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Fox: hi-ho to 'Snow'

Fox has given a pilot commitment to a legal dramedy based on "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."

Set up at ABC Studios and developed by Chris Brancato and Bert Salke with writers David Weissman and David Diamond, the tentatively titled "Georgia and the Seven Associates" will be directed in pilot form by Ken Kwapis ("The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants").

According to the Hollywood Reporter the pilot will focus on young lawyer Georgia Burnett. Banished from a job at a top law firm by her evil stepmother, she takes a job at a small firm of seven quirky lawyers.

Yes, all the associates will have character traits similar to those held by Snow White's beloved dwarfs; at least one will be grumpy, another bashful and another sneezy. The trade paper also says that some of the cases will have fairy-tale roots.

Writing credits for Mr. Weissman and Mr. Diamond include the upcoming "Old Dogs" and "When in Rome." Mr. Salke and Mr. Brancato have been producers on shows ranging from NBC's "Boomtown" to Fox's "North Shore."

HBO gets Ellroy

HBO has hired a team of scriptwriters to adapt two thrillers by author James Ellroy into a television series, Agence France-Presse says, citing a report in Daily Variety.

"American Tabloid" and its sequel, "American Death Trip," will be turned into a miniseries set in the United States in the 1960s and will follow three men and their shifting alliances in a turbulent period.

The series will be produced by the company set up by Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks, which also was behind the network's hit series "John Adams," about the second president of the United States.

Mr. Ellroy, known for his gritty, bleak crime novels, penned "L.A. Confidential," which was turned into an Oscar-winning film starring Russell Crowe, Kim Basinger, Kevin Spacey and Danny DeVito in 1997.

Clooney nixes 'ER'

Anthony Edwards wants him back, the producers want him back, but George Clooney is officially saying no to a return to "ER" for its 15th and final season, TVGuide.com reports.

Reuters news agency has confirmed that the Oscar winner has no plans ever to go back to County General. "He is on record as saying he is not coming back," Mr. Clooney's publicist, Stan Rosenfield, said on Monday. "It is something he has already done. He is busy making movies."

Earlier this week, TVGuide.com reported that producers have story lines all set for the return of Mr. Clooney as Dr. Ross, Julianna Margulies as Carol and Eriq La Salle as Dr. Benton. Executive Producer David Zabel said he's "optimistic that we might be able to get them all. We have a really good story line for every [major] character from the past to show [the actors] what we want to do."

On tap tonight ...

Grey's Anatomy ( 9 p.m., ABC) - A potential challenge looms for Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) and Derek "McDreamy" Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) when the hit series kicks off its new season with a two-hour premiere.

• Compiled by Robyn-Denise Yourse from Web and wire reports