CBS sets new series pickups

'Good Wife,' 'NCIS' spinoff on slate

By CYNTHIA LITTLETON

CBS has settled on its new series pickups, spreading the good word to producers Monday on orders for four dramas, a comedy and a reality skein for the 2009-10 season.

Three of the four dramas getting the nod from the Eye, which unveils its sked Wednesday, hail from CBS Television Studios:

”The Good Wife,” from scribes Robert King and Michelle King, stars Julianna Margulies as a political wife who decides to pursue her original career as a defense attorney.
”NCIS” spinoff, from “NCIS” showrunner Shane Brennan, stars LL Cool J and Chris O’Donnell as L.A.-based investigators.
”Three Rivers,” from scribe Carol Barbee, concerns organ transplants from the p.o.v. of the donors and recipients and features Alex O’Loughlin.
Warner Bros./Bruckheimer TV’s “Miami Trauma,” from Jeffrey Lieber, is a fast-paced medical actioner set in a Miami ER.

Late Sunday, CBS also formally sealed a seventh-season renewal pact for Warner Bros. TV drama “Cold Case.” The chances of a renewal for two other dramas on the fence, WBTV’s “Without a Trace” and 20th Century Fox TV’s “The Unit,” looked slim.

The lone new laffer to get the nod from CBS so far is Jenna Elfman starrer “Accidentally on Purpose,” from CBS TV Studios and BermanBraun. Series revolves around a film critic who gets pregnant after a fling with a much younger man. Eye is expected to renew its frosh sitcom “Gary Unmarried,” despite its middling perf, as well as bubble laffers “The New Adventures of Old Christine” and “Rules of Engagement.”

The reality skein in the works at the Eye is workplace-centric “Undercover Boss,” from All 3 Media, involving a top exec who goes undercover in an entry-level job at his or her own company.

There was chatter Monday that two more dramas were still in contention for midseason orders: the untitled U.S. attorneys drama from scribe Frank Military, and “House Rules,” which follows a freshman class of politicos in Congress.

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http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118003866.html

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