4:10PM: The inspiration for LIFE UNEXPECTED came from showrunner (and real-life adoptee) Liz Tigelaar’s childhood belief that her actual birth mother was Nancy Reagan.
4:15PM: Attention teenagers who aren’t happy at home, Tigelaar doesn’t want a baby at 30, but she would love if a teenager showed up on her doorstep. Related note: How cool would it be to be adopted by a TV showrunner? I wonder how Tigelaar feels about adopting thirty-something TV Addicts?
4:18PM: Ryan’s role (Kerr Smith) will continue to grow throughout the season thanks in part to Tigerlaar’s belief that Kerr Smith is the epitome of a man. Suck it Dawson Leery.
4:20PM: File this under stuff that won’t mean anything to you until you see the fantastic first three episodes of the show, but Tigelaar reveals that they’ve just cast seven-year old versions of Lux and her friend Tasha for a flashback (or two!)
4:23PM: Liz Tigelaar talks really fast.
4:24PM: Over the course of filming the show, Liz Tigelaar found her birth parents. The first thing her mom said was, “I’m not a radio DJ!” Again, something that will make a lot more sense after you watch the pilot (premiering January 18th) and learn that Lux’s bio-mom Kate played by Shiri Appleby is a radio DJ.
4:34PM: It’s a family affair teases Tigelaar who promises that we’ll definitely be meeting Kate’s Dad, Ryan’s parents and Tasha’s mom to discover how these people ended up as crazy as they are.
4:37PM: Tips for aspiring writers from Tigelaar whose first job was as a writer’s assistant to Winnie Holzman (MY SO-CALLED LIFE, WICKED): To really write something that hopefully will affect and move people you really have to infuse a big part of your own voice into it. In other-words, stay tuned for my diary of a couch potato, coming to bookstores near you Fall 201….. wheneverIgetoffmycouchandstopwatchingTV!