Watching The View

On today’s show, a lucky audience member, Natalie from Long Island, got to sit in as the fourth host. She is the mother of three, about to be a grandmother, while planning her other daughter’s sweet 16 party. She said that it will not be as extravagant as those over-the-top parties on MTV’s My Super Sweet 16.

Rosie O’Donnell announced excitedly that her son 11 year-old son Parker finally got a good parent/teacher conference report and then confetti fell from the ceiling in celebration. Rosie said that while Parker was liked by his teachers, he used to often get into trouble because “he thinks he is funny” and is “opinionated and thinks he is right,” which prompted his teachers to tell Rosie that he takes after her. Rosie has mentioned previously that her three older children, including Parker, attend a private school that prohibits the children from watching television in the home. As a result, although they do occasionally watch DVDs or sporting events, the children do not regularly watch television.

Regis Philbin appeared on the show. Rosie said that she has been causing a lot of controversy in his life, first with the Kelly Ripa feud and, she said “your friend,” then flipping her hair a little to simulate Donald Trump’s comb-over. Regis recounted how he and Rosie went to see Barbra Streisand in concert at Madison Square Garden and then got to meet with Barbra backstage. When it was time to leave, all the doors had been locked and they couldn’t get out of the arena. He finally told someone that if they didn’t unlock the door, Rosie would break through it.

Heroes star Sendhil Ramamurthy also appeared on the show. Sendhil, who plays geneticist Mohinder Suresh on the show, said that everyone in his family is a doctor, including both of his parents. They had some reservations when he abandoned his own plans for medical school and turned to acting, although now he plays on doctor on television, so that is close. The switch to acting came after he took an introduction to acting class at Tufts University, in order to complete an arts credit to balance out his pre-med course work. After that, he was hooked on acting and he went to drama school in London, and then was a part of the World Shakespeare Company.

He said that when he initially went to the audition for Heroes they were casting for an actor to play an older geneticist. When he arrived at the audition, he was among a slew of men in their 50s, while he is only 30. He said that there was no pressure in the audition, because he knew he was wrong for the role of a 50 year-old man. After his audition, the producers of the show were so impressed that they re-wrote the role for a younger geneticist, the character he now plays. The role of the older doctor ended up being his character’s father, who was killed at the start of the season.

Sendhil said that the popularity of Heroes even stretches to Europe. On a recent holiday hiatus, he traveled to Europe. While he was admiring the Sistine Chapel, two German tourists came up to him, asking to take his picture. He thought that it was funny, given that they were in the presence of one of the most beautiful works of art in the world, yet they wanted his photograph.

Sendhil offered some insight into what will be coming up on future episodes. He said that he knows which hero will be killed in an upcoming episode, because they have already filmed it. Of course he would not reveal who it will be. He also said that the audience will see some good out of HRG, the adopted father of the cheerleader, in an upcoming episode. He added that more new characters with new powers will be continuously added. For more on Heroes, visit Watching Heroes.

Heroes, The View, Sendhil Ramamurthy, Rosie O’Donnell, Regis Philbin