By TERRY MORROW, Scripps Howard News Service

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- "Life on Mars" star Jason O'Mara's time has come.After either playing short-term roles in prime-time shows or being the lead in series with no future, O'Mara has landed one of the plum parts of the fall: playing time-displaced cop Sam Tyler in ABC's version of the British hit series.

The waiter looked at comic Ricky Gervais and couldn't resist asking."Where do I know you from?" he asked."I did a show on HBO called 'Extras,' " Gervais said, unshaken that the waiter couldn't quite place him."I didn't see that," the waiter said. "But I know I've seen you before."

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- "House" co-star Kal Penn is finding TV work to be a bit of a mystery."The challenge seems to be that you don't know anything about the character as you play them," the 31-year-old Penn says."That's the exact opposite from working on a film, where you have the entire script to tell you about who you're playing."

Actress Paula Marshall figures she's giving ex-wives a good name on the new comedy "Gary Unmarried" (8:30 p.m. EST Wednesdays, CBS)."Ex-wives are going to love me," says the 44-year-old star, an ex-wife herself. "I'm not going to play her as the snotty, obnoxious, bitter ex-wife."

Of all the election-night coverage out there, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert may be providing the most entertaining.The two media-lampooning stars are headlining "Indecision 2008: America's Choice" (live at 10 p.m. EST Tuesday, Comedy Central). The special will bring viewers coverage of the election, with reports and analyses from the field and candidate headquarters.

Comic Fred Armisen has a professional stake in the presidential election.If Barack Obama wins, Armisen will get to continue his impression of him for the next four years, at least -- a role that has finally made Armisen a breakout performer on "Saturday Night Live" after being on the show for seven seasons.

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- "Little Britain" duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas became indoctrinated to the United States through frozen custard, Dixie Stampede and Chick-fil-A.

What kind of a driver is Justin Bruening, star of the new "Knight Rider"?"A (darn) good one," he says quickly.

If ever a television season could use a touchstone, it's this one.And rolling out with new episodes after almost every other network series has been back on the air for weeks, NBC's "30 Rock" returns blazing (9:30 p.m. Thursday), if not quite boldly, satisfying if not entirely pronounced.

"Come in here and show them your teeth," actress Anna Paquin yells into another room.Actor Stephen Moyer walks in, a bit perplexed about why she wants him to open his mouth to a room of strangers. Then she giggles and asks him again to bare his fangs.And he does."See," she says, smiling. "He does have them."