TeenTelevision Parties On with The WB

At the fancy Ritz Carlton hotel in Pasadena, California, WB stars gathered to give the press the latest news on their current TV shows and upcoming brand new series. In a richly decorated but rather dark, atmospheric room (hey, what AM I eating anyway?) guests chowed down, mingled and chatted. Ah, blonde hair, tall and a great party dress with an interesting diamond cut-out in the back? Must be Rebecca Romijn.. you know, Jerry O'Connell's girlfriend and that sexy blue Mystique lady in X-Men? She's got a new comedy show on the WB Called "Pepper Dennis" in which she plays a TV reporter. Let's do our own reporting thing and get the story...

TeenTelevision: Hi Rebecca. Are you allowed to give the producers of "Pepper Dennis" any ideas for storylines?

Rebecca: Oh, I call him all the time [indicating one of her producers standing nearby]. I come up with all sorts of things that are probably way too specific. Like, at one point, I called him and said 'will you please put in a whole thing about men who wear flip flops because I really have an issue with that. 'Can we make sure Pepper can't stand it when men wear flip flops'? We really get down to the nitty gritty but I find it really therapeutic myself.

TeenTelevision: I dated a guy who wore flip flops to a fancy party. It's not pretty! [she laughs]. Was there any anchorwoman that you saw growing up that you decided you wanted to use as an example for this character?

Rebecca: I never watched the news with the thought in mind that I might one day play a news anchor but I really get a kick out of watching local news now.

At this point a photographer sweeps Rebecca away... Okay, whoa.. here comes that cutie Jenson Ackles who plays Dean Winchester on the spooky series "Supernatural". He looks pretty hot in his suit...

TeenTelevision: Hey Jensen, any news on upcoming episodes? Will your dad on the show be back? Any other cool guest stars?

Jensen: We've got our dad coming back. We're going to see more of him. We're really glad to have Jeffrey Dean Morgan back. He's a phenomenal actor and he's signed on to do multiple shows. We actually get to interact with our father in the episode we're filming now which is a huge step for us. Where that takes us, we're not sure but it's a step in the right direction, I think, as far as the show goes. The character of Meg played by Nikki Aycox is going to be coming back in a multiple story arc. Every episode will deal with a new threat.

TeenTelevision: So you'll learn more about the mythology?

Jensen: Yeah, behind Sam's character and behind the mom. That's going to start building toward the surface in the back nine episodes. Things are going to start coming together more.

TeenTelevision: Will they solve the big mystery by the end of the season?

Jensen: That I really don't know. I hope something great happens.

TeenTelevision: You don't want to give too much away.

Jensen: Yeah, it's important in series television, to keep something out; keep the audience wanting more. It could also be a [mistake] to drag it out season after season. I know that things will be resolved.

TeenTelevision: How is your relationship with Jared Padalecki? You guys didn't really know each other before the series started, right?

Jensen: Jared's great. I'm thrilled to be working with him and that we got cast as brothers because we are very much like brothers off screen as well. We're very close friends. I'm a little bit older than him so I do feel kind of like a big brother to him but, at the same time, just as equal as well. He's a mature, smart kid and a very talented actor. He's someone I can lean on when I have to.

TeenTelevision: Do you hang out off set and get into trouble?

Jensen: [laughs]. A little bit. We get into our own bit of trouble every now and again but they keep us so busy up there in Vancouver. With only two people as the cast members of a show, the workload is quite taxing. It's enough to keep us out of trouble somewhat... but I won't say all the time.

TeenTelevision: Do you guys suggest scary myths to your producers?

Jensen: Well, I definitely think that Jared and I have contributed a lot to the show in addition to playing the roles. But, having the time to come up with another myth is hard. I'm going to leave that to the creators and writers. Jared and I are just trying to make it interesting and look cool.

TeenTelevision: Are you thinking of doing a movie while on hiatus maybe?

Jensen: Absolutely. I'm looking at scripts now. The things that are casting in the next month or two are going to be filming in the time I'll have off. Hopefully I'll find a project I really respond to.

We thanked Jenson and decided to explore the "Beauty and the Geek" party put on by Producer Ashton Kutcher in an adjoining room. Hey, it's really light in here.. everything is white and bright. Oooo a free T-shirt with a Geek on it. Who is that over by the pool table in the corner with the pretty brunette on his arm? It's the other Winchester brother Jared Padalecki.

TeenTelevision: Hi, Jared. Okay, we talked to Jensen. He says no time for cutting up and getting into trouble for you guys. True?

Jared: On or off set? [at this point, dark-haired Milo Ventimiglia, soon to be seen in another WB show "The Bedford Diaries" and formerly of "Gilmore Girls" joins us].

TeenTelevision: Both.

Jared: We're going to have Milo here come by and be crazy cousin Vinnie with an ever-cocked crossbow. He loves Van Halen. I'm making a phone call tomorrow. I need a cousin helper, man! I think you're perfect. He can ride in the back seat. Let's get this party started!

Milo: [going with it] I can have a pompadour. Get a comb and put it in my hair.

TeenTelevision: I would so watch that! So Jared, what's your fave "Supernatural" episode so far?

Jared: "Scarecrow" that just aired after the break. We thought it was a great show, one to be proud of and we had a great director, Kim Manners who is one of our producers and it introduces a character that's going to be on a couple more episodes and you see Sam and Dean butting heads for several episodes. They finally say 'this is enough', have some time apart and realize they love each other and will go back and be together because they're family. So, I really like that episode. They're still looking for their dad and it just overwhelms Sam and he goes after him. Real emotional stuff.

TeenTelevision: Have you had time to think of some villains to suggest?

Jared: I've thought of some stupid ones like "Jack Frost" but nothing good. I just say words on a page. I'm nowhere near the writer that [our staff] is.

TeenTelevision: What are you going to do on hiatus; a movie?

Jared: I'm not sure. I might spend a lot of time with my girlfriend here Sandy [very pretty brunette. We say 'hi]. And spend time with my dogs Harlie and Sadie. They are both rescues. One is like a German shepherd and one is a mastiff basically.

TeenTelevision: So, where did you and Sandy [Sandra McCoy] meet?

Jared: We met on a film we did called Cry Wolf so we've been together for almost two years. That's my mark so I've got to break up with her. That's my cut off point. I can take a hint.

[At this point, Sandy is laughing and glaring at him]

TeenTelevision: Will you guys do another movie together?

Jared: That would be fun I think.

We let the two go cuddle somewhere and step up to Milo who has been listening to our exchange. In his new show "The Bedford Diaries" he plays a college student in a Human Behavior and Sexuality seminar that requires the students to report on their sex lives.. hummmm

TeenTelevision: Hey Milo, so you're going to leave your new show and go guest on Jared's show?

Milo: No, just kidding. I'm friends with all the guys over at Wonderland, Mc G's company and we've joked around about it. Nothing really set.

TeenTelevision: Do your "Bedford Diaries" producers let you suggest ideas for your show?

Milo: They look to the actors as much as we look to them to drive the ship. If we've got ideas, they want to nurture them and they give us the opportunity to say 'hey, we know a couple of things about the character' so they're going to let us contribute.

TeenTelevision: You also have a big movie coming up, the sequel to all the "Rocky" films, Rocky Six.. [He plays Rocky's son].

Milo: We're still shooting it. I've got to go back to Philadelphia tomorrow.

TeenTelevision: How is working on that with Sly Stallone?

Milo: It's a lot of fun. He knows exactly what he wants to do with the shots and is directing and writing it. It's fifteen years later. The character is 27. I'm 28. The character is all there on the page. That's what's nice about a guy who is a talented writer as well as an actor and everything. There's not many questions you have to ask but, at the same time, he wants to know that you're comfortable in the role; wearing the clothes that this guy is wearing and saying the words he's saying and he's not, in any way, unsupportive with how you feel about something. He wants to know what you are thinking. That's only going to make the character and the project stronger.

TeenTelevision: What kinds of music do you listen to when you kick back?

Milo: A lot of different stuff; a lot of stuff you'll never hear of. If I told you I'd probably offend a lot of people..

TeenTelevision: Ooookay. Best of luck on that film and with the new show.

We spy Beverly Mitchell who plays minister/mom Lucy on "7th Heaven" talking with friends. She's looking very un-minister-like in a hot satin dress.

TeenTelevision: Hi Beverly. What's next for you? Do you have anything lined up moviewise after being in Saw 2?

Beverly: Not yet. We're still shooting "7th Heaven".

TeenTelevision: Will you try for something else controversial or different from your Lucy part?

Beverly: I'm just looking to work. I'm not all that picky.

TeenTelevision: What can you tell me about Lucy that's coming up on the show?

Beverly: Well, she's just being a mom and a minister and working with teens. There's a little bit more emphasis on that teen outreach work.

We thank Bev and head to the door for a word with John Schneider who plays Jonathan Kent, dad to Tom Welling's Clark Kent on "Smallville". Does this guy have a portrait of Dorian Gray stashed in his closet? He looks as good as he did way back in the day when he co-starred on TV in "The Dukes of Hazzard".

TeenTelevision: Do you and Tom have a pal relationship or more dad and son in real life?

John: I love working with Tom. We have a remarkable relationship in regard to the father and son bit. We're both big guys and peers in many respects but, when we get right down to it, the relationship you see on "Smallville" is very much like the relationship we have. My own son is fourteen and I'll have that relationship in a couple of years but I don't have that yet. Tom and I Blackberry back and forth all the time.

John heads over to the food tables. Back into the all white "Beauty and the Geek" party room where two "geeks" (hey they look pretty cute to me) Josh, a curly-haired reviewer for college magazines who has anxiety attacks when he meets a gorgeous girl and Tyson, an Asian-American with a bachelor's degree in astrophysics from Cal Tech, are posing behind a cut out of a beauty and a geek for a photo. Josh wears a crown as the girl. Tyson held the record for the fastest solving of a Rubik's Cube while blindfolded. Unfortunately, he was just beaten at the skill by a friend. Okay..geeks in crowns? We've seen enough. These guys are two to watch! Stay tuned for more TV star scoops as they come our way.

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Lynn Barker is a Hollywood-based entertainment journalist and produced screenwriter.