ABC Sets Feb. 2 Premiere Date for LOST Final Season, Chuck Returns for NBC; ABC Family Monday Originals in January

ABC announced that the premiere of the sixth and final season of LOST, will have a special all-night event on Tuesday, February 2, 2010. A recap special will kick off the night at 8:00 p.m., ET/PT, followed by the much anticipated two-hour premiere from 9:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT. The series will then air in its regular time period Tuesday nights from 9:00-10:00 p.m., ET beginning the following week, on February 9.
ABC has not announced anything else for 2010 in terms of schedule changes. LOST airing in the 9pm hour will likely have ABC move Scrubs and Better off Ted to the 8pm hour. Those comedies start airing in the 9pm hour starting Dec. 1 and will likely air there in January as well before LOST takes the hour starting in February. It is unclear what ABC will air at 8pm on Tuesdays in January. My guess? Shark Tank. ABC has some episodes still to air and they announced yesterday that repeats will air on Saturdays in January at 5pm ET starting Jan. 9. ABC will also air repeats of Shaq Vs. on Sundays at 5pm ET starting Jan. 3. Back to primetime, the forgotten will likely air Tuesdays at 10pm still in January and February. In March both Dancing with the Stars: The Results and V will return. They will air at 8pm and 10pm, but either time for each could work. The only other question mark for ABC will be Wednesdays at 10pm starting in January. Could Ugly Betty be on the move to that slot? Stay with us!

NBC's one-hour action-comedy series Chuck returns to the NBC lineup on Sunday, January 10 with all-new missions and two action-packed, back-to-back original episodes in its season premiere from 9-11 p.m. ET before the series -- starring Zachary Levi in the title role -- moves back to its regular day and time (Mondays 8-9 p.m. ET) beginning Monday, January 11. NBC has 19 hours of Chuck this season, so they are using three hours the first week.
In other programming news, a special two-hour episode of Heroes will be broadcast on Monday, January 4 from 8-10 p.m. ET and then the series moves to its new time slot (actually its old slot) of Mondays at 9 p.m. ET starting January 11. NBC has also announced they have ordered three more episodes of canceled drama Trauma. Why? For inventory reasons as they will need a few more hours to program. Trauma will air 10 episodes in 2009, so 6 episodes will remain to air sometime in 2010. It won't be airing Mondays at 9 in January that's for sure. Looks like it will return when maybe Heroes finishes up its run in February? Don't get too excited Trauma fans, NBC did the same thing by ordering more Lipstick Jungle last year and it remained canceled after that.

Finally, ABC Family will return its two original hit dramas, The Secret Life of the American Teenager and Make It or Break It one week earlier, moving to Monday, January 4 at 8:00-9:00PM ET/PT and 9:00-10:00PM ET/PT. The Secret Life of the American Teenager returns (8:00-9:00PM ET/PT) to complete its second season with 12 all-new episodes; Make It or Break It (9:00PM-10:00PM ET/PT) returns to complete its first season with 10 all-new episodes. The two series were initially scheduled to return on Monday, January 11, 2010.
The network has also created its first 3-hour block of original programming on Monday nights by setting the premiere date for the return of Greek on Monday, January 25 at 10:00 PM ET/PT. Greek will join the new Monday line up in the 10 o'clock hour, which will round out its third season with 10 episodes.
We will have more on ABC Family January 2010 at a later date, if anything has changed on the regular daytime schedule (7am-8pm).

ABC Cancels and Pulls Hank, CW Finalizes Mondays; TV Land Orders Season 3 of She's Got the Look

ABC has canceled the Kelsey Grammer sitcom Hank and will replace it immediately on the schedule as well. This is no surprise at all, especially since I announced on Tuesday that ABC has pulled all promos for Hank that were set to air during the CMA Awards last night. ABC will place repeats of Modern Family in Hank's Wednesdays at 8pm slot starting next week (Nov. 18). Repeats thus far scheduled in the 8pm slot for Modern Family are "The Bicycle Thief" on Nov. 18, "The Incident" on Nov. 25, and "Run for Your Wife" on Dec. 2. Of course Modern Family will be all-new still in its 9pm half-hour on Wednesdays.
As for Hank, the show aired only 5 episodes, and still has 5 more episodes to air. They had a 13 episode order, but ABC has stopped production. They finished taping an episode (#10) this week. Hank joins The Beautiful Life: TBL, Trauma, and Eastwick in freshman series cancelations. Still yet to hear its fates are Brothers and Three Rivers, everything else has been given additional episodes or full seasons. V just started and is doing great in the ratings, but it will only air for 13 weeks this season no matter what.
In other ABC schedule updates, as we mentioned the other day, Find My Family will launch on Monday, Nov. 23 at 9:30pm following the Dancing with the Stars performance finale. It will be a 30-minute preview, as one-hour episodes will air on Mondays at 9pm starting Nov. 30 through and including Dec. 21. Crime drama Castle wasn't originally scheduled to air on Nov. 23 in its 10pm slot, but it will now for the last Monday in November sweeps. Castle will be getting Saturday at 10pm repeats starting Dec. 12 through at least Jan. 9. And finally, Let's Dance will be scheduled on ABC in 2010, either mid-season or in the summer. It is just delayed due to the celebs other commitments during the holidays it couldn't launch Nov. 23.
Stay tuned for mid-season news very soon, as we find out when Lost airs!

Also, the other day we mentioned The CW's Monday plans, now we have actual dates. The CW Network announced it will air all-original episodes of three series - Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill and the new drama Life UneXpected – on Monday nights from mid-January through May 2010. The three series will air in a revolving schedule as follows:
The network's new drama series, Life UneXpected, will premiere Monday, January 18 at 9:00 p.m. ET as we mentioned, following the return of original episodes of One Tree Hill that night in the 8:00 p.m. timeslot. OK, we announced this part already the other day, but we now have it confirmed.
Then as we mentioned, Life UneXpected will move to the 8:00 p.m. timeslot, but now we have a date on that, it will be on March 8. Original episodes of the pop-culture sensation Gossip Girl will return on March 8 in its 9:00 p.m. ET time slot.
And finally, on April 19, after Life UneXpected has completed its initial 13-episode run, the Monday-night schedule will finish the broadcast season with One Tree Hill at 8:00 p.m. and Gossip Girl at 9:00 p.m.

TV Land announced that it has picked up the hit original reality model competition She's Got The Look for a third season and is moving the series production to Los Angeles, CA. Premiering in 2010, this season of She's Got The Look sets out to discover a beautiful, sophisticated and confident woman over the age of 35 who has the potential to transform herself into a model representing some of the most high-profile brands and highly-coveted campaigns in the fashion and beauty industry. Emmy Award-Winner Allison Grodner (Big Brother) returns as executive producer and has teamed up with executive producer Rich Meehan (Big Brother) in their first project together under their new banner, Fly On The Wall Entertainment. The show has also renewed partnerships with SELF Magazine and world-renowned modeling agency, Wilhelmina Models, Inc.
If you want to join the show, open casting calls for She's Got The Look begin Sunday, December 6 in Los Angeles, CA. Additionally, there will also be open casting calls in New York, NY on December 12, in Memphis, TN on December 13 and in Columbus, OH on December 15. Thousands of applications have already been received for the third season. For the most current information on casting, log onto TVLandPrime.com.
Stay with us for the premiere date announcement soon!

The CW, ABC Make Pick-Ups, Cancelations, New Premieres; JustMyShow Interviews Susan Olsen (Cindy Brady) on Her New Book

The CW has announced it will launch new midseason drama Life UneXpected on Monday, January 18 at 9pm, replacing Gossip Girl for a few weeks. Life UneXpected has a 12 episode order, so it will move to 8pm when Gossip Girl returns (probably in March). It will replace One Tree Hill most likely for a few weeks. Life UneXpected stars Britt Robertson, Kristoffer Polaha, Shiri Appleby, and Kerr Smith. The series was previously titled Parental Discretion Advised. We will have more on The CW's midseason plans soon, stay with us!
As for ABC, they have picked-up 5 additional episodes of the forgotten, bringing the total to 18 episodes for the Tuesday crime drama. That is excellent news for the Christian Slater crime drama. The show has been pretty consistent each week in the ratings, though it still needs to do better. Looks like the forgotten is safe until March at least. 10 episodes are likely to air by December's end. Episode 8 airs next week, as the show is preempted this week for a CMA special called In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts. Episodes 9 and 10 are likely to air the first two weeks of December (Dec. 1 and 8). The news wasn't as good though for ABC's Wednesday night 10pm drama, Eastwick. ABC will not produce any more than 13 episodes, but all 13 will air. 7 episodes have aired thus far and episode 8 isn't scheduled until Nov. 25 due to special programming airing the next two weeks. It is too bad, as the show was pretty good. The only other new series yet to hear its fate is sitcom Hank, but I think it will be pulled very soon and might not even get a chance to air all 13 episodes. It's scheduled to air next on Nov. 18 at 8pm.
And finally, ABC is not going to launch new Kathy Griffin hosted dance show Let's Dance on Nov. 23 at 9:30pm (following the final performance show of Dancing with the Stars) after all. Instead ABC will launch a feel-good reality series from the creator of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. The series is Find My Family, as you saw the promo last night on ABC. ABC has a six episode order for the series, while Let's Dance had a five episode order. It is unclear if all six will air in Nov/Dec, but we will keep you posted.
ABC has said they will keep us posted on the rescheduled day and time period for Let's Dance, so it is not totally dead. It's just delayed due to a hard time finding quality celebrities. Personally, I think Find My Family is a better fit for the holidays, as that series follows the stories of people desperate to find a long-lost relative, friend, or lover. If you all remember ABC launched both Extreme Makeover and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition as specials in December 2002 and 2003 respectively and got huge ratings before turning them into series. Tim Green and Lisa Joyner host. We will keep you posted on the message boards for complete airing schedule for this series and check back with us also for the rescheduled day and time period for Let's Dance. I'm guessing summer 2010? ABC mid-season 2010 should be announced soon (which includes the launch date for Lost), so stay with us for that!

Our friend Eric of JustMyShow.com is back with a new podcast, that is pretty groovy! It's been called one of the worst shows in the history of TV. Susan Olsen (AKA Cindy Brady) is here to talk to JustMyShow.com about the subject of her new book (Love to Love You Bradys), the short lived Brady Bunch Variety Hour as well as the original series The Brady Bunch you grew up watching. Plus Susan gives us bonus audio on the porn rumors and the radio incident. If you want to hear that "story," you'll have to head on over to JustMyShow.com's Susan Olsen podcast!

New Scrubs and Better off Ted Return to ABC in December; NBC Cancels Trauma, More Chuck; Roseanne's Wicked Halloween Bash on TV Land

Scrubs will return with an all-new season starting Tuesday, December 1 (as I expected), as the action will shift from Sacred Hearts hospital to the classroom and make med-school professors of John C. McGinley's Dr. Cox and Donald Faison's Dr. Turk, however their students will still make rounds at Sacred Heart. Eliza Coupe as intern Denise "Jo from Facts of Life" Mahoney will remain on the show. Joining the cast are Michael Mosley, Kerry Bishe and Dave Franco. Scrubs will air back-to-back episodes for its season premiere on Dec. 1 at 9:00pm & 9:30pm (airing after A Charlie Brown Christmas and the new special Disney Prep & Landing), before airing every Tuesday in the 9:00pm half hour. Most of the original cast will make appearances throughout the season, including Zach Braff as J.D., but this series will now focus on a new cast with McGinley and Faison now the stars. 18 episodes have been ordered for season nine, of which at least 4 or 5 will air in December before the holidays.
The new Scrubs will lead into the second season of the hilarious comedy Better off Ted. That will launch its second season on Tuesday, Dec. 8 at 9:30pm. Unofficially 13 episodes have been ordered, but there is no confirmation of that. The first season had 13 episodes, with 7 airing in the spring and 6 in the summer. If you missed any of those 13 episodes, get the DVD coming out Dec. 1 or watch the last 5 episodes from season one on Hulu.

NBC has canceled freshman medical drama Trauma, which is airing Mondays at 9pm. The series has failed to draw any interest and will remain airing until it finishes its 13 episode order, as of now at least, but production has stopped for anything more than 13 episodes. If NBC sticks with the show on the schedule, the finale will be airing on Dec. 21.
Meanwhile, it looks like Chuck will return earlier than planned, as NBC has ordered 6 more episodes of the one-hour comedy. Originally 13 episodes were ordered, so now we have a total of 19. It is expected to return to Mondays starting in January now, instead of March. Stay with us for an official confirmation!

TV Land has stirred up a magical brew of Halloween-themed episodes of Roseanne to celebrate All Hallow's Eve on Saturday, October 31 from 10:00PM-2:00AM (ET/PT). Tune in to "Roseanne's Wicked Halloween Bash" for a haunting night of episodes, including when the Conners have a spooky night of fun with a Ouija board, a hilarious parody of the horror flick Rosemary's Baby, their annual Halloween party at the lodge and finally, a night filled with antics that leads to the arrival of a new family member -- Jerry Garcia Conner.
Episodes airing are: "BOO!," "Trick or Treat," "Trick Me Up, Trick Me Down," "Halloween IV," "Halloween V," "Skeleton in the Closet," "Halloween: the Final Chapter," and "Satan, Darling."

Cougar Town Special Marathon on SOAPnet, ION Television November 2009; TV Land Makes Changes to Yesterday's Changes

SOAPnet announced that it will air a four-episode marathon of ABC's hit comedy Cougar Town on Saturday, November 14 from 5:00PM to 7:00PM. The critically acclaimed series airs Wednesdays at 9:30PM ET/PT on ABC. They are doing this to attract even more new viewers to the program. The show has done very well in the ratings, especially in the 18-49 demo. The Cougar Town marathon will include four previous episodes ("Pilot," "Into the Great Wide Open," "Don't Do Me Like That," and "I Won't Back Down") previously broadcast on ABC earlier this season.
Courteney Cox stars as Jules, a recently divorced single mother exploring the honest truths about dating and aging in our beauty and youth obsessed culture. While most women in their twenties go through life experiencing the challenges and often humorous pitfalls of meeting men, Jules took on the responsibilities of marriage and raising a son. Now in her forties, she embarks on a journey to self-discovery whilst surrounded by fellow divorcees and singletons eager to live or re-live a time gone by.
Along for the journey are her friends and family: Laurie (Busy Philipps), the younger, feisty co-worker who encourages her to get out there and have some fun; Ellie (Christa Miller), the sarcastic, unapologetic confidante content with her life and marriage to her average, but loveable husband, Andy (Ian Gomez); ex-husband Bobby (Brian Van Holt), a classic under-achiever who'll test her patience as they attempt to raise their teenage son, Travis (Dan Byrd); and newly divorced neighbor Grayson (Josh Hopkins), who proves to be a catalyst of sorts for Jules.

This November on ION Television, we don't have any schedules changes, as of now, but we have a lot of movie premieres. ION airs movies Fridays in primetime and all-day on Saturday & Sundays (3pm-11pm). Movie premieres for the month are On Deadly Ground, Breach, Heist, Miami Vice, Out for Justice, Waterworld, Demolition Man, and The Rookie. Encore airings include Hunt for Red October, The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Last Boy Scout, Batman Forever, Sphere, Pale Rider, Magnum Force, and The Enforcer.
So the regular weekday schedule will remain the same as it is now, with Reba at 4, Family Feud from 5-7p, Ghost Whisperer at 7, and in primetime Ghost Whisperer at 8, followed by various nights and times of NCIS, Criminal Minds, and Durham County.
See the full ION Television November 2009 schedule.

Yesterday we announced some TV Land schedule changes that starts today...and now they have made changes to those changes. Bonanza will still replace Gunsmoke at 3pm, leaving Gunsmoke only at 2pm on weekdays, but now Bonanza will remain in its 4pm and 5pm hours. That means All in the Family (originally scheduled to air 4pm) will now air back-to-back in the 6pm hour replacing Little House on the Prairie, which leaves the weekday schedule now. It will remain Sunday nights (early Monday mornings) from 4-6am. Sanford & Son (originally scheduled to air 5pm) will now get the 7pm hour, replacing Andy Griffith, Hogan's Heroes and Brady Bunch hours. Andy Griffith Show will still be replacing series from 8-10pm weekdays (Fridays it is 8-9pm), as we announced yesterday. However, Cosby Show will replace Andy's Monday block from 10pm-12am. Other little changes include two-hour episodes of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition on weekends from 8-10am, Gunsmoke & Bonanza on Sundays are now 10am-3pm, and Andy Griffith is now 3pm-9pm on Sundays. M*A*S*H follows on Sundays from 9pm-11pm, as Roseanne gets an additional hour now on Sundays airing 11pm-2am. Also a personal bummer for me, the Three's Company marathon slated for this Saturday (Oct. 31) from 12:30pm-8pm, will be replaced by Sanford & Son and it gets two more hours, too, airing from 12:30pm-10pm.
See the full changes and the full TV Land schedule now.

ABC, CW and Fox Updates; JustMyShow.com's Podcast with Billy Vera

ABC's sophomore drama Castle and The CW's freshman drama The Vampire Diaries are the latest series to have their initial 13-episode order extended to the full 22 full-season order. Both were not surprises and are doing well in the ratings. Castle is in its second season, but the show only received a 13-episode order for this season after launching with 10 episodes last March.
Also, the CW has ordered more episodes of Melrose Place, ordering five additional episodes instead of the full back nine. The series has really disappointed in the ratings, but they are obviously waiting to see how much of an impact Heather Locklear will have when she joins the show reprising her character Amanda Woodward starting Nov. 17.
Castle and Vampire Diaries join Modern Family, Cougar Town, The Middle, FLASHFORWARD, Glee, NCIS: Los Angeles, The Good Wife, and The Cleveland Show getting full season orders. The only official cancelation has been The CW drama The Beautiful Life: TBL. Hank, Eastwick, Community, Mercy, Trauma, Brothers, and the forgotten still have not heard their fates yet beyond the original 13 episodes, as well as sophomore drama Dollhouse. I expect a few of those to get picked-up at least. ABC's Hank will be preempted next week (Oct. 28 at 8pm) for the classic special It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.
Meanwhile, Fox has announced some schedule changes. After this Friday, the line-up of sitcom Brothers, 'Til Death, and drama Dollhouse will be pulled for November sweeps. So starting Friday, Oct. 30 repeats of House and Bones takes over the night. Freshman sitcom Brothers will air Sundays at 7pm now with new episodes, while 'Til Death has been benched completely...again. And after just four airings, Dollhouse will be benched, but it will return in December to Fridays airing back-to-back at 8pm & 9pm starting Dec. 4. It is not expected Dollhouse will get more than 13 episodes, so it should be finished for good in January.

Our good buddy Eric from JustMyShow.com is back with an all-new podcast! It shot up the charts after being featured in a few classic episodes of Family Ties, now Billy Vera is at JustMyShow.com to talk about the #1 hit "At This Moment" and much more. Billy Vera wrote and performed that #1 hit, which was featured in a few classic episodes of Family Ties. He talked about music and the song, but also about the show and how it helped it take off. In addition, Eric has a bonus chat with Family Ties producer Michael Weithorn (who went on to co-create The King of Queens) about both the song and the episodes. You can hear a comment or two from him in the show and the rest in the "bonus audio" section. Also in the "bonus audio" section are comments from Billy about The King of Queens and Empty Nest opening themes, both of which he performed.
So, head on over to JustMyShow.com for all of this!

More Lucy on Hallmark; ABC Picks Up FLASHFORWARD for Full Season

Last Friday we told you about some Hallmark Channel changes beginning Monday (yesterday), now they have made a change that starts tonight! We get even more I Love Lucy! They must have a love-hate relationship with Lucy! In addition to the changes listed on Friday's blog, now effective tonight (Tuesday, Oct. 13), I Love Lucy will air 9-11pm as well replacing Touched by an Angel, which is off the line-up for NOW. It's slated to return to 8pm starting Oct. 26, but that could change. As of now, I Love Lucy airs weekdays 5-11pm and also in the morning 9-10am. That's a whole lotta Lucy! Will it last? You'll just have to keep checking back with us to see!

Also last Friday we announced that ABC has picked-up Comedy Wednesday comedies The Middle, Modern Family, and Cougar Town for full seasons, now no surprise they have picked up drama FLASHFORWARD for a full season.
From 8:00-9:00 p.m. on Thursday, ABC's FLASHFORWARD ranks No. 1 in Adults 18-49, leading CBS' time-period veteran Survivor: Samoa through its first three airings. On its series debut telecast, the new ABC drama became the first regular program since Friends in 2004 to beat Survivor in the key young adult sales demo. The ABC freshman is an exceptionally strong draw among Adults 18-34, dominating its time period and qualifying as TV's No. 1 new drama series this season. The new series is greatly improving its time period year-to-year for ABC, boosting the hour by 1.8 million viewers and by 32% in Adults 18-49 over the same nights last year. Based on DVR playback during season-premiere week (Sept. 21-27), FLASHFORWARD finished as TV's biggest freshman gainer, as its numbers jumped by 2.0 million viewers (12.5 million to 14.5 million) and 8-tenths of an Adult 18-49 rating point (4.1 rating to 4.9 rating) from the initially reported next-day numbers to 7-day DVR finals.
ABC has said they have picked up 25 episodes of the series, so that is three more than usual. As of now the comedies are 22 each, but that could change to something more if necessary.
Building on its lead-in at 8:30 p.m. among viewers (+4%) and young adults (+26%), ABC's The Middle qualifies as the most-watched TV show in its time period and a ranks a strong No. 2 in the half-hour to Fox's time-period regular So You Think You Can Dance among Adults 18-49. The new ABC comedy also holds the No. 1 position in its half-hour with Adults 25-54 and Men 18-49. On average, The Middle is boosting ABC's numbers in half-hour year-to-year by 2.1 million viewers and by 20% in Adults 18-49, over the same nights last season.
Standing as TV's most-watched new comedy this season, ABC's Modern Family ranks No. 1 in its half-hour among Adults 18-49. Modern Family is also No. 1 in its slot among Women 18-49 and Men 18-34. On average, the freshman comedy is improving the time period year to year for ABC, growing its half-hour over the same nights last year by 3.0 million viewers and by 36% in Adults 18-49. The mockumentary style sitcom is out-delivering NBC's similar style The Office in total viewers this season averaging 10.47 million viewers through its first three airings.
And finally, exhibiting impressive compatibility, ABC's Cougar Town holds 100% retention of its Modern Family lead-in in Adults 18-49. Cougar Town ranks a strong No. 2 in its half-hour in Adults 18-49, just two-tenths of a ratings point behind and tied in audience share with first-place CBS's veteran drama, Criminal Minds. The new show leads its time period among Men 18-34. The freshman comedy is also improving the time period for ABC year-to-year, boosting ABC's results over the comparable year-ago nights in Total Viewers (+19%) and Adults 18-49 (+23%).

ABC Picks Up Full Seasons of 3 New Comedies; Hallmark Does More Changing; Bio TV's TV Related Specials

ABC has announced it has given early full season orders to three of the four new Comedy Wednesday sitcoms. The Middle starring Patricia Heaton, Modern Family starring Ed O'Neill and Cougar Town starring Courtney Cox were given at least 22 episodes for this season, adding on nine episodes at least in the original 13 episode order. The latter two especially has done well in the ratings, in particular in 18-49. They have set up for a good comedy foundation for the network. No news was given yet on Hank starring Kelsey Grammer, the next few airings will be key for its future.
The three comedies join CBS's NCIS: LA & The Good Wife, along with Fox's Glee and Cleveland Show in full season pick-ups, though the latter was given multiple season orders before it even aired. Look for more full season renewals officially soon such as for ABC drama FLASHFORWARD.

Well it must be Friday because The Hallmark Channel has made some changes to its schedule. Effective Monday (October 12), the weekday 9am hour will now be I Love Lucy instead of The Golden Girls. So Golden Girls in the mornings are now 10am-1pm instead of 9am-1pm. And it will still air weeknights 11pm-2am. Then starting next Saturday (Oct. 17), M*A*S*H returns and will air Saturdays from 9am-11am replacing The Golden Girls. Then on both Saturday and Sunday nights starting next weekend, Walker, Texas Ranger is back, replacing The Golden Girls from 1-3am on both nights. And finally Sundays starting next Sunday we have another hour of Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures on Sundays in the 10am hour, and yes it replaces The Golden Girls. The Golden Girls is now totally off the line-up on weekends but remain of course on weekdays. So if you're keeping track, Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures airs Saturdays 6am-9am and Sundays 8am-11am.
And for the November schedule, Touched by an Angel will replace I Love Lucy in the 8pm hour starting Oct. 26, but Lucy will remain 5-8pm. Touched by an Angel will not be airing 9pm and 10pm because of the previously announced movie airing weeknights 9-11pm starting Oct. 26.

Finally Bio TV has some new specials this month that are interesting. First on Tuesday (Oct. 13) at 10pm, they are airing Cast Confessions: The Facts of Life. This special takes you behind the scenes to reveal everything you never knew about one of our favorite sitcoms...The Facts of Life. Revisit this classic comedy as back-stage secrets and hidden drama are revealed through exclusive footage and interviews with original cast members, writers and network executives. Sounds interesting!
They have also premiered a new series called Celebrity Ghost Stories. It launched last Saturday and airs Saturdays at 10PM. In the premiere last week, celebs featured were Joan Rivers, David Carradine, Scott Baio, Teri Polo. Joan Rivers asks a voodoo priestess to help her with an angry ghost; Scott Baio's unresolved issues with his father haunt him when his dad dies; Teri Polo has a horrifying encounter one night when she's just 8 years old; and David Carradine has a strange encounter with his wife's dead husband. Airing tomorrow (Oct. 10) are about celebs Barry Williams, Debi Mazar, Greg Grunberg, Sammy Hagar. When Barry Williams holds a memorial service for his father, a few strange "happenings" make the day even more unforgettable; Debi Mazer gets a hostile welcome from a ghost when she moves into a friend's home; Greg Grunberg meets a ghost with a shocking past; and Sammy Hagar gets a visit from Van Halen's dead manager.
Upcoming celebs featured are: Carrie Fisher, Rue McClanahan, John Waters, Federico Castelluccio (10/17); Tom Arnold, Dee Snider, Carnie Wilson, Nia Long (10/24) Lisa Rinna, Jeffrey Ross, Vincent Curatola, Illeana Douglas (11/7); Carnie Wilson, Eric Roberts, Elisabeth Rohm, C. Thomas Howell (11/14); Justine Bateman, Traci Lords, Jay Thomas, James Kyson Lee (11/21). There will be a marathon on Halloween night starting at 8pm.

Gospel Has Amen, Sister Sister Every Weekday Now; Ugly Betty Season Premiere Now Oct. 16

Gospel Music Channel quietly added Sister Sister and Amen to their regular weekday schedule. Previously both were airing just a few times week. Sister Sister now airs weekdays 10-11am and 10pm-12am and also on Saturdays from 9am-11am. Amen airs weekdays 11am-12pm and 1am-2am and also on Saturdays from 8-9am. The weekday dramas have some time changes as a result. The dramas start at 1pm with back-to-back Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, followed by Promised Land at 3pm, Sue Thomas F.B.Eye at 4pm, and Doc at 5pm. Encores of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, Sue Thomas F.B.Eye, Doc air from 6pm-10pm.
Now they have more of a daily schedule and it is so much easier to follow! Movies are now on weekends and Fridays in primetime.

I haven't had a chance to post this on the blog, but I did break the news on our message board about the season premiere of Ugly Betty being delayed a week on ABC. The two-hour season premiere of Ugly Betty is now scheduled to air on Friday, October 16, 2009 from 8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT and not on Friday, October 9, 2009 from 8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT as previously announced. Instead encores of this week's FLASHFORWARD, Modern Family and The Middle will air from 8-10pm on Friday (Oct. 9). Ugly Betty will begin airing in its regular 9:00 PM ET/PT hour effective Friday, October 23, 2009.
The season premiere of Supernanny is now scheduled to air on Friday, October 23, 2009 in its regular 8:00 PM ET/PT hour. It was previously scheduled to have its season premiere on October 16, but now that will be Ugly Betty from 8-10pm.
In other updates, It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is scheduled to air on Tuesday, October 27, 2009 from 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT on ABC (ABC will air the full-length version of this classic Charlie Brown special including a bonus Charlie Brown cartoon entitled, You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown, which has the Great Pumpkin in the storyline.).
Finally in November, In The Spotlight With Robin Roberts: Bright Lights, Big Stars, All Access Nashville is airing on Tuesday, November 10, 2009 from 10:01-11:00 PM ET/PT. This special features interviews with country superstars Carrie Underwood and Tim McGraw on the eve of the CMA's (airs November 11 on ABC). the forgotten will be preempted on this night.

ABC Fall Pilot Review: The Middle - Premieres September 30; TV Land Goes Brady Crazy This Week

The Middle - Wednesdays 8:30PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 8:30PM ET/PT

Emmy-winner Patricia Heaton stars in this warm and witty single-camera comedy about raising a family and lowering your expectations.

Frankie Heck is a superhero. Well, no, not an actual superhero - not unless you count getting her kids out the door for school every morning as a superfeat. Middle-aged, middle class and living in the middle of the country, this harried wife and working mother of three uses her wry wit and sense of humor to try to get her family through each day intact. Frankie has a job selling cars at the town's only surviving car dealer; her husband, Mike, is a manager at the local quarry.

In between juggling shifts and picking up fast food dinners eaten in front of the TV, Frankie and Mike raise their kids with love and solid Midwestern practicality. Axl is the oldest, a teenage jock who eats the family out of house and home and walks around in his underwear. Then there's Sue, their extraordinarily ordinary pre-teen daughter who fails at everything she tries with great gusto. Brick, the youngest son, is an odd kid whose best friend is his backpack. Together, they're putting THE MIDDLE on the map.

Cast Details:

* Patricia Heaton as Frankie Heck
* Neil Flynn as Mike Heck
* Charlie McDermott as Axl Heck
* Eden Shur as Sue Heck
* Atticus Shafer as Brick Heck
* Chris Kattan as Bob

Patricia Heaton (Frankie Heck) is perhaps best known for her role as Debra Barone on the award-winning series Everybody Loves Raymond. She won two Emmy Awards for the role and was nominated seven times. In addition to her Emmy wins, Heaton is also the recipient of the Best Comedy Actress Award from the Viewers for Quality Television, a SAG Award and three SAG nominations in the Best Actress category for her work on Raymond. Heaton most recently starred opposite Kelsey Grammer in the Fox comedy series Back to You. She also starred in the Hallmark Hall of Fame film, Front of the Class. Other television credits include a recurring role on ABC's popular series thirtysomething and prominent roles in the series Room for Two, Someone Like Me and Women of the House, as well as the television films A Town Without Christmas and Miracle in the Woods. Heaton produced and starred in the TNT/FourBoys Films production, The Engagement Ring, She also starred in the TNT/Neil Simon production of The Goodbye Girl and ABC's The Path to 9/11. Her feature film credits include Memoirs of an Invisible Man, Beethoven, New Age and Space Jam.

Neil Flynn (Mike Heck) just finished his eighth season as Sacred Heart Hospital's menacing janitor in the ABC comedy series Scrubs. Flynn can be seen interrogating Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, directed by Steven Spielberg, and is also well known for playing Lindsay Lohan's dad in the hit comedy Mean Girls. His other feature appearances include Hoot, Home Alone 3, The Fugitive, Chain Reaction, Rookie of the Year, Baby's Day Out and Major League. Equally adept at comedy and drama, Flynn has performed a variety of roles on television series, ranging from Seinfeld, The Drew Carey Show and That 70's Show to C.S.I., Boston Public and NYPD Blue. Other T.V. appearances include Arli$$, Ellen, Family Law and Smallville.

Charlie McDermott (Axl Heck) is a quickly rising star who will make his presence felt on both the large and small screen in 2009. On the big screen he has two new films in production: He'll join Chevy Chase, John Cusack, Rob Corddry and Craig Robinson in United Artist's Hot Tub Time Machine, an absurdist comedy slated to open in February 2010; he will also star alongside Laura Linney and writer/director Leland Orser in Morning, opening later this year. McDermott began his career with M. Night Shyamalan's The Village, alongside Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, William Hurt and Sigourney Weaver. Additional film credits include The Sex Drive, opposite Seth Green and James Marsden. Television credits include The Office, as the disinterested student who ignores Michael Scott (Steve Carell), ABC's Private Practice, Parks and Recreation, and Medium.

Eden Sher (Sue Heck) is best known for her work on the ABC comedy Sons & Daughters. She has also starred in Starz Party Down, ABC Family's The Middleman, Disney's Sonny With A Chance and Showtime's Weeds.

Atticus Shaffer (Brick Heck) was discovered by his manager in 2006 and soon landed a guest starring role in the series The Class. That role led him to the role of Brick in the original ABC pilot, The Middle. Several episodics followed, such as My Name is Earl, Days of Our Lives, Carpoolers, Out of Jimmy's Head and Human Giant. Perhaps best known for the bus stop scene he shared with Will Smith in Hancock, Atticus' other roles in feature films include The Unborn, An American Carol, Leaving Barstow and Opposite Day.

Chris Kattan (Bob) is best known for his many characters on Saturday Night Live, which he joined in March 1996, completing his seventh and final season in 2003. With numerous upcoming projects, he was recently seen in the Independent Film Channel's three-part miniseries, Bollywood Hero, in which he played himself in an otherwise fictional comedy. Other big-screen credits include Universal's Undercover Brother, Disney's Corky Romano" the script of which was based on a character Kattan developed, and A Night at the Roxbury, written by Kattan and Will Ferrell and produced by Lorne Michaels and Amy Heckerling. Kattan was also seen opposite Brendan Fraser and Bridget Fonda in Monkey Bone, and in The House on Haunted Hill, opposite Geoffrey Rush, Famke Janssen, Ali Larter and Taye Diggs and produced by Joel Silver and Robert Zemeckis.


Pilot Plot:

#1 "Pilot" (Airs September 30)
Frankie is struggling in her career as a car salesperson because she has failed to actually sell a car. Sue has auditioned for show choir and, to everyone's shock, makes the team, but fails to mention that she's part of the stage crew. To top things off, Brick wants Frankie to come to his class presentation dressed as a superhero. Just when Frankie thinks she's got a car sold and her kids under control, she does show up to Brick's class dressed as a superhero -- but he's given her the wrong day -- and the car she thought she had sold is stolen right in front of her. Work and home have taken over Frankie's life... to the point that she barely recognizes herself and has even taken to coloring her hair with a magic marker. Her youth has faded and the day-to-day grind has worn her down, but it's family and the struggles they face together that keep Frankie and the rest of the Hecks one big happy mess.
Guest starring are Brian Doyle-Murray as Mr. Ehlert, Amy Farrington as Gail, Patricia Belcher as Mrs. Rettig, Jeanete Miller as Aunt Edie, Francis Bay as Aunt Ginny, Peter Breitmayer as Pete, Andy Kreiss as choir director, Ping Wu as Mr. Yamamoto, Mike Randleman as flight attendant and Robert Clendenin as P.A.
"Pilot" was written by DeAnn Heline and Eileen Heisler, and directed by Julie Ann Robinson.


Analysis:

ABC has had this pilot in development for a few years, so they have really believed in it and got to a point where they made it the best they could. Previously when it was in development, Ricki Lake was the star...now we have Patricia Heaton as the star and she shines in this role! This sitcom is about an average family living in "the middle" of the country in Indiana. If you liked Malcolm in the Middle, you are sure to like this. While that series was focused mainly on Malcolm, this series is all about Frankie Heck (Patricia Heaton). But that is not to say this isn't an ensemble, because the family is a key part of the show.

The pilot is excellent. Mike and Frankie Heck have three children Axl, Sue and Brick. They are all so unique and funny in their own ways. I think everyone in the entire country will love the youngest child, Brick. He is unbelievably funny! Even his name is pretty funny! Seriously, Frankie, Axl, and Brick...strange names, but funny! Frankie is a car salesman and of course a mom, where she has to juggle so many tasks. Brick has even called his mom a superhero for his class. What happens with that is actually very hysterical. Frankie also can't sell any cars and when you think she is about to, something very out of the blue happens that you'll never see coming. And at the dealership, Frankie's co-worker Bob (Chris Kattan) is there, but he hasn't really gotten any substance yet. He has now been made a series regular, where on this pilot he was just a guest star. We have two very fun men here in Neil Flynn as Mike Heck and Chris Kattan as Bob the car salesman. Just a wonderful cast and a hilarious family!

You've see some hilarious scenes in promos, such as Brick unknowingly tapping her teacher's breast when trying to get her attention, and the hilarious scenes just keep on coming on this show! Another scene that is hysterical is when Frankie is telling Brick to lick his frozen pancake because it will last longer! Everything in this pilot clicks very well and ABC now I think has 3 very good comedies on Wednesday nights, with only Hank (The Middle's lead-in) being the exception so far.


Conclusion:

This could quietly become one of the top comedies on the air right now. Modern Family is probably the best family comedy, but this should not be overlooked either. If you like sitcoms like Roseanne and Malcolm in the Middle, you'll love this one because it is a mix of both. I am from the Northeast, so I don't know if families are really like that in "the middle" of the country, but Heaton has said in interviews that she was born in Ohio (close to Indiana) and her family was so much like this. I'm sure people in the middle of the country will even like this show more since they can relate to this. In these tough times, we sure need a show like this! I never really liked Everybody Loves Raymond, but Patricia Heaton shines in this role...she plays it real and is funny. Neil Flynn was always hilarious on Scrubs and just seeing the janitor from Scrubs as a father is hysterical itself! I think the real show stealer in this is Atticus Shaffer as the young Brick. He pulls his pants down in public to go to the bathroom, he touches his teacher's breasts (not on purpose), and repeats stuff under his breath. He is like Dewey from Malcolm, but so much funnier!

The ratings should be pretty good for this show. This hour is pretty weak and the show is millions better than CBS's competing Gary Unmarried. Tune in tonight at 8:30pm for this new hilarious comedy on ABC Comedy Wednesday! You'll be saying "this is a winner" and like Brick, you'll say it under your breath, too!

Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 4.5/5
Funniness: 4/5
Overall: 4.5/5

-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 09/30/09

Discuss the show after you watch it on Wednesday, September 23 on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

The Middle Photo Gallery

Preview:

TV Land has made a slight change for the remainder of the week starting tonight. The Brady Bunch will air Wed-Fri this week ONLY in the 7pm hour instead of the usual back-to-back The Beverly Hillbillies. That is interesting as it seems last week's Brady Bunch anniversary must have did decent for them in the ratings. However, it just seems so strange they have Brady Bunch followed by Married...with Children! Talk about two totally different shows! I'm not sure what TV Land is doing, but their scheduling has been pretty weird the last year or two.
TV Land has also quietly returned Extreme Makeover: Home Edition in the weekdays at 9am hour, replacing Good Times, which now shifts to 10-11am, followed by Sanford & Son from 11am-12pm. Previously three episodes each of these two sitcoms were airing from 9am-10:30am and 10:30am-12pm.
Stay with us for more TV Land news. We hear more changes could happen next week, so keep checking back. We also have the TV Land November 2009 schedule to give you all, but we might wait a few days for that...just in case we have wholesale changes happening next week.

ABC Fall Pilot Review: Hank - Premieres September 30; ION Not Airing Season 2 of Durham County...Yet

Hank - Wednesdays 8:00PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 8:00PM ET/PT

Sometimes scaling back is the best way to get ahead. A legendary entrepreneur in the sports retail world, Hank Pryor (Kelsey Grammer) and his wife, Tilly, have been living the high life in New York City. That is until Hank is forced out of his CEO job and has to downsize and move his family back home to the small town of River Bend, Virginia.

A self-made man, Hank is used to being the boss. But now that he's lost almost everything, is he up for the even bigger challenge of being a husband and father? While Tilly regrets having to leave the glitz of New York City to move back to her hometown, Hank is gung-ho to relaunch his career in the place where it all began for him. Unfortunately this also means having to spend way too much time with his brother-in-law, Grady, who delights in Hank's recent misfortunes. Hank struggles to find common ground with his kids -- offbeat son Henry, who would rather play with action figures than toss a baseball with his dad, and daughter Maddie, a hip, New York City teen in whose eyes Hank can do no right. But every great businessman knows that the key to success is to turn setbacks into opportunities. It may take a while for this corporate giant to figure out how to mingle with the little people -- like his family -- but Hank's up for the challenge, a man who feels he is destined to return to greatness. And he is. It's just not the greatness he imagined.

This hilarious family comedy mixes genuine, heart-warming moments with Grammer's trademark blustery humor.

Cast Details:

* Kelsey Grammer as Hank Pryor
* Melinda McGraw as Tilly Pryor
* David Koechner as Grady Funk
* Jordan Hinson as Maddie Pryor
* Nathan Gamble as Henry Pryor

Kelsey Grammer (Hank Pryor) has excelled at the highest level in theatre, television and film as an actor, producer, executive producer and director. Grammer was cast in two TV miniseries, first as Stephen Smith in Kennedy (NBC, 1983), and next as Lieutenant Stewart in George Washington (CBS, 1984). Then, an initial guest-starring role as Dr. Frasier Crane on Cheers developed into the cornerstone of actor's career. He continued playing the celebrated character in two different television series (Cheers and then Frasier) over the span of 20 years, tying the record for longest-running television character. This fall Grammer of course stars in the show but also serves as executive producer of the series. Portraying Crane, Grammer won four Emmys, two Golden Globes and a SAG Award, and received an unparalleled 16 Emmy nominations, eight Golden Globe nominations and 16 SAG nominations. Fifteen years ago, Grammer created Grammnet, a TV production company which has produced such hit television shows as the Emmy-winning Medium for NBC/CBS and The Game and Girlfriends for UPN/CW. Grammer has directed single episodes of Everybody Hates Chris, My Ex Life and Out of Practice. He has also directed several episodes of Frasier, one of which earned him a DGA nomination.
Also accomplished as a voice-over artist, Grammer plays the character Sideshow Bob on The Simpsons, for which he won an Emmy in 2006. He has also lent his voice to the feature films Toy Story 2, Anastasia and Teacher's Pet, to the television series Father of the Pride and Gary the Rat and to the Emmy-nominated Animal Farm for TNT. Other acting credits include Vivendi Universal's An American Carol, Disney's Swing Vote, Fox's blockbuster hit X-Men: The Last Stand, Fox TV's Back to You -- in which he also served as executive producer -- A Christmas Carol for NBC, Benedict Arnold for A&E, Mr. St. Nick for ABC's Hallmark Hall of Fame, and many more films. In his latest film project, a remake of Fame, he stars as the orchestra maestro at the prestigious New York City High School of Performing Arts.

Melinda McGraw (Tilly Pryor) has made regular and recurring appearances on Mad Men, Journeyman, The West Wing, Desperate Housewives, Inconceivable, Center of the Universe, The District, My Adventures in Television, Skin, Living in Captivity, Pursuit of Happiness, The X-Files, The Commish and The Human Factor. She has also appeared in Law & Order: SVU, Saving Grace, The Practice, Ally McBeal, Mad About You, Larry Sanders and Seinfeld. In addition to television, she appeared in the films Meeting Spencer, Skateland, Weather Girl, The Dark Knight, Wrongfully Accused, Nutty Professor: The Klumps and Albino Alligator.

David Koechner (Grady Funk) spent one season on the cast of Saturday Night Live before moving to Los Angeles, where he landed guest appearances on Curb Your Enthusiasm, Reno 911 and played a recurring character on Still Standing. And in film comedies like Out Cold, My Boss' Daughter and A Guy Thing. Concurrently, Koechner, along with Dave "Gruber" Allen, developed and performed The Naked Trucker & T-Bones Show on stage at Club Largo in Los Angeles, which later became a Comedy Central series. Koechner's first major film break came when he was cast as Champ Kind in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. Since then he has been seen in a variety of films, inlcuding The Dukes of Hazzard with Johnny Knoxville, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Snakes on a Plane, the animated feature Barnyard, the family film Yours, Mine and Ours, the critically acclaimed Thank You for Smoking, opposite Aaron Eckhart and Maria Bello, Semi-Pro and Get Smart. He recently starred in the Fox Atomic comedy The Comebacks. Koechner can be spotted in cameo roles in The 40 Year Old Virgin, Balls of Fury, and Sex Drive. He continues to play the recurring character Todd Packer on NBC's The Office as well.

Jordan Hinson (Maddie Pryor) began acting in plays at the age of five. When she was 11, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her acting career. She began modeling and appeared in several television commercials. Shortly thereafter, Hinson was cast in her first starring role as Kaitlin Kingsford, an aspiring figure skater in the Disney Channel Original Movie, Go Figure. She went on to play Zoe Carter for three seasons on Syfy's highest rated series, Eureka. She also co-starred with Angie Harmon in the movie Glass House 2: The Good Mother. Between seasons of Eureka, she continued to work, guest starring in such shows as Dirt and CSI: Miami.

Nathan Gamble (Henry Pryor) has already established an impressive career in television and film at age 10. His introduction into the entertainment business came when he played the role of Mike, Brad Pitt's son, in the Golden Globe-winning picture Babel. Babel director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu discovered Nathan after a nationwide search encompassing more than 20,000 young boys, all eager to play the part. Nathan's career soon took off, as he appeared in the feature Marley & Me, starring Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson, the blockbuster hit The Dark Knight, directed by Christopher Nolan, in Stephen King's The Mist, opposite Thomas Jane and Marcia Gay Harden and directed by Frank Darabont, and in the 3-D feature The Hole for Bold Films.
His television credits include the CW series Runaway, as Donnie Wahlberg's son, and the pilot Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas, directed by Tommy Schlamme for ABC. Nathan has also had guest appearances on Ghost Whisperer, CSI, Without a Trace and House, MD.


Pilot Plot:

#1 "Pilot" (Airs September 30)
A legendary entrepreneur in the sports retail world, Hank Pryor, and his wife, Tilly, have been living the high life in New York City. That is until Hank is forced out of his CEO job and has to downsize and move his family back home to the small town of River Bend, Virginia.
"Pilot" was written by Tucker Cawley, and directed by Andrew Weyman.


Analysis:

I saw both the original pilot and the new pilot. They are pretty much the same but with new actors playing the children. There are a few scene changes, such as the opening scene is almost completely different and for the better. I think this new pilot is a bit better than the original pilot. I don't like that they replaced Macey Cruthird with Jordan Hinson, though Hinson sort of does look like Cruthird. Why the change then? Actually before Hinson was cast as the daughter, they had Sasha Pieterse replacing Cruthird. Not sure what happened there, but they didn't shoot any scenes with Pieterse. The son was also recast from the original pilot. Originally it was Ryan Wynott, now it is Nathan Gamble.

Anyway, as for the pilot itself. It is nothing special so far. There are a few laughs, but it has potential. Kelsey Grammer is clearly the star and is in nearly every scene. It's nice to see him in a family comedy for once and playing a dad, but he still has a bit of Frasier in him. The show is about him as a big time CEO who lost his job in New York and he decides to move his family back to his hometown in Virgina. The chemistry between Kelsey and Melinda McGraw, who plays his wife on the show, is not there yet...but I see potential. They had a great scene in bed that was actually funny. She calls Hank, "Awesome Hank." Not sure why since the entire family seems to think he isn't awesome. They all basically ditched his family meeting (see preview video below). Hank is out of touch completely with his family. He has no idea what his kids like and do...so it will be interesting for him to learn now. By the end of the first episode he learns a bit about his son, but also gets played a bit by both the daughter and son. That was one of the better scenes. Brother-in-law Grady Funk is also a bright spot, but I wish he was in it more. David Koechner is a hilarious actor!

Usually pilot episodes, especially for family comedies, are usually one of the weaker episodes because they are setting things up for the show. So I hope the show does get better because we need a multicamera family comedy. I don't think this is in the same league as recent ABC multicamera family comedies such as 8 Simple Rules, George Lopez, My Wife & Kids, Hope & Faith or According to Jim. But Kelsey is certainly a big name and will draw an initial audience. Let's hope the show gets better!


Conclusion:

Originally this show was titled Awesome Hank. I think they should have kept that because Hank seems so dry and broad. Well maybe they decided not to name it that because Awesome Hank is a weird nickname for Hank because they really don't think he is awesome, but maybe they do deep down. I like the nickname for his daughter Maddie better, Moody Maddie! I think you should give the show a chance, meaning not just this episode because it isn't that good. Give it a few episodes to find its footing. Kelsey Grammer deserves that because he is such a great sitcom actor and he even is producing this show. So maybe it will get better. I haven't seen any subsequent episodes, but the second episode is about a yard sale in which Hank tries to run that as he did as a corporation. It's going to be interesting to see if Hank can find himself as a father. The competition isn't that strong in the Wednesday at 8pm hour, so Hank certainly has a shot and ABC Comedy Wednesday is off to a great start already with Modern Family and Cougar Town. Try this....but stick with it for more than just the pilot, because this is just a set-up that isn't very funny yet but has potential. America is an economic crisis, so maybe the nation will watch as it is a reality.


Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 3.5/5
Funniness: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5

-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 09/29/09

Discuss the show after you watch it on Wednesday, September 30 on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

Hank Photo Gallery

Preview:



Part of ABC Comedy Wednesday:


Stay tuned tomorrow for our pilot review of The Middle, which follows Hank on ABC Comedy Wednesday at 8:30pm ET/PT.

ION Television has been airing original series Durham County, a one-hour crime-drama series that follows the troubled world of Homicide Detective Mike Sweeney, on Mondays at 10pm since Sept. 7. The show has six episodes for its first season, and ION will air all six...but season two was supposed to start immediately following season one starting Oct. 19. Now that will not happen. Effective Monday, October 19 Criminal Minds will take over the Monday at 10pm slot on ION. Durham County will still air repeats Mondays at 11pm, though. So will ION air the season two episodes at a later date? I'm not sure, but I think they will. 6 more were ordered for season two. The ratings have not been too good, though. The series is a Canadian production and season two has already aired in Canada. Stay with us for continued updates!

ABC Fall Pilot Review: Cougar Town - Premieres September 23; Glee Picked-Up For Full Season

Cougar Town - Wednesdays 9:30PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Wednesday, September 23, 2009 at 9:30PM ET/PT

Courteney Cox stars as Jules, a recently divorced single mother exploring the honest truths about dating and aging in our beauty and youth obsessed culture. While most women in their twenties go through life experiencing the challenges and often humorous pitfalls of meeting men, Jules took on the responsibilities of marriage and raising a son. Now in her forties, she embarks on a journey to self-discovery whilst surrounded by fellow divorcees and singletons eager to live or re-live a time gone by.

Along for the journey are her friends and family: Laurie (Busy Philipps), the younger, feisty co-worker who encourages her to get out there and have some fun; Ellie (Christa Miller), the sarcastic, unapologetic confidante content with her life and marriage to her average, but loveable husband, Andy (Ian Gomez); ex-husband Bobby (Brian Van Holt), a classic under-achiever who'll test her patience as they attempt to raise their teenage son, Travis (Dan Byrd); and newly divorced neighbor Grayson (Josh Hopkins), who proves to be a catalyst of sorts for Jules.

Cast Details:

* Courteney Cox as Jules
* Busy Philipps as Laurie
* Dan Byrd as Travis
* Christa Miller as Ellie
* Josh Hopkins as Grayson
* Ian Gomez as Andy
* Brian Van Holt as Andy

Courteney Cox (Jules) gained overnight fame as neurotic yet loveable Monica Gellar on the Emmy Award-winning comedy Friends. She teams this season with Scrubs creator Bill Lawrence on the new ABC comedy Cougar Town. They will serve as executive producers through their companies, Coquette and Doozer, respectively. She most recently created, starred, and produced in FX's comedy Dirt. Cox made her acting debut in 1984 on the daytime soap As the World Turns, and later that year was cast by Brian de Palma for Bruce Springsteen's video, Dancing in the Dark. She landed her first well known work as an actress in 1987 when she was cast as the bright, perky girlfriend of Michael J. Fox on Family Ties. Following the series, she appeared in several feature films, including the box-office success Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, opposite Jim Carrey. In 1996 Cox starred in Wes Craven's horror/comedy Scream, which grossed over $100 million at the box office. She went on to reprise her role two additional times for the Scream trilogy. Additional film credits include 3000 Miles to Graceland, Mr. Destiny, Cocoon: The Return, Zoom, November, The Longest Yard and Barnyard. Cox was most recently seen in Disney's family comedy Bedtime Stories, opposite Adam Sandler.

Busy Philipps (Laurie) had a memorable performance as tough but sympathetic rebel teen Kim Kelly in the critically praised series Freaks and Geeks, from Judd Apatow and Paul Feig, Philipps crafted one of the most compelling young characters in contemporary television. After roles on Dawson's Creek and Undeclared, in 2004 she took a lead in the Shawn and Marlon Wayans comedy, White Chicks. In 2006 she starred in the UPN sitcom Love, Inc., from Friends showrunner Adam Chase. Next, she joined the cast of ER for one season as the devout Christian med-student, Hope Bobeck. Most recently, Philipps has been seen in standout roles in the films Made of Honor and He's Just Not That Into You. While eight months pregnant with her first child in summer of 2008, she filmed a five episode arc on Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.

Dan Byrd (Travis) had a memorable arc as Sylar's protégé apprentice, Luke, on NBC's drama Heroes. Last year he starred on the short lived but critically acclaimed CW series Aliens in America. Other television credits include the CBS drama Clubhouse, the lead role in the TNT miniseries Salem's Lot, with Rob Lowe, Sci-Fi Channel's miniseries Firestarter 2: Rekindled, with Dennis Hopper, and the Lifetime Original Movie Just Ask My Children, starring Virginia Madsen. He also made guest appearances on Joan of Arcadia, The Guardian, Boomtown, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Judging Amy and State of Grace. On the film side, he recently began production on Screen Gems' comedic retelling of The Scarlett Letter, Easy A, opposite Emma Stone and Amanda Bynes. Byrd has wrapped production on the independent coming-of-age drama Norman, opposite Emily VanCamp and Adam Goldberg, in the title role. He got his big break starring alongside Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray in the Warner Bros. teen romantic comedy, A Cinderella Story. Additional feature film credits include Universal Pictures' Lonely Hearts, opposite John Travolta, FOX Searchlight's The Hills Have Eyes and 28 Days, opposite Sandra Bullock.

Christa Miller (Ellie) has her first role on television in Kate & Allie, which starred her real-life aunt, Susan Saint James. n 2001 Miller's husband, writer-producer Bill Lawrence, conceived the comedy-drama Scrubs. Miller was given a guest role as Jordan Sullivan, the bitter ex-wife to Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley). Originally the character was intended to appear in only one episode, but in Season Two the role became recurring and she has appeared every year since. Miller also had a leading role in the 2008 TV miniseries The Andromeda Strain. She appeared in episodes of Northern Exposure, Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Party of Five and Seinfeld. She had a major role on The Drew Carey Show from 1995-2002 as Kate O'Brien, and was the voice of Cleopatra in the short-lived animated show Clone High. Her film credits include Deceived and Love and Happiness. She also starred with Kellie Martin in the acclaimed made-for-television movie, A Friend to Die For.

Josh Hopkins (Grayson) was most recently seen as Dr. Noah Barnes on the ABC drama Private Practice. He also recently appeared on CSI: Miami and in the film Pretty Ugly People. Prior to that, he appeared in the CBS drama Swingtown. Hopkins made his debut as a season regular on Fox's critically acclaimed series Ally McBeal, portraying Raymond Milberry, a rival lawyer and potential love interest to Calista Flockhart. Additional television credits include Ghost Whisperer, ABC's Brothers & Sisters, with Calista Flockhart once again, the CBS drama Surrender, Dorothy, with Diane Keaton, the CBS mini-series Robert Ludlum's Covert One: The Hades Factor, the TNT original movie Pirates of Silicon Valley, opposite Noah Wyle and Anthony Michael Hall, Fox's New York Undercover, The WB's Jack & Jill and Kate Brasher. In addition Hopkins starred opposite Rebecca Romijn in The WB romantic comedy, Pepper Dennis.

Ian Gomez (Andy) is a familiar face to film and television audiences. He was most recently seen in the multi-camera Lifetime comedy, Rita Rocks, and in the ABC single-camera sitcom Jake in Progress. He starred as the popular character Javier on the series Felicity, as the shameless self-promoter Larry Almada on The Drew Carey Show, and as Danny Sanchez on The Norm Show. Gomez has also starred in such feature films as My Life in Ruins, I Hate Valentine's Day, Connie and Carla, Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, Chasing Papi and My Big Fat Greek Wedding. He developed his improvisational skills which he showcased when he guest starred on the hit improv series, Whose Line Is It Anyway? Other television credits include guest starring roles on George Lopez, Curb Your Enthusiasm, NYPD Blue, Murphy Brown and the television movie Get a Clue.

Brian Van Holt (Bobby) starred in the critically-acclaimed HBO series John from Cincinnati, created by David Milch, portraying the lead role of Butchie. Van Holt's many feature film credits include Ridley Scott's Black Hawk Down, as Task Force Ranger Jeff Struecker, who led the convoy to a fallen soldier in Mogadishu, Somalia; he starred with Nicholas Cage in Windtalkers as a U.S. Marine officer assigned to protect a Navajo code-talker in World War II; he was the enigmatic soldier Dunbar, opposite John Travolta and Sam Jackson, in Basic, directed by John McTiernan; he then segued to Swat, with Colin Farrell and Sam Jackson and many more.


Pilot Plot:

#1 "It Takes a Village Idiot" (Airs September 23)
A recently divorced single mother in her 40s explores the honest truths about dating and aging in a society dominated by youth and beauty, along with her friends, her ex-husband and the cantankerous divorced man living next door.
Recurring is Carolyn Hennesy as Barbara Coman.
"Pilot" was directed and written by Bill Lawrence.


Analysis:

The hilarious mind of Bill Lawrence (Scrubs) is bringing you this show, so of course there will be laughs. Courtney Cox returns to broadcast television in a very funny and sexy comedy vehicle. I never liked Friends and thought it was vastly overrated. But I'm sure many Friends fans will want to watch Cox return. Who knows there could be some Friends stars popping-up for guest appearances. Anyway, as for the show itself...it is funny, quirky, sexy, and maybe even risque. I first saw the pilot this summer and there were rumors it was very risque. Other than maybe a scene or two, it seemed tame compared to some other shows, particularly on premium cable. If you watched the 2007 movie Cougar Club, then this show is nothing in terms of risque. That was a very wild movie! Cox plays Jules, a divorced mother of a teenage boy (Dan Byrd). She works as a real estate agent with Laurie (Busy Phillips). Laurie is a bit younger than Jules, so Jules I think tries to keep up with her and be "hip." Jules does have a best friend her own age in Ellie (Christa Miller), but with Laurie in the picture...Jules is showing off her bad side by hitting on younger men. Ellie is married to Andy (Ian Gomez). One of Jules' neighbors is the new bachelor Grayson (Josh Hopkins) who just got divorced and now has a different women each night...and they are all young, much to to the dismay of Jules. Jules' ex-husband Bobby (Brian Van Holt) stops in from time to time to take his son.

The pilot centers around Jules being lonely. She seems attracted to Grayson, but she just doesn't like him with these younger women. Jules and Laurie go to a night club where Jules meets a much younger man...and the funny stuff happens. With her son Travis hanging out with his father, Jules has the house to herself. One of the risque scenes I was talking about earlier happens by the pool...but it doesn't go too far because back comes her son and ex-husband! After that, Travis is just embarrassed and gets even more embarrassed when some kid is stealing real estate signs with a sexy picture of her mother...to well pleasure themselves. Wild stuff...but funny!

Ellie and Andy don't have much to do in the pilot, but I think their characters will be important to Jules, as she needs someone her own age. The recurring character of Barbara (Carolyn Hennesy) is hilarious! She plays one Jules' co-workers and she seems like a cougar herself, as she was also at the nightclub where Jules and Laurie went to. This show is much more than Jules sleeping around with younger guys, it has substance and it could be a sense of reality with women in their 40s who are divorced. Even if you're not a women in your 40s, you'll like this show!


Conclusion:

What a fun show! This has to air at 9:30pm, since it is a bit risque for network TV. That isn't to say it is vulgar or anything, but a few scenes in the pilot might be a bit weird to have in an earlier timeslot. It is going to follow a family comedy in Modern Family, but that show will have more adult viewers than kids, so I think this show was placed correctly. I haven't seen any subsequent episodes yet, so I am not sure if there will be any more risque scenes like that...but from the plotlines, we are still in for some good fun and laughs! If you like Scrubs, then you'll want to watch this since Bill Lawrence created this. And if you're a fan of Friends and Courtney Cox, then for sure you'll want to watch! I have always liked Cox. She was great on Scrubs last season and in many other roles like one of her earlier roles in Family Ties.

There isn't much more to say, but you need to watch the show. We need sitcoms to make a big comeback and ABC so far is 2 for 2 in the reviews (Hank and The Middle reviews to come next week). If you missed our Modern Family review yesterday, please read it! Tune in to ABC Comedy Wednesday starting tonight! You're going to be in for a fun, sexy, and of course funny ride in Cougar Town, Florida! Meowwwww!!!


Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 4.5/5
Funniness: 4.5/5
Overall: 4.5/5

-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 09/23/09

Discuss the show after you watch it on Wednesday, September 23 on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

Cougar Town Photo Gallery

Preview:

Fox has ordered a full season of the critically acclaimed one-hour comedy Glee after just two episodes this fall. The show hasn't even aired during the actual season yet and Fox has picked-up a full season. Glee, the genre-defying new musical comedy series, follows an optimistic teacher who against all odds and a malicious cheerleading coach attempts to save McKinley High's Glee Club from obscurity while helping a group of aspiring underdogs realize their true star potential. The critically acclaimed series stars Dianna Agron, Chris Colfer, Jessalyn Gilsig, Jane Lynch, Jayma Mays, Kevin McHale, Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Matthew Morrison, Amber Riley and Mark Salling. Guest stars this season include Victor Garber, Josh Groban, Kristin Chenoweth and Eve.

Blog DVD Review: Castle - The Complete First Season (9/22)

Welcome to our weekly Blog DVD Review! This week we take a look at ABC Studios' Castle: The Complete First Season. Castle is about a mystery writer working with the NYPD to solve cases as he tries to come up with ideas for his new book. This show has the same style of shows like The Rockford Files and Moonlighting. See my Blog DVD Review of Castle: The Complete First Season:

Castle: The Complete First Season (ABC Studios, $39.99) brings the first season of the witty crime series starring Nathan Fillion on DVD with all 10 episodes! Get on the beat with this great new show! It is loaded with provocative banter and a talented cast. Richard Castle is a world-famous crime novelist whose stories come to life in the pilot episode when a copycat killer follows his literary blueprint. He then enlists to help the NYPD stay a step ahead of the murderer. Castle realizes working with the police can also supply him with a new slew of ideas for his next book. The relationship gets a little more complicated -- and a whole lot more fun -- when he is paired with the attractive Detective Beckett, who doesn't appreciate Castle's unorthodox style. If you like Moonlighting and The Rockford Files, this show is in the same vein as those as the characters are the most important part of the show.
The series will return to its Mondays at 10PM timeslot on ABC this coming season following Dancing with the Stars. The series stars Nathan Fillion as Richard Castle, Stana Katic as Detective Kate Beckett, Jon Huertas as Detective Javier Esposito, Seamus Dever as Detective Kevin Ryan, Tamala Jones as Medical Examiner Dr. Lanie Parish, Ruben Santiago-Hudson as Captain Roy Montgomery, Molly Quinn as Alexis Castle, and Susan Sullivan as Martha Rodgers. Among the recurring stars are Stephen J. Cannell and James Patterson as themselves, and Bailey Chase as Will Sorrenson. Among the guests this year are Dan Castellaneta, Jayne Brook, Bill Smitrovich, K Callan, Darby Stanchfield and Judy Reyes.

This first season got better and better as the season went a long. I don't like crime shows of today, but this one is a throwback to the ones of the past and focuses on characters than more about the case. I like that! The series airs Mondays at 10pm and had a Dancing with the Stars direct lead-in a few times in season one, but now in season two...it will get that lead-in each time! The more people find this show, the better...because it has something for everyone. The humor, the crime, the relationships, the action, and great characters! The second season premieres on Monday (Sept. 21) and I have seen the season premiere already and it is awesome. We are about two months later in the story when Castle has to "tell" Beckett something, which I won't give away if you haven't watched the first season finale yet. It is a great premiere you won't want to miss, for sure! Beckett looks even more stunning this coming season with longer hair! She has a very stunning scene near the end of the second season premiere. Anyway, as for season one, some memorable episodes include the premiere, "Flowers for Your Grave," where popular and famous mystery novelist Richard Castle, who is bored with his own success, learns that a real-world killer has begun staging murders based on scenes from his novels. In "Nanny McDead," the body of a young woman is found spinning inside the dryer in the laundry room of an upscale apartment building. In "A Chill Goes Through Her Veins," the body of a frozen woman found tangled in steel bars at a construction site leads Beckett and Castle to a years-old mystery and a long abandoned case...as the two uncover startling revelations about the victim's past, the investigation forces Beckett to face some difficult memories of her own family tragedy. In "Always Buy Retail," when an immigrant is found tortured and murdered in a ritualistic killing, Beckett navigates the uncharted territory of the mysterious Vodun religion with Castle along for the ride, meanwhile, Castle is confronted with the possible return of his first wife, Alexis' mother, whose dizzying personality threatens to upend the tranquility of the entire family. In "Little Girl Lost," when a two-year-old girl is discovered missing from her home, Beckett is called in to assist with the investigation only to discover that the FBI agent in charge is, in fact, her ex-boyfriend. Finally, in the outstanding season finale "A Death in the Family," Castle and Beckett investigate the murder of a missing plastic surgeon who is found dead in the front seat of his car after a week of being parked curbside. As they delve into the twisted world of surgery obsessed patients and secret operations, Castle experiences a fatherly rite of passage as Alexis attends her first prom. And by looking into Beckett's past, he digs into information that could end his relationship with her forever.

Packaging has a thin outer box that you can remove from the top or bottom to get to the case inside. Both the thin outer box and case have the same artwork for both the front and back. The cover has a nice full body photos of Castle and Beckett in the New York City night sky, with one of Castle's books below that as we see a dead body I guess below the book. The show logo is in the middle in white lettering. The back has that dark blue night background with information on the set and has some episodic screen shots from episodes and we also have a cast photo. There is also a section detailing the bonus features box with technical specifications also.
Opening the case, on the left side we see disc one. On the right side we see discs two and three, overlapping each other. There is also an insert for Blu-ray inside. Disc artwork is very nice. Disc one has episodes 1-4 with artwork of a pen with some blood. Disc two has episodes 5-8 and has artwork of two of Castle's books including "At Dusk We Die." And disc three has episodes 9-10 plus bonus features and has artwork of two more of Castle's books including "A Calm Before the Storm." When you remove the discs, the panels have a nice cast photo, along with a disc-by-disc breakdown of episode titles and bonus features.

The menu screen starts with the opening credits from the series with the theme music, then we get to the main menu where we see moving video images with the closing theme playing in the background. The options on the main menu are Play All, Episode Selection, Set Up, Bonus Features, and Sneak Peeks (disc three). But before the main menu screen comes on disc one, we get some auto sneak peeks of other DVDs: ABC on DVD, The Proposal, and Cheri. Sneak Peeks option is only found on disc three on the main menu and has previews of many titles like Ugly Betty, Life on Mars, Lost DVDs, and an ABC promo for Desperate Housewives. Set Up section has the option of subtitles in English, French or Spanish and how you can register your DVD. The Episodes option gives us the episode number, title and a screenshot. Bonus Features option has all the extras listed. All of the sub-menus have different background music from the show.

The episodes run usually 41-43 minutes...unedited of course with all the great music intact. There are about 9 chapter stops per episode. The video is digitally mastered and is in widescreen and looks very good! The audio is great and sounds very good, as it is in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. This is from mid-season 2009, so it had better be good. There is nothing to complain at all here...it is perfect!

Moving on the bonus features. Discs one and two have audio commentaries, while the rest of the extras are on disc three. Disc one has audio commentary for the first episode "Flowers for Your Grave" with creator/executive producer Andrew Marlowe, executive producer Rob Bowman, Nathan Fillion (Castle), Stana Katic (Beckett), and Jon Huertas (Esposito). They give lots of details and are very fun to listen to. Fillion is very witty in real life, too. On disc two we have audio commentary for the great episode "A Chill Goes Through Her Veins," with creator/executive producer Andrew Marlowe, executive producer Rob Bowman, Nathan Fillion (Castle), Stana Katic (Beckett), Jon Huertas (Esposito), and also this time Molly Quinn (Alexis). Once again this is very fun and Molly Quinn is on it this time. She is a teenager but doesn't seem like it at all. She is very smart!
All of the other extras are on disc three! We have two more audio commentary tracks. They are for the same episode, the season finale "A Death in the Family." The first track is with creator/executive producer Andrew Marlowe, executive producer Rob Bowman, Nathan Fillion (Castle), Stana Katic (Beckett), Jon Huertas (Esposito), and Molly Quinn (Alexis) once again. This team is so good to listen to! And we also have a track with Seamus Dever (Ryan) and Jon Huertas (Esposito). So Huertas does commentary TWICE for this episode! We have an interview featurette titled "Whodunit: The Genesis of Castle" (6:14). This is a very good detailed extra that gives us the inside scoop on the cast, characters and the season. Interviewed are Andrew Marlowe, Stephen J. Cannell (writer/producer, novelist), Rob Bowman, Nathan Fillion, Stana Katic, Molly Quinn, Susan Sullivan, Jon Huertas, Seamus Dever, and Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Then we have another featurette titled "Castle's Godfather" (7:15). This has the trio of Stephen J. Cannell, Rob Bowman and Andrew Marlowe. We find out how Cannell got involved with the show and how he has known Rob Bowman since he was a child! This is a very interesting featurette. The final featurette is a GREAT one! It is very unique and very funny. It is titled "Write-Along with Nathan Fillion" (9:06). Nathan spends an entire day with Stephen J. Cannell and learns how to be a mystery writer. It is a tough job! This is very comical and even has Cannell doing his famous throwing the paper in the air. One of the best extras ever and a must watch! Finally, we have some "Misdemeanours: Bloopers & Outtakes" (2:36)...yes, bloopers! See all the goofs and play on the set!

I recommend this series and set...it is an ABC Studios DVD, so it is good and filled with special features. I think this series will break out this season and will get a full season to show America how witty and great this show is. This DVD is awesome! We get of course all ten great episodes from the first season, good packaging, and great extras that has one of my favorite extras ever with Fillion and Cannell. We need more extras like that on DVDs! I don't understand why the DVD is coming out on Sept. 22, when the second season launches a day before on Sept. 21, but ABC did re-air all ten episodes this summer (some multiple times). So I hope you saw them all. Everyone needs to be watching this show. Make a date with Castle and Beckett every Monday at 10pm on ABC! This is the best crime drama on TV right now because it has substance to the characters. It has a bit of everything and fans of older series like The Rockford Files and Moonlighting will enjoy this series. It's a whole new chapter in crime solving, indeed! See the tension between Castle and Beckett! As Castle would say, "Tell Me You Saw That!"
View the Season One Trailer.

-- Reviewed by Pavan
(4.5/5 stars)

To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
Official ABC Website
Castle TV.com Page

ABC Family October 2009 Has 8 Simple Rules Returning; Big Three To Air Obama Address on Wednesday

After a year off from the schedule, family comedy 8 Simple Rules is returning to the ABC Family line-up in October 2009! However, it will only air on weekend mornings starting Saturday, October 3. The series will air Saturdays 10-11am and Sundays 11am-12pm, both replacing Grounded for Life, which is now off the schedule totally. There will be times when one or even both of the airings will be preempted due to a movie, especially on Sundays. There are no other schedule changes on ABC Family October 2009, so the same schedule as September otherwise.
ABC Family last aired 8 Simple Rules for a month in the weekdays 3-4pm slot in September 2008 through early October 2008. Previously it was airing weekdays 6-7pm for well over a year. It's good to see the John Ritter/Katey Sagal comedy back on air, even if it is only weekends.
Elsewhere on ABC Family October 2009, the annual 13 Nights of Halloween begins Monday, October 19. Among the items we will see are hit movies such as The Goonies, The Addams Family, The Mask, Edward Scissorhands, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Haunted Mansion, Scooby-Doo, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, Batman, Batman Returns and Batman Forever. We will also see Halloween episodes of America's Funniest Home Videos on Mondays at 10pm.
Other ABC Family theatrical premiere for October are Coyote Ugly, Meet Joe Black, and Underdog.

President Obama will be having his sixth primetime address tomorrow at 8pm ET/5pm PT. It will be a joint session to Congress on Health Care and the Republican response will follow. This will once again effect the big three networks of ABC, CBS, and NBC in primetime. Fox will pass on the address for the third straight time.
ABC will air the Presidential Address to Congress live at 8pm ET/7pm CT, so for the east and central, an all-new Wipeout will shift to 9/8 central, preempting Crash Course. Primetime: Crime will remain at 10/9 central. For mountain time, the Presidential Address to Congress airs live at 6pm MT, so the all-new Wipeout remains in its normal time of 7pm MT, but they will air a repeat of Wipeout at 8pm MT since Crash Course is preempted in the east. For pacific time, it is essentially the same as mountain. The Presidential Address to Congress airs live at 5pm PT, so the all-new Wipeout remains in its normal time of 8pm PT, but like the mountain time zone they will air a repeat of Wipeout at 9pm PT since Crash Course is preempted in the east.
For CBS they will air the Presidential Address to Congress live at 8pm ET/7pm CT, so for the east and central, they will just simply preempt scheduled repeats of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried in the 8/7 central hour. For mountain time, the Presidential Address to Congress airs live at 6pm MT, so nothing will be changed as repeats of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried will air in the 7pm MT hour as planned. For pacific time, it is essentially the same as mountain. The Presidential Address to Congress airs live at 5pm PT, so nothing will be changed as repeats of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried will air in the 8pm PT hour as planned. Repeats of Criminal Minds and CSI: NY will air at its normal times in all time zones.
Finally, for NBC they will air the Presidential Address to Congress live at 8pm ET/7pm CT, so for the east and central, they will just simply preempt the scheduled repeat of America's Got Talent in the 8/7 central hour. The all-new episode will remain at 9/8 central. For mountain time, the Presidential Address to Congress airs live at 6pm MT, so nothing will be changed as the repeat of America's Got Talent will air in the 7pm MT hour as planned. For pacific time, it is essentially the same as mountain. The Presidential Address to Congress airs live at 5pm PT, so nothing will be changed as the repeat of America's Got Talent will air in the 8pm PT hour as planned. The all-new America's Got Talent airs still in its normal time in all time zones as well as a repeat of Law & Order: SVU.
Fox will air its primetime schedule as planned, which will have the season premiere of the new fall edition of So You Think You Can Dance and the regular series premiere of Glee. The CW will launch America's Next Top Model with a two-hour premiere.

AmericanLife Network October 2009 Adds Sue Thomas; Charles Gibson to Retire from ABC News in January, Diane Sawyer To Take Over

The AmericanLife Network will add one new show to its line-up in October 2009. We gave you their September line-up, now October will be similar but with one new show added. AmericanLife has acquired reruns of Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye to its October 2009 line-up. The series will air weeknights at 6:00pm starting October 1, replacing the second hour of The Bob Newhart Show and Newhart. Both of those will still remain in the 5pm hour, though. This is the second cable network that has acquired the series. A few weeks back, we told you that Gospel Music Channel has acquired the series to air weekdays at 4pm starting Sept. 14.
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye loosely based on the true experiences of the real Sue Thomas, a deaf woman worked for the FBI doing undercover surveillance with reading lips. It aired for four season on PAX TV (now known as ION Television). Deanne Bray starred as Sue Thomas. Sue Thomas is the second old PAX series to air on AmericanLife, as they air Chicken Soup for the Soul on weekends at 6:00pm.

Charles Gibson, anchor of ABC's World News, has announced he will step down as anchor in January for retirement. Diane Sawyer will take over for Gibson in January. Gibson has been anchor since June 2006. The following is an email he sent to the World News staff:
I have always been taught you should never bury the lead -- so I write to tell you that I have told David Westin I want to step down as anchor of World News, and retire from full time employment at ABC News.
It has not been an easy decision to make. This has been my professional home for almost 35 years. And I love this news department, and all who work in it, to the depths of my soul.
I have received much comment, and quite a few emails and letters referring to the signoff Eddie Pinder convinced me to use -- wishing that everyone has had a good day. But the proudest part for me has been saying "...for all of us at ABC News...", since those words signify in my mind that I have been in a position to speak for an entire news department that I consider second to none.
It had been my intention to step down from my job at Good Morning America in 2007 but with Peter's illness, Bob's injuries, and Elizabeth's pregnancy, the job at World News came open in May of 2006, and David asked me to step in as anchor. It was an honor to do so. The program is now operating at a very accelerated, but steady, cruising speed, and I think it is an opportune time for a transition -- both for the broadcast and for me. Life is dynamic; it is not static.
I have told David I would like to continue in some capacity contributing occasionally to ABC News. He has been receptive to the idea -- and we will be discussing what that role might be.
Most importantly, my heart is full of gratitude for those with whom I have had the privilege to work as a correspondent, as a host at Good Morning America, at Special Events, and now as anchor at World News.
I'll be anchoring World News through December and will have a chance to thank many of you personally. In the meantime let's get back to the news...
See also David Westin's email to the ABC News staff.

Network TV Fall Preview Specials for 2009; Scooby-Doo Turns 40!

Pretty soon it will be that time of year again...the start of the new TV season. So let's get ready for that with annual network preview specials to inform us on what is new and returning! See our Fall 2008 preview from last year.

First up we will look at ABC. ABC's Fall 2009 preview special has been titled ABC Fall Preview Open House. It will premiere this weekend on local ABC affiliates (NY: WABC Sun Sept. 6 at 2:30pm). It can be aired between September 5-20, 2009 (affiliate exclusive clearance window is September 5-6, then it will air on ABC cable networks after Sept. 6). The fall preview special is about ABC's new Wednesday night comedies and the most talked about new drama this season, Flash Forward. The special will also include material about the two new 10pm dramas: Eastwick and The Forgotten as well as the returning hit drama, Castle. This fall preview special will introduce viewers to character descriptions, storylines and recaps of last season and provide a sneak peek at the new season ahead! ABC: Start here! The special will be available on abc.com soon as well, if you miss it on your local ABC station or an ABC-owned cable network.
The CBS Fall 2009 preview special, simply titled CBS Fall Preview will be a primetime special previewing CBS's new fall lineup, to be hosted by the stars of the hit comedy series How I Met Your Mother, will be broadcast tomorrow (Wednesday, Sept. 2 from 8:30-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. The special will feature sneak peeks of the five new additions to CBS's primetime schedule this fall: the drama series NCIS: Los Angeles, The Good Wife, Three Rivers, and Medium and the comedy series Accidentally on Purpose. Hosts Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan and Cobie Smulders exchange humorous banter throughout the special, which was taped on their series' sets, in the midst of introducing various video previews. They also utilize comical means to drive home the point that How I Met Your Mother is moving to 8:00 PM on Mondays.
The NBC Fall 2009 preview special (titled The NBC Primetime Preview) has aired on their cable owned networks & local NBC affiliates (in NY on WNBC Sun Sept. 6 at 12:30pm) and is also available online on nbc.com, but as of now it will air on NBC itself. Joel McHale, star of the all-new NBC Thursday comedy Community, hosts a special preview of NBC's new upcoming season. The lively 30-minute cavalcade will feature exclusive, behind-the-scenes views to be delivered across a wide gamut of NBC Universal media platforms beginning August 8 through September 27. The program will run an estimated 306 times over broadcast and cable platforms. The annual Fall program will be offered to NBC's 232 television stations (check local listings) as well as other channel entities such as USA, Syfy, Bravo, UniHD, Chiller, mun2, MSNBC, CNBC, Oxygen, Sleuth, NBC2Go, on-demand and broadband (search "NBC Fall Preview" on TVGuide.com). NBC stations can also run it on their websites while NBC.com is also running it as well. In addition, the program will be screened on selected American Airlines flights (estimated to be shown on approximately 11,000 flights). Watch now online.
The Fox Fall 2009 preview special has already started airing on local Fox affiliates (in NY WNYW Sat Sept. 5 at 3pm). It will only run on local Fox affiliates this year and not on Fox in primetime. Actress Jane Lynch hosts a comprehensive look at the upcoming shows on Fox's fall schedule, including returning favorites like House and American Idol, new shows like Brothers, and the highly acclaimed comedy series Glee.
The CW aired its Fall 2009 TV preview special called The CW Fall 2009 Preview Special this past Sunday (Aug. 30) at 6:30pm, but your local CW affiliates (in NY WPIX Sun Sept. 6 at 1pm) are still airing encores this week...so be on the look out (search "CW Fall Preview" on TVGuide.com)! From the set of The CW's new drama, Melrose Place, returning stars Laura Leighton and Thomas Calabro gives viewers a sneak peek into the world of vixens, vampires, models and more. New series featured include Melrose Place, The Vampire Diaries, The Beautiful Life and the midseason drama, Life UneXpected.
In addition, The TV Guide Network will run the Fox and CW primetime fall preview specials starting Sept. 14 at 7:30pm with Fox on Monday and The CW on Tuesday.

Looking quite remarkable for his age in dog-years (approx. 280!), Scooby-Doo will celebrate his 40th Birthday with a two-day Labor Day Weekend marathon on Boomerang. Saturday and Sunday will each feature seven hours of classic Scooby-Doo episodes from two of the earliest animated series, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? (1969) and The New Scooby-Doo Movies (1972).
When Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? premiered on broadcast television (CBS) Saturday morning, Sept. 13, 1969, television audiences took their first journey on what would become literally hundreds of mystery-solving comedy capers featuring a teenage gang of amateur detectives and their cowardly, yet beloved great Dane. Today, having recruited generations of fans young and old across the globe, Scooby-Doo will celebrate his milestone 40th birthday over Labor Day Weekend on the commercial-free Boomerang network with two seven-hour marathons, 2-9 p.m. (ET), Saturday, Sept. 5 and Sunday, Sept. 6, as we mentioned on the Boomerang Fall 2009 schedule.
To commemorate the special event, Scooby and the gang--Freddy, Daphne, Velma and Shaggy--on Saturday will solve 17 classic supernatural mysteries, including their very first from the original premiere episode, "What a Night for a Knight." Then on Sunday, Boomerang will devote another seven-hour marathon, 2-9 p.m., to showcase The New Scooby-Doo Movies, the second series in the Scooby-Doo canon and the only series to feature hour-long episodes. The hallmark of this series is its animated celebrity guests, and during the special presentation, Scooby and the gang meet the casts of other great Hanna-Barbera cartoons such as Josie and the Pussycats and the Harlem Globetrotters.

Nick at Nite Fall 2009 Schedule; Dancing with the Stars Season 9 Cast

We continue our look at Fall 2009 schedules today with Nick at Nite's Fall 2009 line-up. Joining the schedule will be the comedy Everybody Hates Chris. The sitcom will launch with a marathon on Labor Day evening (Monday, Sept. 7) airing from 10pm-6:30am ET/PT. The series is inspired by the teenage experiences of comedian Chris Rock (who is also the narrator), while growing up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York in the early-mid 1980s. The series stars Tyler James Williams as the young Chris Rock. Tequan Richmond, Terry Crews, Tichina Arnold, Imani Hakim, and Vincent Martella also star. With recurring guest appearances by Todd Bridges, Ernest Thomas, Jackee Harry, and Jason Alexander. The series is also expected to air on sister Viacom network BET this fall (more to come on that).
All 88 episodes of Everybody Hates Chris will air on Nick at Nite as the show will air every night at 10 & 10:30PM ET/PT starting the next night as well as 2 & 2:30AM ET/PT. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air will be leaving the schedule, as the contract has indeed expired, as we guessed a few weeks back. The show will air on Disney-owned ABC Family and Disney XD (more on Disney XD soon) on weeknights in September, while continuing to air on TBS in the mornings. As we mentioned Chris will air in the 10pm hour, this is now shifting the second hour of George Lopez back to 1am. The Nanny's weeknight 11pm-3am block is now just the 11pm hour, as Malcolm in the Middle returns to 12 midnight. 3-6am every night will be a rotating wheel of three series: The Nanny (Mon, Thurs, Sun), Family Matters (Tues, Fri) and Home Improvement (Wed, Sat). Also, the 6am half-hour will now be a wheel of these three series as well. This means Family Matters and Home Improvement will not air before 3am, as the 8pm-3am schedule is consistent each night with a few exceptions (Glenn Martin Mondays at 8 and Malcolm in the Middle Sunday nights in the 1am hour).
Other September highlights include a week-long marathon of George Lopez prior to Everybody Hates Chris joining. George week will be Aug. 31-Sept. 6, from 9pm-6am (10pm-6am on Fri-Sat). And of course original series Glenn Martin, DDS continues Mondays at 8pm. The original stop-motion animated series follows the life of Glenn Martin (Kevin Nealon), who yearns for a change of scenery and a deeper connection with his family.
View the FULL Nick at Nite Fall 2009 schedule that begins Sept. 8. As always, especially with Viacom owned networks, this is subject to change. So stay with us for continued updates.

An all new cast of celebrities hits the dance floor on ABC's Dancing with the Stars with the highly anticipated two-hour season premiere on Monday, September 21, 2009 from 8:00-10:02 p.m., ET/PT on ABC. With its biggest season yet, Dancing with the Stars Season Nine introduces us to 16 new stars, including an Osmond and an Osbourne, two Grammy Award ® winning artists, a Cowboy, a model CEO and a former House Majority Leader.
During the first week, eight teams will strut their stuff on Monday night (Sept. 21), while the other eight teams will show off their moves on Tuesday night (Sept. 22) at a special time of 8:00-10:00 p.m., ET/PT. On a special night and time, two couples will learn their fate and be sent home on Wednesday night (Sept. 23) from 8:00-9:00 p.m., ET/PT.
The series will regularly air Mondays 8-10 p.m. ET/PT and the results show on Tuesdays from 9-10 p.m. ET/PT. A 90-minute performance finale is scheduled for Monday, November 23 with the two-hour season finale on Tuesday, November 24 from 9-11 p.m. ET/PT. Four new dance styles -- the Bolero, the Charleston, the Two Step and the Lambada -- are also going to be introduced. The middle stages of the competition feature the return of the "Dance Off" on Tuesday nights, where contestants will perform a dance style of their choosing to fight for their spot in the competition, and three consecutive double eliminations promise the most dramatic period of Dancing with the Stars.
And the stars are: Aaron Carter (singer/actor), Natalie Coughlin (Olympic swimmer), Mark Dacascos (chef, Food Network), Tom DeLay (politician), Macy Gray (singer), Ashley Hamilton (actor, son of George Hamilton), Melissa Joan Hart (sitcom star/actress), Kathy Ireland (model, CEO), Michael Irvin (NFL legend), Joanna Krupa (model, The Superstars), Chuck Liddell (UFC mixed martial arts), Debie Mazar (actress), Mya (singer), Kelly Osbourne (singer/actress, personality), Donny Osmond (singer/actor/host, brother of Marie Osmond), and Louie Vito (professional snowboarder).
View full details on all the cast members for Season Nine and more!

Summer 2009 TCA Tour: ABC

We are preempting our Saturday blog DVD review this week so we can cover the last day of the summer 2009 TCA press tour. Today ABC will be up, and it is a full docket! Kicking it off will be panels starting at 9am PT for Modern Family, Shark Tank, The Middle, Hank, and FlashForward. FlashForward's pilot will be screened during lunch. Then we have the executive session, where we should learn a whole lot. After that, we have more panels for new series, The Forgotten, Cougar Town, Eastwick, and V. ABC is set to announce that V will launch in November. Finally, the night concludes with the Disney-ABC Cocktail Reception!
ABC is promoting their new Wednesday comedy block as "ABC Comedy Wednesday," and starting today promos for Comedy Wednesday will crank up as stars of those comedies join the ABC House! Check out two of those new ABC House promos, featuring Comedy Wednesday casts. As of this writing, the first spot will air today during the ABC Afternoon Movie at 4pm. The Middle and Hank promos begin tonight during the ABC Saturday Night Movie at 8pm!

V will launch on Tuesday, November 3 at 8pm! In other confirmations, ABC has confirmed they have picked-up the sitcom Romantically Challenged for midseason. The show stars Alyssa Milano and Kyle Borneheimer.

TV Land September 2009 Schedule; ABC and Fox Schedule Changes

TV Land has announced its September 2009 line-up. Is it their fall line-up though? We're not sure yet. Because this only covers Aug. 31-Sept.27. So TV Land could have something in store starting Sept. 28. There aren't much changes to the schedule. But before we get to that, we have to tell you The Andy Griffith Show will air Mondays 6-10pm and Sunday nights 4-6am now for all of August and a few times on Tuesdays (Aug. 4 and 25) from 6pm-7:30pm. Now that that is out of the way, we can tell you about September. There are only a few changes, mainly in primetime. Weekdays from 7-9pm will now be The Andy Griffith Show starting Monday, Sept. 14. It will lead into marathons on Mon-Thurs from 9pm-12am with more Andy on Mondays, Roseanne on Tuesdays, M*A*S*H on Wednesdays, and The Cosby Show on Thursdays. M*A*S*H's regular 5-6am Wednesday airings will be preempted for more Three's Company as a result of this change. Everything else is the same as August, except Little House is back Sundays 4-6am instead of Andy...for now. I say for now because the August Andy Griffith changes happened after the September schedule was released.
TV Land PRIME original series How'd You Get So Rich and Make My Day will have their season finales on Wednesday, Sept. 9. Weekends will still have classic marathons that have a classic show and Andy Griffith paired up. Those shows include Beverly Hillbillies, Bonanza, and Brady Bunch. Speaking of Brady Bunch, that is their 40th anniversary marathon. It's unbelievable that it has been 40 years since that "one day when that lady met that fellow" but it's true and TV Land is celebrating in grand style for one whole week. Beginning Monday, September 21 to Friday, September 25 catch episodes from 7pm-9pm and then if that isn't enough of this bunch, catch even more episodes on Saturday, September 26 and Sunday, September 27 from 10am-6pm to round out the celebration. It's the best of the Bradys all week long and it will be positively groovy!!
That's not all for anniversaries! The Cosby Show is turning 25! Join TV Land PRIME Thursday, September 24 from 9pm-12am and say Happy 25th Birthday to The Huxtables as PRIME celebrate the years of laughter The Cosby Show brought to our TV screens. This quarter-century milestone marathon features extra-special episodes that highlight memorable moments from the series and pays special tribute to America's favorite sitcom family.
Finally, catch premieres of this month's movies on Labor Day (Monday, September 7 from 9am-6:30pm) if you can't wait for them every Fridays at 9pm! All-month long the network will air new movies and you can see them on Labor Day first...Private Benjamin, Airplane II, The Bodyguard and Field of Dreams.
So is this the fall schedule? Will something new be added on Sept. 28? We're not sure yet. But stay with us! And as usual, this schedule is subject to change, since TV Land always changes something. So again stay with us for that, if it happens. View the full TV Land September 2009 schedule and highlights.

ABC has altered its schedule a bit. Late yesterday just hours before The Bachelorette finale, they decided to air an instant special encore of The Bachelorette finale for Tuesday (July 28) from 8-10pm, preempting the season finale of The Superstars and an all-new episode of comedy Better off Ted. So if you missed the drama of the Bachelorette finale, you can watch it again leading into the special all-new After the Final Rose special. So with The Superstars season finale now on Tuesday, Aug. 4 from 8pm-9:30pm, the Scrubs repeats will no longer air...but it will air at 9:30pm on this date. The final two episodes of the season of Better off Ted were originally supposed to air July 28 and Aug. 4 at 9:30pm, will now air for an hour on Tuesday, Aug. 11 from 9-10pm following Night 3 of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. One other note, ABC will encore the pilot episode of summer hit Dating in the Dark on Monday at 9pm, shifting the all-new episode to 10pm. The show will air new episodes at 10pm starting the following week now. See the announcement we made on this last night in a list form.
Also at ABC, we announced on Friday on our message board that Shark Tank is scheduled to air additional airings on Sundays on August 30, September 6 and 13, 2009 at 9:00 PM ET/PT. Shark Tank is also still scheduled to air on Sundays on August 9, 16 and 23, 2009 at 9:00 PM ET/PT after Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?, as planned. However, Shark Tank is no longer scheduled to air on Tuesdays, effective August 25, 2009 in the 8:00 PM ET/PT slot. Tuesdays at 8PM starting Aug. 25 is now TBD. Shark Tank will move to Tuesdays at 8PM this fall now, likely Sept. 22 or 29. 13 episodes have been ordered and six will air in the "summer" season.

Fox has made some changes to its fall line-up. They are moving the premieres of So You Think You Can Dance and Glee up a week to Wednesday, Sept. 9, while pushing comedies Brothers and 'Til Death back slightly. Brothers will now premiere with back-to-back episodes in the 8pm hour on Friday, Sept. 25, while 'Til Death will take over the 8:30pm Friday slot the following week on Friday, Oct. 2. Fox will air more Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader episodes Fridays at 8pm now on Sept. 11 and 18. If you missed the special pilot of Glee this past May, Fox will re-air it on Wednesday, Sept. 2 and again on Friday, Sept. 4 at 9pm. Glee will also encore its first two episodes on Friday, Sept. 11 and 18 at 9pm.

TV Guide Channel Acquires Ugly Betty Reruns; TBS Orders More House of Payne; Network Notes

In a significant move to bolster its programming and attract new viewers, TV Guide Network announced that it has entered into an agreement with Disney-ABC Domestic Television to acquire the exclusive basic cable off-network rights to ABC Studios Golden Globe Award winning television series Ugly Betty. It is TV Guide Networks first scripted series acquisition and part of a multi-tiered programming strategy to evolve the network as an entertainment destination.
The deal includes access to existing and future episodes of Ugly Betty which will begin airing as a weekly strip on TV Guide Network in fall 2010. As part of the agreement, TVGuide.com will have rights to stream up to five Ugly Betty episodes at a time online. In addition, the deal includes repurpose rights for the upcoming fourth season of Ugly Betty premiering in October 2009 on ABC. The repeat telecast of the new episodes will air on TV Guide Network within two weeks of their premiere on ABC.

TBS is expanding the network's groundbreaking partnership with Tyler Perry and Debmar-Mercury by ordering an additional 20 episodes of the powerhouse comedy Tyler Perry's House of Payne. The order will bring the number of episodes in the series to 172, a remarkable total for any sitcom. House of Payne, along with Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns, continue to rank as the top sitcoms on cable.
House of Payne and Meet the Browns rank as ad-supported cable's top two original sitcoms of all-time among adults 18-49, viewers and households. So far in 2009, the shows are television's top two series in delivery of African-American adults 18-34. Meet the Browns also ranks as television's #1 program among African-American viewers and adults 18-49. This year, new episodes of Meet the Browns have averaged 3.2 million viewers, while new episodes of House of Payne have averaged 3 million viewers.
House of Payne is owned by Perry, distributed by Debmar-Mercury and licensed by TBS - debuted in 2006 with a test run of 10 episodes. After early results showed promise, TBS ordered a then-unprecedented 100 episodes. TBS later ordered an additional 26 episodes, followed by a deal for 26 more and the 20-episode order being announced today. The series is set in Atlanta and features LaVan Davis as fireman Curtis "Pops" Payne, a man who believes his house should be his castle, he the king and his wife, Ella (Cassi Davis), the queen. Unfortunately, their castle has turned into Grand Central Terminal, thanks to the constant comings and goings of immediate and extended family members. Lance Gross, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Allen Payne, Demetria McKinney, Larramie "Doc" Shaw and China McCain co-star.

ABC has announced premiere dates for Eastwick and Brothers & Sisters for the 2009-10 season. Eastwick will premiere on Wednesday, Sept. 23 at 10pm ET/PT, while Brothers & Sisters will launch its fourth season on Sunday, Sept. 27 at 10pm ET/PT. These two were the last of the fall premiere dates yet to be announced by ABC. Private Practice launches its third season on Thursday, Oct. 1 at 10pm ET/PT.
Recap yourself with the full ABC fall 2009 premiere dates.
Meanwhile, Wipeout, ABC's outrageously popular reality series, has been picked up for a third season. Twenty-four thrill-seekers will compete in the world's largest extreme obstacle course designed to provide the most spills, face plants and wipeouts ever seen on television. Moving nights, from Tuesday last summer to Wednesday this year, against tougher competition from Fox's time-period veteran So You Think You Can Dance, ABC's Wipeout is No. 1 during the 8 o'clock hour in Total Viewers and across each of the key Men demographics (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54). In Adults 18-49, Wipeout is a strong and very close second to Fox's Dance. Since its debut, Wipeout stands as Wednesday's No. 1 TV program in each of the Men demos (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54). It's the No. 5 TV series of Summer 2009 with Adults 18-49 and No. 1 with Men 18-49. On average to date, Wipeout is drawing ABC's largest summer audience in the Wednesday 8 o'clock hour in 13 years and highest Adults 18-49 rating during the summer frame in 10 years since 1996 and 1999, respectively.
In other summer news, ABC will launch Crash Course on Wednesday, August 26, 2009 airing Wednesdays at 9pm through and including Wednesday, Sept. 16. As of now, only four episodes are scheduled to air. The series, hosted by Orlando Jones and Dan Cortese, is a comedic auto-obstacle course series. It will air after Wipeout and will replace I Survived a Japanese Game Show, which would conclude its run the previous week.

Obama News Conference On Wednesday Alters Network Schedule; Cronkite Specials on Bio TV, AmericanLife; Update on Nick at Nite

President Obama is having another live news conference. It will be held tomorrow (Wednesday, July 22, 2009) at 8pm ET/5pm PT. This will affect the networks' schedules. ABC, CBS and NBC will cover the news conference on broadcast, with Fox passing for the second straight time. Fox will air the two-hour So You Think You Can Dance from 8-10pm ET/PT.
ABC will air the Obama News Conference live at 8pm ET/5pm PT, so this means an all-new Wipeout will be moved in Eastern and Central time zones to 9pm ET/8pm CT instead. I Survived a Japanese Game Show will also air an hour later, at 10pm ET/9pm CT. Charlie Gibson's Special Edition of 20/20 - Over A Barrel: The Truth About Oil will now be scheduled to air on Friday, July 24, 2009 at 10:00 PM ET/PT, because of this change. It had been scheduled to air 10pm ET/PT on Wednesday. In the Mountain and Pacific time zones, Wipeout and I Survived a Japanese Game Show will air in its normal time periods of 8pm PT/7pm MT and 9pm PT/8pm MT. A repeat of Primetime: Crime will air after them at 10pm PT/9pm MT. View our time zone schedule list for ABC on this date.
Next up is CBS. They will also air the Obama News Conference live at 8pm ET/5pm PT. This will preempt the repeats of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried in the East and Central at 8pm ET/7pm CT. They will air as planned in the Mountain and Pacific time zones in their regular time periods of 8pm PT/7pm MT, as the news conference airs live at 6pm MT and 5pm PT. Repeats of Criminal Minds and CSI: NY will not be affected, and air as planned in all time zones.
Finally, NBC will also air the Obama News Conference live at 8pm ET/5pm PT. In the East and Central, this will preempt the America's Got Talent encore from the previous day at 8pm ET/7pm CT. I haven't been able to 100% confirm, but it is likely that the encore will remain intact in the Mountain and Pacific time zones at 8pm PT/7pm MT, as the news conference airs live at 6pm MT and 5pm PT. An original America's Got Talent will air immediately following the news conference in the East and Central at 9/8 central and as planned in Mountain and Pacific time zones. The same goes true for The Philanthropist at 10pm ET/PT.
Really only ABC is the most affected here, so if you're DVRing or watching, be aware of the changes!

Bio TV will honor the late Walter Cronkite tonight with a repeat of his Biography episode. It will air from 8-10pm ET tonight (Tuesday, July 21, 2009). The special 2-hour portrait of the war correspondent, TV broadcast pioneer, and anchorman who was beloved by almost all Americans. With vintage clips of his most famous newscasts, including his announcement of the death of President Kennedy. Because of this schedule change, Bio TV has shifted some of its primetime programming tonight to next week. View those changes. Stay with us tomorrow for details on new Biography episodes on Bio TV for August!
AmericanLife TV will honor Walter Cronkite with the special Moments That Changed Us: Walter Cronkite. It will air today at 3pm, Wednesday at 3:30pm, and Thursday at 4pm. Throughout the 1960s, as the cost in American lives lost in the Vietnam War increased, Americans began to wonder what we were really accomplishing there. In the wake of the Tet Offensive in early 1968, Walter Cronkite, the venerable anchor of the CBS Evening News, went to Vietnam see for himself. His now-famous report from the front changed the face of journalism, changed the direction of the war and changed history. Veteran journalist Nick Clooney gets the story behind the story in a rare interview with Walter.

Yesterday we gave you a story on Nick at Nite's schedule changes. We mentioned weekends wouldn't change, but now they have. We updated the story to reflect the changes, so view the story again.
And you can also view the schedule effective July 20 in a list form. View both the story and list so you don't get confused!

Sci Fi Changes to Syfy Today; Jackson Memorial Special Tonight; Hallmark Primetime Changes

We told you back in March that Sci Fi Channel was renaming to Syfy starting July 7, and now that day has come. Syfy also has a tagline saying "Imaging Greater." They will launch original series Warehouse 13 tonight at 9 with a two-hour premiere.
As for the regular schedule, there are no changes. The rest of this week Syfy is airing more movies than usual though, as there is no daytime rotation marathons. The regular schedule will return July 13, that includes Lost at 4pm and 1am weeknights. And speaking of the daytime rotation marathon, in August we will see Early Edition finally air on this network. It was set to join the schedule in March, but it never happened, as we mentioned. Early Edition will air on Tuesday, August 4 from 8am-4pm and Friday, August 21 from 8am-4pm as well. Other daytime rotation notables in July and August include Joan of Arcadia, 7 Days, Friday the 13th: The Series, and The Sentinel.
Ghost Whisperer joins the Syfy schedule this fall. That show was acquired from part of their CBS-Paramount deal. I think everything from that deal has now aired at least one time (if Early Edition ends up airing this time!), except Charmed and I believe The Invaders. We are not sure when those will turn up. We are still hoping for another Mork & Mindy marathon! Anyway, stay tuned in the coming weeks for Syfy's Fall 2009 schedule.
Check out their new website www.syfy.com!

If you don't get a chance to watch the Michael Jackson Memorial live this afternoon (on ABC, CBS, NBC, and many other networks including Hulu on the Internet) from approx. 1pm-3pm ET (10am-12pm PT), then the broadcast networks will all have specials on Michael Jackson tonight. ABC will have s Special Edition of 20/20: Remembering Michael Jackson tonight at 9pm, preempting scheduled Better off Ted and Scrubs repeats. That's not all, ABC will air a special episode of Primetime: Family Secrets focusing on Michael Jackson's children at 10pm, instead of the regular story. So, it's two-hours of Jackson on ABC primetime tonight. CBS will have a special 48 Hours tonight titled 48 Hours - Michael Jackson: The Last Dance at 10pm, preempting regularly scheduled segments. And finally NBC will preempt an encore of Law & Order: SVU at 10pm for a Dateline special on Michael Jackson titled Dateline: A Farewell to Michael Jackson.

Finally, The Hallmark Channel has announced that they will preempt five primetime movies in favor of Touched by an Angel at 9pm and an hour of The Golden Girls at 10pm. The movies will be preempted on Thursday, July 9 and the week of Monday July 13 through Thursday, July 16 from 9-11pm. No reason why, but due to this, Cheers will air also in the 1am hour since Golden Girls is airing at 10pm.
This is not a permanent primetime change, it is just for these five dates...as of now. View this in a list form.

ABC Pulls Motherhood, Doubles Up On Samantha Who; Me-Too July Marathons; Nick at Nite's 2nd Quarter Ratings

We were the first ones to mention yesterday (on our message board) that ABC has pulled In The Motherhood after just one episode since its return. The canceled sitcom has two more burn-off episodes left, and only aired once this summer. ABC will now double-pump Samantha Who? instead. Samantha Who? is now scheduled to air new episodes on Thursdays at 8:30 PM ET/PT on July 2 and 9 with the season finale airing on Thursday July 23, 2009 at 8:30. Just to be clear, Samantha Who? will also still be all-new in the 8:00 PM ET/PT time period on these three nights as well, as the series has 6 episodes left (on July 16, ABC has an ABC News special on J.K. Rowling scheduled). Don't forget Samantha Who? fans, to DVR or watch the entire 8pm hour tomorrow!
No word if In The Motherhood will burn-off its final two episodes on another night, but we will certainly let you know. In other ABC updates, ABC has confirmed that the final two scheduled Sunday airings of Just for Laughs will also be at 7:30pm ET/PT on Sundays (July 5 and 12) like it was this past week. An abbreviated repeat of AFV will serve as its lead-in, before going back to its full-hour on July 19. Not sure how many episodes Just for Laughs has this third season, but only four were scheduled to air even before it started airing.

The daily classic TV summer marathons continue on Chicago's Me-Too this July. Continuing this July, Chicago's Me-Too will feature all-day marathons of classic shows! Me-Too, sister station of Chicago's Me-TV and WCIU-TV, showcases a different classic show every weekday from 10AM-10PM. One day you could be arrested by Kojak, the next you could be cruising in the Batmobile through Gotham City!
The schedule for the month in order starting today is: The Greatest American Hero is today, followed by The Adventures of Superman, Black Sheep Squadron, Magnum P.I., Hawaii Five-0, In the Heat of the Night, The Untouchables, Kojak, The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, Batman, The Green Hornet, Get Smart, Eight is Enough, Family Ties, Diff'rent Strokes, The Cosby Show, Little House on the Prairie, Wild Wild West, Have Gun Will Travel, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, and Rawhide closes the month.
As you can see, each week there is a theme. First week is super heroes, then dramas, crime solving, family, and westerns.
View the schedule section on their website for episode info.

Nick at Nite closes second quarter as the number-one basic cable network with Women 18-49 in total day, averaging a 0.8 rating in this demo (448,000 viewers W18-49). Driven by hits like George Lopez, Nick at Nite also ranks as the number-two cable network with Adults 18-49 (behind only USA Network) for the quarter, averaging a 0.6 rating in this demo (668,000 viewers A18-49) and 1.5 million total viewers.
George Lopez is the network's highest-rated program in second quarter, and has posted ratings growth since the show launched in September 2007. George Lopez averages a 0.6 rating in A18-49 (678,000 viewers A18-49) at 10 p.m. for the quarter and has posted gains of 20% with Adults 18-49 launch to date. George Lopez can be seen on Nick at Nite everynight at 10 p.m. and it will be moving to weeknights at 9 p.m. next week.
In prime time (9-11 p.m. ET/PT), Nick at Nite averages a 0.6 A18-49 rating and 1.6 million total viewers for the quarter. Nickelodeon recently announced that it is extending the Nick at Nite programming block to encompass all three hours of prime time (8-11 p.m. ET/PT), providing viewers with a slate of family programming including the upcoming Nick at Nite premiere of Malcolm in the Middle on July 5.
Year to date, Nick at Nite is averaging 1.5 million total viewers, a 0.6 A18-49 rating (679,000 viewers A18-49) and a 0.8 W18-49 rating (442,000 viewers W18-49).

Stay tuned tomorrow for TV Land August 2009! So come on back for that tomorrow!

BET Acquires Sister, Sister; ABC Removes Scrubs Repeats Slated to Begin June 23

BET has acquired the rights to air the hit '90s sitcom Sister, Sister starting this July! The Tia and Tamara Mowry sitcom will launch on BET with an all-day 4th of July marathon from 9am-4am ET/PT on Saturday, July 4! There will also be a block on Sunday, July 5 from 12pm-5pm ET/PT as well. Then starting Monday, July 6, Sister, Sister will air weekdays in the 12 noon hour and also in the 4pm hour leading into The Game at 5pm, which also stars Tia Mowry. Talk about seeing double! We will have more updates on BET's sitcoms soon, but as of now the daytime schedule starting in July looks like this: 9-10am Proud Family, 10-11am Smart Guy, 11am-12pm One on One, 12-1pm Sister Sister, 1-3pm Movie, 3-4pm One on One, 4-5pm Sister Sister, and 5-6pm The Game.
Sister, Sister will still remain on ABC Family as well. They air it weekdays 7-8am and 1-2pm...so another double dose of the twins. BET is picking up the WGN America deal, as they lose rights to the series at the end of this month. So that's how BET is going to air Sister, Sister. WGN America recently only aired the series once a week in the very late nights, then they removed it from the schedule completely.

ABC has removed the Scrubs repeats slated to start on Tuesday, June 23 at 9:30pm. Instead, ABC will expand upcoming new reality-celeb competition series The Superstars to 90-minutes, airing 8pm-9:30pm ET/PT. Airing at 9:30pm now will be the return of Better off Ted with new episodes. That was slated to air at 9pm previously on Tuesdays. Officially ABC has only expanded the first two episodes of The Superstars to 90-minutes, but if it does well, expect all of them that way. The series will last through Tuesday, August 4. If the series is not expanded beyond the first two weeks, I would expect an hour of Better off Ted--new and repeat, instead of a Scrubs repeat mixed in. But like I said, expect Ted to only air at 9:30pm, as The Superstars will likely do very well and continue to air 90-minutes throughout its run. Some drama in the Bahamas!

ABC Fall 2009 Premiere Dates; Futurama Returns in Mid-2010; TV Land Changes Night and Time for Originals

ABC has announced most of the premiere dates for the 2009-2010 season. Additional premieres will be announced at a later date. Most of the series will launch or return for premiere week (Sept. 21-27), but there are some before and after. Saturday Night Football returns on Saturday nights at 8pm ET starting Saturday, Sept. 5. 20/20 will launch its new season (it never has repeats though) on Friday, Sept. 11 at 10pm. Then we move on to premiere week. Dancing with the Stars kicks-off premiere week and the new season for ABC on Monday, Sept. 21 from 8-10pm followed by the season premiere of Castle at 10pm. Dancing with the Stars will also air on Tuesday, Sept. 22 from 8-10pm leading into the series premiere of The Forgotten. Airing at 8pm on Tuesdays will be Shark Tank starting Aug. 25 (with special airings after Who Wants to Be a Millionaire on Sundays at 9 on Aug, 9, 16 & 23), but Shark Tank is preempted on Sept. 22, but will return Sept. 29 at 8. On Wednesday, Sept. 23, a special Dancing with the Stars: The Results on a special night & time of 8pm will lead-into the comedy premieres of Modern Family & Cougar Town. No word yet what will air at 10pm on this night, as ABC has not announced when new drama Eastwick will launch. Dancing with the Stars: The Results will move to its regular Tuesdays at 9pm slot the following week (Tues., Sept. 29). On Thursday, Sept. 24, ABC launches the premiere of Flash Forward at 8pm followed by the season premiere of Grey's Anatomy. ABC has not announced yet when Private Practice will launch. On Sunday, Sept. 27, ABC will have a two-hour season premiere of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition from 7-9pm, followed by the season premiere of Desperate Housewives at 9pm. No date for Brothers & Sisters has been announced yet.
Premiering out of premiere week will be new comedies Hank and The Middle on Wednesday, Sept. 30 in the 8pm hour. Also, AFV will launch its new season on Sunday, Oct. 4 at 7pm, as Home Edition moves back to the regular 8pm hour. Premiering in week three will be the two-hour season premiere of Ugly Betty from 8-10pm on Friday, Oct. 9, before moving to its regular 9pm slot the following week. And Supernanny launches its new season in week four at 8pm on Oct. 16. That's good to launch the Friday series a bit later as Friday ratings tend to be very low until its gets cooler.
So, to recap so far no premiere dates for Brothers & Sisters, Private Practice and new drama Eastwick. Why? I think ABC might be mulling a special preview for Eastwick. If I were to guess, Eastwick would get a special premiere on Sunday, Sept. 27 at 10 following Desperate Housewives, with Brothers & Sisters launching its new season the following Sunday at 10 (Oct. 4). Eastwick would have its Wednesday premiere on Sept. 30 at 10. During premiere week they might have a special at 10pm on both Wednesday, Sept. 23 and Thursday, Sept. 24 to fill those vacant spots, so maybe Private Practice will not launch until week two (Thursday, Oct. 1). Just my guesses. We also don't know yet what is airing on Fridays the first two weeks from 8-10pm? Maybe special encores of something during the week?
View the premiere dates in list form. We'll inform you as soon as we know about the missing premiere dates.

20th Century Fox Television, the animation powerhouse that brought Family Guy back from the dead five years ago, has done it again: Matt Groening and David X. Cohen's brilliantly subversive animated sci-fi comedy Futurama will return to production on 26 new half-hour episodes more than six years after the series aired its last original episode. The move comes on the heels of the series' blockbuster performance on DVD and on Comedy Central.
The new episodes will be available in mid 2010 to be shown on Comedy Central. However, Twentieth Century Fox Television retains the option to license the original runs of the new episodes to a broadcast network as well.
Futurama was a staple of Fox's Sunday night animation block from 1999 to 2003 before ceasing production on original episodes. In June 2006, Comedy Central acquired the rights to the existing 72 episodes of the series, which the channel began airing in January 2008, and four recently-produced extended length Futurama adventures: "Bender's Big Score," "The Beast with a Billion Backs," "Bender's Game" and "Into the Wild Green Yonder," which enjoyed enormous success both on Comedy Central and in DVD release. This new deal marks the show's return to episodic series production on original episodes. Futurama becomes only the second series in the history of the medium to go back into production based on the strength of its DVD sales and repeat airings on cable.

TV Land announced today that it is making changes to its summer schedule as upcoming original series How'd You Get So Rich? starring Joan Rivers and the comedic hidden camera series Make My Day will now premiere on Thursday, August 6 at 9 p.m. ET/PT and 9:30 p.m. ET/PT respectively.
It was previously announced that they would premiere on Wednesday, August 12 at 10 p.m. ET/PT and 10:30 p.m. ET/PT. The series' will premiere in TV Land PRIME, the network's new primetime programming block designed to appeal to the attitudes, life stage and interests of people in their 40s.
Premiering on Thursday, August 6 at 9 p.m. ET/PT, How'd You Get So Rich? stars the notoriously uncensored gossip diva Joan Rivers as she explores the lifestyles of the fabulously rich and lucky in this 30-minute, six-episode series. Following How'd You Get So Rich? is the premiere of the six-episode show Make My Day at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT. This comedic hidden-camera series provides a window into one day in the life of an unsuspecting participant. Tune in as cameras capture the action as they experience weird coincidences, extraordinary situations and surprise celebrity appearances for one whole day.
It seems Thursdays at 9PM is the new hour for TV Land originals, as TV Land also launches the second season of She's Got the Look tomorrow (June 11) on the night and time.

TV One July 2009; ABC Moves Goode Family and Suburbia to Fridays

This July 2009 on TV One, it is going to be pretty slow. We gave you the TV One June 2009 highlights already, and at the end we mentioned a Martin Independence Day marathon is scheduled for July 3 starting at 8pm last until 8pm the following day. But now we have the rest of July. There are no schedule changes, so the schedule that started in June with the additions of That's My Mama! and Like Family, will continue (see the June schedule link above for more).
The only highlight worth mentioning for TV One July is on Friday, July 24 beginning at 10pm when TV One presents the "Living Single: Queen For A Day Mega-Thon" featuring episodes of the long-running sitcom focusing on Queen Latifah's character Khadijah James in a 24-hour mega-thon event.
The other highlights are for movies and original series, but that doesn't concern us really. Stay tuned if anything changes, if not see for the August highlights in a month!

ABC has moved animated comedy The Goode Family and sitcom Surviving Suburbia from Wednesdays to Fridays effective next week. This coming Wednesday (June 10) will see two episodes of the summer megahit Wipeout at 8pm and 9pm, before the season premiere of I Survived a Japanese Game Show launches on June 17 at 9pm out of new episodes of Wipeout at 8pm. Japanese Game Show was previously not launching its new season until July 8, so this is 3 weeks ahead of schedule due to the ratings bombs of Goode and Suburbia. I think I was the first one to mention the possibility of Japanese Game Show launching June 17, a few days ago on our message boards. And I was right!
Starting next Friday (June 12), we will now see the remaining new episodes of Surviving Suburbia at 8pm, followed by The Goode Family at 8:30pm, and back-to-back repeats of Samantha Who? are still slated to air on June 12 and 19 from 9-10pm, before According to Jim repeats take over on June 26.
Suburbia is not going to air Fridays at 9:30pm as previously announced starting July 3, at least not on July 3 because ABC announced another According to Jim repeat will air then. After that week, I would guess no, and Jim would continue to air for an hour instead. Nevertheless, Fridays is now a full night of comedies! We like that! Tune in!
In other ABC updates, ABC will launch the third season of the hidden camera comedy Just for Laughs airing a half-hour a week on Sundays at 7pm starting Sunday, June 21. An abbreviated half-hour repeat of AFV will follow each week. It is unclear how many episodes are airing, but the two past seasons had 13 episodes each.

ION Switches Reba and Feud; ABC Summer Sitcom Changes; Remembering Michael Ross

We gave you details on ION Television's June 2009 line-up already with the addition of Ghost Whisperer to the Monday night line-up starting June 1, but now they have made a switcharoo on weekdays that will start June 8. Reba will now move to weeknights in the 6pm hour, as Family Feud now switches to the 7pm hour. The switch was made due to Reba's poor ratings and also because Lifetime airs the series at the same time. Now ION will air the sitcom in the 6pm hour, an hour before Lifetime starts their 7-9pm weeknight block of Reba. Family Feud will air on most nights in the 7pm hour on weeknights, especially Mondays and Tuesday, but the other nights on weeknights you can see a movie start earlier.
View the full updated ION Television June 2009 line-up. We will have more on ION next week with their July line-up. We mentioned before ER would return to weekdays starting June 29, but now we hear that is not happening. What will happen? Come on back next week and see!

We have lots of ABC sitcom news for the summer for you today. First off, we have some breaking news. Just premiered animated comedy The Goode Family will air an additional episode at 9:30pm this coming Wednesday (June 3) instead of a new episode of Surviving Suburbia. The Goode Family will also air in its regular 9:00pm Wednesday time slot on this date as well. Why? Ratings. Suburbia did terrible and was pulled right away, but The Goode Family didn't do that hot either losing a lot from the big lead-in from Wipeout, but ABC is giving it more of a chance. If this change does better, expect ABC to double-pump The Goode Family until further notice to perhaps complete more of its 13 episode-run. Originally only 6 were slated to air.
We previously reported that the three remaining episodes of In the Motherhood would air Fridays at 9:30pm starting June 5. Now that isn't happening. ABC will double-pump repeats of Samantha Who? for three weeks in the Friday 9pm hour on June 5, 12 and 19 now instead. Then Samantha Who? will move to Thursdays at 8pm starting June 25, with new episodes (it has 7 episodes left to air). In the Motherhood will air its three remaining episodes at 8:30pm on Thursdays on June 25, July 2 & 9. It is unclear what will air in the 8:30pm slot thereafter, but it will likely be more Samantha Who? ABC has not announced what will air Thursdays 9-11pm yet starting June 25, as I doubt we get both Grey's and Private Practice repeats...maybe just Grey's and something like new crime drama Castle repeats? Then on Fridays at 9 starting June 26, we get According to Jim repeats on a new night and time (Remember the series finale is this Tuesday in the 8pm hour). The following week, July 3, Surviving Suburbia moves to Fridays at 9:30pm with new episodes following repeats of According to Jim at 9. I bet we won't see Suburbia until July 3 now, as I don't expect it to return to Wednesdays following the June 3 Goode Family test.
Elsewhere, 7 new episodes of Better off Ted and repeats of Scrubs will air in the 9pm hour on Tuesdays starting Tuesday, June 23 following episodes of the upcoming competition series The Superstars. This is a good way for the brilliantly done Better off Ted to be sampled before it returns with more new episodes in January 2010.
I applaud ABC in airing all of these comedies this summer! View these changes in a list form, if you get confused. And if we have more updates, we will bring it to you first...so keep checking!


TV producer/writer/director Michael "Mickey" Ross, best known for his work on hit sitcoms All in the Family, The Jeffersons and Three's Company, died Tuesday (May 26) in Los Angeles from complications of a stroke and heart attack. Ross, along with business partners Don Nicholl & Bernie West, made his mark in the 1970's with the breakout CBS TV sitcom, All in the Family, for which he won a writing Emmy in 1973. They were nominated two other times, another one for All in the Family and one for Three's Company. The trio were known as "NRW" until the death of Don Nicholl in 1980. So now only Bernie West remains from this historical team.
Mickey also was part of the creation for ABC's Three's Company spin-offs The Ropers and Three's a Crowd. He also wrote for Maude, another All in the Family spin-off. In 1976 NRW also created and produced the short-lived sitcom The Dumplings for NBC starring James Coco. Mickey also directed many episodes of Three's Company. NRW also wrote the pilot episode for Chico and the Man.
Before all of his hit series were born, he was a part of many shows in the '50s and '60s such as The Garry Moore Show, The Perry Como Show, Sid Ceasar's Hour and The Martha Raye Show. The latter is how he developed a relationship with Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin, later forming All in the Family. And decades later in 1998, Mickey appeared on screen for an interview on the E! True Hollywood Story for Three's Company.
Aside from his TV work, Ross and his wife founded the Michael and Irene Ross Program in Jewish Studies at The City College of New York -- Ross's (and Bernie West's) alma mater. Memorial service will be held this Sunday (May 31) at 11 a.m. Mount Sinai Hollywood Hills on 5950 Forest Lawn Dr. in Los Angeles, CA.
Mickey will certainly be missed and my good friend and author of the Three's Company book Chris Mann tells me he loved farce comedy and that's how he viewed Three's Company with John Ritter as the ultimate farceur. Mickey rejoins Don Nicholl now up in the heavens recreating TV comedy. Rest in Peace, Mickey and you'll be deeply missed. Mickey Ross was 89.

ABC Summer Pilot Review: The Goode Family - Premieres May 27; TV's 50 Funniest Phrases Airs Tonight

The Goode Family - Wednesdays 9:00PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Wednesday, May 27, 2009 at 9:00PM ET/PT

The Goode Family is a new animated series from Mike Judge (King of the Hill, Beavis and Butt-head), John Altschuler & Dave Krinsky (King of the Hill, Blades of Glory).
With standards always changing, no matter how hard you try to be good, it's virtually impossible these days... especially for the Goode family.
Meet Gerald and Helen Goode, a couple who live by the motto WWAGD ("What Would Al Gore Do?"). Gerald, a college administrator, and Helen, a community activist, are determined to obliterate their carbon footprint on the planet: They're zealous vegans, they drive a hybrid, and they recycle everything possible. Even the family dog, Che, is vegan. In the words of Helen, all the Goodes want to do is buy organic apples and call minorities by their right names. But despite their best efforts, something always goes haywire with their politically correct plans.
Like adopted son Ubuntu - Gerald and Helen thought they were doing the right thing by adopting a baby from Africa, only to learn that Ubuntu was South African... and white. Now a teenager, he eagerly tries to embrace the Goodes' love of things like crafts and organic gardening, even though deep in his gene pool is a drive towards more blue collar pursuits like driving fast, using tools and violent sports. Teenage daughter Bliss is constantly mortified by her parents (especially her mom's efforts to talk openly, girlfriend-to-girlfriend, about sex). Even Che is rebelling against his owners - he's secretly depopulating the neighborhood of every stray squirrel, cat, rabbit and bird in search of a square meal.
Their kids and dog aren't the only ones who find the Goodes hard to understand. Helen's SUV-driving, meat eating dad, Charlie, thinks her efforts to save the planet are just a waste of time. Neighbor Ray Johnson (recurring star Gary Anthony Williams) is bemused at the Goodes' attempts to refer to him by the right ethnic catch phrase ("African American?" "Person of Color?") and the constant drama unfolding right next door.


Cast Details:

* Mike Judge as Gerald Goode
* Nancy Carell as Helen Goode
* David Herman as Ubuntu Goode
* Linda Cardellini as Bliss Goode
* Brian Doyle Murray as Charlie
* Gary Anthony Williams as Ray

The Goode Family is voiced by Mike Judge as Gerald, Nancy Carell as Helen, Dave Herman as Ubuntu, Linda Cardellini as Bliss and Brian Doyle Murray as Charlie. Gary Anthony Williams is recurring as their black neighbor Ray.

Mike Judge (Gerald Goode) considered cartooning a hobby while he toiled as bassist for Anson Funderburgh and Doyle Bramhall, but when MTV picked up his 1992 short, Frog Baseball, animation history was made. The network simultaneously decided to spin-off Beavis and Butt-Head into a show of its own, making him the premier animator of the 1990s. The creation of these two teenage icons led to his next equally successful project, Fox TV's King of the Hill. Judge expanded his artistic endeavors into directing films such as 1999's cult classic, Office Space, featuring Jennifer Aniston, and his underrated Idiocracy, with Luke Wilson, as well as doing voices for South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut and acting in Robert Rodriguez' Spy Kids series. Writer, actor, producer, director, composer, animator, musician... Mike Judge is many things, but nothing beats making it okay for grownups to hold up their hands and proclaim, "I am Cornholio!"

Nancy Carell (Helen Goode) got her start in comedy at The Second City, and from there went on to join the cast of Saturday Night Live. She appeared for three years as a correspondent and guest host on The Daily Show. Carell has been a recurring character on the comedy series The Office as Carol Stills, the real estate agent and former girlfriend of Michael Scott. Her feature film work includes The 40 Year Old Virgin and Anger Management. She and her husband, Steve Carell (The Office), have two children.

David Herman (Ubuntu Goode) was one of the eight original cast members of Fox's late night sketch comedy show, Mad TV. In 1997 he began doing voice work on the Fox animated sitcom King of the Hill" where he met writer/director/actor Mike Judge. He was so impressed with Herman that he cast him as Michael Bolton in his critically acclaimed cult hit, Office Space. He also began doing voices for the Fox animated sitcom Futurama.

Linda Cardellini (Bliss Goode) is well known for her portrayal of Nurse Samantha Taggart on the NBC series ER. She has reprised her role, which she originated in 2003, in its 15th and final season. Cardellini first came to prominence starring as academic decathlete Lindsay Weir on the Emmy Award-winning series Freaks and Geeks, which has recently enjoyed a renaissance on DVD. In 2005 Cardellini delivered a heartfelt performance as a jilted lover in Ang Lee's highly acclaimed, award-winning drama, Brokeback Mountain. Last year she starred with Val Kilmer and Steve Zahn in the epic CBS miniseries Comanche Moon. Cardellini captured the hearts of young girls, boys and teenagers worldwide for her portrayal of Velma in Warner Bros.' popular Scooby-Doo and Legally Blonde, as well as in the Adam Sandler produced comedy, Grandma's Boy.

Brian Doyle Murray (Charlie, Helen's father) has appeared in such films as Daddy Day Camp, Nearing Grace, Snowdogs, Bedazzled, Drowning Mona, Stuart Little, As Good As It Gets, Waiting for Guffman, Jury Duty, Cabin Boy, Coneheads, Groundhog Day, Wayne's World, JFK, Nothing But Trouble, Christmas Vacation, How I Got Into College, Ghostbusters II, The Experts, Scrooged, Club Paradise, Legal Eagles, The Razor's Edge, Sixteen Candles and National Lampoon's Vacation. His television work includes Yes, Dear, Lucky, Family Guy, King of The Hill, Seinfield, Ellen, The Martin Short Show, Married with Children, Roseanne, Bakersfield PD and many others. In addition he appeared in over 50 episodes of Saturday Night Live and was nominated for three Emmy Awards for writing for the series. As a writer, he also co-wrote the hit comedy film, Caddyshack.


Pilot Plot:

We have received the first three episodes for air for review!

#1 (PROD #101) "Pilot" (Airs Wednedsay, May 27, 2009)
In the premiere episode, "Pilot," Helen is distraught when Bliss, fed up with her mom's trying to talk to her about sex, joins an abstinence group. Things go from bad to worse when Bliss asks her father, Gerald, to take her to the group's purity ball. Meanwhile Ubuntu turns 16 and wants to learn how to get his driver's license.
Guest voice cast: Gary Anthony Williams as Ray/the DMV Person/Ted, Mo Collins as the Checker/Lucy, Dee Bradley Baker as Che, and Julia Sweeney as Margo.
"Pilot" was written by John Altschuler, Mike Judge and Dave Krinsky, and directed by Wes Archer.

#2 (PROD #106) "Pleatherheads" (Airs Wednesday, June 3, 2009)
Gerald and Helen have a tough time adjusting to the demands of being a football family after Ubuntu unexpectedly becomes a star on high school football team. Meanwhile, Bliss tries some unorthodox ways to improve her college prospects.
Special Guest Voice: Adam Carolla. Guest voice cast: Bob Odenkirk as Brian Kennedy, Gary Anthony Williams as Ray/Coach/Mr. Alvarez, Amy Hill as Jacki/Kiki, Phil Lamarr as Mr. Whitmore/Solosolo and Laraine Newman as Mo/Nice Old Lady.
"Pleatherheads" was written by Dave Jeser & Matt Silverstein and directed by John Rice.

#3 (PROD #102) "Goodes Gone Wild" (Airs Wednesday, June 10, 2009)
Helen sees a way to win her father's approval when he takes a shine to one of the rescues at her pet adoption. Unfortunately, it's a disgusting animal of unknown origin named Gutterball who has to stay with the Goodes because Charlie's "home" doesn't allow pets. While Helen copes with Gutterball, their dog Che gives Gerald a hand with the college's squirrel problem.
Guest voice cast: Gary Anthony Williams as Ray/the Animals First Leader, Dee Bradley Baker as the Animals First Leader/Che/Gutterball, Lori Nasso as Penny and Julia Sweeney as Margo.
"Goodes Gone Wild" was written by Jordana Arkin and directed by John Rice.


Analysis:

I received for review the first three episodes airing. This animated comedy is produced by Media Rights Capital (MRC). It is about a family who wants to do good for the world, but they just can't get it right. They are learning on the way, though. This family is certainly a 21st century family, as they are vegans and an energy saving family. The father and mother (Gerald and Helen) are trying their very best to practice what they believe in, but you'll see not always what they believe is what they actually believe in.
The family is pretty likable. If you like current animated comedies like The Simpsons and King of the Hill, and animation styles of King of the Hill and Beavis & Butt-head then you'll certainly will want to watch this show. Mike Judge has created a show about a family that we can all relate with. It honestly reminds me of a live-action comedy. It is a great family comedy that you'll enjoy. This show has a lot of pop-culture related jokes to make it even more hip.
The characters are pretty interesting. The father, Gerald is probably the one who wants to do the most "good." He works for the local college as an administrator. His wife, Helen also believes in "good" but sometimes her inner bad comes out, as you'll see in many episodes. They have a teenaged daughter, Bliss, that is pretty smart and attractive as well (she reminds me of the type of girl on Beavis & Butt-head). She doesn't really like the "good" way, but still does it. They also have an adopted son named Ubuntu. He was adopted from South Africa, but he is white. He dresses like an African as well. He is a bit eccentric and likes to do good, but as you'll see even he tries to be wild at times. The family also has a dog named Che. He is a vegan dog, but hates it. Gerlad and Helen have no idea that he eats wildlife when they are not looking. Rounding out the characters are Helen's father Charlie, who does not like at all what this family practices and their neighbor Ray, who is black and the family tries to be "politically correct" with him.
In the first episode, it is basically about Helen and Bliss, as Bliss is fed up with her mom's trying to talk to her about sex so she joins an abstinence group. She even goes to a purity ball, but it doesn't work out. Also in the episode Ubuntu turns 16 and wants to learn how to get his driver's license.
In the second episode airing, Ubuntu joins the high school football team, but his parents sees the demands of being a football family are not good and they do some not so "good" things. Also in the episode Bliss tries ways to get into college.
In the third episode airing, Helen never has had her father's approval, but when he takes a shine to one of the rescues at her pet adoption...she tries to take advantage. The catch is it's a disgusting animal of unknown origin named Gutterball who has to stay with the Goodes because Charlie's "home" doesn't allow pets. Also in the episode their dog Che gives Gerald a hand with the college's squirrel problem as he goes wild without them knowing again. The episodes get better and better...maybe because we are now engulfed with the family.


Conclusion:

This show is pretty funny. It is a show about the family itself and not a show about to be a vegan or drive hybrid cars. So don't get freaked out by them saying "What Would Al Gore Do?" This family wants to do "good," but it is so hard to do that, as you'll see with every episode. The show premieres after last summer's biggest hit Wipeout, so the premiere should be sampled in the ratings. Promos have been airing a lot over the past few months, so this is not just a summer burn-off. ABC has ordered 13 episodes, but only 6 are airing this summer (and wow, I've seen 3 of them already). I'm thinking if this show does well, you could see it in the regular season perhaps in the winter on Tuesday nights with Scrubs and Better Off Ted? I've never really watched much of King of the Hill, but I do like The Simpsons and the family element of that show makes it so likeable and it is shown here as well. I did like Judge's other show Beavis & Butt-head, though the only thing similar about that show with The Goode Family is the animation style.
I think if you're going to give this a try, give it a few episodes. I think I liked it more and more because I saw more than one episode. Think about it, sampling something with just one episode is not a good sample. This is the summer, so there won't be much new scripted programming anyway...so stick with it! The episodes get better and better. We need a good animated comedy that is not on Fox. It is very watchable and the laughs are also there. The Goode Family is a "goode" show and I was surprised!


Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 4.5/5
Funniness: 4/5
Overall: 4/5

-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 05/26/09

Discuss the show after you watch it on Wednesday, May 27 on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

The Goode Family Photo Gallery


Tonight on NBC from 8-10pm ET, get ready to laugh your way down memory lane with an array of amazing stars both past and present.
From "No soup for you" to "We are two wild and crazy guys" to "Hug it out," catch phrases are instantly recognizable and become part of popular culture. Actress, dancer, singer and Tony Award-winner Jane Krakowski (30 Rock) hosts. Jeremy Piven, Regis Philbin, Gabe Kaplan, Dana Carvey, Neil Patrick Harris, Jean Stapleton, Ron Howard, Andy Griffith, Keenan Ivory Wayans, Jackie Gleason, Bob Newhart, Penny Marshall, Polly Holliday, and Redd Foxx are among some of the legendary stars featured when The Paley Center for Media and NBC count down fifty of the all-time funniest catchphrases said on television in a two-hour special. With great scenes from the shows and interviews with the stars who brought the lines to life, this program will celebrate the history and humor of catchphrases. The Paley Center for Media's TV's 50 Funniest Phrases airs tonight from 8-10pm ET on NBC. See who made it to the top 10 and what phrase is #1.

New Fall 2009 Sitcoms Preview

Today we take a look at the new sitcoms that made the fall schedules. There will be a total of 10 new sitcoms this season, including 1 that will air at midseason and 1 animated comedy. 5 will be single-camera. 4 will be multi-camera. Some familiar faces returning to sitcoms include Kelsey Grammer, Melinda McGraw, Macey Cruthird, Patricia Heaton, Neil Flynn, Ed O'Neill, Sofia Vergara, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ty Burrell, Julie Bowen, Courteney Cox, Christa Miller, Ian Gomez, Jenna Elfman, Ashley Jensen and Daryl "Chill" Mitchell. Comedy legend Chevy Chase will appear on an American sitcom as a regular for the first time. Former New York Giants great and current FOX NFL Sunday analyst Michael Strahan will appear in a new FOX sitcom.

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ABC



Hank - Wednesdays at 8:00PM EST/PST on ABC

Kelsey Grammer stars in this timely comedy as Hank Pryor, a titan of industry who suddenly finds himself out of work, almost out of money and around a wife and kids for whom he's never made much time. Despite his recent setbacks, however, Hank is confident he's on the road back to the top. He knows he is destined to return to greatness. And he is — just not the greatness he imagines.

The series is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with McMonkey Inc., Grammnet Productions, Werner Entertainment and Warner Bros. Television. It is written by Tucker Cawley. Tom Werner, Tucker Cawley, Kelsey Grammer and Mike Clements serve as executive producers. The pilot was directed by James Burrows.

Cast:
Kelsey Grammer as Hank
Melinda McGraw as Tilly
David Koechner as Grady
Macey Cruthird as Maddie
Ryan Wynott as Henry

Preview:



Links:

TV.com

Wikipedia



The Middle - Wednesdays at 8:30PM EST/PST on ABC

The Hecks are a middle class family living in the middle of Indiana, just trying to keep their heads above water. Emmy-winner Patricia Heaton stars as a wife and mother of three in a comedy about raising a family and lowering your expectations.

The series is produced by Warner Bros. Television. Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline are executive producers/writers and Werner Walian is producer. The pilot was directed by Julie Anne Robinson.

Cast:
Patricia Heaton as Frankie
Neil Flynn as Mike
Eden Sher as Sue
Atticus Shaffer as Brick
Charlie McDermott as Axel

Preview:



Links:

TV.com



Modern Family - Wednesdays at 9:00PM EST/PST on ABC

Today’s American families come in all shapes and sizes. Shot from the perspective of an unseen documentary filmmaker, this comedy takes a modern look at the complications that come with being a family in 2009.

The series is produced by Twentieth Century Fox Television. Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd are executive producers. The pilot was directed by Jason Winer.

Cast:
Ed O'Neill as Jay
Sofia Vergara as Gloria
Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Eric Stonestreet as Cameron
Ty Burrell as Phil
Julie Bowen as Claire
Sarah Hyland as Haley
Rico Rodriguez as Manny
Nolan Gould as Luke
Ariel Winter as Alex

Preview:



Links:

TV.com

Wikipedia



Cougar Town - Wednesdays at 9:30PM EST/PST on ABC

Courteney Cox stars as a recently divorced single mother exploring the honest truths about dating and aging in our beauty and youth obsessed culture.

The series is from ABC Studios. Bill Lawrence is executive producer/writer/director, Kevin Biegel is writer/co-executive producer, and Courteney Cox and David Arquette are executive producers.

Cast:
Courteney Cox as Jules
Christa Miller as Elle
Busy Phillips as Laurie
Dan Byrd as Travis
Brian Van Holt as Bobby
Josh Hopkins as Grayson
Ian Gomez as Andy

Preview:



Links:

TV.com

Wikipedia

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CBS



Accidentally on Purpose - Mondays at 8:30PM EST/PST on CBS

ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE is a comedy starring Golden Globe Award winner Jenna Elfman as Billie, a single woman who finds herself "accidentally" pregnant after a one-night stand with a much younger guy, and decides to keep the baby... and the guy. A newspaper film critic, Billie is barely surviving a humiliating breakup with her charming boss, James (Grant Show), who's still trying to resume their relationship. Suddenly expecting a child with her "boy toy," Zack (Jon Foster), Billie and Zack make an arrangement: to live together platonically. Billie's party girl best friend Olivia (Ashley Jensen), and Abby (Lennon Parham), her conventional, younger married sister, eagerly look forward to the new addition and offer their own brands of advice and encouragement. But when Zack and his freeloading friends, including Davis (Nicolas Wright), start to turn her place into a frat house, Billie isn't sure if she's living with a boyfriend, a roommate, or if she just has another child to raise. Lloyd Braun, Gail Berman, Gene Stein and Claudia Lonow are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios. Pamela Fryman directed the pilot.

Cast:
Jenna Elfman as Billie
Ashley Jensen as Olivia
Nicolas Wright as Davis
Grant Show as Daniel
Lennon Parham as Abby
Jon Foster as Zack

Preview:



Links:

CBS.com

TV.com

Wikipedia

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NBC



Community - Thursdays at 9:30PM EST/PST on NBC

From Emmy Award-winning directors Joe and Anthony Russo ("Arrested Development") comes "Community," a smart comedy series about higher education -- and lower expectations. The student body at Greendale Community College is made up of high-school losers, newly divorced housewives, and old people who want to keep their minds active. Within these not-so-hallowed halls, "Community" focuses on a band of misfits, at the center of which is a fast-talkin' lawyer whose degree has been revoked (Joel McHale, "The Soup"), who form a study group and end up learning a lot more about themselves than they do about their course work. In addition to McHale, the series also stars: Gillian Jacobs ("The Book of Daniel"); Yvette Nicole Brown ("Rules of Engagement"); Danny Pudi ("Greek"); Alison Brie ("Mad Men"); and comedy legend Chevy Chase ("Saturday Night Live"). "Community" is a Krasnoff Foster Entertainment, Harmonious Claptrap and Russo Brothers production in association with Sony Pictures Television and Universal Media Studios. Russ Krasnoff ("The Soloist"), Dan Harmon ("The Sarah Silverman Program"), Joe Russo ("Arrested Development"), Anthony Russo ("Arrested Development") and Gary Foster ("The Soloist") serve as executive producers. Joe and Anthony Russo directed the pilot that was written by Dan Harmon.

Cast:
Joel McHale as Jeff Crocker
Chevy Chase as Pierce
Danny Pudi as Abed
Gillian Jacobs as Britta
John Oliver as Duncan
Donald Glover as Troy
Yvette Nicole Brown as Shirley
Alison Brie as Annie

Preview:



Links:

NBC.com

TV.com

Wikipedia



100 Questions - Mid-Season on NBC

Emmy winner James Burrows ("Will & Grace," "Friends") directs "100 Questions," a new comedy series written and executive-produced by Christopher Moynihan ("For Your Consideration") that provides hilarious answers to 100 questions about love. Charlotte Payne (Sophie Winkleman, "Peep Show") is looking for love and has rejected multiple marriage proposals -- but she has yet to meet Mr. Right. When she joins a popular online dating site, she gets a little help from her dating counselor Ravi (Amir Talai, "The Ex List") - who requires her to take a 100-question compatibility test. The questions aren't easy for Charlotte to answer, and each one requires her to recount a poignant and humorous time in her life with friends Leslie (Elizabeth Ho, "Women's Murder Club"), Jill (Joy Suprano, NBC's "Law & Order"), Mike (Christopher Moynihan "For Your Consideration") and Wayne (David Walton "Quarterlife"). The test becomes a journey of self-discovery for Charlotte who begins to realize what she truly wants in a relationship. Ron West ("Psych"), Kelly Kulchak ("Psych") and Michelle Nader ("King of Queens") join Moynihan as executive producers. The series is produced by Universal Media Studios and Tagline.

Cast:
Sophie Winkleman as Charlotte
Elizabeth Ho as Leslie
Joy Soprano as Jill
David Walton as Wayne
Christopher Moynihan as Mike
Amir Talai as Andrew

Preview:



Links:

NBC.com

TV.com

Wikipedia

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FOX



Brothers - Fridays at 8:00PM EST/PST on FOX

Starring Michael Strahan ("FOX NFL Sunday") and Daryl "Chill" Mitchell ("Ed," "Veronica's Closet"), BROTHERS is a new half-hour comedy about a former NFL hot shot who learns that even though you can always go home again, the trip back might be tougher than you think. MIKE TRAINOR (Strahan) seemingly has it all he's a good-looking, wealthy and recently retired NFL player living the high-life in New York City, but he's about to get sidelined. When Mike gets a phone call from his MOM (CCH Pounder, "The Shield") who orders him home to Houston, he quickly realizes the more his life has changed, the more his family has stayed the same. His brother CHILL (Daryl "Chill" Mitchell), whose life was altered drastically after a car accident left him in a wheelchair, is struggling to keep his restaurant afloat with the help of his loudmouth associate, ROSCOE (Colton Dunn, "MADtv"). The dynamics between Mike and Chill are the same as when they were kids, and their sibling rivalry hasn't lessened with age. If they can stop their bickering, put aside their differences and learn to be teammates, the brothers might just turn out to be each other's biggest asset. Wedged between Mike and Chill are their parents. Their father, whom everyone refers to as COACH (Carl Weathers, "Rocky"), is the local high school football coach and the conservative, opinionated alpha male of his clan. Coach thinks he runs the show, but really it's Mom who calls the shots. Saucy, stern and a schemer, she is the mastermind of the family. And when she learns that Mike's business manager took off with all his money, she orchestrates a plan to keep Mike in Houston, save Chill's restaurant and bring the family back together under one roof again all without anyone realizing what she's up to. Mom's plan helps Mike realize that his family however dysfunctional they may be is the only family he's got. And although he may not have a penny to his name, as long as he's surrounded by people who love him, he'll always be a rich man.

Cast:
Michael Strahan as Mike
Daryl "Chill" Michell as Chill
CCH Pounder as Mom
Carl Weathers as Coach
Colton Dunn as Roscoe

Preview:



Links:

FOX.com

TV.com

Wikipedia



The Cleveland Show - Sundays at 8:30PM EST/PST on FOX

THE CLEVELAND SHOW is a new animated series that follows everyone's favorite soft-spoken neighbor, CLEVELAND BROWN (Mike Henry), to his hometown in Virginia as he settles down with his high school sweetheart, her unruly kids and his own 14-year-old son, CLEVELAND JR. (Kevin Michael Richardson). Many years ago, Cleveland was a high school student madly in love with a beautiful girl named DONNA (Sanaa Lathan). Much to his dismay, his love went unrequited, and Donna wound up marrying another man. Cleveland once told Donna he would always love her, and if this man ever done her wrong, he'd be there when she called. Well, this man done her wrong. Donna's husband ran off, leaving Donna with a teenage daughter and a young son. Now she's open to Cleveland and has offered him another chance at love. Unattached after the Loretta-Quagmire debacle and true to his word, Cleveland joyously reunites with Donna, and he and Cleveland Jr. move to Virginia to join their new family. Once in Virginia, there are a few surprises in store for Cleveland, including ROBERTA (Reagan Gomez-Preston), a rebellious new stepdaughter; RALLO (Henry), his new 5-year-old stepson who loves the ladies; and a collection of neighbors that includes a loudmouth redneck, LESTER (Richardson); a hipster wanna-be, HOLT (guest voice Jason Sudeikis); and a religious pair of talking bears, TIM (Seth MacFarlane) and his wife ARIANNA (guest voice Arianna Huffington).

Voice Cast:
Mike Henry as Cleveland Brown, Rallo and others
Sanaa Lathan as Donna Tubbs
Reagan Gomez-Preston as Roberta Tubbs
Kevin Michael Richardson as Lester and Cleveland Jr.

Guest Voices:
Arianna Huffington as Arianna
Jason Sudeikis as Holt

Preview:



Links:

FOX.com

TV.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia



Sons of Tucson - Sundays at 8:30PM EST/PST in January 2010 on FOX

In the tradition of "Malcolm in the Middle" and "The Bernie Mac Show," SONS OF TUCSON is a family comedy about three brothers who hire a charming, wayward schemer to stand in as their father when their real one goes to prison. What begins as a business relationship evolves into something more complex and compelling: a family unlike any we've ever seen. The three brothers find their dad-for-hire, RON SNUFFKIN (Tyler Labine, "Reaper"), at the local sporting good store. Ron will be forced to draw on a wide array of skills and a vast bag of tricks as he steps into the patriarch role to take care of the boys of the Gunderson family. ROBBY GUNDERSON (Davis Cleveland, "How I Met Your Mother"), 8, is a loose cannon who doesn't respond well to authority; GARY GUNDERSON (Frank Dolce, "Doubt"), 11, is a bright and street-savvy leader who is every bit the con man his father is; and BRANDON GUNDERSON (Troy Gentile, "Entourage"), 13, is a gentle free spirit who simply goes along for the ride. MAGGIE MORALES (Natalie Martinez, "Saints & Sinners"), Robby's second-grade teacher and the object of Ron's affection, might just be the only stable figure in the lives of this quirky quartet. While SONS OF TUCSON is grounded in the day-to-day challenges of a single-parent home, nothing in the Gunderson household is quite what it seems. An ongoing chess match between Ron and the boys will keep both parties on their toes, as neither side can afford to give up too much power or independence.

Cast:
Tyler Labine as Ron Snuffkin
Davis Cleveland as Robby Gunderson
Frank Dolce as Gary Gunderson
Troy Gentile as Brandon Gunderson
Natalie Martinez as Maggie Morales

Preview:



Links:

FOX.com

TV.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

---

Discuss the fall schedules here:

ABC
CBS
NBC
Fox
The CW

What's Your Fall 2009 Viewing Schedule?

Which new sitcoms have the best chance at success? Vote in our poll.

Stay tuned for our reviews of the pilots for these new sitcoms in the upcoming months!

ABC and NBC Upfront 2009-10: Fall 2009 Schedules

Your FIRST look at ABC's official line-up!

ABC 2009-10

Fall 2009

Sundays
7:00PM America's Funniest Home Videos
8:00PM Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
9:00PM Desperate Housewives
10:00PM Brothers & Sisters

Mondays
8:00PM Dancing with the Stars
10:00PM Castle

Tuesdays
8:00PM The Shark Tank (NEW!)
9:00PM Dancing with the Stars: The Results
10:00PM The Forgotten (NEW!)

Wednesdays
8:00PM Hank (NEW!)
8:30PM The Middle (NEW!)
9:00PM Modern Family (NEW!)
9:30PM Cougar Town (NEW!)
10:00PM Eastwick (NEW!)

Thursdays
8:00PM Flash Forward (NEW!)
9:00PM Grey's Anatomy
10:00PM Private Practice

Fridays
8:00PM Supenanny
9:00PM Ugly Betty
10:00PM 20/20

Saturdays
8:00PM Saturday Night College Football

NOTE: The Shark Tank will launch in late summer following the special 10th anniversary of Who Wants to Be Millionaire? this August.

Mid-Season:

New series for midseason include The Deep End, Happy Town, and the limited series event V.
More new mid-season series will be announced at a later date.
Other returning series include Scrubs, Better Off Ted, Wife Swap, The Bachelor, True Beauty, & Lost.
Scrubs/Ted will air Tuesday nights at 9:00pm in January and The Bachelor from 8-10pm in January on Monday nights.

At 8am ET, ABC had a press conference with Steven McPherson (President of ABC Entertainment). Some of the things he mentioned were that they were frustrated with Samantha Who's ratings despite it being a great show (the budget couldn't be cut enough so the show won't return). Cupid and The Unusuals are dead, and Surviving Suburbia will run in the summer and depending on how it does, a decision will be made (they have an option for it through September). ABC is really high on new series Flash Forward, as it will have Lost-like elements of faith and good characters. Speaking of Lost, no day and time has been set for the final season yet. It depends on the fall shows. ABC is going after the Tuesday at 10pm slot with a crime drama since NBC won't have one there. Zach Braff will return to Scrubs for at least 6 episodes. And finally Shonda Rimes' Inside the Box wasn't picked-up to series yet. They will look into it for another few weeks, it didn't test as well as they would have liked but they think it was done very well and just need to improve it a bit and be patient with it. View a complete outline of the press conference.
Then the upfront presentation for ABC was at 3pm ET. Among the highlights were great clips from all the new shows, the first act of Flash Forward, the full pilot for Modern Family, the ABC House promos featuring all ABC stars in the same house, and the hilarious Jimmy Kimmel at upfront! View my full recap of the presentation!

Discuss ABC's 2009-10 line-up and also you can view complete program information.



NBC 2009-10

Fall 2009

Sundays
7:00PM Football Night in America
8:00PM Sunday Night Football

Mondays
8:00PM Heroes
9:00PM Trauma (NEW!)

Tuesdays
8:00PM Biggest Loser

Wednesdays
8:00PM Parenthood (NEW!)
9:00PM Law & Order: SVU

Thursdays
8:00PM SNL Weekend Update Thursday / Community (NEW!)
9:30PM Parks and Recreation
9:00PM The Office
9:30PM Community (NEW!) / 30 Rock

Fridays
8:00PM Law & Order
9:00PM Southland

Saturdays
8:00PM Dateline NBC
9:00PM Trauma repeats
10:00PM Law & Order: SVU repeats

Mid-Season:

Sundays
7:00PM Dateline NBC
8:00PM The Marriage Ref (NEW!)
9:00PM The Celebrity Apprentice

Mondays
8:00PM Chuck
9:00PM Day One (NEW!)

Tuesdays
8:00PM Biggest Loser
9:30PM 100 Questions (NEW!)

Wednesdays
8:00PM Mercy (NEW!)
9:00PM Law & Order: SVU

Thursdays
8:00PM Community
9:30PM Parks and Recreation
9:00PM The Office
9:30PM 30 Rock

Fridays
8:00PM Law & Order
9:00PM Southland

Saturdays
8:00PM Dateline NBC
9:00PM Southland repeats
10:00PM Law & Order: SVU repeats

Notes: The Jay Leno Show airs weeknights at 10pm. The midseason shows will all launch following the Winter Olympics (Feb. 12-28, 2010). And coming in the summer 2010, NBC will telecast all original episodes of The Jay Leno Show, Friday Night Lights, America's Got Talent, Breakthrough with Tony Robbins, Dateline NBC, with additional programs to be announced later. NBC has not picked-up Medium and My Name is Earl. Medium could very well be on its way to CBS now since they own the show. Earl is a long shot of returning on Fox (they own the show), but it won't likely happen.

Discuss NBC's 2009-10 line-up and also you can view complete program information.

Upfront Rumblings; Blog DVD Review: Freakazoid! - Season 2

We interrupt our regularly scheduled Saturday blog DVD review for an update on the network upfronts. This is probably the busiest TV weekend of the year--the weekend before the network upfronts start. Latest buzz on scripted series:

ABC:
Picked-Up/Close to Being Picked-Up Dramas: Flash Forward, Happy Town, The Associates (David Hemingson Project), Eastwick, The Forgotten, V. (all confirmed)
Picked-Up/Close to Being Picked-Up Sitcoms: Modern Family, Cougar Town, The Middle, Awesome Hank. (all confirmed)
Still Could Be Picked Up Dramas: Inside the Box
Still Could Be Picked Up Sitcoms: Romantically Challenged, The Law
No Shot: Canned, No Heroics, Limelight, See Kate Run
Bubble Current Series Renewals: Castle, Better Off Ted, Samantha Who, Scrubs (all pretty much confirmed)
Possible Current Series Canceled That Had a Chance: Surviving Suburbia, The Unusuals
Comments: ABC is going full frontal on comedy it seems. Scrubs, Better Off Ted, Samantha Who? are all returning, with just the latter not really official yet, but it has a great shot since repeats are going to air Fridays at 9pm starting June 5. Sam and Scrubs could be in a format change too, from single camera to a mix of single/multicamera. And ABC has already ordered new comedy Modern Family last week and Cougar Town was ordered last night. Unofficially it is also ordered The Middle & Awesome Hank last night and possibly Romantically Challenged & The Law will be ordered on the day of the upfront for midseason. My moles tell me it will happen. Lots of comedy!! That's what we like here at SitcomsOnline. Now of course all of these comedies are not for the fall. Some will be held for midseason for sure.
New drama wise, ABC is very high on Flash Forward, and on-air promos are already airing. ABC unofficially set series orders for Happy Town, Eastwick, The Forgotten, The Associates and V. V could be used for mid-season as a 6-hour event (good counter-programming vs. the Winter Olympics maybe?) and The Associates is also likely midseason. Inside the Box also still has a good shot of coming to ABC for fall or midseason, but has not been ordered just yet. Current drama wise, Castle was renewed for a second season. That was the only drama that had a real shot that was not renewed yet. Reality wise, ABC has ordered a season second of True Beauty, likely for midseason with The Bachelor.

CBS:
Picked-Up/Close to Being Picked-Up Dramas: NCIS: Legend (wt), The Good Wife.
Picked-Up/Close to Being Picked-Up Sitcoms: Accidentally on Purpose, Waiting to Die
Still Could Be Picked Up Dramas: Three Rivers, Washington Field
Still Could Be Picked Up Sitcoms: Happiness Isn't Everything
No Shot: A Marriage, Big D, The Karenskys
Possible On the Bubble Current Series Renewals: The Unit, Flashpoint, Old Christine, Cold Case, Rules of Engagement, Gary Unmarried, Without a Trace
Possible Current Series Canceled That Had a Chance: Eleventh Hour
Comments: CBS is tight-lipped. No official pick-ups at all. Just the buzz is that NCIS spin-of and The Good Wife are locks to being picked-up drama wise., with Three Rivers, Miami Trauma, and Washington Field also in the running. But usually with CBS something comes out of left field on the day of the upfront. Comedy wise, it's the same thing as dramas, no official pick-ups, but Accidentally on Purpose and Waiting to Die are heating up in buzz with Happiness Isn't Everything also on the radar. As for current series that were not renewed yet, only Ghost Whisperer got officially renewed, as there was word it could have been moved to ABC since CBS didn't want to pay full license fees. Cold Case, Gary Unmarried, Flashpoint, Old Christine, Rules of Engagement, The Unit, and Without a Trace are still not picked-up. What will make the cut? I don't think all of these will make it. Amazing Race, Big Bang Theory, Survivor and Two and a Half Men have no worries along with Ghost Whisperer since they were officially renewed, and CSI, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Criminal Minds, How I Met Your Mother, The Mentalist, NCIS, NUMB3RS are locks for a pick-up of course. Everything else is gone including Eleventh Hour.

NBC:
Picked-Up Dramas: Trauma, Parenthood, Day One, Mercy. (all confirmed)
Picked-Up Sitcoms: Community, 100 Questions. (all confirmed)
Still Could Be Picked Up Dramas: None.
Still Could Be Picked Up Sitcoms: Off Duty
No Shot: Adler/Hurwitz Project, Legally Mad, Lost & Found
Bubble Current Series Renewals: Chuck, Law & Order, Medium
Possible Current Series Canceled That Had a Chance: My Name is Earl
Comments: NBC's pick-ups came at infront on May 4, so we have nothing new to report really. It's just the on the bubble current series we still need to know. It is looking good for Chuck, Medium, and Law & Order but My Name is Earl looks like will be canceled. Medium is being reported it was renewed, but that is unofficial. Can we expect another new series or two to be picked-up on Tuesday when NBC announced the schedule? Yes, but the only other option really is off-beat comedy Off Duty, since NBC passed on the other pilots. The only thing we really need to see for NBC is a schedule and the one I predicted could very well be something similar.

FOX:
Picked-Up/Close to Being Picked-Up Dramas: Human Target, Glee, Past Life. (all confirmed)
Picked-Up/Close to Being Picked-Up Sitcoms: Brothers, Sons of Tucson, The Cleveland Show. (all confirmed)
Still Could Be Picked Up Dramas: Maggie Hill
Still Could Be Picked Up Sitcoms: None
No Shot: Absolutely Fabulous, $2 Beer, Eva Adams
On the Bubble Current Series Renewals: Dollhouse
Possible Current Series Canceled That Had a Chance: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Comments: Fox is also pretty much set in terms of new series pick-ups. For dramas, they will launch Glee this Tuesday for a sneak peek, and have picked-up Human Target and Past Life.
Maggie Hill is probably the only other drama that could see a pick-up on the day of the upfront. Comedy wise, Fox is actually picking-up two live-action comedies, but they could be held for midseason. Brothers and Sons of Tucson are the comedies, they join animated comedy The Cleveland Show which will for sure be in the fall on Sunday nights. No other new comedies will be picked-up. Fox also has a few seasons of 'Til Death they could use at some point. In a surprise move, Fox renewed Dollhouse for 13 episodes and it will likely remain on Fridays this fall. The series has terrible ratings, so I don't understand this move. Dollhouse's pick-up means death for Sarah Connor Chronicles. And Fox has thrown us a wildcard. They have picked-up a fall version of So You Think You Can Dance. It will likely launch after the World Series, I would guess, as Hell's Kitchen's summer version will spill into the fall. It's just an actual schedule for Fox we need now. Fox also ordered reality series Someone's Gotta Go for next season, not sure if it is fall or midseason.

The CW:
Close to Being Picked-Up Dramas: Melrose Place, Vampire Diaries
Close to Being Picked-Up Sitcoms: None.
Still Could Be Picked Up Dramas: The Beautiful Life, The Body Politic, Gossip Girl: Lily
Still Could Be Picked Up Sitcoms: None.
No Shot: Perhaps Light Years
Possible On the Bubble Current Series Renewals: Privileged, The Game
Possible Current Series Canceled That Had a Chance: Everybody Hates Chris, Reaper
Comments: The CW is the last network to go at upfront, so they have not announced official pick-ups just yet. Melrose Place and Vampire Diaries are a lock it seems for fall. With Beautiful Life, Body Politic, and Lily battling for mid-season or a third slot in the fall. On the bubble current shows Privileged and The Game are also battling for a slot. What won't make the cut? I think The Game looks like the odd show out. Lily also could be out, but they should order 6 episodes only just in case they need it come midseason. Still too early for The CW, should know more during the week.

Check back periodically as we get more updates all-weekend long! I don't sleep during upfronts week!

Join us all next week (May 18-21) bright and early for the fall schedules. I assure you we will be among the first ones to post the fall line-ups for each network. Fox will be first on Monday, it'll be interesting how they schedule shows now that So You Think You Can Dance is coming in the fall as well.


And now back to our regularly scheduled blog programming:

It is Saturday, so that must mean it is time for weekly Blog DVD Review! Today we have we take a look at Warner Home Video's animated series Freakazoid! - Season 2. Freakazoid! was an animated series on Kids' WB. See Seth Thrasher's Blog DVD review of Freakazoid! - Season 2:

Freakazoid! - Season 2 (Warner, $26.98) is on DVD for the first time, and you'd have to be crazy not to buy it! Contained in this amazing bundle of plastics and fibers and metals that makes up this DVD set are the final eleven episodes of one of the craziest, and funniest, and most overall enjoyable cartoons I've ever had the pleasure to view. And, as one of the twelve people known to have watched the show when it originally aired in The WB's Saturday morning cartoon block in the mid-90s, I can speak with great aplomb as to what a quality show you're getting with your money.
The season starts off with a bang, with Dexter actually managing to get a date with Steff, only to have the Lobe interfere and potentially blow it. The fun with Freakazoid & the Lobe continues into his next adventure on the next show, when it's Freakazoid's birthday -- which, per the Superhero Codebook, means *he* has to do favors for the others. This sets up a scenario in which every last other superhero is out of town, and Lobe has a plan. The crazy hits keep coming all season, with Freakazoid getting bogged down at a sci-fi convention, Steff getting turned to stone, and so much more madness. In the amazing series finale, Lobe figures out how to destroy Freakazoid once and for all -- but to do so he needs to build his evil device out of wood. Having no talent, he kidnaps master carpenter Norm Abram (This Old House), who voices himself in the strangest cartoon guest appearance ever. Knowing this is the end, the show goes out with a bang making for an enjoyable 22 minutes in one of the most enjoyable series ever. Really, though, how can you go wrong with a cartoon that had recurring voice actors like Ed Asner and Ricardo Montalban -- not to mention the best host in late night TV, Craig Ferguson. Also appearing this season in a guest spot is Leonard Maltin.
Since it's not yet possible to stream these episodes directly into your brain, there must well be packaging that the episodes arrive on. And oh, what wonderful packaging it is. Millions of carbon and hydrogen atoms bonded together just for the benefit of this amazing *HARD plastic!* case. Their sacrifice makes it possible for you to effectively store your DVD set on a shelf near you. The artwork features a giant picture of America's 7th favorite blue skinned superhero pointing to himself and smiling. I'd be happy too if *I* had superpowers so it'd be quite a disappointment to find him unhappy. Background of the artwork is green and features a computer chip-like design, heavily stylized for the purposes of cartoons. Rear cover features more green fun, only this time...Freakazoid has a jetpack! Disc art features more green, with Freakazoid doing a little flexing on disc 1, with Lobe doing some flexing of his own on disc 2. Interior package art features the disc one information, Freakazoid, and Fan Boy on the left panel, with all the villains hiding behind the 2nd disc (the one with Lobe on it).
With a cartoon from the mid-1990s, you're unfortunately not going to get 3D stereovision with 17.2 panaural sound...partially because I just made both things up. What you do get is an animated picture mostly free of defects. I did detect some compression artifacts around the lines on the picture, but I was sitting two feet from a 32" HDTV when doing so. For normal use you're probably not going to notice anything amiss. More importantly, you get 5.1 surround sound. Because of the wonderful musical accompaniment that comes with mid 1990s Warner cartoons, the 5.1 surround sound is wonderfully appreciated, and during a few scenes in the cartoon is enough to make you melt. The chapter stops stop chapters. More importantly than that, they're located after the episode's opening titles, as well as after each act -- where commercial breaks would normally be placed.
When we say special features, we're not implying these features should be riding the short bus, it means that they're a bonus, above and beyond the call of DVD duty. First up is "A Full Season's Worth of Commentaries (in Five Minutes or Less)"and features the creative minds behind the show talking about the season, what went into it, and all the other sorts of things you'd expect. Ideally it would have been nice to do actual commentaries, but pressed for time this is certainly better than a kick in the pants. There's also the demo version of the music to the Hello, Dolly parody Bonjour Lobey -- it's good stuff worth a listen. The true highlight is probably the final feature (say that 81,931 times fast) -- a look into the making of the show's final episode. The feature runs nearly the length of a full episode, and taking a similar tone as the series explores the workings of the last episode.
Let's be serious for a minute. For the basis of pure enjoyment, season one is honestly the better of the two in my opinion. The episodes are just...funnier. But season two is still better than the vast, vast majority of cartoons. Since this set is already out, hopefully you already own it. If you don't already own it, then hopefully you started the order process while reading this review -- I know you can multi-task, come on. If not, you should probably do so now. The review will still be here when you get back. There is probably even a link to buy it below. Needless to say, I recommend this set.

-- Reviewed by Seth Thrasher
(4.5/5 stars)

To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
Freakazoid! TV.com Page

Less Than Perfect Joins Lifetime; Samantha Who and In the Motherhood Return to ABC in June; More Lucy on Hallmark

The 2002-2006 ABC sitcom Less than Perfect starring Sara Rue, Andy Dick, Zachary Levi, Andrea Parker, Patrick Warburton, Will Sasso, and Sherri Shepherd is coming to Lifetime with all of its 81 episodes, including the 8 unaired episodes! It seems they picked the show up since they could be ordering an original sitcom starring Sherri Shepherd. They also did that with Cybill, since they could order an original sitcom (Alligator Point) starring another Shepherd, Cybill Shepherd (no relation to Sherri). Right now both are just ordered to pilot, but this could be good news for both. Cybill airs weekdays in the 8am hour, 5pm hour and 2am.
Less than Perfect lasted four seasons and was about a young female office employee (played by Sara Rue) and her co-workers. The sitcom will join the Lifetime line-up on Monday, June 1, airing in the 9am hour and 6pm hour. In the 9am hour, it will replace Reba. In the 6pm hour it will replace Still Standing. The morning airing of Reba will move to the afternoon in the 4pm hour, replacing an episode of Wife Swap. And recently Reba returned in the 8pm hour, replacing Will & Grace. So Reba is back to 7-9pm week nights, while Will & Grace 8-9pm airings moves to the 1am hour and it still has the 11am and 11pm hours. Also, starting Monday, June 8 in primetime we will get an Army Wives encore at 9pm leading into repeats of Desperate Housewives at 10pm each Monday. Desperate Housewives will also still air weekdays at 12 and 1pm. Movies remain in the 9-11pm block every other weekday, but Fridays is still Wife Swap. Army Wives returns for its third season on Sunday, June 7 for 18 episodes airing Sundays at 10pm.
So, the addition of Less than Perfect means Still Standing is totally off the schedule. Last month it seems, Lifetime removed Medium from Fridays at 11pm, so that is off the schedule, too. Medium is eligible to air five days a week starting this fall, as will Grey's Anatomy (which currently airs Sundays at 11pm), so Medium will likely return then. But the schedule may be less than perfect, but Less than Perfect is a great addition to the schedule!
View the full Lifetime June 2009 schedule and highlights.

ABC sitcoms Samantha Who? and In the Motherhood will return to the schedule on Friday, June 5 in the 9pm hour. Both sitcoms were pulled from the Thursday night schedule two weeks earlier than planned in April. Samantha Who? has 7 episodes remaining to air, while In the Motherhood has 3 more. For Samantha, this could be a slot it can air next season, as it is expected to return for a third season. The sitcom could be in a change of format, though. It is rumored to be changing to a multicamera set-up or a hybrid setup (mix of both single and multicamera). Why? This will cut costs. ABC also might do the same for Scrubs, giving it new life for a ninth season. In the Motherhood is not expected back, so this is just a burn-off. We will find out what all this means on Tuesday, when ABC announces their 2009-2010 schedule and pick-ups. Could Samantha Who? be part of a Friday comedy block in the fall? We shall see. If a Friday block is not in their plans then they should move these Samantha Who episodes to Wednesdays at 9:30pm in the summer instead of Surviving Suburbia. That would work better on Fridays at 9. Just my two cents.

Finally, we end the day with some classic TV news. Hallmark Channel has made a last minute schedule change that goes in effect this Monday (May 18). Replacing two episodes of Matlock, weekdays at 3pm & 4pm will be two-full hours of I Love Lucy! It seems like Hallmark has a love-hate relationship with Lucy. They give it a good slot, pull it, and then give it another good slot. Currently, the series was airing at 2:30am weeknights, and will remain in that slot, too. Everything else will remain the same as it is now. So Matlock is off the schedule again. I Love Lucy 3-5pm will lead-into M*A*S*H.

Stay tuned tomorrow for our blog DVD review of course and a special upfront rumblings edition. Upfront week is next week, so join us all next week. We have some WGN America schedule news as well!

SitcomsOnline.com 2009-10 Upfront Preview: ABC; Bio TV Premieres TV Reunions in June

Last fall ABC barely had any new series because of the writers' strike the previous season. That could change in a big way this coming season. I expect ABC to bring in many new shows, with lots of comedies for the first time in years. ABC should focus that 8pm hour to families. The past year ABC focused on launching 10pm series...it is time to redevelop that focus to 8pm.
Here is the SitcomsOnline.com ABC 2009-10 preview:

New Series Already Picked-Up: Modern Family (comedy), Flash Forward (drama), Copper (midseason drama)
New Series We Think That Are Almost Good To Go: Happy Town (drama), Inside the Box (drama), Romantically Challenged (sitcom), Awesome Hank (sitcom), The Cougar (sitcom), The Middle (sitcom).
New Series Perhaps Picked-Up for Mid-Season: Eastwick (drama), The Forgotten (drama), The Law (sitcom), V (event drama).

OUR FALL 2009 PREDICTION:

Sundays
7:00PM America's Funniest Home Videos
8:00PM Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
9:00PM Desperate Housewives
10:00PM Inside the Box (NEW!)

Mondays
8:00PM Dancing with the Stars
10:00PM Brothers & Sisters

Tuesdays
8:00PM Modern Family (NEW!)
8:30PM The Middle (NEW!)
9:00PM Dancing with the Stars: The Results
10:00PM Castle

Wednesdays
8:00PM Awesome Hank (NEW!)
8:30PM Romantically Challenged (NEW!)
9:00PM The Cougar (NEW!)
9:30PM Samantha Who?
10:00PM Happy Town (NEW!)

Thursdays
8:00PM Flash Forward (NEW!)
9:00PM Grey's Anatomy
10:00PM Private Practice

Fridays
8:00PM Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas (NEW!)
9:00PM Ugly Betty
10:00PM 20/20

Saturdays
8:00PM College Football

Comments: This was very hard. So far the hardest prediction I'm doing is ABC...remember this is what I think they could do, not necessarily what I would want them to do. They have many pilots and many of them are getting good testing. I am going with my gut that Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas makes it this year after being redeveloped. I want it picked-up, too. This is what exactly ABC needs on a Friday. I have many new comedies being picked-up, and it could be a stretch, but I think ABC could go out and bring us many comedies this fall. Most have tested so well and we could be in a surprise on how many comedies are airing. ABC could focus on a Wednesday two-hour comedy block and even have room for a comedy hour on Tuesdays.
So let's look at each night. I'll start with Mondays. Dancing with the Stars should be two-hours every week, enough said. The only time it should be 90-minutes is when they need to boost a comedy for a special airing during the week or two before the two dances per star starts. ABC will easily fill the two-hour hole from Jan-Mar with the resurgent The Bachelor and they should move Brothers & Sisters to Mondays all year-round, making ABC Monday strong all year.
On Tuesdays, Modern Family & The Middle are two of ABC's most praised family comedy pilots. They could work well with each other and could work well with family-themed Dancing with the Stars: The Results at 9pm (more so than Cavemen and Carpoolers a few years ago). Castle should move a night over to Tuesday at 10 since there will be no NBC crime show and perhaps CBS will not schedule a crime drama here anymore. ABC really needs to focus on JUST two post-Dancing shows at 10pm: Brothers & Sisters and Castle. That's it, with the exception of a week or two on Mondays with a special comedy airing at 9:30 (or even 8pm). This season it seemed so many shows aired out of it on both nights. So what happens to the 9pm hour from Jan-Mar? ABC could launch some comedies perhaps bringing back Scrubs/Better off Ted for 6-8 weeks or even new comedy The Law. Primetime: What Would You Do? is an option at an earlier time.
Wednesdays I think ABC is going to go all comedy. They could launch as many as 3 new sitcoms and bring back a returning comedy. I think they will start off with two new traditional comedies in Awesome Hank (starring Kelsey Grammar) and Romantically Challenged (starring Alyssa Milano). Perhaps the most buzzed comedy would be next at 9pm in The Cougar starring Courtney Cox and finally ABC needs to give Christina Applegate the comedy slot it deserves by airing Samantha Who? after Cox's show. Both are single camera and could fit with each other like a button. Closing the night I think they should try new drama Happy Town. I know it is very risky to do this, but Happy Town has a two-hour pilot and they could have the two-hour pilot on the first Wednesday of the year from 9-11pm, following a special Dancing Results, since they do a three-night premiere in the fall. So hopefully that would help the show build some type of an audience before all the comedies start the following Wednesday.
As for Thursdays, Betty is likely on the move, and ABC should try the most buzzed about series Flash Forward at 8pm giving ABC some life in this hour. Grey's and Private Practice will return in the 9 and 10pm hours for sure. Lost will return for its final season at the end of January for 16 or 17 weeks, possibly Thursdays at 8...but if Flash Forward does huge, Lost could go to Wednesdays.
I think ABC should go after Fridays with scripted series and I think they will, too. Comedy is an option, but I don't think ABC will try that. New family adventure drama Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas is exactly what they should air at 8pm. This could be a new type of TGIF for them using family dramas, and Ugly Betty would follow and that certainly has a family feel to it. Wife Swap and Supernanny were only on because nothing was ready last fall due to the strike. Both of those are too important and could fill key holes on other nights in midseason.
Saturdays will have College Football in the fall. Winter they could have movies or even go with cheap reality series, like Homeland Security USA.
Finally, on Sundays...I would leave 7-10pm alone even though right now the ratings are declining. Remember springtime is always like that and they perk up in the fall/winter. I think new drama Inside the Box would be a great fit out of Desperate Housewives and could reclaim that DH/Grey's early magic. Yes, I keep predicting ABC is going to move Brothers & Sisters, but they never do. Now it is time and with it airing the next night, lots of promos will air on Sundays so fans will for sure know.
Series that will be canceled or are ending include: According to Jim, Boston Legal, Dirty Sexy Money, Eli Stone, Pushing Daisies, Opportunity Knocks, Life on Mars, Cupid, The Unusuals, In the Motherhood.
Lost, The Bachelor, Wife Swap & Supernanny will all return for mid-season. Other series like Scrubs, Better Off Ted, True Beauty, Homeland Security USA, Primetime: What Would You Do could be ordered for limited episodes at some point. ABC also has picked-up two new reality series, likely for midseason: The Shark Tank from producer Mark Burnett and an untitled cooking series with celeb Jamie Oliver from producer Ryan Seacrest. Supernanny spinoff SuperManny could also be in the running. As far as new scripted series for midseason, they already ordered Canadian crime drama Copper for midseason. Look for Eastwick, The Law, The Forgotten and perhaps even V in the running for midseason. There is a legal drama from David Hemingson in the works again, perhaps they could pick that up...but they have had so many legal dramas lately it seems.
Looking at the fall line-up prediction, yes lots of new shows. But there is a lot of protection, minus Wednesdays. Wednesdays is the only risk, but risks need to be taken in the fall when there is no American Idol. And if it doesn't work out, ABC has lots of series on the bench for midseason including the final season of Lost. ABC's goal in the fall should be to have strong 9pm shows every night. That is a recipe for success. ABC will have a better fall next season than it did this season for sure.
Discuss your thoughts on our prediction and feel free to make suggestions of your own.

Remember, next Tuesday (May 19) is the actual date when we will find out ABC's plans for the 2009-10 season. So, come on back next Tuesday and we will let you know the details and you can see how much we were right (or wrong!). Stay tuned tomorrow for a preview on CBS's upfront.


Bio TV in June will broadcast special reunions of classic TV series from the past for the first time on Bio TV. We get both the 20th anniversary Happy Days reunion from 1992 and the 30th anniversary Happy Days reunion from 2005. The 20th anniversary premieres Tuesday, June 9 at 9pm following a day long theme of classic TV with Biography episodes of The Love Boat, M*A*S*H, Laverne & Shirley, Happy Days, Henry Winkler, Ron Howard and episodes of Shatner's Raw Nerve with guests Scott Baio, Tim Allen and Drew Carey.
On Tuesday, June 16, Bio TV will air the Laverne & Shirley Reunion from 1995 at 10pm. Just like the previous week, episodes of Biography and more will lead into it, such as Ozzie & Harriet, Barbara Eden, Andy Griffith, Ron Howard, Cheers, Truth Behind the Sitcom Scandals: Cheers/Laverne & Shirley, and the Happy Days 30th Anniversary Reunion premieres at 12pm and 6pm. We also get Shatner's Raw Nerve episodes featuring Valerie Bertinelli and Kelsey Grammar.
Thursday, June 18 at 10pm will see the premiere of Biography: Billy Crystal. On Tuesday, June 23, it's 90210's turn for a reunion. Beverly Hills 90210: The Final Goodbye from 2000 will first air at 10pm, followed by Beverly Hills 90210: The Reunion Show from 2003 at 11pm. Again before that, we get Biography episodes of Home Improvement, Tony Danza, Jason Priestley, Alyssa Milano, and Teen Heartthrobs.
View more on Bio TV's June 2009 highlights of TV/sitcom related specials, including encores of Biography episodes such as Gary Coleman, Charlie's Angels, and Child Stars: Their Story

Tribune Stations Land Entourage, Curb for Fall 2010 Local Syndication; ABC Picks-Up Modern Family, More Updates

HBO and Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution have licensed the broadcast television syndication rights to the critically acclaimed and award-winning comedy series Entourage and Curb Your Enthusiasm to Tribune Broadcasting's stations in a three-year agreement for a fall 2010 airing.
Under terms of the three-year pact, Tribune has licensed all seven seasons of Curb Your Enthusiasm and all six seasons so far of Entourage for broadcast on all of Tribune's owned-and-operated stations in 17 markets, including New York (WPIX-TV), Los Angeles (KTLA-TV) and Chicago (WGN-TV), among others. Both series will be presented in strip form on the Tribune Broadcasting stations, with episodes airing Monday-Friday, along with one weekend telecast, beginning in fall 2010.
As mentioned earlier this week, Spike TV has bought the cable rerun rights for Entourage starting in January 2010, so it will have a nine-month head start on cable. Curb Your Enthusiasm is also being shopped around for cable repeats.

ABC has made its first pickup for the fall season, a sitcom. Modern Family, the single camera mocumentary about about three suburban couples -- a traditional one, a gay one and a multi-ethnic one. ABC has ordered 13 episodes from 20th Television and the show stars Ed O'Neill (Married with Children), Sofia Vergara (Knights of Prosperity), Julie Bowen (Lost) and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (The Class). The show has tested very well in focus groups and screenings. ABC also has unofficially picked-up drama Flash Forward, as teasers have aired during Lost the last two weeks to generate some buzz.
In other ABC updates, Surviving Suburbia will be preempted for a second week in a row for a two-hour Dancing with the Stars this coming Monday (May 11). That was scheduled to be its last Monday airing anyway, as the show will move to Wednesdays at 9:30pm starting May 27.
Meanwhile, the final episodes of According to Jim will run into the summer thanks to all the preemptions by President Obama. On Tuesday, May 26 and Tuesday, June 2, According to Jim will air its final four episodes (8-9pm both weeks), including the finale on June 2 at 8:30pm with a parade of guest stars. But before that there are two new episodes airing this Tuesday (May 12).

Stay tuned all next week for our predictions of the fall schedules for NBC, Fox, ABC, CBS, and The CW. First up will be NBC, which we will cover likely on Sunday and the rest will follow in that order every other day. And the following week of course is upfront week and we will get the actual schedules and you can compare to see what we got right and wrong! Big and fun time of year!

TV Land June 2009 Has Roseanne; ABC/Disney Now on Hulu

This June on TV Land they will launch sitcom Roseanne in TV Land PRIME, launch the second season of reality series She's Got The Look on a new night and time, and spend Father's Day with TV Land Rough n Rugged.
TV Land PRIME welcomes Roseanne to the network with a week long, primetime marathon beginning Friday, June 5. The marathon will air 8pm-1am each night and encore 1am-6am each night through Friday, June 12, before the series joins the regular schedule on Saturday, June 13. Roseanne is the quintessential sitcom about a working class family that put the "Real in TV" long before reality television became the norm. Travel back in time with the "Queen of Comedy" as TV Land PRIME chronicles the Conner family's ups and downs, laughs and love, and dreams - both real and imagined.
Roseanne will air Saturdays from 9pm-11pm & 2am-4am; Sundays from 12am-2am; Mon-Tues & Thurs 11pm-2am; Tues-Fri from 8pm-10pm (except 9-10pm on Thursdays); and Wednesdays & Fridays 1-2am. That's a whole lotta Roseanne! And good news for classic TV fans because Leave it to Beaver is renewed and on the June schedule airing Saturdays from 12-2pm. Three's Company is unfortunately off the line-up for now with the addition of Roseanne, as will be Hogan's Heroes & Green Acres. The other big change is late nights on weeknights. 2am-6am all get changed, with The Cosby Show airing in the 2am hour, 3rd Rock from the Sun will only air now at 3am, followed by the return of Scrubs at 3:30am, followed by M*A*S*H at 4am, Sanford & Son at 4:30am, The Jeffersons at 5am, and Good Times at 5:30am. So this does mean M*A*S*H is just once a night on weeknights, but it will still air on Sunday nights, but now 9pm-12am. We have the full schedule for you to click on below...so keep reading!
They're back again... and this time the stakes are bigger and better as 12 gorgeous women 35-and-over grace TV Land PRIME in season 2 of the modeling competition series that's like no other...She's Got the Look! For one very lucky winner, a second chance for a supermodel career, a life changing contract with the world famous Wilhelmina Modeling Agency, and a spread in Self magazine awaits. Watch the nationwide search, follow the drama as the number of contestants dwindles, and root for your favorite to win it all. Join in on the fun on a new night and time starting Thursday June 11, 2009 at 9pm for eight straight weeks through July 30. Encores of the show will air Thursdays at 10pm & 1am; Fridays at 12 midnight; Saturdays 10am & 1am; Sundays 3am; Mondays 11am; Tuesdays 2am; Wednesdays 10pm; and the next Thursday at 12 noon.
But before the premiere on June 11, catch a sneak peek at She's Got the Look season two on Wednesday, June 3 at 11pm following the finale of The Cougar.
It's Dad's Day and TV Land has 12 hours of rough rugged entertainment planned that will keep dad glued to his seat. Starting with a 7-hour block of movies featuring fights and sports, a classic Mel Brooks comedy and a 4 hour western block featuring popular episodes of Bonanza and Gunsmoke, Dad is sure to appreciate that you've kept him busy doing his most favorite thing: sitting on the couch and watching good manly TV! Catch the movies Slapshot 2, Slapshot, and History of the World Part 1.
Other TV Land PRIME movie premieres for the month are Another 48 Hours and Driving Miss Daisy.
View the full TV Land June 2009 schedule, with full highlights and one-time adjustments.

Hulu and The Walt Disney Company announced that Disney, through a subsidiary of ABC Enterprises Inc., has agreed to join NBC Universal, News Corporation and Providence Equity Partners as a joint venture partner and equity owner of Hulu, a leading online aggregator of video content. Upon closing, the agreement will enhance Hulu's programming lineup through the expanded online distribution of Disney's most popular current and library primetime series and library feature films. In particular, full-length episodes of hit current and library programs like Lost, Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Private Practice, Ugly Betty, Scrubs, Greek, Hope & Faith, Less than Perfect, Wizards of Waverly Place, Phineas and Ferb, Who Wants To Be a Millionaire, General Hospital, The View and The Secret Life of the American Teenager will soon be streamed on Hulu on an ad-supported basis.
· Full-length episodes of ABC primetime programs like Lost, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty, Samantha Who?, Scrubs, Private Practice and popular late night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live!
· Full-length episodes of hit ABC Family series like The Secret Life of the American Teenager and Greek
· Popular series from ABC Daytime and SOAPnet like General Hospital and The View
· Classic series from ABC's library like Hope & Faith, Less than Perfect, Commander in Chief, Who Wants To Be a Millionaire and past seasons of the megahit Dancing with the Stars
· Select hit programs from Disney Channel like Wizards of Waverly Place and Phineas and Ferb which can be easily accessed from a new DISNEY location in the Channel section of Hulu.com
· Popular library titles from The Walt Disney Studios
· Short-form content including webisodes, sneak peeks and episode recaps from ABC Entertainment, ABC Family and SOAPnet
That is a lot and this is huge! ABC/Disney has bought 30% of Hulu. There is no date yet when all of this will appear, but we will let you know.

Stay tuned tomorrow for our regular blog DVD review and a look at what we think will be picked-up by NBC for both new and returning series. NBC has their "infront" on Monday and will announce what they will pick-up, but an actual schedule won't be announced until upfront week (week of May 18). NBC continues to be the oddball with this "infront" stuff.

TV One June 2009 Adds Two Sitcoms; Network Notes Includes Obama Address; Hogan Family Interview

The weather is getting warmer out there in most of the country, so we are going to look ahead all this week to the month of June! Yes, May is still on the horizon but we here at SitcomsOnline like to plan ahead, which I'm sure you all like! We start out our "June schedule week" with plans for TV One June 2009! And they will add two new sitcoms to its regular line-up! On Monday, June 8 at 7:30pm, a new comedy joins the TV One prime-time line-up. The Holly Robinson-Peete short-lived family sitcom Like Family takes over the weeknights at 7:30pm timeslot to add some fresh laughs in the comedy zone. Like Family (2003-04) is a sitcom about two families -- one black, one white -- who share the same house and work together to overcome their differences to create a home.
Also joining the line-up on Monday, June 8 will be the classic '70s sitcom That's My Mama! We told you previously the show will have a special Mother's Day marathon on May 10, but now it is ALSO joining the weekday line-up as well a few weeks later! Mama and her family will air weekdays at 5:00pm kicking off the early evening sitcom line-up.
Due to these two new additions, there are quite a few changes to the weekday line-up. In the weekdays at 6am hour we now get Divorce Court, replacing Amen. At 7am Living It Up with Patti LaBelle replaces an episode of All About the Andersons, but that slides to 7:30am replacing Comics Unleashed. In the 8am hour, we now get two episodes of Amen, replacing an episode each of Comics Unleashed and Sharp Talk with Al Sharpton. The 9am and 10am hours remain the same with original encores. Weekdays in the 11am hour will now be Half & Half replacing original encores. The daytime marathons continue from 12pm-3pm, while Divorce Court's afternoon airings are moved in the 3pm hour replacing Bill Bellamy's Who's Got Jokes. The Tom Joyner Show will air in the 4pm hour replacing Divorce Court. Then the sitcom line-up starts at 5pm as we mentioned with That's My Mama replacing Good Times at 5pm, followed still by Sanford & Son at 5:30pm, and Good Times at 6pm. Not to worry, the 5pm Good Times is now at 6:30pm replacing Half & Half. All of Us replace Eve at 7pm, and the aforementioned Like Family launches at 7:30pm replacing another Half & Half. Then we still have Martin and Living Single in the 8pm hour, followed by another Living Single a 9pm, but now 9:30pm will be Half & Half instead of All of Us. Back-to-back episodes of The Jeffersons remain in the 10pm hour, while Martin and Sanford & Son still share the 11pm hour. The late night schedule also gets a bit of a change, at 12 midnight we now have Eve instead of another Jeffersons, while at 12:30am we have Living Single instead of Good Times. 1-3am will still feature a movie. Then the really late schedule also gets changed, in the 3am hour will be The Jeffersons and Martin instead of back-to-back Living Single. At 4am Half & Half remains, but the 4:30am Half & Half is replaced with Martin! And finally the 5am hour will still have Get the Hookup. So that's the entire schedule! We still have highlights to give though.
On Saturday, June 20 beginning at 12 Noon (following the Saturday morning sitcom block from 6am-12pm) through 8pm (with an encore from 12am-6am), Our Music Month is in full effect as TV One presents the "Half & Half: Must Be the Music" marathon consisting of episodes of the sitcom with guest appearances from some of the music industry greats including DMX, Tyrese Gibson, Musiq Soulchild, Faith Evans, MC Lyte, Ginuwine, Eric Benet, and Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis.
On Sunday, June 21 beginning at 3pm through 8pm (encores from 2am-6am), TV One airs a Fathers Day tribute in the form of an "All of Us: Fathers Day" marathon consisting of episodes of the family sitcom dealing with father/son episodes and situations of characters Robert and his son Bobby.
Finally, yes this is in July, but technically it part of June for TV One. On Friday, July 3 beginning at 8pm, the zany antics of Martin Payne will keep viewers in stitches as TV One presents the "Martin: Independence Day" mega-thon, a 24-hour laugh-a-thon consisting of some of the funniest and most talked about episodes of the sitcom Martin featuring comedian Martin Lawrence in some of his classic best moments and alter-ego character.
It is certainly going to be fun in the sun this June on TV One!

We have a lot of network notes for you. We announced them all on our message board yesterday, but we want to put it all in one space in case you missed it. President Obama is having a news conference live on Wednesday at 8pm ET for an hour. This means yet again the networks have to scramble and juggle programming. ABC and CBS had to change the most, especially CBS. We'll start with ABC, though. In the eastern and central time zones, Scrubs and Better Off Ted have to be preempted because of the Obama news conference. Everything else will air as normal, including the 100th episode of Lost at 9/8 central. In the mountain time zone, the news conference is at 6pm MT, so that won't affect primetime programming. Scrubs and Ted will follow at 7pm MT but will be repeats though since they are not airing in the east/central zones. Same goes for Pacific. Repeats of Scrubs and Ted will air at 8pm PT. Because of this change, ABC will move the planned new episodes of Scrubs and Ted to a special night of Tuesday, May 5 in the 8pm ET/PT hour replacing two episodes of According to Jim. Poor Jim has had so many preemptions already and won't get to air its finale in the season now. Four episodes got preempted so ABC will have to air those sometime in the summer. Jim is still airing tonight and as of now on May 12. I would just pull it on May 12 and bring it back in the summer for its final 6 episodes. We'll let you know what happens to Jim. View the changes in a list form.
Moving on to CBS, they will have more changes than anyone. They also will air the Presidential News Conference on Wednesday at 8pm ET. In the eastern and central time zones, special airing of Rules of Engagement and Old Christine at a special time, will have to be preempted because of the Obama news conference. Everything else will air as normal on this night. In the mountain time zone, the news conference is at 6pm MT, so that won't affect primetime programming. Old Christine and Gary Unmarried will follow at 7pm MT but will be repeats though since they are not airing in the east/central zones. Same goes for Pacific. Repeats of Old Christine and Gary will air at 8pm PT. In other changes, CBS has pulled Harper's Island out of the Thursdays at 10pm slot effective immediately. A repeat of Criminal Minds will air this Thursday (April 30), followed by a repeat of CSI on May 7. And on May 14, the final Thursday of the regular season, will see the season finale of CSI NY on a special night! Programming for the 10pm hour for the summer season, effective May 21, is to be announced right now. As for Harper's Island, it will be still on the air...it will be moved to Saturdays at 9pm replacing crime repeats. The series will air from May 2 through July 11, except on May 16 a special Mentalist repeat will air. And because of the Obama news conference on April 29, the sitcoms get affected. The Rules of Engagement special night and time is now on May 13 at 8pm, followed by a new Old Christine at a special time of 8:30pm. Because of that the season finales of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried, which were slated for May 13, will now be May 20 against American Idol. And the two-part Criminal Minds season finale on May 20 moves from 8-10pm to 9-11pm, since the CSI NY finale at 10pm has been moved to Thursday, May 14. Besides the Harper's Island changes, all of these changes are because of the news conference! View the changes in a list form.
NBC is not really affected by this. NBC will air the Presidential News Conference at 8PM ET this Wednesday (April 29). A Law & Order repeat was scheduled in that slot. In the Mountain and Pacific time zones they will get Dateline at 7pm MT and 8pm PT instead of the Law & Order repeat. Why not just air the repeat there? No big loss for NBC.
Fox announced it is NOT airing the news conference! They will have a little scroll on the bottom saying you can watch it on Fox News Channel or Fox Business Channel. They will air an all-new episode of Lie to Me as scheduled. This is the first time Obama's conferences have been not aired by one of the big four. But they are making some changes to Sundays. Effective this Sunday (May 2), new animated comedy Sit Down, Shut Up is being banished to 7pm replacing the American Dad! encore, which moves to 7:30pm. So this means King of the Hill moves from 7:30 back to its old 8:30pm slot for new episodes! This is not good news at all for Sit Down, Shut Up, which only after two airings has not done well in the ratings. 3 more episodes are left, as Fox is only airing 5 of the 13 for some reason. View these changes in a list form.

It went through three names, two leading ladies, and two networks, yet The Hogan Family managed to last six seasons and is well remembered as one of the great family sitcoms of the '80s. Our good friend Eric is back with another retro interview on his wonderful interview website, JustMyShow.com! Listen to on and off camera insight as Eric hangs out with Mark Hogan himself, Jeremy Licht! For six seasons, Jeremy Licht played the role of Mark Hogan on The Hogan Family. His other credits include the ABC TV movie The Comeback Kid starring John Ritter and appearances on TV hits such as St. Elsewhere and Hotel. These days, he spends his time working as a financial advisor with his company JL Capital Management. It is a very fun interview and Eric also has a bonus clip of him asking Jeremy on when on earth the Hogan Family is coming to DVD?! Life is such a sweet insanity, indeed! Head on over to Just My Show to listen to this new great interview!

ABC Family Pulls Sophie, Speeds Up Roommates; ABC Announces More Summer 2009 Series

After just five weeks on the air, ABC Family has pulled original single camera sitcom Sophie off the air completely. The show has failed to garner any ratings whatsoever on Mondays at 9:30pm. ABC Family still has 8 episodes left in the can, but no word yet if and when they will air at a later date. Sophie's lead-in is also an original sitcom. Roommates, a multi-camera sitcom, will still be on the air but it will be sped up. What do I mean? Well, now they will air four episodes a night so they can quickly finish the run. Roommates also hasn't gone well in the ratings, but is not worse than Sophie at least. This Monday (April 27) and the following Monday (May 4), Roommates will air from 9-11pm ET/PT, replacing a repeat of AFV in the 10pm hour for two weeks. 5 episodes have aired so far, and with this two four-episode block, all 13 will air. Then starting May 11, ABC Family will air movies in the Monday 9-11pm block through June 15 since June 22 ABC Family plans on launching new original drama Make It or Break It. Movies slated for May are Mean Girls, My Fake Fiance, and Legally Blonde.
We got the sense ABC Family was not happy with the performances publicly when they removed the Tuesday encores of both shows as we mentioned last week. These two were the first original sitcoms for ABC Family and they have two more coming this summer (10 Things I Hate About You on July 7 and Ruby & the Rockits on July 21). They are scheduled a bit better though. Those two will air in the 8pm hour on Tuesdays, which is better since they will have the sitcom block as its lead-in, such as My Wife & Kids (6-7pm) and That '70s Show (7-8pm) which both do very well. I think ABC Family should have had Roommates and Sophie in the 8pm hour and moved Greek to 9pm. That would have been better and made more sense. Sophie will for sure not be back for another season and Roommates is also likely not to return, unless it does a spike in the ratings in the next two weeks.
Roommates launched with 1.5 million viewers, but that was following the season finale of Secret Life of the American Teenager which did a strong 4.49 million. The premiere of Sophie only mustered 892,000 viewers. From there both shows saw even more declines. With Roommates dropping to 440,000 viewers by episode two and only 335,000 viewers for Sophie. They then hovered around those ratings for episodes 3-5, which is terrible numbers.

ABC has now announced more summer series news. Now we get more info on ABC News produced series for the summer along with some specials. We have completely new details on shows we haven't heard about yet. First, ABC will finally air the ABC News produced special Earth 2100 on Tuesday, June 2 from 9-11PM ET/PT. This special was previously set to air in early January. The special is hosted by Bob Woodruff, it takes viewers on a journey through what the next century could have in store and shows viewers what can be done to avoid disaster. Then on Sunday, June 21 and Sunday, June 28 from 9-11PM ET/PT on both nights we have the miniseries event Impact. We seem to have survived a catastrophic meteor storm...but something has changed and the moon is looming larger in the sky. What once was the most familiar object in the night now threatens to destroy all life on earth. A small band of international astronauts, scientists, and soldiers band together as our last best hope. David James Elliott, Natasha Henstridge, Steven Culp, and James Cromwell star in this highly anticipated miniseries.
Next up will be special Primetime series. Primetime: Family Secrets returns and will air Tuesdays at 10PM starting June 23 through and including July 21. Then starting July 28, Primetime: The Outsiders returns to air airing Tuesdays at 10PM through and including Sept. 8. Airing Wednesdays at 10PM starting June 24 will be Primetime: Crime and it will air through and including Sept. 9. ABC will also bring back the popular Primetime: What Would You Do? sometime in August, but no day and time has been set yet. Other ABC News specials are one-time specials on Wednesday, July 15 at 10PM for a special called Oil with Charles Gibson, preempting Primetime: Crime on this night. We also have an ABC News produced special called J.K. Rowling: A Year in the Life airing the next night (Thursday, July 16) at 8PM.
So now we have most of the missing pieces for the ABC summer line-up. Still we need more schedules, but with the entertainment update we gave and now the ABC News update, we are almost set. ABC also announced it will air the CMA Music Festival: Country's Night to Rock on Monday, August 30 from 8-11PM ET/PT. View more on all of this, including synopsis of all the Primetime series. And for a recap of all things ABC summer so far, please view that also.
CBS is just about the only network yet to announce any summer details, as ABC, NBC, Fox has already in different parts.

ABC Announces 12 Early Pick-Ups for 2009-2010, Returns Millionaire in Summer; GSN's Classic TV Airings

ABC has announced 12 early pick-ups for the 2009-2010 season for returning series. This doesn't mean all other shows not mentioned won't return, this is just the early pick-ups. The 12 early pick-ups for 2009-2010 season are America's Funniest Home Videos, The Bachelor, Brothers & Sisters, Dancing with the Stars, Desperate Housewives, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Grey's Anatomy, Lost, Private Practice, Supernanny, Ugly Betty and Wife Swap. No surprises here. 20/20 is also of course a lock to return, with shows like Castle and Samantha Who? also likely to return. We won't know the rest of the returnees until upfront on May 19.
Meanwhile, Regis is back in ABC primetime! Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the smash hit Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? comes back to ABC this summer for a special two-week event. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? premieres Sunday, August 9, 2009 at 8:00PM ET/PT and will air for 11 nights from Sunday-Thursday at 8:00PM, with the finale on Sunday, August 23, 2009 at 8:00PM.
Can you believe it has been 10 years? The show launched on Aug. 16, 1999 at 8:30pm as a half-hour series and aired all seven days for two weeks. We will see an hour of course in this run and Sun-Thurs instead of all seven days. A few weeks ago I said ABC would do a two-week run like this in August, and I turned up being right. Now if this is a success, I can see ABC doing a similar two-week run in December. ABC usually airs repeats then and when hey air new episodes, they are usually lower anyway. So Millionaire would be a great option for December, especially following holiday specials. One week they can even have ABC stars playing for charity for the holidays. I would also schedule Millionaire once or twice a week in January and February, as ABC usually needs help then. But before we think that far ahead, right now this is just a two-week anniversary event in August.

Speaking of Millionaire, GSN is airing the classic TV edition from 2001 starting this weekend! If you've never seen this or need to record and save this, now is your chance! GSN will air all four nights of this edition on Sunday, April 26; Saturday, May 2; Sunday, May 3; and Saturday, May 9 all from 5-6PM ET. The classic TV stars appearing and playing for a million dollars for charity are Adam West (Batman), Kim Fields (The Facts of Life), Florence Henderson (The Brady Bunch), Cindy Williams (Laverne & Shirley), Melissa Gilbert (Little House on the Prairie), Danny Bonaduce (The Partridge Family), Valerie Bertinelli (One Day at a Time), Marion Ross (Happy Days), Sherman Hemsley (The Jeffersons, Amen), and Ted Lange (The Love Boat).
Elsewhere on GSN, we have some other noteworthy specials. On Saturday, May 9 from 9-10PM we have a special Mother's Day themed episode from 2002 of Weakest Link with Classic TV Moms! Pat Crowley (Please Don't Eat the Daisies), Karen Grassle (Little House on the Prairie), June Lockhart (Lassie), Jo Marie Payton (Family Matters), Janet Hubert (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), Carol Potter (Beverly Hills 90210), Beverly Garland (Lois & Clark), and Alley Mills (The Wonder Years).
On Mother's Day (Sunday, May 10) itself, GSN has a marathon of the Donny Osmond revival of Pyramid from 9am-4pm, and we have one episode from a Classic TV week in this marathon at 9:30am featuring Marion Ross and Erin Moran of Happy Days.

Sticking to our game show theme today, Chris Mann of Retroality.TV has posted a story on his take on Bob Barker's new book, Priceless Memories. See the real scoop on Bob and see video interviews with former Barker's Beauties models Holly Hallstrom and Dian Parkinson. It is quite an interesting read, and Chris has a book coming out on the drama behind the camera of the popular game show as well. We'll let you know more on that when available.
But for now, read his take on Barker's new book.

Lifetime Networks 2009 Upfront; Network Notes; Remembering Wendy Blair

Lifetime Networks unveiled its 2009-10 program slate that encompasses the most powerful line-up of original series and movies in Lifetime Television and Lifetime Movie Network's history, headlined by the sixth season of cable's hottest unscripted competition series, Project Runway.
Project Runway, featuring host Heidi Klum, mentor Tim Gunn and judges Michael Kors and Nina Garcia, is set to make its long-awaited return to television on Thursday, August 20, at 10:00 PM (ET/PT) with 14 hour-long episodes. The series, the highest-rated unscripted competition show on all of cable, will seamlessly lead into Models of the Runway at 11:00PM (ET/PT), beginning August 20, an all-new, half-hour companion series will center around the drama, anxiety, tears and joys of Project Runway's models as they compete for money and a major magazine cover shoot. In other unscripted news, new shows Cook Yourself Thin debuts on May 4 at 5:00 PM (ET/PT), and DietTribe is scheduled to return for its second season later this year.
As we mentioned, Lifetime's hit drama series Army Wives returns for its third season at 10:00 PM (ET/PT) on Sunday, June 7. Joining Army Wives this summer will be Drop Dead Diva, the spirited new comedic drama, starring newcomer Brooke Elliott (Hairspray, Wicked) and Margaret Cho (17 Again). It will air at 9:00 PM (ET/PT) starting Sunday, July 12. Lifetime has many original dramas in development. However, they have not been picked-up as series just yet. In development are: Mona Lisa Smile, based on the feature film of the same name; Mystic Pizza: Another Slice, a two-hour, back-door pilot based on the hit film; Marry Me, a limited-run anthology series that starts with a couple who meets in the pilot and concludes with a wedding in Episode 13; Queens of the Rodeo, a comedic drama with the exciting and dangerous rodeo circuit as the backdrop; The Fallen (working title), based on T. Jefferson Parker's novel of the same name; and Murder in Suburbia, formatted from the popular British series.
Rita Rocks, its first original comedy in a decade, stars Nicole Sullivan as an overworked wife and mother trying to find time for herself, will return for its second season in the Fall. Lifetime has three other original comedies in the works, but have not been picked-up as a series yet. In production for pilots are Sherri, loosely based on Sherri Shepherd's (The View) personal family experiences; The Valerie Bertinelli Project (working title) is about a newly divorced mother (Bertinelli) who must maintain a balance between her family and running her ex-husband's struggling hardware business; Alligator Point, is from Kelsey Grammar and stars Cybill Shepherd following the life and times of an eccentric group of Floridians whose lives change when a "Yankee" becomes part of their disjointed family. We will let you know if any of these three gets picked-up as a series joining Rita Rocks.
As for daily strip schedule, this fall Lifetime will begin airing two high-profile, off-net properties nightly, the popular dramas Grey's Anatomy and Medium. Currently, they both air once a week. They join a strong schedule that already features such top acquired product as Wife Swap, Desperate Housewives, Reba, Will & Grace and Frasier. Cybill joins the daytime line-up on May 4. Finally, in September 2010, Lifetime will also begin stripping the hit off-net comedy How I Met Your Mother, which currently fills one hour of the network's schedule per week on Mondays.
View more on Lifetime and LMN's upfront, which includes all the original movies they have in the works for 2009 and 2010.

We have a lot of network notes for you today. First off, ABC will air a repeat of Grey's Anatomy this Thursday (April 23) at 8pm leading into the return of all-new episodes at 9pm. The repeat will be the last original episode that aired, so fans can remember what happened, if they need refreshing. This means In the Motherhood and Samantha Who? will not return to the slot now since yesterday we announced Ugly Betty was coming back a week earlier than planned (April 30). So updating my story from yesterday, Motherhood will now have three episodes still remaining to air, as it will have 4 of its 7 aired (though they had only planned to air 6 anyway). Samantha Who? looks like will only air 13 of its 20, with seven still left in the can, but ABC could certainly use those next season, which is more than likely to happen despite the ratings falter on Thursdays.
In other ABC notes, ABC has announced the celebs and athletes for the new summer series The Superstars! The eight athletes are Jennifer Capriati (tennis), Brandi Chastain (soccer), Robert Horry (basketball), Jeff Kent (baseball), Kristi Leskinen (X Games), Lisa Leslie (basketball), Bode Miller (skiing) and Terrell Owens (football). The eight celebrities are David Charvet (actor), Maksim Chmerkovskiy (Dancing with the Stars), Dan Cortese (host/actor), Paige Hemmis (Extreme Makeover: Home Edition), Julio Iglesias, Jr. (singer), Joanna Krupa (model), Ali Landry (model/actress) and Estella Warren (actress). The series is based on ABC's classic Wide World of Sports, which pitted athletes from all different sports against each other to determine the best athlete in the world. The Superstars pairs the celebrities with the athletes to compete in varying sporting events. Participants found out who their selected partners were only when they met for the first time at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. The six-episode series premieres Tuesday, June 23 at 8:00PM on ABC. The team pairings for The Superstars will be Terrell Owens & Joanna Krupa; Jeff Kent & Ali Landry; Robert Horry & Estella Warren: Bode Miller & Paige Hemmis; Kristi Leskinen & Maksim Chmerkovskiy; Lisa Leslie & Dan Cortese; Jennifer Capriati & David Charvet; and Brandi Chastain & Julio Iglesias, Jr. Every week a team will be eliminated until one team is ultimately crowned the winner. Competitors' athletic prowess and strategy will be put to the test to excel in events including swimming, biking, running and kayaking, in addition to other head-to-head athletic challenges everyone must try to conquer. Find out more on the celebs and athletes.

Moving on to NBC, they have pulled drama Kings from Saturdays even after just one airing. Repeats of Law & Order: SVU will air instead at 8pm (it was at 9pm), with Southland encores moving to 9pm (from 10pm), and now Law & Order repeats will close out the night at 10pm. Then after May sweeps ends, Law & Order: Criminal Intent repeats will air for a few weeks at 8pm before Kings returns. 7 episodes of Kings remain and NBC promises to return the series on Saturday, June 13 at 8pm to finish them off. That date was originally the plan to end the series, now that will be the return date. The series will last through July 25, bearing any more changes of course.
Finally Fox has changed its summer schedule a bit again. New series Mental will now air Tuesdays at 9PM starting May 26 following summer repeats of House. Mental was previously scheduled to launch on Friday, May 29 at 9PM. It will still air Fridays, but now they will be encores of the Tuesday episodes. However, the Tuesday airings will only last through June 23. The Friday encores will become the new night for new episodes for Mental starting July 3 through August 14. Fox has also announced that it will return reality show The Moment of Truth on Wednesday, July 29 airing Wednesdays at 9PM, following So You Think You Can Dance. Dance ends its season in early August (Aug. 5 & 6), though, so Truth will then have repeats of Bones as its lead-in starting Aug. 19. August 12 will see two episodes of Moment of Truth from 8-10pm. View the complete Fox summer schedule.

Finally, we leave you today with some sad news. Wendy Blair died of cancer on Tuesday, April 14, 2009 in North Hollywood. Blair enjoyed a long career in the entertainment industry, having served as the first female junior executive at CBS Television City in the mid-1950s. Known for being analytical and extremely organized, she worked as an associate producer and producer on a number of popular television series. Among the series she worked on as an associate producer are Three's Company, and both of its spin-off series The Ropers and Three's a Crowd, as well as several variety shows and specials for companies including Dick Clark Productions and Sid and Marty Krofft Enterprises, such as Dr. Shrinker.
Her other producer credits include pilots and series such as What a Country! in 1986, I Married Dora in 1987, Mutts in 1988, and Where's Rodney? in 1990. She later segued from working in production to serving as the manager of business operations for The Smothers Brothers and was active in this role until the beginning of 2009. Now, Joanne McCracken has taken over. Blair was a member of the Directors Guild of America, the Producers Guild of America and was a founding member of the Association of Associate Producers (which later merged with the PGA). Blair was devoted to her family and family traditions. She will be deeply missed, especially by Three's Company fans and The Smothers Brothers followers. She was only 70.

ABC Returns Ugly Betty 1 Week Earlier; YouTube Adds Full Episodes of Shows

Ugly Betty is now scheduled to return to the ABC schedule starting Thursday, April 30, 2009 and will continue through and including Thursday, May 14, 2009 in its 8:00-9:00PM ET/PT slot. Ugly Betty was previously scheduled to return on May 7, but now it will be a week earlier than planned, as ABC will preempt In the Motherhood and Samantha Who? In the Motherhood was planning on airing 6 of its 7 episode order, but now it will be 5 of the 7, so 2 episodes will remain leftover. It is unlikely the show will return for another season, but ABC could air those two episodes at a later date. As for Samantha Who?, the second season has a 20 episode order, but only 14 will have aired, so 6 will remain. ABC will likely hold them over for next season, which it is likely to return. Not sure what this means for the second season DVD that is slated to come out Aug. 25...will they have all 20 on there or just the 14 aired?
The two-hour season finale of Ugly Betty is still scheduled to air in the 8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT slot on Thursday, May 21, 2009. So Ugly Betty will air all 24 of its hours this season, as previously it didn't match-up with just 23 hours.

YouTube has just recently added a "Shows" section where you can watch full episodes of TV shows! There are many genres of television shows you can watch, with of course Classic TV, Comedy, and Drama. YouTube has partnered with the likes of Sony's Crackle, CBS, MGM, Lionsgate and Starz and many others have made thousands of television episodes and hundreds of movies available for you to watch, comment on, favorite and share. This addition is one of many efforts underway to ensure that YouTube is offering you all the different kinds of video you want to see of full-length films and TV shows.
Get ready here is a list of just some of the stuff you'll see: The Addams Family, ALF, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, American Gladiators, Barney Miller, Beverly Hillbillies, Bewitched, Burns and Allen, Dana Carvey Show, Dick Van Dyke Show, Dragnet, Fantasy Island, He-Man, I Dream of Jeannie, Jack Benny, Lucy Show, MacGyver, Make Room for Daddy, Married with Children, My Mother the Car, NewsRadio, Party of Five, Star Trek, T.J. Hooker, Three Stooges, Trouble with Father, and What's Happening!!
Current stuff will also be available such as episodes of Harper's Island and clips of Jimmy Kimmel Live. So head on over to YouTube to start watching!

Rodney Episodes on CMT; 2009 TV Land Awards Show Details; ABC Note

This coming weekend on CMT (Friday, April 24 through Sunday, April 26) is Rodney Carrington Weekend on CMT. Included in that weekend will be episodes of his sitcom Rodney, which aired on ABC for two seasons from 2004-2006 and lasted 44 episodes. There were six unaired episodes though, but unfortunately we still do not get to see any of them here. Instead, CMT will air six season one episodes. The episodes will premiere on CMT on Friday from 9pm-12am. Various encores of these episodes will air on Saturday from 5:30-7:30pm and Sunday from 8pm-11pm. The episodes airing are: "Teacher" with guest star Christine Lakin (Step by Step), "Halloween," "Dream Lover" with guest star Sofia Vergara, "It's Up It's Good," "Charity Ball," and "Rodney's Affair."
To kick off the weekend, Rodney Carrington will also host the CMT Top 20 Countdown on Friday, April 24 at 11:00am ET/PT. CMT will also air Rodney's one hour Comedy Central special Rodney Carrington Live at the Majestic at 12 midnight (ET/PT). On Sunday April 26, CMT will air the feature film Beer for My Horses starring both Rodney and Toby Keith at 6:00pm and 11:00lm (ET/PT).
Also, a DVD package consisting of all 22 episodes from the first season of Rodney, will be sold exclusively in Wal-Mart as of May 19. Hopefully that package will soon also be available as a regular DVD!

It was an unforgettable and star-studded evening as celebrities from television, film and music came out tonight for the taping of the 2009 TV Land Awards which will premiere on Sunday, April 26 at 8pm ET/PT on TV Land during a special presentation of TV Land PRIME. Appearances included Will Ferrell (presenter for Pop Culture Award), Matthew McConaughey (presenter for Hero Award), Martin Sheen (presenter for Impact Award), Teri Hatcher (presenter for Future Classic Award), Amy Poehler (presenter for Legacy of Laughter Award), Jimmy Kimmel (presenter for Legend Award), Cyndi Lauper, Angela Bassett (presenter for Entertainer Award), Reba McEntire (presenter for Anniversary Award), Jamie Lee Curtis (presenter for Fan Favorite Award), Dr. Phil McGraw (presenter for Innovator Award) and more. This year's honorees included Don Rickles (Legend Award), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Lucille Ball Legacy of Laughter Award), M*A*S*H (Impact Award), Married With Children (Innovator Award), ER, (Icon Award), Home Improvement (Fan Favorite Award), Magnum P.I. (Hero Award), Sid and Marty Krofft (Pop Culture Award), Knots Landing (30th Anniversary Award), Two and a Half Men (Future Classic Award), and Earth, Wind & Fire (Entertainer Award).
An entertaining videotaped parody/show open by host Neil Patrick Harris which took him through his own version of The Twilight Zone, traveling through TV hits spanning from The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Love Boat, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, Happy Days - featuring an appearance by Marion Ross, Baywatch and finally Survivor where he comes face to the show's host Jeff Probst.
There was also a heartwarming taped tribute to Don Rickles by close friend and fellow icon Bob Newhart. Neil Patrick Harris performed the song "I'll Take TV," written by acclaimed Academy Award-nominated composer Marc Shaiman (Hairspray, Sleepless In Seattle).
Read more about the 2009 TV Land Awards, and tune in on Sunday (April 26) at 8PM!

As we mentioned on Friday on our message board and yesterday here on our ratings report, ABC will air two all-new episodes of the comedic cop show The Unusuals this week. ABC will air The Unusuals on a special night of Tuesday (April 21) at 10pm following Dancing with the Stars: The Results. That means new romantic comedy-drama Cupid will be preempted this week, but is slated to return the following Tuesday (April 28). The Unusuals will also air on its regular night of Wednesday this week at 10pm, following a Lost Special. The show has a 10 episode order, and thus far has aired two episodes--so after this week four will air in all. So it is slated to air through June 17, unless ABC decides to double up each week, if it does much better than Cupid. But for now, tune in this week! It is a well done show!

ABC Announces First Batch of Summer 2009 Schedule; ION Ratings Go Up, Schedule Changes

A few days back we gave you a peek at some of ABC's summer schedule. All of that was right basically but now we have more details! So let's take a look night-by-night! As we knew, the new cycle of The Bachelorette launches May 18 from 9-11pm, but its timeslot launch is Monday, May 25 from 8-10pm. We are not sure how long the cycle will run, since there will be for sure a Men Tell All and After the Final Rose specials, so maybe the finale won't be July 13 and could last longer? We'll let you know. So what will air at 10pm on Mondays? I guessed a second season of Here Come the Newlyweds, and I was right! ABC will air that series for eight straight weeks from May 27-July 13 at 10pm on Mondays. Following the run of that, ABC will launch a new series starting July 20 at 10pm. The reality series Dating in the Dark will air for six weeks making it last through all of August. The show is a unique alternative series that asks the age-old question, "Is Love Blind?" Each week, three single men and three single women, all looking for love, will move into a house together, but be totally sequestered from the opposite sex. While they will have no chance of seeing each other in the light, they will have the opportunity to date in a completely dark room.
Tuesdays will not change until after the NBA Finals are over. Prior to the NBA finals will be filler programming, including two burn-offs of Opportunity Knocks. Then after the NBA Finals (which airs Thursdays, Sundays, and Tuesdays from June 4-18) ends, ABC will launch The Superstars on Tuesdays at 8pm starting Tuesday, June 23. The Superstars, a fresh take on an old favorite, is based on ABC's classic "Wide World of Sports" series, The Superstars, which pitted athletes from all different sports against each other to determine the best athlete in the world. Eight celebrities are paired with eight professional male and female athletes to compete against each other in varying sporting events. Each week a team will be eliminated until one team is ultimately crowned the winner. The six-episode series will be shot entirely on location at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. The finale is set for Tuesday, July 28. As for rest of Tuesday, it is unknown still what will air from 9-11pm starting June 23. And it is unknown what will air following the run of The Superstars starting August 4. As I said, this is only the first batch details.
Moving on to Wednesdays, as we mentioned, Wipeout will have its season premiere on a new night starting Wednesday, May 27 at 8pm. And ABC has 16 episodes this season, well one aired already, as ABC aired the Wipeout Bowl (the 6th one produced) on Super Bowl Sunday. We get new obstacles and a new twist to the big balls! Cannot wait for this as this will last throughout the summer on Wednesdays at 8! Following Wipeout, for six weeks, as we mentioned we get the animated comedy The Goode Family! The Goode Family is a new animated series from he King of the Hill crew Mike Judge, John Altschuler and Dave Krinsky. With standards always changing, no matter how hard you try to be good, it's virtually impossible these days... especially for the Goode family. Gerald and Helen Goode are a couple who live by the motto WWAGD ("What Would Al Gore Do?"). We first thought the series would be aired back-to-back at 9pm & 9:30pm, but now that is not the case. It will air in the 9pm half-hour only. So we get 6 of the 13 episodes produced. Following The Goode Family will be the new night of the Bob Saget sitcom Surviving Suburbia. That sitcom launched to decent ratings on Monday at 9:30 and will air five more times in that slot (through May 11) before moving to Wednesdays at 9:30pm starting May 27 for six more episodes for an original summer run. So ABC will air at least 12 of the 13 episodes produced. I really think this sitcom has potential and ABC could use it next fall to launch new traditional comedies. Both comedies will run through Wednesday, July 1. Starting Wednesday, July 8, we get a second season of the game show I Survived a Japanese Game Show! It is an unscripted reality/game show -- actually a show within a show - that takes an eye-opening, behind-the-scenes look at 12 Americans who are whisked away to Japan to compete in the ultimate Japanese game show. This season we get 10 episodes, so it will last into September. It is unknown what ABC will do at 10pm, but The Unusuals has five episodes remaining in its first season episode order if they want to air originals of that. The series launched last night to good ratings. The series will air for four more straight weeks through May 6, before the Lost two-episode season finale on May 13. So five episodes will for sure air out of its ten episode order. If ABC chooses to air the remaining five in the summer, it would air from May 27 through June 24, for five straight weeks. That would give ABC an entire night of originals on Wednesdays from 8-11pm. If that is the case with The Unusuals, they have not announced what would air Wednesdays at 10pm starting July 1. Or they could hold those episodes for next fall, if the series returns.
There has been nothing announced for Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays. We have specials and stuff, though. Thursday, May 28 will be The Scripps National Spelling Bee from 8-10pm, as we told you. And Sunday, May 24 is the first part of the miniseries Diamonds from 9-11pm, also as we told you. It concludes on Tuesday, May from 9-11pm. ABC has another miniseries in the works called Impact.
Finally, Saturdays at 10pm is a rotating wheel to burn-off remaining episodes of canceled series. Pushing Daisies returns to the schedule from Saturday, May 30 through Saturday, June 13 at 10:00pm for its final three episodes. Then Eli Stone returns on Saturday, June 20 through Saturday, July 11 at 10:00pm for its final four episodes. Then finally Dirty Sexy Money returns on Saturday, July 18 through August 8 at 10:00pm for its final four episodes (which includes the unaired Thanksgiving episode!). It'll be weird seeing the Thanksgiving episode first since they aired three other episodes after that.
Well there you have it, the first batch of ABC summer. Of course more timeslots needs to be announced and we will let you know as soon as we hear what they are! Will Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? return in August for its 10th anniversary? We shall see!

First quarter 2009 has been a record breaking time for ION Television, with double digit growth in primetime viewership among households as well as in the key adults 25-54 demo. ION has delivered more adults 25-54 than at any other time in its history and ION's top five most watched episodes ever in households (HH) all aired during the first three months of this year. ION's extraordinary growth is a continued reflection of the success of its strategy to build viewership through its acquisitions of critically acclaimed off-network series in primetime.
Primetime delivery for households was up 26%, while adults 25-54 rose 44%, year over year. Also during this time period, viewership for adults 25-54 exhibited double digit growth across every hour in primetime: The 8:00 PM hour was up 20%, the 9:00 PM hour grew 49% and the 10:00 PM hour rose 62%.
ION's primetime off-network series continue to deliver. NCIS and Boston Legal have both grown significantly since their launch in fourth quarter 2008. In fact, NCIS delivered ION's top five most watched episodes ever (HH), reinforcing ION's mission in attracting more viewers than ever. NCIS averaged over one million total viewers in first quarter 2009, up 27% among households and up 31% among adults 25-54. Boston Legal's first quarter 2009 performance has grown 18% among households and 17% among adults 25-54.
ION's ratings gains provide the network with considerable momentum as it prepares its programming schedule for the 2009-10 season and beyond. That schedule will feature 12 originally produced movies a year, the new first-run series Durham County, The Border and The Guard; and the newly acquired off-network hits Ghost Whisperer and Criminal Minds.
Speaking of ION Television, they have just announced some changes to April. They are not major changes, though. All of the RHI movies have been pulled for the rest of April. So this Saturday (April 11) from 6-11pm we will get a M*A*S*H marathon instead. Other replacements include a Boston Legal block on Friday, April 17 from 8-11pm, big screen movies and more M*A*S*H. We already told you for May, the RHI movies would be leaving, so now it is earlier than planned. The Lonesome Dove four part mini-series is still slated to air the weekend of May 2-3, then after that there is no more RHI movies scheduled. More mainstream big screen movies will air. Check out the revised April schedule so you know what is on a particular day.

Stay tuned tomorrow for ABC Family upfront update!

ABC To Air Animated Comedy The Goode Family in Summer with Wipeout; Fox and NBC Updates

Today we have all network news, including some scoops! As we first announced on our message board on Friday (and then later on Twitter), we have gotten the early portion of the ABC summer 2009 schedule! We already knew about The Bachelorette airing on Mondays (it launches in-season on May 18 after the Dancing performance finale), and will air 8-10pm on Mondays starting the following week (May 25). It is unknown right now what will air at 10pm on Mondays, but ABC does have Here Come the Newlyweds on the roster for a possible pairing. The next night will be Tuesday, May 26 as ABC brings back the family game show Opportunity Knocks for at least two weeks airing May 26 and June 2 at 8pm. Then the NBA Finals come, so not sure what ABC will do yet. ABC has six episodes on the shelf, so at least two will see the light of day. ABC will air the miniseries Diamonds on two nights--Sunday, May 24 and Tuesday, May 26 from 9-11pm. Diamonds is a Canadian production starring Judy Davis. Diamonds weaves together five storylines to form the plot, focusing on the daughter of a U.S. Senator who is murdered at a diamond mine in Sierra Leone (in Africa). It is a Hollywood event limited series from start to finish, especially with its stellar ensemble including Judy Davis who won an Emmy for the last role she played which aired on ABC (Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows). James Purefoy (Rome) also stars. ABC has another Canadian miniseries in the works for later in the summer called Impact. Impact is a four-hour disaster epic and stars David James Elliott, Natasha Henstridge, Steven Culp and James Cromwell.
Then on Wednesday, May 27, ABC will launch the second season of last summer's big hit Wipeout! It's back with all the big balls and more for 16 episodes this summer! Wipeout will lead into new animated comedy The Goode Family airing back-to-back in the 9pm hour. The series has 13 episodes to air. The 10pm hour will likely be new episodes of The Unusuals, as that series (which launches this Wednesday) will have only 5 episodes airing of its 10 in the regular season, so the final 5 could air in the summer following Wipeout and Goode Family. As previously announced, Thursday, May 28 will be The Scripps National Spelling Bee from 8-10pm. Saturday, May 30 will see the return of Pushing Daisies! The series has three episodes left and will likely be stripped for the next two weeks as well in the Saturdays at 10pm timeslot concluding the series. ABC could also air the final three episodes of Dirty Sexy Money and the final four of Eli Stone as well in the slot thereafter. We'll let you know for sure when we do. Sunday, May 31 could see game 7 of the NBA Western Conference Finals in primetime, if it is necessary. The 2009 NBA Finals will air from June 4-18 on Thursdays, Sundays and Tuesdays for up to seven games, if necessary. A second year of the half-hour series Jimmy Kimmel Live: Game Night will lead into all of the games once again. We don't have any other June details or late summer news, so stay tuned for that. Lots of stuff still to come, such as the second season of I Survived a Japanese Game Show and new stuff such as Wide World of Sports Superstars, with possibly the 10th anniversary return of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire this August!
In other ABC updates, they will air a clip show of Lost on Wednesday, May 13 at 8pm leading into the two-episode season finale from 9-11pm, while ABC will air a performance recap show of Dancing with the Stars on Tuesday, May 19 at 8pm leading into the two-hour grand finale from 9-11pm.

Fox has given Bones two special nights. Because of the all preemption by American Idol and President Obama, Bones will have to air on two special nights to catch up on its episode order. The first special night will be Wednesday, April 15 at 8pm, preempting Lie to Me, which has also had its share of preemptions. The second special night will be Monday, April 20 at 8pm, replacing a scheduled House repeat. So, yes that will be three new episodes of Bones in a matter of 5 days, as it will still air and be all-new on its regular night and time of Thursday, April 16.
We gave you the Fox summer 2009 schedule before, but they have added a new series and moved the premiere of one by a week. New medical drama Mental now premiering Friday, May 29 at 9:00 pm ET/PT. Mental follows Dr. Jack Gallagher (Chris Vance), a dynamic, young psychiatrist who serves as Director of Mental Health Services at a Los Angeles hospital. It was previously scheduled to launch on May 22, but now a House repeat will air instead. In other summer updates, More to Love, the inspirational new dating competition out to prove that love comes in all shapes and sizes, is set to premiere Tuesday, July 28 at 9:00 pm ET/PT on Fox. Executive-produced by Mike Fleiss, the unscripted series follows a single average guy with a big waist and an even bigger heart as he romances several confident and secure plus-size women. The series will follow episodes of Hell's Kitchen.

Meanwhile NBC has pulled Law & Order: Criminal Intent Wednesday repeats after one airing effective this week. The repeats had replaced the recently pulled Chopping Block. Instead now NBC will air repeats of the original Law & Order. After the Life season (or series?) finale this Wednesday, repeats of Law & Order: SVU take over starting the following week (April 15). So, the night will be turned into an all Law & Order series night, with repeats of the original at 8 and repeats of SVU at 9, leading into new episode of the original at 10pm. This could be a test for the fall to see how Law & Order and Law & Order SVU do from 8-10pm, back-to-back, even though they will be repeats right now.

ABC Mid-Season Pilot Review: Surviving Suburbia - Premieres April 6; Lifetime TV Acquires Cybill

Surviving Suburbia - Mondays 9:30PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Monday, April 6, 2009 at 9:30PM ET/PT

In the family-centered tradition of Roseanne and Home Improvement, Surviving Suburbia opens the curtain to follow Bob Saget (How I Met Your Mother, Full House) and Cynthia Stevenson (Men in Trees, Dead Like Me) as Steve and Anne Patterson, a seemingly normal couple who have been married for 20 years, have two children and a cookie cutter house in the idyllic suburbs. But Steve maintains a rather cynical point of view on family, friends, neighbors, society -- pretty much everyone and everything -- as he tries to survive suburban life.
Surviving Suburbia takes a contemporary look at family life and the reasons one might have to question the system -- How does exchanging keys with a neighbor for emergencies result in house sitting? Why do kids' classroom projects inevitably become the parents' responsibility? When did we start needing mediators to handle disagreements between adults? - all of which goes to prove that it's never just another sunny day in the suburbs.
Also starring in the half-hour comedy series are Jared Kusnitz and G Hannelius as the Patterson kids, Henry and Courtney, plus Jere Burns (Good Morning Miami, Something So Right) as Dr. Jim. Dan Cortese (What I Like About You) and Lorna Scott (Criminal Minds, The OC) are recurring guest stars as Onno and Monica, respectively.


Cast Details:

* Bob Saget as Steve Patterson
* Cynthia Stevenson as Anne Patterson
* Jere Burns as Dr. Jim
* G. Hannelius as Courtney Patterson
* Jared Kusnitz as Henry Patterson
* Dan Cortese as Onno
* Lorna Scott as Monica

Bob Saget (Steve Patterson) is known worldwide for his many television roles and for setting a precedent by simultaneously starring in two Top 10 primetime series, the long-running sitcom Full House and as host of ABC's America's Funniest Home Videos for eight years. He's also familiar to a more 'adult' audience through his edgy standup comedy, theater and film work. In August 2008 Saget was honored with The Comedy Central Roast of Bob Saget, one of the highest rated shows for all of 2008 on Comedy Central. In the past two years, Saget has made his Broadway debut in the Tony Award winning play, The Drowsy Chaperone, hosted the quiz show 1 vs. 100, starred in his own HBO special, That Ain't Right, and kicked off a national theater tour. In the past few years he has also played a murderer on Law & Order: SVU, poked fun at his own image on Entourage, guest-starred on Huff, and had a hit music video from MTV, "Rollin' With Saget," in which he starred with friends Jamie Kennedy and Stu Stone.

Cynthia Stevenson (Anne Patterson) was born in Piedmont, CA but grew up in Bellevue, WA and Vancouver, BC. After attending American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, followed by Drama Studio London at Berkley, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. Her work in improv and in theatre landed her an agent and an immediate job doing 26 episodes of a sketch comedy TV show entitled Off The Wall. After doing guest parts on the sitcoms The Famous Teddy Z, Newhart and Cheers, Stevenson was cast as the lead in the sitcom talk show My Talk Show. That proved to be her big break, as director Robert Altman noticed and cast her in his Oscar nominated film The Player. Series regular roles on such shows as Bob and Hope & Gloria followed. Additionally Stevenson played the lead on the cable series Oh Baby, then she moved to Vancouver and starred in Dead Like Me. Her feature roster also includes such films as Agent Cody Banks, Agent Cody Banks 2, Neverwas, Case 39 and the Disney Air Bud comedies. She was a series regular on ABC's series MEN IN TREES, had a recurring role on According to Jim and starred in the TV Christmas movie, Will You Merry Me. She can also be seen in the recent and upcoming films Dead Like Me: The Movie, Reunion, I Love You Beth Cooper and Jennifer's Body.

Jared Kusnitz (Henry Patterson) teams him once again with Jere Burns, with whom Kusnitz starred in the indie film Otis, also starring Illeana Douglas and Daniel Stern and written by Emmy Award winning writer Erik Jendresen (Band of Brothers). In February 2009, Kusnitz was nominated for a Zombie Dead Letter Award in the category of Best Actor for his performance as Jimmy Dunn in the film Dance of the Dead, which also garnered eight nods in other categories, including Best Movie. Kusnitz's skill and comedic timing inspired writer Joe Ballarini to rewrite the script with the unlikely hero, Dunn, as the lead.

G Hannelius (Courtney Patterson) was born in Boston, MA but moved with her parents to southern Maine when she was still very young. At the age of seven she landed the title role in Madeline's Rescue at The Children's Theatre of Maine. When the family relocated to Los Angeles in 2008, Hannelius promptly booked commercials for Orville Redenbacher's Popcorn, Little Caesar's Pizza, Dairy Queen and a regional spot as the spokeskid for The Aquarium of the Pacific, which caught the attention of a more than a few casting directors. A notice seeking "the representative for the little girl in the Aquarium commercial" led to an opportunity to read for the lead role in ABC's new sitcom, Surviving Suburbia, with co-stars Bob Saget and Cynthia Stevenson. Hannelius recently worked a guest lead role in an episode of the Disney Channel comedy, Sonny with a Chance, and fulfilled her cherished dream to work with Miley Cyrus when she booked a role as a zealous fan on the hit Disney Channel series Hannah Montana. She is also part of the promotional campaign for Leo Little's Big Show, co-hosting spots on the Disney Channel.

Jere Burns (Dr. Jim) was born and raised in Cambridge, MA. He graduated from UMass, Amherst and attended the MFA program at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. His New York theatre credits include The New York Shakespeare Festival, The Public Theatre, Manhattan Theatre Club, The Culture Project and, most recently, Hairspray at The Neil Simon. On television Burns is a veteran of eight series, including Dear John, Something So Right, Help Me Help You, and Good Morning Miami. He has also appeared in numerous made for television movies and independent and feature films.

Dan Cortese (Onno) has both acting and hosting credits in television. He burst onto the small screen hosting MTV Sports, then hosted My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad. His acting credits include such sitcoms as Joey, Veronica's Closet, What I Like About You, Seinfeld and Rock Me Baby.


Pilot Plot:

#1 (PROD #106) "Hero" (Airs Monday, April 6, 2009)
Steve reluctantly agrees to house sit for Onno (recurring guest star Dan Cortese) and ends up starting a fire that he later claims to have stopped. Steve gets caught up in being praised as a hero by his daughter and his neighbors, until his conscience gets the better of him.
Special Guest Star: Dan Cortese as Onno. Guest Cast: Paul Nobrega as Guy and Michael Christian Alexander as paramedic.
"Hero" was written by Don Beck and directed by Emile Levisetti.


Analysis:

I received for review the first episode airing, which is titled "Hero." This is actually the sixth episode produced. Originally this sitcom was supposed to be for The CW's Sunday night block, which was produced by Media Rights Capital. But due to low ratings, The CW canceled that block in the fall, thus giving this series no home as it was set to launch in January. But fortunately for Surviving Suburbia, ABC picked up the show in February and announced it would air it after Dancing with the Stars starting in April! 13 episodes have already been taped, but likely only 6 will air for now on ABC as they won't have room for all 13 this season. So there you have it, the history of the show in a nutshell.
Now to the actual analysis...Bob Saget returns to ABC! The first episode they are airing has some very funny moments and I could certainly see this being a promising series with many laughs. This is for sure a throwback to traditional family sitcoms such as Home Improvement. Bob Saget plays Steve Patterson, a husband and father. He is certainly not squeaky clean and perfect like he was on Full House. On this show, he gets into a lot of messes. This show is certainly his vehicle, as on Full House it was more of an ensemble and later turned into "the Olsen twins show with John Stamos." Bob does get to play a father once again to a little girl. This time the little girl is not as annoying as Michelle on Full House (sorry I know there are MANY fans of that show, but it clearly was very sappy to me). The daughter (Courtney) on this show is very adorable (yes, so was Michelle) and pretty smart. She is funny, too. Bob's character, Steve, connects with her very well.
In the first episode airing, Courtney announces for her project she is writing that Zach Efron is her "hero." Later Steve's neighbor Onno comes by as he is going on a trip, so he asks Steve to take care of his house and gives him the key to the house. Steve and his friend Dr. Jim go to the house and accidentally set the curtain on fire! Steve puts out the fire and is credited as a hero, yet no one knows he was the one that started the fire! Anyway, then daughter Courtney changes her hero project to her dad. Steve now feels bad because he didn't deserve it. What will happen? You'll have to tune in.
So what works and doesn't? Obviously the connection between Steve and daughter Courtney is very much there. Right now there is not much connection between Steve and his son Henry, but I see potential as we go on. Henry seems to be 17 or so, while the daughter has to be 10 or less. The chemistry between Steve and Anne is somewhat there, but I need to see more episodes. It gets better between them as the episode goes on, though. Dr. Jim is going to be a classic character. He is the classic sitcom "buddy." He could be on the same page as Larry from Three's Company and more recently Andy on According to Jim. He is just a fun character that gives many laughs. Dan Cortese's character Onno, didn't have much to do in this episode and I didn't see Lorna Scott's character Monica in this episode. And finally, Bob Saget shines in this. He is very funny and better like this than Danny Tanner. The only gripe I have about him here is that it seems Bob is not standing straight at any time. He looks like Big Bird as he is 6'4". Maybe he has a neck or a back problem?


Conclusion:

Well this is certainly a traditional comedy. Comedies of this type are what we need right now. This is ABC's first stab at launching a traditional comedy since believe it or not Crumbs back in January 2006. In the fall of that season (fall 2005) they launched Freddie and Hot Properties, while airing returning series such as According to Jim, Rodney, George Lopez, and Less than Perfect. After that season only Jim and George remained, and then after that just Jim. So the timing seems to be very right for Surviving Suburbia to launch and succeed, as viewers like these types of comedies. CBS's Monday comedies have seen ratings climb this season, as they are the only traditional comedies airing on network TV right now. You won't see this show win any awards like Samantha Who or 30 Rock, but I'm sure this show will outright do much better than single camera sitcoms in the ratings.

The premiere episode is decent. It is not perfect at all, but Bob is good in it. Many fans and TV fans will be tuning in for sure to see Bob return to TV comedy. The promos for the show have been hilarious and most of the stuff in the promos are not for this first episode that is airing. So that is promising that the show will deliver laughs in future episodes. The first one they are airing is not the greatest episode probably of this show, but I see lots of potential and viewers should stick around to see them all. ABC says they have added a new into to this episode with the family watching and talking about Dancing with the Stars. That was not in the version I saw, but can't wait to see that. Hopefully they don't edit anything out, because the version I saw starts with Steve talking to his daughter. Tune in Monday at 9:30pm on ABC because we need the traditional sitcom to come back!


Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 4/5
Funniness: 4/5
Overall: 3.5/5

-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 04/03/09

Discuss the show after you watch it on Monday, April 6 on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

Surviving Suburbia Photo Gallery

Finally, we end today with some news! As promised, I will reveal what sitcom Lifetime TV has acquired! They have acquired the Cybill Shepherd '90s sitcom Cybill! The show will launch on Monday, May 4, airing weekdays at 8am & 8:30am and 2am ET/PT. The morning airings will replace Still Standing, which will still remain in the 6pm hour, and the late night airing will replace encores of original sitcom Rita Rocks. Cybill aired for four seasons from 1995-1998 on CBS.
Cybill was last seen on cable on Oxygen earlier this decade for a few years. Cybill Shepherd is starring on the Lifetime sitcom pilot Alligator Point, a comedy about an eccentric group of Floridians who find refuge in the southern hospitality of Mae's Oyster Bar. So with the pick-up of Cybill, maybe that sitcom will be ordered to series? Kelsey Grammer is producing the pilot. We will let you know if it gets picked-up.
Other schedule changes for Lifetime in May 2009 is original series Cook Yourself Thin replacing the third Wife Swap airing. That will air weekdays at 5:00pm & 5:30pm starting Monday, May 4. 20 episodes have been ordered. Based on the hit British series and popular cookbook, Cook Yourself Thin encourages women to lose weight by changing their eating habits. So after that series concludes, Cybill will also air in the early evenings, airing at 5:00pm & 5:30pm starting Tuesday, May 26. It will also air in its other timeslots as well.
Rita Rocks will return with new episodes sometime this summer, while new episodes of Army Wives begins Sunday, June 7 at 10pm for its third season (18 episodes).

According to Jim Return Delayed To April 14; ION Television Upfront 2009

Earlier this month we told you that According to Jim returns to ABC with its final 12 episodes starting March 24, but then President Obama scheduled a news conference during that time, thus delaying Jim's return. So it was assumed According to Jim would return the following week (March 31), but as we first broke the news a few days ago on our message board, that is not the case. According to Jim will now return Tuesday, April 14 with back-to-back episodes for six straight weeks, giving it its final 12 episodes. So if that all goes well, the series finale is now May 19 instead of the originally planned May 5. As we have seen, things change, so keep checking back with us. You ever know, ABC might schedule two episodes on another night (Friday?) to finish earlier, say May 12.
So why didn't ABC return Jim next week (March 31)? It wouldn't have made sense to launch it that week and then have to preempt it the following week, as ABC had already scheduled It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown for April 7. So instead, on March 31, we get encores of the first two episodes of the hilarious new sitcom Better Off Ted! So if you have missed those two episodes, you need to watch on that night!

Underscoring its commitment to build its primetime programming schedule, ION Television announced plans to develop and produce 12 original films a year, with the first film set to premiere in fourth quarter 2009. It was announced yesterday at ION Television's Upfront presentation.
ION Television plans to commission originally produced films and offer integrated marketing opportunities to advertisers who seek an alternative and expanded way to reach the consumer. Genres being explored include drama, romance, thriller, action and holiday -- all of which will be created to appeal to the broad based general entertainment audience that ION Television continues to attract. These films will complement the ION Television's growing library of blockbuster and critically acclaimed films from the major movie studios.
The announcement reinforces ION Television's strategy of expanding its programming mix through a strong combination of quality major network TV series, as well as signature originals produced specifically for ION Television. These films will join a line-up that includes the previously announced off network series Ghost Whisperer and Criminal Minds and the new original acquired series Durham County, The Guard and The Border. New programming will begin roll out on ION Television starting this fall. Ghost Whisperer, Criminal Minds, and Durham County are expected to launch first and air back-to-back-to-back.
ION Television has garnered major increases in primetime viewership among adults 25-54 since the launch of its re-branding campaign last fall. The dramatic growth in ratings includes a 30% increase among adults 25-54 in primetime (2008-09 season to date vs. 2007-08 season to date). Primetime household viewership for the same period was up 16%.
ION Television will also remove up to two more hours a day of paid programming on weekdays. We will have more on that and ION's Fall 2009 schedule soon. Keep checking back. Wonder if ION will start at 2pm now on weekdays or end two hours later after 12am since two hours of Paid will be removed? Currently on weekdays, the network programs from 4pm-11pm. 2pm-11pm or 4pm-1am sounds good!


As for tonight, tune in for the series premiere of comedy In the Motherhood and the return of Samantha Who? all starting tonight at 8/7 central on ABC!

ABC Mid-Season Pilot Review: In the Motherhood - Premieres March 26; Short-Lived Dramas Comes to DIRECTV; Fox Note

In the Motherhood - Thursdays 8:00PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Thursday, March 26, 2009 at 8:00PM ET/PT

Megan Mullally (Will & Grace) and Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm) come to ABC in the new comedy In the Motherhood, which takes a look at the importance of family and friends while trying to juggle motherhood, work and love lives in an overly complicated modern world.
The story focuses on Rosemary (Mullally), Jane (Hines) and Emily (Jessica St. Clair), who represent mothers we all know. Rosemary is a free-wheeling mom who plays it fast and loose when it comes to parenting her teenaged son, Syd. Married numerous times, but currently single, Rosemary lives by her own rules. Much to the amazement of the other moms, her nontraditional parenting style has yielded a son much more responsible than she. Rosemary's best friend, Jane, is a recently divorced working mother of a pre-teen, Annie, and a baby girl, Sophie, who is just trying to keep her career and home afloat. Having just returned to work after giving birth eight months ago, Jane struggles to find a happy balance - lucky for her she has her "manny," Horatio (Horatio Sanz, Saturday Night Live), to help out. Jane's younger sister, Emily, sees herself as the model stay-at-home-super-mom for her two young children, Esther and Bill. Emily's home is a work of art, and her kids are polite and sweet-everything has its place in her world. Married to Jason (RonReaco Lee), Emily takes parenting as seriously as any mother could.
As for the men in their lives, Horatio, Jane's "manny," communicates with Jane's infant daughter through sign language and believes the baby is the only person who really "gets" him. He's a good-hearted lug who is also much more than a babysitter to the three ladies. Then there's Jason, Emily's husband, who is the uptight breadwinner, ready at any given moment to open a vein for his family. He likes his food to be organic and his wife, home and children at the top of their class. Basically he's an ulcer waiting to happen.


Cast Details:

* Cheryl Hines as Jane
* Jessica St. Clair as Emily
* Horatio Sanz as Horatio
* RonReaco Lee as Jason
* Megan Mullally as Rosemary

Cheryl Hines (Jane) is a two-time Emmy nominee for her role as Cheryl David on HBO's Golden Globe Award-winning series, Curb Your Enthusiasm. She is also establishing herself as one of Hollywood's most sought after film actresses with starring roles in a number of critically acclaimed feature films and box office hits. This past summer she was the female lead in the animated comedy Space Chimps, with Saturday Night Live's Andy Samberg, and she co-starred in the Sundance hit, Henry Poole Was Here, opposite Luke Wilson, Adriana Barraza and Radha Mitchell. Hines has a number of feature films scheduled for release in 2009, including the the romantic comedy Labor Pains, directed by Lara Shapiro and co-starring Lindsay Lohan, Chris Parnell, Luke Kirby and Connie Britton and The Ugly Truth, directed by Robert Luketic and co-starring opposite Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler. She recently completed production on her feature film directorial debut with the indie, Serious Moonlight, with Meg Ryan and Timothy Hutton, from a screenplay written by the late Adrienne Shelly.

Jessica St. Clair (Emily) got her start as a comedian and writer at New York's Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, where she performed in several critically acclaimed stage shows co-written with Jason Mantzoukas. Called "the next Nichols and May" by Daily Variety in their "Ten to Watch" list in 2003, their shows were a hit at HBO's Aspen Comedy Festival and were later developed into pilots for both HBO and Comedy Central. St. Clair is currently developing a pilot for HBO with fellow UCB alum Lennon Parham. St. Clair had a recurring role on the comedy Worst Week and can be seen later this spring in the new Showtime series The United States of Tara. She will also be featured in the upcoming feature film She's Out of My League. Other credits include Christopher Guest's For Your Consideration, guest starring roles on ABC's Samantha Who? and Notes from the Underbelly, and Comedy Central's The Showbiz Show with David Spade. She is also a regular panelist on VH1's Best Week Ever.

Horatio Sanz (Horatio the "Manny") was born in Santiago, Chile, and raised in Chicago, Illinois, he honed his craft in his hometown both as a founding member of the Upright Citizens Brigade and company member of Chicago's legendary Second City. When he joined the cast of Saturday Night Live at the beginning of the 24th season, Sanz became the long-running sketch comedy show's first Latino cast member. After only one season, he was promoted from featured player to full cast member. On the show, he made his mark with original characters ranging from pothead Gobi in "Jarret's Room" to A/V teacher Mr. Banglian on "Wake Up, Wakefield" and "Uncle Rick" to Amy Poehler's "Kaitlin." Popular celebrity impersonations ranged from Aaron Neville and Ozzy Osbourne to the Axis of Evil's Saddam Hussein and Kim Jong Il.

RonReaco Lee (Jason, Emily's husband) is best-known for his role as mechanic Tyreke "Ty" Scott on the popular television series, Sister, Sister. He has also had recurring roles followed on The Shield, ER, Girlfriends, Committed and All About the Andersons. Guest starring roles include Monk, Boston Public, Moesha and Home Improvement. He most recently had a recurring role on the comedy Worst Week.

Megan Mullally (Rosemary) is best known for her two-time Emmy and four-time SAG Award-winning role as Karen Walker on Will & Grace. Making her television series debut in 1986 with Elaine Stritch and Ellen Burstyn on The Ellen Burstyn Show, she has since appeared as Stanley Tucci's wife in Paul Mazursky's award-winning HBO bio-pic, Winchell, starred opposite Juliet Stevenson in Lifetime's The Pact, and recently guest starred on the 2008-09 season premiere of 30 Rock, episodes of The New Adventures of Old Christine and Boston Legal. She has also hosted her own syndicated daytime talk show, The Megan Mullally Show. On the big screen, Mullally appeared in Anywhere But Here, with Susan Sarandon, and starred in Marc Forster's Everything Put Together -- an entry in the 2000 Sundance Film Festival's main competition. She recently completed production on a remake of the 1980 film, Fame. Other feature film credits include Stealing Harvard, Speaking of Sex and Rebound.


Pilot Plot:

I received the first two episodes airing for review. So, I will base my thoughts on the show on these two.

#1 (Prod #101) "It Takes a Village Idiot" (Airs March 26)
Jane is finally back in the dating pool after a long, dry spell but afraid that she won't remember all of the romantic basics of courtship. Meanwhile, Rosemary discovers the special attention and perks that pregnant ladies are afforded and passes herself off as one -- with Horatio in on the ruse -- and Emily finds that honesty is not always the best policy when she decides to share the truth about certain childhood myths with her preschooler son.
Guest starring are Charlotte Foley as Annie, Sayeed Shahidi as Bill, Yara Shahidi as Esther, Tiffany Haddish as Teddy, Ken Marino as Shep, Tig Notaro as Rhoda, Rachel Harris as Blair, Annie Mumolo as person no. 1 in coffee place, Bob Rumnock as man from another table, June Diane Raphael as Liz, Keri Shahidi as Alexis, Meredith Roberts as Hadley, Sacheen Padilla as BJ, Jeff Snyder as person no. 2 in coffee line and Steve Little as guard one.
"It Takes a Village Idiot" was written by Jennifer Konner & Alexandra Rushfield and directed by Richard Shepard.

#2 (Prod #103) "Vacation" (Airs April 2)
Jane's vacation week alone with baby Sophie turns out to be anything but relaxing, Rosemary tries to unionize Horatio's fellow nannies to help them get the perks they deserve, and Emily and Jason's "stay-cation" at home gets a thumbs-down from their kids.
Guest starring are Charlotte Foley as Annie, Sayeed Shahidi as Bill, Yari Shahidi as Esther, Rachael Harris as Blair, Leslie Grossman as Maggie, Soledad St. Hilaire as Eugenia, Sarah Baker as Doris and Abby Miller as Abby.
"Vacation" was written by Paul Corrigan & Brad Walsh and directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller.


Analysis:

Decent start for the show. It is clearly more mainstream than quirky & niche, so that should help this show. It certainly is not funnier than Better Off Ted in its lines, but the show is still funny in a more traditional way, even though this is single camera. ABC originally had the episode "Vacation" set-up to air first, but after Obama announced he was having a news conference on Tuesday, that forced Fox to move American Idol from Tues-Wed of this week to Wed-Thurs this week, now going head-to-head with In the Motherhood's premiere. So then ABC switched episodes. This series doesn't rely on previous storlylines from previous episodes, so it works and any episode can air first really. Both episodes I saw set up the characters well and you'll know who is who. The second one airing is clearly the better episode, I think. Maybe that is why ABC moved it to the second week, so it doesn't have to face Idol? Hopefully the premiere tomorrow gets a good sampling and does even better the following week because viewers need to give it more than just one episode.

As for the show itself, it isn't quite there yet for me...but it has great potential. It really fits Samantha Who's style, so they should work well with each other. As I said, the second episode airing is the better episode...so please stick around. Quick recap, we have three main stars. Jane is the main character. She has a sister named Emily. And a best friend named Rosemary. They are all mothers. Jane is divorced and has a preteen daughter and a baby. Emily is happily married (to a black man) and has two young children. And Rosemary has been divorced many times and has a teenaged son...who I have not seen yet in these episodes. To help Jane with the baby, she has a "manny" named Horatio. He seems to be friends (or a lover?) to Rosemary. That isn't really explained yet. All the characters are likeable and in the first two episodes they all have their own subplots but appear with each other as well. Rosemary has the craziest plots. In the first one airing, she fakes being pregnant to get free stuff. And in the second episode she brings all nannies together to go on strike. She certainly is the funniest, but she isn't being a "mother" per say here. Maybe in future episodes we will see that, as we haven't seen her teenaged son yet. Emily has the most traditional family, even though she has an interracial marriage. She certainly is the youngest of the three mothers, and the hottest, but she starts off very slow in her delivery...but gets better by episode two.

Jane and the "manny" have good chemistry, but perhaps not better than Rosemary and the "manny." There was a great Who's the Boss? joke with Jane and the "manny." It's been playing in clips on promos, so it has been seen. The supporting players are all good. The "manny," Emily's husband, the kids, and Jane's boss played by the great Rachel Harris. She is always hilarious in anything. She probably was the best thing about the sitcom Notes from the Underbelly.


Conclusion:

This series is based on the internet series of the same name (and that starred Leah Remini, Jenny McCarthy and Chelsea Handler). I've never watched those, but they have been higly touted. So I think this will work. I'm sure all mothers or parents can relate to this and will tune in. I'm neither and even I liked it. There is just something missing for me, but I do see great future potential here. It is said that real-life stories are put into this. So that is very good to hear and parents may want to watch. There is something here for all kinds of moms/parents: a divorced mom looking for love, interracial marriage, raising children, raising a teenager, raising a baby, and an entire family. I'm sure I'm missing something, too. In future episodes, you'll see Stacy Keibler on a TV show the moms watch. Cannot wait for that!

So if you're a parent/mom, check this show out. Don't just watch the premiere and that's it...give it a chance. I didn't think the first one airing was that good, but the second one is better and future plotlines sound even better. Fans need to be more patient with TV shows these days, especially sitcoms. So stick around for a few episodes, you might like it. As of now, only 6 of the 13 produced are airing...so give it a fair chance. If you've watched the internet series, then for sure tune in here to compare. So have you ever locked yourself outside the house with the baby inside? Or have gone on a vacation at home and called it a "staycation?" Then you'll want to tune in here! They're glamourous...but their moms!


Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 4/5
Funniness: 4/5
Overall: 3.5/5

-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 03/25/09

Discuss the show after you watch it on Thursday, March 26 on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

In the Motherhood Photo Gallery


DIRECTV champions quality television programming once again and inks a rare deal with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution to bring three critically acclaimed drama series back to television via DIRECTV's 101 Network Wednesday lineup.
Smith, The Nine and Eyes will return to primetime with never-before-seen episodes, commercial-free and in HD, only on DIRECTV's 101 Network and DIRECTV on DEMAND.
Beginning Wednesday, April 8 (10 p.m. ET/PT), Smith the action-adventure crime drama starring Emmy winner Ray Liotta, Academy Award nominee Virginia Madsen, Golden Globe nominee Simon Baker, Jonny Lee Miller, Amy Smart, Franky G., Chris Bauer and Academy Award nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo will return with seven episodes, including four never-before-seen episodes.
The Nine will premiere on Wednesday, May 27 (10 p.m. ET/PT), a week after the season finale of Smith. The Nine is the compelling drama series that delves into the lives of nine people who forge a common bond when they live through a 52-hour hostage standoff during a bank robbery. The series will return with 13 episodes, including four that were never broadcast. The Nine stars Lourdes Benedicto, John Billingsley, Jessica Collins, Emmy nominee Tim Daly, Dana Davis, Camille Guaty, Chi McBride, Kim Raver, Scott Wolf and Owain Yeoman.
Eyes will join The 101's Wednesday summer lineup as the lead-in to The Nine, beginning in July (9 p.m. ET/PT). The one-hour detective drama stars Tim Daly as Harlan Judd, owner of Judd Risk Management, a 21st century private investigation firm that makes clients' problems go away quickly and quietly while operating at the absolute fringe of the law. So that means two Tim Daly shows will air back-to-back! Created and executive produced by John McNamara, the series will return with 12 episodes, including seven that have never been seen before. Eyes also stars Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon, A.J. Langer, Laura Leighton, Ugly Betty's Eric Mabius, Rick Worthy and Natalie Zea. Smith and The Nine originally aired in fall 2006 on CBS and ABC, respectively. Eyes originally aired on ABC in spring 2005. DIRECTV's 101 Network is the only place viewers will be able to catch these shows in their entiretycommercial-free and in HD.

Fox adds a second season of Kitchen Nightmares to its menu of unscripted series starring famed chef Gordon Ramsay. In Kitchen Nightmares, Ramsay steps out of his own five-star establishments and into some of the country's most unsuccessful restaurants to help turn them around or close their doors forever. It aired until this January on Thursdays on Fox, and is expected to return sometime this summer for more episodes.

Detroit's WADL New Classic TV Block; Obama Preempts Programming on March 24

WADL TV-38, Detroit's Urban TV station will be adding some exceptional new programming that will include legendary favorites to the station's spring line-up. The new additions to the classic TV programs will include: I Love Lucy, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, The Brady Bunch, The Honeymooners, The Beverly Hillbillies and The Andy Griffith Show.
WADL TV 38 features Detroit's only local dance show Dance Party, and nationally known programming such as Cribs, American Chopper, RENO 911, Dave Chappell's Show, and Cheaters. In addition, the station already specializes in classic programming such as Good Times, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Fat Albert, The A-Team, In The Heat of the Night and up and coming to the lineup, Steve Harvey, Brian McKnight, The Brady Bunch and many others.
Currently the classic TV line-up on weekdays starting at 4PM is The Jeffersons, Sanford & Son, The A-Team, The Rockford Files, Fat Albert, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, A Different World, In the Heat of the Night, Good Times, M*A*S*H, The Odd Couple, Magnum P.I., Hawaii Five-0, and What's Happening Now!!
So, the new programming will start Monday, March 30. Weekdays starting 4PM: Fat Albert, The Brady Bunch, Beverly Hillbillies, I Love Lucy, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Sanford & Son, Fresh Prince, A Different World, The Honeymooners, In The Heat of the Night, The Jeffersons, Good Times, M*A*S*H, The Odd Couple, Magnum P.I., Hawaii Five-0, and What's Happening Now!!

President Obama is as it again...with preempting primetime programming. This time it will be on Tuesday, March 24 at 8PM ET. I'm all for Obama, but come on this is crazy. Eastern/Central time zones will be mostly affected by this. I'll detail it by network.
First up ABC will air the Presidential News Conference with Obama live at 8pm ET/5pm PT. So in the eastern/central time zones, the return of According to Jim will be totally preempted. Dancing with the Stars: The Results and Primetime: What Would You Do? will air as scheduled following the news conference. Out in the mountain and pacific time zones, everything will air as normally scheduled, including According to Jim...but they will be repeats instead ("The Blankie" and "Cabin Boys"). So if you're in the east/central time zones and love According to Jim, you'll have to watch the repeats on abc.com the next day, or if you get ABC onDemand on your cable system. Not sure how this will affect ABC's finale date of May 5 for According to Jim. Will it be pushed back a week or will they air two episodes on a special night to catch up? I was looking forward to the return, because Constance Marie (George Lopez) was going to guest star and the second episode was directed by Penny Marshall.
CBS will air the Presidential News Conference with Obama live at 8pm ET/5pm PT. Following the address, they will air all-new episodes of NCIS and The Mentalist at special times of 9pm and 10pm ET/PT. Without a Trace will totally be preempted. Not sure yet what will air at 8pm PT/7pm MT, but that could go back to local affiliates or CBS could air a NCIS repeat there leading into a new NCIS.
NBC will air the Presidential News Conference with Obama live at 8pm ET/5pm PT, pushing The Biggest Loser an hour back from 8-10pm to 9-11pm ET/PT. So, Law & Order: SVU is totally preempted. For mountain/pacific time zones at 8pm PT/7pm MT you will see a special Dateline episode leading into The Biggest Loser at a special time.
Finally, most affected by Obama is Fox. Fox will have to totally scrap a two-hour American Idol Tuesday. They will air the Presidential News Conference with Obama live at 8pm ET/5pm PT. A House repeat will follow at 9pm ET/8pm CT. House will also air at 9pm PT/8pm MT. King of the Hill repeats will fill the hour at 8pm PT/7pm MT. The regular Tuesday installment of Idol will be moved to Wednesday 8-10pm ET/PT, so that means an episode of Lie to Me will have to be preempted that week. And the regular results of Idol Wednesday will have to be moved to Thursday, March 26 from 8-9pm ET/PT preempting Bones. Instead of this mess, couldn't Fox just have aired Idol 9-11pm ET on Tuesday and air it in its normal time in the mountain/pacific time zones instead of causing mass confusion? I know Fox doesn't schedule at 10pm, but the local affiliates wouldn't mind, I'm sure.

I'm on my way to a quick trip to Houston in literally minutes, so I'll see you back live on Sunday when I return...but please do come on by tomorrow (great story!) and Saturday (blog DVD review) as I have already done those stories for those days set to post on their own. Ain't technology grand?

ABC Mid-Season Pilot Review: Better Off Ted - Premieres March 18; Lifetime Schedule Change

Better Off Ted - Wednesdays 8:30PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at 8:30PM ET/PT

Better Off Ted is a satirical office comedy about successful good guy, Ted, who runs research and development at the morally questionable Veridian Dynamics. No achievement is too far-fetched and no invention too unorthodox for Veridian. Need cow-less meat grown in a test tube? Done. Need pumpkins that also double as weapons of mass destruction? No problem. Ted's a single dad to a seven-year-old girl, and he loves his job, but he's starting to take a closer look at the company's extremely dubious practices. Do you manufacture the best teeth whitener ever if it could also kill off all of the planet's fish? Probably not, but...
Ted's also fighting an attraction to co-worker Linda, who enjoys small acts of rebellion against Veridian (she's secretly stealing and hoarding all the company's creamer packets). But he holds back about his true feelings. He's already had his self imposed "one office affair" with überboss Veronica. Incredibly beautiful (if seemingly devoid of conscience and also emotion-free), Veronica lets nothing get in her way when it comes to serving Veridian's needs... even if it means doing something like cryogenically freezing an employee for testing purposes. And after all, the employee, research scientist Phil, survived (after he thawed out). So what if he screams like an eagle at the slightest provocation? He and his best friend, fellow research scientist Lem, are both geniuses and when they're not bickering, they're responsible for many of Veridian's miracles of weird science.

Cast Details:

* Jay Harrington as Ted Crisp
* Portia de Rossi as Veronica Palmer
* Andrea Anders as Linda Zwordling
* Jonathan Slavin as Phil Mymen
* Malcolm Barrett as Lem Hewitt
* Isabella Acres as Rose Crisp

Jay Harrington (Ted) has a recurring role on Private Practice as Dr. Wyatt Lockhart and has appeared on The Inside and Coupling. Other television credits include Teri Hatcher's doctor-turned boyfiend Dr. Ron on Desperate Housewives, Ghost Whisperer, Las Vegas, The Division, The Shield, Without a Trace and the Lifetime movie Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy. His feature film credits include Partners, Whatever It Takes and Anywhere But Here. Jay is also an avid sports fan. He plays in the NBA Entertainment League and dons skates for a local hockey team.

Portia de Rossi (Veronica) has had a widely varied career, captivating audiences in both television and film. She recently starred as a fifth-season series regular on the FX popular original drama Nip/Tuck as Olivia Lord, a holistic medicine practitioner who has problematic relationships with both her girlfriend, Julia, and her out-of-control daughter. She also starred as Lindsay Bluth Funke in the critically acclaimed Fox comedy Arrested Development. The show won a Primetime Emmy Award in 2004 for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble and was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2006 and a SAG Award in 2005. De Rossi is perhaps best known for her portrayal of enigmatic lawyer Nelle Porter on Fox's hugely successful Ally McBeal. On the big screen, she starred in Wes Craven's Cursed, opposite Christina Ricci, Chris Ver Wiel's Who is Cletis Tout?, opposite Richard Dreyfuss and Tim Allen, Paul Goldman's The Night We Called It a Day, opposite Dennis Hopper and Melanie Griffith, Wes Craven's Scream 2, Rupert Wainwright's Stigmata, Bruce Wagner's Women in Film, Noah Stern's The Invisibles and Michael Goorjians Ambition to Meaning, with Wayne Dyer.

Andrea Anders (Linda) is best known to television audiences for her roles as Nicole Allen on the sitcom The Class and as Alex Garrett in the comedy Joey. Additional television credits include Law & Order, Tru Calling, Oz and Numb3rs. Her feature film credits include the road comedy Sex Drive and The Stepford Wives.

Jonathan Slavin (Phil) has been acting steadily in recent years. After a string of "insert occupation here" guy TV roles (Flower Delivery Guy, Fish and Chips Guy, Computer Tech Guy, etc.), Slavin landed a memorable turn as "Ice Cream Guy" on Caroline in the City, and has worked in television ever since. He has appeared as a series regular on Andy Richter Controls the Universe and Union Square, and had recurring roles on My Name is Earl, Summerland, Inconceivable and Wings. Recent guest starring roles include Life, Grey's Anatomy, CSI, Ugly Betty, Friends and Bones. He has also appeared in the feature films Hard Pill, A Cinderella Story, Grand Theft Parsons, Race to Witch Mountain and My Mother's Hairdo.

Malcolm Barrett (Lem) has appeared on a number of series as either a regular or guest star, including The Bonnie Hunt Show, Kelsey Grammar Presents: The Sketch Show, Monk, Psych, Ghost Whisperer, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and The Sopranos. Feature film credits include My Best Friend's Girl, Hurt Locker, American Violet, The Rhythm of the Saints, King of the Jungle and Swimfan.

Isabella Acres (Rose) was born in Atlanta, where she discovered her love for acting in children's theater. Since relocating to Los Angeles she has appeared on such TV series as Monk, Hannah Montana and Jimmy Kimmel Live. She has also appeared in the recurring role of Jane's daughter on The Mentalist. Isabella has extensive voiceover credits, including the feature films Horton Hears a Who, Four Christmases, The Women and Fred Claus, and has voiced characters in the animated series Phineas and Ferb and Special Agent Oso.


Pilot Plot:

I received two episodes for review. So, I will base my thoughts on the show on these two.

#1 Pilot (Airs March 18)
Ted finds out just how far Veronica's willing to go for Veridian's greater good when she charges him with convincing brilliant research scientist Phil to be cryogenically frozen for a test experiment. Phil is excited, even if best friend and research partner, Lem, is a little jealous...and Ted is more than a little worried about the long-term effects if the experiment actually goes ahead.
Guest starring are Maz Jobrani (The Knights of Prosperity) as Dr. Bhamba and Jim Lau as the screaming office worker. "Pilot" was written by Victor Fresco and directed by Mike Fresco.

#2 "Through Rose Colored HAZMAT Suits" (Airs April 1)
When the nanny calls in sick, Ted reluctantly takes daughter Rose to work, where Veronica forms a surprising (if frightening) bond with the little girl. Rose's visit to Veridian also stirs up trouble when a casual remark she makes sends Phil and Lem into a tailspin about just who has the upper hand in their work relationship. Meanwhile, Ted finds out where he stands with Linda when her ex-boyfriend comes back to town.
Guest starring are Julian Bailey as Hal, Martha Boles as Lisa, Mason Lauderdale as the little boy, Sean Christopher Davis as Jerry and Richard Fancy as Mr. Campbell. "Through Rose Colored HAZMAT Suits" was written by Justin Adler and directed by Michael Fresco.


Analysis:

After watching two episodes, I am pleased. The show is very smartly written and has some laugh-out-loud moments. Both Jay Harrington and Portia de Rossi as Ted and Veronica are strong leads and likable, yet de Rossi's character is a bit weird and wacky, but at the same time hilarious. Some of the stuff she says is priceless! The supporting cast includes scientists Phil and Lem, who are an excellent comedic duo. They are very funny. Also, we have co-worker Linda, who has instant chemistry with Ted...but will they get together? Or will Veronica beat Linda to it? And finally we have Rose, who is Ted's little daughter. She is smart and blends in well with Veronica, as you'll see on episode three (the second one I saw).

As for the plot of the show, it is all centered around the workplace. Both episodes I saw starts off with a one-minute presentation for Veridian Dynamics. Very cool and hilarious to start like that. Veridian Dynamics is certainly a future company. We can see that as they develop quite outrageous stuff, but it is funny. Some of the hilarious and wacky stuff they want to do are...to freeze Phil, just to see if it is possible; itchy chairs to have better production at work; and exploding pumpkins with Dr. Bhamba! If you like The Office, you'll certainly like this show. I hate that show, yet I liked this show, though. Why? There is no weird camera zooming to make this look documentary style or cheap. Plus this actually has music and background sound, unlike that show. The similarities for that show with this show so far is that this really is a good cast and ensemble. Everyone plays well off each other and Veridian Dynamics is a very fun place to work, even though they have weird ideas! It just makes it funny!

Will this series work for ABC? It will be following new episodes of Scrubs, so the young audience ABC is hoping for will certainly be there. It will air in a rather weak timeslot with the only competition really from Fox's Lie to Me and CBS's Gary Unmarried, the latter is also a comedy and ABC should have no problem beating it in 18-49. Hopefully this show surprises and at least becomes a cult hit like The Office that skews very young.


Conclusion:

This show is very funny. It is not as crazy as say Worst Week, but is much better written and relies more on dialog. Though this show has its fair share of physical comedy as well. Having both funny dialog and physical comedy, along with a great ensemble make a recipe for a great comedy. This show has so much potential. The promos have been showcasing scenes from later episodes, so I cannot wait to see a worker jumping out of a window, and the human resources lady saying "that's gonna be some paperwork," Ted staring at Linda's butt, and Veronica making fun of the balding guy. So there are going to more fun stuff coming soon, and I cannot wait! I hope to see more of Dr. Bhamba, too. He was only in the pilot episode but will make more appearances this season. He is played by Maz Jabrini, who was on The Knights of Prosperity, which is the funniest sitcom to air in the last few years. Too bad it didn't last...but I hope and think this will. There are stuff I didn't like, such as sitcom cliches (smart daughter, sitcom romance), but who cares. We need bread and butter sitcoms to get an audience, even though this is not a traditional sitcom.

Freezing Phil, training children of Veridian Dynamics "life skills," and so much more makes this show top-notch and a must watch. Watch the premiere, and if you like it...please tune in every week as we need a new sitcom hit. And if you like the premiere but are on the fence, don't give up because episode two is even better! Portia de Rossi deserves an Emmy nomination for her work here!


Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 4/5
Funniness: 4.5/5
Overall: 4/5

-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 03/16/09

Discuss the show after you watch it on Wednesday, March 18 on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

Better Off Ted Photo Gallery

Finally, if you didn't see this posted on our message board over the weekend, Lifetime made a schedule change effective today. They are replacing the afternoon movie with an extra Desperate Housewives and Wife Swap, so both of those shows will now air three in a row...12-3pm and 3-6pm. Also, in primetime, Will & Grace will be airing in the 8pm hour, while the primetime Wife Swap moves