Showtime lines up more original series

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- An "'In Living Color' on steroids" hosted by Damon Wayans is among four new series lined up to air on the premium cable channel Showtime.

"Damon Wayans' The Underground" will premiere in the fall, Showtime announced on its Web site.

The Chicago Public Radio show "This American Life" and its host, Ira Glass, will make the transition to TV, and Irish film star Jonathon Rhys-Meyers will star in a historic drama, "The Tudors," about the early years of Britain's King Henry VIII.

"Desperate Housewives" director Charles McDougall will direct the "Match Point" star in the first two episodes, scheduled to debut in 2007, TVWeek said.

The fourth new series is "Dexter" starring "Six Feet Under's" Michael C. Hall as an unlikely serial killer.