Published: May 02, 2008 10:01 am            

TELEVISION: Guest stars, return of new episodes highlight May schedules.

Television’s biggest and brightest programs will be featured during the May sweeps season that carries into the next few weeks.

The month-long period, which began last weekend and continues until May 21, is an annual time during which networks most closely monitor viewership ratings. Those ratings, in turn, are used to determine how much to charge advertisers.

Following are some highlights, according to network releases, of what the major networks will broadcast during sweeps this month.

ABC

“Lost,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Ugly Betty” returned last week and will air new episodes for the next four weeks. They and most other series were truncated due to the writers strike, so many shows have refrained from airing original episodes until May sweeps.

Most shows will wrap up this month. “According to Jim” and “Women’s Murder Club” will wrap May 13, while “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” and “Desperate Housewives” will end May 18

“The Bachelorette” will begin its summer run at 9 p.m. May 19 and features DeAnna Pappas, who was passed upon at the end of a recent season of “The Bachelor.” The special “Audition: Barbara Walters’ Journey” will debut May 7.

Among the specials to be aired are screenings of “The Chronicles of Narnia” (Saturday) and “Hitch” (May 17).

CBS

Fresh off the heels of a special appearance on “How I Met Your Mother,” Britney Spears’ return to the sitcom highlights The Eye’s May schedule.

Spears appeared in the March 24 episode of the series and boosted that night’s ratings by 2.4 million from the season average to 10.62 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. Spears will reprise the role of Abby, a receptionist who conspires with main character Barney to irk his friend, Ted. The episode will air at 8:30 p.m. May 12.

The 16th edition of “Survivor,” this one featuring fans vs. favorites, concludes May 11 with a finale and reunion show. That’s preceded by new episodes at 8 tonight and May 8.

“CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and “Two and a Half Men” will cross paths at 9 p.m. Monday, when the CSI team investigates a death in the home of “Men” character Charlie Harper. The shows’ writers swapped places for one episode, with the “CSI” episode penned by “Men” scribes airing at 9 p.m. May 8.

Among the series coming to a close are “Mother” (May 19), “Shark” (May 20) and “Criminal Minds” (May 21).

“The Price is Right Spectacular,” a series of Friday night specials of the game show, return at 8 p.m. Fridays throughout sweeps. Previous specials aired in February-April each won their time slot, according to Nielsen. “The 43rd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards” will air at 8 p.m. May 18, with guest appearances to be made by Katey Segal (“CSI”) Bill Nye and Three 6 Mafia (“Numb3rs”) and Jenny McCartney (“Men”).

Fox

NASCAR will return to primetime twice this month, with Fox airing the Richmond 400 at 7 p.m. Saturday and the Darlington 500 at 7 p.m. May 10. Also to be featured on Saturday night is the 1,000th capture on “America’s Most Wanted,” which airs at 9 p.m. May 17.

“American Idol” will crown its seventh winner during a two-part finale to air May 20-21, with youngster David Archuleta appearing to be the front-runner at this point. Other finales taking place include the new Monday night lineup of “Bones” (8 p.m. May 19) and “House” (two-part finale airing at 9 p.m. May 12 and May 19), “ ‘Til Death” (8 p.m. May 14) and the Thursday night game show lineup of “Are You Smarter than a Fifth-Grader” and “Don’t Forget the Lyrics” (starting at 8 p.m. May 15).

Niagara Falls native Bobby Anderson and Buffalo resident Shayna Raichilson-Zadok are still alive on “Hell’s Kitchen” and competing for a top prize of a $250,000 job as chef of a Los Angeles restaurant. The show continues with new episodes at 9 p.m. Tuesdays.

Sunday nights will mostly be new, with four episodes each of “King of the Hill,” “The Simpsons” and “American Dad” being complemented by two new episodes of “Family Guy.” Jim Jarmusch, Glenn Close and Drew Carey are among the stars slated to lend their voices to “The Simpsons”

Friday night has been turned into movie night, with the premieres of “Are We There Yet?” at 8 p.m. Friday, “Man of the House” at 8 p.m. May 9 and “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story” at 8 p.m. May 16.

NBC

“Deal or No Deal” has kicked into high gimmick mode, with “Star Wars” and “American Gladiators” serving as the themes of episodes that aired earlier this week. The game show will host around the world episodes Monday, Wednesday and May 14 featuring versions of the show played in the Philippines, Estonia and South Africa.

The aforementioned “Gladiators” return for their second season at 8 p.m. May 12. The ’90s revival enjoyed solid ratings in its first run this past winter and will feature new gladiators and events.

“Law & Order: SVU” will hit the 200-episode milestone while welcoming guest star Robin Williams this month (10 p.m. Tuesdays). Its forefather, “Law & Order,” welcomes new cast member Anthony Anderson, who takes over for former Buffalo resident Jesse L. Martin (10 p.m. Wednesdays).

Mother’s Day will see Donny and Marie Osmond return to the screen at 7 p.m. May 11 as the hosts of the “America’s Favorite Mom” special, for which people can vote online for their favorite mother.

Among the series wrapping up their seasons are “30 Rock” (9:30 p.m. May 8), “The Office” (9 p.m. May 15) and “ER” (10 p.m. May 15).

        

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