Cast News (Page 5)

When it comes to his upcoming wedding to actress Katherine Heigl, singer / songwriter Josh Kelley is letting his fiancée handle the wedding planning.

"I'm kind of a part of it," Kelley says about planning the upcoming nuptials to Heigl. "But I think [Katherine] has got a pretty good handle on it."

Of his offer to help, he recently told People magazine: "I said, 'Baby, you know, anything you want me to help with, I got it.' But you know, other than that, what am I really gonna do? 'The tulips need to go over here?!' I don't know!"

Josh Kelley and Katherine Heigl will wed next month.

When he was asked if the music list for the wedding will include his song "Only You," which might be nostalgic for the couple who met while filming the song's video, the singer seemed unsure... then warmed up to the idea.

"No, probably not," he says. "I might get up and play it, I don't know... Maybe I should tell the wedding band to learn that. That might be a good idea! Yeah, that's probably a really good idea!"

Well, you've got to like the enthusiasm.

Josh Kelley, 27, and Katherine Heigl, 28, who stars on Grey's Anatomy, got engaged in June 2006. They are planning to marry just before this Christmas.

In September of 2007, when reflecting on his engagement to Katherine, Josh Kelley talked about his changing priorities in life, saying "I'm ready to settle down, start a family and build my Kelley empire."

His new album, Special Company, is due out February 5.

Hey, #2 isn't so bad, right?

Leading the way for a talented Grey's Anatomy cast as well in several films - and most importantly, as husband to Jillian and father to Talula, Sullivan and Darby - Patrick Dempsey placed second on People magazine's annual Sexiest Man Alive list.

Patrick Dempsey narrowly lost out to Matt Damon, a fairly sexy fellow in his own right. But there's little question who our choice would have been at the Insider...

Patrick Dempsey: Second to none in the minds of Grey's Anatomy fans.

Matt Damon, a first-time father as of this year, remained coy about his win, saying, "You've given an aging suburban dad the ego boost of a lifetime."

The magazine cites Matt Damon's "irresistible sense of humor," "rock-solid family man" and "heart-melting humility" for landing him the sexiest title.

People's top 10 Sexiest Men Alive are, as follows:

1. Matt Damon
2. Patrick Dempsey
3. Ryan Reynolds
4. Brad Pitt
5. James McAvoy
6. Johnny Depp
7. Dave Annable
8. Will Smith
9. Javier Bardem
10. Shemar Moore

It looks like Ellen Pompeo had a lot more to celebrate last weekend than her 38th birthday! And we wondered what they were doing in New York.

The star of Grey's Anatomy and her longtime boyfriend/fiance, music producer Chris Ivery, quietly got married on Friday at New York's City Hall, where none other than Mayor Michael Bloomberg served as their witness.

Appropriately, Pompeo and Ivery got engaged almost exactly a year ago while celebrating the actress' 37th birthday. Ellen Pompeo, an Everett, Mass., native, repeatedly professed that she and Chris Ivery would prefer a quiet wedding.

And how low-key it was.

A city clerk performed the minutes-long ceremony with only Michael Bloomberg - like Pompeo and Ivery, a Boston-area native (he grew up in Medford, Mass.) - and First Deputy Mayor Patti Harris accompanying the couple.

Congratulations to Ellen Pompeo and Chris Ivery from all of us!

"They are over the moon," Ellen Pompeo's spokeswoman, Jennifer Allen, told the Boston Globe yesterday. The discreet newlyweds were spotted courtside at the New York Knicks game Sunday night at Madison Square Garden.

Ellen Pompeo was back in Hollywood yesterday filming Grey's Anatomy, which is expected to shut down production soon because of the writers' strike.

Each year, Barbara Walters hosts a special on ABC, interviewing the people that she deems the most fascinating people of that year. This year's show will air on December 6 and will feature Justin Timberlake, Jennifer Hudson, and Grey's Anatomy star Katherine Heigl as part of the 10 Most Fascinating.

Katherine Heigl certainly had an eventful year that put her in the spotlight. She starred in the movie Knocked Up with Seth Rogen, winning critical acclaim and doing extremely well commercially. She also won the 2007 Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her portrayal of Dr. Izzie Stevens.

Katherine Heigl also got engaged to singer/songwriter Josh Kelley, and their wedding is scheduled to take place next month, just before Christmas.

Of course, part of what makes Katherine Heigl fascinating is also controversial. While the rest of the Grey's Anatomy cast was tight-lipped during the infamous Isaiah Washington incident(s), Heigl was outspoken regarding the matter. Katherine has never been afraid to be anything but herself, that's for sure, for better or for worse.

Besides Heigl, Walters will also speak to Victoria and David Beckham, as well as former President Bill Clinton, the two masterminds behind MySpace, and many more. Last year, Barbara Walters dubbed one of Heigl's co-stars one of the most fascinating people of 2006 - the talented, handsome Patrick Dempsey.

James Pickens Jr.'s wife is hoping her husband of 23 years has a steamy affair. And she's already picked out the perfect woman to take part.

"I want him to be with one of those young girls, like Sara Ramirez," Gina Taylor Pickens tells USA Today over lunch with her Grey's Anatomy star husband.

"That would be perfect. Sara's Rubenesque, a hot Latina. The two of them together would burn that screen up."

She is, of course, speaking strictly about her husband's TV alter ego: Dr. Richard Webber, a.k.a. "The Chief," Seattle Grace's hospital administrator.

The character just split from his wife after his workload - coupled with a battle over their niece's cancer - took a toll on their fragile marriage.

"He was never at home," James Pickens, Jr., explains. "He was so dedicated to his job that his marriage evaporated right before his eyes and he never realized it. To try to balance your work with your family life is tough.

James Pickens, Jr., certainly knows this from experience.

He met Gina 27 years ago, when both were struggling actors on the New York theater scene. "I thought she was cute, and she gave me her number," he recalls. Their first date: a spring stroll through Central Park.

The two struggled financially for a few years, but James Pickens, Jr., believes "you gain strength in the struggle. We never veered from the focus of our careers, but also committed to staying together and building a family."

Before landing Grey's Anatomy, Pickens, 53, was recognized for recurring roles including those on "The X-Files," "Beverly Hills: 90210" and "Roseanne." There were also parts on the quickly canceled "Brooklyn South," "City of Angels," "Philly" and "The Lyon's Den," all leading up to his casting on the ABC medical hit.

This Thursday, Richard, whom Pickens says some Grey's fans have dubbed "McClassy" or "McChocolate," will bond further with Drs. McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey) and McSteamy (Eric Dane). The Chief has already moved to his own bachelor trailer into the woods alongside Patrick Dempsey's Derek Shepherd.

Though his character, Richard, has failed in marriage, his real-life wife commends him for balancing personal and professional lives.

"I wouldn't call him a workaholic," she says. "I would say he has a passion for whatever he is working on, but he is a very well-balanced guy."

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Just a quick note we received from one of our readers we thought we'd pass along - a one-hour biography of Patrick Dempsey is scheduled to air at 10 p.m. tomorrow (Wednesday) on Biography. Could be a great opportunity to get to know more about this former teen idol and current Grey's Anatomy heart throb.

Patrick Dempsey and Grey's Anatomy co-star Ellen Pompeo.

Not only does it look more and more as if the Hollywood writers' strike may cap Season Four of Grey's Anatomy at only 11 episodes, but leading man Patrick Dempsey now says the relationship that has kept viewers on the edge of their seats for three years may have finally reached its expiration date.

Patrick Dempsey tells TV Guide:

"The next couple of episodes are going to be completely different with what happens with Meredith and Derek... I'm looking forward to that change and that movement."

Dempsey, who was interviewed by TV Guide exclusively while he promoted his new movie, Enchanted, in Los Angeles November 4, says he is ready for his character, Dr. Derek Shepherd, to move on â€" potentially to the new character (reportedly to be played by Lauren Stamile) set to be brought in as his love interest.

"I just want the characters to continue to grow, and to work things out realistically," Patrick Dempsey said. "Derek and Meredith's relationship has gone as far as it can go. I don't think it's going to go unless she commits to marrying him or goes into therapy and starts working on herself. We'll have a cliffhanger with this last show and there will be a resolve that seems to be permanent."

Sara Ramirez didn't join the cast of Grey's Anatomy until Season Two and was not made a full-time cast member until the start of Season Three.

But Sara Ramirez's character of Dr. Callie Torres - recently promoted to Seattle Grace chief resident - sure is in the thick of things here in Season Four.

In fact, Calliope's turbulent love life has been getting a large part of the attention this season, thanks to a possible split from husband George O'Malley (T.R. Knight), who had an affair with his best friend Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl).

"Like all the characters on the show, I think Callie has her flaws, issues, hang-ups. We don't know all the ins-and-outs of why she truly was with George. I think there was a pure love there but I'm sure Callie has other issues behind clinging onto something that just isn't right," Ramirez told the Los Angeles Daily News.

While the role on Grey's Anatomy has made the Mexican-American hottie widely known to television audiences, the New York theater scene has been aware of Sara for some time now. In fact, Ramirez won the 2005 Tony Award for her performance as The Lady of the Lake in "Monty Python's Spamalot."

Sara Ramirez is certain she will return to the stage at some point.

"I consider New York and theater my home base, where I sort of grew up," she said. "I miss it and I hope they'll have me back whether it's a musical - it doesn't have to be on Broadway - or a play. I miss the theater, the whole symbiotic relationship between actor and audience and being on stage. The live factor."

As Dr. Erica Hahn, the heart surgeon who used to serve as a rival to Dr. Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington), Brooke Smith has now joined the fray full time. Here are excerpts from the actress' conversation with the Los Angeles Times ...

Question: So how did this come about - did you hatch some scheme with [Grey's Anatomy creator and executive producer] Shonda Rhimes?

Brooke Smith: No! I've been dabbling over there in Season 2 and Season 3. After every time I would hope they would call and also hope not too, kind of like when I used to be single. And they finally actually called!

Question: OK! So how's it going? Everyone is so unpleasant!

Brooke Smith: They are? You mean the characters.

Question: Indeed! A little gritty, a little narcissistic. . . .

Brooke Smith: Oh yeah. That.

Question: And your own is a little abrasive.

Brooke Smith: Yes. I've heard that word used before. What's the question?

Question: You're the first person to ever confront me on not asking questions. You must have been to a lot of therapy or something.

Brooke Smith: Oh, that was years ago, but I need to go back.

Question: Oh, we'll circle back to that. So?

Brooke Smith: [Erica Hahn] is a professional! She's a workaholic! She has little rules in her head about how you're supposed to act at work. That doesn't mean she can't break the rules. But everyone else is supposed to follow them.

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After several strong guest appearances over two years-plus, Brooke Smith is set to join the Grey's Anatomy cast as renowned heart surgeon Erica Hahn.

With her role cemented after last night, Brooke Smith talked with Michael Ausiello of TV Guide to discuss her character, what it's like to join such a talented ensemble, and whether or not Erica Hahn will be portrayed as a lesbian ...

TV Guide: Congratulations!
Brooke Smith: Thanks!

TV Guide: You must've had an idea this was coming.
Brooke Smith: Honestly, I wasn't expecting it, [probably] because I didn't want to be disappointed if it didn't end up happening. I thought it was really cool when TV Guide [floated the idea], because I thought, "Wow, I didn't even think of that!" And literally a couple days after we spoke, they called.

TV Guide: Did they come right out and offer a full-time gig? Or were they just offering another guest spot?
Brooke Smith: No, it was, "Hey, can you come full-time?" Thank God. I couldn't handle any more dabbling. It's too much. [Mock anguish] I feel like I want someone to commit to me already!

TV Guide: What was your first reaction?
Brooke Smith: You know, we were kind of excited. [Laughs] I say "we" because my husband and I were like, "Wow, OK." We had just finished [renovating our apartment] in New York, and put down a deposit on school for our little girl. But, aside from that, we just said, "All right, I guess we're moving to L.A. for a little while." But we're going back to New York at the end of this.

TV Guide: Do you like that Dr. Hahn is a little bit of an antagonist?
Brooke Smith: Yeah. I've heard people say [Dr. Hahn] is abrasive. [Laughs] Dr. Hahn is a workaholic and she's very professional and, you know, I think she feels that there should be professionalism at work, and when other people do things that aren't professional she gets a little upset.

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