He's Lost No More

Okay, Lost fans… have I got some news for you: after the demise of his CBS pilot Demons, Harold Perrineau… a/k/a Michael, will be returning to Lost next season! It appears that Michael is coming back not as a guest but as a series regular. Unfortunately, that’s all I know so far. And no, there’s no word on Walt.

After figuratively stabbing his fellow castaways in the back and literally murdering Libby and Ana Lucia, one would have to imagine that Michael wouldn't be welcomed back with open arms.

Or might Michael not be actually returning to the island at all? Could Michael’s return be tied into the recently-introduced technique of “flashing forward”…? Hmmm...

For the answers to these and other burning Lost questions, tune in… next February.

Drew Carey... Come on Down!

The interminably-long search for a new host for The Price is Right came to an end a couple of hours ago, and the person chosen by CBS to succeed the venerable Bob Barker is none other than... Drew Carey? Sorry, readers, but that's not a typo.

It seems that the comedian (and onetime star of the primetime sitcom The Drew Carey Show and host of the improv series Whose Line is it Anyway) impressed the suits at CBS while taping the pilot of the upcoming CBS summer game show The Power of 10.

Rumor has it that CBS had at least one back-up candidate in the wings, in case the offer to Carey didn't pan out.

Carey himself will make the official announcement on tonight's edition of Late Show with David Letterman. New episodes of Price with Carey at the helm are scheduled to begin taping in August.

But... Drew Carey? You know, now that I think about it, he does kind of have that early-Bill-Cullen thing going on. And Bill Cullen was the host of the first version of The Price is Right (in the late 50s through the mid 60s). So maybe - just maybe - if Drew can channel his inner-Bill Cullen, then who knows – we just might have a winner here.

We've Missed You, Miss Cleo

It seems as if our friends at VH1 have been quietly assembling a cast for a seventh go-round of the inimitable Surreal Life franchise. And while nothing has yet been made official by VH1, expect to see the likes of the highly-unlikeable "comedian" (and I use that term very loosely) Carrot Top, fraudulent TV-psychic Miss Cleo, wrestling has-been “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Dabney Coleman, and former American Idol contestant Nikki McKibbin among the group of they've-seen-better-days celebrities populating the Surreal Life house.

Carrot Top? Miss Cleo?? Oh yeah, this is gonna be bad.

Did I ever mention that I love bad? God bless you, VH1.

He's Baaaaaaack...

From the “you heard it here first” department: former Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci is coming back to local Rhode Island radio. It's a done deal. As early as later today, expect an official announcement.

It Was Only a Matter of Time

We knew it was coming. In fact, we could see it coming a mile away. Between its anemic-looking fall lineup and its new network sheriff in town, programming changes at 30 Rock prior to the start of the new season were inevitable.

This afternoon, NBC’s newly-crowned co-chair of entertainment Ben Silverman announced a number of adjustments to the network's previously-announced fall schedule. The shakeup affects three nights: Monday, Tuesday, and Friday.

The drama Chuck, which had been scheduled to run Tuesdays-at-9, will now lead off the NBC Monday night schedule. The Biggest Loser will remain in its Tuesday-at-8 slot, but will now expand from 60 minutes to 90 minutes, and a 30-minute version of The Singing Bee (which had been penciled-in as a Friday night midseason replacement for 1 vs. 100), will inherit the Tuesday-at-9:30 slot.

The Monday edition of Deal or No Deal will now assume the Friday-at-8 slot (pushing 1 vs. 100 off to hiatus land), and Las Vegas and Friday Night Lights will now flip time periods: Lights will move to 9:00, and Vegas will slide into the 10:00 slot.

Will any of this help the fall fortunes of the peacock? Considering the disaster that was the original NBC fall lineup, it can’t hurt. But if I were Ben Silverman, I wouldn’t start ordering any celebratory champagne just yet…