Mike Darnell

Mike Darnell, the man behind a string of sometimes provocative and sometimes trashy reality TV shows such as "When Animals Attack," "Joe Millionaire," "The Simple Life" and "Who Wants to Marry a Multimillionaire," said Monday that he was staying put at Fox Broadcasting Co. For the last two months, Darnell has been courted by more than half a dozen companies, including Fox rival NBC Universal. "It was an emotional nightmare for me and my wife," Darnell said in an interview.

The Octomom is finally ready for prime time. Nadya Suleman, the single mother of 14 children, will be featured in a Fox special "Octomom: The Incredible Unseen Footage" that producers say will offer a "jaw-dropping" look into her chaotic life. The special, which will air Aug. 19, was compiled from footage shot by RadarOnline.com, which has had full access to Suleman since last March, when she brought the first two of her octuplets home to her La Habra residence. "The access they got is amazing," said Mike Darnell, Fox's head of alternative programming.

A dating series featuring "plus-size" men and women will air on Fox Broadcasting later this year. The network said Monday that it had ordered "More to Love," a show it describes as an average single guy "with a big waist and an even bigger heart" choosing among several "confident and secure plus-size women." "This is the first dating competition show in television history that reflects what most real single men and women look like, which makes it instantly relatable to the vast majority of people in the dating pool," said Mike Darnell, Fox Broadcasting's president of alternative entertainment.

A dating series featuring "plus-size" men and women will air on Fox Broadcasting later this year. The network said Monday that it had ordered "More to Love," a show it describes as an average single guy "with a big waist and an even bigger heart" choosing among several "confident and secure plus-size women." "This is the first dating competition show in television history that reflects what most real single men and women look like, which makes it instantly relatable to the vast majority of people in the dating pool," said Mike Darnell, Fox Broadcasting's president of alternative entertainment.

The Octomom is finally ready for prime time. Nadya Suleman, the single mother of 14 children, will be featured in a Fox special "Octomom: The Incredible Unseen Footage" that producers say will offer a "jaw-dropping" look into her chaotic life. The special, which will air Aug. 19, was compiled from footage shot by RadarOnline.com, which has had full access to Suleman since last March, when she brought the first two of her octuplets home to her La Habra residence. "The access they got is amazing," said Mike Darnell, Fox's head of alternative programming.

Although he's a slightly built fellow who stands 5 feet tall and weighs less than 100 pounds, Mike Darnell will apparently carry the Fox network on his shoulders through the balance of the television season.

WESTERN civilization is apparently on the brink of collapse, and once again we can blame Fox television's Mike Darnell. Widely acknowledged as one of the most talented reality programmers in town, the normally media-shy TV executive behind "American Idol," "Joe Millionaire" and, yes, even 1995's "Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction?" has cast himself as the carnival barker for a new reality show that he jokes could push the culture over the edge.

Fox is putting big bucks behind "X-Quest," an unscripted reality show from Imagine Entertainment, the creative force behind "Apollo 13," and the co-creator of the hit videogame "Halo." Imagine's Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, along with Imagine TV President David Nevins, will work with Fox reality TV guru Mike Darnell to executive produce the show, in which two teams of contestants with no special training are locked into separate, cramped, high-tech biocrafts designed to simulate life in space.

Fox, hoping to trump the ABC reality-based hit "The Bachelor," announced that seven episodes of a show called "Joe Millionaire" will begin airing Jan. 6 and run Mondays at 9 p.m. The hook of the show involves a bachelor and 20 hopeful single women. Only this time, the women fly to France to meet the man who, unbeknownst to them, is not a millionaire but an average Joe given a make-over.

We may never know if Americans are smarter than a fifth-grader, but we do know that apparently people want to find out. Fox television's "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?," which quizzes adults on fifth-grade level and below math, science and history, scored an audience of 26.6 million Tuesday night, making it the highest-rated series premiere ever on the network in total viewers. Even with it airing after the most popular show on TV, "American Idol," the numbers are still impressive.

WESTERN civilization is apparently on the brink of collapse, and once again we can blame Fox television's Mike Darnell. Widely acknowledged as one of the most talented reality programmers in town, the normally media-shy TV executive behind "American Idol," "Joe Millionaire" and, yes, even 1995's "Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction?" has cast himself as the carnival barker for a new reality show that he jokes could push the culture over the edge.

Mike Darnell, the man behind a string of sometimes provocative and sometimes trashy reality TV shows such as "When Animals Attack," "Joe Millionaire," "The Simple Life" and "Who Wants to Marry a Multimillionaire," said Monday that he was staying put at Fox Broadcasting Co. For the last two months, Darnell has been courted by more than half a dozen companies, including Fox rival NBC Universal. "It was an emotional nightmare for me and my wife," Darnell said in an interview.

Although he's a slightly built fellow who stands 5 feet tall and weighs less than 100 pounds, Mike Darnell will apparently carry the Fox network on his shoulders through the balance of the television season.

Bob Greenblatt is resigning as executive vice president of prime-time programs at Fox after eight years in the job and four presidents, clearing the way for Peter Roth, who was appointed head of the Fox Entertainment Group in September, to put his own team in place. Greenblatt would not say whether he has another job lined up. But speculation has centered on his forming a production company or moving into the feature-film business as an independent producer.

Lylle Breier has been promoted to vice president, special events for Buena Vista Pictures Distribution. Breier will be responsible for creating and overseeing all special events related to motion pictures under Disney, Touchstone and Hollywood Pictures. * Ynon Kreiz has been promoted to vice president, business development, Saban Entertainment.