Author: Erin Carlson

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Laura Benanti, Andrew Rannells, Megan Hilty and Neil Patrick Harris at Sunday’s Tonys.

What do Andrew Rannells, Megan Hilty and Laura Benanti have in common?

They all have major Broadway cred, and they’ve all had TV shows canceled.

NBC recently yanked freshmen comedies The New Normal and Go On, which starred Rannells and Benanti respectively, and also pulled the two-year-old dramedy Smash (featuring Hilty) from its primetime line-up.

At Sunday’s Tony Awards, the trio teamed up with emcee Neil Patrick Harris to perform a musical number lamenting the uncertainty of landing the lead in a network series — and praising the comforting embrace of the New York stage.

“Both my shows were canceled, it’s true — no joke! Not one show, but two! And so I raise a bottle to you — television sucks!” crooned Benanti, brandishing a bottle of booze. A Tony winner for the acclaimed 2008 revival of Gypsy, the actress has also crossed over into small-screen territory with the short-lived NBC drama The Playboy Club, scrapped after just three episodes in 2011.

VIDEO: Neil Patrick Harris Ends Tonys With a Rap Number

Rannells, a past nominee for his role in the blockbuster Broadway musical The Book of Mormon, has cable to fall back on: he plays recurring character Elijah, frenemy of Hannah (Lena Dunham), on HBO’s Girls. And Hilty, one of Smash‘s breakout stars, has won raves on the Great White Way for her roles in Wicked and 9 to 5: The Musical.

Harris, meanwhile, remains in his cushy gig as a regular on the popular CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother, which heads into its ninth season in the fall. (And, finally, after so many years, we know who’s playing the “Mother”: Cristin Milioti, a 2012 Tony nominee for Once.)

“Doing TV has its pros and cons, right? But just like the theater, sometimes you have a hit and sometimes you don’t. We can’t all have long-running hit TV shows like my own,” quipped NPH.

Twitter: @ErinLCarlson

Email: erin.carlson@thr.com

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Prince and Paris Jackson

Prince Michael Jackson has scrapped plans to appear on a German game show following sister Paris‘ suicide attempt earlier this week.

The 16-year-old son of Michael Jackson was scheduled to sub in for Paris, 15, on the popular series Wanna Bet? (Wetten, dass…?) but decided to stay home after she was rushed to the hospital early Wednesday morning, reportedly with cuts on her wrist.

“Under these circumstances, we perfectly understand that Prince Michael prefers to stay close to his family. We wish Paris the strength and the power to recover soon,” said Silke Blömer, a representative for the German TV network ZDF, in a statement to People magazine.

Wanna Bet? is being filmed this summer in Mallorca, Spain.

STORY: Michael Jackson’s Death: 5 Surprising Developments in AEG Trial

Paris Jackson is “physically fine,” said Jackson family attorney Perry Sanders Jr. in a statement Wednesday, noting: “Being a sensitive 15-year-old is difficult no matter who you are. It is especially difficult when you lose the person closest to you.”

June 25 marks the fourth anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death. The music legend’s mother, Katherine Jackson, shares a co-guardianship of the late pop icon’s children — Paris, Prince and their brother Blanket, 11 – with her grandson T.J. Jackson.

Paris has expressed interest in acting, and is signed to star in the film Lundon’s Bridge and the Three Keys, based on a series of children’s fantasy novels. An active Twitter user, she tweeted Tuesday “yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away now it looks as though they’re here to stay,” and earlier wrote “i wonder why tears are salty?”

People reported that Paris was in stable condition after cutting her wrists with a kitchen knife and swallowing some 20 ibuprofen pills; TMZ cited sources as saying that the teen had called a suicide hotline, after which the person on the other line dialed 911. She is now under psychiatric care, said the site.

Howard Weitzman, attorney for the Estate of Michael Jackson, told The Hollywood Reporter: “Co-Executors John Branca and John McClain, wish to extend their heartfelt thoughts and prayers to Paris Jackson during this very difficult time. The Executors are fully committed to providing Paris with whatever assistance she requires in dealing with this situation and will be there for her.”

Paris appeared in good spirits in a video she posted May 31st on YouTube. In the 20-minute clip, she does her make-up, remarking: “I need serious help. I am crazy!”

Trae Patton/NBC

Usher

Justin Bieber might be rich, famous and the object of adoration for his legions of swooning fans, but lately, the 19-year-old pop star has been taking more than a few hits in his personal and professional lives.

Last week, he was booed on stage while accepting his Milestone Award at the Billboard Music Awards. Then, on Sunday night, cops were called to Bieber’s Calabasas, Calif., home, after multiple individuals (including former NFL player Keyshawn Johnson) called to complain about his allegedly reckless driving. And let’s not forget his “Euro Crisis.”

Bieber’s mentor, Usher, appeared on Wednesday’s Ellen, to talk about judging The Voice. But the conversation also turned to the teen idol and his public travails.

“I’m hoping for the best,” said Usher. “I don’t look at it as a negative though. I look at it as a teenager. He’s a teenager having to live his life in front of a camera. Imagine if you had to do that as a teenager.”