The TV Addict 

By: Amrie Cunningham [My Take on TV]

The latest original offering airing on Lifetime Movie Network this weekend is their first miniseries. “The Capture of the Green River Killer” tells the true story of the 20-year search for the most prolific serial killer in US history. The miniseries stars Tom Cavanaugh (“Ed”), as detective Dave Reichert, the man who persevered to bring an end to this extraordinary case. The story is told through the eyes of a runaway, named Helen (“Hel”) Remus, played so inspiringly well by Amy Davidson (perhaps most recognizable for her role on “8 Simple Rules”). Amy was kind enough to sit down and answer some questions for us about her role, her close ties to her “8 Simple Rules” family, and why this story needed to be told.

What about this mini-series for LMN drew you in? The other cast members, the writing, the network?
Amy Davidson: I would have to say the story for sure drew me in. It was one of those scripts that I couldn’t put down. And it was a long one! My character Hel was an absolute dream role for me. I had been wanting a role that would expand me as a person and as an actress. I’ve always wanted to do a lifetime movie. And here I booked LMN’s first miniseries. That was such a bonus!

What does a viewer need to know about your character, Hel, before watching the mini-series?
Hel asks the questions that I think we all want answers to. At least I know I want the answers. When we first meet her, she’s an innocent girl who just wants to be loved. And as the story progresses we see the toll life takes on her. She starts to go in a downward spiral and it’s just heartbreaking.

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By: Amrie Cunningham [My Take on TV]

I’ve been a TV Addict forever, watching hours of TV when my mom told me not to. One of my favorite characters ever to grace the small screen is Samantha Micelli from WHO’S THE BOSS?, played so wonderfully by Alyssa Milano. I recently had the great pleasure of catching up with Alyssa to talk about her new Lifetime movie airing this weekend.

The movie, called WISEGAL, is the true story of Patty Montanari, a widowed mother, trying to make ends meet, who in doing so, joins the mafia. Alyssa portrays the title character with strength and vulnerability. James Caan and Jason Gedrick costar in a movie that fits the mold of a Lifetime film – the kind that gets you all teary-eyed – but goes above and beyond that to make you really think about what you would do for your family.

I love the movie. Lifetime has been doing some really great stuff lately.
Alyssa Milano: Yeah, it’s definitely, it’s interesting. It’s an interesting combination. It’s definitely a movie that Lifetime audiences will enjoy because the crux of it is a single mother trying to make ends meet.

What made you want to play Patty?
There were a lot of elements. When I first read the script, before we started production, I just felt like I had a really good grasp on who she was. And what motivated her to make the choices that she makes. And also, I think it shows the mafia in a way that we’ve never seen before, through the eyes of a woman. What that enabled us to do was to really show a side that where it cares about family and about being accepted in a family and about feeling protected and taken care of. And I think that because Patty never had those things, it was very attractive to her.

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By: Amrie Cunningham [My Take on TV]

Lifetime is good to me. They recently sent over a preview copy of their latest inspirational movie called RACING FOR TIME. It’s inspired by the true story of a male prison guard who pulls together a track program for tough and violent female offenders at a juvenile facility. Charles S. Dutton (Emmy award winning actor and director) is fabulous, both as an actor and a director, in the main role. He is joined on screen by Elizabeth Pena and an up and coming young actress named Yaya Da Costa (some of you might recognize her from America’s Next Top Model). I had an opportunity to chat with her for a bit about working with “Roc” (Charles S. Dutton), why she wanted to be an actress, and who she admires.

Great film, I think it’s really in the vein of what Lifetime tries to do. It’s inspirational.
YaYa: I’m glad you watched it! It was controversial at first, but it is inspirational.

You’re right, it is controversial, but I think people will understand it, and you’re great in this.
Thank you!

Brings me to the first question – what made you interested in this role?
I just thought it was a great role. Any role, honestly for a young actor, is work, so that’s always good. It’s great to be excited when you’re going into an audition about the prospect of playing someone. Different from yourself. It makes it more. I just the different code of behavior and the different thought process that you use. My first instinct as a person in conflict resolution is to find the right words. But Vanessa’s is physical confrontation, so that was fun to explore.

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By: Amrie Cunningham [My Take on TV]

You know me. You know that I’ve been championing the high quality of Side Order of Life since before it started on Lifetime. I feel a connection to the show since I got to talk to the creator Margaret Nagle. She gave me insight into what would happen as the season went on, and it was so exciting to see that played out. I watch the show every week, sometimes twice, with my roommates. I got the privilege of talking to four members of the cast over the past two weeks, and as if I needed another reason to be addicted to this show, they got me wanting me to see the final three episodes more than anything!

When someone asks me why I watch the show, the cast chemistry is almost always my first response. The characters interact as if the actors have known each other for years. Talking to Marisa Coughlan (Jenny), Chris Gartin (Rick), Diana-Maria Riva (Vivy), and Ashley Williams (Becca) has made me want to go work on the show so I can spend time with them! I asked them about the interaction and here is what they had to say:

“I think that like, somehow, we are all so like our characters…we don’t all spend a lot of time in scenes together, but off camera, it is even better, and we can’t wait to get more of that on camera. We all really get along great. A lot of the things the characters are going through on the show…are so similar to our conversations that they are so similar to our dialogue sometimes, we laugh about it!” says Chris. Adds Diana, “You know, no joke, it is ridiculous how well we came together. I mean, we are this tight knit little family that could not have blended better and there is so much trust between us that, we will literally turn to each other and say ‘I’m blocked with this, what do I do, where should I push?’ We will turn to each other for advice on our own work, which really is a sign of a lot of faith and trust in each other and respect for each other. That, to me, is a glorious group to be with.” As if you need more reason to love them, Marisa says, “It’s kind of ridiculous haha, I work the most with Rick (Chris Gartin) and Vivy (Diana). I couldn’t be much more in love with them and Jason, too. I just lately don’t have the pleasure of working with him as much! It’s just one of the things they really did well, and it was just sheer happenstance. It was serendipity I guess, because we really do have an amazing natural affinity for each other. It’s a very fun set to work on, which I can’t say for all sets ha! It’s a fantastic time.” As for Ashley, who came in later than the “core four” as I call them, she has nothing but love. “They have been the most awesome cast to work with and they have all been so friendly from the beginning and they were really close because they had just finished shooting the pilot when I came in. They sort of bonded, and then I was this guest. But they have been so cool to me, it has been really fun!”

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By: Amrie Cunningham [My Take on TV]

I am a TV Addict who watches the Disney channel, and I’m not afraid to admit it. I actually consider myself one of the biggest fans of the charming star Kay Panabaker. Memorable for roles on Phil of the Future and movies like Life is Ruff and Read it and Weep; you may also remember her from the gone-too-soon classic Summerland, now airing on The N. She also has a recurring role on CSI as Katherine’s precocious daughter (not to be confused with the other Panabaker, Kay’s sister, the equally fabulous Danielle, who plays Stark’s daughter Julie on one of my guilty pleasures, Shark on CBS).

Kay is starring in the enjoyable new Lifetime Original Movie appropriately named “Custody” airing September 8 (with two fabulous men fighting over her, I don’t know how she does it! Sure, they’re fighting for custody of her character, but it’s Rob Morrow and James Denton, you cannot go wrong there!). I had the absolute privilege of speaking with her recently about great set relationships, the importance of staying in school, and oh yeah, a charming young kid you might know, named Zac Efron!

Why did you pick this movie [in which Kay’s character finds out at the age of 13 that the man who raised her as his own after her mother died (Rob Morrow) isn’t her biological father and that her mom’s ex-boyfriend (James Denton) is back in her life to get to know his daughter and get full custody]? What about it spoke to you?
Kay Panabaker: When I first heard Lifetime, my sister has done two movies and she’s always, it’s always been the woman who’s been beaten or abused or is going through a hard time. This one, the lead was two guys and a little girl and the story was just so touching to me, it was just the idea that your whole world gets torn apart and you still return to the one that saw you through the horrible times….I thought it was a sweet story. At the time, Rob Morrow wasn’t attached, and James Denton was, so I thought, hey this could be fun! I’ve got a couple of friends that work on the show [Desperate Housewives], one of the hairdressers. I thought, that’s a good thing, so that could be fun. And it was. It was an absolutely fantastic time.

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This summer, Lifetime’s ARMY WIVES has proven to be a wildly entertaining series with some of the most likable characters around. And Sunday night’s finale gave fans exactly what they’ve come to expect: A little romance, a few tears, a hokey moment or two and even a little bit of flag-waving patriotism. But can anyone tell me why the network gave away the “shocking” ending a full week in advance? Viewers who’d seen the previous week’s teaser for the finale knew that someone would walk into the Hump Bar with a bomb strapped to their chest. What we didn’t realize that the moment wasn’t leading up to the cliffhanger, but actually WAS the cliffhanger! Getting all the lead characters together in order to put them in jeopardy is a tried-and-true soap device which was deftly used by the WIVES writers, who probably weren’t thrilled to have their carefully constructed cliffhanger blown by an over-eager PR department.

Why is SURVIVOR heading to China? Have they learned nothing? Past seasons have proven that when the show leaves the beach, viewers tend to abandon ship. I could be wrong, but I think the producers are putting a whole lot more stock into the fact that - as the commercials love to remind us - “for the first time ever” an American television show is filming in the shadow of an ancient mountain… I’m sorry, how long was I asleep? Yes, I’ll tune in on September 20th… but if there aren’t a few interesting folks making the journey, don’t expect me to stick around. And by “interesting” I don’t mean nasty. That’s a casting mistake BIG BROTHER made this season, and if I get even the vaguest hint that the new survivors will prove as unlikable a bunch as their house-bound brethren, I’ll be flipping channels quicker than you can say “the tribe has spoken.”

Usually by this time of year, I’m frantically trying to figure out how I’m going to watch all the great new shows I’m excited to see. This year… not so much? Is it just me, or does the crop of fall programs being offered seem even more lackluster than usual? Have we just been spoiled by the great shows on cable? Help me out, here, folks, because I’m getting depressed. Convince me that at least a few of the new shows coming out are worth getting excited about!

About two weeks ago, I got a fabulous surprise in the mail. After a long work day, I came home to find an adorable envelope filled with information and the pilot episode of Lifetime’s new show “Side Order of Life”. I’ve watched it 4 times since then, and I’m just so excited for new episodes!

The show is about Jenny McIntyre (Marisa Coughlin in a charming role), a 30 year old woman on the verge of the perfect marriage with the perfect man. That all changes when her best friend tells her that the cancer she thought she had beaten had returned, and was overtaking her brain. What follows is Jenny’s world slowly falling apart before her eyes, and she needs to find a way to make it all better again. She has a strong group of friends, who all have fabulous chemistry. Diana Maria Riva (Vivy, cancer-stricken friend), Jason Priestley (saintly fiancé of Jenny), and Chris Gartin (Rick, struck with love for Vivy) all mesh so well with each other. They really are fabulous. What I love most is the surprise element of the officially-titled Cell Phone Guy and what he represents for Jenny as she starts her new life.

Along with the luck of watching the pilot episode, I had the privilege of speaking with Margaret Nagle, creator, writer, and executive producer of the show, about what she thinks about her show, how she feels about her characters, and what she hopes we all get out of the material.

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