Craig Ferguson gets 'Late Late' gig

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- CBS has decided to make Craig Ferguson the permanent host of "The Late Late Show," Daily Variety reported Tuesday.

The paper said Ferguson -- best known to TV viewers as Mr. Wick on "The Drew Carey Show" -- is expected to start on Jan. 3. Ferguson got the job after being one of several interim hosts on the show, including actor Michael Ian Black ("Ed"), Damien Fahey of MTV's "TRL" and comic-actor D.L. Hughley ("The Hughleys").

Ferguson would be the third host of "The Late Late Show." Tom Snyder was first, followed by Craig Kilborn, who surprised the network and his colleagues by announcing in September that he was leaving the show.

Ferguson is due on U.S. theater screens later this month in "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events." He also wrote and produced and starred in the 1999 comedy "The Big Tease."