The first couple of American Idol embark on a new adventure today, as the hosts of Planet 360, premiering on the Hallmark Movie Channel at 12 noon EST and PST. Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young, who have set their wedding date for June 1 after a live proposal on last May’s season finale of Idol, will anchor the new pop culture series.
Planet 360 was formed when David McKenzie from Associated Television International approached DeGarmo and Young about hosting the new show. DeGarmo had just returned from the pre-Broadway engagement of the new musical Nerds in North Carolina and with one day’s notice, flew to Las Vegas to meet with Planet Hollywood founder Robert Earl at his hotel on the strip, home base for the new series. “Even though we are based at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, the show is called Planet 360 so we cover the entire planet whether it’s entertainment in New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Hong Kong or London,” says DeGarmo. “We cover it all.”
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Segments in the first show include an on-set visit with Don Cheadle and the cast of House of Lies, originating from the Nobu restaurant at Caesars Palace, and an interview with Lance Bass about his weeknight SiriusXM show, Dirty Pop.
Correspondents on the new Hallmark TV series include Steven “Cojo” Cojocaru for fashion and Sam Rubin for motion pictures. Segments include “Soap Dish,” featuring a trio of rotating soap stars to talk about prime time and daytime soaps and “Geek Peek.” “I’m a true nerd,” says Young. “We’ll look at subjects like how the same director can do Star Wars and Star Trek and the conflict that has fans of both franchises divided.”
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This is not the first show where Young conducts interviews. Along with Jillian Reynolds, Young was the host of the fourth and final season of American Idol Extra, an “after-Idol” show that aired on the now-defunct Fox Reality Channel. Both Young and DeGarmo have been interviewed hundreds of times ever since they competed on American Idol. “I’ve had the most amazing interviews and I’ve done interviews that were so bad, I was embarrassed to be interviewed,” says DeGarmo. “I’ve seen both sides of the coin. But I’m genuinely curious about people, I want to know what makes them tick, what makes them excited and what makes them sad, and bring that to our show.”
“It’s amazing doing this show because I’m able to work with my fiancée,” says Young. “It’s our show together and that’s a dream come true. All I want to do for the rest of my life is be with Diana 24/7. We’re creative people and we love to work together.”
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