It's official: Piers Morgan is the new Larry King

Piers Morgan will take over for Larry King in the new year as CNN's evening interviewer, the network announced Wednesday, surprising just about nobody with the news after months of speculation about who might take the chair.

Best known in the U.S. as a judge on "America's Got Talent" and winner of "Celebrity Apprentice," the former tabloid newsman has also done a British interview series for the iTV network.

Morgan departs slightly from the King model when it comes to his personal life: He's on only his second wife, Celia Walden, who at 33 is a mere 11 years her husband's junior. King's current wife, Shawn Southwick, is the host's seventh spouse in eight marriages, clocking in 26 years younger than her 76-year-old hubby.

King announced his departure plans in June.

Will you watch?

-- Christie D'Zurilla

Photo: Piers Morgan and Paris Hilton at the celebutante's most recent fragrance launch party, held Aug. 10, 2010, in Los Angeles. Credit: Jason Merritt / Getty Images

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