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EMMYS: ‘Big Bang Theory’s Science

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Monday June 17, 2013 @ 8:43pm PDTTags: Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, The Big Bang Theory

Diane Haithman is an AwardsLine contributor.

Undergrads from UCLA’s Honors Physics 1B — who take this class because ordinary physics just isn’t difficult enough — were in for a surprise when they took a field trip to Warner Bros. Studios to be part of the live studio audience for CBS’ The Big Bang Theory. The set always features whiteboards marked up with dizzyingly complex equations. And it took awhile for any student to notice that today’s equations were the solutions for the midterm exam they’d taken that day. As Big Bang physicist Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) might say: Bazinga! This visual gag was a lot like the continual pranks of Sheldon and his geeky pals on the show. But the man behind this in-joke was their professor, particle astrophysicist David Saltzberg, who also serves as science adviser on Big Bang.

Related: EMMYS: Comedy Series Overview

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‘Big Bang’s Johnny Galecki To Do ‘CBGB’ Movie

By DOMINIC PATTEN | Monday June 4, 2012 @ 2:21pm PDTTags: CBGB, Johnny Galecki, The Big Bang Theory

Johnny Galecki is going to CBGB, with The Big Bang Theory star playing band manager Terry Ork in the indie punk rock movie. The real CBGB, which stood for “Country, BlueGrass and Blues”, was the legendary New York … Read More »

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EMMYS: Lead Comedy Actor Handicap

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Sunday September 18, 2011 @ 9:24am PDTTags: 2011 Primetime Emmy Awards, Alec Baldwin, Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Louis C.K., Matt LeBlanc, Steve Carell

Ray Richmond is contributing to Deadline’s 2011 Emmy coverage. Here’s his scorecard assessing the Outstanding Lead Comedy Series Actor race.

Steve Carell, The Office
NBC
Why He Was Nominated: It’s Carell’s sixth consecutive nomination for his role as the dunderheaded Michael Scott on The Office, and his departure from the NBC comedy this past spring spawned a big-time farewell. Credit network marketing as well as the fact Carell has wide popularity throughout the industry. You get the feeling that he could have stayed on this show for 15 years and been nominated every time.
Why He Has To Win: It literally is now or never, and Carell’s submission for the Emmy (his swan song, “Goodbye, Michael”) was a potent blend of pathos, tears and mirth that also generated a nod for writer/exec producer Greg Daniels’ teleplay. If that isn’t enough, there’s the feeling that Carell’s body of work on a show that began life as a warmed-over imitation of the British edition deserves a golden sendoff. “Carell didn’t try to squirm out of his TV contract even after becoming a feature guy,” a writer and academy member notes. “That scores big points.” Historically, both Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City) and Michael J. Fox (Spin City) have won trophies on their final lap.
Why He Can’t Possibly Win: Well, he hasn’t taken the thing home in five previous tries, so it’s possible Carell simply has a big “Bridesmaid” tattoo etched on his forehead. The Office is also seen as having lingered a bit too long at the dance by some. It’s possible that he already blew his best shot here: when the series earned top comedy honors in 2006. And sentiment doesn’t always carry the day, as the perpetually passed-over John Goodman (0-for-7 for Roseanne) could attest. Read More »

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CASTING ROUNDUP: Two Board 2 HBO Series As Recurring, Two Join TBS Pilot

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday January 10, 2011 @ 10:02pm PSTTags: Cable TV, Entourage, HBO, HBO Casting, Johnny Galecki, TBS The Wedding Band, True Blood, TV
Nellie Andreeva

Paola Turbay has joined HBO’s drama True Blood as a recurring. She will play Antonia. We don’t know much about her except for the fact that she speaks fluent Spanish. The Houston, TX-born Turbay, … Read More »

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‘The Big Bang Theory’ Co-Star Kunal Nayyar Gets Salary Bump Too

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Friday December 17, 2010 @ 2:13pm PSTTags: Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Kunal Nayyar, The Big Bang Theory, The Big Bang Theory Renegotiations, TV, Warner Bros. TV
Nellie Andreeva

EXCLUSIVE: Just in times for the holidays, The Big Bang Theory co-star Kunal Nayyar has reached a new salary agreement with the series producer Warner Bros. TV, meaning that all five principal cast members of the hit CBS comedy series … Read More »

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‘Big Bang’ Co-Star Simon Helberg Gets Big Salary Bump; No Deal For Kunal Nayyar Yet

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday November 22, 2010 @ 3:00pm PSTTags: Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Kunal Nayyar, Simon Helberg, The Big Bang Theory, The Big Bang Theory Salary Renegotiations, TV, TV Deals
Nellie Andreeva

UPDATED: Simon Helberg will have a lot more money to buy those bright-colored turtlenecks. The Big Bang Theory co-star has just landed a big raise from the series’ producer Warner Bros. TV. I hear Helberg’s new salary is in the … Read More »

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‘Big Bang Theory’ Star Johnny Galecki Heading For Justin Timberlake Sci-Fi Film

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday October 15, 2010 @ 6:03pm PDTTags: Amanda Seyfried, Andrew Niccol, Cillian Murphy, I'm Mortal, Johnny Galecki, Justin Timberlake, Movie Casting, Movie Deals, Movies, Olivia Wilde, The Big Bang Theory

The Big Bang Theory has made Johnny Galecki a hot property, and now he’s in final negotiations to star in New Regency’s untitled sci-fi movie from Andrew Niccol that used to be called I’m Mortal. He’s joining already-announced Justin Timberlake, Olivia Wilde, Amanda Seyfried … Read More »

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‘Big Bang’ Extends Hiatus While Co-Star Kaley Cuoco Recuperates From Injury

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Friday September 17, 2010 @ 2:25pm PDTTags: Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Kaley Cuoco Broken Leg, The Big Bang Theory, The Big Bang Theory Schedule, TV, TV Scheduling
Nellie Andreeva

With star Kaley Couco sidelined by a broken leg following a horseback accident last weekend, The Big Bang Theory is taking a breather to give more time to the actress to recuperate — and to the writers to figure out how to handle her absence. The Warner Bros TV-produced show is on a scheduled week-long hiatus, which started on Wednesday. Now it has been extended for another week. Cuoco missed the taping at the beginning of this week, and probably won’t be able to start right after the hiatus ends. But producers are optimistic that she may be gone for as few as 2-3 episodes altogether. It is not clear if her injury will be written into the show. But it seems clear that the actress will be able to make a full recovery.  Read More »

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EXCLUSIVE: ‘Big Bang Theory’ Stars Score Huge Paydays After Hardball Bargaining; Jim Parsons Told ‘Take It Or Leave It’ Today

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday September 15, 2010 @ 11:41am PDTTags: Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, The Big Bang Theory, The Big Bang Theory CBS, The Big Bang Theory Salary Renegotiations, The Big Bang Theory Season 4
Nellie Andreeva

EXCLUSIVE: I’ve learned that the stars of The Big Bang Theory are getting fat new paychecks just as the hit CBS comedy is getting ready for its big move to Thursdays next week. After almost 3 months of negotiations with series producer Warner Bros TV, Big Bang leads Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, and Jim Parsons have agreed to a major salary hike that would bring the trio’s salaries to $200,000 an episode for the upcoming fourth season, up from about $60,000 last season. The salaries will rise to $250,000 in Season 5, then $300,000 in Season 6 and 350,000 in Season 7. Additionally, they will each receive .25 point of the series’ lucrative backend and will be paid $1+ million as an advance against it now and another $1 million in Season 7. That effectively adds another $50,000 to their per-episode paycheck over the life of the deal.

I hear Galecki and Cuoco, who have been negotiating together, closed their deals on Monday in a face-to-face meeting between their representatives and Warner Bros following a powwow with the two actors and their teams on Friday where the studio’s final offer was presented. Meanwhile, recent Emmy winner Jim Parsons had been holding out for more money and had handled his negotiations separately despite the fact that he is represented by the same law firm as Galecki and Cuoco (Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren & Richman). I learned that Parsons was offered the same deal as Galecki and Cuoco and given a deadline to take the take it or leave it by today. He just accepted. Talk about hardball: I hear the studio, which had made it clear it was planning to do “favored nations”-type deals (paying all the stars the same), was prepared to table re-negotiations with Parsons until next summer if he had turned down the offer. Read More »

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EMMYS: Q&A With Lead Comedy Actor Nominee Jim Parsons

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Tuesday August 3, 2010 @ 10:14pm PDTTags: Alec Baldwin, Emmy, Jim Parsons, Jim Parsons Emmy, Jim Parsons The Big Bang Theory, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Larry David, Matthew Morrison, Steve Carell, The Big Bang Theory, The Big Bang Theory Renegotiations, Tony Shalhoub, Warner Bros. TV

Ray Richmond is contributing to Deadline’s 2010 Emmy coverage.

Jim Parsons is kinda sitting on top of the world these days after having just landed his 2nd consecutive Emmy nomination for his role as the brilliant nerdball physicist Sheldon Cooper on the CBS hit The Big Bang Theory. But it’s also a time of real anxiety for him as well. For one, he’s nervous about both winning and losing an Emmy category where he’s considered a frontrunner. And when his competition includes 3-time winner Tony Shalhoub (Monk) and 2-time victor Alec Baldwin (30 Rock) along with perennial nominees Steve Carell (The Office) and Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm) plus newcomer Matthew Morrison (Glee). Parsons is also a bit on edge because of the tense salary renegotiation going on right now between Warner Bros TV and the three Big Bang leads (Parsons and co-stars Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco). Parsons, 37, spoke with Ray Richmond for Deadline Hollywood about the Emmys, his finances, and the best thing about being a rich and famous TV star.

Deadline Hollywood: So, is this Emmy thing in the bag or what?

Jim Parsons: What? No! Of course not.

DH: It’s what those in the know are saying.

JP: Well, that’s great. But the way I see it, you can look at the Emmys two ways in you’re nominated. It’s either win-win or lose-lose. If things go very well and I win, you still have to get up in front of a group of people and risk having God knows what come out of your mouth. If you won’t win, you have to breathe deeply and smile and clap with a camera in your face. Last year, just before they announced my award, I was weak in the knees and had sweaty palms. It wasn’t because I was nervous about winning or losing. It was having to accept the trophy if I did win.

DH: And then you lost.

JP: Yes! So it all worked out. But I still don’t see the odds being with me winning. It’s…what is it? One in six. But you know, my competition is awfully good. My stomach is already in knots. The problem is that I don’t drink, so I can’t calm myself that way. I wish I could be better at pretending I don’t care.

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‘Big Bang’ Cast Update: Two Sides Negotiating But Nowhere Near Deal

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday July 28, 2010 @ 2:31pm PDTTags: Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, The Big Bang Theory, The Big Bang Theory Renegotiations, Warner Bros. TV
Nellie Andreeva

EXCLUSIVE: One week before CBS’ hit The Big Bang Theory is scheduled to go back into production on Season 4, I hear the main cast is still nowhere near a deal in their salary renegotiations with producing studio Warner Bros. … Read More »

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‘The Big Bang Theory’ Cast Renegotiate

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday June 22, 2010 @ 8:03am PDTTags: CBS, CBS Comedy, Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, The Big Bang Theory CBS, The Big Bang Theory Salary Renegotiations, The Big Bang Theory Schedule, Warner Bros. TV, WBTV
Nellie Andreeva

BigBangTheoryartComing this summer to CBS and WBTV, it’s renegotiations time for the Big Bang gang. The CBS comedy is coming off a red-hot 3rd season and a gigantic off-network syndication deal, putting the cast of the show in a prime position for big salary bumps. Which brings me back to a post I did a month ago titled Is The Big Bang Theory the next Friends? The two comedies share a similar setup: ensemble multi-camera sitcoms about single twentysomethings, the majority of them living in two apartments across the hall; similar ratings strength: Big Bang is now the highest-rated scripted series on TV just like Friends once was; and now the two also share the same time slot, Thursday 8PM, after CBS decided to move Big Bang there in the fall.

Yes, I felt the two comedies had a lot in common… until now. One of the signature moves of the Friends cast was that they negotiated their deals together in an all-for-one, one-for-all fashion, getting to $100,000 per episode each in their first go-around with producer Warner Bros. TV after two seasons and eventually to $1 million per episode. Now, the cast of Big Bang is facing their first salary renegotiation with WBTV following a record-breaking syndication deal for the show, that netted the studio $2+M per episode. But I hear one of the three leads, Jim Parsons, is considering negotiating separately from co-stars Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco.

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