Hot Off The Press: The Latest TV News and Information - Page 2283

The crazy and totally silly censorship here.

ahhh.. I hear you. I can't say I know how it feels to be 64. I'm 29. Community got a lot better over the course of its first season. Parks and Rec had a little 6-8 episode 1st season that could really be skipped, as S2 is when it started to shine.

Are you put off by the comedy shows without a laugh track?

2011 Upfront Notes
What’s With the Awful Key Art for New Shows?
By Margaret Lyons, New York Magazine's 'Vulture' Blog - May 17th, 2011

Amid the hubbub of upfronts and the excitement of new shows getting picked up (plus the delicious Schadenfreude of shows not getting picked up), one major thing often gets overlooked: the bizarrely crappy key art the networks release for their new shows.

Some of the art is fine — banal, overly posed and edited, but fine — but some of these photos are just ridiculous. Particularly the one's for:

Once Upon a Time

ABC! Come on, now. That image of the national security team wearing Princess Beatrice's hat looks better than this.

Pan Am

Christina Ricci levitating between those two pilots is pretty creepy.

Bent

Why is David Walton so gigantic? And tan?

Free Agents

Really? Implied blowies on a poster? We're there now?

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment...key_art_f.html

TV Sports/2011 Upfront Notes
ESPN's plan for NFL lockout is no plan; aggressive Olympics bid in works
By Joe Flint, Los Angeles Times' 'Company Town' Blog - May 17th, 2011

A top ESPN executive told advertisers Tuesday he knows how the National Football League labor dispute will end.

"They're going to play," said John Skipper, the cable sports empire's executive vice president of content. He then added wryly, "I don't know when they're going to play, but when they do we'll carry it."

All kidding aside, the battle between the NFL owners and players over a new collective bargaining agreement has cast a cloud over all the TV networks that count on football for big ratings and ad dollars. Walt Disney Co.'s ESPN, which carries "Monday Night Football," has a lot at stake.

Skipper, a candid executive, said there is no secret plan to replace "Monday Night Football" should the regular season be delayed by labor strife because it is irreplaceable. That doesn't mean ESPN will run a test pattern for four hours on Monday evenings, but for now Skipper isn't trying to figure out what the network can throw on as a substitute because whatever it is, the ratings and advertiser demand won't be as high.

One thing you won't see is ESPN trying to put college football on to replace "Monday Night Football." Skipper said the logistics of such a move would be too difficult and the network also needs the flexibility to drop whatever replacement plans are in place the second the players and owners reach an agreement and games start again.

"We got a lot of other stuff," Skipper said without elaboration.

Skipper reiterated that ESPN would be an aggressive bidder for the 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2016 Summer Games this June when the International Olympic Committee starts the process. Other bidders will include incumbent NBC and News Corp.'s Fox.

"Our level of interest is very high," Skipper said. As for the competition, Skipper said it is difficult to handicap. While NBC has the legacy of carrying the games, new owner Comcast has indicated it wants to be in businesses that make money. NBC lost over $230 million on the 2010 Olympics.

Still, Skipper expects Comcast to be there. The cable giant also has a sports channel -- Versus -- that it wants to beef up.

"I think they'd like to have it," Skipper said.

One of Skipper's big pitches to the IOC will be live coverage regardless of what time zone the games are being played in. NBC usually puts taped coverage in prime time if the games are not being played in a time zone where the majority of U.S. viewers are home in the evening.

But in the age of the Internet and Twitter, such an approach seems out-of-date to some.

In its presentation to advertisers in New York, ESPN seemed to go out of its away to emphasize that it is much more than football and has an audience that goes beyond beer-guzzling men.The network heavily promoted its upcoming coverage of the Women's World Cup and a new soccer-flavored biography series about female athletes and personalities called "HERoics."

In attendance was Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger. Although he was listed as a "participant" by ESPN in their program, his level of participation was waving to the crowd when introduced.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/ente...-in-works.html

TV Notes
Time For CBS To Move 'CSI' From Thursday?
By Nellie Andreeva, Deadline.com - May 17th, 2011

This February marked the 10th anniversary of CBS' overnight transformation into a major player on Thursday with the successful relocation there of Survivor and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. But, after nine and a half seasons, Survivor was pulled from the Thursday 8 PM slot at the beginning of this season when CBS opened a comedy block on the night anchored by The Big Bang Theory. Will CBS continue the rejuvenation of its Thursday lineup by replacing longtime anchor CSI this year?

As usual CBS is mum on its scheduling plans but the buzz is that this may be the year that CSI vacates TV's most lucrative night. CBS laid the groundwork for such a move last year. With the very risky decision to uproot red-hot Monday comedy The Big Bang Theory to Thursday to launch a comedy block, the network understandably opted for stability on the rest of the night, keeping its 9-11 PM drama block of CSI and The Mentalist intact. But now that the network has established a foothold on the night with Big Bang, it can focus on rebuilding the rest of the lineup, most importantly, addressing the continuous ratings decline of CSI, which hit several series lows this season. Also helping the case for a change is the fact that neither of the other Big 4 made a move at 9 PM, leaving 3 aging shows - ABC's Grey's Anatomy, Fox's Bones and NBC's The Office - vulnerable to assault by an upstart.

CBS has a number of options for the 9 PM slot. Because it has only picked up 2 new comedy series so far, expanding the comedy block to 2 hours is probably not one of them. But younger shows like The Mentalist, which was tested once in the time period last season but couldn't improve on CSI's performance, NCIS: LA, Hawaii Five-0 or the unscripted Undercover Boss could be viable candidates. Slotting a new series in the hour is also a possibility, though networks have had more success with transplanting there shows that already have built momentum elsewhere. As for the CSI franchise, last year CBS pulled the 2 spinoff series, CSI: Miami and CSI: NY out of their Monday and Wednesday 10 PM positions, leaving the mothership (and oldest) CSI series as the only one in its longtime (and prominent) slot. It would be symbolic if CSI moves back to Fridays 9 PM where it originally launched, just like Survivor last year was sent back to its original Wednesday 8 PM time period.

Meanwhile, of CBS' two new comedies, Two Broke Girls, which has 2 female leads, and How To Be a Gentleman, which has two male leads, Two Broke Girls, seems compatible with both The Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother, while How To Be a Gentleman would go nicely with Two and a Half Men.

http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/time...from-thursday/

TV Notes
House Shocker: Lisa Edelstein Calls It Quits
By Michael Ausiello, TVLine.com - May 17th, 2011

House fandom, brace for impact: Dr. Cuddy is checking out.

Sources confirm to TVLine that Lisa Edelstein — whose long-term contract expires this month — has opted not to return for the show’s eighth and likely final season.

Fox and NBC Universal declined to comment and there’s no word from Edelstein’s camp.

Back in March — when the fate of House itself was up in the air — Edelstein told TVLine, “Nobody at work seems to think it won’t [return]. Everybody wants to come to a deal, and I certainly am looking forward to a Season 8.”

http://www.tvline.com/2011/05/house-...elstein-quits/

UPDATE (from Deadline): Lisa Edelstein just released the following statement: "After much consideration, I am moving onward with a combination of disappointment at leaving behind a character I have loved playing for seven years and excitement of the new opportunities in acting and producing that lie ahead."

Lisa, nooooooooooooooo!

I guess she got tired of House in real life also...

I wonder if they are going to have time to re-write her departure or appear as guest on the first episode..

I think they wanted her to take a pay cut, that might have contributed to her decision to leave.

Mmm a paycut is way better than no pay.. I hope she gets into a new series, but I don't think they are going to pay her that much, unless she lands a main star role.

Saturday, May 28, 1pm PDT - Leave it to Beaver (four episodes.) TV Land

Saturday, May 28, 3pm PDT - The Andy Griffith Show (four episodes) TV Land

2011 Upfront Notes
CW Picks Up 'Secret Circle', 'Hart Of Dixie', 'Ringer' & 'H8ER'
By Nellie Andreeva, Deadline.com - May 17th, 2011

The CW has officially picked up the Sarah Michelle Gellar drama pilot Ringer, which was originally produced for CBS, along with early frontrunners Secret Circle and Hart of Dixie. On the unscripted side, as expected, CW has picked up series H8ER, which pairs celebrities with their haters.

The pickups for Secret Circle and Hart of Dixie brings the number of CW series from producers Kevin Williamson and the duo of Josh Schwartz & Stephanie Savage to 2 each. The Vampire Diaries co-creator Williamson co-wrote the witch tale The Secret Circle with Andrew Miller, based on the Alloy books, which stars Britt Robertson. And Gossip Girl co-creators Schwartz and Savage are executive producing the small town medical drama Hart of Dixie written by Leila Gerstein and starring Rachel Bilson. Ringer, written by Eric Charmelo and Nicole Snyder, stars Gellar and a girl on the run from the mob who assumes the identity of her twin sister.

Ringer is from CBS TV Studios, Hart of Dixie and Secret Circle from Warner Bros. TV, and H8ER from Warner Horizon. All scripted series will now be co-productions between Waner Bros. TV and CBS Studios.

http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/cw-p...hart-of-dixie/

* * * *

TV Notes
Ed Zuckerman To Run CBS' 'Blue Bloods'

Law & Order veteran Ed Zuckerman, who most recently ran ABC's legal drama The Whole Truth last season, has been tapped as the new showrunner on CBS' Blue Bloods, which has not been officially renewed but is coming back next season.

Zuckerman will succeed the series' creators Mitchell Burgess and Robin Green who have exited at the end of this season. Zuckerman's strong procedural background (he spent 14 years on Law & Order and also worked on JAG and L&O: Criminal Intent) confirms CBS' desire to take the cop/family drama in a more procedural direction next season.

http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/ed-z...s-blue-bloods/

I watched the Andy Griffith show when I was a kid

but I hope I'm not still just watching Friends re-runs when I'm 65

He should check his OTA subchannels, also. Might have ones with some Retro programming, and his pay provider may not be carrying all of them. I think all those series' he mentioned are shown here.

TV Notes
The CW Renews 'One Tree Hill,' 'Nikita'; 'Hellcats' Canceled
By Lesley Goldberg, The Hollywood Reporter - May 17th, 2011

As the CW readies its schedule for the coming season, the network has renewed two dramas (One Tree Hill and Nikita) and dropped a third (Hellcats).

While Nikita has not been the ratings slam-dunk the network had hoped it would be, it remains a solid performer for the younger-skewing net. What's more, the spy-drama's well-received series star, Maggie Q, offers significant international appeal. The drama co-starring Shane West averaged about 2.5 million viewers this season, according to Nielsen. The show's season finale aired Thursday.

One Tree Hill, a carry-over from the now defunct WB Network, has added and shed many of its characters over the course of its near decadelong run. Playing to its advantage in recent years is a built-in name and track record, both important on a network that's struggled to draw viewers. The female-skewing serial hails from Warner Bros. TV and creator Mark Schwahn. One well-placed source says it will likely return for midseason.

Hellcats, centering on a college cheer squad, lacked the ratings or buzz necessary to get a second chance. It has averaged less than 2 million viewers this season, according to Nielsen.

The CW will unveil its slate to Madison Avenue buyers Thursday.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/new...ee-hill-189156

A pay cut and a reduction of episodes. I assume she thinks she can get a pilot somewhere and have a chance to work full time rather than part time on House.

One would have to assume she is pretty much set for life on how well HOuse does in syndication.

Nielsen Notes (Cable)
'Game of Thrones' Continues its Ratings Reign
By Tim Kenneally, TheWrap.com - May 17th, 2011

On HBO, as in life, it's good to be the king.

The pay cable network's "Game of Thrones, which launched in mid-April, continued its ratings climb on Sunday, scoring its highest ratings to date.

The most recent "Thrones" grabbed 2.6 million viewers during its 9 p.m. broadcast on Sunday. Combined with the show's 11 p.m. encore presentation, the total viewer average was 3.3 million.

By comparison, last week's episode -- itself a series high at the time -- garnered a combined 3.1 million viewers with its broadcast and re-broadcast.

Between various platforms -- broadcast, DVR and HBO on Demand -- "Game of Thrones" has been averaging 8.1 million total viewers.

http://www.thewrap.com/tv/column-pos...gs-reign-27475

2011 Upfront Notes
Fall TV season: ABC's ambitious new schedule tries to 'Man Up' and strike a balance
By Meg James, Los Angeles Times' 'Show Tracker' Blog - May 17th, 2011

In unveiling ABC's fall prime-time schedule, the network's new entertainment president, Paul Lee, played keys of affection to describe his slate of 13 new shows, calling them: "super cool," "a power bloc of drama" and "pure candy."

But one more practical word stood out: balance.

"What we have tried to do is get a nice balance -- stability for our established hits and real ambition for our new shows," Lee said Tuesday morning during a news conference at ABC's New York headquarters, a few hours before he was scheduled to take the stage to pitch his schedule to hundreds of advertisers and influential advertising buyers.

Finding a balance has been something that has eluded the Walt Disney Co.-owned network in recent years. After soaring to great heights six years ago with such blockbuster dramas as "Grey's Anatomy," "Desperate Housewives," and "Lost," ABC stumbled in its search for strong replacement dramas that appeal to both men and women.

Instead, the network has achieved ratings success with "Dancing with the Stars" and the breakout comedy "Modern Family," and has made more modest gains with "The Middle," "Castle" and "Body of Proof," starring Dana Delany as a medical examiner.

But advertisers have grumbled that the network, which will finish the current season in third place, was becoming a bit too female-centric. Nearly 65% of ABC's prime-time audience are women.

So now, similar to the middle-aged vixens of "Desperate Housewives," fetching the men has become something of a priority for Lee. The 50-year-old British executive, who transformed Disney's ABC Family cable channel, was picked last summer to run ABC Entertainment following the abrupt departure of former network programmer Stephen McPherson.

Tuesday, Lee rolled out 13 new programs, including a remake of "Charlie's Angels," characterized by Lee as "pure candy;" a 1960s-themed soapy yarn, "Pan Am," that promises "sexy entanglements" between pilots and flight attendants; and a vividly drawn fantasy world, "Once Upon a Time," that seems tailor-made for an attraction at Disneyland.

"Once Upon a Time" features a beautiful 28-year-old bail bondswoman, Emma Swan, played by Jennifer Morrison ("House, M.D.') and her 10-year-old son, Henry, played by Jared Gilmore. Henry believes Emma is the missing daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming. And yes, there is even a Disney-esque Evil Queen, played by Lana Parrilla, and Snow White, played by Ginnifer Goodwin ("Big Love"). Robert Carlyle ("The Full Monty") is Rumplestiltskin.

Fantasy has become a recurring theme this week as the major broadcast networks give advertisers a peek at their new lineups. In times of recession and economic hardship, audiences crave fantasy, Lee said.

"In challenging times, people turn to superheroes, they turn to monsters and a number of things," he said. "People are looking for pure entertainment, and television can provide that."

ABC's schedule, Lee said, "is a balance between comfort and escapism."

However, he said, the network is not about to shy away from providing estrogen-heavy programming. "We are extremely proud to be a network that over-delivers and brings in the most affluent female audience," he said, noting that "Modern Family" is "a deeply balanced show."

Even his 18-year-old son watches "Modern Family," he said.

Several shows seek to attract men. In addition to "Charlie's Angels," there is a new Tuesday night sitcom, "Last Man Standing," starring Tim Allen, who exhibited plenty of male appeal when he remodeled the ABC prime-time schedule 20 years ago with "Home Improvement." There is a also a comedy, appropriately named "Man Up," that is described as three modern men trying to get in touch with their "inner tough guys," including one who prefers his coffee with nondairy hazelnut creamer.

The network canceled the long-running drama "Brothers and Sisters," which was running out of steam in the ratings, to make room on Sunday night for "Pan Am," which is produced by Sony Pictures Television, which is contributing two shows to the lineup. (ABC also struck a balance here, as six of its 13 new shows are produced by the in-house ABC Studios, a priority of Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger).

Other new offerings include "Revenge," a drama about a young woman who seeks to right wrongs by destroying the people of a town in the Hamptons, and "Suburgatory," about a single father who moves his family from promiscuous New York City to the suburbs.

Midseason shows include "The River," what is being called a tense and action-packed scripted drama about a wildlife expert and TV personality who goes missing during a boat trip along the Amazon. His family attempts to find him as the cameras roll.

And, of course, there are a couple of cat-claw pleasers, including "Good Christian Belles," based on the book "Good Christian Bitches," by Kim Gatlin, about a former mean girl who returns to her home in the affluent and gossipy suburbs of Dallas. There is also "Apartment 23" (renamed from the working title of "The Bitch in Apartment 23.")

The only thing that seemed missing from ABC's schedule was a singing competition. When a reporter wanted to know why ABC wasn't offering such a competition, Lee cheerfully asked: "Do you want me to start singing?"

ABC is hoping that the advertisers will be the ones doing that.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/show...a-balance.html

Does she get a cut of that? I thought most actors do not get a cut of the syndication revenue?

via press release from A&E]
A&E GREENLIGHTS NEW ORIGINAL SERIES "FLIPPED" FEATURING "SURVIVOR" RUSSELL HANTZ
"SERIES WILL GIVE VIEWERS ACCESS TO HIGH STAKES HOUSE FLIPPING IN THE CURRENT ECONOMY

SEVEN ONE-HOUR EPISODES SLATED FOR FOURTH QUARTER 2011

New York, NY, May 16, 2011 - A&E has ordered seven one-hour episodes of "Flipped" from Departure Films, it was announced today by David McKillop, Executive Vice President, Programming, A&E Network and BIO Channel. The series follows "Survivor" Russell Hantz, a "flipper" himself, along with his family, around the Houston area as they try to buy low, renovate cheap and sell high. The series is slated to air in late 2011. ..."



Read more: Breaking News - A&E Greenlights New Original Series "Flipped" Featuring "Survivor" Russell Hantz | TheFutonCritic.com http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2...#ixzz1Me4SibIE

And Craig Ferguson.

I've been looking at their winners for several years now, and only once have I been dumbfounded...when they gave Entourage a Peabody. They're allowed one mistake I suppose.

TV Notes
'Cougar Town' producer Bill Lawrence on the mid-season move
Lawrence wanted to lead off an hour; ABC gave him his wish
By Alan Sepinwall, HitFix.com - May 17th, 2011

"Cougar Town" co-creator Bill Lawrence blames himself, in a way, for the show being pushed to mid-season on ABC's new schedule, where it will air Tuesdays at 9 in between installments of "Dancing with the Stars," while "Happy Endings" takes up resident in the post-"Modern Family" timeslot Wednesdays at 9:30.

Lawrence has a development deal with Warner Bros., which means next season will likely be his last as a hands-on boss at "Cougar Town." And one of the things he wanted to accomplish before he handed the keys to Kevin Biegel was to try to establish the show as something that could stand on its own at the start of a half-hour. He'd been asking ABC president Paul Lee about it for a while; he just didn't necessarily expect it to happen this quickly, or with "Cougar Town" not airing at all in the season's early months.

I spoke with Lawrence this afternoon about the move, which he's known about for a few days, about what he learned from the seasons when "Scrubs" aired at mid-season, and about how he and the cast and crew intend to continue the guerilla marketing they did during this season's mini-hiatus. As often happens with Bill, he talks a lot and I get in a word on occasion.

So how did you feel when you found out? Is it not a big deal for you to be on at mid-season?
I knew about this a little beforehand, and I'll paraphrase what I wrote to the cast and the writers. I said I feel like I brought this on in a good way, which is I've been hounding Paul to give us a chance to lead off an hour. I think that's important. I don't know if you're a retention guy or a ratings guy. I'm happy for "Happy Endings," which has a bunch of "Scrubs" people working on it, but one of the things they'll find out about their lead-in is that if you can't retain that ridiculously high number you get as a hit, every Thursday for a year you get to see Marc Berman's column say you're a giant loser and shouldn't be on television. "The Middle" is rightly called a hit with a 2.0 (demographic) rating at 8, and the only way we'll know if this show is worth any money is if we lead off an hour. If we have a core audience and can get a 2 or a 2.4, then the show is a giant success.

I'm not totally spinning. If I could have designed what I wanted to have happen this year, it would've been to be on after "Modern Family" until "Dancing" went off and then go to Tuesday. My hope would be that that happened, that we would get our old timeslot for the first month and a half. My fear is that we would just be listed as a mid-season show. Coming on after the holidays would be too big a gap. This didn't really bum me out.

I know for a fact that "Apartment 23" is one of their favorite new sitcoms, if not their favorite new sitcom, and we're on with them. Somebody in the cast said, "Wouldn't it bum you out if you continue on into the summer?" I said, "You're talking to me as a guy who feels like these last two episodes of our season are our strongest, but they're now against two-hour episodes of 'American Idol' and will be absolutely obliterated. Maybe they'll only be watched on DVRs." To me, I'm a guy who is still intrigued why they don't just roll out shows year-round. 10 years ago, I would see FOX roll out shows in August, and it actually worked. I'm looking at this last TV season, and if I could go back in time and run a network for a year, I would take a show like "The Chicago Code" or "Lone Star" and find a place where I could roll them out where there was no pressure on them, where they weren't being overwhelmed by the masses. Give them a chance to get a toehold and develop creatively.

It's a long-winded answer, but this stuff doesn't really bother me. "Scrubs," when we got rolled out for mid-season back on NBC, it really helped us. Here, let me read to you from that e-mail I sent: "The positives: our show gets ruthlessly criticized following 'Modern Family' with lower numbers. If we get those numbers leading off an hour, you get praised. The network will have no money for promoting old shows in the fall other than 'Modern Family,' so we'll be ignored, while we might actually get a push at mid-season. The only negatives, for real, is that it feels ******." I'm on the phone with you, in part, because all my friends are TV writers, and for the next few weeks, they walk up to you like you just got diagnosed with cancer. "Oh, you got moved to mid-season. I'm sorry..." This is a town of negative perception. To me, the only negative is being off the air for so long.

You wound up in this exact timeslot, airing in between two "Dancing" seasons, with that final "Scrubs Med" season of "Scrubs," and ABC gave up on that partway through the season and started airing episodes on other nights. Of course, that was a show that was dying, so will this be different?
That was a show that they did not believe in creatively, and it felt like a burn-off to me and everyone involved. This time, we are helping to launch a sitcom ("Apartment 23") that I'm quite honestly surprised isn't on the fall schedule. With a new president, he's not seeing this lightly. He sees this as a timeslot that has a winnable hour, if not an entire comedy bloc that, in success, could exist in the future.

Maybe I'm looking through rose-colored glasses

This morning, Paul said you still had a 22-episode order, but there aren't going to be 22 weeks in between "Dancing" seasons. He said he wasn't sure what to do with the leftovers yet, and that they might air in the summer or something. What has he told you?
All he's told me is that they'll air. Here's the thing that a network president can't say to you, especially on a day like today: in the best possible year ABC could hope for, two or three of the shows you're writing about this week will exist at the end of the season. That's the best possible outcome. Most of these shows will fail and need to be replaced, some of them in the middle of the season. Is a network president ever going to stand up and say, "By the end of the year, that 8:30 show isn't going to be working, we're going to bump it for 'Cougar Town'"? He can't say that. All I know is that our episodes aren't going to be held over for the following year. Our worst-case scenario doesn't bother me that much. If you do the math - and I like to do the math - you'd be looking at 3 or 4 episodes ending up in May or early June. And I could care less about that.

We talked a few weeks ago about all the viral marketing you did to keep "Cougar Town" fans engaged during the spring hiatus. Do you have any specific plans yet for what you'll do this time?
We're having a big old meeting this coming Monday to really talk about how to keep the show alive. I really enjoy the social media experiment, as to whether or not you can do anything other than on a limited basis market your show. If we can keep it alive, we're gonna. I also don't believe that this time is going to feel as long as our hiatus did this year. On some level, people that watch network television are still geared to shows start when they start. To me, our show is just starting in late fall rather than in the morass of premiere season. No spin, my only giant fear is that coming on completely forgotten is always risky.

We've talked before about how that first year when "Scrubs" was on at mid-season, you guys got really really weird with no audience feedback to play off of as you made the episodes.
"Scrubs" got weird because of that show's nature. The core message of what you're hitting on, that we'll do again, is we're going to do a show that cracks us up. When you're doing it this way, it removes you a little from network guidance of what your storytelling style is going to be. In the fall, you're only going to be on your 5th episode when your show premieres, and it becomes, "Well, people are responding to this, so do more of this, ditch this, give her more to do..." This way, there's less creative tinkering. So let's just make something that really makes us laugh.

http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/whats-al...id-season-move

2011 Upfront Notes
Live-Blogging ABC Presentation
By Nellie Andreeva, Deadline.com - May 17th, 2011

When he took the stage for his first ABC upfront presentation, the network's new president Paul Lee was quick to bring up the event's main attraction. "When Anne Sweeney called me about the job, I asked myself, 'Do I really wan't to be humiliated by Jimmy Kimmel in front of hundreds of people?' The answer was: 'Absolutely' "

Right away, Lee branded the network's lineup "pure entertainment," so he began presenting ABC's fall schedule with Thursday night, showcasing new 8 PM anchor Charlie's Angels. "I wanted to remake Charlie's Angels since I was 14," Lee said. He explained the decision to schedule the remake Thursdays at 8 PM with the fact that it will be the only scripted drama in the slot (besides CW).

Tim Allen was on hand to promote his new ABC comedy Last Man Standing. "It's about a man in a women’s world. Its original name was The Paul Lee Story."

After the clip for ABC's new cross-dressing comedy Work It, Lee justified his decision to pick up the show with, "So sue me, I'm a Brit," segueing to "Talking about cross-dressing, here's Jimmy Kimmel."

Kimmel was his usual irreverent self. Here are some of his top barbs:

On Lee: "Speaking of gay, let's talk to the new head of ABC, Paul Lee. Oh, wait? He's not gay, he's British? Who better to lead the American Broadcasting Company than an English guy with a Korean last name."

On Fox's The X Factor: "It's like American Idol meets a mirror."

On ABC's reality series Shark Tank, in which wanna-be inventors compete for a cash prize: "You know what someone should invent on Shark Tank? A replacement for Shark Tank."

On older-skewing CBS: "CBS is the No. 1 network mainly because their viewers can't remember where they put the remote. ... More people die watching CBS than any other network."

On Ashton Kutcher replacing Charlie Sheen on CBS' Two and a Half Men: "They said that they will retool the show, and sure enough they found a new tool, Ashton Kutcher." Why is he a great choice? "He did a good replacing Bruce Willis."

On ABC executives and talent: "All of us at ABC, from the top down, are committed to one thing: Keeping our jobs."

http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/live...-presentation/

I honestly don't know what it is, but I have no reason to think it has anything to do with that. I simply don't find today's sitcoms funny, especially from episode to episode, so I tend to avoid them altogether. I can enjoy individual episodes of things like 2.5 Men, but not enough to tune in week after week. To me, the humor is based on sexual innuendo, crude language that passes in today's society, or just plain slap-stick, ala Seinfeld. I'd much rather watch a You Tube video of a Jeff Dunham performance or even the Blue Collar guys.

I think a big part of it is because I never find 2 back to back, so I opt for the 1-hr drama vs wasting the hour on a 30-minute sitcom I only partially enjoy once in awhile. Granted, the DVR helps with that problem, but I still prefer dramas, even lousy ones, like The Event, to sitcoms.

Then too, like a lot of other things in life these days, I have something to compare to. I look at 30 Rock compared to Mork & Mindy, The Office to Bob Newhart, Scrubs to MASH, 2.5 Men to 3's Company, Modern Family to Home Improvement, Parks & Rec to The Honeymooners, and The Simpsons, Family Guy, etc., to Leave It To Beaver, I Love Lucy, and Ozzie & Harriet. IMHO, the former were originals, the latter are classless ripoffs of the greats.

If you have no point of reference, I can see where the current crop might be considered funny, so that's why I say "generational". My generation goes from I Love Lucy to MASH and no one currently on TV compares to Red Skelton, Red Buttons, Jerry Lewis, Bob Hope, Bob Newhart, Don Rickles, or even Dean Martin and HIS "Roasts". I'll admit those were different times, certainly naive, but at least my generation of TV didn't teach my 4-yr old granddaughter "it sucks", "it's crap", "ass", "damn", "hell", etc. There wasn't a need for a finger on the bleeper when Elvis did his '68 Comback Special live or when the Oscars were presented. I could drive around Phoenix without being subjected to lyrics with the "F" word or songs about cop killers.

Sorry, I guess I got carried away with the soapbox, but I decided to leave it rather than delete it to more fully explain my POV. And don't get me wrong, I'm no prude. I just find stuff overdone and boring as a result. I find the same thing true about dramas when compared to The Rockford Files and others of days long gone, but we're talking sitcoms here, so I kept it to that.

Hey, thanks. I just checked my cable giide and it doesn't go that far out. FWIW, I don't go out of the way to find them, just watch them when I see them.

I did see them on RTV, but that wasn't really my point.

That is another part of my point. How many songs and TV shows from today will be around 30-40 years from now the way the "oldies" have managed to maintain a following?

Plus, where was her character going? IMHO, it's been less than stellar of late.

2011 Upfront Notes
CW Picks Up Two More Reality Series: 'The Frame' & 'Re-Modeled'
By Nellie Andreeva, Deadline.com - May 17th, 2011

The CW has picked up two more new reality series for next season, The Frame, about teams of 2 living in a single room, and Re-Modeled, about small modeling agencies banding together to take on the big fish. The two shows join H8er, which was ordered earlier today for what I think is the largest number of new unscripted series ever introduced by the CW at its upfront.

The Frame is a bi-weekly show, in which 10 teams of two will each live in a single room - one Frame - for up to 8 weeks, under 24/7 surveillance. They will face challenges, head-to-head competitions, and eliminations, all while isolated from the outside world, with the viewers controlling who stays and who goes. Shed Media and Armoza International Media are producing, with Nick Emmerson and Jen O’Connell exec producing.

In Re-Modeled, modeling industry veteran Paul Fisher is planning to bring together hundreds of small agencies around the world in a new venture called The Network to make sure agents in small towns no longer get screwed, and to empower models to take control of their careers and lead healthier lives. Fly on the Wall Entertainment and Sony Pictures TV are producing, with Allison Grodner and Amy Palmer executive producing.

http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/cw-p...me-re-modeled/

* * * *

TV Notes
AMC Won't Order Any Pilots This Go-Round

After narrowing its development field to six scripts, which had been undergoing thorough evaluation for the past two months, AMC ultimately decided not to pick up any of them to pilot at this time. This does not mean that all six projects are dead. I hear that two of them, The Voyage and an untitled racing project, will remain in contention and are expected to be redeveloped. Space epic Voyage, from writer/executive producer John Shiban and executive producer Lynda Obst, is described as a grounded look at human beings' first contact with extraterrestrial life seen through the eyes of an ambitious female scientist and her team at Jet Propulsion Laboratories. Sony TV is producing.

Voyage, the racing project and four other scripts -- The Man With the Golden Ears, The 4th Estate, The Wreck and American Made -- took part in the network's annual pilot script "bake-off" in early March, in which they faced off in a series of elaborate presentations, with the producing team for each project showing a promo reel and each creator pitching in detail the series beyond the pilot, including mapping out the first season. After examining each presentation, I hear AMC brass determined that none of the six scripts were ready to go to pilot at this time. AMC has been very selective in its pilot orders as 100% of them have gone to pilot so far: Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Rubicon, The Walking Dead (straight to series), The Killing and the upcoming Hell On Wheels.

http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/cw-p...me-re-modeled/

2011 Upfront Notes
ABC Schedule Analysis: The Alphabet Goes on a Wild New-Show Spree ... Because It Has To
By Josef Adalian, New York Magazine's 'Vulture' Blog - May 17th, 2011

Let's be blunt: ABC is a network in crisis mode. New Alphabet chief Paul Lee's calm exterior and British stiff upper lip aside, any broadcast network that orders thirteen new series for a season thirteen! has issues. NBC, which, when last we checked, barely had a pulse outside of The Voice and The Office, only green-lit twelve shows for next season. Talking to reporters this morning, Lee certainly didn't sound desperate; he touted increasing ratings for Dancing With the Stars as proof that all is right with the Alphabet. He made the baker's dozen of green lights seem perfectly normal, as if launching that many new shows was something that happened all the time in TV land. "I come from a world where we get just as ambitious throughout the year [as in fall]," the former ABC Family president rationalized. If he were being completely honest, however, he would've said something like this: "Virtually all of my predecessor's new shows tanked, Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy are in their twilight years, and I really have no choice but to throw on as much new crap as possible next season and pray a couple of things click with viewers." Because, really, that is the ABC strategy for 2011-12. And it is not necessarily a bad one.

The reason we're sympathetic to Lee's throw-it-all-against-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks game plan is because, after a disappointing 2010-11 that saw few new successes emerge, next season is starting to feel like one of those big, transitional years when audiences suddenly embrace a whole new crop of obsession-worthy shows across the dial. (Okay, there are no dials anymore, but "across the cable box" doesn't have a ring to it.) Compare it to 2009, when Glee and Modern Family became TV's biggest hits overnight. Or the 2004-05 season, when ABC launched Desperate Housewives, Lost, and Grey's Anatomy into the stratosphere within the space of six months. Sure, ABC (and NBC) are going to be lousy with failures this time next year, but with cable nets churning out cheapo reality shows by the dozens, it's hard to criticize major conglomerates such as ABC owner Disney and NBC parent Comcast for being willing to bet hundreds of millions on original scripted programming. And ABC, like NBC, is wisely trying to roll out its something-for-everyone buffet of new programming in a logical fashion.

Specifically, ABC is keeping most of its tentpole series in place and saving most of its biggest changes for time slots where it's hard to imagine the network doing much worse than it did this season. Mondays, for example, are stable with Dancing and Castle. On Tuesdays, Body of Proof will continue to get a lead-in from the Dancing results show, giving ABC a good shot at winning those two hours. Thursdays are also unchanged from 9 to 11 p.m., and Friday could get a boost from having Extreme Makeover: Home Edition anchoring at 8 p.m.

The Alphabet is taking a major roll of the dice trying out comedies on Tuesdays, with Tim Allen's TV return (Last Man Standing) at eight paired with the equally masculine Man Up at 8:30 p.m. NCIS remains a powerhouse (and appeals to the same blue-collar audiences one would expect would be interested in seeing Allen again); Glee is starting to fade but still has a mighty hold on women under 35. Vulture today is also officially declaring its (mild) opposition to Lee's decision to hold Cougar Town until December and then stick it Tuesdays at 9 p.m. with no established lead-in. We (like co-creator Bill Lawrence) had accepted the show would lose its post-Modern Family slot, but the delay is a momentum killer. That said, ABC hasn't had much luck with dramas on Tuesday, so comedy could prove to be a good alternative for the network.

There's also a lot of change on Wednesday night, though it's change we can believe in. Better With You didn't earn another season behind The Middle, so slotting Suburgatory in at eight-thirty is logical (though we're going to be misspelling that title for months, we think). We like Happy Endings, so giving it a shot behind Modern Family isn't a bad thing; still, why not save it for later in the season, giving producers time to make some tweaks and get season two 100 percent right? And long-term, it feels like a much better fit with Cougar Town than Modern Family. We kind of wish ABC had just stuck with comedies at 10 p.m. in the fall, holding off another drama launch until later in the season; Revenge seems a pretty pedestrian choice for the start of the season. We're much more encouraged by the Sunday shifts: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition had grown stale, and there has been hardly any interesting new scripted programming on the night the last few years. Sandwiching Desperate with the somewhat cool-sounding Once Upon a Time and the even cooler-looking Pan Am could make the end of the week feel like an event again (something cablers like AMC and HBO learned long ago).

Finally, the most interesting part of Lee's first schedule as head of ABC is his belief in taking lots and lots of chances on very ambitious dramas. Over the next year, he'll be trying out soaps (Good Christian Belles, Revenge), thrillers (The River), fluff (Charlie's Angels), period pieces (Pan Am), and fantasy (Once Upon a Time). There's not a single conventional cop, doctor, or lawyer series in this bunch, and that's a good thing; ABC does best when it's at its boldest. With Castle a hit and Body of Proof promising, the Alphabet can take a season off from the relentless pursuit of new procedurals. It needs buzz shows more than anything, and it's not unreasonable to expect at least one or two of these ideas might catch on with audiences. Yes, there will be failure, but you can't expect to get a home run without taking a lot of swings.

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment...ew_season.html

2011 Upfront Notes
Official: Sarah Michelle Gellar returning to TV as The CW picks up 'Ringer'
By James Hibberd, EW.com's 'Inside TV' Blog - May 17th, 2011

She's back: Sarah Michelle Gellar is returning to TV next season as the star of Ringer, a thriller developed for CBS but punted over to The CW.

Sources say CBS brass liked the script and loved the idea of casting Gellar, but once they saw the pilot it didn't feel on brand for the network and luckily the company has a sister network at The CW (that just so happens to be built partly upon the foundation of another network, The WB, where Gellar reigned as high priestess for years as the star of Buffy the Vampire Slayer).

The network also picked up The Secret Circle as a companion for Vampire Diaries, and medical drama Hart of Dixie. Official descriptions of the new shows:

RINGER
Logline: Sarah Michelle Gellar stars as a woman, who after witnessing a murder, goes on the run, hiding out by assuming the life of her wealthy identical twin sister - only to learn that her sister's seemingly idyllic life is just as complicated and dangerous as the one she's trying to leave behind. The series stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ioan Gruffudd, Kristoffer Polaha, Nestor Carbonell, Tara Summers and Mike Colter. RINGER is produced by CBS Television Studios and Warner Bros. Television in association with ABC Television Studios and Brillstein Entertainment with executive producers Pam Veasey (CSI, NY, The District), Peter Traugott (Samantha Who?) and Emmy Award-winner Richard Shepard (Ugly Betty). The pilot was directed by Richard Shepard.

THE SECRET CIRCLE
Logline: Based upon the book series by L.J. Smith (author of The Vampire Diaries book series), THE SECRET CIRCLE is the story of a young woman (Britt Robertson) who moves to a new town and discovers that not only is she a witch and part of a secret coven, but she's also the key that will unlock a centuries-old battle of good versus evil. The series stars Britt Robertson, Thomas Dekker, Gale Harold, Phoebe Tonkin, Jessica Parker Kennedy, Shelly Henning, Louis Hunter, Ashley Crow and Natasha Henstridge. Based upon the book series by L.J. Smith (author of The Vampire Diaries book series), THE SECRET CIRCLE is from Outerbanks Entertainment and Alloy Entertainment in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios with executive producers Kevin Williamson (The Vampire Diaries, Scream, Dawson's Creek), Andrew Miller (Imaginary Bitches), Leslie Morgenstein (The Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl) and Gina Girolamo. The pilot was directed by Liz Friedlander (The Vampire Diaries, 90210).

HART OF DIXIE
Logline: Culture shock awaits a young New York City doctor (Rachel Bilson) after she inherits a medical practice in a small Southern town inhabited by an eclectic and eccentric group of characters in this comedic drama. The series stars Rachel Bilson, Jamie King, Wilson Bethel, Cress Williams, McKaley Miller and Scott Porter. HART OF DIXIE is from Bonanza Productions Inc., in association with Fake Empire, Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios, with executive producers Leila Gerstein (Gossip Girl, Eli Stone), Josh Schwartz (Gossip Girl, Chuck, The O.C.), Stephanie Savage (Gossip Girl, The O.C.), Len Goldstein and Jason Ensler (Gossip Girl, Chuck). The pilot was directed by Jason Ensler.

H8R
Logline: Celebrities go head-to-head with civilians who hate them to win their haters over. Mario Lopez hosts. H8R is from Horizon Alternative Television with executive producers Lisa Gregorisch (Extra), Jeremy Spiegel (Extra), and Mario Lopez.

http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/05/17/sa...cw/#more-44903