First off, let me go on record as being the biggest Bonnie Hunt fan in the entire universe.

This Monday (9/8) marks the premiere of “The Bonnie Hunt Show”, a daytime talk show hosted by, of course, Bonnie Hunt (”So it’s not just a clever name?”)

Her guests will include Robin Williams (I can imagine how that’s going to go!) and Papa Girardi himself, Joe Mantegna.

Check your local listings - but don’t check mine because none of my local stations had the foresight to add the show to the fall schedule.

*&^%)$&^!

PLAYBILL.COM - -

Complete casting has been announced for the Blank Theatre Company’s upcoming production of Stephen Karam’s Speech & Debate.

Directed by Daniel Henning, the dark comedy will begin previews at the Hollywood venue Sept. 13 with an official opening scheduled for Sept. 18. The production will run through Oct. 26.

The cast will feature Mae Whitman (”Arrested Development”) as Diwata, Michael Welch (”Joan of Arcadia”) as Howie, Aaron Himelstein (Dickie & Babe: The Truth About Leopold & Loeb) as Soloman and Dale Dickey (”My Name Is Earl”).

Speech & Debate, press notes state, concerns “three teenage misfits in Salem, Oregon [who] form their school’s first speech and debate team after discovering they are all linked by a sex scandal that’s rocked their town. Secrets become currency, blogs are belted and ‘bathing suit areas’ exposed in this dark comedy with music that explores the complex communications of young people caught in the borderland between late adolescence and adulthood.”

Speech & Debate premiered last fall at the Roundabout Theatre Company’s Roundabout Underground.

Show times are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM.

Tickets, priced $22-$28, may be purchased by visiting www.TheBlank.com or by calling (323) 661-9827. The Blank’s 2nd Stage Theatre is located at 6500 Santa Monica Boulevard (on Theatre Row, between Highland and Vine at Wilcox) in Hollywood, CA.

HOLLYWOOD REPORTER - -

ABC is ramping up its police procedural ranks with two new cop dramas planned for midseason.

The network picked up ABC Studios’ “Castle” (starring Nathan Fillion as a horror novelist who helps the NYPD solve crimes) and Sony TV’s “The Unusuals” (an ensemble dramedy set in a New York police precinct co-starring Amber Tamblyn) for series orders on Monday in addition to three other shows.

Along with the fall series “Life on Mars,” the drama pickups give ABC some procedural guns for next season. Though the network has plenty of medical and legal shows, ABC has lacked a reliable stable from the police genre to call its own since “NYPD Blue” went off the air in 2005.

ABC also picked up Rob Thomas’ “Cupid” (a one-hour reinvention of Thomas’ 1998 romantic comedy starring Bobby Cannavale) and a pair of half-hour single camera comedies — 20th’s Victor Fresco laugher “Better Off Ted” (office comedy starring Jay Harrington as a moral guy trying to do right in an amoral world) as well as ABC Studios’comedy “Single With Parents” (Alyssa Milano who juggles her dysfunctional family,  friends and boss) by ”How I Met Your Mother” producer Kristin Newman.

Just a note to Amber Tamblyn fans…Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 will be in theaters on Wednesday, August 6th.

Check out Fandango.com to purchase tickets early or to find showtimes at your local theatre.

Sorry - I forgot I had to moderate the comments in the news section.  I will get the hang of this blog thing, I promise. :)

iowahawx, joa.com admin

Beginning July 11, Joan of Arcadia will air weekly on Friday nights at 8:00 PM on the Sci-Fi Channel.  This will surely expand the visibility of the show - it will be interesting to see what happens.

Click here to see the episode schedule on Sci-Fi.

Official releases have confirmed info from various sources about Chris Marquette’s latest film commitment. Chris has been cast in the lead of John Stockwell’s “Kid Cannabis”, a film centered around two friends’ involvement in a marijuana smuggling ring.

HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Stockwell will write and direct the film, slated to kick off this July. If Stockwell’s name rings a bell, he’s known for directing “Blue Crush” and starring as Cougar in “Top Gun”. This is how I will always remember him: freaking out in the cockpit of an F-15 (”This is Ghost Rider 117, this bogey is all over me. He’s got missile lock on me. Do I have permission to fire?”) while Tim Robbins (yeah, that was Tim Robbins!) screams at him from the backseat.

I for one am very proud of myself for avoiding any kind of snarky drug reference in this postings’ title and text. Yay me.

REUTERS/HOLLYWOOD REPORTER - -

Amber Tamblyn, star of CBS’ short-lived drama “Joan of Arcadia,” has signed on as the female lead in the ABC pilot “The Unusuals.”

The comedy drama is set at a New York police precinct. Tamblyn will play a smart cop who also is the black sheep of her wealthy family. The actress returns to theaters in August with “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2.”

Already aboard “The Unusuals” are Harold Perrineau (”Lost”) and Adam Goldberg, who recently appeared in a few episodes of HBO’s “Entourage.”

VARIETY - -

Kevin Zegers will star in indie “The Perfect Age of Rock ‘n’ Roll” alongside Jason Ritter.

Spike Lee is exec producing the dramatic music-themed project; production is under way on location in New Jersey, New York and Los Angeles.

Pic will feature appearances by rocker Billy Morrison and blues legends Pinetop Perkins, Hubert Sumlin and Sugar Blue. Scott Rosenbaum wrote and is directing the film.  Peter Fonda, Taryn Manning, Lauren Holly, Aimee Teegarden and James Ransone round out the cast.

Story centers on a rock star (Zegers) who retreats to his Long Island hometown after his sophomore album flops. Neil Carter, Mike Ellis, Mike Romero and Joseph White are producing.

HOLLYWOOD REPORTER - -

Warner Bros. has moved up the release date for its ensemble flick “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2″ two days, to Aug. 6.

Two rival wide releases are set unspool Aug. 8 — Sony’s Seth Rogen starrer “Pineapple Express” and Lionsgate’s Little League drama “The Perfect Game.” Disney tried a similar Wednesday release with its “Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement,” which unspooled Aug. 11 and rung up an extra $8 million ahead of the following weekend.