TVSquad

TBS started the 100-episode order with the Tyler Perry family of sitcoms. And now they're at it again with a similar offer on the table for a television adaptation of Ice Cube's film Are We There Yet? Even better, they've nabbed Everybody Hates Chris' Terry Crews to play Nick, the role Ice Cube played in the film and its sequel.

Crews was always the funniest character on Everybody Hates Chris, and seeing him as the fish out of water marrying into an instant family should give him plenty of opportunity for laughs. It's nice to see that shows featuring predominantly African American casts are still being developed somewhere since they've left network television completely now with the cancellation of The CW's comedies.

Bless Oprah Winfrey's soul for all the good work she does in the name of bettering humanity. She gets people to read, she gives poor kids scholarships, she reaches out to victims of environmental disaster, and, of course, there was that time she gave a new car to everyone in her audience. She's a money fairy out to save the world, and we applaud her for it.

But then there are times when Oprah's weird side comes out, when that unique connection she so strongly maintains with her audience - both in the studio and viewers at home - is broken in favor of reminders that, oh yeah, Planet Oprah might not be such a crazy notion. The lady probably uses $100 bills to clean her teeth. And, in case you'd forgotten, she and buddies Gayle King and Tyler Perry will remind you, as they did while palling around on Friday's show, on which Oprah retold a super-nauseating story about Perry giving her the most incredibly unnecessary gift a media mogul could ever not hope for.

Hey, if this means more coverage for Mad Men, I'm all for it.

Lionsgate, the studio that produces both that AMC show and Showtime's Weeds, has bought both TVGuide.com and The TV Guide Network. This may come as a surprise to readers who thought that they were sold a couple of weeks ago to someone else. Turns out that deal was final yet and Lionsgate came in quickly with another offer and it was OK'd.

• At 7:30, ESPN2 has coverage of the Rogers Cup tennis tournament.
• At 8, CBS has a new Power of 10.
• FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance at 8, then a new Don't Forget The Lyrics.
• BBC America has a new What's Eating Victoria Beckham at 8.
• At 8:30, ABC has anew Knights of Prosperity (there's another new episode at 9:30).
• At 9, NBC has a new Last Comic Standing, then a new Dateline.
• TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne starting at 9.
• Discovery has a new Mythbusters at 9, followed by a new Cash Cab.
• Travel Channel has a new World Poker Tour at 9.
• At 10, ABC has a new episode of The Nine.
• There's a new Rescue Me on FX at 10.
• Bravo has a new Top Chef at 10.
• Sci-Fi has a new Mind Control with Derren Brown at 10.
• Also at 10: Food Network has a new Dinner: Impossible.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, ABC has a new The Next Best Thing, followed by a new American Inventor.
• NBC has a new Most Outrageous Moments at 8, then new episodes of Last Comic Standing and Dateline.
• FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance at 8, then a new Don't Forget The Lyrics.
• Discovery has a new Really Big Things at 8.
• At 9, CNBC has Big Mac: Inside The McDonald's Empire.
• There are two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne on TBS at 9.
• On a new Challenge, cooks try to make the ultimate Simpsons cake. It's on Food Network at 9.
• At 10, PBS has a new American Masters.
• FX has a new Rescue Me at 10.
• Discovery has two new eps of Cash Cab starting at 10.
• Also at 10: HBO repeats Bill Maher's live special from last weekend.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, ABC has a new The Next Best Thing, followed by a new American Inventor and the series finale (?) of Traveler.
• FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance at 8.
• There's a new Most Outrageous Moments special on NBC at 8, then new episodes of Last Comic Standing and Dateline.
• TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne starting at 8.
• Also at 8: Court TV has a new Most Shocking, then new episodes of Forensics Files, L.A. Forensics, Haunting Evidence, and Psychic Detectives.
• At 9, PBS has a new American Masters, profiling David Hockney.
• Sci-Fi has a new Ghost Hunters at 9, then a new Destination Truth.
• BBC America has a new Footballer's Wives at 9.
• At 10, FX has a new Rescue Me.
• Discovery has two new episodes of Cash Cab at 10.
• History Channel has a new Modern Marvels at 10.
• There's a new Top Chef on Bravo at 10 (repeated at 11).
• At 10:30, MTV has a new "Where Are They Now?" episode of Jackass.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• Sci-Fi has a Twilight Zone marathon all day and night, while The History Channel has a marathon of Revolution.
• TCM has Yankee Doodle Dandy at 5:30, followed by The Howards of Virginia and 1776.
• At 8, PBS has A Capitol Fourth, with Tony Danza, Bebe Neuwirth, Elliot Yamin, Yolanda Adams, and Hayden Penttiere from Heroes. Wow, did they just pick names out of a celebrity hat or something?
• The CW has a new Hidden Palms at 8.
• At 9, NBC has the Macy's Fourth of July Spectacular, followed by a new Dateline.
• TBS has two new episodes of Tyler Perry's House of Payne starting at 9.
• At 10, CBS has the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• At 8, ABC has a new The Next Best Thing: Who Is The Greatest Celebrity Impersonator?, followed by the season premiere of American Inventor and a new Traveler.
• NBC has the Senators/Ducks game at 8.
• The CW has a new Hidden Palms at 8, then a new One Tree Hill.
• At 9, FOX has a new So You Think You Can Dance.
• TBS has the series premiere of Tyler Perry's House of Payne at 9, followed by another new episode.
• There's a new Mythbusters on Discovery at 9.
• The Travel Channel has a new World Poker Tour at 9.
• Also at 9: Sci-Fi has the season premiere of Ghost Hunters, then a new Destination Truth.
• At 10, Food Network has a new Good Eats.
• There's a new Top Chef on Bravo at 10, where cast members from the first two seasons compete for charity.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Sister is doing it for herself. When Gilmore wraps and the Studio 60 guest spots dry up, Lauren Graham will be able to fall back on her production chops. Graham has unveiled a slate of shows that she'll be executive producing with Warner Brothers Television under the banner of Good Game Entertainment. Good Game Vice-President Kathy Ebel is a college friend of Graham's, and the Warner Brothers' partnership is good so long as Gilmore Girls is on the air.

What's on the Good Game girls slate so far? First up is an international auction house-set dramedy called Objects of Desire. The show, which has been sold to The CW, is an ensemble show that promises a mix of "juicy workplace soap and behind-the-scenes intrigue" as well as a procedural element that follows an art object's history over the course of the show.

Tyler Perry, the man behind the popular films Diary of a Mad Black Woman and Madea's Family Reunion is coming to television with a new syndicated show called House of Payne. Unlike his films, however, Perry won't be appearing on this show, which will focus on a multigenerational family living in the same house. Perry will serve as an executive producer, writer, and director. He might possibly appear in future episodes in a guest role. Perry chose to go the syndication route in order to maintain creative control. The first ten episodes will be available in select markets with national distribution set for 2007.