during his Finn audition with his drumming skills? You’ll also hear from Mark Salling about Puck’s impressive “personal tribute to a musical Jewish icon” in the form of “Sweet Caroline.”

EW.com
There are a few videos on this playlist so don't stop believing watching after the first!

(now I want Puck/Rachel again.)

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On a completely different topic, now, would it be worth it if I posted blurry pictures/pictures of the back of their heads from this past Tuesday's signing?

Two Mark Salling interviews; one from Savvy and one from After Elton:
Click here for the first in pdf form

( "Uh...big gay following, huh? [laughs] No. Is that the case?" )

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( "In all the years that I've been in the business, I've never worked on anything quite like this," says Geoff Bywater, head of the music department at 20th Century Fox Television. "It's a real cultural phenomenon that you can just feel. We've got people who are going to have great acting careers and recording histories for themselves in the future." )

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( More auditions! )

And in other news, does anyone else want to be an admin of this comm? Responsibilities just involve tagging posts appropriately using the same scheme that's already been set up, posting, of course (I tend to get most of my news from the Glee twitter and the ontd_glee comm on LJ), and generally being active. Let me know!!