2ND COMIC NAMED TO CBS ‘MORNING’ LINEUP

NEW YORK —  The 7:30-9 a.m. portion of the new morning show CBS is planning now has a second comedian on its roster. Word is expected this week on who will anchor CBS News’ 6-7:30 a.m. “hard news” part of the broadcast.

Mark McEwen, a stand-up comic and former disc jockey at WNEW-FM here, will be the weatherman on the entertainment-oriented second 90 minutes of the broadcast.

That portion, to be co-hosted by actress Mariette Hartley and former WCBS-TV anchorman Rolland Smith, earlier signed another comedian, Bob Saget, as its announcer and “sidekick” for Hartley and Smith.

A CBS source said Wednesday that Forrest Sawyer, the former “CBS Morning News” co-anchor who left the program last August, is expected to be named as co-anchor of the early-morning news portion of CBS’ new program.

His co-anchor, the source said, likely will be Faith Daniels, who had been co-anchoring the “Morning News” until she took maternity leave several weeks ago.

She was temporarily succeeded by Sandy Hill, who now is doing the broadcast with Charlie Rose.

The new three-hour morning show is planned as the successor to the perennially low-rated “CBS Morning News.” It will premiere in January, although no date has been set.

Two separate units are producing the broadcast--with CBS News in charge of the opening 90-minute news segment, and another group headed by former ABC executive Robert Shanks producing the succeeding entertainment portion.