Jersey Shore

The impending end of "Jersey Shore" is not being met with silence. For those who loved the over-tanned knuckleheads and those who thought the show was the death spasm of pop culture itself, the announcement that MTV is canceling it after six seasons is bringing out many thoughts. Snooki herself confirmed the news, tweeting , "Yes, sadly it's true. This upcoming season of Jersey Shore will be our last. But it was fricken INSANE. I will always love my roomies!" "Lost" co-creator Damon Lindelof tweeted , "Snooki's baby is the Yoko of JERSEY SHORE.

During its presentation at the Television Critics Assn. press tour on Friday, MTV announced the premiere date of "Jersey Shore's" sixth season as well as the premiere dates of several other series. The GTL (that's Gym, Tan, Laundry) crowd will be back on MTV on Oct. 4. New series premieres will follow, including the comedy drama series "Underemployed" on Oct. 16; "Catfish: The TV Series," based on the controversial Sundance hit; and the second season premiere of "World of Jenks" on Nov. 12. In addition to the return of "Jersey Shore,"MTV's head of programming, David Janollari, also announced that "Snooki and JWoww," the "Jersey Shore" spinoff, and "Money From Strangers," the hidden-camera prank show hosted by Jeff Dye, will get second seasons.

After five seasons, the hit reality show"Jersey Shore"has spawned no shortage of spinoffs - towels, tanning oil, even greeting cards featuringNicole "Snooki" Polizzislurring catchphrases. Somehow a transition to the stage seems fitting, if not inevitable. "Jersey Shoresical: A Frickin' Rock Opera," playing at the Hayworth Theatre in L.A. through June 27, has all the clubbing, tanning and "smushing" ("Jersey Shore"-speak for sex) set to music, with the cast of bronzed "guidos" and "guidettes" from the TV series played by sketch comedy veterans, a Tony Award-winner and a Buttafuoco.

The once-famed Steel Pier on the long-faded Atlantic City Boardwalk will invest more than $100 million on new amusement rides and entertainment venues after scrapping plans to revive its centerpiece diving horse act amid an outcry by animal rights activists. PHOTOS: New rides at Steel Pier in Atlantic City Located across from Donald Trump's Taj Mahal casino on the New Jersey shore, the 1,000-foot-long amusement pier will add 11 rides, an arcade, nightclub, museum and ballroom during a four-year expansion project.

Viacom Inc. and CBS Corp. Chairman Sumner Redstone was etched in entertainment history Friday when he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The aging mogul's family members and some of Hollywood's most powerful executives were on hand to witness the tribute on Hollywood Boulevard, just outside the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, where the first Oscar ceremony was held. Viacom Chief Executive Philippe Dauman compared Redstone to Adolph Zukor, the visionary New York nickelodeon owner who became one of the first people to make big money in movies.

BEN BOLCH'S RANKINGS, COMMENTS THROUGH SATURDAY THE HAPPIEST DAYS OF OUR LIVES 1. CHICAGO (17-4) Bulls circle birthdays, anniversaries and rematch with Indiana on calendar. (1) 2. OKLAHOMA CITY (16-3) Seattle called; it wants its franchise back. (2) 3. MIAMI (14-5) Dwyane Wade thanks James Jones for filling in, asks who he is. (3) WISH YOU WERE HERE 4. DENVER (14-5) If signing results in that kind of output, put Danilo Gallinari on 10-day deals.

First it was artificially tanned, party-crazed Italian Americans. Now it's mud-racing, squirrel-hunting Appalachians. MTV is again at odds with state film officials who refuse to subsidize the network's latest reality TV show with tax credits. West Virginia film officials have cited MTV's unflattering depiction of state culture in "Buck Wild. " The show, scheduled to start filming next spring in Charleston and Sissonville, follows a group of recent high school graduates living in rural West Virginia as they participate in homegrown activities such as mud-racing.

A $12-million pier-spanning wooden roller coaster that will dive beneath the boardwalk and race across a cantilevered bridge before navigating a series of high-speed twists and turns is expected to open in 2013 at Morey's Piers seaside amusement park on the Jersey Shore. > Photos: New wooden coaster at Morey's Piers on Jersey Shore The Wildwood, N.J. waterfront park describes the new coaster as an "air in your face, down and dirty Jersey Shore experience. " The Morey brothers have yet to decide on a name for the new coaster: Jack likes Wildwoody while Will prefers Boardwalk Flyer.

If you're part of a reality TV show and might be famous for 15 minutes, tops, it's probably best to cash in while you can. But what if you're not a breakout star on the Kim Kardashian level? No worries. Blue-chip national advertisers, nightclub promoters and book publishers still want you. And they're willing to fork over real money — sometimes six figures and up — for your recognizable face. While the Kardashian klan is pulling down a reported $65 million annually and "Jersey Shore's" Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino banked as much as $5 million last year alone, lesser players in the reality show game are riding their relative popularity to notable financial gain.

For MTV, the situation was more than awkward . In fall 2008, the network was bingeing on manufactured reality shows that celebrated wealth and excess just as the country was staggering into a recession. Banks were failing, people were losing their jobs and college students were facing uncertain futures. But on MTV, the glamorous clique from "The Hills" was indulging in West Hollywood shopping trips and getaways to Cabo San Lucas. And on "My Super Sweet 16," the parents of a South Carolina beauty queen spent tens of thousands of dollars to give her the perfect birthday party, complete with a baby-blue Hummer.