Title:: Ray Romano: Open to One More Season 
Author::  Roger Friedman
Source:: FOX News 

There seems to be a difference of opinion over at "Everybody Loves Raymond." Is this the last season or not? No two people seem to have the same answer.

Let's cut to Ray Romano, the show's star. What does he think?

"This is supposed to be the last season," he says, "but we have to see what happens through the year. We have until January to decide."

He'd better tell co-star Patricia Heaton, who is looking for work on Broadway and developing her own sitcom. Ditto for Brad Garrett, who's doing an indie movie in the summer and working on his own show too. In fact, Garrett may even get a "Raymond" spin-off, with several of that show's writers pitching in to get it off the ground.

Meanwhile, Romano told me at HBO's big post-Emmy Awards party last night (see below) he would not be recording a second comedy album to follow up his self-titled one from last year.

"Another one? I don't think so," he said. "I don't have any more material. I'm not like Jerry Seinfeld where I'm going to invent all new stuff."

Romano is still the down-to-earth guy I met about five years ago. Back then he and Garrett came to the premiere of the Albert Brooks movie "The Muse" and told me it was the first time they'd ever been to such an event. Judging by their low-key presence last night, nothing has changed. Maybe that's why everyone indeed seems to love Ray ¡ª and Brad.

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Title:: Will Romano scrap 'Raymond?'
Date:: September 24, 2003
Author:: By Jeannette Walls with Ashley Pearson
Source:: MSNBC

Sept. 24 ¡ª Will "Everybody Loves Raymond" return next season? It better not, say publishing insiders, who tell the Scoop that Ray Romano, the star of the show, has been pitching a book about the show and telling would-be buyers that this will be the last year for the popular series.

"RAY ROMANO AND his rep have been talking to publishers about a book, and they¡¯re looking for big bucks," says a source. "It would be a scrapbook-type thing with lots of pictures and captions and one of their key selling points has been that this will be the show¡¯s last year. They¡¯re saying that the book should be published by May and that it would get tons of publicity when the series ends."

"Everybody Loves Raymond" won an Emmy this year, and there has been much speculation as to whether it¡¯s the show¡¯s last season, although a rep for the series steadfastly tells the Scoop that "no decision has been made" about the future of the show.

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Title:: Raymond cast says show should go on - Decision in January over ninth season
Date:: September 22, 2003
Author:: Gary Gentile
Source:: Canadian Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- If the cast members have anything to say about it, Everybody Loves Raymond will be back for another season.

"I don't know how they can quit," said Doris Roberts, who won an Emmy for best supporting actress in a comedy series for her role as Marie Barone. "It's brilliant writing. I don't know how you can take that off the air, I really don't and I hope they won't."

Later, as the entire cast came backstage, Peter Boyle, who plays cranky Frank Barone, weighed in when creators Ray Romano and Philip Rosenthal were asked about the future of the show.

"The answer is yes!" he said.

Romano and Rosenthal said they will decide whether to continue for a ninth season in January. Rosenthal said winning the Emmy for best comedy does not necessarily mean the show should go on.

"There are two schools of thought," Rosenthal said. "This is very encouraging and we should take this and go. It's very hard to come up with stories, and we don't want to repeat."

Continued topliner Ray Romano: "The decision will be made creatively on how we feel the show is going." And back to Rosenthal: "We've done 175 shows -- we don't want to repeat." Closed Romano: "I'm very happy with the outcome tonight. I didn't need to win for actor, and I wanted to win for show because of these people behind me (Brad Garrett, Patricia Heaton, Doris Roberts and Peter Boyle). They make me look so much better. They are my 'Queer Eye' -- they make me look good."