"CEDAR COVE," A HALLMARK CHANNEL ORIGINAL PRIMETIME SERIES, STARRING ANDIE MACDOWELL AND DYLAN NEAL, RECEIVES SERIES GREENLIGHT, BEGINS PRODUCTION WITH VETERAN CARL BINDER AS SHOW RUNNER

Series Scheduled to Premiere Spring 2013, Two-Hour Sneak Peek Kick-Off Premiere, January 19, Based on the Beloved Cedar Cove Book Series from New York Times #1 Bestselling Author Debbie Macomber

Michelle Vicary, Executive Vice President, Programming, Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel announced today that the network's first-ever primetime series, "Cedar Cove" has received a greenlight and is heading into production in Vancouver with veteran show runner Carl Binder at the helm. Binder is best known for many successful seasons of "SGU Stargate Universe," "Stargate Atlantis," "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman," as well as, being one of the writers of the Disney animated classic, "Pocahontas." "Cedar Cove" is based on a series of beloved novels from New York Times #1 bestselling author Debbie Macomber. The series stars internationally acclaimed movie star and Golden Globe nominee, Andie MacDowell ("Four Weddings & A Funeral," "Green Card," "sex, lies, and videotape") and veteran actor Dylan Neal ("Blood Ties," "Dawson's Creek"). The pedigree of the series is further enhanced by Executive Producers Dan Wigutow, Caroline Moore and Michael Scott, the team responsible for Hallmark Channel's top-rated Original Movies, "Debbie Macomber's Mrs. Miracle," "Debbie Macomber's Call Me Mrs. Miracle," and "Debbie Macomber's Trading Christmas" in 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively. "Cedar Cove" will feature a two-hour sneak peek for devoted fans exclusively on Hallmark Channel, Saturday, January 19 (9 p.m. ET/PT, 8c) before the series joins the weekly schedule in early Spring.

"If ever there was a recipe for series success, 'Cedar Cove' is it," said Vicary.

"Start with internationally-acclaimed actor Andie MacDowell, add seasoned co-star Dylan Neal, Debbie Macomber's bestselling stories, the consistency of a world-class show runner, and one of the most successful producing teams in television, and you'll see why we think the outcome will be irresistible - Cedar Cove will be the place we all want to call home," Vicary concluded.

In "Cedar Cove," MacDowell plays Judge Olivia Lockhart whose Cedar Cove Municipal Court is the professional milieu and social microcosm of issues the judge will face in her own day-to-day life with family and friends. Neal plays Jack Griffith, the new editor of the Cedar Cove Chronicle, and budding love interest for Judge Lockhart.

Hallmark Channel, owned and operated by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., is a 24-hour basic cable network that provides a diverse slate of high-quality entertainment programming available in high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD) to a national audience of nearly 87 million subscribers. Hallmark Channel is the nation's leading destination for quality family programming with an ambitious slate of original TV movies and specials, as well as some of television's most beloved sitcoms and series, including The Golden Girls, Frasier, Little House on the Prairie, and The Waltons. The channel is also home to a diverse range of lifestyle programming, including the newly-launched Home & Family, a daily two-hour live show shot in a fully functional house located on the Universal Studios lot and Marie, a one-hour talk show hosted by iconic entertainer, Marie Osmond. Hallmark Channel's sibling network, Hallmark Movie Channel, also available in HD and SD, focuses on family-friendly movies with a mix of classic theatrical films, presentations from the acclaimed Hallmark Hall of Fame library, original Hallmark Channel movies, and special events.