NBC visited 7 World Trade Center on June 2, the most recent of more than one visit to Larry Silverstein’s gleaming downtown tower, whose top 10 floors are still available for lease. Sources say NBC was considering housing its new business operations center there.

“NBC has been back to 7 World Trade Center a number of times, with executives and different division heads poring over the building,” said a real estate insider, who, on a recent visit to the building, saw NBC representatives looking like “cats who swallowed the canary.”

Those “executives” included Jeff Zucker, the president and CEO of NBC Universal, according to another source.

A Silverstein spokesman said he would “not comment on nor confirm discussions with potential tenants.” But another broker familiar with NBC’s plans said the media giant has since moved on from 7 World Trade, and is now looking at SJP Properties’ under-construction 11 Times Square and properties along Eighth Avenue.  read more »

According to several news reports today, though it is currently in fourth place among the broadcast networks, NBC has wrapped up its advance advertising sales this year with successful results.

And they didn't even throw an upfront!

Earlier this year, NBC executives announced that they would eschew the traditional TV time frame, not show pilots to advertisers at an upfront presentation, and would roll out new programming all year long.

"NBC's intention to announce a new sked in April—and then follow with a mix of small meetings and one big Gotham pitch—promises to disrupt the usual upfront selling season by giving the net a full month's head start on dealmaking," Variety reported back in February.

Four months later, that approach appears to be working.  read more »

Page Six meant to report that Katie Couric might be returning to NBC when Jeff Zucker was spotted visiting her Upper East Side apartment, but instead totally outed Mr. Zucker to his wife! The NBC Universal CEO was simply picking up a gift that he asked Katie to buy for his wife for mother's day. [P6]  read more »

At Monday's Costume Institute gala, Christina Ricci reportedly left when she learned that she wasn't seated with her boyfriend and Speed Racer co-star, Kick Gurry; Jeff Zucker avoided Project Runway stealer, Harvey Weinstein, on the red carpet. [P6]

Rudy Giuliani shops for pants at TJ Maxx and his wife helps him! [P6]  read more »

President of NBC Universal, Jeff Zucker, will file a defamation suit against Harvey Weinstein if he calls him his friend again in public. [P6]

Not-yet-fired Elle fashion director, Nina Garcia, has been asked to take a lesser title at the magazine, but was also told that if she leaves all together, she will no longer be a judge on Project Runway. [P6]  read more »

NBC is planning to get rid of an entire level of MSNBC's management team, as well as making major cuts at NBC News, according to The New York Post. Two senior MSNBC staffers -- head of primetime programming Bill Wolf, and editorial director Davidson Goldin -- are set to see their jobs eliminated. But the cable network's top shows -- those hosted by Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, and Dan Abrams -- are said to be sacrosanct, and will escape the cuts unscathed.

As for CNBC, it too will be unaffected, says The Post, because NBC chief Jeff Zucker wants it at full strength to compete with Fox Business.

NBC Universal's president/CEO Jeff Zucker, television's shiny-headed boy genius, has a new home for the holidays.

A deed filed in city records today shows that he and his wife Caryn closed earlier this month on the late Kitty Carlisle Hart's 11-room apartment at East 64th Street, which they'd been rumored to buy.

They paid $12.3 million, which means the Zucker clan got just a $200,000 discount from the asking price.

The 99-year-old apartment has five bedrooms, five fireplaces, four bathrooms, wood paneling, a maid's room, a salon, and an eat-in kitchen. But the Zuckers are used to nice spreads: In November 2005, they sold their Central Park West duplex for $15 million.

“The buzz was loud and clear, we struck a chord,” said president of NBC Entertainment Kevin Reilly at the network’s Upfront presentation yesterday afternoon. But: “Frankly, we need to be more better.”

Mr. Reilly was saying what the hundreds of ad executives milling around Radio City for the first day of the Upfronts already knew.  read more »