Ayda Field Movies
Actress Ayda Field first came to public attention via her inclusion in the long-running Days of Our Lives soap opera, on NBC, but soon began to specialize in comedic roles that showcased her extreme versatility with characterizations. She graduated to prime time via participation in the Jeff Foxworthy-Bill Engvall-Larry the Cable Guy sketch comedy series Blue Collar TV, which premiered in 2004. Field continued to land supporting roles in series pilots over the next several years, many of which cropped up and subsequently failed to blossom into successful series -- including the Aaron Sorkin ensemble comedy drama Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (2006). In 2007, however, Field also landed a plum role on the Kelsey Grammer/Patricia Heaton sitcom Back to You, as Hispanic meteorologist Montana Diaz Herrera. Meanwhile, Field continued to tackle feature work on the side, signing on for a small role in the Adam Sandler-produced, Steve Zahn-headlined comedy Strange Wilderness (2008). ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
A pair of animal enthusiasts desperate to boost the ratings of their failing television series "Strange Wilderness" set out for the Andes in search of the elusive Bigfoot in this comedy directed by Fred Wolf and starring Justin Long, Steve Zahn, Kevin Heffernan, and Ernest Borgnine. Peter Gaulke (Zahn) and Fred Wolf (Allen Covert) are the energetic hosts of "Strange Wilderness" -- television's most unconventional nature show. When the ratings take a nosedive and they are confronted with cancellation, Peter finds himself resorting to desperate measures in order to stay on the air. Perhaps if the "Strange Wilderness" crew could somehow track down the most elusive creature ever to stalk the woodlands, they could keep their show on the air and go down in history as the adventurers who solved one of nature's greatest mysteries. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Zahn, Allen Covert, (more)
Fox's Back to You was a tailor-made vehicle for two sitcom favorites, Frasier's Kelly Grammer and Everybody Loves Raymond's Patricia Heaton. Grammer was cast as vainglorious TV news anchor Chuck Darling, who after publicly humiliating himself with an internet tirade lost his job with a prestigious big-market station, and found himself right back where he started at Pittsburgh's WURG-TV. While Chuck had been away from Pittsburgh, his former co-anchor Kelly Carr (Heaton) had become a star and "news diva" in her own right. Now Chuck and Kelly were forcibly teamed again by the WURG management, and neither was happy over the arrangement. Much of the series' humor arose from the backstage squabbling between these two giant egos, which often focused on Chuck's reputation as a womanizer and Kelly's habit of playing "Ms. Know-It-All". Like most sitcoms of this nature, Back to You boasted a large supporting ensemble: Josh Gad as neurotic news director Ryan Church, Fred Willard as dunderhead sports anchor Marsh McGinley, Ayda Field as well-endowed weatherperson Montana Stevens, Ty Burrell as accident-prone field reporter Gary Crezyewski (pronounced Kre-Shoov-Ski), and Laura Marano as Kelly's 10-year-old daughter Gracie. Originally titled Action News, Back to You made its network bow on September 19, 2007. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kelsey Grammer, Patricia Heaton, (more)
- 2006
One of the two NBC series debuting in the fall of 2006 which took place backstage at a Saturday Night Live-style comedy show (the other was 30 Rock), Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip was the brainchild of The West Wing's Aaron Sorkin. This weekly, hour-long dramedy concerned itself with the million-and-one intrigues behind the hallowed walls of the fictional "NBS" network, where ambitious new president Jordan McDeere (Amanda Peet) was determined to pump fresh blood into the network's anemic Prime Time schedule. Over the objections of imperious NBS chairman Jack Rudolph (Steve Weber), McDeere rehired writer Matt Albie (Matthew Perry) and director Danny Tripp (Bradley Whitford), who had been fired from the staff of the network's weekly ensemble-comedy offering "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" two years before. It was hoped that Albie and Danny could save the flagging property from cancellation, a formidable task in that "Studio 60" was already collapsing from within thanks to a surfeit of egotism and ill-will. For head writer Matt Albie, the challenge was doubly difficult: it so happened that "Studio 60"'s star Harriet Hayes (Sarah Paulson) was his former lover. Fortunately, Matt and Cal worked together so harmoniously that it would seem that Jordan McDeere's strategy for rescuing her network from oblivion was sheer brilliance. . .maybe. Other regulars included D.L.. Hughley and Nathan Corddry, respectively, as popular "Studio 60" cast members Simon Styles and Tom Jeter. Filled to overflowing with smart-and-savvy inside references to the state of network TV in the first decade of the 21st century (many of the "jokes" were at the expense of the series' host network NBC), Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip premiered September 18, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matthew Perry, Bradley Whitford, (more)
- 2004
Each of the 33 episodes in the first season of WB's redneck sketch-comedy series Blue Collar TV center around a basic theme: typical titles include "Family" (the opener), "Naked", "TV", "Bad Jobs", "Marriage", "Vacations", "Sports", "Funerals", "Pets", "Bad Habits", "Dating" and "Testosterone" (which really must have been a mouthful for the barely literate characters played by the series' talented comedy troupe). Three carryovers from the popular "Blue Collar Comedy Tour", Jeff Foxworthy, Larry the Cable Guy and Bill Engvall, appear in every episode, while the fourth "Blue Collar" headliner, Ron White, shows up as a guest star. Likewise guesting are such country-music favorites as Travis Tritt and Leanne Rimes, not to mention a few folks not normally seen in "yahoo country", notably Drew Carey. In addition to such recurring bits as "Redneck Dictionary" and "You May Be a Redneck If. . .", the show serves up such one-shot skits as "400 Pounds of Intervention" and "House of Gravy Restaurant." When all was said and done, Blue Collar TV averaged an audience of 1.3 million viewers throughout its first season, darn good for a WB network show! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
