HALLMARK CHANNEL ANNOUNCES PARTNERSHIP WITH NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR SHERRYL WOODS, FOR POTENTIAL NEW PRIMETIME SERIES "CHESAPEAKE SHORES"

Hallmark Channel announces a partnership with New York Times bestselling author Sherryl Woods to adapt her cherished 10-part book series, "Chesapeake Shores," as a potential primetime series premiering in 2015. Woods, who started writing the Chesapeake Shores novels in 2009, is a successful romance writer of over 100 romance and mystery novels since 1982. She is frequently on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists with her heartfelt stories featuring genuine family sagas that resonate with readers. With this latest partnership, Hallmark Channel continues to build successful relationships with bestselling authors to bring their popular works to television viewers. The "Chesapeake Shores" series will bring to life Woods' heartwarming O'Brien family. The O'Briens are a sprawling, multi-generational clan who reunite in their charming hometown on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay after years apart, to face the memories from their past and learn the importance of reconciliation.

"We are looking forward to working with the multi-talented Sherryl Woods to develop Hallmark Channel's fourth scripted series," said Michelle Vicary, Executive Vice President, Programming, Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel. "Woods' 'Chesapeake Shores' series of books truly embodies the emotions of life's lessons, family and community, that we know will captivate our viewers."

"Chesapeake Shores" tells the story of architect and urban planner, Mick O'Brien, who has built the community of Chesapeake Shores from scratch on land once owned by his ancestors. But the process of developing the town on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay created dissension among Mick and his brothers. His workaholic lifestyle created problems in his marriage as well, especially when his success took him away from his family for longer and longer periods of time. When his wife left him, Mick convinced her to leave their five children with him in Chesapeake Shores and then turned them over to his mother Nell to raise. Now, one by one, those children - now adults - are returning to Chesapeake Shores to make peace with their uninvolved father and with the mother they believe abandoned them. Mick's brothers, too, must find a way to make amends and move on. And at the heart of it all is Nell, the glue that holds this entire family - sons, brothers, sisters, wives and cousins - together. At its heart, "Chesapeake Shores" is about family, but it's also about community and heartfelt emotions - the kind that can tear families apart and the kind that can make them heal.

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 88 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, The Waltons, Little House on the Prairie, and Frasier. The channel is also home to a range of lifestyle programming, anchored by Home & Family, a daily two-hour live show shot in a fully functional house located on the Universal Studios lot. Hallmark Channel's sibling network, Hallmark Movie Channel, available in HD and SD, focuses on family-friendly movies with a mix of original films, classic theatrical releases, and presentations from the acclaimed Hallmark Hall of Fame library.

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