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• Post #2 - Current Ratings (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=4265637&&#post4265637)
• Post #3 - What's Been Renewed and What's Been Cancelled (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=4267598&&#post4267598)
• Post #4 - Upcoming Premiere/Return Dates/Finales (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=4278280&&#post4278280)
• Post #5 - In Development (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=4278412&&#post4278412)
• Post #6 - Other Useful Information (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=4278616&&#post4278616)
• Post #7 - TV Links (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=4278624&&#post4278624)
(Last update: 10:30 AM PT Sunday, April 22, 2007; Saturday night's Fast National overnight ratings added)
(From Marc Berman’s Sunday, April 22, 2007, Programming Insider blog at Mediaweek.com )
http://pifeedback.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/63310451/m/34310474
Overnight Ratings for Saturday, April 21st
Fast National Ratings (Live Plus Same Day data)
Total Viewers:
CBS: 7.20 million
Fox: 6.28
ABC: 4.16
NBC: 2.33
Adults 18-49:
Fox: 2.3 rating/9 share
CBS: 1.7/ 6
ABC: 1.4/ 5
NBC: 0.8/ 3
Yesterday’s Winners:
Nothing
Yesterday’s Losers (excluding repeats):
The night overall
Ratings Breakdown:
CBS and Fox shared leadership on this typically abysmal Saturday, with CBS first in total viewers and NASCAR 2007 on Fox No. 1 among adults 18-49. NASCAR finished second overall in total viewers, with 6.28 million, and first in the demo with an overall 2.3 rating/9 share. A repeat of NCIS opened the evening for CBS with 6.53 million viewers (#1) and a 1.3/ 6 among adults 18-49 (#2) at 8 p.m., followed by a repeat of CSI: NY (Viewers: #1, 7.34 million; A18-49: #2, 1.6/ 6) and 48 Hours Mystery (Viewers: #1, 7.73 million; A18-49: #1, 2.1/ 7) from 9-11 p.m.
A repeat of theatrical Harry Potter: Sorcerer’s Stone on ABC finished third overall, with 4.16 million viewers and a 1.4/ 5 among adults 18-49 from 8-11 p.m. Last, and very least were three repeat episodes of NBC’s Heroes at just 2.33 million viewers and a 0.8/ 3 in the demo from 8-11 p.m. All together now…what a night!
• • • • • • • • • • •
(From Marc Berman’s Saturday, April 21, 2007, Programming Insider blog at Mediaweek.com )
http://pifeedback.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/63310451/m/29510374?r=81610374#81610374
Overnight Ratings for Friday, April 20th
Fast National Ratings (Live Plus Same Day data)
Total Viewers:
CBS: 7.55 million
NBC: 5.79
Fox: 5.36
ABC: 5.10
CW: 3.84
Adults 18-49:
ABC : : 1.9 rating/7 share
CBS: 1.9 /7
Fox: 1.6/ 6
NBC: 1.5/ 5
CW: 1.2/ 4
Friday’s Winners:
Nothing
Friday’s Losers (excluding repeats):
Identity (NBC)
Raines (NBC)
Ratings Breakdown:
It was of a night of mixed leadership on this repeat-riddled Friday, with CBS the most-watched network and ABC and CBS tied for No. 1 among adults 18-49 (with a mere 1.9 rating/7 share, mind you). A repeat of Ghost Whisperer opened the evening for the Eye net first in total viewers (6.67 million) and tied with a repeat of Fox’s House for No. 1 among adults 18-49 (1.7 rating/7 share each). The House encore was second in total viewers, with 5.60 million.
Also in the 8 p.m. hour were NBC’s Identity (Viewers: #3, 4.84 million; A18-49: #3t, 1.4/ 5), which remains a pale replacement for former occupant 1 vs. 100, a repeat of Grey’s Anatomy on ABC (Viewers: #4, 4.08 million; A18-49: #3t, 1.4/ 5), and the first hour of The CW’s perennial Friday Night Smackdown! (Viewers: #5, 3.29 million; A18-49: #5, 1.1/ 4). Overall, Smackdown! was below average with 3.84 million viewers (#5) and a 1.2/ 4 among adults 18-49 from 8-10 p.m. As for NBC’s current Friday 8 p.m. time period woes, why not renew 1 vs. 100 already?
At 9 p.m., a repeat of CBS’ Close To Home and a repeat of ABC’s Wife Swap shared the top spot as follows:
Friday 9 p.m.
Close to Home R (CBS)
Viewers: 7.95 million (#1)
A18-49: 1.8/ 6 (#2)
Wife Swap R (ABC)
Viewers: 4.72 million (#4)
A18-49: 2.1/ 7 (#1)
Also at 9 p.m. were NBC’s doomed Raines (Viewers: #2, 5.87 million; A18-49: #4t, 1.4/ 5), a repeat of Fox’s Bones (Viewers: #3, 5.12 million; A18-49: #3, 1.6/ 5), and the second hour of The CW’s aforementioned Friday Night Smackdown! (Viewers: #5, 4.40 million; A18-49: #4t, 1.4/ 5). Although Raines did managed to buld from lead-in Identity by 1.03 million viewers, keep in mind that the competition included three repeats.
A repeat of CBS’ Numb3s and ABC’s veteran 20/20 shared the No. 1 position at 10 p.m., followed by a repeat of NBC’s on the fence Law & Order. Take a look:
Friday 10:00 p.m.
Numb3rs R (CBS)
Viewers: 8.01 million (#1)
A18-49: 2.1/ 7 (#1t)
20/20 (ABC)
Viewers: 6.50 million (#3)
A18-49: 2.1/ 7 (#1t)
Law & Order R (NBC)
Viewers: 6.70 million (#2)
A18-49: 1.7/ 6 (#3)
• Source: Nielsen Media Research data
Note: Previous overnight ratings are available at Marc Berman’s blog:
http://pifeedback.com/eve/forums/a/frm/f/63310451
• • • • • • • • • • •
Nielsen prime-time ratings for week of April 9-15, 2007
Here are the rankings for national prime-time network television last week as compiled by Nielsen Media Research. They are based on the average number of people who watched a program from start to finish. Nielsen estimates there are 283.5 million potential viewers in the U.S. ages 2 and older. Viewership is listed in millions.
Program Network Viewers
1. American Idol, Wed Fox, 28.6 million
2. American Idol, Tue Fox, 26.8 million
3. CSI CBS, 22.2 million
4. House Fox, 21.6 million
5. Dancing With the Stars, Mon ABC, 18.8 million
6. Dancing With the Stars, Tue ABC, 17.3 million
7. Desperate Housewives ABC, 16.4 million
8. CSI: Miami CBS, 16.1 million
9. Shark CBS, 14.9 million
10. NCIS CBS, 14.4 million
• Source: Nielsen Media Research data
• • • • • • • • • • •
Last week's Network Average Ratings
Nielsen network average prime-time ratings for week of April 9-15, 2007
WEEKLY AVERAGES
Average rating, share and audience in each category
ADULTS 18-49
Fox 4.1/12, 5.4 million
CBS 3.3/10, 4.3 million
ABC 2.8/8, 3.7 million
NBC 2.3/7, 3.0 million
UNI 1.6/5, 2.1 million
CW 1.1/3, 1.5 million
TEL 0.3/1, 0.4 million
Each rating point equals 1.31 million viewers
ADULTS 25-54
Fox 4.0/11, 5.2 million
ABC 3.1/9, 4.1 million
CBS 3.1/9, 4.0 million
NBC 2.2/6, 2.9 million
UNI 1.7/5, 2.2 million
CW 1.1/3, 1.4 million
TEL 0.4/1, 0.5 million
Each rating point equals 1.31 million viewers
ADULTS 25-54
Fox 4.3/11, 5.2 million
CBS 4.0/10, 4.9 million
ABC 3.6/9, 4.4 million
NBC 2.6/7, 3.2 million
UNI 1.6/4, 2.0 million
CW 1.0/2, 1.2 million
TEL 0.4/1, 0.4 million
Each rating point equals 1.22 million viewers
TOTAL VIEWERS
CBS 4.0/11, 11.3 million
Fox 3.6/9, 10.3 million
ABC 3.3/9, 9.3 million
NBC 2.4/6, 6.8 million
UNI 1.3/4, 3.8 million
CW 1.0/2, 2.7 million
TEL 0.3/1, 0.9million
Each rating point equals 2.84 million viewers
SEASON TO DATE
Average rating, share and audience in each category
ADULTS 18-49
Fox 4.0/11, 5.2 million
CBS 3.8/10, 5.0 million
ABC 3.5/9, 4.5 million
NBC 3.2/9, 4.2 million
UNI 1.6/4, 2.0 million
CW 1.3/3, 1.7 million
TEL 0.4/1, 0.5 million
Each rating point equals 1.31 million viewers
ADULTS 25-54
CBS 4.8/12, 5.8 million
Fox 4.3/10, 5.2 million
ABC 4.0/10, 4.9 million
NBC 3.7/9, 4.6 million
UNI 1.5/4, 1.9 million
CW 1.2/3, 1.5 million
TEL 0.4/1, 0.4 million
Each rating point equals 1.22 million viewers
TOTAL VIEWERS
CBS 4.5/12, 12.7 million
Fox 3.6/9, 10.2 million
ABC 3.5/9, 9.8 million
NBC 3.2/8, 9.2 million
UNI 1.3/3, 3.6 million
CW 1.1/3, 3.2 million
TEL 0.3/1, 0.9 million
Each rating point equals 2.84 million viewers
• Source: NBC and Nielsen Media Research data
(Most recent update: April 20th)
Prime-Time Show Status
Renewed for 2007-2008
30 Rock NBC
American Idol Fox
America's Funniest Home Videos ABC
Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader? Fox
The Bachelor ABC
Big Brother CBS (Summer 2007)
Bones Fox
Boston Legal ABC
Brothers & Sisters ABC
CSI CBS
CSI: Miami CBS
CSI: New York CBS
Criminal Minds CBS
Dancing With The Stars ABC
Desperate Housewives ABC
Everybody Hates Chris the CW
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition ABC
Football Night In America NBC
Grey’s Anatomy ABC
House Fox
Heroes NBC
House Fox
Jimmy Kimmel Live ABC
King Of The Hill Fox
Las Vegas NBC
Law & Order: SVU NBC
Lost ABC
Men In Trees ABC
Numb3rs CBS
My Name is Earl NBC
The Office NBC
Prison Break Fox
Sunday Night Football NBC
Supernanny ABC
Survivior CBS Fall (china) and Spring (TBA) editions
Ugly Betty ABC
Wife Swap ABC
Full Season 2006-07 Pickups
30 Rock NBC
Brothers & Sisters ABC
The Class CBS
Friday Night Lights NBC
The Game CW
Heroes NBC
Jericho CBS
Men In Trees ABC
7th Heaven CW
Shark CBS
Standoff (19 episodes)
Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip NBC
'Til Death Fox
Ugly Betty ABC
Veronica Mars CW (20 total episodes)
What About Brian? ABC
Cancelled
3 Lbs. CBS
Andy Barker, P.I. NBC
Armed & Famous CBS
The Black Donnellys NBC
Day Break ABC
The Great American Dream Vote ABC
Happy Hour Fox
Justice Fox
Kidnapped NBC
The Knights of ProsperityABC (Unofficial)
The Nine ABC (Unofficial)
The O.C. Fox
Reba CW
Rich List Fox
Runaway CW
Show Me The Money ABC
Six Degrees ABC
Smith CBS
The Wedding Bells Fox
Twenty Good Years NBC
Vanished Fox
Upcoming Premieres / Returns/Finales
(Updated April 23, 2007)
Heroes Monday, April 23 9 PM ET/PT, NBC
The Real Wedding Crashers Monday, April 23 10 PM ET/PT, NBC
Veronica Mars Tuesday May 1, 9 PM, ET/PT, CW
One Tree Hill Wednesday, May 2, 9 PM, ET/PT, CW
Grey's Anatomy: The Other Side Of Life Thursday, May 3 9-11 PM ET/PT, ABC
Traveler Thursday, May 10 10 PM ET/PT (Regular time slot begins Wednesday, May 30 10 PM ET/PT) ABC
On The Lot Tuesday, May 22, FOX
So You Think You Can Dance? Thursday, May 24, 8 PM ET/PT, FOX (Regular schedule: Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8)
America's Got Talent 9 PM ET/PT Tuesday, May 29, NBC
The Next Best Thing: Who Is the Greatest Celebrity Impersonator? Wednesday, May 30 8 PM ET/PT, ABC
Pirate Master Thursday, May 31 9 PM ET/PT, CBS
The 4400 10 PM ET Sunday, June 3 Sci Fi
Creature Comforts 8 PM ET Monday, June 4 CBS
Hell's Kitchen Monday, June 4, 9 PM ET/PT, FOX
On The Lot Box Office Results Show Tuesday, June 5, 8 PM ET/PT, FOX
Loop Sunday, June 10, 9:30 PM ET/PT, FOX
John From Cincinnati 10 PM ET Sunday, June 10 (moves to 9 PM June 17) HBO
Rescue Me Tuesday, June 12, FX
Last Comic Standing 9 PM Wednesday, June 13 NBC
Big Love 9 PM ET Sunday, June 17 HBO
Flight of the Conchords 10:30 PM ET Sunday, June 17 HBO
Act Of Love 10 PM Monday, June 18 NBC
The Closer 9 PM ET/PT Monday, June 18, TNTHeartland 10 PM ET/PT Monday, June 18 TNT
Monk Friday, July 13, USA
Psych Friday, July 13, USA
Saving Grace July, TNT
The Company Summer, TNT
It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia Summer, FX
Dexter Summer, SHO
In Treatment Fall, HBO
Tell Me You Love Me Fall, HBO
Ken Burns' "The War" Sunday, Sept. 23, 9 PM PBS
Crowned To be announced, The CW
Hidden Palms To be announced, CW
Curb Your Enthusiasm To be announced (2008), HBO
Scheduled Finales
HBO
Sunday:
The Sopranos 9:00 PM ET/PT - June 10
ABC
Monday:
Dancing with the Stars 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT - May 21
Tuesday:
The Bachelor 8 PM ET PT May 22
Dancing with the Stars (Results Show) 9 PM ET/PT - May 22
Boston Legal: 10 PM ET/PT - May 22
Wednesday:
Lost: 9:00-11:00 PM ET/PT - May 23
Thursday:
Ugly Betty: 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT - May 17
Grey’s Anatomy: 9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT - May 17
Friday:
America’s Funniest Home Videos: 8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT - May 18
Sunday:
Extreme Makeover Home Edition: 7:00-9:00 PM ET/PT - May 20
Desperate Housewives: 9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT - May 20
CBS
Monday:
The New Adventures of Old Christine May 7
How I Met Your Mother May 14
Two And A Half Men May 14
The King Of Queens (series finale) May 14
CSI: Miami May 14
Tuesday:
The Unit 9 PM ET/PT - May 8
NCIS 8 PM ET/PT - May 22
Wednesday:
Jericho 8 PM ET/PT - May 9
Criminal Minds 9 PM ET/PT - May 16
CSI: NY 10 PM ET/PT - May 16
Thursday:
Shark 10 PM ET/PT - May 3
Without A Trace (special night) May 10
CSI CSI 9 PM ET/PT - May 17
Friday:
Ghost Whisperer 8 PM ET/PT - May 11
Close To Home 9 PM ET/PT - May 11
Numb3rs 10 PM ET/PT - May 18
Sunday:
The Amazing Race 8 PM ET/PT - May 6
Cold Case 9 PM ET/PT - May 6
Suvivor: Fiji 8 PM ET/PT - May 13
Fox
Monday:
24 9 PM ET/PT - May 21
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Bones 9 PM ET/PT - May 16
American Idol 8 PM ET/PT - May 23
Thursday:
Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? 8 PM ET/PT - May 10
Friday:
Sunday:
The War At Home 9:30 PM ET/PT - April 22
NBC
Monday:
Heroes 9 PM ET/PT - May 21
Tuesday:
Law & Order: SVU 10 PM ET/PT - May 22
Wednesday:
Crossing Jordan 9 PM ET/PT - May 16
Medium 10 PM ET/PT - May 16
Thursday:
30 Rock 9 PM ET/PT - April 26
My Name I Earl 8 PM ET/PT - May 10
E R 10 PM ET/PT - May 10
The Office (one-hour finale) 8 PM ET/PT - May 17
Srcubs (one-hour finale) 9 PM ET/PT - May 17
ER May 17 10 PM ET/PT
Friday:
Raines 9 PM ET/PT - April 27
CW
Monday:
Girlfriends May 7, 9 PM ET/PT
Everybody Hates Chris 8 PM ET/PT - May 14
All Of Us 8:30 PM ET/PT - May 14
The Game 9:30 PM ET/PT - May 14
Tuesday:
Gilmore Girls 8 PM, ET/PT - May 15
Wednesday:
America's Next Top Model 8 PM ET/PT - May 16
Thursday:
Smallville 8 PM ET/PT - May 17
Supernatural 9 PM ET/PT - May 17
Sunday:
7th Heaven (series finale) 8 PM, ET/PT - May 13
The 2007-08 TV Season
Network pilot orders shun serial dramas
2007-08 dramas lure more feature pros
By Nellie Andreeva The Hollywood Reporter
Heavily serialized dramas are out, soaps and high-concept procedurals are in, "The Bionic Woman" and Philip Marlowe are back, and one-hour British imports are hotter than ever.
Overall, the five networks have ordered 45 drama pilots, on par with the 47 greenlighted last year.
Dubbed as "the season of serialized dramas," 2006-07 yielded only one big hit in the genre, NBC's "Heroes," and one modest success, CBS' "Jericho." With a number of high-profile, heavily serialized new shows such as ABC's "The Nine" and "Six Degrees," NBC's "Kidnapped" and Fox's "Vanished" long gone, the networks opted for more close-ended dramas for next fall.
A record four British drama concepts have landed pilot orders: "Life on Mars" and "Football Wives" (the latter based on "Footballers' Wives") at ABC, "Viva Laughlin!" (based on "Viva Blackpool!") at CBS and a project based on "Wild at Heart" at the CW. They have attracted impressive auspices, with David E. Kelley writing and executive producing "Mars," Bryan Singer directing and executive producing "Wives" and Hugh Jackman executive producing and guest starring in and Gabriele Muccino directing and executive producing "Laughlin!"
Street cops are back in favor after disappearing from primetime following the end of ABC's "NYPD Blue." CBS ("Protect and Serve"), NBC ("Ft. Pit"), Fox ("K-Ville") and CW ("Gravity") are all on the beat with police dramas.
And then there is the high-concept element that adds a twist to many of this year's crop of drama pilots. For instance, "Mars" is about a detective who goes back in time to the 1970s; the detective at the center of Fox's "New Amsterdam" is hundreds of years old, and the private eye in CBS' "Twilight" is a vampire.
But if there is one element that dominates the drama field this development season, it's the invasion of big-name feature directors -- a trend that exploded this year.
"We hear over and over that television is the new features," says Christina Davis, vp drama development at CBS.
Added Ted Gold, Fox's senior vp drama development, "It has to do with everybody's efforts to stand out."
Feature helmers tapped for pilots include Lasse Hallstrom, Spike Lee, Brett Ratner, Guy Ritchie, Doug Liman and Barry Sonnenfeld.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/features/e3ifa3342614f951b4f5dde03bda9b25741
The 2007-08 TV Season
ABC Drama Pilots
By Nellie Andreeva The Hollywood Reporter
Larger-than-life characters and self-contained stories are on the drama docket for ABC this year.
The network -- which sparked the recent interest in serialized dramas with the Emmy-winning "Lost" but saw its ambitious continuous-story-line dramas "The Nine" and "Six Degrees" fizzle in the fall -- is staying away from the genre this development season.
"This year, we concentrated on close-ended shows," says senior vp drama development Suzanne Patmore-Gibbs. "We don't have any intensely serialized pieces."
It was a conscious decision made in the summer -- before most networks struggled to launch a slew of nail-biter serial dramas -- that was aimed at a better schedule balance, Patmore-Gibbs says. But at the end of the day, it all came down to "responding to the best material."
"A year ago, we had a lot of strong serialized shows," she says. "This year, there's a lot of strong character procedurals and soaps. They rose to the top because they were great stories."
Indeed, Patmore-Gibbs notes that it was a good year for soaps with heavy dollops of humor ("Cashmere Mafia") -- a genre with which ABC found success this year with "Ugly Betty" and "Brothers & Sisters" -- and character-driven procedurals ("Suspect," "Marlowe," "Judy's Got a Gun," "Women's Murder Club").
For a second consecutive year, ABC is leading the network pack with the most drama pilot orders. ABC's total of 13 greenlighted projects is down from 16 one-hours picked up last season.
Cashmere Mafia
Production Co.: Sony TV/Darren Star Prods.
Production Team: Darren Star, Gail Katz, Kevin Wade, Susie Fitzgerald
Four successful female executives, friends since college, rely on one another as they juggle the demands of career, family and high ambitions in New York
Dirty Sexy Money
Production Co.: Touchstone TV
Production Team: Craig Wright, Greg Berlanti
Idealistic young lawyer inherits the job of representing a rich, powerful and ethically flexible family after his father's unexpected death
Eli Stone
Production Co.: Touchstone TV
Production Team: Greg Berlanti, Marc Gugenheim
Thirtysomething attorney (Jonny Lee Miller) begins to have larger-than-life visions that compel him to do unusual things; Victor Garber co-stars
Untitled Jon Feldman
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV
Production Team: Jon Feldman
Revolves around four high-powered CEOs or CEOs-to-be who socialize at the same exclusive golf club; Michael Vartan stars
Football Wives
Production Co.: Touchstone TV
Production Team: Marco Pennette, Chris Brancato, Bert Salke, Bryan Singer, Maureen Chadwicke, Eileen Gallagher, Ann McManus
U.S. version of the ITV series "Footballers Wives" that focuses on wives of professional football players; Gabrielle Union co-stars
Judy's Got a Gun
Production Co.: Touchstone TV
Production Team: Michelle King, Robert King, Stu Bloomberg
Suburban woman balances being a single mother with being a detective investigating bizarre suburban crimes
Life on Mars
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV
Production Team: David E. Kelley, Stephen Garrett, Jane Featherstone
Detective whose girlfriend has just been kidnapped finds himself transported back to the 1970s. Based on the BBC series
Marlowe
Production Co.: Touchstone TV
Production Team: Sean Bailey, Greg Pruss, Carol Wolper, Dan Platt, Phil Clymer
Procedural crime drama centered on the Philip Marlowe character set in present-day Los Angeles
Untitled Rina Mimoun
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV
Production Team: Rina Mimoun
Revolves around a family of Southern lawyers
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Production Co.: Regency TV/Dutch Oven
Production Team: Simon Kinberg, Doug Liman, Dave Bartis
Based on the hit feature about a married couple who are spies
Pushing Daisies
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV, Jinks/Cohen Prods.
Production Team: Bryan Fuller, Dan Jinks, Bruce Cohen
Detective show/romance/fairy tale about a guy who can touch the dead and bring them back to life
Suspect
Production Co.: Sony Pictures TV/25 C Prods.
Production Team: Ed Zuckerman, Guy Ritchie, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly
Stylish, fast-paced procedural drama uncovering the perpetrator by tracing the suspects
Women's Murder Club
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV
Production Team: Liz Craft, Sarah Fain, Brett Ratner, James Patterson, Joe Simpson, Shawn Ryan
Four girlfriends solve tough murder cases. Based on James Patterson's series of mystery books
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/features/e3ibc9653989093dd917e5d5ef43e29eab9
The 2007-08 TV Season
CBS Drama Pilots
By Nellie Andreeva The Hollywood Reporter
When CBS brass said in the fall that they are throwing out the rule book this development season, they weren't kidding.
Described by vp drama development Robert Zotnowski as "eclectic," the network's drama pilot roster of nine projects, two fewer than last year, includes a murder mystery musical ("Viva Laughlin!") and projects about couple-swapping ("Swingtown"), exorcism ("Demons"), resurrection ("Babylon Fields") and a blood-sucking private eye ("Twilight").
"We feel with these unique shows we will appeal to our core viewers as well as bring in new eyeballs," says vp drama development Christina Davis, who oversees CBS' drama slate with Zotnowski.
Last development season, CBS took risks with the serialized postapocalyptic drama
"Jericho," which worked, and with the intense, dark caper "Smith," which didn't.
With the safety net of having the strongest overall drama lineup on television, CBS decided to go for an even riskier high-wire act this time around, going for "inventive," "unconventional," "out-of-the-box" projects, Davis and Zotnowski note.
"Each has an attention-grabbing element, but at its center, there is an emotionally complicated story (and) highly relatable storytelling," Zotnowski says.
Babylon Fields
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV
Production Team: Michael Atkinson, Gerald Cuesta, Michael Cuesta
Sardonic, apocalyptic comedic drama in which the dead are resurrected and try to resume their former lives. As a result, lives are regained, families restored and old wounds are reopened
Demons
Production Co.: CBS Paramount Network TV
Production Team: Barbara Hall, Joe Roth, Nina Lederman
Ex-Jesuit priest/psychlogist performs exorcisms, fighting the demons in his life and the lives of others
Los Duques
Production Co.: CBS Paramount Network TV
Production Team: Cynthia Cidre, Jonathan Prince, Polly Anthony, Jimmy Iovine
Follows the lives of three generations of a powerful Latin American family in South Florida who work in the rum business
Protect and Serve
Production Co.: NBC Universal TV Studio
Production Team: Gary Scott Thompson, Mark Gibson, Philip Halprin
Follows the lives of street cops in suburban Los Angeles as they deal with the trials and tribulations of police life on and off the job
Untitled Barry Schindel (presentation)
Production Co.: CBS Paramount Network TV/Scott Free Prods.
Production Team: Barry Schindel, Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, David Zucker
Follows the private lives and cases of a team of dedicated public defenders; Janeane Garofalo, Rachel Carpani co-star
Skip Tracer
Production Co.: CBS Paramount Network TV
Production Team: Mitchell Burgess, Robin Green, Tucker Tooley, Stephen Dorff
Centers on a so-called skip tracer -- a guy who finds people who have tried to disappear -- who works in Los Angeles; Dorff stars
Swingtown
Production Co.: CBS Paramount Network TV
Production Team: Mike Kelley, Alan Poul
Revolves around married couples in 1970s suburbia who explore partner-swapping and open marriages
Twilight (presentation)
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV
Production Team: Trevor Munson, Ron Koslow, Joel Silver, Gerard Bocaccio
Private investigator/vampire struggles with the repercussions of immortality, vampire adversaries and his love for a mortal
Viva Laughlin!
Production Co.: SPT/BBC Worldwide Prods./CBS Par TV/Seed Prods.
Production Team: Bob Lowry, Hugh Jackman, John Palermo, Paul Telegdy, Peter Bowker, Gabriele Muccino
Musical about a family man who dreams of opening a casino in Laughlin, Nev. Based on BBC's "Viva Blackpool!"
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/features/e3ibc9653989093dd91a6ae8d3b0a1fd676
The 2007-08 TV Season
Fox Drama Pilots
By Nellie Andreeva The Hollywood Reporter
Leveraging Fox's biggest assets, "American Idol" and "House," with "bold, sometimes challenging, quality, take-notice offerings" is how senior vp drama development Ted Gold sums up the network's development strategy this season.
After a weak start to the season, in which Fox's new dramas "Vanished," "Justice" and "Standoff" failed to gain traction with viewers, the network is taking big swings with its 2007-08 development.
The network's 10 drama pilots -- the same number as last year -- include the big-budget "The Sarah Connor Chronicles," a follow-up to the "Terminator" movies. The thriller, directed and executive produced by David Nutter, is shaping up "to be one of the biggest action pieces out there," Gold says.
On the sci-fi front, Fox also is bringing a whole new dimension to the term "sleeper cell" with its adaptation of the graphic novel "Them." Executive produced and directed by "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" helmer Jonathan Mostow, it revolves around extraterrestrials infiltrating our world.
The high-concept "New Amsterdam," about a New York detective who is immortal, lured Oscar-nominated director Lasse Hallstrom to television. Gold says he knows why.
"It's one of the best scripts I've ever read," Gold says. "It has a core procedural to it, and underneath, there is romanticism."
With most networks opting for lighter, more escapist fare this development season, Fox isn't shying away from darker, more challenging concepts like "K-Ville," a cop drama set in post-Katrina New Orleans.
"It's a hot-button place, and the show has relevant issues for viewers," Gold says.
The Apostles
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV
Production Team: Chuck Pratt
Cop drama with soapy elements that follows officers in Simi Valley, Calif., in their off-duty time with their families
Canterbury's Law
Production Co.: Sony Pictures TV/Apostle
Production Team: Dave Erickson, Denis Leary, Jim Serpico
Rebellious female defense attorney pushes the boundaries of the law to protect innocent clients
The Cure
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV/Weed Road Pictures
Production Team: Patrick Massett, John Zinman, Akiva Goldsman, Stephanie Koff, Brittany Lovett, Danny Cannon
Group cuts through the red tape of medical bureaucracy -- often at their own peril -- to get care to those who need it most
K-Ville
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV
Production Team: Jonathan Lisco
Cops in post-Katrina New Orleans face the challenges of enforcing the law in a city whose infrastructure has been completely upended
New Amsterdam
Production Co.: Regency TV/Scarlet Fire/Sarabande/Laha
Production Team: Allan Loeb, Christian Taylor, Steven Pearl, David Manson, Lasse Hallstrom, Leslie Holleran
Man (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) cursed with immortality works as a New York homicide detective
NSA Innocent
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV/Realtime Prods.
Production Team: Bob Cochran, David Ehrman, Jon Cassar, Joel Surnow, Howard Gordon
Family man winds up recruited by the NSA as a spy within the defense contracting company he works for
Philadelphia General
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV
Production Team: Samantha Goodman, Andrew Stern, Barry Josephson, Eileen Gallagher, Ann McManus, P.J. Hogan
Comedic drama about the lives and loves of a team of nurses in a big-city hospital
Sarah Connor Chronicles
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV/C-2 Pictures
Production Team: Josh Friedman, David Nutter, James Middleton, Mario Kassar, Andrew Vajna, Joel Michaels
Based on the characters from the "Terminator" franchise, it follows Connor (Lena Headey) and her son John (Thomas Dekker) in present-day Los Angeles as they fight attackers from the future in a battle for survival of the human race
Supreme Courtships
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV/Adelstein Prods.
Production Team: Gary Tieche, Marty Adelstein, Michael Thorn
Soapy comedic drama about the personal and professional lives of six Supreme Court clerks and the judges they work for
Them
Production Co.: CBS Par TV/Circle of Confusion Prods.
Production Team: Jonathan Mostow, David Eick, John McNamara, David Engel, David Alpert, Lawrence Mattis
Centers on an extraterrestrial sleeper cell that has infiltrated the human race. The cell's mission is compromised when its members begin to express human emotions. Based on the graphic novel
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/features/e3ibc9653989093dd91769226429b563e66
The 2007-08 TV Season
NBC Drama Pilots
By Nellie Andreeva The Hollywood Reporter
NBC's hourlong development is across the board this year, and that's just fine with Katie O'Connell, the network's senior vp drama development, who is overseeing her first development slate since taking the top drama post in May.
"We try to pick up the best scripts and the ones we feel we can execute," O'Connell says. "We pick up shows that we think would find a place on the schedule."
Speaking of NBC's schedule, O'Connell says she and her team aren't necessarily trying to find a companion piece for the network's breakout hit "Heroes," though the "re-imagination" of "The Bionic Woman" for contemporary times would seem like a good fit.
Also on NBC's menu this season are the "Sex and the City"-esque "Lipstick Jungle"; a hard-boiled City Hall piece ("M.O.N.Y.," directed by Spike Lee); a few offbeat dramas ("Chuck," the David Semel-directed "Life"); and "Ft. Pit," from Denis Leary and Peter Tolan, which sounds like it falls somewhere between "Rescue Me" and "The Job."
"One thing we set out to do is to have a little bit more of a female focus than (NBC has had) in the past and to go for lighter crime procedurals," O'Connell notes, pointing to the untitled show centering on a female cop from David Shore, creator and executive producer of Fox's "House."
Overall, NBC's eight pilots are on par with the eight one-hours the network greenlighted last season.
The Bionic Woman
Production Co.: NBC Universal TV Studio
Production Team: David Eick, Laeta Kalogridis, Bruno Heller, Michael Dinner
Re-imagination of the 1970s series with focus on women's place in the world today
Chuck
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV
Production Team: Josh Schwartz, Chris Fedak, McG, Peter Johnson
Unlikely hero undertakes missions every week while still working at the "Geek Squad"; a comedic Jason Bourne
Ft. Pit
Production Co.: Sony Pictures TV/Apostle
Production Team: Peter Tolan, Michael Chernuchin, Denis Leary, Jim Serpico
Drama with comedic elements set at one of the worst police precincts in Brooklyn with rampant crime where bad cops are sent to live out their careers and rookie cops with no connections are stationed; James Badge Dale, Michael Rispoli co-star
Journeyman
Production Co.: 20th Century Fox TV
Production Team: Kevin Falls, Alex Graves
Epic fantasy about a man who travels back in time to alter and fix the lives of people in trouble, but by recalibrating the past, he sometimes alters the future
Life
Production Co.: NBC Universal TV Studio
Production Team: Rand Ravich, Farr Shariat, David Semel
Offbeat drama about an ex-cop (Damian Lewis) who rejoins the force after being wrongly imprisoned for years
Lipstick Jungle
Production Co.: NBC Universal TV Studio
Production Team: DeAnn Heline, Eileen Heisler, Candace Bushnell
Trio of power-hungry, rich professional women will do anything in their power to maintain their status in New York. Based on Bushnell's novel.
M.O.N.Y.
Production Co.: NBC Uni TV Studio/Fatima Prods./Airwaves Entertainment
Production Team: Tom Fontana, Barry Levinson
Surprising and unlikely everyman becomes mayor of New York. He shoots from the gut, makes mistakes and hopefully wins the hearts of the city's residents
Untitled Shore/Blake
Production Co.: NBC Universal TV Studio
Production Team: David Shore, Peter Blake
Light ensemble drama with procedural elements that centers on a female cop played by Famke Janssen, surrounded by an ensemble cast
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/features/e3ibc9653989093dd917d0d815354fc5967
The 2007-08 TV Season
The CW Drama Pilots
By Kimberly Nordyke The Hollywood Reporter
The young-adult demo always was top of mind for the CW drama development executives this year -- even if it meant passing on some appealing projects.
"We had to eliminate certain projects that were not right for us but would have been great for other broadcast networks that go after 18-49," says Thom Sherman, executive vp drama development at the CW, which targets adults 18-34. "We were always cognizant of the demo."
But what the network was able to secure in its first full development season, Sherman says, was a strong roster of talent, including "high-quality writers" and "young, fresh voices." Among the five projects on the slate -- one more than last year -- are "Gossip Girl," from "The O.C.'s" Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, about a secretive tell-all blogger, and untitled Tom Wheeler, described as being in the spirit of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and "Animal House."
This season, the CW struck out with its first new drama offering, the short-lived "Runaway." (Its second new drama, "Hidden Palms," premieres this year.) But Sherman, who joined the network in June, says the projects on the slate for 2007-08 were selected because they will draw the attention of the network's target viewership.
"All of these projects have something conceptual that we can really promote: They will be noisy," he says.
Gossip Girl
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV/Alloy
Production Team: Josh Schwartz, Stephanie Savage, Bob Levy, Leslie ******stein
Based on the best-selling book series about the lives of rich youngsters and their parents in New York City
Gravity (presentation)
Production Co.: CBS Paramount Network TV/DreamWorks TV
Production Team: Caleb Kane, Charles Segars, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey
Follows in cinema verite style a sexy ensemble of rookie cops and their training officers in Los Angeles beginning with the rookies' first day
Reaper
Production Co.: Touchstone TV/Mark Gordon Co.
Production Team: Michele Fazekas, Tara Butters, Mark Gordon, Deborah Spera
Comedic drama about a 21-year-old slacker who becomes the devil's bounty hunter, retrieving souls escaped from hell
Untitled South Africa
Production Co.: CBS Paramount Network TV/Company Pictures
Production Team: Michael Rauch, Charlie Pattinson, George Faber
New York veterinarian moves his second wife and their two sets of children to a South African game reserve run by his father-in-law. Based on the ITV series "Wild at Heart"
Untitled Tom Wheeler (presentation)
Production Co.: Warner Bros. TV/Class IV
Production Team: Tom Wheeler, Steve Pearlman, Andrew Plotkin
Comedic drama about two cheeky graduate students who use their skills to help solve crimes
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/features/e3ibc9653989093dd91b6f7cd9c6b61173d
Last updated at 11:35 PM PT Saturday, March 3rd, 2007
USEFUL INFORMATION
What I Watch
Try as I might to be impartial about TV programming, of course my personal prejudices can influence what I post.
So, in the interest of full disclosure, here are the shows (in order of preference by network) currently set on my HD DVRs and HD TiVos:
NBC: (4 hours) Friday Night Lights, Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: CI
ABC: (4 hours) Brothers & Sisters, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Men In Trees
CBS: (4 hours) Shark, CSI: NY, NCIS, 60 Minutes
Fox: (2 hours) Bones, House
Sports: MLB EI, college hoops, college football (Game Plan) and NFL ST.
News: Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News, Fox News Channel, MSNBC and CNN.
• • • • • • • • • • •
What’s on in HD
A complete and continually updated guide from Ken H:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=164671
• • • • • • • • • • •
Local Market HD threads
Have questions about reception, HD providers, antennas, general problems or anything else in your local area? Find your local market’s HD thread here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=453241
• • • • • • • • • • •
Sports HD Schedules
If you want to know if your favorite team -- in any sport -- will be playing in HD , check this invaluable website, which is updated continually:
http://www.hdsportsguide.com/
• • • • • • • • • • •
NFL Weekly Coverage Maps
Current Week available usually by Wednesday:
http://www.gribblenation.net/nflmaps/
• • • • • • • • • • •
AC Nielsen 210 Market DMA Rankings for the 2006-2007 TV Season
Find out where every U.S. TV market ranks here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8270847&&#post8270847
• • • • • • • • • • •
Digital TV Info for all 210 Nielsen DMAs
The people at HDTV Magazine have supplied this link. It tells who in each market is broadcasting digitally, from where and with how much power:
http://www.hdtvmagazine.com/programming/broadcast.php
• • • • • • • • • • •
Maps of all 210 Nielsen DMAs
If you wonder what counties are nestled in each DMA, you can find the maps here:
http://www.truckads.com/licensed_affiliates1.asp
• • • • • • • • • • •
Cable/Satellite Penetration By Nielsen DMA Market as of November, 2006
How many people have cable or satellite in each market? Check here:
http://www.tvb.org/rcentral/markettrack/Cable_and_ADS_Penetration_by_DMA.asp
• • • • • • • • • • •
Updated DirecTV HD Locals Availability:
http://www.dbstalk.com/hr20/html/DTV_HDLIL_DMA.html
• • • • • • • • • • •
DirecTV Customer Retention Direct #
800-824-9081
• • • • • • • • • • •
DirecTV Level 2 Technical Support #
888-713-7772
• • • • • • • • • • •
FCC's Digital TV Info Resources
http://www.dtv.gov/
• • • • • • • • • • •
FCC SHVERA Fact Sheet
Now that DirecTV has cancelled bi-coastal HD Distant Network Station reception, here is the FCC fact sheet which may answer some of your questions about SHVERA and how it effects what we are -- or are not -- allowed to purchase.
http://www.fcc.gov/mb/policy/shvera.doc
Some Favorite Links
Updated February 20, 2007
Aside from the very helpful general links listed in the post above this one, here are some of the TV writers, columnists and bloggers I feel are especially worth the time to keep up with.
(Those needing a subscription are marked.) Some other require registration. I would suggest you register at the Aaron Barnhart, Marc Berman and Maureen Ryan sites at a bare minimum.
But almost all allow basic scrolling through much -- if not all -- of their content.
Aaron Barnhart of The Kansas City Star writes a lot and also links to numerous podcasts each week which are fun listens. He is also a favorite because he long ago mentioned this thread as “indispensable” (and is a great college basketball companion -- although I suspect I wouldn't be happy sitting next to him at a UCLA-Kansas game).
http://blogs.kansascity.com/tvbarn/
Marc Berman is MediaWeek’s “Mr. Television”. His knowledge about ratings and TV in general is amazing. Even more amazing is how his one-man blog posts daily ratings every day. (Nothing else on the web matches it.) Holidays, weekends, it doesn’t matter, somehow he gets it done. And that is far more than you can say for any other reputable online source (even those with far larger staffs) I know of.
http://pifeedback.com/eve/?cdra=Y&s=32410241
One of the nation’s best TV writers, Rich Heldenfels of the Akron Beacon Journal, had his job description (and duties) drastically changed last year in a newsroom cost-cutting move. Now he also has to cover and review movies and all of pop culture. But he loves TV and his blog often contains gems – though sadly not as often as before the change:
http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/heldenfiles/
Try TV Guide's Matt Roush for reasoned commentary, reviews and twice-a-week Q&A along with Michael Ausiello for often fun and sometimes over-the-top commentary and news.
http://tvguide.com/
Maureen Ryan’s blog for the Chicago Tribune TV critic is always a good and stimulating read. And if you post an embarrassing and/or nonsensical comment (and get back to her quickly enough!) she’ll good-naturedly make sure no one ever reads it.
http://tempo.typepad.com/entertainment_tv/
The Chicago Tribune’s TV page:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/
Television Week is home of James Hibberd, the best HD reporter in the business. The weekly HD newsletter is posted Thursday afternoon Pacific Time. Sadly, (and I suspect because it doesn't seem all that internet savvy yet) TV week tends to lag behind in posting many TV stories – it is sometimes a full day late. But Hibberd’s HD coverage more than makes up for that deficiency. The link (and you should definitely bookmark this one) to Hibberd’s HD newsletter is:
http://www.tvweek.com/page.cms?pageId=183
The Television Week site is here:
http://www.tvweek.com/
For thought-provoking daily ratings number crunching there is frequent contributor RussTC3’s detailed and fascinating blog:
http://wordpress.com/tag/broadcast-tv-ratings/
Tim Goodman’s “The Bastard Machine” blog allows the acerbic San Francisco Chronicle television critic to vent – and inform us. He is always a fun read:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/indexn?blogid=24
The San Francisco Chronicle’s TV page is here:
http://www.sfgate.com/tvradio/
The Washington Post’s TV page is where you’ll find the tart writing of Lisa de Moraes and the Pulitzer Prize winning critic Tom Shales:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/artsandliving/television/?nav=left
Rob Owen TV Editor of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, has his “Tuned In Journal” blog. (Rob is also president of the Television Critics Association.) You can read him here:
http://www.post-gazette.com/tv/tunedin/
The Television Critics Association provides helpful links to dozens of its members. (Aaron Barnhart keeps it updated.) Find the TCA site here:
http://tvcritics.org/
Perhaps the most respected inside-the-TV-business writer is Bill Carter of The New York Times. (subscription needed)
http://query.nytimes.com/search/query?srcht=s&srchst=&query=%22bill+carter%22&date_select=past30days&submit.x=70&submit.y=9&submit=Search
If you want lots of information, including episode lists, cast and crew members of almost any TV show past or present, try the tv.com online reference libary:
http://www.tv.com/
The legendary trade publication Variety is a great source of information – and pay careful attention to the in-depth stories posted on Sunday mornings. The show biz slang can be fun – although a bit puzzling to newbies.
http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=dept_main&dept=TV
The Hollywood Reporter is good for inside TV -- and especially production -- news
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/television/index.jsp
Trade publication Broadcasting&Cable is a good source of news. John Eggerton is one of the best reporters around:
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
And the Broadcasting&Cable blog “BCBeat” can be provocative:
http://broadcastingcable.com/blog/1380000138.html
MultiChannelNews reports industry news with a decided cable-centric slant, but is on top of almost every major item of interest to the industry. Its coverage of Washington regulatory news and the FCC is first rate.
http://www.multichannel.com/
Media Life Magazine is written for ad agency people, and concentrates on the (for them) key 18-49 demograpphics. But it is sprightly and well written with some very good insight into which and why shows are in trouble – or not. Negative: The site operates -- and ratings are posted -- just Monday through Friday. But the insights of Toni Fitzgerald are worth the wait and especially worth your time.
http://www.medialifemagazine.com/
Amy Amatangelo, “Zap2It's TV Gal”, who writes frequently for many newspapers including the Washington Post and Boston Globe, keeps a sharp (and usually very amusing) viewer’s eye on TV happenings. She is at
http://www.zap2it.com/tv/news/zap-t...43.storygallery
The general zap2it site can be hit and miss, but sometimes has items of interest. It slows to a crawl on weekend and holidays.
http://www.zap2it.com/
I'd give it higher marks, but the veteran website The Futon Critic basically shuts down on weekends. During the week it is best to check for press releases, especially from cable networks. Its daily ratings do not feature viewer numbers, just ratings/share figures…the kind for which you need an eye-shade to truly understand. Or at least pretend to understand.
http://www.thefutoncritic.com/home.aspx
"TV Guide Online has learned that the Eye Network has again postponed the new season of The Amazing Race — this time until late October. 'We want to give a little more space between the finale of Race 5 and the premiere of Race 6,' says the rep. 'We think the audience likes the breather."
Also, it's PrimeTime Live, not Prime Time Live.
fredfa, I appreciate the compliements but I just see the news when i go to places like www.thefutoncritic.com . Could you undo the bolding of f44?
thanks.
LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- In the latest update to the broadcast networks' fall rollout schedule, ABC has announced it was moved up the premiere of its new reality series "Wife Swap."
The series will now kick off on Sunday, September 26 at 10:00/9:00c following the two-hour season premiere of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." "Swap" will then settle into its regular Wednesday, 10:00/9:00c slot on September 29.
Steve Harvey's Big Time had its premiere today, 9/12.
Rakesh.S
09-13-04, 05:44 PM
hey gang..some sad news regarding tru calling..made a separate post for it so everyone sees it but here's the link
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=445900
Rakesh, Zap2it reports the show is still in production though...
Rakesh.S:
The Tru Calling info was updated on the master premiere list this morning.
Red Angel
09-15-04, 07:52 PM
When does Curb Your Enthusiasm start up again? Anybody catch the Larry David cameo on Entourage this week?
According to a June HBO press release (on futoncritic.com) here is the info:
CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM - A fifth season of 10 episodes is set to head before the cameras in January for a premiere later in 2005.
Well as long as we're talking HBO, I've been unable to find out when Sopranos and Deadwood return, anyone know?
Originally posted by GregF
Well as long as we're talking HBO, I've been unable to find out when Sopranos and Deadwood return, anyone know?
I remember reading somewhere that The Sopranos will not be back until 2006 and Deadwood will show up after The Wire is done with this seasons episodes.
Jim
The most recent word from HBO (and it is a couple of months old now) is very vague.
Deadwood is (now) due back in March 2005.
The Sopranos begins shooting its final ten episodes in "early 2005" with no word on when it be actually air. Given the track record of David Chase, it could air in 2008 (just kidding).
Final season, *sigh*. I know most people are tired of it but I'll be sad to see it go. Thank goodness Deadwood just starting it's run. Thanks for the updates guys.
Originally posted by fredfa
The Sopranos begins shooting its final ten episodes in "early 2005" with no word on when it be actually air. Given the track record of David Chase, it could air in 2008 (just kidding).
And by then Anthony Sr will be retired and AJ will be fighting for control with Meadow, it has some great possibilities. :D
Jim
I have pulled Method & Red from the Fox lineup based on this story from the NY Post:
"September 16, 2004 -- 'METHOD & Red," a summer comedy that had been expected to be back this fall appears to be over.
"The show is done. It's on the long hiatus," rapper Method Man, one of the show's stars, told The Post yesterday.
Fox has picked up only three episodes of the six that were filmed over the summer. Initially it was believed that the network wanted an additional nine for this fall. ..."
http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/19460.htm
CPanther95
09-16-04, 06:46 PM
Title changed per request.
Thanks, Mr. Moderator, for the quick service
stealthg2000
09-16-04, 09:56 PM
Originally posted by NetworkTV
It's funny how people can have completely different tastes. I watch almost nothing on CBS except for the original CSI and bits of 60 minutes if the stories are good. I've found I watch less CBS programming than I used to. I just looked in my PVR listings and have actually found most of my viewing runs toward ABC, FOX and various cable shows (despite the lack of HD).
yep, only watch csi and jag on CBS... only watch jag now due to force of habit and the DVR, LOL i usually watch one or two shows on each network... 24 and arrested development on fox, the practice and line of fire on abc (wow, two shows that are gone, lol) 3rd watch on nbc even though MI and Hawaii might keep me interested if they can make some improvements.... So i have no brand loyality, shoot me, LOL!
Line of Fire is history? Bummer, I thought that was pretty decent TV. The Practice has morphed into Boston Legal with James Spader, IMO, one of the very best characters on TV that I've watched in awhile.
Jim
Rakesh.S
09-16-04, 10:16 PM
Originally posted by keenan
Line of Fire is history? Bummer, I thought that was pretty decent TV. The Practice has morphed into Boston Legal with James Spader, IMO, one of the very best characters on TV that I've watched in awhile.
Jim
line of fire was a new show last year and it was on ABC..you should be happy that they aired all the episodes
Unlike Karen Sisco, which they really butchered.
Amazing Race (now late October/November) updated
I'm bummed about no Alias or 24 until January.
Originally posted by sdf777
I'm bummed about no Alias or 24 until January.
Hopefully the Jan starts will eliminate all the pre-emptions and no-shows that both these shows have had in common last year. These shows more than most any others need that continuity because of their serial nature.
Jim
mallu2u
09-17-04, 04:13 PM
What is up with Thursday having so many good shows: CSI, Without a Trace, Joey, Apprentice, Benefactor, ......others?
benefactor on thursdays was a one-time airing.
also, karen sisco was butchered, but its unaired episodes were shown on USA Network.
Meanwhile, a similar scenario is said to be underway for FOX's "Athens," which comes from "The O.C." creator Josh Schwartz. At its upfront presentation, FOX outlined a plan which would have "Athens" on its January 2005 schedule where it would air on Monday nights alongside the new season of "24." Now it seems "Athens" won't make it to the air until at least the spring, as Schwartz reportedly doesn't want to rush the series to the detriment of either "The O.C." or "Athens." FOX or producer Warner Bros. Television have yet to confirm any sort of delay however it's clearly not a surprise considering the multitude of changes already done to its schedule since its original upfront presentation in May.
(thefutoncritic.com)
What is "Teens Nov 4" on Fox?
Rakesh.S
09-17-04, 05:07 PM
Originally posted by mallu2u
What is up with Thursday having so many good shows: CSI, Without a Trace, Joey, Apprentice, Benefactor, ......others?
simple:
every network is trying to derail CSI..as long as CSI is on the air, CBS will be able to promote their other shows and suck in more viewers
look at Without a Trace..it is an awesome show but the lead in from CSI certainly doesn't hurt..WAT is going to overtake ER really really soon
I bet Without A Trace catches up to ER by mid-season, Rakesh.S (if not before).
f44: Teens? Who knows! It's gone. Thanks for catching it.
Originally posted by fredfa
I bet Without A Trace catches up to ER by mid-season, Rakesh.S (if not before).
How much? Just kidding, ER is getting a little long in the tooth.
Jim
Originally posted by f44
benefactor on thursdays was a one-time airing.
also, karen sisco was butchered, but its unaired episodes were shown on USA Network.
I would say to date that was my favorite title sequence of any HD show.
taz291819
09-18-04, 02:56 PM
Veronica Mars premieres Wednesday, Sept 22. It then moves to Tuesdays the following week when Kevin Hill premieres.
I've been told both will be in HD.
Why is The Benefactor listed as HD? AFAIK, no one has seen this show in HD.
Tall1:
Because The Benefactor was announced by ABC as being in HD, shot in HD, edited in HD, and supposed to be broadcast in HD.
If it is (again) in SD this week ( or if we get confirmation it is supposed to be only SD from now on), I'll change it.
taz291919:
I can find no confirmation that either Veronica Mars or Kevin Hill will be in HD.
If I get confirmation, I'll happily change the grid to reflect it.
Originally posted by fredfa
Center of the Universe Sept 22 HD[/B]
This has been delayed until Sept 29.
Originally posted by fredfa
Tall1:
Because The Benefactor was announced by ABC as being in HD, shot in HD, edited in HD, and supposed to be broadcast in HD.
If it is (again) in SD this week ( or if we get confirmation it is supposed to be only SD from now on), I'll change it. Thank you for all your hard work. This has become my bible for tv viewing.
I appreciate the kind words, Tall1, and will try to keep the list updated.
Originally posted by GregF
I would say to date that was my favorite title sequence of any HD show.
I never got to see it in HD (still was good opening sequence in non-HD), must've looked really good.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yes, Dear is HD and Steve Harvey's Big Time premiered before Jack & Bobby.
For cancelled shows, you should keep them in the list but put (cancelled) next to the name or at least put the cancelled list not at the top of everything.
Thanks for the suggestion f44.
The cancelled show(s) list is now at the bottom, and for everyone's convenience, I've added a day-by-day HD premiere list, by times scheduled, to the top.
Fox.com does show Method & Red airing on 9/29.
METH AND RED TAKE IT TO COURT TO PROVE THEY GOT GAME
ON AN ALL-NEW “METHOD & RED”
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 29, ON FOX
Special Guest Stars Devean George of the Los Angeles Lakers
And Corey Maggette of the Los Angeles Clippers
When fellow hip-hop artist Fear (guest star Fredro Starr) moves into a better gated community and lures Method and Red’s ace TV repairman away from them, the duo challenge their rival to a neighborhood basketball game on the “Da Shootout” episode of METHOD & RED Wednesday, Sept. 29 (9:30-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. (MAR-108) (TV-PG; L)
Cast: Method Man as himself; Redman as himself; Anna Maria Horsford as Dorothea; Beth Littleford as Nancy Blaford; Peter Jacobson as Bill Blaford; David Henrie as Sykler Blaford; Lahmard Tate as Lil’ Bit; Jeremiah Birkett as Dupree.
Guest Cast: Devean George as himself; Corey Maggette as himself; Brian Posehn as Karl; Christian Clemenson as Donald; Fredro Starr as Fear; Leonard Earl Howze as Jamaican Ray; Aloma Wright as Mama Fear; Byron Stewart as Coolidge.
I haven't said it will not be on any more, I've simply noted that it has been cancelled.
Originally posted by keenan
I remember reading somewhere that The Sopranos will not be back until 2006 and Deadwood will show up after The Wire is done with this seasons episodes.
Jim
I needed to correct this post, forgot about Carnivale, which will come on between the Wire and Deadwood.
Jim
Here is a generally positive overview of the new shows this season from Tom Shales of the Washington Post:
-------------------------------
A Season to Watch
From Hot 'Housewives' To Warm 'Clubhouse,' Roster Holds Promise
By Tom Shales Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, September 19, 2004; Page N01
Good news: The kids are back in school, punishing summer humidity is slowly giving way to punishing fall humidity and, on a personal note, I am no longer under a 24-hour suicide watch. That's because I have completed the annual taxing task of looking at the new fall television shows.
The precaution is taken just in case, having been driven insane, I get the urge to drop the VCR in a bathtub full of water and jump in after it.
The pleasant surprise this year is that there are several pleasant surprises. It can't be called a stunning comeback for the broadcast networks, whose total share of the audience continues to decline as basic cable's continues to rise -- last season having been no exception and this season unlikely to be one either. But there's definitely an uptick in overall quality, and every little uptick has a meaning all its own.
Fred Allen's oft-quoted line about imitation being the sincerest form of television has never been truer. Indeed, the networks are even getting testy about it with each other, claiming a competitor stole this or that idea for this or that reality show. Big deal: Those things are basically all the same anyway, differing mainly in degrees of embarrassment suffered by the contestants and by the viewers. Few reality shows are made available for preview, but they are included here for the record.
Network TV may be at a turning point because of those reality shows, however. Faster-paced than scripted fare, full of narrative shortcuts and, though costs are said to be rising, inexpensive to produce, reality shows could remain just another of many genres or, scarily enough, prove to be the dominant program type in prime time. That would represent a cheapening of prime time, which is already cheap enough, and mark a turning point in the whole art of storytelling as practiced on TV and, before that, radio for much of the 20th century.
Of the four major networks, ABC, this close to being proclaimed a disaster area, has the most to prove, looking up at its fellow networks from the bottom. But it also appears to have the largest number of good, if not great, new shows. CBS hopes to hold onto first place among total viewers, which NBC claims is less important than its first-place standing among younger viewers. Actually, they should all be grateful they still exist, and in some cases that's partly thanks to cable entities they're linked with in the vast corporate empires that contain them.
It's not your father's New TV Season, nor his mother's. But it will have to do for now. Here are the new fall shows with premiere dates in parentheses.
My work is done. Yours is just beginning.
New ABC Series
"The Benefactor," an atrocious imitation of Donald Trumpeter's "The Apprentice" on NBC, drags a sorry bunch of saps into the mansion of Texas billionaire Mark Cuban and offers them the chance to win $1 million by going through a succession of asinine antics. Deadly in its dreadfulness, execrable in execution. (Mondays, 8 p.m., already premiered)
"Rodney," part of the resurgent blue-collar-comedy trend, stars Rodney Carrington (sounds like a character from "Dynasty"), a real-life comic, as a frustrated workingman in Tulsa who quits his job so he can become a stand-up comedian like the one he really is. Carrington is tolerably inoffensive, but it's Jennifer Aspen as his wife who gives the show whatever sparkle it manages to generate. (Tuesdays, 9:30 p.m., premieres Sept. 21)
"Lost" begins promisingly, but then so did the universe. Matthew ("Party of Five") Fox's eyes pop open to behold a tropical jungle that is totally alien to him. Slowly he remembers that he is one of 14 survivors of a terrible plane crash (re-created in nerve-shattering flashbacks) and that the aircraft was 1,000 miles off course when its tail fell off. Worse, there appears to be a big, scary monster on the island that for openers eats the pilot; it's as if Gilligan were marooned in Jurassic Park. On the plus side, co-star Evangeline Lilly brought along her flesh-colored bikini underwear for bathing in the ocean; how convenient! Alternately provocative and childish, "Lost" lacks the liveliness of its obvious reality counterpart, and perhaps inspiration, "Survivor." (Wednesdays, 8 p.m., Sept. 22)
"Wife Swap," despite the off-putting trasho title, has fascinating possibilities, at least to judge from the fast-moving pilot episode in which the frivolous, vacuous wife of a Manhattan millionaire trades places for a couple of weeks with a hard-working suburbanite mom who rises at 5:30 a.m. to chop wood. The swapping does not, apparently, include conjugal responsibilities to the respective husbands, and the reward is finding out that both women, and their families, turn this into a learning experience and not just another voyage for voyeurs. (Wednesdays, 10 p.m., Sept. 29, with a preview Sunday, Sept. 26 at 10 p.m.)
"life as we know it" is also junk as we know it, only with a phony tony veneer meant to suggest such past cult hits as "My So-Called Life." The real title should be "Three Guys Who Won't Shut Up"; when the teenage bores aren't talking about sex to one another, they turn directly to the camera and talk to us folks out here in television land ("I'm such an idiot!," one accurately grumps). A saving grace is Kelly Osbourne as the kind of plumpish girl boys tend to overlook, but otherwise this is a void to avoid. (Thursdays, 9 p.m., Oct. 7)
"Complete Savages" is an irregular riot, an oddly appealing, slapdash sitcom about a single father (Keith Carradine, who now has a bit of a belly) trying to raise five boys on his own. The housekeepers keep quitting; in the premiere, the latest one goes out in a blaze of glory, setting fire to all their dirty clothes in the back yard. Not "Lord of the Flies" in suburbia -- though close at times -- the show has a rough-and-bumble "Animal House" charm, and the boys have distinctive personalities that aren't the usual cliches. One of the executive producers, and director of the premiere, is Mel Gibson. God knows he needs the money. (Fridays, 8:30 p.m., Sept. 24)
"Desperate Housewives" is the best new network series of the year, but is it the best new drama or the best new comedy, or a crazy commingling of both? Many new shows rely on chatty voice-overs to handle exposition, but this is the only show narrated by a corpse: Mary Alice Young (Brenda Strong), who blows her brains out in the opening scene for reasons later to unfold. Her spirit hangs around to watch a gaggle of her old neighbors struggle, scheme and say bitterly funny things about their husbands, if any. It's not as cynical as it sounds -- but cynical, in a delicious sort of way, it is. (Sundays, 9 p.m., Oct. 3)
"Boston Legal." Not available for preview, the series is an outgrowth of that perennial work-in-progress "The Practice," with James Spader probably the best reason to watch, continuing in the role of a lawyer who demonstrates why so many people seem to hate lawyers. (Sundays, 10 p.m., Oct. 3)
New CBS Series
"Listen Up." Jason Alexander was nominated six times for an Emmy for playing George Costanza on "Seinfeld," but, unforgivably, the TV Academy never gave him the statue. Okay, so he'll keep playing George Costanza until they give in, though this time George is called Tony Kleinman and is based on Washington Post columnist and ESPN commentator Tony Kornheiser. Kleinman is another daffy dad from Sitcom City, but Alexander gives him spirit and, certainly, volume. Watching him grovel before his wife and kids is dispiriting, however, and from what we see of it, few people would make a mad dash to the TV set to watch Kleinman's show, "Shut Up and Listen." Malcolm-Jamal Warner plays Tony's on-air partner and longtime friend. (Mondays, 8:30 p.m., Sept. 20)
"Clubhouse" can claim one of the sweetest temperaments of any new series, one of those warmhearted coming-of-age tales that don't get icky, at least not in the first hour. Jeremy Sumpter, who starred in that wretched movie version of "Peter Pan," is much more likable here as the son of a single mom who sneaks off without her approval to become a batboy for the New York Empires (obviously the Yankees). Dean Cain winningly plays a friendly star player. This story of a kid with a dream isn't just about baseball; it's about Everykid with Everydream, and beautifully done. (Tuesdays, 9 p.m., Sept. 28, with a preview Sept. 26 at 8 p.m.)
"Center of the Universe." Not! Laughless and listless, this from-the-factory sitcom wastes the talents of John Goodman (not looking well) and Jean Smart, as well as Ed Asner, who is turning into Wilford Brimley, and Olympia Dukakis, all together in a grating copy of "Everybody Loves Raymond" in which the husband's parents live nearby and keep barging in with bad advice and worse jokes. As Goodman's brother, Diedrich Bader, a funny survivor of the old Drew Carey show, is the only bright spot. "Loving your family can be hard work," Goodman says. Loving this family would be just about impossible. (Wednesdays, 9:30 p.m., Sept. 29)
"CSI: NY," though not available for preview, was introduced as part of an episode of "CSI: Miami" last season and is bound to follow in the "CSI" mold, which risks getting moldy indeed if plundered much more for spinoffs. Gary Sinise, apparently saying adieu at least temporarily to his movie career, will be the hero this time, with bushy-maned Melina Kanakaredes as his partner in crime-solving. Plus lots of teeny-tiny, itsy-bitsy, teensy-weensy clues. (Wednesdays, 10 p.m., Sept. 22)
"dr. vegas" gets the "They've got to be kidding" award of the year. The title makes it sound like a parody of a lousy TV show but no, it really is a lousy TV show. It is steeped in lousiness, starting with raspy-voiced star Rob Lowe, still paying the price for getting bigheaded on "West Wing," and here haplessly cast as the house doc at a trouble-prone casino/hotel managed by best friend Tommy Danko (Joe Pantoliano as Joe Pantoliano -- again). The pilot included a tune with the lyrics "wrong way on a one-way track," which really ought to be the "dr. vegas" theme song. (Fridays, 10 p.m., Sept. 24)
New NBC Series
"LAX" taps that seemingly inexhaustible energy source called Heather Locklear and teams her with too-darn-handsome Blair Underwood to play co-directors of Los Angeles International Airport. Though they once had a "thing," they are now rivals, each hoping to push the other out and hog the top job alone. Splashy trash, rich with cheap detail and occasionally interrupted for music videos, it's a fast-moving ride and tolerably foolish amusement. (Mondays, 10 p.m., already premiered)
"Father of the Pride" combines state-of-the-art animation with -- almost nothing, since the ridiculous scripts are mostly humorless boilerplate. We're supposedly in a kingdom populated by blabby animals who are involved with Vegas magicians Siegfried and Roy; the creatures either work for the campy duo or just know them socially. The S&R caricatures are almost droll (there is no mention of the fact that a tiger got mad and almost made Roy disappear), but the painful pointlessness is demoralizing. (Tuesdays, 9 p.m., already premiered)
"Hawaii," a kind of tourist trap of the air, transports viewers to guess-where, that much-exploited (for TV shows) tropical state where cops do the standard somersaults before shooting bad guys and the air is polluted with their wanly manly banter. The stale show is an insult to the memory of "Hawaii Five-0," which had real style and, unlike "Hawaii," employed many native Hawaiians in major roles. This is just "New Jersey" with coconuts. (Wednesdays, 8 p.m., already premiered)
"Joey" brings back one-sixth of the principal cast of "Friends," Matt LeBlanc, in the role he played on the hit show, that of a supposedly adorable male bimbo who gets by on ingenuous charisma. That's ingenuous, not ingenious, because the show is a thrown-together assembly-line vehicle that delivers the bare minimum and requires much mugging and eyebrow-wiggling by the star. (Thursdays, 8 p.m., already premiered)
"Medical Investigation," the giggly "Gigli" of doctor shows, imitates the CBS "CSIs," but very poorly, with lots of familiar old jargon and a star, Neal McDonough, who just keeps shouting demands for 10 cc's of this or five cc's of that. Sí, sí, señor doc! The show has one nifty gimmick: When Dr. Demando looks at the scenes of crimes, they come to life in eerie overlapping images. Otherwise it's one dull medicine show. (Fridays, 10 p.m., already premiered)
New Fox Series
The Fox network, which will soon be airing the big-draw but schedule-disrupting World Series, thinks the idea of a new fall season is an anachronism, so the network doesn't seem to be having one in the usual sense. Some of its "new fall shows" won't premiere for months; others bowed months ago.
Nevertheless, keep an eye out for "House" perhaps the best hospital show since the debut of "ER" and definitely featuring the most fascinating character of the new season so far, Hugh Laurie as misanthropic Dr. Gregory House (hence the title), a brilliant crank of a diagnostic physician. He works for and constantly battles with the hospital's director and with associates played by, among others, Omar Epps and Robert Sean Leonard, both exceptional actors. The show includes some up-the-nose photography in the "CSI" style, but Laurie is the reason to watch. (Tuesdays, 9 p.m., premiering Nov. 16.)
"The Next Great Champ," which now occupies the "House" time slot, is a reality boxing show under the expert and telegenic guidance of Oscar De La Hoya -- but Fox should face reality as well as air it: Boxing in prime time is a pretty punch-drunk proposition, even if it is disguised as "American Idol" in trunks. "Champ" must also do battle with a similar NBC show, "The Contender," premiering at a date to be announced. NBC executives in fact tried to stop the Fox show in court on the grounds that it was an idea stolen from them, but both shows are "go" for now.
Fox's "The Rebel Billionaire: Branson's Quest for the Best," meanwhile, sounds like yet another imitation of NBC's "The Apprentice," this time with quirky British entrepreneur Richard Branson in the Donald Trump role (Tuesdays, 8 p.m., premiering Nov. 9). Such nominally new Fox series as "Method & Red" and "The Quintuplets" premiered weeks or months ago. Fox will rely heavily on such returning hits as "American Idol" when baseball is over.
New WB Series
"The Mountain," which is really "The O.C." with snow, follows the adventures of red-hot babes and stubblesome hunks who try to run the chichi ski resort they inherited from their snow-haired grandfather. Naturally a mean old corporation wants to buy the mountain and turn it into "condos and burger joints." You can tell the bad guys by their naked faces; any dude without stubble on this show is automatically suspect. It's chilling fare, but only because it gives you a screenful of snow. (Wednesdays, 9 p.m., Sept. 22)
"Blue Collar TV" celebrates the Jeff Foxworthy style of hillbilly-hick humor, which is borderline racist but still popular in some circles. (Thursdays, 8 p.m., already premiered)
"Drew Carey's Green Screen," described by one series insider as "the stoner show of the year," will be a hit if it's as funny as its premise is complicated. Carey and a crew of improvising actors stage impromptu sketches in front of a "green screen," which thanks to TV technology can be erased and replaced with virtually any background. In this case, the backgrounds will be animated high jinks filled in after the sketches are taped. (Thursdays, 8:30 p.m., Oct. 7)
"Commando Nanny," supposedly based on episodes in the early life of "Survivor" producer Mark Burnett, is just the old Fran Drescher sitcom with a former British commando trying to survive as a nanny for a rich Bel Air couple (who, oddly, have no other servants). Surely this has already been an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, and probably a bad one. Gerald McRaney is funny, though, as the bellowing grouch who owns the house. (Fridays, 8:30 p.m., premiere date to be announced).
"Jack & Bobby," a fantasy about a little boy who will grow up to be elected president in the year 2040, is ambitious but too gimmicky, and would probably have worked much better as a motion picture than as a continuing series. (Sundays, 9 p.m., already premiered).
New UPN Series
"Second Time Around" stars real-life soul mates Boris Kodjoe and Nicole Parker as the semi-amusing Muses, a couple who divorced, thought it over, and decided to marry each other again. (Mondays, 9:30 p.m., Sept. 20)
"Veronica Mars" puts forth the dubious notion that the world would do better if run by determined teenage girls. That is so totally not true. But Kristen Bell has a brassy good time in the title role, even if the idea that she's a part-time detective when not in high school is probably the farthest-fetched of the season. (Tuesdays, 9 p.m., Sept. 28 with a preview Sept. 22 at 9 p.m.)
"Kevin Hill" stars fashion plate Taye Diggs as a music-business lawyer and walking GQ cover whose New York playboy life hits an iceberg of sorts: a 10-month-old baby named Sarah, left to the bouncing bachelor by his cousin. "I haven't been home on a Friday since I was 12," he mopes with the baby on his lap. The nanny, a wisecracking gay man, has the night off. Yes it's unlikely, but it's anything but unlikable. (Wednesdays, 9 p.m., Sept. 29)
thanks for this informative article.
After reading it, it's hard to decipher because of the general malaise of a tv critic. he says this is the most promising season in years and yet doesn't really seem to like any of it hehe.
[i]-------------------------------
A Season to Watch
From Hot 'Housewives' To Warm 'Clubhouse,' Roster Holds Promise
By Tom Shales Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, September 19, 2004; Page N01
Network TV may be at a turning point because of those reality shows, however. Faster-paced than scripted fare, full of narrative shortcuts and, though costs are said to be rising, inexpensive to produce, reality shows could remain just another of many genres or, scarily enough, prove to be the dominant program type in prime time. That would represent a cheapening of prime time, which is already cheap enough, and mark a turning point in the whole art of storytelling as practiced on TV and, before that, radio for much of the 20th century.
[/B]
Couldn't agree more with this, thankfully we have subscription premium networks, HBO,SHO etc.
Jim
Originally posted by GregF
thanks for this informative article.
After reading it, it's hard to decipher because of the general malaise of a tv critic. he says this is the most promising season in years and yet doesn't really seem to like any of it hehe.
That's because except for a handful of exceptions, prime time network TV is pretty weak overall, IMO anyway.
Jim :)
HiDef Bob
09-19-04, 04:39 PM
Error -
Thursday, Sept 23rd HD Season Premieres:
Joan of Arcadia CBS 8 PM ET HD
Of course that should be Friday, which you do have listed.
Also, on 9/23, CSI is on at 9pm ET, Without A Trace is on at 10pm ET.
Please fix the order so it shows Jack & Bobby premiered after Steve Harvey's Big Time (so people don't get confused with what time the shows are on).
Add Saturday, Sept. 25th HD Season Premieres for ABC Saturday Night Movie at 8pm ET (the movie is Cast Away).
Thanks all for catching the errors.
CastAway, by the way WILL be in HD.
Tonight is the "official" beginning of the 2004-2005 network TV season, and it also marks biggest HD (and SD) premiere week of the season: almost 30 HD shows debut this week (along with the movie CastAway).
It wasn't that long ago that almost 30 shows on all networks in a season would have been a big deal.
.
fredfa, the movie's title has a space in it (Cast Away).
Updated with LAX ratings woes (and LAX is the first member on a new list of ratings-challenged HD shows).
Updated through Tuesday, Sept 21st.
Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere (yes, I tried a search...), but is Star Trek Enterprise "moving" to KCAL-9 DT in the Los Angeles area? I ran across this unexpected "hit (http://www.r-vcr.com/~television/TV/TV13.htm)" while searching for information about Enterprise's 4th season premier. (8:00 P.M., October 8 as it turns out on KCOP-13 DT)
Ray H, the Star Trek premiere date (Oct 8) has been on this list since I first posted it.
I have no information that it will be switched from the UPN station to KCAL.
That would seem very odd.
Why don't you call Channel 13 in LA?
Fredfa, how are the rating for Hawaii? I normally look at the numbers in the column that Marc Berman writes over at Mediaweek.com but for some reason I missed the Hawaii numbers. It appeared that NBC was trying to use up all of the episodes it had ordered so that it could get rid of the show. It now seems that NBC is no longer trying to speed thru all of the episodes it has already bought. What's your opinion on what NBC is doing with this show?
LAX did also face the "Who dies?" episode of CSI: Miami, but it was a big plummet.
Put ABC in front of "Saturday Night Movie" to not confuse it with the NBC one, which might've been replaced by drama reruns (not cancelled since it was before season started). (for the Saturday, 9/25 premiere dates list)
Season 3 of Last Comic Standing is getting low ratings.
The Next Great Champ and The Complex: Malibut are having serious ratings trouble.
ENDContra
09-22-04, 04:58 PM
Originally posted by Rakesh.S
line of fire was a new show last year and it was on ABC..you should be happy that they aired all the episodes
Actually when the show was cancelled in January, there were 4 episodes unaired. Over the summer they made a movie out of the last two, but the two before that have yet to find an audience.
Re AFH:
"....how are the ratings for Hawaii?"
The Hawaii ratings certainly could be better.
I don't think NBC is as concerned by Hawaii as it is by what is it seeing with LAX, but still the numbers are pretty soft.
We’ll probably know a little more tomorrow after the week three numbers come out. If CSI:NY performs solidly against Law and Order, NBC might be even MORE concerned that it has to get its Wednesday night lead-ins doing better. The West Wing appears to be on its last legs, so a weak Hawaii leading into a continually slipping West Wing would not help Law and Order stave off CSI:NY.
Here is one perspective from Marc Berman last week (and the reference to Ed, is worrisome. While Ed was a cult and critical favorite, I doubt that Hawaii falls into either category.)
-----------------------------------
From Marc Berman’s Mediaweek.com column The Programming Insider Thursday 9/09/04:
“….week two of Hawaii in its regularly scheduled Wednesday 8 p.m. hour lost steam. Hawaii was second in the overnights (6.9/10) and viewers (8.56 million), but third among adults 18-49 (2.3/ 7), declining 17 percent in the overnights (8.3/13 to 6.9/10), 1.88 million viewers (10.44 to 8.56 million) and 26 percent among adults 18-49 (3.1/10 to 2.3/ 7) from its debut one week earlier. Considering the new season has not officially begun, this is concerning. All in all, Hawaii's performance is no better than marginal former time period occupant Ed….”
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
EXPLOSIVE TWO-HOUR SEASON PREMIERE OF '24' STARTS THE CLOCK ON A NEW DAY JAN. 3 ON FOX
Released by FOX
Series Moves to Monday Nights for 24 Episodes in a Row
FOX's award-winning series 24 returns for a fourth season of clock-stopping suspense beginning with an explosive season premiere of back-to-back episodes Monday, Jan. 3 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. The time period premiere will be Monday, Jan. 10 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT).
Kiefer Sutherland returns as Jack Bauer as the series shifts to Monday nights in 2005. The intense drama will unfold on a weekly basis without repeats or preemptions, from the pulse-pounding premiere to the heart-stopping season finale.
In season three of 24, Jack, who was in charge of a special field operations unit of the Counter Terrorist Unit, fought to stop a viral terrorism threat before it could kill millions of people.
Season four begins 18 months later with the episode "Day 4: 7:00 am – 8:00 am." CTU is now headed by Erin Driscoll (Alberta Watson, "La Femme Nikita"), a steely government agent who made firing Jack one of her first priorities upon taking over. After the explosion of a commuter train, Jack, who is now working for Secretary of Defense James Heller (William Devane, "Knots Landing") and also is romantically involved with his married daughter, Audrey (Kim Raver, "Third Watch"), suddenly finds himself heading back to CTU for a meeting with Driscoll on Heller's behalf.
taz291819
09-22-04, 07:35 PM
Originally posted by fredfa
Re AFH:
"....how are the ratings for Hawaii?"
The Hawaii ratings certainly could be better.
I don't think NBC is as concerned by Hawaii as it is by what is it seeing with LAX, but still the numbers are pretty soft.
We’ll probably know a little more tomorrow after the week three numbers come out. If CSI:NY performs solidly against Law and Order, NBC might be even MORE concerned that it has to get its Wednesday night lead-ins doing better. The West Wing appears to be on its last legs, so a weak Hawaii leading into a continually slipping West Wing would not help Law and Order stave off CSI:NY.
Here is one perspective from Marc Berman last week (and the reference to Ed, is worrisome. While Ed was a cult and critical favorite, I doubt that Hawaii falls into either category.)
-----------------------------------
From Marc Berman’s Mediaweek.com column The Programming Insider Thursday 9/09/04:
“….week two of Hawaii in its regularly scheduled Wednesday 8 p.m. hour lost steam. Hawaii was second in the overnights (6.9/10) and viewers (8.56 million), but third among adults 18-49 (2.3/ 7), declining 17 percent in the overnights (8.3/13 to 6.9/10), 1.88 million viewers (10.44 to 8.56 million) and 26 percent among adults 18-49 (3.1/10 to 2.3/ 7) from its debut one week earlier. Considering the new season has not officially begun, this is concerning. All in all, Hawaii's performance is no better than marginal former time period occupant Ed….”
Great, another show I actually like isn't doing well. What is it with my taste in television? :confused:
re f44:
"...Season 3 of Last Comic Standing is getting low ratings.
The Next Great Champ and The Complex: Malibu are having serious ratings trouble...."
While I don't necessarily disagree, I am trying to keep the focus here on HD programs, mentioning the SD shows just for balance.
Although I might slip a little now and then, I will not be updating the SD cancellations and ratings woes with any consistency.
Originally posted by taz291819
Great, another show I actually like isn't doing well. What is it with my taste in television? :confused:
One can only ask themselves that question. :D
Jim
People say Veronica Mars was in HD (I also read somewhere that Kevin Hill will probably be HD too, would make sense).
As far as I know, the only UPN HD program is Enterprise.
But read the post in this section about Veronica Mars.
Now I have seen the UPN information - from UPN, f44. So the listings have been updated with the UPN HD news.
Added: surprising ratings news for the first CSI:NY-Law and Order 10 PM faceoff.
Hawaii added to the in trouble list.
Updates with the week's schedule delay for Center of the Universe and King of Queens announced late Thursday Sept 23rd by CBS.
I guess I'm not even a litttle surprised that CSI:NY beat Long in the Tooth and Order.
It'll probably get worse when The West Wing returns as the L&O lead in next month, and with Hawaii apparently dying quickly, NBC could be in real trouble on Wednesdays
Updated with Thursday's ratings.
Paul Bigelow
09-24-04, 03:36 PM
I find it interesting that both LAX and Hawaii were *heavily* promoted during the 2004 Olympics HD telecast.
60 Minutes (formerly 60 Minutes II) should go under CBS Shows which have Already Premiered.
f44: change made. Thanks.
Lost HD
The Bachelor
should only be listed under ABC and not CBS as well.
Updated with Friday night's ratings.
Added prime time schedule changes for Thursday, Sept. 30th due to the first Presidential debate.
Updated with Sunday's ratings
Thanks fred this is still my fave thread on the board at the moment.
Why the heck is FOX waiting so long to roll out its sunday line-up?
And what is up with the Simpsons? How can you have a "new episode" on the 7th but a season premiere on the 14th? And will there not be a Halloween episode this year?
h_a_h_3
09-27-04, 01:58 PM
FOX is waiting for baseball playoffs to finish before starting the new shows...
fox's sunday night has premeired in November for the past few years.
don't matter though.. IMHO it's the best night on TV...
Originally posted by fredfa
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
EXPLOSIVE TWO-HOUR SEASON PREMIERE OF '24' STARTS THE CLOCK ON A NEW DAY JAN. 3 ON FOX
Released by FOX
Series Moves to Monday Nights for 24 Episodes in a Row
FOX's award-winning series 24 returns for a fourth season of clock-stopping suspense beginning with an explosive season premiere of back-to-back episodes Monday, Jan. 3 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. The time period premiere will be Monday, Jan. 10 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT).
Kiefer Sutherland returns as Jack Bauer as the series shifts to Monday nights in 2005. The intense drama will unfold on a weekly basis without repeats or preemptions, from the pulse-pounding premiere to the heart-stopping season finale.
In season three of 24, Jack, who was in charge of a special field operations unit of the Counter Terrorist Unit, fought to stop a viral terrorism threat before it could kill millions of people.
Season four begins 18 months later with the episode "Day 4: 7:00 am – 8:00 am." CTU is now headed by Erin Driscoll (Alberta Watson, "La Femme Nikita"), a steely government agent who made firing Jack one of her first priorities upon taking over. After the explosion of a commuter train, Jack, who is now working for Secretary of Defense James Heller (William Devane, "Knots Landing") and also is romantically involved with his married daughter, Audrey (Kim Raver, "Third Watch"), suddenly finds himself heading back to CTU for a meeting with Driscoll on Heller's behalf. Sheesh. When I read the thread last week about the 24 premiere on "Monday Jan 3rd at 8:00, moving to it's regular time slot at 9:00 the following week" it totally went over my head that the move to Monday nights was permanent. I misread that as meaning it would move back to Tues at 9:00 the following week :(. That's a drag. There is really nothing else on Tues nights that I look forward to.
ron
Originally posted by R11
Sheesh. When I read the thread last week about the 24 premiere on "Monday Jan 3rd at 8:00, moving to it's regular time slot at 9:00 the following week" it totally went over my head that the move to Monday nights was permanent.
ron
Plus, now it conflicts with Everybody Loves Raymond and Two and a Half Men, IMO two of the best sit-coms on TV.
Is FX still going to show an encore the following night?
Jim
CBS.com says the premiere for 60 Minutes (formerly 60 Minutes II) was on 9/22, but current wording on CBSNews.com and a promo in TV Guide say it is this week on 9/29.
I think NBC has decided to show drama repeats instead of a Saturday Night Movie.
Also, thefutoncritic.com says the premieres of The King of Queens and Center of the Universe have been moved to October 20th.
Originally posted by f44
CBS.com says the premiere for 60 Minutes (formerly 60 Minutes II) was on 9/22, but current wording on CBSNews.com and a promo in TV Guide say it is this week on 9/29.
During Sunday's "60 Minutes", they ran a promo of the Wednesday show, calling it "60 Minutes Wednesday". (Also of note, the featured heavyweight correspondent was Mike Wallace, not you-know-who).
NBC will apparently usually run drama repeats Saturday, but will sometimes air movies.
It's either called 60 Minutes Wednesday or 60 Minutes (Weeknight Edition).
More news from 24, this time from the New York Post Tuesday Sept 27th:
http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/30975.htm
TONY '24' BACK By COELI CARR, New York Post
September 28, 2004 -- THE last time viewers saw turncoat-agent Tony Almeida on "24," he was facing serious jail time for treason.
His reasons for siding with terrorists against the U.S. may have been understandable — to save his kidnapped wife — but fans of the Fox suspense show ended the season with the reasonable assurance that Tony was gone.
Turns out now that he's not forgotten. Tony Almeida's coming back this season.
The word several months ago was that many of the program's most pivotal characters would not be returning for the new season, which debuts January 3.
"I was always told there were going to be changes, but that I was always going to be coming back," actor Carlos Bernard told The Post, as he prepares to start production on the fourth season of "24" next week. "We had discussions about how the Almeida character was going to be brought back. I wanted to do another season, if the character was put in a new place."
Prison was the most likely place — given his double dealing .
But this week Bernard is more focused on the story yet to be mined from Almeida's past.
"It's not so much about what you didn't find out about the character, it's more about the possibilities with the character," he said.
Bernard's mum on the fate of Almeida's wife, Michelle (Reiko Aylesworth), or even what episode he makes his entrance, saying that kind of advance information migth spoil things for viewers.
"My first impression fro