QUICK TAKES - April 22, 2009

A federal judge in Chicago told ousted Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich on Tuesday to forget about starring in a reality TV show in the Costa Rican jungle and focus instead on the corruption charges that could send him to prison for years.

Blagojevich, 52, has pleaded not guilty to racketeering, fraud and other charges that allege he schemed to sell or trade President Obama’s former U.S. Senate seat and plotted to use the muscle of the governor’s office to pressure companies for campaign money.

Blagojevich had hoped to make some money to support his family by heading to Costa Rica in June to be on NBC’s “I’m a Celebrity . . . Get Me Out of Here!” -- a program similar to “Survivor” -- while attorneys in Chicago worked on his case.

But U.S. District Judge James B. Zagel said Blagojevich’s time would be better spent helping his lawyers cope with the mound of documentary evidence prosecutors will soon turn over to the defense.

NBC said it was disappointed by the ruling but not so much that it would move the show to the U.S. to accommodate him.