Kathy Griffin Lands $2M Memoir Deal

Launch a Fox rival? Return to SNL ? Reality TV?

(NEWSER) - NBC's shabby treatment of Conan O'Brien has been a recurring theme of the Jay Leno-centric late-night shuffle, but "he-who-rocks-the-dopest-pompadour-on-TV" has more options than you might think. MTV ponders his options.

• Defect to Fox: The network is apparently interested, and it would be a great way to tick off NBC. But Fox has a terrible track record with late-night talk shows.
• Saturday Night Live: O'Brien's writing tenure at SNL coincided with a memorably strong run for the show, but Tonight Show host to "Cheeto-dusted anonymity" is a major step down.

Ballantine Books won't disclose fee for May 2010 release

(NEWSER) - Jenny Sanford will write an “inspirational memoir” to be released by Random House next spring, CNN reports. The publisher is mum on how much the estranged wife of South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford will get for her trouble. The fairer half of the couple has been fairly tight-lipped since the news of her husband’s affair broke in June. The deal marks a revival of the Sanfords' literary fortunes: the governor had an agreement with Sentinel Publishing that was axed in July. More»

(NEWSER) - The Decider, aka George W. Bush, will write a book titled Decision Points, the New York Post reports. The former president's rumored advance for the book, due out in 2010, is $7 million. That’s $5 million short of Bill Clinton’s deal for My Life, $1 million less than Hillary Clinton got for Living History, and $2 million shy of Tony Blair’s advance, Gawker reports. Ouch. More»

One blogger thinks her brand of humor is to blame instead

(NEWSER) - In her new book, Girl Walks Into a Bar, Rachel Dratch says her looks have cursed her career. "By Hollywood standards, I’m a troll, ogre, woodland creature, or manly lesbian," she writes, and that's prevented her from getting the roles she wants—NBC replaced her as a 30 Rock lead, for instance. Jezebel generally agrees with Dratch ("if she were a dude, she'd have her own show"), but at Slate , Torie Bosch isn't so sure. "What if her particular brand of acting—and she has admitted that she is more a character actor—just isn’t right for leading-lady-dom?" More»

Bristol Palin: Life’s a Tripp premieres on Lifetime later this year

(NEWSER) - Bristol Palin will be back on the tube in her own reality TV show. It's called Bristol Palin: Life’s a Tripp and will premiere on Lifetime later this year, reports USA Today . The premise of the "docuseries" is to follow Bristol in Alaska as she "steadfastly moves forward both personally and professionally," notes New York's Vulture blog , adding, "Aw, man, just as she was fading from public consciousness." The network has ordered 10 half-hour episodes to start. More»