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Reel News Tim Ryan |
Chuck Norris’
TV series moves
closer to launchChuck Norris' Oahu-based action television series is one step closer to a done deal, with NBC executives evaluating the script they received a week ago.
Norris and his producer-brother Aaron met with Gov. Linda Lingle last week to explain the storyline and how Hawaii will be featured. Aaron also met with Lt. Gov. James Aiona; Ted Liu, director of the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism; and Hawaii Film Office manager Donne Dawson.
"The Guard" will feature Norris as a Coast Guard commander. While brother Aaron visited Coast Guard facilities at Barbers Point, Sand Island and in the Prince Kuhio Federal Building, a spokesperson for the Guard said that "No contracts have been signed."
But the Norrises have made a deposit for use of the entire Hawaii Film Studio for more than four months, to film 22 episodes beginning July 23. Chuck and wife Gena have already leased a home here for six months.
NBC announces its fall lineup of new shows May 10, though word on the Norris show may arrive sooner. The deal would require a pilot episode.
The governor's spokesman, Lenny Klompus, described the meeting as "terrific." "Chuck talked about all the exciting possibilities to show off Hawaii to the world, hiring mostly local crew (and) focusing on the Coast Guard's importance in Hawaii."
The Norrises were accompanied by Cmdr. Jeff Loftus from the Coast Guard's motion picture division in Los Angeles. The brothers have declined public comment on the show until the deal is completed.
The series will be co-produced by the Norris brothers and Lions Gate Entertainment for a fall debut. Dave Peckinpah, nephew of the late Sam Peckinpah, wrote the first script.
The only other hurdle may be Chuck Norris' beard -- facial hair is prohibited under Coast Guard regulations -- but then, Texas Rangers have the same prohibition, and the actor found a way to keep his beard while filming the long-running CBS series "Walker, Texas Ranger."
The pilot for Hawaii's other pending TV series, "The Break" for Fox Television, is being evaluated by the network, which will announce a decision in early May.
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Contact Tim Ryan at tryan@starbulletin.com.