Q and A: Week of Feb. 13

Q: I read in an interview with James Van Der Beek that he was going to be in a new comedy this year, but I haven’t seen anything about it. I know he’s in “Franklin and Bash,” but I don’t think that’s what he’s talking about. Can you help? — Violet F., Harrisburg, Pa.

A: James was referring to his midseason comedy called “Don’t Trust the B—— in Apartment 23,” in which he plays a “sort of” version of himself. The series debuts after comedy powerhouse “Modern Family” on April 11 on ABC. The show is about a female odd couple who live together in New York City, with James portraying the best friend of Chloe, the mean-girl roommate. I’ve seen the pilot and it is very funny, and I love that James is able to parody himself in a non-self-conscious way, and that he isn’t afraid to bring up “Dawson’s Creek.”

Q: When does the new Snow White movie come out in theaters? — Brandon D., Omaha, Neb.

A: That would depend on which Snow White movie you mean. “Mirror Mirror” — which stars Julia Roberts as the Evil Queen, Lily Collins as Snow White and Armie Hammer as Prince Andrew Alcott — hits theaters on March 30. This film is being billed as family fare, in contrast to the darker “Snow White and the Huntsman.”

The latter film stars Charlize Theron as Queen Ravenna, with Kristen Stewart as Snow White and Chris Hemsworth as the Huntsman, and will fill the big screens on June 1. “Snow White” is a twist on the fairy tale, in which the Huntsman schools Snow White in the art of war and together they start a rebellion to bring down the Queen.

Q: I watched a full version of the movie “Dressed to Kill” on TV recently, and I’m positive that Sylvester Stallone played the part of Angie Dickinson’s son but was not listed on the credits. Did he use another name? — Lin L., via e-mail

A: The part of Angie Dickinson’s son, Peter Miller, was played by Keith Gordon, 51, whom I remember best as Jason Melon in “Back to School,” the bullied college nerd whose father (played by Rodney Dangerfield) enrolls in college with his son to help him assimilate. In the late ’80s, Keith made the move to directing, helming such series as “Wild Palms,” “Homicide: Life on the Street,” “Dexter” and “House.”

Q: Could you please tell me if “Against the Wall” will be returning? — Kathleen E., via e-mail

A: Despite positive reviews by “New York Daily News,” “Los Angeles Times” and “The Hollywood Reporter,” Lifetime’s cop-drama “Against the Wall” wasn’t able to hold enough of its lead-in audience from “Drop Dead Diva” each week, and its ratings slipped from a meager 1.78 million viewers at its premiere to 1.47 million by its season finale. Lifetime opted not to renew the show for a second season.

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Interview: Claire Coffee Is a Killer Lawyer

Claire Coffee, Photo by Whit Anderson

Claire Coffee is living the Hollywood dream: After already having worked on shows like "The West Wing," "General Hospital," "Cold Case," "Bones," "CSI," "NCIS," and many others, she is now gainfully employed — twice. Claire is pulling double lawyer duty: as a demon lawyer on NBC’s “Grimm” and a regular lawyer on TNT’s “Franklin and Bash.” I spoke with her recently about her roles, and the vast difference between the two.

Celebrity Extra: “Grimm,” which is a modern-day retelling of “Grimm’s Fairy Tales,” is very inventive and super scary. What about the show caught your attention and made you really want the part of reaper/assassin/lawyer Adalind Schade?

Claire Coffee: I think the look of the show is so neat. They combined a lot of elements that people are familiar with, but it’s also kind of police procedural with fairy-tale elements. I just really like the whole idea of the show. I like the genre of television in terms of what I want to watch myself. As for my character, I really wanted this one because I’ve never gotten to play any sort of supernatural character before. I’ve played lawyers before, and she’s a lawyer, but I’ve never played an evil witch who has fight scenes and kills people. I got to put some new special skills on my resume through this job.

CE: What’s good about this concept is you have so many Grimm’s tales to choose from — conceivably, the show could go on for decades!

CC: That’s what’s so great. I’ve been reading a lot of the “Grimm’s Fairy Tales,” and I think the ones that we are all familiar with are certainly the best of the bunch, but there are hundreds. They are all very moralistic tales. In the morals of the stories, the characters die or get killed or eaten constantly. It’s not for the Disney Channel — that’s for sure.

CE: Can you give me some clues as to what is coming up later in the season?

CC: The show’s going to be exploring this new world that Nick (Burkhardt, played by David Giuntoli) is coming to and the politics of this magical realm — who’s good and who’s bad — and the unpredictability of not knowing where people stand.

CE: Now, what about “Franklin and Bash”? I know you recently started shooting for the second season.

CC: I do know a little bit about what’s going to happen. Fun times ahead; that’s all I can say.

CE: You play lawyer Janie Ross in “FB,” but I’d say she’s a different kind of lawyer altogether from your “Grimm” character.

CC: Oh yeah — I wear similar suits, but the bad guys are VERY different.

CE: It must be fun for you to get to play two completely different characters like this, at the same time.

CC: It’s really fun. It’s fun to have two jobs, first and foremost. I’m very grateful for that. I feel very lucky that both sets are so pleasant to work on, with people who are really cooperative and have a great sense of humor. That’s a plus.

CE: You are living the dream of almost every girl who grew up in the ’90s by starring with Mark-Paul Gosselaar and James Van Der Beek.

CC: Including myself! It’s too bad I didn’t get a job like this when I first came to town — or maybe it’s a good thing, because I probably would have lost my mind. Mark-Paul and James are similar in that they’re total pros. They know how to work, but they also know that it’s all about the team, and they are very good at being helpful. It’s funny, they get mistaken for each other a lot. We did a joke about that on one of the episodes.

CE: What are some funny moments on the set?

CC: There was one scene where my character and James’ character, who plays my boyfriend, get in a fight, and I run off and the camera holds on James. He says: “Can we please just not hold on this tight angle of me watching a girl walk away?” Because all of “Dawson’s Creek” you could make a montage of Dawson looking, weeping, watching a girl walk away. That was pretty funny.

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Q and A: Week of Nov. 14

Q: I really like “Prime Suspect,” especially the actor who plays Detective Blando. Can you tell me a little about him? He looks so familiar. — Gennifer F., Allentown, Pa.

A: Tim Griffin, 42, has starred and guest-starred in countless TV series and big-screen movies, including “Party of Five,” “Charmed,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “The Bourne Supremacy,” “24,” “Iron Man,” “The Men Who Stare at Goats,” and most recently, “Super 8″ and “Abduction.”


I spoke with Tim about his role in the American version of the British cop drama and asked if he had any qualms about trying to “remake” such a popular series. Tim told me: “It wasn’t really until we started doing the initial press work that I realized, ‘OK, this is a sacred institution,’ because I was a huge fan of the British series too. It’s almost like a trial by fire that you have to go through. Can it be envisioned, reimagined with an American voice?


“Our partners are the original producers of the original ‘Prime Suspect,’ Tim said. “So we have that entire cannon of scripts at our disposal, and we have Peter Berg as the executive producer and director. It’s like its own new animal.”

Q: I am loving the new fall season so far — lots of good shows and only a few stinkers in the bunch. Which shows are you digging so far? — Clyde R., via e-mail

A: In the drama category, far and away my favorite show has to be ABC’s “Revenge,” which has injected a much-needed shot of campy, soapy, sexy drama into my Wednesday nights. (If you are on Twitter, you can follow my live-tweeting feeds at twitter.com/celebrity_extra every Wednesday starting at 10 p.m. ET, where all of us “Revenge” fans whoop and holler together.) I haven’t had this much fun watching a nighttime drama — nor have I talked to the TV screen so much — since “Melrose Place.”

On the comedy side, it’s a tie between Zooey Deschanel’s “New Girl” on Fox and ABC’s “Suburgatory,” whose ensemble cast of Jeremy Sisto, Jane Levy, Cheryl Hines, Alan Tudyk and Ana Gasteyer has me wiping tears of laughter from my face every episode.


Q: I love watching “The Talk” every afternoon. What happened to two of the original hostesses, Holly Robinson Peete and Leah Remini? — Joanne M., Fairport, N.Y.

A: Holly’s and Leah’s contracts were not renewed by CBS after the first season. As of Sept. 6 and Oct. 23, respectively, CBS officially replaced them with Sheryl Underwood and Aisha Tyler.

Q: I read somewhere that James Van Der Beek’s wife recently had another baby. Didn’t they just have a daughter? — Barb D., via e-mail

A: You are halfway correct, Barb. James and wife Kimberly have a daughter, Olivia, who recently turned 1, and are expecting their second child next year. James tweeted: “Just when we thought we couldn’t feel any more blessed, it seems the universe has plans to give our daughter a sibling.”

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Q and A: Week of April 26

Q: I thought Conan O’Brien (pictured left) was going to be heading to Fox with his late-night talk show, but now I hear he is going to TBS. Is this true? And is he taking over George Lopez’s timeslot? — Trista W., Seattle

A: Conan recently announced that he will indeed be bringing his late-night-hosting duties to TBS. His show will air at 11 p.m., with George Lopez taking on the midnight timeslot with “Lopez Tonight.” However, make no mistake: There is no animosity in this timeslot switcharoo. George is the one who actively courted and pursued Conan to sign with TBS, and he couldn’t be happier that Conan accepted.


“I can’t think of anything better than doing my show with Conan as my lead-in,” George said. “It’s the beginning of a new era in late-night comedy.” With a reported eight-figure deal, as well as allowing Conan to own his own show (which he would not have been able to at Fox), the move to TBS was the most profitable, creativity-wise and monetary-wise.

Q: How is actress Maura Tierney doing in her breast cancer treatment? Will she be back on TV soon? — Greta D., via e-mail

A: Maura’s representative, Christina Papadopolous, said that the 45-year-old actress “has finished treatment and is doing very well, and is happy to move forward with the next phase of her life.” That next phase happens to be returning to the FX network’s action-drama “Rescue Me,” where she’ll return in 2011 for four episodes as Denis Leary’s love interest during the show’s seventh (and final) season.

Q: I was very upset to hear that Dixie Carter had passed away. She was the epitome of grace, beauty and talent. How are her friends and family doing? — Edith D., via e-mail

A: Not surprising, Dixie’s family is heartbroken by her passing on April 10 from complications of endometrial cancer at the age of 70. Husband Hal Holbrook released this statement: “This has been a terrible blow to our family. We would appreciate everyone understanding that this is a private family tragedy.”


Friend and former “Designing Women” co-star Annie Potts told People magazine: “Dixie Carter was a Goddess. The kind of wife and mother that every mother hopes their daughter will become, and the kind of friend that is absolutely irreplaceable. She loved fiercely and was adored in return.”

Q: Is James Van Der Beek getting married again? I’ve heard that he is, but didn’t he just recently get divorced from his first wife? — Ginger F., Port St. Lucie, Fla.

A: While the former “Dawson’s Creek” star hasn’t revealed if there are wedding bells in the future for him and girlfriend Kimberly Brook, I do predict plenty of diapers and pacifiers. James recently revealed via Twitter (the latest go-to forum for celebs to reveal personal, breaking news) that he and Kimberly are expecting their first child later this year.

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