TCA Summer 2012 Press Tour: ABC Day 1; Fox Presents The Short-Com Comedy Hour; Style Acquires Gossip Girl

Thursday, July 26, 2012

TCA Summer 2012 Press Tour: ABC Day 1; Fox Presents The Short-Com Comedy Hour; Style Acquires Gossip Girl

Today at the TCA Summer 2012 Press Tour ABC is up for its first of two days. However, the actual ABC primetime series panels and executive session will be tomorrow, so more coverage will be on that day. Today they will be showcasing ABC News (Good Morning America will be featured), the upcoming syndicated talk show Katie with Katie Couric and General Hospital, which will be moving to a new time period during ABC Daytime. Then after lunch, the TCA members will head on to the set of TV's hottest show, Revenge! That's an entire afternoon visit, followed by cocktails with the cast of hip comedies Happy Endings and Don't Trust the B---- In Apartment 23. Join the cast and executive producers of two of ABC's edgier hit comedies for delicious truck nosh and thirst-quenching cocktails (Whore's Bath, anyone?) inside and outside of the Beverly Hilton's Bar210.
Come on back in this spot if there is anything that is announced today. We expect ABC Fall premiere dates either today or tomorrow for sure, so stay tuned for that! Tomorrow will be the day for the cast announcement for the All-Star season of Dancing with the Stars, so check back with us tomorrow for that!

Stay tuned tomorrow for TCA Summer 2012 Press Tour: ABC Day 2!

Fox will launch The Short-Com Comedy Hour in Summer 2013, building on television's rich past to reinvent comedy for the future. Both a contemporary spin on multi-camera comedy and an alternative development platform, The Short-Com Comedy Hour will feature four unique short-form sitcoms - or "short-coms" - in a fast-paced hour-long broadcast. Each short-com will feature both established and up-and-coming actors and comedians in one-act scenes, creating a comedy showcase brimming with today's best, brightest and freshest voices.
The short-com development process will be as distinct as the end result, featuring hand-picked talent from the world of stand-up comedy. In an effort to open up the traditional development process, Fox will facilitate a creatively open environment for comedy talent to hone their voices and material within the context of their self-produced short-coms. In addition to airing them as part of The Short-Com Comedy Hour, Fox will commission the most fully realized of these scripted vignettes to series, helping to seed the future of the Fox multi-camera brand. Additional details to be announced, stay tuned. If you recall, Fox announced something similar on the animated comedy side for a Saturday late night block. The late-night programming block will air Saturdays from 11:00 PM-12:30 AM ET/PT on Fox and will feature four new animated series per season starting in January 2013.

Gossip Girl

And finally, Style Media has acquired the off-network rights to the hit young drama series Gossip Girl from Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. The one-hour drama about the scandalous lives of Manhattan's elite, executive produced by Josh Schwartz (Chuck, The O.C., Hart of Dixie) and Stephanie Savage (The O.C., Hart of Dixie) will begin airing Wednesday, August 15 at 8pm ET/PT on Style. Viewers can get caught up from the beginning every Wednesday night from 8-11pm ET/PT; additionally Style will air an all-day marathon on Labor Day, Monday, September 3.
This is their second off-network acquisition in recent weeks, as they also now air '90s sitcom Sister, Sister every weekday morning, as we announced.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Tuesday, October 17

The Middle - "Meet the Parents" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Frankie is stoked when Axl invites her and Mike to meet and have dinner with girlfriend Lexie’s rich parents, Tammy (Lisa Rinna) and Bennett. But Frankie is worried that their less then luxurious lifestyle may put a damper on their meeting. Meanwhile, Brick is excited to be a part of the Sophomore Slammer fundraiser, in which fellow classmates fake arrest each other and friends come to pay money – which will go to charity – to bail them out. But Brick soon discovers that no matter how hard he tries, he just can’t get arrested.

Fresh Off the Boat - "Kids" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
With the realization that Eddie is finally mature enough to be left on his own, Louis and Jessica see the light at the end of their parenting tunnel and make plans to spend more time with friends Honey and Marvin. Until their neighbors announce a plan of their own: Marvin is getting his vasectomy reversed so the couple can conceive a baby. The Huangs do their best to dissuade them.

black-ish - "Elder. Scam." (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Ruby gets scammed and Dre begins to suspect that she isn’t as sharp as she used to be, particularly because she was the one who used to scam other people. Zoey’s friend Aaron visits and Diane develops an instant crush on him.

The Mayor - "Buyer's Remorse" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
As Courtney settles into his new role as mayor, he’s faced with a dismal approval rating as the citizens of Fort Grey express their lack of confidence in his ability to lead, as well as those on his own staff. He realizes that he needs to take an unconventional approach when dealing with Councilman Ed Gunt (David Spade) and comes up with a plan to quickly turn public opinion in his favor.

The Mick - "The Haunted House" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Mickey and Jimmy organize a special Halloween party at their mansion, but the party soon goes awry; Sabrina hopes to further her legacy with the party; Mickey becomes determined to give a group of practical jokers a lesson.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine - "Halloveen" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
When the fifth annual Nine-Nine Halloween Heist begins, everybody scrambles to make a plan to come out on top of the competition, which tests various friendships and relationships as they struggle to earn the title of "Amazing Human Slash Genius."

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 16)

Tuesday, October 17

Paul Shaffer (A Year at the Top) - Paul sits in with Cleto and The Cletones on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Jerry Seinfeld (Seinfeld) - Jerry appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Bobby Moynihan (Me, Myself & I) - Bobby is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Kate Micucci (Raising Hope/Scrubs) - Kate appears on a repeat of Conan at 11pm on TBS.
David Arquette (In Case of Emergency/Parenthood) - David stops by Watch What Happens: Live at 11pm on Bravo.
Jason Alexander (Seinfeld/Bob Patterson/Listen Up!) - Jason visits The Wendy Williams Show at 2am on BET or on your local stations.
Terry Crews (Brooklyn Nine-Nine/Are We There Yet?/Everybody Hates Chris) - Terry teaches Harry his signature jump pose on Harry, so check your local listings.
Brandon Micheal Hall (The Mayor) - Brandon is a guest on Harry, so check your local listings.
Jason Ritter (The Class) - Jason talks about his new ABC show Kevin (Probably) Saves the World on the People Now at 8:30am.
Lana Parrilla (Spin City) - Lana appears on Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Ron Livingston (Loudermilk) - Ron talks about the Audience Network's Loudermilk on the AOL Build Show at 2pm and on New York Live on WNBC in New York at 11:30am ET.
Kimberly Williams-Paisley (According to Jim) - Kimberly talks about the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries original Darrow & Darrow on Home & Family on Hallmark Channel at 10am ET/PT.
Randall Park (Fresh Off the Boat) - Randall is a guest on Access Hollywood Live, so check your local listings.