Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Dylan Walsh reports that Marilu Henner will soon be in New York to play the aunt of Poppy Montgomery's character on their "Unforgettable" CBS crime drama. The red-haired one-time "Taxi" star, as you may know, serves as a consultant on the show in which Montgomery plays a detective who can recall all the moments of her life with perfect clarity — the extremely rare, superior autobiographical memory that Henner possesses in real life.

Walsh says he's looking forward to seeing Henner again. "With her role as consultant, there've been a lot of telephone calls between her and Poppy, but I haven't talked to her since last summer," notes the actor, who plays Montgomery's colleague and former lover.

Now, if only "Unforgettable" can take hold. It's been a ratings toss-up, and right now, its fate remains up in the air.

"We're waiting to hear what our future is on the schedule. Nobody talks about it," according to Walsh. "I hope to get some good news about continuing soon. We've put in a lot of hard work, and there's a lot more hard work ahead. It's been bumpy, but the reason it's been bumpy is something I'm as proud of as anything — it's that people are trying to do more than just your dry procedural."

He goes on: "Everyone assumed that (Henner's) superior memory would be a superficial way to get people into the show. But the writers have really cleverly used it as an integral part of the stories — including the fact there's this romance, albeit in the past. She keeps remembering, and people get to see this couple without betraying what the show is in the present. There are a lot of flashbacks to their relationship."

As far as what that means to him as an actor? "The challenge is the fun," says Walsh. "I get to play a younger guy, a guy who is in love, more of a suburban guy than in the present, a guy rising up through the ranks."

Walsh, who lived in Los Angeles while making "Nip/Tuck," is extremely glad to be back in his former NYC stomping grounds for his current show. "It's the best part of all of this. I'm so happy here. I'm in Tribeca right now," he tells us via phone. "On the weekends, one of my hobbies is learning all the architecture, building by building."

Whatever the future of "Unforgettable," Walsh is already thinking ahead to the holidays. "I'm having my kids come out for Thanksgiving," he says, "and I suspect the same for Christmas."

FROM THE INSIDE LOOKING OUT: Sally Kirkland says she found it cathartic to play the domineering mother of an exotic dancer (Corinne Becker) in Brent Roske's "African Chelsea" short film.

The gritty, moody and memorable piece was shown at the Cannes Film Festival and is eligible for Academy-Award consideration.

"When he described how dysfunctional the mother was, I fell in love with the part," recalls the inimitable actress-director-artist-activist and one-time member of Andy Warhol's Factory. "I love doing mother-daughter, hate/love, get-to-tear-the-scenery-apart kind of roles."

Why is that? "Maybe because I had a mother-daughter relationship like that, as a daughter," replies Kirkland. Her "African Chelsea" character "wants to be in control of her daughter, and clearly her daughter is rejecting that and running away. But there's a moment when she holds her daughter and sings to her that shows such deeper feelings."

Kirkland adds, "I get drawn toward very lost-souls kinds of stories."

Roske (whose eclectic credits range from his "Live at the Viper Room" album to directing hundreds of commercial campaigns) sought out Kirkland for the part. She believes, she says, that "he clearly has a cinematic gift."

Kirkland is being feted with Lifetime Achievement honors at the Beverly Hills Film, Television and New Media Festival that started last night (Oct. 20). She's in the midst of a month chockablock with special event screenings of various movies of hers, including something new, "The Wayshower," and something old — "Brand X."

The latter is Wynn Chamberlain's 1969 bawdy absurdist parody of a television show in which she starred with Sam Shepard and Abbie Hoffman, and it has been getting re-appreciation screenings after having mysteriously disappeared for more than 40 years. Shown at UCLA's Hammer Museum last week, "Brand X" has screenings ahead at Harvard and "it's going to Berlin in February," Kirkland reveals. She may head to Germany for that.

IT'S REAL: Celebrity couples willing to bring their issues into the reality TV spotlight to be sorted out and solved are being sought by what's described in casting notices as a major cable network. At least one member of the couple has to be a known name, either in film, music, TV or sports, and he or she has to be willing to do "whatever it takes" to resolve the relationship difficulties. Imagine all the A-listers who must be rushing to sign up for that one.

And also on the reality front, there's a gay paranormal project in the works, and casting notices have gone out for gay ghost experts "with an authentic ability to communicate with the spirit world, or comparable ability." Who knows? They might just have better luck than the celebrity relationships people.

To find out more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith and read their past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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