Post by Forever Xena on Apr 26, 2006 0:02:01 GMT -6
`Medium' casting may surprise viewers
Five new episodes start tonight on NBC
By R.D. Heldenfels
Medium fans have been idling through reruns and pre-emptions for some time now. But series creator Glenn Gordon Caron said things will change.
The show -- starring Patricia Arquette as Allison DuBois, whose visions of the dead help solve crimes -- will begin a run of five new episodes at 10 tonight on NBC. The network hoarded the episodes for an uninterrupted, season-ending run.
The new shows will include a rare TV appearance by Molly Ringwald as ``a woman who starts to appear prominently in Allison's visions,'' Caron said in a recent telephone interview. And Kelsey Grammer, who is an executive producer of Medium, will appear as the Angel of Death.
``We've been looking for something appropriate for Kelsey,'' Caron said.
The Grammer casting is just one of the many little surprises the show has come up with -- like a 3-D episode, or one where David Carradine played a dead man who had often fantasized that he was like David Carradine.
Caron said part of his job is ``to subvert the expectations of viewers.'' Such twists should be familiar to viewers of two previous Caron shows, the hit Moonlighting and the splendid non-hit Now and Again.
Now and Again, which involved an ordinary man whose brain was transplanted into a superhuman body, was a precursor of sorts to Medium, since each show grounded its characters in everyday reality.
DuBois is actually based on a real person, and her life -- which includes a husband and three children -- is presented matter-of-factly, no matter what's going on with DuBois' work.
``There's a casualness, sloppiness, a lack of vanity,'' Caron said. He recalled telling the cast early on that ``if I had my way, 75 percent of the scenes would be with you in underwear and your hair mussed.''
In other words, the show is also about a settled, married couple. It's not only about grownups, it's for them.
Getting the tone right is not always easy, Caron said, especially given that a lot of young Hollywood writers don't know what it's like to have had a long, secure relationship. But Caron remains involved in the show ``from the moment I wake up until I go to sleep.... Everything goes through my typewriter.''
Well, not really. Caron has moved on to computers. But just his saying ``typewriter'' should tell you that he's, well, seasoned.
And he expects that Medium will occupy him for a good bit longer. He has no doubt about a third season.
``We are consistently in the top 20 or 25 with adults 18-49,'' Caron said, referring to NBC's target audience -- and one it has had trouble attracting this season.
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R.D. Heldenfels writes about television for the Beacon Journal and for a blog at www.ohio.com. Contact him at 330-996-3582 or rheldenfels@thebeaconjournal.com.
Five new episodes start tonight on NBC
By R.D. Heldenfels
Medium fans have been idling through reruns and pre-emptions for some time now. But series creator Glenn Gordon Caron said things will change.
The show -- starring Patricia Arquette as Allison DuBois, whose visions of the dead help solve crimes -- will begin a run of five new episodes at 10 tonight on NBC. The network hoarded the episodes for an uninterrupted, season-ending run.
The new shows will include a rare TV appearance by Molly Ringwald as ``a woman who starts to appear prominently in Allison's visions,'' Caron said in a recent telephone interview. And Kelsey Grammer, who is an executive producer of Medium, will appear as the Angel of Death.
``We've been looking for something appropriate for Kelsey,'' Caron said.
The Grammer casting is just one of the many little surprises the show has come up with -- like a 3-D episode, or one where David Carradine played a dead man who had often fantasized that he was like David Carradine.
Caron said part of his job is ``to subvert the expectations of viewers.'' Such twists should be familiar to viewers of two previous Caron shows, the hit Moonlighting and the splendid non-hit Now and Again.
Now and Again, which involved an ordinary man whose brain was transplanted into a superhuman body, was a precursor of sorts to Medium, since each show grounded its characters in everyday reality.
DuBois is actually based on a real person, and her life -- which includes a husband and three children -- is presented matter-of-factly, no matter what's going on with DuBois' work.
``There's a casualness, sloppiness, a lack of vanity,'' Caron said. He recalled telling the cast early on that ``if I had my way, 75 percent of the scenes would be with you in underwear and your hair mussed.''
In other words, the show is also about a settled, married couple. It's not only about grownups, it's for them.
Getting the tone right is not always easy, Caron said, especially given that a lot of young Hollywood writers don't know what it's like to have had a long, secure relationship. But Caron remains involved in the show ``from the moment I wake up until I go to sleep.... Everything goes through my typewriter.''
Well, not really. Caron has moved on to computers. But just his saying ``typewriter'' should tell you that he's, well, seasoned.
And he expects that Medium will occupy him for a good bit longer. He has no doubt about a third season.
``We are consistently in the top 20 or 25 with adults 18-49,'' Caron said, referring to NBC's target audience -- and one it has had trouble attracting this season.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
R.D. Heldenfels writes about television for the Beacon Journal and for a blog at www.ohio.com. Contact him at 330-996-3582 or rheldenfels@thebeaconjournal.com.