Wednesday, June 30, 2010

USA Network Buys Modern Family Repeats Starting Fall 2013, Oxygen Buys Glee Repeats; Futurama Returns Scores for Comedy Central

USA Network has reached an agreement with Twentieth Television, acquiring the exclusive syndication rights to the critically acclaimed ratings ABC comedy hit Modern Family. Under the agreement, USA Network will strip the series Monday through Sunday beginning Fall 2013. It is by far the most significant sitcom acquisition they have ever made. Modern Family is the hottest new sitcom that premiered during the 2009-2010 TV season and it's a perfect fit for USA Network. The terrific writing, incredible ensemble cast and the 'cool' cultural relevance align perfectly with USA Network's "Characters Welcome" brand.
Modern Family stars Ed O'Neill as Jay, Julie Bowen as Claire, Ty Burrell as Phil, SofĂ­a Vergara as Gloria, Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Mitchell, Eric Stonestreet as Cameron, Sarah Hyland as Haley, Nolan Gould as Luke, Ariel Winter as Alex and Rico Rodriguez as Manny. The series is produced by Twentieth Century Fox Television in association with Levitan Lloyd Productions. Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd are executive producers/creators.
Modern Family is the biggest sitcom acquisition by USA Network since Wings in 1995. Wings aired on USA Network from 1995-2002 to good numbers. It returned to early morning in June 2008 and is sill airing. Financially, Modern Family is their biggest sitcom acquisition ever. Some of the past sitcoms they have aired were all in the morning hours such as Coach, Becker, Perfect Strangers, Gimme a Break!, Webster, The Facts of Life, Major Dad, Saved by the Bell: The New Class, Martin and Living Single. USA Network was also famous for airing short-lived sitcoms in the mornings in their USAM block, such as Hearts Afire, Veronica's Closet, Jesse, and Something So Right. They also had original comedies such as Weird Science and USA High in the '90s.
By Fall 2013, Modern Family will be entering its fifth season on ABC. Currently, USA Network has no other comedies to pair Modern Family with, so they will either buy another comedy or pair it with original programming.

Meanwhile, Oxygen Media and Twentieth Television have reached an exclusive agreement for the basic cable syndication rights to Twentieth Century Fox's critically-acclaimed television hit series Glee. The hour-long Glee will join the Oxygen line-up with a weekend marathon of the second season in January 2011. This will be followed by a companion unscripted reality competition series to discover the next Glee star scheduled to premiere in June 2011 to appear on the third season of the series in Fall 2011. Oxygen will retain exclusive basic cable rights to telecast all seasons throughout the Oxygen schedule beginning in Fall 2013.
Entering its second season this fall and renewed already for a third season on Fox, Glee is a biting musical comedy that has quickly become a pop-culture phenomenon. This is by far the biggest acquisition for the 10-year-old network. Past acquisitions have mainly been sitcoms such as Roseanne, Living Single, Mad About You, Grace Under Fire, Ellen, Kate & Allie, and A Different World. Non-sitcoms included Xena, America's Next Top Model, and The Tyra Banks Show. As with most cable network, Oxygen is focused primarily on original programming.

The Emmy(R) Award-winning animated sci-fi comedy Futurama, resurrected by Comedy Central, made an out-of-this-world return and, with 2.92 million total viewers, became the highest-rated and most-watched season premiere for an animated series on cable with the exception of South Park.
Airing its first original episode in almost seven years, the sixth season premiere of Futurama titled "Rebirth" (Thursday, 10:00-10:30 p.m.) averaged a 2.0 HH rating, 1.9 Adults 18-49 rating, 4.5 Men 18-24 rating and 3.5 Men 18-34 rating, finishing the night as the most-watched and highest-rated show in all of television for Thursday Prime among M18-24 and M18-34, as well as the highest-rated show in all of television among Adults 18-49 (tie).
With 2.92 million total viewers tuning in to watch the next chapter in the lives of Leela, Fry and Bender, the premiere powered Comedy Central to its highest-rated and most-watched night of 2010 among total viewers (1.7 million total viewers) and A18-49 (1.1 rating) and the highest-rated and most-watched Thursday night in the network's history among M18-24 (2.4 rating) and M18-34 (1.9 rating).
The second of two all-new, back-to-back premiere episodes of Futurama (Thursday, 10:30 p.m.-10:59 p.m.), averaged a 2.1 HH rating, 1.7 A18-49 rating, 4.2 M18-24 rating, 3.2 M18-34 rating and 2.78 million total viewers to rank as the #2 program of the night in all of television among M18-34 and M18-24, and the #1 cable show in its timeslot with A18-49 (tie), M18-34 and M18-24.
Encore presentations of the season premiere of Futurama air Sunday at 12:00 a.m., Monday at 12:30 a.m., Tuesday at 8:30 p.m., Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. and Thursday at 9:30 p.m. (all times ET/PT). And the series airs new episodes Thursdays at 10:00 p.m.

Laugh On all summer long with Modern Family tonight at 9/8 on ABC:


Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Monday, September 25

Son of a Critch - "Particip-action" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Mark is forced to participate in the school's Sports Day; Fox fights for her mother's attention and attempts to break the school record for gold medals.

Run the Burbs - "Li Xi" (The CW, 8:30PM ET/PT)
As they celebrate Vietnamese Lunar New Year, Andrew worries about his parents' relationship; Camille pitches her business to Andrew's mother; the kids get into trouble with their business startup.

Children Ruin Everything - "Dignity" (The CW, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Following embarrassing run-ins with her boss and co-workers, Astrid feels on the back foot and disconnected from her younger co-workers; Astrid realizes her best move might be to attend a drink night with the rest of her team.

American Dad! - "Productive Panic" (TBS, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Francine becomes an overnight sensation when a famous art dealer discovers her homemade pottery.

Breeders - "No Matter What: Part Two" (FX, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Jackie's health is continuing to worsen; Paul helps out a distressed Luke but finds himself in more conflict with Ally; at Baby Jay's naming party, Ava declares her love, and Paul makes an offer that will take him and Ally back in time.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 25)

Monday, September 25

  • Eddie Murphy (The PJs) - Watch Eddie on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • D'Arcy Carden (The Good Place/Barry) - D'Arcy is a guest on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
  • Idris Elba (Turn Up Charlie) - Idris appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation) - Aubrey is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
  • Wilmer Valderrama (That '70s Show) - Wilmer appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
  • Woody Harrelson (Cheers) - Woody is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
  • Jon Lovitz (Mr. Box Office/NewsRadio/Foley Square) - Jon is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen on CBS between 12:37-1:37am.
  • Kelly Ripa (Hope & Faith) and Mark Consuelos (Alpha House/Hope & Faith) - E! News has interviews with Kelly and Mark at 11pm on E!.
  • Jamie-Lynn Sigler (Guys with Kids/Entourage) - Jamie-Lynn appears on Watch What Happens: Live at 3:30am on Bravo.
  • Kerry Washington (Unprisoned) - Kerry talks about her new book Thicker than Water: A Memoir on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
  • Punkie Johnson (After Life) - Punkie talks about her podcast Love Thang with Punkie Johnson on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
  • Keke Palmer (Scream Queens/True Jackson, VP) - Keke talks about her Big Boss album and tour on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.


New on DVD/Blu-ray (June-October)

Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series Family Matters - The Complete Series Step by Step - The Complete Series ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition)

06/13 - Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series
06/13 - Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series
07/18 - South Park - Seasons 21-25 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
07/25 - The Neighborhood - Season Five
07/25 - Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin - Season One
07/25 - Superstore - The Complete Series
08/22 - Back to Life - Season 1 / Season 2
08/29 - Smiling Friends - Season 1 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/05 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Sixth Season
09/12 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Second Season
09/12 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-6 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/26 - Family Matters - The Complete Series
09/26 - Step by Step - The Complete Series
10/10 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Thirteen / The Complete Season Fourteen
10/17 - ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) (Shout! Factory Special Offers)
10/17 - Night Court (2023) - The Complete First Season
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

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09/24 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 25, 2023)
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09/22 - The Santa Clauses Season 2 Launches November 8; CBS Alters Fall Schedule
09/21 - Penn & Teller: Fool Us Gets New Return Date; Netflix's Unicorn Academy Premieres November 2
09/20 - Paramount+ Announces Colin from Accounts; The Really Loud House Gets Halloween Movie
09/19 - The Simpsons Season 34 Streams October 11 on Disney+; Good Burger 2 Set for Holiday Season
09/18 - Hulu's Huluween and Disney+'s Hallowstream Line-Up; Shining Vale Returns October 13 on STARZ
09/17 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 18, 2023)
09/16 - SitcomsOnline Digest: ABC Cancels Wonder Years Reboot; Byron Allen Makes $10 Billion Offer to Buy ABC
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09/14 - Dancing with the Stars Season 32 Cast; BUZZR Celebrates 40 Years of Press Your Luck
09/13 - TBS Acquires Modern Family; The Frasier Awards on COZI TV
09/12 - Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen Gets CBS Late Night Run; Unsolved Mysteries: Behind the Legacy Special
09/11 - Matt Rife Gets Netflix Special; Star Trek Day and Kid Cudi Join Forces
09/10 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 11, 2023)
09/09 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Warner Bros. Television Suspends Deals with Top Creators; Fran Drescher Re-Elected President of SAG-AFTRA
09/08 - CBS Announces Hosts of Game Show; New Goosebumps Premieres Friday the 13th This October on Disney+ and Hulu
09/07 - MeTV Presents Svengoolie's Halloween BOOnanza!; The CW Moving Fall Comedies to Thursdays
09/06 - CBS to Air NCIS: Sydney This Fall; Fox Makes Fall Change
09/05 - TBS and TNT September Stunts Include Big Bang Theory Batman Day Marathon; Netflix UK Produced Series Updates
09/04 - TV Marathons on Labor Day 2023 Include Three's Company
09/03 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of September 4, 2023)
09/02 - SitcomsOnline Digest: No Third Season for How I Met Your Father; Spectrum Dispute with Disney Could Spell End of Cable
09/01 - September Is Anniversary Month on Hulu; Freeform's 31 Nights of Halloween Returns for Its 25th Anniversary
08/31 - Max's Original Comedy Series Starstruck Season 3 and Our Flag Means Death Season 2 Premiere Dates; AXS TV Announces Fall Programming Lineup
08/30 - The Partridge Family Coming to AXS TV Starting Oct. 2; CBS to Air A Tribute to Bob Barker Special Aug. 31, Marathon of Match Game Episodes to Air Sept. 2 on Game Show Network
08/29 - Once Upon a Time Coming to Hulu; Young Love Launches on Max in September
08/28 - Remembering TV Legend Bob Barker; Wolf Like Me Returns in October on Peacock
08/27 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of August 28, 2023)
08/26 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Frasier Reboot Date Set, With CBS Also Airing First Two Episodes; Doogie Kamealoha, M.D. Cancelled
08/25 - Rick and Morty Returns October 15; Switch New Season Begins September 18 on Game Show Network