Tuning In

Fallon to host ’Late’

It’s now official: Jimmy Fallon will become the third host of “Late Night” in June 2009, setting in motion the high-stakes, late-night shift that will send Conan O’Brien to the “Tonight Show” and a new studio on the NBC Universal lot in Los Angeles next year, TVWeek.com reports.

The New York Times, which first reported Mr. Fallon’s presumed coronation in February, yesterday reported the consummation of the deal. Mr. Fallon is a veteran of NBC’s”Saturday Night Live.”

Jay Leno has ruled late night since passing CBS’ “Late Show with David Letterman” in 1995. However, NBC decided in 2004 to make the commitment to Mr. O’Brien, even if it meant risking the loss of the hard-working Mr. Leno to other competitors seeking a star who can bring in elusive — and lucrative — young male viewers in profitable numbers.

Although NBC has said it would like to find a way to keep Mr. Leno at the network, the comedian, who succeeded “Tonight” pioneer Johnny Carson in 1992, has been courted by numerous suitors. They include Fox Broadcasting, which has failed more than once to find a late-night show that succeeds.

Bravo expands brand

NBC-owned Bravo has a recipe to extend the “Top Chef” series brand into retail and services environments both expected (such as cookware) and unexpected (cruises), Multichannel.com reports.

The idea, Bravo officials said, is to get the brand beyond the television screen and directly into a viewer’s local environment.

The most natural extensions are with the Culinary Institute of America, which already worked with the network to provide prizes for an early season live polling sweepstakes on this edition of the series. Going forward, the CIA will host a series of “Top Chef”-branded classes at its facility in the Astor Center in New York this summer. Contestants from the show will cook for classes of about 40 students, and the partnership will help generate online content, such as the CIA’s most popular recipes, for the “Bravo for Foodies” Web site.

However, the most exotic extension might be a sponsored cruise on Jazz Cruises. The “Top Chef” trip, scheduled in May 2009, will be hosted by former contestants, who will escort guests on shopping forays to local markets and wineries in such Mediterranean destinations as Rome, Barcelona and Venice. The hosts will also select local restaurants to dine in and will offer hands-on cooking demonstrations.

Also, during this month’s Cable Show ’08 in New Orleans, Bravo will kick off a 20-city mobile tour. A customized 18-wheeler will make stops in key markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, St. Louis, Detroit and Denver. Former contestants will offer cooking demonstrations and behind-the-scenes production secrets at the stops.

Short takes

• ESPN is expected to announce today that Hannah Storm will anchor a new, revamped “SportsCenter” morning edition, TVSquad.com reports. Miss Storm previously co-anchored “The Early Show” on CBS.

• At the end of Sunday’s live “Survivor” finale, host Jeff Probst revealed the series will return to Africa for its 17th season and feature 18 contestants living among wildlife. “Survivor: Gabon — Earth’s Last Eden” will premiere in the fall, says Associated Press. The third “Survivor” season was filmed in Kenya. Parvati Shallow, 25, was the last woman standing on the latest edition, “Survivor: Micronesia— Fans vs. Favorites.” She previously came in sixth place on “Survivor: Cook Islands.”

• Actor Dennis Farina was charged with a felony Sunday at Los Angeles International Airport after a loaded gun was found in his carry-on luggage, AP reports. When the weapon was discovered at a security checkpoint, the 64-year-old actor — who played Detective Joe Fontana on the NBC hit “Law & Order” from 2004-2006 — said he had forgotten the .22-caliber handgun was in his luggage, police said. Mr. Farina, a former Chicago police officer, was booked for investigation of carrying a concealed weapon, said Sgt. Dennis Beacham. Calls to Mr. Farina’s lawyer and agent were not returned, AP says.

Compiled by Robyn-Denise Yourse from Web and wire reports