SOAPNET’S NEW ORIGINAL DOCUSOAP, “SOUTHERN BELLES: LOUISVILLE,” PREMIERES THURSDAY, MAY 21 AT 10:00 PM ET/PT

“Bless Their Hearts” … The New Series Unveils the Challenging Journey of Self-Discovery Among Five Modern, Single Southern Women in the Heart of Louisville, Kentucky

SOAPnet is adding more original series to its slate and will premiere “Southern Belles: Louisville” on Thursday, May 21, 2009. A total of 10 one-hour docudrama episodes will air on Thursdays at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT. The series, produced by Endemol USA in association with ABC Media Productions, follows the lives of five single, modern Southern women in their 20s and 30s in the heart of Louisville, Kentucky, offering an intimate look at the professional and romantic lives of this circle of friends.

“Southern Belles: Louisville” is a real-life “Sex and the City” that takes place in the South, but not the South that stereotypes are made of. The backdrop is the progressive, art-centric and warm community of Louisville, Kentucky. The series will showcase the intense friendships and family values that are part of the Southern way of life. These five contemporary and independent women are all at critical crossroads in their lives: Some are confronting their biological clocks, some are still looking for Mr. Right and are trying to find their career paths, and one is preparing for her wedding.

Our “Southern Belles: Louisville” include:

Kellie Frey, 32: Kellie is a divorcee who married into high society. Newly divorced for the second time at 32, Kellie is attempting to stand on her own two feet for the first time in her life without the security of a man. Ironically, Kellie has decided to start a matchmaking service and hopes she can learn how to run a business as she goes. Having been divorced twice, Kellie thinks she’s a natural because she knows what doesn’t work in a relationship. She sets her mom and Julie up on dates in the hope that she can find both of them true love.

Emily Gimmel, 24: Emily is the prodigal daughter who turned her back on the riches of her family’s business to pursue a career as a TV reporter. She’s been pursuing her entertainment dreams since she was a teenager and now has landed a job offer in Las Vegas, a far cry from her family’s conservative ways. Her father doesn’t approve of daddy’s little girl being in ‘Sin City‘, and fights to keep her at home. He would love to see Emily join the family’s multimillion dollar manufacturing company. Afraid to lose her Kentucky roots, and to please her father, Emily takes the Vegas job part time and commutes back and forth from Louisville. Will Emily be able to pursue her broadcasting future in Las Vegas permanently without alienating her family in the process?

Hadley Hartz, 26: Hadley is the girl next door who is beautiful, bubbly and fun to be around. She’s well educated and smart…except when it comes to the things that really matter: her love life and her career. She has a history of dating the wrong kind of guys and making poor career choices. Mired in a low paying dead end job as a personal assistant, Hadley struggles to grow up and find out what she wants out of life. Will she get burned again or will she be able to take control of her life for the first time and start planning out a real future for herself?

Shea Johnson, 28: On the outside it looks like Shea has it all. She’s a sophisticated socialite that comes from money. Under the façade, she’s actually just a regular girl with her own family issues. She’s finally met someone who can give her something she’s never had: stability. And, she’s planning her wedding even though he hasn’t proposed. Will her high-maintenance ways throw a wrench into her plan for a perfect life?

Julie Smith, 34: Julie is a model on the verge of her 35th birthday. It’s time for her to face the hard truth, that to stay in the game she’s going to have to adapt and evolve –goodbye catwalk…hello soccer mom shoots. Julie creates a to do list and sets out to accomplish each thing on it, which include finding a man and getting her modeling career back on track. As she works on keeping her career afloat, she ventures into the choppy waters of the Louisville dating scene and lets Kellie set her up on blind dates. It’s time for her to stop living on the sidelines and take some risks. Will Julie be able to find true love before it’s too late?

Southern Belles: Louisville” is produced by Endemol, USA in association with ABC Media Productions. David Goldberg is chairman of Endemol North America. Joe Livecchi, Donald Bull and R. Greg Johnston serve as executive producers. Endemol USA is a leading producer of television programming specializing in reality and non-scripted genres for network and cable television. The company produces the break-out hits “Deal or No Deal,” “Wipeout,” “Fear Factor,” “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” and “Big Brother.” Endemol USA is a division of Endemol Group, a world leading content developer, producer and distributor of television and online programming. The company, headquartered in the Netherlands, has subsidiaries and joint ventures in 25 countries, including the major European markets, the U.S., South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Australia.

Source: Soapnet Press Release