'Christine' assured of a renewal by ABC

ABC has sealed a deal with Warner Bros. TV that guarantees a full season order to 'The New Adventures of Old Christine' if CBS doesn't renew the show.

This is the second consecutive year ABC has made such a pact for the sitcom starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus as a neurotic divorcee.

For now, the odds are in favor of CBS renewing "Christine," which helped the network open a second comedy block on Wednesdays.

But with the comedy going down to the wire every year with 11th-hour pickups at CBS, the back-up deal with ABC gives reassurances to "Christine's" producers, who are seeking to sell the series in syndication.