Celebrity News for the SU2K3

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Jun 16, 2:12 PM (ET)

By The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) - In the crowded neighborhood of late-night talk shows, Orlando Jones wants to move in and become the rowdy resident who shakes up the block.

The "The Orlando Jones Show," debuting Monday night on the FX cable network, features the popular former 7-Up TV spokesman pledging to break what he called the stale humor of his late-night rivals.

Among the sketches, Jones plays a researcher at an institute studying the palm-slapping, finger-jabbing moves of street handshakes. He also plays the pitchman for bandages that match the skin tones of black people, from "Morgan Freeman Black (with freckles)" to "Halle Berry Latte."

If that sounds offensive, Jones says you're too uptight - or too old. The 35-year-old actor-comedian said he's "not looking at the world the way people who are 50 look at it."

Instead of having a band, he hired pop and R&B producer Dallas Austin to add music to the show. He also discarded the traditional talk-show decor. "A desk and a cityscape is really kind of boring," Jones said. "It's not me. ... I want a sofa, something Italian, sexy, sleek, that looks like a club I'm going to."

Among his first guests: Adrien Brody, the Oscar-winning star of "The Pianist," and Michael Chiklis of FX's crime series "The Shield," a program that proved to Jones that the network would stand by edgy material. Half-hour episodes will air Monday through Thursday with a rerun on Fridays.