Love Monkey Premiere Episode Preview  12/23/05

TOM CAVANAGH, JASON PRIESTLEY, LARENZ TATE, CHRISTOPHER WIEHL, JUDY GREER, IVANA MILICEVIC AND KATHERINE LANASA STAR IN THE SERIES PREMIERE OF "LOVE MONKEY," TUESDAY, JAN. 17 ON THE CBS TELEVISION NETWORK

"Pilot" -- Tom Cavanagh, Jason Priestley, Larenz Tate, Christopher Wiehl, Judy Greer, Ivana Milicevic and Katherine LaNasa star in the series premiere of LOVE MONKEY, Tuesday, Jan. 17 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Tamra Davis directed the episode written by Creator Michael Rauch, one of the series' executive producers.

LOVE MONKEY, based on the best-selling book by Kyle Smith, revolves around Tom Farrell, a 30-something up and coming single record executive who's navigating the tumultuous and highly amusing waters of work and dating in New York City with the help of his buddies. Tom's got it all until he gets fired from his job and dumped by his girlfriend, all in the same day. Fortunately, Tom's friends help him keep his life in full swing: Mike, his buddy who happens to be married to his pregnant sister, Karen; Shooter, his street-wise friend with money; Jake, a handsome former baseball player turned sports writer; and Bran, his platonic girl friend who always tells it to him straight. With their help and support, Tom finds a new record company to call home and a new woman, Julia Hixon, to fixate on. It's a brand new Tom -- which is to say, it's the same old Tom.

In the premiere, Tom Farrell, an A&R representative at a major New York record label, is having a very bad day. First, he gets dumped by his beautiful girlfriend and then he gets fired from the job he loves. Determined to start his own label, Tom pursues teen prodigy Wayne and realizes that sometimes sticking to your own convictions isn't always easy. Meanwhile, Tom meets Julia, an A&R rep who loves good music just as much as he does.

Tom Cavanagh is best known to television audiences for his starring role in the television series "Ed." He also had recurring roles in the series "Scrubs" and "Jack and Bobby." Last year, Cavanagh starred in the television movie "Snow." Cavanagh recently completed the movie version of the popular children's book, "How To Eat Fried Worms." This spring, Cavanagh will also be seen in the romantic comedy, "Gray Matters," and the family drama, "Two Weeks," in which he plays Sally Fields' son. His additional feature film credits include "Alchemy" and "Heart of Darkness." He made his Broadway debut in the musical "Shenandoah" and, more recently, he took over the starring role in "Urinetown."

Jason Priestley is probably best known to television audiences for his breakout role on the television series "Beverly Hills, 90210," for which he earned two Golden Globe nominations. He also starred in the series "Tru Calling" and guest-starred in "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter" and "Spin City." His television film credits include starring as the title character in "I Want to Marry Ryan Banks" and "Warning: Parental Advisory." He also recently starred in the Canadian series "Sleep Murder," "Going the Distance," "Chicks with Sticks" and the British miniseries "Colditz." Priestley received critical acclaim for his performance in the feature film "Love and Death on Long Island" and will be seen in the upcoming feature films "Die, Mommie, Die!" and "Cover Story." His additional feature film credits include "Cherish," "Eye of the Beholder," "The Boy Who Could Fly," "Nowhere to Run," "Calendar Girl" and "Tombstone." He recently starred in the London theatre production of "Side Man."

Larenz Tate was most recently seen in the feature films "Crash" and portrayed a young Quincy Jones in the Oscar-nominated "Ray." He will soon be seen in the film "Waist Deep." His additional feature film credits include "Menace II Society," "Dead Presidents," "Love Jones," for which he earned a 1997 Best Actor NAACP Image Award nomination, "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," for which he received the Best Actor Award at the 1999 Acapulco Black Film Festival, "Biker Boyz," "The Inkwell" and "A Man Apart." He also executive produced the film "Love Come Down." Tate made his professional acting debut in the television series "The Twilight Zone: The Series," and starred in the series "South Central."

Christopher Wiehl is best known to television audiences for his lead roles in the series "Playmakers," "First Monday" and "Bull." He also portrayed recurring characters on "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and "Clubhouse," both on the Network. His guest-starring credits include "ER," "Las Vegas," "Monk," "Surface" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Wiehl's feature film credits include "Hollywood Homicide," opposite Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett, "Broken Hearts Club" and "Can't Hardly Wait."

Judy Greer was most recently seen in the feature film, "Elizabethtown," and will soon be seen in the films "The Moguls," "The TV Set," "American Dreamz," "In Memory Of My Father" and "The Great New Wonderful." Her additional film credits include "The Village," "13 Going On 30," "Adaptation," "The Wedding Planner," "What Women Want," "What Planet Are You From?," "Three Kings," "Jawbreaker," "The Specials," "Kissing A Fool," "I Love Your Work" and "The Hebrew Hammer." Among Greer's television credits is her recurring role as Kitty Sanchez on "Arrested Development."

Ivana Milicevic will soon be seen in the feature films "Running Scared," due out in January 2006, "The Plague" and "The Optimist," and recently starred in "Just Like Heaven." She also appeared in the feature films "Enemy of the State," "Jerry Maguire," "Head Over Heels," "Paycheck," "The Big Brass Ring," "Vanilla Sky," "Down with Love" and "Love Actually." On television, Milicevic starred in the series "Mind of the Married Man" and guest-starred in the series "Seinfeld," "Friends," "Felicity" and "Just Shoot Me."

Katherine LaNasa was most recently seen guest-starring in the series "Grey's Anatomy." Her television credits include guest-starring roles in "CSI: Miami," "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "The Guardian," "Judging Amy," all on the Network, "Seinfeld," "NYPD Blue," "ER," "The Practice," "3rd Rock From The Sun" and "Miss Match." LaNasa also starred in the series "Three Sisters." LaNasa starred in the feature films "Alfie," "Schizopolis," directed by Steven Soderbergh, "Back Track," directed by Dennis Hopper, "Brain Donors" and "Rooftops."

Tom Farrell............................ Tom Cavanagh

Mike Freed............................. Jason Priestley

Shooter Cooper........................... Larenz Tate

Jake Dunne....................... Christopher Wiehl

Brandy "Bran" Lowenstein.......... Judy Greer

Julia Hixon............................ Ivana Milicevic

Karen Freed...................... Katherine LaNasa

Gabby .................................... Milena Govich

Eli Sendack............................. Josh Stamberg

Jeff............................................... Erik Jensen

Wayne Jensen.......................... Teddy Geiger

Doug Jensen........................... Jeff McCarthy

Phil Leshing............................. Eric Bogosian

Gorgeous Woman............... Denise Quinones

Paul........................................ John Gallagher

Woman................................... Bridget Regan

Wayne 's Mom.................................Laura Poe

Source: CBS Press Release