Who has time for clouds?

Weatherman Jonathan Novack turning reality TV into his new career, hits TheBachelor Pad

Jonathan Novack
Oooh, steamy!

If we've learned anything about reality television, it's that taking a group of good-looking people with flair for drama and a taste for fame and putting them in a house together is pretty much a no-fail recipe for a must-see guilty pleasure.

So when we heard that the producers behind The Bachelor and The Bachelorette has assembled an "all-star" cast from past seasons to live together and compete for $250,000 in a new show called The Bachelor Pad, which premieres Aug. 9, the only question we had was 'Why haven't they thought of this before?"

Fresh after getting the brush-off from bachelorette Ali, Houston's favorite cute weatherman, Jonathan Novack, will be competing — and his Bachelorette nemesis Craig will be there as well.

In fact, the cast is heavily oriented towards contestants from the last three seasons, with three guys from Ali's season, five guys rejected by Jillian, six girls who competed for the love of Jake and two castoffs from Jason's season, plus three more girls from separate early seasons. (Click here to check out the entire cast of 19.)

Many are comparing this to CBS's Big Brother, but with a cast that has so many ready-made rivalries and plenty of sex appeal, we'd compare it more to MTV's Real World/Road Rules Challenge.

Two other notorious Texans will be making an appearance on the show. Wes, the series' most infamous villain for admitting he came on not to woo Jillian (he had a girlfriend back home) but to jump-start his country music career, hails from Austin. And former Dallas Cowboys cheerleader and Dancing with the Stars contestant Melissa Rycroft, dumped by fiance Jason on national television, will be co-hosting with series stalwart Chris Harrison.

Will you be watching The Bachelor Pad? Which contestants should be brought back and who should be banned from TV forever? And does the weatherman have a chance this time?

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welcome back, frank!

Broadcaster Frank Billingsley finds second act at Houston radio station

Al Torres Photography

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When he announced his retirement from KPRC, Frank Billingsley told the late Ken Hoffman that he probably wasn’t done with media.

“I love all forms of communication so I'm sure I'll gravitate toward that either as a hobby or a second act. I'll weigh options and go from there,” he said in May.

Turn out that second act will be at one of Houston’s most prestigious radio stations. Billingsley has joined Houston Public Media as an executive producer and meteorologist.

"Frank Billingsley’s reputation as a Houston legend precedes him,” station manager Josh Adams said in a statement. “His experience and connection to our community align perfectly with Houston Public Media’s mission to inform and inspire. We are thrilled to welcome him to the team and look forward to the impact his presence will have."

Beginning in early 2025, Billingsley will serve as one of the hosts for a new talk show called Hello, Houston!. Led by Billingsley, veteran HPM host Ernie Manouse, and producer Celeste Schurman. Hello, Houston! will tell stories about a wide range of Houston happenings.

“Of course, I'll still get to talk about the weather, but Celeste, Ernie, and I will have fun and fascinating discussions about politics, arts, concerts, restaurants, clubs, people: everything that makes this city so great,” Billingsley said. “We have a great team behind us and I'm really looking forward to the challenge!”

Frank Billingsley worked at KPRC for 30 years. Prior to that, he worked at ABC13 for six years. He has earned multiple honors from the Associated Press, Houston Press Club, Houston Press Newspaper, and Dallas Press Club.

media celebrities frank billingsley