The Weekly Round Up (Feb. 1 to 5)

Here are the entertainment news items for this week:

CONDOLENCES

Days of Our Lives actress Frances Reid passed away this week at the age of 95. She was a theater veteran who appeared in the soap for 42 years (from 1965 to 2007). Condolences are extended to her family, friends and fans.

NEWS

Congrats to all the winners at this past weekend’s Grammy awards. And, congrats to all the Oscar nominees that were announced earlier this week.

The Canadian series The Bridge will air on CTV (in Canada) starting on March 5 at 9 PM with a two-hour premiere before shifting to its normal timeslot of 10 PM the following week. CBS still has yet to announce an airdate for the series, which is being co-produced between the American and Canadian netlets.

The Emmy Awards may be coming to the nation LIVE on both coasts rather than the typical tape delayed airings that the West Coast always gets, following the lead of the Golden Globes. No confirmed plans have been set yet, though.

TV SERIES NEWS

A new series finale date for the ABC series Lost was announced earlier this week: Sunday, May 23. Mark your calendar!

The final episodes of Saving Grace will air on TNT starting on March 29 at 9 PM with back-to-back episodes. The remaining 7 episodes will play out over the spring in its regular 10 PM timeslot (with a slight interruption by the NBA playoffs in between).

Southland will conclude its second season on TNT on April 6 at 10 PM. A marathon of the second season episodes will run that same day starting at 5 PM.

Big Love has been renewed for a fifth season on HBO.

The new series Happy Town, a mid-season series, has been given a premiere date: April 28 at 10 PM. The series stars Geoff Stults, Sam Neill, Lauren German, Steven Weber, Amy Acker, Robert Wisdom (among others).  The series is being touted as a creepy show (ala supposedly Twin Peaks) about a small town still haunted by a number of unsolved kidnappings.

The March 5 episode of Ghost Whisperer will be the series 100th episode and it will feature a major characters death.

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

ABC Family Channel has picked up the half-hour comedy Melissa & Joey, which will star Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence (who also serve executive producers). Hart will portray Mel, the grown-up former wild child of a political family who is now a local politician herself. When her sister ends up in prison and brother-in-law flees after a scandal hits, Mel must take responsibility for her teenaged niece Lennox and pre-adolescent nephew Ryder. Spread too thin to manage by herself, help comes in the unlikely form of Joe (Lawrence) who, desperate for a job, moves in and becomes the family’s “manny.” The series has been given a 10-episode order and is scheduled to premiere in 2010.

CBS has picked up drama pilot ATF, which centers on an ATF agent who hunts down the most dangerous criminals while trying to balance life as a dad to his teenage daughter who has re-entered his life.

Matt Ryan (The Tudors) is expected to join Forest Whitaker in the cast of the Criminal Minds spin-off about a new group of profilers who work outside the FBI bureaucracy. Michael Kelly (The Sopranos) has also been added to the cast.

The pilot Hellcats based in the world of competitive college cheerleading and based on the Kate Torgovnick book Cheer will come to the CW and will produced by none other than Tom Welling (Smallville).

The exploits of the sexy freshmen class at Harvard Medical School as seen through the eyes of a young female student will come to the CW in a pilot called HMS from co-executive producer Hayden Panettiere (Heroes).

CBS will bring the personal and professional lives of the adult Quinn quintuplets, whose whole lives have been documented on TV to life in the new drama pilot called The Quinn-Tuplets.

Sarah Chalke (Scrubs) has the lead role in the comedy pilot Freshmen from ABC that follows the friendship of three freshmen members of Congress – two men and a woman – who live together in D.C.

Emmy-winner Allison Janney (The West Wing) has joined the cast of the Matthew Perry comedy pilot Mr. Sunshine at ABC, which is about the manager of an aging San Diego stadium who realizes on his 40th birthday that he can no longer get by on just his charming, noncommittal ways. She’ll play Crystal Cohen, his boss at the arena.

Emmy-winners Mitchell Burgess and Robin Green (The Sopranos) have booked a pilot called Reagan’s Law with CBS, which is about a multi-generational family of New York-based cops.

NBC has slated a two-hour backdoor pilot called Secrets of the Mountain for Friday, April 16 at 8 PM. The possible series stars Barry Bostwick and Paige Turco in a story about a single mom (Turco) with three kids who inherits a remote mountain cabin from a supposedly dead uncle (Bostwick) who turns out to be very much alive, and they set out to keep an evil buyer from gaining access to the mountain that holds secrets and treasures.

An as-yet untitled new drama from Hannah Shakespeare (The Philanthropist) has received a pilot order from CBS. The series is to follow a roaming medical team that travels the U.S. helping those less fortunate get through life-or-death medical crises.

Zooey Deschanel (500 Days of Summer) has joined the HBO half-hour pilot based on the Pamela Des Barres memoir about her life of bed-hopping with musicians and movie stars in the late 1960s.

HBO is developing an untitled political drama that revolves around a young political aide and his relationship with his idol–the former President of the United States.

Gary Cole will headline the first hour-long mystery comedy called Uncle Nigel on TBS about a veteran homicide detective (Cole) in Philadelphia who partners up with his rookie nephew.

Virginia Madsen will appear as the lead in the new ABC dramedy Scoundrels, which is about a family of small-town criminals who attempt to go straight after the patriarch is sent to prison. Madsen would play the mom. The show, which has been picked up for eight episodes (all of them slated to air this summer), is based on the New Zealand series Outrageous Fortune.

Enrique Murciano (Without a Trace) has joined ABC pilot Off the Map, which centers around a team of medical professionals who flee the U.S. to work at a clinic on a tropical island. He will join Martin Henderson in the cast.

Laura Prepon (That ’70s Show) will star in the ABC comedy pilot Awkward Situations for Men, alongside Matt Letscher (Eli Stone).

Bret Harrison (Reaper) has landed the lead role in FOX’s untitled Adam Goldberg single-camera comedy, where he will play a member of a team who crack computer security systems.

Emily Rose (Jericho and Brothers & Sisters) will appear in the Syfy series Haven, which is based on the Stephen King novella The Colorado Kid. She will play FBI agent Audrey Parker, who investigates a murder in the small town of Haven, Maine and finds herself caught up in a web of supernatural activity among its citizens.

MADE FOR TV MOVIES NEWS

The Syfy made-for-TV movie Beauty and the Beast will premiere on Saturday, February 27, at 9PM. The movie stars Estella Warren (Planet of the Apes) is a young Beauty with a gift for healing who helps a deformed Prince (Rhett Gilles, Wraiths of Roanoke) regain his throne and defeat the ruthless nobleman who wants to be king — and then together they try to destroy a power-hungry witch.

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Zachary Quinto (Heroes and Star Trek) is set to play famed composer and pianist George Gershwin in a biopic of the man who was responsible for more than a dozen Broadway shows such as Funny Face and Porgy and Bess who died of a brain tumor at the age of 38.

Orlando Bloom is to star in the indie drama The Good Doctor, which centers on a frustrated doctor (Bloom) looking to impress his superiors and colleagues.

Greg Kinnear, Alan Arkin and Billy Crudup will be seen in the indie crime drama The Convincer that follows a desperate insurance salesman whose scheme to acquire a rare violin, which leads to unforeseen consequences.

Uma Thurman, Kristin Scott Thomas and Christina Ricci have joined the cast of the Robet Pattinson-led film Bel Ami, which is based on the Guy de Maupassant novel and set in 1890’s Paris.

American Idol winner and country singing star Carrie Underwood will play the church youth leader in the movie Soul Surfer, the biopic of 19-year-old surfer Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm in a shark attack but persevered to resume hanging 10 less than a month later. AnnaSophia Robb, Helen Hunt and Dennis Quaid also star.

Christian Bale, Javier Bardem, Rachel McAdams and Olga Kurylenko will appear in the as-yet untitled romantic drama from acclaimed director Terrence Malick.

Whoopi Goldberg and Kathy Bates have signed on to the film Earthbound which also stars Kate Hudson, Gael Garcia Bernal, Rosemarie DeWitt, Steven Weber and Treat Williams.

Bradley Cooper and Reese Witherspoon will appear in the action-comedy This Means War. Cooper is expected to play one of a pair of spies whose friendship devolves into trickery and deceit when they both fall for the same woman (Witherspoon).

CASTING SCOOP

Fred Willard and Swoosie Kurtz will guest star in an upcoming episode of Chuck, as a Hart to Hart-esque spy couple now over-the-hill but still in the game.

Actor Chelcie Ross (Mad Men) will appear as Jackson’s (Jesse Williams) ailing grandfather, Harper Avery, in an upcoming episode of Grey’s Anatomy. Turns out he is the namesake of the Avery Award that was bestowed on Meredith’s mom, Ellis. This will help form a bond between Jackson and Meredith.

Indy race car driver Danica Patrick will appear on CSI: NY next week as a rival of a racing legend (guest star Antonio Sabato Jr.) who dies in a vehicle explosion.

Dawn Olivieri (Heroes) will play Janice Herveaux, the sister of werewolf Alcide (Joe Manganiello) and Brit Morgan (The Middleman) will play Alcide’s psycho ex girlfriend Debbie Pelt on True Blood.

It would appear that casting is nearly confirmed for the flashback episodes of Brothers & Sisters with Rachel Leigh Cook, Nora Zehetner (Grey’s Anatomy) or Courtney Ford (Dexter) could possibly playing a young Nora (Sally Field); Kay Panabaker (Fame) will play a young Kitty (Calista Flockhart); newcomer Anna Wood will play Sarah (Rachel Griffiths) and newcomer Kasey Campbell will play Kevin (Matthew Rhys). Also it’s being rumored that singer Joe Jonas (of the Jonas Brothers) will play a young Tommy (Balthazar Getty).

Cynthia Watros (Lost) will appear as Wilson’s (Robert Sean Leonard) first ex-wife and the doctor’s rekindled love interest in upcoming multi-episode arch of House.

Charles Measure (Crossing Jordan), Nicholas Lea (The X-Files), and Lexa Doig (The 4400) are joining the cast of the ABC drama V.

Julie Benz’s appearance in Desperate Housewives has been extended at least one more episode (if not more). Her character will be moving out of Susan’s home and moving in on Katherine (Dana Delany).

Henry Winkler is joining the USA Network hit Royal Pains in a major recurring role next season, playing Eddie R. Lawson, the absentee father to Hank (Mark Feuerstein) and Evan (Paulo Costanzo) Lawson.

RUMOR PATROL

Ginnifer Goodwin (He’s Just Not That Into You and Big Love) is in talks to star in Something Borrowed, which is based on the Emily Giffin novel. She would play a Manhattan attorney who becomes involved with her best friend’s fiancé following her 30th birthday.

Could Rob Lowe be headed to the planned Criminal Minds spin-off on CBS?  Rumor has it that he has been approached about a leading role in the new series.

Russell Crowe is apparently the front-runner for the male lead in the latest remake of A Star Is Born, playing an alcoholic musician who mentors a rising female star and the pair begin a romance. The female role has yet to be cast but Beyonce Knowles is likely to star as the singer/actress has long been linked with the role.

Eric Bana is in the final negotiations to join the movie Hanna, which already stars Saoirse Ronan (The Lovely Bones) as a 14-year-old girl who has grown up entirely in a remote woods where her father has taught her to become a lethal assassin.

Brad Pitt is the top contender while Ryan Reynolds is among the potential back-up candidates to star in a film remake of classic western series Gunsmoke. In the film version, Pitt or the other potentials would play the lead role of Marshall Matt Dillon.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

The following movies, special and new series will debut and/or air this weekend and throughout next week:

The HBO movie Temple Grandin, starring Claire Danes, will air on Saturday, February 6 at 8 PM. This is a biopic about the animal scientist who overcame the stigma of autism to become an authority on livestock in the 1970s.

NOTE: This movie will reair on both Monday, February 8 at 9 PM and Wednesday, February 10 at 8 PM on HBO.

The movie The Cursed will air on Syfy on Saturday, February 6 at 9 PM and follows a writer who awakens a malevolent creature in a Tennessee town with a dark past. The cast includes Costas and Louis Mandylor.

The conclusion of the Jane Austen classic novel Emma, starring Jonny Lee Miller an Romola Garai in the lead roles will air on PBS on Sunday, February 7 at 9 PM.

The new series Past Life will debut on FOX on Tuesday, February 9 at 9 PM. This series follows a woman who “solves crimes that put souls to rest”. The series will then move to its regular timeslot on Thursday, February 11 at 9 PM.

The opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics will air at 7:30 PM on NBC on Friday, February 12.

NEW EPISODES OF EXISTING SHOWS

Here are the new episodes of the dramas that will be airing this coming week:

Saturday, February 6:
Demons on BBC America at 8 and 9 PM (Series Finale at 9 PM)

NOTE: A repeat of Legend of the Seeker will air in syndication this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.

Sunday, February 7:
Super Bowl Sunday
Big Love on HBO at 9 PM

NOTE: A repeat of Legend of the Seeker will air in syndication this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.

Monday, February 8:
Castle on ABC at 10 PM
CSI: Miami on CBS at 10 PM
One Tree Hill on the CW at 8 PM
Life Unexpected on the CW at 9 PM
House on FOX at 8 PM
24 on FOX at 9 PM
Chuck on NBC at 8 PM
Heroes on NBC at 9 PM
The Secret Life of the American Teenager on ABC Family at 8 PM
Make It or Break It on ABC Family at 9 PM
Greek on ABC Family at 10 PM
Damages on FX at 10 PM
Men of a Certain Age on TNT at 10 PM

Tuesday, February 9:
Lost on ABC at 9 PM
The Forgotten on ABC at 10 PM
NCIS on CBS at 8 PM
NCIS: Los Angeles on CBS at 9 PM
The Good Wife on CBS at 10 PM
Southland on TNT at 10 PM
White Collar on USA at 10 PM

Wednesday, February 10:
Ugly Betty on ABC at 10:01 PM
Criminal Minds on CBS at 9 PM
CSI: NY on CBS at 10 PM
Human Target on FOX at 8 PM
Life Unexpected (reair) on the CW at 8 PM
Nip/Tuck on FX at 10 PM
Mercy on NBC at 8 PM
Leverage on TNT at 10 PM
Psych on USA at 10 PM
Friday Night Lights on DirecTV; check local listings for time (Season Finale)
Being Erica on SOAPNet at 10 PM

Thursday, February 11:
The Deep End on ABC at 8 PM
Grey’s Anatomy on ABC at 9 PM
Private Practice on ABC at 10:01 PM
The Mentalist on CBS at 10 PM
The Vampire Diaries on The CW at 8 PM
Supernatural on The CW at 9 PM
Burn Notice on USA at 10 PM

Friday, February 12:
Smallville on the CW at 8 PM
Spartacus: Blood and Sand on Starz at 10 PM

NOTE: Please check your local listings for the correct air dates and times for all of the above.  Have a great weekend!

Please note that I will feature a weekly round-up of sci-fi based (and similar genres) news items at our sister site located at http://scifitvzone.com/. Please visit there as often as you can. Thanks!

A Look Back at 2009 (Part 5)

Every year there are new faces introduced to the general viewing audience via television series and/or movies at the box office. This year is no different with very unique and diverse actors and actresses coming to the forefront to capture the attention of audiences all over the country (and in some instances the world).

Here, in no particular order, are the stand outs for 2009:

1. Molly Quinn – Starring as Alexis Castle, the straight arrow daughter of mystery novelist Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion), Molly really made an impression on the viewers of this irreverent cop drama with her wit and charm. For a relative newcomer to the industry, she has a lot of talent and has made Alexis an endearing character that the viewers can truly enjoy seeing every week. Her voice was also featured in the Jim Carrey animated movie A Christmas Carol.

2. Sam Worthington – This Australian actor took charge in the summer movie Terminator: Salvation. He pretty much stole the show from steel-voiced Christian Bale, who had the starring role as legendary leader John Connor. Sam can now be seen in the James Cameron movie Avatar, which opened on December 18 and he will take theatres by storm next March when he appears in the much-anticipated remake of The Clash of the Titans.

3. Gabourney Sidibe – This New York born newcomer took the indie world by storm in her moving and heartbreaking performance in one of the most talked about movies of the year: Precious. Starring alongside comedienne Mo’Nique (in a complete role-reversal), singer Mariah Carey and actresses Paula Patton and Sherri Shepherd, Gabby – as she is better known – became one of the most recognizable new faces of the year. She will next be seen in the movie Yelling to the Sky, which is slated for theatres sometime next year.

4. Brooke Elliott – Starring in the new Lifetime series Drop Dead Diva, Brooke, a rising star in the world of theatre with several Broadway shows under her belt, made a ridiculous TV show concept – a vapid aspiring model is killed in a car crash but brought back to life as an intelligent, overweight lawyer, hoping to find the meaning of inner beauty – sparkle and shine, making the series one of the most talked about new shows of the summer. She made her character Jane (sans Deb) fallible, relatable and wonderfully effervescent. The series will return for its second season next summer.

5. Isabelle Fuhrman – Starring in the horror flick Orphan, the then 10-year old Isabelle was a relative newcomer to the acting world. Her riveting and disturbing performance as Esther, an orphaned Russian girl adopted by a couple with many problems of their own, sent shockwaves through viewers at the Cineplex. Shifting gears for her next project, the now 12-year-old will be one of the featured voices in the animated movie Around the World in 50 Years 3D, which includes the likes of Tim Curry, Jenny McCarthy, Melanie Griffith, Anthony Anderson, Ed Begley, Jr., Stacy Keach and Kathy Griffin.

6. Sharlto Copley – Starring in one of the most riveting yet disgusting movies of the year – District 9 – Sharlto took the world by storm with his moving portrayal of a South African government agent who is affected by biotechnology from the bug-like inhabitants forced to live in slum-like conditions in his country for the past 28 years. His regrettable transformation into one of the “prawn” – as they are called by those on this imagined Earth – was shocking and disturbing yet Sharlto – in his role as Wikus (pronounced Vikus) van der Merwe – was compelling to watch. His next role will be that of iconic Captain “Howling Man” Murdock in the remake of the classic 1980’s TV series The A-Team.

7. Jeremy Renner – Despite having roles in movies such as S.W.A.T., North Country, 28 Weeks Later and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Jeremy received the most attention this year for his performance in the Oscar-contender movie The Hurt Locker. Playing Staff Sgt. William James, the leader of a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst the violent conflict in Iraq, Jeremy made an impression on all those who saw the movie. Unfortunately, that didn’t draw viewers to his short-lived ABC series The Unusuals, which co-starred Amber Tamblyn, Harold Perrineau and Adam Goldberg. Next up for Jeremy is the film The Town, starring Blake Lively, Ben Affleck, Jon Hamm and Chris Cooper.

8. The Cast of Glee – This unique, diverting and out-of this-world musicomedy debuted on FOX earlier this year and has since taken the world by storm with its irreverent look at high school glee clubs; and, in the process, has made stars of its relatively unknown cast. The main members of the Glee Club include (in alphabetical order – to keep it fair): Dianna Agron (Quinn), Chris Colfer (Kurt), Kevin McHale (Artie), Lea Michele (Rachel), Cory Monteith (Finn), Amber Riley (Mercedes), Mark Salling (Puck) and Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina). The “adult” members of the cast, who can also share in the limelight, include: Jessalyn Gilsig (Terri), Jane Lynch (Sue), Jayma Mays (Emma) and Matthew Morrison (Will). The road to sectionals recently came to an end, but the series will return with 9 new episodes starting on April 13.

9. Sofia Vassilieva – While she’s not a newcomer by any means, after starring in Medium since 2005, Sofia made a name for herself in the role of Kate Fitzgerald in the tear-jerker movie My Sister’s Keeper, alongside Cameron Diaz, Abigail Breslin and Jason Patric. Playing a teenaged leukemia-survivor allowed this talented young actress to show her depth and to actually shave off her golden locks for the role. Sofia has also been given the chance to show her range in her roles as Ariel DuBois on the TV series Medium, especially with its recent move to CBS from NBC.

10. Quinton Aaron – The giant-sized new actor who nearly steals the movie, The Blind Side, from lead Sandra Bullock, has certainly made an impression on mover goers – much the same way his real-life counterpart Michael Oher made on the football world. Quinton stands at a towering 6’ 10” tall and had roles in the movie Be Kind Rewind and some uncredited appearances in Law & Order; but that has changed after the success of this movie.  He will next be seen in the comedy short called Cred.

11. The Cast of Being Human – This BBC series only had 6 episodes in its first season (if you don’t count the original pilot that featured a couple different actors in two of the lead roles), became a bit of a sensation over the summer when it aired here in the States, making Russell Tovey, Lenora Crichlow and Aiden Turner three actors on the rise. The series takes a look into the lives of three twenty-somethings and their secret double-lives – as a werewolf (Tovey), a vampire (Turner) and a ghost (Crichlow). They struggle to live normal lives, despite their strange and dark secrets. The second season is expected to air in the UK sometime next year and will follow with an airing on BBC America here in the States. Plans are also underway for the Syfy to reimagine the series for an American audience with a 13-episode run.

12. Isabel Lucas – This Australian actress, who made a name for herself in the Aussie series Home and Away, made quite an impression on American audiences in the summer blockbuster Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. She recently appeared in the vampire-centric movie Daybreakers alongside Willem Dafoe, Ethan Hawke and Sam Neill. Additionally, she will be seen in the 10-part HBO mini-series The Pacific that is set to air next year and she will appear in next fall’s remake of the 80’s classic movie Red Dawn, which also stars Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chris Hemsworth, Adrianne Palicki, Josh Hutcherson, Michael Beach, Josh Peck and Brett Cullen.

13. Lindsey Shaw – She may have gotten her start in the Nickelodeon series Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide before moving on to the short-lived CW series Aliens in America, but Lindsey got a lot of attention this summer, starring in the lead role of Kat Stratford in the ABC Family Channel half-hour comedy 10 Things I Hate About You, based on the 1999 box office movie of the same name. She will soon be seen in the movies Devolved and Nic and Tristan Go Mega Dega.

14. Genelle Williams – Despite being an employed actor for the past 6 years, including roles in the made-for-TV movies Eloise at the Plaza, The Note and Taking a Chance on Love and the theatrical release Orphan, Genelle made quite a splash in the Syfy summer series Warehouse 13, playing Leena, the owner of the bed and breakfast where lead characters Myka (Joanne Kelly) and Pete (Eddie McClinktock) stay while working for the warehouse. When the series returns next summer for its second season, viewers will hopefully find out more about the nefarious reasons behind Leena’s turn to the evil side when it was revealed in the season finale that she was partnering with the demented James MacPherson (Roger Rees).

15. Carey Mulligan – Last year at this time I included Carey in my Faces to Watch for 2009, and I am very pleased to have been correct in the belief that she would get the attention of the world. Her role in the smash independent movie An Education (with Peter Sarsgaard) catapulted her to the top of the award lists and made her a critical darling. She is even being touted as an Oscar contender for her work in this bittersweet 1960’s coming of age tale. For those with a good eye, Carey also appeared in this year’s movies Brothers (with Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal and Natalie Portman) and Public Enemies (with Johnny Depp and Christian Bale). She also made an impression on genre viewers as Sally Sparrow in the “Blink” episode of Doctor Who and appeared in the two period piece movies Northanger Abbey and Pride & Prejudice (with Kiera Knightley). Her next big project is the sequel to the hit Oliver Stone movie Wall Street – Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps (with Shia LeBeouf, Charlie Sheen and Michael Douglas).

16. Chris Pine – Also included in my list from last year of Faces to Watch for 2009 was actor Chris Pine, who was to take over the helm of one of the most legendary science fiction characters of all time: James T. Kirk in the reimagined tale of the seminal classic series Star Trek. It was quite a feat to undertake, but Chris pulled off the role with (seemingly effortless) ease; and the movie became a summer blockbuster. For those curious minds, Chris appeared in the movies The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (alongside Anne Hathaway) and Just My Luck (with Lindsey Lohan). He will appear in the planned Star Trek sequel as well as the “in-development” Jack Ryan project (taking over for Harrison Ford and Ben Affleck in the title role).

17. Saorise Ronan – In the harrowing role of Susie Salmon from the movie The Lovely Bones based on the acclaimed novel by Alice Sebold, Saorise captured audiences’ hearts with her touching and riveting performance in an otherwise difficult movie to watch. She was previously seen in the movies City of Embers (with Bill Murray) and Atonement (with Kiera Knightley and James McAvoy). She will next be seen in the theatrical release The Way Back, a fact-based World War II piece directed by the legendary Peter Weir.

They Deserve Their Own Show (Part 35)

Nikki DeLoach – For two years in the mid-90’s she appeared in the new Mickey Mouse Club (known as MMC at the time) alongside Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Ryan Gosling and Christina Aguilera. She then moved on to appear in the shows Misery Loves Company, North Shore and Windfall. More recently she has appeared in episodes of CSI: NY, Cold Case and Without A Trace. She guest starred in several episodes of Days of Our Lives as well and was having the lead in the straight to video movie The Net 2.0. She will be seen in the upcoming movie Flying Lessons, The River Why, Answers to Nothing, Maskerade, Love and Other Drugs and The Trial.

Vanessa Ferlito – Vanessa got her start in guest roles on Third Watch and Law and Order. She then made the big leap to a recurring role in Season 3 of 24. Her first notable movie role was in Spiderman 2 followed by the box office movie Man of the House with Tommy Lee Jones. Most viewers will remember her from her two year stint on CSI: NY. Since then she has appeared in the box office movies Grindhouse, Descent, Death Proof, Nothing Like the Holidays, Madea Goes to Jail and Julie & Julia. She will next be seen in the theatres in Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps.

Kam Heskin – Kam is probably best known for taking over the role of Paige Morgan in the sequels The Prince & Me: The Royal Wedding and The Prince & Me: A Royal Honeymoon but she got her star in the soap opera Sunset Beach and most recently appeared in Passions. She has had guest roles in 7th Heaven, Angel, Charmed and CSI: NY. She appeared in the movies Vlad, Pride and Prejudice: A Latter Day Comedy and Dirty Love.  She just completed another Prince & Me sequel: The Prince and Me 4.

Roger R. Cross – Some of Roger’s first TV roles include 21 Jump Street, Wiseguy and The Commish; he also guest starred in episodes of Sliders, Strange Luck, The Sentinel, Highlander and The X-Files. His first big role was in the sci-fi series First Wave, but he is probably best known for his role in 24. Some of his made-for-TV movies include Aftershock: Earthquake in New York, The Color of Courage, A Father’s Choice and the mini-series Taken. Some of the box office movies for which he has appeared are X-Men 2, The Chronicles of Riddick, World Trade Center, The Day the Earth Stood Still and Mad Money. And, his voice will be featured in the animated movie Noah’s Ark: The New Beginning alongside Michael Keaton, Jason Lee, Sir Ben Kingsley and Marcia Gay Harden (among many others).

Brennan Elliott – Some of his earliest work was in guest roles on Viper, The Outer Limits and First Wave. He later appeared on episodes of North Shore, Monk, Without a Trace and House. He was a regular on the short-lived series Blind Justice and appeared in the series Strong Medicine for 5 years. More recently he guest starred in several episodes of Cold Case, What About Brian and The 4400. In the last two years, he appeared in Grey’s Anatomy, Bones, Ghost Whisperer and Castle. He was in the made-for-TV movies The Nanny Express and Flight 93 and he will be seen in the upcoming movies Black Widow with Janine Turner and Rachel Hunter; Confession; Blood Shot with Lance Henricksen and Take Me Home with Victor Garber and Sam Jaeger (both of Eli Stone).

James Frain – James is probably best known for his role in Season 4 of 24 and his role in the short-lived series Invasion, but he has appeared in episodes of Strong Medicine, Medium, Threshold, Numb3rs, Fringe, The Closer, In Plain Sight and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. He most recently has been seen in The Tudors and an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. He appeared in the made-for-TV movie Spartacus and the TV mini-series Empire. His film work includes Loch Ness, Elizabeth, Reindeer Games, The Count of Monte Cristo and Into the Blue. He appeared in the recent movie Everybody’s Fine with Kate Beckinsale, Drew Barrymore and Robert DeNiro and has two other projects in the works: Crusades and Tron Legacy. And, he’ll be seen in at least one episode of Lie To Me.

Do you agree? Disagree? Do you recognize any or are they all unknowns to you? NGTV would love to hear your thoughts. The next installment will be posted on Wednesday.

The Mid-Season TV Calendar

With the holidays out of the way and mid-season upon as, keeping track of all the new and returning shows as well as all the made-for-TV movies that will be airing over the next couple months on the major networks and cable channels could become impossible. So we here at NiceGirlsTV wanted to devise another calendar to help you with all your viewing options. Please keep in mind these dates and times could change so please watch your local listings for alterations.

In the meantime, get your pencils sharpened and have your calendars ready, as it’s going to be one hell of a ride:

FEBRUARY

February 2 – Lost will have a one-hour recap on ABC at 8 PM
February 2 – Lost will have its final two-hour season premiere on ABC at 9 PM

February 4 – Fringe will have its winter finale on FOX at 9 PM

February 5 – Smallville will air its special two-hour Justice Society movie Absolute Justice on the CW at 8 PM

February 6 – The movie Temple Grandin will air on HBO (check local listings for time)

Movie Synopsis: Starring Claire Danes in the lead role based on the true story of best-selling author, animal scientist and autism advocate, whose own autism affords her uncanny powers of observation. The movie also stars Catherine O’Hara, Julia Ormond and David Strathairn.

February 8 – Heroes will have its season finale on NBC at 9 PM

February 9 – Past Life will have its one-hour debut on FOX at 9 PM

Show Synopsis: This new drama is about an unlikely pair of past-life detectives (Kelli Giddish, All My Children and Nicholas Bishop, Home and Away) who investigate whether what is happening to you today is the result of who you were before. Co-stars include Richard Schiff (The West Wing) and Ravi Patel (Scrubs).

February 10 – Friday Night Lights will air its season finale on DirecTV at 9 PM

February 11 – Past Life will have its regular night time slot premiere on FOX at 9 PM

February 13 – The Hallmark Channel movie Elevator Girl will air (check local listings for time).

Movie Synopsis: Lacey Chabert (Party of Five and Mean Girls) and Ryan Merriman (The Pretender) will star in this movie about a free-spirited woman and an uptight lawyer who get stuck in an elevator together.

February 13 – The new British series Survivors debuts at 8 PM on BBC America

Show Synopsis: Imagine what would happen if a virulent disease scoured the planet, wiping out 99% of the human race. It kills every member of your family, your lovers, friends, neighbors and probably everyone you have ever known. Imagine the world stripped of all the conveniences of the 21st Century – no law, no shops, no communications, no transport, no electricity, no clean water. Set in the present day, the series focuses on the world in the aftermath of a virus where only a lonely few are left to start over in a devastated world where everything that was once safe and familiar is now strange and dangerous. The cast includes Julie Graham (Bonekickers), Paterson Joseph (The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency), Freema Agyeman (Doctor Who), Max Beesley (Hotel Babylon), Phillip Rhys (Nip/Tuck) and Zo Tapper (Stage Beauty) among others. The series is based on the novel by Terry Nation.

February 18 – Bones will be back on FOX at 8 PM
February 18 – Past Life will move to its regular time slot on FOX at 9 PM

February 21 – The Lifetime Movie Network movie Sins of the Mother at 8 PM

Movie Synopsis: Based on the novel Orange Mint and Honey by Carleen Brice, Jill Scott (The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency) revolves around a grad student who returns home to face her abusive, alcoholic mother — played by Scott — only to discover that her mom is sober and has a 3-year-old daughter and a new life. Nicole Beharie (American Violet) co-stars.

February 27 – The Syfy movie Beauty and the Beast will air at 9 PM

Movie Synopsis: Estella Warren (Planet of the Apes) is the lead in this new adaptation of the story as a “beauty” with the gift for healing who helps a deformed Prince (Rhett Gilles) regain this throne and defeat the ruthless nobleman who wants to be king — and together they also try to destroy a power-hungry witch.

MARCH

March 1 – New episodes of Law & Order start tonight on NBC

March 2 – Parenthood will debut on NBC at 10 PM

Show Synopsis: Based on the box-office comedy hit of the same name introduces audiences to the very large, very colorful and imperfect Braverman family. The cast boasts the likes of Peter Krause (Sports Night and Dirty Sexy Money), Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls), Craig T. Nelson (The District), Dax Shepard (Baby Mama), Bonnie Bedelia (The Division), Monica Potter (Boston Legal) and Erika Christensen (Six Degrees and Swimfan) and Mae Whitman (State of Grace and Thief)

March 2 – Southland will have its second season premiere on TNT at 10 PM

March 3 – New episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit start tonight on NBC

March 6 – The movie Uncorked will air on the Hallmark Channel (check local listings for time).

Movie Synopsis: In this romantic comedy, a workaholic CFO (Julie Benz, Dexter) on business to Southern California’s wine country meets a world-famous chef (Scott Elrod, Men In Trees).

March 7 – Breaking Bad is expected to return to AMC at 10 PM

March 8 – Make It or Break It will air its season finale on ABC Family Channel at 9 PM
March 8 – Life Unexpected will move to its new time slot on the CW at 8 PM
March 8 – Gossip Girl returns from its hiatus on the CW at 9 PM
March 8 – Trauma will return to the NBC line-up at 9 PM

March 11 – Burn Notice is expected to air its season finale on the USA Network at 9 PM
March 11 – White Collar is expected to air its season finale on the USA Network at 10 PM
March 11 – Past Life will air its final episode of its first season on FOX

March 12 – Psych is expected to air its season finale on the USA Network at 10 PM

March 14 – The mini-series The Pacific will debut on HBO at 9 PM (and will every Sunday night until May 16).

Movie Synopsis: The movie tells the intertwined stories of three Marines during America’s battle with the Japanese in the Pacific during World War II. The mini-series stars James Badge Dale (24), William Sadler (Roswell), Isabel Lucas (Transformers 2), Nathan Corddry (Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip), Joseph Mazzello (Jurassic Park), Jon Seda (Close to Home), Matt Craven (Timeline) and Jon Bernthal (Eastwick).

NOTE: The mini-series will air from March 14 through May 16.

March 14 – The movie The Cutting Edge: Fire & Ice will premiere on ABC Family at 8 PM

Movie Synopsis: Francia Raisa (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) is back as Alexandra “Alex” Delgado whose figure skating career is in jeopardy because her partner (on and off the ice) gets injured. As their love affairs cools off, she stops competing and turns to teach. Enter James Van Behr (Brenden Fehr, Roswell and Bones), the bad boy of speed skating who wants Alex as his partner since he was banned from the sport.

March 15 – Secret Diary of Call Girl will air its season finale on Showtime at 10 PM

March 16 – Justified is a new series on FX that will debut at 10 PM

Show Synopsis: FX has picked up this new series for a 13-episode run, which is about modern day 19th century-style lawman U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant), enforcing his brand of justice in a way that puts a target on his back with criminals and places him at odds with his bosses in the Marshal service. He ends up reassigned to the district that includes his rural Kentucky hometown. Co-stars include Nick Searcy (CSI), Jacob Pitts (21) and Erica Tazel (Life). Guest stars include Walton Goggins (The Shield), Joelle Carter (CSI: Miami) and Natalie Zea (Dirty Sexy Money).

March 18 – FlashForward will return to ABC at 8 PM with a two-hour Spring premiere

March 19 – Caprica is expected to air its season finale on Syfy at 9 PM

March 20 – The Hallmark Channel movie Healing Hands will air (check local listing for time)

Movie Synopsis: Eddie Cibrian (Invasion) plays a school janitor who awakens from a coma and realizes he has the ability to heal others just by touching them. His fiancee is played by Lisa Sheridan (who coincidentally starred as his wife in Invasion).

March 22 – Nurse Jackie will return to Showtime at 10 PM
March 22 – United States of Tara will return to Showtime at 10:30 PM
March 22 – The Secret Life of the American Teenager will air it season finale on ABC Family Channel at 8 PM

March 29 – Greek will air its season finale on ABC Family Channel at 10 PM
March 29 – 10 Things I Hate About You returns to ABC Family at 8 PM
March 29 – Saving Grace will return to TNT for its final season, airing two back-to-back episodes starting at 9 PM

March 30 – V will be back on ABC at a new time – 10 PM (following Lost)

SPRING

In Plain Sight should be back sometime this Spring on the USA Network

Lie To Me returns to FOX in late Spring

Spring 2010 – The film You Don’t Know Jack will air on HBO (check local listings for date and time)

Movie Synopsis: The story of Dr. Jack Kevorkian (also known as Dr. Death) is chronicled in this movie which stars Al Pacino in the lead role. The film will follow the doctor’s creation, the infamous Mercitron and the media frenzy he created. The film also stars Susan Sarandon, John Goodman, Danny Huston and Brenda Vaccaro.

Spring 2010 – The Special Relationship film will air on HBO (check local listings for date and time)

Movie Synopsis: The unique and sometimes turbulent political relationship between newly installed British Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President Bill Clinton will be depicted with Michael Sheen as Blair and Dennis Quaid as Clinton. The film also Hope Davis and Helen McCrory.

APRIL

April – The new HBO series Treme will debut (date and time to be determined)

Show Synopsis: Wendell Pierce (The Wire) stars as a trombonist trying to make ends meet in a struggling music scene; Khandi Alexander (CSI: Miami) will play his ex-wife, who owns a bar; Clarke Peters (The Wire) is the chief of a tribe of Mardi Gras Indians who returns to New Orleans to rebuild his home and culture; Rob Brown (Stop-Loss) as his son, a well-known musician; Steve Zahn (Sahara) as a DJ and music scene regular; Kim Dickens (Friday Night Lights) as a chef trying to keep her restaurant afloat; Melissa Leo (Homicide: Life on the Street) as a civil rights lawyer and John Goodman (Roseanne) as an outspoken professor. All these characters appear in this series that explores the lives of residents of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

April 1 – Bones will air on FOX at 8 PM
April 1 – Fringe will be back on FOX at 9 PM

April 2 – The second season of the UK series Merlin will begin to air on Syfy (check local listings for time)
April 2 – Miami Medical (formerly known as Miami Trauma) will be debut on CBS at 10 PM

Show Synopsis: This medical drama centers on a team of trauma surgeons saving critically injured patients in Miami, Florida. The show stars Lana Parrilla (Swingtown), Jeremy Northam (The Tudors), Elisabeth Harnois (Point Pleasant), Mike Vogel (Cloverfield) and Omar Gooding (The Playmakers).

April 5 – Saving Grace moves to its regular timeslot of 10 PM on TNT

April 6 – Spartacus: Sand and Blood is expected to air its season finale on Starz at 10 PM
April 6 – Marathon of 2nd season of Southland will air today on TNT, starting at 5 PM with the final episode set to air at 10 PM

April 7 – Being Erica will have its season finale on SoapNet at 10 PM

April 10 – The Lifetime movie At Risk will air at 9 PM

Movie Synopsis: This movie is based on the Patricia Cornwell best-selling crime novel [the first time ever that Cromwell’s books have been adapted for the screen] and is about high-powered and glamorous District Attorney Monique Lamont (Andie MacDowell), who seeks to further her political aspirations by solving a decades-old murder. Not convinced of the purity of his boss’ motives, Monique’s colleague, Win Garano (Daniel Sunjata, Rescue Me), grudgingly takes on the assignment. But, the deeper he delves into this cold case, the more twisted it becomes and more apparent that there is much more at stake. Co-stars include Diahann Carroll, Annabeth Gish (Brotherhood) and Ashley Williams (Good Morning, Miami).

April 11 – The Tudors will return for its final season on Showtime at 9 PM
April 11 – Army Wives returns to Lifetime at 10 PM

April 12 – Life UnExpected will have its season finale on the CW at 8 PM

April 13 – Glee will return to FOX on a new night at 9 PM

April 14 – Ugly Betty will have its series finale tonight on ABC (check local listings for time)

April 17 – The Lifetime movie The Front will air at 9 PM

Movie Synopsis: This movie is also based on the Patricia Cornwell best-selling crime novel about Boston District Attorney Monique Lamont (Andie MacDowell) and her favorite ace detective, Win Garano (Daniel Sunjata, Rescue Me) in a fast-paced mystery. Determined to generate much-needed publicity as her career in politics begins to lose its shine, Monique orders Win to re-open an investigation into an unsolved homicide that took place in one of Boston’s small outlying communities served by “The Front,” a coalition of small, local police departments that have banded together to fight crime. Co-stars include Diahann Carroll, Annabeth Gish (Brotherhood) and Ashley Williams (Good Morning, Miami).

April 18 – The ABC Family movie Business of Falling in Love will debut at 8 PM

Movie Synopsis: Based on the book by Daniella Brodsky, Diary of a Working Girl, Hilary Duff stars as Lane Daniels, a bright fashion journalist whose career and love life come together in an unusual way after her article “Switching Careers to Find Love” in Cosmopolitan magazine is accepted and that article changes her life in unexpected ways. Also starring in the movie are Matt Dallas (Eastwick and Kyle XY) and Chris Carmack (The O.C.).

April 19 – One Tree Hill is expected to return from its hiatus on the CW at 8 PM

April 28 Happy Town will be a new series on ABC at 10 PM

Show Synopsis: Haplin, a small town in Minnesota has its first crime following a period of peace after a series of unsolved kidnappings. The series stars Geoff Stults (7th Heaven and October Road), Lauren German (A Walk to Remember), Amy Acker (Angel and Dollhouse), Steve Weber (Wings), Sarah Gadon (Being Erica), Jay Paulson (October Road), newcomer Ben Schnetzer, Robert Wisdom (Prison Break and The Wire) and Sam Neill (Jurassic Park).

April 30 – Friday Night Lights will be back on NBC at 8 PM

MAY-JUNE

May 12 – Special preview of new FOX drama Code 58 will air at 8 PM

Show Synopsis: The series follows a young, ambitious and by-the-book detective (Colin Hanks, Roswell) who is relegated to the mundane petty crimes department with his boozy, maverick old-school partner (Bradley Whitford, The West Wing). The series also stars Jenny Wade (Reaper) and Diana Maria Riva (Side Order of Life).

May 16: Final airing of HBO mini-series The Pacific will air at 9 PM.

May 23 – Lost will air its two-hour series finale on ABC at 9 PM

NEWLY ADDED:
May 24 – Chuck will air its two-hour season finale on NBC starting at 8 PM

June 7 – Nurse Jackie will have it season finale on Showtime at 10 PM
June 7 – United States of Tara will have it season finale on Showtime 10:30 PM

June 7 – Series Premiere of FOX drama Code 58 will air at 9 PM

June 13 – The Tudors will air its series finale on Showtime at 9 PM

COMING SOON

Copper will be a new series on ABC

Show Synopsis: This Canadian drama about five rookie cops at work and at play has been picked up for a 13-episode run on ABC; and will star Eric Johnson (Smallville and Flash Gordon), Gregory Smith (Everwood) and Missy Peregrym (Reaper).

The Bridge will be a new series on CBS

Show Synopsis: This is another Canadian drama about a tough and dedicated police officer who is voted to become the police union’s dynamic leader, which was picked up for an 11-episode order by CBS. The series will star Aaron Douglas (Battlestar Galactica), Ona Grauer (Stargate Universe) and Paul Popowich (Angela’s Eyes).

Day One will be a mini-series on NBC (rather than an originally planned new series)

Show Synopsis: In the aftermath of a global event that devastates the world’s infrastructures, a small band of survivors strive to rebuild society and unravel the mysteries of why the event took place and what the future has in store. Told from the point of view of an eclectic group of neighbors in a Van Nuys, California apartment building, this journey of survival will show us that hope is found in the smallest of victories and heroes are born every day. The series stars David Lyons (ER), Julie Gonzalo (Eli Stone and Veronica Mars), Adam Campbell (Harper’s Island), Carly Pope (Popular, Dirt and 24), Catherine Dent (The Shield), April Grace (The Nine), Xander Berkeley (24), Derek Mio (Greek), Thekla Reuten (Sleeper Cell) and Addison Timlin (Cashmere Mafia).

Persons Unknown will be a new series on NBC

Show Synopsis: This Mexican-produced series was picked up for a 13-episode run by NBC and follows a group of people who awaken in a deserted town with no memory of how they got there, and cannot leave. They are watched by security cameras, and are occasionally fed information via remote-controlled televisions. No matter what they try, their attempts to escape the town are thwarted by mysterious forces. The series stars newcomer Daisy Betts, Jason Wiles (Third Watch), Sean O’Bryan (Yes Man and Six Feet Under), Alan Ruck (Spin City) and Chadwick Boseman (Lincoln Heights). James Read (Charmed) and Kandyse McClure (Battlestar Galactica) are set to guest star.

The Syfy movie Riverworld (based on the Philip Jose Farmer classic) has yet to receive an air date, but the mini-series will cover the same basic storyline: about people who’ve died and wake up very much alive along a seemingly endless river, finding everyone else who has ever lived and died on Earth also there. The main stars are Tahmoh Penikett (Battlestar Galactica and Dollhouse) and Laura Vandervoort (Smallville and V).

So, there you have the long list of what to expect this mid-season and into the summer from the major networks and cable channels. Please remember any of these dates and times can change quickly so keep a close eye on your local listings.

The Weekly Round-Up for Jan. 25 to 29

Here are the entertainment news items for this week:

CONDOLENCES

Legendary actress Jean Simmons passed away earlier this week of lung cancer at the age of 80. She won an Emmy for her role in The Thorn Birds and was a two-time Oscar nominee. She appeared in the box office movies Guys and Dolls, Elmer Gantry and Spartacus (among many others).

Long-time soap actor James Mitchell (All My Children) passed away late last week of lung disease complicated by pneumonia at 89 years of age. He was a dancer on Broadway in his early career and he appeared in the movies Oklahoma! and The Band Wagon.

Well-known TV actor Pernell Roberts, who appeared in Bonanza and was the star of the M*A*S*H spinoff Trapper John, M.D., passed away this week at the age of 81 after a battle with cancer.

Legendary author J.D. Salinger (The Cather in the Rye) passed away this week at the age of 91.

Petite actress Zelda Rubinstein, who played the psychic in the classic movie Poltergeist passed away at 76 this past week.

Condolences are extended to the families, friends and fans of Ms. Simmons, Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Salinger and Ms. Rubinstein.

Legendary singer Etta James, 72 is currently in a hospital in Riverside, California with a serious infection. Well wishes are set her way.

NEWS

Congrats to the SAG winners who were announced this past weekend.

NBC is going to quietly pull The Jay Leno Show two days earlier than expected with its final “episode” airing on February 9.

Cancellation news broke mid-week that ABC will pull Ugly Betty at the end of its current (fourth) season and the episode order has been reduced from 22 to 20. The show’s bosses were, however, given enough time to create a satisfying series finale, though.

TV SERIES NEWS

Mark Pellegrino and Titus Welliver will reprise their roles of Jacob and his nemesis on Lost when it returns for its final season.

ABC Family Channel has picked up two new one-hour dramas Huge and Pretty Little Liars:

Huge is based on the book by author Sasha Paley, which is being developed by Winnie Holzman (My So-Called Life) and her daughter Savannah Dooley. The series will follow the lives of six teens and the staff at a weight-loss camp, as they look beneath the surface to discover their true selves and the truth about each other. Pretty Little Liars will follow four estranged best friends who are reunited one year after their best friend and queen bee of the group, Alison, goes missing only to discover they are receiving messages from an anonymous “A” who knows all their secrets. The drama stars Lucy Hale (Privileged), Troian Bellisario (NCIS) Ashley Benson (Eastwick), Shay Mitchell, Laura Leighton (Melrose Place), Nia Peeples (The Young and the Restless) and Bianca Lawson (The Vampire Diaries).

This new season of the ABC drama Castle has been extended by two more episodes, bringing the full season order to 24 episodes.

Bryan Batt will not be back for fourth season of Mad Men when it returns this summer on AMC.

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

JoAnna Garcia (Privileged) has landed an as yet untitled sitcom on ABC from Shana Goldberg-Meehan Friends) that will center on two sisters who are at different points in their romantic relationships. One is unmarried and in a long-term relationship and the other (Garcia) gets married after getting knocked up.

Some of the new shows in development at the major networks include:

BREAKOUT KINGS (FOX) – This procedural pilot is about ex-fugitives who are recruited to work as U.S. Marshals .

EDGAR FLOATS (ABC) – This pilot comes from men behind the NBC series Life and follows a police psychologist who becomes a bounty hunter.”

PLEADING GUILTY (FOX) – This pilot is based on the Scott Turow novel about an ex-cop-turned-attorney who works as a partner at a powerful Chicago law firm.

NO ORDINARY FAMILY (ABC) – This pilot come from Greg Berlanti and Jon Harmon Feldman and is about a typical American family whose members have special abilities. ( Kind of like Brothers & Sisters x Heroes?!)

SHAMELESS (Showtime) – The lives of a very unconventional family will be chronicled in this new pilot from John Wells and stars Emmy Rossum, Justin Chatwin and William H. Macy.

187 DETROIT (ABC) – This pilot is about a fictional documentary crew that follows a top homicide division.

CHAOS (CBS) – This pilot revolves around a group of rogue CIA operatives who combat bureaucratic gridlock, rampant incompetence and political infighting.

JUSTICE (NBC) – This pilot follows an ex-Supreme Court justice who quits the Court to start his own legal practice and comes from none other than Conan O’Brien’s production team.

MIDLAND (FOX) – This soap is set against the backdrop of an oil business that centers on a polygamist living a double life.

THE REMEMBERER (CBS) – A drama pilot about a female NYPD detective who possesses the ability to remember everything – a gift in her job but a curse in her personal life.

THE UNTITLED RICHARD HATEM PROJET (ABC) – A new drama pilot about a beautiful female detective who teams with a disgraced ex-cop to solve crimes and untangle the conspiracy that sent him underground.

THE WHOLE TRUTH (ABC) – This pilot chronicles the building of a case from the perspective of both the defense and prosecution. It will be produced by Jerry Bruckheimer.

THE CUBE (CBS) – Neil Patrick Harris will host the potential game show based on the ITV series of the same name in which folks try to win big bucks by completing simple tasks inside a chamber designed to induce stress.

NOTE: I am only including the above “show” because Neil Patrick Harris has been tapped as the host.

The CW plans to do a remake of the action-thriller La Femme Nikita, which started out as a French film that was then remade for US theaters as the film Point of No Return and then became a popular series on the USA Network. This new version will have the lead character Nikita going rogue with a new assassin brought in to replace her.

Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino and executive producer Dan Palladino are coming back to the CW with a new as-yet untitled project that is supposed to revolve around a family horse farm in the Midwest. Meanwhile Sherman-Palladino also has a deal with HBO for a show about three sisters and their complicated relationships with their mother and each other.

Martin Henderson (Bride & Prejudice) has been cast in the ABC pilot Off the Map from Shonda Rhimes where he will play one of three doctors working a remote medical clinic in the tropics.

Charlize Theron (The Road) has teamed with auteur David Fincher (Zodiac) to develop the HBO drama series Mind Hunter based on John Douglas and Mark Olshaker’s non-fiction book about the profiling of serial killers and rapists.

Maria Bello, Simon Beaufoy, and Russell Crowe have teamed up to develop the HBO drama project Emergency Sex, based on a non-fiction book by Kenneth Cain, Heidi Postlewait and Andrew Thomson. The story is about the larger-than-life exploits of expatriate nongovernment-organization workers who find their sanity tested in the face of atrocities, loneliness and primal desires.

Tony Hale (Chuck), Matt Letscher (Eli Stone) will star in the ABC hybrid comedy pilot Awkward Situations for Men, about an Englishman who moves to the US with his wife and discovers that his everyday behavior clashes with American values and gets him into trouble.

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Vincent D’Onofrio and Kyra Sedgwick will star in the comedy-drama Chlorine that revolves around a family struggling to maintain their well-to-do lifestyle in their overly materialistic New England community.

Kellan Lutz (Twilight) will star with Mandy Moore in the romantic comedy Love, Wedding, Marriage about a husband (Lutz) of a relationship counselor (Moore) who endangers her marriage while trying to save that of her parents. Actor Dermot Mulroney will be the director and Blythe Danner and Christopher Walken co-star.

Zac Efron will star in the adaptation of the graphic novel Fire by Brian Michael Bendis. He will play a college student who is recruited by the CIA, only to find that he has been trained for a program that creates expendable agents.

Seth Rogen and Michelle Williams will star in the romantic drama Take This Waltz that follows a young woman (Williams) who struggles with her infidelities and the budding realization that she may be addicted to the honeymoon period of her relationships. The movie is from actress/director Sarah Polley.

CASTING SCOOP

Sam Page (Mad Men) will guest star in episodes of Desperate Housewives, playing a chef who admires Bree Hodge and her conservative values.  The episodes will start in late February.

Tony winner Brian Stokes Mitchell will guest star in Ugly Betty, playing a former flame of Wilhelmina.

Alan Cumming is set to guest star The Good Wife later this season, playing an image consultant named Eli Gold hired to help Peter (Chris Noth) make over his image.

Sarah Drew will return to Grey’s Anatomy for the Valentine’s Day episode to air on February 11.

Richard Burgi will appear on episode of Lie to Me as a state governor who is the target of an assassination attempt.

Brooke Nevin (The 4400) will guest star in an upcoming episode of How I Met Your Mother, playing a romantic interest for Ted. Also, Jennifer Lopez is slated to appear on the comedy in March, as a no-nonsense author of self-help books that teach woman how to train men into relationship machines through the power of denial

Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger himself) will terrorize Booth and Brennan in a slasher-themed episode of Bones that is to air this spring.

Leonard Roberts (Heroes) has been cast as the partner of Dana Delaney’s federal agent character on upcoming episodes of Castle.

John Barrowman (Torchwood) will be guest starring in at least five episodes of Desperate Housewives, as the “Big Bad” at the center of the Angie (Drea de Matteo) mystery.

Mexican pop star Diego Boneta will appear on 90210 as Javier, a young musician who has a fling with Adriana (Jessica Lowndes).

RUMOR PATROL

Oscar winner Forest Whitaker is in final negotiations to star on the Criminal Minds spinoff, which revolves around a new group of profilers who work outside the FBI bureaucracy.

Mel Gibson is in negotiations to star in the spy thriller Cold Warrior about a Cold War spy who comes out of retirement to confront a domestic terrorism threat from Russia by joining with a younger agent.

Miley Cyrus and Demi Moore are in talks to star in a remake of the French comedy L.O.L.: Laughing Out Loud that follows a 15-year-old girl who, dumped by her more sexually experienced boyfriend, who sets her sights on his best friend. At the same time, her 40-year-old divorcee mother is struggling to move on with her life.

Julianne Moore may become the lead of the US adaptation of the crime series Prime Suspect if NBC gets what they want. Other actresses being considered for the lead role are Maria Bello, Tea Leoni, and Christina Applegate.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

The following movies and special will air this weekend and throughout next week:

On Sunday, January 31, Masterpiece Classic on PBS will air part 2 of 3 at 9 PM of the Jane Austen classic movie Emma, starring Jonny Lee Miller (Eli Stone) starring as Mr. Knightley and Romola Garai in the lead role.

The Grammy Awards will air on CBS on Sunday, January 31 at 8 PM.

The new Lifetime movie Lying to be Perfect will reair at 9 PM and stars Poppy Montgomery, as a magazine editor who leads a double life as an anonymous online advice columnist. The movie co-stars Adam Kaufman.

Also, Lost will return for its final season on Tuesday, February 2 for a 2-hour premiere, starting at 9 PM.

NEW EPISODES OF EXISTING SHOWS

Here are the new episodes of returning and new series that will be airing this coming week:

Saturday, January 30:
Demons on BBC America at 8 and 9 PM

NOTE: Legend of the Seeker will be back with all new episodes in syndication starting this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.

Sunday, January 31:
Desperate Housewives on ABC at 9 PM
Brothers & Sisters on ABC at 10:01 PM
Big Love on HBO at 9 PM

NOTE: Legend of the Seeker will be back with all new episodes in syndication starting this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.

Monday, February 1:
CSI: Miami on CBS at 10 PM
One Tree Hill on the CW at 8 PM
Life Unexpected on the CW at 9 PM
House on FOX at 8 PM
24 on FOX at 9 PM
Chuck on NBC at 8 PM
Heroes on NBC at 9 PM
The Secret Life of the American Teenager on ABC Family at 8 PM
Make It or Break It on ABC Family at 9 PM
Greek on ABC Family at 10 PM
Damages on FX at 10 PM
Men of a Certain Age on TNT at 10 PM

Tuesday, February 2:
NCIS on CBS at 8 PM
NCIS: Los Angeles on CBS at 9 PM
The Good Wife on CBS at 10 PM
Southland on TNT at 10 PM
White Collar on USA at 10 PM

Wednesday, February 3:
Ugly Betty on ABC at 10:01 PM
Criminal Minds on CBS at 9 PM
CSI: NY on CBS at 10 PM
Human Target on FOX at 8 PM
Life Unexpected on the CW at 8 PM
Nip/Tuck on FX at 10 PM
Mercy on NBC at 8 PM
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit on NBC at 9 PM
Leverage on TNT at 10 PM
Psych on USA at 10 PM
Friday Night Lights on DirecTV; check local listings for time
Being Erica on SOAPNet at 10 PM

Thursday, February 4:
The Deep End on ABC at 8 PM
Grey’s Anatomy on ABC at 9 PM
Private Practice on ABC at 10:01 PM
CSI on CBS at 9 PM
The Mentalist on CBS at 10 PM
Bones on FOX at 8 PM
Fringe on FOX at 9 PM
The Vampire Diaries on The CW at 8 PM
Supernatural on The CW at 9 PM
Burn Notice on USA at 10 PM

Friday, February 5:
Smallville on the CW at 8 PM (Two-Hour Special)
Ghost Whisperer on CBS at 8 PM
Medium on CBS at 9 PM
Numb3rs on CBS at 10 PM
Spartacus: Blood and Sand on Starz at 10 PM
Caprica on Syfy at 9 PM

NOTE: Please check your local listings for the correct air dates and times for all of the above.

Have a great weekend!

Please note that I will feature a weekly round-up of sci-fi based (and similar genres) news items at our sister site located at http://scifitvzone.com/. Please visit there as often as you can. Thanks!

A Look Back at 2009 (Part 4)

Most critics, and even bloggers, create their own categories of the best and worst in the TV season each year. This year I inadvertently started my own list that took on a life of its own and ended up geared more toward the best than the worst.

But, I honestly believe that the following characters, actors, actresses and series deserve a little extra attention this year. I hope you find some of your favorites included. They appear in no particular order:

Favorite New TV Character – Emma Pillsbury on Glee

Cutest Would-Be TV Couple – TIE: Booth and Bones on Bones and Tony and Ziva on NCIS

Sexiest TV Siblings – The Winchester Brothers on Supernatural

Favorite New Hunk – Paul Wesley on The Vampire Diaries

Prettiest Newcomer – Katerina Graham on The Vampire Diaries

Actress Who Should Be a Household Name – Miracle Laurie on Dollhouse

Actor Who Should Be A Household Name – Matt Dallas on Eastwick

Biggest TV Nerd – Sheldon on The Big Bank Theory

Best Lab Tech – Abby Sciuto on NCIS

Best Sidekick – Chloe Sullivan on Smallville

Favorite Returning Crime Fighter – Oliver Queen on Smallville

Favorite Soon to be Couple – Mr. Shuester and Ms. Pillsbury on Glee

Favorite Snarky Teacher – Sue Sylvester on Glee

Most Adorable TV Mini-Series Star – Andrew Lee Potts on Syfy’s Alice

Most Anticipated New Series – TIE: Caprica on Syfy and Life Unexpected on The CW

Favorite New Guilty Pleasure – Glee

Most Anticipated Returning TV Show – Chuck

Most Anticipated TV Series Return (from hiatus) – V

Most Anticipated Winter TV Movies – TIE: Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars and Doctor Who: The End of Time

Most Unexpected TV Show Cancellations – TIE: Kyle XY, Privileged, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Life

TV Shows That Didn’t Deserve Cancellation – TIE: Pushing Daisies and Eli Stone

Best Surprise of Summer TV – Drop Dead Diva

Best Summer TV Import – Being Human

Series Finales That Didn’t Quite Match Up to Expectations – Battlestar Galactica and Prison Break

Most Overlooked TV Series by Viewers – TIE: Kings and Defying Gravity

TV Series with the Best Guest Stars – Drop Dead Diva

Best Father-Daughter Team on TV – Molly and Richard Castle on Castle

New Fall TV Series That Deserves a Second Chance – Eastwick

Best New Fall TV Show, Drama – The Vampire Diaries

Best New Fall TV Show, Comedy – Modern Family

Best Action Star on TV – Eve Myles on Torchwood: Children of Earth

Best New Crime Fighting Duo – Matt Bomer and Tim DeKay on White Collar

Host with the Most – Neil Patrick Harris

TV Trend That Needs to Disappear NOW – Reality programming

Best Use of a Guest Star in TV – Alan Tudyk on Dollhouse

Best Most Unlikely Duo on TV – Kate Beckett and Richard Castle on Castle

Most Interesting TV Cast, Drama – NCIS

Most Interesting TV Cast, Comedy, How I Met Your Mother

Best Guilty Pleasure on TV – Legend of the Seeker

Best Co-Star in a Comedy – Simon Helberg, The Big Bang Theory

Best Co-Star(s) in a Drama – Seamus Dever and Jon Huertas

Most Interesting TV Mom – TIE: Madeline Westen in Burn Notice and Martha Rodgers on Castle

Persons You Don’t Want to Meet In An Alley On A Clear, Sunny Day When They’re Pissed: Fiona Glenanne and Michael Westen on Burn Notice

TV Series That Features Best Music – The Vampire Diaries

Actors Who Deserve Better Parts Than They Are Getting: TIE: Dichen Lachman and Enver Gjokaj from Dollhouse; Katie Cassidy from Melrose Place; Alex O’Loughlin from Three Rivers; Sara Rue and Lindsay Price from Eastwick and Gillian Jacobs from Community.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on these selections and, even more so, learning some of your best and worst of 2009.

EXTRAS:  The following two highlights sections – Movies and Music – aren’t featured here at NiceGirlsTV, but you are welcome to read them at the following URL’s: http://rueben901.livejournal.com/163852.html and http://rueben901.livejournal.com/163609.html.

They Deserve Their Own Show (Part 34)

Marina Black – One of Marina’s first acting roles was as a Hostage in the box office movie Swordfish, and then she appeared in an episode of Special Unit 2 before landing a short recurring role in Six Feet Under. It was her role in the short-lived but fan-appreciated series Jake 2.0 that gave her a bit more attention. Since then she has had guest roles in CSI, CSI: NY, Grey’s Anatomy, 24, Saving Grace, FlashForward and Ghost Whisperer. She has appeared in the made-for-TV movies The Trail to Hope Rose with Lou Diamond Phillips, Wedding Daze with John Larroquette and Karen Valentine, Murder 101: If Wishes Were Horses with Dick, Barry and Shane Van Dyke. Her latest production is Xtra Credit with Mitch Pileggi and Dawn Olivieri (Heroes).

Valerie Cruz – Valerie first appeared in one-time roles on Strong Medicine, American Family and The Agency before landing a recurring role in Nip/Tuck. She guest starred in episodes of 1-800-Missing, Crossing Jordan, Grey’s Anatomy and Invasion. She appeared in both the short-lived series Hidden Palms and The Dresden Files and most recently has been seen in Dollhouse, Dexter and True Blood. Her movie roles include Cellular and The Devil’s Tomb with Cuba Gooding, Jr.

Josie Davis – Probably best known for her role in the series Charles in Charge, Josie has a long resume starting with appearances on Baywatch, Profiler, The Division, CSI: Miami and NCIS. She appeared in the made-for-TV movies Blind Injustice, McBride: Requiem, Carolina Moon and The Perfect Assistant. Most recently she has appeared in Bones, Ghost Whisperer and Burn Notice. She will be seen in an upcoming episode of Chuck as well.  She has three projects in the works: Tranced, The Ascent and Night at the Carriage House.

Jordan Belfi – Best known for his recurring roles on Entourage and in the short-lived series Moonlight, Jordan has also been seen in Close to Home, Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, American Dreams, Gilmore Girls and Pepper Dennis. More recently he has appeared in Smallville, Shark, Without A Trace, CSI: Miami and Ghost Whisperer. He recently appeared in the box office movie Surrogates with Bruce Willis and has three projects in the works: Bedrooms with Julie Benz (Dexter) and Moon Bloodgood (Terminator: Salvation), Christina with Nicki Aycox (Dark Blue) and Catch .44.

Paul Blackthorne – Paul first appeared in the long-running UK series Peak Practice before making several appearances in the UK series Holby City. He then caught the attention of American audiences in the short-lived series Presidio Med before moving on to ER and 24. He then had the lead role in the short-lived Sci-Fi Chanel series The Dresden Files. Since then he has appeared in both short-lived series Big Shots and Lipstick Jungle and appeared in Burn Notice and the holiday movie A Christmas Carol.

Clayne Crawford – Like so many before him, Clayne got his first big break on television in Buffy, the Vampire Slayer before making a couple of appearances on Roswell. He has appeared in episodes of CSI: Miami, Thief, Women’s Murder Club, Life, Leverage, CSI, Cold Case, Dark Blue, Criminal Minds and 24. Many viewers will remember him from Jericho as well. He appeared in the online series Gemini Division with Rosario Dawson and Justin Hartley and has appeared in the box office movies Swimfan, A Love Song for Bobby Long and A Walk to Remember.  He can be seen in the movie Smokin’ Aces 2: Assassin’s Ball, Brooklyn to Manhattan, The Perfect Host and Kingshighway.

Do you agree? Disagree? Do you recognize any or are they all unknowns to you? NGTV would love to hear your thoughts. The next installment will be posted on Wednesday.

The Weekly Round-Up for Jan. 18 to 22

Here are the entertainment news items for this week: (January 18 to 22):

CONDOLENCES

The best-selling mystery novelist and the creator of both the “Spenser” and “Jesse Stone” series of novels Robert B. Parker passed away earlier this week at the age of 77.

Canadian folk singer and songwriter Kate McGarrigle passed away from cancer this week at the age of 63.

Musician Charlie Daniels suffered a mild stroke on Friday while snowmobiling in Colorado; but he was later released and is recuperating at his home.

NEWS

Congratulations to all the winners of last weekend’s Golden Globe Awards presentation.

The annual PaleyFest held by the Paley Center for Media will be held from February 26 to March 14 and the full schedule was announced this week. It is as follows:

Friday, February 26 at 7 PM – Modern Family
Saturday, February 27 at 7 PM – Lost
Monday, March 1 at 7 PM – NCIS
Wednesday, March 3 at 7 PM – Community
Thursday, March 4 at 7 PM – Dexter
Friday, March 5 at 7 PM – Cougar Town
Saturday, March 6 at 7 PM – The Vampire Diaries
Tuesday, March 9 at 7 PM – Seth MacFarlane & Friends
Wednesday, March 10 at 7 PM – Breaking Bad
Thursday, March 11 at 7 PM – FlashForward
Friday, March 12 at 7 PM – Men of a Certain Age
Saturday, March 13 at 7 PM – Glee
Sunday, March 14 at 7 PM – Curb Your Enthusiasm

As everyone knows by now, the Jay Leno Show 10 PM programming has been pulled and will end on February 12; and the “drama” of the late night scheduling has left Conan O’Brien (and his staff) $45 million richer.

President Obama will have his State of the Union speech on Wednesday, January 27.

TV SERIES NEWS

The new FX series Justified, starring Timothy Olyphant, will debut on March 16 at 10 PM.

Jennie Garth and Rob Estes are both leaving 90210; Estes will be gone next season.

Rob Lowe will be leaving the ABC series Brothers & Sisters at the end of this season.

DEVELOPMENT NEWS

Relative newcomer Jessica Parker Kennedy (Another Cinderella Story) will star alongside Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw in the J.J. Abrams spy drama Undercovers. Gerald McRaney (Jericho) will also be part of the show and Carter MacIntyre (American Heiress) has joined the show as a CIA agent with a drinking problem who goes ‘missing’ while trailing a Russian arms dealer.

CBS has greenlit a remake of the classic cop shows Hawaii Five-O to be written by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. This updated version will center on an elite branch of the Hawaii State Police who only answer to the governor.

A new pilot at FOX called Midland has been ordered. The series revolves around a polygamist with a double life who works in the oil industry. *Cough* Big Love *cough* part deaux?!

The following ABC pilots have been picked up:

• Body of Evidence a drama from Chris Murphey about a female medical examiner who used to work as a neurosurgeon;

• The dramedy Generation Y from writer/executive producer Noah Hawley (The Unusuals) is based on a Scandinavian series about a group of people who remember their lives ten years ago as high school seniors;

• A female-driven dramedy called Cutthroat from writers/executive producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters (Reaper) about a single mom who runs a drug cartel in Beverly Hills in order to keep up financially with her neighbors;

• The legal drama The Whole Truth, from writer Tom Donaghy and executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer;

• Edgar Floats from Rand Ravich and Far Shariat (the team behind Life) is about a police psychologist who becomes a bounty hunter;

• Matadors, set in Chicago, follows two feuding families; one in the district attorney’s office and the other in a large law firm, comes from Jack Orman (writer and executive producer of ER);

• The cop drama True Blue centers on San Francisco homicide detectives who regroup to figure out who killed one of their own. This series comes from Jon Feldman (Dirty Sexy Money) and executive producers Chris Brancato and Bert Salke; and,

• The Shonda Rhimes created medical drama, tentatively called Off the Map, about three stateside doctors who opt to work for an isolated tropical clinic.

TNT has greenlit two original series, including:

•  The offbeat drama Delta Blues (the working title) executive produced by George Clooney will star Jason Lee as a Memphis police officer who lives with his mother. The cast includes Alfre Woodard (Three Rivers), Celia Weston (Junebug), Sam Hennings, Robyn Lively (Saving Grace), Leonard Earl Howze (Barbershop), Abraham Benrubi (Men in Trees and ER) and DJ Qualls (My Name is Earl). The series will premiere this year and will have 10 episodes.

•  Based on the Tess Gerritsen mystery novels, Rizzoli & Isles (the working title) will star Angie Harmon (Women’s Murder Club) as a Boston detective who works closely with a medical examiner (Sasha Alexander from NCIS) to solve crimes. Lorraine Bracco (The Sopranos) will have a recurring role in the series with Lee Thompson Young (FlashForward), Bruce McGill, Jordan Bridges (Dawson’s Creek) and Billy Burke as co-stars. This series will also have 10 episodes and premiere sometime this year.

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Academy Award winning screenwriter Ronald Harwood will write the Martin Luther King, Jr. biopic with Steven Spielberg and Suzanne de Passe acting as producers.

Keira Knightley is no longer up for consideration in the role of Eliza Doolittle in the new adaptation of My Fair Lady. Current candidates include Carey Mulligan, Gemma Arterton and Emily Blunt.

Marc Webb (500 Days of Summer) will be the director of the retooled Spider-Man which is set to pick up in 2012 with Peter Parker in high school

Marcia Gay Harden and Aidan Quinn have joined the indie drama If I Were You, which centers on two women who form and unlikely bond to repair their lives.

Clive Owen is replacing Paul Walker in the action thriller Protection that follows a disgraced former Special Forces soldier who takes on Mexican gangs in an attempt to rescue a judge’s daughter.

MADE-FOR-TV MOVIES

The Hallmark Channel movie The Wild Girl will air on April 24 at 9 PM and is set in the Depression Era and stars Brian Austin Green (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) and Graham Greene (Dances with Wolves) as an unlikely team who embarks on a rescue mission in the Sierra Madre Badlands, but who stumble upon an orphaned Apache girl abandoned in the wilderness. Kathleen Munroe co-stars. The movie is based on the novel by Jim Fergus.

The movie Healing Hands will air on the Hallmark Channel on March 20 at 9 PM and stars Eddie Cibrian and Lisa Sheridan (both formerly on Invasion). The movie follows the simple life of Buddy Hoyt (Cibrian), a school janitor who lives in the garage apartment of his adoptive parents’ home; but tragedy strikes him and his fiancée Alice (Sheridan) when he ends up in a coma. When he awakens, he discovers he has the ability to heal others just by touching them. The movie also stars Patrick Duffy.

CASTING SCOOP

Rich Sommer (Mad Men) will play a working class fireman who will be aiming for Betty’s heart in upcoming episodes of Ugly Betty. His episode is set to air in March. Liza Minnelli has landed a recurring role in the series, recurring as Lena Korvinka, the high school drama teacher. Kristen Johnson will reprise her role as Helen on next week’s episode of the series. Lainie Kazan (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) and Nestor Serrano (24) will play Bobby’s Italian parents, Dina and Anthony in this season’s 15th episode.

Allison Sweeney (Days of Our Lives) will appear in an episode of Mercy as a bus-crash victim who appears to have only minor injuries.

Legendary actress Gena Rowlands will appear in a potentially recurring role as Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ mother-in-law in NCIS starting in March.

Movie actor Michael Sheen (Underworld movies) will guest star in an upcoming episode of 30 Rock and John Hamm (Mad Men) will return to the series for the Valentine’s Day episode.

Neil Patrick Harris is to appear in the episode of Glee that will be helmed by Joss Whedon.

Billy Baldwin will play Serena’s (Blake Lively) absentee father in a few episodes of Gossip Girl that will air later this season.

Sarah Paulson(Cupid) and J. August Richards (Angel) will appear in the February 18 episode of Grey’s Anatomy as the younger versions of Meredith’s mother Ellis and the Chief. Missi Pyle will also be seen in flashbacks of Dr. Bailey’s first days on the job.

Madchen Amick (Californication) has been cast in a recurring role on CSI: NY. She will play a romantic interest for Detective Taylor (Gary Sinise).

RUMOR PATROL

Rumor has it that CBS is eyeing Alex O’Loughlin (Moonlight) for their proposed remake of Hawaii Five-O; but that is speculation at best right now.

Robert Pattinson and Sean Penn are said to be in negotiations to star with Reese Witherspoon in the movie Water for Elephants, which is an adaptation of Sara Gruen’s 2006 novel of the same name about a love triangle among circus employees in Depression-era America.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

The following movies and specials will air this weekend and throughout next week:

The Lifetime movie The Pregnancy Pact will debut at 9 PM on Saturday, January 23 and is about a blogger (Thora Birch) who investigates a rash of teen pregnancies at her old high school, and rumors swirl about a pact between the girls.

NOTE: The movie will reair on Monday, January 25 at 9 PM.

The US Figure Skating Championships for women will air on NBC at 9 PM on Saturday, January 23.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards will be simulcast on both TNT and TBS on Saturday, January 23 at 8 PM.

Masterpiece Classic on PBS will feature the first of the three-part movie Emma based on the beloved Jane Austen novel with Jonny Lee Miller (Eli Stone) as Mr. Knightley and Romola Garai in the lead role on Sunday, January 24 at 9 PM.

The following new or returning shows will debut this coming weekend and next week:

Damages returns for another season on FX on Monday, January 25 at 10 PM.

Psych returns for the rest of its new season on USA Network at 10 PM on Wednesday, January 27.

Greek will return to the ABC Family Channel at its new time of 10 PM on Monday, January 24.

NEW EPISODES OF EXISTING SHOWS

Here are the new episodes of returning and new series that will be airing this coming week:

Saturday, January 23:
Demons on BBC America at 8 and 9 PM

NOTE: Legend of the Seeker will be back with all new episodes in syndication starting this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.

Sunday, January 24:
Big Love on HBO at 9 PM

NOTE: Legend of the Seeker will be back with all new episodes in syndication starting this weekend. Check your local listings for date, time and channel.

Monday, January 25:
Castle on ABC at 10 PM
One Tree Hill on the CW at 8 PM
Life Unexpected on the CW at 9 PM
House on FOX at 8 PM
24 on FOX at 9 PM
Chuck on NBC at 8 PM
Heroes on NBC at 9 PM
The Secret Life of the American Teenager on ABC Family at 8 PM
Make It or Break It on ABC Family at 9 PM
Men of a Certain Age on TNT at 10 PM

Tuesday, January 26:
NCIS on CBS at 8 PM
NCIS: Los Angeles on CBS at 9 PM
Southland on TNT at 10 PM
White Collar on USA at 10 PM

NOTE: If you want to remember what happened on last season’s finale of Lost, you can rewatch the 2-hour finale tonight at 9 PM on ABC. You can also rewatch the 2-hour pilot of Caprica on Syfy at 8 PM tonight. A special airing of Human Target is supposed to air on FOX tonight, too. Please check your local listings for time and confirmation.

Wednesday, January 27:
Ugly Betty on ABC at 10:01 PM
Nip/Tuck on FX at 10 PM
Leverage on TNT at 10 PM
Friday Night Lights on DirecTV; check local listings for time
Being Erica on SOAPNet at 10 PM
Human Target on FOX at 9 PM (Note: Check local listings for this airing)

Thursday, January 28:
The Deep End on ABC at 8 PM
Bones on FOX at 8 PM
Fringe on FOX at 9 PM
The Vampire Diaries on The CW at 8 PM
Supernatural on The CW at 9 PM
Burn Notice on USA at 10 PM

Friday, January 29:
Smallville on the CW at 8 PM
Dollhouse on FOX at 8 PM – Series Finale
Law & Order on NBC at 8 PM
Spartacus: Blood and Sand on Starz at 10 PM
Caprica on Syfy at 9 PM

NOTE: Please check your local listings for the correct air dates and times for all of the above.

Have a great weekend!

Please note that I will feature a weekly round-up of sci-fi based (and similar genres) news items at our sister site located at http://scifitvzone.com/. Please visit there as often as you can. Thanks!

“White Collar’s” New Night Works!

USA Network’s newest original hit series, White Collar, is back on a new night and it looks like a good move for the show’s first season. The winter premiere, which aired this past Tuesday night, garnered series high ratings in the 18 – 49 demographic, averaging 2.12 million which is up 30% from the previous Friday night spot. White Collar delivered 2.21 million in the 25 – 54 demographic, up 18%, and the best performance on a Tuesday night for that demo in more than five years.The move to the night also brought in series highs among  the 18-34 demo with a jump of +42%!

White Collar out-delivered ABC in its entire primetime lineup among the two demographics and total viewers. It also beat all broadcast competitors among 18-49, making it #1 in the demo at 10pm in all of television. White Collar beat CBS among 18-34 in the 10 pm timeslot.

Can I get a “Hell yeah!”?

A Look Back at 2009 (Part 3)

While many can argue that the Nielson ratings are flawed and desperately need to be overhauled, the industry still greatly relies on their daily tallies. Therefore, I did my own unscientific research on the top dramatic programs over the course of this past year. The details that follow are based strictly on the millions of viewers who tuned into dramas on the major networks from January to mid-December of 2009:

NOTE: All numbers shown in parenthesis are the estimated average of millions of viewers for each month for each show listed.

In January, the top 15 shows were: CSI (20.6); NCIS (19.0); The Mentalist (18.9); House (15.3); Criminal Minds and Grey’s Anatomy (14.0); CSI: Miami (13.6); Desperate Housewives (13.5); Cold Case (12.8); Lie to Me (12.7); 24 (12.4); CSI: NY (12.3); Fringe (12.0); Lost (11.3) and Ghost Whisperer (11.0).

For February, the top 15 shows were: NCIS and The Mentalist (18.2); CSI (17.5); Grey’s Anatomy (15.3); House (14.7); Criminal Minds (13.9); Desperate Housewives (13.8); CSI: Miami (13.3); Lie to Me (13.0); Private Practice (12.8); CSI: NY (12.6); Fringe (11.3); 24 (11.2); Ghost Whisperer (11.1) and Lost (10.7).

In March, the top 15 shows were: CSI (19.0); NCIS (16.8); The Menatlist (15.8); Grey’s Anatomy (14.8); Desperate Housewives (14.3); Criminal Minds (14.1); CSI: Miami (13.7); CSI: NY (13.0); House (12.8); Cold Case (12.3); Lie to Me (11.3); Ghost Whisperer, 24 and Law & Order: SVU (11.1) and Castle (11.0).

For April the top 15 shows included: NCIS (17.5); The Mentalist (17.0); ER (16.4); CSI (15.3); Criminal Minds (13.7); Desperate Housewives (13.6); Grey’s Anatomy (13.5): CSI: Miami (13.4); House (12.9); CSI: NY (12.5); 24 (11.0); Bones (10.8); Cold Case (10.6); Ghost Whisperer (10.1) and Fringe (9.9).

For May – despite the repeats that aired during the last two weeks of the month – the following were the top 10 shows of the month: The Mentalist (16.7); NCIS (16.3); Grey’s Anatomy (15.3); CSI (15.0); Criminal Minds (13.7); CSI: Miami (13.3); Desperate Housewives (13.2); CSI: NY (12.9); Cold Case (12.2) and House (12.0).

The programming landscape was rather bleak for the major networks from June to mid-September (as typical) with repeats being the norm while the cable networks took advantage of less competition.

With that thought in mind, the following statistics are based on information from The Futon Critic and relate only to current dramatic series airing on the cable channels (any series not included was either canceled this season, completed its run this season or was not included on the list at The Futon Critic’s website). The following list was put into alphabetical order:

Army Wives (Lifetime) – averaged 4.407 million viewers
Breaking Bad (AMC) – averaged 1.628 million viewers
Burn Notice (USA Network) – averaged 7.677 million viewers
Dark Blue (TNT) – averaged 3.288 million viewers
Dexter (Showtime) – averaged 2.166 million viewers
Eureka (Syfy) – averaged 3.148 million viewers
Greek (ABC Family Channel) – averaged 1.051 million viewers
Hawthorne (TNT) – averaged 4.005 million viewers
Leverage (TNT) – averaged 4.508 million viewers
Lincoln Heights (ABC Family Channel) – averaged 1.017 million viewers
Mad Men (AMC) – averaged 2.496 million viewers
Men of A Certain Age (TNT) – averaged 4.506 million viewers
Nip/Tuck (FX) – averaged 3.197 million viewers
Psych (USA Network) – averaged 5.126 million viewers
Royal Pains (USA Network) – averaged 7.474 million viewers
Sons of Anarchy (FX) – averaged 4.483 million viewers
Stargate Universe (Syfy) – averaged 2.574 million viewers
The Closer (TNT) – averaged 7.691 million viewers
The Secret Life of the American Teenager (ABC Family Channel) – averaged 3.870 million viewers
True Blood (HBO) – averaged 5.003 million viewers
Warehouse 13 (Syfy) – averaged 3.933 million viewers
White Collar (USA Network) – averaged 6.080 million viewers

With the return of another new season, the major networks were back in business and during the last two weeks of September the top 12 shows were: NCIS (20.3); NCIS: Los Angeles (18.0); Grey’s Anatomy (16.1); CSI (15.7); House (15.5); The Mentalist (15.0); Criminal Minds (14.5); CSI: Miami, CSI: NY and Desperate Housewives (14.0); The Good Wife (13.6) and FlashForward (12.0).

In October, the top 12 shows were: NCIS (20.7); NCIS: Los Angeles (16.0); CSI (15.2); The Mentalist (14.2); Grey’s Anatomy (14.1); Criminal Minds (13.9); Desperate Housewives (13.8); The Good Wife (13.2); CSI: Miami (13.1); House and CSI: NY (12.8) and Castle (10. 9).

For November, the following were the top 12 shows included: NCIS (20.2); NCIS: Los Angeles and The Mentalist (15.9); CSI (15.8); Grey’s Anatomy (14.1); Desperate Housewives (13.6); CSI: Miami (13.2) CSI: NY (13.1); Criminal Minds (12.8); The Good Wife (12.7); House (12.5) and V (11.4).

Lastly, the first half of December ranked the following shows as the top 10 for the month: NCIS (20.5); NCIS: Los Angeles (17.4); CSI (16.3); The Mentalist (15.7); Desperate Housewives (14.7); Criminal Minds (14.5); The Good Wife (14.1); CSI: Miami (13.5); CSI: NY (13.3) and House (13.2).

The final analysis of this unscientific research provides the following details:

1. CBS is the number one most watched network with 10 of the top shows;

2. CBS also has the most watched drama (NCIS) and the most watched new fall drama (NCIS: Los Angeles);

2. ABC only has two top dramas: Grey’s Anatomy and Desperate Housewives;

3. NBC is sorely lacking in any top dramas, new or returning:

4. FOX has one top drama: House; and,

5. It pays to be a series on any of the cable channels, as the series will actually stand a better chance of renewal and a loyal, if smaller than the major networks, fan base.

 This does not negate the success of other series. Those other shows simply have not cracked the top 20 most watched shows in terms of Nielson’s ratings.

NOTE:  If you would like to read my full TV ratings report, please visit the following URL:  http://rueben901.livejournal.com/165418.html.

EXTRAS: The following two highlights sections – Awards and Condolences – aren’t featured here at NiceGirlsTV, but you are welcome to read them at the following URL’s: http://rueben901.livejournal.com/165642.html and http://rueben901.livejournal.com/164130.html.

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