Alex O'Loughlin's Hawaii Five-O reboot officially picked up by CBS

Not surprisingly, CBS has given the green light to Alex O'Loughin's new tv show. As you know, it is the remake of Hawaii Five-O. Many have speculated about whether or not Alex will be trying to step into Jack Lord's shoes, or create a totally different character. That is mentioned in this great article by Mari-Ela David.

Alex's program will air on Monday nights at 9:00 PM Central Time / 10:00 PM Eastern Time.

CBS picks up new Hawaii Five-O series
By Mari-Ela David
Hawaii News Now

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - 'Hawaii Five-O', take two! In showbiz slang, the Five-O pilot has been picked up.

That means the episode filmed here in March will be on CBS in prime time this fall.

That could also mean big bucks for Hawaii's production industry and tourism.

At Big City Diner at Ward on some of their TV screens, there were re-runs of the original 'Hawaii Five-O' playing. Folks there said they're excited about the remake although some say they're a little skeptical.

"It won't be the same, but maybe it'll be better, we'll see. I'll check it out," said Sandra Blazel, a fan who says she used to watch the show whenever she felt homesick while off to college on the mainland.

"I was in the Marines and it was a hot show and it's just great to have it back. I hope it's as good as it was," said Gary Mynatt, a fan.

Alex O'Loughlin will take over Jack Lord's shoes, and 'Lost' celebrity Daniel Dae Kim will star as Chin Ho Kelly. Jean Smart, famous for playing Charlene in the sitcom "Designing Women" has been cast as Hawaii's governor.

This past March, the new 'Hawaii Five-O' shot pilot episodes all over Oahu, including Chinatown, Downtown Honolulu, and inside the post office on Richards Street.

"My knee jerk reaction is fantastic! Fantastic for Hawaii! Because this gives us an opportunity to be in the mainstream of television," said Al Harrington, who played Detective Ben Kokua in the original Five-O, which aired on CBS from 1968 to 1980, making it one of the longest running crime shows on American TV.

Harrington says the drama exposed Hawaii to the world.

"People used to think that Pearl Harbor was some place in the Caribbean. There was a lot of misconceptions," he said.

Harrington hopes the remake will continue to portray Hawaii as it really is.

"I just wish them the very best. And I hope that if they need an old actor, come see Al Harrington," he said chuckling.

The challenge is how to cater the show to this generation without compromising the integrity of the classic Five-O.

Rumor has it that O'Loughlin will actually play Steve McGarrett's son.

"Perhaps you've heard it's not really a new Jack Lord character but part of that family and you might be right about that but I think we have to wait and see when the up fronts come out on Wednesday," said Georja Skinner from the Hawaii Film Office.

Skinner says pre-production starts in mid-June, and shooting starts mid-July.

Exact numbers aren't in yet but the state says the new version of 'Hawaii Five-O' could bring in more than a million dollars per year to Hawaii's economy. That's based on how much revenue the series 'Lost' raked in.

Honolulu mayor Mufi Hannemann applauded the decision to green light the series.

"The City and County of Honolulu pulled out all the stops to assist with the making of the new pilot episode because a network television series translates into significant economic development for Hawaii. We look forward to supporting the production as it goes forward into series" said Hannemann in a statement.

http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/global/story.asp?s=12497198

Photographs ~ Alex O'Loughlin and Daniel Dae Kim

Moonlight in Associated Press article about True Blood

Moonlight & Alex O'Loughlin briefly mentioned in a new AP article about HBO's True Blood tv series (which premieres this Sunday, September 7th). I highlighted the part about our show in yellow.

Southern vampire novels adapted for HBO's new series 'True Blood'
Canadian Press: Kinney Littlefield, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

As fictional lovers go, bubbly blond Sookie Stackhouse and tall, pale Bill Compton are as massively mismatched as they come.

After all, Sookie (Winnipeg-born Anna Paquin) is exuberantly human and Bill (English actor Stephen Moyer) is, well, totally undead in HBO's flamboyant new vampire saga, "True Blood."

"Bill is really genteel but that doesn't stop him from being blood-hungry," Moyer says of his menacing 173-year-old character in "True Blood," adapted for television by Alan Ball ("Six Feet Under") from the popular series of Southern vampire novels by Charlaine Harris.

"The tension between Bill and Sookie is quite palpable," Moyer says in between scenes in which the courtly vampire, who fought for the Confederacy in the Civil War, escorts his lady friend Sookie, a telepathic roadhouse waitress, home on a dark and eerie night.

That sexually suggestive tension is key to "True Blood," which will be seen in Canada on Movie Central and The Movie Network. Set in a small Louisiana town (actually the Santa Monica Mountains northwest of Los Angeles), the edgy series chronicles a time when synthetic blood supplies enable Bill and other vampires to live openly among humans, without necessarily feeding on them.

Like Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid) in the classic vampire soap opera "Dark Shadows" (1966-1971), Bill has returned to his ancestral home, where he woos Sookie and tries to fit into human society. Like Frid's Barnabas, Moyer's Bill is an unresolved paradox - part seductive protagonist, part menacing monster.

"He's not typically vampiric," says Moyer, who played a vampire in the Brit miniseries "Ultraviolet." No long black cape and ghoulish grin for Bill, who dresses yuppie-casual. "But we do get to see him sort of sex-starved at one point," Moyer says. "And there are moments when he is quite confrontational with other vampires, when other people are predatory with Sookie."

"True Blood" also pushes the content boundaries of premium cable, with plenty of extravagantly gushing arteries and over-the-top bedroom antics to rival Showtime's "Californication" - all mixed with a good dose of Southern gothic goofiness.

Ball was looking to produce "lighter" fare after the life-and-death introspection of critically acclaimed "Six Feet Under."

"Charlaine has just created this amazing world that's funny and vibrant and scary and also a sort of social treatise, you know what I mean?" Ball says.

"The books are violent and that's part of the appeal," he says. "It's visceral and predatory and unapologetically sexual. And it's unapologetically romantic in the sense of an old-fashioned romance novel."

The centuries-old vampire metaphor is "also about the terrors of intimacy, and about any kind of misunderstood, hated, feared minority - homosexuals, other cultures," Ball says. "When I first pitched 'True Blood' to HBO, I called it 'popcorn TV for smart people.' "

Still, vampire series are not always surefire. Last season, CBS spiked "Moonlight," despite its loyal following for undead hero Mick St. John (Alex O'Loughlin).

Like "Moonlight," "True Blood" plays on the thrill of a vampire-human hookup. But the mechanics of Bill and Sookie's romance proved tricky for Moyer and Paquin during filming.

"You do get fangs caught in places," Paquin says, remembering her first lip lock with Bill's lethal teeth, which pop down when he's lost in bloodlust. "Perhaps it's like people with braces trying to make it work. Puncture wounds aside, one gets used to it," she teases.

Although Ball says his series "is true to the spirit of the novels," there are differences. "True Blood" takes the powerful and ruthless nature of vampire clans a little further than the novels do, he says. Sookie narrates the Harris books but not "True Blood." Instead, Ball has given Sookie a female best friend and confidante named Tara (Rutina Wesley).

The events in the 12 episodes play out over a fast and furious two-week period, like they do in Harris' first vampire novel, "Dead Until Dark." As in the novels, Sookie's mysterious boss Sam Merlotte (Sam Trammell) is very much in evidence, keeping close to Sookie.

But Ball has greatly expanded the characters of the roadhouse's gay short-order cook, Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis), and Sookie's bumbling and sexually indefatigable brother Jason (Ryan Kwanten).

"They've given me some really outrageous story lines," Kwanten says. "Jason just jumps into things before he thinks about them. He thinks he's Louisiana's answer to Casanova. Any reservations or inhibitions I had before starting the show have well and truly gone now in a good way," he says of his sex scenes. Then he laughs. "One of the grips jokes that he sees me naked more than he does his girlfriend."

Photograph ~ Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin) & Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer) showing his Vampire fangs in True Blood tv series.

BuddyTV ~ Catching up with Moonlight's cast

Valerie, from BuddyTV, has written an article about what Alex O'Loughlin, Sophia Myles and Jason Dohring have been doing since Moonlight's cancelation.

Note : The piece mentions Sophia working on a film called Buddha's Little Finger. However, I have heard from several sources that she is no longer involved with this movie project.

CBS Adopts 'Moonlight' Actor, Cast Members Pursue Other Projects
by Valerie Anne del Castillo

While some have already packed their bags and tidied up their camp sites following the campaign to bring Moonlight back to CBS, quite a number of fans are still clamoring for the return of the much-loved series which starred Alex O’Loughlin and Sophia Myles. The series, which only survived a season with a little under an average of 7.5 million viewers, was cut by CBS earlier this year because the network claimed that the ratings weren’t sufficient enough for a renewal. Moreover, CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler admitted that unlike Jericho, the resurrected series with a passionate fanbase, Moonlight’s fans tend to support the actor behind it rather than the series itself.

"The response to Moonlight was actually more actor-centric, so I think it certainly measures our decision on the show," Tassler told reporters at the TCA last month.

Apparently CBS saw the potential in the Australian actor and has signed him on for a one-year deal (which includes CBS’ sister studios CBS Paramount and ABC Studios) which will have him playing the central character in the new series currently being developed by producer Mark Gordon, whose credits include Grey’s Anatomy, Army Wives and Criminal Minds. Moreover, the deal will also provide O’Loughlin with a few movie projects with CBS Films.

O’Loughlin will soon be appearing in the feature film Whiteout, while his Moonlight co-star Sophia Myles appeared in the recently released Outlander, in which she played Viking warrior princess Freya, who battles extraterrestrials. The film premiered at the Locarno International Film Festival. Currently, Myles is working on the film Buddha’s Little Finger, which is set to be released next year.

As for Moonlight co-star Jason Dohring, who played Mick St. John’s 400-year-old best buddy, he says that he is currently in the process of landing other acting projects.

"More recently since I’ve been done with Moonlight, I’ve sorted some stuff out in my career, just personally about where I want to go," Jason Dohring said in an interview with the Review Times last month. "I think that I worked out a couple things for myself, kind of what I want to create in the world with being a celebrity."

He adds that he would like to try taking the lead in the next project that comes his way. He explains, "It was like all of a sudden I realized I could do it and I was like excited to try to do that, be a leading man. And I saw the amount of good that you can do, that you can use that platform to effect change in the world and that was exciting to me."

http://www.buddytv.com/articles/moonlight/cbs-adopts-moonlight-actor-cas-22123.aspx?cf=1048576

TV Squad ~ Recently canceled shows I mourn

Debra, from TV Squad's website, has written an article detailing television shows that she misses since they were canceled. Moonlight is at the top of the list.

Note : She misspelled Alex O'Loughlin (as O'Laughlin) and Josef (as Joseph). I corrected the typos in the piece below.

Recently canceled shows I mourn
by Debra McDuffee

There will always be Buffy, Angel, Quantum Leap and Magnum, P.I. on my "Oh Man I Want New Episodes of These Shows" list, but what about the more recently canceled shows of the past few years? Are there any worth mourning?

Maybe not in the same way I mourn my culty loves and classic '80s shows, but there are a few worth mentioning....

Moonlight

Yep, I know, I am one of Those People -- a fan of Moonlight. Though I agree it was weak when it returned after the writer's strike, there were lots of things to love about this show: the vampire lore, the episodic mysteries, the way they could have taken the love story (had they not muffed it up in the last four episodes), the actors (Jason Dohring and Alex O'Loughlin; not Sophia Myles). I can't believe that I won't find out more of the back story with Josef's family and Coraline.

To read the rest of Debra's list....
http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/08/05/recently-canceled-shows-i-mourn/

New Vampire projects bring more attention to Moonlight

Moonlight is getting lots of great media attention with the launch of other Vampire projects in the news. iF Magazine has written many articles about our show, as well as interviewed Alex O'Loughlin, Sophia Myles and Jason Dohring. They made sure to include Moonlight in their piece about HBO's new vamp series, True Blood.

Television : Breaking News: 'MOONLIGHT' MAY BE DEAD, BUT THERE'S ALWAYS 'TRUE BLOOD'

HBO gets into the vampire game with the Alan Ball produced horror series
By CARL CORTEZ

LOCATION: New Orleans

THE SKINNY: First ANGEL is staked by the WB and last season CBS dusted their vampire series MOONLIGHT after one season despite support from a strong legion of fans. With vampire series getting little respect on TV, why would HBO greenlight a vampire series called TRUE BLOOD?

Two words: Alan Ball.

Yes, the creator of SIX FEET UNDER and the screenwriter of AMERICAN BEAUTY has brought Charlaine Harris’ series of novels focusing on a psychic girl (Anna Paquin) who falls in love with a mysterious vamp (Stephen Moyer) to the small screen with sex, blood, and more sex.

“We’re all about bringing in an idea with enormous passion and talent and when Alan came in to us with the idea of TRUE BLOOD, it was a no brainer,” says Michael Lombardo, HBO’s President of Programming Group and West Coast Operations, at this year's summer press tour.

“And when he described what he wanted to do, that was the reason to do it," he adds. "We weren’t looking for Alan to do a ‘vampire show.’ We were looking to be in business with Alan again, and he had a great take on a great series of books.”

http://ifmagazine.com/new.asp?article=6500

Photo ~ Sookie Stackhouse ( Anna Paquin ) and Bill Compton ( Stephen Moyer ) True Blood television series

TV.com article about our DirecTV campaign to Save Moonlight

Enterprising Moonlight fans are getting the word out to various media outlets about our efforts to save our show! Tim Surette ( from TV.com ) has written an article regarding the DirecTV campaign.

Rumor: DirecTV looking at adopting Moonlight
By Tim Surette

Could the vampire drama be saved by the same people who saved Friday Night Lights?

There are hardcore fans, and there are hardcore fans. The guy with the Dwight Schrute bobblehead doll on his desk? He's kind of hardcore. Moonlight fans? They're really hardcore.

Moonlight fans are attempting to pull a Jericho with the recently canceled vampire drama, making it undead. They've put the line out there in attempts to hook a new network or television provider for Moonlight, and it looks like they may have at least a nibble.

According to Moonlight fan site Moonlight Line, which is attempting to resurrect the show, DirecTV has inquired about possibly picking up the program. Though DirecTV may seem like an odd choice--basic-cablers such as Sci Fi Channel seemed possible destinations--the satellite service has already acted as life preserver for another well-loved drama treading water.

In April, it was officially announced that DirecTV had reached a deal with NBC to keep Friday Night Lights on the air. The unique arrangement would see DirecTV have first-airing rights, with NBC rebroadcasting the show four months later.

It's unclear what DirecTV has plotted for Moonlight, but the company is apparently interested in at least considering something. According to one of the board's higher-ups, DirecTV asked the site to post a poll asking what members thought of DirecTV sponsoring the show. The poll is up with the following three answers: "No problem, I already have DirecTV," "I'll switch to DirecTV in a hot second," and "Not switching."

The results of the simple market research would then be looked over by DirecTV who would determine if any of this makes financial sense. As of press time, 21 percent said they already have DirecTV, 71 percent said they would switch, and seven percent said they wouldn't switch.

This is great news for Moonlight fans, but probably best to hold off on hosting a bloodsucking party until something official comes out.

http://www.tv.com/story/11415.html?tag=gumballs;ing;1

MSNBC Article ~ Moonlight on list of "canceled shows we loved"

MSNBC published an article about canceled tv programs that they will miss. Of course, Moonlight is on the list! They heap more praise on the fans for the amazing Moonlight Blood Drive. And, they single out Alex O'Loughlin as a highlight from our show :)

So, add MSNBC to the list of media entertainment outlets & tv gurus who have come out in support of Moonlight. YEA! Surely, other networks must see all these positive comments from very reputable sources. We can include quotes in our letters & emails.

Rest in peace, canceled shows we loved
‘Moonlight,’ ‘Men in Trees,’ ‘Jericho’ will be missed
By Jeff Hidek

“Moonlight”

Why it should have been renewed: It might have been the lowest-rated of CBS’s Friday night dramas, but "Moonlight" still consistently won its time slot against ABC and NBC offerings. That’s impressive, considering all of the tinkering that went on at this series about a blood-sucking private investigator. After multiple show-runner changes and a few shaky scripts, “Moonlight” seemed to just be settling into a charming routine in its post-strike episodes.

Series highlight: As brooding vampire Mick St. John, Alex O’Loughlin injected equal parts hot and cool into his leading-man role. A flash of his smile could make even an undead pulse quicken.

Silver lining: Fans should congratulate themselves on the most charitable “save our show” campaign ever. A well-orchestrated blood drive organized through YouChoose.net might not have been able to save the series, but it did help save lives. Mick would be proud.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24780304/

CBS Watch website still featuring Alex O'Loughlin

Hmmmmmmm..... The CBS Watch Magazine website is still featuring Alex O'Loughlin on its main page. It directs people to the article and interview with him that was in the April 2008 issue. Also, they showcase photos taken of Alex & Jason Dohring at the New York Comic Con. Very interesting considering that they canceled Moonlight! Why showcase the star of a show that is no longer on your network? Obviously, they want to continue to benefit from Alex's rising celebrity status even tho they let him & Moonlight go! Grrrrrrrr!

I reposted the article on my Alex O'Loughlin fan blog.

http://alexoloughlinfan.blogspot.com

Wall Street Journal article ~ Ratings slip threatens CW Network

This Wall Street Journal article lays out the CW's crippling ratings issues. As we know, the numbers for the CW network are very low. I gave you several examples previously ~ Smallville 3.96 million, Gossip Girl 2.11 million, Supernatural 2.53 million and their newly renewed freshman show Reaper 2.47 million. Moonlight would instantly more than double the number of viewers their highest rated series.

It's No Gossip, Ratings Slip Threatens CW Network
By Rebecca Dana

Time may be running out for the CW network.

Two years after CBS Corp. and Time Warner Inc. combined their second-tier networks UPN and WB into the youth-oriented CW to pool young viewers prized by advertisers, the network's hopes of surviving are looking increasingly bleak.

Despite the buzz about "Gossip Girl," a prime-time soap opera about a group of rich kids on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, the network has lost about 28% of its target audience of 18 to 34 year olds so far this season. Its ratings during this month's "sweeps" period -- the all-important measure upon which future advertising rates are set -- are down about 22%.

Advertisers eager to reach a young demographic initially clamored to sign on to the CW, but have since cooled to the network. Steven Kalb, director of broadcast media for media-buying firm MediaHub, owned by Interpublic Group, says there were high hopes for the network when last year's lineup was unveiled. Now, he says, "It has collapsed."

Part of the problem is that the CW's young audience is most prone to spend leisure time on the Internet. Last winter's Hollywood writers' strike, which forced scripted shows off the air for three months, hastened the defection of viewers to the Web.

Increasingly, people in the industry are asking whether this coming season is the CW's last chance. One person close to the situation confirms that without significant progress in the next year, at least one of the network's owners is likely to abandon the venture.

The defection of viewers recently led the network to suspend the free Web streaming of "Gossip Girl," angering some fans in the process. After several weeks of the experiment, ratings have remained essentially flat.

The CW's fall schedule, unveiled this week, suggests the network has few fresh ideas. It is debuting only three new shows, all designed to complement "Gossip Girl," which executives hope will find a larger audience come fall. The new offerings are: "90210," an updated version of the 1990s hit prime-time soap about rich kids in California, "Beverly Hills, 90210"; "Surviving the Filthy Rich," a drama about rich kids in Palm Beach; and the reality show "Stylista."

The network has made a series of radical moves in recent weeks to stem its financial losses and draw more attention from advertisers and viewers.

Last week, the CW said it was bringing in an outside production company, Media Rights Capital, to program three hours of Sunday nights, often the most-watched night on broadcast television but a poorly rated time period for the network. To take a slice of prime time and essentially cede it to another programmer is a rare event for a major network.

Also this spring, the CW elected to stop airing wrestling on Friday nights -- an admission that chasing a young male audience was no longer part of the network's mission. Wrestling had drawn high ratings, but advertising rates were lower because it draws an audience less desirable to advertisers. At its upfront presentation this week, the CW redefined its target audience as exclusively 18- to 34-year-old women.

The success of the venture is of importance for CBS Chief Executive Officer Leslie Moonves, who has been closely involved in every element of building and promoting the network.

Mr. Moonves sits on the executive board that overseas programming and marketing decisions at the CW. The network's president, Dawn Ostroff, is a longtime associate and protégé of Mr. Moonves, and he was instrumental in placing her at the helm of the network. Mr. Moonves declined to comment.

CW executives attribute the network's poor ratings performance not to a lack of viewers but to flaws in the system of measure. "Obviously, we would have liked to do better," Ms. Ostroff said this week. "Our young audience certainly knows how to get their content in different ways, and we have to figure out different ways to measure how they're getting it."

The CW has two strategies for this: work with Nielsen Media Research, the company that records ratings, to improve its methodology; and continue efforts to lure more and younger viewers to the network. Despite its stated demographic targets, the CW viewer's median age is 34, Ms. Ostroff says.

Nielsen says in a statement that although it believes its ratings "provide a fair picture of what younger viewers are watching," the audience is challenging to track. "We are working closely with the CW and all of our clients to continuously improve our measurement."

In the past two years, the CW has experimented with different ways of presenting advertisements to its young viewers, who are proficient with digital video recorders that allow them to fast-forward through commercials, and who have especially short attention spans.

The network introduced multipart commercials called "content wraps" in its first year; in its second year, it introduced ultra-short commercials it called "cwickies." Next year, the network is focusing its efforts on TV and Web integrations, says Executive Vice President of Network Sales Bill Morningstar.

Bruce Rosenblum, president of the Warner Bros. Television Group and a member of the CW's board, says he was disappointed the network had not managed to capture a larger audience. But he pointed to the strength of its distribution system and its new-series development as reasons for optimism.

Although the CW isn't profitable itself, it has helped its parent companies launch shows that can make money down the road on other platforms such as syndicated reruns and DVD sales, Mr. Rosenblum says.

Combined, UPN and the WB lost about $2 billion in the 11 years that spent on the air. It is unclear how the CW's losses compare, since neither company reports earnings for the small network. CBS and Warner Bros. incurred significant start-up costs when they launched the CW, including a multimillion dollar marketing campaign. CW draws about a quarter of the audience that CBS does.

Nancy Tellem, president of CBS Paramount Network Television Entertainment Group, says that CBS's commitment to the network is open-ended and that the CW has suffered mostly from too-high expectations. "I honestly believe that we did not expect it would be as difficult as it was," she says.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121089546043097065.html?mod=hps_us_whats_news

Hollywood Reporter article confirms Moonlight is being shopped

Nellie Andreeva has written an article for The Hollywood Reporter titled "It was an odd upfront." Basically, it is about how the Writer's Strike changed the normal network pilot season and presentations. In the report, she mentions that Moonlight is being offered to other tv channels. Feels good to have more confirmation of that from the industry.

Here is the part related to our show........

The strike-impacted pilot season contributed to an unusually robust post-upfront market for the shows that didn't make the cut this year, with a number of projects, such as the series "Back to You" and "Moonlight" and pilot "The Pitts," being shopped around.

http://tinyurl.com/3l95r7

BuddyTV interviews Jason Dohring about Moonlight and Josef

BuddyTV's Kris De Leon has a new, brief interview with Jason Dohring. He talks about our Josef getting more screentime on Moonlight. I am all for that! And, the possibility of fighting with a certain best friend. He is such a bad boy ;)

Tiny spoilers are in the article......

More Airtime for Jason Dohring on 'Moonlight'

As Josef Kostan, Jason Dohring gets to play a centuries old vampire and mentor to lead character Mick St. John. While he is considered to be part of the main ensemble of the CBS series, he hasn't had considerable exposure on canvas compared to lead stars Alex O'Loughlin, who portrays vampire private investigator Mick, and Sophia Myles, who plays reporter Beth and Mick's love interest. Gradually however, Dohring's airtime has improved towards the recent installments, especially with the episode "Sleeping Beauty," where his character reveals a secret he has kept for more than 40 years. Fortunately, he'll be playing a bigger part in the new episodes, which starts airing on April 25.

According to Dohring, fans can expect more fight scenes from his character in the coming installments of Moonlight.

“I go vampire for the first time, which you haven't really seen. It is pretty cool. That will be a really good scene,” the Moonlight actor revealed.

While most of the action will involve Mick and Josef teaming up to fight other vampires, Dohring is already hoping for his character to come to blows with best friend Mick.

“I hope soon, but for the most part I think it will be him and I kicking someone else's a**. But will I ever kick his a**? Maybe. Hopefully, because that would be kind of cool to see what that would be like. We'd both get a little bit of a beat down…They just haven't written it yet,” he said.

Just like co-star O'Loughlin, Dohring has a lot of interesting things to say about the new episodes of Moonlight. While better character progression, impressive musical scoring and more emotional storylines are just some of the things to look forward to, Dohring also hopes that the new storylines will eventually dwell on his character's bloodline and history.

http://tinyurl.com/489jtr

Detroit News Article ~ Can these 12 shows be saved?

Mekeisha Madden Toby, of the Detroit News newspaper, has written an article regarding television shows on the bubble. She not only included Moonlight, but also provided the address for those who want to contact CBS to ask for a second season pickup. Excellent! I am glad she is helping to spread the word :) I hope it gets more fans motivated to support Moonlight.

I won't include all twelve shows here.... just her kind words about our show. You can read the rest by following the link below.

Can these 12 shows be saved?
By Mekeisha Madden Toby

It's time again to sit right down and write the networks a letter.

A dozen TV shows rest on the bubble and face cancellation, so if you're a fan of "Eli Stone" (ABC), "Aliens in America" (The CW), "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" (Fox) and "The Unit" (CBS), take a few moments this weekend and write network executives to try to save them.

Not into writing letters? Fans of "Las Vegas," which ended its fifth season with an unceremonious cliffhanger, are sending baby booties to the president of NBC in honor of Delinda and Danny's unborn baby. Such antics have been known to work.

Peanuts brought "Jericho" back for a second season. Although low ratings have killed it for good, a second chance is better than nothing.

CBS

"Moonlight" (returns 9 p.m. April 25): Mick St. John (Aussie-born actor Alex O'Loughlin) is no Angel, but he's a pretty handsome and pretty charming vampire all the same. A perfect fit with its schedule predecessor "Ghost Whisperer," all "Moonlight" needs is a few more weeks to excel.

To save "The Unit," "The Big Theory" and "Moonlight," write to:
Nina Tassler
CBS Entertainment President
7800 Beverly Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036

http://tinyurl.com/3a2cw4

Alex O'Loughlin article and interview in CBS Watch! Magazine's April Issue

CBS Watch! Magazine has a new article and interview with Alex O'Loughlin in the April 2008 issue. I'm happy to see them featuring Moonlight and Alex. We need more promotion like this to get everyone excited about the show returning in April :) Funny tho how even a CBS article gets some of the little details wrong.

Interview with the new Vampire

by Lynn Morgan

Put away your garlic and wooden stakes. Thanks to a new twist on the vampire legend, Moonlight's Alex O'Loughlin is emerging from the shadows as a TV heartthrob

"I've always been interested in storytelling," Alex O'Loughlin says. "Even as a kid, I've always been the guy spinning a yarn around the campfire."

The campfire is now TV, and the 32 year old Australian born star of Moonlight is mesmerizing an audience of millions with his portrayal of Mick St John, a private detective with a unique affinity for the dark side : He is a 90 year old vampire. And playing the broodingly sexy St John has anointed O'Loughlin TV's newest dark heartthrob.

"I've always loved the genre," says O'Loughlin. "I'm a big fan of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. The travels of Lestat are my favorites. I've always wanted to play a vampire. It's like playing a character with several different personalities."

As a fan of scary movies and dark literature, O'Loughlin feels right at home in this haunted and shadowy role. "It's an opportunity to play with bigger ideas," he says. "Infinity, immortality, the dichotomy within the character."

Taking a Stake to Convention

O'Loughlin is surprised and mildly taken aback by the fervor with which fans have embraced the show, a modern Gothic tale that combines elements of action, film noir and romance, and their passionate dedication to all things vampiric. Moonlight updates the legends of the undead, toying with the established and cherished mythology. Moonlight offers a 21st century version of the ancient dark archetype : no capes, no coffins, no wild-eyed, obsessive Van Helsings brandishing crucifixes. Most shocking of all to many dedicated vamp fans is Mick's ability to survive sunlight.

Some of their chat room comments have filtered down to O'Loughlin, and he greets their theories with good humor. "Daylight weakens Mick," he explains patiently. "He can go out into the sunlight, briefly, if he keeps to the shadows. The sun weakens him, and lengthy exposure to the light will kill him. We explored those things in the fourth episode when Beth [Sophia Myles] finds out the truth about Mick."

Reinterpreting this evocative symbol keeps vampires relevant and eternally fascinating. Novelists Laurell K. Hamilton, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro and, most recently Elizabeth Kostova have all put their unique spins on the conventions established by Bram Stoker and set in stone by Bela Lugosi. Moonlight creators Ron Koslow and Trevor Munson and executive producer Joel Silver are just taking their turn reimagining a world of the undead, and O'Loughlin is excited to be a part of it.

Shadow of Doubt

Moonlight is a breakthrough role for O'Loughlin, who arrived in Hollywood just three years ago from Australia. He worked in television playing guest roles - including an acclaimed performance on The Shield - and was narrowly beaten out for another iconic role by Daniel Craig, who was cast instead of O'Loughlin as the new James Bond.

Moonlight has brought him a new level of visibility for which he was not entirely prepared, but which he confronts squarely with a level head and a sense of humor.

"Fame is kind of frightening. I don't yearn for it," O'Loughlin says. "All of a sudden, you are driving home one night, and there's your head, 30 feet tall, on a billboard on Sunset Boulevard. I was an actor in theater in Sydney, and I've done little indie films that paid nothing. I am not an actor for that kind of recognition. I like playing parts that I can disappearin. I enjoy hiding behind my characters."

O'Loughlin is refreshingly irreverent about his new status as a heartthrob as well. Despite those ubiquitous billboards, he is convinced he is safely hidden behind Mick St John. "It doesn't look like me!" he laughs. "It doesn't even look like Mick! Between the wind machine blowing my hair around and the retouching, it looks nothing like me."

Fans of Moonlight obviously disagree. O'Loughlin's gravel-over-velvet voice and dark, rock-star charisma have them swooning. To them, he is the hottest bloodsucker since Brad Pitt hung up the fake fangs back in 1994.

Blood, Sweat and Tears

"I don't see myself that way at all!" the self-effacing actor scoffs, explaining that he's much more interested in exploring the depths of his character than in polishing the cosmetic surface. Moonlight's Mick St John is a tangle of contradictions, ambivalent about his vampiric state and ill at ease with his possible immortality, in high contrast with his amoral sidekick, Jozef Konstan (Jason Dohring), a billionaire vampire who is a blithe bloodsucker, comically unconflicted about his predator status - the insouciant Lestat to Mick's tormented Louis.

"Mick is the loneliest man in the world," O'Loughlin says. "Even though he's surrounded by people, he's isolated and cut off from his own humanity. Mentally, he's one of the most damaged characters I have ever played. He's not in a lot of physical jeopardy, but emotionally, he's a wreck. I try to reach inside of him and find the humanity at his heart."

O'Loughlin leaves the grim and angsty stuff on screen, though. Personally, he's cheeky and charming with a raucous laugh and a sexy, Down Under accent. He would rather ride motorcycles than brood, and his hobbies are more rugged than moody : running, rock climbing, and sailing "badly." He does as many of his own stunts on the show "as the insurance company will let me," he says. And to stay in shape for the grueling work, he spends his downtime on set in his trailer doing a punishing Navy SEAL workout to keep up with the physical demands of the role. After all, nobody would be scared of a flabby vampire.

Sound Bites

Recently, movie audiences got to see a different side of the actor as he played the brother of Jonathan Rhys Meyers' character in the movie August Rush, a holiday fable about the healing power of music. O'Loughlin got to showcase a few of his other talents in the film - singing and playing the guitar (in real life, O'Loughlin plays both acoustic and electric guitar).

When asked about his favorite musician, it takes the actor a moment or two to sort through the many possibilities before settling on one : "Hendrix. Definitely Jimi Hendrix. I don't play anything like him, but he's my favorite. He was the best."

Moonlight has a subtle musical subtext that will move to the forefront in upcoming episodes, when audiences will get to hear O'Loughlin play on the show as part of Mick's character development.

The actor remains intrigued by the character's possibilities and the potential for telling more stories about Mick St John. It's his purpose in being a performer. "I want to do work that's meaningful to me and touches people," he insists. "I don't care about being a heartthrob or any of that crap. I care about having somebody come up to me on the street and say, 'That meant a lot to me.'"

He has had that moment in his own life. "When I met Robert De Niro in New York, I got to sit and talk with him for a few minutes," O'Loughlin recalls. "It was amazing. He taught me a lot as a young man, through his work, and the characters he played. He helped me get through adolescence and along the road growing up."

One of the things he has come to understand along that road is the signifigance of stories, and of telling them. "I've always appreciated art and music, different forms of expression," O'Loughlin says. "As an adult, I appreciate the opportunity to tell important stories."

Photos by Cliff Lipson

Photo captions ~

Alex O'Loughlin and Sophia Myles bring new heat to the vampire tradition in Moonlight.

Mick St John (O'Loughlin) taking a bite out of crime.

A Star is Born

Birth name : Alex O'Lachlan

Birth date : Aug. 24, 1975

Birthplace : Sydney, Australia

Breakout role : Detective Kevin Hiatt on The Shield

New Jason Dohring interview and article in Portrait Magazine

Portrait is an informative and fun online magazine. In their March 2008 issue, they have a new article & interview with our Jason. Angela Lee did a wonderful job with this feature!

Jason Dohring: In Demand
By Angela Lee

Over the past few months we’ve received many requests to feature the one and only Jason Dohring. Just like the man himself, Portrait is more than happy to deliver fans requests, and with great timing too! On the occasion of this talented actor’s birthday later this month, Portrait presents to you this must have guide to Jason Dohring.

You know him best as the tortured but snarky Logan Echolls on “Veronica Mars” and the mischievous vampire Josef Konstan on “Moonlight”, and although these two characters share similar characteristics, Jason is different to his alter egos. “It’s funny – I always get these characters that I’m so afraid of – I so feel like I can’t…I’m like, this is so not me. With Logan, I thought, “Why me? I’m a nice guy,” says Jason, who interestingly enough originally auditioned for the role of nice guy Duncan Kane on “Veronica Mars”.

It’s one thing to imagine Jason not playing Logan on “Veronica Mars”, but can you imagine if Jason wasn’t a regular on the show? No way right? Initially, Jason was meant to be a guest star and Michael Muhney’s Sheriff Lamb was meant to be a regular instead. “I think Logan became a much bigger character than anticipated. It’s the result of Jason Dohring being an engaging performer that all the writers wanted to write for him,” divulges show creator Rob Thomas.

When “Veronica Mars” came to an end, Jason’s popularity carried onto “Moonlight” and grew even more. Not actually part of the original “Moonlight” cast, since Josef was a 60 year old man, Jason found himself a contender when the show received an overhaul. Aware of Jason’s talent, executive producer of “Moonlight” Joel Silver, who was also the executive producer on “Veronica Mars”, pushed for Jason to be cast on “Moonlight”. “I would say very influential is an understatement, because he [Joel] pushed for me all the way,” reveals Jason. “He really did. Once they made this character into a 25 year old, he though of me and took me all the way through the network.” And just like on “Veronica Mars”, Jason’s “Moonlight” co-stars love him too! “Jason is just, like the most other-centred person that I know. He’s always thinking about other people, he’s always, he’s so generous with his time. I’d work again with him in a heartbeat,” Alex O’Loughlin, who plays Mick St John, told Moonlight-Detective.Com in an interview recently.

While his co-stars may gush about him and Jason is respectfully in awe of them as well, is there anyone that Jason would love to work with in the future? “I’d love to work with Ryan Gosling, I think he’s awesome. I think Jeff Bridges is unbelievable. I think he’s very underrated. Alfred Molina, I love. I think Meryl Streep is fantastic, I think she does amazing work. Jessica Lange is beautiful,” praises Jason.

Onscreen he’s had his fair share of love interest as the misunderstood-but-really-just-wants-to-be-loved-rich-kid on “Veronica Mars” to the billionaire playboy on “Moonlight”, but in real life Jason only has eyes for his wife Lauren, who is a painter.

The pair met in high school and were friends before they started dating, and married in 2004. “At the end of the day, it’s great to have someone who is your good friend to talk to and being able to be around someone you can be yourself with makes for a long lasting relationship,” says Jason. “It’s just so comfortable.”

Also highlighting the difference between Jason and his alter egos is the close relationship that Jason has with his family. Born on 30 March, 1982 in Ohio, to Doug and Laurie Dohring, Jason William Dohring is big brother to twins Robert and Jonathan, and twins Kelsey and Kirsten. That’s right, two sets of twins! “We don’t have twins anywhere else in the family so it’s like a one in a million chance,” says Jason. In fact it was through his siblings who were child actors (Kelsey and Kirsten played Chrissy on “Growing Pains”), that Jason got into acting. From the age of eight to twelve, Jason starred in commercials such as one for American Express and Sharp Electronics, before moving onto guest appearances in television shows such as “Roswell”, “Judging Amy”, “Once and Again”, “Boston Public”, “Jag”, and “Cold Case”. He has also starred in films such as Deep Impact, Black Cadillac, The Deep Below, and the Disney movie Ready to Run.

Although Jason shot to international fame with his role on “Veronica Mars” and has now become increasingly recognized for his work on Moonlight, Jason is continually looking for ways to better his acting skills. “I just try keeping an eye open for new stuff, listening, watching movies,” he says. In between filming seasons of “Veronica Mars”, Jason continued to take acting classes to further develop his craft. (See? How awesome and humble is this guy?) But if he wasn’t an actor, what would he do? “I would probably be like, I don’t know. A race car driver? A motorcycle driver? Something like that – that sounds like fun. Maybe a teacher. An acting teacher? I like people,” ponders Jason.

One thing that you may not know about Jason is that he is a 2nd generation Scientologist. There may have been some colourful ideas associated with the religion, but for Jason it has aided him creatively, so who are we to complain? “The misconceptions that occur with people who haven’t ever read a book about it, or don’t know what it’s about. They’re just taking someone else’s false opinion of what it is,” explains Jason. “Just for me, it saved my acting career. I became a professional through Scientology…I understand acting better because Scientology is the study of life.”

Also an inspiration to Jason are his fans, who Jason has nothing but praise for. “I’m a huge fan of fans and it is so fantastic when they write in; I love that. You get real feedback and it’s inspiring to keep on your game and keep trying,” declares Jason. Thanks to his work on “Veronica Mars” and “Moonlight”, Jason has an ever-growing fanbase but he hasn’t let it go his head, instead remaining ever so humble. It’s one thing to acknowledge fans and another to truly appreciate them, which is what Jason does. “Meeting Jason in person is something that never gets old. He takes the time to get to know you when you’re talking to him each time, and really remembers as much as he can the next time he sees you,” says dedicated Jason fan, Roz Foster, who has been lucky enough to have met Jason on several occasions. Echoing Roz’s sentiments is another loyal Jason fan fortunate enough to have met him – Jennifer Riddle. “He’s such an easy-going guy and really treats his fans with love and respect. He loves his job, but he loves his fans even more, and you can see it when you meet him in person,” says Jennifer. “He’s very down to Earth and will pretty much do anything you ask of him. Whether it’s taking a picture, signing an autograph, or even calling one of your friends because they couldn’t make the trip to meet him.”

Aww. Passionate, dedicated, talented, appreciative, good looking, humble – no wonder everyone loves him!

*Fast Facts*

Favorite movies – One Flew Over the Cuckoo Nest, Jerry Maguire. Love Actually, Crash.

Favorite TV shows – “Family Guy”, “Deadwood”, “The Office”.

Acting Idols – Sean Penn, Marlon Brando, James Dean, Gary Oldman

Music Tastes – “I have such a range, it’s ridiculous. Elton John, Postal Service, Reo Speedwagon, some country. I like music that has emotion. I love to feel that passion that music has,” says Jason.

Jason is actually quite a big sports guy. His sports range from golf to tennis, baseball to basketball, snowboarding to volleyball.

Jason can cook – “I’ll have you know I make awesome artichokes and salads, as well as steak,” he says.

Jason is very passionate when it comes to children and prescription drugs – “I have very strong opinions about the psychiatric drugging of children. Pisses me off that we prescribe a drug to kids (Ritalin) that is in the same class as heroin,” declares Jason.

http://www.portraitmagazine.net/

Alex O'Loughlin speaks to Australian Newspaper Sydney Morning Hearld

We have all been hoping that our Aussie and our Brit would be able to return home for the holiday season. Alex & his delicious girlfriend, Holly Valance, did make the trip back to Australia. Jason Dohring & his lovely wife, Lauren, plan to travel there also to celebrate the New Year with Alex. Can you imagine how much fun it would be to ring in 2008 with them?!?! From what I'm hearing, Sophia is still here in the US.

I've gone to the future to get this for you. *grin* Sorry, couldn't resist since it's December 17th in Australia. Alex has been interviewed by Scott Ellis from one of his home newspapers ~ The Sydney Morning Hearld. Funny.... almost every article throws in a description of Alex puffing away on a cigar.

Great feature! We've seen and heard about Alex's playful side. In this, he reveals more of his philosophical, thoughtful outlook on life.

Alex O'Loughlin is sitting in his make-up trailer, alternating puffs on a cigar with a serious discussion about spiritual belief and human nature.

"I think really if there's nothing out there in the dark, then once we're dead we're just dead and all religion, all spiritual belief, is redundant," O'Loughlin said. "So there has to be something else, or what's the point? And if we accept that there has to be something ... then there can be anything."

"Mick St John essentially is a human who denies the monster within," O'Loughlin said. "He became a vampire against his will and then became a private investigator because he feels that each predator he gets rid of, each monster he kills or has put away gets him closer to the humanity within himself that he has lost."

"He's a very complex character to play because really he hates what he is and hates himself, and that's put him right on the edge."

Also pushing him to the edge is his relationship with Beth Turner (played by Sophia Myles), a reporter who discovers his secret.

As a child, Beth was saved by St John and was the first step on his search for redemption. Now grown up and igniting passions he's tried to deny, she is both the one woman he could love and the one woman he shouldn't.

"What saving [Beth] signifies to him was so enormous and now that she's come of age and he's starting to find himself attracted to her ... oh man ... he wants her to call him Dad and he wants her to call him Baby ... it's all messed up."

"But that allows for some really dramatic twists and changes in the character that you just wouldn't see anywhere else."

"A big thing that comes up for me with this show and with this world is redemption," he said.

"At what point can we no longer be redeemed? And Mick's hoping the answer is never."

Vampire on a mission ~

http://tinyurl.com/2tlc2b

TV Guide features Alex O'Loughlin online!

I know I have said it before, but...... I adore TV Guide! They have yet another feature with Alex O'Loughlin. Looks like they are as charmed by him as we are :)

TVGuide.com :

O'Loughlin loves the rush he gets from doing his own stunts. "I really feel like I'm participating in life when I'm strapped into a harness and hanging precariously above the ground," says the 31-year-old Australian actor (whose last name is pronounced "O-lock-lin"). As Moonlight's crime-fighting vampire/private detective Mick St. John, he gets plenty of chances to revel in those daredevil moments. His character often leaps from rooftops and catwalks in pursuit of both mortal and immortal lawbreakers.

On a fall afternoon on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, however, the actor finds himself earthbound, shooting an indoor scene where Mick is pondering the ongoing plot about whether or not the evil ex he killed is still alive. Between takes, he ducks out to an alley to puff a Cuban cigar. Costumed in trademark Mick garb — black jeans, boots, dark shirt — he apologizes repeatedly for the smoke, his gentlemanly concern something you'd expect from Mr. St. John.

But while Mick is smoldering and reserved, O'Loughlin is playful. "He's a bundle of energy," says costar Sophia Myles, who plays reporter Beth Turner, the woman Mick loves but can't have. "And he's funny — he makes me laugh all night long. With our schedule, 16 hours a day, six days a week, I couldn't have hoped for anyone more wonderful to work with."

The intense routine means that the actor doesn't get to see his girlfriend, Australian actress/singer Holly Valance, as much as he'd like, although she recently guest-starred as Lola, the gorgeous vamp Mick fought to the death. The two met while he was doing construction work for a mutual friend and have been dating for a year and a half. How's she handling his burgeoning status as a heartthrob? "She's a sex symbol," O'Loughlin says of her status Down Under, "so probably the same way that I do, which is just deal with it. To me, it's weird."

"What's great about Alex is he can turn on the sex for the job, but he never abuses his good looks," Myles says. "He knows his place in the universe." Right now that's a pretty sweet spot. Besides Moonlight, he's appearing in two films: In August Rush, he's a passionate musician, and in next year's Whiteout (with Kate Beckinsale), he's a rough-and-tumble pilot. "He's one of the baddies," O'Loughlin says. "But I mean, who is bad? You know?"

As usual, the lovely Sophia Myles only has great things to say about her co-star. Read it all at ~

http://www.tvguide.com/news/moonlight-alex-oloughlin/071214-01

TV Guide Features Alex O'Loughlin AGAIN! :)

TV Guide Magazine has published a feature article on Alex O'Loughlin ~ again! *cheer* Click on the images above to get a larger, legible versions. Great photos! He and Holly Valance make such a stunning couple. The reporter asks Alex how his girlfriend is handling "his burgeoning status as a heartthrob." Uhhhhh... that status is not "burgeoning"... he is already a heartthrob! :) As usual, he is modest and down plays his hunk appeal. Sophia says really sweet things about him.

I like this trend of him being in every issue. They are realizing how popular he is and how many issues Moonlight addicts will purchase. ha! All those emails and comments are really paying off. Of course, now I hope you will join me in contacting them to say a big "Thank You!"

Feedback form for TV Guide....

http://www.tvguide.com/CustomerService/Default.aspx