Gail: Hi, guys. Today's excuses for a less-than-prompt start are No. 3: traffic (40 minutes downtown from U. City? seriously?)and a new one, No. 24: distracted by Charles Williams of STLtoday.com. But it's lovely and quiet here now with most of my colleagues in a meeting, and I have a ton of questions, so I'll open my Diet Coke and get started.

itsazoo: Hi, Gail. I liked Without A Trace enough that I watched nearly every week. Was its cancellation sudden or had it been in the works and I never caught wind of it? I also heard that Frank's Place might be released on DVD but they have to redo almost all of the music since the rights to what they had would be prohibitively expensive.

Gail: I liked "Without a Trace," too. It's consistently been a Top 20 show; last week, in repeats, it was something like No. 3. The problem was that when a show gets past a certain age, the license fees the networks have to pay the studio go way up, and contracts are renewed at higher salaries. I think money was most of the reason CBS dropped "Without a Trace," which is too bad. It wasn't really "on the bubble" as most shows are, but most lists of probable cancellations had either it or "Cold Case," which survived by cost-cutting.
As far as I know, music is the holdup for a "Frank's Place" DVD. I also just heard that the reason "Britain's Got Talent" can't air in the United States is that music clearances would be too difficult and expensive.

OAK4329: What is with the local weather people? I know we had a big storm on Monday with a lot of damage in certain areas. But it was all over by 6:30 when channel 5 decided to preempt Wheel of Fortune to show a 5 minute storm story six times. (Hey, I have an elderly mother living with me. I need the Wheel to keep her occupied.) Then channel 4 decided to preempt the first 15 minutes of The Big Bang Theory with the same old story. The storm was over. We could have waited until 10:00 pm to see the aftermath. It seems like they are in competition to agravate the viewer. Channel 5 has a dedicated weather channel, for those who want to rehash the weather. Am I the only one who finds this so annoying?

Gail: It's been a weather orgy lately! They had storm pictures and wanted to show them off. Everyone finds it annoying, except TV meteorolgists and those in the direct path of a storm they'll hear about only on TV. But might as well not be annoyed; turn on cable or KDNL if you don't feel the need to be warned.

Bill Haas: why cant the networks get you the right schedule for tvmag and daily grids?
Monday and wednesday, I'm a survivor get me out of here two hours, no law and order at 900; they're not the same show! I find I'm a celebrity unwatchable; just saying. If I wanted to watch I'm a celebrity get me out of here with strange people in strange places doing strange things, I could just look in a mirror. :)
thanks

Gail: There are several problems with listings. First, the networks have to convey their schedules to the listings services. Then, the local stations have to convey their changes, as with preemptions. Then, the listings services have to send the listings to newspapers, DVRs, etc. Then, they have to correct for late changes, if the networks/local stations bother to mention them. The networks make very late changes these days, which is why there will be no newspaper TV books in a few years, and why all printed listings are increasingly obsolete. By the way, the deadline for the mini-grid in the daily Everyday pullout is more than a week in advance, so those listings will never reflect late changes.

Cable is overpriced: I've seen commercials for the new season of Monk on USA, but none for Psych. Any word on whether or not it's coming back?

Any thoughts on Jada Pinkett Smith's new show, "Hawthorne" on TNT?

If there was one cancelled show that you had the power to bring back, what would it be and why?

Gail: "Psych" returns in August. Both "Monk" (which is ending its run) and "Psych" split seasons into two short seasons, so there's always a new season coming.
I have a story on TV nurses in Sunday's A&E section and will have a review of "Hawthorne" up online before the Tuesday premiere. I give "Hawthorne" a C. I didn't find it very different or interesting or satisfying, but I've seen only one episode.
By the way, for someone who thinks "cable is overpriced" -- and thinks so enough to use it as an online name -- you're sure interested in cable programs.
The one canceled show I'd bring back would be "Deadwood" -- just to wrap up all those storylines we'll have to wonder about forever.