On Today's Show: Natalie Portman, winners of ABC's Dancing with the Stars

Hosts at the table: Whoopi, Joy, Sherri, Elisabeth, Barbara

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Joy is planning on making stuffed mushrooms and salad. Her show will air all day tomorrow, from 1-7. Elisabeth is making Jell-O with pretzels (her husband loves it). Sherri’s son will spend the day with his dad, and Sherri will spend the holiday in a hotel room. She is looking forward to having a massage and reading a book. Whoopi will be cooking for 17 people.

ABC canceled a scheduled performance from Adam Lambert. He was set to appear on Good Morning America, but they decided against having him on the show. Barb had interviewed him for her “Most Fascinating People” special and she said he’s very likable. She said he told her he’s not upset with being canceled and he just got carried away. He also said there is a double standard , and had Madonna done what he did, no one would have been upset. Sherri said the difference between Adam and Madonna and Janet Jackson is he has not earned that position yet. Whoopi did not agree, and essentially said the same standard should apply to everyone. Joy was told by her guests that the reason Adam did not win American Idol is because he is gay.

Next subject was who will take Oprah’s place after she retires her talk show. In the New York Times, there was a discussion on “The View” taking her time slot. Based on the month that The Oprah Show is scheduled to end, Barbara and Brill Gedde speculate Oprah will hand her talk show slot to her best friend, Gayle King. Sherri thinks whoever takes the slot will have to be completely different from Oprah. Joy thinks Sarah Palin would be a good choice for that job.

Dr. Larry Norton joined them to discuss the US Preventive Services Task Force’s controversial mammography recommendation. He first clarified that this is an advisory body to the government, but is not a government agency. They looked at old data from years ago and thought that getting a mammography at 50 was better. He disagrees with the Task Force’s conclusion and think the current guidelines are wonderful. Dr. Norton said that cost was not a factor in the board’s conclusion and thinks getting a mammography every two years means bigger tumors which requires more money treating them. He thinks people should know their bodies and being told they should not do a self-examination is silly. Dr. Larry reiterated this is not a new study; it’s a new analysis of very old data and scientifically it is being challenged. This has no effect on everyone’s insurance and policies are not being changed as a result of this study. He thinks women should get mammograms every year, starting at the age of 40.
There was another study saying women should not be tested for cervical cancer until they are 21. Dr. Norton said most cervical cancers start by viruses you can catch and that women should be screened as soon as they become sexually active. He also said the HP vaccine significantly reduces cervical cancer and the energy should be focused on prevention tools so we don’t have to deal with cancer in the first place.

The first guest to appear was Natalie Portman. She is in the new movie “Brothers”. The movie is about a woman who, thinking her military husband was killed, has a relationship with his brother. Natalie said she had the opportunity to talk to military wives and it helped her perspective. She wanted to play a mother and a wife to get away from being looked at like she was 12. Natalie is an only child and does not think she would have become an actress if her parents has more children. She attended Harvard, studying psychology, and liked the structure of college. “Brothers” is in theaters December 4.

The last guests were the final contestants on “Dancing With the Stars”. First to appear were couples Mya and Dmitri Chaplin, and Kelly Osborne and Louis Van Amstel. Mya and Kelly wore comfortable shoes because their feet hurt so bad. Mya said the show was challenging and she had not trained for it. Her partner, Dmitri, said Mya lived up to the expectations people had of her. Kelly said she learned dedication and not to give up. Louie said it was an amazing ride,

Donny Osmond and Kim Johnson his partner was the big winner on the show. They performed “The Jitterbug” on stage. Donny said it was the greatest moment in his career and he has never worked as hard as he did on the show. Kim said Donny was amazing and was very dedicated. Donny said he would do it again.

Barb concluded the show by giving thanks to her hosts as well as the audience. Have a great day.

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Open Thread - Wednesday 11/25

This is the Open Thread for Wednesday. Please post your off-topic discussions here.

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Your View: Giving thanks

In the day to day struggles, it's so easy to get bogged down in what's  going wrong, how bad things are, things you don't have,  and things you'd like to change. I think sometimes we forget the positive, simple things we are grateful for. So what are those things for you? What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?

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On Today's Show: Robin Williams, Matthew Rhys

Hosts at the table: Whoopi, Joy, Sherri, Elisabeth

They started today’s discussion talking about Paula Deen being hit by ham. She was donating 25,000 lbs. of meat and as they were passing the meat around she got hit in the nose. She is okay, and laughed the incident off.

Next came the topic of the 911 Terror trials. It’s being reported that the accused have requested to not have lawyers and the question is whether this will give them a soap box to spread their anti-American views. Joy is confused by it all and was questioning whether it would be televised. Elisabeth snapped that it’s not the Super Bowl. On one hand, Joy wants to see it and on the other she’s afraid of what will happen. She also questions Pres. Obama saying they will be bought to justice and executed. Elisabeth started to quote Attorney General Eric Holder, but did this pre-school like move where she took her finger over her lips, and made a weird blubbering sound. She said Eric was questioned about why is this happening and whether it’s been done before and said Eric had no clue. Joy disclosed that Elisabeth is very upset and wants to move out of New York City. Elisabeth said “Hey, that’s personal, do you want me to dig on your personal stuff?”. She then started talking in her shrilly voice, saying “Let’s keep it between , it’s like Vegas back there, hey sistah”. I am not making this up. Joy said “Oh calm down, we all want to move out of the city when we’re scared. “ Elisabeth said “no one wants to see this” and “it will bring danger to this world”. Sherri bought up the fact that a lot of things were going on during the Bush reign, and now maybe people want to see what’s happening”. Elisabeth then said “Oh, so now Bush is on trial”. She then started ranting about putting Bush on trial and not masking it by going after Khalid Sheik Mohammed. Whoopi then smartly veered the conversation back to the original subject.

Sherri said she does not think they should be given the same civil rights that we afford others. Joy said we have the best justice system in the world. Elisabeth does not want to see it, and then she started talking about popcorn or something.

A message on Facebook encouraged kids to target redheads and beat them up. This was also a subject in a “South Park” episode. Elisabeth then said she had a redhead she wants to kick today. Wow. The school where an actual incident occurred has had other instances where redheads were bullied are now trying to work things out. Sherri thinks expulsion is necessary and there needs to be zero tolerance. Joy wonders why the police is not calling a hate crimes. Joy mentioned she is not a natural redhead, and Elisabeth replied “well then I really don't want to kick you”. Gee, that's just great, Elisabeth. First you express how you want to kick your redhead co-worker and now you walk it back because she's not a natural redhead. Nice.

Last night was the final episode of “Jon and Kate +8”. Jon Gosselin said he thinks the network TLC exploited his children, exposed them to pedophiles and the kids did not get paid. Joy doesn’t feel they should have put the kids in that situation. Sherri wonders who will take a woman with eight kids. Whoopi said Jon and Kate are stuck together.

Pilot Sully Sulliberger and his wife say his hero status revived their sex life. Sherri said knowing her husband saved lives must have been a turn-on.

Sherri plugged her show.

First guest to appear was Robin Williams. Robin recently had open heart surgery and said it’s great to be back. He went through rehab for alcoholism and said the way he recovered was his being grateful for everything. He said life is a gift. He also said not drinking and doing standup makes him take responsibility for what he says. He said he knew he had to quit when he bottomed out and that was when he knew he needed help. In addition to doing “Weapons of Mass Destruction“ comedy tour , he also has a new movie out called “Old Dogs“. In it, he plays a character that has to care for six year old twins. He liked the jokes, but does not see himself as a grandpa.
After break, he was asked about Sarah Palin. He said her book is in the fantasy section, and being asked “What books you read” is not a trick question. Elisabeth said he is the only one that can make her laugh about this, and Robin told her “Oh baby, just let it go, it‘s over”. He spoke about former president George W Bush being a motivational teacher and compared it to Lindsey Lohan being a guidance counselor. (Elisabeth’s laughs seemed forced to me)

Robin was asked what it’s like working with Whoopi and Billy Chrystal for “ Comic Relief” . Robin said it’s wild and everyone each had their own specialty. He said Whoopi is honest and speaks from the heart.

The final guest was Matthew Rhys from ABC’s “Brother’s and Sisters”. Matthew is from Wales and has perfected his English accent. He said he used George Clooney as a guide for how he speaks. On the show, he plays “Kevin” who is in a gay marriage. He said he gets hit on my men, even though he is a straight. He said she is he like humor in a woman. This turned into them trying to fix Sherri up with him.
“Brothers and Sisters” airs Sunday nights on ABC.

Everyone in the audience recived a copy of the new movie “Angels and Demons“ on DVD. (I really want to see this!)

That concludes today’s show. Enjoy your day!

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Open Thread - Tuesday, 11/24

I'd like to again welcome katielouisiana! She was in the process of moving the last time I posted about her. Well she is settled in her new place and has access to a laptop. I am so happy she is finally able to post.

I'd also like to welcome back Diane and an old time favorite (wink) Kelly, as well extend a hi to mokka and all the newer posters.
And our 'regulars' - you know who you are - I truly appreciate your posts, thoughts and presence here. Thank you for being a part of this site. I hope you will all continue to visit and share your thoughts regarding the show.

And to those that used to post but no longer do so, we'd love if you rejoin us. You are surely missed. And if if you don't post but would rather just read, that's okay too.

Now enough of my yakking; welcome to the Open Thread Tuesday! Please post your off-topic discussions here.

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On Today's Show: Zac Efron, Claire Danes, Norah Jones

Hosts at the table: Whoopi, Joy, Sherri, Elisabeth, Barbara

The American Music Awards aired last night. One of the performers, Adam Lambert, raised eyebrows when he simulated a sex act while onstage . They did not show a clip of it because it was deemed “inappropriate”. Barb thinks not showing it is absurd, but Elisabeth is ok with it because she thinks it was over the line. Sherri described the act, mentioning simulations of oral sex and fondling. Adam Lambert released a statement calling the outrage a double standard and said women have been pushing the envelope for years and calls the censorship discrimination.

Whoopi mentioned how parents are angry about their kids seeing the performance. She wonders why the kids are up so late. Sherri said people only know Adam from American Idol and may not have known what to expect. Whoopi said if they had been listening to him and reading what he has said about himself and his sexuality, they would not have been surprised. She also said it’s parents job to protect your kids.

Oprah Winfrey announced she will leave her daytime show in Sept 20011. Sherri thinks Oprah is a best friend to people. Whoopi kept saying how it will be two years until she is gone and wonders why people are so upset now. Joy said Oprah is a warm personality and cares, and that comes through the television. Barb mentioned Oprah emulated her when interviewing. Whoopi insists Oprah is a good “broad” and we still have her on air for two years.

Next subject they discussed was Patrick Kennedy being told by Bishop Tobin not to receive Communion because of his stance on abortion. Joy thinks this is political. Elisabeth said her friend was told not to receive it after her divorce. Whoopi does not feel anyone should tell you what you can’t participate in. Barb questioned the timing. Whoopi said there was a recent clash on stances of health care and tying it to the abortion restrictions.

There is a proposal in the health care bill to impose a 5% tax on cosmetic surgery . This will bring in between 5-8 billion dollars a year. Barb is not against the tax and thinks it’s a good idea. Whoopi said she pays a lot for her insurance and says it does not cover anything. Elisabeth thinks it starts off as a “bo-tax” and wonders where the line will be drawn and who will be drawing it. Whoopi takes issue with “sin” taxes, and says she is taxed every time she steps out of the house. Elisabeth said Whoopi is a Republican. She said she does not mind paying taxes, but doesn’t want to be the all together “go to the well” all the time.

The first guests to appear were actors Claire Danes and Zac Ephron. They are in the new movie “Me and Orson Welles“; Zac character works for Orson Wells and Claire plays a production assistant. Zac said he was nervous about the part and working with Claire.
Claire recently wed in France and loves the married life. She said there is a deep sense of security that comes with it and it’s very special.
There were rumors that the theatre they shot the movie in was haunted, but Claire and Zac did not notice anything or see ghosts.
The movie opens Wednesday, Nov. 25.

The final guest was Nora Jones. Her new CD is called “The Fall“ and is receiving rave reviews. Nora said she does not like the red carpet, and is afraid to be a “fashion don’t”. One of the songs on her CD is called “It‘s Gonna Be” and is about the frustrations of watching the news and seeing it concentrate on celebrities and not stuff you really want to know. Nora has done some acting, but would rather focus on singing.
She then performed the songs “It’s Gonna Be” and “Come Away With Me”. Everyone in the audience received a copy of her CD.

That concludes today’s show. Have a great day.

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Open Thread - Monday

This is the open thread for Monday. Please post your off-topic discussions here.

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'The View' Schedule Nov 23- Nov 27

Guests and show topics scheduled for this week are:

• Monday - Zac Efron and Claire Danes, Norah Jones
• Tuesday - Robin Williams, Matthew Rhys
• Wednesday - Natalie Portman, winners of ABC's Dancing with the Stars
• Thursday - Khloe Kardashian guest co-host; celeb moms' favorite products, audience product picks (re-run)
• Friday -Seth Green, Marlo Thomas, mom interventions

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Rock on, Whoopi

Whoopi Goldberg will appear on the show "30 Rock" this Thursday, December 3. She will make the guest appearance as herself.
"30 Rock" airs 9:30pm ET on NBC.

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Weekend View: Open thread

This is the Open Thread for the weekend.
Enjoy your day.

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