Yes, Chris "Boomer" Beachum and I gobble up our deserved servings of cold crow and humble pie for our stupid prediction that "Tudors" would make the Top 10, even, egads, the final five. Listen to us chew over the rest of the lists, too — CLICK HERE to Download the MP3 File! (NOTE: You may need to hold down your computer's Control key while clicking!)

Photo: Boomer (left) and me in the lobby of the Beverly Hilton Hotel during the Golden Globes last January.

Memo to those dutiful TV showbizzers giving up their time to endure the drudgery of sitting on judging panels at the Academy of TV Arts & Sciences headquarters and the Beverly Hilton Hotel: Are you aware that your vote only counts half as much as last year?

That's because ATAS chiefs decided that the solution to all Emmy ills — the way to fix the voting procedure once and for all — was to use the same process used on "Dancing with the Stars"!

That's right! After you're done spending grueling hours watching a sample episode from all 10 contenders for best drama and comedy series, academy accountants plan to reduce the importance of your vote by one half. Last year your vote counted fully toward determining the five nominees per category, of course, but you were a naughty judge. You didn't pick "Lost" for best drama series and now can't be trusted fully.

Never mind "Lost" producers submitted an episode sample full of dangling plot lines ("Man of Science, Man of Faith") that made no sense to judges who aren't regular viewers of the series. Producers were SUPPOSED to submit their BEST episode of the year, which TV Guide said was the Tailies one. Conveniently, that eppy happened to have a self-contained, sensible story line that probably would've resulted in a nomination for best drama series and maybe even a win.

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When Mary-Louise Parker joined us for a chat session on Saturday, we were able to give her the good news that "Weeds" was in the Top 10 comedy series being screened by judges at the TV academy. (Later in the day, after the chat, we learned that she made it into the Top 10 rundown for best comedy actress and relayed that news via her reps.) When we asked her about how she feels portraying a controversial, pot-peddling suburban mom on TV, she said, "I feel like I wouldn't want to play a character that was only lovable and above reproach. I don't know if that mother exists. That said, she could have gotten a job at the Gap. But then I wouldn't have a job." READ MORE BELOW. (Special thanks to MicheBel for editing this transcript.)

Mary-Louise Parker: hi everyone

Kams: Hi, Mary. Greetings from Brazil.

Tom O'Neil: Did you hear that Weeds made the Top 10 finalists for the Emmys?

Kudos to our pal Edward Douglas of Comingsoon.net for predicting the rapturous reviews for "Ratatouille." Two weeks ago, he told me just how good this movie was and he predicted that the critics would fall for it too. Read his early review here.

With these glowing notices, Pixar could well avenge losing last year's animated feature Oscar. Although "Cars" outraced "Happy Feet" at the box office, many reviewers wondered if Pixar was running out of gas. Those same critics are now feasting on "Ratatouille," which scores a studio high of 95 on both Meta Critic and Rotten Tomatoes. If the box office is as solid as these reviews, Pixar may need to make room on the mantle for a third Oscar to join the ones won for "Finding Nemo" and ""The Incredibles."

Click here to sample the critics fare.

Though they brought together elements that made "The Hours" such a success, the producers of the critically panned "Evening" have learned, all too late, that lightning does not strike twice. Indeed, this throwback to a 'woman's picture" had many reviewers crying foul about the two hours they had just wasted with the film scoring a measly 29 at Rotten Tomatoes and a tepid 46 at Meta Critic.

While the novel by Susan Minot about the remembrances of a dying woman was lauded, this screen adaptation by "The Hours" author Michael Cunningham was loathed. Indeed, the film is notable more for the casting than the finished product. "The Hours" star Meryl Streep reunites with Vanessa Redgrave thirty years after they first appeared together in "Julia." READ MORE - CLICK HERE!

Photo: Streep and Redgrave meet up on screen again. (Focus Features)

The Roundabout revival of "Old Acquaintance," the first show of the 2007-2008 theater season, might have met with mixed reviews but most of the critics singled out star Margaret Colin for her strong performance. With the theater company's impressive track record at the Tonys, Colin could well be competing for best actress in a play next spring. Even though the awards are almost a year away, the Tony nominators have long memories. Indeed, Swoosie Kurtz got a nod this year for her appearance in the Roundabout's first play of last season, "Heartbreak House," while Kate Burton did the same in 2006 for her lead role in "The Constant Wife."

As usual, Elysa Gardner of USA Today neatly summarizes the scenario. "Margaret Colin and Harriet Harris respectively inherit the roles of Kit Markham, a respected author and confirmed bachelorette, and her lifelong friend/rival Milly Drake, a divorcee and prolific purveyor of beach reads. Kit, despite her less conventional lifestyle, which includes a young lover, is actually the sensible, grounded one, but Milly frets when her teenage daughter develops a worshipful relationship with her old buddy." For Gardner, "it's unimaginable that there could be a more ideal Kit than the criminally undervalued Colin, who at 50 exudes the kind of unfussy beauty and poise . . .

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Photo: Good thing Harriet Harris (l) already has a Tony. She cannot be laughing about the reviews for "Old Acquaintance which singled out her co-star Margaret Colin (r). (Roundabout Theater Company)

Back when this website was launched — back in the Hoover administration when it was still known as GoldDerby.com — Joel Siegel courageously accepted my invitation to be one of our first contributors. Wow! Nabbing a big name like him really put us on the cyber-map. And his acceptance really knocked me out. Why did he do it?

Frankly, I was baffled. Joel hardly knew me. I'd met him a few times when I'd been a guest on "Good Morning America," but he agreed to team up with me because he was impressed by the quality of the books I'd written on showbiz awards, he told me, so he assumed my website would be just as darn good. And he liked the whole idea of it: rounding up 9 pundits — our own Supreme Court! — at an Internet trackside to predict Oscar and Golden Globe races. What fun!

At least for a while. Joel, being a celebrity, could be, well, a bit fickle. Sometimes he'd turn on the whole idea of Oscar punditry — vehemently, like a damning evangelist — and resign from GoldDerby in a huff. When I'd ask him why, he'd get all flustered, give me lots of babbling gibberish about how Oscar punditry cheapens the whole discourse of great films. Then he'd march away from me, cutting off further discussion with an abrupt waving of hands.

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As we learn info about what contenders are among the Top 10 finalists being judged in the races for best comedy and drama series, Gold Derby will post the info all weekend. Check back for frequently breaking news. If YOU have news you'd like to impart, click on the "Comments" link below — or else speak up in our forums where there will be LOTS of buzzing all weekend long — CLICK HERE!

Please note that we are not encouraging any judges to break their confidentiality agreement with ATAS. We are, however, encouraging everyone not bound by such agreement to share what interesting gossip they may have heard. We warn our readers that Emmy info posted here this weekend is not confirmed.

""If the first six months (of 2007) are any indication, the actress race is going to be the one to watch this year," reports Variety about the new Oscar derby.

So far, Julie Christie in Lionsgate's 'Away From Her,' Marion Cotillard of Picturehouse's 'La Vie en rose' and Angelina Jolie in Paramount Vantage's 'A Mighty Heart' have earned awards buzz. Three serious contenders for five slots make for a lively start."

Read More — CLICK HERE!

Wes Anderson's "The Darjeeling Limited" will open the New York Film Festival in September. That's often a perch for Oscar takeoff, as previously proven by "The Queen," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Mystic River" and "About Schmidt," among others.

Anderson received an Oscar bid for best original screenplay of 2001 for penning "The Royal Tenenbaums," which also earned a Golden Globe for Gene Hackman as best comedy actor.

"The Darjeeling Limited" will be released by Fox Searchlight in December. It's the tale of three American brothers (Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman) who take a trip together after the death of their father and disappearance of their mom. Mayhem ensues when they get kicked off a train in India.

"One of them organized this spiritual journey for them to bond, but it really just turns into a bender," Anderson told Entertainment Weekly.