More Black-ish? Leslie Jones joins SNL cast

 LORNE MICHAELS  has added another "Saturday Night Live" cast member to his little black book.

NBC said the show is adding Leslie Jones to its cast.

She won't have to move or anything - the African-American comedian has been a writer on the show.

Jones has been a featured performer at the Just for Laughs festival in Montreal and the Aspen Comedy Festival. She starred in a one-hour comedy special, "Problem Child," on Showtime.

She came to "SNL" in January, along with fellow writer LaKendra Tookes, as well as Sasheer Zamata, who was signed to join the cast at that time.

Those hirings came after "SNL" had been criticized for a lack of diversity, particularly the absence of any black women among the regular or featured players, and Kenan Thompson said he was going to refuse to portray black women until the problem was rectified.

Additionally, black comedian Michael Che ("The Daily Show") became a "Weekend Update" co-anchor this season. He replaced Cecily Strong, because now the show isn't sure what to do with white women.

* Barbara Walters is coming out of retirement for "The 10 Most Fascinating People of 2014," to air Dec. 14 on ABC.

The first four fascinating people to be revealed are Oprah Winfrey, Neil Patrick Harris, Chelsea Handler and Scarlett Johansson, all of whom Tattle picked for our special, "10 Occasionally Interesting People of 2014."

* Diddy will host Alicia Keys' 11th annual Black Ball charity event, which raises awareness about HIV and AIDS.

Alicia announced yesterday that her husband, producer-rapper Swizz Beatz, will co-host the event at New York City's Hammerstein Ballroom.

Keys, Nas, David Byrne and Angel Haze will perform.

Keep a Child Alive, Keys' charity launched in 2003, assists people affected by HIV and AIDS in Africa and India.

Last year's Black Ball raised $4 million and featured Carole King and Pharrell.

* Cartoon Network and CNN, two channels that these days are often confused for each other, are no longer part of Dish's programming lineup as a deadline has passed for the satellite TV provider and Turner Broadcasting to renew their distribution agreement.

Dish Network Corp. said yesterday that Turner refused to extend the overall deal. But Turner - a division of Time Warner - said in a statement that it has worked for months to come up with a fair agreement and that the two sides have been unable to reach a deal.

Other Turner channels removed from Dish's programming include Boomerang, Adult Swim, HLN, truTV, CNN en Espanol and Turner Classic Movies.

What about TNT and TBS?

Nothing gets an impasse settled faster than the inability to watch "Big Bang Theory" reruns.

* TLC, meanwhile, is being touched by an angel.

Roma Downey and her husband, (megaproducer) Mark Burnett, are teaming with the network for a new six-episode show about everyday people who face life-threatening challenges that require a divine intervention.

The show will explore the stories of people who claim that they've experienced modern-day miracles, incredible twists of fate and phenomena that logic and science cannot explain.

Tattle loves shows about miracles, but there could probably be an entire network dedicated to unanswered prayers.

Just ask any Cubs fan.

* Tatiana Maslany, the frequently cloned star of "Orphan Black," will be finding a temporary home on an off-Broadway stage.

Second Stage Theatre said yesterday that the BBC America star will appear beside Tony Award nominee and "The Newsroom" actor Thomas Sadoski in Neil LaBute's world premiere, "The Way We Get By."

The play will be directed by Leigh Silverman, who was nominated for a Tony Award last season for her direction of "Violet." Previews begin May 12.

Maslany just finished filming "The Woman in Gold." In that, she stars alongside Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds (two actors Tattle never expected to see as co-stars).

* Prosecutors are vehemently against the idea, but "Real Housewives of New Jersey" star Teresa Giudice is petitioning to serve most of her federal prison sentence in a halfway house.

And star in "The Real Halfway Housewives of New Jersey."

- Daily News wire services

contributed to this report.

Phone: 215-854-5678

On Twitter: @DNTattle