187318793.thumbnail.jpgGosh darn it! Sarah Palin may not be appearing on Saturday Night Live after all, according to NBC who oughta know.

Was the leak to the gushing Cindy Adams a sneaky way to discredit the liberal media elite? Or did Troopergate and the chilly Philly welcome from Flyer fans cause Sarah's early withdrawal? Booooo!

SNL producer Lorne Michaels, who was contacted by Senator McCain's campaign after the first Palin sketch aired,  had this to say:

It started as rumour, but it's getting enough momentum that I think it will be real. And it's my experience that if people think it will do them some good, they will show up.

"Do them some good?" Heck, using Willow and Piper as her human shields didn't help Palin on the ice Saturday, so it's not very likely appearing childless live from New York is gonna help Gov GILF's image.

 But fans of politcal still have something to look forward to: Beginning last week, SNL went live in prime time with half-hour "Weekend Update"-driven episodes, which continue at 9:30 p.m. on the next two Thursdays.