‘Engagement’ news for Spade

It looks like David Spade is going to be spending a lot more time on the small screen next spring.

The “Benchwarmers” and “Joe Dirt” star will join the cast of CBS’ midseason comedy “Rules of Engagement.” And if that isn’t enough, Spade will also be sticking around for the third season of “The Showbiz Show With David Spade.”

Seriously, could anybody as for any more Spade?

No.

Like so many of Spade’s big screen efforts, “Rules of Engagement” comes from Sony Pictures TV-based Happy Madison. It focuses on an engaged couple (Bianca Kajlich and Oliver Hudson), a married couple (Patrick Warburton and Megyn Price) and a single guy (Greg Pitts). According to The Hollywood Reporter, Spade will play the best friend of the engaged guy.

Meanwhile, Comedy Central has ordered 13 new weekly episodes of “The Showbiz Show,” Spade’s skewering of either celebrities or of celebrity-obsessed entertainment shows. The season will premiere in February 2007.

Other TV credits for Spade include “Saturday Night Live,” “Just Shoot Me!” and “8 Simple Rules.”

NBC gets its (other) game on

NBC has made its first scheduling change of the season – one that doesn’t involve a show currently on the air.

The network announced Wednesday that it will roll out a new game show, “1 vs. 100,” for a five-week run on Fridays starting Oct. 13. It will debut at 9 p.m., following an episode of “Deal or No Deal,” then move to 8 p.m. the following week and serve as a lead-in for the season premiere of “Las Vegas.”

As a result, veteran drama “Crossing Jordan”- which was scheduled to fill the 8 p.m. Friday spot starting the 20th – is being nudged aside for now. Its premiere date hasn’t been rescheduled yet.

“This entertaining game is a proven winner from Europe that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats as the pressure builds with every question and the financial stakes grow higher,” NBC Entertainment boss Kevin Reilly says. “The introduction of this new show also allows us the luxury of saving such a proven and versatile series as “Crossing Jordan’ for use later in the season.”

Comedian Bob Saget (“The Aristocrats,” “Full House”) will host “1 vs. 100,” in which one player will face off in a trivia challenge against 100 competitors. The solo player has to answer every question correctly, while hoping members of the 100-person mob answer wrong and are eliminated. If the player eliminates everyone, he or she will take home $1 million. Should the single player miss a question, the remaining players among the 100 will split the pot.

The show originated in the Netherlands and has become a hit in several countries. It was brought to these shores by Endemol USA, which also produces “Deal or No Deal.”