House Television Program

On a recent Tuesday night, viewers of Fox's hit medical mystery drama "House" saw the cranky, Vicodin-popping doctor -- whose diagnostic ingenuity is matched only by his breathtaking rudeness -- as visibly unnerved as he's been all season long. It wasn't a convulsing patient or his bad leg rattling him. He was being thanked by a staff member for agreeing to shill for an overpriced new drug in exchange for not having to fire her or any of his staff.

The Emmy statue would have gone so nicely with the surfboard. But, really, who needs a stuffy old Emmy when the people who know what's hot have named you the Teen Choice TV Actor? Hugh Laurie has two Golden Globes at home and has earned two Emmy nominations, but America's adolescents last month picked him over Matthew Fox, Wentworth Miller, Milo Ventimiglia and Jared Padalecki as their favorite male TV star on the awards show presented by Fox and Global TV. Not bad for a 48-year-old, huh?

MAYBE it's the cane. Nobody involved in the creation of the Fox medical drama "House," which begins its second season tonight at 9, will cop to consciously trying to conjure a character who would make TV Guide's list of television's sexiest men. Not creator David Shore, who says it never occurred to him that a sardonic, physically damaged and often quite unkind doctor would stir the hearts of American women. Certainly not actor Hugh Laurie, who resorts to a Woosterian stammer of surprise.

HUGH LAURIE isn't too worried that Gregory House will steal his soul. Often, when a character becomes as entrenched in popular culture as House has, people forget there is an actual actor in there somewhere. An actor who may not share many, or any, of the characteristics, tendencies and tics the writer -- yes, there's usually one of those too -- has bestowed upon said character. Fortunately for Laurie, all he has to do is walk across a room and open his mouth to make that pretty clear.

BEING a "House" fan is a bit like being friends with an addict. You have to put up with ridiculous behavior: a doctor who doesn't ever wear a surgical mask, milelong tapeworms, a season-ending shooting that is never mentioned again. There are also the inexplicable disappearances -- whenever "American Idol" needs a little extra legroom, "House" goes missing -- and all those lies -- everyone who thought House really had brain cancer this week please stand on your heads.

THAT "House" was, at least for the night of May 15 (at least in the 18-to-49 demographic), more popular than "American Idol" might come as something of a shock even to regular viewers and admirers of the show. This is largely because Dr. Gregory House is not the sort to curry much favor with those who spend too much time with him. He's irascible, snide and motivated by knowledge, not compassion. Over the three seasons of "House" (Fox, 9 p.m.

IN the three weeks between new episodes of "House," Hugh Laurie won a Golden Globe and a SAG Award for his portrayal of sardonic drug addict and master of diagnostic detection Gregory House. And on Tuesday's episode, he certainly earned both the hard way. Fox's "American Idol" gave this episode its highest ratings ever, and it's too bad this was their introduction since it was the most un-"Housian" "House" to date.

The doctor will be in for a second season. Fox announced Friday that the network's popular freshman medical series "House," starring British actor Hugh Laurie as the unconventional, brutally honest Dr. Greg House, has been picked up for its sophomore year. Despite generally positive reviews, "House" wasn't a ratings powerhouse when it premiered last fall. But with the return of "American Idol" to the Fox lineup in January, "House," which airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m.

"House," Feb. 6, 9 p.m., "Needle in a Haystack." The premise: A 16-year-old is brought to the hospital after experiencing breathing difficulties while making out with his girlfriend. When a chest X-ray reveals fluid in the pleural space (lining of the lung), Dr. Gregory House and his team conclude that the fluid must be blood, so they shoot dye into the teen's veins (venogram) and then his arteries (arteriogram) searching for the source.

WHEN 19th century English cleric Charles Caleb Colton wrote "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," he had no way of envisioning a 21st century universe where "Law & Order" spinoffs would number nearly enough to qualify for their own cable network. Television is such a hungry beast it's not fair to expect originality around every prime-time corner. But every so often, despite formula demands and limitations, TV writers deliver a truly singular character we've not encountered before.

THAT "House" was, at least for the night of May 15 (at least in the 18-to-49 demographic), more popular than "American Idol" might come as something of a shock even to regular viewers and admirers of the show. This is largely because Dr. Gregory House is not the sort to curry much favor with those who spend too much time with him. He's irascible, snide and motivated by knowledge, not compassion. Over the three seasons of "House" (Fox, 9 p.m.

BEING a "House" fan is a bit like being friends with an addict. You have to put up with ridiculous behavior: a doctor who doesn't ever wear a surgical mask, milelong tapeworms, a season-ending shooting that is never mentioned again. There are also the inexplicable disappearances -- whenever "American Idol" needs a little extra legroom, "House" goes missing -- and all those lies -- everyone who thought House really had brain cancer this week please stand on your heads.

"House," Feb. 6, 9 p.m., "Needle in a Haystack." The premise: A 16-year-old is brought to the hospital after experiencing breathing difficulties while making out with his girlfriend. When a chest X-ray reveals fluid in the pleural space (lining of the lung), Dr. Gregory House and his team conclude that the fluid must be blood, so they shoot dye into the teen's veins (venogram) and then his arteries (arteriogram) searching for the source.

IN the three weeks between new episodes of "House," Hugh Laurie won a Golden Globe and a SAG Award for his portrayal of sardonic drug addict and master of diagnostic detection Gregory House. And on Tuesday's episode, he certainly earned both the hard way. Fox's "American Idol" gave this episode its highest ratings ever, and it's too bad this was their introduction since it was the most un-"Housian" "House" to date.

"House," Fox, Oct. 7. Episode: "Que Sera, Sera." The premise: A 600-pound man, George Hagel, is brought into the hospital in a coma. Dr. Gregory House and his team of diagnosticians are stumped as they consider Pickwickian syndrome (obesity hypoventilation syndrome), a stroke, a parasite, a sexually transmitted disease and diabetes. House tries to force Hagel to drink sugar water to rule out diabetes (a glucose tolerance test). Dr.

WHEN 19th century English cleric Charles Caleb Colton wrote "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," he had no way of envisioning a 21st century universe where "Law & Order" spinoffs would number nearly enough to qualify for their own cable network. Television is such a hungry beast it's not fair to expect originality around every prime-time corner. But every so often, despite formula demands and limitations, TV writers deliver a truly singular character we've not encountered before.

The Emmy statue would have gone so nicely with the surfboard. But, really, who needs a stuffy old Emmy when the people who know what's hot have named you the Teen Choice TV Actor? Hugh Laurie has two Golden Globes at home and has earned two Emmy nominations, but America's adolescents last month picked him over Matthew Fox, Wentworth Miller, Milo Ventimiglia and Jared Padalecki as their favorite male TV star on the awards show presented by Fox and Global TV. Not bad for a 48-year-old, huh?

"House," Fox, Oct. 7. Episode: "Que Sera, Sera." The premise: A 600-pound man, George Hagel, is brought into the hospital in a coma. Dr. Gregory House and his team of diagnosticians are stumped as they consider Pickwickian syndrome (obesity hypoventilation syndrome), a stroke, a parasite, a sexually transmitted disease and diabetes. House tries to force Hagel to drink sugar water to rule out diabetes (a glucose tolerance test). Dr.

MAYBE it's the cane. Nobody involved in the creation of the Fox medical drama "House," which begins its second season tonight at 9, will cop to consciously trying to conjure a character who would make TV Guide's list of television's sexiest men. Not creator David Shore, who says it never occurred to him that a sardonic, physically damaged and often quite unkind doctor would stir the hearts of American women. Certainly not actor Hugh Laurie, who resorts to a Woosterian stammer of surprise.

On a recent Tuesday night, viewers of Fox's hit medical mystery drama "House" saw the cranky, Vicodin-popping doctor -- whose diagnostic ingenuity is matched only by his breathtaking rudeness -- as visibly unnerved as he's been all season long. It wasn't a convulsing patient or his bad leg rattling him. He was being thanked by a staff member for agreeing to shill for an overpriced new drug in exchange for not having to fire her or any of his staff.