Kathryn Morris UK

Cold Case Cast Catch-up – October 2016

Happy (is that right?) Halloween everyone.

It’s the end of the month so it is time to update ourselves on the on-going careers of the rest of the Cold Case cast.

I say on-going careers but we’ll start with a brief pause in one. As suspected in the previous update it was announced that the TV comedy drama series BrainDead, which starred Danny Pino (Scotty Valens in CC) as a senator, will not be on the receiving end of a season two order. That’s a shame because it was a very good show made even better by the fun and inventive ‘previously on…’ songs at the beginning of each episode. As things stand there is no news on Danny’s next project, though based on history something will be announced within hours of this post being published. Look for CCCC-up November 2016 for that news

Last month I covered Tracie Thoms (Kat Miller on CC) treading the boards again in a revival of the musical Falsettos. The Broadway show had its public opening last Thursday (27th Oct) night at the Walter Kerr Theatre. Tracie plays Dr Charlotte and stars alongside Stephanie J. Block, Christian Borle, Andrew Rannells, Anthony Rosenthal, Brandon Uranowitz, and Betsy Wolfe. Good news for those that would like to experience the show but can’t make it to New York: the day before the première it was announced that a double-CD recorded by the cast will be released.

Before raising the rafters Tracie must have filmed a role in new movie The Basement, a horror/thriller starring Mischa Barton (The O.C.), Cayleb Long (Ascent To Hell), and Jackson Davis (Lonelygirl15). It involves the kidnapping of a rock star by a serial killer. Tracie is ‘Lauren’. No release date beyond ‘2017’ has been issued.

Back in August I reported that the film The Watcher would be broadcast by the Lifetime network in October. It was. Next month it is due to be available on Netflix. In the film Erin Cahill (Jen the Pink Power Ranger) and Edi Gathegi (The Blacklist) have bought their dream home together. Turns out to be more of a nightmare. Tracie is ‘Amanda’.

In mid-November Tracie must be getting a day off from her work in Falsettos. Where as most of us would take the opportunity to spend the whole day sleeping, that’s not Tracie’s way. She’s going to spend the 24 hours making another play, from scratch. Its another in the ’24 Hour Plays’ series which happen in various parts of the country during the year. This is Broadway’s annual version. A whole load of actors with a bunch of writers and directors will put on 6 short plays. It is all in aid of raising money to help aspiring young actors, writers, producers, and directors learn their craft.

Occasionally we veer off the Cold Case cast theme a little to encompass some other significant people involved in the show. One of those is Veena Sud who was a writer and producer on many episodes. Veena went on to have much success in those same roles with the America version of The Killing. Now she has a new drama in the works for Netflix. It is called Seven Seconds and is based on a Russian movie called The Major. A senior member of the police service accidentally kills a boy whilst driving his car. Abusing his position he covers the crime up to save himself. The 10 part drama series transplants the story to Jersey City and includes the all too familiar element of tension between a predominantly white police force and the black populus. David Lyons (Game Of Silence) and Beau Knapp (The Nice Guys) are set to star.

You Get Me. But When?

There has not been much to say about the upcoming thriller teen drama You Get Me for months.

Considering the likes of stars du jour Bella Thorne (Shake It Up!) and Nash Grier, as well as TV series stalwart and new NCIS team member Jennifer Esposito (Spin City), are in it you would think it worthy of more hype. The film was announced back in March and Kathryn’s involvement in April. Since then there’s been almost nothing. We don’t know details of Kathryn’s role or if she really is starring at all. Some confirmation would be nice.

A couple of weeks ago a poster and some photos from the film appeared on IMDb. Since then they have been removed. The poster, as it was, took a couple of images from the film and gave it the ‘Coming Soon’ treatment. An exact release date had not been specified but 2016 appears now to have slipped into 2017. Kathryn was not in any of the pictures nor is she amongst the cast listed on the poster.

A copy of the poster (right) can found in the KM UK Gallery here.

I guess we’ll be waiting a little longer then. You get me?

Cold Case Japan Débuts

They’re all there: Will, John, Lilly, Nick, Scotty, file boxes. But some how they look different.

The locally created Japanese version of Cold Case premièred today (22nd October 2016). Or was it yesterday? At the time of writing it is very late in the day in Tokyo. Is it now? It all makes my head ow. Speaking of which the show is being broadcast on the WOWOW TV network in Japan, the home of the American version there too.

The news of this local version being in the works broke back in April, at the time it was said that 10 episodes had been commissioned. From looking at the WOWOW website (even though I cannot read Japanese) it looks like that is still the case.

Cold Case Japan is set in the Kanagawa Prefecture. This is south of Tokyo and has a mix of topography from major cities like the capital Yokohama, to more mountainous regions, and ancient areas. The large bay and the fact that Yokohama is such a major port for the country makes it a good replacement for Philadelphia. The Prefecture gives a lot of scope for vary varied stories across all aspects of Japanese life now and, as is so important to the show, the past. The theme music is based on “Nara” by E.S. Posthumus too.

Yō Yoshida leads the cast as ‘Yuri Ishikawa’. In a lovely nod to the original ‘Yuri’ translates as Lily. ‘Ishikawa’ apparently is a combination of the words ‘stone’ and ‘river’ or ‘stream’. That sounds like Lilly Rush: a stone, with hidden undercurrents.

I hope the Japanese viewers enjoyed their new TV show as much as they enjoyed the American original. If you have seen the programme and want to tell us what you thought then please contact me or post a comment below. We’d love to hear from you.

I’ve a new ‘Global versions’ sub-section to the Cold Case area of the KM UK Gallery, kicked things off with a Japan album and put the above photo and a short promo video to it. You can see it here.

Dennis Byrd 1966 – 2016

Late last night (15th October 2016) it was announced that the former American football player Dennis Byrd had died in a car accident. Dennis had recently celebrated his 50th birthday.

Dennis was a successful player for the New York Jets in the late 1980s/early 1990s. He had a long career still ahead of him when a collision with a team-mate on the field left him with a broken neck and temporary paralysis. His prognosis was bleak, with doctors unsure if he would ever regain the use of his legs. This was November of 1992. However, at the start of the following football season he took to the field unaided as an honorary captain for the coin toss. He was never able to again play the sport he loved but his determination to overcome odds and learn to walk once more was a source of great inspiration to many.

Each year the Jets’ team players nominate a team-mate to receive a Most Inspirational Player award created and named in honour of Dennis. I’m sure the next presentation will take on particular significance now. The team retired Byrd’s shirt number 90 after his injury.

Dennis wrote a book, Rise And Walk: The Trial And Triumph Of Dennis Byrd, about his experiences. It was published in 1993. Dennis continued to work, coaching and giving talks about his recovery.

In 1994 that book was released as TV movie, with the slightly shorter title of Rise And Walk: The Dennis Byrd Story, starring Peter Berg as Dennis Byrd. Kathryn, credited as Kathy Morris, played his wife Angela. It was one of Kathryn earliest roles.

The film is something of a rarity, has never been released on DVD, and as such has never really been featured on KM UK. Hopefully we can return to it in the future in more detail but, for now, I’ve opened an album in the Gallery for the film and got things rolling with some promos, stills, and the video box cover art.

Hostage Released – October 2002 Photo Update

The news last month of a return by car maker BMW to its The Hire short film series gave me an excuse to look back at one episode.

That episode was, of course, Hostage which, of course, starred Kathryn.

The shorts were high production value publicity material and as part of that BMW Films screened them at a star-studded première event. Vanity Fair magazine were even roped in to host the screening and launch party at the ArcLight Cinema in Hollywood. Velvet rope was almost certain used.

One such star, a little studded in places, was, of course, Kathryn. It’s pre-Cold Case Kathryn looking in many ways very different from how we became so familiar with her but also so very much the same as we came to love her. The styles may change, the smiles never do

I have added 5 more smallish photos of Kathryn attending the The Hire season two première event from October 2002 to the KM UK Gallery. See them here.