JOAN OF ARCADIA
Although certain that she's seen a man lurking outside her bedroom window, sixteen-year-old Joan Girardi (Amber Tamblyn, The Ring, General Hospital) has a hard time convincing her parents – Will (Joe Mantegna, First Monday), Arcadia's recently appointed Chief of Police, and Helen (Mary Steenburgen, Sunshine State, Ragtime), her forty-five-year-old mother -- that it's anything more than just an overactive imagination.
After getting an even less sympathetic reception from her brothers, the nerdy fifteen-year-old Luke (Michael Welch), and Kevin (Jason Ritter, Swimfan), an embittered nineteen-year-old paraplegic who's confined to a wheelchair as the result of a tragic car accident, Joan heads for school. But on her way, she's confronted by a cute teenage boy who proves to know quite a bit about her and her family. And after claiming he is also the old man she saw outside her bedroom window, he surprises
Joan by announcing that he's God.
After giving her some time to get over the shock, God makes it clear that, despite her fleeting acquaintance with religion, he's singling Joan out to help him from time to time, beginning with having her apply for a job at the Village Book Store. Still unsure as to what it's all about, Joan decides to play along and convinces the store's irascible owner to give her a chance. Meanwhile, after more than a year has passed since
Kevin's accident, Will and Helen cannot agree on how hard to push their son into resuming something like a normal life. And after two teenage girls are found murdered, Will realizes that not only does the town have a serial killer on its hands, but that Joan's claim of seeing someone outside her window may not be so farfetched after all.
During her first day at the new job, Joan is alone at the store thumbing through "The Lives of the Saints" when she comes across a series of images of Joan D'Arc that leaves her very disturbed. Quickly deciding to call it a day, she closes up shop and is heading home in the rain when she's confronted by a man outside the store. And though she initially assumes that it is another appearance by God, when the stranger
tries to force her into his car, Joan bolts for the safety of home where her description leads Will to conclude that it was the serial killer. And as Joan struggles to understand why God has chosen her, Kevin admits that her getting a job has made him see that the time has come for him to get on with his life, too.
From writer and executive producer Barbara Hall (Judging Amy, Chicago Hope), JOAN OF ARCADIA is a new one-hour drama from Sony Pictures television and CBS Productions.
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Amber Tamblyn Talks To God
NEW YORK, Sept. 25, 2003
(CBS) Former daytime star Amber Tamblyn moves to prime time Friday night, as the star of the new CBS drama series “Joan Of Arcadia.” She plays Joan Girardi, a teenager, who finds herself constantly visited and talked to by God, who appears to her in human form.
“Joan Of Arcadia” premieres Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
The show stars Tony Award-winning actor Joe Mantegna as her father, Will, and Academy Award-winning actress Mary Steenburgen as her mother, Helen. Rounding out the cast is Joan’s 15-year-old science-geek brother, Luke (Michael Welch), and her older brother, Kevin (Jason Ritter), a former high-school sports star who is in a wheelchair as a result of an automobile accident.
It is the accident that brings the family to a time of spiritual crisis, Tamblyn explains. “At the same time, Joan, who is an average teenage girl, starts having God speak to her and show up in the form of different people, so she never knows who it's going to be.”
In the premiere episode, Joan tries to make sense of her first unsolicited face-to-face encounters with God, who urges her to get a part-time job at a bookstore. Meanwhile, Will Girardi (Mantegna) becomes passionately involved in overseeing a case involving a serial murderer who is on the loose and targeting teenage girls.
And at the year-and-a-half mark of Kevin's accident, the lovingly strict Helen begins to pressure Kevin to resume his life -- responsibilities and all.
Tamblyn tells The Early Show co-anchor Hannah Storm, “The show is beautifully written. It has many, many underlining metaphors and philosophical references. It's beautiful.”
It is also blatant in some ways. In one scene, Helen (Steenburgen) encounters a priest on the sidewalk and asks him, “Why does God make people suffer?” And the priest has no answer.
Tamblyn notes, “The show sort of mirrors real life and how we deal with each other as human beings, I think. Everybody in the family, all of the characters, are very well-written and very well-rounded. They are sort of in their own place of spiritual crisis because of what's going on with the family, and Joan looks crazy. They don't know what is going on.”
Is prime-time television the place for discussion of God?
She notes, “I think it's not a coincidence that there are so many shows that have been coming out and people talking about spirituality.” People have compared “Joan of Arcadia” to "Touched by an Angel"
Tamblyn continues, “One thing that attracted me to the show was there was no definition for it. When I read it, I said, 'There's no way I can explain the show to somebody.' They're going to have to watch it and get their own meaning out of it.”
Tamblyn is best known for her portrayal of Emily Quartermaine on the daytime drama "General Hospital." The role, which she originated in 1995, was set for only a few months but it turned into a seven-year stint as she won viewers' hearts, critical acclaim and two consecutive Hollywood Reporter Young Star Awards as Best Young Actress in a Daytime Series.
Now that she is in primetime, she says the experience she acquired working for the soap is paying off.
She says, “Soap operas are sort of a condensed version of a prime-time show, because you do 37 scenes a day, 60 pages of dialogue, a different show every day year-round. You come to primetime, you do like eight pages max, four scenes a day, so it's a piece of cake. You're really well-oiled and prepared. Seven-year run has prepared me.”
Her prime-time television credits include guest-starring roles in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "The New Twilight Zone," and "Boston Public," as well as "CSI: Miami" and "Without a Trace," on CBS. She also appeared in the short Showtime film "Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet."
Her most recent film credit is the thriller "The Ring."
Her father is veteran actor Russ Tamblyn, best known for his roles in "West Side Story," "Seven Brides For Seven Brothers," and "Father Of The Bride."
© MMIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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ABOUT THE CAST
Joe Mantegna as Will Girardi
Joe Mantegna earned a Tony Award for his performance as Richard Roma in David Mamet's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, "Glengarry Glen Ross." His additional Broadway credits include the role of Bobby Gould in Mamet's "Speed-the-Plow" and a role in the musical "Working," in which he made his Broadway debut. In his hometown of Chicago, Mantegna also starred in the Mamet plays "A Life in the Theatre" and "The Disappearance of the Jews," both
at the Goodman Theatre. He directed Mamet's "Lakeboat" in Los Angeles and later made his feature-film directorial debut with "Lakeboat," based on Mamet's screenplay. Mantegna also conceived and co-authored the Off Broadway play "Bleacher Bums," which was subsequently produced for television and earned him an Emmy Award.
Mantegna made his feature-film debut in "Compromising Positions" and has since starred in the David Mamet films "House of Games," "Things Change" and "Homicide," in roles that Mamet created specifically for him, as well as in "Alice," "Celebrity," "The Godfather III," "Bugsy," "Searching for Bobby Fischer," "Liberty Heights,"
"Forget Paris," "Suspect," "Up Close and Personal," "The Money Pit," "Weeds," "Baby's Day Out," "Airheads," "Queens Logic," "Wait Until Spring, Bandini" and "An Eye for an Eye." He also stars in the upcoming films "Uncle Nino" and "Stateside" and will be seen in the title role in "Pontormo," which is based on the life of the Italian Renaissance painter.
Mantegna's television credits include the cable films "The Rat Pack," for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award for his portrayal of Dean Martin, as well as "State of Emergency," "A Call to Remember," "My Little Assassin," "The Water Engine," "Boy Meets Girl," "Jerry and Tom" and a series of films based on Robert Parker's Spenser novels, including "Small
Vices," "Thin Air" and "Walking Shadow." He earned an Emmy Award nomination for his role in the mini-series "The Last Don," based on Mario Puzo's best-selling novel, on CBS, and he also starred in its sequel, "The Last Don II," also on CBS. He starred as well in the CBS series "First Monday." His voice can be heard in his recurring role as Fat Tony in "The Simpsons," and he starred as the voice of the Boatman in the animated
feature "The Trumpet of the Swan."
Mantegna was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago and lives in Los Angeles. His birth date is November 13.
Mary Steenburgen as Helen Girardi
Mary Steenburgen, an established film, television and stage actress, earned an Academy Award for her role in "Melvin and Howard." Her additional film credits include "Philadelphia," "Parenthood," "What's Eating Gilbert Grape," "The Grass Harp," "Wish You Were Dead," "Nobody's Baby," "Back to the Future III," "Time After Time," "A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy," "Cross Creek,"
"One Magic Christmas," "Dead of Winter," "End of the Line," "Hope Springs," "Sunshine State" and "Life as a House." She recently completed production on the upcoming films "Elf" and "Casa de Los Babys."
In 2002, Steenburgen starred with her husband, Ted Danson, in the mini-series "Talking to Heaven," on CBS. They had previously worked together in 1996 in the mini-series "Gulliver's Travels" and in the 1994 feature film "Pontiac Moon," as well as in the CBS series "Ink." They will also star together in the upcoming CBS television movie "Surviving Love." Steenburgen's additional
television credits include the mini-series "Noah's Ark" and the CBS movie "About Sarah."
Her theater credits include the Broadway productions of "Candida" and "Holiday," the Off Broadway production of "The Beginning of August" and, most recently, "Marvin's Room" at the Tiffany Theater in Los Angeles.
Born in Newport, Arkansas, Steenburgen was raised in Little Rock and lives in Los Angeles. Her birth date is February 8.
Amber Tamblyn as Joan Girardi
Amber Tamblyn is best known for her portrayal of Emily Quartermaine in the daytime drama "General Hospital." The role, which she originated in 1995, was set to last for only a few months, but it turned into a seven-year stint as she won viewers' hearts, critics' acclaim, and two consecutive Hollywood Reporter Young Star Awards as Best Young Actress in a Daytime Series.
Her primetime television credits include guest-starring roles in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "The New Twilight Zone" and "Boston Public," as well as CSI: MIAMI and WITHOUT A TRACE on CBS. She also appeared in the short Showtime film "Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet."
Tamblyn's most recent film credit is the thriller "The Ring."
Her father is veteran actor Russ Tamblyn ("West Side Story," "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," "Tom Thumb" and "Twin Peaks"). She was born and raised in Los Angeles, where she lives. Her birth date is May 14.
Jason Ritter as Kevin Girardi
Jason Ritter's feature-film credits include "Mumford," "Swimfan" and a starring role in the upcoming "Freddy vs. Jason."
Among his television credits are guest-starring roles in HACK, on CBS, "Law & Order" and "Law & Order: SVU," as well as a role in the movie "The Dreamer of Oz."
His theater credits include the Off Broadway production of "The Beginning of August," which also starred Mary Steenburgen, and the role of Tim in the world premiere of Neil LaBute's play "The Distance from Here" at London's Almeida Theatre.
Ritter is a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where he studied at the Atlantic Theatre Company. He also studied at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. He is the son of actors John Ritter and Nancy Morgan and the grandson of famed film cowboy Tex Ritter.
He was born and raised in Los Angeles, where he currently lives. His birth date is February 17.
Michael Welch as Luke Girardi
Michael Welch's first acting role was as young Niles in the series "Frasier" in 1998. His television credits have since included lead roles in the movies "Personally Yours" and "The Ballad of Lucy Whipple," on CBS, and guest-starring roles in the series "Malcolm in the Middle," "The X-Files," "Stargate SG-1" and "The Norm Show," as well as the CBS series "Chicago Hope," CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION, JUDGING
AMY and "Ladies Man."
His ability to perform believable accents landed him such parts as a British boy in "7th Heaven," a southerner in the independent film "Angel Doll" and a New Zealander in the animated television movie "Rocket Power Race Across New Zealand." He was the voice of Pinocchio in the animated productions of "House of Mouse" and the special "Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed In at the House
of Mouse," and he had recurring roles in the animated series "Fillmore," "Hey Arnold!" and "Lloyd in Space." His additional film credits include "Star Trek: Insurrection" and "United States of Leland."
In addition to his acting career, Welch is currently taking independent college courses, writing a one-man show and volunteering for the organization Kids with a Cause, for which young celebrities work with less fortunate and ill children.
He was born and is being raised in Los Angeles. His birth date is July 25.
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