Conan - Monday November 8, 12AM ET/PT, Comedy

Finally, the red-headed phoenix rises from the ashes of that NBC debacle, taking his rightful place on your late-night screen. Conan O'Brien's first week of guests includes Seth Rogen, Jack White, Tom Hanks, Jon Hamm, and Canadian Jon Dore. There was initially some talk of having Coco on earlier up here in Canada, with initial releases claiming he'd be on at 11PM, but alas with 'The Daily Show's historic takeover of the top late night spot, why mess with success? (Jon Stewart airs at 11PM on CTV affiliates in Canada.)

'Dancing With the Stars' main man Tom Bergeron is playing Bobby Mann -- a late night talk show host who gets canceled permanently on the April 12 episode of 'Castle,' which airs on ABC immediately after the 'DWTS' two-hour performance show. It's up to series star Nathan Fillion and his TV detective partner, played by Stana Katic, to find out who killed Bobby.

AOL spoke with Bergeron, who weighed in on 'Castle,' the current -- and arguably most-talked about -- cast of 'Dancing With the Stars,' and how he handles those pesky TMZ.com interviews.

Read the interview after the jump.

A lot of us here at TV Squad have been listing that for which we are thankful. Like many of the others, I feel I have to start with my wife and family, and my friends. And I'd also add the comedy community in Boston, where I work, and beyond, for giving me something worth writing about and following day after day, year after year.

But this is a TV site, so the big part of this list is the things I am thankful I can see on the rundown TV in my office that makes a horrible cranking sound when I try to play DVDs, ot downstairs when I'm not bothering anyone by trying to catch up on thirteen discs of the Steve Coogan Collection.

My Local Library

Don't laugh. I have a rule that I won't watch an episodic TV series unless I've started it from the beginning, which means I wind up missing a lot of shows everyone else is screaming praises for.

Given the level of Python geekery out there, I'm not sure any Monty Python sketch is truly obscure. But there are plenty of gems past the more celebrated Fish-Slapping, Dead Parrot, and Argument Clinic sketches you see most often.

Since the Python reunion was broadcast yesterday, IFC starts "Monty Python Midnights" tonight with The Holy Grail, and starts airing the six-part documentary Monty Python: Almost the Truth: The Lawyer's Cut on Sunday, I thought it would be a good time to toss my own bit of nostalgia on the building heap this week.

I'm sure any list could be nitpicked to death with so much to choose from, but these are a few of my favorite less talked about Python sketches, starting with one from the troupe's great concert film, Live at the Hollywood Bowl.

The founding members of one of the most groundbreaking comedy troupes and TV shows of all time are reuniting this week. And you're invited.

Monty Python's 40th anniversary reunion at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City will be broadcast at IFC.com and Pythonline.com. Both sites will host the event at 9 p.m. Eastern.

This latest reunion marks their first appearance together in public since their memorable reunion show at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colo. Watch it or you're no fun anymore.

One of the world' most quotable and iconic comedy shows made its television debut 40 years ago today.

Monty Python's Flying Circus first appeared on British television on Oct. 5, 1969, a show that branched into four feature length films, launched the careers of six very funny dudes and inspired millions of countless nerds to quote their most famous lines to death (myself included).

I'm sure everyone with a working set of eyes and a television set remembers the first time they saw Monty Python. What's your earliest memory of the show and more importantly, did it include any images of nude ladies?

Back in the Old Days, before cable ruled the air, Americans only got to see Brit television (most notably, Doctor Who, but also The Prisoner and Monty Python's Flying Circus) via their local PBS station.

Now, thanks to the magic of YouTube, we can revisit those days when the only on-air Comic Cons or Cosplays were the folks at PBS (or whatever public access station was available) dressing up and embarrassing themselves in front of a camera in an effort to get donations. The most interesting aspect is that the low-cost special effects they used to get donations were the same as those used on Doctor Who at the time.

I sincerely hope the folks behind these videos are watching them right now and cringing, praying for the ground to swallow them up. More likely, the people behind them are the ones who put them on YouTube in the first place.

BAFTA (The British Academy of Film and Television Arts) will be honoring Monty Python on the group's 40th anniversary. The surviving members of Monty Python will receive a special award for outstanding contribution to film and television in October. The event will be co-hosted by the Independent Film Channel and take place in New York.

Excuse me. What? An awards event hosted by a British organization for a British group is taking place in New York? Isn't that somewhat counter-intuitive? Unless IFC is picking up the whole check (which is a distinct possibility), this should be moved to London.

I was going to save this extra-classic show, Monty Python's Flying Circus, for the later part of the Sketch Comedy Saturday series, but I just had to do this in light of recent, super-exciting news. As I hope most of you know, Monty Python will be having a reunion. Sure, John Cleese and Graham Chapman won't be there (for two, completely different reasons) but it will still be nice to see Michael Palin, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Terry Gilliam get back together, right? Magic always happens when there's more than one Python guy around. Except that time John Cleese and Michael Palin tried to do "The Parrot Sketch" on Saturday Night Live a few years ago. That was just weird.

According to Twitter, John Cleese is recovering from successful eye surgery in the U.K.

Following a procedure on his left eye, Cleese handed his Tweets over to a friend, Garry Scott-Irvine. That buddy is keeping fans updated on the Monty Python and Fawlty Towers legend's condition. Fans sent scores of well-wishes to Cleese as he heals up in a British hospital.

The 69-year-old comedian is reportedly in good health otherwise and looking to head home later this week. His chosen method of communication is ironic when you consider Cleese sells a t-shirt on his site entitled: "WTF is Twitter?"

I must be way behind on all the Monty Python hot gossip because, well, I didn't know there was gong to be any more hot gossip. Surely I am not the only one that completely missed this whole story about Terry Jones leaving his wife of thirty-some years for a much younger model, forty years his junior.

Now, as if that wasn't enough to boggle my mind for a good day or so, here comes to news that 67 year-old Jones is about to become a father again. Regardless of how you feel about this situation ethically, you've got to admit, that's ... pretty wild.

Care more about tribbles than touchdowns? Don't sweat it. From sci-fi favorites to Batman biographies, there's tons of geeky stuff to watch on TV before and after you've had your turkey on Thanksgiving Day. Check out these suggestions (SciFi Channel's James Bond marathon was excluded due to its unhealthy amount of Pierce Brosnan).
Update: Check out Bob's list for more Thanksgiving Day viewing options.

6:15 a.m. (Eastern), Solaris (IFC) – I only recommend watching Andrei Tarkovsky's meditative sci-fi classic this early if you've stayed up all night basting a bird. It's sure to put you right to sleep and give you some crazy dreams.

6:30 a.m., Planet of the Apes (FMC) – Prepare for Turkey Day by watching Charlton Heston give evolution (that cruel joker) a one-two punch in the face. Followed by a documentary about the POTA movies and several episodes of the 1974 TV series.

7 a.m., Angel "Offspring" (TNT) – Darla shows up preggers on Angel's doorstep in this tense season three ep, written by co-creator David Greenwalt.

8 a.m., Biography: Batman (Biography Channel) – Adam West and Burt Ward guide you through a look back at the 60s Batman TV show. Followed by Adam West: Behind the Cowl and bios of Catwoman and Wonder Woman Lynda Carter. Holy awesomeness, Batman!

Hey, want to know something super-sad? For most of seventh grade, I came home every day from school and, before doing anything else, watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail from beginning to end. I also spent a great deal of middle school reading everything I could about the troupe, filling my brain with pointless trivia about Sam Peckinpah's "Salad Days" and Spam.

This not only caused me to develop a type of hardcore social awkwardness that was extremely rare outside of the 70s and 80s, but forever instilled in me a deep love for Monty Python. Since the boys are very busy with their individual projects these days, it's a thrill to see any new Python stuff to come around, even when it's in the form of an extra-short YouTube clip and they're never actually shown to be in the same room together.

Another "holy crap!" giveaway. Besides the Futurama giveaway, one of today's giveaways is for three copies of The 16-Ton Monty Python DVD Megaset, which you can save 50% on if you order here. All you've got to do is submit a comment below before 5PM Eastern, November 23, and mention your favorite Monty Python sketch. We'll randomly choose three winners to receive the DVDs!

Some other details:

• To enter, leave a confirmed comment below stating your favorite Monty Python sketch.
• The comment must be left before November 23, 2007 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
  
• You may enter only once.
• Three winners will be selected in a random drawing.
  
• Three winners will receive a copy of The 16-Ton Monty Python DVD Megaset (valued at $99.95).
  

Click here for complete Official Rules.

Hey, Brigitte here with TV Squad Daily. I'll be covering the TV stories I find interesting each day, Monday through Friday, in this video blog.

Today on TV Squad Daily:

• Crew members of The Shield ran into some real-life resistance while trying to film in a gritty neighborhood in L.A.
  
• Sara Ramirez of Grey's Anatomy is after a pop music career, with the help of the makers of a Monty Python musical?
  
• The Pussycat Dolls will finally choose their new member tonight. I'm on team "the girl with bangs."
  

The video's embedded below, or you can download the file directly (Quicktime required). You can also subscribe to this podcast via our feed.