Leno’s guests for the premiere week of The Tonight Show include former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, gold medal Olympians Apolo Anton Ohno, Shaun White and Lindsey Vonn, American Idol singer Adam Lambert, the cast of MTV’s Jersey Shore, country singer Brad Paisley and American Idol judge Simon Cowell. Leno’s upcoming guests in the following weeks include Morgan Freeman, Kim Kardashian, Jamie Foxx and Dakota Fanning.

The controversy surrounding the cast of MTV’s Jersey Shore and recent comments by American Idol judge Simon Cowell should intrigue viewers and provide some colorful moments during the first week of the show. The combination of Sarah Palin and Adam Lambert booked on the same night, along with the fact that Palin’s first interview on a late-night talk show is the rival to David Letterman’s show, with whom Palin has feuded with in the past, might pique viewer interest. This could be good programming or clever fanning of the flames to gain viewership from bad PR that might result in lower ratings than competitor Letterman’s show.

The Late Show with David Letterman is counter programming in coming weeks with scheduled guests Jerry Seinfeld, Matt Damon, Tom Brokaw and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. Seinfeld, who is a friend of Leno’s and promoting his new NBC show The Marriage Ref will appear on CBS’s The Late Show the first week Leno is back in action.

More controversy was stoked when it was announced on February 16 that Kevin Eubanks, bandleader of Leno’s Tonight Show and his primetime show The Jay Leno Show, is leaving as bandleader soon after the The Tonight Show resumes production.

The Tonight Show’s star-studded line-up for March should gain interest from viewers. The question is will the bad publicity from what some viewers may see as removing O’Brien to replace him with previous Tonight Show host Leno be forgotten that easily? Time and ratings will tell the story.

In an interview, the 88-year-old White commented on the Facebook situation. “I’m just amazed,” White said from Las Vegas, having been honored earlier that day by the Morris Animal Foundation at the P&G Pet Care luncheon. “I would think by now that they’ve had such an overdose of Betty White that they’d be throwing rocks instead.”

ABC’s Diane Sawyer interviewed White yesterday about being the toast of social networking. White called herself a “technological spaz,” amazed at the Facebook fan club and stated “ridiculous; they just dig old ladies.” A typical Betty White comment…how can you not like her?

White is a comedic institution, with a career spanning over 65 years in the television industry. White starred in classic shows like Mary Tyler Moore and Golden Girls, showcasing her superb comic timing. More recently she had a recurring role on Boston Legal. White’s popular Super Bowl ad was one of the more successful ads featured during the Super Bowl.

White has won six Emmy Awards and received 18 Emmy nominations over her career, and was the first woman to receive an Emmy for game show hosting. White received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1988, the star is next to her late husband, Allen Ludden,’s star. White is the author of “Betty White’s Pet-Love: How Pets Take Care of Us” and her autobiography, “Betty White in Person”.

White is an animal rights activist, animal health advocate and pet enthusiast, supporting such charities as Actors and Others for Animals, Los Angeles Zoo Commission, the Morris Animal Foundation, and is a sponsor for Farm Animal Reform Movement and Friends of Animals.

Next up for White is a female revenge flick “You Again,” costarring Kristen Chenoweth, Sigourney Weaver, Kristen Bell, Jamie Lee Curtis and Victor Garber. The movie is set to release in September 2010.

At the end of the Leno interview Winfrey made it clear O’Brien was also invited for a interview to reveal his side of things. O’Brien’s people stated now was not the right time for an interview. Winfrey left the invitation for O’Brien open whenever the time was right for an interview on her show. From the Leno interview and conversations online it looks like Leno and NBC have some work to do to smooth over the past few weeks controversy and get back on the road to high ratings on The Tonight Show when it begins to air with Leno as host starting March 1.

Later in the evening on ABC, Jimmy Kimmel’s monologue revealed an irked Kimmel commenting on Leno’s statement Kimmel “sucker-punched” him on Leno’s 10 at 10 segment during the Oprah interview. Kimmel seemed none too pleased over being shown as a bad guy by Leno in the Oprah interview since most comics would joke about the situation, being news of the day. Kimmel then proceeded to show an edited clip of Leno’s interview complete with R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts”, meant to skewer Leno.

Read portions of the Oprah/Leno interview transcript:

WINFREY: When they came into your office, they, NBC executives, come to your office, your show is number one in nighttime and tell you that you’re going to be moving out in five years, what is your first reaction to that?
Mr. LENO: It broke my heart. It really did. I was devastated. This is the job that I always wanted and it was the only job that ever mattered in show business to me. It’s the job every comic aspires to…

WINFREY: So in your mind this happened or that move happened, because Conan wanted that spot?
Mr. LENO: Yeah…

WINFREY: When the numbers started to drop, was your ego bruised by that? Because you’re used to being number one.
Mr. LENO: I wouldn’t say my ego was bruised. I felt bad for everybody on the show and I felt bad for our affiliates. A couple weeks ago I called the head of the affiliate board and I said listen, they’re the ones that canceled us, and I said, “I’m sorry I let you guys down. I mean, you guys supported us, you went along with the decision. I’m sorry our show wasn’t successful for you.”
WINFREY: Because if it had worked, it would have saved millions of dollars.
Mr. LENO: Yeah. Yeah. Actually, the odd thing is, it was making money for the network, it wasn’t for the affiliates.
WINFREY: The other side of that, many people say that your going into prime time five nights a week, it took away thousands of jobs from other people who would have been working on dramas…
Mr. LENO: I’ve got to admit, that was not something I even realized until we went on the air. But they’re not wrong. I have to admit, that one did catch me. We were on the air when I realized, wow, I have to admit, that one I didn’t know about that…

WINFREY: Had Conan’s numbers been higher, you’d have never been asked to go back to take the time slot?
Mr. LENO: I never expected this to happen. People think you’re behind the scenes pulling strings. There’s no strings to pull. I have a show that’s been canceled. So why would I have any power to go, oh, I want that? What happened was NBC came to me and they said, “Look, your show was down 14%, Conan’s show was down 49%. We have a plan. We want to keep you both” because I asked, I said, “Can I be released from my contract?” And they said no.
WINFREY: This was your contract on the prime time show?
Mr. LENO: On the prime time show.
WINFREY: When did you ask that, Jay?
Mr. LENO: I asked maybe a day after we got canceled. And I said, “Well, can I move on?” “No, you’re still a valuable asset.” I said, “You fired me twice, how valuable can I be as an asset?” “Oh, no, we want to keep you.” I said okay. And they said, “Here’s our plan…

WINFREY: Was there any part of you that thought, “You know, let me think about this. Let me have a conversation with Conan. Let me see if Conan wants to take the hour?” Was there any part of you that thought, “You know what? I’ve already done that enough let’s move on.”
Mr. LENO: Actually, it wasn’t my place to call Conan and say, you know, they made this offer to me, and I said, “Do you think Conan will go for this?” and they said, “We’ll ask him tomorrow.” I said, “Okay, let me know what happens.” And then the next thing you know, I guess Conan had his article in the paper and that was that.
WINFREY: Yeah. Conan said he thought it would be destructive to the franchise and that if he took that spot…
Mr. LENO: Well, if you look at what the ratings were, it was already destructive to the franchise…

WINFREY: Have you talked to Conan in person throughout all this?
Mr. LENO: No, I haven’t.
WINFREY: Did you want to pick up the phone?
Mr. LENO: Yeah, but it didn’t seem appropriate.
WINFREY: Why?
Mr. LENO: I don’t know. I think let things cool down and maybe we’ll talk, you know…

Read the full transcript of the Oprah/Leno interview at Deadline Hollywood

O’Brien has been faced with making a decision following NBC’s plan to cancel Jay Leno’s primetime show and move Leno back to his late night position. The change cuts Jay Leno’s time to a half hour as a lead in for The Tonight Show, moving The Tonight Show to 12:05 p.m. start time. Rumblings from both Leno and O’Brien camps as well as the late night hosts humorous jabs at NBC are adding to the late night drama.

As you would expect from O’Brien, his press release includes good humor, graciousness in the face of a bad situation and his concerns about the welfare of The Tonight Show’s legacy show what a class act he is.

Read Conan O’Brien’s Press Release

Story online at Associated Press:
Conan O’Brien NBC Story

Official Press Release

“People of Earth:

In the last few days, I’ve been getting a lot of sympathy calls,
and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a
second feeling sorry for me. For 17 years, I’ve been getting paid to
do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I’ve been
absurdly lucky. That said, I’ve been suddenly put in a very public
predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision.

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The
Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching
Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair
has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that
opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I
have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the
franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like
my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as
important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time
schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without
both.

But sadly, we were never given that chance. After only seven
months, with my Tonight Show in its infancy, NBC has decided to react
to their terrible difficulties in prime-time by making a change in
their long-established late night schedule.

Last Thursday, NBC executives told me they intended to move the
Tonight Show to 12:05 to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 11:35. For
60 years the Tonight Show has aired immediately following the late
local news. I sincerely believe that delaying the Tonight Show into
the next day to accommodate another comedy program will seriously
damage what I consider to be the greatest franchise in the history of
broadcasting. The Tonight Show at 12:05 simply isn’t the Tonight Show.
Also, if I accept this move I will be knocking the Late Night show,
which I inherited from David Letterman and passed on to Jimmy Fallon,
out of its long-held time slot. That would hurt the other NBC
franchise that I love, and it would be unfair to Jimmy.

So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy
hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it
is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked
unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the
legacy of The Tonight Show. But I cannot participate in what I
honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the
argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn’t matter.
But with the Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.

There has been speculation about my going to another network but,
to set the record straight, I currently have no other offer and
honestly have no idea what happens next. My hope is that NBC and I can
resolve this quickly so that my staff, crew, and I can do a show we
can be proud of, for a company that values our work.

Have a great day and, for the record, I am truly sorry about my
hair; it’s always been that way.

Yours,

Conan”

The official press release about the Ugly Betty move states: “‘Ugly Betty’ is moving to Wednesdays at 10:00 p.m., ET beginning January 6, 2010, rounding out ABC Comedy Wednesday.”

“‘Ugly Betty’ stars America Ferrera as Betty Suarez, Eric Mabius as Daniel Meade, Tony Plana as Ignacio, Ana Ortiz as Hilda, Judith Light as Claire Meade, Becki Newton as Amanda, Michael Urie as Marc, Mark Indelicato as Justin, Daniel Eric Gold as Matt Hartley and Vanessa Williams as Wilhelmina Slater.”

“Based on ‘Yo Soy Betty La Fea,’ the groundbreaking Colombian telenovela that became an international phenomenon, ‘Ugly Betty’ is from ABC Studios. The series has been awarded Emmy, Golden Globe, Peabody, NAACP, ALMA and Imagen awards and earned 19 Emmy nominations.”

With so many awards and such popularity it is a wonder that ABC moved the popular series from its successful Thursday night time slot. After much backlash from Ugly Betty fans, ABC has moved Ugly Betty to Wednesday nights at 10:00 p.m. starting January 6, 2010 with new episodes of the popular series. This schedule pairs Ugly Betty with the popular lineup of freshman hits Modern Family and Cougartown, giving ABC two hours of solid comedy shows on ABC’s all-comedy Wednesday night schedule and providing a willing audience of new as well as old fans to the comedy series.

Watch Ugly Betty on ABC at its new time Wednesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Gervais has previously appeared on HBO in “Extras,” winning him an Emmy as best comedy actor. Gervais starred in and created the British TV series “The Office,” which was adapted for the hit series for the American audience on NBC.

“The Ricky Gervais Show debuts on HBO a month after the Globes,” Gervais blogged recently, mentioning the launch of the show follows his upcoming gig as host of the host of the Golden Globe Awards January 17. “I think it could be bigger than Extras. Big words. Well to Karl they’re big words.”

Gervais, Merchant and Pilkington serve as producers for the half-hour animated show, with animation created by Wildbrain, the company behind the popular preschool show Yo Gabba Gabba.

Gervais stated he wanted to keep the new show running long term because of Pilkington – “a global village idiot, but the funniest man alive”.

“Karl is a bottomless well of stupidity, so unlike my other shows The Office and Extras, which I stopped prematurely through fear of going stale and running out of ideas, I want this to run and run like The Simpsons. The world has a new Homer, but this one is real,” said Gervais.

Gervais is known for creating and starring in British comedies. The successful American spinoff of The Office is produced by Gervais. Gervais has starred in the films “Ghost Town” and “The Invention of Lying”. His children’s book series is a bestseller and is being adapted into a 3-D animated feature film.

The Ricky Gervais Show will premiere February 19th on HBO.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards will be simulcast live on Saturday, January 23, 2010, on TBS and TNT at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Screen Actors Guild 2010 Television Nominations List

PRIMETIME TELEVISION

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries

KEVIN BACON / Lt. Col. Michael R. Strobl – “TAKING CHANCE” (HBO)
CUBA GOODING, JR. / Ben Carson – “GIFTED HANDS: THE BEN CARSON STORY” (TNT)
JEREMY IRONS / Alfred Stieglitz – “GEORGIA O’KEEFFE” (Lifetime)
KEVIN KLINE / Cyrano de Bergerac – “GREAT PERFORMANCES: CYRANO de BERGERAC” (PBS)
TOM WILKINSON / Salter – “A NUMBER” (HBO)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries

JOAN ALLEN / Georgia O’Keeffe – “GEORGIA O’KEEFFE” (Lifetime)
DREW BARRYMORE / Little Edie – “GREY GARDENS” (HBO)
RUBY DEE / Mrs. Harper – “AMERICA” (Lifetime)
JESSICA LANGE / Big Edie – “GREY GARDENS” (HBO)
SIGOURNEY WEAVER / Mary Griffith – “PRAYERS FOR BOBBY” (Lifetime)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series

SIMON BAKER / Patrick Jane – “THE MENTALIST” (CBS)
BRYAN CRANSTON / Walter White – “BREAKING BAD” (AMC)
MICHAEL C. HALL / Dexter Morgan – “DEXTER” (Showtime)
JON HAMM / Don Draper – “MAD MEN” (AMC)
HUGH LAURIE / House – “HOUSE” (FOX)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series

PATRICIA ARQUETTE/ Allison Dubois – “MEDIUM” (NBC/CBS)
GLENN CLOSE / Patty Hewes – “DAMAGES” (FX)
MARISKA HARGITAY / Det. Olivia Benson – “LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT” (NBC)
HOLLY HUNTER / Grace Hanadarko – “SAVING GRACE” (TNT)
JULIANNA MARGULIES / Alicia Florrick – “THE GOOD WIFE” (CBS)
KYRA SEDGWICK / Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson – “THE CLOSER” (TNT)

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series

ALEC BALDWIN / Jack Donaghy – “30 ROCK” (NBC)
STEVE CARELL / Michael Scott – “THE OFFICE” (NBC)
LARRY DAVID / Himself – “CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM” (HBO)
TONY SHALHOUB / Adrian Monk – “MONK” (USA NETWORK)
CHARLIE SHEEN / Charlie Harper – “TWO AND A HALF MEN” (CBS)

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
CHRISTINA APPLEGATE / Samantha Newly – “SAMANTHA WHO?” (ABC)
TONI COLLETTE / Tara Gregor – “UNITED STATES OF TARA” (Showtime)
EDIE FALCO / Jackie Peyton – “NURSE JACKIE” (Showtime)
TINA FEY / Liz Lemon – “30 ROCK” (NBC)
JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS / Christine Campbell – “THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE” (CBS)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series

THE CLOSER (TNT)

G.W. BAILEY / Lt. Provenza
MICHAEL PAUL CHAN / Lt. Mike Tao
RAYMOND CRUZ / Det. Julio Sanchez
TONY DENISON / Lt. Andy Flynn
ROBERT GOSSETT / Commander Taylor
PHILLIP P. KEENE / Buzz Watson
COREY REYNOLDS / Sgt. David Gabriel
KYRA SEDGWICK / Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson
J.K. SIMMONS / Asst. Police Chief Will Pope
JON TENNEY / FBI Special Agent Fritz Howard

DEXTER (Showtime)

PRESTON BAILEY / Cody
JULIE BENZ / Rita Bennett
JENNIFER CARPENTER / Debra Morgan
COURTNEY FORD / Christine
MICHAEL C. HALL / Dexter Morgan
DESMOND HARRINGTON / Joey Quinn
C.S. LEE / Vince Masuka
JOHN LITHGOW / Arthur Mitchell
RICK PETERS / Elliot
JAMES REMAR / Harry Morgan
CHRISTINA ROBINSON / Astor
LAUREN VÉLEZ / Lt. Maria Laguerta
DAVID ZAYAS / Angel Batista

THE GOOD WIFE (CBS)

CHRISTINE BARANSKI / Diane Lockhart
JOSH CHARLES / Will Gardner
MATT CZUCHRY / Cary Agos
JULIANNA MARGULIES / Alicia Florrick
ARCHIE PANJABI / Kalinda Sharma
GRAHAM PHILLIPS / Zach Florrick
MacKENZIE VEGA / Grace Florrick

MAD MEN (AMC)

ALEXA ALEMANNI / Allison
BRYAN BATT / Salvatore Romano
JARED S. GILMORE / Bobby Draper
MICHAEL GLADIS / Paul Linsey
JON HAMM / Don Draper
JARED HARRIS / Lane Pryce
CHRISTINA HENDRICKS / Joan Holloway (Harris)
JANUARY JONES / Betty Draper
VINCENT KARTHEISER / Peter Campbell
ROBERT MORSE / Bertram Cooper
ELISABETH MOSS / Peggy Olson
KIERNAN SHIPKA / Sally Draper
JOHN SLATTERY / Roger Sterling
RICH SOMMER / Harry Crane
CHRISTOPHER STANLEY / Henry Francis
AARON STATON / Ken Cosgrove

TRUE BLOOD (HBO)

CHRIS BAUER / Andy Bellefleur
MEHCAD BROOKS / Eggs
ANNA CAMP / Sarah Newlin
NELSAN ELLIS / Lafayette Reynolds
MICHELLE FORBES / Maryann Forrester
MARIANA KLAVENO / Lorena
RYAN KWANTEN / Jason Stackhouse
TODD LOWE / Terry Bellefleur
MICHAEL McMILLIAN / Steve Newlin
STEPHEN MOYER / Bill Compton
ANNA PAQUIN / Sookie Stackhouse
JIM PARRACK / Hoyt Fortenberry
CARRIE PRESTON / Arlene Fowler
WILLIAM SANDERSON / Bud Dearborne
ALEXANDER SKARSGÅRD / Eric Northman
SAM TRAMMELL / Sam Merlotte
RUTINA WESLEY / Tara Thornton
DEBORAH ANN WOLL / Jessica Hamby

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series

30 ROCK (NBC)

SCOTT ADSIT / Pete Hornberger
ALEC BALDWIN / Jack Donaghy
KATRINA BOWDEN / Cerie
KEVIN BROWN / Dot Com
GRIZZ CHAPMAN / Grizz
TINA FEY / Liz Lemon
JUDAH FRIEDLANDER / Frank Rossitano
JANE KRAKOWSKI / Jenna Maroney
JOHN LUTZ / Lutz
JACK McBRAYER / Kenneth Parcell
TRACY MORGAN / Tracy Jordan
KEITH POWELL / Toofer

CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (HBO)

LARRY DAVID / Himself
SUSIE ESSMAN / Susie Greene
JEFF GARLIN / Jeff Greene
CHERYL HINES / Cheryl David

GLEE (FOX)

DIANA AGRON / Quinn Fabray
CHRIS COLFER / Kurt Hummel
PATRICK GALLAGHER / Ken Tanaka
JESSALYN GILSIG / Terri Schuester
JANE LYNCH / Sue Sylvester
JAYMA MAYS / Emma Pillsbury
KEVIN McHALE / Arty Abrams
LEA MICHELE / Rachel Berry
CORY MONTEITH / Finn Hudson
HEATHER MORRIS / Brittany
MATTHEW MORRISON / Will Schuester
AMBER RILEY / Mercedes
NAYA RIVERA / Santana Lopez
MARK SALLING / Puck
HARRY SHUM JR. / Mike Chang
JOSH SUSSMAN / Jacob Ben Israel
DIJON TALTON / Matt Rutherford
IQBAL THEBA / Principal Figgins
JENNA USHKOWITZ / Tina

MODERN FAMILY (ABC)

JULIE BOWEN / Claire Dunphy
TY BURRELL / Phil Dunphy
JESSE TYLER FERGUSON / Mitchell Pritchett
NOLAN GOULD / Luke Dunphy
SARAH HYLAND / Haley Dunphy
ED O’NEILL / Jay Pritchett
RICO RODRIGUEZ / Manny Delgado
ERIC STONESTREET / Cameron
SOFIA VERGARA / Gloria Delgado-Pritchett
ARIEL WINTER / Alex Dunphy

THE OFFICE (NBC)

LESLIE DAVID BAKER / Stanley Hudson
BRIAN BAUMGARTNER / Kevin Malone
CREED BRATTON / Creed Bratton
STEVE CARELL / Michael Scott
JENNA FISCHER / Pam Beesly
KATE FLANNERY / Meredith Palmer
ED HELMS/ Andy Bernard
MINDY KALING / Kelly Kapoor
ELLIE KEMPER / Kellie Erin Hannon
ANGELA KINSEY / Angela Martin
JOHN KRASINSKI / Jim Halpert
PAUL LIEBERSTEIN / Toby Flenderson
B.J. NOVAK / Ryan Howard
OSCAR NUÑEZ / Oscar Martinez
CRAIG ROBINSON / Darryl Philbin
PHYLLIS SMITH / Phillis Lapin-Vance
RAINN WILSON / Dwight Schrute

LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Screen Actors Guild Awards Life Achievement Award
Betty White

Watch the Golden Globes January 17, 2010 from 5-8 PM (PST) and 8-11 PM (EST) live coast to coast on NBC.

Golden Globe 2010 Television Nominations List

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

1. BIG LOVE (HBO)
Anima Sola and Playtone in association with HBO Entertainment
2. DEXTER (SHOWTIME)
Showtime Presents, John Goldwyn Productions, The Colleton Company, Clyde Phillips Productions
3. HOUSE (FOX)
Universal Media Studios in association with Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z Productions and Bad Hat Harry
4. MAD MEN (AMC)
AMC
5. TRUE BLOOD (HBO)
Your Face Goes Here Entertainment in association with HBO Entertainment

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
DRAMA

1. GLENN CLOSE
DAMAGES
2. JANUARY JONES
MAD MEN
3. JULIANNA MARGULIES
THE GOOD WIFE
4. ANNA PAQUIN
TRUE BLOOD
5. KYRA SEDGWICK
THE CLOSER

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

1. SIMON BAKER
THE MENTALIST
2. MICHAEL C. HALL
DEXTER
3. JON HAMM
MAD MEN
4. HUGH LAURIE
HOUSE
5. BILL PAXTON
BIG LOVE

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

1. 30 ROCK (NBC)
Universal Media Studios in association with Broadway Video and Little Stranger Inc.
2. ENTOURAGE (HBO)
Leverage and Closest to the Hole Productions in association with HBO Entertainment
3. GLEE (FOX)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
4. MODERN FAMILY (ABC)
Twentieth Century Fox Television
5. THE OFFICE (NBC)
Universal Media Studios, Deedle Dee Productions, Reveille LLC

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL

1. TONI COLLETTE
UNITED STATES OF TARA
2. COURTENEY COX
COUGAR TOWN
3. EDIE FALCO
NURSE JACKIE
4. TINA FEY
30 ROCK
5. LEA MICHELE
GLEE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES –
COMEDY OR MUSICAL

1. ALEC BALDWIN
30 ROCK
2. STEVE CARELL
THE OFFICE
3. DAVID DUCHOVNY
CALIFORNICATION
4. THOMAS JANE
HUNG
5. MATTHEW MORRISON
GLEE

BEST MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

1. GEORGIA O’KEEFFE (LIFETIME TELEVISION)
Sony Pictures Television
2. GREY GARDENS (HBO)
Specialty Films and Locomotive in association with HBO Films
3. INTO THE STORM (HBO)
Scott Free and Rainmark Films Production in association with the BBC and HBO Films
4. LITTLE DORRIT (PBS)
Masterpiece/BBC Co-production
5. TAKING CHANCE (HBO)
Motion Picture Corporation of America and Civil Dawn Pictures in association with HBO Films

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION
PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

1. JOAN ALLEN
GEORGIA O’KEEFFE
2. DREW BARRYMORE
GREY GARDENS
3. JESSICA LANGE
GREY GARDENS
4. ANNA PAQUIN
THE COURAGEOUS HEART OF IRENA SENDLER
5. SIGOURNEY WEAVER
PRAYERS FOR BOBBY

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOTION
PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

1. KEVIN BACON
TAKING CHANCE
2. KENNETH BRANAGH
WALLANDER: ONE STEP BEHIND
3. CHIWETEL EJIOFOR
ENDGAME
4. BRENDAN GLEESON
INTO THE STORM
5. JEREMY IRONS
GEORGIA O’KEEFFE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A
SERIES, MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

1. JANE ADAMS
HUNG
2. ROSE BYRNE
DAMAGES
3. JANE LYNCH
GLEE
4. JANET McTEER
INTO THE STORM
5. CHLOË SEVIGNY
BIG LOVE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES,
MINI-SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

1. MICHAEL EMERSON
LOST
2. NEIL PATRICK HARRIS
HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
3. WILLIAM HURT
DAMAGES
4. JOHN LITHGOW
DEXTER
5. JEREMY PIVEN
ENTOURAGE

“‘Acquiring a series of this caliber truly underscores our commitment to defining TV Guide Network as a destination for some of the best shows on television,” President of TV Guide Network and TVGuide.com Ryan O’Hara stated. “‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ is our second major acquisition this year and it will become another key building block in our programming line-up for 2010 and beyond.”

“We are excited to bring ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm to TV Land PRIME,” President of TV Land Larry W. Jones commented. “Curb Your Enthusiasm’ is one of the most clever, witty and groundbreaking shows on television and we’re excited to have it join our roster of top-quality sitcoms. The irreverent way ‘Curb’ uses characters to illuminate real-life situations fit perfectly with our strategy of delivering programming that is geared to the life stage and attitudes of people in their 40s.”

TV Guide Network will start showing season one through seven of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” in February 2010. TV Land expects to show “Curb Your Enthusiasm” after the TV Guide run starting in 2013. HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” is in it seventh year and also stars Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin and Susie Essman.

TV Guide Network is viewed by more than 80 million nationwide. TVGuide.com is also available online, providing 21 million visitors information on their favorite shows. TV Guide Network currently shows episodes of “Ugly Betty” and “American Idol Rewind.”

TV Land PRIME programming features original programming, contemporary syndication television series and movies. TV Land PRIME is part of TV Land network, geared towards entertainment for viewers in their 40s and 50s.

Scripps CEO chairman and president Kenneth Lowe stated “Combining the Travel Channel with Food Network and HGTV will make our fast-growing, young company the undisputed global leader in lifestyle programming”.

“Adding the Travel Channel, and its related enterprises, provides us with a unique opportunity to meaningfully expand our portfolio into a lifestyle category that’s highly desirable to media consumers, advertisers and programming distributors,” Lowe stated. “Our vision for Travel follows the same script that’s made Food Network and HGTV two of the most powerful brands in all of television.”

Scripps will spend $181 million in this partnership venture, paying $181 cash and the rest as a debt of $696 million for 65% of Travel Channel, with Cox retaining 35% of the channel. Scripps is the owner of Food Network and HGTV channels and outbid News Corp. to acquire a portion of Travel channel. Cox will be a contributor to the Travel channel.

The bidding competition began after Cox received unsolicited bids for the Travel Channel. Scripps has a national audience of 95 million in the United States. Their shows include “Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations,” “Man v. Food,” “Madventures” and “Most Haunted.” Scripps Network Interactive will be the controlling factor in the venture, with the Travel Channel part of Scripps lifestyle media brands.

Cox Chief Financial Officer Mark Bowser said in a statement “The two areas where we would see the largest opportunity would be international and would be digital”. At a September 16 investor conference Financial Officer Joseph NeCastro said his company was interested in the network because of the genre and size of the channel audience.

Scripps Networks is located in Cincinnati. Scripps Networks cable lifestyle channels include the popular cable channels DIY Network, HGTV and the Food Network. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. was hired in June 2009 to advise Cox on the Travel Channel acquisition.