Roseanne to star in a new ‘show within a show’ on ABC

Roseanne, the feisty middle-America mom who hit the comedy clubs and landed an eponymous sitcom deal on ABC that rocketed her to fame, is set to star in another series on the network, executives confirmed Friday morning.

For 13 half-hour episodes tentatively scheduled to premiere next summer, Roseanne will let audiences into a “real” workplace setting, a concept one producer called a “show within in a show.”

Roseanne will executive-produce the show along with R.J. Cutler, the documentarian who made “The War Room” (1993) and just completed “The Residents,” an unscripted drama for TNT.

“If, for instance, this were the show of a cooking show, Roseanne would exist as the host of that show,” Cutler said. He said details are still being worked out as to whether ABC would air the polished, edited “cooking show” at a separate time.

Andrea Wong, ABC’s senior vice president of alternative series and specials, said the program would offer viewers an “evolution” of Roseanne since her last stint in front of the camera.

The 49-year-old comedian rose to fame through the prime-time hit sitcom “Roseanne,” which ran on ABC from 1988 to 1997 and earned her an Emmy for lead actress.

The show also earned three Emmys for co-star Laurie Metcalf and a Golden Globe for John Goodman, who played Roseanne’s husband.

The last time she headlined a television project was with “The Roseanne Show,” a syndicated talk show she hosted from 1998 to 2000.