Exclusive: Army Wives Boss Relieved of Duty

• Mar 31, 2008 06:50 PM ET
• by Michael Ausiello

Army Wives ' top lieutenant is stepping down. Show-runner Dee Johnson was relieved of her duties over the weekend, sources confirm to me exclusively.

Johnson's ouster - the result of creative differences with producer ABC Studios - marks the third show-runner change the Lifetime drama has weathered in a little over a year. Samantha Corbin-Miller was the first to go AWOL in Dec. 06. She was replaced a few months later by Jeff Melvoin ( Alias), who stuck around until last August, at which point Johnson took over.

This latest exec shuffle couldn't have come at a worse time: Army Wives - which ranks as Lifetime's No. 1-rated drama series of all time - is only two weeks into production on its highly anticipated 18-episode second season.