Time Warner Cable and Walt Disney Co. agreed to keep ABC, ESPN and other channels on the air as the two companies continued negotiations past a midnight deadline.

The media companies are trying to reach a new contract and avoid blackouts for Time Warner Cable customers, but haven't come to terms on a new deal. Their existing contract expired at midnight.

"We continue to negotiate - there should be no programming interruption while the negotiations continue," Time Warner Cable spokesman Keith Poston wrote in an e-mail this morning. "Stay tuned."

Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino (left) will be adding a new task to his daily regimen of gym, tan, and laundry: dance lessons.

The "Jersey Shore" lothario has been confirmed by ABC as one of the contestants on the upcoming season of "Dancing with the Stars," along with former NBA (and UNC) star Rick Fox, NFL quarterback Kurt Warner, singer Michael Bolton, "Brady" mom Florence Henderson, comedian/actress Margaret Cho, singer/actress Brandy, reality actress Audrina Patridge, actress Jennifer Grey, actor/singer(?) David Hasselhoff, rapper Kyle Massey, and daughter-of-famous-person Bristol Palin. 

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This is the new trailer for the upcoming season of "Desperate Housewives," which has added Vanessa Williams ("Ugly Betty") to the cast. Looks great. Williams will pay Renee Filmore-Jones, an old classmate of Lynnette. Williams told Fancast that the first episode starts with a "bang." The new season debuts September 26.

This is an unabridged version of our Q&A, which ran into today's print edition.

Pittsboro actress Andrea Powell has landed a hair-raising role on ABC's supernatural summer drama, "The Gates." Powell plays Karen Crezki, the mother of temperamental teen heartthrob and star athlete Brett Crezki.

Oh yeah, Brett is also a werewolf.

Powell's episodes begin this Sunday (10pm on ABC) and she'll appear on and off throughout the rest of the season. You can also see Powell in an upcoming movie with Renee Zellweger and Forest Whitaker, "My Own Love Song," and also in "Get Low" with Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek.

We caught up with Powell this week and asked her about her role on "The Gates" and about managing an acting career from Chatham County.

I'm not a regular viewer of "All My Children," but while channel surfing, I've seen J.R. Martinez, who plays Brot Monroe, a war vet turned police officer, who is visibly scarred.

At first, I thought the scars were makeup, but after it became clear there were truly his, I wondered about his back story.

Here's a nice profile from the Los Angeles Times. Sounds like a great guy.

Remember when Erica Kane and her first husband Tom Cudahy went on their honeymoon in St. Croix? Or when Hayley Vaughan (Kelly Ripa) arrived in Pine Valley dressed like a punk rocker with black hair?

Then you must be a fan of "All My Children," and this might excite you. In honor of the show's 40th anniversary, the producers are opening up the photo archives and making them available for purchase starting today. The gallery has about 40 cast images from every year of the series since it premiered in 1970.

There's more: if you just love Erica, Susan Lucci has signed a limited number of photos of her character from her first month playing the role. If you buy one, you'll get a certificate of authenticity. I have to say, looking at the "then" and "now," 40 years have been good to La Lucci!

Go to www.abcdaytimefans.com for sizes and prices.

The sitcom "Better Off Ted," which is funnier than most of the sitcoms out there now, never got much respect from ABC. The promotion was light, the scheduling often seemed random, and then it was abruptly canceled before its season ended. The last two episodes, which were already completed, were never shown ("Pushing Daisies," anyone??).

Even now that the fall schedule is over, ABC would rather double-up on reruns of "The Middle" on Wednesday nights than let us see those last two "Ted" episodes.

Now there may be a way to see them....

The Disney Corporation, which owns ABC, announced today that they are killing their SoapNet channel and replacing it with a channel for youngsters.

SoapNet airs reruns of ABC soaps and dramas like "Beverly Hills 90210" and "Gilmore Girls," and also a relatively popular original scripted series called "Being Erica," which was just renewed for a third season.

SoapNet will be replaced with Disney Junior, a network featuring 24-hour programming for kids aged 2-7.

Disney said when SoapNet was launched it was to provide soaps on a time-shift so that people could watch them at night, but DVRs have made such viewing much easier.

The change will take place January of 2012.  

The last installment of Luci's 3-part "Lost" finale recap (read  part 2):

SPOILER ALERT

A taxi arrives at a church. It's Real Locke in WITPDCAR. He gets into his wheelchair. He sees Ben outside. Ben apologizes for everything. "I was selfish. Jealous. You were special, John. And I wasn't." "Ben, if it helps, I forgive you." Ben chooses to stay outside even though everyone else is inside. (A self-imposed penance perhaps?) Ben tells Locke he doesn't need the wheelchair anymore and Locke walks into the church on his own two legs.

More from Luci Chavez on last night's "Lost" finale (read part 1 of recap here):

Juliet, Claire and David (Dylan Minnette) are walking into he concert in WITPDCAR. Juliet has to go back to the hospital, I presume. Charlie is passed out in the green room until the lovely Charlotte wakes him. "I got shot by a fat man." Daniel Farraday/Widmore (Jeremy Davies) is in the green room, too. He and Charlotte meet.

Outside, David and Claire sit at Table 23 with Desmond and Kate. (The producers think they're so cute.) Dr. Chang is emceeing the event. It is his museum after all. Daniel Widmore is going to jam with Drive Shaft while playing classical piano. Highly unlikely in real life because, in my mind, Drive Shaft is basically Oasis but I don't even care because there is Charlie with his bass looking just shy of sober! Yeah!!!!