Category Archives: TV

Another Invisible Man Series?

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Well, it looks like Fox is considering a new Invisible Man series.  The drama, entitled Invisible, “tells the story of a criminal at rock bottom who is given a second chance at life when a chemical compound makes him invisible.”  Hmm…now doesn’t that sound vagely similiar to a certain show we all know and love?

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the project has “landed at Fox with a script commitment.”  What this means is that Fox has asked for a pilot script to be developed.  Now that doesn’t guarantee that the pilot will actually get made.  Networks can have anywhere from 100 to 150 pilot scripts ordered each season.  From those, only about 20 to 30 pilots will actually be produced.  And from those, only a handful get picked up.  It depends on how many slots they need to fill in their schedule.  So this series is far from being a sure thing at this point.  Time will tell if we see another Invisible Man series on our TV screens.

Frankly, I think it’s a risky move for any network to put an Invisible Man story on air.  Invisibility stories have been notorious for being flops.  Anybody remember The Invisible Man with David McCallum?  Or Gemini Man with Ben Murphy?  The problem with invisibility is that film is a visual medium and invisibility is…well, not visual.

Now our Invisible Man was the rare show that did it right.  That’s because invisibility wasn’t the main focus of the show.  Sure, it was very cleverly done and there were a bunch of cool invisibility tricks and all.  But the focus was more on the characters and relationships.  There was humor, there was drama, there was action.  Heck, there’s way too much to list that the show did right.  But all the elements came together to create a show that could have had a much larger audience if it was given half a chance.

Personally, I’m with Tony Whitt of If Magazine who wrote:  “No, it’s not the SCI FI Channel show that aired some years back that’s returning to our screens – though wouldn’t it rock if it did?”

Paul Guest Stars in “Shark”

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I’m always disappointed when I find out news about the cast or crew after the fact and, unfortunately, that’s what happened here.  Yep, Paul Ben-Victor was a guest star on Shark last week.  But even though this bit of news slipped by me, there is a silver lining.

Thanks to the fact that Shark episodes are being streamed online, we still get to watch the episode!  So go to the official Shark website, scroll down a bit to “Watch Full Episodes of Shark,” and click the “View Now” button.  Choose the “For Whom the Skel Rolls” episode and sit back and enjoy Paul’s performance.

Nestor No Longer “Lost”

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Well, it looks like Nestor Carbonell, who has been playing the recurring guest role of Richard Alpert on Lost, might be taking a break from the series.  He’s landed a series regular role on the new CBS drama Cane, which premieres tomorrow night, September 25, at 10:00 p.m. on CBS.

Cane Trailer

There’s been a lot of concern among Lost fans as to the fate of Nestor’s character and even Cane creator Cynthia Cidre gets asked if Nestor will be available to guest star in Lost in the following interview.

Exclusive Interview: ‘Cane’ Creator Cynthia Cidre

And she’s not the only one getting asked that question.  Lost Executive Producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse also touch on that question in the Official Lost Podcast.

However, the Star Ledger takes it right to the top.  CBS entertainment president Nina Tassler was asked whether she’d let Carbonell do a guest spot on Lost.  “‘Probably not,’ she said, arguing that they’re trying to establish a new show and a new character, and she felt it would confuse the audience to see Carbonell playing roles on two different series at once.”

I think Nina may be underestimating the TV audience a bit, don’t you?

So there you have it.  When and if Richard Alpert ever appears on Lost again remains to be seen.  In the meantime, Nestor is in the enviable position of being in demand on two TV shows…an actor’s dream.

Batman

And just when you think things couldn’t get any better for Nestor, Variety reports that Nestor has been cast as the mayor of Gotham City in the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight.   

The Dark Knight Movie Teaser

Official Dark Knight Site

The Dark Knight is scheduled to be released July 18, 2008.

Anybody else find it ironic that Batmanuel will appear on Batman?

Paul, Paul, and More Paul

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Paul Ben-VictorOkay, I’ve got a whole gaggle of Paul Ben-Victor news to share with you, so let’s get started.

First, let’s get the bad news out the way.  I’m sorry to report that, after only nine episodes, John from Cincinnati has been cancelled.  Even though Paul’s character, Palaka, has been praised, the show itself hasn’t been getting many good reviews and it just couldn’t seem to find its audience.

Now for some good news.  The Foxhole site has a really great podcast interview with Paul.  In it they cover a whole range of topics from John from Cincinnati to The Wire to how Paul got his start in show biz and more.  The podcast is an hour long and I should warn you that there are a couple of swear words in this interview. 

In addition, there are a couple of links given during the course of the interview.  One is to Paul’s old Atari video game commercial (You might remember that one from when I posted the link on The Invisible Man Online back in September of last year.) and the other is to Paul’s father’s photography website.  Note:  If you click on those links during the podcast, you’ll have to restart the podcast from the very beginning each time.  It doesn’t pick up where it left off.  So for your convenience, I’ve included the links below.  Now you can listen to the podcast without interruption and then come here to click on the links or vice versa.

Foxhole Podcast Interview with Paul Ben-Victor

Young Paul Ben-Victor

Here’s the link to the Atari video game commercial that Paul did many years ago (note the hair).  His costar is a very young Elisabeth Shue.

Atari Video Game Commercial

Paul’s father, Victor Friedman, has been a photographer for over 40 years.  You can view his work at the link below.  Warning:  There is some nudity.

Victor Friedman Photography

Paul’s Upcoming Projects

In the above podcast interview Paul mentions that he will be back in season five of The Wire in his role as Vondas.  He will be in at least three episodes, possibly four.  No word yet on when season five will start or which episodes Paul will appear in.

While one series ends for Paul, another series is getting underway.  In Plain Sight is a USA original series being shot in New Mexico.  It’s the story of a no-nonsense federal marshal who masquerades as a parking attendent, but really works in the witness protection branch of the FBI.  It is purported to possibly start after the new year.  Here are a couple of articles about the filming of the pilot:

Albuquerque Journal:  TV Pilot to be Filmed Here

Valencia County News-Bulletin:  Highland Meadows Gets Visit From Hollywood Crew

In the feature film arena, Paul appears in the movie Randy and the Mob, which is scheduled to be released in Atlanta, Georgia, on September 21, 2007.  According to the official website, which is still under construction, there will be a national tour to promote the film.  In the meantime, go check out the trailer that is up at the official site. 

Official Randy & the Mob Website

Paul’s Website

Last, but certainly not least, if you haven’t been to Paul’s website in a while, go on over and pay it a visit.  While still under construction, Paul’s website has been given a whole new look.  Do some exploring and you’ll find some really great info about Paul’s character Bobby Hobbes.  I’ve found that the site can be extremely slow sometimes in loading the links, but if you click one of the small pictures under Paul’s demo reel, you can get into the rest of the site.

Paul Ben-Victor’s Official Website

Okay, that’s it for now.  When I hear more, I’ll pass it along.

 

“Standoff” Cancelled

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After only one season, Craig Silverstein’s series, Standoff, has been cancelled.  I think we all saw the writing on the wall when the show was moved to Friday nights.  But don’t worry about Craig being unemployed.  His incredible talent has been recognized by 20th Century Fox TV and they have no intention of losing him.  Can you blame them?  According to Variety, “while Standoff lasted just one season, 20th moved quickly to extend its relationship with Silverstein.  Studio had another year left on its old deal with the scribe but chose to throw out that pact in order to negotiate a new agreement.” 

“Every opportunity we get, we’re going to try to extend our deal with him,” said 20th Century Fox TV chair Dana Walden. “He’s a great utility player who can write any genre of television. And he’s been a really good partner to us by being on other people’s shows while developing his own projects.”

So what’s next for Craig?  Well, he’s been named executive producer of Fox’s new fall show K-Ville, which is set in New Orleans.  K-Ville is set to premiere Monday, Sept. 17, 2007, at 9:00 p.m./8:00 p.m. central, on Fox.  But in an unprecedented move on the part of the studio, you can watch the first episode right now before it premieres on TV.  Interesting way to market a TV show.

Unaired Episodes of “Drive” Now Online

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Six episodes of Drive were made, but only four episodes were shown before the show was unceremoniously yanked from the air.  Now, those last two episodes are available to watch online on Drive’s MySpace page.  Episode five, entitled “The Extra Mile,” and episode six, entitled “Rearview,” are there in addition to the first four episodes.

A post-Drive wrap-up interview with executive producers Tim Minear and Craig Silverstein can be found at the Drive Fans website.  In it, Tim and Craig reveal future storylines had the series continued.  It may not really matter at this point, but because of all the spoilers, I suggest you watch the last two episodes before reading the interview.

“Monk” Available On Demand

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Melissa has informed me that the Monk episode entitled “Mr. Monk and the Birds and the Bees” is currently available on Comcast On Demand in the TV Entertainment section.  So if you are a Comcast customer, here’s another chance to catch the episode that Vince is in.  Thanks for passing on the info, Melissa!

Follow Up to “Mr. Monk and the Birds and the Bees”

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So wasn’t it great to see Vince back on TV again?  My only complaint was that the episode ended too quickly! 

If you missed the episode, don’t worry.  You still have a few more chances to catch it on the USA network.  Note the following dates and times when this episode will be reaired and do check your local listings as usual.

  • Saturday, August 11, 5:00 p.m.
  • Monday, August 13, 1:00 a.m.
  • Sunday, August 19, 9:00 a.m.

If you’ve already seen the episode or you don’t mind spoilers, you can read a full synopsis of the episode over at the Episode Guide.  If you click on the Episode Gallery link just below the picture, you’ll find a picture of Vince among the stills from the episode.

If you’re interested in the writing process for this episode, you might want to watch the Writer Commentary video with writer Peter Wolk. And, yes, it’s full of spoilers too.