Power players who shape your TV habits

What a crazy TV season it was.

For those of us who love to sit, watch and invest ourselves and our valuable time in a handful of favorite shows, it was both the best times and worst of times.

We were treated to continued gems such as "Lost," new treasures such as "Mad Men" and karaoke comfort food in "American Idol." Yet, all our shows — at least the scripted ones — were cut off at the knees in mid-season by a writers' strike in which fans were left asking, "Hey, what about us?"

But we endured. So here's a list of those powerbrokers, buzzmakers and game-changers who kept us riveted — interruptions notwithstanding — until the very end.

“American Idol”
Sure, the 800 lb. gorilla might be shedding some weight, but it's still the king of the jungle. No other show draws the amount of viewers as "Idol," nor does anything else grab the attention or create water-cooler chatter from January to May. Other networks cower when "Idol" enters the fray and there's good reason. Of course, "Idol's" popularity isn't so much because of the singers but those who judge them. Which leads us to …

Simon Cowell
Let's face it, for years Cowell has been the only one willing to tell the contestants what they don't want to hear, and he's usually right. Teenage girls may scream for David Archuleta, but late at night when nobody's listening, Archuleta screams in fear of Cowell. The judge is the true barometer of who's got musical talent and who doesn't when they hit the "Idol" stage. If he were to leave the show in a year or two, as has been discussed, "Idol" will be a shell of its former self.

Jerry Bruckheimer

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While making his multimillions on the big screen with such films as the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise, it's Bruckheimer's primetime projects that have made him the most successful TV producer today. "CSI," the most-watched scripted show, is Jerry-rigged, as are the other "CSI" spin-offs. Also under Bruckheimer's domain are "Without a Trace," "The Amazing Race" and a new one to launch this fall, "Eleventh Hour."

Sure, he's had his failures ("Skin," "E-Ring") but CBS has been very fortunate to be in the Bruckheimer business for nearly a decade.

Ellen DeGeneres
While Oprah still reigns in ratings, DeGeneres is the more buzzworthy show for mid-afternoon chitchat. She genuinely seems to be having a good time, and her success isn't all about telling people what to read or which politicians to endorse. Her off-the-cuff bits involving audience members and guests bring out a frivolity in the proceedings that doesn't feel too staged or worked over. And the infamous Izzygate dog episode, in which she broke down on air, made for late-night fodder but it also proved her humanity, which can be a rare commodity in showbiz these days.

Shonda Rhimes
She might not be a David E. Kelley, who used to write every episode of "Ally McBeal" and "The Practice" when both were on the air at the same time, but Rhimes is plenty busy with "Grey's Anatomy" and spin-off "Private Practice" taking up two hours of ABC's lineup. While the quality of "Grey's" has unarguably slipped since it began in 2005, and "Private Practice" took its creative lumps in its first season, there's no reason she and her team can't turn things around on both shows. Considering what she's helped ABC earn, Rhimes always has the ear of network president Steve McPherson when it comes to where she wants her shows scheduled, who should come and go in the cast and whatever else she needs to help her ever-growing empire succeed.

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