Psych Information

Psych centers on Shawn Spencer, who possesses uncanny powers of observation honed by his police officer father, Henry, who drilled young Shawn to note even the smallest details of his surroundings.

When Shawn is accused of committing a crime that he actually solved for the police department, he convinces the cops that he's psychic. With the reluctant help of his best-friend Gus, Shawn starts solving cases for an ever-skeptical, but grudgingly impressed, police force.

About PSYCH Psych Cast Photo

A new quick-witted drama, Psych stars James Roday as young police consultant Shawn Spencer who solves crimes with powers of observation so acute the precinct detectives think he's psychic -- at least that's what he lets them believe.

Psych also stars Dule Hill as Shawn's best friend and reluctant sidekick, Gus, and Corbin Bernsen as Shawn's disapproving father, Henry, who ironically was the one who honed his son's "observation" skills as a child. Also featured are Timothy Omundson and Kirsten Nelson.

Psych will premiere with a 90-minute episode on Friday, July 7 at 10/9C followed by one-hour episodes for the remainder of the season.

Psych is executive produced by Steve Franks ("Big Daddy"), in association with Tagline Pictures' Kelly Kulchack and Chris Henze and NBC Universal Television Studios. Jack Sakmar & Kerry Lenhart ("Boston Public," "Ed") and Mel Damski ("Pickett Fences") are co-executive producers, Douglas Steinberg ("Boston Public") is consulting producer. Story editor is Anupam Nigam and Andy Berman serves as staff writer. Michael Engler directed the 90-minute pilot.

Created and written by Franks, Psych continues USA's tradition of original scripted programming centering on quirky, intelligent characters. As with Monk, Psych mixes comedy with its crime and features a somewhat eccentric lead character -- Shawn, a police Psychic with absolutely no psychic abilities.

Raised in Santa Barbara by a family of cops, Shawn possesses uncanny powers of observation honed by his police officer father, Henry, who drilled young Shawn to note even the smallest of details from his surroundings as a way of grooming him for his inevitable career in the family business. Unfortunately, when a rift develops between father and son, Shawn finds himself taking a series of random jobs instead of becoming the detective he was groomed to be.

However, for the fun of it, Shawn makes a habit of calling in tips to the police about cases he reads about or sees on television, and when one of his tips appears too close to the truth, the police are convinced that Shawn is an accomplice and arrest him.

Using his charm and well-tuned talent, Shawn convinces the cops that he's actually a Psychic, and although highly skeptical of his explanation, they hire him to help solve tough cases. With the reluctant assistance of his best friend Gus, Shawn uses his skills of observation and charismatic personality to become the detective he was trained to be, opening his own PI agency -- Psych -- and solving cases for an ever-suspicious, but grudgingly impressed, police force.

About the Characters

Shawn Spencer

Shawn Spencer (James Roday) hails from a family of cops, and was fully expected to carry the torch by his father, Henry, who meticulously schooled his son from a very young age in the finer points of detective work. But while Henry made him a detective, he can't make Shawn be a detective.

It soon becomes clear that Shawn's extraordinary powers of observation and deduction are still no match for his overdeveloped sense of fun, as he takes a string of random jobs strictly for enjoyment and entertains himself calling in tips to the police hotline for crimes he sees on television.

And then one night, one of Shawn's tips lead police somewhere he never imagined -- back to him. It seems detectives believe information this accurate could only have come from the inside, and Shawn is the suspect.

Desperate to avoid jail time, Shawn hastily explains that his insight is really second sight - he's a psychic. And though skeptical, the department is impressed and Shawn is hired on as a "psychic consultant".

Immediately enlisting the assistance of his reluctant best friend, Gus, Shawn opens his own agency, PSYCH, taking his talent for detective work -- and fun -- in a new direction.

Burton 'Gus' Guster

Gus (Dule Hill) has been party to the impulsive adventures of his best friend, Shawn, since they were kids, which is why he's convinced himself that the straight and narrow -- a job as a pharmaceutical sales rep, 401(k) and a regular paycheck is right where he belongs.

Still, the idea of being a private investigator intrigues him, and while he is completely horrified by Shawn's behavior most of the time, he knows that the excitement and adventure of their new enterprise might just make it all worth it.

Henry Spencer

Retired cop Henry Spencer (Corbin Bernsen) makes no bones about his contempt for Shawn's new business venture. After years spent training his son to observe and analyze like a detective, Henry can't believe that Shawn would squander his enormous talent only to take his place at the bottom of the law enforcement food chain ... as a psychic.

To Henry, it just completes the long spiral of disappointment that has left his relationship with his son strained to say the least.

Carlton Lassiter

Head Detective Carlton Lassiter (Tim Omundson) would sooner arrest Shawn Spencer than follow any of his psychic "visions".

A straight-shooting, 10-year veteran of the Santa Barbara Police Department, Lassiter has worked his way to the top by conducting investigations cleanly, efficiently, and always by the book. This leaves little room for Shawn to intervene, and plenty of frustration when he inevitably does.

Juliet O'Hara

Junior Detective Juliet O'Hara (Maggie Lawson), a recent transplant from Miami Beach, was brought up in a family of brothers and is suited for both the rigors of police work and the demands of her new partner, Roland Lassiter, with whom she shares an encyclopedic knowledge of police code.

But unlike her partner, Juliet is amused by Shawn Spencer and is open to the idea that sometimes a good lead is found outside of the Standard Operating Procedure.

Karen Vick

Interim Police Chief Karen Vick (Kirsten Nelson) worked alongside Shawn Spencer's father, Henry, during his days on the force. And while she may not be entirely sold on Shawn's strengths as a medium, she admires his moxie, as well as the fact that, like his father, Shawn brings results.

Hot new series starring James Roday, Dulè Hill and Corbin Bernsen returns

with all new episodes

PSYCH, this years number one new show on cable continues its first season, with all new episodes on Friday, January 19 2007 10pm/9c. USA will also host a PSYCH marathon on Saturday, January 13 2007 from 12:30pm – 8pm featuring seven episodes.

A quick-witted drama, PSYCH stars James Roday (“The Dukes of Hazzard”) as young police consultant Shawn Spencer who solves crimes with powers of observation so acute the precinct detectives think he's psychic – at least that’s what he lets them believe. The series also stars Dulé Hill (“The West Wing”) as Shawn's best friend and reluctant sidekick Gus and Corbin Bernsen (“Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,” “L.A. Law”) as Shawn's disapproving father, who ironically was the one who honed his son's "observation" skills as a child. Also featured are Timothy Omundson (“Judging Amy,” “Deadwood”), Maggie Lawson (“Crumbs,” “Inside Schwartz”) and Kirsten Nelson (“Everwood”).

Raised in Santa Barbara, Shawn possesses uncanny powers of observation honed by his police officer father, Henry, who drilled young Shawn to note even the smallest of details from his surroundings as a way of grooming him for his inevitable career in the family business. Unfortunately, when a rift develops between father and son, Shawn finds himself taking a series of random jobs instead of becoming the detective he was groomed to be. However, for the fun of it, he makes a habit of calling in tips to the police about cases he reads about or sees on television, and when one of his tips appears too close to the truth, the police are convinced that Shawn is an accomplice and arrest him. Using his charm and well-tuned talent, Shawn convinces the cops that he's actually a psychic, and although highly skeptical of his explanation, they hire him to help solve tough cases. With the reluctant assistance of his best friend Gus (Hill), Shawn uses his skills of observation and charismatic personality to become the detective he was trained to be, opening his own PI agency - PSYCH, and solving cases for an ever-suspicious - but grudgingly impressed - police force.

Guest stars for the upcoming season include Academy Award winner Mercedes Ruehl (“The Fisher King”), Richard Kind (“Mad About You”), Dan Lauria (“The Wonder Years”), Kurtwood Smith (”That 70’s Show”) and Nicole Lyn (“Feast of All Saints”) as well as guest directors John Landis, Tim Matheson and Joanna Kerns.

As the first season continues, Henry’s former boss Captain Connors (Smith), knows he’s solved a crime but can’t remember it. He comes to Shawn for help, who must piece together not only Connors’ memories, but also the clues buried in them to find the killer; a woman sleeps with a beloved local weatherman but wakes up to find him dead and she is charged with his murder. Shawn finds a way into the case by becoming a consultant to the defense; Shawn and Gus step into a real life urban legend, as they investigate a death suspiciously like the tale of “Scary Sherry,” who met her untimely end at the now haunted Wispy Sunny Pines mental institution; before the Psych Agency can begin to investigate the disappearance of an up and coming tennis star, Shawn must first retrieve Gus from a corporate retreat, and they soon realize things are not always as they appear; when a drunken and depressed Lassiter confesses to Shawn that he has doubts about the death of an astronomer, officially listed as being of natural causes, Shawn sets out to secretly prove the detective right in order to boost his morale; as a joke, Lassiter gives Shawn the case when a man shows up naked at the police station claiming to have been abducted by aliens, but Shawn’s investigation soon takes in him into an even stranger universe – speed dating; and, Henry’s friend Peterson (Lauria) refuses to call the police after his wayward son steals from him and then goes missing, which forces Henry to go find help in the last place he ever wanted to visit – the Psych office.

PSYCH is executive produced by Steve Franks (“Big Daddy”), in association with Tagline Pictures’ Kelly Kulchack and Chris Henze and NBC Universal Television Studio. Jack Sakmar & Kerry Lenhart (“Boston Public,” “Ed”) and Mel Damski (“Picket Fences”) are co-executive producers, Douglas Steinberg (“Boston Public”) is consulting producer. Story editor is Anupam Nigam and Andy Berman serves as staff writer.

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