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Rene Syler, lame-duck co-anchor of CBS' "The Early Show," will undergo a bilateral prophylactic mastectomy next month.
Syler's mother and father both had breast cancer, and she has endured several breast cancer scares and painful biopsies. She was working on a first-person piece about her forthcoming surgery when she was told that "Early Show" "was going in a different direction. It wasn't like there was any room for debate," she says.
Her bosses knew about her medical condition, Syler says, but she doesn't believe it was a factor in their decision. Her swan song is Dec. 22; her CBS contract runs until October `08.
Syler, 43, labels her plan as "pretty radical. I've been thinking about it for a while. The difficult part is that I have two young kids. They can't be without their mommy. I don't want to be in a position where I'm fighting for my life."
Syler says she and her husband, sales executive Buff Parham, will tell their children about her operation closer to the Jan. 9 date. "I want them to have a really great Christmas," she says. "I don't want to burden them."
Some days, Syler feels confident about her decision. Other days, "I wake up and feel like I only have X number of days with my breasts. It's like I have a date with the executioner. But when my doctor said I'd never have to have another mammogram or biopsy, I felt better."
Syler says that her sister, Tracy Syler-Jones, 42, director of communications at Texas Christian University, is also thinking about having the surgery.
As for "The Early Show," Syler had no warning of CBS' decision, she says. "I was surprised. Nobody ever wants to be told, `We're going in a different direction and you're not part of that.' We mutually decided it was a good time to move on."
Her departure is not without an upside. "This gives me time to recuperate," she says. Her first book, "Good Enough Mother," is to be published in March.
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Meanwhile, the big question at CBS News is who will replace Syler in the anchor quartet at the ever-struggling "Early Show."
CBS morning honcho Steve Friedman confirms that he's looking for a fourth to join Harry Smith, Hannah Storm and Julie Chen before the show re-launches Jan. 2 with a new set and more distinct roles for the principals.
Since "Early Show's" October `02 debut, all four co-anchors have taken turns reading news, conducting big interviews, and covering breaking stories from the field. That will change.
Friedman, who joined CBS in April, doesn't like "amorphous shows where everybody does everything."
At NBC's No. 1 "Today" and ABC's No. 2 "Good Morning America," anchors have defined roles. Also, both broadcasts have separate news anchors. "They've done very well over the decades," says Friedman, two-time former "Today" boss. "The audience seems to like that."
The audience hasn't seemed to like any CBS morning show since the network broke into the game in 1954. Walter Cronkite, Jack Paar, Will Rogers Jr., and Jimmy Dean all served as hosts during various early incarnations.
"When push comes to shove, I'll probably bring in someone else to do the news," Friedman says. "For better or for worse, and I'm not saying this disparagingly, we will have what Matt Lauer did for me and Ann Curry does for them" at "Today."
Friedman's not talking, but CBS insiders say his wish list includes Campbell Brown, coanchor of NBC's weekend "Today"; Kate Snow of ABC's weekend "GMA"; CNN star Anderson Cooper; and "GMA" anchor Diane Sawyer.
Should Friedman land one of them - Brown and Snow are his best shots - smart money says she/he would be an anchor, with one of the current troika being demoted to news anchor.
As of now, Smith is "Early Show's" reporter in the field. (He'll anchor Thursday from Washington.) Chen, who spends summers in L.A. to host "Big Brother," will do more stories from there, Friedman says.
Storm conducts many of the on-set interviews. "I hate to say this, because sometimes it's taken out of context, but she's the mother," Friedman says. "She should do a lot of pieces about kids. If it's a mother-daughter piece, why should Harry do it?"
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Latest addition to Fox's hit "24": "NYPD Blue" alum Rick Schroder, as forceful CTU operative Mike Doyle, who teams with Kiefer Sutherland's Jack Bauer on crucial field operations.
Season 6 launches with a two-night, four-hour "TV event" at 8 p.m. EST Jan. 14 and 15 before moving to its regular 9 p.m. Monday slot on Jan. 22.
Former "Sex and the City" boy toy Jason Lewis will switch teams in several episodes of ABC's new drama, "Brothers & Sisters." He'll play a potential love interest for sad-sack Kevin Walker (Matthew Rhys).
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Short stuff:
Hip-hop star Akon ("I Wanna Love You") has been added to this week's musical lineup for NBC's "Saturday Night Live." Annette Bening makes her "SNL" debut as host; the other musical guest is Gwen Stefani ... Good news, "30 Rock" fans. NBC has ordered the "back nine" episodes of Tina Fey's freshman comedy for a full season's 22 ... CBS' "Criminal Minds" has won the coveted post-Super Bowl slot Feb. 4. "Minds," starring Mandy Patinkin and Thomas Gibson as elite FBI profilers, ranks No. 7 among all prime-time shows.
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Gail Shister: gshister@phillynews.com
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(c) 2006, The Philadelphia Inquirer. Distributed by Mclatchy-Tribune News Service.
