Christina Applegate

MONDAY

Monday’s future just got a little bit bleaker. Dancing With the Stars (ABC)—whose finale last Tuesday earned the network its best ratings on that night in over seven years—cha-cha-cha-ed out of our lives. CBS canceled their December 10th debates, as the Democratic nominees balked, fearing the bad publicity of a protest by striking news writers. (CBS is hurting: How I Met Your Mother is in repeats, as well as the rest of the network’s sitcoms.) And NBC announced this week that Chuck (NBC, 8 PM) will be replaced by American Gladiators—the original was obviously before its time—on January 7th.  read more »

Christina Applegate’s Samantha Who? (9:30 PM, ABC) debuts tonight, sandwiched in between Dancing With the Stars and The Bachelor. She plays a woman who wakes from an eight-day coma with retrograde amnesia only to slowly come to the realization that she was a total bitch. Perhaps a little amnesia is necessary on the part of viewers, who will need to forget Surviving Christmas in order to give this show a shot. (Who am I kidding?  read more »

Former New York Times executive editor Howell Raines--who was forced out of paper after the Jayson Blair debacle--is now getting out of the West Village, too (and, as far as we can tell, out of New York City entirely).

Mr. Raines recently sold his West 11th Street townhouse for $3.5 million, according to city deed-transfer records.

Mr. Raines--who purchased the house in 1996--has been renting it out for some time, while spending his days in his Pennsylvania country house.

Last May, actress Christina Applegate reportedly rented the 18-foot-wide townhouse while performing on Broadway.  read more »

Mr. Raines hadn't yet responded to an email asking about the sale, as of this posting.

- Michael Calderone

When it comes to Tony time, I'm all in favor.  read more »