ION Television Acquires Leverage, Lifetime Acquires AMW; Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 12, 2011)

Friday, September 09, 2011

ION Television Acquires Leverage, Lifetime Acquires AMW; Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 12, 2011)

We have two pieces of acquired series news. One will be reruns, but the other will actually be new episodes on a new network! First, ION Television continues to expand its programming line-up with high-quality content with the acquisition of reruns of the popular TNT drama series, Leverage from Electric Entertainment. ION Television, a top-10 rated network, has licensed the off-network rights to all seasons of Leverage. The series will begin airing on ION Television in summer 2012.
The series will enter its fifth season on TNT by the time ION starts airing reruns. Before that, the fourth season will continue with the second batch of episodes starting Sunday, Nov. 27 on TNT. Leverage follows a five-person team: a thief, a grifter, a hacker, a retrieval specialist, and their leader, former insurance investigator Nathan Ford (Academy Award Winner(R) Timothy Hutton), who use their skills to right corporate and governmental injustices inflicted on ordinary citizens. The first half of season four has averaged more than 4.8 million viewers, up 10% over season three, with 1.9 million adults 18-49 (+6%) and 2.3 million adults 25-54 (+9%).
The Leverage deal comes on the heels of ION's recent acquisition of cable's other hit series Psych, Monk and House, signifying ION as a viable after-market platform for cable net productions. The hit series also joins ION Television's primetime schedule of the popular off-net series Without a Trace, Criminal Minds, Ghost Whisperer and ION's first original police drama Flashpoint, which will join the network soon.
We recently announced ION Television's Fall 2011 schedule, but we will have an update on that by hopefully next week, so stay tuned. We might see a sitcom or two added. Enticed now? Stay tuned!

Meanwhile, Lifetime has picked up all-new episodes of John Walsh's pioneering series America's Most Wanted, television's top crime-fighting show that will return for its 25th season later this year on Lifetime. Hosted and executive produced by Walsh, America's Most Wanted has become one of the most important programs on television, having played a major role in the capture of more than 1,100 fugitives in the U.S. and 30 countries, including 17 on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List, and rescue of 61 children and missing persons since its launch in 1988.
The series was not placed on the Fox schedule this fall, but Fox had scheduled quarterly two-hour specials, the first of which is slated to air on Saturday, Oct. 29. As of now, that is still on the schedule on Fox, but it is unclear if there will be any other specials as originally planned. The series stopped airing as a regular on Fox this past June. Stay with us for scheduling updates on when Lifetime will start airing it. As of now, their September schedule will remain the same (that's why we haven't covered Lifetime yet), but if anything should change, we will of course be the first to let you know.

It's Friday, so it is time for "Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows" for the coming week. This is where we list what sitcom stars are appearing on talk shows for the coming week, the stars are both current and past sitcom stars, so this is for all sitcom fans of all eras!
For the week of September 12-16, 2011, we have many current sitcom stars and past sitcom stars on TV talk shows! So get your DVR's (or whatever you use) ready! Ready? Here is all what you need to know for the coming week!

Monday, September 12, 2011

Christina Applegate (Up All Night/Samantha Who?/Married with Children) - Watch the lovely Christina on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno at 11:35pm on NBC.
Victoria Justice (Victorious/Zoey 101) - Victoria is a musical guest on The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Ashton Kutcher (Two and a Half Men/That '70s Show) - Ashton stops by The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check listings.
Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster/Sabrina, the Teenage Witch) - Soleil talks about her book, Happy Chaos, on Today between 10-11am on NBC.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Ellen DeGeneres (Ellen) - Catch Ellen on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno at 11:35pm on NBC.
Will Arnett (Up All Night/Arrested Development) - Will visits Late Night with Jimmy Fallon at 12:37am on NBC.
Roseanne Barr (Roseanne) - Roseanne appears on Conan at 11pm on TBS.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Alec Baldwin (30 Rock) - Watch Alec on a repeat of The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
Danny DeVito (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia/Taxi) - Tune in to see Danny on Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson at 12:37am on CBS.
Jon Cryer (Two and a Half Men) - Jon drops by The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check listings.
Will Arnett (Up All Night/Arrested Development) - Will talks about his new show, Up All Night, on Today on NBC between 7-9am.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Kirstie Alley (Cheers/Veronica's Closet) - Catch Kirstie on a repeat of The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
Louis C.K. (Louie) - Louis drops by on a repeat of The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
Zooey Deschanel (New Girl) - Zooey appears on LIVE! with Regis & Kelly, so check your listings and later she will be on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon at 12:37am on NBC.
Kristin Davis (Sex and the City) - Kristin visits Late Night with Jimmy Fallon at 12:37am on NBC.
Ashton Kutcher (Two and a Half Men/That '70s Show) - Ashton continues to make the rounds on Conan at 11pm on TBS.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Ashton Kutcher (Two and a Half Men/That '70s Show) - Watch Ashton on a repeat of The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory) - Kunal stops by the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson at 12:37am on CBS.
Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City/Square Pegs) - Sarah chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Jerry Ferrara (Entourage) - Jerry is a guest on The Gayle King Show at 10am on OWN.