Hugh Laurie's voice will make an appearance in the new season of "The Simpsons"

VARIED VOICES: In the real world, turning 22 is typically just another birthday. But in Springfield, the party is going to last the length of a season and will have some of Hollywood's biggest stars on the guest list.

Season 22 of "The Simpsons" will be filled with guest-voice appearances by stars of other TV hits such as "Glee," "House," "Flight of the Conchords" and "Mad Men." Big-screen actors will also lend their pipes throughout the season, as well as beloved athletes, comedy legends and pop-culture icons.

The new season of the legendary Fox series will premiere on Sunday, Sept. 26.

The first episode, titled "Elementary School Musical," will follow Lisa Simpson as she attends a performing arts camp. She quickly comes out of her shell and embraces her artistic side with the help of her camp counselors (Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie of "Flight of the Conchords") and her fellow campers (Lea Michele, Cory Monteith and Amber Riley of fellow Fox series "Glee").

The show's annual Halloween tradition, "Treehouse of Horror XXI," will feature some very recognizable British voices, courtesy of Hugh Laurie, who stars as the title character in "House," and Daniel Radcliffe, better known to the world as Harry Potter.

Lifestyle icon Martha Stewart will voice a character in the holiday-themed episode "The Fight Before Christmas," which will feature live-action puppets.

Other stars doing guest-voice stints through the season will include actors Halle Berry, Paul Rudd, Rachel Weisz, Alyson Hannigan and Jon Hamm; comedy legends Ricky Gervais, Kristen Wiig and Cheech & Chong; athletes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Danica Patrick and Mike Scioscia; and Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg and sportswriter Bill James.

The season will also mark the return of "Criminal Minds" star Joe Mantegna as the voice of Fat Tony.

THEIR MAN FLINT: The name Baldwin is as synonymous with Hollywood success as Barrymore, Fonda, Coppola and Sutherland. For these families, being on screen is in their blood.

Now, the second-youngest of the Baldwin brothers, William, is returning to TV for a guest-starring arc on a hit drama that's all about family.

NBC just announced that the actor will star as Gordon Flint in "Parenthood" when it returns for a new season on Tuesday, Sept. 14.

Baldwin's character will be featured in multiple episodes in the new season, stirring up drama for many members of the Braverman family. As Adam's (Peter Krause) boss, Gordon is a rich and charismatic man who prefers to dream up big goals for the company while Adam does all of the dirty work. The bachelor causes Adam even more stress when he pursues an attraction to Adam's sister, Sarah (Lauren Graham).

Bringing in Baldwin for this arc in the new season only adds to the major star power possessed by the show's cast, which includes Krause ("Six Feet Under"), Graham ("Gilmore Girls"), Monica Potter ("Boston Legal"), Craig T. Nelson ("Coach"), Erika Christensen (2002's "Swimfan"), Dax Shepard (2004's "Without a Paddle") and Mae Whitman ("Arrested Development"), among others.

Baldwin previously worked with Krause on the ABC series "Dirty Sexy Money," and he also had a recurring role on "Gossip Girl."

However, he has primarily focused on film work, with credits in "Internal Affairs" (1990), "Flatliners" (1990), "Backdraft" (1991), "The Squid and the Whale" (2005), "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" (2008) and "1 a Minute," an upcoming docu-drama about breast cancer.

MUSICAL PANEL CHAIRS: Ellen DeGeneres is one of those rare entertainers who has made a success of pretty much every single endeavor she's tried.

The success of her early standup career led to two televised sitcoms in her name, and the opportunity to host the Academy Awards and the Emmys. Her silver-screen career had a big boost from the success of 2003's "Finding Nemo," in which she voiced the forgetful reef fish Dory. And she's also the host of one of the most popular daytime talk shows currently on television.

However, DeGeneres is evidently the type of woman who's willing to admit when something just doesn't feel right.

The star, who has been a judge on Fox's "American Idol" since early February, has decided to bow out from that job after only one season with the show.

"A couple of months ago, I let Fox and the 'American Idol' producers know that this didn't feel like the right fit for me," said DeGeneres in a release. "I told them I wouldn't leave them in a bind and that I would hold off on doing anything until they were able to figure out where they wanted to take the panel next.

"It was a difficult decision to make, but my work schedule became more than I bargained for," she continued. "I also realized this season that while I love discovering, supporting and nurturing young talent, it was hard for me to judge people and sometimes hurt their feelings."

Much speculation now surrounds Fox's search for DeGeneres's replacement, as well as one for Simon Cowell, who is also leaving the panel. Rumors floating around Hollywood suggest that Jennifer Lopez is a strong contender, as well as Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Harry Connick Jr. and even returning executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, who judges another Fox competition series, "So You Think You Can Dance."