Rueben's Ramblings

Hey All,

Here are the news items for today on this day before the long Memorial Day holiday weekend:

TELEVISION

Actress Rebecca Mader (Lost) will guest-star on Covert Affairs, playing Franka, a German flight attendant whom Auggie meets while en route to Istanbul. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Actor Brady Smith (and real-life husband Tiffani Thiessen) will appear on his wife’s show White Collar, playing an ex-Navy commander and COO of a Blackwater-type private security company. (Matt Mitovich at TV Line)

Actor Gary Cole will appear in an upcoming episode of True Blood, playing Earl Stackhouse, Sookie’s grandfather from whom she inherited her telepathic abilities. Since her grandfather is known to be gone, it is anticipated that he will either appear in a flashback or dream. (The Wrap)

CONDOLENCES

Actor Jeff Conaway, who is best known for his roles in the box office film Grease and the TV series Taxi passed away today at the age of 60. (LA Times and Twitter)

ME: Rest in Peace, Mr. Conaway. Condolences to his family, friends and fans.

MOMENT OF SILENCE, PLEASE…

BOX OFFICE NEWS

Actor Zach Braff (Scrubs) has been cast in the upcoming film Oz: The Great and Powerful and is expected to play the role of Frank, the loyal but under-appreciated assistant to Oz (James Franco), a charismatic circus magician who is treated as a powerful wizard after his balloon blows off course into Oz. (Deadline and Dark Horizons)

Actor John Cho has been added to the cast of the upcoming film Total Recall, playing McClane, the smooth-talking rep for the mind-messing company that tempts Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) to implant fantastic memories into his brain but ends up inadvertently making him think he’s a spy. (Entertainment Weekly and First Showing)

Actor Kenan Thompson and actress Virginia Madsen have joined the Rob Reiner film Summer at Dog Dave’s that follows Morgan Freeman as a wheelchair-bound author of Western novels whose alcoholism is making him lose his passion for writing. Madsen is expected to play his new neighbor, a single mother going through a divorce who has three daughters. The family strikes up a relationship with the novelist and helps him rediscover his talent and find his passion for writing again. Meanwhile, Thompson is expected to play Freeman’s helpful nephew. (Variety and First Showing)

Actor Colin Hanks will join Seth Rogen and Barbra Streisand in the upcoming film My Mother’s Curse that follows an inventor (Rogen) who invites his overbearing mother (Streisand) on a cross-country trip as he tries to sell his new product while also reuniting her with a lost love. Hanks will be playing husband to Yvonne Strahovski (Chuck) who plays Rogen’s high school sweetheart with whom he previously proposed marriage. The couple let Rogen and Streisand’s characters stay in their house after they get caught in a blizzard. (The Hollywood Reporter and First Showing)

Actress Rosie Perez and actor Lance Reddick (Fringe) have joined the cast of the upcoming movie Still I Rise, a drama about two frustrated mothers (Maggie Gyllanhaal and Viola Davis) who team up to transform an inner-city public school in Pittsburgh. Perez will play a former teacher who is now the poised-yet-frank head of the school board, while Reddick will play Davis’ husband who is also a teacher. (Variety and First Showing)

Actor Orlando Bloom will reprise his role of Legolas in the upcoming movie The Hobbit. Director Peter Jackson confirmed the casting on Facebook. (Facebook and Blastr)

That’s it. Enjoy!

Have a terrific weekend!