New Lives & Legal Lies (July 28 – Aug 3)

HOLLYWOOD BRIEFING

By C.L. Gaber

Your weekly report of entertainment that focus on the legal profession and pure R&R for the  legally minded

QUICK INTERROGATION: Ty Burrell, “Modern Family” and “The Good Life,” a new series on Audible. 

            Tired of the rat race?  Want to ditch your regular job and move to the hinterlands? Actor Ty Burrell  — best known for playing Phil Dunphy on the ABC sitcom “Modern Family” — knows that feeling. 

            When he was ten, he watched as his parents sold their house, quit their jobs, packed up the kiddos and moved to Grants Pass, Oregon, population 200.  

 “My dad was a family therapist in the foster care system. My mom was an educator. At one point, they really looked at their life. Were they actually happy? No. So, they got this hairbrained idea to buy a country store in the woods,” says Burrell, 57. 

The end result wasn’t riches, but contentment. “I can still see my father behind the counter, greeting everyone in town with a big smile. Times weren’t always easy, but my parents took chances. Big chances. I think that’s one of the keys to a happy life. Take that chance to make yourself happy,” he says. 

Those family memories are now influencing the plot of his new Audible original series, a ten-episode, guilty pleasure called  “The Good Life.” Created by Burrell and narrated by him, the story follows Maddie (Jennifer Garner) and Craig Finch (Colton Dunn) who move their family from bustling Los Angeles to a small town in Oregon where everyone has to pitch in to run a general store. 

Q: Is “The Good Life” strictly autobiographical?

Burrell:  “It’s loosely based on my family although not every character is one for one, but the feeling is there of pulling together, meeting new people and having the adventure of a lifetime.” 

Q: How much did your life change when you moved to Oregon? 

Burrell: “I worked in our general store. I stocked shelves at 10, but mostly I depleted the store of its inventory of candy. It was such a cool place. It was the general store and the same structure was the town’s café, library, hardware store, fire house and gas station. In Oregon, you’re not allowed to pump your own gas, so at 11 I was sent outside by my dad to handle flammable liquids. I’m lucky to still be here.” 

Q: What did you learn about enjoying life? 

Burrell: “There is an art to slowing down. As kids, we were given a huge gift, which was being in nature. That makes you slow down and look what’s all around you. In many ways, I was this feral child who was always out in the woods, inner tubing and racing through trees. These were things you didn’t get to do in the city. The country  forced you to look around, breathe, not live by a list of things to do.”

Q: Any tips for those of us who want to pull a life do-over?

Burrell: “My parents knew nothing about running a store and had to learn a whole new skill set. There was financial stress and the chaos of starting over again when you’re older, but they took the chance. In the end, it was the right move and a meaningful one. We were out of our element, but we were fast on the learning curve. No one in my early family ever doubted that we could pull it off. Feeling that way about challenges is an important thing in life. I always think, ‘We can make this work.’” 

Q: Tell us about your life post-“Modern Family.” And will there ever be a “Modern Family” reunion? 

Burrell: “I love living in Salt Lake City with my wife and daughters. It’s the best of all worlds. Salt Lake is a big enough city with all the city stuff – sports, music, art – but you’re also at the base of a mountain range and can really get out there in nature…. As for a “Modern Family” reunion, the cast jokes that if we went with the British model, it would be ‘A Very Modern Family Christmas.’ Honestly, I don’t know if that’s possible, but the cast would be up for it. We really enjoy each other’s company although it’s hard to wrangle everyone into one place.” 

WE DON’T OBJECT : 

Here is the latest and greatest in upcoming legal streaming shows and movies: 

Soon-to-be-Streaming

The Rainmaker. “I’ve always wanted to be a lawyer,” says young Rudy Baylor. Yet, law school couldn’t prep him for his first major law firm job in the USA series, “The Rainmaker” based on the 1995 John Grisham best seller. The new series revolves around a young law school graduate who takes a job with a firm that supposedly specializes in ambulance chasing – but not really. They’re also involved with the mob who likes to kill young lawyers who have a conscience. Rudy (played expertly by actor Milo Callaghan)  finds himself in the midst of a David vs. Goliath case against a powerful insurance company. The series also stars John Slattery (“Mad Men”) as a courtroom lion named Leo Drummond. Lana Parrilla is there are Ruby’s law school girlfriend.  Release date: August 15 at 10 p.m. ET on USA Network with episodes also streaming on Peacock. 

All’s Fair.  The tagline: “You know what a girl’s best friend is…not diamonds. Her lawyer.” Welcome to a new Ryan Murphy series that will follow a successful divorce lawyer and the owner of an all-female law firm in Los Angeles billed as a place where women represent women. Each lawyer here is billed as “fierce, brilliant and emotionally complicated” as they navigate high-stakes breakups, scandalous secrets and shifting allegiances both in the courtroom and in the office.  A top-notch cast includes Glenn Close, Sarah Paulson, Niecy Nash, Ed O’Neill, Judith Light, Elizabeth Berkley and Kim Kardashian. Stay for Close insisting to a client: “Get mad, get hot, get revenge.” The series will debut this fall on Hulu and Disney +.  

“The Lincoln Lawyer.” Netflix just made it official. Their popular legal series, “The Lincoln Lawyer,” will be getting a fourth season. Created by Emmy winner David E. Kelley (“The Practice,” “Big Little Lies”) and based on the books of Michael Connelly, the series revolves around Mickey Haller, a hotshot LA criminal defense attorney and recovering addict (Manuel Gracia-Rulfo) who takes on murder cases and often works out of a chauffeur-driven Lincoln Navigator. . You can catch up now on the first three season. Or, you can read the book, which will be the basis of season four called, “The Law of Innocence.” It’s the sixth in the Connelly series. 

“Counsels.” The new BBC legal series, an eight-part, high stakes drama, is garnering rave reviews. Set in Glasgow, Scotland, the show tells the stories of five young lawyers who are former classmates at an elite Scottish law school, but now work at various firms where they are pitted against each other in court.  The series examines their wins, losses, friendships, personal lives and fights for justice.  The BBC reports, “Some will rise to the top, while others risk losing everything as their careers teeter on the edge as they lock horns in their biggest cases yet.” “Counsels” airs on BBC One. 

THROWBACK WATCH: 

“Defending Jacob.” Murder mystery. Legal drama. Family saga. This Apple + mini-series has it all, plus Chris Evans in a small screen adaptation of the 2012 novel by William Landay. Fresh off of his Captain America run,  Evans gets gritty real as an assistant district attorney named Andy Barber living the American dream in Newton, Massachusetts with his beautiful wife Laure (Michelle Dockery) and their complicated teenage son Jacob (Jaeden Barber). Life hits the skids in a major way when their 14-year-old is accused of fatally stabbing a classmate to death and then leaving his body in a local park near their school.

Did he do it? Mom and Dad can’t agree causing marital strife, but they do know something is about to break their family apart. Things get even more complicated when Andy is assigned his son’s case despite the obvious legal conflict of interest. Andy begins to question students at the school and slowly unravel secrets and lies. What should a father do when he finds the murder weapon hidden in his kid’s sock drawer at home?  Look for standout performances from Evans and Dockery as his wife who refuses to believe their son could kill. Eight episodes are on Apple +.