NBC�S �THIRD WATCH� ADDS CARA BUONO AND JOSH STEWART AS SERIES REGULARS AND FEATURES AIDAN QUINN AS GUEST STAR IN FOUR-EPISODE ARC EARLY IN NEW SEASON

NBC'S 'THIRD WATCH' ADDS CARA BUONO AND JOSH STEWART AS SERIES REGULARS AND FEATURES AIDAN QUINN AS GUEST STAR IN FOUR-EPISODE ARC EARLY IN NEW SEASON

Actor-Director Charles Haid ("Hill Street Blues") Also Guest-Stars Over Three Episodes as Head of Internal Affairs Bureau

BURBANK, Calif. �- August 24, 2004 -- NBC's "Third Watch" (Fridays, 10-11 p.m. ET) has added Cara Buono ("Hulk") and newcomer Josh Stewart ("Jekyll") as series regulars -- and will also feature Aidan Quinn ("Legends of the Fall") who will guest-star as a tough police lieutenant for four episodes beginning in the new season's second episode.

Likewise, Emmy Award nominee actor-director Charles Haid will guest-star in three related episodes as the intense head of the N.Y.P.D.'s Internal Affairs Bureau.

Buono has already guest-starred in two episodes of the police/first-responder series from last spring. She will continue to portray Grace Foster, an arrogant, know-it-all paramedic who has alienated her colleagues. Buono comes to "Third Watch" from the independent film world, where she has starred in such features as "Next Stop Wonderland," Chutney Popcorn," and "Two Ninas." She also starred in Ang Lee's "Hulk."

Buono's other notable television appearances include two critically acclaimed episodes of "Law and Order," "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "Deep in My Heart," a CBS/Hallmark movie in which she played a young Anne Bancroft, and "In a Class of His Own," with Joan Chen for producer Wendy Finerman and Showtime/Hallmark Productions

Stewart will play Shawn Finney, a new, no-nonsense police officer who joins the 55th Precinct force and hails from a family of cops � including a father (portrayed by Haid) who heads the Internal Affairs Bureau. He stars in the upcoming feature film "Jekyll." In addition, Stewart guest-starred in an episode of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" in April 2004.

The veteran Quinn portrays a stern taskmaster who arrives in the police precinct to clean up a maverick Anti-Crime squad � and might prove to be harboring his own dark secret. Quinn first found fame in the feature film "Desperately Seeking Susan" and made history soon after when he starred in NBC's landmark "An Early Frost" in 1985 � the first television movie or feature film to address the rising specter of HIV-AIDS. He went on to star in "The Mission" (opposite Robert De Niro), "Avalon," and "Benny & Joon."

In 1994, Quinn starred with Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins in the hit film "Legends of the Fall" and continued on the big screen in "Michael Collins," "Practical Magic," and "Music of the Heart." Among Quinn's television movies are "Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor," and "See You in My Dreams."

Haid gained famed for his Emmy-nominated role as the blustery Officer Andy Renko on "Hill Street Blues" before transforming his skills to become an accomplished television director on such series as "ER" (which earned him a Director's Guild Award for television drama), "The Guardian" and "Third Watch." Recently, his voice was heard on the Disney animated feature film "Home on the Range," and his other films include "Who'll Stop the Rain" and "The Choirboys." Among his TV movies are "The Fire Next Time," "Cooperstown," "The Dreamer of Oz" and "In the Line of Duty: A Cop for the Killing." Haid also was a series regular in "Delvecchio" and "Kate McShane."

"Third Watch" � now entering its sixth season � is a John Wells Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. John Wells, Christopher Chulack, and Edward Allen Bernero are the executive producers.