The Daily Beast: "ABC Family’s Switched at Birth ASL Episode Recalls Gallaudet Protest"

Almost 25 years to the day after the student protest at Gallaudet University began in 1988, ABC Family’s ‘Switched at Birth’ features a storyline about a deaf student uprising in an episode, airing March 4, that’s told almost entirely in American Sign Language.

At The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "Do Not Adjust Your TV: ABC Family’s Switched at Birth ASL Episode Recalls Gallaudet Protest," in which I offer praise of ABC Family's extraordinary Switched at Birth, which presents a nearly all-ASL episode on Monday, a landmark installment that connects both to Deaf culture/history and to the seminal 1988 Gallaudet student protests (DPN). Not to be missed.

A generation has passed since the weeklong act of protest known as Deaf President Now, and its influence on deaf culture is likely a distant memory for the hearing community. That may change, however, thanks to a pivotal and landmark episode of ABC Family’s Switched at Birth, which will present a television first: an installment that is enacted nearly entirely in American Sign Language (ASL).

For the deaf community, the Gallaudet University students’ uprising was a metaphorical crossing of the Rubicon, just as vital and significant as Stonewall or Rosa Parks. It was a momentous act of revolution that has remained a critical cultural and social touchstone, reaffirming deaf identity, culture, and pride.

In 1988, Gallaudet, the world’s first higher educational institution for the deaf and hard of hearing, had just announced as its seventh president yet another hearing appointee. Elizabeth Zinser, assistant chancellor at University of North Carolina at Greensboro, had been the only hearing candidate for the job. Jane Bassett Spilman—chairwoman of Gallaudet’s board of trustees, largely made up of hearing individuals—announced Zinser’s appointment and defended the board’s decision by allegedly saying, “The deaf are not yet ready to function in the hearing world.”

Furious, deaf and hard of hearing students barricaded Gallaudet’s gates, refusing to leave and denying anyone entry until a deaf person was appointed as university president. Effigies of both women were burned during Deaf President Now (DPN), which received national coverage in the media.

In the end, Zinser would resign from her position, the university’s first deaf president, I. King Jordan, would be appointed after 124 years, and more than 2,500 protesters would converge on Capitol Hill, holding banners that read, “We still have a dream!”

Today, outside the deaf community, pioneers and crusaders like I. King Jordan; Laurent Clerc, America’s first deaf teacher; and Jean-Ferdinand Berthier, a deaf intellectual and political organizer who wrote about deaf culture and history, are sadly all but unknown.

But the ASL episode of Switched at Birth—titled, fittingly, “Uprising,” and airing March 4—will bring fresh attention to the Deaf President Now movement at Gallaudet, recalling a time of deaf activism that continues to inspire a new generation of students today.

For those not familiar with Switched at Birth, the show, created by Lizzy Weiss and now in its second season, charts the collision of cultures, identities, ethnicities, and classes when two teenage girls (Vanessa Marano’s Bay Kennish and Katie Leclerc’s Daphne Vasquez) discover that they were switched at birth and their respective parents convene in a blended family to become reacquainted with their biological children.

The drama, which won the Television Critics Association award for youth programming last year, isn’t just about the drama that ensues after the switch is discovered. It is a deft and sophisticated look at the way we communicate and express ourselves; whether through ASL, street art, or music. Switched at Birth is also the most nuanced and complex depiction of deaf culture and individuals ever to air on television. It’s all the more astounding that what unfolds before us—intelligent, emotionally resonant, and even profound—is packaged in what is nominally a teen drama.

Continue reading at The Daily Beast...

The Daily Beast: "Switched at Birth: ABC Family’s Groundbreaking Deaf/Hearing Drama

And now for something different. I'm definitely not within ABC Family's target demographic, but I've fallen head over heels in love with the cable network's drama Switched at Birth, which is a profound and reflective exploration of communication, identity, and self-expression.

Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, entitled "Switched at Birth: ABC Family’s Groundbreaking Deaf/Hearing Drama," in which I take a look at the teen soap, which explores self-expression and the communication gulf between the hearing and deaf communities, and talk to creator Lizzy Weiss and stars Katie Leclerc, Sean Berdy, and Marlee Matlin.

When Marlee Matlin walked away with an Academy Award for her heart-wrenching turn as a deaf custodian in 1986’s romantic drama Children of a Lesser God, it seemed as though film had finally encountered a definitive depiction of a deaf individual and the often tenuous relationship between the hearing and the deaf worlds. Television has lagged behind; nearly 30 years later, most TV shows still typically shove deaf characters into the background or use them as props as part of a hearing person’s story.


Switched at Birth reverses that course. On the surface, the teen soap, which launched on ABC Family last summer, appears to revolve around two teenage girls (Vanessa Marano, Katie Leclerc) who discover that they were switched at birth as their families—a wealthy white couple (D.W. Moffett, Lea Thompson) and a Latina recovering-alcoholic hairdresser (Constance Marie)—attempt to untangle the emotional Gordian knot in which they’ve found themselves.

Unexpectedly, the show delves deep. Created by Lizzy Weiss (Blue Crush), Switched at Birth—which airs Tuesday evenings at 8 p.m.—offers a deft and intelligent take on the way in which we form our identities through self-expression, whether that be street art, spoken/signed communication, texting, or open dialogue among family members and individuals, as well as the communication gulf between the hearing and deaf/hard-of-hearing communities. It’s also a show that doesn’t pander to its presumed audience. Semantics—“deaf” and “hard-of-hearing” are OK; “hearing-impaired” is not—and ethical implications, as well as morality and choice, are discussed frankly and without preaching.

Continue reading at The Daily Beast...

The Daily Beast: "The Summer's Best (and Worst) TV"

Over at The Daily Beast, you can check out my latest feature as I offer a report card for the Summer TV Season: picking the winners, losers, and draws across broadcast and cable.

Be sure to check out the gallery at "The Summer's Best (and Worst) TV," where I break down the successes and failures of the past season show by show. Where did White Collar, Pretty Little Liars, and Covert Affairs end up? And which shows ended up at the bottom of the barrel?

Head over to The Daily Beast to find out and head to the comments section to discuss your favorite and least favorite shows of the past summer season and why you felt certain programs succeeded or failed.

Channel Surfing: Olivia Munn Tackles Chuck, Scott Porter Investigates The Good Wife, Chris Isaak Could Replace Simon, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. A few things to get through before I hit the road for San Diego and Comic-Con.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Olivia Munn (the newly minted Daily Show correspondent) will guest star on NBC's Chuck this fall when the series returns for its fourth season on September 20th. Munn, who is a series regular on NBC's midseason comedy Perfect Couples, will play "an impossibly cool, smart, and pretty CIA agent who intimidates and schools Chuck and Morgan" in the same installment that features Dolph Lundgren. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

In other scoop, Ausiello writes that former Friday Night Lights star Scott Porter will be joining the cast of CBS' The Good Wife this fall. Porter, whose CW pilot Nomads was not ordered to series, will play Blake, described as "Kalinda’s private-eye counterpart at the D.C. firm that’s merging with Lockhart & Gardner" who "offsets his cynical attitude with lots of hidden humor and sexual charisma. He is disguised as a landlord when he first encounters Kalinda, who doesn’t appreciate being taken in by this ‘master of disguise.’ However, underneath their fractious interactions, there’s definite chemistry between these two." Porter is expected to appear in at least ten episodes of The Good Wife's second season. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Wicked Game? Singer Chris Issak is among the frontrunners to replace Simon Cowell on FOX's American Idol, as is Harry Connick Jr. while Bret Michaels and Donald Trump have each lobbied to replace Cowell for the tenth season of Idol. "The network is determined to land a widely known music industry figure for the post, and THR has learned that singer Chris Isaak has met twice with the network," write James Hibberd and Kim Masters. "Also, at least one desirable candidate has set off a tug-of-war between Idol executive producer Simon Fuller and Cowell -- whose upcoming Fox singing competition The X Factor is similarly seeking judges." Hmmm... (Hollywood Reporter)

Syfy has announced that the back half of Season One of Caprica will not air until January 2011, a sizable delay given that the first half of the season wrapped in the end of March. Here's how Syfy is positioning the remainder of the season: "In season 1.5, the once idyllic world of Caprica – as well as life across the colonies – falls prey to an explosive chain reaction of consequences set off by the characters’ many questionable actions in the season’s first half. Tensions rise, power shifts and the line between reality and the virtual world becomes increasingly blurred as everyone struggles to learn – and conquer – the stakes in this volatile setting. As the season races towards its stunning conclusion, events of each episode lay the framework for the inevitable (and brutal) clash between the newly-created Cylon race and their human creators." (via press release)

Universal Media Studios has signed a deal with The Office writer/co-star B.J. Novak that will keep him aboard the NBC comedy series for two more seasons and will be bumped to an executive producer title halfway through the series' upcoming seventh season. He'll also develop new projects for the studio as well. "B.J. has been an integral part of The Office since the launch of the show," said Angela Bromstad, NBC's president of primetime entertainment. "Whether he's in the writing room or appearing on screen, we always get the smart, sophisticated, ridiculously funny humor from him that the fans have come to love." (Variety)

Mark your calendars: HBO has announced that Bored to Death and Eastbound and Down will return for their second seasons on Sunday, September 26th at 10 pm and 10:30 pm ET/PT respectively. (via press release)

TVGuide.com's Denise Martin is reporting that Katherine Moenning (The L Word) will guest star in the upcoming season of Showtime's serial killer drama Dexter, where she will play a tattoo artist appearing in one episode. "How she'll become embroiled in the serial killer's world remains unknown," writes Martin. The fifth season of Dexter launches Sunday, September 26th at 9 pm ET/PT. (TVGuide.com)

Doris Roberts (Everybody Loves Raymond) will be dropping by ABC's The Middle for the second season premiere, airing September 22nd. She'll play a new teacher for Brick who is "an intimidating force to be reckoned with" and "'strong' opinions about Frankie's parenting methods." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

File under strange but true: CBS' drama pilot Chaos, the subject of a lively back and forth between the network and studio 20th Century Fox Television, is allegedly alive again, according to Deadline's Nellie Andreeva. "The resurrection process took a step forward yesterday when CBS' entertainment president Nina Tassler had lunch with 20th TV chairmen Dana Walden and Gary Newman to discuss the matter," writes Andreeva. "I hear the Brett Ratner-directed Chaos is now back on track for a midseason series order at CBS, possibly as a co-production between 20th TV and CBS TV Studios. The only major obstacle is bringing back the cast, led by Freddy Rodriguez, which was released on June 30 when the actors' options expired. I hear the actors have been approached about returning and things look optimistic on that front." (Deadline)

If you were worried that the cast of MTV's Jersey Shore wouldn't be back for a third season, you can rest easy today: the entire cast has renegotiated their contracts and will be approximately $30,000 per episode for Season Three. [Editor: the sound you hear? Me gagging.] (The Wrap)

ABC Family is launching new comedy Melissa & Joey on Tuesday, August 17th, with two back-to-back episodes at 8 and 8:30 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

Cinemax is resurrecting the thriller anthology genre with a new latenight series Femme Fatales, based on the magazine. Format will be a half-hour anthology, airing in a latenight slot with a narrator introducing short-form thrillers. Project, which has received a series order, is executive produced by Mark A. Altman and Steve Kriozere. (Hollywood Reporter)

Bert Salke will replace Chris Carlisle as the president of Fox21, the subdivision of 20th Century Fox Television that specializes in cable and reality programming. He is expected to start in August and will report to Dana Walden and Gary Newman. (Deadline)

FremantleMedia has teamed up with Mark Sennett Entertainment and Headline Pictures to develop period racing drama The Drivers, which will be based on Wallace A. Wyss' book, "Shelby: The Man, the Cars, the Legend." Series will revolve around a group of drivers from US and Europe who race for the top prize at Le Mans and will be set in either the 1950s or 1960s. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: More on Party Down Cancellation, NBC Dumps Persons Unknown on Sats, Weeds, Big Love, and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

Following yesterday's brutal cancellation of Party Down, Hitfix's Alan Sepinwall talks to Party Down executive producer Rob Thomas about the cancellation of the Starz comedy. "No one on our side is particularly shocked by the news," Thomas told Sepinwall about the cancellation. "Frankly, the waiting has been excruciating, and there's a certain amount of relief in knowing and being able to move on." Thomas indicated that the series was heading towards a third season renewal before newly installed entertainment czar Chris Albrecht was brought in. "There's little to no doubt that we were going to get one until Chris came in," said Thomas. "But I do think if we had done better numbers, Chris would've kept us. I don't think Chris wanted to come in and clean house. I just don't think he had quite the emotional attachment that people who had been at Starz through the birth of the show had towards it." (Hitfix)

E! Online's Kristin Dos Santos also spoke briefly with Rob Thomas about the Party Down cancellation and learned that he's working on a new project. "I'm writing a drama pilot set in the world of corporate espionage for Showtime," Thomas told Dos Santos yesterday. [Editor: of course, that came out when Dos Santos asked Thomas about what was happening with a Veronica Mars feature film, so Neptune fans, I wouldn't keep holding our breaths on that one.] (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

If you're one of the few tuning in to NBC's serialized thriller, don't get too attached to watching Persons Unknown on Mondays. The Futon Critic is reporting that NBC is shifting Persons to Saturday evenings at 8 pm ET/PT beginning July 17th. Mondays will now how repeats of America's Got Talent at 8 pm, new episodes of Last Comic Standing at 9 pm, and Dateline at 10 pm. Persons Unknown will air its final Monday airing on July 5th. (Futon Critic)

SPOILER! Looking for some dirt on Showtime's Weeds, which returns August 16th? TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck talks to Weeds' Hunt Parrish about the sixth season, which finds the Botwins on the run. "Nancy would never leave her family behind so we're all on the run together. We pick up and move states. It's cool to see this family outside of their world," said Parrish. "We've only had one consistent set in the nine out of thirteen episodes we've shot so far [the Bowtin's RV]. We're filming on location a lot." Look for Nancy to move from pot into the hash business as well. (TV Guide Magazine)

ANOTHER SPOILER? Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has some dish on the fifth season of HBO's Big Love. "The new season starts shooting July 13, and based on some fresh casting intel, we’ll be seeing a lotta fallout from the Henricksons’ 'outing' as polygamists’, especially at the elementary school some of the kids attend," writes Ausiello. "Maybe Bill will find a sympathetic ear in Richard Dwyer, the Majority Leader of the Utah State Senate and a new recurring character? On second thought, not likely, eh?" (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

The CW has announced its plans for fall, unveiling its autumn launch dates for new and returning series. Up first: America's Next Top Model, kicking off on Wednesday, September 8th, along with new drama Hellcats. The Vampire Diaries and Nikita kick off on Thursday, September 9th. 90210 and Gossip Girl return September 13th, One Tree Hill and Life Unexpected launch on Tuesday, September 14th, and Smallville and Supernatural return to the schedule on Friday, September 24th. (Variety)

SPOILER! TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Harriet Sansom Harris (Frasier) will reprise her role as Felicia Tilman on ABC's Desperate Housewives next season as part of the return of Mark Moses' character Paul to the series. "We are definitely going to show Harriet on the show," an unnamed source confirmed to Keck. "We will be using her to clarify how Paul got out of jail." Felicia, after all, had faked her own death in order to point the finger of suspicion on Paul as revenge for Paul's murder of her sister, Martha Huber. "I had lunch with (series creator) Mark Cherry who gave me an idea of some of the fun stuff he wants Paul to do," Moses told Keck. "It's going to be a great run and very interesting to see which of the housewives still think Paul's guilty and which won't. And just why is he coming back to Wisteria Lane?" (TV Guide Magazine)

Heidi Klum and reality shingle LMNO Productions have teamed up to produce family reality series Seriously Funny Kids, which will, per Variety's Michael Schneider, "go on location to where the kids are and document their reactions to various scenarios." Project will be pitched to networks very soon. (Variety)

E! Online's Megan Masters talks to Bristol Palin about her guest role on ABC Family's Secret Life of the American Teenager. "I was excited to work with the cast and just to contribute to this show's message," Palin told E! Online's Masters. "I feel obligated [to speak out] because I've lived through this experience...the more I talk about it and the more I can be hands on about it, the better I feel about myself...'m not an actress. I'll leave that up to the experts, but I had a great time here. I don't think I'll be doing any more acting in the future." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared are coming back to television. Well, sort of. IFC has acquired syndication rights for the series, from executive producer Judd Apatow, and will begin airing Freaks and Geeks this Friday at 11 pm ET/PT (along with repeats on Sundays at 10 pm and Mondays at 11 pm), while Undeclared will bow in the fall. (IFC will also air a never-been-aired episode of Undeclared.) (Variety)

Following a successful grassroots campaign waged on Facebook, Travel Channel has saved reality series Three Sheets. The travel series, which follows Zane Lamprey on a beer quest, will shift from the now defunct Fine Living (which morphed into Cooking Channel) to Travel, which has acquired all back episodes and will begin screening new episodes as well. (Hollywood Reporter)

Sundance Channel has hired former Travel Channel executive Michael Klein as SVP of original programming and development. He'll report to Sarah Barnett and be based out of New York. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Steve Carell Confirms Office Departure, Janeane Garofalo Circles Criminal Minds, Being Human Lands Sam Witwer, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

Steve Carell has confirmed that he will leave NBC comedy The Office following the conclusion of next season, the series' seventh. "I just think it's time," Carell told E! Online's Kristina Guerrero while promoting his new film Despicable Me. "I want to fulfill my contract. When I first signed on I had a contract for seven seasons, and this coming year is my seventh. I just thought it was time for my character to go... It doesn't certainly mean the end of the show. I think it's just a dynamic change to the show, which could be a good thing, actually. Add some new life and some new energy... I see it as a positive in general for the show." Carell pointed to the series' ensemble cast and the strength of the writers and didn't seem to feel that his departure would negatively affect The Office at all. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Wait, what? Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Janeane Garofalo (24) is in talks to join the cast of CBS' Criminal Minds spinoff, currently entitled Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior, where she will play an agent in the FBI's Behavior Analysis Unit overseen by Forest Whitaker's Sam Cooper. Garofalo had previous been attached to star in the untitled Hannah Shakespeare/John Wells medical drama pilot, which failed to receive a series order at CBS. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

In other casting news, Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Sam Witwer (Smallville) has signed on to star in Syfy's US adaptation of Being Human as vampire Aidan. Meanwhile, Meaghan Rath (The Assistants) is said to have reportedly signed a deal to play Molly, the flat's resident ghost, while Sam Huntington (Cavemen) is "up for the role of werewolf Josh." (Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello)

ABC Family has ordered twelve additional episodes of nighttime teen soap Pretty Little Liars, bringing the episodic commitment this season to 22 installments. (Variety)

Deadline's Nellie Andreeva talks to Robert Greenblatt about his future plans following the end of his contract as president of entertainment at Showtime. "I had been wrestling with [the issue] for the last couple of months until I came to the decision that it was the time to move on,” said Greenblatt. "I don’t have any specific plans, I’m not in negotiations on anything, and I don’t have anything lined up." But don't look for Greenblatt to segue back into producing again. "Producing is a lonely, difficult work, and I’m not sure that’s where I’m headed. I’m leaning more towards an executive job at the moment," he said. "It’s all about innovating, building or rebuilding something. I don’t feel like walking into a place that needs a new head. It needs to be a place where I have to rethink the whole system; I’m very entrepreneurial.” (Deadline)

[Editor: meanwhile, Variety's Cynthia Littleton also has an interview with Greenblatt about the legacy he leaves behind at Showtime. "The degree to which we were able to break through the clutter with some programming that people seem to really love," said Greenblatt when asked about his major achievements at the pay cabler. "I've always tried to be innovative, going back to the Fox days (as a programming exec), and certainly as a producer. To be given this platform to reinvent it the way I saw fit was just such an extraordinary gift. And then to see the shows embraced the way they have been is just the icing on the cake."]

Variety's Cynthia Littleton also talks to inbound entertainment president David Nevins and chairman/CEO Matthew Blank about the transition. "With a tremendous batch of new stuff coming over the next year, David has the luxury of getting involved with those shows and looking around for the best new material that would take us forward in a way that is tune with his sensibility," Blank told Littleton. "One of the luxuries of the premium TV business is that we don't have a development season per se. David doesn't have to be ready to go with X number of pilots by any particular date." (Variety)

A&E is said to be in talks with 20th Century Fox Television to order thirteen episodes of FOX pilot Breakout Kings, which revolves around a federal fugitive apprehension program that is staffed with convicts. Project is created by Matt Olmstead and Nick Santora. (Variety)

Meanwhile, Deadline's Nellie Andreeva reports that FOX has ordered two additional scripts for comedy Breaking In, after the network passed on ordering the Christian Slater and Bret Harrison-led pilot to series. Studio Sony Pictures Television will extend the options on the actors, which--as Andreeva points out--will prevent Harrison from being in the running to take over the male lead on NBC's Perfect Couples, which is recasting. (Deadline)

TVGuide.com's Gina DiNunno has an interview with Louis C.K. ahead of tonight's premiere for his new FX comedy, Louie. "It's kind of like an autobiographical fiction," said C.K. of the new series. "It's like I'm playing myself, but none of these things have happened to me. Like I have a brother on the show, but I don't in reality. I just thought it would be interesting to have a one for a little while." (TVGuide.com)

SPOILER! TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck talks to Calista Flockhart and Brothers & Sisters executive producer David Marshall Grant about what the future holds for Flockhart's widowed Kitty. "It will be a little challenging for her," said Grant, who indicated that the action will begin a year after the death of Rob Lowe's Robert. "She might be seeing the kinds of guys that she didn't normally date, and I'm sure she'll have a date from hell." Flockhart added that she's sad to lose Lowe but said that Kitty won't be siting at home alone. "I don't think Kitty will be single for that long," she told Keck. "She'll have lots of guys — at least I hope." (TV Guide Magazine)

Executive shuffle: former ABC Studios executive Morgan Wandell has left Berlanti Television after two years, following the conclusion of his contract with the company. He will remain an executive producer on ABC's No Ordinary Family and will continue to develop projects. His responsibilities will be taken over at Berlanti Television by Melissa Berman. (Deadline)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: ABC Clarifies Lost Wreckage Shots, Julie Benz to Return to Dexter, Friday Night Lights Heads to ABC Family and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

The Los Angeles Times's Maria Elena Fernandez is reporting that the final shots of the Oceanic Flight 815 wreckage that accompanied the closing credits of the series finale of Lost were not placed there by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, but rather by ABC executives who wanted to "soften the transition from the moving ending of the series to the 11 p.m. news and never considered that it would confuse viewers about the actual ending of the show," according to Fernandez. ABC went on to release a statement to confirm this fact. "The images shown during the end credits of the Lost finale, which included shots of Oceanic 815 on a deserted beach, were not part of the final story but were a visual aid to allow the viewer to decompress before heading into the news," said an ABC spokesperson in a statement. [Editor: I am hoping this finally puts an end to the misread of the series' ending, as some have taken to believing that the passengers of Oceanic Flight 815 died in the initial plane crash, despite the presence of some lengthy exposition from John Terry's Christian Shephard that spelled out about the nature of the purgatory that they had created... and stated that everything that happened on the island, happened in real life.] (Los Angeles Times' Show Tracker)

[Editor: elsewhere, Movieline attempts to solve as many of the 100 "unanswered" questions from Lost, as raised by a recent College Humor video called "Unanswered Lost Questions."]

SPOILER! Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Julie Benz is set to reprise her role as Rita in the first episode of Season Five of Showtime's Dexter but that Benz won't be playing Rita as a ghost. Confused? "We’re not going to do some ghostly thing with her," said executive producer Chip Johannessen. "We reserve those for Harry," executive producer Sara Colleton told Ausiello. "If you have too many things like that it becomes gimmicky." So just how will the writers bring her back from the dead? That's them mystery, although a Showtime spokesperson told Ausiello that Rita's presence will "help Dexter deal with his newfound feelings of loss and grief — emotions he has never really felt before." So interpret that as you will. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Looks like Friday Night Lights is heading to ABC Family. The cabler has acquired basic cable rights to all five seasons of Friday Night Lights, which airs on DirecTV's Channel 101 (and has a second window on NBC), and plans to launch repeats of Season One in September. "Friday Night Lights is a perfect fit for ABC Family's sensibility for the modern day family program," said Bruce Casino, senior vp of cable sales at NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution, in a statement. "ABC Family will introduce this award-winning show to a whole new audience segment where the series can thrive in its new environment." (via press release)

TNT has ruled out saving Law & Order, according to a statement released to The Los Angeles Times. "We are not in current talks, and we are not interested in a Season 21," said the cabler in a prepared statement. News comes even as creator Dick Wolf attempts to find a savior for the cancelled NBC procedural drama. (Los Angeles Times's Show Tracker)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that ABC drama Castle will relocate to Wednesdays this summer, a temporary move before it reclaims its Monday night timeslot this fall. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Brett Davern (Desperate Housewives) and Beau Mirchoff (Case 219) have been cast in MTV drama pilot That Girl, about a high school student who becomes the center of attention when she's involved in an accident that everyone believes was a suicide attempt. (Hollywood Reporter)

Variety's Cynthia Littleton takes a look at MGM's television business, which includes the twelve-episode order for drama Teen Wolf at MTV and its This TV movie channel. (Variety)

CBS has announced launch dates for several of its summer series, including Big Brother (July 8th), Flashpoint (June 4th), and the burn-off of medical drama Three Rivers (June 5th). (Hollywood Reporter)

Meanwhile, international co-production The Bridge, which stars Battlestar Galactica's Aaron Douglas, will premiere on CBS on Saturday, July 10th at 8 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

UK's Channel 4 has commissioned a fifth season of comedy The IT Crowd as creator Graham Linehan prepares to assemble a team of writers. (Broadcast)

Style Network has given a series order to docuseries Too Fat for 15, which will center on "four extremely overweight teens and one preteen whose parents bring them to Wellspring Academy, a weight-loss boarding school in North Carolina." Series will debut in August. (Hollywood Reporter)

Warner Bros. Television has expanded the oversight of executive Lisa Gregorian, who will now serve as both chief marketing officer and EVP. The former title was created specifically for Gregorian. (Variety)

Elsewhere, former Channel 4 executive Simon Andreae has been hired as West Coast SVP of development and production for Discovery Channel. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: ABC Expands Lost Finale (Again), Actors and Execs Talk Lost Twist, 24 Movie Update, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing.

Looks like there's more Lost than we thought. The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd is reporting that ABC has expanded the series finale of Lost by a half an hour, bringing the finale's running time to two and a half hours on May 23rd, after the two-hour recap special, Lost: The Final Journey, and before a special edition of Jimmy Kimmel Live featuring the cast at 12:05 am that night. The decision to expand the series finale was made after executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse completed post-production on the final episode. "The producers of ABC's hit drama have shot so much crucial material for the show's hugely anticipated series finale that the network has agreed to extend the last episode by an extra half hour," writes Hibberd. Which means that we get another half an episode of the series. Lucky, lucky us. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

STOP READING IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN LAST NIGHT'S EPISODE OF LOST! Entertainment Weekly's Jeff Jensen has an interview with Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse about last night's episode of Lost ("The Candidate") and about certain matters of good and evil. Asked why the producers had to kill off Sun and Jin this week, Lindelof said, "Because now you know this show is willing and capable of killing anyone." And those wondering about the Man in Black's true nature need to read the following quote: "There is no ambiguity,” said Cuse of the Man in Black. "He is evil and he has to be stopped... There will be very little debate at the end of this episode that [Fake Locke] is evil and bad and has to be stopped. The main narrative reason for him killing our main characters is to establish how much of a bad guy he is and to clearly identify him as the antagonist rolling into the end of the series." (Entertainment Weekly's PopWatch)

Elsewhere, TVGuide.com's Natalie Abrams talks to Lost's Yunjin Kim about last night's episode. "It was a brilliant way to end Sun and Jin's life on the island," said Kim of the episode that killed off her character and Daniel Dae Kim's Jin. "Because of the way the story is going, especially once we get to Episode 15, 16 and 17, it's moving at a pretty fast pace. Let's say if Jin dies alone, Sun would only grieve for Jin for two seconds and we'd have to move on with the storyline. It was a very romantic death... As soon as I got on the phone with Damon Lindelof, he said 'This phone call is not one of those phone calls.' He told me how it was going to happen and I actually thought it was a beautiful ending to both of the characters. It will only propel the other survivors to go after Locke [Terry O'Quinn], and have a very good reason to go after Locke as aggressively as they do in the final episodes." (TVGuide.com)

E! Online's Megan Masters talks with 24 executive producer Howard Gordon, Kiefer Sutherland, and Mary Lynn Rajskub about the long gestating 24 feature film... and how the series finale of 24, set to air later this month, will impact the plot. "It's less of a cliff-hanger as much as it is a personal ending between a few of the characters, which is very intimate for us, when we're not blowing up the planet," Sutherland told Masters. "It was very wonderful for us to make and I hope the audience likes it as well. I'm very happy with it." Gordon agreed: "It's exciting, it's emotional and it just feels right. The ending fits somewhere between Jack dying and a happily ever after." As for Rakskub, she believes she'll be playing Chloe for some time to come. "The series really lends itself to the movie, but having said that, it is a satisfying ending," Mary Lynn Rajskub, who plays fan fave Chloe, says. "Things are coming to a head in a pretty exciting way. This whole year has been a really strong year to go out on and the ending is just as strong... I know for sure that I'll be Chloe for at least a few years from now." (E! Online's Watch With Kristin)

NBC has confirmed that Jimmy Fallon will be the host of the 62nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, which will be telecast on Sunday, August 29th at 8 pm ET and 5 pm PT. "Hosting the Emmys has been a dream of mine ever since they told me I was doing it," said Fallon. (Variety's Emmy Central)

Deadline.com's Nikki Finke and Nellie Andreeva have an update on their Primetime Pilot Panic List, tracking rumors about which pilots are going to get the greenlight to series and which will fall by the wayside. (Deadline.com)

The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd is reporting that Laurie Holden (The Shield) is the latest actor to board AMC's upcoming zombie drama series The Walking Dead, where she has been cast as Andrea, described as "a key member of the survivor group who has a proficiency with a sniper rifle and falls for a man twice her age." Also cast: Steven Yeun, who will play Glenn. (Hollywood Reporter)

Former Life on Mars co-stars John Simm and Philip Glenister are set to reunite on-screen for Sky1's upcoming murder drama series Mad Dogs. (Broadcast)

Steve Blackman and Craig Turk have been promoted to co-head writers on ABC's Private Practice. They will report to creator Shonda Rhimes but will serve as "de-facto co-showrunners" on the series, which is widely expected to be returning next season. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Jessica Walter (Arrested Development) has been cast in an upcoming episode of ABC Family's Make It or Break It, where she will play the grandmother of Cassie Scerbo's Lauren. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

It's official: Debra Winger is heading to Season Three of HBO's In Treatment, where she will play a patient of Gabriel Byrne's Paul in the upcoming season of the psychoanalysis drama series. (Variety)

GSN has ordered raunchy comedy game show Late Night Liars, featuring Jim Henson Company's puppets, and will launch the series on June 10th at 11 pm ET/PT. Larry Miller will be joined on the series by "two human contestants [who face] off against a panel of four 'celebrity puppets' who are also drunk and telling half-truths." (Hollywood Reporter)

E! Online's Jenna Mullins talks to Glee's Jonathan Groff about his character's motives on the FOX musical-comedy. "He's certainly up to something, that's for sure," Groff said. "My reasons for being at the high school are surprising. I was surprised... He has some surprises up his sleeves, none that I can reveal right now." (E! Online's Watch With Kristin)

Jamie Ray Newman (Eastwick) has been cast in a multiple-episode story arc on Season Two of Lifetime's Drop Dead Diva, where she will play "an accomplished lawyer from a rival law firm who possesses a killer instinct," according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. In other casting news, the series has also cast Emily Kuroda (Gilmore Girls) as the mother of Margaret Cho's Teri and Robin Givens will play "a mean-spirited cosmetics lab exec who accuses Jane’s (Brooke Elliott) client of wrongdoing." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

TLC has renewed reality series Hoarding: Buried Alive for a second season, with nine episodes on tap. (Variety)

A&E has renewed Paranormal State for a firth season, with 20 episodes set to air in the fourth quarter of 2010. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Fringe Musical, Conan Heads to TBS, Ryan Devlin Checks into Grey's, Fred Willard, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has an exclusive first-look at the upcoming musical episode of FOX's Fringe, set to air April 29th. "We didn’t set out to do a musical," Fringe's executive producer Jeff Pinkner told Ausiello. "We set out to do an episode that explored Walter’s state of mind — he’s dealing with some very upsetting news. When we realized that the way Walter would deal with such news would be to try to anesthetize himself with copious amounts of marijuana, well, singing and dancing became a natural outcome." [Editor: Hmmm, just what could that "very upsetting news" be?] (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

A rather big speed bump has emerged during the ongoing talks between Conan O'Brien at FOX. Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd and Matthew Belloni are reporting that while the negotiations between the former Tonight Show host and FOX have been smooth, O'Brien won't commit to a late night talk show with FOX unless the network "can guarantee that stations will air his show in all or nearly all of the country." Which is a significant problem as some affiliates are less than excited by the idea of Coco taking over their late night timeslots, currently home to syndicated programming. The issue has so far prevented O'Brien from entering into "exclusive negotiations" with FOX, with his team continuing to look at other options outside of FOX, which wants to air O'Brien's new series weeknights from 11 pm to midnight. (Hollywood Reporter)

UPDATE! Hold the presses: O'Brien's team has opted not to sign with FOX and has instead concluded a deal with cabler TBS. Yes, you read that correctly. O'Brien's team has signed with TBS for a latenight talk show that will air between 11 pm and midnight on the basic cabler, a move that will push George Lopez's eponymous talker to midnight. "In three months I’ve gone from network television to Twitter to performing live in theaters, and now I’m headed to basic cable," said O'Brien in a statement released by TBS. "My plan is working perfectly." The move pushes the comedy-oriented TBS into a place of prominence. "Conan has been the comedic voice for a generation. TBS already has a huge audience of young comedy lovers, and Conan’s show will give these fans even more reasons to watch our network," said Steve Koonin, president of Turner Entertainment Networks. (via press release)

Ryan Devlin (Cougar Town) will guest star in the May 20th season finale of ABC's Grey's Anatomy, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, who reports that Devlin will play Bill, the husband of Mandy Moore's character Mary, who is a patient at Seattle Grace. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Entertainment Weekly's Mandi Bierly has an interview with the uber-talented Fred Willard, who will next been seen on Castle, Modern Family, and Chuck. Willard, set to reprise his role as Phil's dad on Modern Family, will guest star on Chuck as half of a super-spy couple. "That was an interesting one, because I play a part I’d always thought I was right for — a spy," said Willard about his upcoming turn on Chuck. "I’m with Swoosie Kurtz on that, we’re a bickering spy couple, kind of like Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers played [on Hart to Hart], and we’re showing the ropes to the young Chuck and his partner. And it’s like a real did we double-cross them or did we triple-cross them? That was a lot of fun." (Entertainment Weekly's PopWatch)

Delroy Lindo (Kidnapped) has been cast as one of the leads in Shawn Ryan's FOX cop drama pilot Ride-Along, opposite Jason Clarke and Jennifer Beals. Lindo will play "a longtime building magnate-turned-politician who is loved by his constituents, but there have always been whispers about possible ties to organized," according to Hollywood Reporter's Nellie Andreeva. (Hollywood Reporter)

NBC ordered a pilot for gameshow Secret Treasure, in which six contestants compete against one another as they answer trivia questions and try to steal one another's cash-laden "secret treasure boxes." Project, from ITV Studios, was created by Jeff Apploff. (Variety)

CBS, meanwhile, ordered a pilot for a revival of classic gameshow Pyramid, from Sony Pictures Television and Michael Davies (Who Wants to Be a Millionaire), which would replace As the World Turns in its daytime lineup. (Hollywood Reporter)

Starz is reportedly developing a series adaptation of culinary critic Gael Greene's 2006 autobiography "Insatiable: Tales From a Life of Delicious Excess," about her "gastronomic and erotic adventures" in 1970s and 1980s Manhattan. Starz will produce the potential one-hour drama series with Robert Lantos' Serendipity Point Films and Rob Lee's Bayonne Entertainment. (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Grey Damon (90210) has been cast in Season Five of Friday Night Lights as a series regular. He'll play Hastings Ruckle, described as a "sexy, laid back basketball player who ends up joining the Lions as a wide receiver." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Philip Seymour Hoffman and Emily Ziff's production company Cooper's Town is developing an HBO drama series based on Samantha Peale's novel "The American Painter Emma Dial," about a woman coming to terms with her identity crisis as she works within the Manhattan art world. Sarah Treem (In Treatment) will adapt. It's unknown whether the potential drama series would air as a half-hour or one-hour. (Variety)

Warner Bros. Television has signed a two-script deal with Miss Guided creator Caroline Williams--currently a consulting producer on ABC's Modern Family--under which she will develop two comedy projects for the studio, including a single-camera comedy project with executive producer J.J. Abrams. (Hollywood Reporter)

Chris Gethard (The Other Guys) will replace Jon Heder in the Comedy Central comedy series Big Lake. Series, ordered for ten episodes by the cabler, has an option for an additional 90 episodes. (Variety)

Showtime's Marc Wootton comedy La La Land is heading across the pond to BBC Three. (Broadcast)

Law & Order's Sam Waterston will guest star on the April 28th episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, according to TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck. "For the first time in Law & Order: SVU’s eleven year history, Sam will show up in the SVU squad room," executive producer Neal Baer told Keck. (TV Guide Magazine)

SPOILER! Taylor Momsen will be MIA when Gossip Girl returns next season. At least at first, anyway. Citing a source close to Gossip Girl's production, Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Momsen will be absent from the CW drama series for an unknown number of episodes but her temporary departure is for creative reasons. "When you watch the finale," the unnamed insider told Ausiello, "you’ll see that we’re doing something very big with her character." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Sony Pictures Television, Scott Free Television, Tandem Communications, and Peace Out Prods. is developing a four-hour mini-series based on Robert Harris' historical novel "Pompei." (Variety)

ABC will flip Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice on April 22nd, swapping the timeslots for each medical drama for one week. According to the Fuon Critic, "The Grey's/Practice swap... is simply to avoid having original episodes of FlashForward and Practice bookend a second run Grey's." (Futon Critic)

Holly Marie Combs (Charmed) has been cast in ABC Family's upcoming drama series Pretty Little Liars, where she will play the mother of Aria (Lucy Hale), one of four teenage girls who are bound together by a dark secret. She'll be playing opposite Chad Lowe, recently cast as Aria's father, who replaces Alexis Denisof. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

MTV has renewed reality series The Buried Life for a second season. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

Elsewhere, Spike has renewed reality series 1000 Ways to Die for its fourth and fifth seasons. Move comes before the third season of the Original Prods.-produced series has even debuted. (Variety)

And NBC has renewed The Sing-Off for a second season. The Sony Pictures Television-produced musical competition series will return for eight episodes next season. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: AMC Orders "The Walking Dead," Elizabeth Mitchell Talks "V" Return, Big Bucks for "Lost" Finale Ads, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

AMC has ordered six episodes of zombie drama series The Walking Dead, based on the Robert Kirkman comic book series of the same name. Production on the six-episode first season of The Walking Dead is set to begin in June in Atlanta, with Kirkman serving as executive producer alongside writer/director Frank Darabont, Gale Ann Hurd, David Alpert, and Charles "Chic" Eglee. News comes as cabler AMC begins to cast the production, with Jon Bernthal (The Pacific) attached to star as Shane; the cabler has targeted an October 2010 launch date for The Walking Dead. "AMC strives to make original shows that play like movies and The Walking Dead is a perfect complement to the network's celebrated movie franchise, Fearfest, which has always been an important destination for our audience," said Charlie Collier, AMC President, in a statement. "With its depth of story and the remarkable talent attached, The Walking Dead gives us an opportunity to raise the bar significantly within this popular genre, and continue our commitment to being the home of premium programming on basic cable." (via press release)

The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan has an insightful interview with V star Elizabeth Mitchell, who talks about the return of the ABC sci-fi series and her role as Juliet Burke on Lost (as well as whether she will be returning to the series before it wraps up). "In a way, it was such a crazy thing to come into doing [V] after working on Lost," Mitchell told Ryan. "I think it was wonderful for me to be able to take a step back and figure out what I really wanted to do and how I would create this person. I don't feel like we lost momentum -- it was more like, we built excitement to go back to work and we were rested and ready and really charged up." (Chicago Tribune's The Watcher)

That's a lot of Dharma-brand mac and cheese: A single 30-second spot during ABC's series finale of Lost will cost roughly $900,000 when the serialized drama wraps its run on Sunday, May 23rd, according to a report in Advertising Age, a huge leap in price from the $213,000 offered at May's upfront presentation. "There are many advertisers willing to pay a reasonable premium for inventory in programs that generate such a highly passionate and rabid fan base," Kris Magel, exec VP-director, national broadcast at Interpublic Group of Cos.’ Initiative, told Advertising Age. "There is definitely value in that." (via Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

NBC has announced that Season Four of Friday Night Lights will launch on Friday, May 7th at 8 pm ET/PT, a week later than originally indicated. No reason was given for the change in scheduling on the series, which has already aired on DirecTV's Channel 101. (via press release)

Tyler Labine (Sons of Tucson) has been cast in CBS multi-camera comedy pilot True Love opposite Jason Biggs and Minka Kelly. Project, from Sony Pictures Television and CBS Television Studios, revolves around Henry (Biggs), a lawyer in a relationship, who falls for a stranger (Kelly). Labine will play Henry's best friend, replacing Dan Fogler. Casting is in second position to Sons of Tucson for Labine. (Hollywood Reporter)

Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) has dropped out of the untitled Will Ferrell-executive produced Comedy Central series that he was attached to, in which he was originally going to play a man who moves back in with his parents (Chris Parnell and Horatio Sanz). No replacement was named and the search is underway to recast the role for the series, which had received a ten-episode order from the network. "Comedy Central, Gary Sanchez Productions and Jon Heder have mutually decided to part ways over creative differences with the character," said Heder's rep in a statement. "Jon wishes the show nothing but success, and is very grateful for the opportunity." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files, Variety)

Pilot casting roundup: Nick D'Agosto (Heroes) has joined the cast of NBC comedy pilot This Little Piggy opposite Brooke Bloom and Ben Koldyke; Jessica Lucas (Melrose Place) has been added to ensemble comedy pilot Friends With Benefits; and Ashley Madekwe (Secret Diary of a Call Girl) has been cast opposite Katharine McPhee and Michael Cassidy in Josh Schwartz's NBC comedy pilot The Pink House, where she will play Jamie, a husband-hunting neighbor. (Hollywood Reporter)

ABC Family has announced launch dates for its new original series Pretty Little Liars, Huge, and Melissa and Joey. Pretty Little Liars--a mystery series revolving around a missing teenage girl and a group of former friends who come together when they begin to receive eerie messages--will launch on June 8th at 8 pm ET/PT. Nikki Blonsky-led drama Huge, from creators Winnie Holtzman and Samantha Dooley, will launch on June 28th at 9 pm ET/PT. Comedy Melissa and Joey, starring Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence, will launch in August. (Variety)

BBC Two has commissioned another season of political comedy The Thick of It. [Editor: my heartfelt pleas go out to BBC America to air the batch of episodes that we have still not had a chance to see Statside.] (Broadcast)

FOX is said to be close to issuing a pilot order for comedy prank series My Parents Are Gonna Love You, in which everyday people bring home a celebrity to introduce to their parents as their significant other... but the celeb is utterly obnoxious. The longer they can string the parents along, the more money the marks will win. Project, based on a Banijay Entertainment format, is executive produced by Jean Michel Michenaud and Chris Cowan. (Hollywood Reporter)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Demi Lovato (Sonny With a Chance) will guest star in an upcoming episode of ABC's Grey's Anatomy. Lovato will play "a patient at Seattle Grace/Mercy West who will be treated by Alex (Justin Chambers) and Arizona (Jessica Capshaw) for possible schizophrenia" in an episode slated to air in May. (TV Guide Magazine)

Season Seven of FOX's reality competition series So You Think You Can Dance will undergo some format changes, with Mia Michaels set to return as a judge and a choreographer, and 10 dancers would be picked from the contestant pool... who will then be paired with past all-star participants, with one dancer getting eliminated each week. So You Think You Can Dance is set to launch on May 27th. (Hollywood Reporter)

HBO has cancelled sports talk show Joe Buck Live after three episodes. (Broadcasting & Cable)

ABC Studios has signed a two-year overall deal with David Zabel (ER), under which he has come aboard drama pilot 187 Detroit as executive producer/showrunner. Should the project be picked up to series, he'll remain in that role while also developing new projects for the studio. (Hollywood Reporter)

Susan Rovner has been handed oversight of both comedy and drama development at Warner Bros. Television, following the departure of Len Goldstein, who is now heading up television at Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage's shingle Fake Empire. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Disney Channel has renewed preschool comedy Imagination Movers for a third season. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Knepper to "SGU," Schwartz and Savage Set up Shop, "Chuck," Knighton FlashForwards to "Happy Endings," Spacek to CBS, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

Robert Knepper (Heroes, Prison Break) has reportedly been cast in a villainous recurring role on Season Two of Syfy's Stargate Universe. Citing internet reports, several sites are reporting that Knepper will play Simeon, a mysterious member of the Lucian Alliance, and will appear in a multiple-episode story arc to last between six to seven episodes. (via TV Squad)

Producing partners Josh Schwartz (Chuck) and Stephanie Savage (Gossip Girl) have signed a multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Television and have set up their own shingle, Fake Empire, which will be based at the studio. Pod will develop projects for television, film, digital, videogames, music, and publishing. (Variety)

The Wrap's Josef Adalian, meanwhile, has an interview with Schwartz and Savage, who jointly answered Adalian's questions via email. [Editor: The duo answered the question I had, which was whether Chuck would fall under the Fake Empire umbrella. Answer: it won't.] (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

SPOILER! Speaking of Chuck, Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has some major spoilers for the third season finale of NBC's Chuck. You can read them but I am keeping my eyes and ears pure as I don't want to be spoiled about any of the plot twists ahead. Don't say I didn't warn you! (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

FlashForward's Zachary Knighton has been cast opposite Elisha Cuthbert in ABC comedy pilot Happy Endings, where he will play Dave, half of a couple that split up at the altar and must decide how to maintain their friendships afterwards. Project, from ABC Studios and Sony Pictures Television, is written by David Caspe and directed by Anthony and Joe Russo. Knighton's participation is said to be in second position to FlashForward, but Hollywood Reporter's Nellie Andreeva states that the latter's "chances for renewal are slim." (Hollywood Reporter)

Academy Award winner Sissy Spacek--who just completed a story arc on HBO's Big Love--has been cast in CBS' untitled Hannah Shakespeare medical drama from executive producer John Wells. Spacek will play Adrianne, a driven visionary who heads up a mobile medical team that travels the country providing care for the less fortunate and who grapples with her own cancer diagnosis and regular chemotherapy. (She's also the mother to Rachelle Lefevre's character, also a doctor.) Spacek's role was, like several others this season, originally written as a man. (Hollywood Reporter)

Jaime Pressly (My Name is Earl) has been cast as one of the leads in CBS' untitled Carter Bays/Craig Thomas multi-camera comedy pilot (also known as Livin' on a Prayer) from writers Kourtney Kang and Joe Kelly. Pressly will play a veterinarian who works with her best friend Tommy (Kyle Bornheimer) at the local zoo. (Hollywood Reporter)

Pilot casting update: Michael Rapaport (The War at Home) will star opposite Dylan Walsh in ABC cop drama pilot The Line (also known as ATF); Will Estes (Reunion) and Bridget Moynahan (Six Degrees) have been cast opposite Tom Selleck, Donny Wahlberg, and Len Cariou in CBS' untitled Burgess/Green drama pilot (a.k.a. Reagan's Law); Amy Landecker (A Serious Man) has landed the female lead opposite Paul Reiser in NBC comedy pilot Next; Kurt Fuller (Supernatural) has been cast in ABC's untitled Shana Goldberg-Meehan comedy pilot; and Kevin Rahm (Desperate Housewives) has come aboard CBS comedy pilot Open Books. (Hollywood Reporter)

TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck is reporting that Scott Porter will likely be heading back to Friday Night Lights for the series' fifth and final season, following a conversation Porter had with the series' producers, in which they indicated that they would like him to reprise his role as paraplegic Jason Street. "I’m hoping it turns into a definite because I’d love to go back," Porter told Keck. "I’m hoping he could repay his debts – particularly to Riggins for everything he did for Street." (TV Guide Magazine)

The Los Angeles Times' Maria Elena Fernandez has an profile of Justified co-star Walton Goggins (The Shield), who plays the sadistic white supremacist Boyd Crowder on the FX drama series... and whose character was meant to be killed off at the end of the pilot episode. "The greatest part about it," Goggins told Fernandez about Boyd's alleged religious epiphany in tonight's episode, "is that you will think you know by the end of the first season if the change is real, but no one knows. This is Boyd seeing God for the first time. What's so interesting about it is that while his actions may not be different, his motivations are different. And that's really important at the conclusion of the first season. What happens to this guy and this friendship when many things are called into question?"(Los Angeles Times)

Nikki Blonsky (Hairspray), Hayley Hasselhoff, Andrew Caldwell, and Zander Eckhouse have been cast in ABC Family's upcoming ten-episode drama series Huge, which revolves around the teenagers and staffers of Wellness Canyon, a weight-loss camp. (Hollywood Reporter)

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association has named January 16th as the date for the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards, which will once again air live coast to coast on NBC. (Variety)

Those tears that Peter Facinelli's Dr. Fitch Cooper let flow in last night's season premiere of Showtime's Nurse Jackie? Absolutely real and completely not pre-meditated, according to Facinelli. "I started venting, and all of a sudden, tears sprung from my eyes and I couldn't stop crying. Basically, I had a physical meltdown," Facinelli told E! Online. "I was traveling back and forth from Vancouver to New York, and I was shooting Nurse Jackie and Eclipse at the same time. I think I was emotionally exhausted. The writers loved it! They thought I planned it, and I really didn't. Just know that those are real tears." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

HBO has given a greenlight to telepic Cinema Verite, a dramatization of the behind-the-scenes events during the making of the landmark reality television series An American Family, which premiered in 1973 and focused on the Loud family. Telepic, executive produced by Gavin Polone, will be written by David Seltzer and directed by Shari Springer Berman and Bob Pulcini. (Hollywood Reporter)

TLC has ordered twelve episodes of spinoff reality series Say Yes to the Dress: Atlanta, which will launch in July. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: FX Renews "Archer," Team Darlton on "Lost" Partnership, Hiroyuki Sanada Speaks, Jim Belushi Suits Up for "Defenders," and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

"Danger zone!" FX has ordered a second season of its animated action-comedy Archer, from creators Adam Reed and Matthew Thompson. The cabler has commissioned 13 episodes for the series' second season, which is set to launch next year. The order is up from the seven installments that comprised Season One of Archer. [Editor: while Archer started off rocky and is somewhat hit-or-miss, I'm actually quite enjoying its off-kilter madcap action now that the season is set to wrap in a few weeks' time.] (Variety)

The Los Angeles Times' Maria Elena Fernandez talks to Lost showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse about their partnership on the show. And thanks to a video interview, you can get the words from Team Darlton themselves as they recount the events back in 2004 that lead to the duo forming one of Hollywood's strongest creative partnerships. (Los Angeles Times' Show Tracker)

SPOILER! Meanwhile, TV Guide Magazine's Will Keck has an interview with Lost's Hiroyuki Sanada, who plays the mysterious temple master Dogen on the ABC drama series' final season. Look for the March 2nd episode to reveal more about Dogen's past. "I believe Dogen and Sayid will experience some kind of friendship in the end," Hiro told Keck. "Temples are built for peace and saving people." Hmmm... (TV Guide Magazine)

No, it's not a joke: former According to Jim star Jim Belushi has landed one of the lead roles in CBS legal drama pilot The Defenders, from writers/executive producers Niels Mueller and Kevin Kennedy and director David Guggenheim. Belushi will play Nick, described as "as Las Vegas attorney with marital and drinking issues." (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that the cast of FOX's Glee will perform at the White House Easter Egg Roll on April 5th, after being invited by First Lady Michelle Obama. "Rumor has it Mrs. O and her daughters are big fans of the show," writes Ausiello. "And since a White House gig is an offer that’s pretty darn hard to refuse, Glee’s producers did some lickety-split schedule rejiggering in order to honor the request." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

PBS' Masterpiece has signed a co-production deal with BBC Worldwide that will encompass several international co-productions, including a new production of period drama Upstairs, Downstairs, Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss' Sherlock--starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, and Rupert Graves--and three mysteries based on Michael Dibden's Aurelio Zen novels starring Rufus Sewell. (Televisionary)

Pilot casting roundup: Jane Kaczmarek (Raising the Bar) and Adam Arkin (Life) have been cast in ABC comedy pilot Who Gets the Parents? (Also cast: Greek's Andrew West and Men in Trees' Derek Richardson); Leah Remini (The King of Queens) has landed a lead in ABC comedy pilot It Takes a Village; Zeljko Ivanek (Big Love) and Ian Anthony Dale (Taken) have joined the cast of NBC drama pilot The Event; Ben Koldyke (Big Love) has snagged the lead in NBC comedy pilot This Little Piggy; Romany Malco (Weeds) has been cast in ABC superhero drama pilot No Ordinary Family; Wayne Knight (Seinfeld) has been added to the cast of Ant Hines and Larry Charles' untitled CBS comedy pilot presentation; Olivia Munn (Attack of the Show) will star in NBC comedy pilot Perfect Couples; D.J. Cotrona (Dear John) has come aboard ABC cop drama pilot 187 Detroit; Julian Morris (24), Daniella Alonso (Friday Night Lights), and Kelli Garner (Lars and the Real Girl) have been joined the cast of Noah Hawley's ABC drama pilot Generation Y; Kaitlin Doubleday (Cavemen) will play one of the leads in FOX comedy pilot Most Likely to Succeed; Taran Killam (Scrubs) has joined the cast of ABC comedy pilot Freshmen; and Malcolm Goodwin (Leatherheads) has been cast in Matt Olmstead and Nick Santora's FOX drama pilot Breakout Kings. (Hollywood Reporter)

Lionsgate Television has signed a new two-year overall deal with Weeds creator Jenji Kohan that will keep her at the helm of Showtime's Weeds for a sixth season as well as develop other projects. First up is an untitled musical comedy for Showtime that Kohan is writing with Stephen Falk. "Having gotten to second base with Lionsgate in my former 'under the shirt but over the bra' deal," said Kohan, "it's a thrill to now be in bed with them and going all the way." (Kohan is also executive producing the studio's Epix drama pilot Tough Trade.) (Variety)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has a first look at Cynthia Watros' upcoming arc on FOX's House, where she will play the first ex-wife of Robert Sean Leonard's Wilson beginning April 19th. "There can be great comfort in the past," Leonard told Ausiello. "He wants his blankie. And there’s the extra benefit of familiarity and, in a way, a lack of drama." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Comedy Central has ordered six episodes of an untitled comedy showcase, from executive producers Russell Simmons and Stan Lathan, which will air this summer and will be hosted by Curb Your Enthusiasm's JB Smoove. (Variety)

Bristol Palin, eldest daughter of former Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin, is set to play herself on an upcoming episode of ABC Family’s The Secret Life of the American Teenager that will air this summer. "Bristol Palin is the most famous teenage mother in America," said executive producer Brenda Hampton in a statement. "We're thrilled to have her join us, and I think she will bring additional attention to the issues facing teen parents that we've been exploring for a couple of seasons now." (via press release)

Cabler TLC has ordered a third season of docuseries The Little Couple, with 20 episodes set to launch in June. (via press release)

MTV has promoted Chris Linn to executive VP of MTV Production, where he will continue to oversee development and production of telepics as well as physical production and planning for pilots and series. Linn will be based in New York and will report to MTV programming chief Tony DiSanto. (The Wrap's TVMoJoe)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: NBC Renews "Parks and Recreation," John Barrowman to Wisteria Lane, "Being Human" Gets Third Season, "Chuck," and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Great news for fans of NBC's killer comedy Parks and Recreation: the Peacock has renewed the series for a third season, set to launch this fall. News of the renewal was broken by The Wrap's Josef Adalian, who reported that due to "certain production timing issues," an early renewal was required on the Universal Media Studios-produced comedy, which is executive produced by Greg Daniels and Mike Schur. (The Wrap)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Torchwood's John Barrowman is joining the cast of ABC's Desperate Housewives for at least five episodes this season. Barrowman, who is slated to appear beginning in April, will play "the Big Bad at the center of the Angie (Drea de Matteo) mystery," writes Ausiello. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

BBC Three has commissioned a third season of supernatural drama Being Human and announced that all three of the series' leads--Russell Tovey, Lenora Crichlow, and Aidan Turner--will return for a third go-around. Currently airing its second season in the UK, Being Human's third season will see the flatmates move to new digs in Wales. "BBC Three continues to provide us with a great opportunity to make unusual, ambitious drama, and we are very excited to be able to take the new series of Being Human into fresh territory," said executive producer Rob Pursey in a statement. "With the new location in mind, we’ve already established some startling new storylines and characters. We’ll also aim to deliver plenty more exclusive online content in the gaps between series." (BBC)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Fred Willard and Swoosie Kurtz are set to guest star later this season on NBC's Chuck, where the duo will play "a Hart to Hart-esque spy couple now over-the-hill but still in the game." Look for Willard and Kurtz to appear towards the end of the season. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Digital Spy is reporting that Bill Nighy is set to guest star in the fifth season of Doctor Who. Nighy will play a Vincent Van Gogh exhibition curator in an upcoming episode written by Richard Curtis that is set in 19th century France and the present day. "It was a real coup to get Bill Nighy in Doctor Who, especially in Richard Curtis's amazing episode," an unnamed Who insider told Digital Spy. "Bill plays a van Gogh expert with some similar fashion choices to The Doctor himself." (Digital Spy)

ABC has given a pilot order to a single-camera comedy pilot How to Be a Better American, about a man who decides to become a better person and forces his family along for the ride. Pilot, from ABC Studios, is written and executive produced by Scrubs' Steven Cragg and Brian Bradley. ABC also gave a pilot order to an untitled multi-camera comedy from writer/executive producer Dana Gould, who will star as well. Pilot, from Warner Bros. Television and 3 Arts Entertainment, revolves around a high school guidance counselor who is "caught between his own father's old-school beliefs and his wife's progressive attitude toward parenting." (Variety)

Allison Janney (The West Wing) has been cast opposite Matthew Perry in ABC single-camera comedy pilot Mr. Sunshine, about a 40-year-old sports stadium manager suffering a mid-life crisis. Janney will play Crystal, his boss, on the Sony Pictures Television-produced pilot. Elsewhere, Janney has also been cast in Showtime's US adaptation of British drama series Shameless, where she is set to recur. (Hollywood Reporter)

MTV has officially renewed reality series Jersey Shore for a second season, following the successful renegotiation of contracts for the cast members of the New Jersey-set series. Production is set to get underway on the second season's twelve-episode order, which is set to air this summer on MTV, though the gang "could escape the cold Northeast and find themselves in a new destination," according to the network's press release. (Variety, though I reported the renewal earlier in the week on Twitter)

Elsewhere at MTV, the cabler has ordered twelve episodes of reality series If You Really Knew Me, described as a reality version of The Breakfast Club, in which five high school students are put through Challenge Day, "a one-day program designed to break down barriers between different social cliques." MTV also gave out a second season renewal to Teen Mom, with eight episodes set to air this summer. (Hollywood Reporter)

Another series order at ABC Family: the cabler announced that it had ordered ten episoes of dramedy Melissa & Joey, starring Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence. Series, which is expected to launch this summer, will follow a politician (Hart) who hires a manny (Lawrence) to help her deal with her family. Hart and Lawrence will executive produce with David Kendall, Bob Young, and Paula Hart. (Variety)

Pilot casting alert! Reno Wilson (Crank: High Voltage) and Katy Mixon (Eastbound & Down) have been cast in CBS comedy pilot Mike and Molly, from executive producer Chuck Lorre. Meanwhile, Megan Hilty (Eli Stone) has joined the cast of NBC's untitled Adam Carolla comedy pilot. (Hollywood Reporter)

Spike has ordered weekly half-hour latenight series Manformation, which will "showcase everyday guys who have had extraordinary experiences, such as the convenience store clerk who fought off a robbery attempt or a stock broker who left Wall Street for a hitch in the military." Series, from Thom Beers' Original Prods., will be produced by authors George "Maddox" Ouzounian and Dax Herrera. Additionally, the cabler ordered a third season of reality series 1000 Ways to Die. (Variety)

Syfy is set to air five telepics that will offer fresh takes on classic fairy tales, including Beauty and the Beast, Hansel and Gretel, and Little Red Riding Hood. The first, Beauty and the Beast, will air on February 27th. (Hollywood Reporter)

Daytime syndicated lifestyle series The Nate Berkus Show is on track to launch this fall, after it was cleared on NBC's top 10 O&O stations. Series is co-produced by Harpo Prods. and Sony Pictures Television. (Hollywood Reporter)

TLC has ordered a third season of reality series Cake Boss. 26 episodes are on tap for the third season, which will launch in May. (Variety)

OWN has acquired Sundance documentary Family Affair, about the unraveling of a family when a ten-year-old boy shoots his sister in the leg. Written by Chico David Colvard, the film marks the first selection of OWN's documentary film club, which will air once a month on the cabler, which is set to launch in January 2011. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: "Fringe" to Go on Hiatus in February, FOX Announces Midseason Schedule, "Lie to Me" Gets Full Season, "Burn Notice" Renewed, and More

Welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. Just a few headlines to get through today as the Hollywood PR machine begins its annual shutdown for Thanksgiving.

Futon Critic yesterday broke the story that Fringe will go on a seven-week hiatus beginning February 11th in order to accommodate the seven-week run of reincarnation drama Past Life. Fringe will return for the remainder of its run on April 1st and will air all-new episodes for the rest of the season. Sadly, FOX has opted to keep Fringe in its Thursday night berth rather than move it out of the line of fire. (Futon Critic)

FOX announced its full midseason schedule yesterday afternoon, which included news that Glee will be returning with new episodes in April after wrapping up its initial thirteen-episode commitment in December. (Televisionary)

In other FOX-related news, the network has given sophomore drama series Lie to Me a full season order, bringing the episodic total this season to 22 installments. News comes after FOX ordered three additional scripts for the Shawn Ryan-produced series but there's no indication as of yet when Lie to Me will return to the schedule or in what timeslot. (Hollywood Reporter)

USA has renewed Burn Notice for a fourth season, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, who is reporting that despite press reports in July about a renewal, a deal for Season Four only came together on Monday. Burn Notice's fourth season would likely launch in summer 2010. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Lea Thompson has been cast in ABC Family's Greek, where she will play April, the free-spirited mother of Scott Michael Foster's Cappie. (24's Jim Abele will play his father Tobias.) Thompson and Abele are set to appear in the latter half of Greek's next ten-episode cycle, which kicks off on January 25th. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Carolina Lightcap has been named president of Disney Channels Worldwide effective immediately. Lightcap replaces Rich Ross, who left the division last month to become become chairman of Walt Disney Studios. (Hollywood Reporter)

TiVo has signed a deal with Virgin Media in the UK to roll out a set-top box that will be co-branded and allow broadband delivery. "TiVo’s proven track record of innovation, strength of its patented technology and experience in developing best in class user environments, make it an ideal strategic partner for Virgin Media as we move aggressively to bring our next generation TV service to market," said Virgin's CEO Neil Berkett. "The superiority of our fibre optic network combined with TiVo’s capabilities, will allow us to offer consumers the most significantly advanced and compelling TV service available in the UK, and we believe will do to the TV market what Virgin Media has done to the high speed broadband market." (Broadcast)

CMT has ordered Posse: The Young Guns of PBR, a one-hour special that follows eight pro bull riders as they travel across the US looking to become the next Professional Bull Rider champion. Special will air on December 12th. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: FOX Sends "Dollhouse" to the Attic, ABC Axes "Hank," Syfy Blasts into "Outer Space," and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

It's official: FOX has canceled Joss Whedon's metaphysical drama series Dollhouse. The series, which is currently in production on this season's eleventh episode, will finish production and the network is currently expected to air all thirteen installments of the low-rated Friday night drama beginning December 4th. Whedon himself posted on Whedonesque about the cancellation news (which didn't come as a surprise to anyone tracking the ratings) and said, ""I don't have a lot to say. I'm extremely proud of the people I've worked with: my star, my staff, my cast, my crew. I feel the show is getting better pretty much every week, and I think you'll agree in the coming months. I'm grateful that we got to put it on, and then come back and put it on again. I'm off to pursue internet ventures/binge drinking," he wrote. "Possibly that relaxation thing I've read so much about. By the time the last episode airs, you'll know what my next project is. But for now there's a lot of work still to be done, and disappointment to bear. Thank you all for your support, your patience, your excellent adverts. See you again." (Hollywood Reporter, Whedonesque)

ABC has canceled struggling Kelsey Grammer comedy series Hank and has yanked it off of the schedule, effective immediately. The network will instead use the Wednesdays at 8 pm timeslot to air a mix of comedy specials and holiday specials. There are five unaired episodes of the Warner Bros. Television-produced Hank on the shelves and it's not clear whether any of these installments will air. News comes after the network opted not to pick up supernatural drama Eastwick for its back nine, while the rest of ABC's Wednesday lineup--Modern Family, The Middle, and Cougar Town--have all been picked up for full seasons. (Variety)

Syfy has ordered five half-hour episodes of hybrid animated comedy Outer Space Astronauts. Series, from executive producers Russell Barret, David O. Russell, and Scott Puckett, will follow "eight military misfits who journey to the far reaches of the galaxy on board the O.S.S. Oklahoma" in a style that will blend both live-action as well as 2D and 3D animation techniques. It's slated to launch on December 8th. "Syfy fans have never seen animation quite like this before," Syfy EVP of original content Mark Stern told the Hollywood Reporter. "Out of the basement and mind of show creator, Russell Barrett, he's delivered a funny and fresh take on the future of underground and homegrown animation today." (Hollywood Reporter)

Martha Plimpton, Lucas Neff, and Olesya Rulin have been cast in FOX single-camera comedy pilot Keep Hope Alive, from writer/executive producer Greg Garcia. Project, from 20th Century Fox Television, follows Jimmy, a 25-year-old man (Neff) who is forced to raise his infant child with the help of his quirky family after the mother, with whom he had a one-night stand, ends up on death row. Plimpton will play Jimmy's no-nonsense mother. Michael Fresco is attached to direct. (Hollywood Reporter)

Author Ray Bradbury has signed a deal with indie producers White Oak Films to develop The Bradbury Chronicles, a six-hour miniseries based on six of his short stories. No network is currently attached to the project, which will be executive produced by Bradbury, John Dayton, Merrill Capps, Todd Klick, Cory Travalena, and Dale Olson, with Bradbury himself adapting his own work. (Variety)

Scott Cohen (Gilmore Girls) and Stephanie Childers (Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip) have been cast in ABC Family's untitled Michael Jacobs single-camera comedy pilot, where Cohen will play an unemployed architect who "begins to mentor his underdog middle daughter, while his veterinarian wife (Childers) shares a closer bond with their Type-A older daughter." Elsewhere at ABC Family, Troian Bellisario and Ian Harding will star opposite Lucy Hale in drama pilot Pretty Little Liars. (Hollywood Reporter)

FOX has given a series order to Mark Burnett-produced game show Our Little Genius, in which child geniuses, ranging from six to twelve years old, are given the chance to put their knowledge to the test and earn cash prizes. "In television, we often showcase kids who are incredible singers, actors or dancers, so it's high time we give the spotlight to kids with incredible brains," said Mike Darnell, President of Alternative Entertainment, Fox Broadcasting Company, in a statement. "The kids on this show are ridiculously smart, and with its unique appeal to both parents and children alike, I think Our Little Genius is one of Mark Burnett's most compelling creations yet." (via press release)

Warner Bros. Television has signed a new three-year overall deal with Old Christine creator Kari Lizer, under which she will develop projects for the studio as well as remain on board Old Christine as executive producer, should the series be picked up by CBS for a sixth season. (Hollywood Reporter)

NBC has confirmed its plans for its musical competition series The Sing-Off and will strip the series across a single week beginning Monday, December 14th. Series, from Tenth Planet Prods., Outlaw Entertainment, and Sony Pictures Television, will launch with a two-hour installment and air double-length episodes on Tuesday, December 15th and Wednesday, December 16th before wrapping up with a two-hour finale on Monday, December 21st. It will take a breather on Thursday, December 17th, when NBC airs a two-hour primetime Saturday Night Live Christmas special. (Variety)

BBC Two has acquired UK rights to Showtime's dark comedy series Nurse Jackie, which it plans to launch early next year. (Variety)

Elsewhere at the British terrestrial network, Mad Men's Vincent Kartheiser will star opposite Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz), Emma Pierson (Little Dorrit), and Jerry Hall (Calendar Girls) in a BBC Two adaptation of Martin Amis' novel Money, a "comedic tale of excess, greed and flawed ambition set at the beginnings of Eighties capitalism." Production begins this month on the two one-hour installments, written by Tom Butterworth and Chris Hurford and directed by Jeremy Lovering. (BBC)

Broadcast's Robin Parker takes a look at the new production models emerging as American and British comedy writers join forces, with several Atlantic-crossing series such as David Cross' The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret and Matt LeBlanc-led Episodes becoming a reality. (Broadcast)

CurrentTV pinkslipped 80 full-time staffers yesterday in the company's Los Angeles, London, New York, and San Francisco offices as the cabler moves from a shortform content strand to a more traditional television network model, with its schedule likely to be filled mostly by acquisitions. (Hollywood Reporter)

TruTV has ordered reality series NFL Full Contact, which will offers viewers a behind-the-scenes-look into the inner workings of the football league and focus on key personalities within the sport. Series, from executive producers Steve Sabol and Anthony Horn, will launch on February 8th. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: J.J. Abrams Back in Spy Game, Aylesworth Briefed for "Damages," FX Orders "Terriers," "Lights Out" to Series, and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

The Wrap's Josef Adalian is reporting that J.J. Abrams is returning to the spy business with a new potential series project with writer/executive producer Josh Reims (Felicity, Dirty Sexy Money) and executive producer Bryan Burk that is the subject of a heated bidding war with several broadcast networks including ABC, NBC, and CBS. The untitled project, from Warner Bros. Television and Bad Robot, follows a husband and wife who work as spies. According to Adalian, the script is described as a "fun romp" in the style of classic television spy adventures. (The Wrap)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Reiko Aylesworth (24, Lost) has been cast in Season Three of FX's legal drama Damages in a recurring role. Details about who Aylesworth--who starred in the original pilot for ABC drama series The Forgotten--will be playing are being kept firmly under wraps. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

FX has given series orders to dramas Lights Out and Terriers, ordering thirteen episodes of each series. Fox21's Terriers, which stars Donal Logue as a former cop who launches an unlicensed private eye firm with his best friend (Michael Raymond-James), is set to debut in Summer 2010. It was created and will be executive produced by Ted Griffin and Shawn Ryan. Lights Out, from Fox Television Studios and FX Prods., stars Holt McCalleny as a former boxing champ who tries to support his wife and children. Series, from creator Justin Zackham, executive producer/showrunner Warren Leight, and executive producers Phillip Noyce and Ross Fineman, will launch in late 2010. That series will undergo some casting changes from the pilot episode, which had been tweaked by Leight. (Hollywood Reporter)

Rumors swirled yesterday that Comcast was in talks to acquire part or all of NBC Universal for $35 billion, but Comcast was quick to shoot down a report on The Wrap, saying that it was "inaccurate." (Editor: not untrue but inaccurate. Hmmm.) What is clear, however, is that the two companies are in talks of some kind as the deadline looms in the next few months for former Universal owner Vivendi to decide what to do with its remaining 20 percent ownership stake in the company, said to be in the neighborhood of $4 billion. Stay tuned on this one. (Broadcasting & Cable, Variety)

USA has given a cast-contingent pilot order to legal drama Facing Kate about a divorced lawyer in San Francisco who leaves her job as an attorney to become a mediator. Project, from Universal Cable Prods., is written by Michael Sardo, who will executive produce with Steve Stark and Russ Buchholz. (Hollywood Reporter)

E! Online's Megan Masters speaks with Modern Family star Ty Burrell about what's coming up on the ABC comedy series, including this little doozy: "Jay likes to fly model airplanes, so Phil goes out to fly [them] with him, and Jay gets fed up with Phil yacking on, so that goes sour." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Bravo is developing three new series around some of its most memorable stars, including Real Housewives' Bethenny Frankel, Project Runway's Christian Siriano, and Top Chef's Fabio Viviani. Frankel's as-yet-untitled series, from Shed Media, will follow her as she looks for love and grows her business as a natural foods chef. Siriano's series will follow the flamboyant designer as he opens a shop and promotes his clothing line. Viviani will star in Fabio: A Catered Affair, which will follow him and his business parter Jacopo Falleni as they look to "expand their restaurant and catering business in Los Angeles." The latter two projects hail from Magical Elves. (Variety)

Guest stars aplenty for ABC's Ugly Betty. E! Online's Megan Masters is reporting that Christie Brinkley will join the cast of the dramedy this season as rival fashion editrix Penelope Graybridge while Shakira will guest star as herself in a November episode of Ugly Betty that finds the Mode staffers overseeing a photo shoot in the Bahamas. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

ABC Family has given pilot orders to two comedies. The first, an untitled multi-camera comedy starring Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence, will see the duo play a "a political dynasty wild child-turned-politician who takes in her teenage niece and pre-adolescent nephew when her sister goes to prison and her brother-in-law flees. She turns for help to Jack (Lawrence), who, desperate for a job, moves in and becomes the family's "manny.'" (Whew.) That project is from writers Bob Young and David Kendall, who will executive produce with Melissa Joan Hart, Paula Hart, and Joey Lawrence. The second greenlight went to an untitled single-camera comedy from writer/executive producer Michael Jacobs about a father who gets laid off from his architecture firm who "begins to mentor his underdog middle daughter, while his veterinarian wife shares a closer bond with their Type A older daughter." (Hollywood Reporter)

CBS Studios International has closed deals to bring several of its new series to the UK, with rights deals in place for NCIS: Los Angeles at Sky1 and The Good Wife and Accidentally on Purpose at Channel 4. Sky1 will launch NCIS: Los Angeles on October 21st while The Good Wife will bow on on More4 and Accidentally on Purpose on E4. (Broadcast, Variety)

R.J. Cutler's reality single Actual Reality has signed a co-production deal with Evolution Media under which Evolution will co-produce the nonscripted projects that the company has at MTV, Bravo, TruTV, and Sony Pictures Television and will have a first-look option at any new projects that Actual Reality develops. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: "Gavin and Stacey" Heads to ABC, Nelsan Ellis Talks "True Blood" FInale, "Bones" Flashback Possible for 100th Episode, and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

ABC is developing a US adaptation of British hit comedy series Gavin and Stacey, about the romance between two very different lovers from two very different places (in the original it was Essex and Wales) who fall in love over the phone and begin a relationship, against the advice of their eccentric friends and families. US version, from BBC Worldwide, will be written by Stacy Traub (Notes from the Underbelly) and Hayes Jackson (According to Jim). Elsewhere at the Alphabet, the network has given a pilot order to 18 Years, about a young couple who become parents and must "adjust to their new life as parents -- trading their fast-paced existence for a more domesticated lifestyle," from Sony Pictures Television and writer/executive producers Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith (The King of Queens). ABC is also developing an untitled comedy, from Samantha Who? executive producer Don Todd, ABC Studios, and Brillstein Entertainment Partners, about a thirty-something woman who learns that her new job as boss to a group of twenty-somethings puts her in the role of mother, therapist, and friend. (Variety)

The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan has a great interview with True Blood star Nelsan Ellis about the second season finale, which aired on HBO last night. And Ryan recounts that Ellis has one suggestion for executive producer Alan Ball about Season Three of the vampire drama: he wants a Lafayette flashback to see the short order cook with his mother. "There are so many lines about how his mother treated [Lafayette]," Ellis told Ryan. "It would be nice if we found out in the flashbacks that she was a vampire." (Chicago Tribune's The Watcher)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Bones creator Hart Hanson is considering using the 100th episode as a flashback to the first assignment that Booth (David Boreanaz) and Brennan (Emily Deschanel) worked togther, before the events of the pilot episode. "We alluded in the pilot that the first time they worked together — the time before the pilot — that it went very badly," Hanson told Ausiello. "They had a terrible time. So it would be really fun to do a flashback episode.... It’s in the bin of ideas for the 100th episode, but it’s a big bin!" (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

CBS has given a pilot order to multi-camera comedy True Love, from Sony Pictures Television and writer/executive producer Matt Tarses and executive producer Jamie Tarses, about four friends in their twenties who are looking for love in Manhattan. The studio also has comedy script Nathan vs. Nurture, written by David Guarascio and Moses Port, in contention at NBC. (Hollywood Reporter)

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting that Julian Sands (24) has been cast as a guest star on the CW's Smallville, where he will play a young Jor-El. Sands is slated to appear in a November episode entitled "Kandor," where "it’s revealed that he arrived with Zod and the other Kandorians." Sands is so far only contracted for one episode but that could change as well. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

E! Online's Watch with Kristin is reporting that ABC Family has ordered the back ten episodes of its freshman comedy series 10 Things I Hate About You. The ten additional episodes are thought to be likely to launch in January 2010. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

However, ABC Family opted not to pick up any additional episodes of fellow frosh series Ruby and the Rockits, which will wrap its run after its initial order of ten episodes. (Hollywood Reporter)

TBS has ordered a fourth season of comedy My Boys. The Sony Pictures Television-produced series has received an order for nine episodes, which will launch in 2010. (Variety)

Showtime has given a six-episode order to half-hour reality series Lock 'N Load, which offers a hidden-camera behind-the-scenes look at a gun store in Englewood, Colorado as its gun expert Josh T. Ryan interacts with clients. Project, from Authentic Entertainment, will launch on Wednesday, October 21st at 8 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

Eric McCormack (Will & Grace) has been cast in an untitled single-camera comedy pilot about a recent widower who tries to get his life back on track with some help from his eccentric friends and family. Project, which hails from Sony Pictures Television, was written on spec by Alex Barnow and Marc Firek and will be taken out to the networks in the coming weeks. He will star in a Lifetime telepic about con artist Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, a.k.a. Clark Rockefeller, a high society scammer who ran "the longest con in FBI history." Project, from Sony Pictures Television, is written by Edithe Swensen and will be directed by Mikael Salomon. (Hollywood Reporter)

Fox21 has signed a first-look deal with Stuart Krasnow (Hole in the Wall), under which the reality producer will develop unscripted series projects for the boutique division for both broadcast and cable. He had previously had a co-venture deal with FremantleMedia North America. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Elizabeth Banks Joins "Modern Family," Shawn Ryan to "Ridealong" with FOX, Tina Fey Talks Emmys and "30 Rock," and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Elizabeth Banks (Scrubs) has signed on guest star on ABC's upcoming comedy series Modern Family in a potentially recurring role. TV Guide Magazine's William Keck is reporting that Banks will play Sal, a close friend of gay couple Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) and Cameron (Eric Stonestreet), in an October episode and that she came to the project via her real-life friendship with Ferguson. "Sal is their old running buddy," executive producer Steven Levitan told Keck. "Mitchell and Cameron decide they need a night out on the town, so they call her up." Lloyd adds, "She's thrilled to be back with her old friends until they start talking about their new (adopted) baby and she doesn't want to hear about the baby, so she starts saying things like, 'I wouldn't mind killing the baby.'" (TV Guide Magazine)

FOX has given a put pilot commitment to Shawn Ryan's one-hour drama project Ridealong, about a group of Chicago-based cops ranging from uniformed beat cops to a female police chief. Ryan will write and executive produce the pilot, which will be shot on location in Chicago. Ryan, who said that the project won't be as gritty as The Shield, indicated that the series will focus on episodic cases "but something will happen in the pilot that will have overarching (ramifications) that we deal with over time. It will be less serialized than Grey's but more than CSI." Project hails from 20th Century Fox Television and Ryan's shingle Midd Kid Prods. (Variety, Chicago Tribune's The Watcher)

Broadcasting & Cable's Melissa Grego has a fantastic interview with 30 Rock creator/star/executive producer Tina Fey about the Emmys, Ben Silverman, 30 Rock, syndication, and much more. Of Silverman, Fey said, "Ben was always very good to us and good to 30 Rock, and anyone who left us on the air is all right by me. We'll miss him, but all seems well with the new guy, too. I spoke to Mr. Gaspin last week and he seems like a good guy—so far. So far. I'm giving him 10... no, I'm kidding." (Broadcasting & Cable)

Mike Vogel (Empire State) has replaced Richard Coyle on CBS' midseason medical drama Miami Trauma. Vogel will play a "charming and fiercely competitive surgeon with a healthy ego." (Is there any other kind?) Series, from Warner Bros. Television and executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer, follows the lives of trauma specialists in Miami. (Hollywood Reporter)

Despite comments made by Kevin Reilly at last week's TCA Summer Press Tour, FOX will be airing the final installments of King of the Hill, according to a new press release. FOX has slated the one-hour series finale of King of the Hill for Sunday, September 13th at 8 pm ET/PT. (via press release)

Hilary Duff will star in ABC Family romantic comedy telepic The Business of Falling in Love, based on the book "Diary of a Working Girl" by Daniella Brodsky about a fashion reporter who goes undercover in the financial world to write an article about dating business men. Gil Junger will direct the two-hour telepic, which was adapted by Mike Horowitz (Burn Notice). (Hollywood Reporter)

ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson confirmed that comedies The Goode Family and Surviving Suburbia have been canceled and won't be returning to the schedule. (Futon Critic)

Two more cast additions to TNT's untitled alien invasion drama pilot from Steven Spielberg: iCarly's Drew Roy and The Hole's Peter Shinkoda have signed on to star opposite Noah Wyle. (Hollywood Reporter)

Clint Black will executive produce anthology series American Storytellers from ITV Studios, which transforms country music songs into one-hour drama installments. Black will executive produce the series with Mark Roberts, Lorena David, and Joel C. High. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Barrowman Could Get "Desperate," Michael Hogan Checks into "Dollhouse," USA Renews "In Plain Sight," and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

Torchwood star John Barrowman has told BBC1 Radio host Chris Moyle that he is meeting with the producers of ABC's Desperate Housewives about a possible role on the series next season. "I'm off to Los Angeles on Sunday again," said Barrowman on the air. "I probably shouldn't say this but I've got a meeting with the execs of Desperate Housewives; can you believe it, I'm going to be a Desperate Housewife!" No word yet on what role Barrowman could be playing or if a deal is in place for the actor to come on board the long-running drama. (Guardian's Media Monkey)

The Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan is reporting that former Battlestar Galactica co-star Michael Hogan will be guest starring in an upcoming episode of FOX's Dollhouse this fall. Hogan, set to appear in the second episode of the sophomore season, will play "a customer of the Dollhouse who has used the services of the 'dolls' in the past." (Chicago Tribune's The Watcher)

USA has handed out a third season order to drama In Plain Sight, which stars Mary McCormack, giving the Universal Cable Studios-produced series a sixteen-episode renewal. Behind the scenes, creator David Maples and executive producer Paul Stupin will step down from running the series, segueing into consulting roles on the series. An as-yet-undetermined executive producer will be brought into to give In Plain Sight "a little more narrative drive," according to USA president of original programming Jeff Wachtel. In other USA news, the cabler is said to be close to renewing Law & Order: Criminal Intent as well. (Hollywood Reporter)

20th Century Fox Television has confirmed that they have signed deals with all of the original voice actors on Futurama to reprise their roles in the new Comedy Central Futurama series, which will launch next year. The terms of the deals are unknown but it's clear that some sort of compromise was reached on one or both sides. "We are thrilled to have our incredible cast back," said creators Matt Groening and David X. Cohen in a prepared statement. "The call has already gone out to the animators to put the mouths back on the characters." (Variety)

FOX has handed out a cast-contingent pilot order to multi-camera comedy The Rednecks & Romeos, about a group of teen friends living outside Buffalo, New York dealing with the results of economic turmoil, from writer/executive producer Mark Brazil and executive producers Tom Werner and Mike Clements. Project hails from Warner Bros. Television and Good Humor TV. (Hollywood Reporter)

Grant Bowler will reprise his role as slick thief Connor on ABC's Ugly Betty next season, reports Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello. Bowler is said to have signed on for a multiple-episode story arc beginning this fall. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

NCIS' Pauey Perette will guest star in the second episode of spin-off series NCIS: Los Angeles. "She does a crossover and she's directly involved with helping us solve the case. It's a fun little cameo for her," said showrunner Shane Brennan. "We have plans for her to perhaps be in more episodes. And perhaps not just her. I can't tell you yet." Brennan also gave E! Online's Watch with Kristin some additional scoop about what to expect this fall. "It's Callen's (Chris O'Donnell) first day back on the job, and we see his scars. We literally see his scars," said Brennan. "And he rolls into this new venue and away we go from there. Will we answer what happened to him and how it happened and why? In the very best tradition of NCIS, yes. And in the very best tradition of NCIS, you'll just have to wait. So it will be a sweeps episode. I'll give you that." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Universal Media Studios has signed a blind script deal with Tom Arnold, under which he will write and produce an untitled comedy pilot script for NBC through his 2 Dog Limit shingle. He'll next be seen on the small screen in a recurring role on FX's Sons of Anarchy this fall. (Variety)

Tyra Banks is set to guest star on the CW's Gossip Girl next season, according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello, citing unnamed sources. Banks will play an actress who co-stars in a film alongside Hilary Duff's character. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

CBS has given a series order to a revival of vintage game show Let's Make a Deal, which will likely fill the daytime timeslot vacated by cancelled soap Guiding Light. Pilot for the series had already been shot with Wayne Brady as the host and he is expected to return for the FremantleMedia North America-produced series as well. (Variety)

ABC Family has ordered telepic The Cutting Edge: Fire & Ice, the third sequel to 1992 ice skating film The Cutting Edge, which will star Francia Raisa and Brendan Fehr. Project, written by Holly Brix and directed by Stephen Herek, will premiere in spring 2010. (Hollywood Reporter)

A fifth season of Radical Media's Iconoclasts is on tap at Sundance Channel, which the cabler ordering six episodes to air in 2010. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Jamie Bamber to Play in "Dollhouse," Day, Denisof, and Glau Set for "Dollhouse" Season Two, Syfy Sets "Caprica" Launch, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing.

Battlestar Galactica's Jamie Bamber will guest star in the season premiere installment of FOX's Dollhouse next season. According to E! Online's Watch with Kristin, Bamber will play a character who is "heavily involved in an engagement Echo (Eliza Dushku) and her new handler Paul Ballard (Tahmoh Penikett) have been assigned to." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

In other Dollhouse-related news, Joss Whedon has confirmed that Season Two of the FOX drama will feature some familiar faces from the Whedonverse including Dr. Horrible's Felicia Day (who appeared in the unaired "Epitaph One" episode), Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles' Summer Glau, and Angel's Alexis Denisof. (TVGuide.com)

Syfy has announced that Battlestar Galactica spin-off Caprica will debut on Friday, January 22nd at 10 pm. Of course, if you read my coverage of the Caprica/BSG: The Plan panel at Comic-Con, you already knew all about this. (Variety)

FOX has pushed up the return of Glee by a week to Wednesday, September 9th, where it will air at 9 pm, behind the launch of the new season of So You Think You Can Dance (which also got bumped up a week as well). (Futon Critic)

ABC Family has ordered ten additional episodes of freshman drama Make It or Break It, bringing the first season run to twenty episodes. The back ten episodes will launch in early 2010. (Variety)

Elsewhere at ABC Family, the cabler has announced that Season Three of Greek will launch on Monday, August 31st. Guest stars this season include Olivia Munn, Kadeem Hardison, Thomas Calabro, Tom Amandes, and Jerry Lambert. Greek will air ten new episodes through November. (via press release)

E! Online's Watch with Kristin has some Gossip Girl scoop for Season Three, directly from the mouth of executive producer Josh Schwartz: "Well, you know Georgina (Michelle Trachtenberg) is coming back even though she is at Mercy. She is going to have a very unexpected roommate and a very unexpected love interest." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

UK terrestrial network ITV unveiled its autumn plans, which include the return of The X Factor, Duchess on the Estate, which follows Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson as she helps "communities raise ambitions and standards," a new Life Stories go-around with Piers Morgan, and game show The Cube. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.