Cancelled CBS series gets new life on cable

Viewers weren't given many chances to fall for "Love Monkey" earlier this year, as the CBS series about a music executive searching for the gorilla his dreams lasted only three episodes.

Thanks to VH1, though, those who did take a shine to the show will be able to see its fully run starting next week. The cable network has acquired all eight produced episodes of "Love Monkey," which stars Tom Cavanagh ("Ed") as the title character, music exec Tom Farrell. Jason Priestley, Judy Greer, Larenz Tate and Chris Wiehl also star.

The three episodes that aired on CBS will in January run in a block starting at 7 p.m. ET Tuesday, April 11. The five previously unseen episodes will begin the following week, airing Tuesdays at 9 p.m. -- oddly enough, the show's originally scheduled time period on CBS. It never actually aired then; CBS eventually placed it at 10 p.m. Tuesdays, where the combination of airing opposite "Law & Order: SVU" and the lack of a compatible lead-in led to its demise.

"'Love Monkey' has found a perfect home at VH1," says Tom Calderone, executive vice president and general manager of the channel. "The storyline is tailor-made for the VH1 audience, which enjoys stories and appreciates music from up-and-coming artists that are featured in the series."

Among the artists featured in the show, either performing or guest-starring, are Teddy Geiger -- who has a recurring part as Tom's discovery, Wayne -- Ben Folds, Aimee Mann, James Blunt and Natasha Bedingfield.

Regardless of how well "Love Monkey" performs for VH1 (it averaged 7.3 million viewers on CBS), it's unlikely that the series would be resurrected for a second season. Cavanagh has since moved on to star in a CBS pilot called "My Ex-Life."