» Bryan Enk

While Joss Whedon may still be saddened by Fox's recent cancellation of 'Dollhouse,' it looks like the Producers Guild of America will be providing the writer-producer-director with some sort of compensation.

Variety reports that Whedon will receive the organization's Vanguard Award, which recognizes achievements in new media and technology, at the 21st Annual PGA Awards at the Hollywood Palladium on Jan. 24.

The CW was hoping the triumphant return of Heather Locklear, the eternal "special guest star" of the original 'Melrose Place,' would boost the alarmingly low ratings of the CW reboot. But, alas, it seems that not even a scheming vixen like Amanda Woodward can do much to help the struggling series.

The Live Feed is reporting that Locklear's appearance on the tenth episode of 'Melrose Place,' which aired on Tuesday, had little to no effect on the ratings. In fact, the show was only up 14 percent from last week's ratings, which were at an all-time low for the series.

Heather Locklear was nominated for four-consecutive Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress in a Television Series (Drama) for her performance as Amanda Woodward, the ambitious and manipulative head of D&D Advertising, in the original 'Melrose Place.' The series ran for seven seasons on Fox from 1992-1999.

Good news for fans still mourning the demise of actor Jason Lee's NBC comedy series 'My Name is Earl': The Hollywood Reporter confirms that Lee will headline 'Delta Blues,' a new TNT pilot executive produced by George Clooney.

Lee will star as Dwight Hendricks, a Memphis police officer who lives with his mother and lives a second life as an Elvis impersonator. Clark Johnson ('The Shield,' 'The Wire') will direct the pilot, written by Liz M. Garcia and Joshua Harto.

Casting continues apace for NBC's legal drama pilot, 'Rex is Not Your Lawyer.'

It's already been announced that David Tennant of 'Doctor Who' fame will be making his American television debut as Rex Alexander, a Chicago lawyer who begins suffering from panic attacks and attempts to compensate by coaching his clients to represent themselves. The role was apparently very difficult to cast, with NBC searching for a leading man for several months until Tennant came in and nailed it.

Now The Hollywood Reporter reports that Abigail Spencer has been cast in the key role of Lindsey Steers, a hotshot up-and-coming lawyer at Rex's firm -- and his fiancee. Madcap complications will most assuredly ensue.

Joss Whedon has become something of a tortured artist since 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' ended its highly successful seven-season run in 2003. Since Sunnydale was destroyed and 'Angel' got pulled right when it was finding its own identity post-'Buffy,' Whedon has yet to find another long-running hit. It's still hard to believe that a show as great as 'Firefly' only lasted one season!

Whedon's bad luck continues with the recent announcement that Fox is pulling the plug on 'Dollhouse,' a series that had enough of a following -- and potential -- to warrant another season. Would 'Dollhouse' have really hit its stride further down the road? We'll never know. Here are some other sci-fi television series that met their makers too soon.

Variety reports acclaimed fantasy author Ray Bradbury will team up with White Oak Films to produce a six-hour television miniseries, 'The Bradbury Chronicles.' Following in the footsteps of TNT's successful 'Nightmares and Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King,' 'The Bradbury Chronicles' will be small screen adaptations of six of Bradbury's short stories.