Newspaper Page Text
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TV'S MIDSEASON START
The writers'strike has changed what well see on TV in the
new year. Although we may miss many favorite shows,
both old and new, there's still plenty of fresh fare to check
out Here is a taste of what's coming:
,1 Hi')
p*
-ft**
Malcolm in the
Middle s dad
in Breaking Bad
family. Cranston, 51, says the irony is
that “he becomes more alive than he has '-JR
been in 25 years. It’s the silver lining to
his condition he’s really living.” H
Ik The Naked Brothers Band is
hack for a second season on N ick- M
eltxieon Jan. 2!. and brothers Nat
and Alex Wolff hit the road for a VMHV H
cross-country tour. Unlike some rock Wf Jl
stars, this duo really embraces their
budding fame and scores of fans. H v 4-X4^, '
“Then' have been, like, two instances y “"X
where we had bodyguards,
like when we went to Disney
New series premiere, old favorites return and reality shows up everywhere
■ COOL NEW SERIES: CBS airs
a three-night miniseries,
Comanche Moon, starting Jan.
13.... HBO's In Treatment,
about a new resident
therapist (Gabriel
Byrne) starts Jan. 28 and
runs Monday through
Friday for nine weeks.
... On NBC, Lipstick
Jungle, Brooke Shields'
new show, starts Feb. 7.
... Fox's The Return of Jezebel
James with Parker Posey and
Lauren Ambrose starts seven
2
USA WEEKEND • Jan. 4-6,2008
By LORRIE LYNCH To ask a question, e-mail whosnews@usaweekend.com or click on “Contact Columnists" at our website. Include name, city, state.
k Bryan Cranston knows peo
ple won’t like his character in
the new AMC series Breaking
Bad, premiering Jan. 20. “We’re
not asking our audience to agree
with what I’m doing but rather
to understand,” he says. He
plays a high school teacher who,
after diagnosis with a terminal
illness, sets up an .
illegal drug lab to HHHH
provide for his EHBH
The Wolff brothers, Nat, leh,
and Alex, right, like on set pranks.
episodes on March 7.... Tracey
Ullman returns to Showtime this
spring.... ABC has dramas Eli
Stone and Cashmere
Mafia and Miss/Guided,
a comedy, but no air
dates at press time.
■ RETURNING FAVORITES:
The Wire comes back to
HBO on Sunday for its
final season.... NBC
started up Law & Order
$
SHIELDS '(
this week and will bring Medium
back on Monday.... Fox's
American Idol premieres Jan. IS
News
Ik Lena Headey as Sarah
Connor Fox’s Tenni
-4 JgHHp not or The Sarah Con
nor C 'h mtt ides, premier
■r I ing Jan. 13, does
impossible: She ri- ipj
vals Linda Ramil- If J \
) v ■? I ton’s jxrrtrayal of If
I the character in |
C v t I the Terminator I fl
I movie. •’There's a t df '
I group 0 f people I M \
liliiiliHHH who would like | | ,
to see me in a box underground,” she ■
tells us. “I don’t know who they are, k 1 J
but they’re [thinking] it’s so blasphe- HI
mous that I would take on the role, RSffl
that I’m too skinny and not ca- HH|
pable.” Headey, 34, trained
Hi hard to get muscles, but she al- FT’S
WMKf ready had an edge. “I boxed I ■
back [home] in London.” J||
World, there was a crazy /J|i
| amount of kids,” says Nat, I!* c j
I 13, lead singer and a song
i writer. The band’s appeal m
I also has transcended age.
! This season, we’ll see Joel By
L Madden, George Lopez Mm
W and Tony Hawk, who
I gave a few tips to jun
ior skateboarder Alex, 10.
and 16 in two two-hour shows.
... CBS will bring back The New
Adventures of Old Christine Feb.
4 for 13 episodes and Jericho for
seven episodes beginning
Feb. 12— ABC's Lost will return;
there was no date at press time.
■ NEW REALITY: Bravo's Make
Me a Supermodel starts Thursday
for 12 weeks.... CMT has My Big
Redneck Wedding, starting
Friday, for eight episodes....
ABC's Dancing With the Stars
spinoff. Dance Wan Bruno vs.
Carrie Ann, starts Monday.
For da«y behind-the-scenes tidbits, check out Lome’s Who’s News Blog at
©blogs.usaweekend.com
There are still five I
weeks for Court TV's I
Murder by the Book, in I
■Hpyaf which mystery writers
look at real-life i j
crimes. Eliza
beth George BF J / i
!p‘ , jj| $■ -%|jlll hosts Monday’s IJbJLmmmmm
about a
1 1999 murder Ksh9
BPk °f a doctor and his wife. “I saw
the story from Day One, when
1 the bodies were found,” George.
58, says. Her favorite show on
H3H Court TV? Forensic Files.
THIS WEEK'S
BIRTHDAYS
1.6.08
Gabridle Reece 38
John Singleton 40
1.7.08
Nicolas Cage 44
Katie Couric 51
1.8.08
David Bowie 61
1.9.08
Dave Matthews 41
1.10.08
Pat Benatar 55
Rod Stewart 63
1.11.08
Amanda Peet 36
MaryJ. Blige 37
1.12.08
Kirstie Alley 57
m ►► Laila Ali, a standout on
Dancing With the Stars, co
hosts American Gladiators on
NBC, premiering Sunday. Gladi-
gm aiors is part of boxer Ali’s “stra-:
Bffi tegic plan,” which began with |
I**™ Dancing. “People never saw I
me outside of the ring. I had to
show the softer side of me, ” she
tells us. Now Ali, 30, daughter of
Mohammed Ali, wants a career
that involves health, fitness and
kids. In fact, she would like to have I
children someday, but for now she’ll
let career opportunities come first.
kk Donald Trump returned with The
Celebrity Apprentice this week, and
he tells us, “It’s a more vicious ver
sion. They have a
14 contestants are I?' ‘yx
vying for a chance B1&3B* gC&|
to win money for
their charities. Says
we thought were
flakes turned out to ■■■■■V \H
be really solid people. The show 7 is
going to be phenomenal for some and
not so good for others.” E 3
Contributing: Gayle Jo Carter,
Jon Tollestrup
CRANSTON: AMC; THE NAKED BROTHERS BANO GREGG DEI MAN, VISTALUX. SHIELDS: NBC/MfTCHEIL HAASETH ALI NPX/STARMAX; TRUMP: ALEX BERLINER BERLINER STUDIO/BEIMAGES