[05/19/04 - 12:00 AM]
2004 Broadcast Upfront Presentations: Cbs, Part 4
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- CBS has released several images of its new projects in conjunction with its upfront presentation.

Here's a look at each, listed alphabetically according to series:

Pictured: Phil Keoghan as Host

This September, Phil Keoghan hosts as Teams of 2 people, each with a pre-existing relationship, will set out on THE AMAZING RACE around the world to compete for one million dollars. The Teams will never know where they're going next or what they'll have to do once there. Each pair's relationship will be forever changed by their experience in this once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Along the way, the Teams will compete in a series of tasks, some mental and some physical, before learning their next destination. Restricted plane travel and strict budgets will add to the tension as Teams are forced to rely on wit and ingenuity, perhaps sleeping on park benches or in bus stations and traveling on buses, trains, boats, taxis, bicycles, even camels. Teams farthest behind will be eliminated as the race progresses, and the first Team to arrive at the final destination wins one million dollars.

Pictured: John Goodman as John Pressman, Spencer Breslin as Kate Pressman, Gary Dourdan as Miles Pressman, Olympia Dukakis as Marge Pressman, Ed Asner as Art Pressman, Diedrich Bader as Tommy Pressman, Melinda McGraw as Lily Pressman

CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE stars Emmy Award-nominee John Goodman in a comedy about a family man who, by default, is the go-to guy for his eccentric extended clan. John (Goodman) and Kate (Emmy Award-winner Jean Smart) Barnett are still very much in love after 20 years of marriage and are looking forward to the next 20. Only one thing interrupts their bliss: John's family. His sex-obsessed father, Art (Emmy Award-winner Ed Asner,) and his loopy mother, Marge (Academy Award winner Olympia Dukakis,) have a penchant for coming over unannounced, ready to stir the pot. As the owner of a security company, John just hired his gleefully oblivious brother, Tommy (Diedrich Bader), who is having trouble wrapping his mind around the concept of "office hours." John's sister, Lily (Melinda McGraw), is a therapist who is her own best patient. If that's not enough, their 12-year-old son, Miles (Spencer Breslin), has the makings of a perfectly nutty third generation Barnett. As the family patriarch, John fights an uphill battle with Kate's help to keep the peace while his oddball family spins around him.

Pictured: Jeremy Sumpter as Pete Young, Mare Winningham as Lynne Young, Kirsten Storms as Betsey Young, Christopher Lloyd as Lou, Dean Cain as Conrad Dean

CLUBHOUSE is a drama about a 16-year-old boy who becomes a man in a world of overgrown boys when he takes a job as a batboy for a professional baseball team. For the first time, Pete Young (Jeremy Sumpter) takes a risk--perhaps the only risk of his young life--when he applies for and lands his dream job as a batboy for the New York Empires. The problem is his single mom, Lynne (Mare Winningham), has no idea what he's up to. Until now, he's been the golden boy while his rebellious older sister, Betsy (Kirsten Storms), has always been in the doghouse. On the job, Pete becomes a part of a new family that includes Conrad Dean (Dean Cain), the team's captain and star third baseman and one of the boy's all-time idols who takes on the role of an older brother. Also in the clubhouse is his boss, Lou Russo (Christopher Lloyd), a gruff but fair equipment manager who becomes a much-needed father figure; Rich (Marc Donato), a fellow batboy who just happens to be the general manager's nephew; Carlos Tavares (John Ortiz), a rookie who believes that Pete is his good luck charm, and Jose Marquez (J.D. Pardo), the Empire's territorial head batboy. Pete is over the moon at being a member of his favorite team, but he must still balance life at home and life in the big leagues as he faces the moral dilemmas and curve balls that life throws his way.

Pictured: Gary Sinise as Det. Mac Taylor, Melina Kanakaredes as Stella Bonasera, Carmine Giovinazzo as Danny Messer, Hill Harper as Dr. Sheldon Hawkes, Vanessa Ferlito as Aiden Burn

CSI: NY stars Academy Award-nominee, Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winner Gary Sinise and Emmy Award-nominee Melina Kanakaredes in a crime drama about forensic investigators who use high-tech science to follow the evidence and solve crimes in The Big Apple. Det. Mack "Mac" Taylor (Sinise) is a dedicated and driven crime scene investigator who believes that everything is connected and for everyone there is a story. He and his partner, Det. Stella Bonasera (Kanakaredes), a workaholic and a jack-of-all-trades, share a passion for the job. They lead a team of experts amid the gritty and kinetic city that never sleeps. Their team includes Danny Messer (Carmine Giovinazzo), a Brooklyn-born investigator with rugged good looks, an unflappable spirit and a colorful family history, and Dr. Sheldon Hawkes (Hill Harper), a reclusive coroner who walked away from a promising surgical career after the traumatic loss of two patients. Rounding out the team is Aiden Burn (Vanessa Ferlito), a smart and sexy investigator whose chameleon-like behavior allows her to adapt to any situation at any time. These skilled investigators, who see New York City in a whole different light, follow the evidence as they piece together clues and eliminate doubt to ultimately crack their cases.

Pictured: Rob Lowe as Dr. Billy Grant, Joe Pantoliano as Tommy, Amy Adams as Alice, Sarah Lancaster as Veronica

DR. VEGAS stars Emmy Award-nominee Rob Lowe and Emmy Award-winner Joe Pantoliano in a drama about an unconventional physician who takes a gamble when he leaves behind the world of emergency medicine to become the in-house doctor at a high-end casino in Las Vegas. From his penthouse office suite, Dr. Billy Grant (Lowe) attends to the round-the-clock medical needs of guests, employees and their families amid the lures of Sin City. The doctor's always in when it comes to catering to the often frivolous medical requests of his good friend and boss, Tommy Canterna (Pantoliano), the hotel's general manager. Tommy's priority is the well-being of his high rollers and the casino's bottomline, while Billy's committed to upholding the Hippocratic Oath, often putting them at odds. Assisting Billy is his former ER colleague, Alice Doherty (Amy Adams), who serves as his trusted nurse practitioner but who spends most of her time watching his back. The frenetic pace continues on the casino floor where the action never stops. Always on hand is beautiful blackjack dealer, Veronica Harold (Sarah Lancaster), who attends classes during the day and works nights to help support her father. Whether it's a celebrity headliner who takes a header from the stage, an employee hurt on the job or a desperate guest whose luck has run out at the tables, it's a safe bet that Dr. Grant will see his share of unique medical cases. But, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, and for Billy, it's all in a day's work on the Strip.

Pictured: Jason Alexander as Tony Cleinman, Daniella Monet as Lauren Cleinman, Will Rothhaar as Mickey Cleinman, Malcolm-Jamal Warner as Bernie Widmer

LISTEN UP stars Jason Alexander in a comedy about a well-regarded sports talk show host and columnist who struggles to get the respect and admiration from his family that he gets from his fans. Based on the writings of real-life sports commentator and columnist Tony Kornheiser, Tony Clineman (Alexander) is an irreverent sports show host who banters about all things sports with his witty sidekick, Bernie Widmer (Malcolm-Jamal Warner), a former football player turned sports show host, on their television talk show, "Shut Up and Listen." Tony has also begun writing a humorous syndicated newspaper column that includes commentary on his family who are less than thrilled to have their trials and tribulations made public. Tony's wife, Dorothy, works as a fundraiser. While not a sports fan, she is always supportive of her paranoid and obsessive-but-loving husband. Lauren (Daniella Monet) is the Clineman's know-it-all, soccer-playing 14-year-old daughter. Mickey (Will Rothhaar) is their 15-year-old golf prodigy son. While Tony's inability to self-edit before broadcasting his thoughts is what makes him most endearing to his fans, it keeps his friends and family on their toes as everything could be fodder for his column.

Pictured: Jeff Probst as Host

VANUATU. Stranded on an island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, a group of strangers will be forced to band together and carve out a new existence, to use their collective wits to make surviving in their primitive environment a little easier. In this wild and wonderful land, with its heat, poisonous insects and hidden predators, the Survivors must form a cooperative society, building shelter, gathering and catching food, and competing in Challenges. Host Jeff Probst will reward winners of these Challenges with things that make life on Vanuatu more bearable; those who fail must do without.

Who will outwit, outplay, and outlast all others in Vanuatu? To find out, don't miss a single episode of SURVIVOR: VANUATU, coming this September.

  [may 2004]  


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