We have added pictures of Simon at the Emmy Awards!

Emmy Awards – 20th September

Simon’s going to be on David Letterman on Wednesday so make sure you set your DVRs!

Starz/Anchor Bay is preparing the well-received thriller for a high-definition release in two months.

Starz/Anchor Bay Entertainment will bring ‘Not Forgotten‘ starring Simon Baker from ‘The Mentalist’ to Blu-ray on November 3.

The Blu-ray will feature 1080p video, a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack, and supplements including an audio commentary, a behind-the-scenes featurette, and a theatrical trailer.

Suggested list price for the Blu-ray has been set at $34.98.

You can find the latest specs for ‘Not Forgotten’ linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it’s indexed under November 3.

Check out a first look at the THE MENTALIST Season 2 premiere airing Thursday, September 24 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. The first episode is titled “Redemption”.

You wouldn’t know it from the nominations, but “The Mentalist” and “Fringe” were last season’s most watched first-year shows. Together, they garnered only two nominations.

Unlike last year, when newcomers lighted up the ceremonies, this year no first-season program cracked the coveted categories of outstanding drama or comedy series. (Voters did recognize “Mentalist” star Simon Baker with a nomination for lead actor in a drama series. “Fringe” was honored for its special effects.)

In the long tradition of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” snubs, the intense buzz around HBO’s supernatural series “True Blood” didn’t help this growing rookie hit about vampires. And Showtime’s “United States of Tara,” despite the cachet of being executive produced by Steven Spielberg, still managed only a lead acting nod for Toni Collette. (“Tara” has three other nominations — for casting, title design, theme music.)

Meanwhile, Starz’s “Party Down,” about a Hollywood catering crew, earned breathless raves from critics but was hampered by the fact that only critics watch the show. And the same goes for HBO’s raunchy “Eastbound & Down,” which doesn’t have big ratings but has a cult following online and with young guys — probably the same ones who put “Family Guy” into the running.

source: latimes.com

Simon Baker (The Mentalist) – This Tasmanian devil has a killer smile that comes in handy when he plays the title character named Patrick Jane in The Mentalist. The blond actor – a Home and Away alumnus – got his big break in the United States when he took a minor but memorable role as a budding actor in L.A. Confidential. He went on to appear in the movies Red Planet (2000) and The Affair of the Necklace (2001) before landing the lead role in the TV series, The Guardian. His three-year stint on the show got him a Golden Globe nomination. Following that were gigs in The Ring Two (with fellow Aussie and pal, Naomi Watts), George A. Romero’s Land of the Dead, and The Devil Wears Prada. Baker, 40, a former bricklayer and a keen water sportsman, was attached to the short-lived series Smith, which featured Ray Liotta and Jonny Lee Miller. His part in Mentalist has tremendously raised his profile; he’s got two films lined up: Fair Game (with Watts in the lead again) and The Killer Inside Me (starring Jessica Alba and Kate Hudson). At the just-announced 61st Emmy nominee list, Baker is up for a best drama actor award. [source]

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)

On CBS’ breakout hit “The Mentalist,” Simon Baker stars as a former fake psychic who lends his expertise to murder investigations. Not even a tarot card reader, however, might have been able to anticipate Baker’s status as one of the hottest faces in all of television.

The Australian-born thesp had previously appeared on the Eye series “The Guardian” and “Smith,” but didn’t pop in viewer minds until portraying Patrick Jane, a man whose bravado led to the murder of his wife and child by a mysterious serial killer known only as Red John. Despite his tragic past, Jane exhibits a lot of cheeky wit as he tracks down bad guys.

“He’s essentially a dark character, but instead of choosing to indulge in that dark torturous side, he has an optimistic take on life,” Baker explains. “From the pilot, the key to the character is that through his tragedy he has been freed. He’s not desperately hanging on to anything material and physical things, just living moment to moment. (more…)