Monday, January 09, 2012
TCA Winter 2012 Press Tour: Fox; Hallmark Moves Bob Newhart To Late Nights
Some notes from the executive session included that Fox will NOT develop spin-off series for House and Glee, and both series have not been yet renewed for next season. The latter will most likely will be, but the House might be nearing the end now. Reilly made it official (and no surprise) that animated comedy Allen Gregory has been indeed canceled. He also said he plans to air the approx. 6 episodes or so that are left for the season of new comedy I Hate My Teenage Daughter. No decision yet has been made on Terra Nova, but it is very expensive and a decision will be made soon since it would need to go back into production as soon as possible if it wants to be back next season. The same goes true for another season of Fringe, as the cost for the series on a Friday night is almost impossible for them to make money on it and he said they're not in the business of losing money. Reality wise, Reilly expects Idol to be down in its 11th season and that losing the results show for So You Think You Can Dance is happening because Fox wants to add more original programming in summer. Some milestones: the 500th episode of The Simpsons airs Sunday, February 19 at 8:00pm and the 400th episode of American Idol will air on a special night (its original night) on Tuesday, February 28.
In other news, Fox will create a new alternative animated content and the programming will run on a new late-night animated block and digital channel. Building on its more than 20 years of animation domination, Fox has created a new unit to oversee the development and production of alternative animated series, shorts and user-adapted material for a brand new late-night animated programming block and new digital multi-platform network. To run this new unit, Fox has inked an exclusive deal with Nick Weidenfeld, former head of program development for Adult Swim and executive producer of acclaimed series Childrens Hospital and The Boondocks. The network has also tapped producer Hend Baghdady as the executive in charge of production for the new division. Under their leadership, the unit will develop and produce an ambitious slate of original animated shorts and series to run both on-air and online. The late-night programming block will air Saturdays from 11:00 PM-12:30 AM ET/PT on Fox and will feature four new animated series per season starting in January 2013.
The digital channel will extend across platforms such as Web, mobile apps, game consoles and Video on Demand. It kicks off in 2012 and will feature 50 original short-form pieces per year, online windows of Fox animated shows, and user-adapted content. It will create a unique opportunity for fans and up-and-coming talent to engage with professional Fox-curated content, which they could possibly platform into their own series. Fox will also use its expertise and cross-promotional power to nurture these new assets through this pipeline.
Look ahead: Today has ABC/Disney Cable/Daytime/News, while tomorrow it is ABC primetime. We will cover that tomorrow. Then on Wednesday it will be CBS and on Thursday The CW will end the broadcast portion. On Friday (Jan. 13) thru Sunday (Jan. 15) will be the cable portion. Stay with us for key updates from these events.
Well that was fast. Starting tomorrow (Tuesday, Jan. 10), The Hallmark Channel will move The Bob Newhart Show out of its weekdays 8-10am block and will air it weeknights from 2-4am instead. Replacing Bob Newhart's 8-10am airings will be more The Golden Girls (thank you for being a friend, Bob), while the 2-4am block of Bob Newhart will replace an hour each of Cheers and Frasier. This means Cheers is off of the weeknight line-up, but will remain on weekend late nights from 4-5am on Saturday and Sunday nights. One other schedule change will be that Little House on the Prairie will get another hour in primetime and will air in the 9pm hour replacing an hour of Frasier. The sitcom will still air from 10pm-12am, while Little House on the Prairie will air weeknights from 6-10pm.
The Bob Newhart Show just started airing in the 8-10am block on Jan. 2, so it will only last 6 days in this time period. Hopefully the late night block will be better suited for the show as it seems the ratings weren't too good for the 8-10am block, perhaps hurting the Martha Stewart at Home block even more. And speaking of that block, Hallmark has canceled The Martha Stewart Show after it finishes its season (thru the end of summer), but the Hallmark Martha block will continue with other programming. Stay tuned for any further updates, if any, on Hallmark, Martha and Bob!
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Monday, March 2
The Neighorhood - "Welcome to the Hoodwink" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Tina grows concerned about Malcolm’s romantic choices. Meanwhile, Calvin and Dave’s street smarts are put to the test.
DMV - "Power Shift" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Barb leaves Ceci in charge, but when Ceci improves the DMV, Barb sabotages the progress and injures her “good foot.” Meanwhile, Colette pushes back against Vic’s outdated views by challenging him to a game of basketball against former pro basketball player Renee Montgomery.
St. Denis Medical - "A New Best Friend" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Alex's husband gets treated by Bruce; Joyce goes on an accidental journey; Ron's shoes squeak.
The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins - "Put It on Your Cabbage!" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Tobin urges Reggie to leave the house and face the outside world; Monica learns there's more to Brina than meets the eye.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 2)
Monday, March 2
- Daniel Radcliffe (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Miracle Workers) - Watch Daniel on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS. He also talks about The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- Tracy Morgan (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Crutch/The Last O.G./30 Rock/The Tracy Morgan Show) - Tracy appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Christina Applegate (Dead to Me/Up All Night/Samantha Who?/Jesse/Married... with Children) - ABC's Good Morning America and GMA 3: What You Need to Know has Part 1 of Robin Roberts’ interview with Christina discussing her new memoir You with the Sad Eyes sometime between 7-9am and at 1pm.
- Zach Braff (Scrubs/Alex, Inc.) and Donald Faison (Scrubs/Extended Family/The Exes/Clueless) - Zach and Donald talk about Scrubs on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am, on GMA 3: What You Need to Know, and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm. Zach dishes on ABC's Scrubs on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family/The Class) - Jesse talks about Tru on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
- Christa Miller (Shrinking/Cougar Town/Scrubs/The Drew Carey Show) - Christa talks about Shrinking on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Jamie Lee Curtis (The Sticky/Anything But Love/Operation Petticoat) - Jamie Lee talks about Scarpetta on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and in the 10am hour.
- Dermot Mulroney (The Righteous Gemstones/Four Weddings and a Funeral) and LaRoyce Hawkins (South Side) - Dermot and LaRoyce will be on NBC's Today in the 9am hour.
- Ariana DeBose (Schmigadoon!) - Ariana talks about Scarpetta on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Erika Alexander (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Run the World/Living Single/The Cosby Show) - Erika talks about The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Cafe Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie is joining the Drew's News desk for a cozy news story on The Drew Barrymore Show, 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)
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