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Well...this is awkward. When Allison Williams appeared on NBC's Late Night Thursday, Seth Meyers had to ask the actress about how it feels to have photo agencies constantly misidentify her brother, SportsNet New York anchor Douglas Williams, for her husband, College Humor founder Ricky Van Veen. "This happens 100 percent of the time," said Allison, daughter of journalist Brian Williams. "Directly before this photo was taken, we all said in unison, 'This is Doug Williams, not Ricky Van Veen. This is my brother, not my husband.' The photographers all said, 'That's not our job.'" Try as he might, not even Seth could ignore Douglas and Ricky's uncanny resemblance....

ImpactWrestling.com

Tna’s annual Maximum Impact tour is just around the corner, and as they have done in the past, the company has announced that they are giving a homegrown British star the opportunity to shine in front of a worldwide audience. In the past, this has been a path into the promotion for stars like Doug Williams, Mark Haskins and Magnus and has been a proving ground for British Bootcamp contestants like Rockstar Spud, Mandrews and Marty Scurll.

Tna have announced three candidates for fans to vote for, with the winner of the fan vote being added to the roster for this year’s tour. They have chosen wisely, selecting Jimmy Havoc, Will Ospreay and Big Damo. The British independent wrestling scene has arguably never been hotter, with promotions selling out venues large and small across the country. Tna have selected three very different wrestlers, all of whom...

There’s an episode of Doug where the kid in khaki shorts goes to see a creature feature everyone is excited about, except he’s too scared to keep his eyes open when the monster appears. While his classmates are all raving about how terrifying it was, Doug fakes his way through the conversations and retreats to confront the question of what’s worse: his fear of lying to fit in or his fear of something fake on a movie screen. Eventually he works up the courage to see the movie again, and when the monster appears, he keeps his eyes uncovered to find that you can clearly see the zipper on a horrendous rubber costume. Everyone else was pretending, too, and the entire tale gets an Emperor’s New Monster Suit spin about following the crowd. Over the weekend, Neill Blomkamp showed us a monster without the rubber suit. He...

Ever since the company’s initial announcement, Global Force Wrestling has been making waves — whether it’s by teasing new talent, hyping inter-promotional agreements, or hinting at possible television deals. Well, a new deal has been signed, and this time Jeff Jarrett is focusing on acquiring even more international talent for his promotion.

As discussed in a previous article, Gfw has already agreed to talent exchange programs with both New Japan Pro Wrestling and Mexico’s Aaa — two of the largest international promotions around. On the heels of those established deals, Jarrett’s company released an official press statement detailing further talent exchange programs on July 24th.

Gfw has officially announced agreements to exchange talent with various European promotions. In all, five different promotions were reported to have inked deals with Gfw. Revolution Pro Wrestling and New Generation Wrestling — both covering various parts of England — have agreed to work with Gfw,...

Oscar Sunday is three months from today, March 2, 2014 and this year, it’s anyone’s game. The Academy has a history of playing up all the glamour and suspense, and this year should be no different.

As of today, Gold Derby‘s Top 5 Best Picture predictions for the 86th Academy Awards are: 12 Years A Slave, Gravity, Saving Mr. Banks, Captain Phillips and American Hustle.

Hit Fix’s Top 5 are: Gravity, 12 Years A Slave, Saving Mr. Banks, Captain Phillips and Inside Llewyn Davis.

In what’s classic TV, take a look at the opening of the 43rd Academy Awards in 1971, featuring an introduction by Academy President Daniel Taradash.

The big A-listers of the day all appeared at the Oscars – Goldie Hawn, Jeanne Moreau, Melvyn Douglas, Ryan O’Neal, Leigh Taylor-Young, George Segal, Jennifer Jones, Lee Grant, Maximilian Schell, Ginger Rogers, Jack Nicholson, Ali McGraw, Robert Evans, Quincy Jones, Sally Kellerman, Jim Brown,...

Concept Art by Allen Williams Concept Art by Doug Williams Pacific Rim Synopsis - When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes-a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)-who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse. Pacific Rim...

Sure it took Susan Lucci ("All My Children") and Jeanne Cooper ("The Young and the Restless") multiple nominations over decades before they won a Daytime Emmy.  But their dreams were eventually realized.  Consider those stalwarts of daytime drama who toil for decades without ever taking home a trophy from the TV academy.  Susan Seaforth made her debut on "Days of Our Lives" 45 years ago. She took over the role of Julie Olson after three others had played the part for a short time since being introduced in 1965. Seaforth went on to fall in love with her leading man Bill Hayes who joined the show in 1970 to play Doug Williams.  The pair married on both the show and in real-life in 1974 and were the first supercouple on daytime TV, even landing on the cover of Time. And they found themselves in the Emmys spotlight as well -- she contended unsuccessfully for Best Actress four times (1975, 1976, 1978, 1979) whil.

Rinko Kikuchi as Jaeger pilot Mako Mori, in the Gypsy Danger Conn-pod. The actors do not actually control the Conn-pod apparatus; puppeteers from Legacy FX worked off camera to control the rigs. The Jaegers deploy to protect Hong Kong. Center: Russian Jaeger Cherno Alpha. Right: Chinese Jaeger Crimson Typhoon. A third Jaeger deploys in the distance. Charlie Hunnam in the Gypsy Danger pilot suit. Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) enters the Conn-pod of Jaeger Gypsy Danger wearing his second-generation pilot suit. Raleigh is Gypsy Danger's once-and-future pilot. Rinko Kikuchi on the Gypsy Danger Conn-pod set. Guillermo del Toro embraces star Rinko Kikuchi on the set of “Pacific Rim.” Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) makes her first appearance in “Pacific Rim.” Mako and Raleigh become Gypsy Danger's pilots as the Kaiju War plays out its endgame. Keyframe art of Cherno Alpha guarding the Russian coast. Artist: Doug Williams Final concept art of Gypsy Danger.

Hands up if you remember the WCW Invasion angle back when WWE owner Vince McMahon bought the failing company back in 2001. Now hands up if you were happy with the way Vince and co. handled the whole storyline. Not many of you I’ll bet. What could easily have been the biggest angle in the history of professional wrestling turned into a massive vanity project for the company’s head honcho who outright refused to see those boys from “Dubbya See Dubbya” get the better of any of his creations. It was a huge mistake.

A decade has passed since the horrible Invasion PPV and no one cares to discuss it. Plenty of ex-wcw guys recovered from the failed Invasion (Booker T for example) but many more just faded away into obscurity or simply did not take part (Kevin Nash, Hulk Hogan, Goldberg, Sting). But what if a similar angle...

The brand-new issue 204 of Total Film magazine has revealed two pieces of concept art from Guillermo Del Toro‘s upcoming ‘rock-’em-sock-’em robots vs monsters’ movie, Pacific Rim. This awesome work is created by concept artist Doug Williams and reveals the pride of Mother Russia Cherno Alpha Jaeger as well as the Temple Skull, probably made from a dead giant monster – Kaiju, but it’s created to showcase mood, so there’s no guarantee if the scenes are actually in the movie. Summer popcorn extravaganza opens in 3D on July 12th, 2013 and stars Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Ron Perlman, Robert Kazinsky, Max...

Concept art can sometimes be a mixed bag. In many cases - particularly when it comes to big sci-fi or action adventures - the pieces can be totally mindblowing and cool, but it can sometimes turn to disappointment when the final cut of the film bares very little resemblance to that what was initially promised through illustrations. Only time will tell if that will be the case Guillermo del Toro and the upcoming Pacific Rim, but for now what we have are some pretty damn cool paintings. In their latest issue, Total Film has unveiled two never-before-seen pieces of concept art for the giant monsters vs. giant robots blockbuster, and have been kind enough to release both of them online. The works were made by Doug Williams and seem to show two very different scenes from the film. The first is set in some kind of winter environment and is...

Yes, we've already seen a trailer for Guillermo del Toro's epic blockbuster Pacific Rim. And while there was plenty of monster and robot action to ogle, it was still just a tease, especially since the movie doesn't come out until July. Now a couple new pieces of concept art have emerged, and it's clear why Legendary Pictures wanted in on this giant sci-fi project. These two pieces from artist Doug Williams give a bit of scale to the humans compared to the Jaeger robots, and also highlight a Skull Temple, which looks to be the remnants of a Kaiju killed many years ago and now is part of an underground, urban environment. Look! Here's the concept art from Guillermo del Toro's Pacific Rim via Total Film: Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth) is directing Pacific Rim from a script by Travis Beacham. The film follows a washed up...

Ok, ‘Pacific Rim,’ you look like Rock-Em-Sock-Em robots meet Godzilla and – honestly – that’s enough to reel me in.

Sure, I would have liked to have seen more of the film earlier so I could be this excited as of last July. But I didn’t slit anyone’s throat to get into Hall H and apparently, that was my mistake.

Total Film has the exclusive concept art from Doug Williams. One shows just how big a Jaeger (the robot) is as he towers over some sort of secure Russian facility. The other shows, like, a Skull Temple, probably made from a dead Kaiju (giant monster). Which seems odd because the Pacific Rim trailers thus far made it seem like Kaiju attacks are fairly new, so I’m interested to see if the Asian metropolis shown built around this skull adapted to it or if the skull predates the city.

Two pieces of, quite gorgeous, concept art from Guillermo del Toro's Pacific Rim has been revealed via Total Film.  Head inside for a look.

The first piece of artwork, by Doug Williams, features a giant skull in a city landscape.  The second finds a Jaeger standing watch by a snowy harbor.

Opening in 3D, 2D and IMAX 3D theaters on July 12th, the film stars Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Ron Perlman, Robert Kazinsky, Max Martini, Clifton Collins, Jr., Burn Gorman, Larry Joe Campbell, Brad William Henke and Diego Klattenhoff. When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity's resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge.

The X Division was once the best thing on television. These days it’s a watered down shell of it’s former self. Things were on the up with Austin Aries as champion which has ultimately led to him fighting for the World Heavyweight title in a PPV main event. Can you believe it? We can’t! Not from the company that pushed an enfeebled Jeff Hardy over Aj Styles.

So without further ado we look once more into our crystal ball and give you our thoughts on Tna Destination X 2012.

Dakota Darsow Vs Rubix Vs Lars Only Vs Mason Andrews – Last Chance 4 Way

Kudos to Tna for bringing in some exciting talents for this tournament and not just throwing Robbie E into the mix because they don’t have a decent X Division roster anymore, but surely there could have been a few better choices than the ones they...

The first issue of the zombie anthology comic series Zombie Terrors has been released on digital formats. The original trade paperback was released in 2010, but Zombie Terrors has now been picked up as an ongoing series. We have more information on the recent release, along with the cover art and a 6-page preview:

“Zombie Terrors (ongoing series) is an anthology of the undead. It gathers together artists and writers from all over the world to have their hand at everyone’s favorite brain eaters. Issues 1-5 will feature content form the Zombie terrors Tpb released in 2010, and issues 6 and on will feature all new content.

Zombie Terrors will also be available on Comixology. Comics+ (Iverse), Graphicly, Diamond Digital as well as stand alone apps and epubs on KindleFire, Nook, Kobo, ibookstore, and Googlebooks.

Zombie Terrors #1 is a morbid flesh rotting collection of zombie tales. Featuring an international cast of artistic talent.

Tna Impact! February 9th 2012!

The UK “Invasion” continues, with a cross promotional opening video package with Star Wars. Because Garrett vs. Eric is just like Luke vs. Vader. Never does a week go past that Tna doesn’t surprise me. Last weeks crowd in the UK made the show seem ten times more important, so lets hope for more of the same on Tna Star Wars Night in association with Episode One in 3D.

First out is Jabba the Hutt. Or Bully Ray as hes known. Bully doesn’t want to talk to Anyone but his “Close, personal friend” Bobby Roode and he’s clearly pissed with him. Roode obliges and Ray meets him in the ramp to shout at him. “Where the hell have you been for Me!?” Crowd are all over both of them as Bully wants to know why he doesn’t have his back. “You’ve...

"The Battle" is an inside look at the Hbcu (Historically Black College and University) Marching Bands, which will return for its second season with five 30-minute shows over five straight weeks, every Thursday from Nov. 10 to Dec. 8, on Espnu. This year the series will focus on the training, discipline, heart, soul and sweat of the Grambling State University Tiger Marching Band. .You can.t talk about Grambling State University football, without talking about the Grambling State Band. said the school.s head football coach Doug Williams, featured in the Nov. 10 debut.The Battle reflects a glimpse into the rivalry and tradition that dates back decades and defines Hbcu bands, like the Gsu Tiger Marching Band. Established in 1926, with 17-members,...

It's funny, every time I'm feeling down – or just need a break – YouTube becomes my first port of call. For the sake of this opening, let's say I spend just 30 minutes a day on YouTube; that equates to 210 minutes a week, and 840 minutes a month. Now, let's assume I live till I'm 80, forever continuing my 30 minutes a day routine. If my calculations – well, my calculator's calculations – are correct, then I will have spent 594,720 minutes (or 413 days) of my life on YouTube. Scary stuff.

However, if it's 413 days of content as good as this, then I consider it time well spent...

5. The Chaser’s War on Everything: Americans

If you are lucky enough to live in Australia, you definitely already know about this brilliant comedy show. And if you live in the UK, perhaps you might have stumbled upon some episodes on the BBC’s iPlayer service a few years back.

A cast of familiar faces in the low budget, no budget indie horror world including Joe Zamora, Tina Grimm, Robert S. Miller, Roger Conners, Eman Khwaja, Kelsey Zukowski, Janine Sarnowski, Shawn C. Phillips, Kaylee Williams and Desiree Saetia star in director Eddie Lengyel's The Melon Heads. 

The Melon Heads was shot this past summer and is currently in post production. It was made on a budget of just $10,000! The film is a production of Fright Teck Pictures which is also responsible for Hellweek and Voodoo Rising. 

Official Plot Synopsis: As summer in Ohio draws to a close, four friends prepare to move forward with their lives and take their first steps into adulthood. Griff (Joe Zamora) is about to propose to his girlfriend Riley (Tina Grimm) as his best friend Dean (Robert Miller) debates on ending his relationship with Audrey (Eman Khwaja), who is about to move across the country to start her career.

Five designs for what was alleged to be early concept designs for the Space Jockey alien race we'll see more of in the Alien prequel movie have been making the rounds across movie news websites. As groovy as you might find this alien art, I'm here to tell you that these aren't legit.

The story emerged first on Script Flags. As the site's reporter explained in their article, the designs were sent in by a reader who explained to them that they came from the Alien prequel design team. Without any means to authenticate the artwork, Script Flags was careful to note that its authenticity remained in doubt, and that they would wait to see if 20th Century Fox asked them to remove the artwork from their site.

(Fox has been known to be very trigger happy and send out cease and desist letters to movie websites, asking them to...

Showtime's Kiki Melendez. Hot Tamales Live! is Thursday, December 9 at 7:30pm at The Hollywood Improv. Showtime's Hot Tamales Live will be in performance for one night only at the Hollywood Improv. The sexy, spicy smart comics will knock your socks off with an All-Star Cast!! Booked are New York City's Sara Contreras and Edgar Rivera; Monique Marvez from Showtime.s Latin Divas; Nadine Rajabi from Showtime.s Hot Tamales Live; Ludo Vika from Que Locos Comedy Jam and Douglas Williams from Starz Television .First Amendment;. all are in the house. The Hollywood Improv is at 8162 Melrose Ave in Hollywood CA 90046 Doors Open at 7:00Dinner Reservations available323-651-2583 or www.improv.com...

Photo by Pop Culture Passionistas

In 1968, 43-year-old actor Bill Hayes joined the cast of thesoap opera Days of Our Livese. Little did he know how important a decision thatwould be. He’d earn two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Actor in a DaytimeDrama Series playing Doug Williams, stay on the show for over 40 years andcounting, and most importantly found the love of his life.

Now that last part might sound like a made up soap storyline but it isn’t.

The same year that Bill signed on to Days, a 25-year-oldactress named Susan Seaforth joined the cast, playing Julie Williams.On-screen, Doug and Julie fell in love and became daytime’s first supercouple.Off-screen, Bill and Susan married in 1974.

They became so popular they actually appeared on the coverof Time magazine in 1975. And, when Doug and Julie wed on camera, theyexchanged the same vows as the real-life couple had on their big day.

Martin Lawrence is returning for another season of his stand-up comedy series "Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand-Up." The fifth season features a new host and a fresh line-up of comics.

Comedienne Sheryl Underwood will host the new season, filmed before a live audience at The Chicago Theater.

The show will feature rising and season comedy stars such as Sandra Bernhard, Jimmi "J.J." Walker, Roz G., D'Militant, Schruncho, Darren Carter, Pierre, Jay Phillips, Melanie Comarcho, Ian Edwards, Chocolate, Damon Williams, and Deon Cole, who will also serve as guest host for two episodes.

Lawrence and previous host Doug Williams, serve as executive produces.

Showtime network's Original Latin Divas' star Monique Marvez will join comic impresario Kiki Melendez' latest Hot Tamales revue, also featuring Thea Vidale, Rick Najera, Nadine Rajabi, Douglas Williams III, and Joey Vega at the famous Conga Room in Los Angeles on June 12. Marvez is just off her Fox Sports en Espanol mobile upfront junket and East coast comedy tour, Vidale is appearing on Comedy Central Premium Blend and Howard Stern, Najera is performing Daddy Diaries: Diary of a Dad Man at the Covina Center for the Performing Arts, Rajabi has a hot radio show, "Nadine @ Nite", which can be heard on National Lampoon Comedy Radio on Xm Channel 154 and Vega is producing and starring in...

Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand-Up will return to the Starz network for a fifth season, and will have a new host in Sheryl Underwood. Original host Doug Williams will continue to serve as executive producer of the show.

The show, said to be the network’s longest-running original series, is scheduled to premiere in October, later this year.

Performances for this, the 5th season, will tape May 13-16 in front of live audiences at the Chicago Theatre, with comedians scheduled to appear in the series including Deon Cole, Roz G, D’Militant, Scruncho, Darren Carter, Pierre, Jay Phillips, Melanie Comarcho, Ian Edwards, Chocolate and Damon Williams.

I’d be lying if I said I was familiar with every single one of these names.

Last year, before the start of the show’s 3rd (or was it 4th) season, I was asked to watch and review a set of preview...

As we reported several weeks ago, comedian Doug Williams, who is the co-creator and Executive Producer and former Host of the Martin Lawrence 1st Amendment Show on Starz, stepped aside as the Host of the show as it begins filming its fifth season.

At that same time, our sources disclosed that the show’s producers were thinking about replacing Williams with a new female host that would bring a different flavor to the show. Today we found out what that flavor is as our sources have told us that the New host of the show is comedian Sheryl Underwood!

Underwood, a former host of Bet’s Comic View and current radio personality of the Tom Joyner Morning Show and The FOXXhole, is not unfamiliar to hosting and is expected to bring a different spin to the show.

Anyway, the Martin Lawrence 1st Amendment Show is one of the highest rated...

Today our sources have told us that comedian Doug Williams, who is the co-creator and Executive Producer and Host of the Martin Lawrence 1st Amendment Show that has run on the Starz Network for the last four years, is stepping aside as the Host of the show as it begins filming it’s fifth season.

Our sources have also disclosed that the show’s producers is possibly thinking about replacing Williams with a new female host that would bring a different flavor to the show.

It should be noted here that the sources stated that is was Williams' decision to step aside and that since he is still involved in many aspects of the show, it looks like he thought it was time for him to step aside and bring in something new and fresh to the show. As a matter of fact, if you recall, at the end of...

We just discovered that the Starz Network's Martin Lawrence's 1st Amendment, that has been shooting for the last four years, is gearing up for another season as they are recruiting comedinas for this upcoming season.

But the biggest news is going to be if they are going to bring back comedian Doug Williams, (who was the original host of the show) as there have been rumors that Williams may not return to the show. Add all that up, plus we hear that the producers are looking for an up- and coming comedian to host  the new season is stirring up a lot of rumors in the comedy world.

So, if this story is true we will reveal the Host once we confirm the story and as the story develops.

Questions or comments? Please email us at the thehumormill.info@gmail.com...

We just discovered Comedy Central will showcase a new batch of comedians in the 14th season of Comedy Central Presents, opening February 19 with two back-to-back 30 minute episodes starting at 11Pm. Prior to the season debut, the network will air a special 30 minute sneak preview of Comedy Central Presents Best of 2010 on February 12th at midnight. During the new 14th season, filmed at Gerald W. Lynch Theater in New York City, two episodes will air weekly at 11Pm and 11:30Pm featuring stand-up performances by comedians such as Tony Rock and Doug Williams (both of who are in the premiere episodes) among many others. It should be noted that we also discovered Tony Rock filmed his performance last and is the first one to be aired. The network is very excited about his performance and thinks that Rock is a perfect start to their show.

Questions or comments? Please email us at thehumormill.

The season finale of Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand Up airs this Friday night at 11 pm. E/P on Starz. Filmed in Washington, D.C. at the historic Lincoln Theatre, .Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand-Up. is hosted by Doug Williams and features the nation.s edgiest up-and-comers as well as star comics performing before a live audience. This Starz original series is executive produced by one of America.s most popular actor/comedians, Martin Lawrence. This week is a double-header, with two episodes airing back-to-back to finish off the fourth season. Martin has rounded up a ton of comedians for the stage Friday night; Martin Lawrence 1st Amendment Stand Up: Rob Stapleton Martin Lawrence 1st Amendment Stand...

Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand Up airs Friday night on Starz at 11 p.m. E/P. This week, Starz sent Monsters and Critics great sets from Joe Clair, Darius Bradford and Hope Flood. Doug Williams is back to host the show, which features the nation.s hottest, edgiest up-and-coming talent as well as star comics. Check out http://www.starz.com/1stamendment to learn more about Martin Lawrence.s stand up comedy show and get info on all of the featured comedians. Here is some classic Darius Bradford: Here are two behind-the-scenes from this week.s show. Hope Flood Hope Flood reps the ladies Joe Clair Joe Clair tells us how he feels when he gets up on stage:...

Stars original series "Martin Lawrence Presents 1st Amendment Stand-Up" features some of the country's hottest rising comedians strutting their stuff and performing for a live audience at the historic Lincoln Theatre in Washington, D.C.

Comedian Doug Williams, the host and producer of the show, sat down with Cns for an exclusive interview. Williams discussed the upcoming shows and what it takes to make it in the cut throat industry of stand-up comedy.

When asked about what Williams likes best about being involved with a show that is dedicated to stand up comedians, Williams replied, "What I like most about it is giving comedians that might not ever had the opportunity to showcase themselves on a national level that opportunity because a lot of these comedians we kind of plucked out of the comedy clubs from the urban underground. You might not see them on a late night show or a primetime show.

A couple of weeks ago, the news broke that Martin Lawrence was about to jump into television again in a new animated series for the Fox network based on his experiences growing up in Washington D.C., plus a one is a single-camera series for the Starz Network that revolves around an interracial family.

Well it looks like that there is more up Lawrence's sleeve in the film area also. Our sources have discovered that Lawrence and his production company, Runtelldat Productions, have begun to develop one of his successful franchise films, Big Momma’s House 3. The film series revolves around Lawrence’s character as an FBI agent who disguises himself as an old lady to protect a beautiful federal witness and her son. No word yet if actress Nia Long will reprise her role in the film.

Speaking of television, don’t forget to check out Martin Lawrence...

Cable TV in New York is gearing up for war - a long one.

Verizon got the final go-ahead last week from New York State to build a high-speed fiber-optic network in the city over the next six years.

It is, in effect, the first competition - other than satellite - that the city's two cable monopolies, Time Warner and Cablevision, have had for TV service in the city's 3.3 million homes.

And, at least for the moment, it's a win-win situation for customers who will now be able to seek the best deal.

Cable subscribers in other cities where cable TV wars have...