Day 36: WGA's Strike; Minor TBS Schedule Change; ION Not Airing Kung Fu

Monday, December 10, 2007

Day 36: WGA's Strike; Minor TBS Schedule Change; ION Not Airing Kung Fu

It is now day 36 and there seems to be no end in sight for this strike. Late on Friday, we received this statement from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers: "We're disappointed to report that talks between the AMPTP and WGA have broken down yet again. Quite frankly, we're puzzled and disheartened by an ongoing WGA negotiating strategy that seems designed to delay or derail talks rather than facilitate an end to this strike. Union negotiators in our industry have successfully concluded 306 major agreements with the AMPTP since its inception in 1982. The WGA organizers sitting across the table from us have never concluded even one industry accord. Their Quixotic pursuit of radical demands led them to begin this strike, and now has caused this breakdown in negotiations. We hope that the WGA will come back to this table with a rational plan that can lead us to a fair and equitable resolution to a strike that is causing so much distress for so many people in our industry and community."
And the WGA told us this on Friday: "Today, after three days of discussions, the AMPTP came back to us with a proposal that included a total rejection of our proposal on Internet streaming of December 3. They are holding to their offer of a $250 fixed residual for unlimited one year streaming after a six-week window of free use. They still insist on the DVD rate for Internet downloads. They refuse to cover original material made for new media. We remain ready and willing to negotiate, no matter how intransigent our bargaining partners are, because the stakes are simply too high. We were prepared to counter their proposal tonight, and when any of them are ready to return to the table, we're here, ready to make a fair deal."
I don't care who to believe. I just want this over NOW! ABC will be releasing their January strike schedule this week. We will let you know when that happens! So come on back!

TBS has made some minor schedule changes effective Monday, December 24. Many viewers have complained about the constant airings of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air on many channels (Nick at Nite, The N, and TBS), well now you might be just a little bit relieved. TBS is moving the show out of 3-4pm weekdays into 9-10am weekdays. I guess that is a start. TBS is wishing us a Merry Christmas by doing this...their present to us. With this change, the morning movie will go from 9-11am to 10am-12pm, thus the Home Improvement block will be shifted from 11am-1pm to 12pm-2pm which will move Yes, Dear from 1-2pm to 3-4pm. Say that ten times fast. Click HERE to view the changes and to discuss them. These changes are only for the cable TBS...not Peachtree TV in Atlanta and Canada.

In other scheduling news, ION Television was slated to bring back Kung Fu to Saturday nights at 6pm starting Dec. 15, but that will not happen anymore. NFL Game of the Week highlights will continue to air the rest of the month until the NFL season is over. So maybe Kung Fu will return in January? We will let you know. We should have January this week, if all goes well. So you'll want to come on back for that! The only thing announced is The Drew Carey Show weeknights 9-10pm.

It is still early in the day...if we have more news, we will return for sure.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, October 12

Electric Bloom - "How We Pulled a Song Out of Our Pocket" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Tulip struggles to write lyrics for the first time for an important songwriting contest - accidentally borrowing inspiration from an unexpected source.

Electric Bloom - "How We Tried to Crash a Party" (Disney Channel, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Tulip and Jade encourage Posey to have a "go with the flow" day, leading them on a huge adventure and the night of their lives.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 6)

Friday, October 10

Seth Rogen (The Studio/Platonic/Undeclared) and Aziz Ansari (Master of None/Parks and Recreation) - Watch Seth and Aziz on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Carrie Preston (Crowded/Happyish/Emeril) - Carrie is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Rose Byrne (Platonic/Physical) - Rose appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. She also chats about If I Had Legs I’d Kick You with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Bill Bellamy (Mr. Box Office/Men, Women & Dogs/Cousin Skeeter) - Bill is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Michael J. Fox (Family Ties/Spin City/The Michael J. Fox Show) - Michael discusses his new book Future Boy: Back to the Future and My Journey Through the Space-Time Continuum on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Kenzi Richardson (Vampirina: Teenage Vampire) - Kenzi talks about Vampirina: Teenage Vampire on ABC's The View at 11am ET/10am CT-PT and on GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Morris Chestnut (Out All Night) - Morris sits down for a DAYTIME EXCLUSIVE to chat about the Season 2 premiere of Watson on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Maya Rudolph (Loot/Bless the Harts/Forever/Up All Night) - Maya stops by the studio to discuss Loot on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Greta Lee (HouseBroken/Russian Doll) - Greta talks about Disney's Tron: Ares on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Dermot Mulroney (The Righteous Gemstones/Four Weddings and a Funeral) - Dermot is a guest on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Idris Elba (Turn Up Charlie) - Idris and Rebecca Ferguson talk about A House of Dynamite on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation) - Aubrey talks about her new book Luna and the Witch Throw a Halloween Party on NBC's Today in the 10am hour and on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary/Fam/Instant Mom/Moesha/It's a Living) - Sheryl stops by to chat with Sherri about the new season of Abbott Elementary on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Henry Winkler (Barry/Arrested Development/Out of Practice/Monty/Happy Days) - TV legend Henry shares details about his 40th book, Detective Duck: The Mystery at Emerald Pond, on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Cafe Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie appears on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Teri Hatcher (The Odd Couple/Sunday Dinner/Karen's Song/The Love Boat) - Teri and her daughter Emerson Tenney talk about the Desperately Devoted podcast on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Jeremy Piven (Entourage/Ellen/Pride & Joy/The Larry Sanders Show) - Jeremy is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:05am.