Heather and Denise to fight for screen time?

Heather Locklear may have lost what was once her best friend Denise Richards as she has taken up with Heather's soon to be ex-hubby Richie Sambora. But Locklear is getting all the sympathy and now may best Denise Richards for next week's fall schedule on TV. A report on the Star web site cites an industry source that claims there's a good chance Locklear will come out ahead of Richards in the battle between their respective new ABC series pilots to gain a spot on next fall's TV schedule. Star Magazine: Locklear plays a widow embarking on a new life with her two best friends in the sitcom Women of a Certain Age; Richards leads an ensemble cast in Secrets of a Small Town, a drama about an unsolved murder in a rural community. "Both of the pilots were screened for ABC executives in New York and Los Angeles during the first week in May," says the source. "The competition over what pilots get picked up as new fall series is intense — and I think Heather is going to get the best of Denise in that arena. No one was too jazzed about Denise's show; the general feeling is it's kind of plodding. But Heather's show looks like a breakout hit. Everyone loved it. It could be the next Desperate Housewives for the network." [National Ledger]