November 2006 News Archive (Page 3)

“Do you want my pickle?”

That's the question posed by Eric Dane, a.k.a. Dr. Mark “McSteamy” Sloan, a plastic surgeon known for his strategically placed towel, and one who's been heating up the halls of Seattle Grace on the new season of Grey's Anatomy.

In this week's TV Guide, Dane is actually waving a cucumber at Kate Walsh, who shares the magazine's cover with him, and who plays the woman he lusts after, Addison Montgomery. In response to his pickle inquiry, Walsh shoots him a sour look. Mark lets his pickle fall limply back into his lunch sack.

Dane, 34, walks from the set, strokes the “scraggly old beard” he grew for the role, and grins.

“This,” he declares, “is some of the greatest writing on television. How often can you offer somebody your pickle and actually have it mean the dill pickle that came with your deli sandwich?”

The return of Mark, the hard-to-resist hottie who broke up Addison and Derek's marriage, has added yet another twist to the soapy surgical show.

“It means Addison gets to have some sex, which is awesome!” says creator Shonda Rhimes. “It also allows her to confront her past, which will be interesting to watch. Mark, the original bad boy, is struggling with his own demons. He brings a healthy serving of mystery and potential conflict to Seattle Grace.”

Not to mention a heaping helping of rumpled bedsheets. McSteamy has already done the McNasty with Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez) and seems intent on getting Meredith out of her scrubs.

“Very often people have sex with other people when the people they love aren't available,” says executive producer Betsy Beers. “And as Eric has said about his character, he's a guy who doesn't like to sleep alone.”

Hey, no one ever called it Grey's Monogamy.

Continue Reading...

We all know Patrick Dempsey is the sexiest man alive. In the eyes of millions of Grey's Anatomy fans, it's no contest.

But apparently another handsome gentleman - one who used to play a hot doctor on TV - has edged Patrick out for People Magazine's annual honor.

Yes, former ER star George Clooney was named Sexiest Man Alive by People for the second time. But Patrick still made the magazine's cover (right), and is featured inside along with various other hunks. We'll take it. Being an also-ran isn't shabby when you're going up against the likes of Clooney and Brad Pitt.

Patrick, 40, is married to stylist and cosmetics executive Jillian Fink Dempsey. They have a (very cute) 4-year-old daughter, Tallulah, and Jillian is currently pregnant again -- with twins!

The former teen heart throb is enjoying his second go-around with fame and has a sense of humor about his sudden burst of sexiness.

"This is so funny. I'm a hunky guy now," he says. "How did that happen?"

This post is for all you MerDer and McDreamy fans who can't get enough of our favorite stars... or who want to save $30 on a purchase of $75!

By popular demand, here are a few more shots from the New York & Company marketing campaign featuring Ellen Pompeo (who got engaged to Chris Ivery over the weekend) and her on-screen love, Patrick Dempsey.

Many thanks to Kat for sending us these! These two really make a cute couple - even if both are happy with their off-screen significant others.

This week proved yet another extremely difficult Caption Contest. At least as far as picking the winner. Since there was a prize up for grabs once again, fans brought their A games... not to mention some jokes about rods and other fishing humor, references to George Clooney, and even a blatant plea for a free CD (nice try, Sarah)!

We've looked over the list of entries, and determined that Kimmy is the winner by the slimmest of margins. Nice job! Contact us at steve@greysanatomyinsider.com to claim your prize as soon as you can!

Kimmy has won a copy of Joe Purdy's album, Julie Blue (right), which has a pair of songs heard on Grey's Anatomy, "I Love the Rain" and "Far Away Blues." Due to popular demand, we are giving away one more copy this week as well. So get cracking!

You can read the winning caption below the image, and scroll down the page to read all 64 entries we received. Thanks to all who participated, because all of the captions we got really are great. We appreciate it, and wish you the best of luck again this week!

Here's this week's Caption Contest image...

"The pig and the chicken, it’s like the fish and the worm: the worm is involved ... wait, the fish is ... no, that’s not right. Maybe that analogy doesn’t work. I thought I had that, seriously!"

Katherine Heigl wants to know when she’s going to get some action.

After seeing the other characters on Grey's Anatomy ride a perpetual roller coaster of hookups, breakups and makeup sex, Heigl went to her boss, show creator Shonda Rhimes, and asked why she's been left out.

“I said, ‘Why doesn’t Izzie get any action?’

"She said, ‘Izzie doesn’t sleep around,’" Heigl told the New York Post. "The writers incorporate a lot of our own personalities into the characters. I cook, I bake, I knit. Izzie’s the super moral version of me."

As the heart and soul of this increasingly sex-filled series, Heigl has to take the high road - because nobody else on the show knows where it is.

Almost midway through the show’s third season, Izzie has now become the show’s heroine. It used to be Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), queen of the romantic dilemmas. But lately, she’s been a little dopey, what with the endless McDreamy soliloquies and all.

Then Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh) was in the spotlight, when it was revealed that she had a heart under her cutthroat exterior. As they go on the back burner, Izzie is a welcome, calming presence, despite the devastation she endured when she failed to save her patient and fiance, Denny Duquette.

After nearly derailing her career by violating hospital rules with regard to his care, Izzie, said Heigl, was not cut out to be a doctor. But the writers on Grey’s Anatomy disagreed and gave Dr. Stevens a second chance.

“At the beginning of the season they were trying to show how lost Izzie was. She lost her optimism. She realizes now that life is difficult, but she still tries very hard to see the best in people,” Heigl said.

Besides the formidable Dr. Bailey (Chandra Wilson), Izzie seems to be the only adult intern at Seattle Grace. Her character has achieved a depth lacking in her fellow interns.

“Denny’s death matured Izzie in a very sobering way,” says Betsy Beers, the show’s supervising executive producer. “She’s marked for life.”

When Izzie is feeling more confident, Heigl hopes she will eventually Izzie have a relationship with Alex Karev (Justin Chambers).

“I believe on some level, there’s a connection between Izzie and Alex,” she said. “He can do honorable things even though he’s cutting and sarcastic. I would like to ultimately see them together, if not this season, then next. Initially, she was trying to change him too much.”

Despite all of Izzie’s tragedies, Heigl is relishing her moment in the sun and the show’s incredible popularity.

“It’s so satisfying. It sucks being on a show that no one watches,” she said. “The roles for women are really great on television and they really don’t have that in film. You’re lucky if you get to play the girlfriend.”

Below are two more pictures of Ellen Pompeo and fiance Chris Ivery taken last Friday, the day of their engagement and also Ellen's birthday.

Nothing new to report, just thought we'd pass along a few more shots of the happy couple that a fan was kind enough to send in to us! 

A fan from Illinois wrote today to inform us that one of her state's most famous residents will be paying a visit to the set of Grey's Anatomy.

That's right, Oprah Winfrey herself will be getting together with the cast and hosting a Grey's Anatomy special this Friday, November 17. This episode of Oprah's show is considered "a coast-to-coast fan party!"

This should be exciting as we rarely receive a glimpse behind the scenes and into the lives of Ellen Pompeo, Patrick Dempsey and the rest of our favorite actors and actresses. Set your TiVo/VCR if you can't watch it live!

Ellen Pompeo and Chris Ivery, her boyfriend of nearly three years, are officially engaged, Us Weekly reports.

Ivery, 38, proposed on Friday -- which was Pompeo's 37th birthday -- with a 3.5-carat emerald-cut diamond and platinum ring by Tacori.

That's quite the birthday gift, but their relationship is laid-back. Chris popped the question after breakfast at home, and following that, he and Ellen proceeded to celebrate with a fairly low-key day.

"We had a great day," Pompeo told People. "We walked on the beach, then we came home, took a shower and went out for sushi. Then we laid on the couch with the dogs and watched TV."

Pompeo has risen to fame as Meredith Grey on Grey’s Anatomy. She has also starred in various movies, including Old School and Moonlight Mile. Ivery is a music producer she met in an L.A. grocery store, and though Pompeo wasn't interested in a date originally, she agreed to go out with Ivery when they bumped into each other again six months later.

That's when they discovered that they grew up 10 miles from each other outside of Boston and that Chris knew Ellen's father.

"I had to go 3,000 miles away to meet a guy who practically grew up next door," Pompeo told the Boston Herald last year. "But I guess everything comes full circle."

Although the couple has not yet set a date or location for the big day, the romantic European destination of Italy might be a good guess.

"My boyfriend and I travel to Italy quite often and I think that’s always the most romantic for us," Pompeo told Us earlier this year. "We went to Bologna and he has family there and I think that’s our favorite place."

Congratulations to the happy couple! It's great that Ellen is happy with her real-life McDreamy. Below is a picture a fan sent us of the two of them taken on the day of their engagement!

This week on the Round Table, male bonding is off the charts in the forest, an enraged Bailey strikes back against Cristina, and Mark offers some friendly advice to Meredith ...

Will Dr. Burke and Dr. Shepherd become true friends?

McCritic: No. They each have too much pride to open up to the other as true friends must. They may bond over a surgery, it's possible they give one another knowing intern-loving winks ... but Dr. Shepherd will never have the running, cooking, coffee canoodling relationship with Dr. Burke that George enjoys.

iheartizzie: My gut reaction is that these guys are far too different, evasive, and arrogant at times to make a lasting friendship works. But Derek needs a group of guy friends, and Burke seems willing to be the flagship member. A self-proclaimed kind and decent person, and one with an assortment of interests, Preston will worm his way into Derek's inner circle one day.

AwayWithMerDer: Absolutely. I think it's time Derek got some new guy friends. I'm pretty sure Dr. Burke will never sleep with Derek's future wife (Meredith of course) behind his back. It's time to open your heart again, Derek.

How much do you love the Chief?

AwayWithMerDer: The Chief was easily the most entertaining character during the camping trip. From his picnic basket to inviting himself to sleep with Joe and his boyfriend. What a ridiculous man.

McCritic: More than Callie loves dancing in her underwear.

iheartizzie: More than ever. Richard is as flawed and overwhelmed by the real world as he is talented inside the operating rooms of Seattle Grace, giving his character a real authenticity that we rarely saw in Season 1 or Season 2.

His awkward, but supportive babbling upon realizing that Joe and Walter are gay was one of the show's funniest moments as well. "Man love!"

Continue Reading...

Last night's episode, "Where The Boys Are," was a good one -- funny and serious at times, and certainly emotive and revealing as far as our beloved characters go.

Our official episode guide is complete, and you can read it by following the link above. To talk about the episode with fellow fans, follow this link to our OFFICIAL FORUM THREAD.

Let us know what you thought of Bailey and Cristina, Mark the man-slut, the guys' trip to the woods, and anything else from tonight that struck you. We want to hear what you think!

As always we'll have our staff Round Table discussion up on Friday. However, our Caption Contest winner will be announced on its new day, Monday, and the next edition of the contest will begin then as well.

We've put together our lists of quotes, pictures and music (with lyrics) from this episode as well. Enjoy, and let us know if there's anything we missed.

Thanks, as always, for visiting Grey's Anatomy Insider! Enjoy!