Nashville Watching

I already have a whole load of regular favourite TV series, but I've recently added a new one into the mix-Nashville, written by Thelma & Louise screenwriter Callie Khouri.

It's the story of Rayna Jaymes, a 40 year old Nashville superstar whose star is beginning to fade. Rayna wants to continue with her career and singing is her first love, but her husband Teddy is keen to run for Major, with her controlling rich father's support, and Rayna feels the pressure of having to support her family in the meantime. The need for money means she's being pressured from all sides, her agent wants her to do a tour with up-and-coming country singer Juliette Barnes (something she doesn't want to do) and her husband wants her to do a commercial. She's also torn between Teddy and her guitarist ex lover and songwriter Deacon Claybourne.

The two women clash when Juliette makes moves on Deacon. He's a fantastic songwriter, and she wants him to go  on tour with her, to write songs for her and she also fancies him rotten. The fact that he's devoted to Rayna is a thorn in her side, and her life is far from easy too. She's plagued by her addict mother, and her career is in jeapordy when she's filmed shoplifting.

If the two women, one man thing wasn't enough, there are an excellent side plot going on with Deacon's niece, Scarlett, who's stuck in a love triangle with her boyfriend and co-songwriter.

But what really makes Nashville compelling viewing for me is the music. The actors who play all the characters actually sing the songs in the series, most of which seem to have been comissioned for the show, and they are really great. So much so, that the album of songs from Nashville titled The Music of Nashville: Season one, Volume one sold 56,000 copies on it's first week of release.

If you haven't watched it yet, do!

Here's a sample from YouTube, Rayna and Deacon singing in a club. With Juliette casting daggers in the audience...

Where are they now?

I've just discovered that the late 80s TV series 21 Jump Street has been made into a movie (or rather a sequel). I loved the original TV show - though I was of course very young when it aired ;-)

We all know what happened to the career of the show's main asset, but it made me wonder where the rest of the cast are now. A little Google searching revealed some interesting tidbits that I thought I'd share with you.

That was then ...

Johnny Depp as Officer Tom Hanson
'Nuff said










Holly Robinson as Officer Judy Hoffs

After 21 Jump Street, Holly continued a successful run on TV with the sitcoms Hangin' with Mr Cooper and For Your Love. More recently, she co-hosted the CBS talk show The Talk. But Holly's most interesting achievements have happened off camera. Before 21 Jump Street she attended the prestigious Sarah Lawrence College and spent a year at the Sorbonne. In 1995 she married football quarterback Rodney Peete, and they have four children, one of whom is autistic. She sings and writes. Her woman's guide to pro football, Get your own Damn Beer was released in 2005 and her 2008 book about Parkinson's disease, Proud Hands, is a tribute to her father. In 2010 she released a childen's book, My Brother Charlie, co-written with her daughter Ryan and author Denene Millner.

Peter de Luise as Officer Doug Penhall
Son of a well known acting family, Peter got an early start, making his film debut at the age of 13. 21 Jump Street was his most prominent role in front of camera, the bulk of his on-screen career consisting of guest and supporting roles. It was on 21 Jump Street that he was first offered the chance to direct. He has since gone on to direct on many shows, including Andromeda, Stargate, Stargate: Atlantis and SGU Stargate Universe. He now produces and writes in addition to directing.

Dustin Nguyen as Officer Harry Truman Ioki
Like Holly Robinson, the most interesting moments in Dustin Nguyen's life seem to be the ones that happened off-camera. His parents were both in artistic professions, his mother an actress and dancer, his father an actor, writer and producer. Dustin was just 13 when they made a dramatic escape from Vietnam before the encroaching Viet Cong forces. They lived in refugee camps until settling in Missouri. While 21 Jump Street was pretty much the height of his career, he has an impressive list of credits. He is currently hosting, directing and producing Amazing Race Vietnam.

Steven Williams as Captain Adam Fuller
There's very little personal info out there on Steven Williams' personal life, but his career, spanning more than 30 years, has included appearances in dozens of high profile TV shows, from MacGuyver and The Dukes of Hazzard, to The X-Files, Stargate and most recently Supernatural ... hmm, I'm seeing a pattern in his more recent work.

Then

Richard Grieco as Officer Dennis Booker

Now

Richard Grieco arrived on 21 Jump Street in 1988 after a stint on the daytime soapie One Life to Live. With heart-throb appeal rivalling Mr Depp's, he left after just two years to star in his own spin-off, Booker. That show only ran for two years. Since then he's appeared in numerous B-movies and had a singing career, but I think most people will agree that time has been least kind to this former Calvin Klein model.


If any of our blog readers see the new movie, please leave a comment and let us know what you think (cos I don't get out much so I'll have to wait for the DVD release!)

TV Show Review: Blue Bloods

I’m a huge fan of Tom Selleck. I fell in love with him from way back in the day when he was Magnum PI, through to Three Men and a Baby. I wasn't so sure about his role as Monica's squeeze in Friends but doggone it, I forgave him for it.

So imagine my whoop of joy when I saw him featured in the newish series of Blue Bloods last year. I watched, I loved and I believe this is his best role yet.

In Blue Bloods, Tom plays Police Commissioner Frank Reagan, the second of three generations of a New York Catholic cop family, with two sons played by Donnie Wahlberg and Will Estes.

Blue Bloods is more than just Tom Selleck, although his dimples on the rare occasions he smiles on the show makes me melt (Shallow? Moi?).

There are three things that make Blue Bloods special for me: Family - the way this family support each other through rights and wrongs. Integrity – the way Tom’s character struggles between the fierce need to protect his family and the pressure of being Police Commissioner. Great Drama (spoiler alert) – the common thread that runs in the show is the loss of Tom’s first son under shady circumstances and this thread crops up throughout the series and keeps the show just that little bit more interesting for me.

But even without these elements, I’d watch just for Tom's dimples and Donnie Wahlberg's bad boy looks.

Yes, apparently I'm that shallow, lol!

Storytelling Through Dance

Yep, once again I’m here to confess another obsession!

So You Think You Can Dance (US Version)

I’ve known about this series for a while (it’s in its 8th Season) but nothing really drew me to it until a few folks on Twitter tweeted about it. On a whim I tracked down a few YouTube clips and OMG, I fell in love!

Let’s just say I’ve seen “most” of the series and like the dedicated writer that I am, have totally fallen in love with the art of story telling through dance.

In case you start to think I’ve totally gone bonkers and need to be carted off by the men in white coats, in the recent Emmy announcements, SYTYCD got five out of eight nominations for its choreography alone and the show’s host, our very own Brit-grown Cat Deeley, was also nominated for best reality show host. So, really, it’s a great show…and I’m not crazy…just sayin’!

Anyway, I wanted to share with you a few clips that shows what I’m talking about.

My personal favourite and very effective in channelling the black moment: the “infidelity/heartbreak” routine.



This one is entitled (paraphrasing) "the ups and downs of falling in love"



Then the's the friends to lovers routine that gave me goosebumps when I first saw it...



Then to finish with my family’s favourite, the “girl power” routine. Watch out for Lady Gaga’s shoe at the end. My husband googled the band after watching it and now knows everything about District 78!



By the time this post goes out, I’ll know this year’s winner. Personally, I wish I could give two awards as I can't choose between Sasha and Melanie, but then again, I love Marko too so whoever wins I would make me extremely happy too.

Enjoy!

My Favourite Love Triangle

A good love triangle story always grabs my attention, and for me, the Kate / Sawyer / Jack love triangle from Lost  is hard to beat. It has it all - a beautiful girl, and two hot as hell, but different as chalk and cheese men.

Lucky Kate, eh?

Kate is a complex character, her tough life experiences have left her battle scarred and defensive. Sawyer is her equally embittered male mirror image - they are drawn to each other because they understand each other perfectly and are haunted by the same demons. Two peas from the same dangerous pod, they are explosive together, both in  and out of bed.

Jack, on the other hand, is Kate's complete opposite. He's responsible, calm and dependable, and it helps of course that he is easy on the eye. He nourishes Kate's soul in all the ways Sawyer can't, he's rock solid and offers Kate safe harbour and security. He meets her emotional needs in a way Sawyer couldn't possibly hope to, and in the end these qualities turn out to be what she needs most of all.

Turning full circle, Sawyer later found true love with the serene Juliet, who shared many of the same attributes as Jack. I know many people were unhappy with the ending of Lost, but for me it shone in the way it crafted characters I really cared about and invested in emotionally.

How about you? What's your favourite love triangle? Just don't get me started on Bella, Edward and Jacob, I could be here for hours...