Lifetime Television Kicks Off Fall Schedule With Academy Award(R) and Golden Globe(R) Award-Winning Actress Kim Basinger Starring in 'The Mermaid Chair,' Saturday, September 9 at 9PM (ET/PT)

Network Rolls Out Next Generation of Programming With Primetime Novela 'Bianca' (wt) Starring Rachel Ward, and Two New Reality Series 'Off The Leash' And "The Lisa Williams Project" (wt)

Sarah Chalke ('Scrubs') Headlines in 'Why I Wore Lipstick To My Mastectomy' During Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October

On Sister Network LMN, Danica Mckellar ('The Wonder Years') Stars in Original Movie 'Inspector Mom' Accompanied by Broadband Episodes on LMN.TV

NEW YORK, Aug. 8 -- Lifetime Television launches its fall season with a powerful Lifetime Original Movie event starring Academy Award(R) and Golden Globe(R) Award-winning actress Kim Basinger ("L.A. Confidential," "The Door in the Floor") as a restless wife and mother consumed with forbidden love for a Benedictine monk and the crisis and self-awakening it ignites within her in an adaptation of Sue Monk Kidd's explosive best seller, The Mermaid Chair. The movie airs during a special three-night premiere beginning Saturday, September 9 at 9PM, followed by encore presentations on Sunday, September 10 at 8PM and Monday, September 11 at 9PM. All times are ET/PT.

Lifetime's fall season kicks into high gear in October with its newest reality series, "Off the Leash," which goes inside the tumultuous world of a real-life Hollywood pet talent agency to reveal just how far some women will go to find four-legged stardom for their beloved dogs. Later that month, the network unveils "Bianca" (wt) starring Virginia Williams ("As the World Turns"), Rachel Ward ("The Thorn Birds") and Academy Award(R)-winning actress Shirley Jones ("The Music Man") in a 20-episode primetime novela series from FremantleMedia North America about a young woman who has to start over in life after being wrongly imprisoned for murder.

Also in October Lifetime presents "The Lisa Williams Project" (wt), featuring the multi-talented English clairvoyant Lisa Williams bringing messages from deceased loved ones in spontaneous, heartwarming encounters with everyday Americans.

During October's National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Sarah Chalke ("Scrubs") and Jay Harrington ("Desperate Housewives") headline in the Lifetime Original Movie "Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy," based on the delightfully feisty memoir of the same name by Geralyn Lucas, a breast cancer survivor and Lifetime's Director of Corporate Communications who works on the network's award-winning breast cancer awareness campaign.

Also that month, LMN, cable television's second most watched women's network, premieres the original movie "Inspector Mom," starring Danica McKellar ("The Wonder Years") as a young stay-at-home mom on the go who happens to stumble across murders and mysteries in the heart of suburbia. Maddie has an extraordinary talent for detecting and solving crimes, a veritable modern day suburban sleuth with a magnifying glass in one hand and a diaper bag in the other.

"The Mermaid Chair"

Basinger plays Jessie Sullivan who, after her daughter leaves for college, finds herself restless in her life and 20-year marriage. When Jessie's mother commits an inexplicable act of self-mutilation, Jessie is forced to return to her childhood home on Egret Island, a tiny barrier island off the coast of South Carolina. Her homecoming reignites the volatile relationship Jessie has with her mother and reawakens nagging questions about her father's death years earlier. Soon, she meets Brother Thomas (Alex Carter), a Benedictine monk from the neighboring abbey with whom she shares an immediate and powerful connection. As the relationship unfolds, Jessie unlocks the roots of her mother's tormented past and the secrets around her father's death while undergoing a spiritual, artistic and erotic awakening.

"The Mermaid Chair" is co-produced by Randwell Distribution and Nomadic Pictures for Lifetime Television. Randy Robinson (Lifetime's "The Pact" and "Lies My Mother Told Me") is the executive producer. Emmy(R) Award winner Steven Schachter ("Door to Door," "The Wool Cap") is the director. The teleplay is by Suzette Couture.

"Off the Leash"

Starring performing pooches, quirky pet owners and cutthroat animal agents, the half-hour series from executive producers Kevin Dill and Mechelle Collins (Bravo's "Blow Out," MTV's "Juvies") exposes the inner workings of the star-maker machinery along with the excesses, intrigues and just doggone escapades of ambitious pet owners driven to unleash their inner animal.

"Off the Leash" is produced by Intuitive Entertainment for Lifetime Television. Dill and Collins serve as executive producers.

"Bianca" (wt)

Virginia Williams ("One Life to Live") stars as Bianca, a young woman who spent the last six years of her life wrongly imprisoned for the murder of her father. She returns home to find the family business folded, her sister Kathy (Samantha Shelton - "Gilmore Girls") squandering her inheritance, younger brother Ben (Matt Funke - "Dawson's Creek") dealing drugs and her grandmother Grace (Shirley Jones - "The Partridge Family") suffering from cancer. As Bianca attempts to regain her life, she meets and shares an undeniable connection with Jake Preston (Kieren Hutchinson - "Wildfire"), the wealthy heir to The Monarch Preston Resort who also happens to be engaged. The novela also stars Simon Rex ("What I Like About You"), Stephen Martines ("General Hospital"), Vanessa Lengies ("American Dreams") and Rachel Ward ("The Thorn Birds").

Based on the popular German telenovela, "Bianca" (wt) is produced by FremantleMedia North America ("American Idol") for Lifetime. Mike Murphy and Steve Tao serve as executive producers.

"The Lisa Williams Project" (wt)

Shot around southern California, each episode of "The Lisa Williams Project" (wt) follows Lisa interacting with ordinary Americans as they go about their daily lives, whether in their homes, at work and play. In these impromptu meetings, Lisa relays messages from the dead to their astonished relatives and friends.

"The Lisa Williams Project" (wt) is produced by Merv Griffin Entertainment and Kimo Jagger Productions for Lifetime Television. Executive Producers are Merv Griffin ("Wheel of Fortune," "Jeopardy!"), Andrew Yani ("Second Verdict"), Raymond J. Brune ("Good Morning America," "E! News Live") and Bruce Toms ("Nanny 911," "Paradise Hotel").

"Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy"

The gutsy, touching and often irreverent drama pulls away the hospital curtain to tell the story of a 27-year-old woman diagnosed with breast cancer whose long-lasting matte red lipstick she applies before her mastectomy surgery becomes a metaphor for her to become the confident and sexy woman she always wanted to be. The movie includes a special cameo appearance by superstar Patti LaBelle as a fellow cancer patient.

Before turning 30 years-old, Geralyn (Chalke) has finished journalism school, landed her dream job at a network television news magazine and married a handsome young doctor (Harrington). Practically overnight, however, she must transform from "it" girl to cancer patient, when she receives her shocking diagnosis. Her unconventional journey to survivorship includes a visit to a strip club to ponder what it will mean to have a mastectomy and arduous medical treatments, while managing the fear and expectations of her husband, family, friends and colleagues, who desperately want to support her, but do not always know how.

"Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy" is produced by Grossbart Kent for Lifetime Television. Jack Grossbart and Linda Kent ("Any Mother's Son," "Unforgivable") are the executive producers. Peter Werner (Lifetime's "Gracie's Choice" and "We Were the Mulvaneys") directs. The teleplay is by Nancey Silvers (Lifetime's "Mom at Sixteen," "Revenge of the Middle-Aged Woman").

"Inspector Mom"

Once the first original movie installment of "Inspector Mom" premieres on- air on LMN in October, a new mystery starts on LMN.tv. The online webisodes unfold in eight, seven-and-a-half minute segments from November through March 2007 when a new "Inspector Mom" movie premieres on LMN. The online web site for the series includes special features such as an interactive mystery that allows people to explore the main character's neighborhood to find additional clues to help solve the mystery.

"Inspector Mom" is a production of Inspector Mom LLC. Brad Keller is executive producer and director.

LIFETIME is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, LIFETIME is committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. LIFETIME Television, LMN, Lifetime Real Women, Lifetime Home Entertainment, and Lifetime Online are part of LIFETIME Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of The Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.

SOURCE Lifetime Television
http://www.lifetimetv.com