Question: I'm a little worried about all of the new characters that will be introduced in the upcoming season of Lost. It seems to me that most successful shows tend to revolve around a consistent group of characters: M*A*S*H, Friends, etc. I know ER has some success with a rotating cast, but Lost seems to lend itself to singling out each character and telling that person's story. But it feels like they're slowly giving up on some of the original characters and introducing new ones for the sake of more flashbacks. What is your take?
Answer: My take is that it's way too early to judge, and that I lean toward giving Lost a chance to prove itself before we jump to conclusions. What's safe to say is that Lost will get hammered no matter what it does. Too many stories about the original characters, and there will be griping that the show isn't moving forward fast enough. Too many new tangents with new characters and story lines, and there will be griping that the show has changed too much.
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Tom Everett Scott, Saved
Described by some as "Rescue Me for the ambulance-driving set," TNT's Saved (Mondays at 10 pm/ET; the premiere rebroadcasts this Wednesday at 11 pm) stars Tom Everett Scott as Wyatt Cole, a paramedic dealing — or not — with a domineering father, a lady doc "ex," and the dilemma of whether to give med school that one last long-after-college try. Oh, and he also has a gambling problem, one so bad it puts his self-stitching expertise to good use. TVGuide.com
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Tom Everett Scott, Saved
Described by some as "Rescue Me for the ambulance-driving set," TNT's Saved (premiering tonight at 10 pm/ET) stars Tom Everett Scott as Wyatt Cole, a paramedic dealing — or not — with a domineering father, a lady doc "ex," and the dilemma of whether to give med school that one last long-after-college try. Oh, and he also has a gambling problem, one so bad it puts his self-stitching expertise to good use. TVGuide.com talked to Scott about exploring such da
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Caitlin Wachs, Commander in Chief
You may wonder, as I do, just what Rebecca Calloway's problem is on ABC's Commander in Chief (returning tonight at 9 pm/ET). I mean, wouldn't it be the bee's knees to be the president's daughter? Even though she left us hanging for a full day, TVGuide.com was more than happy to talk — prehiatus, mind you — with the first daughter, aka Caitlin Wachs (pronounced "wax"), about life in the White House, a pregnancy shocker to come and that older costar she's been calling "sexy."
TVGuide.com: So, you blew off the hotshot TV Guide reporter....Caitlin Wachs: Oh, no! [Laughs] Maybe I'll win you back.
TVGuide.com: Out late partying, I
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Question: It seems a given, in the many questions about network scheduling that you receive, that Saturday night is where TV shows go to die, so no one schedules a potential keeper on Saturday. Yet within living memory (mine, at least), CBS had a killer Saturday lineup that would put any recent "must-see" night to shame (All in the Family, M*A*S*H, Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett). I know we went out on Saturday night in the '70s (and with no TiVo, or even VCRs). It can't just be due to the fracturing of cable — if the audience is really too small on Saturday, then it's too small whether your share is 15 percent or 35 percent. I've been looking back trying to find the tipping point, but I can't see when the landscape changed. What in the business has caused this change in perception? On a completely unrelated note: I have fallen in love with Slings & Arrows. Has there been, or is there going to be, a third season? I need more of New Burbage!
Answer: First off, I'm thrilled
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Rene Auberjonois, Boston Legal
Before "snark" was even a word, Rene Auberjonois was wonderfully full of it as Clayton Runnymede Endicott III, the fancy-speaking foil to Robert Guillaume's titular manservant-turned-civil servant on the '80s comedy Benson. These days — and a sci-fi-fabulous run as Deep Space Nine's Odo later — the veteran actor is sharing a set with fellow Star Trek universe alum William Shatner on ABC's Boston Legal (Tuesdays at 10 pm/ET). In fact, Auberjonois' prickly Paul Lewiston recently embarked on a juicy new story arc, one of the many topics covered in this Q&A with TVGuide.com.
TVGuide.com: Long before there was The West Wing, befo
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Danielle and Dani, The Amazing Race
Question: I have two unrelated questions, so I'll (try to) be brief: Seeing the promos for The Amazing Race 9 (are you as excited as I am?), I wonder if they have ever considered trying it with teams who don't know each other beforehand. I realize they're probably a little gun-shy about experimenting with format after the last race, but I think it might be fun to see strangers working together. My other question is about Scrubs: I read that there has never really been a truly successful sitcom set in a hospital. Leaving aside M*A*S*H (which is kind of a special case), I can't think of any. Can you? Could it be that Scrubs is a historical first?
Answer: Wow, those are unrelated. But I'm leading with this because (drumroll) I've just seen this week's two-hour opener of The Amazing Race 9, and I'm happy to say: The show we loved is back, as good if not better than ever. Put thoughts of Rob & Amber and the misbegotten family edition out of your mind. The teams are colorful and well chosen.
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Sharon Gless and Tyne Daly, Cagney & Lacey
Question: I don't have any wagers, arguments or bets to settle. I just have a question, if that's OK. Was there another actress who played Cagney on Cagney & Lacey before Sharon Gless did, or is my memory failing already? Thank you for your time.
Answer: Actually, there were two, Ruth. Loretta Swit (M*A*S*H) first played Det. Chris Cagney in the CBS TV-movie that aired in 1981. However, after that movie proved successful enough for the network executives, who didn't initially believe the concept was strong enough for a show to order up a series, Swit was unavailable. In stepped actress Meg Foster, and the reason for her abrupt departure, together with the lack of network spin on it, provides an interesting lesson in how different today's political climate is from that of 20 years ago.
"[T]oo
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Question: In the mid-1960s, I think, Dennis Weaver starred in a show where he had an adopted Korean son, lived on a ranch and drove a convertible Mustang. What was the name of it? Thanks.
Answer: That would be the short-lived comedy-drama Kentucky Jones, which ran on NBC for a year beginning in September 1964. Weaver, coming off his nine-year stint as Chester Goode on the classic Gunsmoke, starred as veterinarian Kenneth Yarborough "Kentucky" Jones (he signed his name "K.Y."), who lived on a ranch in Southern Cal.
And the 9-year-old boy of whom you speak, Dwight Eisenhower "Ike" Wong (played by Ricky Der — apparently nifty nicknames were plentiful on this show), was Chinese, not Korean. Kentucky's wife had arranged to adopt the lad and then promptly died, leaving the widower vet to raise him alone.
Har
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Caitlin Wachs, Commander in Chief
If you're like me, you may wonder just what is Rebecca Calloway's problem on ABC's Commander in Chief (Tuesdays at 9 pm/ET). I mean, wouldn't it be the bee's knees to be the president's daughter? (Or did my usage of "the bee's knees" prove how out of touch I am with today's teens?) Even though she left us hanging for a full day, TVGuide.com was more than happy to talk with the first daughter, aka Caitlin Wachs (pronounced "wax"), about life in the White House, a pregnancy shocker to come, and that older costar she's going around calling "sexy."
TVGuide.com: So, you blew off the hot-shot TV Guide reporter....
Caitlin Wachs: Oh, no! [Laughs] Maybe I'll win you back.
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