Scott Bakula will be guest-starring next week on American Body Shop, the new Comedy Central mockumentary that spoofs mechanic shows like American Chopper in a pseudo-vérité style similar to Reno 911! or The Office. The show revolves around an oddball group of characters at an auto-body shop outside of Phoenix.

The episode, titled "Juicy Lou's Quantum Leap," premieres Sunday night at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT, and repeats several times during the week in late-night hours. The series also airs on Spike TV. Check your local listings.

The TV Guide logline for the episode reads, "Tim and Uncle Lenny persuade Scott Bakula to do a commercial for the shop." But according to Bakula's fan site, Project Quantum Leap, Bakula won't be playing himself but rather a Bakula look-alike — a "one-legged drunken womanizer" named Maury — who has been living off the celebrity's name for years. "Our source says Scott was 'absolutely fabulous' on the show, and that he was hoping Scott is able to make many return appearances," the site states.

In other Bakula news, the Star Trek: Enterprise star will headline a cabaret show in Washington D.C. in January to benefit the renovation of Ford's Theatre, the historic landmark where Lincoln was assassinated and where Bakula performed last year in the musical "Shenandoah." The show, titled "A Cabaret Evening With Scott Bakula and Friends," will run January 17 and 18, 2008, at the Shakespeare Theatre's brand new Harman Center for the Arts in D.C. Tickets are not yet available, so keep an eye on ProjectQuantumLeap.com for updates.

Nichols Latest Addition to Heroes

Soon Heroes and Star Trek will be indistinguishable from each other. In the latest casting cross-over between those two franchises, Nichelle Nichols is now on board to guest-star in the popular Monday-night NBC series in its second season.

TVGuide.com reports, "Showing up in the season's fourth episode, she'll play Nana, a New Orleans doyenne whose daughter died during Hurricane Katrina ... The character, who is in dire financial straits, has moved back into her once-flooded home, where she cares for her two grandchildren. One of them, new hero Monica (The Nine's Dana Davis), is an avenging angel intent on bringing justice to the corruption-plagued Big Easy. Nana is also a great-aunt to Micah, the junior hero played by series regular Noah Gray-Cabey."

"Nana is tough and undaunted and — like the blues — she just keeps rising to the occasion," Nichols said in the article. "It's a quite marvelous, magical story, with wonderful things emerging." Does "Nana" have any powers? "Well, that remains to be seen, now doesn't it?"

The producers of Heroes also recently recruited Dominic Keating to play an Irish mobster in the second season (related story). Nichols' TOS castmate George Takei will return as the father of principal character Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka), now that it's been revealed that he actually supports his son's superhero quests. And in a reverse crossover, the show's villain "Sylar," Zachary Quinto, is now part of the Star Trek family as the new "Spock" (related story). Other Trek alumni who have been on Heroes include Malcolm McDowell, Thomas Dekker, and writer/producer Bryan Fuller (who left after the first season to concentrate on Pushing Daisies).

In other Nichols news, "Lady Magdalene's," an independent film she stars in and also executive produced, will hold its world premiere at Dragon*Con, the huge science fiction/fantasy convention in Atlanta, Georgia, over Labor Day weekend. Nichols will be present to personally introduce the film, which will screen Sunday, September 2, in the Hyatt Regency Centennial Ballroom. Billed as a suspense-comedy, "Magdalene's" features Nichols as a brothel madam who gets involved in a federal investigation of an al-Qaeda plot against Hoover Dam. More details are available in this press release.

Nichols has also recently been in Colorado filming a political psychological thriller called "The Torturer," about what happens to interrogators-slash-torturers when they come back from Iraq. She's also recently filmed a romantic comedy called "Tru Loved," and soon will co-star with Billy Dee Williams in a musical drama called "This Bitter Earth." Busy woman!

Takei to Attend Beverly Hills Debut of New Voyages Webisode

When the independent New York-based production Star Trek: New Voyages premieres its newest episode "World Enough and Time" on the Internet next Thursday, August 23, that rollout will occur simultaneous to a special screening in Beverly Hills. George Takei is the special guest star of that "webisode," and he will attend the screening at the Fine Arts Theater on Wilshire Blvd., which fans will be able to watch live via streaming video. Majel Barrett Roddenberry, who appears in the episode reprising "Nurse Chapel," is also expected to attend, along with Walter Koenig, who starred in the last New Voyages episode.

The writers of "World Enough of Time," Michael Reaves ("Where No One Has Gone Before") and Marc Scott Zicree ("First Contact," "Far Beyond the Stars") — the latter who directed — will also be there, along with New Voyages executive producer and star James Cawley.

Visit www.StarTrekNewVoyages.com for details on how to view the gala live on the web, or attend it in person.

The New Voyages screening kicks off a four-day Star Trek film marathon at the Fine Arts Theater. All 10 movies will run from Friday through Sunday — the first two Friday evening, then the remaining four Original-cast movies on Saturday, and the four TNG movies on Sunday. Details about that can also be found on the New Voyages website.

Meaney Goes Back in Time for "Mars"

It looks like Colm Meaney may soon have another regular gig on American TV. The Hollywood Reporter announced this morning that the ex-Niner is in final negotiations to co-star in Life on Mars, a pilot being developed by David E. Kelley — creator of Boston Legal — as a remake of the BBC series of the same title.

Life on Mars has nothing to do with space travel, but rather time travel (the title comes from a David Bowie song). A present-day detective (to be played by Jason O'Mara), whose girlfriend is kidnapped, is mysteriously transported back to the 1970s after a car accident. Meaney will co-star as "Detective Hunt," the gruff, funny head of the homicide unit in 1972 who clashes with O'Mara's character. Detective Hunt was played by Philip Glenister in the BBC version of the show. Meaney previously worked with David E. Kelley on the 1999 film "Mystery, Alaska."

The show is up for midseason consideration on ABC.

Whoopi Takes in The View

It's old news already (sorry, we've been preoccupied with all the recent conventions!), but our favorite space-age bartender has a new regular venue to show off her gift of gab. Whoopi Goldberg ("Guinan") will officially replace Rosie O'Donnell in The View, the popular ABC daytime talk show that has been steeped in controversy in recent months. Goldberg appeared on the August 1 show to be introduced by Barbara Walters, and she will take over as moderator the day after Labor Day. "This is a big old thrill for me," said Goldberg, who has guested on the show several times prior. "The thing I'm looking forward to the most are the hot topics. The thing I'm looking forward to the least is getting in between everyone talking at one time."

Though she has stated in interviews that it is not her goal to be controversial, Goldberg's strong liberal opinions and outspoken nature may create as many sparks with her co-hosts as O'Donnell did. "I'm going to be a little meaner than normal," she even said, half-jokingly.