Monday, January 23, 2006

TCA Network Winter Press Tour: ABC and NBC; 'The Facts of Life' on DVD in June?

ABC and NBC were up at the TCA tour this weekend. ABC didn't release a concrete schedule of their March schedule, but they did talk about their upcoming March shows. ABC addressed the situation about pulling Emily's Reasons Why Not after just one airing. “We had seen the majority of big long-lead advertising money for Emily before we even saw a script, unfortunately, given the way production schedules work. Creatively we just did not get the show where it needed to be. All of us tried really hard: producers, the network and the studio, but it never got on track. I think you kind of have to measure your patience based on how you believe in the creative, and we felt it was not going to get better.”
The future looks a little brighter for Jake in Progress, which was also pulled after one episode this season. ABC President Stephen McPherson holds out hope that he'll be able to bring the show back later in the season. "I have a crush on John Stamos," he jokes about "Jake's" star.
ABC also talked about the status of Arrested Development coming to their network: “I don’t foresee that happening,” said Stephen McPherson. “I believe that I can market that show really well, and I think we have some spots on our schedule that make sense for us. But it is a long-shot.”
Finally ABC addressed their two new dramas Commander in Chief and Invasion. “Obviously, we are disappointed in Commander in Chief ticking down recently. I think being off the air for so long, not being able to hit it with aggressive marketing, has hurt it. We feel like we have to get the viewers and the demo back in there.”
Invasion is a great television show. There are a lot of theories why it is not holding onto the Lost audience. A lot have people have said to me, ‘I watch that one hour of Lost. It’s such an intense experience. I come in for that appointment. No matter what you put in after that, I am not going to watch anything else.’ But I think it’s a great example for us of when to be patient and when to kind of fold them. We believe in Invasion.”
I think we will see both shows back next season, even if they move to another night and time.

So what is coming up this March for ABC? Returning sitcom Less Than Perfect, returning drama Alias, new drama from J.J. Abrams What About Brian, new one camera sitcom Sons & Daughters, new feel good reality show The Miracle Workers and new drama The Evidence. ABC also has a new mini-series in the works called The Ten Commandments. Should air in April for Easter. And don't forget Hope & Faith and Jake in Progress will likely be back from hiatus, too. ABC also has a series of specials with Regis Philbin in This is Your Life.

NBC released actual dates and times for its new March line-up. The game show Deal or No Deal returns Feb. 27 and will run through March 3 airing every night at 8 p.m. Then it will settle to its new weekly slot of Mondays at 8 p.m., replacing Surface, which is likely done for good. Also, The Apprentice (Trump edition of course) returns that night airing Mondays at 9 p.m., replacing Las Vegas which moves to Fridays at 9 p.m., which replaces Dateline NBC, which will now go to Saturdays at 8 p.m. Say that ten times fast! In a strange move, NBC will move Law & Order from 10 p.m. Wednesday to 9 p.m. Wednesday up against Lost, Criminal Minds, and American Idol Results Show. NBC might have to settle for fourth place, but it is better than what they are doing right now in that slot. New drama Heist will follow at 10 p.m. I don't think Heist will compete with CSI: NY and even Invasion. What NBC should have done was to air the new Dick Wolf drama Conviction at 10 p.m. Wednesday, but instead they will air that Fridays at 10 p.m. New sitcom Teachers will take over April 6 for The Office at 9:30 p.m., which will end its season early in late March. Not to worry The Office and the hit My Name is Earl have been already renewed for 22 episodes for next season. Some of NBC's moves are questionable, but they will be heavily promoted during the Winter Olympics.
NBC has yet to announce what they will do with the remaining Joey episodes and their other new sitcom Thick and Thin. Personally, Joey is good as dead, I doubt they will air it between March-May.

NBC has confirmed that long running hits Will & Grace and The West Wing will both be gone after this season. NBC’s The West Wing will end its seven-year run with an hour-long retrospective on Sunday, May 14 at 7 p.m., followed by the series-finale at 8 p.m. Will & Grace, meanwhile, will officially conclude its eight-year run on Thursday, May 18 with an hour-long retrospective followed by the series-finale at 9 p.m. Both shows have declined in the ratings this season. NBC might also lose Scrubs next season, but it is not official yet.
NBC announced some of their summer plans: In addition to the surprise return of The Last Comic Standing, NBC will launch Windfall, its long-awaited drama about a group of lottery winners, and the unscripted Treasure Hunters, where contestants search for hidden treasure.

Finally, on Saturday Facts of Life fans were out celebrating as the show is apparently finally heading to DVD this June! The Beyond the Facts of Life site is reporting that seasons one and two (29 episode set) will be out from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment this June. It is not official yet, but it seems like this will happen. If I were Sony, I'd release Silver Spoons Season 1 and Diff'rent Strokes Season 3 on the same day for a great marketing campaign. We will of course try to find out more on this and get back to you. For now head on over to TVShowsOnDVD.com and they have the exact quote that Sony said to this fansite. And you can discuss this news with fans right here on our message boards.

Coming tomorrow: Hit '80s sitcom Gimme a Break! coming to cable network TV One? Find out the details tomorrow in a SitcomsOnline.com exclusive!


Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, October 6

The Simpsons - "The Yellow Lotus" (Fox, 7:00PM ET/PT)
The Simpsons encounter death on vacation at a high-end resort.

Bob's Burgers - "Bully-ieve It or Not" (Fox, 7:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
The Belcher kids learn a secret about Zeke's past; Bob rekindles his feud with Jimmy Pesto.

The Simpsons - "The Yellow Lotus" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The Simpsons encounter death on vacation at a high-end resort.

Universal Basic Guys - "Jaws of Life" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Jealous of the attention Tammy gets for saving the life of a choking stranger, Mark buys a Jaws of Life to efficiently save lives; Tammy's life is threatened when she rejects the advances of Paul, the stranger she saved.

Bob's Burgers - "Saving Favorite Drive-In" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
When the Belchers visit the local drive-in, Bob comes up with a plan to save the theater from closing; Linda accidentally insults another mom while on a group text chain; Louise and Gene hide from Tina after stealing some of her favorite candy.

Krapopolis - "Thor" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Tyrannis' little hunting mishap brings the Norse gods to Olympus; the family is forced to deal with the hunky Thor, the mischievous Loki, and some nasty bridge trolls.

The Conners - "Double Honeymoon and Seeing Double" (The CW, 7:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
In an effort to save money, newlyweds Darlene and Ben, and Jackie and Neville head off on their joint honeymoon, where their cost-saving measures contribute to a tension-filled getaway.

The Conners - "Gas Pump, House Dump and Stew Volcano" (The CW, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Darlene searches for a home that she and Becky can afford; after an attempt to boost business at the diner goes awry, Jackie finds herself apologizing to Ben and rethinking her future running the place.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 30)

Friday, October 4

  • Halle Berry (Living Dolls) - Watch Halle on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Will Ferrell (The Office) - Will and Harper Steele (Will & Harper) are guests on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Kristen Bell (Nobody Wants This/Central Park/The Good Place) - Kristen appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Tien Tran (How I Met Your Father) - Tien is a guest on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
  • Sarah Paulson (Leap of Faith) - Sarah can be heard on The Morning Mash Up on SiriusXM.
  • George Lopez (Lopez vs Lopez/Lopez/Saint George/George Lopez) and Mayan Lopez (Lopez vs Lopez) - NBC's Today catches up with George and Mayan in the 10am hour.
  • Paul Scheer (Black Monday/Fresh Off the Boat/The League) - Paul is telling Drew all about his new memoir and answering questions from his wife June Diane Raphael on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
  • Niecy Nash-Betts (Reno 911!/Getting On/The Soul Man/Do Not Disturb) - Niecy talks about the highly-anticipated premiere of Grotesquerie on FX on Sherri, so check your local listings.
  • Deon Cole (grown-ish/Angie Tribeca/black-ish) - Deon sits down to chat about his new comedy special and touring with Martin Lawrence on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
  • Nathan Lane (Only Murders in the Building/Modern Family/Charlie Lawrence/Encore! Encore!/One of the Boys) - Nathan chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
  • Yvette Nicole Brown (Act Your Age/The Odd Couple/Community/The Big House) - Yvette guest co-hosts The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
  • John Stamos (UnPrisoned/Fuller House/Grandfathered/Jake in Progress/Full House/You, Again?) - John talks about his memoir If You Would Have Told Me on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • Victoria Justice (Victorious/Zoey 101/) - Victoria discusses her film Depravity on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT and on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
  • Paul Reiser (Mad About You/Red Oaks/Married/My Two Dads) - Paul is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:15am.


New on DVD and Blu-ray

The Ropers - The Complete Series Friends - The Complete Series (4K Ultra HD) Young Sheldon - The Complete Series Veep - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

09/10 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-7
09/10 - The Ropers - The Complete Series (VEI)
09/10 - Ted - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/17 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - Video Scrapbook
09/17 - Top Cat - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
09/24 - Friends - The Complete Series (4K Ultra HD)
09/24 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Seventh Season (DVD) / The Complete Series (DVD) (Blu-ray)
10/08 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Twelfth Season / The Complete Series
10/22 - Veep - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/05 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/19 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fourteenth Season
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)

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