Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Bill Engvall is fuming about the cancellation of his sitcom "The Bill Engvall Show" and he calls TBS idiots for pulling the plug.

"I've been on shows that have been canceled before, but this one really threw me because we had a great audience and it was exactly what they had told me they wanted us to do," says Engvall.

"What I was told is that they're going to go more urban, which apparently means anything Tyler Perry writes, they put on. Good for him. I've got no bones against Tyler," he adds. "They didn't plan ahead and I think the economy hit them, too. We were literally within a week of announcing that we were going to shoot 100 more shows and be in syndication, and that week is when it all went to hell. It's just a hard pill to swallow when they tell you they have no more money, but they give Tyler Perry 40 more shows," he explains.

"I wish they had taken a little more time and thought about this because if they would have, I think we'd still be on the air. I enjoyed working with TBS, but I just don't think they're that strong in original program. TNT is great at it. I think TBS is going to find out that their niche is going to be putting on reruns like 'The Office.' But the show did what it was supposed to. It showed other networks that I can carry a show so hopefully by next fall, I'll have another one."

In the meantime, Engvall is anticipating his one-hour stand-up special "Bill Engvall: Aged and Confused," debuting Nov. 22 on Comedy Central. "We had one show to get it in. They're like, 'If you mess up, you can stop and go back. I'm like, 'No, you can't,'" he recalls with a laugh. "Despite doing TV and movies, I still love stand-up. I was raised with the phrase, 'You dance with who brung ya.' Stand-up has been great to me my whole life. You get the instant response right then and you're in control. TV and movies, you've got networks and studios all weighing in. With stand-up, it's just me and the audience. The great thing about 'Aged and Confused' is that there's stuff for the adults and the kids, too."

FROM THE INSIDE LOOKING OUT: "Brothers & Sisters" star Dave Annable tells us he's enjoying his character Justin's newfound road of responsibility in med school, but he's missing the stories about being a war veteran. "This season, my character had to do something different and I think Justin's starting to redeem himself and focusing on who he wants to be. But I really enjoy, not necessarily the bad-boy part of my character, but the veteran story lines because it's something we're dealing with today with the war.

I thought that was a really interesting story line to delve into," says Annable. "There are times when you wish it were a cable show so you could go a little bit further and not network TV, where you can only get away with so much. I certainly got a lot of feedback from people thanking us for telling the veteran's story or the addict's story."

Annable does reveal, though, that things may not stay cookie cutter for long. "This season is going to bring a lot of ups and downs with Kitty's (Calista Flockhart) story lines as far as the cancer." And as far as his and Emily VanCamp's characters, he goes on, "Then there's the whole question of, 'Will Justin and Rebecca's marriage happen or not? Is he going to get back into addiction or not?' I think the fans are going to be really happy," he adds.

Annable also says Balthazar Getty's character, Tommy, will be returning off and on as well. Getty's contract as a full-time regular was cut due in part to budgetary considerations, but there had been rumors of him falling out of favor with the cast amid his reported affair with actress Sienna Miller. However, Annable claims they are glad to have Getty among them. "Tommy will definitely be coming in and out throughout the season. We're really happy when he's back. Balthazar is a dear friend of all of ours, and family to us, and we miss him when he's not there."

GOODNESS, FOR A CHANGE: Producer Larry Thompson is getting ready to begin production on a TV adaptation of "Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy." You may recall the 2006 Amish schoolhouse massacre, when five girls were shot to death by deranged gunman Charles Carl Roberts, who then committed suicide — and how the Amish community in their rural Pennsylvania town subsequently stunned the world by its extraordinary acts of forgiveness, including comforting Roberts' family and attending his funeral. The book, by Amish scholars Donald Kraybill, Steven Nolt and David Weaver-Zercher, explored what accounted for such saintly behavior by that grieving community. Thompson's plans for the Lifetime original movie call for a four-week production in Los Angeles, starting early next month. Casting is under way.

WOMEN ON CABLE: Laura Dern's "Enlightened" HBO series is moving right along en route to production of its pilot episode, with a start date now set for Jan. 19. Dern's exec producing and getting a story credit, and her collaborator is director Mike White. The story has her as woman who decides to leave her temperamental, neurotic, depressed, nutty ways behind her and live an enlightened life — which many find as alienating as her previous personality.

With reports by Emily-Fortune Feimster

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 2009 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS.COM