HBO News: "Deadwood" Killed By A Surfer

The new season of "Deadwood" has been better than ever -- which makes HBO's decision to kill it off prematurely all the more painful. At an annual convention promoting TV shows to critics, HBO's head says he got more angry letters about the cancellation of "Carnivale" than he did about "Deadwood." (Duh, that's because a brand new season was about to start and we were already promised another four or six hours down the road to wrap things up. "Carnivale" was off the air and stuck in a cliffhanger that would never be resolved.) And yes, they killed "Deadwood" because they were more excited by a new show David Milch proposed. Why would he let them kill off "Deadwood" when there was so much life left in it creatively? More HBO news: "The Sopranos" has been pushed back to March of 2007; "Curb Your Enthusiasm" will be back if Larry David can work up some enthusiasm; "Rome" will end after its second season (which really doesn't get me excited about plowing into the season one DVDs); and "The Wire" is better than ever. Can't wait for that one.