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The TV Column
The Week’s Winners and Losers
And the Oscar Goes to . . . in a Handbasket
By Lisa de Moraes The Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, March 8, 2006; C07
For the first time, ABC did not win Academy Awards Week. Fox did, with three nights of "American Idol." Hopefully this message will wind its way to the film folk who treated Jon Stewart like an East Coast TV-skank interloper in the Kodak Theatre Sunday night, causing their Botoxed brows to furrow.
Here's a look at the week's "Crashes" and "Kongs":
WINNERS
Academy Awards. Managing expectations downward, a lot, can be fun -- and profitable. Take this year's Oscarcast. Expected to be the least watched ever -- Best Pic contenders all politically charged and box office-starved; this year's cable-star host clocks just 1.5 million viewers on a good night, blah, blah -- it turns out to be only the fourth least watched, with an average audience of 39 million viewers, which is nowhere near as bad as 2003's stupendously bad 33 million. Great news!
"American Idol." With a hefty four hours of highly rated "Idol" on its lineup (nearly a third of its prime time) -- Fox won the week, marking the first time a broadcast network has beaten ABC for Oscar Week. "Idol" is now tracking about 12 percent above the same point last year.
Virtually everything on CBS . The network took almost all of the excitement out of its May dog-and-pony show, in which it unveils its fall schedule to advertisers, by announcing that it's given full-season orders to 14 prime-time series repping 13 hours on its lineup, including freshman series "Criminal Minds," "Ghost Whisperers" and "How I Met Your Mother," as well as all "CSIs," all "CSI" knockoffs and posers, "60 Minutes," "Survivor," "Amazing Race" and "Two and a Half Men."
"Project Runway." The second season ends tonight; Bravo has picked up a third. This season "Runway" has averaged about 1.6 million viewers, most of them 18 to 49 years old. In the demo, it was cable's No. 1 Wednesday show for the past seven weeks.
LOSERS
ABC's Oscar Week . For the first time, ABC did not win Oscar Week among viewers of all ages; for the second time in two years, ABC did not win Oscar Week among the 18-to-49-year-olds it targets. Of course, up until 2004, the Academy Awards did not fall in a February sweeps week, when competition is keener. Perhaps it's time to reconsider that strategy.
CBS series without early pickup . You know who you are, you handful of shows ignominiously left out of CBS's "We're Picking Up Almost Everything" news release. The List of Shame includes "King of Queens" (hooray!) and "Still Standing" (hooray!), as well as "Close to Home" and "Out of Practice." Oh, and "Yes, Dear," but we already know that one's over.
"ER." Dr. Carter, aka Noah Wyle, returns to the ER, sort of. Actually he's in the Sudanese desert treating hundreds of disease-infested and famine-stricken people, but it's on "ER" anyway. Don't ask. Anyway, viewers reacted with intense apathy, causing the NBC drama to hit a new series low.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/07/AR2006030701795_pf.html
Tuesday’s network prime-time ratings are now at the top of RATINGS NEWS (the first post in this thread).
Overnights in the 18-49 Demo
Bang-up premiere for CBS's 'The Unit'
By Diego Vasquez MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Mar 8, 2006
CBS’s second attempt at a Tuesday night drama this midseason was a lot more successful than the first.
Erasing any lingering memories of the now-canceled “Love Monkey,” the premiere of the new CBS drama “The Unit” last night averaged an impressive 18.2 million total viewers and a 5.1 rating among viewers 18-49, finishing second in the 9 p.m. timeslot behind Fox’s “House.”
“The Unit” bettered the last big premiere in the timeslot, last fall’s “Commander in Chief” on ABC, by 2 million total viewers. That was CBS's second-best new show premiere of the season, behind "Criminal Minds'" 19.8 million last fall.
"Unit's" 18-49 rating was a 55 percent improvement over the 3.3 CBS averaged in the timeslot over the last four weeks.
Another encouraging sign for CBS: “The Unit” grew from its first half hour to its second. From 9 to 9:30 p.m. the show averaged 17.8 million total viewers and a 4.8 rating among 18-49s, but that jumped to 18.5 million viewers and a 5.3 among 18-49s during its second half hour. It also jumped 34 percent over lead-in “NCIS,” which to be fair was facing Fox juggernaut “American Idol.”
The show received good reviews from critics and is a departure from CBS’s usual “CSI”-style procedural crime dramas, focusing in part on the wives of men in an Army special forces unit combating terrorism. Media Life TV critic Toni Fitzgerald wrote, “Finally there is a new element in this already stale [terrorist] formula.”
CBS’s last attempt at a new Tuesday drama, “Love Monkey,” was dropped after just a handful of outings after averaging below a 3.0.
Elsewhere last night, the one-hour debut of ABC comedy “Sons & Daughters” in the same 9 p.m. timeslot was less successful. The show averaged a 3.2 rating among 18-49s, a 14 percent improvement over the 2.8 ABC averaged in the timeslot the last four weeks. But “Sons” declined as the hour wore on, posting a 3.4 among 18-49s in its first episode before dropping to a 3.0 for the second in a back-to-back premiere.
Also last night, NBC’s returning “Joey,” off the air since December, sunk to a series low in its new Tuesday timeslot, posting just a 1.4 rating among 18-49s and averaging 4.1 million total viewers, fifth in its timeslot on both counts. It also faced Fox’s “Idol.”
Fox finished first for the night among 18-49s with a 10.0 average rating and a 25 share. CBS was second at 4.2/11, ABC third at 2.9/8, NBC fourth at 2.6/7, Univision fifth at 1.7/4, WB sixth at 1.0/3 and UPN seventh at 0.7/2.
Fox dominated the 8 p.m. hour, leading with an 11.6 rating for “American Idol.” CBS was a distant second with a 3.8 for “NCIS,” ABC third with a 2.1 for an hour of “According to Jim” and Univision fourth with a 1.9 for “Contra Viento y Marea.” NBC was fifth that hour with a 1.5 for an hour of “Joey,” WB sixth with a 1.2 for a repeat of “Gilmore Girls” and UPN seventh with a 0.7 for a repeat of “America’s Next Top Model.”
At 9 p.m. Fox led again, this time with an 8.4 for a new episode of “House.” CBS was second with its 5.1 for “The Unit,” ABC third with a 3.2 for “Sons & Daughters” and NBC fourth with a 2.8 for an hour of “Scrubs.” Univision finished fifth with a 2.0 for “Alborada,” while UPN and WB tied for sixth at 0.8, UPN for repeats of “Everybody Hates Chris” and “Girlfriends” and WB for a repeat of “Supernatural.”
CBS took the lead at 10 p.m. with a 3.7 for “The Amazing Race.” ABC and NBC tied for second at 3.4, ABC for “Boston Legal” and NBC for a “Law & Order: SVU” rerun with Univision fourth with a 1.1 for “Lo Que No Vio…”
Fox took the night among households with a 14.6 average rating and a 22 share. CBS was second at 9.5/15, ABC third at 5.6/9, NBC fourth at 4.5/7, Univision fifth at 2.0/3, WB sixth at 1.6/2 and UPN seventh at 1.2/2.
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/printer_3312.asp
SVonhof
03-08-06, 03:48 PM
slocko, you haven't missed it. It's called Black.White. and it debuts tomorrow night at 10/9C on FX. Apparently two whole families make the switch, not just two people.
I saw the ad for this last night and it looks like it could be an eye opening experience for everyone involved. May have to try to catch it.
DoubleDAZ
03-08-06, 09:30 PM
Overnights in the 18-49 Demo
Bang-up premiere for CBS's 'The Unit'
10 minutes into my recording and they had me hooked for the season. Hoorah!
It was pretty good. That must have made keenan happy -- he's been waiting for this show for months!
A Critical View:
When it comes to 'Sopranos,' I'm glad to be kept waiting
By Matthew Gilbert The Boston Globe staff March 5, 2006
Thank you, David Chase, for being a darn slug.
And thank you Mr. Gilbert, for a great read.
In that vein, Ken H, there is this:
TV Review
Sopranos (five out of five stars)
By Hal Boedeker Orlando Sentinel Television Critic
The main question about The Sopranos, which starts its sixth season on HBO Sunday: How good is it?
The thrilling answer: better than ever.
A 21-month wait for new episodes would doom most series. But Sopranos creator David Chase has earned the right to work at his own pace, and when the results are this splendid, you don't complain.
Rather, you acknowledge that this drama represents the peak of the 2005-06 season. The Sopranos unfolds at a more absorbing and imaginative level than TV's strongest series, from ABC's Lost and Grey's Anatomy to Fox's 24 and House.
The new season opens with a spoken song about souls, secret names and the ancient Egyptians. The eerie sequence, which merits repeated study, foreshadows the personal and philosophical themes.
The Sopranos are in turmoil. Carmela (Edie Falco) is worried all the time. Husband Tony (James Gandolfini) is more pessimistic than ever and warns son, A.J. (Robert Iler): "I don't care how close you are. In the end your friends are gonna let you down." Uncle Junior (Dominic Chianese) has slipped deeper into dementia.
TV critics have seen the first four episodes, but revealing the central plot would be unforgivable. The family faces profound challenges. The first episode stuns. The second episode, which Chase wrote, is an original and unsettling hour that's destined to be a TV landmark.
Even as the public and media have embraced The Sopranos, Chase has refused to glamorize the mob or let the show go soft. The series tells blistering stories about Gene Pontecorvo (Robert Funaro), who wants out of the gangsters' orbit, and Jason Barone (Chris Diamantopoulos), who runs afoul of the mob when he tries to sell his late father's garbage business.
The Sopranos continues to deploy actors in fascinating ways. After a character dies, that doesn't preclude the performer's reappearance. Hal Holbrook gives a touching performance as a thoughtful scientist.
Tim Daly returns as a screenwriter with a gambling problem. In future episodes, ER alumna Julianna Margulies portrays a real-estate agent, and Oscar-winner Ben Kingsley plays himself.
The stars are in stellar form. Falco conveys Carmela's anguish and anger with remarkable intensity. The new season lets Gandolfini play addled and vulnerable sides to Tony. As the Soprano children, Jamie-Lynn Sigler reveals new maturity as Meadow while Iler ratchets up the childish ways of A.J.
The early episodes skimp on choice material for Lorraine Bracco as Dr. Jennifer Melfi and Michael Imperioli as Christopher Moltisanti, Tony's nephew. The true standout is Tony Sirico, who savors his finest hour as Paulie Walnuts in the fourth episode. Sirico is equally frightening and funny as the pathetic, self-absorbed mobster.
Despite the grim events, The Sopranos provides moments of stimulating hilarity. In a zany scene, the mobsters discuss moving into the movie business. Other topics producing sharp humor include dinosaurs, Viagra and rap stardom.
To deepen the story, the series deftly mixes in pop-culture references, from the TV series Kung Fu to singer Marvin Gaye to "Over the Rainbow."
HBO will offer 12 new episodes this spring and the final eight installments early next year. Then The Sopranos will definitely end, Chase says.
In previewing the show for TV critics in January, Chase and his stars did their best not to divulge plots. The first four episodes suggest that was a wise strategy. They didn't want to ruin the story.
I don't either because The Sopranos is as good as television gets.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/tv/orl-tvreview-sopranos-020706,0,1573251,print.story
TV Review
'The Sopranos' returns with the end in sight -- and that just makes everything juicier
By Tim Goodman San Francisco Chronicle Wednesday, March 8, 2006
After a full 21 months in cobwebs, "The Sopranos" returns to HBO on Sunday with a viscerally stunning reminder: It's the best series on television, end of story.
The only series competing at the same creative height as "The Sopranos" are HBO stablemates "The Wire" and "Deadwood," but what creator David Chase has set in motion this season for his mob-and-family epic makes debating this trifecta a hollow exercise. Based on the first four episodes of Season 6, what we're witnessing here is the making of a magnificent bonfire of assured creativity, as Chase burns through episodes to the end of this landmark television series.
Knowing that the series will wrap-up (12 episodes this season, eight more beginning in January) helps forgive a nearly two-year layoff that's not only unheard of but would be completely unacceptable for an inferior series. And yet, within the first few minutes -- and then with an exclamation point at the end -- the first episode jump-starts your brain into remembering how truly great "The Sopranos" really is. From the intricate structure to the nuanced characters to the detail Chase captures in their emotions, there's so much to grab onto here.
(If you haven't already been watching HBO's rerunning of Season 5, then you should hit the Web site soon and recap episodes, because events move quickly after the opening.)
When we last saw Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) running through the snow as the feds nabbed Johnny Sack (Vincent Curatola), television's best drawn anti-hero was trying to put his life back together again. As Season 6 begins, Tony is off his anti-depressants and noticeably more upbeat after a tumultuous year in which he narrowly avoided a turf war, killed his cousin Tony Blundetto (Steve Buscemi) and had to beat back -- or snuff out -- rats in his own extended mob family including, most famously, Adrianna (Drea de Matteo).
Now Tony and Carmela (Edie Falco) are enjoying each other's company after their reconciliation -- they've even discovered sushi together, which brings them closer. (Food, yet again, plays a huge part in "The Sopranos" and is played for laughs with a deft touch this season, particularly when it comes to Vito, because actor Joseph Gannascoli lost more than 150 pounds in real life).
Die-hard fans of "The Sopranos" -- which is pretty much everyone who tunes in -- would be wise to remember that Chase doles out clues and metaphors in a fashion that outright embarrasses a show like "Lost." Each year the promotional photos are dissected for clues (which are there) and much can be gleaned from songs that are played, television shows that Tony watches and the myriad dream sequences that dot each season.
If dealing in this alternate universe appeals to you, pay close attention to the first few minutes when William S. Burroughs' "Seven Souls" spoken-word piece plays ominously over scenes of what has transpired in the lives of the characters since we last saw them (and what, by extension, may ultimately befall them). "The Sopranos" is dense with the kind of things you catch on repeat viewings, whether it's the look on someone's face or seemingly tossed off lines, such as this one from Sunday's episode -- "No good deed goes unpunished," that end up having seasonlong reverberations.
While eager fans only want to look forward at this point -- and there's certainly much to anticipate -- part of the legacy of the series is that God is definitely in the details. Past conversations, dreams, hints, the tiniest bit of seemingly pointless banter -- it all adds up, a story is being told in multiple, nuanced layers.
Chase is using an obviously sure hand as he steers this unwieldy story to its conclusion. Where others search for Big Issues, Chase tends to keep things simple when he talks about the show. He'll say, for example, that a theme for a particular season is Tony and Carmela, or Tony and his kids. And it's true that the series is rooted in some unwavering basics established from the very start:
• Tony is having troubles in both of his families.
• Ancestry, DNA and familial traits are pressing concerns for him, and others.
• Psychiatry is essential because Tony lives in his head.
What was true back then is even more true now -- the neat trick is wondering how it will all play out, which direction Chase will choose not only to finish the series, but to deal with Tony, the central figure in this dark, funny opera.
We're still a long way off from then, but the first four episodes -- a quarter of the season -- indicate Chase is no longer burdened with keeping the show slowly marching ahead, season-to-season. There's a finality that Chase can aim for and there's a nimbleness to how he gets out of the gate come Sunday.
But it's pointless to get into specifics. Fans don't want anything spoiled. They don't want too many hints. So on the safe side, the most you should know is that mooks will be mooks and nature really does abhor a vacuum.
Guns will go off, but they always do. Plans will be hatched, not all of them wise. And those dream sequences? The more bizarro the better. Twenty-one months and worth the wait. Clearly, this discussion will continue throughout the season. So cook up the baked ziti, pour the Chianti and keep your head on a swivel.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/03/08/DDGHGHJIJ41.DTL&type=printable
TV Review
“Sopranos”: Starting it off with a big bang!
By Richard Huff New York Daily News TV Editor Wednesday, March 8th, 2006
They made us wait 21 damn months — 21 — but the wait was worth it.
Sunday night, "The Sopranos" returns to HBO's prime-time lineup, and every last one of those lovable and equally hateable mobsters — plus a few others — are back with an earth-shattering, life-changing vengeance.
Everything you missed about TV's greatest drama is there, from the always-shocking — but this time downright stunning — gunfire to the buckets of blood to the continually fraying relationships, all of which make us want more of Tony Soprano and his dysfunctional families — both of them.
It's kind of like "The Sopranos" are our old mob buddies who got sent up the river for nearly two years and are now back on the streets. And, of course, that means they're also back to their wicked ways. The difference this time around? In the sixth season, these guys are loaded with as much tension as too-tight piano wire.
"I think kind of disquieted, sort of rattled, not feeling like things are going well" is the way David Chase described the coming season to reporters in January.
He might have been underplaying that a bit.
You want action? How's this?
There's a major shooting early in the run of the new episodes. A shooting — on "The Sopranos"? Okay, on its face that isn't news, but it will be when you find out how it happens and who the victim is. Let's just say that, in this crooked world, no one is safe. The moment is so shocking, in fact, that it could blow folks out of their seats.
Not enough action for you?
Janice Soprano and her husband, Bobby Baccalieri, will have a baby girl. The flaky and fiery Janice (Aida Turturro) is probably the least-qualified mother in TV history.
Elsewhere, the Soprano kids are growing up — and, as all kids do, growing less appreciative of their family. One major incident, however, nearly makes A.J. take up his father's business, or at least a part of it, which should cause some major headaches down the road.
Now that Carmela let Tony back in the house, she worries more about the family — both of them. She seems particularly curious about Adrianna, who was last seen eating leaves in upstate New York and, presumably, taking a bullet. Chase and his team are at their best when creating gut-tightening stress, such as when Carmela wonders aloud about Adrianna to Tony.
Outside of the Soprano homestead, Johnny (Sack) Sacramoni is trying to get out of jail, having been tackled in a snow bank in the last season. Phil Leotardo takes over while Johnny's wearing an orange jumpsuit, but he doesn't play the game quite the way Sack did, causing even more agita for Tony — as if he didn't have enough problems on his very full plate.
Among them are the feds, who are also still trying to nail Tony and his associates.
"The Sopranos" has always skillfully weaved in great guest stars, and this season is no exception. You will see Julianna Margulies playing a real estate agent and Hal Holbrook as a scientist who used to work for Bell Labs. Ben Kingsley plays himself. Elizabeth Bracco, Lorraine Bracco's sister, also plays a mob wife down the road.
But that's all later.
Before the first few hours are done, viewers will spend time in familiar and unfamiliar places — hospitals, the Satriale Pork Store and everyone's favorite strip club, the Bada Bing. And they'll take a trip out of town, with Tony, sort of.
No matter where the action is happening, though, they'll know that the gun is cocked, a finger is on the trigger and, at any moment, any one of the family could be playing cards with Adrianna in heaven.
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/ent_radio/v-pfriendly/story/397640p-336986c.html
TV Notebook
Teri Hatcher helped solve Sunnyvale case
ACTRESS'S REVELATIONS OF HER PAST LED TO CONVICTION
By Julia Prodis Sulek and John Woolfolk San Jose Mercury News Wed, Mar. 08, 2006
For almost four years, Santa Clara County prosecutor Chuck Gillingham kept secret the name of the woman who helped put away a Sunnyvale child molester whose young victim killed herself.
The woman put aside concerns about her career and called Gillingham from her home in Los Angeles to say that she, too, had been molested as a child by the same man. The woman's name? Teri Hatcher, one of Hollywood's hottest TV actresses starring in ABC's hit show, ``Desperate Housewives.''
Hatcher tells her story in the April issue of Vanity Fair Magazine, which hits newsstands this week.
``At the end of the day, there was no way I was not going to put this girl first, before whatever damage might be done to me,'' Hatcher told the magazine.
Hatcher, 41, who grew up in Sunnyvale, is the niece of Richard Hayes Stone, who is serving a 14-year sentence for molesting Sarah Van Cleemput and a 12-year-old girl. Sarah, just 14, committed suicide in January 2002, leaving a mysterious note that pointed to her abuser.
Without Sarah's testimony, Gillingham was worried he didn't have enough evidence to convict Stone. The case, he feared, was doomed.
Then he got a call from Hatcher.
``The case was on the verge of being dismissed at about the time she made contact with us,'' Gillingham told the Mercury News on Tuesday.
Even though Stone, who is now 67, had told police he had a ``passionate kiss'' with Sarah, which itself would constitute child molestation, a confession alone would not be enough for conviction. Gillingham also had the girl's suicide note, but it was vague, saying only ``ask Dick'' about why she would kill herself.
Gillingham needed corroborating evidence.
``She asked what I thought,'' about coming forward, Gillingham said of Hatcher. ``I said, `I'm going to beg you to be involved, as hard as that is for you.' ''
Gillingham flew down to Los Angeles with a Sunnyvale public safety officer to take Hatcher's statement.
``When we went to interview her, she almost canceled,'' Gillingham said. ``But she had been with her daughter that morning and was thinking if, God forbid, something happened to her daughter that someone would come forward and do the right thing.''
With a tape recording running, Hatcher explained in detail how her uncle -- the then-husband of her mother's sister -- allegedly molested her in the late 1960s and early '70s when she was no more than 7.
``Obviously she took a big risk doing the interview,'' Gillingham said.
After prosecutors gave the defense a transcript of Hatcher's interview, Stone pleaded guilty Oct. 24, 2002, leaving no need for a trial nor a court appearance for Hatcher.
Eric Geffon, who represented Stone at the time, did not respond to phone calls Tuesday.
Hatcher learned about the Van Cleemput case during a trip to Sunnyvale to help her parents with a garage sale at their Templeton Court home before they moved to Southern California. Her mother handed her news clippings about Sarah's suicide and Stone's subsequent arrest on charges of sexually molesting the girl, who lived across the street from him.
``It struck me so strongly that -- oh my God, he's been doing this for 35 years!'' Hatcher told Vanity Fair. ``I was just blown over by this girl's pain. I thought, boy, that's really close to being me, any day of the week. I could feel that sort of pain.''
At that time in the actress's life, she was going through a divorce and her career was tanking. Hatcher hadn't even told her parents about what her uncle allegedly had done.
If her story of molestation came out in the tabloids, she told Vanity Fair, she worried she would be viewed as a has-been actress trying to get attention.
``I thought she was extraordinarily courageous,'' Gillingham said. ``At all times, she felt deeply about the victim in our case.''
The Van Cleemputs didn't know until Gillingham told them Monday that Hatcher was the secret savior who helped their case.
``They were aware someone had come forward at almost the 11th hour, but they didn't know who it was,'' Gillingham said. ``They were obviously floored by the whole thing.''
Stone, a former engineer at National Semiconductor, was a trusted family friend of the Van Cleemputs, who had emigrated from Belgium to Sunnyvale where Patrick Van Cleemput worked for semiconductor maker Novellus Systems. The families vacationed together.
In an e-mail to the Mercury News on Tuesday, Sarah's parents and older sister also called Hatcher a ``very courageous woman.''
Patrick Van Cleemput, Sarah's father, wrote: ``The only thing we want to accomplish is to prevent other adolescents or young adults from going as far as Sarah went to be free from molestation.''
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/entertainment/television/14045819.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
TV Notebook
'Sopranos' is done lying low
After nearly two years, the HBO hit series returns. But will its fans come flocking back?
By Lynn Smith Los Angeles Times Staff Writer March 8, 2006
Looking back on it all, David Chase admits, no one involved in the first episodes of "The Sopranos" had a clue the show would ever make such a mark on the cultural landscape. The stories, he says, were meant to be funny and sad, and he hoped viewers would come away feeling as if they had had a satisfying "emotional meal."
Now, as Sunday's premiere of the sixth season of the HBO series nears, Chase hopes that by the end of its run, "The Sopranos" will have given them meaning as well, even some beyond the creators' control. "I hope there's more than one thing going on. I hope there are things that I and the writers and actors don't even know about. I've noticed, even with my prior work, there are intentions I was not aware of and thought, 'Wow, this thing had a subconscious life of its own.' "
The new season marks the beginning of the end for "The Sopranos," the series that put HBO on the map and put "whacked" and "bada-bing" into the nation's vernacular. The cast is just finishing production on the 12 episodes of Season 6 and, after a few months off, will start work on the final eight "bonus" episodes that will air in 2007. Chase pledges there will be no more.
"I think we've done it," he says. "We're all going to move on from here."
Until "The Sopranos" and "Sex and the City," HBO was known mostly for showing uncut movies. Those signature shows elevated the network to appointment TV status. Now, HBO is facing the pressure of an increasingly fragmented audience that confronts all networks, but without its two bulwarks.
And after a nearly two-year hiatus for the show, some fans may be reluctant to come back for one last dose.
St. Louis sales manager Glen Callanan wrestles with inner conflict over that. On the one hand, he's angry that he has had to wait so long for a new episode. But, like the mafia gangsters on the show, he knows he can't just walk away.
"They get you on a string and pull you back in," he says. "There's not much you can do about it. I guess I'll be mad at them and still watch it."
According to Nielsen Media Research, viewership in the last season of "The Sopranos" fell to an average of 11 million, down from 12.5 million in 2002. But counting replays and on-demand viewings of episodes on HBO, that audience nearly doubled, according to David Baldwin, HBO's executive vice president of program planning. The show is so detailed and dense that many people watch it more than once, he says. Callanan, for instance, says he usually watches the show on Sunday and then watches it again twice during the week.
Although subscription cable does not depend on ratings like broadcast, Baldwin is hopeful Season 6 will sustain the same numbers.
As a possible hedge, the network has been heavily promoting its latest original series, "Big Love," and will air the new series about a modern polygamist family at 10 p.m. Sundays, just following "The Sopranos." HBO has enormous hopes for the series but does not intend for it to take the place of "The Sopranos," says HBO Entertainment President Carolyn Strauss.
"It's not about 'The Sopranos' successor. There will be no such thing. It's a unique animal," Strauss says. "These characters are truly three-dimensional people. Everything I've seen so far on this [new season] makes it harder and harder for me to let them go. It won't be easy for me as an executive or as a fan."
For Chase, the goal was always to "get away from the type of storytelling where characters lecture and hector each other, and say whatever is exactly on their minds and say it well and therefore teach the audience some lessons. I've never been a professor and I don't want to be."
Some say it's best to quit while they still have something left to say. Robert Thompson, director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University, thinks it's a good time to wrap it up since it has played out all the themes laid out in the January 1999 pilot: Mafia don Tony Soprano, inspired by a flock of ducks, gets a chance to reform his life and enters therapy; he has trouble winning the respect he believes he deserves in a world whose "Godfather" days are long gone; his masculinity is constantly challenged — by his mother, his wife, even his therapist.
A key to its popularity is that, without its mob references, the show is basically about "an unhappy American man who's never quite gotten used to the definitions of a male in the 21st century," Thompson says. "It's a show with a violent family to make it go down better. If it's about a family with troubles, who would watch it? If someone gets whacked in every episode, it's more exciting.
"Then there's the whole issue of hypocrisy. There are great themes that make this so watchable and so much more than a bloodbath action adventure."
Callanan, 45, says he finds it hard not to like Tony. He can relate to the mob boss as a father and even as a manager.
"There's somebody in there that seems like a good person," he says.
The new season explores darkened themes of loyalty and identity and makes unusual and extensive use of dreams and metaphors, one of its artistic hallmarks.
Where the story will end is the topic of much speculation. Will Tony be redeemed? Will A.J. take over as the next generation's boss? Could it wind up, à la "Dallas" and "St. Elsewhere," as a figment of an unhappy 21st century American man's imagination?
Thompson believes that dramatic convention requires that Tony, persistently amoral, must suffer. "He's got to go to hell by the end of the season," Thompson says.
As to the speculation it may all wind up as a figment of someone's imagination, Chase promises: "That will never happen." Neither will the family wind up hugging and smiling with lessons learned, he says. "If you're asking if they find out crime does not pay, no comment." Tony is already paying a price for his behavior, he adds.
http://www.calendarlive.com/tv/cl-et-sopranos8mar08,0,1782190,print.story?coll=cl-tvent
RussTC3
03-09-06, 01:26 AM
Can't wait till this Sunday. The Soprano's is finally back and Grey's Anatomy comes back from it's short hiatus.
It was pretty good. That must have made keenan happy -- he's been waiting for this show for months!
I have, any show that has David Mamet, Shawn Ryan and Dennis Haysbert involved in it deserves a good look. The first episode was good and had me hooked but it was a little rough, hopefully with upcoming episodes it will be able to do what Bochco couldn't seem to get done with Over There, keep it intelligent and gain an audience. My fear is that it will become like a CSI:Special Forces...
Next up is Thief, with Andre Braugher. :)
BTW, if this really is the last season of Shawn Ryan's The Shield, I am going to certainly miss it, this season has been oustanding, watching Forrest Whittaker's Kavanaugh and Michael Chiklis's Mackey go at each other has been some great TV.
The TV Column
Will Letterman Let Stern Poke CBS in the Eye?
By Lisa de Moraes The Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, March 9, 2006; C07
In an interesting bit of booking, CBS's "Late Show With David Letterman" announced yesterday it has lined up Howard Stern, who is being sued by CBS, for the March 13 show.
Ostensibly, Stern will appear to chat up the video-on-demand version of his Sirius Satellite Radio show on iN Demand Networks. But we're guessing some talk of the lawsuit will find its way into the conversation.
Late last month, CBS Radio filed a lawsuit against its former shock jock, claiming Stern unfairly promoted Sirius while he was still on the air at CBS and, in the process, pocketed more than $200 million.
"This is a booking that has been planned by the show since January," CBS Entertainment spokesman Chris Ender told The TV Column.
"Obviously issues have arisen since then, but we respect the show's editorial independence and don't intend to censor their programming decisions."
Stern has been on "Late Show" 14 times -- most recently last November.
CBS claims Stern's deal with Sirius would give him 34 million shares of stock, valued at more than $200 million, if Sirius reached certain subscriber levels by a date this year. Stern fraudulently kept this secret while promoting Sirius on CBS Radio, CBS claims in its suit, which seeks undisclosed compensatory and punitive damages for breach of contract, fraud, unjust enrichment and misappropriation of CBS Radio broadcast time.
Stern moved to Sirius in January after signing a deal valued at $500 million in cash and stock.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Hey -- let's play Guess Which Network Had the Academy Awards This Past Sunday.
On Monday, ABC finished a distant fourth in the ratings, including a DOA debut for its medical reality series "Miracle Workers" at 10 that night.
CBS snagged the most viewers Monday night with its regular sitcoms-plus-"CSI: Miami" lineup.
Fox finished a strong second with two hours of "24" during which computer nerd Edgar Stiles got clocked by a Russian villain using nerve gas -- so retro.
Tuesday, ABC finished a distant third, including the anemic start for its comedy from Lorne Michaels called "Sons & Daughters." "American Idol" host Fox finished first. CBS came in second but scored a major ratings win with the launch of David Mamet's drama "The Unit" (aka President Palmer meets "The A-Team"). The Dennis Haysbert vehicle logged 18.5 million viewers to become the most watched premiere of any scripted show on any network this season. (A preview of CBS's freshman drama "Criminal Minds" snared 19.6 million viewers in the post-"CSI" time slot in September, but its official "premiere" the following Wednesday averaged only about 10.5 million.)
And yet, if you guessed "The Unit" launched so well because CBS promoted the heck out of it during its broadcast of the Academy Awards -- you've picked the wrong network.
ABC had the Oscars and promoted the heck out of "Miracle Workers" and "Sons & Daughters" during the 3 1/2 -hour broadcast, which averaged about 39 million viewers -- very few of whom bothered to check out either show over the next two nights. On Monday, "Miracle Workers" averaged 8.6 million viewers; Tuesday night "Sons & Daughters" attracted about 8 million.
"Too much has been made of the promotional platform of the Olympics, Super Bowl and the Oscars," noted one TV industry exec of the high-priced special events. "People come for those shows" but are not necessarily interested in anything else the network has to offer, he added.
The "track of launching shows out of these things is sketchy."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/08/AR2006030802275_pf.html
TV Notebook
Death watch: What shows won't return
By Kevin Downey MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Mar 9, 2006
Next week, at pre-upfront meetings with media buyers, the networks will preview series in development for the fall. Executives will also talk up the shows being renewed for next season.
Less talked about will be the shows that aren't coming back, but there will be a hefty number for sure. Shows that might have survived in prior seasons are at risk, as ratings improve for ABC in particular.
Many network shows have already been written off, and others will be getting the axe soon if their ratings don’t begin trending up, and fast.
Among these roughly two dozen on-the-bubble shows are the expected --NBC’s “Joey,” for example--but also a few surprises, most notably ABC’s “Commander in Chief” and NBC’s “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.”
Programs like “Commander” premiered with a bang, while series like “Criminal Intent” have done well for years, only to falter in recent weeks, pegging them as potential goners.
Media researchers tell Media Life that figuring which shows will be canceled is anything but a science, but any combination of falling ratings, production troubles, and deflated buzz point to shows in trouble.
Shari Anne Brill, vice president and director of programming at Carat, notes that ABC’s “Commander” has suffered from falling ratings and serious behind-the-scenes shakeups. Series creator Rod Lurie was ousted and Steven Bochco took his place only to get replaced himself.
“I had very high hopes for that show,” says Brill. “They are now going to a third showrunner. It was Rod Lurie’s voice and vision, and with his departure the voice and vision changed. A shift like that has a big impact.”
Brad Adgate, senior vice president and corporate research director at Horizon Media, agrees.
“It was a top-rated new show in fourth quarter,” he says. “But it has an old-skewing audience and has had production problems.”
“Commander” isn’t ABC’s only show on the bubble.
A slew of sitcoms aren’t expected back, including rookie series “Crumbs” and “Freddie,” but also “Rodney” and possibly one-time hits “According to Jim,” “Hope & Faith” and “George Lopez.” ABC said earlier this season that “Alias” is finishing its run.
But fading drama “Boston Legal” and “Bachelor” will likely survive. The reality love-match show had been sinking but this season its rating came back up, and that likely ensures that ABC will bring it back.
CBS earlier this week renewed 14 programs, including all three “CSIs,” “Without a Trace,” “Two and a Half Men,” “Numb3rs,” and rookie series “Criminal Minds,” “Ghost Whisperer,” and “How I Met Your Mother.”
Not mentioned but thought to be safe are the drama “Close to Home” and newsmagazine “48 Hours Mystery.”
On the bubble are “Yes, Dear” and “Still Standing.” In fact, both shows are believed to be canceled. Also in doubt is “King of Queens.”
The fate of new sitcoms “Out of Practice” and “Courting Alex” will become clearer after ratings come in for the Monday premiere of Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ “The New Adventures of Old Christine.” If that show does well, their chances of surviving go down.
NBC has yet to confirm which programs aren’t returning. But media researchers say two of three versions of “Law & Order” are safe while “Criminal Intent” may be nearing its end.
“I can’t say any ‘Law & Orders’ are on the bubble, but maybe ‘Criminal Intent’ because it’s having a tough time against [ABC’s] ‘Desperate Housewives,’” says Brill.
“My Name is Earl” and “The Office” have already been renewed. “Las Vegas” is safe, though it may be moved from Fridays, where it moved from Monday last week.
A long list of NBC series are in trouble, including “E-Ring,” “Four Kings,” “Fear Factor,” “Surface,” the new “Conviction” and the long-running “Scrubs.”
NBC’s “Apprentice” is widely expected to return, as the network is already shooting the next season, but considering its tumbling ratings, it may return with one version per season rather than two.
“It will be back,” says Adgate. “NBC has a lot invested in it and it’s their showcase reality show.”
And most of Fox’s series are expected to return at some point next season, including “24,” “House,” “Prison Break,” “Bones” and perhaps the short-run “Skating with Celebrities.”
Fox sitcoms “Malcolm in the Middle” and “That '70s Show” have been canceled while there’s almost no chance that “Stacked” with Pamela Anderson and “War at Home” will return.
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/printer_3340.asp
Wednesday’s prime-time ratings – and Media Week Analyst Marc Berman’s view of what they mean -- have been posted at the top of Ratings News the first post in this thread.
Overnights in the 18-49 Demo
Tyra on fyra: Returning 'Model' struts
By Diego Vasquez MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Mar 9, 2006
Finally, a show that doesn’t get utterly destroyed in the face of Fox’s “American Idol.”
The two-hour sixth-season premiere of UPN’s “America’s Next Top Model” last night averaged a 3.2 overnight rating among viewers 18-34, a 10 percent increase over the 2.9 last fall’s season premiere earned.
Last night’s improved performance among 18-34s was impressive considering the show’s first hour aired head-to-head with “Idol,” which was not on the air when season five debuted last fall. Though “Idol” still dominated the timeslot, “Model” finished second at 8 p.m. and grew considerably during its final hour.
“Top Model” averaged a 2.5 rating among 18-34s at 8 p.m. and jumped 52 percent to a 3.8 during the 9 p.m. hour. In fact, during the 9:30 p.m. timeslot, UPN led all broadcast networks with a 3.9 rating among 18-34s. Fox’s “Bones” was second at 3.4.
Among women 18-34, the show was flat to last fall’s premiere, averaging a 4.7 rating. But it averaged a 5.7 in the final hour, after “Idol” had gone off the air.
Last night’s premiere also grew over season five among the slightly older 18-49 demo, jumping almost 9 percent, from a 2.3 to a 2.5.
“Top Model” host Tyra Banks is herself retired from the modeling game, but she’s building quite a TV empire. Besides last night’s successful premiere, her syndicated daytime talk show “Tyra” set several series-bests during February sweeps.
Meanwhile, Fox finished first easily for the night among 18-49s with an 8.5 average rating and a 22 share. CBS was second at 3.7/10, ABC third at 2.6/7, UPN and NBC tied for fourth at 2.5/6, Univision sixth at 1.8/5 and WB seventh at 0.9/2.
At 8 p.m. Fox bettered the combined broadcast competition with a 12.3 rating among 18-49s for “Idol.” ABC, CBS and Univision all tied for second at a 2.0, ABC for a repeat of “George Lopez” (2.1) and a new “Freddie” (1.9), CBS for an hour of “Still Standing” and Univision for “Contra Viento y Marea.”
That left UPN fifth with a 1.9 for the first hour of the “Top Model” premiere, NBC sixth with a 1.5 for “The Biggest Loser” and WB seventh with a 0.8 for a repeat of “One Tree Hill.”
Fox slipped 61 percent during the 9 p.m. hour but still led with a 4.8 rating for “Bones.” CBS followed with a 4.6 for “Criminal Minds,” with ABC third with a 3.4 for a repeat of “Lost” and UPN fourth with a 3.0 for the second half of “Top Model.” NBC was fifth that hour with a 2.3 for a repeat of “Law & Order,” Univision sixth with a 2.2 for “Alborada” and WB seventh with a 0.9 for a “Beauty & the Geek” rerun.
CBS took the lead during the 10 p.m. hour with a 4.6 for “CSI: NY.” NBC was second with a 3.7 for a new “Law & Order,” ABC third with a 2.5 for “Invasion” and Univision fourth with a 1.3 for “Don Francisco Presenta.”
Fox finished first for the night among households with a 12.2 average rating and a 19 share. CBS was second at 7.8/12, NBC third at 5.4/8, ABC fourth at 4.7/7, UPN fifth at 3.5/5, Univision sixth at 2.2/3 and WB seventh at 1.4/2.
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/printer_3341.asp
The Business of TV
TV May Be Free but Not That Free
"You can pretty much guarantee, as soon as the episodes hit the states about 8 o'clock Eastern time, by 3 or 4 o'clock GMT it's going to hit the Internet," said Palmer, referring to 10 p.m. Eastern time. "Don't worry: I don't stay up that late. I have the nice advantage of having a taxi driver husband who helps me."
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-tvpirate1mar01,1,4677275.story?coll=la-headlines-business&ctrack=1&cset=true
I never understood why someone would take the time to capture a tv show and make it available on the internet. Filesharing I can understand, people ripped CD's to reburn them and most filesharing software would auto share it but sharing tv and editing out commercials is a lot more work.
TV Notebook
Death watch: What shows won't return
By Kevin Downey MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Mar 9, 2006
Next week, at pre-upfront meetings with media buyers, the networks will preview series in development for the fall. Executives will also talk up the shows being renewed for next season.
Less talked about will be the shows that aren't coming back, but there will be a hefty number for sure. Shows that might have survived in prior seasons are at risk, as ratings improve for ABC in particular.
Many network shows have already been written off, and others will be getting the axe soon if their ratings don’t begin trending up, and fast.
Among these roughly two dozen on-the-bubble shows are the expected --
A long list of NBC series are in trouble, including.........” the new “Conviction”..........
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/printer_3340.asp
I'm sitting here thinking, 'What the hell'? How can Conviction be in trouble when it has barely completed one episode and most of the reviews have been somewhat positive? That type of thinking is why some of these networks are having ratings trouble.
As many media writers have noted, there is room for more than one hit show in a time slot. I don't know how Conviction did against Numbers on CBS but to say a show is in trouble after one showing is lame, unless the ratings were are bad the recent premiere of South Beach on UPN. I watched my recorded version of Conviction last night and I must say that the show has promise.
I agree with Tom Shales in that some of junior DAs did something that make you wonder how that scene could even be plausible but we'll have to wait and see.
I agree entirely, AFH.
But the MediaLife story is based on information being supplied to ad buyers from the networks.
Marcus Carr
03-10-06, 10:03 AM
Swanni's TV Tech 'Hits and Misses!'
Phillip Swann predicts whether 10 new TV technology products and services will succeed or fail.
By Phillip Swann
Washington, D.C. (March 9, 2006) -- Over the last five years, I have correctly predicted that:
* Voom, the satellite TV service, would fail.
* TiVo, the DVR service, would struggle because of a lack of partnerships with cable and satellite operators.
* FCC Chairman Michael Powell would resign.
* TiVo CEO Mike Ramsay would resign.
And I have correctly predicted many other events and actions in the TV technology industry. While many people in the industry get upset at my candor and bluntness, no one can say that I don't deliver. TV Predictions is more than a name; it's a reality.
But, now, I am going to jump out on the limb again and offer my predictions for 10 new TV technology products and proposals.
Here are Swanni's TV Tech 'Hits and Misses'!'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Sling Media's Sling Box
The silver-colored box enables you to watch your home TV channels from a remote location, such as a laptop or PC. Available at retail for approximately $200, the Sling Box requires a Broadband connection at both ends.
The Sling Box is well designed and very convenient for frequent travelers who want to keep tabs with local broadcasts, particularly sports. However, the Broadband requirement is a big obstacle that will take some time to remove. Most viewers are loathe to make their televisions more complicated. And knowing that the extra connection will only be useful when they are on the road, most people will not find it worthwhile.
However, Sling Media has some heavy investors, such as Liberty Media and satcaster EchoStar. Perhaps it can hang in there until Broadband TV becomes commonplace.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 30 Percent
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Apple's Video iPod
With a 2.5-inch screen, the new portable device can play downloaded videos, such as ABC's Lost and Desperate Housewives. The downloads cost $1.99 each.
However, the picture on the small screen fares poorly compared to a normal-sized TV or even a DVD-enabled laptop. It's difficult to maintain your interest with a screen so small.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 5 Percent.
(Although people will still use the device to listen to music.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. DIRECTV's Broadband VOD
DIRECTV later this year will launch a Video on Demand service that will enable DVR owners to download from up to 2,000 movies and TV shows via a high-speed Internet connection. For the first time, a satellite TV service will be able to compete with cable TV's growing on-demand lineup.
The VOD service will struggle early because DIRECTV will find it difficult to persuade subscribers to connect their set-tops to Broadband. However, in time, Broadband TV will be embraced by the masses. And with the deep-pocketed News Corp. as its parent, DIRECTV has the luxury of time.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 100 percent.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. Cell Phone TV
Like Apple, cell phone makers are rapidly adding video to their handheld devices. Owners can pay monthly fees to watch news and sports clips and previews of upcoming movies and TV shows.
However, again, the small screen works against the concept. The monthly subscription fees don't help, either.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 1 percent.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. DIRECTV's $25-30 HDTV PPV Movie
Peter Chernin, president of News Corp., the parent of DIRECTV, says his company will soon offer HDTV films on demand 60 days after their theatrical release. The cost per viewing: $25-30, says Chernin.
The News Corp. executive says HDTV viewers will gladly pay the high price because they are "desperate" for additional high-def programming.
Don't bet on it, Pete.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 0 Percent.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. MovieBeam's VOD Player
MovieBeam, which is backed by Disney, Cisco and Intel, has launched a set-top that can deliver up to 100 on-demand movies to the home without the need of a Broadband connection.
The receiver, which costs around $200, is available in large retail stores. MovieBeam says some of the 100 films are available in high-def.
MovieBeam viewers will only have to pay for the movies they order. The on-demand service will use a datacasting technology to deliver 10 new movies to the set-top every week.
The company's prime target is the frequent movie watcher. However, that person likely already has a cable/satellite receiver, a DVD player, a DVR and maybe an A/V receiver and thus may hesitate to buy yet another set-top.
In addition, despite the backing of six of the seven major studios, many film buffs may find MovieBeam's lineup of 100 titles too limiting. And, finally, the HDTV audience may find the number of high-def films too small to justify the purchase. According to MovieBeam, the early lineup of HD movies will only include titles from Disney and Warner Bros.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 10 Percent
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. The HDTV DVD Player
Sony and Toshiba this year will launch new DVD set-tops that can play HDTV movies. The receivers, called Blu-ray and HD-DVD respectively, will not be compatible, meaning consumers will fear another Betamax vs. VHS fiasco.
In addition, the studios are threatening to add anti-copying software that would dilute the picture for millions of high-def owners.
In short, the new DVD industry is doing everything it can to sabotage itself before the launch. However, in time, the industry will work out the kinks and the new DVD player will find its audience. High-def owners will want to watch their DVDs in high-def. It's as simple as that.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 100 Percent.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8. Telco TV
AT&T and Verizon are launching new TV services to compete with the cable and satellite TV operators. They hope to exploit a growing dissatisfaction with the established services over everything from high subscription prices to a lack of high-def programming.
However, the telcos are facing an uphill fight. The cable and satellite operators have roughly 85 percent of the TV market. It could take years -- and billions of dollars -- to peel away a significant portion of that audience. Of course, the telcos have the money, but will their shareholders sit still while they spend it?
Swanni's Odds of Success: 35 percent.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. Online Video
Networks such as CBS and ABC are now offering their primetime shows online either for free or a small fee. The TV industry is hoping that online video will catch on with office workers and home PC users.
However, watching a long-form show or movie on a PC screen is simply not as comfortable as watching it on a big TV while sitting on a comfy couch. Consequently, the concept will stall until it's easier to download those shows directly to the TV itself.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 20 percent for video on the PC; 100 percent for online video on the TV.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. The HDTV Camcorder
Camcorders that record in High-Definition have been on the market for a few years now. But prices, which have ranged up to $3,000, have been out of reach for most consumers.
However, Sanyo this month is expected to launch a $799 HDTV camcorder and it's likely other companies will follow suit before year's end. The low-cost HDTV camcorder will become a big hit, perhaps as early as this holiday season.
Swanni's Odds of Success: 100 Percent.
http://www.tvpredictions.com/hitsandmisses030906.htm
Thursday’s prime-time ratings – and Media Week Analyst Marc Berman’s view of what they mean -- have been posted at the top of Ratings News the first post in this thread.
Swanni's TV Tech 'Hits and Misses!'
Phillip Swann predicts whether 10 new TV technology products and services will succeed or fail.
By Phillip Swann
Washington, D.C. (March 9, 2006) -- Over the last five years, I have correctly predicted that:
* Voom, the satellite TV service, would fail.
* TiVo, the DVR service, would struggle because of a lack of partnerships with cable and satellite operators.
* FCC Chairman Michael Powell would resign.
* TiVo CEO Mike Ramsay would resign.
And I have correctly predicted many other events and actions in the TV technology industry. While many people in the industry get upset at my candor and bluntness, no one can say that I don't deliver. TV Predictions is more than a name; it's a reality.
But when you predict the obvious, it isn't that hard!
chris_h2
03-10-06, 12:52 PM
But when you predict the obvious, it isn't that hard!
Yeah, and I don't thing you can ever be called completely wrong unless you pick 100% or 0%
I also noticed that there is no mention of any of his past "wrong" predictions. I suspect that there have been a few of those. I know there are a lot of folks at TCF that think this guy is off his rocker.
I stopped posting his stuff because it just doesn't seem all that prescient -- and it is pretty obvious, to my mind, at least.
Not to mention that I think his constant obsession with how awful some people look in HD is pretty boring, very mean-spirited and almost embarrassingly self-aggrandizing.
But YMMV.
Overnights in the 18-49 Demo
Limp post-'Idol'punch for Fox's 'O.C.'
Viewers flee in hordes from ex-hot teen soap
By Diego Vasquez MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Mar 10, 2006
It appears more people are interested in watching has-been celebrities ice skate than they are in watching the super-sexy residents of “The O.C.” following an episode of “American Idol.”
In its first original episode in four weeks, Fox’s teen drama last night posted a 3.5 overnight rating among viewers 18-49, down nearly 33 percent from the 5.2 Fox earned in the same 9 p.m. timeslot last week for the season finale of “Skating with Celebrities.”
“O.C.” lost 67 percent of its lead-in, a 10.6 for “Idol,” though the singing competition did help the later show better its recent average. Last night’s 3.5 for “O.C.” was a 35 percent improvement over the 2.6 overnight rating it had averaged over its previous four episodes, all without an “Idol” lead-in. The show has been declining in that demo since last fall.
The aging teen soap opera is obviously not as hot as it was two years ago, when it regularly followed “Idol” on Wednesdays. The last time “O.C.” aired out of “Idol,” in May 2004, the show posted a 4.6 overnight rating, losing just 46.5 percent of “Idol’s” 8.6 rating.
Last night “O.C.” actually faced less competition than did “Skating” last week. In the 9 p.m. timeslot, ABC, CBS and NBC were all down versus last week. In fact, NBC’s “My Name Is Earl” and “The Office” were reruns, but they still finished ahead of “O.C.” “O.C.” did best them among 18-34s.
Why the relative disinterest in “O.C.?” Fans have been complaining about the show’s storylines for months on online messageboards. They also could be slow to return after the month-long layoff, unsure when the show was finally coming back.
On the strength of the final of three “Idol” Thursday episodes, Fox edged the competition for the night among 18-49s with a 7.1 average rating and an 18 share. CBS was a close second at 6.9/18, NBC third at 3.0/8, ABC fourth at 2.4/6, Univision fifth at 1.9/5, WB sixth at 1.4/4 and UPN seventh at 0.8/2.
Fox started the night with a comfortable lead, averaging a 10.6 at 8 p.m. for “Idol.” CBS was second with a 5.3 for “Survivor,” NBC third with a 2.1 for an hour of “Will & Grace” repeats and Univision fourth with a 2.0 for “Contra Viento y Marea.” ABC finished fifth during the hour with a 1.9 for the first hour of the movie “Bringing Down the House,” WB sixth with a 1.2 for a repeat of “Smallville” and UPN seventh with a 0.9 for repeats of “Everybody Hates Chris” and “Love, Inc.”
CBS jumped into the lead at 9 p.m. with an 8.6 for “CSI.” NBC moved to second with a 3.8 for repeats of “Earl” and “Office,” while Fox dropped to third with its 3.5 for “The O.C.” ABC was fourth with a 2.7 for the second half of “Bringing Down the House,” Univision fifth with a 2.1 for “Alborada,” WB sixth with a 1.7 for the season finale of “Beauty & the Geek” and UPN seventh with a 0.8 for repeats of “Eve” and “Cuts.”
CBS hung onto the lead at 10 p.m., averaging a 6.6 for “Without a Trace.” NBC was second with a 3.0 for “ER,” ABC fourth with a 2.5 for “Primetime” and Univision fourth with a 1.5 for “Aqui y Ahora.”
Among households, CBS finished first for the night with a 13.0 average rating and a 20 share. Fox was second at 10.1/15, ABC third at 5.1/8, NBC fourth at 4.7/7, Univision fifth at 2.2/3, WB sixth at 2.0/3 and UPN seventh at 1.4/2.
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/article_3368.asp
TV Notebook
I Am a Sentimental Fool
By Rich Heldenfels in his Akron Beacon Journal TV blog
I took a look at a new episode of ''The West Wing,'' which airs on Sunday. It's still following the two tracks -- the presidential campaign between Santos and Vinnick, and the international crisis where the U.S. may have to intervene -- and even finds a place for the tracks to come together. It has some good stuff in the campaign portions, where the Santos campaign has finally pulled close and Vinnick's moderation on some issues may have to be compromised to keep his campaign viable. Ron Silver and Patricia Richardson, who have been playing members of Vinnick's team, have some good scenes.
Still, it wasn't a great ''West Wing,'' and I thought Vinnick had stepped out of his moderate box when he went knee-jerk in the debate episode.
But that, as you are undoubtedly aware, is not why I am a sentimental fool. It was the first sight of the late John Spencer, still alive and playing Leo, in this episode. It was just a glimpse, but it choked me up. I miss the guy, even more when I see him at work.
And I still love to see him work. There is a scene in this episode with Leo and Bartlet that reminds us how well those two worked together, what a good fit they were. It was a good enough scene that I just watched the characters interact, and the actors at work, without thinking once again that Spencer was gone.
http://blogs.ohio.com/beacon_tv/
And he's wrong about this one,
* TiVo, the DVR service, would struggle because of a lack of partnerships with cable and satellite operators.
TiVo has a solid agreement with the largest cable company in the country, Comcast, to provide a TiVo interface on existing already deployed STBs.
Unless he is getting 75-80% right every year, his predictions could have been made by a monkey and have been just as accurate.
TV Notebook
Fox locks in 'House' as 'Joey' exits
NBC orders up eight more installments of 'Deal'
By Josef Adalian Variety.com
Fox has made another appointment with "House," while NBC appears closer to finally putting "Joey" out of its misery.
Elsewhere, Peacock has ordered up eight more installments of "Deal or No Deal," the Endemol USA gameshow that's proved adept at helping the net turn on the lights in some tough time periods. Order brings to 30 the total number of segs NBC has greenlit for this season.
Extra segs will help NBC keep "Deal" on both Monday and Friday nights for the next few weeks.
Peacock was planning to air "Most Outrageous Moments" on Fridays, but the skein will now air Tuesdays from 8-9 p.m. -- the timeslot that was to have been occupied for the next few weeks by "Joey."
Opening for "Moments" appeared after NBC execs decided to again pull "Joey" from the lineup following the skein's disastrous return this week in the new Tuesday slot. Just 4 million viewers tuned in, with the half-hour skein averaging a stunningly weak 1.4/4 among adults 18-49.
"Joey," which had been struggling on Thursdays, will now return to Hiatusville and likely won't be back until summer, when NBC might opt to burn off the remaining originals. Net still hasn't confirmed "Joey's" cancellation, but the writing has been on the wall for some time now.
As for "House," early pickup was a no-brainer for Fox execs. Skein is the first procedural hit Fox has had in years.
So far this season, "House" is averaging a 5.3/13 in adults 18-49 and 14.1 million viewers, up a tad from its frosh performance. Numbers have exploded, however, since Fox started airing the show after "American Idol."
While any show would benefit from an "Idol" lead-in, "House" has impressed by retaining more than 70% of the "Idol" aud. Other skeins airing post-"Idol" are lucky to keep half of the skein's eyeballs.
cdp1276
03-10-06, 02:51 PM
Has anyone heard the status of a Season 2 of Surface? I suspect it will be canned but hadn't seen anything yet and was just curious if someone saw any facts on this?
"Surface" had its last original telecast on Feb. 6. The ratings were not good.
Back in January, NBC entertainment chief Kevin Reilly said, "The show has done a pretty good job over on Monday. I think it's creative. It's got a very loyal audience.
"I think this one has fared best on its own, having to self-start at 8 o'clock. So we'll reassess in May. We'll look at the rest of the product, but no decision is made right now one way or the other."
It is still a possibility to return, but not very good, I wouldn't think.
Woodrow
03-10-06, 10:45 PM
A slew of sitcoms aren’t expected back, including rookie series.... and possibly one-time hits “According to Jim,”
Ouch
Symbios
03-10-06, 11:25 PM
Yeah, and I don't thing you can ever be called completely wrong unless you pick 100% or 0%
I also noticed that there is no mention of any of his past "wrong" predictions. I suspect that there have been a few of those. I know there are a lot of folks at TCF that think this guy is off his rocker.
"How did Swanni mess up in 2005?"
http://www.tvpredictions.com/2005parttwo121905.htm
RussTC3
03-11-06, 12:23 AM
Fred, do you have any idea what's going on with Threshold. I seen a few articles on the net, and in my local paper, saying that the show is still on the bubble and CBS has yet to make a decision on whether or not to return it.
For instance:
Shows still reportedly on the bubble include 'Threshold,' 'Yes, Dear,' 'Still Standing,' 'King of Queens' and 'Out of Practice.'
and
But no word yet on freshman drama “Threshold” and the comedies “King of Queens,” “Out of Practice,” “Still Standing” and “Yes, Dear.”
And here's an article from E! Online (http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,18501,00.html?fdnews)
The network did not reveal the fates of shows including freshman drama Threshold and comedies Yes, Dear, Still Standing, King of Queens and Out of Practice. The full schedule won't be announced until May.
I think it is still on the fence, RussTC3, and its fate probably hangs on how well other CBS shows do in the ratings the next few weeks and what the prognosis is for some of the new series expected in the fall.
It definitely didn't get an official pickup yet -- as 13 1/2 hours (of the 22 broadcast) in the current CBS schedule already have.
I think it is still on the fence, RussTC3, and its fate probably hangs on how well other CBS shows do in the ratings the next few weeks and what the prognosis is for some of the new series expected in the fall.
It definitely didn't get an official pickup yet -- as 13 1/2 hours (of the 22 broadcast) in the current CBS schedule already have.
RE: Threshold, I though it twas already announced that the unaired episodes would air during the summer(?) on one of the cable nets. You had an article here that mentioned which channel but I don't recall. It would seem odd that if CBS were still considering retaining Threshold they would burn off the remaining episodes on another channel..?
Now that you mention it, Jim, I think you are right.
CBS has certainly not gone out of its way to make any overly hopeful statements about the show.
And in the very first post of this thread, under cancelled shows, I have "Threshold" listed.
I usually don't put shows there until I have some definite sign the show is a goner. I just don't remember what was said specifically and when by CBS.
The Business of HDTV
ABC Seeks Second-Generation HD
By Glen Dickson Broadcasting & Cable 3/13/2006
For ABC, HDTV is old news. The network’s priority at NAB is replacing the first-generation 720-line progressive-scan (720p) HD playback gear that it installed at its New York broadcast center back in 1998 to launch HD broadcasts.
“We’re very focused on getting out of that first-generation HD equipment, much being prototype equipment in the 720p variety, and getting into more-mature equipment,” says Preston Davis, president of ABC broadcast operations and engineering, who will go to Las Vegas with 40 staffers looking at HD control switchers, tape machines and routers.
Davis also wants to replace proprietary HD graphics systems with new off-the-shelf, standards-based PC products. “We’re really feeling some urgency,” he says, “as the systems we have at the network are older and in need of replacement.”
ABC’s other priority is more general: identifying production equipment that can easily accept both standard-definition and HD content.
“We’re going to be straddling the SD and HD fence for some years to come in terms of delivering both analog SD and HDTV to viewers,” says Davis. “We’re looking for products that allow us to mix and match.”
Editing products, such as the nonlinear Avid systems that ABC uses, have been able to support both SD and HD for some time. Other gear—for instance, switchers—has lagged behind in providing dual SD/HD functionality, but that is beginning to change.
ABC will explore compression technologies and faster, cheaper ways to move content. The network is quickly deploying IP-over-satellite systems and would like to tap into the emerging WiMax wireless broadband infrastructures being developed in some cities.
Another hot topic is high-def newsgathering, including HD acquisition gear, microwave systems and satellite uplinks. “I don’t believe that we’re at a point where we would produce solely in HD,” says Davis. “So again, we’re focused on tools that allow us to gather and distribute in both [HD and SD] formats. We’re feeling some pressure now, as our current ENG [electronic-newsgathering] camcorder systems are beginning to feel signs of fatigue.”
ABC is looking at hard-disk–based cameras, such as Thomson Grass Valley’s Infinity system and Ikegami’s Editcam, as well as Sony’s optical XDCAM HD format. Adopting a tapeless camera has a broad impact on workflow, and Davis needs to see a tighter link between such products and ABC’s current Avid editing and content-ingest systems before making a purchase. He is also keeping an eye on Apple’s Final Cut Pro editing software, which works with several of the new tapeless systems, and he hasn’t ruled out Panasonic’s P2 solid-state format.
Many broadcasters consider the P2 storage cards, which sell for $1,400 and can store eight minutes of HD video, too expensive. But Davis isn’t sure the cost is a deal-breaker.
“If you can stream it off and get it into an edit system quickly, and then push that card back into the field, and the transfer is reliable enough that you can rely on it as your master, it almost doesn’t matter how much those things are,” he explains. “But if I have to keep it on a shelf for some time, I have to evaluate that differently.”
HDTV-NUT
03-11-06, 04:21 PM
The Business of HDTV
ABC Seeks Second-Generation HD xits
By Glen Dickson Broadcasting & Cable 3/13/2006
For ABC, HDTV is old news. The network’s priority at NAB is replacing the first-generation 720-line progressive-scan (720p) HD playback gear that it installed at its New York broadcast center back in 1998 to launch HD broadcasts.
“We’re very focused on getting out of that first-generation HD equipment, much being prototype equipment in the 720p variety, and getting into more-mature equipment,” says Preston Davis, president of ABC broadcast operations and engineering, who will go to Las Vegas with 40 staffers looking at HD control switchers, tape machines and routers.
Davis also wants to replace proprietary HD graphics systems with new off-the-shelf, standards-based PC products. “We’re really feeling some urgency,” he says, “as the systems we have at the network are older and in need of replacement.”
ABC’s other priority is more general: identifying production equipment that can easily accept both standard-definition and HD content.
“We’re going to be straddling the SD and HD fence for some years to come in terms of delivering both analog SD and HDTV to viewers,” says Davis. “We’re looking for products that allow us to mix and match.”
Editing products, such as the nonlinear Avid systems that ABC uses, have been able to support both SD and HD for some time. Other gear—for instance, switchers—has lagged behind in providing dual SD/HD functionality, but that is beginning to change.
ABC will explore compression technologies and faster, cheaper ways to move content. The network is quickly deploying IP-over-satellite systems and would like to tap into the emerging WiMax wireless broadband infrastructures being developed in some cities.
Another hot topic is high-def newsgathering, including HD acquisition gear, microwave systems and satellite uplinks. “I don’t believe that we’re at a point where we would produce solely in HD,” says Davis. “So again, we’re focused on tools that allow us to gather and distribute in both [HD and SD] formats. We’re feeling some pressure now, as our current ENG [electronic-newsgathering] camcorder systems are beginning to feel signs of fatigue.”
ABC is looking at hard-disk–based cameras, such as Thomson Grass Valley’s Infinity system and Ikegami’s Editcam, as well as Sony’s optical XDCAM HD format. Adopting a tapeless camera has a broad impact on workflow, and Davis needs to see a tighter link between such products and ABC’s current Avid editing and content-ingest systems before making a purchase. He is also keeping an eye on Apple’s Final Cut Pro editing software, which works with several of the new tapeless systems, and he hasn’t ruled out Panasonic’s P2 solid-state format.
Many broadcasters consider the P2 storage cards, which sell for $1,400 and can store eight minutes of HD video, too expensive. But Davis isn’t sure the cost is a deal-breaker.
“If you can stream it off and get it into an edit system quickly, and then push that card back into the field, and the transfer is reliable enough that you can rely on it as your master, it almost doesn’t matter how much those things are,” he explains. “But if I have to keep it on a shelf for some time, I have to evaluate that differently.” good news!
Sorry for the lengthy delay, but Friday’s network prime-time ratings are now at the top of RATINGS NEWS (the first post in this thread).
TV Notebook
Here Comes the Judge
By Bill Carter The New York Times March 12, 2006
One night a little more than two years ago, Simon Cowell, the creator of and corrosive judge on the biggest show on television, "American Idol," was driving his car through the streets of London, thinking about the state of his entertainment-business interests. "I remember thinking: My gosh, I've sold a new talent show in Britain, and I'm taking 'Idol' off the air there. I'm launching a classical group called Il Divo. I'm changing the sound of the group Westlife, which had already sold 40 million records. And I was thinking: This could all come crashing down. This new show could fail. The classical group could fail. I could screw Westlife's career up. Why am I doing this, because it's going to be quite a high-profile bomb if that happens."
Mr. Cowell did not suffer self-doubt for long. "It was sort of a delicious thrill really," he said in his buttery British tones. "Making a lot of money usually means not putting your neck on the block anymore, but putting your neck on the block is part of the thrill. If I genuinely believe something is a good idea, then I'm willing to fail or succeed by giving it a go."
For once, Simon Cowell was putting it mildly. No one in entertainment, in either the United States or Britain, is giving the business more of a go than Mr. Cowell, who, despite being the highest-paid star in the history of the Fox network, remains much more mogul than divo himself.
The recording industry executive "never had on my wish list" to be a television star. When he reluctantly agreed to judge a little talent show in England called "Pop Idol," it was just to protect his record label's interest in the winner. Today he still thinks of himself first as a businessman. That businessman is only too happy to collect millions for telling appallingly bad singers that they're rubbish; but his real goal remains something along the lines of worldwide control over musical and any other kind of talent you can think of — from inventors to magicians to plate spinners.
In a wide-ranging interview in a spectacularly elegant Manhattan hotel suite (what other kind would someone of his current state of fame be expected to inhabit?), a relaxed and — believe it or not — unassuming Mr. Cowell discussed the many tentacles of his growing empire, part of a company he calls Syco, which at the moment includes a record label and a television production unit, both of which are cranking out products at a larruping pace.
The reach of what might be called Simon Inc. is on an impressive scale. Mr. Cowell runs the careers of numerous recording artists, including the Irish band Westlife and Il Divo, the operatic, pop-singing quartet that has reached the top of the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. His label sells millions of albums a year and will release five new titles in 2006. In addition, Mr. Cowell created a television show in England called "The X-Factor," which proved so popular it prevented the British version of "Idol" from getting back on the air, thus prompting a lawsuit against him. And he has, in some form of production or development, a total of no fewer than 11 television ("telly-vision," as he pronounces it) series for British and American networks.
And then there's the movie. "Basically an updated version of 'Fame,' " Mr. Cowell explained.
ALL of it begins, of course, with "America Idol," which, in its fifth incarnation on Fox, is reaching more than 30 million viewers each night it is on, and in the process is doing to the rest of television what Sherman did to Georgia. Having already buried every other competitor under ratings that are, against all odds, bigger this year than even the prodigious numbers it had previously rung up, "Idol" drove NBC's recent coverage of the Olympics into retreat, forcing that network to schedule its best winter events outside the hours of "Idol."
It seemed a perfectly wise decision. NBC could have offered America a night of naked ice dancing, and "Idol" fans would have preferred another dose of unknown teenagers singing their hearts out on cover versions of Michael Jackson and Mariah Carey.
One executive at a competing network (who did not want to be identified because it is never acceptable to be admitting defeat) said finding a show to face off against "Idol" has become akin to "going into a radioactive zone — anything you put there is going to get wiped out."
ABC made a rather frank admission of how formidable the task of taking on "Idol" can be when it promoted its new comedy "Sons & Daughters" during the Oscars telecast last week. The promotion said: "If you pick only one show to watch this spring, we assume if will be 'American Idol.' But since it's on almost every night, why not take a break and check out a show TV Guide calls fresh and painfully hilarious?"
Kevin Brockman, the top corporate spokesman for ABC said: "You might as well embrace it. It's not like America doesn't know what's going on."
Mr. Cowell clearly relishes the continuing success of the reality talent show he and his partner, Simon Fuller, brought from their native England in 2002. "What for me makes 'Idol' so special is that under a reality banner so much of what we see today can't be considered reality," Mr. Cowell said. "Auditioning is reality. You win 'Idol,' the odds are you're going to get a career out of it."
But he emphasized that the reason he presides over "Idol" like Judge Dredd is that the winners join his label, which is under the aegis of BMG-Sony Music. "The only reason that I put myself through this pain is because my label gets the artist," he said. "Which is why I actually do care if I hate somebody or I actually like somebody."
"Idol" winners are signed for as many as five to seven albums. "We've sold 50 million records through 'Idol' alone in the last four years," he said. In England, the winner of this year's "X-Factor," a young singer named Shayne Ward, released a single (from Mr. Cowell's stable of songwriters) that sold a million units in a week. "He sang it on the finale," Mr. Cowell said. "We had it in the shops three days after the competition ended."
Perhaps his biggest music venture yet has been Il Divo, who are now packing concert halls, mainly with breathless female fans. Mr. Cowell said he came up with the idea one night several years ago while sitting in bed watching an episode of "The Sopranos," which he had heard much about but never seen. It was the episode when the gangsters go to Italy, and the voice of Andrea Bocelli plays behind many of the scenes.
"I literally sat up in bed," he said. "I was so mesmerized by this music against this imagery. I literally banged my forehead and said, 'Why don't we get four great opera guys together?' " An opera boy band, as it were.
Acknowledging that he knew nothing about the opera scene, Mr. Cowell said he enlisted several experts who told him it would take years to find four young, great-looking men with true opera voices for this kind of act. "I said, well, I've got years."
Almost three years later, he finally had his foursome: one from Spain, one from Switzerland, one from France, one from the United States. The first thing he had them sing was an opera-style rendition of "Unbreak My Heart" by Toni Braxton. "I never heard anything like it in my life," Mr. Cowell said. To date the group has released two albums — and sold 11 million.
"It's been especially good for me because when you're criticizing people on 'Idol," there's always people thinking: put your money where your mouth is," Mr. Cowell said. "So it was very satisfying. To put four unknown guys in front of the American public and have the album go to No. 1, that was very important for my validation, I think."
Still, as potent as the music business has been for him over the past five years, the television arm of Simon Inc. may have an even bigger upside. Mr. Cowell has three new series ready for three separate American networks. One for Fox, "Duets," sounds a little like "Singing With the Stars." Celebrities not known for singing will team up with professional singers. That one has yet to go into production.
The most immediate television venture will be "American Inventor" for ABC, with a premiere set for Thursday at 8 p.m. This one has the ring of "Idol" for the nerd set, with crackpot/genius inventors getting a chance to unveil their brainstorms (entries include a stun-gun-equipped glove and a portable fan for overheated dogs) in an audition setting. Then the finalists — as picked by a panel of experts — will get $50,000 to develop the idea and bring it to the next level. The winner, determined as usual by audience phone-in vote, will be awarded a $1 million prize.
Mr. Cowell has a deal with Amazon to sell the winning product online. More significantly, he has a deal for himself to retain one-third of the invention's total profits. "We always try when we can to get a back-end participation," he said.
Of course, he will retain a similar interest in whoever wins his new program for NBC. Still untitled, the idea is to create an "American Idol" format for just about any other kind of talent.
"I'm just as interested to see an audition of a good and bad dog act as I am of a singer." Mr. Cowell said. "I promise you the auditions are going to be like something you have never seen before." Mr. Cowell likened the show, which he said he expects to have on NBC as early as June, to an old-fashioned talent office in New York in movies in the 1930's, where "any kind of act can walk in."
THAT would include singers, he said, but ones who don't qualify under the rules for "Idol." Thus, he said, "We will attract groups, and everything from 80-year-old singers or 8-year-old singers who think they are as good as Celine Dion." He stressed that the talent might be wide-ranging, but it had to be a specific act, capable of being presented on a stage in Las Vegas — because that's the prize.
"If you are a plate spinner on my show," he said, "you have to believe you can entertain a Vegas audience spinning your plates."
Craig Plestis, the top reality programming executive at NBC, said it took almost no time for Mr. Cowell to sell this show. "We sat down for lunch, then we saw a piece of tape and we were sold," he said.
Mr. Plestis said, "He definitely wants a hit on another network."
NBC could not have landed this project if Mr. Cowell's home network had not passed on it first. Under the deal Mr. Cowell signed late last year with Fox — which will net him more than $30 million a year — committing him to five more years of judging the wailers and warblers on "Idol," he agreed to give Fox a "first look" at all his new show ideas.
"I don't think they thought it through enough," Mr. Cowell said of Fox's decision to pass on the new talent series. He acknowledged that Fox might be reluctant to add talent contests that could in any way dilute the huge "Idol" franchise, but added, "If it's a hit, it's their loss." Not that he has any dispute with his Fox employers. To the contrary, Mr. Cowell said, "They have been incredibly decent and supportive to me."
It was mainly that relationship with Fox, Mr. Cowell said, that led him to settle the suit over "The X-Factor." Simon Fuller had alleged that Mr. Cowell stole the idea for that show from "Idol," then, because he starred in it, the original could never get back on the air. "It was settled amicably, but I do not like being called publicly somebody who steals," Mr. Cowell said. "You can't say, 'I own talent shows forever.' That's rubbish."
The invention show has also attracted a suit from a television production company in Minnesota, which claims it has produced a similar program for years. Mr. Cowell said he had never seen or heard of such a show.
Even with all these series backing up on the runway, Mr. Cowell said he had real regrets about one that would not be turning up on American television. In his deal with Fox, Mr. Cowell had to agree not to sell "The X-Factor" to an American network. Fox, in essence, paid him to keep that show off the air, fearing it could undermine some of the appeal of "Idol."
"If I say so myself, 'X-Factor' is a great show," Mr. Cowell said. "It's hilarious. I absolutely love it. Would it have been a hit in America? A million percent a hit."
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/12/arts/television/12cart.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print
TV Notebook
Networks Seeing Stars
Pilot season a boon for A-list names, and a few fresh faces
By Jim BensonBroadcasting & Cable, 3/13/2006
Networks are increasing their spending and pursuing top talent more aggressively this pilot season than in years past, according to producers, casting executives and agents. The moves come as networks like ABC and NBC have increased their comedy-pilot orders and TBS, branding itself as “Very Funny,” has stepped up its originals slate. Among dramas, the networks are seeking the next ensemble hit like Grey’s Anatomy.
Shooting on the pilots in contention for the 2006-07 development season is winding to a close. Dramas generally wrap by the end of March and comedies by mid April. In the meantime, top network executives continue to look at tape, attend casting sessions and participate in live video conferences to ensure the best talent possible is attached to their series.
Leading actors aren’t the only ones benefiting this development season; salaries for the short list of single-camera comedy-pilot directors have also risen. Already well paid, the directors have seen demand for their services grow as networks scramble to cash in on the success of NBC’s single-camera comedy My Name Is Earl; nearly half of the broadcast comedy pilots, such as CBS’ The Weekend, employ Earl’s single-camera shooting.
The networks’ increased willingness to spend concerns some producers. Gavin Polone, who, with partner Jamie Tarses, has three comedies in development for Fox, CBS and TBS next season through his Sony Pictures Television-based company, Pariah, sees mid-level acting talent (especially men) commanding $75,000-plus pilot episode fees. “The networks are pursuing talent more aggressively and with more money,” Polone says. “They’re so desperate to get a more familiar face, especially people known for movies.”
Among those making the transition from film to drama pilots are James Woods, starring as a lawyer in Shark for CBS; Jeff Goldblum, leading the NBC police series Raines; and Anne Heche, as a shrink who flees to Alaska in ABC’s Men in Trees.
With the networks making pilot pickups contingent on casting, Polone, whose pilots lack A-level talent, says it works against the programs. “Talent has been able to jack up its prices, which comes out of the production budgets,” he says. “It’s frustrating, because it takes away from the production value.”
A veteran studio casting executive, who wished not to be identified, says there is major concern on the part of the networks that a pilot won’t fly without the “perfect person” in the lead. The executive says competition is especially fearsome this year; that includes not only top-tier movie actors but also “fresh faces” with a decent track record to star in ensembles.
But a premier Hollywood attorney, whose firm represents a roster of top- and mid-level talent, thinks networks and studios are doing the right thing by writing the big checks. “We haven’t seen a lot of downward pressure on talent pilot salaries like in past years,” says the attorney, who also asked not to be named. And with “great writing and good acting” serving as the keys to any good TV show, he adds, “talent is not the place to save money.”
Along with more comedy-pilot orders from the broadcast networks, Sony Pictures Television has stepped up its cable sitcom development, with eight lower-cost comedy pilots in the works for TBS.
Original cable dramas also continue to rise, and with so much competition for talent, say casting executives, it’s no time to be timid. “It’s certainly hard to take the position that we’re going to hold onto the money and let the cards fall where they may,” the casting exec says. “Someone is going to step up, so it’s hard to make the argument that the price is too high.”
But agents contend that most of the big money is going to a narrow group of familiar faces, such as Woods. With the big-name talent getting big sums, some “mid-list” clients are lucky to get $20,000 for a pilot. And often, say agents, their midrange clients have to agree to cut their salaries. Some lead actors that fall into the “B” range command $40,000-$60,000.
Agents are also saying that the lack of diversity has further diminished the available talent pool. “It used to be there were younger, middle-aged and CBS comedies,” says one. “Now they all want sole male leads in the 28-35 age range and, outside of ensembles, parents in their late 40s, maybe 50-55, with a daughter to cover the demos. As for ensembles, good-looking guys in their 20s.”
Casting executives say writers have been turning out fewer spec scripts with demanding lead roles, since networks have cut back on pilots featuring sole leads. When networks do seek out stars to lead a show, executives say, they want to know who it is early in the development process.
Perhaps that explains why there are more comedy ensembles now than in years past. “There is a finite number of people to carry a show by itself,” a casting executive says.
The ensemble trend is present in the drama slate, too. The runaway success of Lost and Grey’s Anatomy has spurred more ensembles, which makes it easier to get those pilots cast. “Not everyone is a leading person,” the casting executive says. “That allows for a certain punch in the cast, a romantic lead, someone to provide the humor.”
Development season has lacked one overriding trend among dramas (conspiracy programs and soaps are some minor ones), which TV executives largely attribute to the success this past year of series that fall across multiple genres. Beyond ensembles like Lost and ABC’s Desperate Housewives, Fox’s medical series House, which stars Hugh Laurie, demonstrates that programs with a single main lead are working, too.
After the fall scheduling decisions are made in mid May, network executives hope that their strategy of aggressively courting big-name talent translates into big-name hits.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/index.asp?layout=articlePrint&articleID=CA6315244
Saturday’s network prime-time ratings are now at the top of RATINGS NEWS (the first post in this thread).
TV Review
'Old Christine': Juicily Lucyish, Zanily Elainey
By Tom Shales Washington Post Staff Writer Monday, March 13, 2006; C01
Which compliment would please a comic actress more -- that her contagious and infectious humor seems to come naturally to her, as if part of her DNA, or that it is obviously something she has perfected through long and arduous hours of work? Actually, "contagious and infectious" may be the offensive part, since it sounds like a disease.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is not diseased, of course, but she is cheeringly and benignly demented, as she proved in nine joyous seasons of "Seinfeld" on NBC and as she reaffirms tonight (8:30 PM ET/PT and 9:30 PM ET/PT on CBS) with her smart, sassy and delightful sitcom "The New Adventures of Old Christine," a happy blast of fresh, cool air that's just what we need on these warm winter nights.
Merely premiering the series at its regular time slot of 9:30 would be too logical for CBS, however, and might fail to confuse viewers. So -- according to a network press release and the CBS Web site -- the series will get a kind of double premiere that was devised too late for the deadlines of weekly TV magazines: The pilot airs at 8:30 on Channel 9 followed by a half-hour break for "Two and a Half Men" and then a second episode of "Christine" at 9:30.
That perplexing ploy is as daffy as the show. The bright side is, if you like "Christine," you get two fresh episodes, and there's another bright side: Louis-Dreyfus herself. Although a previous attempt at following up her "Seinfeld" success failed, this new vehicle takes better advantage of her rough-and-tumble charm. She's cast as a young single mother, divorced two years and the successful owner of a women's health club -- someone hardly footloose and fancy-free but, despite the responsibilities, still too young for the post-prime-time ennui of middle age.
Louis-Dreyfus looks a bit older, mainly because her makeup has been radically toned down, but she is no less adorable. And though Christine Campbell, the character she plays, is fairly affluent, viewers should have no trouble identifying with her anxieties and insecurities, two closely related states of mind that Louis-Dreyfus has a unique talent for making hilarious.
As the pilot begins, she's phoning her own answering machine to leave self-scolding reminder messages ("Stop eating sugar!") and, more to the point, nervously preparing her 8-year-old son, Richie (Trevor Gagnon), for his first day in third grade, which also marks his transfer from an urban public school to a tony private one. When they walk into the classroom, Richie surveys the situation, looks up at his mom and asks pointedly, "Where are the black kids?" Defensively she tells him she's sure she saw one in the brochure.
A kind of two-woman Greek chorus that also resembles a scaled-down coven of witches from "Macbeth," Tricia O'Kelley and Alex Kapp Horner hover about as a pair of very knowing moms who love to stir up trouble during those brief lapses in life when none manages to present itself. They're the ones who take it upon themselves to tell Christine that her ex-husband is making out with his new girlfriend, right out there in the school parking lot.
In a bit of comic business that does recall Elaine of "Seinfeld," the embittered Christine tells her husband that she, too, has a boyfriend and a rich romantic life. He's -- a lumberjack, yeah, that's it. Joe, the lumberjack. And he's, uh, very rich and virile and so on ("When a lumberjack loves you, he loves you"). Midway through such wishful fantasies, it's obvious that Louis-Dreyfus is making up a lie and wading deeper and deeper into it. Her husband (agreeably played by Clark Gregg) recognizes the telltale signs mere moments into the tale's telling.
Until she meets the new girlfriend -- also, painfully enough, named Christine -- the old Christine had considered hers an ideal divorce, "better than most people's marriages." But then comes the monkey wrench. How much of the series's comedy relies on this situation will depend, obviously, on how adroitly the writers can stretch it out, but there are plenty of other possibilities in Christine's life -- her struggles to raise a child and run a business, her efforts to keep from looking ridiculous, her likably deadbeat live-in brother (Hamish Linklater) and the battle to be waged against the forces of time and gravity ("I have to stand on my head to make my boobs look good").
Louis-Dreyfus has a priceless moment in the second episode, with a mustachioed Andy Richter guest-starring as a (potentially) one-night stand that Christine picks up at the supermarket. Attempting earlier to seduce another shopper, she nervously babbles out her entire autobiography, then stumbles awkwardly into a would-be come-hither wiggle that looks more spasmodic than erotic. It's a combination of physical and verbal humor that evokes memories of -- and one can never say this lightly -- the immortal Lucy herself.
To make things better still, the very tart and very smart Wanda Sykes will guest-star in the third episode, which airs of course in the show's second week. My, but those scamps at CBS like to tempt fate -- rescheduling a new show's air times at the very last minute. But ensconced in the fairly solid CBS Monday night comedy block at whatever hour, "The New Adventures of Old Christine" (executive-produced by Kari Lizer) seems entirely at home and capable of keeping viewers cheerful. And keeping them entirely at home, for that matter.
Louis-Dreyfus deserves her own big hit, and if prime-time television were a true meritocracy, which it isn't, "Christine" would be it. Whatever happens, Louis-Dreyfus is wackily back in the funniest of fettles, the pleasure of her company as deliriously dependable as ever.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/12/AR2006031201304_pf.html
TV Review
What about that 'Seinfeld' curse? 'Christine' promises to break the spell for Louis-Dreyfus.
By Tim Goodman San Francisco Chronicle Monday, March 13, 2006
Julia Louis-Dreyfus finally got the material to match her talent, and in the process, CBS took another step closer to hipness.
Miracles, both?
It certainly has seemed that "Seinfeld" cast members were trying to prove the ludicrous notion of a "Seinfeld" curse. (Honestly, getting a hit series on broadcast television is a bit of a miracle. Having a huge hit that both audiences and critics adore is almost unheard of, so anything short of that -- which would be pretty much everything -- isn't a failure or a curse, it's business as usual.) Now, with Louis-Dreyfus in a winning, extremely funny new sitcom, all of that nonsense can end.
"The New Adventures of Old Christine," created by former "Will & Grace" writer Kari Lizer, finally meshes smart writing with Louis-Dreyfus' superb physical comedy. And, unlike Louis-Dreyfus' disastrous first post-"Seinfeld" project, "Watching Ellie," this series makes her likable. And not soft, mealy likable, either, a past CBS trait (particularly with men), but relatable and interesting and funny (even sexy and vulnerable, bitter and adorable). That's not easy to do.
But "The New Adventures of Old Christine" is consistently funny, and cleverly funny -- even that rarest of all, truthfully funny -- in all three episodes CBS sent out for review (two will be shown tonight at 8:30 and 9:30).
When a comedy is able to saunter out and be good immediately, it's almost always a good omen. "The New Adventures of Old Christine" has an assured feel to it, and the premise seems solid enough to allow the writers to hit all the right notes from the start. For her part, Louis-Dreyfus looks comfortable in her own skin, as if she's found the perfect vehicle to share her skills without some pointless comparison to the past.
Just to reiterate, pulling off that feat is terribly difficult. And yet, look at formerly old, formerly stodgy, barely cutting-edge CBS -- there's a deserving wow in there somewhere. First we get "How I Met Your Mother," which was different, and now this. (On the other hand, "Out of Practice" wasn't exactly a bold step forward. "Courting Alex" is patently unfunny and, in contrast to Louis-Dreyfus' new vehicle, a sad waste of talent for Jenna Elfman). So, anyway -- 50 percent! If you throw in "Two and a Half Men," which is much better than most doubters will admit, then you've got the solid beginning of a welcome trend at CBS.
In "The New Adventures of Old Christine," Louis-Dreyfus plays Christine, owner of gym dedicated to 30-minute workouts for women. She is two years divorced from Richard (Clark Gregg) and mother to 8-year-old Ritchie (Trevor Gagnon). Her house is also home to her brother, Matthew (the wonderful Hamish Linklater), which allows him, in his low key, dismissive way, to remind her that hitting the snooze button on all your wants and needs isn't such a great thing.
See, Christine hasn't exactly moved on from Richard. She's not pining for him -- he's a good dad, they remain friendly, and now there's no messy married stuff to clog up the relationship.
Until Richard gets a girlfriend. A young one. Named Christine. So now there's an Old Christine and a Young Christine. And this makes Old Christine a bit batty. She hasn't dated at all in the two years since the divorce. And she hasn't had sex, either. Counting the sad last year of her marriage, that makes three years without sex.
"I haven't even thought of dating," Christine says. "I'm still wearing my maternity underwear."
The best part of "The New Adventures of Old Christine" -- aside from remembering how funny and talented Louis-Dreyfus can be -- is the modern-mom realism at play here. Christine has tamped down her own personal needs and channeled them through her son and her business. But the private school she's just enrolled Ritchie in brings up worries about single-mom finances and fitting in. Not to mention that Ritchie preferred his old school and friends.
"Where are all the black kids?" he says on his first day. "There was one on the brochure," Christine says, equally worried, looking around. At the school, she finds two wealthy, judgmental stay-at-home moms in Marly (Tricia O'Kelley) and Lindsay (Alex Kapp Horner). Cliches? Sure. But they grow on you fast as a kind of snobby Greek chorus, the nastier equivalent of the eccentric neighbor found in so many sitcoms.
Suddenly feeling like a bad mom and an unfulfilled loser compared with her ex-husband, Christine ventures out into the dating world with exceptionally bad results. Matthew, her brother, tries to be reassuring: "We'll scare someone up for you. Hey, how about my friend Ugly Larry?" Christine winces and says, "Is he that weird guy who used to follow me around in high school? Yeah, he can call me."
Louis-Dreyfus hits every joke out of the park -- and there's more of them here than you