Channel Surfing: Leonard Nimoy Beams Down to "Fringe," ABC Sets Returns for "Daisies," "Dirty," and "Eli," HBO Down with More "Eastbound," and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing.

Talk about perfect casting. Star Trek legend Leonard Nimoy will beam down to FOX drama series Fringe, where he will play none other than the enigmatic William Bell, the former lab partner of Walter Bishop (John Noble) and the founder of Massive Dynamic. "It was a delight to work with Mr. Nimoy on Star Trek," executive producer J.J. Abrams told Michael Ausiello. "The idea that he will play the mysterious, much-referenced William Bell is a thrill. I know I sound like a goofy fan boy, but I can't help it: Leonard is an icon of the genre and such a wonderful actor. To have him come on board Fringe is a mind-blowing honor." Nimoy is expected to first appear in the season finale of Fringe and then appear in Season Two in an extended story arc. (Entertaiment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

E! Online meanwhile checked in with Star Trek and Fringe writer/executive producer Roberto Orci about the casting of Nimoy whom he says will be "an active part of the story, not just backstory. He interacts with our players." (Whew.) "Several answers will come outside of William Bell, and then William Bell will be the beginning of the answers to even bigger questions," said Orci. "[Walter and William] have not only different approaches to the Pattern, but different interpretations of what the Pattern is. The Pattern is slightly in the eye of the beholder, you're going to find out. And sometimes what you think is real can become real. In a way, these two are the top minds in the world attempting to figure out the Pattern and how to react to it, based on their world view." (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

It's official: ABC has finally ended months of speculation and announced when it would burn off remaining episodes of scripted dramas Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, and Eli Stone, following an earlier report that had the network returning Daisies to the schedule on May 30th. The network has now confirmed that Pushing Daisies will air its final three episodes beginning Saturday, May 30th at 10 pm over three weeks; Eli Stone will return in the same timeslot beginning June 20th with four episodes; and Dirty Sexy Money, which has four installments remaining, will likewise wrap its run starting July 18th. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Elsewhere at ABC, the network has shored up its summer schedule, announcing launch dates for all of its off-season series: The Bachelorette will launch on May 18th; Here Come the Newlyweds' second season kicks off on May 25th; Wipeout returns May 27th; animated comedy The Goode Family will launch on May 27th; I Survived a Japanese Game Show will return July 8th; The Superstars kicks off June 23rd; and Dating in the Dark launches on July 20th. (Variety)

Pilot casting alert: Xander Berkeley (24) has been cast as a regular in NBC sci-fi pilot Day One, where he will play Clark, a man who is "seriously injured in an explosion and whose daughter goes missing." Berkeley will also recur in ABC drama pilot Inside the Box, where he will play the network EVP and boss to Indira Varma's Washington news bureau chief. (Hollywood Reporter)

HBO has ordered a second season of comedy Eastbound and Down, starring Danny McBride as a washed-up pro baseball pitcher who returns to his North Carolina hometown. No episodic order was given, though the second season will be comprised of at least six episodes and possibly more, but all scheduling and episode counts will need to be worked around McBride's feature commitments. "We're really excited about the cult following this show has taken on," said executive producer Adam McKay. "Next year we'd like to see this cult develop into a full-flung religion. and we can start judging people and telling them that they're gonna go to hell." (Variety)

Could NBC replace Law & Order: Special Victims Unit leads Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni? That's what Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello is reporting, claiming that multiple unnamed sources have told him that the Peacock is threatening to replace the duo if Hargitay and Meloni don't back down from demanding salary increases. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Russell T. Davies has revealed that Bernard Cribbins will reprise his role as Wilfred "Wilf" Mott, the grandfather of Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) and take on the role as the Doctor's companion in the two-part Doctor Who Christmas special that marks the end of David Tennant's tenure on the series. (Digital Spy)

Meanwhile, David Tennant has admitted to BBC Radio One that he cried when he read the final script for his run on Doctor Who. "I might have had a little cry," said Tennant. "They were brilliant scripts and very moving. It was quite a big deal really. I sort of turned the phone off and made sure I could read it straight through without too much interruption. Filming is now always out of schedule, so I don't know if I'll be sadder on the last day or filming the final scenes. That remains to be seen. It's weird because it's been four years. It's been so all-consuming and so life-changing. It's been such a big thing." (Digital Spy)

Lionsgate Television has signed a first-look deal with Steve Buscemi and Stanley Tucci's Olive Prods., under which the production company--overseen with producer Wren Arthur--will develop scripted series for both broadcast and cable networks. The studio has a relationship with Buscemi, who just directed four of Showtime comedy Nurse Jackie's twelve episodes. (Variety)

Sam Linsky has been promoted to SVP, current programming at both TNT and TBS. He will continue to report to Michael Wright and has now assumed current duties at TBS in addition to his TNT current oversight. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: ABC Slates "Pushing Daisies" End, Sydney Andrews Returns from Dead for "Melrose Place," John Simm Returns to "Doctor Who," and More

Welcome to your Monday morning television briefing.

The Pie Maker returns to ABC! Pushing Daisies fans will finally be able to catch the final three episodes of the prematurely canceled series. ABC is expected to officially announce that it will air the final three episodes of Pushing Daisies on Saturday evenings at 10 pm ET/PT beginning May 30th. (Sadly, still no news for when or if Dirty Sexy Money or Eli Stone will return to the lineup to burn off their remaining installments.)

Also on tap for May on ABC: four-hour mini-series Diamonds, starring Judy Davis and James Purefoy, on May 24th and 26th; the launch of The Bachelorette on May 18th; the return of reality competition series Opportunity Knocks on May 26th; Wipeout returns on May 27th; and comedy The Goode Family will kick off on May 27th. (Futon Critic)

Despite her character seemingly dying in the fifth season finale of Melrose Place (where she was run over on her wedding day), Laura Leighton will reprise her role as the manipulative Sydney Andrews in the CW's revival of soap Melrose Place. (Look for the series' writers to say that she managed to survive the near-fatal car accident.) Leighton's Sydney, who will be recurring, will be the landlord of the famed apartment complex, where a new crop of LA wannabes will be living. So far, Leighton's casting marks the first deal for a cast member from the original Melrose Place to reprise their role on the new project. (Hollywood Reporter)

Meanwhile, Shark's Shaun Sipos has also been cast in Melrose Place, where he will play David Patterson, the son of original series' Jake Hansen (Grant Show), described as a "bad boy with smoldering good looks who grew up as a rich kid but has been cut off from his family money." (Hollywood Reporter)

Confirming an earlier story that John Simm would reprise his role as The Master in the series of David Tennant's farewell specials of Doctor Who, Simm has been spotted on the set of the series' Christmas special, which--along with another installment slated to air a week later on New Year's Day--mark the end of Tennant's tenure on the series as the time-traveling Doctor. Matt Smith will take over the role with Season Five of Doctor Who, slated to air next year. (Wired)

Jason Katims (Friday Night Lights) has been hired by NBC as a non-writing executive producer on drama pilot Dorothy Gale, a modern-day retelling of "The Wizard of Oz," about Kansas native Dorothy who moves to Manhattan and deals with her wickedly witchy boss in the art world. Project, written by Bridget Carpenter (Bionic Woman), will be executive produced by Carpenter, Katims, and Meryl Poster. Katims, meanwhile, is attached this season to NBC drama pilot Parenthood, in addition to duties on Friday Night Lights. (Variety)

NBC has renewed Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for an eleventh season but while the deal covers the majority of the cast, it doesn't cover series leads Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni. The network is said to have already begun contract negotiations with both actors. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Doctor Who's Freema Agyeman, who played Martha Jones on the series, has offered her support for inbound series lead Matt Smith taking over as the Doctor. "He's great. I can imagine there must have been a fair few people up for that role and for the producers to have such confidence in him, he must clearly have blown them away," Agyeman told Digital Spy. "He looks absolutely fantastic. He's a really good actor in all the other things he's done. I think he's going to be outstanding." (Digital Spy)

Anil Kapoor (Slumdog Millionaire) has joined the day of FOX's 24, where he will play a Middle Eastern leader who arrives in the US on a peacekeeping mission in Day Eight of the series, which is expected to bow in January 2010 on the network. (Hollywood Reporter)

Sky One has acquired UK rights to Sci Fi's new Stargate series SGU: Stargate Universe, which it plans to launch this fall. (Variety)

Reaper creators/executive producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters have signed a two-year overall deal with studio 20th Century Fox Television, under which they will develop series for the studio and join the writing staff of a 20th Century Fox Television series. Their exclusive deal all but makes a cancellation for CW's Reaper, produced by ABC Studios, a certainty. (Hollywood Reporter)

Creator/showrunner Mara Brock Akil is hoping to save her single-camera half-hour comedy series The Game from cancellation at the the CW by pitching the series to network executives as a reformatted one-hour dramedy. (Hollywood Reporter)

FOX has announced that it will launch overweight dating series More to Love on Tuesday, July 28th at 9 pm and delay the launch of scripted drama Mental by a week; the latter series will now debut on May 29th. (Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed)

SAG and the AMPTP are said to be moving towards a tentative agreement on the feature-primetime contract, which would expire in 2011, and the SAG netotiating committee is set to meet on Tuesday following several recent informal talks between the two sides, brokered by Peter Chernin and Bob Iger. But there's no deal just yet. "Any report of a tentative agreement on any aspect of our TV/Theatrical negotiations is premature," said SAG spokesperson Pamela Greenwalt. "SAG's leadership remains engaged in ongoing efforts to secure a fair deal for SAG members." (Variety)

Stay tuned.

ABC's Steve McPherson Talks "Pushing Daisies," "Dirty Sexy Money," and "Eli Stone," But No Return Dates

Fans of Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, and Eli Stone shouldn't hold their collective breath waiting for ABC to run the remaining episodes of their favorite series, all of which the Alphabet cancelled last year.

Speaking at the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour, ABC Entertainment president Steve McPherson was maddeningly vague when questioned several times about when viewers could anticipate seeing the leftover episodes of Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, and Eli Stone.

"I wish that we had been able to give the producers really series-ending notice to some extent so they could really get that done and really have kind of a finale, if you will," said McPherson. "Because of the way the timing worked out, we didn't, and we weren't able to. But I'd love to find a way to get those out, because Pushing Daisies and Dirty Sexy Money for me -- most of the time when shows don't work, you can really, in hindsight, look back and kick yourself and say, 'I should have seen that.'"

"I really love those shows [and] commend those producers," continued McPherson. "They delivered what they promised. For us, it was just a frustration that we couldn't get a larger audience or that Nielsen said we couldn't get a larger audience."

Still, ABC did not announce any scheduling of those remaining episodes today and McPherson pointed to a number of obstacles standing in there way from airing those installments, including the preciousness of "real estate on air," especially in these economically uncertain times, rights clearance issues, and just scheduling dilemmas.

So, would McPherson have done anything differently coming out of the writers strike in regard to these series? Would he have brought them back in the spring rather than attempt to "relaunch" them in the fall?

"It wasn’t like there were a lot of options," said McPherson, who said that they could have "maybe gotten two or three episodes of the Wednesday night shows back on the air in the spring... So we made the gamble. Hindsight is 20/20. People did not come back to them the way we hoped. I don’t know that we had a better option. But I wished the strike didn’t happen because we are all trying to recover."

As for Pushing Daisies, McPherson didn't really have any answer about why the series underperformed on ABC. "You could look back and maybe say, okay, Pushing Daisies was a little bit too much this or that, but [Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, and Eli Stone] are great shows. There may be something out there in terms of the way we promote these shows, the way we deliver these shows, and the way that the viewership is actually counted. I think that there's a tremendous amount of viewership that nobody, no network gets credit for. And hopefully, if we can get those viewers and get them counted for, we can keep great shows like that on the air."

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: NBC Renews "30 Rock" and "The Office," Daniels Still Mulling "Office" Spin-off, Hopkins Scrubs in on "Private Practice," and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

By the hammer of Thor! Good news for fans of 30 Rock and The Office: NBC has renewed both series for the 2009-10 season, which means that we're guaranteed a fourth and sixth respective season of each. Given 30 Rock's comedy win at this week's Golden Globes (and well-deserved statuettes for stars Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin), I would have been gobsmacked if NBC hadn't ordered an additional season of the critically beloved series. (press release)

Unfortunately, there's no news of the fate of ratings-challenged but critically loved NBC series Chuck and Life, which weren't mentioned in NBC's renewal announcement (which also included another season of The Biggest Loser).

And there's even worse news for fans of ABC's Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, and Eli Stone. According to Kristin dos Santos' sources, the Alphabet won't be airing the remaining episodes of either series until June at the earliest. (E! Online's Watch with Kristin)

Bryan Fuller is said to be contemplating a feature film version of Pushing Daisies but as co-star Kristin Chenoweth, recently cast in NBC pilot Legally Mad, told me and several other reporters on Tuesday, Fuller would only do it if all six of the series' leads signed on... and they are prepared to do so! "I'm sure that Bryan Fuller wouldn't do it without the six main characters," said Chenoweth. "Paul Reubens was a big part of it and we have certain guest stars that are standouts that we'd want back. But he has such a great idea for it [and] we all want to [do it]."

Scott Bakula (Enterprise) has been cast in Chuck as Chuck and Ellie Bartowski's estranged father; he'll first appear in an episode slated to air in April. "Chuck made a promise to his sister, Ellie, that he was going to find their dad in time for her wedding," co-creator Josh Schwartz told Michael Ausiello. "And it's something that Chuck becomes consumed with pursuing during the second half of the season. But when he finds him, he's not necessarily a guy who wants to be found. He's living in a trailer, he's disheveled, he's paranoid and he's claiming constantly that Ted Roark [Chevy Chase] -- who he used to work with -- stole all his ideas from him. And Ted Roark has now become this super-successful software billionaire, and Chuck's dad has become an eccentric, living in the shadows."(Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Elsewhere at the Peacock, NBC announced launch dates for four new series: Kings on March 15th, Southland (formerly known as Police and even more formerly known as LAPD) on April 9th; the Untitled Amy Poehler/Greg Daniels Comedy on April 9th, and reality series Chopping Block on March 11th. (press release)

Hugh Bonneville (Bonekickers) has been cast in NBC dramedy pilot Legally Mad, opposite Charity Wakefield and Kristin Chenoweth. Bonneville will play Gordon Hamm, a partner at the law firm and the father of Brady (Wakefield) who is going through a bit of a midlife crisis. (Hollywood Reporter)

Meanwhile, that spin-off of The Office (not to be confused with the untitled Amy Poehler/Greg Daniels comedy) could still be in the works. "It's not possible, physically, for me to be involved in it right this second, but I'm talking to people over at The Office about another idea, and [The Office's British creator] Stephen Merchant came back and directed an episode of The Office so were were talking about the idea," said Greg Daniels at yesterday's TCA panel. "It's possible that some combination of other Office people could produce it without my giving blood for it." (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

NBC has reduced the episodic count for freshman comedy Kath & Kim to 17 episodes, five installments less than its original 22-episode order. Look for Kath & Kim to end its season on March 12th. (Futon Critic)

Greg Daniels says that he wants Amy Ryan to return to NBC's The Office as Holly Flax. Ryan will hopefully appear in the season finale of The Office and could return next season as well. "She will come back," Daniels told Michael Ausiello. "We haven't written it yet, but we're discussing her coming back for the season finale. We're hoping she'll be available... Because [Michael and Holly] have such a deep connection, I don't think she can blow in and out every so often. It would be too hard for him as a human being. So, we're hoping to find some very significant things for them. And if we can get her to sign on for a really long period, we'll do it." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

And, finally, Lipstick Jungle isn't quite dead just yet. "We officially have not canceled Lipstick Jungle," said Universal Media Studios' Angela Bromstad. "I think there are alternatives we may look into. It's all a conversation for the fall." (TV Guide)

Lifetime has ordered twelve episodes of dramedy Drop Dead Diva, about a wannabe model who, after a fatal car accident, is reincarnated in the body of an overweight lawyer. Project, starring Brooke Elliott and from writer/executive producer Josh Berman (Bones), will launch this summer. (Hollywood Reporter)

FOX is said to be close to ordering two drama pilots: Maggie Hill, from writer/executive producer Ian Biederman, EXPs Brian Grazer and David Nevins, 20th Century Fox TV, and Imagine, about a female cardiac surgeon battling schizophrenia; and Human Target, based on a DC comic about a shady security expert who goes undercover to protect clients, from executive producer McG and writer/executive producer Jon Steinberg (Jericho). (Variety, Hollywood Reporter)

Josh Hopkins (Swingtown) has been cast in a multiple-episode story arc on ABC's Private Practice, where he'll play a surgeon with whom Addison strikes up a flirtation... or, well, more than a flirtation in five episodes this spring. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

CBS has given a cast-contingent pilot order to comedy Tick Tock, about a 30-something single mom who attempts to focus her attention on finding love. Project, from writer/executive producer Bill Kunstler (The War at Home), will be produced by CBS Paramount Network Television. (Variety)

Christine Baranski (Mamma Mia!) has been cast in at least one episode of CBS' The Big Bang Theory, where she will play Dr. Beverly Hofstadter, Leonard's mother and an acclaimed brain researcher. (TV Guide)

TNT has ordered six additional scripts for freshman drama Leverage. (Hollywood Reporter)

Ronald D. Moore talks about Battlestar Galactica spin-off prequel series Caprica. (Variety)

Ugly Betty's David Blue has been cast in Sci Fi's Stargate Universe, the latest iteration in the franchise, opposite Robert Carlyle. Blue will play "Eli Wallace, a total slacker who just happens to be an utter genius with anything he puts his mind to -- mathematics, computers, video games. A lack confidence has left him with an acerbic sense of humor." (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Also cast in Sci Fi's Stargate Universe opposite Carlyle and David Blue: Justin Louis (Hidden Hills), Brian J. Smith (Hate Crime), and Jamil Walker Smith (Sister, Sister). (Hollywood Reporter)

Everybody Loves Raymond executive producer Phil Rosenthal has been keeping busy. He's currently developing three HBO projects--comedy The Jeannie Tate Show, drama Random Family, and a telepic about the 1960s Freedom Riders--and has sold a series to the Beeb. (Hollywood Reporter)

Grant Show is said to be open to returning to the new iterations of either of his old haunts, namely 90210 or Melrose Place. But he does have one condition: he wants to rekindle his short romance with Jennie Garth's Kelly Taylor. "“That would be the only angle that would be really interesting,” said Show. “They never really explored that in enough depth.” (E! Online)

Stay tuned.

Wilted Daisies: ABC Opts Not to Renew "Pushing Daisies," "Dirty Sexy Money," and "Eli Stone"

The axe has fallen at ABC.

It's time for the terrible, terrible news that we've all been dreading for weeks now: ABC has decided not to renew Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, and Eli Stone past their initial 13-episode orders for this season.

While the word cancellation hasn't been officially given, it's basically equal to just that. None of the three series will continue past their initial second season orders. Many of us have been on death watch for Pushing Daisies for some time now and it absolutely breaks my heart to think that Chuck and Ned's days are now numbered.

ABC has yet to release an official statement about the, er, non-cancellation cancellations, but word started to reach me mid-day that the network would not be ordering any additional episodes of the troika.

UPDATE: James Hibberd at The Live Feed has gotten a statement from Daisies creator Bryan Fuller, who was playing phone tag with ABC's president, about the decision:

"I assumed that's what [the call] was about," said Fuller. "I can't help but feel immense pride when it comes to Pushing Daisies. I'm grateful TO everyone and FOR everyone who brought the show to life and for the very loyal audience that embraced us. If we are indeed dead on ABC, we now have to convince DC Comics to let us tell the rest of the season's story lines out in comic book form and convince Warner Bros. features to let Pushing Daisies live again as a movie."

While we've heard other creators speaking of continuing their canceled series' storylines in comic form (I'm still waiting for that Carnivale comic, Knauf!), I really do hope that Fuller has the opportunity to wrap up some of Daisies' storylines, especially as the thirteenth episode is said to end on a cliffhanger for Chuck.

UPDATE #2: Kristin Dos Santos at E! Online has another statement from Fuller. "Steve McPherson called me, and said 'We gave it the best shot we could,'" said Fuller. "It's very likely that Pushing Daisies will end after episode 13, which as you know, is a cliffhanger. But we are talking to DC Comics about doing comic books that will wrap up our storylines, and I already have a pitch for a movie ready to go. To be honest, I'm really not feeling very boo-hoo about it. I am so proud of the show. We put together 22 really good episodes, and there is a lot to be proud of. I'm sure I'll be working with a lot of these people again, and I would love to do so."

Sigh.

Meanwhile, I can't help but think back to a certain dinner I had with Bryan Fuller back in May 2007 when he told me the very final scene he envisioned for Pushing Daisies, should the series make it that far. (If Bryan is okay with me revealing the details, I'm happy to share.) But until then, I can't help but imagine just what other delicious treats Fuller would have been able to cook up in that brilliant imagination of his.

Pushing Daisies, I'll miss you terribly, not only for bringing some lightness (and darkness) into the television landscape with your zany plots, candy-colored sets, and heartbreaking (and mirth-making) stories but for the deft dialogue, the witty characterizations, and above all your innate beauty and originality. You'll be missed.

Channel Surfing: ABC Might Shift "Mars" and "Practice," Quinlan Locks Down "Prison Break," BBC Drama in Jeopardy, and More

Welcome to your Tuesday morning television briefing. While I watched this week's episode of Chuck yet again (and fell in love with it all over again), I couldn't help shake the feeling that last night's episode of Gossip Girl was absolutely beyond ludicrous. Anyone else agree?

ABC is allegedly making some changes to its midseason schedule, with Grey's Anatomy spin-off Private Practice shifting to Thursdays at 10 pm, where it will air right behind Grey's. Meanwhile, the current timeslot holder, Life on Mars, will move to Wednesdays at 10 pm, where it will receive a hell of a lead-in from Lost. The Alphabet didn't comment on the leaked schedule, which it has yet to announce. Can we see ABC launching a Wednesday night around Pushing Daisies, Lost, and Life on Mars... or does this once again signal a death knell for Daisies? (Hollywood Reporter)

Samaire Armstrong's Juliet Darling WILL be returning to ABC's Dirty Sexy Money after all. (Come on, I wasn't the only one who didn't believe producers when they said she wasn't off the series altogether!) Armstrong will return for a special Thanksgiving episode that will air on November 26th that finds chauffeur Clark offering his take on the Darlings' many scandals, including Juliet's year-long globe-spanning love affair with Kai. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Kathleen Quinlan (Made of Honor) has been cast in at least four episodes on FOX's Prison Break, where she will recur as a "mysterious woman who has ties to the Company and a surprising connection to Michael." Quinlan's first appearance is slated to air on the series' December 22nd fall finale. Could Quinlan's character be the basis for FOX's long-delayed Prison Break spin-off Cherry Hill? Hmmm... (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

Lifetime has ordered seven additional episodes of freshman comedy series Rita Rocks, bringing this season's total episodic count to 22 episodes.

Rita Rocks is perhaps some much-needed positive news for indie shingle Media Rights Capital, which has bombed with its scripted offerings this season, courtesy of the CW's Sunday night lineup. (Variety)

Departing BBC drama head Jane Tranter, who commissioned such hits as Doctor Who and Life on Mars, warned that BBC drama budgets were at their "breaking point" and that UK production was in grave danger from cost-cutting initiatives. "There's really not much more we can cut without endangering not just the quality of the work, but also the quality of the lives of the people who work on these things," said Tranter, who will become EVP of programming and production at BBC Worldwide this January. (Hollywood Reporter)

USA Today's Robert Bianco offers up three suggestions on how to improve US networks' ailing schedules, including: create more, import less; get serious about comedy; and develop on your time, not ours. I have to say I agree. (USA Today)

Tracy Pollan (Law & Order: SVU), a.k.a. Mrs. Michael J. Fox, has been cast in a three-episode story arc on Season Five of NBC's Medium, slated to launch in January. Pollan will play Caitlyn, a "corporate intuitionist who befriends Arquette's Allison and attempts to bring her to the corporation she works for because of her gift. " (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

The Hills' Heidi Spencer and Spencer Pratt will guest star on a January episode of CBS' How I Met Your Mother, where they will play themselves (naturally) when they taunt Marshall from the cover of a tabloid as he searches for a "quiet place." (TV Guide)

Colm Feore (24) has been cast in Canadian drama The Listener, which will air in the US on NBC. (Elsewhere, it will air on CTV in Canada and on Fox International Channels.) He'll play the mentor of a young parametic (Craig Olejnik) who uses his telepathic gifts to help the people he heals. (Hollywood Reporter)

Whoopi Goldberg has signed a development deal with Discovery Emerging Networks, under which she will develop series for Investigation Discovery and Science Channel with her Whoop Inc. partner Tom Leonardis, one of which is guaranteed to be ordered to series. (Variety)

Cabler AMC has named Charlie Collier as president; Collier has been EVP/general manager since 2006 and has overseen the cabler's expansion into original programming via Broken Trail, Mad Men, and Breaking Bad. (Variety)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: Cox Moves to "Cougar Town," Schneider Earns "Money," and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing. I'm still gutted by David Tennant's decision to leave Doctor Who after next year but my sadness was quelled somewhat by a gorgeous episode of Pushing Daisies. (Now, if only others were actually tuning in to watch!)

Courteney Cox (Dirt) and Bill Lawrence (Scrubs) are developing a half-hour comedy at ABC entitled Cougar Town, which will star Cox as a newly divorced single mom, possibly on the prowl for a new man. Lawrence and Kevin Biegel (Scrubs) will write the pilot. (Variety)

John Schneider (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) will guest star in a three-episode arc of ABC's Dirty Sexy Money, where he'll play a Congressman who puts Simon Elder in his place at the request (and, um, payment) of Tripp Darling. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Ice Cube will write and executive produce an untitled one-hour buddy cop comedy for NBC and Universal Media Studios. It's possible that Cube will appear in the project but not as a series lead. (Variety)

The Peacock is also developing a one-hour drama based on Heather McElhatton's choose-your-own-ending novel "Pretty Little Mistakes" with writers Bruce Marshall Romans and Kiersten Van Home and executive producer Jason Katims. McElhattan's book follows a female protagonist graduating high school as readers make a decision--college or travel--that ultimately leads to 150 possible endings. (Hollywood Reporter)

Former BBC Worldwide America exec Paul Telegdy (who resigned from his post yesterday) is said to be in talks to replace NBC reality topper Craig Plestis. With Telegdy having left BBC Worldwide America less than a month after it was announced that Jane Tranter would move over from London to oversee LA-based production, Tranter will likely now oversee the division herself, reporting to Garth Ancier. (Variety)

FOX has cast newcomer Lennon Parham and Chad L. Coleman (The Wire) in space-set comedy pilot Boldly Going Nowhere from the creators of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Parham will play the no-nsense pilot of an intergalactic spacecraft while Coleman will play Cobalt, the ship's stern head of security. (Hollywood Reporter)

E! has renewed reality series Denise Richards: It's Complicated for a second season, which is expected to start production early next year. (Variety)

ITV has commissioned four new Poirot movies to star David Suchet and four new Miss Marple mystery movies to star Julia McKensie, including a remake of Murder on the Orient Express. All four will be executive produced by Phil Clymer. (Hollywood Reporter)

Sci Fi has ordered eight episodes of reality competition series GameQuest, which pits twelve contestants against one another to determine who is the best video gamer. Project is produced by Granada America and World Cyber Games, with Samsung on board as a series production partner. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

Channel Surfing: ABC Gets "V," "Torchwood" Details, Renewals for "Burn Notice" and "Psych," and More

Welcome to your Friday morning television briefing.

Details are slowly emerging about the next season of British import Torchwood. Producers have cast four actors for the series' condensed third season, entitled Torchwood: Children of Earth. Lucy Cohu (Meadowlands) will play Alice, "a woman keeping many secrets from the past," according to producer Peter Bennett. Susan Brown (The Riff Raff Element) will play Bridget Spears, "a character vitally connected to the government, which plays an important part in this story." Cush Jumbo will play Lois Habiba, a secretary who "hacks into some vital information," and Rik Makarem will play Doctor Rupesh Patanjali, a "junior doctor at St Helen's hospital who gets drawn into Torchwood's investigations." I can't wait! (Digital Spy)

ABC is developing an adaptation of classic 1980s mini-series V, about reptilian aliens who enslave Earth, with The 4400 co-creator/executive producer Scott Peters. The new version of V will focus on Erica Evans, a Homeland Security agent with a troubled son who attaches himself onto the aliens upon their arrival, which causes some problems at home. Warner Bros. is being the adaptation, which was sold as a spec script to ABC. Original V creator Kenneth Johnson recently tried to revive the franchise with V: The Second Generation but he will not be involved in the latest incarnation. (Variety)

USA has renewed dramas Burn Notice and Psych, with each earning 16 episode orders for 2009. The orders bring Burn Notice to its third season and Psych to its fourth. The second halves of their current seasons are slated to air in January with the following seasons set to bow next summer. No decision has yet been made about the fate of Monk. (Hollywood Reporter)

Pushing Daisies was only slightly down this week (5.6 million viewers; 2.0/6 in adults 18-49) versus its premiere last week (6.3 million viewers; 2.0/6) but Private Practice dropped 21 percent in the key demo week-to-week and Dirty Sexy Money dropped 17 percent as well. At least Daisies fans seem to be sticking around. Now if only we could get those numbers to just... go up. (Variety)

Eric Winter (Brothers & Sisters), Michael Weaver (Notes from the Underbelly), Brian Van Holt (Threshold), Reid Scott (My Boys), Kevin Sorbo (Andromeda), and James Tupper (Men in Trees) are among the upcoming guest stars on CBS' The Ex List, according to series star Elizabeth Reaser. (TV Guide)

The CW has ordered a pilot for Operation Fabulous, a Top Model spinoff to star Jay Manuel and J. Alexander that will be executive produced by Tyra Banks and Ken Mok. Project will follow the Jays as they travel the country giving women makeovers, selecting five women in each town and giving them head-to-toe fashion overhauls in order to boost their confidence. (Hollywood Reporter)

Mark Burnett Prods. has teamed up with Ralph Edwards Prods. to produce a new version of This Is Your Life, in which guests are surprised with a retelling of their life stories including appearances by important people in their past. Series began as a radio show in 1948. (Variety)

ABC has renewed reality competition series I Survived a Japanese Game Show, with 10 episodes to likely air next summer. (Variety)

Rock of Love 2 runner-up Daisy De La Hoya is getting her own series on VH1. The cabler has already set up a website to cast potential suitors for the Rock of Love castoff whose series is set to debut in spring 2009. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

The Birthday Present: Yachts, Murder, and Mischief on the Season Premiere of "Dirty Sexy Money"

Oh, Dirty Sexy Money, I've missed you.

What other series, returning after a hiatus of nearly a year (thanks to the writers strike of late last year) would kick off its second season by having one member of its central family arrested for murder, kill off another member, while having yet another cover up said death of the wife of one of its scions... by burning their gorgeous country home down to the ground? Not many, that's for sure. And that's what makes ABC's Dirty Sexy Money such a sinful treat to watch.

Sure, there was no mention whatsoever of errant Darling daughter Juliet (Samaire Armstong, who was a series regular last season is no longer with the series) who seems to have vanished into the wind and I had a hard time remembering just what went down between William Baldwin's Patrick and Donald Sutherland's Tripp Darling (or, hell, if Nick believed that Letitia had murdered his father Dutch), but last night's season premiere ("The Birthday Present") was such a breath of (soapy) fresh air that I didn't much mind.

It was smart of series creator Craight Wright and executive producer Jon Harmon Feldman (who co-wrote last night's installment) to push the action several months into the future since we last caught up with the Darlings last year, giving the audience some time to see what's happened to the clan in the intervening time. Patrick is still desperate to track down his missing transsexual lover Carmelita (Candis Cayne), who disappeared from her apartment several months earlier. While I suspected that Patrick's boozy wife Ellen (Bellamy Young) may have been behind Carmelita's abduction (after all, she had shot Patrick last season), I didn't think that she actually had Carmelita killed, to boot. (Or did she?) And just when Patrick learns this (as Ellen breaks down the glass wall of their shower with a fireplace poker), Ellen slips and hits her head on the bathroom counter... and dies. I knew that someone was going to go to the big mansion in the sky in this episode but didn't think that it was going to play out quite this way.

Karen Darling (Natalie Zea), meanwhile, is still seeing her father's enemy Simon Elders (Blair Underwood), even after all of these months. But I loved the fact that Simon told Karen that he loved her, despite knowing that she is using him to spy for her father. And while Karen may have returned that clean fuel that Simon and his scientists cooked up, I thought it only fitting that she steal something from Simon that was worth more than the billions he'd earn from selling that fuel: his beloved crystal swan, a symbol of his transformation from immigrant ugly duckling into billionaire swan. Ouch.

Do we think that Simon and mystery woman Nola Lyons (Lucy Liu) are working together, plotting to divide and conquer the Darling family? While we've seen nothing so far to link Nola and Simon together, there is the little matter of that secretive phone call Simon made to someone to indicate that their plan was coming together. Hmmm. Plus, Nola pushed Jeremy (Seth Gabel) to make a move on Nick's wife Lisa (Zoe McLellan)... which he did, only to have Lisa finally reciprocate, just as Nick catches them together.

How spectacular was that punch that Nick slammed down on Jeremy? Our darling Darling definitely had it coming to him and just in time for him to meet up with Nola, emotional and physically wounded, and fall into the back of a limo with her.

As for Letitia Darling (Jill Clayburgh), I have a feeling that her arrest for the murder of Dutch will definitely split the already fractured Darling clan further. I can actually see an alliance brewing between rivals Nick and Brian (Glenn Fitzgerald), united in their efforts to see their father's killer brought to justice, even if it means putting Letitia in jail to do so. I felt awful that Brian lost Will (a.k.a. Gustav) after regaining him for a four-week stretch, only to have Andrea (Sheryl Lee, yes, Laura Palmer!) waltz off with him back to Brazil. Sigh.

What did you think of the season premiere? Did it reignite your love for Dirty Sexy Money? Or was it a case of too little, too late for this series?

Next week on Dirty Sexy Money ("The Silent Auction"), the media speculates about the cause of the fire at the Darlings' Valhalla estate; Brian suggests to Tripp that a successor be named for Darling Enterprises.

Channel Surfing: FOX Committed to Building "Dollhouse," "Sunny" Questions, "Fringe" Soars, and More

Welcome to your Thursday morning television briefing. I'm in fashion overload after back-to-back episodes last night of Top Model and Project Runway (more on the latter in a bit) but can't say that I am as enthused with either series as I was in the past.

Lest you worry about the fate of Joss Whedon's action drama Dollhouse--beset by multiple problems months before the series' launch--you can dismantle the shrine. FOX is said to be still deeply committed to the project. “With months before our broadcast premiere, we have the rare luxury of extra time,” a 20th Century Fox Television spokesman said. “We believe in this show and want to give it every opportunity to succeed.” Let's hope that's true, given the recent reports that the network was decidedly less than pleased with the series' creative direction. (Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider)

Meanwhile, FOX must be pleased as punch that its other cult drama Fringe performed so well in its second outing. Airing behind a new episode of House, Fringe improved 59 percent in the demo (5.1/13 vs. 3.2/9) and 45 percent in overall viewers (13.27 million vs. 9.13 million) from its series premiere a week earlier. FOX was quick to mention that no new drama on any network has improved so much from its first to second week since at least 1991.

HBO renewed Alan Ball's vampire drama True Blood after just airing two episodes. (Televisionary)

HBO and Playone's Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman have hired Kirk Ellis (John Adams) to write a series that will adapt James Ellroy's novels "American Tabloid" and "The Cold Six Thousand," following three men and their "shifting alliances with the CIA, the Mafia, and the Kennedys" in the turbulent 1960s. (Variety)

Jada Pinkett Smith will star in and executive producer TNT drama pilot Time Heals, about "a strong but caring director of nursing at Charlotte Mercy Hospital in North Carolina, a single mother who always puts the pain of others first." Project, from Sony Pictures Television, will be executive produced by Pinkett Smith and Jamie Tarses and written/executive produced by John Masius (Dead Like Me, Providence). (Hollywood Reporter)

Excited about tonight's season premiere of FX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia? (I am literally counting down the hours until 10 pm tonight.) Rob McElhenney answers EW reader questions and talks about Sunny, the gang's FOX comedy pilot Boldly Going Nowhere, and fields some script pitches. (Entertainment Weekly's Popwatch)

Fans of CBS' cancelled Moonlight will have to wait a little while longer for a DVD release of the series. Warner Home Video has announced that a US release of Moonlight is in the works, but likely not until around New Year's. (TV Guide)

USA has given a 90-minute cast-contingent pilot order to medical drama Operating Instructions from writers/executive producers Judd Pillot and John Peaslee (According to Jim) and executive producers Conan O'Brien and David Kissinger. Project, from Universal Cable Prods, will follow a female trauma surgeon who returns to the States after two tours of duty in Iraq and takes a job as the head of surgery at a military hospital. According to Jeff Wachtel, EVP of original programming at USA, "There is a truly dramatic underpinning [to the series], but the show also will be informed with comedic sensibilities." (Hollywood Reporter)

Sarah Carter (Shark) will guest star in two episodes of the upcoming season of ABC's Dirty Sexy Money as a "mystery woman who crosses paths with Darling matriarch Tish (Jill Clayburgh)." For the love of all things holy, Craig Wright, please do not resurrect that awful storyline from the original Dirty Sexy Money pilot with the journalist. You know which one I'm talking about. (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

Brian Burns has set up three projects at CBS and HBO. The two CBS projects will be developed with his brother Ed Burns; one will be an ensemble drama about arson investigators at the New York Fire Department and the other is a psychological thriller whose details are being kept under wraps. At HBO, Burns will team up with Dan Kennedy for a comedy inspired by Kennedy's memoir "Rock On: An Office Power Ballad," about a slacker who takes on a job at a record label. (Hollywood Reporter)

Jason Jones (The Daily Show) will guest star this season on CBS' How I Met Your Mother as the ex of Stella (Sarah Chalke) and the father of her son. (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (CBS); America's Got Talent/My Name is Earl (NBC); Smallville (CW); Ugly Betty (ABC); Hole in the Wall (FOX)

9 pm: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (CBS); The Office (NBC); Supernatural (CW); Grey's Anatomy (ABC; 9-11 pm); Kitchen Nightmares (FOX)

10 pm: Flashpoint (CBS); ER (NBC)

What I'll Be Watching:

9 pm: Kitchen Nightmares.

Missing the softer side of Gordon Ramsay? Tune in to the US version of his reality series in which he pull back struggling restaurants from the brink of closure. On tonight's episode ("Guiseppi's"), Ramsay visits Guiseppi's Italian restaurant in Michigan and finds a family prone to squabbling and in-fighting rather than running a successful business together.

10 pm: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia on FX.

Televisionary favorite It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia finally returns with brand-new episodes. On tonight's fourth season premiere ("Mac & Dennis: Manhunters"), Dee and Charlie develop a cannibalistic hunger after accidentally eating some of Frank's human meat, while Mac and Dennis take hunting to the next level. Afterwards, it's another brand-new episode ("The Gang Solves the Gas Crisis"), in which Mac, Dennis, and Charlie take advantage of high gas prices by investing in barrels of gasoline and selling them door-to-door, while Dee and Frank discover that Bruce plans to give money to a Muslim center.

Channel Surfing: "Survivor: Gabon" Cast Revealed, More "Chuck" Guest Stars, "Fringe," "Doctor Who" Rumor, and More

Good morning and welcome to your Wednesday morning television briefing. It's my birthday today (yesterday was my brother's and--before you ask--no, we're not twins) so between work, dinner, and present-opening, I still hope to find the time to watch tonight's Project Runway. When there's a will, there's a way as they say.

Season 18 of venerable reality franchise Survivor is about to launch on CBS in just a few weeks. But if you're curious as to who the eighteen men and women are who are competing for the million-dollar prize on Survivor: Gabon, look no further. They include a pin-up girl/actress, a fashion photographer/Cartier salesman (seriously, you can't make this stuff up), a professional gamer, a retired nurse, a personal trainer, and many others. (Entertainment Weekly)

Creator Craig Wright talks about what went wrong with Season One of ABC soap Dirty Sexy Money, including "experimenting" with tone shifts between installments, and what they are doing to fix this for the series' massive relaunch this fall, after getting a "gift" in the form of the writers strike, which he used to rethink the series. (USA Today)

Holy guest stars, Batman: Morgan Fairchild (Fashion House), Bruce Boxleitner (Babylon 5), and Carl Lumbly (Alias) will all appear in Season Two of NBC's Chuck. Fairchild will play the mother of Captain Awesome himself (Ryan McPartlin); Boxleitner will play her husband Dr. Woody Woodcombe who is "very excited to help welcome Ellie into his family -- maybe too excited." And Lumbly will play Casey's mentor. I can't wait! (Entertainment Weekly's Ausiello Files)

ABC has renewed reality competition series Here Come the Newlyweds for a second season of eight episodes, likely to air in 2009. (Hollywood Reporter)

J.J. Abrams and his delightful cast talk more about their upcoming FOX drama series Fringe. My favorite bit: '"J.J. is like Oz," notes actor Joshua Jackson on the New York set. "He's manipulating all his little kingdoms and empires from afar."' (Associated Press)

Everyone's jumping on the weight-loss television bandwagon. ABC has announced that it will air an hour-long special entitled Half Their Size: The People Magazine Weight Loss Challenge on September 30th at 10 pm. (Variety)

Could Doctor Who shoot two of its upcoming feature-length specials here in the States? That's the rumor being thrown about (though take it with a large grain of salt as, admittedly, the source is the News of the World), as the series would look to cast a American as the Doctor's latest companion and shoot Stateside. (Digital Spy)

Spike has ordered ten one-hour episodes of stunt-themed reality series Jesse James is a Dead Man from former Monster Garage star Jesse James, in which he'll prep for and carry out stunts. Series is slated to air in February 2009. (Variety)

Endemol has poached Tom Toumazis, Disney's managing director of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Canada to fill the newly created position of chief commercial officer. He's been tasked with expanding the distributor's drama and comedy business as well as third-party rights. Congrats, Tom! (Hollywood Reporter)

Stay tuned.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Greatest American Dog (CBS); America's Got Talent (NBC; 8-10 pm); America's Next Top Model (CW); Wife Swap (ABC); Bones (FOX)

9 pm: Criminal Minds (CBS); Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious (CW); Supernanny (ABC); Bones (FOX)

10 pm: CBS News: Democratic National Convention (CBS); Dateline (NBC); Vote 08 (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

9 pm: Project Runway on Bravo.

Season Five (the final season on Bravo) of Project Runway continues tonight. On tonight's episode ("Fashion That Drives You"), the designers have to think unconventionally as they rev up for their materials and Season Three's Laura Bennett drops by as a guest judge for next week's challenge.

Lucy Liu to Flaunt "Dirty Sexy Money" for ABC?

I really miss Dirty Sexy Money.

When I first saw an early cut of the original pilot for the ABC nighttime soap last May, there is no way I ever would have imagined myself uttering those words, but cut to April, several months after Dirty Sexy Money went on hiatus (thanks to the WGA strike of last fall), and I am aching to catch up with the Darlings.

While the soap won't return to ABC until next fall (damn!), the series may return with a new cast member: Lucy Liu.

Liu is in talks with the network to join the cast of Dirty Sexy Money as a series regular, should her struggling freshman drama Cashmere Mafia not return next season. (It's looking increasingly likely that the female-skewing drama won't be renewed.) She would play an attorney, one possibly connected to Nick George (Peter Krause), the Darlings, or someone else altogether.

Me, I'm hoping she's in league with Simon Elders (Blair Underwood), where she can channel her so-good-when-she's-bad moxie into a full-fledged villainess.

Meanwhile, while Liu will join a cast that included Krause, Underwood, Donald Sutherland, Jill Clayburgh, William Baldwin, Glenn Fitzgerald, Zoe McLellan, and Seth Gabel, one of the Darlings won't be returning in a full-time capacity. Samaire Armstrong, who plays younger Darling daughter Juliet, will be downgraded to recurring next season.

Juliet or no, I cannot wait for Dirty Sexy Money to return this fall.

ABC Renews "Pushing Daisies," "Dirty Sexy Money," 'Lost," and Six Others

ABC has opted to give nine scripted series early renewals this season, including Lost (guaranteed two additional seasons after the series' current fourth season), Brothers & Sisters, Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, and Desperate Housewives.

These series will all return next season for a place on ABC's fall schedule and have each received a full season pickups for the 2008-09 season.

"The strength of our schedule this fall was unprecedented and speaks for itself," said ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson in a statement. "We're looking forward to building on that success."

The Alphabet also granted reprieves to three first-year dramas and one freshman comedy; Pushing Daisies, Dirty Sexy Money, Private Practice, and Samantha Who? will join the above series on the schedule next season.

Good news, right? Well, yes, I am happy that they've gotten another shot on the ratings merry-go-round but as of right now Pushing Daisies and these other returnees have only been granted thirteen episode orders from the network.

Additionally, the three first-year dramas will not return with new installments this season and any produced episodes will be added to their run this fall. (Samantha Who? is the sole freshman series which will air new episodes before May.)

As for the fate of Boston Legal and Men in Trees, neither of which were mentioned by McPherson in the press release, the jury is still out. But it doesn't bode well for either series that they didn't rate a mention... or a renewal.

Meanwhile, Ugly Betty may be returning to the airwaves later this season, but not everyone on the ABC dramedy's staff will be returning to work.

The Hollywood Reporter has reported that executive producers Marco Pennette and James Hayman were let go from Ugly Betty... on the same day that the series snagged a third season pickup.

ABC wouldn't comment on the exits but the series has faced several exits in recent months, such as when five writers were let go between its first and second seasons.

It is expected that Ugly Betty will produce around five new episodes this season.

Stay tuned.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: NCIS (CBS); Biggest Loser (NBC; 8-10 pm); Reaper (CW); Just for Laughs/Just for Laughs (ABC); American Idol (FOX; 8-10 pm)

9 pm: Big Brother 9 (CBS); One Tree Hill (CW); According to Jim/Carpoolers (ABC)

10 pm: Jericho (CBS); Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8-10 pm: Last Restaurant Standing on BBC America.

Suffering from Top Chef withdrawal? Try this addictive British import in the meantime, in which nine couples compete for the chance to open their own restaurant with famed restaurateur Raymond Blanc. (Reviewed here.) On the first episode, each couple has a week to open their own restaurant and go head to head with the other teams while Raymond's inspectors follow their every move. In the second, the bottom three couples face off in an elimination challenge in which they have 48 hours to put on an event. Sharpen your knives...

PaleyWatch: Details About the 2008 Lineup Emerge

The PR machine is in overdrive for the 2008 William S. Paley Television Festival, the fest's 25th anniversary installment, which moves its location this year from its cramped quarters at the DGA to the Cinerama Dome at the Arclight. (Wahoo!)

While the festival's organizers are being pretty coy about the full lineup and schedule this year, what with teasing us about a Buffy the Vampire Slayer reunion, they have quietly nailed down some dates for some of the panels:

March 14th: Elvis '68 Comeback Special (Opening Night Selection)

March 15th: Pushing Daisies

March 17th: The Comedy World of Judd Apatow & Friends

March 18th: Chuck

March 20th: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Reunion

March 21st: Dancing with the Stars

March 25th: Dirty Sexy Money

March 27th: Mad Men (Closing Night Selection)

The full lineup and schedule, including the date for the previously announced panel for Gossip Girl, is slated to be revealed on February 4th.

Individual tickets for members of the Paley Center for Media go on sale on February 7th, while Joe Public can buy tickets beginning on February 10th.

Me, I'm already trying to figure out how much a hit my wallet can take in order to determine just how many of these events I can attend.

What's On Tonight*

*Note: The State of the Union Address will wreak havoc with tonight's lineup. Check local listings.

8 pm: How I Met Your Mother/Two and a Half Men (CBS); Gossip Girl Revealed (CW; 8-9:30 pm); Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann (ABC); Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (FOX)

9 pm: Rules of Engagement/CBS Special Report: CES (CBS); The Office/30 Rock (NBC); Aliens in America (CW; 9:30-10 pm); Samantha Who (ABC; 9:30-10 pm)

10 pm: American Gladiators (NBC)

What I'll Be Watching

8-9:30 pm: Gossip Girl Revealed.

It's yet another chance to catch the pilot episode of the teen soap, this time with added features including interviews, commentary, deleted scenes, and character profiles.

10 pm: No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain on Travel Channel.

It's a brand new season of No Reservations on the Travel Channel; follow enfant terrible chef Anthony Bourdain as he travels the world in search of good food. In tonight's installment, Tony heads to the Greek Islands, where he swings by Crete and Ithaca and tries to determine whether or not the Greek really do have the world's healthiest fare.

PaleyWatch: "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" Reunion

It pays to be a member... of the Paley Center, that is.

As with most years since I moved out to Los Angeles (five years ago, for those keeping score), I'm planning on attending as many William S. Paley Television Festival events as I can (and as many as my wallet will allow).

The festival's organizers--from the Paley Center for Media--have been particularly canny this year, teasing the audience with little glimpses into this year's lineup (March 14-27 at the Arclight, in the Cinerama Dome, no less), which so far includes panels for Pushing Daisies and Gossip Girl and a special evening with Judd Apatow.

If that wasn't enough, they then made me drool with sweet, sweet anticipation with their latest tantalizing unveiling of the schedule, which features panels for Chuck, Dirty Sexy Money, Dancing with the Stars, and Mad Men.

And, oh, a reunion of the cast from a little show called Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Yes, that's right, ladies and gents, the cast of the cult show that spawned a creative genius, a television franchise, comic books, and more ancillary items that you can shake a stick at will come together for one night only.

I plan to be there for this momentous occasion.

In the meantime, the full lineup for the event--the festival's 25th--will be announced on February 4th. Mark your calendars and sharpen your stakes.

Giant Blue Sponges, Inappropriate Kissing, and the Nutcracker on "Dirty Sexy Money"

I heart Gina Torres.

It doesn't matter what she's in or what role she's playing, whether it be kickass Russian superspy Anna Espinosa on Alias, the steely second-in-command Zoe on Firefly, or demon goddess Jasmine on Angel, I'll follow this woman just about anywhere (except maybe to her FOX series last season, Standoff).

So I was so happy to see Torres turn up this week on one of my favorite new series this season, Dirty Sexy Money ("The Nutcracker"), where she seems to be recurring as a graceful African princess who just happens to be the ex-wife of Darling nemesis Simon Elder. While I knew Torres would be turning up on the primetime soap, I had no idea it would be such a juicy role, given Elder's prominence in the plot at the moment.

While Torres only appeared in one scene--in which Simon introduces new paramour Karen Darling to his, er, darling ex-wife--it hinted at things to come. Why exactly did Simon need his ex-wife's blessing to begin dating Karen? Or did the impromptu interview have another point? And what was up with that story about Simon saving her in the ocean? Foreshadowing of things to come in which he'll attempt to "save" Karen from her family? Hmmm...

In other Dirty Sexy Money-related plot twists, I was stunned--yes, stunned--by the final act reveal that Tripp and Karen are plotting against Simon in tandem and that it appears that Tripp pushed Karen to get close to Simon as long as she doesn't get "emotionally involved." So did Papa Darling instruct his daughter to seduce his billionaire nemesis (because, uh, ew) or was that not part of the deal? And was Karen so shaken after her dinner with Simon and the Princess because she does have feelings for him, after all? Curious. Aside: how spectacularly awesome did Karen look in that dress though?

Though the promos had given away that lip-lock between Nick's wife Lisa and Jeremy Darling, it was far funnier and more touching than I had suspected, with Jeremy sitting on Lisa's lap as they kissed... unaware that the pot they were consuming had damaged a $150K art installation (a giant blue sponge), which promptly leads to Lisa's firing. The episode made Lisa a hell of a lot more interesting than she's been in a while though I don't want to see creator Craig Wright suddenly make her pregnant or have Lisa and Nick's attempt to have a second child become their sole storyline.

As for poor Brian, he's floundering since his attempt to pay off the arbitrator in his custody case and has now received more bad news: he's being suspended from the clergy for six months. With nowhere to turn, he goes to see Tripp for a heart-to-heart that was one of the series' most elegantly understated. End result: empire-maintainer Tripp has always envied Brian's ideas-based vocation but accepts Brian's decision to go work for him. Me, I can't wait to see Brian in the business world, but I was touched with how paternal and kind Tripp was to Brian, considering he recently learned that the meanie minister is not his biological son.

There are supposedly two more produced episodes of this fantastically addictive series, but it's more than likely that ABC will hold these two segments until February sweeps, making it a long, dark winter until we can catch up with the Darlings again...

Family Secrets and Lies: The Darlings Reveal Both on "Dirty Sexy Money"

There's a certain vindication in being right that just can't be beat.

I'm talking, among other things, about this week's episode of Dirty Sexy Money ("The Watch"), which I devoured last night. It was another brilliant installment of this fast, slick, soapy drama and, this week, presented an equal amount of over-the-top fun (Jeremy faking being a struggling artist in order to keep Sofia) along with a complex emotional story that painted in some of the backstory between Letitia and Dutch, along with the reveal about which Darling scion wasn't Tripp's biological child.

Sure enough, my hypotheses so far this season about Brian being Dutch's child--which, yes, would make him Nick's brother--proved to be right on the money. It's only ironic that the hateful, spiteful Brian, who lived his entire life trying to drag Nick into misery and despair and who painted Dutch as a beggar at the feast, would in the end not even be a Darling. It's only fitting, given that the first time we met Brian he was refusing to accept Brian Jr. as his son and a Darling heir, a revelation which now seems foolish as neither of them have any real claim to the Darling name or fortune.

It was heartbreaking that Letitia kept the truth from Dutch as well as Brian, truly believing that she was doing both of them a favor by leaving them in the dark as to their real relationship. Instead, Brian felt alienated and cast out from his own family and never felt as though he fit in. The revelation of Brian's true parentage has also cast a pall over Tripp as well; despite his claims that the knowledge hasn't tainted his love for Brian, it's clear that it has. Whereas he would have rushed to help Patrick or Karen if they were in the same predicament, he insisted that they let the law handle the matter of Brian's custody claim as well as his possible prison sentence for attempting to bribe that arbitrator.

I never thought I'd come to feel sympathy for Brian, but this week's episode definitely managed to do just that. The scene at the church between Nick and Brian was one of my favorite of the series so far as it was so fraught with emotion and the unsaid between them. It also had its own morbid levity as Brian once again told Nick that he hated him, only to finally accept Dutch's watch, which Nick tried to give to him. The scene that followed, in which Brian said his goodbyes to Brian Jr. (a.k.a. Gustav) was heartbreaking, as the emotionally crippled Brian couldn't bring himself to tell his son that he loved him, instead giving him the watch (continuing its generational path) and telling him to keep it set to New York time.

Sigh.

Next week on Dirty Sexy Money ("The Nutcracker"), Nick uncovers Karen's tryst with Simon Elders, which threatens to derail a Darling family tradition and unsettles Nick more than he can admit; Brian tells Tripp he wants to leave the ministry and work for him instead; Juliet falls for her visitor from the Seychelles; Carmelita is convinced she's being followed; and Lisa helps Jeremy impress Sofia with his art, but was that them locking lips in the promo? I can't wait!

Trustafarians Rejoice: ABC Picks Up "Dirty Sexy Money" For Full Season

Forget what your parents may have told you: Vice does have its rewards.

In a bit of a surprise move (albeit one that makes this jaded writer ecstatic), ABC will not kill critical, er, darling Dirty Sexy Money and has instead handed out a full season order to the freshman drama.

The back nine order for the series, created by Craig Wright, comes amid the ongoing writers' strike here in Hollywood and is the first order of its kind since the strike began nearly two weeks ago. (Apparently, my constant prayers that the series would be picked up were heard by Steve McPherson.) Dirty Sexy Money joins fellow Alphabet network rookies Private Practice, Pushing Daisies, and Samantha Who? in the pickup line.

ABC's confidence in Dirty Sexy Money, while well-intentioned, is perceived as a bit odd as there is no guarantee that the series will even finish shooting its initial 13 episode order, given the strike situation. However, a spokesperson for the network said that ABC is confident that the conflict between the WGA and the AMPTP can be resolved in time for production to begin again before the end of the 2007-08 season. (Fingers crossed.)

Personally, I was over the moon after hearing this news. Dirty Sexy Money is hands-down one of my favorite new series this season (the others being Pushing Daisies and Chuck) and I am thrilled to see the network has as much faith in this addictively soapy drama as I do.

Dirty Sexy Money airs Wednesday evenings at 10 pm ET/PT on ABC.

"Let Them Eat Cake": Why I Can't Get Enough of "Dirty Sexy Money"

I've gotten several emails from readers wondering why I'm not giving any Televisionary love to freshman drama Dirty Sexy Money on ABC. Good question.

The fact is that Wednesday nights are so crowded with series, from Pushing Daisies to Top Model, that I occasionally end up turning in before I get a chance to watch Dirty Sexy Money that night. Really, that's the only reason why I haven't mentioned Dirty Sexy Money (other than in every Wednesday's What I'm Watching Tonight section), a snarky and fun series which I absolutely love. (Well, except for the way OTN title.)

The past week's episode of Dirty Sexy Money ("The Bridge") reaffirmed my love for the series. It's been a bouncy ride, from the buoyancy of the original pilot script to the finished series, which has greatly improved on that disastrous and dour early cut of the pilot I saw way back when in early May, complete with a blackmail-laden lunchtime get-together between Nick and a "journalist" that provided a framework device for the entire hour. Whew. Instead, the series has blossomed into a smart, tongue-in-cheek drama with a penchant for combining moral dilemmas (such as those faced constantly by protagonist Nick), soapy hysterics, and the best use of ringtones on broadcast television.

While I'm aware that Nick has his reasons for staying in the Darlings' employment (namely solving the murder of his dear old dad), I'm glad that for the most part this is taking a backseat to the dysfunctional dynamics of the most gleefully screwed up family since we last said goodbye to the Bluths of Orange County. Yes, Dutch's murder provides a nice serialized undercurrent to these episodes but I don't think I'm alone in saying that the mystery behind his demise is the least interesting thing about the series. (Personally, I'm more invested in the mystery as to which Darling child--or children--aren't actually Tripp's.)

Instead, I'm loving the push and pull between these deeply flawed individuals: the inanity of Juliet's feud with Natalie Kimpton (over bangs, no less) and her Marie Antoinette themed birthday bash (Is that really the way they painted women's toenails in 1789?"); Jeremy's disconnect with any sort of cogent reality; Tish's sustained grief over the loss of her secret lover (whose 40-year-long affair is the source of much drama); Karen's refusal to accept the fact that Nick has moved on from their teenage amour; Patrick's inability to break off his affair with transsexual Carmelita; Brian's complete insistence to icy wife Mei Ling that the boy who has moved in with them is a Swedish orphan named Gustav.

It's this last storyline that has provided the most mirth, in my opinion; I didn't much care for overbearing, irate Brian in the pilot episode, but seeing him paired with Brian Jr. (a.k.a. Gustav) has opened up his hypocritical character in unexpected and rewarding ways. While I fully expected that the truth about Brian's illegitimate child to come out eventually, I am glad that it revealed itself in the way that it did: with Brian Jr. telling Mei Ling--relaxing in a bubble bath--that he's going to hell for lying after hearing a Bible story about honesty. Brian Sr., meanwhile, finally came clean to his family. I loved how he's now moved back into the familial manse (in his own room, with bunk beds, no less) while he tries to win back his estranged wife. Dare I say that creator Craig Wright has done the impossible and made me care for Brian?

Sure, there are some flaws. I'm not entirely sure what's going on with Samaire Armstong's Juliet, who always seems drunk, high, or, well, mentally disabled, a performance not helped by Armstong's recent entrance to an outpatient program for personal issues. And I wish that the writers would do some serious work on Zoe McLellan's Lisa; Nick's wife needs some more depth and needs something to do more than just glower uncomfortably every time Karen hits on her husband or he's summoned away for Darling family business. Plus, I'd be perfectly content if the Dutch George murder story took a backseat to some other plotlines for a while (like the paternity of the Darling heirs), especially if Wright plans on implicating techno-philanthropist Simon Elder (Blair Underwood).

But those are minor flaws in a series that has become, with each week, more vivid, quirky, and hilarious than fellow Alphabet network sib Ugly Betty. I thank the Lords of Kobol that the Darlings aren't my family, but I am more than delighted to catch up with them each week. Let's just hope that ABC does us a favor and picks up the back nine of the wickedly funny Dirty Sexy Money.

What do you think? Are you as sucked in as I am to Dirty Sexy Money's soapy pleasures? And which Darling child do you think is really Dutch's? Me, I can't help but think that it's going to wind up that acrimonious Brian who is Nicky's sibling after all...

On the next episode of Dirty Sexy Money ("The Game"), Tripp and Simon Elder face off in a high-stakes poker game, Karen discovers she's still married to her last husband (guest star Eddie Cibrian), Jeremy beings his job as a parking attendant, a blackmailer targets Patrick, and Juliet introduces Brian Jr. to the notion of materialism.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: How I Met Your Mother/The Big Bang Theory (CBS); Chuck (NBC); Everybody Hates Chris/Aliens in America (CW); Dancing with the Stars (ABC; 8-9:30 pm); House (FOX)

9 pm: Two and a Half Men/Rules of Engagement (CBS); Heroes (NBC); Girlfriends/The Game (CW); Samantha Who (ABC; 9:30-10 pm); K-Ville (FOX)

10 pm: CSI: Miami (CBS); Journeyman (NBC); The Bachelor (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8 pm: Chuck.

You know how much I'm already in love with this dramedy, from creators Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak, so why don't you do me a favor and tune in? On tonight's episode ("Chuck Versus the Sandworm"), Chuck considers helping an agent get away from his handlers when he notices similarities between his circumstances and his own, while Morgan feels abandoned by Chuck as Halloween approaches.

9:30 pm: Samantha Who?

On tonight's episode ("The Wedding"), Samantha goes to a friend's wedding only to discover that she had been uninvited by the bride. Oops.

10 pm: Journeyman.

It's Kevin McKidd (Rome) as a time-traveling newspaper reporter in a drama that's more about human interactions and the nature of choice than, say, technicolored time machines. On tonight's episode ("Keepers"), Dan helps two brothers who are traumatized by their father's abuse and a private conversation between Katie and Jack is overheard by Dan and Livia.

10 pm: Weeds on Showtime.

The third season of Showtime's acclaimed comedy, Weeds continues. On tonight's episode ("The Dark Time"), Celia shocks Nancy when she says that she wants in on Nancy's drug business; Conrad and Heylia must remove their, er, crops from the warehouse when a fire inspector shows up; Andy and Dean go to play Murderball.

Talk Back: NBC's "Bionic Woman" and ABC's "Dirty Sexy Money" and "Private Practice"

Several of new fall series launched last night, including dramas Bionic Woman, Dirty Sexy Money, and Private Practice.

Now that you've seen the pilot episodes of all three series, what were your reactions to these new series?

I'll admit that Dirty Sexy Money's pilot was a full head and shoulders above the original network cut I saw in early May and lived up to the promise of the original script. As for my full feelings about the campy series, you'll have to wait until next week when I discuss the pilot episode and the series' third installment. But one note to producers: no more transsexual hooker storylines; it's been done to death already.

As for Private Practice, I'm not a Grey's Anatomy fan, so this isn't normally my cup of medicine-laced tea. That said, I thought that Kate Walsh was as adorable as ever and Tim Daly very charismatic; still, I'm hoping that Addison and Taye Diggs' Sam Bennett hook up (not that I'll be watching). As for replacing Merrin Dungey with Audra McDonald? To be honest, I preferred Merrin. As for the series itself, Private Practice seemed less doom-and-gloom than Grey's but I was hoping for a better mix of dramedy and romance: the medical cases were downright depressing and, please for the love of all things holy, do not ever show me Paul Adelstein naked and tied to a bed. Ever. Again.

And how did my original advance review of Bionic Woman's pilot (found here) live up to the hype? Did you agree with my assessment that NBC downplayed Michelle Ryan's looks a little too much?

Which series has joined your TiVo Season Pass list and which, well, has fallen right off of it?

Discuss in brutal and/or glowing terms right here.