HBO SETS DOCUMENTARY LINEUP FOR THE FIRST HALF OF 2005

-------- Presentations Include Shari Cookson's CRUISIN' WITH ROSIE O'DONNELL, Joe And Harry Gantz's TAXICAB CONFESSIONS: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, Steven Okazaki's REHAB And Kirby Dick's TWIST OF FAITH, A 2005 Sundance Selection --------

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 13, 2005 -- From the back of a New York City cab, to the hectic halls of a new talk-radio network, to the decks of the first-ever gay and lesbian family cruise, HBO's America Undercover documentaries and documentary specials will take viewers to intriguing worlds in the first half of 2005. Among the upcoming presentations are CRUISIN' WITH ROSIE O'DONNELL, from Shari Cookson (HBO's Emmy(r)-nominated "Living Dolls: The Making of a Child Beauty Queen"), TAXICAB CONFESSIONS: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, from Joe and Harry Gantz (directors of the Emmy(r)-winning series), REHAB, from Steven Okazaki (the Oscar(r) winner "Days of Waiting"), and Kirby Dick's TWIST OF FAITH, a 2005 official Sundance Film Festival Selection.

America Undercover documentaries include:

TAXICAB CONFESSIONS: NEW YORK, NEW YORK (Feb. 5) marks the hit Emmy(r)-winning series' return to the streets of New York City after an eight-year hiatus in Las Vegas. In the safety of a taxicab, under the cover of a New York City night, people are capable of saying and doing anything in this provocative, all-new special. Directed by Joe and Harry Gantz.

DOPE SICK LOVE (March 10) catapults viewers deep inside the extreme existence of two drug-addicted couples who try to maintain their relationships while living on the streets of New York City. Following them from apartment buildings, where they shoot up in the corridors and elevators, to public toilets, where they smoke crack, and onto the streets, where they brawl, hustle and engage in prostitution, the film is an unflinching, bare-bones examination of drug addiction. Directed by Felice Conte, Brent Renaud and Craig Renaud.

LEFT OF THE DIAL (March 31) captures the turmoil behind the rise and fall and rise of Air America, the first liberal talk-radio network. Almost nobody involved in the network had worked in radio before, and as a result, tempers were constantly flaring off (and occasionally on) the air. Fast-paced, humorous and dramatic, the film charts the intersection of individual hopes and beliefs with the harsh realities of launching a network. Featuring on-air personalities Al Franken, Janeane Garofalo, Chuck D, Randi Rhodes and Marc Maron, the documentary will premiere on the first anniversary of Air America's launch. Directed by Kate O'Callaghan and Patrick Farrelly.

TWIST OF FAITH (April), a 2005 official Sundance Film Festival Selection, is the powerful story of a man who confronts the trauma of past sexual abuse as a boy by a Catholic priest, only to find his decision shatters his relationships with his family, community and faith. Directed by Kirby Dick (CINEMAX's "The End").

REHAB (May) visits Camp Recovery in Santa Cruz, Cal., to tell the tales of real people - daughters and sons, mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters -- whose drug and alcohol addictions are slowly killing them, and destroying their families as well. Directed by Steven Okazaki.

AUTOPSY 10: ASK DR. BADEN (May) brings a new twist to the hit series, which allows viewers to witness how forensic pathologists, known as "doctors of death," crack their most difficult cases. This season, Dr. Michael Baden, former Chief Medical Examiner of New York City, chooses his subjects from more than 1,000 viewer e-mails, serving as a "court of last resort" in especially challenging cases. Directed by Arthur Ginsberg.

HBO documentary specials include:

CRUISIN' WITH ROSIE O'DONNELL (June) joins Emmy(r)-winner Rosie O'Donnell for the first ever gay and lesbian family vacation. The Norwegian Dawn, chartered by Rosie and Kelli O'Donnell's R Family Vacations, went on a weeklong adventure with 500 families to Key West and Nassau, and HBO came along for the ride. Directed by Shari Cookson.

UNKNOWN SOLDIER: SEARCHING FOR A FATHER (June) follows John Hulme's quest to find out what happened to his father, Lt. Jack Hulme, who was killed in Vietnam on June 30, 1969, having never met his newborn son. Thirty years later, John Hulme tracks down family members, childhood friends and the soldiers who fought beside his father. What he discovers is a life that mirrored a generation's struggles and wounds that remain painfully fresh, especially for his mother. Together, John and his mother travel to Vietnam, to the place where Jack spent the last few moments of his life, in order to finally come to terms with his death. Directed by John Hulme.

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