NEW YORK - 'Hanna Montana' star Miley Cyrus and her father Billy Ray Cyrus have invited the families of US troops to take part in the filming of a concert scene for the show.

'My dad has always been super involved with the troops so (the producers) always try to find things that are close to our hearts and that we're really involved in,' people.com quoted Miley as saying.

Billy Ray, 48, added: 'This past December I was in Afghanistan and Iraq and that trip inspired the writers to say let's do an episode to say thank you to the troops.'

Hannah Montana stars Billy Ray and Miley Cyrus know how to plan a sneak attack: After inviting dozens of military families to fill the studio audience during the March 12 taping of the hit series, they surprised the audience by inviting them to take part in filming a concert scene for the show.

"My dad has always been super involved with the troops so [the producers] always try to find things that are close to our hearts and that we're really involved in," Miley, 17, told PEOPLE.

Let's face it: everyone had a rough first week on "American Idol." The guys, for the most part, tanked, and the women were only marginally better. Even the judges had some difficulties, with Simon Cowell looking visibly bored at times, the other panelists seeming a bit off and new addition to the panel from the same case of nerves that affected many of the contestants.

But no matter what the critics say, Ellen had a blast at her new gig. The veteran comedian discussed her first week of live "Idol" shows on the episode of her talk show airing Friday (February 26).

Madonna has been divorced twice. So who better to help warring couples settle their spats?

The Queen of Pop music is making a rare TV appearance that will not involve singing or corsets on Jerry Seinfeld's new show "The Marriage Ref," which debuts February 28 on NBC.

Madonna is set to preside over spousal feuds alongside British comedian Ricky Gervais, who recently hosted the Golden Globe Awards, and "Seinfeld" co-creator Larry David, more recently known for "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

The last time Jay Leno said goodbye to America, it was in gala fashion, marked by high emotion, a cheering studio audience and tears.

In ending his 17-year stretch on "The Tonight Show" last May, Leno gracefully honored his predecessor, the late Johnny Carson; figuratively passed the hosting baton to successor Conan O'Brien and then asked James Taylor to serenade viewers with "Sweet Baby James."

Don't expect that kind of weepy, bittersweet send-off Tuesday when Leno signs off his failed prime-time program that was once trumpeted by NBC as a bold experiment that could reshape television.

The two top-financed Democrats hoping to regain the Texas governor's mansion after 16 years of GOP control looked to grab a chunk of the political limelight Monday evening when they meet for a televised debate.

The hour-long debate before a small TV studio audience in Fort Worth will give rookie Democratic candidate and hair care mogul Farouk Shami a chance to share equal billing with his more politically seasoned challenger Bill White, the former three-term Houston mayor.

Friday night it was Jimmy Kimmel's turn to host the young stars of The Twilight Saga: New Moon: Kristen Stewart (Bella Swan), Taylor Lautner (Jacob Black) and Robert Pattinson (Edward Cullen, as if you didn't know). The audible rapture of the studio audience, in large part female, stirred Kimmel to that now-familiar remark, "Not since the Beatles..." The crowd swooned when Pattinson, asked if he'd been injured doing any of the movie's stunts, acknowledged, "I strained one of my ass-cheeks." When the ladies had a chance to ask questions, the ones directed to the men were mostly shirt-related.

Why is Oprah Winfrey leaving her iconic talk show? For her, the answer is simple: the time is right.

"I love this show, this show has been my life, and I love it enough to know when it's time to say goodbye," Winfrey told her studio audience during Friday's live edition of "Oprah." "Twenty-five years feels right in my bones and it feels right in my spirit. It's the perfect number. It's the exact right time."

David Letterman surprised his studio audience Thursday during the taping of his CBS show when he announced that he'd had sex with female "Late Show" staffers and that someone had tried to extort $2 million from him to keep quiet about the relationships.

CBS issued a statement late Thursday night acknowledging that the man who attempted to extort the money was an employee of the CBS newsmagazine "48 Hours" who was subsequently arrested Thursday on charges of attempted grand larceny in the first degree.

David Letterman made a shocking personal confession on his CBS Late Show Thursday, admitting he was the victim of a $2 million extortion attempt and that he had had sexual relations with female members of staff.

Three weeks ago, Variety reports, basing its facts on a press release from reps of the TV host, Letterman received a package from a sender claiming to have information about alleged sexual activity between the 62-year-old star and employees of his program.

They made two versions of the pilot episode of "Hank," the new ABC sitcom starring Kelsey Grammer, both of which leave unfunny whiffs of doom in their wake. I nevertheless remain clinically fascinated by the show's lameness. Version 1 was released to critics in the early summer and fell flat on its face. This happens. No biggie, you just tweak the cast and the script and the everything-else-about-it and reshoot the pilot with a different studio audience.

LOS ANGELES -- Conan O'Brien turned his "Tonight Show" stunt injury into laughs at his expense by showing footage of the cringe-worthy backward fall on a hard studio floor.

"As many of you may know, on this past Friday's show I was doing a stunt and I hit my head and suffered a slight concussion. And I promise, if you're a good audience, I'll do it again tonight," O'Brien said during Monday's taping.

A contrite Kanye West helped Jay Leno kick off the TV host's new primetime NBC show on Monday, with the emcee thanking him for not backing out of his commitment to appear – despite the mountain of criticism since he interrupted Taylor Swift's MTV Video Music Awards victory speech.

"Have you had a tough day?" Leno asked West, 32, as the studio audience erupted in laughter. Speaking seriously, West replied, "Yeah, it's been extremely difficult." He admitted to "just dealing with the fact that I hurt someone or took anything away, you know, from a talented artist or from anyone, because I only wanted to help people."

David Letterman took his biggest step to put the furor surrounding his jokes about Sarah Palin's daughters behind him during the taping of his show Monday.

In remarks set to air Monday night obtained by FOXNews.com from a 'Late Show' rep, Letterman directly apologized to the Palin family for the coarse jokes he made last Monday.

"I would like to apologize, especially to the two daughters involved, Bristol and Willow, and also to the governor and her family and everybody else who was outraged by the joke," Letterman told the studio audience.

Baghdad, Iraq - In the normally surreal atmosphere of US military headquarters in Saddam Hussein's former palace, a taped appearance by President Obama ordering his top general in Iraq to shave comedian Stephen Colbert's head didn't even seem that odd.

To the delighted audience of about 250 servicemen and women who were the studio audience of "Operation Iraq Stephen: Going Commando," the show was part of an hour-long suspension of a war that for many on this vast base has become more drudgery than danger.

RECORD numbers of furious viewers tuned in to see MPs being grilled over expenses on BBC1’s Question Time.

About 3.8 million, a million more than usual, were glued to the TV as Labour MP Margaret Beckett was heckled.

It was the biggest audience in the show’s 30-year history — beating 3.4 million in 2003 when Britain and the US declared war on Iraq.

Everybody's nervous the first time.

But not everybody does it for the first time in front of a studio audience and millions of people. "We've never performed any song live - ever," Akiva Schaffer said about the Lonely Island crew making their live-performance debut Tuesday night on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon."

On his HBO show, "Real Time With Bill Maher," the comedian routinely makes vicious fun of celebrities, politicians, presidents and even God. But he's learned that, for much of his audience, Barack Obama is off limits.

We've reached the Twitter tipping point. Get ready for the boom.

There have been plenty of headlines about celebrities who Twitter and people who Twitter through disasters or breaking news events like the Hudson River plane crash, but still the popular micro-blogging Web site remained off the radar for many.

I'm still stuck on Susan Boyle, and still weeping. I suppose that's so 24 hours ago, and I should be thinking instead about how Mel Gibson's divorce might affect his box-office cred with conservative Catholics.