Thursday, April 09, 2009
ABC Announces First Batch of Summer 2009 Schedule; ION Ratings Go Up, Schedule Changes
Tuesdays will not change until after the NBA Finals are over. Prior to the NBA finals will be filler programming, including two burn-offs of Opportunity Knocks. Then after the NBA Finals (which airs Thursdays, Sundays, and Tuesdays from June 4-18) ends, ABC will launch The Superstars on Tuesdays at 8pm starting Tuesday, June 23. The Superstars, a fresh take on an old favorite, is based on ABC's classic "Wide World of Sports" series, The Superstars, which pitted athletes from all different sports against each other to determine the best athlete in the world. Eight celebrities are paired with eight professional male and female athletes to compete against each other in varying sporting events. Each week a team will be eliminated until one team is ultimately crowned the winner. The six-episode series will be shot entirely on location at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. The finale is set for Tuesday, July 28. As for rest of Tuesday, it is unknown still what will air from 9-11pm starting June 23. And it is unknown what will air following the run of The Superstars starting August 4. As I said, this is only the first batch details.
Moving on to Wednesdays, as we mentioned, Wipeout will have its season premiere on a new night starting Wednesday, May 27 at 8pm. And ABC has 16 episodes this season, well one aired already, as ABC aired the Wipeout Bowl (the 6th one produced) on Super Bowl Sunday. We get new obstacles and a new twist to the big balls! Cannot wait for this as this will last throughout the summer on Wednesdays at 8! Following Wipeout, for six weeks, as we mentioned we get the animated comedy The Goode Family! The Goode Family is a new animated series from he King of the Hill crew Mike Judge, John Altschuler and Dave Krinsky. With standards always changing, no matter how hard you try to be good, it's virtually impossible these days... especially for the Goode family. Gerald and Helen Goode are a couple who live by the motto WWAGD ("What Would Al Gore Do?"). We first thought the series would be aired back-to-back at 9pm & 9:30pm, but now that is not the case. It will air in the 9pm half-hour only. So we get 6 of the 13 episodes produced. Following The Goode Family will be the new night of the Bob Saget sitcom Surviving Suburbia. That sitcom launched to decent ratings on Monday at 9:30 and will air five more times in that slot (through May 11) before moving to Wednesdays at 9:30pm starting May 27 for six more episodes for an original summer run. So ABC will air at least 12 of the 13 episodes produced. I really think this sitcom has potential and ABC could use it next fall to launch new traditional comedies. Both comedies will run through Wednesday, July 1. Starting Wednesday, July 8, we get a second season of the game show I Survived a Japanese Game Show! It is an unscripted reality/game show -- actually a show within a show - that takes an eye-opening, behind-the-scenes look at 12 Americans who are whisked away to Japan to compete in the ultimate Japanese game show. This season we get 10 episodes, so it will last into September. It is unknown what ABC will do at 10pm, but The Unusuals has five episodes remaining in its first season episode order if they want to air originals of that. The series launched last night to good ratings. The series will air for four more straight weeks through May 6, before the Lost two-episode season finale on May 13. So five episodes will for sure air out of its ten episode order. If ABC chooses to air the remaining five in the summer, it would air from May 27 through June 24, for five straight weeks. That would give ABC an entire night of originals on Wednesdays from 8-11pm. If that is the case with The Unusuals, they have not announced what would air Wednesdays at 10pm starting July 1. Or they could hold those episodes for next fall, if the series returns.
There has been nothing announced for Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays. We have specials and stuff, though. Thursday, May 28 will be The Scripps National Spelling Bee from 8-10pm, as we told you. And Sunday, May 24 is the first part of the miniseries Diamonds from 9-11pm, also as we told you. It concludes on Tuesday, May from 9-11pm. ABC has another miniseries in the works called Impact.
Finally, Saturdays at 10pm is a rotating wheel to burn-off remaining episodes of canceled series. Pushing Daisies returns to the schedule from Saturday, May 30 through Saturday, June 13 at 10:00pm for its final three episodes. Then Eli Stone returns on Saturday, June 20 through Saturday, July 11 at 10:00pm for its final four episodes. Then finally Dirty Sexy Money returns on Saturday, July 18 through August 8 at 10:00pm for its final four episodes (which includes the unaired Thanksgiving episode!). It'll be weird seeing the Thanksgiving episode first since they aired three other episodes after that.
Well there you have it, the first batch of ABC summer. Of course more timeslots needs to be announced and we will let you know as soon as we hear what they are! Will Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? return in August for its 10th anniversary? We shall see!
First quarter 2009 has been a record breaking time for ION Television, with double digit growth in primetime viewership among households as well as in the key adults 25-54 demo. ION has delivered more adults 25-54 than at any other time in its history and ION's top five most watched episodes ever in households (HH) all aired during the first three months of this year. ION's extraordinary growth is a continued reflection of the success of its strategy to build viewership through its acquisitions of critically acclaimed off-network series in primetime.
Primetime delivery for households was up 26%, while adults 25-54 rose 44%, year over year. Also during this time period, viewership for adults 25-54 exhibited double digit growth across every hour in primetime: The 8:00 PM hour was up 20%, the 9:00 PM hour grew 49% and the 10:00 PM hour rose 62%.
ION's primetime off-network series continue to deliver. NCIS and Boston Legal have both grown significantly since their launch in fourth quarter 2008. In fact, NCIS delivered ION's top five most watched episodes ever (HH), reinforcing ION's mission in attracting more viewers than ever. NCIS averaged over one million total viewers in first quarter 2009, up 27% among households and up 31% among adults 25-54. Boston Legal's first quarter 2009 performance has grown 18% among households and 17% among adults 25-54.
ION's ratings gains provide the network with considerable momentum as it prepares its programming schedule for the 2009-10 season and beyond. That schedule will feature 12 originally produced movies a year, the new first-run series Durham County, The Border and The Guard; and the newly acquired off-network hits Ghost Whisperer and Criminal Minds.
Speaking of ION Television, they have just announced some changes to April. They are not major changes, though. All of the RHI movies have been pulled for the rest of April. So this Saturday (April 11) from 6-11pm we will get a M*A*S*H marathon instead. Other replacements include a Boston Legal block on Friday, April 17 from 8-11pm, big screen movies and more M*A*S*H. We already told you for May, the RHI movies would be leaving, so now it is earlier than planned. The Lonesome Dove four part mini-series is still slated to air the weekend of May 2-3, then after that there is no more RHI movies scheduled. More mainstream big screen movies will air. Check out the revised April schedule so you know what is on a particular day.
Stay tuned tomorrow for ABC Family upfront update!
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Monday, December 23
The Neighborhood - "Welcome to the Vote" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Dave gathers everyone for a lengthy ballot-palooza party to discuss the merits of every candidate and prop on each of their election ballots. Also, Gemma is determined to run a tight ship as their local precinct captain when polls open at Walcott Academy.
Poppa's House - "Sleepover" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Dr. Ivy Reed joins Poppa’s family for dinner, she begins scrutinizing Nina and Junior’s relationship for potential catastrophe. Junior spends the night at his dad’s house while Nina and Ivy devise a plan over a bottle of wine.
Bob Hearts Abishola - "Black Ice" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
On Valentine's Day, when it comes to showing affection, Bob and Abishola have to find a way to meet each other in the middle.
Bob Hearts Abishola - "Where's Your Other Wives, Tunde?" (The CW, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Dottie, Auntie Olu and Uncle Tunde must find a way to reconcile when they're forced to eat dinner together; Bob and Abishola have differing opinions on the progress of their relationship.
The Conners - "Rage Against the Machine" (The CW, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Dan gets injured while covering D.J.'s vending machine route, the decision to sue the company could cost D.J. his job; Jackie is appalled when Becky seeks life coaching from her nemesis.
The Conners - "Smoking Penguins and Santa on Santa Action" (The CW, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Dan is disappointed when everyone but Becky forgets about his birthday; Darlene faces another issue; Dan excludes Jackie from the family Christmas Santa photo for mistreating Louise.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 23)
Monday, December 23
- John Mulaney (Mulaney) - Watch John on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Linda Cardellini (No Good Deed/Dead to Me/Guys Like Us) - Linda is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Sabrina Carpenter (Girl Meets World) - Sabrina appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Nathan Lane (Only Murders in the Building/Modern Family/Charlie Lawrence/Encore! Encore!/One of the Boys) - Nathan is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Rosemarie DeWitt (United States of Tara) - Rosemarie appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Brandon Kyle Goodman (Human Resources) - Brandon is a guest on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Ilana Glazer (Broad City) - Ilana appears on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
- Megan Hilty (Sean Saves the World) - Megan appears on a repeat of Sherri, so check your local listings.
- James Van Der Beek (Friends with Better Lives/Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23) - James chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Tony Shalhoub (We Are Men/Stark Raving Mad/Wings) - NBC's Today has The 70 Club with Tony in the 9am hour.
- Jennifer Love Hewitt (Shaky Ground) - Jennifer talks about Lifetime's The Holiday Junkie on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Alexa PenaVega (Ruby & the Rockits) - Alexa talks about Great American Family's Love at the Kettle on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
09/10 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-7
09/10 - The Ropers - The Complete Series (VEI)
09/10 - Ted - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/17 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - Video Scrapbook
09/17 - Top Cat - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
09/24 - Friends - The Complete Series (4K UHD)
09/24 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Seventh Season (DVD) / The Complete Series (DVD) (Blu-ray)
10/08 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Twelfth Season / The Complete Series
10/22 - Veep - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/05 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/12 - The King of Queens - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (2024 Release)
11/19 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fourteenth Season
11/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 4 (Blu-ray)
12/03 - Angel (1960-1961) - The Complete Series, Volume 1
12/17 - Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (4K UHD)
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
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