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Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Woodruff pops into ABC News
Bob Woodruff’s brief return to ABC News last night was bittersweet — for him, for the “World News Tonight” staffers and for viewers. His visit was taped and broadcast at the end of the newscast, with narration by newly appointed solo anchor Charles Gibson.
Injured by a roadside bomb in Iraq in January, Woodruff has had to step down as anchor of the evening newscast — a job he had longed for and been groomed for since Peter Jennings was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. He was briefly paired with co-anchor Elizabeth Vargas, who has left “World News” to begin an early maternity leave and will not return to the broadcast.
Woodruff, 44, suffered life-threatening injuries in the attack that left him with several broken bones and a serious head injury. But aside from a buzz haircut that revealed his scars, Woodruff looked fine and seemed to be walking fine, too.
Still undergoing rehabilitation, Woodruff was only heard uttering a couple of brief comments — “So good to be back,” etc. There is still some questions about the former anchor’s mental quickness and verbal skills, although he is expected eventually to make a full recovery.
‘Book Club’ is super-cheesy
Last night’s CBS debut of “Tuesday Night Book Club” turned out to be every bit as cheesy as we expected.
Everybody is trying to piggy-back on the success of “Desperate Housewives,” and this is the latest reality attempt. The CBS version is more precisely piggy-backing on the surprising success of “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” which debuted on Bravo in March and displayed a bizarre fascination with enormous breast implants.
“Tuesday Night Book Club,” as you might imagine, has nothing to do with books and everything to do with a group of people in various stages of romantic and emotional distress. It’s supposed to be funny (there’s a scene in which a couple argue about which of them will search their dog’s poop for a ring he swallowed), but you’d have to be really easily amused — and think infidelity is hilarious — to laugh at this show.
Mostly it’s filled with desperately sad and shallow people — a woman whose husband prefers his motorcycle to her, a wife who prefers her gym workouts to her husband, etc.
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