LATENIGHT'S RETURN: WHO'LL DARE SIT ON THE COUCH? (NYT)

By Nancy Vialatte

The late-night talk show hosts are returning. But the stars are not yet ready to come out for them, says today�s New York Times. Program producers are said to be in a frenzy as they try to book guests for �The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,� �Late Night With Conan O�Brien,� �Late Show With David Letterman� and �Jimmy Kimmel Live� which are scheduled to return on Jan. 2.

One publicist for an actor who is starring in a film scheduled for wide release in January told the Times that clients of her agency were likely to wait and see what the reaction was to any actors who decided to cross a picket line.

�I don�t think there will be a rush to go on the shows,� said the publicist. Noting the criticism that greeted Ellen DeGeneres and Carson Daly when they returned to their talk shows earlier during the strike, she added: �We will wait to see if there will be that kind of fallout. It�s such a sensitive issue, and a personal issue for each actor as well.�

Producers for the shows say they have been contacting potential guests since the strike began on Nov. 5, keeping potential guests lined up in case of a swift settlement.

�Certain guests said they wouldn�t come, certain guests said they would,� Jeff Ross, an executive producer of �Late Night With Conan O�Brien,� said in a conference call with reporters on Monday. �The temperature may be changing a little bit as we go forward.�

Debbie Vickers, an executive producer of �Tonight,� said in the same conference call that she too believed actors could be �warming to the idea� of crossing a picket line as �strike fatigue� sets in.

�January feels better than December did,� Vickers said. �I�m not saying it�s going to be easy, but we will be able to do shows.�

Neither �The Tonight Show� nor �Late Night� had confirmed any guests as of Monday and a spokeswoman for the shows said on Wednesday that the producers would not comment further. A spokesman for Mr. Kimmel also declined to comment.

Letterman�s "Late Show" has tentatively booked guests throughout the strike. Donald Trump has been booked for Jan. 2, which led Trump to call media outlets on Wednesday to announce that he would indeed be among Letterman�s guests if the show returns on that day.

Whether actors will be willing to appear on the shows is anything but certain. Alan Rosenberg, the president SAG, said in a letter to its members on Monday that their continued support of the writers� strike �is important to maintaining solidarity and protecting the rights of creative artists.�

But, many actors are required by their contracts to make public appearances or give interviews to promote their projects. Still, the bigger the star, though, the more flexible those requirements are.

For instance, Katherine Heigl, after receiving a Golden Globe nomination for �Grey�s Anatomy,� said she would not cross a picket line to attend the ceremony. "I�m not crossing the picket line unless I�m contractually obliged to do so,� she said. �And I�m not with the Golden Globes.�

Heigl, the breakout star of this year�s �Knocked Up,� has another project set for release in January: Fox�s �27 Dresses.� As one of the few films with big stars set for release next month, the movie is a natural target for late-night shows seeking guests.

A publicist for Heigl told the NYT she �will not cross the picket line� to appear on a talk show to promote her new film.

Other films scheduled for January release include �First Sunday,� starring Ice Cube and Tracy Morgan; �Mad Money� starring Diane Keaton, Queen Latifah and Katie Holmes; and another installment of the �Rambo� series, starring Sylvester Stallone.

Also coming after the first of the year are new episodes for �Lost� and the debut of �Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles� on Fox, whose actors would be natural talk-show guests.

The one late-night talk-show host who has returned, Carson Daly, endured severe criticism for going back on the air while writers for the show were still out on strike.

The show has struggled to book A-list guests, despite being the only late-night game in town. Instead its lineup of guests has been heavy with singing groups, reality-television stars and athletes.

LATENIGHT'S RETURN: WHO'LL DARE SIT ON THE COUCH? (NYT)

By Nancy Vialatte

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