David Palmer is dead and buried, but his family will still be a presence on “24” next season.

In the show’s latest round of casting, the Fox thriller has made DB Woodside, who’s had a recurring part as Palmer’s (Dennis Haysbert, now on CBS’ “The Unit”) brother, a regular for the forthcoming sixth season. Regina King (“Ray”) has also joined the cast, playing his sister.

Woodside’s character, Wayne Palmer, will follow in his late brother’s footstep by assuming the presidency, taking over from the twitchy and traitorous Charles Logan (Gregory Itzin). King’s character, Angela, is a “powerful advocacy lawyer,” according to Fox.

How the two new regulars will play into the story of Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) in the coming season remains to be seen. Fox isn’t dropping any details about the season-six plot, although Sutherland has said it will focus at least in part on Jack trying to save his own skin.

Woodside has appeared in the third and fifth seasons of “24.” His credits also include “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Romeo Must Die” and “Murder One.”

The series will be the first live-action TV work for King since she co-starred in the short-lived NBC comedy “Leap of Faith” a few seasons back. She also voices Huey and Riley on Adult Swim’s “The Boondocks.”

In addition to “Ray,” her film credits include “Jerry Maguire,” “Legally Blonde 2” and “Enemy of the State.”

CW staggers its debut

Day One of The CW Era will be Sept. 20. Or, two days after the former UPN and WB affiliates switch over from their former identities.

Although there won’t be dead air on Sept. 18 and 19, The CW’s official launch will happen on the 20th with a two-hour premiere of “America’s Next Top Model.” The new network will then stagger the rollout of its other shows over the next two weeks.

Pro-wrestling franchise “Friday Night Smackdown!” will be next up, making its CW debut Sept. 22. The weekday schedule will fall into place the following week, with the network’s Sunday comedies premiering Oct. 1 and “Veronica Mars” forming the last piece of the puzzle on Oct. 3.

-Zap2it.com

UPN officially ends its life as a network on Sept. 15; The WB will go off the air two nights later. Affiliates of The CW will switch over on Sept. 18. The two days before the “Top Model” premiere will probably be filled with repeats and a premiere special, says Dawn Ostroff, president of entertainment at The CW. They’ll also allow the network to “iron out the kinks” caused by the changeover.

The CW, you may have heard, was born from the merger of UPN and The WB and will feature a schedule that combines shows from both networks along with a couple of new shows. It will reach about 95 percent of the country.

Here are the premiere dates (all times Eastern, new shows in bold):

Wednesday, Sept. 20

8 p.m. “America’s Next Top Model” (two hours)

Friday, Sept. 22

8 p.m. “Friday Night Smackdown!”

Monday, Sept. 25

8 p.m. “7th Heaven” 9 p.m. “Runaway”

Tuesday, Sept. 26

8 p.m. “Gilmore Girls”

Wednesday, Sept. 27

9 p.m. “One Tree Hill”

Thursday, Sept. 28

8 p.m. “Smallville” 9 p.m. “Supernatural”

Sunday, Oct. 1

7 p.m. “Everybody Hates Chris” (new timeslot) 7:30 p.m. “All of Us” (new timeslot) 8 p.m. “Girlfriends” (new timeslot) 8:30 p.m. “The Game” 9 p.m. “America’s Next Top Model” encore

Tuesday, Oct. 3

9 p.m. “Veronica Mars”

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Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

AP-NY-07-17-06 1626EDT