Back To Reality
Is it any accident that people are talking about Donald Trump because of his "feud" with Rosie O'Donnell? His reality series, "The Apprentice," is back for its sixth season Sunday on NBC.
On the same night at 8 p.m. ET, also on NBC, another reality show debuts. This one is called "Grease: You're The One That I Want," and the idea here is that when "Grease" is revived on Broadway in June, lead characters Sandy Dumbrowski and Danny Zuko will be played by the winners of this "American Idol"-like competition.
Both series will feature their own sets of twists. For instance, on "You're The One That I Want," Olivia Newton-John, who played Sandy opposite John Travolta's Danny in the big-screen version of "Grease," will drop in to offer advice to the wannabe Broadway stars.
And on "The Apprentice," The Donald's kids, Ivanka and Donald Jr., are getting into the act.
Photos: "Grease: You're the One That I Want"
Ivanka, a vice president of real estate development at the Trump Organization, appeared on NBC's "Today" show with her father to promote the show. "Today" co-host Meredith Vieira's first questions were about Trump's feud with O'Donnell, the outspoken moderator of "The View." The 44-year-old comedian was hired by series creator Barbara Walters after Vieira left the ABC show last year to join "Today."
Ivanka said O'Donnell had "instigated" the exchange of verbal hostilities and had been "bullying people for a long time."
(The Rosie-Donald feud began last month after Trump announced that Miss USA Tara Conner would be permitted keep her title, which had been in jeopardy because of underage drinking. Trump is the owner of the Miss Universe Organization, which includes Miss USA and Miss Teen USA. O'Donnell said his news conference had annoyed her "on a multitude of levels" and that the twice-divorced real estate mogul had no right to be "the moral compass for 20-year-olds in America.")
Photos: "The Apprentice": Season 6
"Grease: You're the One that I Want" gets its name from one of the movie version's more memorable songs. It follows the audition process for the roles of the naive good girl and the slick cool greaser, the leads in the 1970s musical, which led to a wave of nostalgia for the teen culture of the '50s.
Kathleen Marshall, who will direct and choreograph the Broadway production, serves as one of the judges. (The other two judges are theatrical producer David Ian and co-creator of the musical, Jim Jacobs.)
Marshall says she thinks the show is unique because "there is a real prize at the end of it. Whoever wins is going to star on Broadway. It's not just 'Oh, thank you very much, here's your trophy, and your check' and then you're sent on your way with a pat on the head. You have to deliver beyond that. So it's a lot of pressure."
"Grease" already has had two marathon runs on Broadway. The original production arrived in 1972, closing in 1980 after more than 3,000 performances. The revival, starring Rosie O'Donnell as Betty Rizzo, opened in 1994 and ran for more than 1,500 performances.