Ed Asner will reprise the 'Hawaii Five-0' role he first played more than 30 years ago.

According to CBS, the 'Mary Tyler Moore Show' veteran will once again play August March in an early 2012 episode. Asner first played the role in the 1975 episode of the original 'Hawaii Five-0' titled 'Wooden Model of a Rat.'

"It is thrilling to, for the first time, merge the original 'Hawaii Five-0' and our new show by having the classic, versatile and award-winning actor Ed Asner reprise his role of August March, a character Mr. Asner first played 36 years ago. There is no better way to form a bridge between our reboot and the original series," Peter Lenkov, 'Hawaii Five-0' executive producer, said in a statement.

For the first time, footage from the original series featuring Asner will be used. The archive footage will show his character in his smuggler days. When Asner's character appears in the new series, he'll be a reformed man after serving 30 years in prison for murder. The Five-0 team approach him for help on a smuggling case.

In other casting news ...

Seriously?! Is this what it's come to. Not only does every C- and D-List celebrity get their own reality series, but now we're giving shows to animals from the news? Sure it's great that the National Geographic Channel show Dogtown is going to try and rehabilitate the dogs that Michael Vick used in his dogfighting gambit, but is this really TV-worthy? Does the channel really need to stoop this low?

Apparently they could use the buzz, and look it worked because here we are: Nat Geo is going to chronicle the rehabilitation efforts of the 22 animals rescued in the Vick scandal, focusing on four of the toughest cases. I certainly hope they're successful, because I think if an animal proves unable to rehabilitate, they have no choice but to put it down. That'd make for a hell of a downer to end the series. "In the end, the dogs were too far gone, hopelessly driven by fear and violence. Let us now say goodbye as they take their final slumber into eternity ... Damn you, Michael Vick! Damn you straight to hell!" Then PETA stages a protest.