Virginia Madsen

Trim, outgoing and adorned with wavy golden locks, Virginia Madsen doesn't seem to have changed much physically over the 25 years she has spent before the cameras. The obvious difference is in the perspective that comes with having seen plenty of hilltops and valleys.

In "Father of Invention," Kevin Spacey doesn't exactly play an inventor; rather he plays an infomercial star who refers to himself as a "fabricator," in that he puts products together to form something new, like a combination pepper spray and digital camera or night light and humidifier. When his combined ab-cruncher and remote-control clicker bears a flaw that lops off users' fingers he is disgraced, made penniless and imprisoned. Once out, he tries to get a fresh start by patching things up with his daughter (Camilla Belle)

Her hair in curlers for an impending talk show appearance, actress Virginia Madsen exudes not a hint of Hollywood vanity. In fact, it is easy to imagine her as never having left her native Chicago as she talks openly about her age (42) and the struggles of being a single mother. Only when she mentions in passing the number of times she had previously been turned down by a certain late-night chat show is one reminded that she is definitely not an average Midwestern mom.

Virginia Madsen, 48, plays married-to-the-mini-mob mom Cheryl West who tries to make her family go straight in "Scoundrels," ABC's new summer dramedy in "Desperate Housewives'" Sunday evening slot. The veteran film actress talks about why network television has been a great place to land at this point in her career — much to her own surprise. How did your role in "Scoundrels" come about? I did a series with Ray Liotta called "Smith." That was three or four years ago, and that was canceled right away.

Virginia Madsen, looking most unlike the haunting spirit she plays in Showtime's "Gotham," romped on the sofa with her yellowish-white "mutt." Whiskey, a mixture of Australian shepherd and timber wolf, licked her face and snuggled close. Madsen stars in "Gotham" with Tommy Lee Jones as a sultry spirit who doesn't want to give up the ghost. "Rachel doesn't get it, she doesn't realize she has to go to the hereafter," said Madsen, shooing Whiskey off so she could talk.

"He's not stupid, but he has a weakness. He's a fool for love, a sucker for an old-fashioned romance." That's how private eye Scott Weston (Treat Williams) is described in "Third Degree Burn" (Home Box Office, Sunday at 8 p.m.), and it's fairly accurate. Hired by a jealous husband (Richard Masur) to trail a beautiful young wife (Virginia Madsen) while she visits a desert spa, Weston falls into bed and into love with the woman. When the two of them return to Seattle, they resume their affair, nuzzling in public places without a second thought, even though both know full well how jealous the husband is. But then someone is murdered, followed by the usual complications.

"Candyman" (citywide), the latest Clive Barker shocker, is his worst to date: an ambitious would-be morality play/thriller of the supernatural involving racism and mythology that seems merely pretentious and preposterous as it drowns in gallons of blood and guts. To pull it off would take the utmost artistry and imagination, but writer-director Bernard Rose expends his energy mainly on the easier task of churning up violence and gore for its own sake.

People were expecting to see Mr. Blonde, the brutal sadist who sliced off a man's ear in the film "Reservoir Dogs." So it was a bit of a shock when Mr. White Hair, the kindly older gent from the upcoming father-daughter movie "All In," came up to the microphone. Michael Madsen, the beefy actor behind both characters, was duly apologetic. "I'd like to apologize for my hair," he said in a rasp thickened by years of smoking, carousing and making a reputation as one of Hollywood's baddest boys.

Virginia Madsen, 48, plays married-to-the-mini-mob mom Cheryl West who tries to make her family go straight in "Scoundrels," ABC's new summer dramedy in "Desperate Housewives'" Sunday evening slot. The veteran film actress talks about why network television has been a great place to land at this point in her career — much to her own surprise. How did your role in "Scoundrels" come about? I did a series with Ray Liotta called "Smith." That was three or four years ago, and that was canceled right away.

In "Father of Invention," Kevin Spacey doesn't exactly play an inventor; rather he plays an infomercial star who refers to himself as a "fabricator," in that he puts products together to form something new, like a combination pepper spray and digital camera or night light and humidifier. When his combined ab-cruncher and remote-control clicker bears a flaw that lops off users' fingers he is disgraced, made penniless and imprisoned. Once out, he tries to get a fresh start by patching things up with his daughter (Camilla Belle)

Trim, outgoing and adorned with wavy golden locks, Virginia Madsen doesn't seem to have changed much physically over the 25 years she has spent before the cameras. The obvious difference is in the perspective that comes with having seen plenty of hilltops and valleys.

People were expecting to see Mr. Blonde, the brutal sadist who sliced off a man's ear in the film "Reservoir Dogs." So it was a bit of a shock when Mr. White Hair, the kindly older gent from the upcoming father-daughter movie "All In," came up to the microphone. Michael Madsen, the beefy actor behind both characters, was duly apologetic. "I'd like to apologize for my hair," he said in a rasp thickened by years of smoking, carousing and making a reputation as one of Hollywood's baddest boys.

Her hair in curlers for an impending talk show appearance, actress Virginia Madsen exudes not a hint of Hollywood vanity. In fact, it is easy to imagine her as never having left her native Chicago as she talks openly about her age (42) and the struggles of being a single mother. Only when she mentions in passing the number of times she had previously been turned down by a certain late-night chat show is one reminded that she is definitely not an average Midwestern mom.

"Candyman" (citywide), the latest Clive Barker shocker, is his worst to date: an ambitious would-be morality play/thriller of the supernatural involving racism and mythology that seems merely pretentious and preposterous as it drowns in gallons of blood and guts. To pull it off would take the utmost artistry and imagination, but writer-director Bernard Rose expends his energy mainly on the easier task of churning up violence and gore for its own sake.

"He's not stupid, but he has a weakness. He's a fool for love, a sucker for an old-fashioned romance." That's how private eye Scott Weston (Treat Williams) is described in "Third Degree Burn" (Home Box Office, Sunday at 8 p.m.), and it's fairly accurate. Hired by a jealous husband (Richard Masur) to trail a beautiful young wife (Virginia Madsen) while she visits a desert spa, Weston falls into bed and into love with the woman. When the two of them return to Seattle, they resume their affair, nuzzling in public places without a second thought, even though both know full well how jealous the husband is. But then someone is murdered, followed by the usual complications.

Virginia Madsen, looking most unlike the haunting spirit she plays in Showtime's "Gotham," romped on the sofa with her yellowish-white "mutt." Whiskey, a mixture of Australian shepherd and timber wolf, licked her face and snuggled close. Madsen stars in "Gotham" with Tommy Lee Jones as a sultry spirit who doesn't want to give up the ghost. "Rachel doesn't get it, she doesn't realize she has to go to the hereafter," said Madsen, shooing Whiskey off so she could talk.

"3 Lbs.," a drama starring Stanley Tucci and Mark Feuerstein about a team of New York City neurosurgeons, will premiere Nov. 14 on CBS, the network said Thursday. "3 Lbs." replaces the crime drama "Smith" in the Tuesday 10-11 p.m. slot. "Smith," a first-year series starring Ray Liotta and Virginia Madsen, was taken off the schedule last week because of declining ratings. Reruns of various crime dramas will continue in that time period until "3 Lbs." premieres.

** "Slamdance." Key. $79.98. "Slamdance" has a great look--vibrantly colorful, sharply contemporary--but often it seems to be dead behind the eyes. Director Wayne Wang ("Chan Is Missing"), a specialist in cross-cultural humor, here has barely any cultures to cross. He and his collaborators create a city of hip anachronisms, ephemera, metallic shimmer, rot under neon.