BC-TV-BRIEFS:ZP – entertainment, people (980 words)

Television news briefs

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‘Blue’ stud reports to “Commander’

Steven Bochco has already made his mark behind the scenes of ABC’s “Commander in Chief,” and viewers will soon see a Bochco veteran in front of the camera as well.

Mark-Paul Gosselaar, who starred in the final four seasons of Bochco’s “NYPD Blue,” is joining the cast of “Chief” starting with the show’s ninth episode, which will likely air in late November. Bochco took over as the series’ showrunner – replacing creator Rod Lurie – starting with episode seven.

Gosselaar will play a “slick, savvy media strategist” on the series, ABC says, although the network isn’t saying whether he joins the team around the first female president, Mackenzie Allen (Geena Davis), or works for one of her political foes.

Bochco was named executive producer and showrunner of “Commander in Chief” earlier this month, reportedly to ensure that the show, the most-watched new series this season, would run smoothly and meet its deadlines. Lurie, who wrote the pilot script but focused more on directing after the show was picked up, retains an executive producer credit but has moved on to a development deal at “Chief” producer Touchstone TV.

Gosselaar played Detective John Clark on “NYPD Blue” from 2001 until the show’s end in March of this year. The one-time “Saved by the Bell” star has one other Washington-based show on his resume: the short-lived 2000 drama “D.C.,” which aired on The WB.

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DAYTIME MULLALLY SHOW A GO

Life after “Will & Grace” is starting to shape up for Megan Mullally, as a daytime show she’s developing has been sold in the country’s biggest markets.

The Emmy winner’s talk-variety show, set to launch in fall 2006, has been picked up by NBC-owned stations in four of the country’s largest markets – New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco – according to the showbiz trade papers. Typically, syndicated shows have to secure a run in at least New York and Los Angeles, the top two markets, to have a chance at success.

Chicago is the nation’s third-biggest market, while San Francisco, which also encompasses Oakland and San Jose, is sixth.

The exact format for Mullally’s show hasn’t been set in stone. It’s expected to combine some traditional talk-show elements with segments that will allow Mullally, who’s earned six straight Emmy nominations for her work on “Will & Grace,” to show off her comedic and musical talents.

So far, Mullally’s show, which is being syndicated by NBC Universal, and a King World show starring ubiquitous Food Network star Rachael Ray are the two daytime shows announced for next fall. The three big launches this year – “Martha,” “The Tyra Banks Show” and “Judge Alex” – are all performing reasonably well in their first weeks on the air.

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NBC FLIPS SCHEDULE, CHANGES MIND, FLIPS BACK

Last week, in a somewhat puzzling one-time-only move, NBC said that two of its freshman series, “E-Ring” and “Three Wishes,” would swap time periods this week.

“E-Ring,” the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced military drama, was to move to 8 p.m. ET Friday, while the feel-good show “Three Wishes” would take over its spot at 8 p.m. Wednesday for a “special military episode” in an Ohio town that’s home to a Marine regiment that has suffered heavy casualties in Iraq.

NBC gave no reason for the move, which would have taken “E-Ring” out of the way of a World Series game on Fox Wednesday and offered up “Three Wishes” as more obvious counter-programming.

But sometime between Wednesday, when NBC announced the schedule change, and the weekend, someone at the network thought better of it. So now “E-Ring” and “Three Wishes” have been moved back to their original spots, electronic listings grids reflect the change and weekly TV books, which were probably printed before the switch anyway, aren’t wrong.

After the switch was first announced, both “E-Ring” and “Three Wishes” turned in their best performances since the start of the season. The former drew about 9.4 million viewers, its biggest audience since its premiere, while “Wishes” hit its highest ratings ever.

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UPN GOES “TOP MODEL’ CRAZY IN SWEEPS

“America’s Next Top Model” has been UPN’s highest-rated show for much of the last couple of seasons. Now, the network is banking that the show’s past participants will draw viewers to its other shows as well.

The week of Nov. 7 – the first full week of November sweeps – has been dubbed “Top Model Week” on the network. Past or current contestants from the show will appear on UPN programs – even “Friday Night Smackdown!” – each night that week.

In fact, only a music special honoring Patti LaBelle on Nov. 8 and “Everybody Hates Chris” (the only UPN show doing better than “Top Model” this fall) on Nov. 10 will be model-free.

The network’s Monday comedies will all feature guest appearances by past “ANTM” contestants on Nov. 7. Season three’s Norelle Van Herk will pop up on “One on One,” followed by Mercedes Yvette on “All of Us,” Toccara Jones on “Girlfriends” and Keenyah Hill on “Half & Half.”

The previous week’s “Top Model” episode will air prior to the LaBelle special on the 8th. On Wednesday, Nov. 9, third-season winner Eva Pigford will drop in on the current contestants, and that week’s challenge winner will earn a guest role on the “Veronica Mars” episode that follows – which also features “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” creator/”Mars” fan Joss Whedon in a guest role, along with a returning Harry Hamlin.

Thursday, Nov. 10, will find season four contestant Brittany Brower and “Top Model’s” two Jays, Manuel and Alexander, on “Love, Inc.,” “Eve” and “Cuts,” respectively. The week will wrap up with season four’s Michelle Deighton, who’s also an aspiring pro wrestler, on “Smackdown!”

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AP-NY-10-24-05 1628EDT