But ’CSI’ isn’t the only show that’s expanding: ’The Apprentice’ inspired ABC’s ’The Benefactor’

CENTURY CITY

NEWS, NOTES and quotes from television’s summer press tour:

If they keep this up, they’re eventually going to run out of songs by the Who.

I’m talking, of course, about CBS’s ongoing love affair with the "CSI" franchise. As I previously noted (and bemoaned), the network will be adding a third rendition of the popular forensics drama this season. Joining "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and "CSI: Miami" in the stable is "CSI: NY."

That means more money for Pete Townshend and company, which again will provide the series theme song. For the original it was "Who Are You," and for "Miami" the choice was "Won’t Get Fooled Again." Co-creator and executive producer Anthony Zuiker said he was all set to go with "Behind Blue Eyes" for the third series, but he was overruled by the man he reverently calls "the Chairman" — Viacom co-president and co-COO Les Moonves.

"He chose ’Baba O’Reilly,’ and I’ll be darned, that man is always right," Zuiker said, smiling. "Yes, sir. It’s a great anthem and a great choice by the Chairman."

HAPPY EMPLOYEE: Zuiker, who created the original "CSI," refused to be drawn into a conversation about the recent firings of actors Jorja Fox and George Eads from the show. They were axed by the Chairman after demanding raises and failing to report to work.

But while Zuiker kept mum, Carmine Giovinazzo, one of the actors set to appear in "CSI: NY," played the dutiful employee and let it be known that CBS won’t have to worry about him behaving in such a manner.

"Heck, if I was making that kind of money," he said, "I would be shining Moonves’ shoes and caddying for him every weekend."

BATTLING BILLIONAIRES: Donald Trump will have company on prime time this season, as his highly successful "The Apprentice" is spawning a few imitators.

One of the clones is ABC’s "The Benefactor," which has Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and one of America’s richest men, leading 16 contestants through a series of "emotional and dramatic" challenges. The winner earns $1 million.

Trump and the affable Cuban have already exchanged a few verbal jabs here at the press tour. First came Trump, who, with a sly smile, told us he wishes Cuban well and hopes his show "does as well as the Dallas Mavericks." NBA fans, of course, know that the Mavericks were rudely dumped out of the playoffs in the first round this year.

But Cuban, it turns out, can give as good as he gets. "I wish Donald nothing but the best for ’The Apprentice 2,’" he said. "And I hope it does just as well as his casinos do."

"RAYMOND" FAREWELL: Last season it was "Friends," "Frasier" and "Sex and the City." This season another much-loved sitcom will bow out as CBS’s "Everybody Loves Raymond" takes what producers are calling a 16-episode "victory lap."

Executive producer Phil Rosenthal, who created the show with Ray Romano, spoke about how, over the years, so much of the material for the domestic sitcom was culled from the writers’ experiences with their own families. But sooner or later, he joked, it had to stop.

"We’ve been taking our little fights from home and putting them in the show," he said. "And if we keep going, our wives will leave us."

The promotional push for "Raymond’s" ninth and final season will kick off Sept. 14, when the DVD set of the show’s first season, as well as a "family album"-style commemorative book will be released.

FUNNY SIDE OF NEWS: We TV critics collectively opened ourselves to some second-guessing and even a few jokes the other night when we honored Comedy Central’s "The Daily Show" with an award for achievement in news and information.

The satirical faux newscast won the award over such hard-news entities as "60 Minutes" and "Frontline" — a decision that had even "Daily Show" host Jon Stewart a bit dumbfounded.

"Um ... we’re fake, illegitimate, and, if you will, unprofessional," Stewart said via a taped message. But then he thought it over and suggested that next year "The Daily Show" would like to expand its dominance even further by capturing an award in the children’s programming division.

SHORT TAKES: NBC is taking advantage of the alluring promotional platform the Summer Olympics offer to get its fall season off to an early start. On Aug. 30, one day after the games in Athens end, the network will preview its new crime drama, "Hawaii," as well as the fifth season of "Fear Factor." The NBC lineup will continue to roll out over the ensuing days. Among the highlights: The highly hyped "Friends" spinoff "Joey" debuts on Sept. 9 and will be followed by a special 90-minute premiere of the edition of "The Apprentice." ... The WB announced that the summer’s only legitimate scripted hit, "Summerland," will pop up again in winter as the network rewarded the drama with a 13-episode order for the midseason. Despite lukewarm reviews, "Summerland" has been generating quality Nielsen numbers, especially among women and female teen viewers. ... Fox has signed a deal with Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie for a third season of "The Simple Life" coming next spring or summer. ... Former "Party of Five" star Scott Wolf has joined the cast of the WB’s "Everwood." ... Also from the WB: "Smallville" will finally get a young Lois Lane. The role will be filled by newcomer Erica Durance, who will play the future newspaper reporter as a college freshman.