December 2011 archive

Ryan Seacrest on WhoSay

Photo: @RyanSeacrest: “Anyone wanna get started early?”

It’s almost time for New Year’s Rockin’ Eve … and 2012. Where did the year go!

Ryan Seacrest on WhoSay
@RyanSeacrest: Dad and I were up first to look under the tree!

Ryan Seacrest on WhoSay
@RyanSeacrest: A guest for cereal wow!

Looks very festive in the Seacrest household!

I hope everyone who’s celebrating today has a very Merry Christmas. I wonder what Ryan found in his stocking … hopefully it wasn’t something scary, like this ‘holiday must-have’ from a few years ago that seemed more likely to be in his nightmares than under his tree.

That video still makes me laugh. Ryan’s reaction is priceless.

It’s that time of the year when we celebrate the birth of a very special little boy, who grew up to be the very special man we adore, with a look back at what’s been happening over the last twelve months. Ryan does so many things that we can barely scratch the surface … On-Air with Ryan Seacrest, American Top 40, American Idol, E! News, Live from the Red Carpet, Ryan Seacrest Productions, Ryan Seacrest Foundation, the list goes on … but he continues to do them all well (even managing to find time for a private life!) and always seems to have something new and interesting on the horizon.

It’s been another amazing year. Ryan started it off in style, bringing in the new year with Dick Clark, a packed out Times Square and 9.1 million viewers (plus a few online gatecrashers), making ABC the most watched New Year’s Eve broadcast, and attracting the show’s biggest audience in three years.

The year kicked off with lots of buzz about new Ryan Seacrest Productions shows — Khloé and Lamar, Kim and Kourtney Take New York, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution Season 2 and The Dance Scene — as Keeping Up With The Kardashians won the award for Favorite TV Guilty Pleasure. RSP shows continued to bring in record ratings and keep people talking with lots of drama (and a little controversy) throughout the year.

American Idol picked up a People’s Choice Award for Favorite Competition Show as it got ready for its first season without Simon Cowell. Some critics were quick to write the post-Cowell Idol off, but once the season started it was clear that American Idol still had the hearts of the audience, and pre-season pessimism was soon forgotten as fans learned to love the new judges and a talented bunch of contestants. Simon who? Idol had a strong season, and comparisons with The X Factor largely resulted in an increase in appreciation for Ryan’s hosting skills, as the X Factor host fell a long way short in comparison. Meanwhile, Ryan’s been busy with the next season of American Idol, which returns to our screens in a couple of weeks.

Ryan’s empire continues to grow, with rumours throughout the year that he is looking to acquire his own TV network and On-Air with Ryan Seacrest reaching even further across the world with shows in Australia and — much to our delight — the UK. Meanwhile, closer to home, Ryan was in the news — and Ellen’s sleaze — for being on the juice.

Luckily, that’s about as scandalous as Ryan seems to get, but his private life continued to attract everyone’s interest. Rumors that Ryan was ready to get engaged started in January, with a gossip writer “close friend” saying he’d already chosen the ring, and continued throughout the year. Ryan closed down rumors a few times, and as yet there’s still been no big announcement, but he did give a diamond to a very special girl on Valentine’s day…

Most of the articles are funny and relatively harmless, but Ryan shares so much of himself already that it’s good that he’s managed to keep his private life mostly off the radar. Let’s hope he can continue to choose which parts of his life he shares with the world. Unless we’re talking about shirtless beach pics, in which case we wholly appreciate the paparazzi’s efforts…

Ryan had another awesome movie cameo this year with a part in New Year’s Eve. Sadly, it seems that the changes Ryan made to the script didn’t make the final cut.

Ryan’s appearance was a definite highlight, proving his ability to play himself in Knocked Up wasn’t a fluke! Much as we love to watch Ryan sending himself up a little, it’d be great to see him take on an acting role before he gets typecast as … himself. Sylvester Stallone caused a stir earlier this year when he said Ryan would be in Expendables 2. That I would love to see … though maybe Ryan wouldn’t be so keen on facing down tough guys after his run in with Hulk Hogan on Idol this year!

Whenever an established host is looking to retire or move on, Ryan’s name is one of the first people come up with; this year he’s been mentioned as a possible replacement for Regis Philbin and Matt Lauer. It would be interesting to see Ryan front a different type of show, but even with his superhuman ability to multitask and bend time (not to mention the half dozen clones he must surely have), it’s hard to see how he’d fit in a big new commitment without giving up one of his existing roles. Though he did manage to fit in a summer job…

Amongst his accolades this year, Ryan was named the Most Powerful Man in Reality TV on The Hollywood Reporter’s Reality Power List, Network/Syndicated Personality of the Year at the 2011 National Association of Broadcasters Marconi Radio Awards and was honored by LA’s Promise for his philanthropic work.

Photo: @SadaoTurner/@RyanFoundation

We all know Ryan has a big heart. He supports many great causes in a variety of ways but there is one that clearly means a great deal to him and of which he should be very proud: the Ryan Seacrest Foundation. This year, Ryan and his family launched a second Media Center in the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

As well as bringing a lot of light and laughter to our lives, Ryan’s also a huge inspiration. We’re proud to say we’re fans, and we wish him the happiest of birthdays and every good thing life can bring.

video: Rebecca Brayton at watchmojo.com

Ryan might be working on Idol, but Ellen’s still bringing us the sleaze … and keeping an eye on the state of Simon Cowell’s moobs so we don’t have to. If it’s Christmas, it must be time for Simon to go jetskiing in Barbados, but it seems there’s a lot less of him to show off on the beach this year as he’s lost a bit of weight recently.

photos: Just Jared

There was a time when we saw another (younger … hotter) celebrity joining Simon on the jetskis after the holidays … those were the days! Ryan works so hard, but he should still find time to take his shirt off for his old friends. Particularly his really old friends, such as Simon.

headed to link up with judges for next round of @AmericanIdol auditions

— Ryan Seacrest (@RyanSeacrest) December 19, 2011

Ryan continues his work on Idol as the new season approaches … it’ll be back on our screens in a month!

Ryan tweeted about a successful outing on the Park City slopes yesterday where his only drama was a lost glove. Impressive! He’s not the only one losing things in the snow! Must be something in the air … other than Ryan:

@RyanSeacrest: Trying to get a little air w snowmobile…so fun

Ryan might have outdone himself with his latest twitpic … that looks like so much fun! Let’s hope there are no … unplanned … acrobatics!

With these moves and how good he looks in a tux, Ryan really ought to star in a Bond movie!

photo: @DerekHough

Ryan’s been spotted out and about with Julianne in Utah. Last night they were spotted in Temple Square, apparently confirmed by a reply from @JulianneHough.

Today they’ve been seen at the Snow Hut restaurant and on the slopes — looks like Derek Hough is in town too as he shared a gorgeous photo of the mountains.

Looks like a great place to kick back and relax! Few people work as hard as Ryan, so even though we miss him when he disappears, we really hope he gets a good break with his loved ones over the holidays.

What would it be like if men ran christmas? Ryan doesn’t think it’d be an improvement … unless it involves beer, burritos and lingerie. What about cupcakes?

Ellen brought Ryan some some of his favorite beverages … well, other than Coca-Cola, of course … and it sounds like he’s planning a celebration.

Ryan Gosling? Oh, Ellen. It started off well and then just crashed … I’m sure she meant to say Ryan Seacrest! Let’s hope someone is close by in Times Square so Ryan gets a well-deserved smooch after bringing in the New Year.

Santa is a little concerned about some of Ryan’s naughty behaviour. He gave horrible advice to a caller, threw pumpkin seeds at Ellen, and most importantly of all, he’s not eating enough:

“Nice boys eat solid food”

I’m sure Ryan will do his best to fix that one over the holiday!

Hey, Santa, we like naughty Ryan …

Ryan’s mom is having a little trouble deciding what to buy for ‘people she knows through Ryan’, but he has the perfect answer: ask his sister. And while they were talking about Meredith, Ellen revealed she had a new accessory at the holiday party … a friend of Ryan who was meant to be chaperoning her. According to Ellen, there may be a little chemistry there, which doesn’t seem to have been part of Ryan’s plan! Ooops.

Skip to the last couple of minutes to hear Simon talking about Ryan taking over from Matt Lauer on Today. Although it’d annoy him if Ryan got another job, Simon can see some advantages: Ryan will look really bad at that time of the morning and he’ll be permanently in New York. Which is a lot closer to the UK, so we can see why he’d like that (that was what he meant, right?) On the plus side, Simon thinks Ryan would do just fine on the hard-hitting political stories, so long as they have enough chat about girls’ fashion as a lead-in. Ah Simon … he must miss having a host with personality and wit to play with keep him on his toes.

It’s just one big happy family at Ryan’s radio show. And like most families, that means the odd squabble or outright insult.

But there’ve been a lot of tears recently, and Ryan and his team have been making people all around SoCal cry too, with the KIISmas calls. If you’ve not heard them, and you’ve got a handkerchief handy, take a listen:

• Selena Gomez Makes A Surprise Visit To A Terminally Sick Patient [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest & Ellen K Give Single Mother Of Three A Tearful KIISmas [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest Gives A Caretaker Of Eight The Surprise Of Her Life [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest Makes A Moment Of A Lifetime In A Race Against Time [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest Gives Mother Of Two An Unforgettable KIISmas [AUDIO]
• Daycare Owner Whisked Away On A Surprise Family Vacation for KIISmas [AUDIO]
• J.R. Martinez Joins Ryan Seacrest In Giving Back To A Struggling Military Family For KIISmas [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest Surprises Single Mother And Her Friend For A KIISmas Miracle [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest Helps Out High School Senior In Coma [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest Surprises Army Wife And Wounded Soldier With A Holiday Gift Package [AUDIO]
• Ryan Seacrest Spreads Christmas Cheer To A Hardworking Mother & Her Two Daughters [AUDIO]

Now here’s a video we need to see! Ryan played King Winter in a school play, dressed in white with his face and tennis shoes painted silver. Ryan forgot his lines and ad-libbed the story. That sounds so cute! Surely his mom must have that stashed away somewhere for the world to see!

I wonder if Ryan had a solo … how special must his singing have been at that age.

It’s not quite up to Ryan and Ellen’s standard, but I saw a great version of Little Drummer Boy on YT a couple of weeks back:

Back to the serious music … sadly, this one got cut a little short — how rude!

Idol will be back January 18th. Ryan’s into his last day shooting Hollywood Week, which is probably a good thing as it sounds like his voice is suffering from the cold weather and working all hours.

What could be more drastic than going down on one knee … to light the barbecue?

Ryan’s dad’s in town arranging things for the Ryan Seacrest Foundation. He and Ryan grilled a little chicken breast last night after Ryan finished filming in Pasadena for Idol.

Ellen’s super organised with her holiday shopping, so much so that she’s sending ideas to Ryan … who’s not quite so organised. He’d better get a wriggle on as it sounds like somebody is in league with Santa’s little elves to fill Ryan’s stocking on christmas eve.

There’s not much holiday spirit in Ryan and Ellen’s neighbourhood … they had the door slammed in their faces again! Was it the trolls or the gay apparel … wait a minute, did Ryan raid his Idol season 1 closet?

I think Ryan and Ellen found a fan with this stop on their Mid-Wilshire caroling expedition! When they didn’t show signs of stopping, their friendly neighbor got into his car and sped off, presumably to get to the store to buy their holiday CD. Man, he’s going to be so disappointed when he gets to the record store and doesn’t find anything other than Justin Bieber and Mariah Carey.

photo: @miles_siggins

Ryan is busy shooting Hollywood Week this week in Pasadena. He got together with the judges over the weekend and watched back the auditions.

Never let it be said that Ryan’s a typical man! Unlike most guys who like to turn the heating down and open the windows, Ryan is too cold when somebody sets his bedroom temperature to 66F (19C), and has resorted to warming his house pants before putting them on! That still sounds quite warm, but hopefully he’s not struggling to sleep because it’s too cold for his comfort.

@RyanSeacrest: Idol Hollywood week, this is what contestants see as they walk off the stage w their instant results

If that’s the view contestants get when they leave the stage, where do we sign up?

Ryan’s mom is big on the reuse when it comes to gift wrap, but Ryan’s never had a bow emergency.

Ryan’s on the torture juice again, trying to get into deficit before the holidays, and Ellen is a snitch … while Ryan had his mom on the phone, she told Connie about Ryan’s sore rib!

Such a shame Ryan’s mom had to leave just as they started caroling.

Ryan was in fine voice again today, with a bit of caroling in the community. I think he and Ellen really found their song, because they almost made it through this one without getting the door slammed in their faces.

More caroling to be heard during Ryan’s interview with Chord Overstreet and during the KIISmas giving call. Of course, sometimes it’s not just Ryan and Ellen’s lucky neighbors that need to make a sharp exit.

Ellen has a gift for Ryan to use when he has company, and Ryan caught Nelson leaving the girls’ bathroom at their holiday party on Friday. Awkward!

Ryan’s put a rib out of place. Sleeping. His mom would tell him he needs to be more careful with that. He should listen to his momma! He needs to take care of himself.

Talking of things Ryan needs to do, he should definitely pull Derek Houghs more often.

Ryan’s bummed about next year’s color; tangerine tango just isn’t him! He prefers this year’s color, though I’m not actually convinced that the man who talks about fashion on the red carpet when he remembers to ask even knows what color ‘honeysuckle’ is, though I’m sure he’d look lovely in it. Whatever color it actually is. I wonder if Burberry will be making Ryan a suit in tangerine tango…

Photo: @officialellenk: I love @ryanseacrest& @chercalvin

Très chic! Check out @officialellenk for photos from the party.

It’s the On Air holiday party this evening, and they’re doing a One Night in Paris theme. Ryan’s wearing a period piece, and it’s something people would not normally see him wearing. He also said he’s wearing plaid. Given the recent discussions about his furry shins, it ought to be a kilt … the geography for kilt-wearing would be a little out for Paris, but it’s not that far away if you’re looking at Europe from America!

Ryan and his team have already done their Secret Santa, and his team sounded like they were well into the christmas spirit ahead of their holiday party tonight!

Ryan got an electric Houdini … a battery powered gadget he can put to great use in the tub. Uh huh. Is that before or after he waxes his legs?

It seemed Ryan was getting into the christmas spirit too, with a rousing rendition of several carols. Never let it be said Ryan isn’t a talented singer. He makes every song his own, even changing up the melody beyond recognition a little.

I’m deeply moved. Ryan and Ellen are welcome to come a-caroling around here any day.

Ryan loves the run up to holidays, but 19 to 24 are the best days because Christmas hasn’t happened yet. The sweet spot for both Ryan and Ellen is the 24th. Ryan likes sunset, when he can go to a candlelight service, but Ellen likes 9pm … when Ryan wants to be in REM. Which isn’t a reference to Michael Stipe, just in case anyone thought that before Ryan’s mind went there.

This morning wasn’t going well for Ryan! He told a story about someone at the gym telling him his shins are too hairy for the rest of him and he should trim … but he didn’t get a lot of sympathy from Ellen and the girls.

Ryan started out talking about adding a little whey protein into his diet, and what looked to be a chance for Ryan to get a few compliments turned into criticism of the suit he wore to the New Year’s Eve premiere. I wouldn’t say he looked awful, but it wasn’t his finest hour! Unlike his more casual look for Jingle Ball, which definitely deserves a second look. And a third. And maybe a fourth.

You know … another look wouldn’t hurt.

This isn’t the first time Ryan’s talked about whey protein … here’s a blast from the past.

Is Ryan considering moving on from E! News?

There have been rumors off and on for a while that Ryan’s the front runner to replace Matt Lauer on the Today show — if he wants to do it. Back in August, Mediate claimed NBC wanted Ryan but Ryan wasn’t sure about leaving LA for New York.

Mediaite has learned. Key NBC insiders now believe that only someone with Seacrest’s name recognition and appeal to women could allow for a smooth transition, and ensure that the incredibly profitable Today Show remains on top in the morning. [1]

The issue with Seacrest, according to insiders, is not whether he could get the gig, but whether he would take it. The full time hosting job would mean that Seacrest would have to leave his beloved Los Angeles and move to New York, which he is apparently loathe to do. [1]

On the flip side of that, Ryan mentioned a long time ago on his radio show that he was considering moving to NYC at one point (though we don’t know how serious he was being), and there were unconfirmed rumors that Ryan was looking at apartments in NYC a little while back.

The story broken by the Wall Street Journal refers to preliminary discussions, with nothing confirmed yet other than talks between Ryan and NBCUniversal are actually taking place.

NBC executives—including “Today” show executive producer Jim Bell, NBC News President Steve Capus and its senior vice president for marketing and communications, Lauren Kapp—met with Mr. Seacrest on Tuesday evening to discuss him joining the show. To be sure, the talks are preliminary and could fall apart at any time. [2]

A spokeswoman for Mr. Seacrest declined to comment on the “Today” show talks but said that negotiations with NBCUniversal about Mr. Seacrest’s deal are ongoing. NBC declined to comment. Mr. Lauer’s agent didn’t return calls. [2]

The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that the meeting referred to by the Wall Street Journal took place, but not that it was specifically about the Today show, pointing out that Ryan’s current agreement with E! ends early next year.

Making the chatter that much more intense is the fact that Seacrest’s rich contract with E!, where he is currently lead anchor and managing editor of E! News, is up in early 2012, and his rep confirms his negotiations with E! parent NBCUniversal are ongoing. [3]

As yet, there’s not much speculation about how Ryan could fit his radio show in with a move to New York. We know he can, and does, broadcast from places other than LA, but doing that to fit around other Idol and other commitments and broadcasting remotely on a regular basis are two very different things.

With his ever-increasing success behind-the-scenes, our main hope every time we hear about a new round of discussions is just that whatever Ryan decides will result in us seeing and hearing more of him, not less!

[1] NBC Woos Ryan Seacrest As Possible Matt Lauer Replacement For Today Show
[2] NBC Courts Seacrest for ‘Today’
[3] Ryan Seacrest Meets With NBC About Replacing Matt Lauer on ‘Today’

Ryan’s latest movie is out this weekend and Ellen got a few details from Ryan about his scene. Seeing Ryan on the big screen is very cool, but next time we need him to take a leap from cameo to leading man.

When is Ryan bringing out his own scent? It’s about time!

Ryan’s on a house-cleaning kick right now. We already know he cleaned out the pantry the other day (first on purpose, and second because he wanted to try everything he’d bought), and now he’s extended the sorting and organizing to shoes, drawers and his keychain. Ryan has a few stray keys but Ellen found an entire set of keys in her purse!

Ryan definitely doesn’t recommend saving the first kiss for marriage. His first kiss was before his growth spurt … and it involved a Watermelon Jolly Rancher and a hall pass. Ryan claimed ‘no issue’ with the kiss, but he’d moved onto another girl by the time he started his Little Mermaid viewing parties.

At first it was fun when Ryan was talking about eating all the peanut butter, ice cream, pretzels, and canned tuna (wait, what?) but after a while it starts to get old. Not having coffee ice cream gets old! There’s not much I wouldn’t do for a tub of coffee ice cream right now … I wonder how many people ended up going for ice cream today because of Ryan. With the non-existent level of self-control he’s showing today, it’s amazing he stays so slim!

Ryan called his mom to find out the name of a store that sells pretzel cones, and then talked about the dessert Connie makes for his birthday: fudge bottom ice cream. He sure has a sweet tooth! It’d be funny if he wasn’t making us all crave sugar along with him.

Ryan’s pantry sounds like an Aladdin’s Cave full of bad things to tempt Ryan. And boy is he tempted! After hearing exactly what — and how much — Ryan was eating last night, Ellen thinks he is having a sympathy hormone cycle. She has a point … what guy eats all the ice cream and half the peanut butter and lives to tell the tale.

Never let it be said that Ryan takes his job lightly.

@RyanSeacrest: just ran into @sofiavergara #jajaja

Ryan attended the premiere of New Year’s Eve yesterday evening, so we got to enjoy the novel experience of watching him interviewed on the red carpet for a change! Who’s going to see the movie this weekend just because Ryan’s in it?

Ryan just gets better and better with every passing day! A couple of days ago, he posted an old photo with Britney when she was On Air, then a photo of him with Nick Cannon this weekend at Jingle Ball. Wow. Ryan was cute enough before, but the way he’s aged you can just see he’s always going to be blessed with good looks.

@RyanSeacrest: Happy birthday @britneyspears... 7 years and so many frosted tips later, we're both finally 30!

Not only did a lot of people believe Ryan when he said he’s 30, but several commented that he looks good for it! All that moisturizing with wasp entrails (or whatever the current fad is) is clearly paying off!

@RyanSeacrest: Just ran into @nickcannon.. he said he's so sick of people calling him the black ryan seacrest lol

Sure he is! Anyone would hate to be compared to this generation’s most talented and iconic TV host, radio personality, producer, entrepreneur, philanthropist, future president (why not!) and all-round pretty boy handsome dude. Even someone with a résumé as impressive as Nick Cannon’s! Wait … Ryan’s not black?

It’s tough to be Ryan. He wants a set of emoticons as manly as he is so he can express himself properly via text, but when it comes to laughing … well, there are no short cuts.

Ryan’s thinking about getting a scooter. It sounds like he’s worried certain models might be a little too girly for him, but he doesn’t want to go for the obvious.

“People would expect to see me on a motorcycle”

Well, he does have a point. When I think of Ryan, I think leathers and a Harley. Wait, that almost works…

Moisturizing is an issue for Ryan. He doesn’t like doing it, and he’s not comfortable asking other guys what they’re putting around their eyes. But he wants to know.

There are some gifts a guy shouldn’t give to or receive from a girl he’s not dating. It doesn’t sound like Ryan agrees with some of the things on the list, and the rules keep changing … or maybe he just gets a free pass.

Ryan has the scoop on how Lady Gaga, Big Time Rush and others will prepare for Jingle Ball, but Ellen smells a rat.

It’s Secret Santa time at On Air. Ryan’s not quite sure whose name he’s drawn, but he’s got to come up with something they’ll like for just $25. That sounds like a challenge. He may just do a little decoupage …

Ryan winds up on hold waiting to speak to a sales associate. His and Ellen’s filler while they’re waiting is hilarious, and probably better than the actual call would have been!

Ellen had sleaze on two people Ryan knows: a guy who’s in Ryan’s house a lot and a girl whose bathroom Ryan can see right into from his house. Clear? Oddly, that all makes perfect sense.

By the end of the show, Ryan’s fending off the effects of too much coffee!

Jingle Ball is this weekend. On Monday Ryan will be talking to Lady Gaga and next week he’ll also be talking about first kisses.

Life goes by quickly, as does December! Ryan’s already 70, so Ellen wants to know about the grandchildren…