BY BELINDA BREMNER
Okay, so we got us some motion picture action here. At long last, says you. Hooray, says I. Home town boy Joe Mantenga returns to star in Uncle Nino, directed by Bob Shallcross. And Jessica Lange returns for another film, Normal, for HBO. Shooting in DeKalb County, it co-stars Tom Wilkenson. "Mind of the Married Man" will be back soon, and the indy, Meditations on Trafficing has just wrapped. And there’s scouting, will wonders never cease. Hope not. Franchise Pictures is scouting around town for Til Death Do Us Part with Michael Douglas. So, after the long drought, FILM WORK!
The ever lovely Jane Alderman will be casting Normal and will be working on two episodes for "The Mind of the Married Man." She sends along the first installment of bookings for a recent series of spots for Cranfill. Those working include: Lusia Strus, Chuck Stubbings, David Warren, Joe Canale, Abdul Malik, Mark Collins, Jason Denusek, Phil Dawkins and Jennifer Joan Taylor. More to come.
And Claire Simon had commercial spots as well. Current projects include Galyans and Grange Insurance. Booked for Fifth Third Bank were Megan Moore Burns and Geryll Robinson. More bookings for "Twilight Zone" include Andrea Evans, Richard Henzel, Doug James, Lauren Patton, Peter deFaria, Maria Stevens, Roderick Peeples, Meg Thalkin, Martin Hughes, Linda Reiter and Maggie Carney. In her copious free time, Simon is conducting searches for the features Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat, Perfect Score and the indy Diagnosis Trauma. Small screen search include "Wanda at Large" for ABC and "She Spies" for NBC.
Tenner Paskal is working sixteen to the dozen as well. They will be doing the casting for Uncle Nino, as well as scouting the pilot "Endurance" and the upcoming new Coen Brothers feature (not, alas, shooting here). Commercial bookings of late have included Clint Todd and Jessica Robbins for Captain Crunch; Michael McRoyal, Lacy Coil and Frans DeBoer for Ceder Point; Missy Jerfitta and Jeff Rogers for Papa Johns; Eva Pietras for Luthern Hospital and Manao Demuth for Centennial Wireless.
Und Umlaut cast two industrials for Sunbeam.
Okay, I’m not happy. Really, really not happy. Tom Colby, how dare you move to Los Angeles! Lily, for whom he has worked for so many years, is nicer about this than I am going to be. She describes her sentiments as "bittersweet." She is "happy to see him go off to Los Angeles to pursue acting but will miss having him working as an actor and as office director." His last day at the agency will be May 10. I miss you already!
But, here are the most recent bookings from Lily’s. Commercials went to Jenny Januszewski, Cosima Greco, Justin Ochonicki, Nate Noggle and Heather O’Brien. Corey Blount, Lisa Stran and Dwight Sowa booked voice-overs. Kisha Knazze had a television booking, and industrials went to Vern Cutler, Anjali Thawani and Lydia Mitchell.
Okay, Ben Carr, just want to tell me again, mister, how you get to be 21 on May 16? I couldn’t possibly have been looking. But we moms are supposed to have eyes in the backs of our...oh never mind. Happy Birthday!
PEACE