Busy Philipps won’t be waking up Thursday morning with visions of Golden Globe nominations for herself or her fellow Cougar Town cast members dancing in her head. “That’s not going to happen now. No one’s seen the show this season,” says Philipps, lamenting the fact that ABC has not only failed to find a spot for the hilarious ensemble comedy on its 2012 schedule, but also reduced its Season 3 episode order from 22 to 15.

Philipps says the Cougar Town cast has already shot 10 of those episodes, and that the show’s writers may have to cut back a storyline focusing on a new love interest for Laurie. “The writers have amazing stuff planned out for this season, and now they’re going to have to condense,” she says. “I feel bad for them. I feel bad for everyone. It’s a bummer. It sucks.”

The good news, though, says Philipps, is that Season 3 contains “some of the funniest work we’ve done since the beginning of the show. I’ve seen a couple of the episodes. The one Courteney [Cox] directed came out incredible.”

Plus, teases Philipps, there’s a new addition to the cast with major breakout potential: Briga Heelan, who’s been cast as the very young woman Grayson (unwittingly) impregnated years ago. “[Briga] is threateningly funny. She’s so good! She’s going to be a huge star,” Philipps predicts. “You heard it from me first.”

What’s more, while Laurie will indeed embark on a new romance with a military man who’s stuck in the Middle East — read more about how that relationship will work in this week’s Ask Ausiello! – the show will also address her burgeoning romantic feelings with Travis. “There’s a really good episode toward the beginning of the season where the two of us discuss our relationship a little bit,” Philipps explains. “It’s funny and sweet.”

TVLine.com

Cougar Town may be back sooner than we thought.

When ABC yanked Courteney Cox’s hit sitcom from the midseason lineup, it was believed they’d return in March.

However…

“Hopefully sooner,” costar Busy Philipps told us last night at the Alice + Olivia fashion show benefiting Baby Buggy at the London West Hollywood hotel. “[Producer] Bill Lawrence gave us a big pep talk today saying that he thinks sooner, so fingers crossed.

“We like to think that the network knows what they’re doing,” she added with a laugh.

Even so, Philipps said, “It’s confusing…It’s a bummer, but hopefully it will be a good thing.”

Not like any of this is keeping the cast and crew from working. “There’s going to be a wedding,” Philipps said. “There’s going to be possibly another vacation someplace fun. My character has an amazing new business venture that they ripped from my personal life.”

EOnline.com

When it comes to motherhood, Busy Philipps certainly knows how she does it: The actress has learned it’s all about rolling with the punches.

“Becoming a mom allowed me to just relax in a way I never had before,” the I Don’t Know How She Does It star, 32, tells Parenting.

“I used to care a lot about what I looked like in public or what people thought of me. I care at least 40 percent less now.”

The sudden change behind Philipps’ perspective on life came following the birth of her now 3-year-old daughter Birdie Leigh.

“I want Bird to see her mom as a woman who is confident and real; not someone who’s always trying too hard,” she says.

“I still like to dress up and get fancy from time to time, but it’s okay to be sweaty and without makeup at the grocery store … The bigger part, to me, is being Birdie’s mom, Marc [Silverstein's] wife, and how I’ve worked very hard to grow the past 10 or so years.”

Working hard is something Philipps knows all too well; She admits her downfall is often her inability to resist favor requests from friends.

“I think learning to say no is very important, however I have not mastered that yet,” she says. “I, in fact, feel like I say yes to everything — making cakes for other kids’ birthdays, doing improv shows at midnight, stranger’s podcast … the list goes on.”

However, the number one spot on her to-do list is one pastime Philipps can’t get enough of: Spending time with Birdie.

“Birdie is always my first priority and I cherish the time we spend together … I try to schedule work things around that,” she shares. “You know, like, ‘Yes, I’ll do your podcast, but only after 8 p.m.’”

But when the juggling act gets to be too much for the Cougar Town star to handle, Philipps relies on a good dose of laughter to tackle the challenges.

“I think that very early on I realized that if I couldn’t come at this parenting thing with humor, I would not only lose my mind, but probably my marriage as well,” she notes.

“I took great comfort in something I read in a Dr. Sears book which basically said to remember that the difficult moments will pass, and then at some point, you’ll long for the days when your child wanted nothing but to be held by you or rocked to sleep or breastfed for 10 hours straight.”

Until that day comes, however, Philipps is making it a point to savor each second with her family.

“The fact is, maybe because I’m lucky enough to have a job that affords me the luxury of sometimes being a stay-at-home mom and sometimes working full time, I’m able to appreciate both sides so completely,” she says.

“This early childhood time is so fleeting and before you know it, you’ve got some huge person living with you. I think the chances of liking your kids as they grow into adults, and I mean really liking, not loving, has a lot to do with this early time in their lives.”

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Finding two actors with the magic of perfect chemistry is hard. And finding three? Near impossible. But in the underrated, unfortunately titled banter-fest that is Cougar Town, ABC has exactly that. The rapport among Courteney Cox, Christa Miller and Busy Philipps can’t be forced, faked or, yes, bottled. What makes their on-screen partnership work so well? The secret may lie in their easy off-screen camaraderie, evident even when the conversation is about career challenges and Emmy chances. It doesn’t really come from vino. We think. During this interview, they drank iced tea… (We’re pretty sure…)

TVLINE | The truth: Are your performances enhanced by alcohol?
COURTENEY COX | I think so.
BUSY PHILIPPS | I think so, too.
CHRISTA MILLER | Just a little free-er.

TVLINE | Kidding aside, there’s no actual alcohol consumption during shooting, right?
COX | I would not say the word never. At the very end of the day when we don’t have that much left to do, we ask for some “pomegranate tea.” That’s what we call it. I even got the craft services lady to hang a little teabag from my “tea cup.”
MILLER | But only if you have tiny things to say or no dialogue or you’ve finished your coverage.
PHILIPPS | I can’t drink it if I’m going to be talking a lot, because a) I’ll start slurring and nobody wants that, and b) I’m too much of a control freak.
COX | Her brain is very fresh, though. She’s very young so she has a great memory. I can’t remember anything sober, so I definitely can’t drink and [then] speak.

TVLINE | When did you feel the chemistry between the three of you start to click?
PHILIPPS | I don’t remember which episode it was where we were filming at the beach. What’s the name of that beach where the planes take off? Dockweiler Beach?
MILLER | Yeah.
PHILIPPS | Literally, it’s right in the takeoff path of LAX. So you can only film for five minutes at a time and then a jet comes overhead. But I remember doing that scene with the three of us sitting on a blanket and [executive producer and Miller’s husband] Bill [Lawrence] coming over and saying, “I just want you guys to know, this is the show. I love this.” It was the three of us sitting there drinking wine on the beach.

TVLINE | How familiar were you with each other’s work beforehand?
COX | I had personally known Christa years ago. I could tell we were going to become really close friends, and I don’t know what happened. We had all these plans.
MILLER | We had kids.
COX | Life happens. But we immediately were like, “Oh my God, I’ll tell you everything. I’m telling you everything — every secret.” But she has three kids and things happen.
PHILIPPS | Christa and Bill knew me personally from our mutual friend [and fellow actress] Nicole Sullivan (The King of Queens).
MILLER | I obviously can’t help but be very familiar with Courteney’s career. And then you [guested] on Scrubs. I think Bill and Courteney were both trying to see how it was going to be working together. It was like a little test run for both of them. Courteney was such a good sport, because Scrubs is hard to come on. It was such a tight, clique-y kind of group.
COX | I did three episodes in two days. It was the most work I’ve ever done. And Bill was so much fun that I was like, “Oh God, please, I hope we work together.”

TVLINE | Courteney, as a producer on Cougar Town, I’m guessing you had a hand in casting… Did you instantly know Busy was your Laurie?
COX | I knew instantly. We read tons of people. We took a couple of people to the network. But hands down, hand to God, on everything I have inside of me, when she came in, I was like, “I love that girl. I love her energy.” She was my first choice. There wasn’t a question.
PHILIPPS | It was actually one of the crazier testing experiences for me, because the other girl I [competed against] had another test offer, which happens a lot in pilot season… [She was also] up for another job at ABC. Bill came out into the waiting room and he’s like, “OK, so Busy, you’re going to get [this] job,” and he turned to the other girl and he’s like, “And you’re going to get that other show. I already talked to the showrunner. I just want you to know that that’s what’s happening right now. I’m only saying this because I just want to alleviate all the pressure from the room, so Busy, you have [this] and you, you’re getting this other job this afternoon in two hours.” … And he walked away and she was like, “Well that was weird.” I’m like, “Yeah. It was super weird.” She’s like, “I mean, awesome for you.” I was like, “No. Awesome for you too, you have a job too!” It was like one of the greatest testing experiences ever.
COX | I didn’t know that story. That actually is crazy.
PHILIPPS | I have been in many situations before where I’ve been told by showrunners and executive producers going into a network test that I am the first choice, that they will be damned if I don’t get this part. I’ve had more than my fair share of phone calls and e-mails after the fact saying, “I’m just so sorry. They just really feel like this 23-year-old Canadian girl is fresher.”
COX | That happens at the network?
PHILIPPS | Yes. Part of the reason why I had [my daughter] Birdie, this is no joke, is because that happened with me with Kath & Kim [NBC’s short-lived Molly Shannon/Selma Blair-starring adaptation of the Australian sitcom]. I wanted that show so badly. It was the same exact situation, and then the next day, the showrunner wrote me this crazy email. “I don’t feel like this is the end of our story, but [then-NBC president] Ben [Silverman] wants to just go in a different direction and we have to play that out…’’ I just looked at [husband] Mark [Silverstein] and was like, “F— it, should we just have a kid? I can’t do this anymore.”

TVLINE | What is your perspective on the Emmys? Do you think about that stuff?
PHILIPPS | I had a dream the other night that I was not nominated for an Emmy and I was really upset in my dream. So I don’t think about it on a daily basis, but clearly, in my dream world, it affects me.
COX | I’ve never been nominated for an Emmy, and I’ve been doing this for a long time.

TVLINE | Did getting snubbed for Friends all those years harden you to award shows?
COX | No. I’d love to be nominated. God, it would be such an honor. I’d be so excited. I’d probably be one of those people who just cried. I wish I could say I didn’t care about stuff like that. Maybe if I didn’t, it would be some sort of karmic thing for me, but I actually do. I think it’s nice to be recognized. [Not being so] makes me go, “Oh s–t maybe I don’t know what the f— I’m doing.”
PHILIPPS | Sorry, but it’s crazy that you were never nominated.
COX | Now I’m going to get really personal. When the first person [on Friends] was nominated for an Emmy, I think it was [David] Schwimmer, you’re so excited. Then the second person, [still] so excited. The only time I was like, “Whoa!” was [in 2001 when Jennifer Aniston and Lisa Kudrow] were both nominated and not me. That’s when it’s like, “I have a lesson to learn here.” I had a hard time not taking it personally when it was both Lisa and Jennifer at the same time. One guy, one girl, whatever. But both girls and not me? It hurt. I’m very sensitive, though.
PHILIPPS | For me, it doesn’t even really seem like a possibility. So, it would be the most exciting thing ever and I would love it. Clearly, my dreams are stating so. But it just doesn’t feel like it’s even going to [be a possibility]… Especially our category is like the hardest ever.
MILLER | You don’t want to look at it. You want to pretend it doesn’t happen, but then there’s that secret part of you that thinks, “Wouldn’t that be the greatest, most fun thing?”

TVLINE | Courteney, what would a nomination mean now versus if you had gotten one during Friends?
COX | It would mean more now. Don’t get me wrong, it would have been great back then. But I think it would mean [now] that I’m on another show that is regarded and is written and performed as well as [Friends] in some ways.
MILLER | Let’s see how much work Michael wants to put in so he can get all three of us nominated.
PHILIPPS | You have a lot of work ahead of you.
MILLER | What would we buy you? I’m going to say a house. Courteney?
COX | Do you like to fly privately?

TVLINE | I’d be happy with just an upgrade to Business.
COX | Done. You’re getting that today.

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The fun-loving “Cougar Town” star participated in Pepto-Bismol’s Pinata Smash, a series of hilarious videos that let you virtually celebrate the holiday. If you haven’t already, check out our favorite “smashing” option which involves Busy and an extremely well-oiled boy toy. Days away from her favorite holiday, we caught up with Busy to talk style and shopping.

That video must have been a real drag to shoot. Kidding, obviously.

It was pretty hilarious. The whole concept was funny— but mine’s the best.

Cinco de Mayo’s your favorite holiday. What do you like about it?

I grew up in the American southwest in Arizona and Cinco de Mayo was always a huge deal. We’d have our quesadillas and shredded beef tacos— the ones that are super-bad for you because they’re probably deep-fried. Those are my favorite.

For our “Cougar Town” fans, what’s next for Laurie?

There’s more drinking and more games and at the end of the season we have this big trip to get Travis back. We shot in Hawaii at the Turtle Bay Resort and it was just a blast. I tried to convince them to relocate the show to Hawaii.

Laurie’s style is on the flamboyant side. What’s your personal taste like?

Very eclectic. I wear a lot of vintage. I just think as the saying goes “they don’t make them like they use to.” So if you can get really great vintage dresses it’s the way to go, even if it means a little bit of tailoring or a little bit of love. In L.A. I go to Shareen and Wasteland and What Goes Around Comes Around.

Do you ever bargain shop?

Yes! I frequent Gilt.com. I can’t get enough of it. With clothes for my little girl, I do all of the kid sale websites like theminisocial.com and Zulily.com because it’s so hard for me to spend a lot of money on clothes that she will literally outgrow in a matter of months.

What are you looking forward to wearing for spring/summer?

I am a sundress kind of girl but I also have to have pockets. Being a mother plays into almost everything that I do. I have to have pockets to throw my keys in, or a water bottle, ChapStick, tissues. I also just bought these amazing shorts from Bird by Juicy that are made of sweatshirt material. They’re weirdly flattering even though they look like a diaper.

Do you have an all time favorite red carpet outfit?

The dress I just wore to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences “An evening with Cougar Town” event. It was a striped Opening Ceremony dress from this season. I loved the pattern, the fit. It just all worked for me. And I like way I styled it. I don’t have a stylist so I’m pretty much on my own. I did black tights and black YSL shoes, and didn’t really do any jewelry because the dress had a lot going on.

That’s awesome. What do you think you’re going to be wearing to your Cinco de Mayo party?

Probably a vintage tribal print muumuu so I can eat a lot!

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The star of ‘Cougar Town’ and ‘Freaks and Geeks’ watches lots of TV

Adweek: What’s the first information you consume in the morning?
Busy Philipps: I have a 2-and-a-half-year old, so generally speaking, I don’t get any news until I’m not with her, which tends to be when I get in the car.

What do you read or watch or listen to at the breakfast table?
If anything, it’s Go, Diego, Go! on Nick Jr., or princess music.

What occupies your mind in the car, on the subway, train, or bus?
I listen to NPR in the car, which is how I get my news. But here in Los Angeles we have KCRW, and between 9 and 12, they just play music. There are days where I can go until late afternoon without hearing anything that’s going on in the world.

Are you a TV junkie, or on an airtime-restricted diet?
We watch a ton of TV in our house. You know that Malcolm Gladwell theory that you have to do something for 10,000 hours before you become an expert? Well, we were recently joking that my husband is a TV expert, and I’m close behind him.

If you’re a couch potato, what do you watch, and how: TV, laptop, or tablet?
My husband and I try to stay with “classy reality” shows like Amazing Race or competition shows Project Runway and Top Chef, and we watch a lot of NBC comedies like 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation, and Community. We just started watching The Killing on AMC, and I watch Men of a Certain Age. And Cougar Town, of course! We always watch shows on our television, but we have rules about my laptop use when we’re watching, because my husband hates to go back and explain things that I’ve missed. So if it’s reality TV, I’m allowed to use my laptop, but if it’s scripted television, I’m not.

Before bed, do you: Bite into a novel; graze on Twitter; or fast until morning?
Almost every night I watch HGTV’s House Hunters, Property Virgins or Income Property before bed. I have to fall asleep to something. What I watch is cyclical: for a while it was Friends, then Seinfeld, then The Daily Show, and now I’m on this HGTV kick. I can’t get enough.

Which is more nutritious: print or Web?
I tend to get my news online, but when something really big is going on in the world, I will turn on the TV.

Give us the skinny on your favorite app.
The one I use the most on my iPhone is the free Twitter app. On the iPad, my daughter loves these stupid talking animal apps that I can’t stand. She’s been using an iPad for almost a year. It’s super kid-friendly.

What’s your biggest digital indulgence?
I do tweet. I wouldn’t say I tweet a lot, but I do it.

With such a bloated media universe, how do you cut out the fat?
Word of mouth. I trust my smarter friends and husband to help me choose what to follow.

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