As Michael Scott, the clueless boss on NBC's "The Office" (9 tonight), would say, "ain't no party like a Scranton party."

With that in mind, the city where the Emmy-winning cubicle comedy is set is hosting a weekend blowout for thousands of fans.

The inaugural "Office Convention" promises to be as quirky as the show itself, with highlights including an Office Olympics (Dunderball, anyone?), a character look-alike contest, appearances by cast and crew and performances by the Scrantones, the band that recorded the show's theme music.

"If people leave here saying, 'I had a blast in Scranton,' then we've achieved our goal," said Michele Dempsey, 35, an architect and Scranton native who came up with the idea for the convention.

It starts Friday with the "Today" show's Al Roker broadcasting live from the University of Scranton and wraps up Sunday.

About 2,000 tickets ranging from $25 to $250 have been sold so far -- 70 percent of them to out-of-town fans.

A remake of the acclaimed British series of the same name, "The Office" is shot in mock-documentary style, following the exploits of Michael Scott (Steve Carell) and his sad-sack underlings at the fictional Dunder Mifflin paper-supply company.

In its fourth season on NBC, "The Office" boasts a devoted following.

Fans have been making pilgrimages to Scranton, a small city about 100 miles north of Philadelphia, to check out real-life landmarks referenced on the show, from Poor Richard's pub and Farley's restaurant to Lake Wallenpaupack and the Lackawanna County Coal Mine Tour.

City leaders have done their best to capitalize on the show's popularity, touting Scranton's recent emergence from years of economic stagnation.

"The show has been the vehicle by which we can tell our story, and cities rarely get that opportunity," said Mayor Chris Doherty, who counts himself a fan.

Fourteen cast members, along with the show's writers and executive producer, are scheduled to appear this weekend. None of the actors who play the main characters -- Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer -- have signed on.

Dempsey said the show has helped the city feel good about itself.

"For us in Scranton, we watch it with a whole other level of appreciation," she said. "When you would tell people outside the area you lived in Scranton, they would felt sorry for you. Now, it's, 'Oh, my God, I love 'The Office'!' " (Michael Rubinkam, Associated Press)

'Curb' imitates life

In the exaggerated mirror to Larry David's life that is "Curb Your Enthusiasm," even the comedian's own divorce is fodder for comedy.

Sunday night's episode of the HBO show was a classic case of art imitating life with the announcement by David's fictional spouse, Cheryl, played by Cheryl Hines, that she was leaving. It was just in June that David and his real-life wife, Laurie David, separated after 14 years of marriage.

The real-life divorce was filed by Laurie David, citing "irreconcilable differences." Their spokesman has called the split "very amicable." On "Curb," the breakup was set off when Cheryl called hysterically from a potentially crashing airplane. Larry told her to "call back in 10 minutes" because he was having their TiVo fixed by a cable guy.

Safe but still rattled, Cheryl returned to declare: "I'm leaving, Larry. I can't do this anymore."

"People ask me all the time, 'How do you stay with him?' " she explained. "I always tell them, 'There's another side to Larry that you don't see.' And then I just realized today, there's no other side."

Larry argued to no avail that the phone reception was bad and, besides, he was able to save her TiVoed shows like "Top Chef" and "Project Runway." The rest of the episode finds the couple's friends (some of whom are the real couple's friends), choosing sides between either Larry or Cheryl.

Whether David's divorce would be reflected on "Curb" had been a matter of speculation. In an interview in early September (after the season wrapped but before it hit the air), David played cagey when asked if his marital woes would seep into the show.

"Can't fire Cheryl," he replied.

Asked if perhaps the fictional couple might feel increased discord, if not collapse, David said: "There's something there, obviously. I wouldn't shy away from dealing with it, if I do another year."

Now David's divorce has made its presence felt, and upcoming episodes will help determine whether his on-screen marriage still has any chance. A spokesman for HBO said the split would indeed constitute a full arc.

Both Larry and Laurie David, in real life, declined to comment. (Jake Coyle, AP)

Fires impact TV biz

The rich and famous of Hollywood couldn't evade Southern California's devastating fires. Production on TV series was disrupted, and stars traded their beachfront homes for shelter in posh hotels.

Kelsey Grammer was among those who fled Malibu, the celebrity-favored oceanfront town that also is home to Mel Gibson, Cher, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Nick Nolte, Jennifer Aniston, Mel Brooks, Ryan O'Neal and more.

Wind-fueled wildfires across Southern California have destroyed more than 1,300 homes, burned more than 500 square miles and driven hundreds of thousands from their homes.

The business side of Hollywood also was affected by the far-flung disaster, which came as studios are bracing for a possible writers' guild strike and trying to stockpile projects.

Fox's "24" was scheduled to shoot Monday and Tuesday at a shuttered Naval air station in the Orange County city of Irvine but was forced to retreat because "smoky conditions made filming impossible," according to producer 20th Century Fox Television.

The cast and crew returned to the studio to shoot other scenes, and it was uncertain if or when they would return to the Irvine facility, a spokesman said Tuesday.

ABC's freshman series "Big Shots" had to reschedule a shoot planned for Tuesday in the Angeles National Forest, a network spokesman said.

Production was halted on CBS's "NCIS," which shoots at a studio in Santa Clarita, near the so-called Magic Fire in northern Los Angeles County. (AP)

Comcast changes

As noted in the Oct. 12 TV Q&A column, Comcast is moving MSNBC, Court TV, CSPAN-2, EWTN and Hallmark to its digital starter package in Penn Hills, Darlington, Elderton, Rural Valley and Parks Township in order to launch additional HD channels.

According to Comcast, Penn Hills subscribers will receive five new HD channels (A&E, Food Network, HGTV, NFL Network and WPMY) while the other communities will get HD for the first time on 12 channels.

Current standard cable customers in these areas will be offered the digital starter tier for free for the next 12 months. (Rob Owen, Post-Gazette TV editor)

Channel surfing

Murrysville native Courtney Hazlett, an entertainment columnist for MSNBC.com, also will offer regular reports on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" show. ... According to The Hollywood Reporter, Steve Shill, who directed "The Kill Point" in Pittsburgh earlier this year, has signed on to direct NBC's "Knight Rider" reboot TV movie, which could serve as a backdoor pilot to launch a new series. ... Sci Fi Channel has renewed "Stargate Atlantis" for a 20-episode fifth season. ... Fox is considering a "Prison Break" spin-off set in a women's prison for next season. ... ABC's "Pushing Daisies" has been given a green light for a full first season. (R.O.)