BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- CBS's new fall sitcom "Mike & Molly" features Swissvale native Billy Gardell as one of two larger-than-we-normally-see-on-TV lead characters, but don't mistake it for a show that's only about the girth of its lead characters.

"This isn't a show about weight, it's a show about people trying to make their lives better and find someone they can have a committed relationship with," said executive producer Chuck Lorre ("The Big Bang Theory," "Two and a Half Men"). "If we're still all talking about this issue come episode six, it would get tired really quickly. That's not enough to hang a series on. Mothers, fathers, sons, lovers, friends, money, health, work -- those are the things you write about."

"Mike & Molly" follows the budding romantic relationship between two members of an overeaters' anonymous support group, Mike (Mr. Gardell) and Molly (Melissa McCarth, who played Sookie on "Gilmore Girls").

It's also an ensemble sitcom that includes Mike's police officer partner (Reno Wilson) and Molly's mother (Swoosie Kurtz) and sister (Katy Mixon, a 2003 graduate of Carnegie Mellon University's drama program).

This sitcom, which debuts Sept. 20 and airs at 9:30 p.m. Monday nights, marks Mr. Gardell's first series lead role. When not on the road as a stand-up comic, he's previously been a supporting player in shows such as "Yes, Dear," "My Name is Earl" and the short-lived "Lucky" and "Heist."

"These men are incredibly gracious to put someone not normal-looking in the middle of a show," Mr. Gardell said, gesturing at the sitcom's executive producers. "When you look like me in Hollywood, you play the bad guy, the cop or the neighbor: 'Bring them to me,' 'You kids get out of here,' 'She's gonna kill us both!' For these guys to trust me, I'm humbled. To be this weight and age in Hollywood and to be one of the leads in a show of this caliber with this team, it's like I got the Willy Wonka ticket."

Mr. Gardell said having a lead role isn't that different from being a secondary character on a television series.

"I can't wait to go to work, man. This is the part that makes me nervous," he said, nodding at a couple of hundred entertainment journalists covering the "Mike & Molly" press conference. "I want to go to work. I think it has to do with my age. I'm 40. If I got this at 20, I wouldn't have been able to handle it. I've been a road comic and I'm not staying in a Holiday Inn this weekend, so I'm excited."

ABC programmer quits

During a day of set visits for future stories, news broke late Tuesday in the midst of a "Parenthood" panel that ABC Entertainment chief Stephen McPherson resigned from the network. BlackBerries started buzzing and NBC Entertainment executive Angela Bromstad, who introduced the "Parenthood" panel, could be seen on the sidelines reading something on her handheld device.

For viewers, news of an executive shakeup may seem like inside baseball, but it does have the potential to impact what they see on TV.

The departure of a network's top programming executive sends a negative message to everyone working on ABC's new fall shows: The guy who put your series on the schedule won't be around to protect it. That may also resonate with viewers who have become wary about getting attached to new programs out of fear that they'll be quickly canceled.

The timing is also peculiar because for the first time in about a decade all of ABC's new comedies are actually pretty good. Mr. McPherson did seem tone deaf to how lousy ABC comedies were in recent years until the success of "Modern Family" last fall, but this new batch suggests ABC's comedy development may be on the right path. (Similarly, Mr. McPherson replaced Lloyd Braun in 2004 just before the debut of soon-to-be-hits "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives" that Mr. Braun scheduled after years of disappointing development.)

When asked for her reaction to the shakeup at a rival network, CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler joked, "Dammit, he got out of doing the press tour!"

Hollywood trades report that Mr. McPherson will be replaced by fast-rising executive Paul Lee, currently overseeing ABC Family and a former top executive at BBC America.

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