TVSquad

Apparently the new Trek movie, Fringe, and whatever it is he does over at Lost these days, isn't enough to fill up J.J. Abrams' day. That's a good thing. He'll be too busy to notice that you are downloading the leaked Fringe pilot. Through Bad Robot, Abrams is set to produce a new project, turning an article from the New York Times into a feature film. J.J.'s overlords at Paramount have purchased the rights to a recent article titled "Mystery On Fifth Avenue."

That article, written by Penelope Green, tells the story of a luxury apartment on Fifth Avenue that has some unique architecture. After dropping $8.5 million on the place, the new owners brought in an architectural designer to liven the place up for the kids. The remodel included hidden compartments, puzzles, poems, and messages. There is even a book and a soundtrack that goes with it. How that translates into a movie remains to be seen, but Abrams has some help from a couple television veterans as he tries to figure that out. Maya Forbes (The Larry Sanders Show) and Wally Wolodarsky (The Simpsons) are on board to write the feature. I'm thinking Panic Room meets Jumanji, with time traveling aliens.

My first impression of this show is that it has a great cast. Al Madrigal is a very funny guy who has been kept off of TV for way too long. You may remember that Al was the star of the aborted sitcom The Ortegas a few seasons ago. I have always thought Chris Klein was funny but never got a chance to show it off and, of course, Jeffrey Tambor has now become a fixture in the comedy landscape due to his brilliant work on Larry Sanders & Arrested Development.

Madrigal plays the doorman of the building named Jesus, who insists that you pronounce his name like the well-known savior. Klein is Marty, a tenant of the building and best bud of the new tenant, Josh (Fran Kanz). Tambor plays Uncle Sol, the veteran of the building who used to write scripts for Three's Company. Ironic, in a way, since Tambor actually starred in the Three's Company spinoff, The Ropers.

How many people in the audience do you think actually knew who Robert Loggia was when his Giant Head popped up on the screen? Because the polite applause seemed to suggest that crowd returned home after the show and had to IMDb Loggia. And yes, "IMDb" is totally a verb now.

"Extreme Makeover: Baghdad Edition": A new wall for the folks in Baghdad... and they don't seem to be too happy about it. The timing of "That wall is totally impenetrable -- oh, boy" made me laugh a little too hard. However, the Dennis Al-Menace joke caused me to feel a little foolish because there was a five second delay before I understood it.

(S01E14) The torch has passed. If Alec Baldwin has a spiritual predecessor in his portrayal of network executive Jack Donaghy, it is Rip Torn as Larry Sanders' producer Artie on The Larry Sanders Show. Putting Alec Baldwin and Rip Torn on the small screen together was a genius move. (Having Alec Baldwin sing "Simply the Best" to Rip Torn's portrait - one of the funniest jokes I've seen all season.) It's just too bad they barely had any screen time together. That was a match made in comedy heaven. Fortunately, there was more than enough funny to make up for the missed opportunity.

I normally don't pick up the baby bump and failed marriage stories because, well, do you really need another voice in the blogosphere with two cents about the celebrity circle of life? Probably not. Yet, I couldn't resist this one because, well, who knew that 62 year-old Tambor was expecting a little bundle of trouble?

Tambor and his wife Kasia welcomed daughter Eve to the world on December 10th. Jeffrey Tambor's most recent television outing - Twenty Good Years - with John Lithgow went south about as fast as you'd expect a network sitcom starring two AARP card holders to, but his genius card was handed out a long time ago with series like Larry Sanders and Arrested Development under his belt. Tambor and Kasia also have a two-year old son, and get this, his 31 year-old daughter has a son the same age. So, Tambor's children and grandchild are of the same generation. Chaplin-esque, isn't it?

Wow - an invitation to list all of my TV-related wishes for the coming year. This is just like sitting on Santa's lap except without the horrible awkwardness and guilt. When I was a kid, I felt like I had to ask for world peace instead of a bike. That's what happens when you grow up Catholic. It was selfish to have "wants" and worse to state them aloud.

This would explain why it was such an unprecedented joy for me to spend time reveling in the frivolity of my own TV desires this holiday season. I have been given a momentary, guilt-free license to indulge. And, I pass that license on to you. Feel free to offer up your own television wishes in the comments section. I couldn't recommend it to the recovering Catholic portion of our readership more.

BBC America has teamed up with Ab Fab creator Jennifer Saunders to produce two new series for the network - one of which reunites Saunders with Ab Fab's Joanna Lumley and longtime partner Dawn French. And, get this, both series are being produced by Jon Plowman, who oversaw the UK's Office and Extras. Does comedy news get much better than this?

The first show - Clatterford - is being compared to the Golden Girls with Lumley and Saunders playing women's club members in a small English town. Lumley is an eccentric stirring up trouble, and Saunders is the town busybody. Dawn French and Sue Johnston are also on board.