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Update -
5/24/06:
 As
previously reported, Peter will be returning as Dennis
Ryland in the third season opener of
THE 4400. It will be
shown on Sunday, June 11th as a two-hour special from
9:00-11:00 ET/PT on the USA Network. "The 4400"
premiered as a limited series on July 11, 2004 on USA
Network as the highest-rated and most-watched new series
premiere ever on a basic cable network. Last summer, the
show ranked as the #1 original scripted series on cable
in P18-49, beating every other cable network's new
series launches. The 4400 received three Emmy
nominations in its first season, including Outstanding
Miniseries, as well as Outstanding Writing and
Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie. Before the
much-anticipated third season launch, fans and newcomers
have two opportunities to familiarize themselves with
the show. On Sunday, June 4 USA will air "The 4400
Special: Unlocking the Secrets" from 10:00pm-11:00pm
ET/PT - a one-hour clip special reintroducing the past
events of the show to prepare fans for the third season.
Earlier in the day, audiences can tune in to "The 4400
Marathon: The Essential Episodes" from 9:00am-10:00pm
ET/PT. For more information as well as a clip from the
season opener, visit
USA's 4400 Web Site.
 Peter
has narrated a PBS documentary called "The Vanishing
Lions", which was aired last month. As recently as
10 years ago, about 100,000 lions roamed the African
continent. However, recent studies have indicated their
numbers have dwindled by 70 percent or more. This
program sheds light on the predators' plight, including
a virus spread via jackals and hyenas and the lions'
quest for food that often leads them from the safety of
wildlife preserves into the sights of hunters' rifles.
The film also examines efforts to maintain the lion
population, including a South African experiment with
artificial insemination, and a program that
electronically tracks the lions' habits, helping
livestock owners shield their herds more effectively.
This documentary will be included on the DVD "Nature:
Leopards & Lions" along with the film, "Silent Roar:
Searching for the Snow Leopard." The DVD will be
released on June 6th at Amazon.com for $13.99 plus
shipping.
 As
many of you know, ABC ultimately pulled the plug on
COMMANDER IN CHIEF and it will not return for the
fall lineup. However, ABC Entertainment President
Stephen McPherson has left open the possibility of
bringing back Commander sometime next season in the form
of a two-hour TV movie. The show got off to a promising
start in the ratings last fall, then steadily lost
ground, even after returning this spring from an 11-week
hiatus with a less-competitive time slot and a renewed
promotional push. The final three episodes, which were
pulled from ABC's schedule for the duration of the May
ratings "sweep," will air on May 31, June 7 and June 14,
concluding the series' prime-time run, network
executives said.
Update -
4/20/06:
Award-winning
filmmakers Dana and Hart Perry have produced a new
documentary series called "The Drug Years", a
four-part look at the rise of illicit drug use and its
cultural impact in the second half of the twentieth
century. Based on the book "Can't Find My Way Home:
America in the Great Stoned Age" by Martin Torgof, this
series will premiere on VH1 on June 12 at 9 pm (EDT)
with encore showings on the Sundance Channel beginning
June 16 at 8 pm (EDT). There will be an interview with
Peter, as well as with Jackson Browne, Russell Simmons,
Chuck D, Ice-T, Juliette Lewis, Ally Sheedy, Tommy
Chong, and many others. I assume Peter's interview will
show up in the first episode called "Break on Through"
(1950s-1967), which highlights the role played by drugs
in the rejection of conformist America, a revolt
championed by artistic and social subcultures that
includes the Beats and the Hippies.
Update -
4/15/06:
 On
Saturday, April 22, "The Gospel of Judas" will be
aired on the National Geographic Channel from 8 to 10 pm
(EDT). Narrated by Peter, this documentary highlights
one of the most hated men in history: Judas Iscariot,
the apostle who betrayed Jesus. For centuries, his name
has meant treachery and deceit. Hidden for nearly two
thousand years, an ancient Gospel emerges from the sands
of Egypt that tells a very different version of the last
days of Jesus and questions the portrait of Judas
Iscariot as the evil apostle. This National Geographic
special details everything that has happened to this
extraordinary document since it was found, including the
authentication process, its translation and
interpretation and efforts to identify its author. The
DVD will be available for purchase on June 6, 2006.
Update -
4/10/06:
For
weeks, ABC has scheduled the return of ''COMMANDER IN
CHIEF'' for April 18. Now it will be back sooner
than expected, according to the latest announcement. It
will return this Thursday, April 13, from 10-11 pm (ET)
in the network's newsmagazine "Primetime" slot and will
continue every Thursday through May 18. Peter will guest
star in the April 20th episode called "The Price You
Pay".
This
summer be sure to look for Peter resurrecting his Dennis
Ryland role in the third season opener of
THE 4400 on the USA
Network. The sci-fi series, which premiered back in July
of 2004, has the distinction of being the highest-rated
and most-watched new series premiere ever on a basic
cable network and was honored with three Emmy
nominations for its first season.
 April
18th marks the 100th anniversary of the San Francisco
earthquake and CAV Media Studios is ready with a
one-hour documentary narrated by Peter called "Damnedest
Finest Ruins". Produced by Bob Burton (seen in the
photo) and author James Dalessandro, the film brings the
historical characters and events of the past into the
present with realism through storytelling. A screening
will take place on Sunday, June 11, at the Oakland
Museum of California.
And
there are more Coyote documentaries to report. Last
month at the 5th Annual Palm Springs Native American
Film Festival & Cultural Weekend, the 10-minute short, "Spirit
Riders - Riding to Mend the Sacred Hoop", was
screened. The James Kleinert film captures the birth of
an American Indian peace movement and shows how its
growth has united such diverse regions of the world as
Central America, Australia, Ireland and South Africa.
And Peter is interviewed in the William Tyler Smith's
documentary called "Summerhill". The film is
based on the real-life stories from Summerhill, the
alternative school in Suffolk, England. Shot over the
course of five years, the feature-length documentary
will include the recent historic political battle by the
Labour Government to close down the school. Also
included are interviews with Tom Conti, Orson Bean, Jake
Weber and Rebecca De Mornay.
Some
recent DVD releases include two documentaries - "Enron:
The Smartest Guys in the Room" (2005), the acclaimed
film narrated by Peter, and secondly, Lisa Law's "Flashing
on the Sixties" (1991), in which Peter
reminisces about his hippie days in San Francisco. On
April 18th, RETURN OF THE DEAD 4: NECROPOLIS will
be released on DVD. In this incarnation of George A.
Romero's saga, a group of high-school kids encounters a
loathsome horde of the living dead and discover that an
evil mad scientist named Charles Garrison (played by
Coyote) has invented a chemical capable of creating
zombies. Great camp! And the DVD for the 1996 TV movie
DALVA, also starring Farrah Fawcett and Powers
Boothe, was released in January.
   
 Universal
Home Video Entertainment will be releasing NBC's
short-lived and overlooked crime drama "Law & Order:
Trial By Jury", starring Bebe Neuwirth, Amy Carlson,
Kirk Acevedo, Fred Dalton Thompson and Jerry Orbach.
Peter guest stars as lawyer Mike LaSalle in the episode
entitled "41 Shots", which originally aired March 4,
2005. This 3-Disc DVD set contains all 13 original
episodes of the entire series, including one never
broadcast on network TV. It will be available on April
25th.
 It
has recently come to my attention that Peter narrated
two productions for KCCM-FM. "Jazz Rhythm" is a weekly
hour radio show hosted by Dave Radlauer, who explores
the lore, culture and personalities of early jazz. Back
in 2003 the show received the Gabriel Award for its
series, which included "Django: Life, Legend, Music"
and "Celebrating James P. Johnson". The Gabriels
are presented each year by the Catholic Academy for
Communication Arts Professionals with their most
important criterion being the ability to uplift and
nourish the human spirit. The photo above shows Dave
sharing his award with Peter.
 Last
month Peter received recognition at the Silver Lake Film
Festival, a non-profit organization that showcases
independent film in Los Angeles. The festival was
created to specifically address the lack of opportunity
for independent narrative features and documentaries, as
well as short films, to be seen by audiences in movie
theaters. These are films that reflect a personal vision
of the filmmaker, rather than a commercial imperative.
Five performances were recognized and awarded, among
them Peter's role as the shifty Herman Finch in the
David S. Marfield film
DEEPWATER. Hopefully Coyote fans will see it
soon on DVD!
Here's
an interesting portrait by Toronto
photographer Sylvia Pecota. Sorry it's not larger...
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