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From Geoffrey of Monmouth to Dan Brown, when it comes to driving narrative, it's hard to beat a good heroic quest. Whether it's the Holy Grail, the one ring, the ark of the covenant or Moby-Dick, draw up a map, create a barely attainable, possibly mystical item to find and/or destroy and you've immediately got the attention of millions. Unfortunately, even for those of us who prefer our conspiracies biblical and our talismans magical, ABC's "Zero Hour," while initially tantalizing (priests, Nazis, Anthony Edwards, an unholy birth, a secret map - I'm in!

The Lakers need more from franchise center Dwight Howard . "Howard's got to get going," said ABC/ESPN analyst Jeff Van Gundy in a phone conversation with The Times. "He's capable of giving so much more. " "I think he has to focus in on performance more than image," he said. "I think he's probably been a little bit overwhelmed - you can say you want a big market, but not everybody is made for a big market. " A free agent this summer, Howard has yet to state his long-term intentions.

Oscar has become golden for advertisers. In years past, advertising sales for the annual Academy Awards show would stretch into February with last-minute spots selling during Oscar weekend. But this season, Walt Disney Co.-owned ABC had sold most of the show's commercial time before Christmas. The telecast is sold out, Disney Chief Financial Officer Jay Rasulo said this week during a conference call with Wall Street analysts. It was the fastest pace for Oscar ad sales in more than a decade.

ABC has sold all of its commercial time for this month's Academy Awards telecast. Walt Disney Co. chief financial officer Jay Rasulo announced the milestone Tuesday during a conference call with Wall Street analysts. ABC's ad sales team established the quickest pace for the Oscars ad sales in more than a decade. ABC also notched substantial rate increases over last year's ad rates for the 85th Annual Academy Awards show Feb. 24. The Disney-owned network is collecting $1.7 million to $1.85 million per 30-second spot for the upcoming extravaganza, people familiar with the negotiations said.

Click here to download TV listings for the week of Feb. 3 - 9, 2013 in PDF format This week's TV Movies     SERIES How I Met Your Mother: Alan Thicke, Alex Trebek and Geddy Lee are on hand for this new episode, in which Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) discovers a lost episode of Robin's (Cobie Smulders) TV show "Underneath the Tunes" from her days as a Canadian pop star (8 p.m. CBS). The Biggest Loser: Cody Simpson performs for the teens and Laila Ali leads a workout in this new episode (8 p.m. NBC)

The big buzzword in cookbook publishing for the last decade has been “platform,” referring to something that made you famous before you actually wrote a cookbook. It usually meant a television show or a famous restaurant.   Publishers Weekly's recent list of the top 10 bestselling cookbooks of 2012 bears that out in spades. The interesting thing, though, is how the notion of platform is changing. Granted, six of the top 10 books are based on television shows (though three of the top five are on a home shopping network)

Barbara Walters had a slip Saturday night, but her employer says the 83-year-old newswoman will be OK. Walters fell on a staircase while visiting the British ambassador's home in Washington for an inauguration party. She cut her forehead during the tumble. "Out of an abundance of caution, she went to the hospital to have her cut tended to, have a full examination and remains there for observation," an ABC spokesman wrote in a statement. "Barbara is alert (and telling everyone what to do)