AOLR Weekly Wrap-Up #57

Hawaii Five-0 Articles & Buzz:
  • Alex O’Loughlin is one of  iVillage’s Men Who Make Us Say Mmm: New Fall TV Edition:

    Why We Love Him: Aussie actor Alex O’Loughlin had us swooning on the short-lived but much-loved vampire drama Moonlight, then in tears with the medical drama Three Rivers. And he showed off leading man chops opposite Jennifer Lopez in The Back-Up Plan. So we’re excited to see him head to a tropical locale (and maybe sport some board shorts) in CBS’s adrenaline-heavy remake of the detective dramedy Hawaii Five-O. Also bringing his signature smolder to the cast — and making Lost fans everywhere happy — is Daniel Dae Kim.

  • Film.com’s Susan Young takes a look at the new TV season:

    Alex O’Loughlin and Scott Caan team up as reluctant police partners Steve McGarrett and Danny “Danno” Williams. Lots of explosions and great scenery.

    If you like … the original “Hawaii Five-O”, this series offers even better banter between McGarrett and Danno.

  • From The Orange County Register:
    • Probably the most-talked-about fall series is CBS’s remake of “Hawaii Five-O.” It’s either going to be the year’s biggest new hit or its biggest bust. On the plus side, people who have seen the pilot say it’s very good. On the minus, the past few TV years have not been kind to revivals, such as “Bionic Woman” and “Knight Rider,” or to “Five-O” star Alex O’Loughlin. (Anyone remember “Moonlight” or “Three Rivers”?)
    • Spike will run the first season of the original “Hawaii Five-O” next week, with episodes airing from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. According to Hollywood lore, Jack Lord was a last-minute pick to play Steve McGarrett. Richard Boone was the first choice, but he said no.
  • From a University of Pittsburgh student newspaper breakdown of the fall TV shows:

    The good: “Hawaii Five-0.” It’s a crime show that actually looks good! The stellar cast, which includes Alex O’Loughlin and Daniel Dae Kim, was enough to get me interested. But more than that, the writing is smart, and the whole show looks pretty bad-ass.

  • From Alex Strachan’s syndicated Fall TV preview article:

    A recent survey by the giant U.S. cable firm Comcast – think Rogers and Shaw combined – showed that the new Hawaii Five-0 is the most anticipated new show of the coming season, supplanting Comic-Con pick The Event as this fall’s Must See TV event.

    Asked to rank new shows in order of preference, based on preview buzz, 40 per cent of those asked picked Five-0, well ahead of second-place finisher No Ordinary Family.

    There could be more than a few disappointed viewers, though. The new Five-0 bears little resemblance – none, in fact – to the 1968-’80 original, but then the new Five-0′s target audience was barely born by the time original Steve McGarrett and his sidekick Danny “Danno” Williams collared their last suspect.

    A bigger problem is that, despite the lush backdrop of Hawaii’s tropics, the new Five-0 itself looks, sounds and feels like countless other crime dramas that are already on the air, from CSI: Miami to NCIS: Los Angeles.

    Alex O’Loughlin, as the new Steve McGarrett, has a suave sexiness to him, and the ensemble, led by Scott Caan, Daniel Dae Kim, Masi Oka and Vancouver native Grace Park, could grow into their roles. The real question remains, though: How much TV crime dramas is too much?

  • A great post by TV Guide’s Ask Matt:

    Question: I loved Alex O’Loughlin in Moonlight, and I loved the show’s blend of crime, mystery and romance. Have you seen any of the new Hawaii Five-0? I’m trying to decide if I should try it out, but I worry that it will be too much of just a cop show, which I don’t think I’d like. Does it have a fun side? Any romance? — Amanda

    Matt Roush: More like “bromance,” at least in the pilot, which is all anyone has seen at this point. The new Hawaii Five-0 is more of an action than “cop” show — the heroes form an anything-goes task force that operates almost outside the law — and takes full advantage of the island’s native beauty, both natural and human. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before O’Loughlin gets a love interest if they haven’t developed one for him already, but the real relationship that matters in the early going is the fractious bantering between his character of Steve McGarrett and Scott Caan‘s scene-stealing sidekick, “Danno.” That’s where the fun and humor come in during a pilot that otherwise is pretty violent and is fueled by tragedy and revenge.

  • Three posts by FanCast’s Matt Mitovich:
    • The heavy-breathing Castle and Beckett were robbed of any chance to come up for air when CBS yanked time-slot champ ‘CSI: Miami’ only to make room for one of the fall’s splashiest and sexiest new shows, ‘Hawaii Five-O.’ Captain Tightpants has a fervent following, yes, but don’t underestimate the Alex O’Loughlin faithful who are champing at the bit to eye what could be his (Faint Praise Alert!) most successful venture to date. The Fancast Forecast: This season’s tightest race will be a months-long see-saw. Though ‘Five-O’ is the highly-promo’d new kid on the block, ‘Castle’ enjoys a proven lead-in – those crazy ‘Dancing’ stars versus freshman lovebirds ‘Mike & Molly.’
    • With Alex O’Loughlin starring in the new ‘Hawaii Five-0‘ (premiering Sept. 20, CBS), I would love to see this hottie in an on-screen romance. Any scoop on that? – Amy
      Will there be onscreen romance for Alex’s Steve McGarrett? “Goodness gracious, yes!” a (female) source assures The Big Tease. In fact, just three or four episodes into the season, you can count on some seriously “hot ‘n heavy action” for Hawaii’s top cop.
    • On September 13, ‘Hawaii Five-0‘ premieres at Sunset On The Beach in Waikiki. Which actors will attend the premiere? Alex O’Loughlin, perhaps? – Karen
      I am happy to say that the entire ‘Five-0? ensemble – AO’L included – will be there. Aloha!
  • Also check out the Daily Actor’s interview with Grace Park about her role as H50′s Kono and Greg in Hollywood’s article about Scott Caan.
  • And Maxim is happy that the Fall Season Starts Soon… Thank God:

    The dog days of summer are coming to an end, and we’d rather be back in school than forced to watch much more of the overwhelmingly crappy summer programming. But the fall TV season will kick off soon, which means we’re back on schedule with returning favorites like The Big Bang Theory and Community, as well as intriguing new shows like NBC’s The Event. CBS’ Hawaii Five-0 reboot (co-starring Daniel Dae Kim from Lost!) and Shit My Dad Says, and The CW’s Hellcats, because it’s a show all about cheerleaders. Even though it’s cooling off outside, let the navel-gazing commence!

Hawaii Five-0 Updates:
  • Here are some heart-warming tweets from Peter Lenkov in reference to Alex’s 34th birthday last Tuesday:
    • Big Kahuna had a great day yesterday, celebrating his Birthday with his Five-0 family who love him dearly. Wish everyone could have come.
    • @PLenkov Did he have to work on his bday? I know Scott did! :-)
    • @reebsreiswig He did…. but let’s make it up to him by making the show a hit
  • Joey Tierney styled the H50 cast for their recent TV Guide cover shoot. Check out the Haute Street Daily fashion blog for the styling details!
  • Patrick Gallagher (Glee, True Blood) is playing a Filipino rebel in episode 104. According to Tim Ryan, Laird Hamilton and Jeremy Jackson are contenders for a guest starring role in an upcoming episode.
  • Added to the gallery is an HQ of a new cast picture released by CBS and some more billboard pictures.
  • Canada’s Global TV recently went live with its official Hawaii Five-0 website – you can also download the official ringtone there. Can’t view the video? Then try YouTube!
  • For a local South Florida promo, check out YouTube!
  • The Show Girl shares 11 Things to Know About Fall TV. Grace Park is mentioned in item #5 (Girl Power) and H50 in item #9 (Trouble with the Law).
Other Updates:
  • As you know, The Back-up Plan was released on DVD and Blu-ray on August 24th and it’s currently the #1 selling movie on iTunes in the US!
  • If you’re not based in Canada, then it’s unlikely that you’ll have seen this interview of Alex and Jennifer from ET Canada done at The Back-up Plan press junket back in March. It’s the uncut version and therefore longer than what was actually aired on TV.
  • Some pictures of Alex from a 2008 photoshoot surfaced recently have been added to the gallery as well as one picture from most likely 2005/2006 by the same photographer. Thanks to whoever found them and to the various ladies who gave me a personal heads-up!

AOLR Weekly Wrap-Up #56

Hawaii Five-0 Articles & Buzz:
  • The Honolulu Star-Advertiser included a snippet about how Daniel Dae Kim celebrated his 42nd birthday:

    DANIEL DAE KIM of “Hawaii Five-0″ celebrated a birthday with dinner at Tango Contemporary Cafe in the Hokua building Aug. 4. His small group of family and friends included Grace Park, also of “Five-0,” and publicist Erika Kauffman. They all must have been happy about the new series being the cover story on the Aug. 16-22 double issue of TV Guide. A solid shot in the arm for the show.

  • Hawaii Five-0 generates the most buzz according to Comcast’s TV Pulse Survey, an annual independent survey involving 1,000 individuals across the USA.  An impressive 40% of the respondents ranked H50 as the first of five shows named. See also “Chicago Viewers Want to See ‘Hawaii Five-0′ This Fall”.
  • From Channel Guide Magazine’s preview post of Hawaii Five-0:

    It’s faster and more dangerous than the original, but even more than the heightened level of action, what really gives it the edge on its predecessor is the human interplay between McGarrett, Danny “Danno” Williams (Scott Caan) and the others on the squad. Back in the days of Jack Lord, the original McGarrett, we rarely knew anything about the personal lives of the supercops who combed the vermin out of their islands, but this time around, we get that insight into their personal lives, even with a bit of tongue-in-cheek levity.

    At heart, though, what makes this series work are the three components that shored up the original’s success — action, intrigue and a bit of exotica. (The traditional Hawaiian blessing the show was given in Honolulu at the start of its shooting probably didn’t hurt, either.) Audiences should respond to the pace in particular: More happens in the pilot than one might have thought possible in a one-hour episode. Add to that the international scope of the action and you have a series that should appeal directly to 24 fans looking for their fix.

  • Praise too for the pilot from Maggie Furlong, The Show Girl:

    “Another re-imagining that fires on all cylinders: Hawaii Five-0 wins the award for most fun pilot. It’s slick, sexy and seriously action-packed. Alex O’Loughlin, Scott Caan, Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park are a force to be reckoned with and the gorgeous Hawaii backdrop sure doesn’t hurt.”

  • A great write-up from Monsters and Critics, who include Hawaii Five-0 in their Fall 2010 TV Drama Picks:

    This version is cinematic, lush, well written, acted and is a contemporary take on the classic series about a new elite federalized task force featuring the fit Detective Steve McGarrett (Alex O’Loughlin), a decorated Naval officer turned cop, returns to Oahu to investigate his father’s murder and stays after Hawaii’s governor persuades him to head up the new team: his rules, her backing, no red tape and full blanket immunity to hunt down the biggest “game” in town.

    What makes this series hum is the chemistry he has with costar Detective Danny “Danno” Williams (Scott Caan), a divorced, newly relocated ex-New Jersey cop who prefers skyscrapers to the coastline but is committed to keeping the Islands safe for his 8-year-old daughter. Rounding out an excellent ensemble is Chin Ho Kelly (Daniel Dae Kim), an ex-Honolulu Police Detective wrongly accused of corruption and relegated to a federal security patrol, who is also a former protégé of McGarrett’s father, and his cousin Kono Kalakaua, played by Grace Park.

    If this show were meat, it would be spit roasted Kalua Pig, served up in banana leaves with a big fat Mai Tai chaser.

Hawaii Five-0 Updates:
  • Hawaii Five-0 will once again be featured on Entertainment Tonight on Monday (that’s tomorrow) in the segment “From Big Buzz to Blockbusters: Hawaii Five-0 Hotties”, so set your DVR!
  • CBS has confirmed the air date for the CBS Fall Preview that I mentioned a few weeks ago. The 30-minute primetime special will be hosted by Jim Belushi and Jerry O’Connell on Monday, September 6 at 8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT and will offer sneak peeks of CBS’s new shows for the fall, including – of course – Hawaii Five-o!
  • Keith Power has joined Brian Tyler to score the Hawaii Five-0 series. For an overview of his work, check out IMDb; he also has a new website that’s currently being developed.
  • In addition to Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK, Australia, Latin America, and Canada, now the Indian market can also expect to get Hawaii Five-0 on TV. A joint venture between CBS Studios International and Reliance Broadcast Network will result in the launch of three new English entertainment channels in Q4 this year, reaching a whopping 134 million households.
  • For another video of our guys shooting at the Pacific Rim Bank on Waterfront Plaza, check out the one posted by The Red Band Project.
  • Taryn Manning will finally appear as Steve McGarrett’s sister (now called Mary instead of Maryann) in episode 104, as will Catherine, McGarrett’s previously elusive love interest. The lucky actress’s identity has been tweeted recently (and it’s not Angela Gots as was rumored a few months ago), so if you absolutely can’t wait till episode 104 airs in October, you know where to search. Peter Lenkov (the Bigger Kahuna and such a terrible tease), did share the following:

    McG and Catherine in bed = Fun & Playful. SO GREAT! There’s enough footage to cut an entire show featuring the 2 of them under the sheets.

    Will we survive the taut navy trunks in 101, only to be floored by a hot love scene in 104?! :thud:

  • Wayne Harada has posted more details about the Sunset on the Beach screening of the pilot on September 13:
  • Meanwhile, the network will air the pilot Sept. 13 in a “Sunset on the Beach” red carpet gala beginning at 5 p.m. on the beach at Waikiki, with the public screening set for 7:30 p.m. Actors O’Loughlin, Caan, Daniel Dae Kim, Grace Park, Taryn Manning and Jean Smart will be on hand, along with producers Lenkov, Alex Kurtzman and Robert Orci.
    Another private red carpet party will follow for invited guests at Nobu’s at the Waikiki Parc Hotel, hosted by chef Nobu Matsuhisa.

  • It doesn’t appear as if Hawaii Five-0 will be presented at the annual Fall TV Preview Parties at the Paley Center! This year’s event is scheduled on Friday, September 10 and only The Defenders, Mike & Molly and $#*! My Dad Says are included in the lineup, but hopefully we will be seeing our Alex and other cast members on various talkshows as the premiere date approaches.
  • On Saturday, August 28 an open casting call will be held between 10 am and 4 pm at Aloha Tower Marketplace. H50 needs to cast speaking roles and background extras and adults of all ages and ethnicities are invited to come forward. No experience is necessary.
  • Watch this cute local Philly Hawaii Five-0 sing-along promo featuring WYSP DJ Danny Bonaduce and assorted CBS3 viewers!
  • A bandaged Scott Caan was spotted leaving an LA restaurant on crutches on Friday and he was sighted at LAX today. He will be back on the set tomorrow (also his 34th birthday), as confirmed by Peter Lenkov in a very recent tweet:

    Just flew into paradise with Danno. On the mend and mobile. Ready to shoot tomorrow.

    Welcome back, gentlemen!

  • A slew of H50 related pictures appeared on Twitter and elsewhere recently that are fun to see:
    http://tweetphoto.com/39484086
    http://yfrog.com/b9x8guj
    http://tweetphoto.com/39481926
    http://tweetphoto.com/39474649
    http://tweetphoto.com/39472304
    http://tweetphoto.com/39465711
    http://tweetphoto.com/39499545
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/7957972@N06/4917641429/
  • And there are also some pics of the cast (yay – Alex!) posted by Cloudia and the Honolulu Star Advertiser! Cloudia also adds:

    All the buzz is about how really good the episodes are screening-out. Everyone included in the production (and that includes every Honolulu resident :) is very excited!

  • Peter Lenkov also treated us to a picture taken of footage of Steve McGarrett playing high school football – check out the number on his jersey :mrgreen: !
  • And a new article from Mike Gordon about local extras having fun on shows such as Hawaii Five-0: “Films, TV Productions Bring Local Actors Extra Income”.
Other Updates:
  • Donate Life is now accepting rose dedications for their 2011 Rose Parade float. If you haven’t sent Alex a gift for his 34th birthday, consider dedicating a rose to him in support of his favorite cause, as the fans of the German Alex O’Loughlin Fan Club did! More details on how to order a rose dedication can be found at the Donate Life Organ & Tissue Donation Blog.
  • A cute mention of the Aussie hottie appeared in a recent Miami Herald article about The Back-up Plan and that other pregnancy movie:

    The soulmate with terrible timing is hunk Alex O’Loughlin. This attraction we get. The Australian star of the upcoming Hawaii Five-O remake is one hot property.

  • Of course you haven’t forgotten that The Back-up Plan DVD and Blu-ray will be released on Tuesday, August 24! There are DVD giveaways  at NiceGirlsTVBeyond Beautiful and Lite FM as well as a chance to win $750 at SheKnows (all are open to US residents only).

Have a great week and stay safe!

‘Hawaii Five-0′: Scoring with the Theme Song

When Morton Stevens completed the theme song for Leonard Freeman’s new police drama Hawaii Five-0 in 1968, he knew that he had a winner on his hands.

Freeman had specified that it should be a mix of Polynesian, classic, jazz and pop sounds with “no ukeleles or steel guitars or falsetto singers or overused bongos.”

Initially Stevens had intended to use music that he had previously written for an unsold CBS pilot, but his wife Annie objected to his plans.

Miffed, “he started smacking the piano around. He was so angry — and that’s why it has that sock-o in there,” Mrs. Stevens told Honolulu Star-Advertiser reporter Mike Gordon.

And that’s how the ageless and most recognized television tune was born.

Two-time Emmy winner Stevens said shortly before his death in 1991, “”You know how you know you’ve written something right? I knew it was right.”

“I created something that can transcend a generation. Maybe not the ages, but a generation.”

Brian Tyler, who is collaborating with Keith Power to score the new Five-0 series, was intent on doing the original justice when he re-recorded the theme song in June for the 2010 show reboot.

“You have to do the theme with a true vintage, cool vibe. Move too far away from the original, you’re losing why it’s so iconic,” the film score veteran explains in a CBS video.

“This piece is actually quite hard to play. You give it to just a regular band and it will fall apart quick.”

Ollie Mitchell, one of the trumpet players who participated on the original 1968 recording, would agree with him. “It was challenging. It’s easy to run out of breath in those last four bars. You had to make sure you took an extra-deep breath to get through the ending.”

“It’s a little bit rock, it’s a little bit score, it’s a little bit surf. You combine all those things and it’s a classic,” says Tyler, who recorded the theme song in three lengths: 1:45, 1:00 and 0:30. The 30-second version is what we can expect to hear with the main title sequence when Hawaii Five-0 premieres on CBS on September 20th!

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