CBS announced Friday that this summer's seventh Big Brother edition, now officially titled Big Brother 7: All-Stars, will premiere on Thursday, July 6 at 8PM ET/PT. The tentpole of a Summer 2006 unscripted programming lineup that will see the network broadcast up to seven hours of new original programming a week, Big Brother 7 will also air Tuesdays at 8PM ET/PT and Saturdays at 9PM ET/PT.

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First announced last month, Big Brother's seventh edition will feature an "All-Stars" cast comprised of houseguests who have appeared on the reality show's six previous editions. After CBS and the show's producers select a pool of twenty previous contestants, the public will get vote on which former houseguests will get to participate in Big Brother 7: All-Stars. As in previous years, Julie Chen will host the Thursday broadcasts that will feature the live eviction of one of the houseguests.

In addition to Big Brother 7, CBS's summer programming lineup will also include twice-weekly broadcasts of Rock Star: Supernova, the new Rock Star edition that will find a lead singer for Supernova, a newly-formed rock band; Tuesday Night Book Club, a new Desperate Housewives-like docu-reality series that will follow the lives of a group of middle class women who get together each Tuesday night; and Gameshow Marathon, a Ricki Lake-hosted adaptation of a British game show that features six celebrity contestants competing in an elimination-style tournament in which they play classic game show games.

"Together, these offerings represent everything viewers seek in summer entertainment -- games, guilty pleasures, escapism and energizing music," CBS Entertainment President Nina Tassler stated in the network's announcement. "This will be the most interactive Big Brother yet," Big Brother executive producer Allison Grodner told Daily Variety after last month's "All-Stars" cast announcement. "Viewers will be getting involved more than in the past."

While CBS still isn't revealing exactly how Big Brother 7: All-Stars' cast voting will be conducted, previous reports have stated that the producers are expected to retain the right to include some contestants who aren't viewer favorites in the cast. Unlike Big Brother's disastrous first season, viewer involvement also won't extend to deciding who gets evicted or wins the final prize -- both will still be determined by the houseguests themselves.

Similar to 2004's Survivor: All-Stars, the amount of Big Brother 7: All-Stars' grand prize will remain unchanged at $500,000. CBS has not disclosed whether, like Survivor: All-Stars, the value of Big Brother: All-Stars' runner-up prizes will increase significantly.

As it has for each of the past two summers, CBS will also attempt to use Big Brother to boost the prospects of its other summer reality shows. Although it isn't scheduled to air regularly on Thursdays and will actually premiere a day earlier on July 5, CBS will air a special broadcast of Rock Star: Supernova's second episode immediately after Big Brother 7's 8PM premiere on Thursday, July 6. The network will also use Big Brother to launch an all-reality Tuesday night lineup, with Rock Star's performance episodes and Tuesday Night Book Club scheduled to air regularly on Tuesdays at 9PM and 10PM beginning July 11.

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