Good Ratings for Wednesday's High School Reunion for TV Land; Network Notes Includes Seinfeld Reunion on Curb?

Friday, March 06, 2009

Good Ratings for Wednesday's High School Reunion for TV Land; Network Notes Includes Seinfeld Reunion on Curb?

TV Land's original series High School Reunion averaged nearly 1 million total viewers for this past Wednesday's 10 p.m. telecast, making it the most-watched episode of the season to date, according to Nielsen Media Research. The telecast also gave TV Land double-digit gains over previous week's airing across the network's target demo, Adults 25-54, and among the network's core audience of Adults 40-54.
Wednesday's installment -- the third episode of the new season of High School Reunion -- posted a 0.6 rating and 592,000 viewers among A25-54, up 30% in rating and 32% in viewers over previous week in the 25-54 demo. Among the network's core A40-54 audience, the episode posted a 0.8 rating and 452,000 viewers, up a whopping 82% in rating and 81% in viewers over previous week in the core 40-54 demo. It also scored double digit gains among total viewers with nearly 1 million (954,000 total viewers), up 38% over previous week, with a median age of 48.
The telecast posted huge gains with Men 25-54 and Women 25-54 over previous week. Among M25-54, it scored a 0.5 rating and 271,000 viewers, up 49% in rating and 48% in viewers over previous week's episode in M25-54. Among W25-54, it posted a 0.6 rating and 321,000 viewers, up 20% in rating and viewers versus last week in W25-54. Adding those two up, you get the 592,000 viewers among Adults 25-54.

It's time for a round of network notes! Multi-platinum singer/songwriter Jewel and Access Hollywood host Nancy O'Dell have withdrawn from Season Eight of ABC's Dancing with the Stars citing injuries. Jewel was diagnosed with a fractured tibia in both legs, O'Dell a torn meniscus. The injuries were sustained while training for the competition.
Jewel and O'Dell will appear on the season premiere of Dancing with the Stars, this Monday (March 9) at 8:00 p.m., ET/PT to address their injuries. The women were paired with professional dancers Tony Dovolani and Dmitry Chaplin, respectively. Additional changes to the cast will also be announced during Monday's premiere...so watch it LIIIIVE (as Tom Bergeron would say)!
ABC is ending Life on Mars after it finishes its 17 episode run on April 1. No fooling. The show hasn't done too well in the ratings since the move to Wednesdays following Lost. The show did a bit better in the fall on Thursdays after Grey's Anatomy, but maybe the hiatus between the two was the downfall for the show, as it was off the air for two months. It is too bad, because the show is wonderful and has top-notch actors.
The show is based on a British series of the same name. What's more, the U.S. version will end up more closely resembling its British predecessor, which lasted for 16 episodes and also was a close-ended series. While the British series spawned a sequel of sorts, called Ashes to Ashes, no such plans are in the works Stateside.
Ensuring a definitive ending for Life on Mars might also make it easier to promote the show's 17-episode run as a DVD release or, possibly on a cable network should the series land an off-net run in reruns. ABC also had an actual ending on the series Day Break a few years ago and since then it has been released on DVD and also airs weekly in reruns on TV One. So Life on Mars will go out properly, as producers will be able to write and shoot a definitive ending to the saga. Groovy!
Finally, the four main stars of the hit '90s NBC comedy Seinfeld will appear together, playing themselves, in a multi-episode arc on HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm alongside creator Larry David, who created both series. Yes, Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander and Michael Richards all reunite! The episodes are part of Curb's upcoming seventh season. 10 episodes have been ordered for the seventh season but there is no premiere date yet or how many episodes they will appear in.

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.