http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i0108b2b9ca7ebad5b90d1fda614c9d46

TV Land has tapped sitcom veterans Valerie Bertinelli ("One Day at a Time"), Jane Leeves ("Frasier"), Wendie Malick ("Just Shoot Me") and Betty White ("The Golden Girls") to star in its comedy pilot "Hot in Cleveland."

Written by "Frasier" alum Suzanne Martin, "Hot" revolves around three eccentric fortysomething best friends from L.A. (Bertinelli, Leeves, Malick) who wind up stuck in Cleveland and decide to stay there when they realize the locals consider them glamorous.

White plays a grumpy and opinionated lady who has lived in the cottage of the trio's Cleveland house for 50 years.

"Hot," from Sean Hayes' Hazy Mills Prods., is one of TV Land's first two pilots, along with the comedy "Retired at 35," which is toplined by Malick's "Shoot Me" co-star George Segal.

I'll say one thing about TV Land. They are going for top talent in these sitcoms of theirs. I hope the shows are good.

I'll say one thing about TV Land. They are going for top talent in these sitcoms of theirs. I hope the shows are good.


I would've preferred Valerie get a network show, because TV Land has a way of cancelling shows and scrapping them a little too fast.

:cool: :D

Maybe Valerie being on this show will open the door for a guest appearance or two or three by Mackenzie Phillips. I for one would love to see that. I know this would be a huge stretch but perhaps Mack could play Val's sister? ;)

Maybe Valerie being on this show will open the door for a guest appearance or two or three by Mackenzie Phillips. I for one would love to see that. I know this would be a huge stretch but perhaps Mack could play Val's sister? ;)
That would be awesome - and it would be great if Bonnie Franklin, Pat Harrington or some of the other ODAAT gang could show up at some point.

That would be awesome - and it would be great if Bonnie Franklin, Pat Harrington or some of the other ODAAT gang could show up at some point.
Yeah, that would be awesome! Well except maybe Glenn Scarpelli. :lol:

Yeah, that would be awesome! Well except maybe Glenn Scarpelli. :lol:
I still think Glenn Scarpelli was one of the worst child actors on the planet. I'm sure he's a nice guy in real life, but I couldn't stand his character. :eek:

It's only a pilot order. It hasn't been picked-up to series yet. See today's blog later on today.

It's only a pilot order. It hasn't been picked-up to series yet. See today's blog later on today.
I'm sure with the big names they have, they'll get picked up. I hope they will!! :D

I still think Glenn Scarpelli was one of the worst child actors on the planet. I'm sure he's a nice guy in real life, but I couldn't stand his character. :eek:
Nothing personal against Mr. Scarpelli but I think the addition of his character to this show was one of the biggest mistakes in sitcom history. And I agree Monika with the big names in this pilot they stand a very good chance of being picked up. After all who could turn down Betty White?

Hot in Cleveland has been picked-up and will premiee in June:

Valerie Bertinelli, Wendie Malick, and Jane Leeves get “Hot In Cleveland” on TV Land this June

Betty White Will Be Recurring


Monday, March 1, 2010 -- TV Land announced today that it has greenlit 10 episodes of the original comedy sitcom “Hot in Cleveland,” starring a sensational veteran cast of Valerie Bertinelli, Wendie Malick and Jane Leeves with Betty White in the pilot episode. “Hot in Cleveland” is written by Emmy Award-winning Suzanne Martin (“Frasier,” “Ellen”) and is produced by Emmy Award-winner Sean Hayes (“Will & Grace”) and Todd Milliner of Hazy Mills Productions. “Hot in Cleveland” is a TV Land PRIME original production and is the network’s first venture into scripted comedy series. The series is scheduled to air June 2010.

“We are thrilled that ‘Hot in Cleveland’ is TV Land’s first original sitcom,” states Larry W. Jones, president, TV Land. “The talented cast has amazing chemistry and delivers the clever script from a renowned sitcom writer with hilarity and sincerity. This show has enormous potential and we are so excited to be a part of it.”

“Hot in Cleveland” revolves around three fabulous, LA women of a certain age and best friends (Bertinelli, Leeves and Malick). Their lives are changed forever when their plane – headed for Paris – unexpectedly lands in Cleveland and they soon rediscover themselves in this new “promised land.” Loving their new home, the women find themselves living under one roof and battling the sassy caretaker of the property they have rented, played by Betty White.

Where was Bertinelli's character headed? Back to her failed 90's NBC Paris set sitcom "Cafe Americain"....lol......hey I have been a fan of Val's since ODAAT and actually will be watching TV Land for the first time in years again.....but I personally liked the TBS pilot idea where she was to play a Ann Romano type role raising two children as a single mother, talk about going full circle, but I guess TBS passed or it was just a rumor about a year ago.

"Written by "Frasier" alum Suzanne Martin, "Hot" revolves around three eccentric fortysomething best friends from L.A. (Bertinelli, Leeves, Malick) who wind up stuck in Cleveland"


Huh?

Bertinelli turns 50 in another month, Leeves will soon be 49, and Malick turns 60 this year. Are they kidding about eccentric "forty-somethings"?

It's common for actors to play younger than what they really are on TV. All three could pass up for 40-somethings.

I agree 100% Pav!

All 3 are still hot too. :D

Many actors do play characters of a younger age, and sometimes can get away with it. "The Gilmore Girls" is a great example - though each actor (Alexis Bledel, Liza Weil, Lauren Graham) was about five years older than the one they were playing.

In this case, I still think they should have left it 'three eccentric friends', and leave age out of it. Claiming they are all 40-something's (especially Leeves and Malick) is really stretching it a bit. It would be as believeable if they cast Lisa Kudrow and Courtney Cox as college freshmen in a sitcome today. (OOOPS! I hope I didn't give them any ideas...LOL!)

I hope ego's don't destroy this show, I am a lifelong fan of both Betty & Valerie, but all of a sudden what was originally billed by TV Land as a return to sitcom for Valerie with Betty in a recurring role is now being announced by the media as Betty White's return to television, since she was added as a regular. I actually saw a report on ET where there was no mention of Valerie!

And I also agree, TV Land does not have a proven track record with sitcoms, Viacom is too cheap and should stick to first run reality.....I think TBS would have been a better choice or this should have been shopped to a network, but who knew there would be such a Betty White appreciation society since her lifetime achievement Award and Snickers superbowl commercial.

as usual you can never predict where life & television will go.......This will be a great payoff for TV Land if the scripts are good, and since Valerie has had three failed sitcoms since ODAAT, maybe Betty is just what she needs to bounce off of....

http://i44.tinypic.com/141lfz7.png
According to JLD, Jason paid Jerry more than 50 thousand to pull
strings with the executives at Slimfast so he could work closely with Bertinelli.