''The Mole'' returning to ABC

(FROM VARIETY) ? The Mole is returning to ABC for the first time in four years. The network has placed a 10-episode order to Stone & Co. Entertainment (Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style), and casting and pre-production are already underway, with shooting scheduled to start this spring for a run this summer. An ABC executive said the network planned on reviving the reality competition series even before the writers’ strike. The first two editions of The Mole, which aired in 2001 and 2002, earned ABC’s top ratings among adults 18-34 for both years. ABC also ran two seasons of Celebrity Mole in 2003 and 2004. The resurrected show will return to the original format, without celebrities, though there will be small tweaks. ”We simplified it to where the people at home can play along,” said Stone & Co. principal Scott Stone. ”And the quiz will be much shorter than in the past.” No host has been chosen yet. Anderson Cooper hosted the first two editions, and Ahmad Rashad hosted the celebrity versions. (Variety)