Friday, January 06, 2006

FOX Pulls Bateman-Bateman Arrested Development Reunion Episode From Schedule; Other TV Notes

Justine and Jason Bateman
  • Next week's episode of Arrested Development, which was going to feature a reunion of Justine and Jason Bateman, has apparently been pulled from the schedule by FOX. They are airing a rerun of "House" instead according to the FOX.com website. No word on if or when the four remaining episodes will air. The show could be moving to Showtime or ABC next season. Discuss the fate of Arrested Development on our message board.

  • Speaking of "House," it will begin airing on the USA Network starting tonight at 11PM ET/PT (right after "Monk"). They are starting with the pilot episode and will go in order from there. It will air every week on Fridays at 11PM ET/PT.

  • George Lopez is executive producing a pilot for ABC starring Lisa, Christina, and Tanya Vidal. It will be based on the Vidal's real-life and centered on the three sisters and their racially mixed families.

  • Drake Bell, the star of Nickeloden's popular sitcom "Drake & Josh," is recovering from injuries, including a broken jaw and severe cuts, he suffered in a car accident. The series debuted on Nickelodeon in January 2004 and regularly draws 3 million viewers a week. Drake Bell's other sitcom appearances include Seinfeld, Caroline in the City, The Drew Carey Show, and Home Improvement.

  • ABC's telecast of the Rose Bowl game between Texas and USC drew an average of 35.6 million viewers on Wednesday night. It drew 21.7 of U.S. households. It was the most-viewed bowl game since 1987, and the highest rated pro (non Super Bowl) or college game on ABC in the same period. Whoa Nelly, what a game!

  • The annual WPIX New Year’s “Honeymooners” marathon once again proved to be among the most popular programs of the New Year’s holiday on New York Television. “The Honeymooners” marathon, which was seen from 12:30 am until 5 pm New Year’s Day on WPIX Channel 11 (The WB11), Tribune Broadcasting’s WB Television Network Affiliate, peaked with a whopping 359,000 viewers for the episode, “Brother Ralph,” which was seen from 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm on January 1. “Brother Ralph,” wherein Jackie Gleason’s Ralph Kramden is laid-off from his job as bus driver, forcing Audrey Meadows’ Alice to find work, won its time period handily, more than 100,000 viewers ahead of its nearest competitor according to Nielsen Station Index (NSI) overnight Local People Meter (LPM) ratings. It was a remarkable performance for a ,TV program which is 50 years old. In “Brother Ralph,” Alice can find a job only by pretending to be the only single woman in an office staffed completely by men, a turn of events that prompts significant jealousy by husband Ralph.

  • Debmar-Mercury distribution company has acquired the domestic television distribution rights for ALF. They are looking to off-license it, so we could see ALF reruns return to cable and local syndication in the future.

  • Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

    Thursday, December 25

    Ghosts - "A Very Arondekar Christmas Part 1" / "A Very Arondekar Christmas Part 2" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
    A leaky water heater mishap threatens to ruin holiday plans as Sam and Jay prepare to host Jay’s hard-to-please dad, Mahesh (Bernard White), difficult-to-impress mom, Champa (Sakina Jaffrey), and sister Bela (Punam Patel).

    Ghosts - "It's a Wonderful Christmas Carol: Part One" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
    Sam’s big Christmas Eve TV interview with Walter Storm (Larry Wilmore) takes an unexpected turn. Meanwhile, Trevor and Patience bond over their mutual disinterest in celebrating Christmas.

    Ghosts - "It's a Wonderful Christmas Carol: Part Two" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
    Sam gets a glimpse of what her life would be like if she could never see the ghosts.

    Complete TV Listings


    Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 22)

    Thursday, December 25

    • Kate Hudson (Running Point) - Watch Kate on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
    • John Stamos (Palm Royale/UnPrisoned/Fuller House/Grandfathered/Jake in Progress/Full House/You, Again?) - John appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
    • Chris Kattan (The Middle) - Chris is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
    • Jason Bateman (Arrested Development/The Hogan Family/It's Your Move/Silver Spoons) - Jason talks Zootopia 2 with Chris Connelly on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
    • George Clooney (Roseanne/The Facts of Life/ E/R (1984-1985) - George talks Jay Kelly with Michael Strahan on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
    • Michael J. Fox (Family Ties/Spin City/The Michael J. Fox Show) - Michael opens up about his career with George Stephanopoulos on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
    • Ariana Grande (Sam & Cat/Victorious) - Ariana talks about Wicked on NBC's Today in the 9am hour.


    New on DVD and Blu-ray

    Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray) Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD) St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

    01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
    02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series (DVD)
    03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two (DVD)
    04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season (DVD)
    05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
    06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2 (DVD)
    06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
    07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
    08/26 - The Huckleberry Hound Show - The Complete Original Series (Blu-ray)
    10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD)
    10/14 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    10/28 - St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    11/04 - Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    11/11 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    11/11 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fifteenth Season (DVD)
    11/11 - Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
    12/02 - Tom and Jerry - The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958) (Blu-ray) (DVD)

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