Yesterday, we dished our fantasy Emmy nominations in the Lead Actor/Actress in a Comedy divisions. Today, however, it’s time to cue up the violins and hit the “mood lighting” button, because we’re talking about the corresponding nominees in the Drama categories. (Not to worry, we’ll get to our fave supporting actors on Thursday and Friday.)

So look. I know some of you are probably scoffing at the folly of this exercise, thinking to yourselves, “What’s the point? The nods are — as uzh — going to go to James Spader, Hugh Laurie, Holly Hunter, and Mariska Hargitay (even though SVU has gone completely off the rails).” But with Emmy opening up room for a sixth nominee in its main races, maybe there’s cause for a little optimism, for the belief that heretofore brilliant-but-unheralded performances might make the Academy of Television Arts and Science’ grade. (Of course, if your ideal candidates don’t get recognized, they might wind up with a nomination in EW.com’s second annual EWwy Awards.) So check out Gold Derby’s list of front-runners in the men’s and women’s lead drama races, then tell us who you’d like to see get his/her name called on July 16. In the meantime, here are four folks I’m rooting for:

Mary McDonnell, Battlestar Galactica: Seriously, Emmy, THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE. McDonnell’s been revelatory for four seasons of BSG, and her final episodes showcased some of her finest work, as her Laura Roslin convincingly shifted from flirtatious lover to defiant cancer patient to resurgent fleet heroine. Failure to recognize her genius would be like calling Bill Gates a small business owner or saying Michael Phelps is just an okay swimmer. (Okay, so those are frakked up examples, but you know what else is frakked up? The inevitability of another McDonnell snub!)

Edward James Olmos, Battlestar Galactica: Can you imagine one of the best SciFi dramas in recent TV history without Olmos’ stoic-but-tender performance? Yeah, me neither. If McDonnell gets her due, so should this dude. So say we all? So say we all!

Regina King, Southland: Maybe her role is too subtle for Emmy voters, but with a single facial expression, the 227 vet Ray star can deliver the equivalent of 1,000 lines of dialog. Witness that rush of maternal love when her Det. Lydia Adams cradles an abandoned baby, or the ferocious lioness who’s unleashed when gang members descend on her house to try to gun down a young witness, or even the weary singleton who strains to smile her way through another doomed lunch date. Is there anything King can’t do? (And don’t answer me by asking, “Win over fusty Emmy voters?”)

Simon Baker, The Mentalist: Yes, his CBS crime procedural is a breezy trifle, but is there any TV star who’s more enjoyable to watch than Baker? His Patrick Jane may not pack the gravitas of characters in more Important Series, but damned if I didn’t find myself completely submerged in his world for an hour every Tuesday night last season.

All right, PopWatchers…you’ve got my list of Emmy longshots in the Lead Actor/Actress Drama catgeories, now it’s time to head to the message boards and share yours (along with your reasons why). Ready, set, argue!

source:  http://popwatch.ew.com/popwatch/2009/07/emmy-regina-king-edward-james-olmos.html

CBS has announced its fall premiere dates for the 2009-10 season and, because this is CBS we’re talking about, it’s the most orderly of any announced schedule to date.

All but two of CBS’ shows — returning and new — will premiere between Monday, Sept. 21 and Sunday, Sept. 27. And — wouldn’t you know it? — CBS’ premiere dates coincide with the official start of the Nielsen season.

The two exceptions are “Survivor: Samoa” and “Three Rivers.” The long-running reality hit’s 19th installment will premiere on Thursday, Sept. 17, one week ahead of the Thursday premieres for “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and “The Mentalist.” The organ transplant drama “Three Rivers,” featuring the return of “Moonlight” star Alex O’Loughlin, will premiere on Sunday, Oct. 4, allowing the 15th installment of “The Amazing Race” to have two-hour launch on Sunday, Sept. 27.

Because CBS is proud of the longevity of much of its schedule (including “60 Minutes” starting its 42nd season), it included original premiere dates for all shows in the network press release.

The full premiere list:

Thursday, Sept. 17
8:00-9:00 p.m. ET “Survivor: Samoa” (19th Installment Premiere)

Monday, Sept. 21
8:00-8:30 p.m. ET “How I Met Your Mother” (5th Season Premiere, OAD 9/19/05)
8:30-9:00 p.m. ET “Accidentally on Purpose” (Series Debut)
9:00-9:30 p.m. ET “Two and a Half Men” (7th Season Premiere, OAD 9/22/03)
9:30-10:00 p.m. ET “The Big Bang Theory” (3rd Season Premiere, OAD 9/24/07)
10:00-11:00 p.m. ET “CSI: Miami” (8th Season Premiere, OAD 9/23/02)

Tuesday, Sept. 22
8:00-9:00 p.m. ET “NCIS” (7th Season Premiere, OAD 9/12/03)
9:00-10:00 p.m. ET “NCIS: Los Angeles” (Series Debut)
10:00-11:00 p.m. ET “The Good Wife” (Series Debut)

Wednesday, Sept. 23
8:00-8:30 p.m. ET “The New Adventures of Old Christine” (5th Season Premiere, OAD 3/13/06)
8:30-9:00 p.m. ET “Gary Unmarried” (2nd Season Premiere, OAD 9/14/08)
9:00-10:00 p.m. ET “Criminal Minds” (5th Season Premiere, OAD 9/22/05)
10:00-11:00 p.m. ET “CSI: NY” (6th Season Premiere, OAD 9/22/04)

Thursday, Sept. 24
9:00-10:00 p.m. ET “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” (10th Season Premiere, OAD 10/6/00)
10:00-11:00 p.m. ET “The Mentalist” (2nd Season Premiere, OAD 9/23/08)

Friday, Sept. 25
8:00-9:00 p.m. ET “Ghost Whisperer” (5th Season Premiere, OAD 9/23/05)
9:00-10:00 p.m. ET “Medium” (Network Debut, OAD 1/23/05)
10:00-11:00 p.m. ET “Numb3rs” (6th Season Premiere, OAD 1/21/05)

Saturday, Sept. 26
8:00-9:00 p.m. ET Procedural repeats
9:00-10:00 p.m. ET Procedural repeats
10:00-11:00 p.m. ET “48 Hours Mystery” (Season Premiere)

Sunday, Sept. 27
7:00-8:00 p.m. ET “60 Minutes” (42nd Season Premiere)
8:00-10:00 p.m. ET “The Amazing Race” (15th Edition Premiere)
10:00-11:00 p.m. ET “Cold Case” (7th Season Premiere, OAD 9/23/03)

Sunday, Oct. 4
9:00-10:00 p.m. ET “Three Rivers”(Series Debut)

TVSHOWSONDVD.COM have the release date for season one DVD of The Mentalist as September 22nd. They also have the DVD cover art. See it HERE!

Television crime drama “The Mentalist” was not only the best new show of 2009, it also boasted the sexiest cast, according to a viewers poll released on Thursday at the close of the 2008-09 U.S. TV season.

But teen drama “The Hills” is clearly over the hill. After five seasons on MTV and the departure of star fashion intern Lauren Conrad, 25 percent of those questioned in the poll for AOL Television deemed it the most “SO over” program on TV.

Medical drama “House” won the season’s best water-cooler moment with the unexpected suicide of Dr. Lawrence Kutner. The Kutner episode beat last week’s “American Idol” finale which saw presumed front-runner Adam Lambert lose to Kris Allen.

“The Mentalist”, CBS’s program starring Australian actor Simon Baker as a police consultant with acute observational powers, took 58 percent of ballots cast for top new program.

The cast of “The Mentalist”, which includes Robin Tunney, also was overwhelmingly deemed the sexiest cast, beating teen high society favorites “Gossip Girl” and “90210″. A winning 56 per cent decided that Baker, 39, had the best comeback from his appearance in the short-lived drama “Smith” in 2006.

Actress Anna Torv of sci-fi series “Fringe” was voted best newcomer to TV, taking 32 percent of votes, and the best guest star spot went to George Clooney for his return as Dr. Doug Ross to the final season of long-running medical drama “ER”.

The poll was conducted by AOL Television (www.television.aol.com) between May 22-27 and attracted a total of 353,953 votes.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant)

source:  reuters.com

I have added episode stills to the gallery from The Mentalist episodes 1×22 and 1×23.

1×22 – “Blood Brothers”

1×23 – “Red John’s Footsteps”

I have added 192 episode stills from “The Mentalist” and 34 “behind the scenes” pictures to the gallery!

There’s no release date for season 1 of The Mentalist yet, but you can pre-order it on DVD at Amazon here. Go pre-order your copy now!

Hey everyone! I just added screencaptures from this week’s episode of The Mentalist entitled “Bloodshot” to the gallery. Simon was amazing as always:

GALLERY LINKS
- “The Mentalist” Screencaptures > 1×16 – “Bloodlust”

Simon will be on both “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and “The Bonnie Hunt Show” to discuss his hit show, “The Mentalist,” this Monday, Feb 16^th!

Check your local listings or visit www.ellentv.com or www.bonniehunt.com for more information.