AOLR Weekly Wrap-Up #45

Hawaii Five-0 updates:

  • It’s been a while since we’ve had a good poll, so head over to E! Online to pick which new CBS show appeals the most to you! It’s a no brainer, but it’s such a rush to see Hawaii Five-0 at 58.6%…
  • Canadian paper The Suburban published a small piece on Peter Lenkov, who hails from Chomedey, Quebec:

    “CBS asked if I’d be interested in coming up with a new take on the series,” Lenkov confided to me. “It was my dad’s favorite show. That’s primarily why I took the gig.”

    One of the interesting casting choices was that of Lost’s Daniel Dae Kim as Chin Ho Kelly. Australian Alex O’Loughlin will play Detective Steve McGarrett and Scott Caan will portray Detective Danny “Danno” Williams. Can we expect to hear a lot of the infamous “Book ‘em Danno,” from McGarrett to Williams as in the original? “Of course,” says Lenkov, a California resident who will now have to take up a secondary residence in Hawaii. And this just in from Lenkov. Hawaii Five-O has been picked up by Global.

  • Check out a photo of the original Steve McGarrett’s 1974 Mercury Marquis from the Hawaii Five-0 set. The car will make a brief appearance in the pilot and was loaned to the production by former H50 stuntman John Nordlum.
  • If you’re on Twitter, you might want to follow the Hawaii Five-0 writing team: @mike_schaub, @PLenkov, @jrorci and @boborci. Mike Schaub is a writer’s assistant and joined the team recently from Lost and J.R. is Rick, Roberto Orci’s brother. Of the four, J.R. tweets the most and Peter just joined. Here’s a picture posted by J.R. of the writers on Day One.
  • Peter Lenkov tweeted that Hawaii Five-0 will be at the San Diego Comic Con, which takes place this year 22-25 July! They are trying to get the whole cast to attend, but “most likely half the cast though.” As long as it’s the right half!  :wink: Peter hints at the date possibly being the Friday morning, i.e. 23 July.
  • The BBC posted an excellent article based on interviews with Alex O’Loughlin and Daniel Dae Kim at the LA Screenings:

    “The difference between this show and the original is that in the original you didn’t know where McGarrett came from,” explains O’Loughlin.

    “You didn’t know his back story and in this one you do. You know why he comes to the island – it’s all revealed in the pilot and that’s how we kick the show off.

    “He’s a navy seal. He has a mission that he sets out on in the beginning of the pilot, and that’s what leads him to the beginning of our adventure which will be Hawaii Five-O.”

Other items:

  • Voting for Donate Life Hollywood’s Person of the Year closes at midnight  tonight (Pacific time). Our Aussie is ahead at the moment, but let’s not rest on our laurels and keep voting. Donate Life encourages everyone to vote as often as they can, so here is the link again: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/5926Z2M!
  • The TCA 2010 Summer Press Tour will be held 6-8 August, 2010 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. During this bi-annual industry conference, the networks will present their shows for the new season to the 200+ members of the Television Critics Association who write about television for various media outlets in North America. For us fans this means the start of a hectic period leading up to the premiere of Hawaii Five-0 with undoubtedly lots of photos, interviews and videos! And who knows, maybe our Aussie songbird will show off his warbling skills again and this time an enterprising journalist will capture it for us on video. There is no information yet on when CBS will be hosting their TCA events.
  • AdWeek published an extensive analysis of the upfronts per network. About CBS, they write:

    CBS headed into upfront week with the strongest schedule, attracting nearly 12 million viewers on average in prime time and with a nearly 2 million viewer lead over the nearest competitor, Fox (which continues to dominate in delivery of adults 18-49). With a combination of smart scheduling moves and development, CBS did more to shore up weaknesses than the other networks, most analysts concur.

  • Media Life Magazine also took a close look at CBS’s fall schedule:

    After years of stability, CBS’s schedule this fall is all about change. The network canceled seven shows, added five new ones and changed timeslots for five others. But while it represents an aggressive approach for a network most consider conservative, media buyers and planners also think the network will do quite well with the new schedule. It moved several shows that already win their timeslot, “Survivor” and “The Big Bang Theory,” into relatively weak time periods that they will likely dominate. New shows including “Hawaii Five-0″ and “Bleep My Dad Says” are getting the sort of buzz usually reserved for young-skewing programs on Fox, ABC or NBC. And axing older shows like “Ghost Whisperer” and “Cold Case” will save the network lots of money on talent and production over the next year. No surprise, then, that CBS is expected to lead in year-to-year CPM increases when the upfront market breaks.

  • The CW’s second promo for the Moonlight rerun is pretty hot – check it out on YouTube!
  • Canwest published an article about Moonlight being aired on the CW that was picked up in numerous Canadian papers: “Undead gumshoe revived to duo with Diaries”.
  • CBS has also been promoting both the new episodes of Three Rivers as well as Hawaii Five-0, and sometimes both at the same time. Two videos uploaded by Deb: Win-Loss promo and a combined promo.
  • Jean Smart will join the Seattle Brain Cancer Walk on June 26th to honor her sister Georgia Smart, who passed away in January after a battle with glioblastoma. Georgia was a resident of Seattle.

Gallery updates:

  • I added the one-sheet for Hawaii Five-0 as well as the logo to the promo materials album.
  • Many MQ Three Rivers episodic stills have been replaced by HQs, especially in the Ryan’s First Day album.
  • Also new: The Back-up Plan posters from Colombia, Greece, Turkey, Romania and a second poster from Spain.
  • More HQs have been added to the London and LA premiere albums as well as the upfront album.
  • Don’t forget to check out the magazine/newspaper scans too – recently added are Aussie articles from New Weekly and TV Week as well as various newspaper items.

I hope you all have a great week ahead!

Vote for Alex O’Loughlin as Donate Life Hollywood’s Person of the Year!

Donate Life Hollywood has opened the voting for their “Person of the Year” award and Alex O’Loughlin is one of five nominees! The Person of the Year is an individual who has worked closely with the national Donate Life campaign to inspire Americans to register as organ and tissue donors. In addition to Alex, All-4-One, Les Moonves, Chris Klug and Alex Band make up this year’s group of nominees.

Alex became closely involved with the Donate Life community when he joined the cast of CBS’s 2009 medical drama Three Rivers. In addition to becoming a trained Donate Life Hollywood ambassador, he also wore his Donate Life pin and wrist band in episodes of the show as well as during public events and various television appearances. Always willing to do what he can, Alex also filmed a CBS Cares public service announcement to encourage Americans to register as donors and recorded a video greeting for an international organ donation conference in Berlin in October 2009.

Voting is open until June 6th and the Person of the Year will be announced on June 11th at a cocktail party to be held in Beverly Hills at the Paley Center.

To access the survey and log your vote, please click on the link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/5926Z2M

Thanks to Alex O’Loughlin Fans for Donate Life for the heads up!

[tags]alex o’loughlin, alex o’lachlan, three rivers, donate life[/tags]

AOLR Weekly Wrap-Up #29

This past week’s updates are mostly about The Back-up Plan!

  • Three more trailers were spotted on YouTube for The Back-up Plan:
    • The French Canadian version
    • The Mexican version (with Spanish subtitles)
    • The Brazilian version (with Portuguese subtitles) – although this may not be an official release.
  • Some gallery additions worth mentioning are the behind-the-scenes HQs provided by CBS Films and large crops of Alex O’Loughlin that I created from the original stills. I’ve also added the Windows wallpapers from the movie site for those of you who prefer not to deal with zip files. If you need Mac wallpapers, please download them from the official site (“Downloads”). And there is now also a Brazilian movie poster!
  • Here is a cute tweet about Alex from makeup artist Christabel Draffin, a.k.a. MovieMole:
  • @BeautyAndDirt Ooh, I did the grooming for Alex O’ Loughlin (J Lo’s movie boyfriend) a while back – he’s not only gorge but really nice!
    3:48 AM Feb 4th from Echofon in reply to BeautyAndDirt

  • The buzz from last Tuesday’s test screening in West Orange is good! The movie was funny and well received by the audience and Alex looked fabulous and had plenty of screen time. And we have another 75 days to go before we can see for ourselves ;-) Thanks for the reassurance, Deb!
  • Also great to hear is that the movie theaters in the Ottawa, Canada region are showing The Back-up Plan trailer and according to the manager of a 24-theater movieplex, the buzz is that the movie will be a big hit. Thanks for sharing that, Skylar!
  • In a recent TV interview with Jennifer Lopez, she talks about The Back-up Plan and there is also some behind-the-scenes footage from the movie. The segment starts at 2:16 in the video, which we have Nadioz to thank for!
  • Don’t forget to keep an eye out for a 30-second teaser for The Back-up Plan during the Super Bowl. It looks like it will air pre- and post-game, according to SuperBowlAds.com and Staci Hayes tweeted “The Back-Up Plan Super Bowl teaser – look for it before the 3rd Qtr“! If you’re not one of  the 98 million viewers tuning in, check out the list of alternatives (including 33 TV marathons) provided by TVAholic.com!
  • Sheesh, I almost forgot…! Voting has opened for the best 2010 Super Bowl ads, so please head over to SuperBowlAds.com and cast your vote for The Back-up Plan (and four others) ;-)! Thanks to Staci for the reminder!

There is one Donate Life item to share:

  • 7-Eleven CEO Joe DePinto is an “Undercover Boss” in the new CBS reality show of the same name that debuts tonight and he recently appeared on Oprah. During his stint as undercover boss at a store in Shirley, N.Y. he discovered that the secret to the store’s selling 2,500 cups of coffee each day lies with store employee Dolores. To honor her, she received two season tickets to her beloved New York Yankees and because she requires kidney dialysis twice a week, 7-Eleven also pledged to donate $150,000 to Donate Life America. Check out the video segment from the show – thanks to Deb for the capture! For Donate Life updates, visit the Donate Life Organ & Tissue Donation Blog.

[tags]alex o’loughlin, alex o’lachlan, the back-up plan, cbs films[/tags]

Alex O’Loughlin’s Year in Review: 2009

The year 2009 was a hectic one for Alex O’Loughlin and his fans alike! We were treated to a lot of anxiety and excitement, and also had to deal with the cancellation of Three Rivers. Some occasions you may have already forgotten, so here’s a rewind of the past year’s most memorable moments!

January 20Moonlight: the Complete Series is released on DVD in North America and makes the #1 position on Billboard’s Top DVD Sales list in the first week of February.

February 5 – After a long absence, the message the fans across the globe have been waiting for appears when Alex O’Loughlin blogs “I’m back!”

February 11 – Michael Ausiello and Matt Mitovich report that Alex is returning to CBS starting with a guest starring role on an episode of Criminal Minds… as a serial killer!

March 6 – A three-month drought comes to an end when the first new photo of Alex appears, taken on the set of Criminal Minds.

March 11Moonlight earns a nod from The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films when the nominations are announced for the 35th Annual Saturn Awards. The show is up for an award in the category “Best Television Series Release on DVD”.

March 12 – An article said to have been published by Melbourne’s Herald Sun triggers rumors in the fandom about Alex winning the lead role in the CBS pilot for Three Rivers. The article itself never surfaces on the newspaper’s website and CBS stays mum on the topic the pilot.

March 17 – The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette confirms that Alex is in negotiations about his role in the Three Rivers pilot.

March 26 – After two long weeks of sitting on pins and needles, fans are relieved and elated when Alex himself confirms his Three Rivers plans.

April 7 – While Alex is in Pittsburgh shooting the Three Rivers pilot, reports surface on the web that he is either in negotiations for or has been cast as the male lead in CBS Films’ feature, The Back-up Plan, opposite Jennifer Lopez.

April  15TV Guide Magazine publishes the first quality interview of the year with Alex, who talks about his upcoming projects and more.

April 21CBS Films send a message to several fan sites confirming the casting of Alex O’Loughlin in The Back-up Plan and provides us with the official synopsis.

April 25TV Guide Magazine shares some hot outtakes and behind the scenes images from Alex’s photoshoot for their “sexiest” May 2008 issue.

April 29Criminal Minds episode The Big Wheel with guest star Alex O’Loughlin airs on CBS and his inspired performance receives, ah… killer reviews.

May 2 – Alex shares a quick update on MySpace with his fans.

May 9 - Alex attends the Noche de Niños Gala 2009, an annual charity event benefiting Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. It is his first official public appearance of the year and TV Guide captures him briefly on video.

May 13 – Three months of manic movie madness kick off when The Back-up Plan goes into production! It begins when Alex O’Loughlin and Jennifer Lopez are captured on video leaving a filming location: video 1, video 2.

May 14 – Alex (wearing a T-shirt with the caption “No Pictures”) and Jennifer are shooting at the Elements Kitchen in Pasadena today and paparazzi are the source of photos from the rehearsals, the night shoot and video 1 and video 2.

May 15 – The night shoot continues, but filming moves to the backyard of the Elements Kitchen for a different scene.

May 17 – Alex shows up at the Crustacean Beverly Hills where The Bash is held, a benefit for Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. The Shield stars Walton Goggins and Michael Chiklis are also present.

May 20 – CBS announces Three Rivers‘ pickup at the network’s upfront presentation in New York City. Alex chats with E! Online about playing a (hot) doctor and is snapped by a paparazzo when he leaves his hotel, looking very cute wearing glasses.

May 25 – Enjoying a break on Memorial Day, Alex goes to Culver City to see a man about his bike

June 3 - Entertainment Tonight airs an interview with Jennifer and Alex on the set of The Back-up Plan.

June 5 – Two unique photos of a bearded Alex taken at Pebble Beach in August 2008 are kindly provided for publishing by Python Racing Australia.

June 9 - The trailer for Australians Hit Hollywood, a documentary by Kalee StClair, is discovered on YouTube. It also features Alex, with footage dating from his Moonlight days. Three more videos with Alex follow later: advice, slang and accents.

June 13 – At the Donate Life Hollywood Film Festival, the Three Rivers pilot is honored with the Inspire Award.

June 16 – Paparazzi are ready to snap pictures and video tape the arrival of Jennifer Lopez on the Elks Lodge set of The Back-up Plan in Pasadena. The Whiteout trailer first surfaces on the web, two years after the movie was shot.

June 17 – Alex attends a screening at LA’s Harmony Gold Theater of The Tender Hook, a movie with fellow Aussie Matt Le Nevez,  a familiar face from Man-Thing and FEED.

June 18 – Alex and Jennifer return to the Elements Kitchen to rehearse and reshoot some scenes. The Aussie speed demon also finds the time to pick up his revamped  bike!

June 19Another scene involving spilled wine and an accidental fire is shot in Pasadena.

June 24 - With a press release CBS communicates the premiere dates for the Fall shows. Three Rivers will air on October 4th… a Sunday. In Burbank, California, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films announces that Moonlight has won the Saturn Award in the category “Best Television Series Release on DVD”. Not bad for Alex’s “little show”!

July 5 – The first of 26 non-episodic commercials for Three Rivers is aired.

July 16The Back-up Plan production moves to New York City and mere hours after they’re made, the first paparazzi photos of Alex and Jennifer appear on the internet. Many more photos and videos follow while they are in New York.

July 24 – Jennifer Lopez turns 40 and Alex toasts her on the set of The Back-up Plan at midnight. Celebrating is done in style at the Hotel Griffou in Greenwich Village later that evening.

July 25 – The last day of filming takes Alex to Forest Park in Queens. That night he attends An Evening for Lola at the Edison Ballroom in NYC, where Jennifer is treated to a surprise party organized by hubby Marc.

July 30 – Back in LA to start work on Three Rivers, Alex blogs about shooting The Back-up Plan and expresses his gratitude to his fans for their support.

July 31 - Three Rivers kicks off the TCA Summer Press Tour for CBS from the show’s Paramount set.

August 3 – Alex attends CBS’ TCA Summer Tour All-Star Party at Pasadena’s Huntington Library.

August 5 – The first official stills of Alex O’Loughlin are released by CBS Films to AlexO’LoughlinRocks and Stan on a tractor causes quite a stir!

August 16 – Alex returns to Pittsburgh to film more scenes for Three Rivers, including a rugby scene and the local CBS affiliate airs a segment.

August 24 – Alex turns 33 today and celebrates his “best birthday ever”!

August 29 – Two excerpts about Alex from a book written by The Casting Company are found on the web. The authors are full of praise when they write about his “hotness factor” and his James Bond audition in 2005.

September 6 – It’s him again: Alex blogs!

September 7 – After two years, Alex returns to chat with Craig Ferguson on the Late Late Show – check out the video, the parts that weren’t aired and the pictures!

September 8 – The Season 4 DVD set is released of Criminal Minds and “Working the Scene” is a special feature in which Alex O’Loughlin and Simon Mirren talk about The Big Wheel.

September 9 – After its release was postponed several times, Whiteout finally premieres in LA, with pictures galore of a gorgeous and relaxed Alex on the white carpet.

September 15 – With some practice with Dodgers’ trainer Todd Tomczyk under his belt, Alex braves the crowds at Dodger Stadium to throw the ceremonial first pitch for the LA Dodgers versus Pittsburgh Pirates game. CBS Films releases another shirtless still of Alex O’Loughlin, this time to LovelyLopez.net.

September 16 – Alex attends CBS’ New Season Premiere Party at MyHouse Nightclub in Hollywood.

September 19 – Alex is spotted at GBK Productions’ 2009 Emmy Gift Lounge, A Bazaar for the Senses, held at a private estate in Beverly Hills.

September 29 – Alex delights the audience and talk show host Bonnie Hunt when he appears on her show. His account of throwing the ceremonial first pitch for the Dodgers’ game is comical and the guest himself is absolutely charming.

September 30 – To support The Back-up Plan director Alan Poul, who receives a Special Outie Award, Alex is present at the Outfest Legacy Awards at the Directors Guild of America in LA.

October 1 – Alex’s first ever live chat with fans lasts 62 minutes, but the fans are left with memories that will last a lifetime. In a press release, CBS announces its partnership with Donate Life America.

October 2 – The mutual respect between Alex and Dr. Gonzo is apparent when they both appear on The Doctors.

October 4Three Rivers premieres on CBS, but the ratings are disheartening.

October 5 – A video message from Alex is shown at an international convention about organ donation in Berlin.

October 12 – Various media outlets report that the 2010 US release date for The Back-up Plan has been pushed back from January 22 to March 12, in favor Harrison Ford’s movie, Extraordinary Measures.

October 16 – Alex blogs about Three Rivers.

October 29 – One of several PSAs that Alex made for Donate Life airs tonight.

November 10 – Alex attends TV Guide Magazine’s Hot List Party at LA’s SLS Hotel. The Aussie hunk is also one of TV Guide’s Sexiest Stars of 2009.

November 11 – Watch aficionado and IWC timepiece owner Alex is part of the group of celebrities attending an exhibition of Michael Muller’s Galapagos Islands photographs. The event is organized by Swiss watch manufacturer IWC Schaffhausen in support of The Charles Darwin Foundation and takes place at Milk Studios’ Hollywood branch.

November 13WHO magazine’s annual “Sexiest People” issue hits the newsstands in Australia and Alex is featured with a smoking hot new picture!

November 18 – Shortly after CBS Films announce having signed an international distribution deal with Sony Pictures, the release date for The Back-up Plan is once again changed on the movie’s official site. The film is now set to open on April 16.

November 25 – The first movie poster for The Back-up Plan is spotted, displayed in a mall.

November 30 – THR’s James Hibberd reports that CBS has pulled Three Rivers, effective immediately, but that all episodes of the initial order of 13 will be completed. Episode 8 was the last one aired. According to various sources, CBS says the show is “on hiatus”.  Alex himself, however, blogs that the show is cancelled and that he is beginning his “process of detachment and will be in touch soon”.

December 3 – Looking fit and relaxed just days after the news broke of the cancellation of Three Rivers, Alex enjoys An Intimate Evening with Alex Band, a Donate Life Rocks event benefiting Donate Life at Cafe Was in Hollywood. He has confirmed his intention to continue his relationship with the charity. CBS Films releases the first movie poster for The Back-up Plan online.

December 14 – An HQ version of a second movie poster for The Back-up Plan is released.

December 15 – This marks the last day of production for Alex on Three Rivers, although for many other cast members, December 14 was their final day on the set.

December 16The Elephant Project posts a picture of Alex on Twitter. Taken on December 15 at Paramount, Alex’s photo will be auctioned on eBay with the proceeds going to the Alzheimer’s Association.

December 17 – Alex dedicates a Donate Life float Family Circle Rose in memory of Fernando Fernandez Alejandre.

December 18 – Yahoo! Movies has the premiere for the first official trailer for The Back-up Plan in HD.

AOLR Weekly Wrap-Up #25

Happy 2010, everyone — I hope the New Year will be an amazing one for you all and that your wildest dreams will come true (yes girls, even that one)!

  • To start the brand new decade off appropriately with some gorgeousness, take a look at the latest gallery additions: I’ve added an Alex O’Loughlin Fan Art section that contains some very cool wallpapers and banners created by the very talented Fever, Lucky and Pinkiepie. For chuckles, check out the contributions from the fandom’s undisputed Queen of Snarks, Gothmyst. She’s often irreverent and always very, very funny! Please credit these ladies appropriately should you use any of their work publicly. Thank you so much for sharing your awesome creations with us — you rock!
  • For some more fun, watch the latest YouTube video by Labormieze. She has the strange symptoms that all Alex O’Loughlin fans have in common and consulted with Andy Yablonski, M.D. about the best treatment. Not sure she’s all that happy about his recommendation, though. Great job, Labor – keep them coming!
  • Matt Mitovich answered a question from a fan about the unaired Three Rivers episodes on his FanCast.com blog:

    I’m still miffed that ‘Three Rivers‘ was canceled. Are we ever going to see the unaired episodes? – Stephanie

    At this time CBS has no plans to burn off those last episodes. But knowing how avid Alex O’Loughlin’s fans can be, I’m actively laboring to get him a new gig. The first show in my crosshairs: NBC’s ‘Chuck.’ “That could be very good,” Yvonne Strahovski concurred when I suggested that her longtime Aussie pal drop by, perhaps as a new dude to make Chuck jealous. “Yeah, that’s a fun idea!” she added. Hey, I’m trying.

  • You may recall a picture of Alex with two little girls that appeared on Twitter late July. It was taken on the last day of shooting The Back-up Plan in NYC (July 25th), but no other information was available at the time about who the girls were. As it turns out, they’re Cailin and Hannah Loesch, 12 year-old twins who appear in the movie as background actors (in all likelihood the playground scene in the park where Stan chats with Anthony Anderson’s character about the joys of fatherhood). Thanks to Bianca for sharing the link!
  • I’ve added large versions of the Spanish and Vietnamese posters to The Back-up Plan gallery as well as a couple of logos.
  • The international release dates for The Back-up Plan have been updated. However, these are not set in stone and some may still change ;-). More will be added as we get closer to April. Many thanks to Nadioz for providing the latest information.
  • The poster contest that Jarett Wieselman mentioned last week has been posted on Facebook. Only US residents are eligible to participate and the sweepstakes end on January 4th at 2:01 a.m. PST.
  • Thanks to all who voted for the Donate Life Rose Parade float today as the Viewers’ Choice. It looks like the Cal Poly Universities’ entry is set to win, but the Donate Life float did win the Theme Award (Excellence in Presenting Parade Theme)! Congratulations!
  • TV Guide posted an interview with The Shield creator Shawn Ryan early December. Although Alex isn’t mentioned, it’s still an interesting read for fans who enjoyed the show.
  • And to close, two posts from last week that you’ve probably seen about the unlikelihood of Moonlight being resurrected. Check out E! Online and BuddyTV!

That’s it for now. Enjoy the rest of your weekend and let’s make 2010 a great year!