The Cast and Crew of “The Cleaner” Auction to Give Back

Below is a press release announcing the cast and crew of The Cleaner in a fund-raising event for EDAR (Everybody Deserves A Roof).

NEW YORK, NY, Sept. 10, 2009 -The cast and crew of the A&E drama series “The Cleaner” have joined together to raise funds to donate two EDAR (Everyone Deserves a Roof) units to the Union Rescue Mission in downtown Los Angeles. An auction is currently running on aetv.auction.seenon.com to raise additional funds.

When Co-Creator and Executive Producer Jonathan Prince first saw the EDAR, he knew he wanted to feature it in “The Cleaner.” The unit was featured in “Path of Least Resistance” an episode that aired August 18th on A&E. While filming, the crew became so involved in the cause that they created an on-set auction to raise money for the units. They were able to raise $1000 which allowed them to purchase two of the mobile devices. They will soon present the EDARs are given to their new owners.

In addition, A&E has created an auction website (http://aetv.auction.seenon.com/) where fans can log-in to bid on items including hats, body boards and bags signed by cast members Benjamin Bratt, Grace Park, Amy-Price Francis and Esteban Powell.

The season two finale of “The Cleaner,” premieres on Tuesday, September 15 at 10 PM ET/PT on A&E. In the one-hour episode, William (Benjamin Bratt) must help an old friend (Richard Lewis), who chooses speed over his wife and two kids, get clean. Meanwhile PK (Whoopi Goldberg) attempts to wrangle some of the other addicts William has helped recently for a surprise party in honor of William’s ten-year-sober birthday. Additional guest stars include Gary Cole, Janina Gavankar, Steve Landesberg, Paul Schulze, Jeanette Brox, Michael Beach, Dionysio Basco, Joy Bisco and Annabelle Gurwitch.

Inspired by a true story, “The Cleaner” stars Benjamin Bratt as William Banks, a recovering addict who must balance his unwavering dedication to helping others get clean with an increasingly rocky personal life and the ghosts of his addictions. Banks and his teammates Akani Cuesta (Grace Park) and Arnie Swenton (Esteban Powell) employ an unconventional – and often by any means necessary – approach to getting addicts and those who surround them to realize they’ve reached rock-bottom and help them begin the process of recovery. With every success and failure, William wrestles with his commitment to his work and his love for his wife Melissa (Amy Price-Francis) and their children through an unusual relationship with God.

EDAR (Everyone Deserves A Roof) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides unique mobile shelters to the homeless. Each EDAR is a four-wheeled unit, based on a mobile cart design allowing for storage during the day. The EDAR unfolds into a framed tent-like enclosure with a bed providing a comfortable place to sleep at night .

“The Cleaner” Returns to A & E, June 23

I wasn’t interested in getting into another heavy drama, but I really do like Benjamin Bratt, and I’ve found a new squishy to love in Esteban Powell. What can I say? I’m finicky. Whatever the case may be, I’m going to be watching this series, which is beginning its second season on A&E, June 23. Since I am coming late to the party, I have all of season one to catch up on. So, for info and photos, I’ll check in at TV.com.

About the Show
Inspired by the true story of real life “extreme interventionist” Warren Boyd, who also co-executive produces the series, “The Cleaner” stars Benjamin Bratt as William Banks, a recovering addict who must balance his unwavering dedication to helping others get clean with an increasingly rocky personal life and the ghosts of his addictions. Banks and his teammates Akani Cuesta (Grace Park) and Arnie Swenton (Esteban Powell) employ an unconventional – and often by any means necessary – approach to getting addicts and those who surround them to realize they’ve reached rock-bottom and help them begin the process of recovery. With every success and failure, William wrestles with his commitment to his work and his love for his wife Melissa (Amy Price-Francis) and their children through an unusual relationship with God.

The Cast
Benjamin Bratt – William Banks
Grace Park – Akani Cuesta
Esteban Powell – Arnie Swenton
Amy Price-Francis – Melissa Banks

Watch for my review of the season two premiere coming soon. And don’t forget, The Cleaner premiere’s June 23, at 10/9 CT, on A&E.

Nice Boy of the Week: Esteban Powell

By special request, this week’s Nice Boy is The Cleaner’s own Esteban Powell, who plays Arnie Swenton. A short bio on him:

Esteban Louis Powell (born 1977 in Houston, Texas) is an American actor.

He attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston, a magnet school of the Houston Independent School District. He was cast in the role of “Carl Burnet” in the 1993 Richard Linklater Film Dazed and Confused.

Since, he has appeared in the films Hysteria – The Def Leppard Story, Runaways, Paper Cut, and Shiloh Falls among others. He has appeared in episodes of Beverly Hills, 90210, Touched by an Angel, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Reba, Dawson’s Creek, Charmed, Gilmore Girls and Monk. In 2000-2001, he played Jargon in Level 9. (Source.)

Esteban Powell

Although we haven’t written much about The Cleaner, this Nice Boy is having such an influence on us that we are beginning to have a change of heart.

“The Beast” DVD Release

TV Shows on DVD posted on their site that Amazon has listed A&E’s The Beast – The Complete First Season to be released August 18, as a 3-disc set.

The Beast, starring Patrick Swayze and Travis Fimmel, centers on an unorthodox but effective FBI veteran, Charles Barker (Swayze), who takes on a rookie partner, Ellis Dove (Fimmel). Barker trains Dove in a hard-edged, psychologically driven approach towards undercover work, where a moment’s hesitation can lead to death.

Specifics are not available at this time, but we’ll keep you posted.

“The Beast” Canceled

Variety is reporting that A&E’s The Beast, starring Patrick Swayze and Travis Fimmel as undercover FBI agents, will not be coming back for a second season. Siting soft ratings, there were rumors of a new lead coming in, but now it looks like the show is just not coming back at all.

New A&E Series “The Beast”

A new series premiering on A&E has caught the Nice Girls’ attention. It’s called The Beast and it stars Patrick Swayze and Travis Fimmel, whom you may remember from the Tarzan series that aired back in 2003. Australia serves up yet another amazing talent in Travis. Keep your eyes on him!

According to the press release, A&E Network will premiere the original scripted drama series, “The Beast” on January 15th at 10PM ET/PT. “The Beast,” starring Patrick Swayze and Travis Fimmel, centers on an unorthodox but effective FBI veteran, Charles Barker (Swayze), who takes on a rookie partner, Ellis Dove (Fimmel), to train in his hard-edged and psychologically clever style of agenting.

In the premiere episode of “The Beast,” the mischievous Barker hazes Dove as they go undercover on their first case to infiltrate a weapons smuggling ring. Barker brilliantly manipulates situations, constantly tests his new partner’s abilities and pushes him to delve deeper into the roles of the undercover characters he creates. Although Dove takes a liking to Barker, the new job takes its toll on him. The stress and danger of being an agent quickly makes him realize that he can no longer maintain normal relationships outside of work. Yet that’s not the worst of it. The rookie is confronted with a larger challenge: An FBI Internal Affairs team feels Barker may have gone rogue and they try to enlist Dove as a double-agent in the bureau’s investigation of his mentor.

“The Beast” is executive produced by Allan Loeb and Steven Pearl for Scarlet Fire Films (“New Amsterdam”) and Cory Concoff (“Beltway”) for Fuel Filmworks. John Romano (“American Dreams,” “Third Watch”) serves as the showrunner and executive producer. The pilot script was written by William Rotko (“Breach,” “Beltway”) and Vincent Angell (Stand By Love). For the pilot, Rotko & Angell served as co-executive producers and for the series they are executive producers. Michael Dinner (“The Wonder Years,” “Grey’s Anatomy”) directed and is executive producer on the pilot. He continues to serve as an executive consultant on the series. “The Beast” is produced by Sony Pictures Television for A&E Network.

Photos can be found in our gallery here.