Tag Archives: TNT

Stand Up To Cancer 2014

stand-up-2-cancer

The Stand Up To Cancer press release says so well what they are about, and what is going on tonight.  Normally we avoid the copy and paste approach with press releases… but in this case, the details matter too much, and we want to get it exactly right.

 Friday, September 5th (8:00 – 9:00 PM ET/PT) Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), will stage its fourth biennial fundraising event.  Robert Downey Jr., Melissa McCarthy, Steve Carell, Sofia Vergara, Ben Falcone, Kevin Bacon, Anna Kendrick, Tony Goldwyn, Dave Grohl, Hailee Steinfeld, Josh Gad, Giada De Laurentiis, Jaime King, Mira Sorvino, Joe Manganiello, Jordana Brewster, Alison Sweeney, Amanda de Cadenet, Charlie Wilson, and Diem Brown, will be part of the star-studded appeal to help build public support for SU2C’s groundbreaking translational research that can provide patients with new therapies to save lives now. They join previously announced participants including Gwyneth Paltrow, Katie Couric, Reese Witherspoon, Pierce Brosnan, Jennifer Aniston, Halle Berry, Jon Hamm, Kiefer Sutherland, Ben Stiller, Will Ferrell, Mark Harmon, Rob Lowe, Eric Stonestreet, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Tony Hale, Dane Cook, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Marg Helgenberger, Matt Passmore, Rob Riggle, Italia Ricci, Ethan Zohn and Bree Turner. Special musical performances include: The Who, Jennifer Hudson, Lupe Fiasco & Common, Ariana Grande, and Dave Matthews Band.

Gwyneth Paltrow and Joel Gallen of Tenth Planet Productions will co-executive produce the September 5th broadcast, live from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.  ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC, along with ABC Family, American Forces Network, AXS TV, Bravo, Cooking Channel, Discovery Fit & Health, E!, Encore, Encore Espanol, EPIX, ESPNEWS, FOX Sports 2, FXM, HBO, HBO Latino, ION Television, LMN, Logo TV, MLB Network, National Geographic Channel, Oxygen, Palladia, Pivot, SHOWTIME, Smithsonian Channel, Starz, TNT and VH1 are donating one hour of simultaneous commercial-free primetime for the nationally televised fundraising special on Friday. In addition, the show will stream live on both Hulu and Yahoo.

Instead of the traditional phone bank staffed by celebrities, the September 5th telecast will feature a “digital lounge” on the set, hosted by Yahoo News Global Anchor Katie Couric. Stars in the digital lounge will reach out to viewers via phone, Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms through an exciting new campaign called “We’re Calling You” that SU2C’s supporters can sign up for at werecallingyou.org.

In the on-stage digital lounge, Katie Couric will tap into the Facebook Mentions Box, which allows supporters to share their connection to cancer and receive real-time responses from celebrities. Other celebrities in the digital lounge will participate in Facebook Q&As, using their own pages to respond live to fan questions.  Facebook and Instagram will also have a presence on the star-studded red carpet on September 5th with a photo experience that will capture the stars as they make their way into the Dolby Theatre, sharing those images and videos with fans. All of this, and much more, can be followed on Stand Up To Cancer’s social media feeds (facebook.com/su2c | Instagram: @SU2C | Twitter: @SU2C).

In addition to Facebook, an array of digital and social media platforms and influencers— ranging from Shazam, reddit, Nerdist, Tumblr, Yahoo, Hulu, AOL, and The Huffington Post— are helping support SU2C this year.

For the first time, there will be a Canada-inclusive co-broadcast of the 2014 telecast, which will air simultaneously on all four major English-language Canadian networks: CBC, City, CTV and Global, along with Canadian services AMI, CHCH, CHEK, Fight Network, Gusto TV, Hollywood Suite and TLN. All funds received from the Canadian general public during the broadcast will be directed towards the creation of collaborative research teams, as well as education and awareness programs conducted in Canada.

The first three SU2C telecasts took place on September 5, 2008, September 10, 2010 and September 7, 2012, and were made available to more than 190 countries. To date, more than $261 million has been pledged to support SU2C’s innovative cancer research programs. Since 2008, SU2C has funded 12 “Dream Teams” of researchers and two translational research teams, as well as 26 young innovative scientists whose high-risk, potentially high-reward projects are aimed at ending cancer’s reign as a leading cause of death worldwide.

There are times when it seems competition and the free market reign supreme, but Stand Up To Cancer is a prime example of an industry pulling together as one united force in opposition to something that touches lives daily throughout the world.  As they say on the StandUpToCancer website:

1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes. We can change these odds.

su2c_header

Falling Skies – Standing with the 2nd Mass

Falling Skies has been renewed for a 10 episode 5th season.  This is a show that captured audiences attention from the first season for a variety of reasons.

For me, what makes Falling Skies stand out is two-fold.  During one of the early episodes I suddenly realized here was a show that was accomplishing what I had been frustrated other shows had failed to do — creating the sense of community among the characters.  In scenes where the 2nd Mass (the main group of characters we have followed for four season) was moving from one location to another, or preparing to move, the camera would start on a fraction of a conversation between several characters, then drift to another grouping, sometimes following someone making deliveries, other times the camera seemed to be staying stationary and the group was marching past us.  But we were being given a glimpse of these seemingly insignificant moments, the joking among comrades, the tension releasing teasing among friends that reinforced these were people — and good times or bad, they were making it through, together.  When someone needed a shoulder to lean on, we saw someone give them words of encouragement, and a hug, and when they needed another weapon to help fight the good fight, we saw them given ammo and the confidence boost they needed.

It was not until I saw episode after episode with these scenes casually woven in that I realized other shows that had left me wanting had in fact left me wanting this.

The other major stand out quality of this show for me is family.  It does not strictly define family as blood relations and those who share DNA, but it does reinforce, time and again that willingness to go the extra mile for those you love.  A belief that those who love you will go to the ends of the Earth to find you and support you.  That the people you trust will have your back.  And those you aren’t entirely sure you trust (Pope) and yet, you find by your side time and again… somehow you realize, in the end they want to get to the same place you do, and maybe, just maybe, an alliance can be formed, a pact can be made, and to a degree, you can trust one another after all.

The show may, at first glance, seem to center on the Mason Family and the 2nd Mass.  But look beyond that, and see how this is a family that embraces their community, and defines community as those who are with them on this journey, not simply those who live in one place at one time.

The Masons are a people of hope, of faith that a better future can be worked towards and achieved, and week after week it makes other characters want to follow where they and the 2nd Mass leads, and viewers tune in.

FALLING SKIES – SUNDAYS AT 10 P.M. (ET/PT)

Falling Skies

TNT’s epic drama Falling Skies – from Amblin Television and executive producer Steven Spielberg– tells the extraordinary story about life and survival in the wake of a catastrophic alien invasion. Noah Wyle stars as Tom Mason, a college professor who became an unlikely resistance leader. Moon Bloodgood is Dr. Anne Glass, a pediatrician who became the survivors’ primary physician and eventually fell in love with Tom.  Will Patton is Colonel Weaver, the gruff and emotionally scarred commander leading the battle against the invaders.  Also starring in Falling Skies are Drew Roy, Connor Jessup, Maxim Knight, Colin Cunningham, Seychelle Gabriel, Mpho Koaho, Sarah Carter, Doug Jones and Scarlett Byrne. Falling Skies premiered as basic cable’s #1 new series of 2011.

Major Crimes

When the character of Sharon Raydor was first introduced on TNT’s The Closer she was what that show needed.  A counter-balance to Brenda Leigh Johnson, Sharon Raydor is a strong woman who follows the rules, to the letter, and did the tough job of investigating officer involved shootings and trying to prevent lawsuits against the LAPD.

In those early appearances, where she was guest staring in the world of characters the audience had come to know and love over several seasons, there were virtually no soft edges, especially in the beginning.  As time wore on we found out she had children — it was almost a revelation when the audience discovered she had a heart.  Sharon Raydor felt Brenda Leigh Johnson was a kindred spirit and they might have the potential to be friends, and the two seemed startled to refer to one another as friends.

Then TNT announced The Closer was coming to an end… and Major Crimes would rise in its place.  It was an odd feeling to many regular viewers, since The Closer had been all about the team in the Major Crimes division.  Why change the name of the show?  What was happening?  A cast shake up was happening, but was that all?

Then there was the feeling of how was Sharon Raydor, who was a solid upstanding character, but had thus far lacked the charisma of Brenda Leigh Johnson, going to take over as the lead of the show?

Graham Patrick Martin, in the role of Rusty Beck, made the difference.  Rusty, who first appeared at the very end of the The Closer, as a witness to a crime, gave the audience a new perspective from which to see Captain Sharon Raydor… suddenly she was not just the always at the office, always on duty cop.  Rusty needed a protector, a guardian, and through him we got to see her as Sharon, in her apartment, occasionally even with her heart on her sleeve.  Through Rusty she was humanized, opened up, and softened into a character the audience could care about just as we had grown to know and love Brenda Leigh Johnson.

The strengths of The Closer were carried forward into Major Crimes, even as a new leader brought a new style, a new goal, and subtle shifts in how the episodes unfold.  I may miss Brenda’s drawer full of candy, and her forever saying Thank You, but in the end I love that not only does Sharon close the case with a confession, she goes that step further and gets a deal that means we know the guilty party will do time.

And, as an added bonus for long time watchers of the shows, Jon Tenney has been reprising his role of FBI Agent Fritz Howard (otherwise known as Brenda Leigh Johnson’s husband), until recently with just the occasional appearance.  But the final three episodes of the current season clearly set him up with the opportunity for a spin-off of his own.  With a strong-willed, determined second in command (Laurie Holden), and a detective with a skill for going undercover (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) those three could could make a strong core cast to yet another powerful show.

The Last Ship — John Pyper-Ferguson is Tex

John Pyper-FergusonFans of John Pyper-Ferguson know him as an actor with a list of credits a mile long.  Those who can not instantly call his name to mind may take a look at his 140+ acting credits on his IMDB page and suddenly realize they are in fact familiar with his work — so why didn’t his name pop on a light bulb?  He has a knack for slipping into a character in the tradition of the proverbial character actor.

During a brief conversation today Pyper-Ferguson discussed his current television character, Tex, on TNT’s The Last Ship,  confirming what fans and regular viewers of the show already know.  Simply put, we do not yet know a lot about Tex’s past.  Time and again the word Mercenary was used to describe his character who is not a member of the United States Navy like the majority of the characters seen week in, week out, on this summer drama.  He is not a civillian scientist either.  Rather he was a guard at gitmo.  A contractor who is now something else altogether.  The writers have referred to him in a behind the scenes special as a character that represents Freedom and has a “good spirit”.

The first pages with Tex in them that Pyper-Ferguson saw, the scenes with which he read and auditioned, held the flavor of the character and after his first reading “I got it” Pyper-Ferguson said, “I understood he’s a guy who tries to lighten things up when they are dark.”  He said his initial reaction to reading the part was, “this role is mine” and anyone who has seen the show will whole-heartedly agree.

Tex is more than a light-hearted, laid back guy.  He is confident with a gun, trained to have your back and you want him there when the chips are down because you know he will defend it — but that does not quite describe the character either, in part because while we believe this man is on our side and adimires Chandler, as Pyper-Ferguson was quick to point out, “he is a lone wolf,” and as he had said earlier, “we just do not know much about his background.”  When asked right out about Tex’s loyalties, Pyper-Ferguson remarked “he’s a mercenary, he’s a survivalist, this might be the kind of world where he might potentially excel in, and the previous world with a lot more rules and regulations was a place that held him back from his own nature.”  And perhaps, that last bit is part of the charm of Tex, the fact that we are seeing a character come into his own, and rise up in a positive way, because he is using his skills to help the good guys, and in a good way.

At San Diego’s Comic-Con International Rhona Mitra remarked that “everyone needs a champion,” in reference to Eric Dane’s Captain Chandler.  Tex may not be Dr. Scott’s stand out in front of the entire ship of Navy personnel champion, but he serves an equally important and vital role in the character Dr. Scott’s life.  Pyper-Ferguson joked Tex is “hot for teacher” and the show gets a lot of mileage out of that light hearted approach between the two characters, but more than that, the lone wolf is aware of all she is doing ‘for the pack’ and is helping to keep her spirits up, to ecourage her — to brighten her dark moments, and urge her forward when she is at risk of faltering.

A good show has unique characters that serve different and necessary roles.  Characters who each have different responses to a situation, and different perspectives on problems.  Those are among the reasons I come back to The Last Ship week after week… TNT is providing good entertainment, exciting action, and a good show, with characters I look forward to seeing in a second season — even bearing in mind Pyper-Ferguson’s warning “all the characters get in a lot of jeopardy, and there are cassualties of war, and there has to be in a show like this.”

The official description of The Last Ship is:

TNT’s action-packed drama The Last Ship, stars Eric Dane (Grey’s Anatomy) and is executive-produced by blockbuster filmmaker Michael Bay (Transformers). The Last Ship opens with a global catastrophe that nearly decimates the world’s population. Because of its positioning, the Navy destroyer U.S.S. Nathan James avoids falling victim to the devastating tragedy. But now, Captain Tom Chandler (Dane) and his crew must confront the reality of their new existence in a world where they may be among the few remaining survivors. Rhona Mitra (Strike Back) plays Rachel Scott, a strong-willed, intelligent and fearless paleomicrobiologist assigned to the ship. Adam Baldwin (Firefly, Chuck) is XO Mike Slattery, a former homicide detective and Chandler’s second-in-command. Also starring in The Last Ship are Travis Van Winkle (Heart of Dixie), Charles Parnell (Pariah), Christina Elmore (Fruitvale Station), Sam Spruell (Snow White and The Huntsman) and Marissa Neitling (Leverage). Based on William Brinkley’s popular novel, The Last Ship comes to TNT from Bay’s Platinum Dunes and its partners, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form, whose credits include the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Bay, Fuller and Form have served as executive producers, along with series co-creators Hank Steinberg (Without a Trace, The Nine) and Steven Kane (The Closer), and director Jack Bender (Lost).

Watch episodes on The TNT Website to catch up, and tune in Sunday’s at 9 PM ET/PT for new episodes on TNT.

Go Navy - circa 1970s

Go Navy – circa 1970s