It's an unscientific survey of three, but it seems telling about the mood of working thesps regarding the Screen Actors Guild contract stalemate.

Dennis Hopper, Don Cheadle and Shirley MacLaine, when asked during TCA seshes on Friday for their thoughts about situation, none of them raised a fist, literally or figuratively, in support of the guild's position. Can't help but notice how markedly different this is to the attitude among scribes last fall.

Hopper got a big laugh during his sesh for the Starz drama "Crash" in noting that taking a side would amount to him having "to get between Jack Nicholson and Tom Hanks...and I’d have to side with Jack." (After all, Hanks wasn't in "Easy Rider.")

"I think the unfortunate thing is that in there are 120,000 actors in SAG and only 7,000 make a living acting... I hope it doesn't come to vote for a strike because I'm afraid that we'll go out on strike," Hopper said.

Cheadle, also part of the "Crash" panel, evinced a little more concern about the contract terms at stake but was still way cautious on the strike front.

"Last time we gave up the farm on some things," Cheadle said of SAG's previous contract negotiation with the majors. "These residuals, that's our life blood for actors. I'm fortunate that I work pretty consistently. But a lot of people rely on (residuals) to get them through month to month. I agree with Dennis -- I hope we're able to come to some sort of agreement without calling for a strike. A great number of people in the city hope that it comes out that way as well. It's not just the actors that are going to be hurt if this happens -- caterers, cleaners, restaurants, valets -- everybody really takes a big hit," he said.

MacLaine, who was tubthumping her Lifetime biopic on Coco Chanel, volunteered her thoughts on the situation while answering a loaded question ("what's wrong with Hollywood?") from a journo. Her remarks reflected the feeling that in many respects there's already a de facto strike going on, and she noted its impact on showbiz workers other than actors.

"Let's settle this strike," she said. "Let's think about other people. Let's think about the problems and the people who will be very, very badly suffering if this strike occurs."

I'd buy Dianne Wiest as Parker Posey's mom, easily. The Oscar-winning thesp has signed on for a recurring role on Fox's midseason comedy "The Return of Jezebel James," which means that creator Amy Sherman-Palladino has another solid actress and intriguing character to write for.

Wiest will play Talia, the mother of the two very different sisters, Sarah and Coco, played by Posey and Lauren Ambrose, around which the "Jezebel James" conceit is built. Wiest hasn't done much TV since her 200-2002 stint as D.A.  Nora Lewin on NBC's "Law & Order." She bagged an Emmy in 1997 for her guest shot on Disney Channel's "Road to Avonlea" to go with her two supporting actress Oscars, for 1986's "Hannah and Her Sisters" and 1994's "Bullets Over Broadway."

There's still no firm preem date set for "Jezebel James" but it's expected to land around the time Hurricane "Idol" hits Fox in January. For a peek at "Jezebel James," click here for your entry into Clip Madness.

This time next week Warner Bros. Television and CBS will be celebrating the taping of the 100th episode of "Two and a Half Men."

Good grief, can it really have been four seasons-plus since the show debuted? (Just for fun here's Brian Lowry's dead-on first Variety review of the show from September 2003) Warners is inviting some industry folks to the taping at the studio, followed by a champagne and cake soiree. It ain't a 100th episode party if you don't have a big-cake cutting photo to show for it. So congrats to Chuck Lorre, Lee Aronson, Eric and Kim Tannenbaum, Charlie Sheen, Jon Cryer, Angus T. Jones, Conchata Ferrell and the rest of the folks behind the show that is not only TV's top-rated comedy but also Emmy-nommed this year. (Here's a highlights reel from last season). In these lean times for sitcoms (especially good ol' fashioned multi-camera sitcoms) the 100th seg is a real milestone (and as always a happy sign of the syndie coin that's soon to flow).

I'm sorry that I won't be able to make the "Men" taping, but not too sorry. I'm going to be out of town -- out of BlackBerry radar, even -- next week on vacation. During my absence, On the Air will be in the good hands of Variety's Stuart Levine, who did yeoman's work in this space in July during the long march of the Television Critics Assn. tour.

Take it away, Stu...!

I'm told a splendid time was had by all last night at the "Pushing Daisies" screening at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. Pilot was said to have been enthusiastically received by the non-pros in the audience, just as it has been by industry insiders during the past few months since it was picked up by ABC back in May. Pilot helmer and exec producer Barry Sonnenfeld looks like he was having a good time, all decked out as a pink cowboy. And here's a pic at left of something we're unlikely to see anytime soon on the show -- stars Lee Pace and Anna Friel smooching!

"Daisies" revolves around a guy, Ned, with an unusual talent to bring the dead back to life with the touch of his hand -- with the catch that if he touches them again, they're back to .... pushing daisies. Chuck happens to be Ned's long-lost childhood sweetheart who Ned reconnects with, unfortunately a little too late when she's already been bumped off. He revives her and the flower of their youthful love re-blossoms in a big way...but only if they don't actually touch.

"Pushing Daisies" has a few tough tasks ahead of it. It's got great industry buzz that it has to live up to. It has to open a night for ABC (Wednesday) at 8 p.m.; and it has to build on the Ned-Chuck storyline without the "no touching" rule feeling tired, and it has to keep the franchise murder-mystery element of Ned reviving murder victims to catch their killers from running out of steam too. If anyone's up to the task, it's "Daisies" creator Bryan Fuller, a man with a naturally sunny-morbid disposition who spent the past season on "Heroes" and has a loyal cult following for his previous offbeat dramas "Wonderfalls" and "Dead Like Me." And he's got formidable help from fellow exec producers Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen (who flank Sonnenfeld and Fuller in the pic at right, with Bruce on the far right). Go, Bryan, go...

(Group pic by Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage.com)

Yes, it's true. If Richie Petrie of "The Dick Van Dyke Show" had been a real person, he could be a grandfather today (at least he would if he'd had kids while in his early 20s and his offspring produced grandchildren fairly early.) Don't ask me why but that's the first thing that sprang to mind when I opened an email from Hallmark Channel with this picture attached. Dick Van Dyke and his son Barry Van Dyke have been frequent costars over the years, working together on CBS' "Diagnosis: Murder" and most recently, the "Murder 101" pics. Now Barry's son, Shane, is getting into the family business with a guest starring role in the third entry in the "Murder 101" series, "If Wishes Were Horses," set to bow Aug. 18. "I've taken nepotism about as far as it can go," Dick Van Dyke quips...but then again maybe not. He has lots of other grandkids, though so far Barry is the only one of D.V.D's four kids to carry a SAG card. Shane has also landed an acting gig, apart from his dad and grand-Dyke, in "Shark Swarm," which Hallmark is promising will be a three-hour, teeth-gnashing "event" in May.

Pictured: A trio of Van Dykes, from left, Dick, Barry and Shane.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

The dark gloom of Seattle skies turn bright this season for Shonda Rhimes (pictured left), as she brings her "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff to Los Angeles in the form of "Private Practice."

The overcast weather analogy seems appropriate for the past season of "Grey's" in many ways. The tone of the series was ominous in a bunch of episodes, including arcs on the tenuous relationship between Meredith and McDreamy, George's by-the-threads marriage to Callie, Richard's divorce and Burke's ultimate dismissal of Dr. Yang as a life partner.

And that's just the on-screen tumult.

Of course, nothing got bigger headlines than Isaiah Washington's meltdown and anti-gay remarks, which ultimately led to his dismissal off the show.

(When asked about Ben Silverman's comments, that NBC had talked to Washington about a possible role on "Bionic Woman" while he was still under contract to ABC Studios, Rhimes answered, "I wasn't aware of any conversations." And when prodded for a response on his arrival at the Peacock primetime lineup, she rose above the fray, answering, "He's very talented and I hope he and the show do well, but not as well as 'Private Practice.'")

"It was a dark journey," said Rhimes of the past year, who added later on that it was a "dark season, but I want to get back to having fun."

On Wednesday, ABC topper Steve McPherson agreed, having said "Grey's" would arrive this fall with a slightly lighter tone.

"There was a lot of difficult stuff and emotional stuff going on for a multitude of characters. And I think we're going to get away from some of that  just because of the nature of the storytelling that she (Rhimes) is going to do," he said.

That's not to say Rhimes wasn't happy with the how the stories turned out. She remained on the creative course she set out from Day 1.

"We started with Meredith helping Izzy out of her wedding dress and ended with Meredith helping Christine out of her wedding dress," Rhimes said in bookending the season.

And, yes, she was aware of the unhappiness of some of the hard-core fans — though she didn't necessarily agree with them — those who followed the show to Thursdays from Sundays in a risky programming move by ABC that paid huge dividends.

"I read the blogs," she explained. "I take very seriously what the fans say. They care about the show."

Disneyland is prepping for an invasion of Zac Efron groupies. Disney Channel has set Aug. 14 as the premiere party for "High School Musical 2," to be held at the AMC theater in the Downtown Disney complex that abuts the happiest place on earth. (No matter how many times I go to the park I still choke up a bit at the plaque with the quote from Walt: "Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America.") It'll be followed by an invitation-only party by the pool at the complex's Grand Californian hotel. All the hoopla for "HSM2" marks the first-ever telepic premiere for Disney Channel at Disneyland, which is still recovering from the buccaneers bacchanal it hosted in May for the "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" preem. (Don't forget, details of Disney Channel's plans for "HSM2" bow on Aug. 17 appeared here two long TCA-filled weeks ago, thanks to Variety's hard-working Steven Zeitchik.) And of course, a new live "HSM2: School's Out!" stage show "springs to life," according to Disney's PR missive, at the California Adventure park starting Aug. 18.

Had some fun this morning at the LATV Festival panel on how digital media is changing the face of TV. Not sure if we answered that question in 75 minutes, but the panelists were a good cross-section of the biz and they were talkative, which made my job easy. Chris Henchy, veteran writer-producer and head of Will Ferrell and Andy McKay's Gary Sanchez Prods., was one of the panelists, yakking about FunnyorDie.com, the comedy Web site that launched stealthily in April with some very funny Ferrell shorts and an open invitation for undiscovered comic geniuses to submit their own shorts. In "American Idol" fashion, users are invited to vote on their fave/least fave shorts, some of which become "Immortal" and some of which are banished to "the Crypt," never to be seen again.

It's kinda mind-boggling but the Ferrell short "The Landlord" (featuring a pic-stealing performance from McKay's toddler-daughter Pearl) has been viewed more than 40 million times since FunnyorDie.com bowed in mid-April. Henchy (pictured above at right with Ferrell), who's also busy juggling feature projects and an HBO pilot, said they're in the midst of trying to partner with a local comedy establishment to bring some of the undiscovered talents on FunnyorDie out of their basements and bathrooms to a showcase event that would be streamed live, natch, on FunnyorDie. And he confirmed that most of the Gary Sanchez-produced stuff on the site is filmed in under an hour, and slapped up on to the site while the DV cam is still warm. Gotta love the digital age.

Another panelist, "Heroes" co-exec producer Jesse Alexander, promised that the show had lots of fun in store for fans this weekend and Comic-Con and when season two of the NBC hit bows in September.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Putting the exec session brouhaha aside, there were some actual news about "Lost" to report.

As noted previously, Harold Perrineau will return as Michael. We haven't seen him on the island since the end of season two, when he betrayed Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Hurley. They were captured by the Others while Michael and his son Walt were allowed to leave the island.

And then last season concluded in grand fashion, with a flash-forward sequence where we see Jack and Kate in the present in a major American city. Jack is distraught over the death of someone he has read about in an obituary.

So where do we go from here? McPherson said exec producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse haven't let on what happens next when the series premieres in February for 16 consecutive episodes.

"They haven't released any news about whether we go flash-forward or flashback," McPherson said.

"Lost" has been one of the most buzzworthy series since it launched three years with an expensive pilot -- simulated plane crashes don't come cheap -- that proved worth every penny. And now Lindelof and Cuse have the luxury of knowing when the series will wrap and can write 48 storylines storylines that build up to the finale in 2008.

"Since the show began, Damon and I have talked about how does it end," McPherson said "We've asked is this a traditional series (and should it end) in a traditional way?"

Unlike many shows that start strong and struggle to the finish, the bet here is that there will be plenty of viewers still around when Lindelof and his writing staff wrap up the plight of the Others, castaways and the mysterious Jacob. McPherson is smart to realize Lindelof needed to stay on board and continue the tone he has set forth.

It was imperative to "keep Damon attached until the end of the series," McPherson said.

That being said, the show took some hits in midseason from critics and fans who felt the the plot wasn't moving forward fast enough and seemed to be going through the motions. And ratings fell from year's past as well, but McPherson said the numbers were misleading.

He stated that while the show gets a 4.2 rating in Los Angeles, if you include Live Plus Seven ratings (those who watch on DVRs within seven days of the original airing), the number jumps much higher to 7.2.

Yet, the legacy of "Lost" will never be about viewer totals or demos, but "Can you believe last night's episode"-type discussion often heard among devotees at the office on Thursday morning. In the Variety newsroom, the show probably accounts for about 50-plus "Lost" geek-out what does it all mean emails, and always a few from people begging for no spoilers because they haven't picked it up on TiVo yet or via streaming on ABC.com.

-- Stuart Levine

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

There's nothing like a standoff between a network exec and sleep-deprived critics to make TCA invigorating on its next-to-last day.

So when ABC topper Steve McPherson (pictured) let out that a major announcement involving the upcoming season of "Lost" would be divulged at Comic-Con tomorrow -- and not here at the Beverly Hilton with the country's TV press assembled -- well, lets just say the news wasn't well received by TCA-ers. (And for more TCA sound and fury, read what was on McPherson's mind in the post-Q&A huddle courtesy of Variety's Michael Schneider.)

McPherson was visibly pissed. In time spent where he could be promoting ABC's new fall lineup, which incidentally has promising new titles in "Pushing Daisies," "Dirty Sexy Money" and "Big Shots," he was forced to keep the wolves at bay who kept pressing on why sci-fi nerds heading to San Diego were more important to them -- and to their readers.

McPherson started the brouhaha accidentally. When one reporter asked about what might happen next on "Lost," McPherson said he couldn't give any details and that a major announcement was coming in San Diego. That's when the blood hit the water and the sharks began circling.

After a a woman questioned why the announcement was being withheld, McPherson kidded her about driving down to San Diego together to hear the news firsthand. Though he was joking, it went over as well as a Michael Richards standup routine at the Laugh Factory.

A few minutes later, Rick Kushman of the Sacramento Bee -- in a very reasonable and well-thought way -- asked McPherson how should newspaper editors, who are spending thousands of dollars to send their critics to Beverly Hills for two weeks in a time when papers are being crushed financially, should feel when networks are withholding information from them.

McPherson tried to make light of the situation and said, "I started talking to him before he was available, and I don't know what happened there, but I've cast Don Imus on 'Lost.'" It was a retort that sounded eerily similar to Ben Silverman describing how Isaiah Washington came aboard NBC's "Bionic Woman."

Soon after that, ABC publicist Hope Hartman whispered into McPherson's ear that "Lost" co-creator and exec producer Damon Lindelof had been told of the brewing controversy and allowed McPherson to spill the news that Harold Perrineau, who plays Michael, would be back. (Sorry for burying the lead, but the jostling was too good to pass up.)

-- Stuart Levine

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

There's enough reason to be taken with Hugh's Laurie's performance on "House" by just watching him on Tuesday night. Listening to him at the TCA panel on Monday makes Laurie's mystique even more impressive.

Born and raised in the U.K., Laurie is as much a Brit as Winston Churchill or Benny Hill. And hearing his strong Blighty accent in person makes one really admire the way he's able to turn that off when the cameras go on.

"I don't know if there's a secret to it or if other people use dialect coaches," he sheepishly explains, remaining incredibly humble.

Laurie's role as the good doctor back in 2004 was the start of a trend of English actors coming to primetime. This fall there's Damian Lewis on NBC's "Life," Kevin McKidd -- most recently of "Rome" fame -- leading the charge in "Journeyman," Michelle Ryan as the title character in "The Bionic Woman" and Lena Headey in Fox's "Sarah Connor Chronicles."

"I can only apologize," Laurie said of the British invasion. "I can't explain it."

But will House use that Americanized acerbic tongue to lash out at a new team of docs this season? With his team -- Cameron, Foreman and Chase -- tired of taking House's abuse and saying goodbye, how does the show's tone shift as it enters season four?

In the season opener, 40 applicants are in line for the the three vacated positions. Unable to remember any of their names, House has each of them wearing a number. So, he's basically just as warm and personable as ever.

"We'll be playing a 'House' version of 'Survivor,'" says executive producer Katie Jacobs. "I'm hoping viewers will be satisfied. David (Shore, co-executive producer) and I talked a long time about not want to cheat the audience."

Among the new actors who are vying for positions at the prestigious Princeton hospital and who might turn into regulars are Kal Penn ("Harold & Kumar," "The Namesake") and Peter Jacobson (most recently he played Debra Messing's husband in "The Starter Wife), who is a plastic surgeon and is able to look at patients much differently than House.

As for the regulars, Foreman has left and is in charge of his own staff of researchers, while Cameron and Chase have also said goodbye, moving to Arizona.  But, this being broadcast television where the boat can rock only so much, each will return eventually, though it's still unclear -- filming is currently two episodes in -- when they will come back and for what reasons.

"We know we'll be back, but we don't know in what capacity," said Jesse Spencer, who plays Dr. Chase. "I don't things will ever be the same (for the characters). It kind of feels like a new show."

Not going anywhere is Dr. Wilson, played by Robert Sean Leonard. And despite the fact that Wilson might receive more abuse from House than anyone else, where other people feel House is insufferable, downright mean and often antagonistic, Leonard considers him a great guy.

"I don't see what's so wrong with House," Leonard confided. "I think he's extremely likeable. As a friend, I would seek out someone just like him."

Laurie can see Leonard's point.

"Though House can be awkward and abusive, people are entertained by him. He's a character worth putting up with. I don't claim to know him well. He's as enigmatic to me as he is to the audience."

-- Stuart Levine

Any sesh with writer-producer Amy Sherman-Palladino is always a treat for the ear, and eye if you share her hat fetish. She talks as fast and with a rapier wit; she is her own best character. Amy and her husband Dan Palladino are up for the big second act following the WB Network's beloved "Gilmore Girls" in the coming season with the new Fox half-hour "The Return of Jezebel James," starring Parker Posey as a successful book publisher who hires her slacker younger sister to carry her baby after learning that she cannot conceive.

It's hard to believe that anyone could channel Amy's spirit and words as well as "Gilmore's" Lauren Graham, but Posey surely does with her own trademark sweetly goofy free-spirit. Posey, known as the queen of indie film, said she'd never seen "Gilmore Girls" but was taken with the "Jezebel James" script when she read it in a laundromat in Albuquerque, New Mexico while filming the upcoming feature "The Eye." Posey had no experience in series TV but she's found she likes the rhythms of the work on the Gotham-based production. It's in the get-it-done spirit of indie pics done on a shoestring budget.
"I like to work," Posey said. "This work is tight...clear...calm...assertive...like (dog trainer) Cesar Millan. I don't want to go in my trailer and be all moan-y all the time. You get bored when you're working on big movies and not doing anything. I really like this" shooting sked, Posey said.

Controversy, what controversy? "Sarah Connor" co-star Thomas Dekker was peppered with questions regarding his now-departed character from "Heroes," Zach, the friend and confidant of Hayden Panettiere's Claire. You get a bunch of rabid fans on the Internet talking about a show with lots of nooks and crannies, and conspiracy theories are going to arise, especially when fan-fave characters leave the scene without much explanation. There was talk that Dekker (pictured in his Zach persona) grew uncomfortable with the role because writers kept portraying him as gay, albeit without explicitly saying so. Dekker said the truth of the matter is as simple as him wanting a steady paycheck, and being offered one on "Sarah Connor."

Dekker was never a regular or even semi-regular on "Heroes." Zach was only supposed to appear in the show's pilot, but even after producers found more to do for the character, Dekker was being retained on a week-to-week basis.

"It was something that got blown out of proportion as far as what happened with the character," Dekker said with a heavy sigh. "From Day 1, in every possible way (Zach) was meant to be ambiguous. We felt that every one of the main characters in the series was so clear in who they were, it was nice to have side characters be a little more open. Me not appearing on the show anymore has nothing to do with anything about the character...I was hired as a guest star in the pilot. I was surprised every week that they called me back. But when something like ('Sarah Connor') comes along, I had to take this opportunity....I have a feeling 'Heroes' will do just fine."

A kinder, gentler Terminator? Well, that's not quite what they're going for in Fox's upcoming smallscreen rendition of the action-pic franchise, "The Sarah Connor Chronicles." But the Terminator who in this incarnation is hellbent on protecting Sarah Connor and her John will be in touch with her feelings in a way that the mean-spirited robo played by Arnold Schwarzenegger the three "Terminator" pics never was. And for sure, actress Summer Glau, who masquerades as John's high school classmate Cameron (har har), has a different set of curves than Arnie's muscle-bound Terminator of pics past. "Mine will be the most human of the Terminators so far," Glau promised during "Sarah Connor's" TCA sesh on Monday, suggesting that she'll be very much in touch with her nuts and bolts even though her character "can't genuinely feel emotion."

(Pictured, left to right: "Sarah Connor" stars Lena Headey, Thomas Dekker, Summer Glau and Richard T. Jones.)

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Cherry Jones has beaten Hillary Clinton to the punch.

Jones (pictured) has been cast as the next U.S. president in Fox's long-running drama "24." She'll play Allison Taylor in the seventh season of the series.

A woman president is nothing new on primetime. Geena Davis took on the role as leader of the free world a few years back in ABC's "Commander in Chief," but the show only lasted one season.

In "24" tradition, it's impossible to say when Jones' character will be "with us or against us," as real-life President Bush might say. Past presidents in "24" have shown to be traitors against the United States.

Jones has previously co-starred in "Ocean's Twelve," "The Perfect Storm" and "The West Wing."

Kiefer Sutherland will be back in action, of course, when the series begins in mid-season, and although the format will be the same, expect other changes after the show fell out of favor last season with hardcore fans and journos.

After winning the Emmy for best drama last year, the show didn't even garner a nomination last week, and it also fell precipitously on the critics' poll.

"Discussions are being made to reinvent the franchise, although it's way too early to talk about specfiics," said Fox topper Peter Liguori on the dais Sunday morning at TCA with newly appointed entertainment prexy Kevin Reilly.

Ligouri was careful not to agree with questioners that the show needed an overhaul, rather saying the franchise is a "living beast" and that the time-clock format creates tension that can be good for the creative process of the show

"I wouldn't categorize my view of the show as disappointing," he said. "Part of the high-wire act is the process of putting it together."

-- Stuart Levine

What Emmy didn't giveth on Thursday morning, the TCA Awards bestowed on Saturday night at the Beverly Hilton.

NBC's "Friday Night Lights," conspicuously snubbed by Emmy voters, got its due in nabbing best new program. Michael C. Hall of Showtime's "Dexter," another near no-show in the Emmy derby, was deemed best drama actor at the ceremony hosted by "Daily Show's" John Oliver.

Overall the Peacock swept the Television Critics Assn. kudofest with four trophies, including best comedy for "The Office," natch, and Alec Baldwin of "30 Rock" for top dog among comedy actors.TCA-ers didn't overlook NBC's other big frosh drama of last season, picking  "Heroes" the program of the year.

(Pictured: Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler of "Friday Night Lights")

The pilot of CW's "Reaper" has been one of the pleasant surprises in this year's crop of new shows. Everyone I talked to about it says virtually the same thing, that they didn't expect to like it as much as they did. It's hard to describe in a logline, which is usually a good sign for a show. The CW has heard all the industry buzz about the show and thus skedded it as the last of their day at TCA Friday, in an effort to get writers to stick around a dark hotel ballroom around on a beautiful Friday afternoon. Show is particularly well cast, with Brett Harrison playing a slacker dude, Sam, who learns on his 21st birthday that mom and dad inadvertently sold his soul to the devil. Devil shows up to enlist Sam in his new chores of helping him track down nasty souls who have escaped from hell.

Ray Wise, known for his role as Leland Palmer on "Twin Peaks" and a plenty of feature character roles, is utterly charming in his role as the Devil, and he turned on that wicked charm (and ultra-bright teeth) for the scribes on Friday. So did Tyler Labine, who is very good in the role as Sock, Sam's rambunctious friend and fellow coworker in a dead-end retail job at the local big-box Home Depot-esque store. Kevin Smith helmed the pilot seg but he was not on hand for the sesh. Exec producer Mark Gordon said Smith would be around to "help us out once and a while" but didn't sound too emphatic about Smith's ongoing participation. Nonetheless, he set a cool funny-scary tone in the pilot.

(Pictured above, left to right, top row: "Reaper" exec producers Deb Spera, Mark Gordon, Tara Butters, Michelle Fazekas. Bottom row: stars Valarie Rae Miller, Rick Gonzalez, Tyler Labine and Brett Harrison. Pictured below, Ray Wise.)

Amid all the TCA and Emmy craziness, I finally caught up with this week's "John from Cincinnati." As Johnny Bravo would say, whoooaaa momma!

"His Visit, Day 5" is television of the absurd. Ionesco-TV. Samuel Beckett could've written the closing scenes with the motley crew hanging out in the motel parking lot, with assorted dead-gray ghosts and fantasy figures. You gotta give HBO credit for having the corporate courage to pay for it and put it on the air. It's TV that keeps on giving. Once you've seen it, you can't help but spend hours turning it all over in your head trying to answer the question "what just happened?!"

In fact, amid all of the mega-bizarro stuff, there were some discernable, and disturbing, plot-moving points served up, along with some important backstory details dropped in "Day 5." John's spacey soliloquy at the end is full of clues, at least I think they are after spending the past few days thinking about them, even when I was trying not to.

Click here to get the lowdown on all the noms from Variety.com

Wow, didn't see that coming. HBO's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" overcame its critics, historians and otherwise, to clean up with some 17 Emmy bids, including a bid for best made-for but not one for the pic's star Adam Beach. Go figure. Still, exec producer Dick Wolf (pictured left on "Knee" set with actor August Schellenberg, who played Sitting Bulland earned a supporting nom) is a happy guy today, with the "Knee" bounty plus a lead drama actress bid for "Law & Order: SVU" star Mariska Hargitay. AMC's period Western "Broken Trail" did well too, coming in second to "Wounded Knee" with a total of 16 Emmy chits, including a lead actor bid for the evergreen fave Robert Duvall. Cowboys and Indians indeed. (I was in the minority among TV pundits in generally liking HBO's filmed take on the landmark 1971 historical tome by Dee Brown, as I discussed with Wolf in this column back in May.)

All in all it's been a good year for new series ("Heroes," "Ugly Betty," "30 Rock") and another breakthrough year for basic cable, especially over at FX with Minnie Driver snaring a lead drama actress bid for "The Riches" and Denis Leary getting his due for "Rescue Me." Bravo flexed some muscle with two entries in the reality-competition race, "Project Runway" and "Top Chef." Kyra Sedgwick is back for a second year for TNT's "The Closer," and of course Tony Shalhoub is the one to beat for lead comedy actor for USA Network's "Monk." USA also looked sharp with "Starter Wife" a contender for mini and lead actress bid for Debra Messing. Lifetime deservedly earned a nom for its "Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy," one of its better telefilm efforts in recent years. I think "Mastectomy" star Sarah Chalke deserved a seat in the lead movie/mini actress category, but the competition was tough. Gena Rowlands tough.

The drama and comedy series noms went as we might've predicted last night. The absence of "24" on the drama side is a little surprising, and with all due respect for David E. Kelley, I've just never quite gotten "Boston Legal" but Emmy voters to love him so. "Heroes" (pictured right) was something of a surprise but not undeserved, by any means. The Acad likes to reward any new show that gets people talking about primetime TV. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the snub of critical, Peabody-winning darling "Friday Night Lights," especially in the lead acting categories for Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton. (This should teach me to go out on a limb with Emmy predicts, as I did earlier in the week after "FNL's" TCA sesh.) "FNL" did land bids for casting and for directing, for the pilot helmed by exec producer Peter Berg.

Also in the near-shutout category is Showtime, which mounted huge campaigns for "Dexter" and "The Tudors," both of which were held to a handful of noms each in tech categories.

"Lost" to my mind was snubbed, but I can't say unexpectedly. It would've been a nice surprise if voters got over the rough patches at the start of this past season to honor the show's fine second half, but so be it, and just wait 'til next year. Good to see Terry O'Quinn and Michael Emerson recognized for their work in the supporting drama actor heat, but really couldn't they have thrown Dominic Monaghan a bone -- he died already! At least Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse got a writing nom and helmer Jack Bender got a directing nom for their work on the wonderful two-hour finale, "Through the Looking Glass."

Peacock's "30 Rock" (pictured left) impressed by scoring a comedy series bid -- it certainly would've been enough for the first-year show to land bids for star-creator Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin, whose much publicized parenting issues obviously didn't get in the way of Emmy voters evaluating his work. Ricky Gervais was a surprise in that category as well for HBO's "Extras." Would've expected Zach Braff to pop up in the funny-men heat but he was probably elbowed out by Gervais. Very, very cheered to see Rainn Wilson and Jenna Fischer break into the supporting field on the comedy side for "The Office."

No surprise whatsoever to see "Sopranos" clean up with 15 noms in its swan-song year. Who could deny the show a deserved last hurrah? James Gandolfini, Edie Falco and Michael Imperioli, Aida Turturro and Lorraine Bracco all are deserving of the recognition, as is Tim Daly, who played the writer friend Christopher Moltisanti whacked during his downward spiral in his last days and is up for guest actor. "Sopranos" as usual dominated he drama writing field with three noms, including one for capo David Chase and the much-discussed finale, "Made in America."

POSTED BY JON WEISMAN

Chuck Lorre didn't even own a TV in the 1970s, so any similarities between his new CBS sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" and the swinging late '70s icon "Three's Company" are completely coincidental. Really, Lorre insists.

Lorre, co-executive producer Bill Prady and the cast of "Big Bang" seemed a little taken aback to find themselves in the unexpected position of being asked to compare and contrast their program to that of Jack, Janet and Chrissy during the "Big Bang" TCA sesh on Wednesday.

Tops on the list: Three decades after Suzanne Somers redefined the role of the dumb blonde on "Three's," is it possible that Kaley Cuoco's Penny (pretty small-town gal befriended by two neighbors who are Caltech physicists) is ... dumberer? (Pictured from left, "Big Bang" stars Jim Parsons, Cuoco, Johnny Galecki)

No way, said Lorre.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Despite the informal press conference setting, Neil Patrick Harris knew there was only one way to dress for the "How I  Met Your Mother" chat session: suited up!

So there was Harris (pictured left) on the dais positioned between show creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas, all three discussing the awesomeness that is Barney, how Ted and Robin cope after their breakup and what's in store for newly married couple Marshall and Lily.

Critics, at least the ones here at the Beverly Hilton for CBS TCA seshes, weren't shy expressing their fondness for all the characters and were hoping for answers to the big question -- who, exactly, is the mother of "Mother"?

The first installment of season three, which airs Sept. 24, may just start to unravel the secret.

"Episode one will show that we haven't forgotten about the title of the show," said Thomas, not giving away more than that.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

The hot topic at the Nina Tassler panel at TCA on Wednesday was Mandy Patinkin's mysterious exiting of "Criminal Minds." Questions came in different forms but CBS Entertainment prexy Tassler stayed on point, saying only that Patinkin (pictured left) "came to me and asked to be released for personal issues."

Is it that Patinkin wanted out to work on another project? Was it health-related? Does he get just tired of the series grind and decides enough's enough?

Tassler wouldn't budge. She said several times that she hoped that Patinkin would come out in the near future to tell his version of events, but it doesn't seem likely. What's in it for him by explaining why he wanted out?

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

When CBS entertainment topper Nina Tassler went for a checkup a few months ago and the doc handed her a bag of peanuts instead of test results, she knew it was time to give "Jericho" its second-season pickup.

The Skeet Ulrich series started out well in the ratings last fall but soon began to fade. Then when it went on a three-month hiatus from November to February, pretty much any momentum the show might've had left was quickly evaporated.

"Maybe it wasn't good for the show and maybe it had an impact," Tassler said of the hiatus. You think, Nina?

Once CBS decided not to renew, the emails from outraged viewers came flooding into the exec's offices on Beverly Boulevard. I wonder if the Eye IT guys were able to install a "Jericho" spam filter to allow Tassler and Leslie Moonves to view non-"Jericho" messages in a more timely manner?

Though she wasn't convinced enough the series was viable enough to be put on the fall schedule, Tassler decided "Jericho" was worthy of a midseason slot. CBS has ordered seven new episodes, as Variety reported last month.

"The emails had reached a certain pitch and I thought that maybe this show needs a second chance," said Tassler (pictured left). "I went on the message boards and read the emails. It seemed like a segment of the population felt they weren't being counted."

Certainly "Jericho" fans aren't the first group to sound howls of protest when their favorite shows are canceled. If viewers voices were always heard by network schedulers, "Freaks and Geeks," "Veronica Mars" and "Deadwood" would still be on the air.

Whether the "Jericho" renewal begins a new trend on how much viewer reaction will play into the decision-making process for renewals remains to be seen, but its nice to realize that voices are being heard.

In the first episode back, Tassler said Stanley (Brad Beyer) would be getting engaged.

(Pictured above: Shaun Daily, a Nevada disc jockey who led one of the many fan-fueled "Save 'Jericho'" campaigns.)

-- Stuart Levine

Big panel, big show, big challenges.

The "Friday Night Lights" cast and crew were well-received by the TCA-ers in the show's sesh on Tuesday. The crix weren't overly gushy but there was a general consensus that this Peabody-winning show is a fine example of quality triumphing over anemic ratings. Getting a wider audience to appreciate the show had become something of a mission for the previous steward of NBC Entertainment, before Kevin Reilly hustled out of Burbank in June following the Ben Silverman shakeup.

To Ben's credit, in the eyes of "FNL" fans, he's vowed to support the show and one of his first bulletins on Monday in his exec Q&A was a time slot switch for the show that at least takes it out of the vortex of 10 p.m. Friday (where only CBS has found the right mathematical equation to get a decent number lately with "Numbers"). Now "FNL" is due to get a little hammock support at 9 p.m. on its namesake night between "Deal or No Deal" and "Las Vegas." And Silverman's co-topper, Marc Graboff, praised the show for being "efficiently produced," which was another thing that helped it survive for a second season.

Dick Wolf was busy today. He started the day with the "Law & Order" panel at TCA on Tuesday, breaking the news that Linus Roache is joining the mothership-show's cast in the upcoming season as executive assistant D.A., or the successor to Jack McCoy now that Sam Waterston's character has advanced to the big D.A. gig.

Wolf then hopped from TCA Central at the Beverly Hilton a few blocks down Wilshire Boulevard to the Regent Beverly Wilshire to moderate the "State of the Industry" sesh for the Hollywood Radio & TV Society. The HRTS panel was lively, and Wolf had plenty to say about the state of the biz he's in. Not surprisingly, much of the conversation revolved around the words "online video" and "new platforms."

As Variety's Michael Schneider reports, Wolf recounted for the HRTS aud the “horrifying moment” he discovered that not only does his 14-year-old son not watch network TV, but none of his son’s classmates do either. “At the end of the day, are we eating our young?” Wolf asked.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Does the fact that viewer totals are excruciatingly low mean NBC's stellar Thursday night comedy lineup has little chance to be placed in the same class as in the days of "Cheers," "Friends" and "Seinfeld," all of which were ratings behemoths?

Ratings, mind you, have never come close to being equated with quality. Geez, "Veronica's Closet" and "The Single Guy" probably have higher numbers than "The Office" or "30 Rock" will ever do ... combined.

But after a TCA panel with the creator and star of each of the four comedies that air on Thursday -- "My Name Is Earl," "Scrubs," "30 Rock" and "The Office" -- it's quite obvious these guys (and lady) are funny. Really funny. What exactly does somebody have to do these days to get people to tune in?

"It's our job to make the shows good and Ben's job to make them watch," said Lorne Michaels, exec producer of "30 Rock" and "Saturday Night Live" godfather, about the job new NBC topper Ben Silverman has ahead of him.

When a reporter asked "30 Rock" star/creator/exec producer Tina Fey (pictured) whether she was confident last fall that hers was the NBC show-within-a-show would survive to see a second season, unlike Aaron Sorkin's "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip," Fey didn't hesitate in her response.

I was 100 percent sure," she said. "I have a nasty streak in me."

(Pictured above, from right: "Office" exec producer Greg Daniels, Lorne Michaels, Tina Fey and "My Name is Earl" exec producer Greg Garcia.)

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Like a greased football, "Friday Night Lights" keeps moving around.

After NBC announced at the May upfronts that that the small-rated but well-reviewed drama was shifting its timeslot to Friday at 10, network topper Ben Silverman announced at TCA on Monday that "FNL" is now moving up an hour to 9 p.m.

Net's new Friday night lineup now shakes up this way: "Deal or No Deal" at 8, "Friday Night Lights" at 9 and "Las Vegas" at 10.

Filmed in Austin, Texas, "Friday Night Lights" -- TCA-nominated for program of the year and a Peabody Award winner -- has a rabid fan base but was never able to generate any type of ratings momentum. The show was very much on the bubble as far as returning for a second season.

One reason the show came back is that it's relatively cheap to produce compared to other one-hour dramas.

"It's produced effiicently," Silverman said. "We're always looking at finding responsible ways (to get these type of shows on the air). It's less expensive than 'Heroes.'"

Added co-topper Marc Graboff: "You want to stay with the shows you're most passionate about. We don't want 'Friday Night Lights' and '30 Rock' to become quality shows that never caught on, like 'Arrested Development.'"

NBC is hoping the late August release of the first season DVD will create more audience awareness that will carry over into season two.

Graboff went on say the series has received a full-season (22 episode) order, meaning if ratings aren't stellar coming out of the gate this fall, don't expect immediate talk about cancellation. And the Friday night slot means the stakes for drawing huge numbers aren't as high as other nights of the week.

Silverman also said that the network will be marketing the show differently this season that last, when the promos were mostly based on the on-field activities. This year, Silverman said, much of the ad dollars would be put toward the family dynamics and interaction of the students at Dillon High.

"We want to see the family demo," he said.

-- Stuart Levine

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Jerry Seinfeld is coming home to the Peacock.

Comedian-actor, whose show became a signature for the network, will appear as himself in the first episode of "30 Rock" when the sitcom returns on Oct. 4.

NBC is hoping the appearance of Seinfeld will give the highly praised comedy a ratings shot in the arm. The show, which stars Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin, returns at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, as part of the Peacock's comedy block, in addition to "My Name Is Earl," "The Office" and "Scrubs."

"Thursday night is a poweful comedy lineup for NBC. To have Jerry join '30 Rock' for the second-season launch is impressive, to him return even for one night in his old Thursday night turf is just classic," said NBC topper Ben Silverman.

"I think it's going to be so refreshing for me to be playing myself in a show that has nothing to do with neurotic, dysfuctional New York characters," Seinfeld quipped, tongue planted firmly in cheek.

Added Fey, who also acts as exec producer: "Finally, my parents have an excuse to watch the show."

-- Stuart Levine

To your Web battle stations, "Battlestar Galactica" fans. Sci Fi Channel confirmed Sunday during its TCA sesh that it will launch an eight-week series of Web mini-sodes leading in to the rest of the series' fourth and final season. The two-to-three minute shorts are set to bow in October as a preamble to the Nov. 24 debut of "Battlestar Galactica: Razor," described as a special extended seg that will lay the foundation for the events that take place in the second half of mothership "Galactica" season. Can't say I'm a rabid fan of the new-model "Galactica" (one of these days I will catch up with it on DVD and see what all the buzz is about, if for no other reason than I've always loved Edward James Olmos) so I'm gonna defer to the Sci Fi press verbiage describe what exactly goes on in the minisodes and "Razor":

These shorts will provide a sneak peek into the original Cylon War, when a young pilot named William Adama (Nico Cortez) discovers a dangerous Cylon weapon that will come back to haunt him and his crew 40 years later. Filmed as part of the extended episode, the mini-sodes will be included in the unrated Universal Home Video release of Razor. They will also be available on SCIFI.COM after their on-air debuts. Battlestar Galactica: Razor will tell the story of Lee Adama's (Jamie Bamber, pictured above left) first mission as commander of the Battlestar Pegasus and will reveal the story of how Admiral Cain (Michelle Forbes, pictured right) served her ship during the original Cylon attack on the Colonies.

Sounds like good fun for the fans.

You loved her in "Roswell" -- now she's all grown up and has intimacy issues to boot. USA Network confirmed during its TCA presentation Sunday that it has given a 12-seg order to the Shiri Appleby starrer "To Love & Die" from Lorne Michael's Broadway Video Entertainment and Universal Media Studios. Series is set to bow next year. Revolves around Appleby (pictured) as a young woman, Hildy, who becomes convinced her misadventures in dating will never end until she makes peace with the father she's never really known. Tim Matheson plays that AWOL dad; Frances Fisher plays Hildy's overbearing mother who's on husband No. 7 at the time her daughter begins her quest for dad, who happens to be a professional hit man. USA Network programming guru Jeff Wachtel bills it as a light-touch drama about a "high concept character with a slightly twisted soul." "Love and Die" hails from tyro creator/exec producer Sara Goodman (Fox's short-lived "Reunion.")

He grew up yearning to write for “Playhouse 90” and “The Twilight Zone.”

Unfortunately for Matthew Weiner, he was born about 35 years too late, and as it happened, his break as a TV writer came in sitcoms, not high-end dramas.But Weiner was nevertheless determined to pursue his vision for a series that would capture all of his fascination with American culture in the finger-snapping era of Camelot and the Cuban Missile Crisis, of skinny ties and steel-tipped bras, of the Rat Pack and Sputnik.

By day, Weiner was working on the CBS sitcom “Becker.” By night, with the added motivation of the approach of 35th birthday, he poured himself into penning the pilot of his period-dreams. That was seven years ago. On Thursday, after many a twist and turn his Weiner’s life and that of his pilot script, his baby is set to make a splashy entrance on the heels of effusive reviews and a big marketing push from AMC. The film-centric basic cabler picked Weiner’s “Mad Men,” from Lionsgate TV, last year as the show to lead  the channel into the scripted series realm.

“No network quite got this show until AMC,” Weiner says, and that’s in keeping with the spirit of the show. “This show is all about misconceptions, and our contemporary culture’s misunderstanding of this period in American history and how it influenced who we are today,” Weiner says.

CONTINUE READING TO WATCH A VIDEO CLIP OF "MAD MEN" CREATOR MATTHEW WEINER DISCUSSING THE PERIOD SETTING OF THE SHOW.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

The truth is out there, and David Duchovny aims to find it at Showtime.

Five years after "The X-Files" ended its nine-year run, Duchovny returns to the airwaves -- though this time viewers will have to pay to see him -- in "Californication," a half-hour comedy about an author who has serious intimacy problems.

So what brought him back to TV?

"It was the script Tom (Kapinos) wrote, though I didn't think that if you do a pilot, you also have do the show, too," Duchonvy kidded. "I wasn't necessarily looking for a comedy but I was open to it."

Pilot episode has Duchovny character Hank Moody bedding many women while simultaneously trying to be a good father to his daughter, Becca (played by Madeleine Martin, who said of being part of the very adult drama, "I listen to my iPod during table reads").

Nudity and sex is a hot topic at TCA this year, with HBO's "Tell Me You Love Me" also generating headlines for its risque manner of filmmaking.

"It's a family show," clarified creator/exec producer Kapinos said of "Californication," "but a fractured, f---d up family."

Duchovny most recently starred in the bigscreen indie "The T.V. Set," which received generally good reviews. He scored two Emmy noms for "X-FIles," and also has one each for "The Larry Sanders Show" and for a guest spot in "Life With Bonnie." In 1997, he won a Golden Globe for his role as Fox Mulder.

Kapinos says the title comes from the 1970s term that citizens of Oregon used when they were concerned that the high influx of Californians would ruin their state. "This couldn't be set in another state."

When asked if his wife Tea Leoni might find her way into a few of the episodes, Duchovny -- who also acts as an exec producer -- said, ""We've always tried to not work together. It's mostly because she doesn't want to work with me."

Series, which also stars Brit Natascha McElhone, Evan Handler ("Sex and the City") and Madeline Zima, begins Aug. 13.

-- Stuart Levine

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Few celebrities faze grizzled TV critics but it was genuinely weird to see Mary-Kate Olsen on stage as part of the "Weeds" panel during Showtime's three-hour TCA session on Saturday.

The actress, who just turned 21, fielded more questions than star Mary-Louise Parker, though her answers left something to be desired, in most cases. (It didn't go unnoticed by the scribes when Olsen misidentified "Weeds'" fictional setting as "Majestic" sted "Agrestic.") Olsen plays Tara Lindman, whom she described as "a good Christian girl with a twist" and a Bible-loving love interest for Nancy Botwin's older son. When pressed about exactly what kind of Christian she would play (campy, evangelistic, goodie-two-shoes, etc.), "Weeds" creator/exec producer Jenji Kohan filled in the details and confirmed that yes, the character will be seen tugging on the chronic.

"She's comfortable in her Christianity and her drug use," Kohan said.

"Weeds" makes the most mature series by far for Olsen, who reached stardom by starring with her sister, Ashely, in "Full House" from 1987-95. She's also become a film producer and extremely successful businesswoman.

Olsen learned of the role from her agent, auditioned and met with Kohan, who initially had a bit of trepidation about the actress.

"We might have been nervous about her reputation but her performance was wonderful," Kohan said. "We wanted someone good for the part, and we got it."

"I've spent the last year going on auditions, acting and working hard," said Olsen, who seemed a bit stunned by the criics' interest in her being part of the cast. On the difficulty of getting more grown-up roles after a career as a child star, she added: "There will always be my celebrity, but my work speaks for itself."

"Weeds" marks Olsen's first on-screen appearance without Ashley. She was recently cast in Sienna Miller's "Factory Girl," but her part was cut.

The series launches its third season on Aug. 13, and will air 15 episodes, up three from season two.

-- Stuart Levine

POSTED BY STEVEN ZEITCHIK

Disney Channel took the wraps off the sequel to its money-minting--er, extraordinarily monetizable-- "High School Musical" at TCA Saturday morning.

The franchise has become a machine for the Mouse, between the various television/album/homevideo/legit/flamethrower extensions. How the net will position and promote the August 17 sequel--with cozy star-studded backyard barbecue (telecast, of course), pre-debut debuts of music videos online, and even a parent-aimed docu from Barbara Kopple (!) centering on a high-school stage production of the original--is the more fundamental question.

After all, the phenom was one of the biggest factors on Disney's bottom line in 2005 and 2006. And a sequel--especially for a television movie--is a notoriously tricky thing. Will the tens of millions of teens from Tuscon to Tuscaloosa (not to mention Brazil and Australia) go for a whole new set of numbers and storylines when they're so attached to the old ones? (Writer Peter Barsocchini said in an interview that he and other creators were especially careful not to "remake a single one of the elements" from HSM1.)

But most journos at the session were interested in the stars, lobbing fungo balls to the group about its projects and personal lives. The post-session chitchat offered the odd specter of dozens of, um, out-of-the-demo critics mobbing the cast; at least twenty crushed in on lead Zac Efron (pictured with HSM2 costar Vanessa Hudgens), shoving their tape recorders in his face the way a teenage girl might her camera-phone.

Execs, for their part, were coy about a potential theatrical, saying that a script was being written and that there was negotiation with the stars and...they couldn't say anything else. A movie based on a blockbuster property owned by the company? From Disney? The HSM cast wouldn't even need to say duh.

--Steven Zeitchik

It was such a "John from Cincinnati" moment.

Moments after I strolled into HBO's poolside party at the W hotel in Westwood on Thursday, I meandered aimlessly (or so I thought?) by a small group of people conversing in a cocktail party circle. I was still scanning the crowd and overall scene when I heard a familiar voice say "...and it was printed on Variety.com that the show is good..." and then the cocktail-party huddle opens up and whaddya know! it's Willie Garson (pictured far left with Ed O'Neill), aka lawyer Dickstein of "John from Cincinnati," and no kidding (I couldn't make this up), he's talking about this week's On the Air column about taking a second look at "John" and how the cast is so damn good. I was stunned -- so much so I almost kept meandering on, but I couldn't. (What writer could?) The timing was just too perfect, the entree too good to pass up.

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE and STEVEN ZEITCHIK

So what's the difference between between real-life Larry David and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" character Larry David?

Whatever it is, the difference is becoming less and less every year.

"I really love the guy who's on that show" he said to critics at TCA. "He's everything that I'm thinking and feeling and who doesn't have to behave the way society wants everyone to behave. I'm getting closer to that guy every day."

Many viewers weren't expecting a sixth season of "Curb," which starts up Sept. 9. Season five ended with Larry going to heaven, a seemingly perfect way to say goodbye.

But soon after that, back in his production office with nothing to do, David felt miserable. So he started thinking ideas for another season. And, as he told critics in his condescending but hysterical way, the process of thinking up new ideas also made him miserable.

So either way -- working or not working -- he wasn't a happy man.

So who's smiling now? Probably HBO, which is currently restocking its series pipeline, yet needs popular long-running skeins to placate auds who want something new while clinging to the old favorites.

Pressed on whether the cult-comedy would come back for a seventh season (after a long hiatus before the upcoming sixth), David said that show has shot an ending that "could be the last-show ending - or it might be the last-show ending."

David has famously equivocated about a new season for the past couple years; he quipped that he did that because knowing there might not be another season was the only way he could get through the current one.

If series does return, David took a cue from a reporter about how to advance the arc: by emulating his real life (in which he has formally separated from his wife, enviro-activist and producer Laurie David) and getting divorced from onscreen wife Cheryl Hines. "Sorry," he said, turning to Hines.

"You're off the show," David deadpanned, as only he can.

-- Stuart Levine and Steven Zeitchik

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

HBO may have lost "Sex and the City," but its still feeling frisky.

Cable will launch "Tell Me You Love Me" on Sept. 9, a nine-episode Sunday night series that focuses on the relationship of three couples -- in their 20s, 30s and 40s. From creator Cynthia Mort, skein moves from the therapist office to the bedroom, and doesn't shy away from showing the inner sanctum of each.

In other words, there's lots of screaming, crying and sex.

"We're not porn stars, we're actors," said actress Michelle Borth to the TCA throngs who were definitely more interested in the authenticity and realism of the sex scenes than they were on the credentials of Jane Alexander, who plays the show's therapist.

Added actress Sonya Walger: "It's uncomfortable. These scenes have no dialogue but each has a lot to say."

"Our decision wasn't to push the envelope but be honest about the intimacy," said HBO programming topper Carolyn Strauss. You can't tell the story about intimacy without having sex in your tool kit. If you want to do it honestly, you have to tell that story."

-- Stuart Levine

POSTED BY STUART LEVINE

Vic Mackey would get along very well with Patty Hewes.

Hewes, as played by veteran actress Glenn Close, is FX's latest anti-hero. In "Damages," which preems July 24, Close plays a calculating and manipulative attorney who feels no remorse breaking the law to win a case. The series will have a 13-episode run.

Close has had an astonishing film careeer and only dabbled in television. She's been nominated for five Oscars but her one-season appearance on "The Shield" made such an impression that when given the chance to come back to TV, she jumped at the chance. That, and the fact there are very few movie scripts that interest her.

"I turn down more scripts that I accept," Close said at the show's TCA panel Thursday at the Beverly Hilton. And the fact that "Damages" was filmed back east, and she could be with her family, was instrumental in her decision as well. "It was very important that it was shot in New York."

The through line of "Damages" details on Close trying to convict a corporate powerbroker (Ted Danson) who has allegedly defrauded his employers.

FX is throwing plenty of marketing muscle behind the show, hoping it connects in the way that the network's other signature shows -- "Nip/Tuck" and "The Shield" -- have. The pilot, which hints at how  Hewes' personal and professional relationships have shaped her career, asks viewers to go along for the season-long ride. Writers use as storytelling device that looks ahead, and where we see a Hewes employee (Rose Byrne) running nearly naked and bloodied through the streets of Manhattan sometime in the not-to-distant future.

Questions will be answered. Maybe not in episode two but certainly by No. 13, and then, promises writers Daniel Zelman, Todd Kessler and Glenn Kessler, new mysteries will be added if the show sees a season two.

For Danson, "Damages" represents a nice dramatic change. The actor who became an icon in "Cheers"  has struggled the last few years in sitcoms and began to, professionally, go through the motions.

"I feel excited about acting again, rather than going into another comedy," Danson said.

"Damages" seems to be a perfect fit for FX, which has worked hard at establishing and earning its hard-edged brand. The network has been extremely successful launching dramas of late. Both "Dirt" and "The Riches" are coming back for a second season.

Early positive reaction to "Damages" would indicate Close might be making a long-term transition to TV, with the series possibly going a few seasons long if viewers find themselves agreeing with the buzz at TCA.

With examples such as Holly Hunter, who's starring in TNT's upcoming  "Saving Grace," there's little argument that thesps looking for quality projects often wind up on the small screen.

"I have always been seduced by good writing," she said. "Early in my career I decided to go where the writing is."

Call it destination fulfilled.

-- Stuart Levine

POSTED BY STEVEN ZEITCHIK:

The FX plastic-surgery drama "Nip/Tuck" has always felt like it was set in Beverly Hills, but it took five seasons to actually get it there.

The series about doctors in their own operating room and other people's beds is relocating this season from South Florida to Hollywood. In one episode, Julian McMahon's bad-boy doctor Christian Troy questions "Where's the glamor I used to read about?" And rest assured, Troy hasn't lost any of his swagger in the cross-country move: "This town needs me," he declares.

Why the move? Creator Ryan Murphy (pictured)told a panel at TCA Thursday morning at the Beverly Hilton that he set the show in Bev Hills when he first pitched it but then changed the venue because he wanted the series to go a little darker. Once the docs got successful, however, he wanted them swimming in a bigger pond.

Murphy (who also said he "would love to" bring the show back for a sixth season but is still negotiating with the net) says despite the move, audiences shouldn't expect the predictable L.A. plot turns. "We don't have a lot of the starlets coming in for surgeries. We still have a lot of the cases that are more exotic and odd," Murphy said.

Actually, the strongest Hollywood touch may involve the biz. When the new season debuts, the two docs will make a career move of sorts: They'll consult on a "Nip/Tuck"-like show-within-a-show starring Bradley Cooper. Said Murphy: "It's kind of the worst medical show ever made." -- Steven Zeitchik

Can't pass up an opportunity to post a great pic of Betty White. She's the subject of one of PBS' "Pioneers of Television" docus set to air in the winter and spring '08 on the pubcaster. I did a lengthy sit-down with Betty in 2000 when she was marking her 50th year in television, and I can confirm that she is as lovely, gracious, funny and sharp as you'd hope Betty White would be. She's only piled up about 25 credits since then, from voice-over work on "King of the Hill" to semi-regular stints on "That '70s Show" and "Boston Legal" and now the CBS soap "The Bold and the Beautiful." Once her career got going in the early-early 1950s, when she was on the air live for five hours on weekday mornings, spinning records, riffing on the day's news and generally shooting the breeze on KLAC-TV (better known today as KCOP-TV Los Angeles), Betty has never stopped. She's an inspiration; we should all be in such good shape if we're fortunate enough to see our 85th birthdays (as Betty did on Jan. 22). To me she's not just a pioneer of television, she's the reigning first lady of television.

A kind-hearted, TV-loving woman in Watertown, N.Y., is orchestrating an elaborate campaign to get some overdue recognition for one of television's most active players in the 1960s, '70s and '80s.

Bill Bixby (pictured far left) was one of those actors who seemed to be everywhere on TV when I was a kid: "Courtship of Eddie's Father" reruns, "Love, American Style" reruns, "My Favorite Martian" reruns, countless TV movies and series guest shots, and, of course, "The Incredible Hulk," a show that was well-placed on CBS' Friday night sked so that pre-teens could stay up for it. (I'm not too proud to admit that it scared me when I was about 8.)

Bixby died young, at age 59 in November 1993, the victim of a late diagnosis of prostate cancer. He was nominated three times for Emmy glory during his 30 years in television -- once for "Courtship" and twice in 1976, for a guest shot on "The Streets of San Francisco," and for his role in the mammoth hit mini "Rich Man, Poor Man." But for all of his work as an actor and director (his interest in helming began during his "Martian" chronicles), Bixby never took home the gold. Renee Tufo thinks this is just plain wrong.

More than any TV series in recent memory, “John from Cincinnati” seemed to be nearly done in by bad buzz long before it premiered.

“Why would HBO think people would want to watch this?” one blog poster opined on AOL’s TV Squad site nearly a month before the show premiered June 10, on the coattails of “The Sopranos’” finale.
“One department has a pool going as to when HBO is going to pull the plug and not complete the season at all,” read a post on the popular TelevisionWithoutPity.com site way back in February. (The author of the missive claimed to be someone who worked on the “John” set.)

Sure, all shows endure a fair amount of post-pickup/pre-premiere drama and “oh boy is it in big trouble” rumor-mongering. But “John” endured a surprising amount of early carping, especially for an HBO skein with a solid pedigree as the creation of revered dramatist David Milch and cult-fave novelist Kem Nunn. Milch took a beating from many fans of his previous HBO creation “Deadwood,” who felt that he and HBO decided to drive a stake in “Deadwood” prematurely in order to free Milch up to work on “John.” (Given the tone of “Deadwood,” Milch surely couldn’t have been surprised when its hard-core fans were quick to express their hostile, profanity-laden revenge fantasies.)

The cast that Milch and Nunn put together last fall and winter for “John” was undeniably strong: Rebecca De Mornay (pictured above left), Bruce Greenwood (pictured right), Ed O’Neill, Matt Winston, Luke Perry, Luis Guzman, Willie Garson, and up and comers Brian Van Holt and Austin Nichols. But when the pilot script started to make the rounds, there was a lot of head scratching.

If “Deadwood” was a surrealistic Western, then “John from Cincinnati” was a psycho surf-themed family drama, as inter-preted via a bad acid trip. The talk was that it was not just unconventional, it was unbound, merely an indulgent exercise in how obtuse (with curse words) two talented writers could be if given the chance. The consensus opinion seemed to be that HBO had come to the crossroads and was at a loss at where to go next after its storied run of success.

Speaking of "Grey's Anatomy," read Brian Lowry's take on Isaiah "shocked and stunned" Washington's moment before Larry King's mike this evening. It's funny, and a good rant about our celeb-saturated airwaves. And probably the only time you'll see Washington and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby mentioned in the same column.

The news about the recasting of Merrin Dungey (pictured left) in one of the lead  roles in the "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff "Private Practice" raises the question of how producers plan to handle the launch of the series this fall since its pilot was actually a two-hour seg of "Grey's Anatomy."

It might've made sense to repeat that episode, or even a cut down version of that seg, in advance of the first episode of "Private Practice" proper this fall, but not now that Audra McDonald (pictured right) is stepping in to the role of Dr. Naomi Bennett, the college pal of Kate Walsh's Addison Montgomery. I'm told there'll be no reshooting of anything done this past spring. "Practice" will start with a fresh seg that finds Addison relocated in L.A. and into her new life at the Santa Monica wellness center populated by a host of quirky doctors. Necessary backstory can be easily filled in with dialogue in the opening moments.

So why the Dungey-McDonald swap? I'm told that it was partly a chemistry thing between Dungey and Taye Diggs, who plays Naomi's estranged husband Sam, and that some were having trouble buying them ever having been a couple. McDonald, a four-time Tony winner and a Juilliard-trained singer, is known for exuding a natural strength common to great stage actresses. But the decision to make the switch couldn't have been easy for Shonda Rhimes, creator-exec producer of "Grey's Anatomy" and its spinoff. Merrin Dungey is the sister of Channing Dungey, an ABC Studios executive who oversees "Anatomy" for the studio and is known to be close to Rhimes.

This just in...

Erstwhile "CBS Evening News" anchor Bob Schieffer (we were just talking about him a few items ago, see 'Rosie wasn't right for 'Price' anyway") is making an appearance on tonight's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," delivering a faux news report about Craig's ongoing campaign to become a citizen of the United States.

Earlier this month Craig began soliciting cities and towns across this fair land of ours for honorary citizenship status. According to CBS, so far the mayors of some 7,200 hamlets have responded, along with the governors of North Dakota, South Dakota, Alaska, Nevada, Montana and Texas, with letters giving Craig his red-white-and-blue due. As they should.

We are a nation of immigrants, and by my yardstick Craig's one of the better ones to have arrived on these  shores in the past 15 years or so. Think about it. The pride of Glasgow's many talents -- actor, writer (and not just short scripts but he pens the trifecta of TV, films and fiction tomes) , producer, host, father, motorcycle rider, keen-eyed pop culture observer, etc. have helped keep people in employed (stagehands, typesetters, craft services, mechanics, etc., etc. ) and he's contributed to the Clean Air Act by maintaining high standards for his double-entendres despite his past-the-FCC's-indecency-policing-jurisdiction time slot of 12:35 a.m.

So by the decree of On the Air, the People's Republic of Variety.com grants Craig lifelong honorary citizenship. He can come hang out in our Miracle Mile digs anytime. After all, Craig's home-away-from-home-away-from-Scotland, CBS Television City, is just around the corner.

Also, as Variety's Joe Adalian reported today, "Late Late Show" is committed to seeing the U.S.A. in a Chevro-..er..Ford this summer by sending two staffers on a road trip full of Ford logos. Maybe afterward one of them will get hopped up on ...coffee... and write the great American buddy-road novel of the early 21st century on one long continuous roll of paper in a sweltering one-room apartment in New York...

POSTED BY ERIN MAXWELL, NEWS EDITOR EXTRAORDINAIRE OF VARIETY.COM.

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" is dead and gone (several times if you count the number of times she perished on the 1997-2003 TV series) but her spirit lives on in many ways, most recently via "Buffy-oke."
Yes, it's just what it sounds like, karaoke, "Buffy" style, based largely on the "Once More with Feeling" musical extravaganza episode that ran during the show's sixth season.

Now touring the country, "Buffy-oke" is a "Rocky Horror"-esque sing-along features audience participation, hand puppets and a fair amount of Dawn-bashing to create a new reason for "Buffy" fans to cheer since their Tuesday nights are now free.

For those who need a recap, the episode features a hoofer-loving demon named Sweet who puts a spell over the beloved denizens of Sunnydale, forcing the Scoobies to sing their innermost thoughts and perform complicated dance numbers.
On June 27, the Los Angeles Film Festival brought the show to the Crest Theater in Westwood, where fans were treated to not only their favorite episode, but fan-made videos that paid tribute to Buffy mom Kristine Sutherland and boy-toy Riley, played by Marc Blucas. A bit of trivia and a two-minute recap of the entire series was thrown in for good measure.

The screening came with an instruction sheets and goodie bags that allowed the audience to fully partake in the showing, such as blow bubbles for Lawrence Welk-inspired ballet numbers and kazoos to help "Buffy" star Sarah Michelle Gellar with the high notes.

At the end of the screening, Marti "Parking Ticket Lady" Noxon (pictured right) took the stage to thank fans and introduced series creator and surprise guest Joss Whedon (pictured above, as if you didn't know that already). Whedon was overcome by the fan response to the episode he wrote and directed, and thanked the audience for the keeping the episode from disappearing into rerun oblivion. He also shared his thoughts on Buffy's younger sis: "Come on. Dawn isn't that bad." (Erin Maxwell)

To investigate "Buffy-oke" further just click right here on this link.

I feel compelled to post a note of hugely heartfelt thanks to all of those who have read and responded to this week's "Supernatural" column. First off, it validates my feeling that this show is an overlooked gem. But more selfishly, from a business perspective, the hundreds and hundreds of good folks who have checked out my post have spiked the traffic for this blog exponentially. Before this week, the above image of guest star Emmanuelle Vaugier from the "Supernatural" seg "Heart" from this past season was a pretty good representation of how frustrated I was in trying to get any real traction for this blog since its soft launch in mid-May. But the response to my sit-down with Eric "hell of a nice guy" Kripke has restored my faith in humanity, television and my ability to do meaningful work in this new medium. It's one of the perks of the job to be able to talk to interesting, thoughtful, creative people like Eric. So thanks muchly to everyone, especially those who left kind words behind. And for all of you rabid Jensen and Jared fans, here's another cute pic of the guys, just for good measure.

Wow. I know some broadcast networks that would like to have these numbers right about now. Disney Channel's earnest "Hannah Montana" is on fire, drawing its highest-ever number on Friday at 7.4 million viewers. That powered Disney Channel to its most-watched day of all time on Friday. Can a "Hannah Montana" theme park be far behind? Somewhere south of Billings, perhaps? It's also a sure bet that by next development season the sitcom offers will be flying fast and furious for "Hannah" star Miley Cyrus, who overcame the "gee, she's Billy Ray Cyrus' daughter" curiosity factor to prove that she's got acting chops all on her own.

According to the AP, Rosie O'Donnell posted an item on her blog Sunday saying that she has formally bowed out of the running to replace Bob Barker as host of "The Price is Right." If she has, I can't find it, so here's a link to the AP story.

I humbly submit, with due respect to Rosie, that she's not right for the gig. Can you say "mellifluous" (I can't but love the word anyway)-- well, that's what Bob Barker was. A total broadcasting pro whose voice never grated. Like I said, with all due respect to Rosie, Bob was someone you could stand to have in your house every weekday before noon. He was cool, never overheated, no matter how hard the contestants were jumping up and down on him....Come to think of it, given these job requirements, I wonder what Bob Schieiffer thinks of Plinko?

The return of "Monk" is always one of the highlights of summer, and this season's opener, "Mr. Monk's Biggest Fan," is particularly entertaining thanks to a good guest-star turn by Sarah Silverman. She reprises her role as the crazed fan Marci Maven from 2004's "Mr. Monk and the TV Star," only this time around it's Adrian Monk who is the focus of her obsessive fandom. Silverman steals the episode from star Tony Shalhoub (which is hard to do) with a role that pushes her beyond the general Sarah Silverman-ish character that she usually plays. She even gets to show off her guitar strumming skills with a folksy ditty she's penned for her beloved:

There's a man in California/
if you're ever in a funk./
He may not be F. Murray Abraham/
but I think he's a hunk./
And his name is Aaaayaaaadddrreeeeiannnnn

The seg, penned by "Monk" creator-exec producer Andy Breckman and directed by Randy Zisk, is packed with in-jokes for "Monk" freaks and other goofy delights. Bows July 13 on USA Network.