When the sun sets, the ultimate underground cake competition begins on new series Duff Till Dawn, premiering on Thursday, January 29th at 10:30pm ET/PT on Food Network. Host Duff Goldman’s bakery becomes a battleground after hours for two talented teams of cake decorators, as their skills and creativity are tested with challenges and twists to create the most outstanding and over-the-top cakes. Competitors must amaze rotating judges Haylie Duff (Real Girl’s Kitchen), Elena Fox (Ace of Cakes), Carrie Keagan (Television Personality), Geof Manthorne (Ace of Cakes), Catherine McCord (Guy’s Grocery Games), Alysia Reiner (Actress), Kelis Rogers (Musician and Host of Holiday Feast with Kelis), Aarti Sequeiria (Aarti Party), Kevin Smith (Writer/Director) and Sherry Yard (Cutthroat Kitchen) with the boldest, tastiest and most impressive cakes for the chance to win bragging rights and the coveted golden whisk.
“The one-of-a-kind Duff Goldman is the master of dazzling and astonishing cakes,” said Bob Tuschman, General Manager and Senior Vice President Programming, Food Network. “In Duff Till Dawn, he tests the bakers on these same talents and abilities, as well as their ability to pull all-nighters.”
The competition is anything but sweet in this six-episode series. In each episode, two new teams must outdo their competition with their special talents and original cake creations before sunrise, when only one will be crowned the winner. It is complete monster mayhem in one challenge, as the bakers race to make their creations come to life. In another episode, one team will sink and the other will swim, as they create their dream ships out of cake. Is it all smooth sailing, or are the teams headed for troubled waters? It is blast off into outer space in another challenge, where the teams must aim for the stars with gravity defying confections. In another enchanting episode, the decorators delve into the land of make believe as they are challenged to make magical fairy cakes. It is a castle clash in another challenge, where the bakers must joust for the golden whisk. Which team’s medieval manor will take the cake in this gauntlet?
Premiering Thursday, January 29th at 10:30pm ET/PT – SERIES PREMIERE!
“Monster Mayhem”
Duff Goldman challenges Kelly Zubal, queen of clean cakes, and former punk rocker, Wiley Saccheri, to bring their ultimate monster cakes to life. Will Kelly’s partnership with her husband trump Wiley’s collaboration with his mother-in-law? Can they make their cakes before the sun comes up, or will their dream monsters turn to into cake nightmares? Guest judges Haylie Duff and Geof Manthorne will help crown the team that delivers the boldest cake of the night.
Premiering Thursday, February 5th at 10:30pm ET/PT
“Cakes Ahoy!”
As the sun sets on the bakery, two teams are headed for troubled waters. Duff Goldman challenges two teams to build ship cakes before the sun comes up. Can Gonzuela Bastarache’s giant ark of cake torpedo Karolyn Plummer’s sweet galleon? Guest judges Kelis Rogers and Sherry Yard are on deck to help determine which ship will set sail, and which one will sink.
Premiering Thursday, February 12th at 10:30pm ET/PT
“Castle Clash!”
Duff Goldman pits two teams of bakers to joust for the golden whisk. Whose castle will withstand the siege of flavor: Jackie McGrath’s medieval manor, or the whimsy of Reva Alexander-Hawk’s sugary stronghold? Guest judges Sherry Yard and Alysia Reiner will answer all of these questions and crown one team victorious.
Premiering Thursday, February 19th at 10:30pm ET/PT
“Super Cake Heroes”
As the sun sets on Duff Goldman’s shop, he challenges two teams of bakers to create the best superhero cake they can before the sun comes up. Will Lachlan Oliver’s super lumenator light up the world, or will Kimberly Bailey’s super chi-weenie save a family of lady bugs from certain doom? Guest judges Geof Manthorne and Carrie Keagan will award the golden whisk to the cake that reigns supreme.
Throughout the season, fans can meet the bold pro-bakers, see photos of their fierce cake creations, and much more at FoodNetwork.com/DuffTillDawn. Fans can also tweet about the overnight battle using the hashtag #DuffTillDawn.
After graduating from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, with degrees in history and philosophy, Duff Goldman went on to study at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, California. He worked at several acclaimed culinary destinations, including French Laundry, Vail Cascade Hotel and Todd English’s Olives before returning to Baltimore in 2000 to become a personal chef. In March 2002, he opened Charm City Cakes, and it soon became a household name on the hit Food Network show Ace of Cakes, which aired for 10 seasons. Goldman served as a judge on Holiday Baking Championship and has also appeared on Donut Showdown, The Best Thing I Ever Ate, and has been featured in episodes of Iron Chef America, Food Network Star, Diners, Drive-Ins and Drives, Cupcake Wars, and Chopped. In 2011, Duff was nominated for two James Beard Foundation awards for Best TV Food Personality/Host and Best Television Program. In addition to owning and operating Charm City Cakes, Charm City Cakes West and Duff’s Cake Mix, Goldman is also a sculptor, artist, and musician, and has an affinity for wearing his signature hockey jerseys.
Duff Till Dawn is produced by Authentic Entertainment.
If you were born in the ’80s, ’90s, or literally ANY decade after those, you know about Super Mario. A cultural phenomenon was brought to life on the big screen this last weekend. One that has not only stood the test of time but reinvented itself time and time again. This wasn’t even the first time it’s been made into a movie but, well, let’s be honest.. some of us choose not to acknowledge the LIVE action adaptation of the beloved game from 30 years ago.
It was pretty bad… But this was animation. ILLUMINATION animation at that. The Universal company that brought us Gru and his Minions, showed us the Secret Life of Pets, and gave us a reason to SING! Still, I had my reservations and even some concerns, especially when the casting was announced.
Eyebrows were raised. As big of stars as they were on paper, could they really deliver on voicing characters from a staple of our childhood? They did.
Chris Pratt and Charlie Day may not be Italian, and Jack Black may not be a King or Turtle creature from the Mushroom Kingdom, but they make the characters their own all while paying homage to the lore of a video game.
From the jump, the story reintroduces us to the brothers that just want to save Brooklyn one clogged sink at a time. We feel an instant connection and relate to these “underdogs of the plumbing world”. The movie is riddled with easter eggs, each of which tugs on the heartstrings of every generation of Mario fandom. And the soundtrack was beautifully put together to not only make us feel like we’re taking a walkthrough of the game but like an experience all its own with some familiar favorites thrown in.
Every word in the movie is pure eye candy for both those that are casual fans, and those analyzing every frame to see what they’ll catch next. Bowser’s ship, the Mushroom Kingdom, Kong’s arena, and the Rainbow Road.. They’re all meant to give us just enough of a “new” look at these amazing worlds, but stay true to how we remember them.
The movie itself moves along at the perfect pace. Although, if you don’t really know ANYTHING about the Super Mario Bros, you may have gotten a little lost and felt left behind in the green tunnel. But that’s ok! It’s an adventure of the imagination and a classic story of a boy that meets a girl and tries to save the world from a monster that wants to destroy it.
What’s funny is that you could easily say this is a story about two characters who couldn’t be more opposite if they tried, battling to win the heart of a princess. Who would’ve thought that the King of the Koopas was just trying to impress his crush?
And that song? Ohhh THAT song! It’s my new ringtone and deserves the Oscar for Best Original Song.
Back to the movie.
Universal and Illumination clearly understood the assignment. Is it missing some things or could things have been done differently or even better? Absolutely! We’re the worst critics of the things we hold nearest and dearest to our hearts. But if you’re up for going on a 90-minute adventure through amazing worlds, with awesome music, and characters that’ll make you smile and laugh, then this is the perfect movie to spring you into that warm summer feeling.
Plus there’s the whole part with karts and shells, and banana peels and oh my goodness how amazing was that?? It’s enough to make you want to stand up and cheer, then go home and destroy your friends and family on your favorite track haha.
The bottom line, it pays homage in all the right ways to the little guy with the mustache, while giving us something new and exciting. Take the kids and go see Super Mario Bros. You’ll be glad you did!
Justice League x RWBY: Superheroes & Hunters Opening Act Saturday, March 25 at 1:30 p.m. on North 200A. Talent confirmed so far to participate in the post-screening panel is Natalie Alyn Lind (Big Sky, The Goldbergs, Gotham) as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince and longtime RWBY cast member Lindsay Jones (Camp Camp) as Ruby, Kara Eberle ( RWBY: Ice Queendom) as Weiss, Arryn Zech (Detective Now Dead) as Blake and Barbara Dunkelman (Blood Fest) as Yang – along with Jeannie Tirado (Soul, Saints Row) as Green Lantern and Tru Valentino (The Rookie, The Cuphead Show!) as a cyborg. Also attending the panel will be producer/director Kerry Shawcross (series RWBY) and writer Meghan Fitzmartin (Supernatural, Justice Society: World War II).
Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment returns to WonderCon 2023 with the big screen debut from DC Animated Films: highlights this year include the world premieres of the highly anticipated Batman: The Doom That Came To Gotham and Justice League x RWBY: Superheroes & Hunters Part One the weekend of March 24-26 in Anaheim, California. Both screenings will be followed by panel discussions with actors and creators. Batman: The Doom That Came To Gotham premieres at The Arena on Friday, March 24 at 6 p.m. Tati Gabrielle (Kaleidoscope, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Uncharted) as Kai Li Cain, Christopher Gorham (The Lincoln Lawyer, Insatiable) as Oliver Queen, David Dastmalchian (Dune, Suicide Squad, Ant-Man) as Grendon, producer/co-director Sam Liu (The Death and the Return of Superman), co-director Christopher Berkeley (Young Justice) and screenwriter Jase Ricci (Teen Titans Go! and DC Super Hero Girls: Mayhem Across the Multiverse).
Both films will have encore screenings in the Arena on Sunday, March 26. Justice League x RWBY: Super Heroes & Huntsmen, Part One will screen at 12:15pm, followed by Batman: The Doom That Came To Gotham at 2:00pm
No Question Mark Box Here; Super Mario Delivers a 1-Up in Theaters
Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment returns to WonderCon 2023
Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Crunnchyroll presents ‘BOFURI: I don’t want to get hurt so I’ll max out my defense’: You’re not twinking!
‘Knock at the Cabin’: Puttin on your boogie shoes!
No Question Mark Box Here; Super Mario Delivers a 1-Up in Theaters
Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
An Askewed View Episode 7 Jay And Silent Bob Reboot
