Tuesday, December 02, 2008
ION Adds New Movies to Christmas Slate; According to Jim Returns Tonight; CBS Midseason 2009 Schedule and More Network Notes
The "Positively Entertaining" network also has plans to debut the classic Pinocchio, a four-hour adaptation of the beloved masterpiece, on Sunday, December 14 at 7:00 p.m. ET. The original miniseries stars Golden Globe winner Bob Hoskins as Geppetto and Robbie Kay as Pinocchio.
View more on ION December 2008.
As we mentioned, don't forget tonight on ABC it is the eighth season premiere of sitcom According to Jim following the holiday classic Santa Claus is Comin' to Town. Yes, According to Jim is returning for one final season and the fun starts tonight at 9pm ET/PT on ABC with two all-new back-to-back episodes that are set during the holidays. The According to Jim holiday-themed fun continues next week at 9pm and on Dec. 16 at 9pm with guest star Steve Guttenberg! Then on Dec. 30 at 9:30pm, an all-new episode to coincide with the New Year's holiday. According to Jim will then have regular all-new episodes on Tuesdays starting Jan. 6 in its new time period of 8-9pm. So celebrate the holidays with Jim all this month and then join Jim starting in January for one final hurrah!
CBS today announced midseason schedule changes that include the return of the drama Flashpoint, the premiere of the mystery event Harper's Island, the debut of the new game show Game Show in My Head and the returns of reality hits Survivor and The Amazing Race.
Game Show in My Head launches first and it is a hidden camera game show from Ashton Kutcher, premiering Saturday, Jan. 3 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT). Ordinary people must perform extraordinary tasks on an unsuspecting public to win up to $50,000. Under the watchful eye of host Joe Rogan, each contestant performs five outrageous, embarrassing and hilarious tasks worth $5,000 each. In a no-holds-barred bonus round, each contestant has the chance to double their money up to $50,000. It will replace the first hour of CBS crime repeats. We're not sure yet how many episodes have been ordered.
Flashpoint, last summer's top original scripted series, returns Friday, Jan. 9 in the 9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT time period replacing various CBS drama repeats.
Harper's Island, a 13-episode mystery event, premieres Thursday, April 9 from 10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT and concludes Thursday, July 2 from 10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT. The series is about a group of family and friends who travel to a secluded island for a destination wedding. They've come to laugh... to love... and, though they don't know it... to die. As the wedding festivities begin, friendships are tested and secrets exposed as a murderer claims victims, one by one, transforming the wedding week of fun and celebration into a terrifying struggle for survival. In every episode, someone is killed and every person is a suspect, from the wedding party to the island locals. By the end of the 13 episodes, all questions will be answered, the killer will be revealed and only a few will survive. It will replace Eleventh Hour, which would have wrapped its season by then. More on that below.
Finally, CBS will return Survivor with its 18th season on Thursday, Feb. 12 and The Amazing Race on Sunday, Feb. 15 for its 14th season. Survivor will replace various encores while Race replaces Million Dollar Password. No word yet on returning sitcom Rules of Engagement will return for its all-new season. Worst Week was ordered for three additional episodes, so I'm guessing it will be replaced by Rules of Enagement after that. Just a hunch, we'll let you know when we know.
View the full CBS midseason 2009 press release.
CBS has picked up five more episodes of Jerry Bruckheimer's Thursday crime drama Eleventh Hour. The episode order is now up to 18 episodes for the season. The show has done nearly 12 million following CSI, not great retention but 12 million is good. Could CBS be doing better in the slot? Yes. If they thought not, then we would have seen a full 22 episodes for Eleventh Hour. We will see Harper's Island take over in the slot starting April 9, as mentioned above.
The CW will launch new midseason scary reality series 13: Fear is Real on Wednesday, January 7, airing Wednesdays at 8pm with encores on Fridays at 9pm. 13: Fear is Real will keep the slot warm for America's Next Top Model when it returns in March. 13: Fear is Real is a spine-tingling new eight-episode series combining the horror genre with a reality show format. Contestants are energetic, competitive and are full of personality, as they try to be part of television's first scary competition reality show and win a grand prize of $66,666. Talk about bad luck!
Sitcoms Airing Tonight
Thursday, March 30
Young Sheldon - "A Stolen Truck and Going on the Lam" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Missy steals her dad’s truck and hits the road with her friend Paige (Mckenna Grace).
Ghosts - "Alberta's Descendant" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
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 - "Peacocks and Pumas" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Frank and Victoria stake out a squawking peacock; Emily and Patel attend to Shred.
Call Me Kat - "Call Me Not Okurrr" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
In the heat of the moment, Zoey kisses Kat at karaoke night; when Randi discovers a secret hideaway in the condo, she hides it from Carter and makes it a place for her to unwind.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 27)
Thursday, March 30
- Brett Goldstein (Ted Lasso) - Catch Brett on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan) - Brooke appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Fred Armisen (Los Espookys/Forever/Final Space) - Fred sits-in with the 8G Band on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Kyra Sedgwick (Call Your Mother) - Kyra and Kevin Bacon are guests on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS. Kyra will also be on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan (check your local listings) and chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- John Leguizamo (The Brothers Garcia) - John guest hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- JoAnna Garcia Swisher (Animal Practice/Better with You/Reba) and Morris Chestnut (Out All Night) - JoAnna and Morris guest co-host The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
- Katie Lowes (How We Roll) - Katie guest co-hosts LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
- Ike Barinholtz (History of the World, Part II/The Afterparty/Bless the Harts/The Mindy Project) - Ike appears on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
- Julie Bowen (Modern Family/Ed) - Julie is a guest on The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings.
- Method Man (Method & Red) - Method Man will be on The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings.
- Larenz Tate (South Central/The Royal Family) - Larenz appears on The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings.
New on DVD/Blu-ray (November-March)
11/08 - Frasier - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/08 - Young Rock - Season Two (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/15 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Seven / The Complete Season Eight
11/22 - That '70s Show - The Complete Series (Mill Creek)
11/29 - Ghosts - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/06 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - 70th Anniversary Ultimate Christmas Collection
12/13 - And Just Like That... - The Complete First Season
12/13 - Hogan's Heroes - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
01/03 - Andy Richter Controls the Universe - The Complete Series (2023 Release)
01/27 - Master of None - Season Three / The Complete Series
02/21 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Nine / The Complete Season Ten
02/28 - Growing Pains - The Complete Series
03/28 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
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