'Desperate Housewives' Reruns Coming to Lifetime?; Syndie Sitcoms Score; Couric to CBS

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

'Desperate Housewives' Reruns Coming to Lifetime?; Syndie Sitcoms Score; Couric to CBS

Variety is reporting that Lifetime is about to pick up reruns of ABC's Desperate Housewives for about $500,000 per hour-long episode. The women’s cable network will begin running the show in fall 2008 – likely both stripping it on weeknights and repurposing new episodes after they air on ABC, according to a source close to the deal. Lifetime, which has not yet finalized the deal, declined to comment on the matter. Lifetime, which passed the show over before it ended up on ABC, will actually be paying less for Housewives than it did for Frasier, which recently joined its schedule in reruns and has not done too well. Reports put the price Lifetime shelled out for each episode of the half-hour Frasier at $600,000. The $500,000 Desperate price tag is twice what Bravo just paid per episode for reruns of the HBO mortuary drama Six Feet Under.

The March 20-26 syndicated ratings just came out. And sitcom Friends hit a season high. The sitcom averaged a season-high 6.6 household rating for the week, up 43% from the previous period -- the biggest leap of any show in syndication for the week -- due to a weekend marathon of the show on cable network TBS. Usual off-network sitcom leader Everybody Loves Raymond slipped to No. 2 with a 6.1, flat for the week. Seinfeld (5.6) fell by 3%, and That '70s Show (4.0) jumped 8%.

And in the big TV news of the day. Katie Couric of NBC's Today show made it official this morning that she is indeed heading to CBS. "I wanted to tell all of you out there who have watched the show for the past 15 years that after listening to my heart and my gut, two things that have served me well in the past, I've decided I'll be leaving 'Today' at the end of May," she said this morning on Today.
Katie Couric, one of broadcasting's most respected and popular journalists, is joining CBS News, it was announced today by Leslie Moonves, President and Chief Executive Officer, CBS Corporation, and Sean McManus, President, CBS News and Sports. As part of the multi-year agreement, Couric will become Anchor and Managing Editor of the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric beginning in September. Couric also will contribute to 60 Minutes, the most successful program in television history and its most respected news magazine, and will anchor CBS News primetime specials as well. With the appointment, Couric becomes the first female solo anchor of a network evening news broadcast.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Thursday, June 8

Young Sheldon - "Pancake Sunday and Textbook Flirting" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Mary struggles to make new friends while Mandy pushes Georgie to date another woman.

Ghosts - "Alberta's Descendant" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Alberta is thrilled when a living relative, Alicia (Ashley D. Kelley), visits Woodstone to learn more about her, but things take a turn when she hits it off with Todd (Rodrigo Fernandez Stoll), Sam’s podcast co-host. Also, Nigel uses his knowledge of Trevor and Hetty’s secret tryst to try to blackmail Hetty.

Animal Control - "Dogs and Geese" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Dispatch radios a report of a goose on the loose; the precinct hosts an adoption day.

Animal Control - "Pigs and Minks" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
The team welcomes back Patel even though he is still on suspension; Shred and Victoria are called into the principal's office on a school visit; Rick heads back into the field with Frank.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 5)

Thursday, June 8

Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory/8 Simple Rules/Ladies Man) - Catch Kaley on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Tom Hanks (Bosom Buddies) - Tom appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Lea Michele (The Mayor/Scream Queens) - Lea is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Janelle James (Abbott Elementary) - Janelle appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Chris Messina (The Mindy Project) - Chris will be on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Laurie Metcalf (The Conners/Roseanne/The McCarthys/The Norm Show) - Laurie chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Boris Kodjoe (The Last Man on Earth/Second Time Around) - Boris is a guest on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan (Never Have I Ever) - Maitreyi talks about Never Have I Ever Live with Kelly and Mark, (check your listings) and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Eva Longoria (Telenovela) - Eva appears on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Marcus Scribner (grown-ish/black-ish) - Marcus joins the Tam Fam to discuss the final season of grown-ish on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Nia Long (Uncle Buck/The Cleveland Show/The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) - Nia appears on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Lauren London (The Game) - Lauren is a guest on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Fortune Feimster (Kenan/Bless the Harts/Champions) - Fortune appears on a repeat of The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings. She also talks about FUBAR on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Kelsey Grammer (Frasier/Partners/Cheers) - Kelsey is telling Rachael about his recent movie, the Frasier revival and what he's got going on next on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Marilu Henner (Evening Shade/Taxi) - Marilu talks about Hallmark's Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Haunted by Murder on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Vivica A. Fox (Mr. Box Office/Getting Personal/Arsenio/Out All Night) - Vivica stops by to discuss her involvement with the Tony Awards and her Fox Soul talk show Cocktails with Queens on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Marsha Warfield (Night Court/Empty Nest) - Marsha drops by to talk about her iconic comedy career, her The Book of Marsha comedy tour and finally sees the green room at Sherri that was inspired by her, so check your local listings.
Sarah Jessica Parker (And Just Like That.../Sex and the City/Square Pegs) - Sarah will be on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.