I'm sitting here in front of the television, and I'm confused. I'm watching "K Street" on HBO. The confusing part is that I'm having a hard time separating fact from fiction. The "actors" include James Carville, his wife Mary Matalin, Paul Begala, Howard Dean, Mary McCormack (an actual actress), among others. The settings are real DC streets, shops, venues such as the Congressional Black Caucus debate, and private homes, all filmed in Soderbergh's Traffic style.

The scenes involving Howard Dean appear to be real, including his debate preparation with James Carville. But Carville, who is also one of the main characters at this point, also has several scenes that are shot from several angles, or with fictional characters such as the mysterious "Francisco Dupre", that are clearly set up. The shots from the Democratic Debate at the Congressional Black Caucus are real, while the shots of Carville watching the debate are staged.

So, what's the deal here? Using my Tivo I reviewed the credits to try to separate fact from fiction. I had been expecting to see George Clooney, but then I noticed that he is credited as an Executive Producer. Sure enough, a bunch of folks are credited as "Appearing as Themselves", though Carville and Matalin are credited separately and look to be main characters. There are only a couple characters played by actors, and I assume they'll be used, along with Carville and Matalin, to tie the episodes together.

One interesting aspect of the show, as reported by Tony Kornheiser on his radio show, is the way in which the show is produced. Apparently the crew work Monday through Friday, shooting film and putting together the show, finishing by Friday night, with the episode airing Sunday. Thus, each episode should contain very current news. That's a very unusual production scheme, and I suspect it will only add to the "is this real?" feeling of the show.

Finally, I'll mention that this is real inside stuff. The main characters are lobbyists and consultants, not candidates and officials. Instead of getting Caesar, we're getting Cassius. For political junkies, this is can't miss. Given the short format and news relevance, even the general public might be interested. I'm certainly going to queue this one on my seasons pass - I loved it!