Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

"Man Up" is getting its premiere so late into the new season that there's already been time for several shows to debut, disappoint and die. There's been time for writers across the land to expound on the "emasculated" male characters on the tube this year. There's even been time for advance critiques not to hurt Tim Allen's "Last Man Standing" in terms of solid ratings for its first outing last week.

"Man Up" creator and costar Christopher Moynihan ("For Your Consideration," "According to Jim") is glad his show was held back for its unveiling until tonight (Oct. 18), after Tim's show. "I think it's a good thing. They wanted to give us the greatest chance for success, and listen, it's got to be better when viewers aren't feeling oversaturated with new shows," he says.

"Man Up" has Moynihan, Dan Fogler and Mather Zickel as a trio of buddies who haven't exactly forsaken some of their high-school ways, despite jobs, children, a wife (Teri Polo) and an ex-wife (Amanda Detmer), who has a ridiculously sexy and accomplished new boyfriend (Henry Simmons). Moynihan would like us to know, "I didn't write this to have some sort of social commentary on the modern man. I'm trying to write a sitcom that makes me laugh."

If it does come to social commentary, "the notion that we are a different generation of men than our forefathers is very true," Moynihan says. "But if you saw the reports about the new World Trade Center — the guys building those buildings, they're real men. The guys in Afghanistan — they're as manly as ever. This show is not about those guys. This show is about guys who have the luxury of being protected by those guys."

As far as the "emasculated men/strong women" issue? He laughs. "My dad's father was in World War II. My dad was a police officer in the Bronx in the 1960s. Who's calling the shots at home? My mom's calling the shots."

SIN OF OMISSION: Brandon Cruz is angry over what he views as Hollywood's slight of his former TV dad, the late Bill Bixby. The former child star, who walked away from acting at age 18, is now out promoting the four-disc DVD release of his vintage "The Courtship of Eddie's Father," Season 1, from Warner Archive.

"When I found out they were putting this out, I thought, 'It's about time,'" Cruz says.

"Bill Bixby had an amazing body of work, not only 'Courtship of Eddie's Father,' but 'My Favorite Martian,' 'The Magician,' 'The Incredible Hulk' and so many other things, as an actor, as a director — and he never got an Emmy. He's never been recognized posthumously by the Academy. And he doesn't have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. That is criminal. There are people who have stars that — not to be blunt, but I wouldn't bother spitting on their stars. Bill's talent would take a couple of blocks of stars compared to them. It really demeans the whole thing that Bill is not included.

"Pretty much my whole intention in being part of this publicity is bringing this to people's attention," he adds.

Cruz has carved out an awfully interesting life for himself as an adult. He's been a punk rocker — even fronted Dead Kennedys for a while. He's a surfer who's been to numerous exotic lands. He's a family man, and with 15 years of sobriety, he's a drug and alcohol counselor for the Walking Miracles Foundation.

But he still has fond memories of the three and a half years he spent playing Bixby's son: "Bill was such a big part of those formative years for me." The two stayed friends until Bixby's death of cancer in 1993.

Bixby had been given six months to live, and "about a year later," Cruz says, "he called me and said, 'Still here, kid.' Then, a while later, he called. 'Guess what? I'm still here,'" recalls Cruz with a laugh. "One day I saw him for lunch and we had a great talk. I told him I'd met this amazing woman — my wife — and he said, 'I hope I get to meet her.' But he died, just before Thanksgiving, just after I'd met with him.

"On the set of 'Blossom,' he taught a lot of people how to live while he was dying. He kept working, directing, right up to the end ... There are guys around Hollywood who are so well-liked, you couldn't pay people to say bad things about them. Bill was one of those guys."

HERE 'N' THERE: Snooki followers will be interested in this: Los Angeles' Hayworth Theatre is planning to unveil a new piece called "Jersey Shorsical: A Frickin' Rock Opera," inspired by the rollicking reality show.

Roger Corman's "Attack of the 50-Foot Cheerleader" is being cast now — the tale of an ugly duckling who tests a new beautifying drug created by a friend. It makes her gorgeous, but also super-sizes her to building-height. At last, the one film missing from Corman's body of work is being made.

To find out more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith and read their past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2011 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

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