Did you know … all the autographed books in the TV, eh? Midseason Charity Auction have a TV or movie tie:

• Susin Nielsen (Dear George Clooney…, Hank and Fergus) wrote for Robson Arms
• Pamela Ribon (Going in Circles) wrote for Samantha Who
• Quinn Cummings (Notes from the Underwire) was nominated for an Oscar for The Goodbye Girl
• John Doyle (A Great Feast of Light, The World is a Ball) is the TV critic for The Globe and Mail
• Ken Finkleman (Noah’s Turn) wrote and starred in The Newsroom and Good Dog
• Alex Epstein (Crafty TV Writing) wrote Naked Josh and Charlie Jade (well, plus the book is about TV writing)

See all auction items here or click on the book titles above for their individual listings.

From Denette Wilford of the Huffington Post:

• ‘The L.A. Complex,’ Muchmusic’s Latest TV Venture, Could Be The Next ‘Degrassi‘
  Move over, “Melrose Place” — there’s a new, er, place to be. But unlike the small apartment building in West Hollywood that housed a doctor, a social worker and a bad-boy handyman, the dwellers of The Lux in new MuchMusic series “The L.A. Complex” are more like aspiring actress Sandy and struggling writer Billy. Read more.

From a media release:

BBC AMERICA, Cineflix Studios, and Shaw Media Announce Lead Cast and Production Team for Original Series COPPER

• Tom Weston-Jones, Anastasia Griffith, Kyle Schmid and Franka Potente To Front 2012 Crime Series
• Steve Cosens, John Blackie, and Delphine White Join Production Team

BBC AMERICA, Cineflix Studios, and Shaw Media today announced lead cast for their original scripted series, COPPER. Tom Weston-Jones (MI-5, aka Spooks) is set to star asrugged Irish-American cop Kevin Corcoran. Alongside Weston Jones is Canadian Kyle Schmid (Blood Ties, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) as Robert Morehouse, a handsome bon vivant and part of Manhattan aristocracy, and Anastasia Griffith (Royal Pains, Damages), as the sophisticated and spirited Elizabeth Haverford. Rounding out the cast is Franka Potente (The Bourne Supremacy, Run Lola Run) who is set to play Eva Heissan, a shrewd businesswoman and the Madam of Eva’s Paradise.

Additionally, the talents of three top production pros have been secured to develop and execute the look and feel of mid-1800s New York – the setting for COPPER. Steve Cosens (Durham County) has signed on as Director of Photography, John Blackie (Hell onWheels) is Production Designer, and Delphine White (Breakout Kings) is Costume Designer.

COPPER is a gripping crime series set in 1860s New York City, and centres on Kevin Corcoran, an intense, rugged Irish-immigrant cop working the city’s notorious Five Points neighbourhood. Corcoran is struggling to maintain his moral compass in a turbulent world, while on an emotional and relentless quest to learn the truth about the disappearance of his wife and the death of his daughter. His friendship with two Civil War compatriots – the wayward son of a wealthy industrialist and an African American physician who secretly assists Corcoran with his work – takes him to the contrasting worlds of elegant Fifth Avenue and rural Harlem. The three men share a secret from their experience on the battlefield that inextricably links their lives forever.

“We’re thrilled to have Tom Weston-Jones, Kyle Schmid, and Anastasia Griffith – all stars in the making – join the cast of COPPER,” said Christina Wayne, President, Cineflix Studios. “Franka Potente brings her undeniable talent and feature experience to the mix.”

“Copper is a visually rich, unflinching drama that requires a gifted and experienced production team,” said Vlad Wolynetz, President of Production, Cineflix Studios. “Steve, John, and Delphine are perfectly suited to meet this challenge.”

The series is created by Tom Fontana (Oz, Homicide: Life on the Streets, St. Elsewhere) and Will Rokos (Monster’s Ball, Southland). Among the co-executive producers on the series are Fontana, Rokos, Barry Levinson (Good Morning, Vietnam, Rain Man, You Don’t Know Jack) and Christina Wayne, President of Cineflix Studios (Broken Trail and executive in charge of Mad Men at AMC).

The series premieres on BBC AMERICA in the summer of 2012 and in Canada on Shaw Media’s Showcase in fall 2012.

From a media release:

THE ROAD TO REDEMPTION: KEVIN O’LEARY OFFERS EX-CONS A SECOND CHANCE IN NEW PRIME-TIME SERIES – REDEMPTION INC.

• Premieres Monday, January 9th at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT) on CBC Television

REDEMPTION INC. is a new prime-time series in which a group of 10 ex-cons are given the opportunity of a lifetime: a chance to set up their own business with a start-up investment of $100,000 from Dragon and multi-millionaire businessman, Kevin O’Leary. Kevin sees the business potential in offering these people a second chance; he recognizes that these ex-cons paid their debt to society. At the end of the series, one of them will earn both Kevin’s support, and his money, to start a legitimate business. REDEMPTION INC. premieres on Monday, January 9 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT) on CBC Television.

REDEMPTION INC. is hosted by O’Leary with Brian O’Dea as a key advisor on the show. O’Dea is a convicted drug smuggler who built a $100 million drug empire before serving a 10-year prison sentence. He has since gone on to become a successful author, businessman and sought-after public speaker on a wide range of topics dealing with convict rehabilitation and re-integration into society.

Together, they will work with a group of 10 ex-cons, assessing their business ideas and putting them through a series of rigorous challenges designed to test, demonstrate and improve their natural abilities, and expose their character flaws, gradually moving them away from their illegal past and ever closer to a legal enterprise of their own. Each challenge is designed to reveal a particular skill set – from marketing and selling, to their ability to lead and work as a team.

It won’t be easy, but this isn’t charity – it’s business. Over the course of nine weeks, a single candidate will emerge who is judged most likely to succeed in running their own entrepreneurial business. They will receive an extraordinary jumpstart with investment money to launch their own dream business venture.