O’Donnell, Drescher may team up in sitcom

NEW YORK -- Comedian and actress Rosie O’Donnell aims to return to television with a sitcom about three best friends that would costar “The Nanny’s” Fran Drescher.

O’Donnell, who abruptly left her post on the ABC daytime talk show “The View” in May, said on her blog that she and Drescher have teamed up on the comedy, which is still in the early stages.

“Now Fran and I have a new sitcom, but we can’t talk about it, right?” O’Donnell said at the end of a 13-minute video entry with Drescher, posted Friday on rosie.com.

“We’re going to do a new, fun, happy family comedy,” Drescher said.

“She and I!” exclaimed O’Donnell with a grin.

The project, about three childhood friends from Massapequa, Long Island, who move to Manhattan, is apparently still being developed.

“It’s way too premature” to discuss, said Cindi Berger, a spokeswoman for O’Donnell.

Drescher’s manager, Elaine Rich, had no comment.

O’Donnell wrote on her blog that the sitcom was the brainchild of Drescher, a longtime friend, and Drescher’s ex-husband, Peter Marc Jacobson, who was executive producer of “The Nanny.” She said it would be taped in front of a live studio audience in New York.

Fans of O’Donnell were excited about the news.

“Ro, is it true you and Fran are going to do a sitcom or are you just teasing us?” one wrote.

“True,” O’Donnell responded.

“OMG. . . . you and Fran are going to be the new Lucy and Ethel! I am about to bust at the thought of it,” another posted, prompting O’Donnell to write: “Honey, sign me up.”

After leaving “The View,” O’Donnell released a memoir, “Celebrity Detox (The Fame Game),” and guest starred on FX’s “Nip/Tuck.”

She has expressed interest in returning to television full time, talking up her desire to host the game show “The Price Is Right,” a gig that went to Drew Carey.

Last fall, O’Donnell was in preliminary talks with MSNBC to host a nightly talk show on the cable news network, but those discussions fizzled.

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matea.gold@latimes.com