Showing posts with label Grant Show. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grant Show. Show all posts

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Swingtown Alums Make Good in Other Series


Image from source, Edge New York
I was a huge fan, and online supporter of CBS's late, lamented summer series, Swingtown. It was a show about the swingin' 70s, with all the fun and sexual liberation that (allegedly) happened in that decade. When I talk about a TV show on this blog, it is inevitably cancelled, so I probably should stop doing that.  But thankfully, many of the actors in Swingtown have found themselves in other shows this season, and I thought it might be fun to see where they all are. Let's see.

Grant Show

Show made his first splash in the original version of Melrose Place.  His role on Swingtown was as an airline pilot, with the whole plotline hinging upon him and his sexually adventurous wife.  This season, he's been seen on Accidentally on Purpose.  The show is from the producer of Two and a Half Men, and The Big Bang Theory.  Unfortunately, Accidentally has been on a lower rung of the popular sitcom ladder. Good luck with the renewal, Grant.

Michael Rady

Rady's character was a summer school teacher, having an inappropriate relationship with an underage (?) student.  He ended up as one of the main characters on a rebooted Melrose Place as half of a "perfect couple."  The couple broke up, and Rady ended up with a scheming, cold, bisexual publicist, putting his character at odds with his image as "Mr. Adorable."  But the pull of his original flame ended that. Whatever happens to the show, Rady pulled off a coup as the single most redeemable character in the show.

Jack Davenport

Jack played one half of the straight-laced couple whose eyes were opened to the swingin' 70s.  His character was basically nice, but kind of a douche, with a fixation on his secretary.  After Swingtown, he got the role of a pivotal character on FlashForward. There, he finds himself "the other man" in the marriage of a central married couple.  Nice shift.

Lana Parilla

Lana was the sultry, semi-bi stewardess wife of Show's pilot. She was sexually adventurous, but vulnerable, and by the end of the series, pregnant.  Now, she's a doctor on Miami Medical.

Josh Hopkins

Josh played the unhappy husband of an uptight, suburban prude.  By the end of Swingtown, he'd done the nasty with a neighbor. Now, he plays a neighbor again, but this time as the flirtatious foil of Courtney Cox on Cougar Town.

I'm sure some of the other actors of the series are also appearing in current or upcoming projects. But I'm happy to see so many of them appearing in current series. Sadly, not many of them look good for renewal. Still, given how quickly those actors found new jobs, I'm confident we'll be seeing more of them. And my Swingtown DVD set is due to arrive any day now. Yay!

Monday, December 22, 2008

The Best Show You've Never Seen: Swingtown


Image from source, Edge New York

This past summer, a show on CBS (of all channels) was aired that pushed the envolope on what was acceptable on broadcast TV. The show, set in 1976 America, told the tale of the sexually adventurous and boundary-blurring adults of the sexual revolution. But that was just the setup.

Though the storylines were set upon the taboo areas of "free love," the story went much deeper. The show did justice to the social upheavals of the day, while simultaneously being very relateable, and period-perfect. The acting was exemplory, if the writing wasn't always perfect. But if you were alive during the 70s, you can attest to the authenticity of the series. A few nitpicky anachronisms did occur, but Swingtown was one of the most authentic period pieces ever shown on network television.

The season one DVD collection would make a very good gift for the more socially liberated of your friends. Or yourself, if you're curious. Here's hoping that CBS (or Showtime, or other suitable venue) finds room in their schedule for season two.

[Excerpt]

Swingtown - The First Season

Swingtown is one of the best shows you’ve never seen. A sexy 1970s nostalgia show explores the decadent world of swingers in a Chicago suburb. Where can you catch this provocative show? CBS! That may be why people might have missed it, but not the reason you shouldn’t run out and buy it on DVD. . .

Read more at: Edge New York



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