New releases
Rodney Carrington
Tulsa comedian Rodney Carrington released his new album of humorous songs, “El Nino Loco,” the follow-up album to 2007′s popular “King of the Mountains,” today.
The album features several songs produced by fellow Oklahoman Toby Keith, who appears in the music video for “If I’m the Only One,” which is funny but just plain wrong.
The video is posted here from CMT.com:
Other CDs offered today include a collection of songs by the late George Harrison (which I’m currently listening to and loving), the new disc from the Jonas Brothers and the debut album from Street Sweeper Social Club.
In other Oklahoma-related entertainment news, the second season the TNT series “Saving Grace,” which is set in Oklahoma City but filmed in Los Angeles, is on available on DVD today. The series stars Holly Hunter as a fast-living Oklahoma City police detective who receives visitations from an oddball angel named Earl (Leon Rippy). The show’s creator, head writer and executive producer, Nancy Miller, grew up in Oklahoma City.
The third season of “Saving Grace” starts at 9 tonight on TNT.
Here is a list of the new CDs, DVDs and books out this week, from Amazon.com, VideoETA.com and BarnesandNoble.com:
CDs
Rodney Carrington, “El Nino Loco.”
George Harrison, “Let It Roll: The Songs of George Harrison.”
Jonas Brothers, “Lines, Vines and Trying Times.”
Spinal Tap, “Back from the Dead.”
Hank Williams Jr., “127 Rose Avenue.”
Michael Bublé, “Michael Buble Meets Madison Square Garden” (Live CD/DVD set).
Street Sweeper Social Club, “Street Sweeper Social Club.”
Josh Groban, Idina Menzel and Adam Pascal, “Chess in Concert” (Live 2-CD set).
Incubus, “Monuments & Melodies” (2-CD limited edition set).
DVDs
Burn Notice: Season Two
The Cell 2
Everwood: The Complete Second Season
Family Guy: Volume Seven
Friday the 13th
Morning Light
Saving Grace: Season Two
The Secret Life of the American Teenager: Season 2
The Seventh Seal
The Transformers: The Complete First Season
Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail
Books
The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
Dune Road by Jane Green
Glenn Beck’s Common Sense: The Evolution of Thomas Paine’s Revolution by Glenn Beck
In the Kitchen by Monica Ali
Knock Out (FBI Series No. 13) by Catherine Coulter
L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad
The Neighbor by Lisa Gardner
Queen Takes King by Gigi Levangie Grazer
A Rogue of My Own by Johanna Lindsey
Short History of Women: A Novel by Kate Walbert
Strangers: A Novel by Anita Brookner
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Third season of “Saving Grace” starts tonight on TNT
Holly Hunter in “Saving Grace”
The third season of the TV series “Saving Grace,” which is set in Oklahoma City but filmed in Los Angeles, starts at 9 tonight on TNT.
The series stars Oscar winner Holly Hunter as troubled Oklahoma City police detective Grace Hanadarko, who is visited by a last-chance angel named Earl (Leon Rippy), who is trying to guide the hard-drinking, fast-living Grace to salvation.
Hunter spoke with The Oklahoman TV Editor Penny Soldan about the third season of the hard-hitting series, which Hunter says is the longest, most stable role of her long, illustrious acting career.
Last year, Hunter won a Gracie Allen Award for her realistic turn as Grace. Nancy Miller, creator and executive producer for “Saving Grace,” who grew up in Oklahoma also won a Grace Allen Award.”The third season is developing even as we shoot it, which is another really exciting thing about the show,” Hunter told Penny. “There are large themes that we want to discuss and approach, but I would say there is no definitive road map.”
Hunter also raved about the cooperation she has received from the Oklahoma City Police Department, praising several members of the department for helping her play her part realistically.
Click here to read Penny’s interesting story.
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Video: Behind-the-scenes of “Saving Grace”
Check out these behind-the-scenes interviews from “Saving Grace” from www.tnt.tv/series/savinggrace.
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“Saving Grace” resumes second season
Detective Grace Hanadarko (Holly Hunter) and Earl the angel (Leon Rippy) in “Saving Grace.”
Oklahoma City-set police procedural/spiritual drama “Saving Grace” resumed its second season tonight with a chase for a serial killer that ranged from Heritage Hills to Warr Acres to Penn Square Mall and several OKC area points in between.
Detective Ham Dewey (Kenneth Johnson), Grace’s former partner and lover, returns from burying his brother, who died in Afghanistan. Detective Grace Hanadarko (Holly Hunter) partners with Abby Charles (guest star Christina Ricci), a patrol cop and single mom, and they get off to a rough start.
Ham is partnered with Detective Butch Ada (Bailey Chase) since Butch’s regular partner, Bobby Stillwater (Gregory Cruz), is working undercover and off the grid.
Of course, Grace’s second-chance angel Earl (Leon Rippy) is still hanging around, trying to get her to reform her wild ways and look into the case of convicted killer Leon Cooley (Bokeem Woodbine), whose time on death row could be getting short.
I’ve seen the first three new episodes featuring Ricci and feel like “Saving Grace” really is coming into its element, developing the characters and storylines slowly but steadily. Plus, it’s just plain fun to watch the series reference so many Oklahoma landmarks and cultural quirks.
In case you were wondering why we last saw Grace and the gang about six months ago, series creator/executive producer/writer Nancy Miller, who hails from OKC, says that TNT broke the second season into two halves, with a summer and spring segment. There will be seven new episodes to round out Season 2, with Season 3 set to start airing in summer.
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Entertainment Roundtable
Holly Hunter and guest star Christina Ricci in “Saving Grace.”
The entertainment team at The Oklahoman and NewsOK – Gene Triplett, George Lang, Matt Price and me – talk about “Watchmen,” “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” and “Saving Grace” in this week’s Entertainment Roundtable. Click here to check it out.
UPDATE: Or check out this video version of the Entertainment Roundtable:
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Video: Nancy Miller, Leon Rippy talk “Saving Grace”
Check out my NewsOK video interview with Nancy Miller, creator/executive producer and writer on the TV series “Saving Grace,” and Leon Rippy, one of the series’ stars.
The second season of the series resumes at 9 tonight on TNT.
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Holly Hunter wishes “Saving Grace” was filmed in Oklahoma City, too
Holly Hunter in “Saving Grace”
TV Editor Penny Soldan has a great interview with ”Saving Grace” star Holly Hunter about the new developments coming to the TNT drama over on her TV Blog.
The second season of “Saving Grace” resumes at 9 tonight on the cable channel.
In the story, Penny talked with the Oscar winner about her desire to film the show in Oklahoma City. The show is currently set in OKC but filmed in Los Angeles. Both of Hunter’s parents were born in Oklahoma and her grandparents took part in the Land Run.
“Oh, man, I wish we could come to Oklahoma for some filming, but it’s a question of money, which is a drag,” Hunter tells Penny.
Click here to read Penny’s excellent story.
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“Saving Grace” continues to explore spiritual issues, solve crimes
“Saving Grace” actor Leon Rippy and creator Nancy Miller pose for a photo last week in The Oklahoman studio. (Photo by Paul Hellstern/The Oklahoman)
From Monday’s Life section of The Oklahoman.
This angel’s ”Saving Grace”
City-set police series resumes second season tonight on TNT
The TV show “Saving Grace” continues to explore the issues of faith, sin and spirituality through the fictional life story of hard-drinking, fast-living Oklahoma City Police Detective Grace Hanadarko.
The TNT series, starring Oscar-winner Holly Hunter as Grace, picks up with its second season at 9 p.m. Monday, six months after the mid-season finale.
Nancy Miller, the Oklahoma City native who created, executive produces and writes for the show, said Grace, her family and her fellow detectives will face interesting personal and professional issues in the coming episodes.
“Each season you kind of have to go, ‘OK, what is this season about and what are the arcs of each of the characters? So, There’ll be some surprises about the other characters that will come out this year,” said Miller in an interview from The Oklahoman offices.
Miller and actor Leon Rippy returned to Oklahoma City last week to host a special screening of tonight’s episode, the first of seven new shows to cap the season.
“Saving Grace” resumes tonight with some extra star power: Christina Ricci will guest-star for three episodes as Abby Charles, a patrol cop and single mom who becomes Grace’s temporary partner.
“Christina and Holly had worked together years ago, and I guess they had always wanted to work together again. So, this was a great opportunity to be able to have Christina on our show. …And then it was like, ‘OK, well, what are we gonna do?’ And I thought, Ah, you know, we’ve gotta partner her with Grace,” Miller said, adding there’s a chance Ricci could return for additional episodes.
Emmy winner Kathy Baker also will be featured in Season 2, and her character will be tied to Grace’s beloved nephew Clay (Dylan Minnette), whose mother, Grace’s sister, died in the Oklahoma City bombing.
“We are barreling toward something,” Miller said, careful not to reveal too much. “Grace goes through some family problems – not problems, but journeys.”
Writers are already at work on the third season, which is set to start filming April 1 and debut in summer. As the series progresses, so does the relationship between Grace and Rippy’s Earl, the unusual angel sent to guide her toward redemption.
“The first season between Earl and Grace there was a lot of conflict. The second season was deepening their friendship, and the third season, Earl kind of has a mission,” Miller said.
Although Grace has accepted Earl as part of her life, she continues to drink, curse and sleep around, often provoking exasperation or sorrow from the angel.
“She’s a tough challenge. … I keep plugging,” said Rippy, sitting smiling between Miller and his wife, Carol.
The South Carolina native believes the series’ success is tied to the universal subject matter, particularly the issue of mortality.
“When people watch it, it makes them feel, I believe, more at ease about their own demise. … Because when we were 17, we were immortal. But now we look at the clock every once in a while and go, ‘Well, what is it all about? And do I feel comfortable with that (death) or angst-ridden over it or what?’” he said.
The series is set in Oklahoma City but filmed in Los Angeles for financial reasons. Although Miller would prefer to shoot the show in her hometown, she still counts “Saving Grace” as her dream job, with a cast and crew that feel like family.
“I’m happy. It’s the gig of my career. I’m having the best time,” she said.
“Me, too. Absolutely,” Rippy added. “Even after endless hours … I wake up the next morning and go, ‘Oh, I can’t wait to get back and do it again. I can’t wait to get back to my family.’”
“Saving Grace”
The second season of “Saving Grace” resumes at 9 p.m. tonight on TNT. The season will end with seven new episodes.
Christina Ricci (“Speed Racer”) will be featured in three episodes, starting with tonight’s. Emmy winner Kathy Baker (TV’s “Picket Fences”) will be a guest star later this season.
Set in Oklahoma City but filmed in California, the series stars Oscar winner Holly Hunter (“The Piano”) as a reckless, boozy police detective who receives regular visits from an angel named Earl (Leon Rippy) sent to guide her to redemption.
Production on the third season will start April 1, with the new season set to debut in summer. The third season will include an episode starring Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham (“Amadeus”) as an angel who gets into a rivalry with Earl over Grace.
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“Saving Grace” creator, actor visit Oklahoma City
“Saving Grace” actor Leon Rippy, who stars as Earl in the series, signs a DVD cover for Matt Westphalen Thursday at an event at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art.
Former University of Oklahoma football coach Barry Switzer poses for a photo with “Saving Grace” creator Nancy Miller, Leon Rippy, who stars as Earl, and Becky Switzer at an event Thursday at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Switzer appeared in an episode of the show earlier this season. (Photos by Steve Gooch/The Oklahoman)
From Friday’s The Oklahoman.
The challenges of casting city’s TV stand-in
Oklahoma City native Nancy Miller senses a special vibe when she steps off an airplane in her hometown.
But recreating the people, places and peculiarities of her hometown on her TV show “Saving Grace” isn’t easy.
“It’s just difficult. Our season opener started in Bricktown, and it just didn’t look like Bricktown, but we did the best we could,” said Miller, the series creator and executive producer, said Thursday at The Oklahoman.
Miller and actor Leon Rippy returned to Oklahoma City Thursday to host a screening of the next new episode of “Saving Grace” at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. The second season of the TNT series resumes at 9 p.m. m2 Monday after a six-month hiatus.
Guests at the screening included Mayor Mick Cornett, former Oklahoma City Police Chief M.T. Berry, who has consulted with Miller on the show, and former University of Oklahoma football coach Barry Switzer, who appeared in an episode earlier this season.
The series follows Grace Hanadarko (Holly Hunter), a self-destructive Oklahoma City police detective who is visited by an angel (Rippy). sent to help her reform her life.
In upcoming episodes, Grace and her colleagues investigate a murder in Heritage Hills, follow leads to Penn Square Mall and squabble over OU-Texas football. But in reality, the series is filmed in Los Angeles.
Miller said Oklahoma City doesn’t have the resources to support the series’ production. In the past, a second unit has come to Oklahoma City to get location shots.
“We don’t have the money to do it this season,” she said. “It is a great place; I wish we could show it to them (viewers).”
The series location manager, Gary Watt, hails from Oklahoma City, so he knows what to look for when he searches for places to film. Rippy said Miller’s first-hand knowledge is invaluable, too.
“I love it here. I love it. You know, it reminds me of home. People are friendly,” said Rippy, a Rock Hill, S.C., native.
“Saving Grace”
The second season of “Saving Grace” resumes at 9 p.m. Monday on TNT. The season will end with seven new episodes.
Christina Ricci (“Speed Racer”) will be featured in three episodes, starting with tonight’s.
Production on the third season will start April 1, with the new season set to debut in summer.
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