A Sarah Palin surprise, 'Downton Abbey' love, and 'Grimm' celebration: TV Press Tour 2012

Lisa Rose/NBCTodd and Sarah Palin, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Tuesday night, where they attended the NBC TCA party. Todd Palin is among the cast of the upcoming reality-competition series, "Stars Earn Stripes."

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIF. -- Television is a winding road, rambling past prestigious neighborhoods, noisy squabbles, wacky parties and low-rent dives. So it couldn't be more fitting that the first few days of the 2012 Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour took us from the august halls of PBS to the chattering antics of a performing monkey.

The annual summer gathering (there's one in the winter, too) here at the Beverly Hilton Hotel brings TV reporters, critics and bloggers together to listen to TV stars and executives promote their new and returning shows. When the network honchos and celebs are done, they get to leave. But for two weeks, us press types are hunkered down in ballrooms, where the sound of clicking computer keyboards mingles with the voices of optimism, even from stars of shows that look about as promising as a career in the horse-drawn carriage business.

During the day, the press moves from buffet breakfasts to panel sessions, to lunch and more panel sessions, and finally, to network-hosted evening parties held either at the hotel or offsite. While the word "parties" may indicate frivolity and festivity, these events usually involve clusters of reporters crowding around any of the recognizable stars who show up. Surrounded by a circle of mini-recorders thrust toward them, the stars answer questions, and try not to look like they'd rather be anywhere else.

The best aspect of the parties is that some of them at least get us out of the hotel. On a typical day at press tour, we spend all day inside the hote! l, catch ing a glimpse of the Southern California sunshine only as we hustle past the glass-walled entry to the Beverly Hilton lobby.

But, thanks to the unpredictable nature of the tour, there's rarely a dull moment. You never know who you're going to see hanging around. Hey, there's Kenneth Branagh! Looking very trim. And isn't that Brendan Coyle, who plays Mr. Bates on "Downton Abbey," taking a dip in the pool? Better use sunblock on that British skin.

Or you may walk down a hallway and pass Sarah Palin, looking very Southern California glamorous, on hand for Tuesday's NBC party. The former vice-presidential candidate was with her husband, Todd Palin, who's part of the cast of the upcoming NBC show, "Stars Earn Stripes." This is a competition-reality series, co-hosted by General Wesley Clark, in which the likes of Nick Lachey, Laila Ali, Picabo Street, Terry Crews, Todd Palin and others try and execute "missions" inspired by actual military maneuvers.

But the surprise Sarah Palin appearance was just one of the colorful stops on the tour so far. Here are some others, ranging from serious to silly:

"Downton Abbey" deliciousness: The buffet dinner available wouldn't have passed muster with Mr. Carson, but the panel for "Downton Abbey" showed just how well its cast clicks, and how the show -- returning for Season 3 on PBS in January -- has won over the critical corps. We ate up a preview trailer for the new season, and its hints of what's to come -- financial straits for the Crawleys, friction between Mary and Matthew, Mr. Bates still in prison -- and laughed at Cast 3 addition Shirley MacLaine's reference to her smooth working relationship with Maggie Smith, who plays the imperious Dowager Countess. "Well," MacLaine said, "we were lovers in another life." MacLaine will be play! ing the American mother of Cora (Elizabeth McGovern), and based on the clips and her salty demeanor, she'll fit right in.

The Wider World: The tour's show-business focus can feel constrictingly narrow after the umpteenth panel featuring white-teethed, tanned, smiley stars. Fortunately, there are antidotes that remind you the world is bigger and more complicated. For example, Nicholas Kristof, the award-winning New York Times columnist (and Oregon native), was among the panel discussing "Half the Sky," an upcoming multi-platform PBS program inspired by Kristof and his wife Sheryl WuDunn's book about oppression suffered by women and girls in the developing world.

In an interview after the panel, Kristof said he had just been back in Oregon, hiking part of the Pacific Crest Trail, with his daughter. The impetus behind "Half the Sky," Kristof said, is raising awareness about the suffering of women and girls, and spotlighting efforts to help empower them. It's an action anyone can take, he said. "There are Portland organizations, and Mercy Corps is the best example of that, that are doing extraordinary things around the world." You don't have to travel the globe to get involved in working to combat human trafficking and abuse, he said. "Look for local organizations that are engaged."

Meanwhile, in Beverly Hills: The Fox presentation on Monday made news of a far less substantive variety: Mariah Carey is the new judge on "American Idol." And, moving right along, new judge on "The X Factor," Britney Spears seemed unable to talk about anything beyond what a big fan she was of the show. And Simon Cowell repeatedly referred to Spears and fellow new judge Demi Lovato -- not to mention fired judges Paula Abdul and ! Nicol Sc herzinger -- as "girls."

Cue the Monkey: Tuesday's NBC day included some encouraging news for fans of the set and filmed-in-Portland "Grimm." In his talk, NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt cited "Grimm" as one of the ratings-challenged network's bright spots. The show, he said, "is a hit for us on Friday. It's the number-one scripted show on Friday nights. It increased the time period for us 108 percent." The Season 2 premiere gets an early, special Monday night time slot, on Aug. 13, the day after NBC's Olympics coverage ends. "It's a show that we believe in," Greenblatt said, "and think will benefit from the momentum that we're going to give it promotionally during the Olympics."

And then there was the monkey. At a panel for "Animal Practice," a new NBC comedy set in a veterinary hospital, critics were joke-griping on Twitter that the cast onstage didn't include Crystal the monkey, who's also in the show. After listening to the creators and cast talk about the show, sans monkey, at last, Crystal made a splashy entrance, to the hum of sirens, riding a miniature ambulance. Crystal smiled and raised an arm to give the crowd a wave. It went over like gangbusters.

That's life on the tour. I'll have more next week, including information on new shows from CBS, ABC and a visit to the set of "Revenge."

-- Kristi Turnquist on Twitter