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TV News Roundup – October 2009 – Week 1

Heather Locklear returning to ‘Melrose Place’
After airing two “Melrose Place” episodes to lackluster ratings, The CW has signed Heather Locklear to join the update of the TV title she starred in during the 1990s. Locklear played scheming Amanda in the original version, which she joined at the end of the first season. She will make her first appearance on the show Nov. 17.

Meet the Bounty Hunters of the Clone Wars
The coming season of Clone Wars will feature not only the battle between Clone Troopers and battle drones, but a colorful new crew of characters: the galaxy’s deadliest bounty hunters. Check out concept art of these hunters for hire.

Video: SGU’s Robert Carlyle answers your questions
In the first to two new exclusive Stargate Universe videos, star Robert Carlyle answers your questions about the new Syfy series. Stargate Universe follows the adventures of explorers who find themselves trapped aboard the Destiny, a ship built by the Ancients, on a never-ending mission when the crew learns the ship can’t return to Earth.

Showtime picks up Bon Jovi doc
‘When We Were Beautiful’ follows band on the road
Showtime has acquired “When We Were Beautiful,” a documentary about rock band Bon Jovi. It will premiere Oct. 24. Directed by filmmaker and photographer, the documentary was filmed on the road and behind the scenes with the band during its 2008 Lost Highway World Tour. It features band member interviews and scenes of life on the road.

CW cancels ‘The Beautiful Life’
Network aired only two episodes of the drama
The CW has canceled the Ashton Kutcher-produced drama “The Beautiful Life” after two episodes. Production on the show, which had been filming its seventh episode, was shut down Friday. The network will not air any new “Beautiful Life” episodes. The cancellation comes on the heels of two reality show pickups for the network, “Fly Girls” and a Tinsley Mortimer docusoap.

USA confirms ‘L&O: CI’ departure
Vincent D’Onofrio leaving at the start of upcoming season
USA Network on Friday confirmed that “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” star Vincent D’Onofrio will leave the series at the beginning of the show’s upcoming ninth season. He is one of four regulars on the show, along with Kathryn Erbe, Eric Bogosian and Julianne Nicholson, leaving. New mom Nicholson is being replaced by Saffron Burrows.

ABC to split run of ‘V’ series
Four eps to air in November with the rest eyed for spring
The network will likely air the first four episodes of the alien drama in November, with the remaining segments of the 13-episode order eyed for spring, probably March. The four-episode November run will end with a cliffhanger, setting up the stage for “V’s” midseason return. “V,” whose production was shut down in late August for a “creative hiatus,” has been the subject of intense speculation in the past several days. “V,” which has two episodes plus the pilot in the can, is now in pre-production and is scheduled to begin filming episode 4 in mid-October. After that episode is completed, the series will go on a holiday hiatus.

Stephen Root to do ‘24′ arc
Actor will play a parole officer in the Fox drama
Stephen Root has joined Fox’s “24″ for a multiepisode arc. On the upcoming eighth season of 20th TV’s real-time drama, Root will play Ben Prady, an officer of the Department of Corrections looking into a parolee gone missing.

‘Trauma’ promos mine radio drama
Used dramatic mock 911 calls as part of campaign
NBC is reviving the art of radio theater in a series of ads for its upcoming medical drama “Trauma” that dramatizes mock 911 calls. The radio ads depict an emergency, a call to a 911 operator and then the aftermath, complete with voiceover from the point of view of the responding paramedic.

A&E cancels ‘Cleaner’
Bratt-led series just concluded second season
A&E Network has canceled “The Cleaner.” The cable network has opted not to renew the drama series toplined by Benjamin Bratt for a third season. The show’s 13-episode second season concluded earlier this month. “The Cleaner,” starring Bratt as a real-life extreme interventionist, marked A&E’s first scripted series in more than six years when it debuted in July 2008.

Showtime, Spielberg team on series
Show to chronicle development of B’way musical
DreamWorks TV and Showtime are in the early stages of developing a scripted series that will chronicle the development of an original Broadway musical, from its creative inception through its opening night. The intention is to then mount the tuner on the Main Stem after the series airs.

CW gives full-season order to ‘Tree’
Network orders more ‘Melrose,’ ‘Vampire’
The CW has given a full-season order to veteran drama “One Tree Hill,” and has also ordered additional scripts for frosh entries “The Vampire Diaries” and “Melrose Place.” The netlet had ordered just 13 episodes of “One Tree Hill” this season, but the early pickup now secures the show a full seventh season. As for “Diaries,” the CW has picked up nine more scripts – a good sign that a full-season order is in the cards. Then there’s “Melrose,” which has so far been a disappointment for the Dub. But the CW believes the show is creatively on track enough to earn an order for six additional scripts.

Australia keeps kid programming quotas
Government maintains mandate for drama content
After an extensive yearlong evaluation, the government handed down its findings Sept. 1, maintaining the status quo; the only controversial move was the lack of a ban on junk food ads during kids’ skeins. These quotas — 32 hours of drama a year for the three commercial-free webs — are largely credited with Oz’s strong position in the kidvid area, particularly tween drama.

Ramsay cooks up animated series
Celeb chef, Cuppa Coffee ‘At Your Service’
Celeb chef Gordon Ramsay is already a pretty cartoonish character. Now he’s set to be the star of his own stop-motion animation series after striking a deal with Toronto-based animation house Cuppa Coffee Studios. “Gordon Ramsay, at Your Service” is described as a half-hour laffer that will take “the essence of who he is and have a bit of fun with it,” according to Adam Shaheen, prexy of Cuppa Coffee.

Aardman moves into live-action
Animation house launches ‘Men in Coats’
U.K. claymation toon house Aardman is teaming with the BBC’s CBBC kids’ arm and German pubcaster WDR to produce a live-action version of tyke hit “Men in Coats.” A pilot has been greenlit with the aim of producing 13 15-minute episodes of the slapstick laffer, which has a huge following thanks to clips on YouTube.

Bits and Pieces

The Fine Print

This is by no means meant to be a comprehensive roundup of the entire weeks’ news. All stories are chosen by me for no other reason than that they got my attention and might capture yours. If something you think is more important chime in on the feedback; we’d love to hear comments and have a conversation about it.

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About The Author

Scott From LA

Scott is an art director, writer and comics creator living in Los Angeles. He has been a pop culture maven from a very young age. His very first job was as a manager of a comic book store. He spent several years working in a video store, and yes, we are talking VHS tapes. A student of literature and Writing, he brings his obsessive love of comic book trivia, movie history and science fiction/fantasy writing to bear on the work he does for CoolShite.

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  • Posted: Thursday, October 1st, 2009
  • Author: Scott From LA
  • Filed Under: News, TV News
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