ION HD Launch Delayed, Details on Switch to DTV on June 12; Retroality.TV Interviews Gilligan's Island's Dawn Wells

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

ION HD Launch Delayed, Details on Switch to DTV on June 12; Retroality.TV Interviews Gilligan's Island's Dawn Wells

We mentioned twice about ION Television going HD. First the initial report, then the launch date of Feb. 16. Obviously that launch date to HD didn't happen yesterday. ION says it wanted to "reduce consumer confusion" surrounding Congress' decision to move the DTV hard date to June 12, so ION Television announced it will push back its launch in high definition one month to March 16 instead. ION was planning to launch in HD on Feb. 16, in 20 markets where it has TV stations. Now those same 20 will launch March 16, with the other 40 stations coming on board later in the year.
B&C reports, ION's 40 other stations are still going to make the transition to digital on Feb. 17, but about two thirds of the nation's roughly 1,800 TV stations will be delaying pulling the plug on the analog version of their primary signal after the administration asked, and Congress consented, to move the date.
So, yes the transition to DTV was supposed to take place today. But President Obama, the House, and Congress moved the date to June 12 instead citing that most people were still not ready. Many stations will still make the transition to digital today, but the entire country won't be ready until June 12. This will the government more time to set up call centers and get DTV-to-analog converter box coupons to ALL viewers, though it will also create some confusion as viewers now have several analog cut-off dates to contend with.
So if you still have an old television with no cable or satellite, I urge you to head to DTVAnswers.com for information on how to still watch TV. This is a big mess, as February sweeps was moved to March because of this and now it isn't happening on Feb. 17 anymore. I haven't mentioned this on the blog at all, but we urge you to head to DTVAnswers.com for any questions and how to get a converter box if you're TV is not ready.

Our buddy Chris Mann has his February cover feature posted on his website Retroality.TV. This time he goes one-on-one with Gilligan's Island's Mary Ann herself--Dawn Wells! I cannot believe she is 70, she still practically looks the same! Dawn "Mary Ann" Wells (now a film actors boot camp mentor) opens up about her Mary Jane scandal/arrest, Michael Phelps' bong fiasco, the upcoming Gilligan's Island feature film, and Tina "The Movie Star" Louise's 40-year Island exile.
I'll share some interesting quotes from Chris' interview with Dawn:
ON HER ARREST
"I had that horrible experience with that fake arrest. It wasn't fake--I was arrested but it wasn't legitimate. He's in jail now, as a matter of fact, the guy who arrested me. And the sheriff has also been under investigation for false arrest. It was a very unfortunate situation. And I was very, very aware of what the press can do. ... It was very, very difficult. And I finally said to somebody, "I'm not sure if Britney Spears has two boys." I don’t believe anything I read anymore."
ON CO-STAR TINA "THE MOVIE STAR" LOUISE
"(The 2004 TV Land Awards) was very awkward, though. I'd heard there was a rumor that she wouldn't sit with us, or she wanted to get paid to sit with us ... So she didn't sit with us. But afterward, we all took a picture with Sherwood Schwartz. And then after that somebody wanted to interview us, and Tina and I sat down together for the first time ever. And she was very complimentary about the show. I almost fell off the chair. (She said,) 'The little kids really like it, and I'm reading to kids and kids appreciate it.' And I thought, 'Well, maybe it's taken this much time to realize how grateful we all should be for that show.' I haven't run into her (since), but we're always very civil."
For the rest of the great questions from Chris to Dawn Wells, check out his FULL interview at Retroality.TV. It is about 4-parts long, so great job by Chris! He even has video excerpts from Entertainment Tonight and The View! Coming soon from Chris will be an interview with Janet Wood herself--Joyce DeWitt! And speaking of interviews, we here at SitcomsOnline.com also have some in the works that you will love to read. I won't give it away until it is official, but many of you will enjoy them! Stay tuned...

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Tuesday, April 1

St. Denis Medical - "Anything to Push Zaluva" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Ron's teasing makes Joyce question whether her friendship with a pharmaceutical rep is genuine; Alex has trouble letting Serena take on a new task; Matt finds a mentor in Bruce.

Night Court - "Hot to Trot" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Abby's friendship with her ex-boyfriend's mother leads to romantic complications; when Julianne's wealthy aunt passes away, the gang vies for a piece of her inheritance.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Love At First Swipe" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT)
C.J. and Janine receive marital advice from an unlikely source; Peanut seeks help with his newfound online lover.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Failure 2 Launch" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Assisted Living is the new situation comedy by Tyler Perry about three generations who must make a new start in the rural backwoods of Georgia.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 31)

Tuesday, April 1

Adam Scott (Ghosted/Veep/Parks and Recreation/Party Down) - Catch Adam on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick) - Kevin is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Amanda Peet (Brockmire/Togetherness/Bent) - Amanda appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Paul Rudd (The Shrink Next Door/Living with Yourself/Wild Oats) - Paul stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Ike Barinholtz (The Studio/The Afterparty/Bless the Harts/The Mindy Project/Eastbound & Down) - Ike appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He will also be on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Vinny Thomas (Platonic), Paul F. Tompkins (The Great North/BoJack Horseman/DAG) and Aparna Nancherla (The Great North/Lopez vs Lopez/Corporate) - Vinny, Paul and Aparna are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Chase Sui Wonders (The Studio/Bupkis) and Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Chase and Kathryn are guests on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Will Ferrell (The Office) and Jennifer Coolidge (2 Broke Girls/Joey) - E! News has interviews with Will and Jennifer at 11pm on E!.
Román Zaragoza (Ghosts) - Román talks about Ghosts on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Jenny Slate (The Great North/Big Mouth/Married/Bob's Burgers) - Jenny talks about Dying for Sex on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Michael Angarano (Laid/I'm Dying Up Here/Will & Grace) and Michael Cera (Life & Beth/Arrested Development/I Was a Sixth Grade Alien) - Michael and Michael talk about Sacramento with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia guest co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Hannah Einbinder (Hacks) - Hannah talks about Hacks on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Tasha Smith (Survival of the Thickest/Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse/The Tom Show/Boston Common) and Tone Bell (Survival of the Thickest/Fam/Disjointed/Truth Be Told/Bad Judge/Whitney) - Tasha and Tone talk about the new season of Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Kathryn is dishing on her new comedy series The Studio on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Wilmer Valderrama (That '70s Show) - Wilmer and Freddy Rodriguez chat about their podcast Dos Amigos on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Brenda Song (Running Point/Dollface/Dads/The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) - Brenda talks about Netflix's Running Point on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Paul Walter Hauser (The Afterparty) - Paul is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.