LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- CBS has passed on the back nine order of its veteran comedy "Yes, Dear," sources close to the show confirmed this afternoon.
In addition, the Eye is expected to announce on Monday its freshman dramas "Threshold" and "Close to Home" will swap time slots for two weeks of the November sweeps period.
"Yes, Dear," currently in its sixth season, had widely been assumed to have a full 22-episode order going into the 2005-06 season. Nevertheless, production will wrap for the time being after its 13th installment this season. That, combined with two holdover half-hours from its fifth season ("The Radford Reshuffle" and "Quitters Never Dance"), will give CBS a total of 15 episodes available to air.
CBS likewise only ordered 13 episodes last season, opting to hold the series until midseason. Said pick-up however only came about after producer 20th Century Fox Television trimmed the show's license fee, a rare event for a show so deep into its run.
Despite the decision, the series will still remain under consideration for the 2006-07 season. A similar scenario played out during the 2003-04 season when CBS passed on "Becker's" back nine order. CBS however ultimately did not renew the show for a seventh season.
To date this season, "Yes, Dear" has averaged a modest 7.60 million viewers, ahead of lead-in "Still Standing" (7.19 million on average). Alan Kirschenbaum and Gregory Thomas Garcia are the show's executive producers.
As for newcomers "Threshold" and "Close to Home," the Eye is hoping a change in scenery for both series will spark their respective ratings. "Threshold" will take over "Close to Home's" current Tuesday, 10:00/9:00c slot on November 22 and 29 with "Home" assuming "Threshold's" Friday, 9:00/8:00c time period on November 11 and 18.
The pair are CBS's only freshman series yet to be picked up for the full 2005-06 season. Not surprisingly, both rank as the Eye's least-watched dramas thus far with "Close to Home" averaging 9.93 million viewers and "Threshold" 7.80 million.
Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman, Jim Leonard and Simon West are behind the Jerry Bruckheimer Television/Warner Bros. Television-based "Home" while Brannon Braga, David Heyman and David Goyer serve as executive producers on Paramount Network Television's "Threshold."
Both decisions come as CBS preps its midseason schedule, which includes the military drama "The Unit," the relationship dramedy "Love Monkey" and the half-hour comedy "Old Christine," starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
Note: The original article stated "Close to Home" would run on Friday, November 18 and Friday, November 25 at 9:00/8:00c. Those dates have been corrected to November 11 and 18. In addition, the original article stated "Yes, Dear" had two holdover episodes from last season. The number is actually one as the other aired on September 14 just prior to the show's sixth season premiere.
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