Stay Tuned

The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, August 24, 2012 2 coverstory By Kyla Brewer TV Media A anxiously await the start of the school year. Homecoming looms on the horizon, and this time it isn't just for stu- dents. This fall marks a return to TV for many high-profile stars, who come back to the air- waves with brand new series. Celebrities from the worlds of music, reality TV and broad- casting offer up everything from typical sitcoms and dra- mas to nationally syndicated talk shows. The big news for music fans is the return of country music queen Reba McEntire, who's set to star in the new ABC comedy "Malibu Country." The fiery redhead plays a wife and mother, also named Reba, whose life is thrown into turmoil when she discov- ers her country music star husband has been cheating on her. Refusing to stand by her man, the scorned woman packs up her family and heads west to sunny Califor- nia to revive her own music career. s hot summer days give way to crisp autumn air, students and parents "Malibu Country" also stars renowned actress Lily Tomlin as Reba's quick-wit- ted mother. Sara Rue, Justin Prentice, Juliette Angelo and Jai Rodriguez round out the cast. Big names, small screen Stars fl ock to television this fall Katie Couric is set to launch her new talk show "Katie" who'd been jilted by her hus- band. While "Malibu Country" isn't slated to debut until No- vember, it has been generat- ing big buzz among TV indus- try critics because of the en- tertainer's past television suc- cess with "Reba," which ran on The WB from 2001-2006, and later on The CW from 2006-2007. In fact, "Malibu Country" has a lot in common with the former hit. It also starred Reba as a single mom McEntire may be big news for country music fans, but broadcasting legend Katie Couric leads the parade this fall with her new nationally syndicated talk show begin- ning Sept. 10. The award-win- ning journalist leaves prime time behind as she gives up her post as the anchor of "CBS Evening News," which she's held since 2006, when she became the first solo fe- male news anchor on the three major U.S. networks. In addition to interviews with newsmakers and celebri- ties, her new talk show prom- ises segments on family, fash- ion and technology. "Katie" also boasts recur- ring segments, such as "Women Who Should Be Fa- mous," which will, according to Couric, "will feature head- line-makers as well as every- day people who make a dif- ference in how we live our lives. Viewers will be intro- duced to women whose lead- ership, commitment to excel- lence and passion for life are awe-inspiring." Ricki Lake returns to the genre that made her popular in the 1990s as she revamps her career with a brand new talk show, "The Ricki Lake Show," also debuting Sept. 10. Fans who watched her original "Ricki Lake" show, which aired from 1993 to 2004 across North America, will once again be able to tune in for Ricki's take on ev- erything from parenting to weight loss. Don't expect the same sort of sensationalism, though. Reports indicate the TV personality will draw from her own experiences, and some in the industry have even suggested she could be- come Oprah Winfrey's succes- sor, a huge boast. The ladies aren't the only ones stepping into the day- time talk show arena, howev- er. "Survivor's" Jeff Probst is set to join the ranks of Ander- son Cooper, Dr. Oz and Nate Berkus with his own talk show, "The Jeff Probst Show," scheduled to premiere along with the others on Sept. 10. The prime-time gridiron also boasts its share of heavy hitters. Former "Ally McBeal" star Lucy Liu and film actor Johnny Lee Miller co-star in CBS's "Elementary," a mod- ern-day reboot of the classic Sherlock Holmes tale. The show kicks off Thursday, Sept. 27, as Miller's eccentric Sher- lock moves to Manhattan af- ter going through rehab in London. His wealthy father saddles him with a sober companion, onetime surgeon Dr. Watson (Liu). When Sher- lock insists on working as a police consultant, Watson has no choice but to tag along, and it turns out her medical expertise comes in handy in solving cases. Movie star Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis of FX's now-defunct "The Shield" team up in the new CBS dra- ma "Vegas." The show was inspired by the true story of onetime Las Vegas Sheriff Ralph Lamb, who tried to bring order to the gambling Mecca in the 1960s. Quaid, who's better known for his big screen work in such films as "The Right Stuff" (1983) and "Innerspace" (1987), re- turns to television for the first time since the 1970s, when he appeared in "Baretta." He portrays Lamb, who finds himself up against ruthless Chicago mobster Vincent Savino (Chiklis), who wants to take over the town. Beginning Tuesday, Sept. Chirstopher's Coins 2 x 2 hollywoodQ&A By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: We've really gotten into "Legend of the Seeker," but it ended abruptly with no next season. What hap- pened? Is there any talk of it coming back? A: There was talk of it coming back, but that was a while 25, the series also stars Car- rie-Ann Moss of "The Matrix" franchise (1999-2003) and Ja- son O'Mara from Fox's short- lived "Terra Nova." Other familiar faces return- ing this fall include former "Friends" star Matthew Perry in NBC's "Go On," premiering Tuesday, Sept. 11, and "The Office's" Mindy Kaling, in Fox's "The Mindy Project," set to debut Tuesday, Sept. 25. Onetime "Desperate House- wives" cast member Vanessa Williams teams up with "Lost's" Terry O'Quinn in ABC's "666 Park Avenue," and "Numb3rs" nerd David Krumholtz returns in the CBS comedy "Partners." ago, and even that has disappeared. "Legend of the Seeker" premiered in 2008, going straight into syndication rather than being produced and aired ex- clusively on one network. Such a strategy works well for fringe fare such as this, with its swordplay and magic. It lasted in syndication for two seasons, but never quite found the fan base it needed to last. Its second-season fina- le aired in May 2010, but it proved, to the surprise of many, to be its series finale, too. According to star Craig Horner, in an interview with enter- tainment-news site PopStar.com, the show ended when one of its producers pulled out, forcing the remaining producers to go, err, seeking a new backer. But they never found one. "If it doesn't go again, it doesn't go again," Horner said in the interview, "but at least we know we had a great little community and that we had 'Legend of the Seeker' out there for a while." The "if" at the beginning of that statement referred, at least in part, to a fan-launched campaign to save the show, allowing everyone to hold out hope for a while that it could be revived. Again, though, that was in 2010, and nothing ever came of it. Q: I was watching an episode of "Game of Thrones," and in one scene some of the actors sing a song that appears again during the credits at the end but is per- formed by a different singer. Do you know who per- formed the credits version? A: That was buzz-generating indie-rock band The Nation- al performing "The Rains of Castamere" in the popular HBO fantasy series "Game of Thrones." The song's lyrics are drawn straight from the books, writ- ten by George R.R. Martin, on which the show is based -- specifically the third book, "A Storm of Swords." It appears in the episode itself, performed (part of it, any- way) by a group of Lannister soldiers on the eve of a battle. The National, who hail from Ohio but are now based in the more stylish locale of Brooklyn, N.Y., are one of the most critically beloved bands to come along in years. However, fans and critics alike have complained about the length of time they take between album releases (it took them three years to release 2010's "High Violet," the follow-up to their breakthrough hit "Boxer"). Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com.

• Cover