Tattle: Donkey tale yanked

WHEN ALL of Comcast's legal and financial minds got together to discuss a purchase of NBC, do you think any of them raised the hypothetical question:

"Do we have a corporate position on donkey semen?"

That was the question du jour for the media conglomerate after "Fear Factor" shot an episode this past summer in which contestants were challenged to drink a glass of donkey semen (and one of urine, you know, as a cocktail) and some of them did - because one's thirst for cash knows no limits.

Now, TMZ.com reports that the big bosses at NBC and Comcast have decided that the episode surpassed their level of bad taste and have spurned the sperm and yanked the episode before it airs tonight - which, we have to add, is a lot better job than yanking the donkey.

More awards

"The Artist" is continuing its quiet run to the Oscar.

The Directors Guild of America gave its feature-film honor Saturday to Michel Hazanavicius for his black-and-white silent charmer for which Tattle's hard-of-hearing dad exclaimed, "It's the first film I've understood in years!"

Hazanavicius, a virtual unknown in Hollywood until "The Artist," beat out a field of Guild heavyweights that included past winners Martin Scorsese ("Hugo") and Woody Allen ("Midnight in Paris") and past nominees David Fincher ("The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo") and Alexander Payne ("The Descendants").

James Marsh won the film documentary prize for "Project Nim," his chronicle of the triumphs and trials of a chimpanzee that was raised like a human child. It was the latest major Hollywood prize for Marsh, who earned the documentary Academy Award for 2008's "Man on Wire."

Robert B. Weide won the TV comedy-directing award for an episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm," while Patty Jenkins earned the TV drama prize for the pilot of "The Killing."

The award for TV movie or miniseries went to Jon Cassar for "The Kennedys."

Other television winners were:

Reality programming: Neil P. DeGroot, "The Biggest Loser."

Musical variety: Glenn Weiss, "The 65th Annual Tony Awards."

Daytime serials: William Ludel, "General Hospital."

Children's programs: Amy Schatz, "A Child's Garden of Poetry."

Commercials: Noam Murro.

* Meanwhile, in Utah, "Beasts of the Southern Wild" won the grand-jury prize in the U.S. dramatic competition, and "The House I Live In" won the same honor in the U.S. documentary category, Saturday at Sundance.