CW Schedule Changes; Summer News for NBC and CBS

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

CW Schedule Changes; Summer News for NBC and CBS

Yes, we gave you The CW's post-strike returns a few weeks ago, but some minor date changes and time changes have been announced. One of them is The Game will now be Sundays at 9pm rather than 9:30pm starting March 23.
I advise you to click HERE to view the full spring line-up. Compare the two links to see what changed.

NBC will celebrate America, its communities, athletes, songs, heroes, talent and Gladiators all summer long as part of "NBC's All-American Summer" - the network's run-up to its exclusive coverage of the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. The network will ignite a late spring and summer of original programming paced by the premieres of series favorites American Gladiators (returns Monday, May 12, 8-10 p.m. ET), America's Got Talent (season premieres Tuesday, June 24, 9-11 p.m. ET), Last Comic Standing (season premieres Thursday, May 22, 9:30-11 p.m. ET) and the network debut of Nashville Star with new host Billy Ray Cyrus (Monday, June 9, 9:30-11 p.m. ET).
In addition, NBC will unveil the new suspense and horror anthology series Fear Itself on Thursday, May 29, 10-11 p.m. ET, as well as two new alternative series Celebrity Circus (premieres Wednesday, June 11, 9-11 p.m. ET) and The Baby Borrowers (Wednesday, June 25, 8-9 p.m. ET).
Wow, that's a ton of reality with one scripted anthology series.
Here is a recap:

Monday, May 12
American Gladiators - two-hour premiere 8-10 p.m.; series resumes on May 19 (8-9:30)
Thursday, May 22
Last Comic Standing - premiere 9:30-11 p.m.; series resumes on May 29 (8:30-10 p.m.)
Thursday, May 29
Fear Itself - premiere 10-11 p.m.
Monday, June 9
Nashville Star - (9:30-11 p.m.)
Wednesday, June 11
Celebrity Circus - two-hour premiere (9-11 p.m.); series resumes on June 18 (9-10 p.m.)
Tuesday June 24
America's Got Talent - (9-11 p.m.); another two-hour show follows on July 1. Series resumes with regular hour-long episodes on July 8 (9-10 p.m.). The show will be on hiatus during the Olympics, returning on August 26 (performance episodes) and "results shows" commencing on August 27 (8-9 p.m.)
Wednesday, June 25
The Baby Borrowers - premieres 8-9 p.m.

CBS also announced some summer news...surprisingly they will launch two scripted dramas in the summer. I think these are burn-offs because they couldn't fit them in this season, most likely because of the strike. The drama Swingtown will launch on Thursday, May 29 at 10:00 PM, ET/PT and drama Flashpoint in July. The premiere date and time period for Flashpoint will be announced at a later date.
Swingtown peeks into the shag-carpeted suburban homes of the culturally transformative '70s to find couples reveling in the sexual and social revolution that introduced women's liberation and challenged conventional wisdom. During this heady era of provocative change, Susan and Bruce Miller move their family to an affluent Chicago suburb where they're confronted with personal choices, experimentation and shifting attitudes, all against the backdrop of a changing social climate defined by its unforgettable music, fashion and style.
Flashpoint is an emotional journey into the tough, risk-filled lives of a group of cops in the SRU (inspired by Toronto's Emergency Task Force). It's a unit that rescues hostages, busts gangs, defuses bombs, climbs the sides of buildings and talks down suicidal teens. As they race against the clock to determine what brought these people to their respective breaking points, members of this highly skilled team use their training in negotiating, profiling and getting inside the suspect's head to diffuse the situation to try to save lives.

If we have more news we will return later. Try to come back if you can.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Friday, July 3

The Dick Van Dyke Show - Now in Living Color! - (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
CBS will honor the memory of legendary actor, producer, director, writer, comedian and Emmy Award winner Carl Reiner with THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW – NOW IN LIVING COLOR! A SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO CARL REINER, featuring two colorized back-to-back classic episodes of the beloved 1960s series, Friday, July 3 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. As series creator and co-star, Carl Reiner personally supervised the original colorization of the episodes.

The special features “Coast to Coast Big Mouth,” which ranked #8 on TV Guide’s list of the “100 Greatest TV Episodes of All-Time,” and “October Eve,” which Mr. Reiner considered to be one of the series’ funniest episodes. Both were written by Bill Persky and Sam Denoff.

In “Coast to Coast Big Mouth,” Laura Petrie blurts out a top secret on a national television quiz show, revealing that comedian Alan Brady wears a toupee. The episode, which was the show’s fifth and final season premiere, was originally broadcast on Sept. 15, 1965. “Coast to Coast Big Mouth” won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 1966.

In “October Eve,” a painting of Laura returns to haunt her when, despite her having posed fully clothed, the artist (played by Carl Reiner) takes the liberty of “undraping” her. The episode was first presented on April 8, 1964, during season three.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 29)

Friday, July 3

Kevin Hart (The Big House/Undeclared) - Watch Kevin on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12:35am on ABC.
Tina Fey (30 Rock) - Tina appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Laura Dern (Enlightened) - Laura is a guest on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Mark Duplass (Togetherness/The Mindy Project/The League) - Mark appears on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly/Samantha Who?) - Melissa guest hosts a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Brett Gelman (Camping/Fleabag/Love/Married/Go On) - Brett appears on a repeat of A Little Late with Lilly Singh at 1:35am on NBC.
Tika Sumpter (mixed-ish/The Game) - Tika talks about the season finale of mixed-ish and her latest project helping new moms on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Peter Gallagher (Grace and Frankie/The Secret Lives of Men) - Peter talks about Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist and Grace and Frankie on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.