Monday, January 23, 2012
NATPE 2012: Day 1 Has WKRP in Cincinnati Coming to Antenna TV; Retired at 35 Bumped Off of March 7 on TV Land
Baby, if you've ever wondered that if WKRP in Cincinnati would be back on TV, now no need to wonder if that will happen! Why? Because digital simulcast network Antenna TV has announced at the annual National Association of Television Program Executive (NATPE) conference that the hit '70s sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati is coming in April 2012! The sitcom is about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. Among the stars on the series are Gary Sandy, Howard Hesseman, Gordon Jump, Loni Anderson, Jan Smithers and Tim Reid. The series last aired regularly on television on Tribune's WGN America in 2008-09, but that was on cable and Antenna TV is a digital broadcast network. Prior to WGN America airing, it was on AmericanLife TV in 2007. When WGN America aired it, all of the music seemed to be intact and I think that will be the case on Tribune's Antenna TV as well.
Antenna TV will air all 90 episodes of WKRP in Cincinnati starting in April and will air it on Sunday nights during a two-hour block following NewsRadio to create a three-hour dysfunctional radio block in primetime! WKRP in Cincinnati will be replacing Married...with Children, which will be resting for a bit. Following WKRP in Cincinnati will still be the addicting '70s sitcom Soap, so WKRP in Cincinnati and Soap air back-to-back as well. Loni Anderson and Diana Canova back-to-back! We'll have exact timings coming soon, but expect this order starting in primetime.
We will have more on Antenna TV's new spring schedule that will start in April in the coming weeks, But we're not expecting any series to be removed from the schedule except Married...with Children, which is just resting anyway. Will more shows come to Antenna TV in the spring and will we see some timeslot changes for some shows? (I'm hoping the underrated Too Close for Comfort finally goes to weekdays) We will let you know as soon as we can announce that. But for now let's remember, "I'm at WKRP in Cincinnati..."
Keep it right here for news from NATPE, which is from Jan. 23-25. And stay with is in the coming days and we will give you a list of the shows being offered for fall 2012 syndication, like we do every year, including the off-network sitcoms.
TV Land announced that the second season of the network's hit original sitcom, Happily Divorced (which began production on January 17, 2012 at CBS Radford Studios) will now premiere at 10:30pm on March 7, rather than 10:00pm. The twelve new episodes of Happily Divorced will premiere on Wednesday, March 7 at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT, so this means the second season of Retired at 35 will not premiere until later in the year. There is no word on when because TV Land also has the Hot in Cleveland spin-off series Have Faith premieres June 6. Encores of Hot in Cleveland will air at 10:00pm leading into Happily Divorced starting March 7, as Cleveland's mid-season finale is on Feb. 15 before it returns June 6 at 10pm with its second half.
Retired at 35 follows a successful businessman (Jonathan McClain) who decides to chuck the New York City rat race... and retires to Florida, three decades ahead of time and moves into his parents' (played by George Segal and Jessica Walter) Florida condo in a brand new world of sunshine and fun, from slow-moving softball games to really early dinners. And of course, Happily Divorced is based on Fran Drescher's real life as Los Angeles florist Fran (Drescher) as she deals with dating after finding out her realtor husband of 18 years (John Michael Higgins) is gay. The show focuses on how she juggles her new relationships and her ex-husband post-divorce while still living under the same roof.
Stay with us for more information and also stay with us soon for some schedule changes at TV Land.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Friday, February 27
Happy's Place - "No" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Bobbie alerts Isabella to an easy way for the tavern to make some extra cash, she's shocked when Isabella tells her no; Gabby becomes obsessed with a bar game that Takoda brought in.
Stumble - "Hildebünch" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Now that they've qualified for Daytona, Courteney must raise the money to get there and recruit new cheerleaders to give them a shot at winning; in order to do so, she must make a deal with the Buttonmeister himself, Augustus Schlimpf.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of February 23)
Friday, February 27
- Nick Jonas (Jonas) - Nick is a musical guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Sam Rockwell (F Is for Family) - Sam appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Guy Torry (Good News) - Guy is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
- Michael B. Jordan (The Assistants) - Michael and director Ryan Coogler talk Oscar nomination with ABC News' Chris Connelly on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
- Eva Marcille (Born Again Virign/Tyler Perry's House of Payne) - Eva talks about Lifetime's Pushed Off a Plane and Survived on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
- Courteney Cox (Shining Vale/Cougar Town/Friends/Family Ties) - Courteney talks about Scream 7 on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Tony Danza (Taxi/Who's the Boss?/Hudson Street/The Tony Danza Show) - It's a cooking flashback with Tony in the kitchen on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Tracy Morgan (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Crutch/The Last O.G./30 Rock/The Tracy Morgan Show) - It's a little bit extra with from Drew's interview with the hilarious Tracy on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Dorian Missick (Zoe Ever After) - Dorian talks about Prime's 56 Days on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
08/26 - The Huckleberry Hound Show - The Complete Original Series (Blu-ray)
09/30 - Touché Turtle and Dum Dum - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
10/07 - Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - The Complete First Season (DVD)
10/14 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
10/28 - St. Denis Medical - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/04 - Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fifteenth Season (DVD)
11/11 - Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/02 - Tom and Jerry - The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/16 - Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/16 - Wally Gator - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
01/20 - The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Golden Age Collection (Blu-ray)
01/27 - The New Fred and Barney Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/11 - Tom and Jerry - The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)
03/24 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive
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