Hallmark Channel Acquires Mary Tyler Moore Show In April 2012; ABC Family Orders Original Drama From Gilmore Girls Creator

Thursday, February 09, 2012

Hallmark Channel Acquires Mary Tyler Moore Show In April 2012; ABC Family Orders Original Drama From Gilmore Girls Creator

Valentine's Day is just around the corner and "love is all around" as The Hallmark Channel has acquired the rights to the classic CBS '70s sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show! Who can turn the world on with her smile? Only the great Mary Tyler Moore can, along with the help of the rest of the brilliant cast: Betty White, Valerie Harper, Cloris Leachman, Ted Knight, Ed Asner, Gavin McLeod, and Georgia Engel. The series of course was about Mary Richards who was jilted by her fiancé, so she moves to Minneapolis and eventually winds up as Associate Producer of The Six O'Clock News. She also befriends her new neighbor, Rhoda Morgenstern, with whom she is initially at odds.
While Valentine's Day is next week, Hallmark will not premiere the classic sitcom until Sunday, April 1, 2012. The series will premiere with a marathon on Sunday, April 1 (and no, we're not foolin') with an all-day marathon. Details are still to come, but the marathon will also feature the 2000 ABC Monday Night TV movie Mary & Rhoda, starring Mary Tyler Moore and Valerie Harper. In the movie, Mary Richards and Rhoda Morgenstern find themselves alone after the death of Mary's husband and Rhoda's divorce. Both have relocated to New York City and try to jumpstart their dormant careers and reconnect with their daughters. Currently, the classic sitcom airs on the digital network MeTV Network and on cable on FamilyNet, so Hallmark's rights are not exclusive.
Hallmark Channel recently added The Bob Newhart Show to its schedule (started in mornings, now in late night), so it looks like they are adding classic sitcoms (both this and Mary Tyler Moore Show are MTM Enterprises sitcoms). We can't reveal the April 2012 schedule just yet, but stay with us in the coming weeks to see if The Mary Tyler Moore Show does indeed "make it after all" on the regular schedule after this marathon event. More details on the marathon are still to come, too, so stay tuned. You're gonna make it after all!

ABC Family continues to expand its original programming slate, giving the greenlight to the new drama series Bunheads (working title). Executive-produced by Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls) and headlined by Tony Award®-winning actor Sutton Foster, Bunheads is the tale of a Las Vegas showgirl who impulsively marries a man, moves to his sleepy coastal town, and takes an uneasy role at her new mother-in-law's dance school. Bunheads joins ABC Family's recently announced new original sitcom Baby Daddy and original reality series Beverly Hills Nannies. All three series will begin production in Spring 2012. More details will come, such as more casting and when it will premiere. Stay with us!

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, October 19

The Simpsons - "Treehouse of Horror XXXVI" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The town is menaced by a mysterious murdering monster from out of the sewers; Krusty has a demonic special guest on his live Halloween special; Springfield's post-apocalyptic future.

Universal Basic Guys - "Golden Beans" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Mark and David start a coffee shop in the garage; Tammy and Hank struggle to keep Mernft Man from bothering customers.

Krapopolis - "Basket Baby" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
A baby arrives in a basket; Deliria encroaches on Apollo's turf; Tyrannis throws a potluck.

Bob's Burgers - "The Twinnening" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Teddy takes a handyman job next door to the restaurant and finds himself trapped inside a store full of spooky antiques.

DMV - "Pilot" (CBS, 10:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
East Hollywood Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) driving examiner Colette pines for her coworker Noa while enduring teasing from colleagues Gregg, Vic and Ceci. Also, new manager Barb rallies the crew to save their branch from government shutdown.

Electric Bloom - "How We Handled an Unexpected Visitor" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Tulip's sister comes home from college and is jealous of Tulip's bond with Jade; Posey deals with a little incident of her own.

Electric Bloom - "How We Defeated a Jingle Bell Bully" (Disney Channel, 8:30PM ET/PT)
To help Tulip rediscover her love of Christmas, Electric Bloom is forced to team up with their sworn enemies, The Two Shellys, to try and win the Holiday Sing-Off.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 13)

Friday, October 17

Charlie Hunnam (Undeclared) - Watch Charlie on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Chelsea Frei (The Paper/The Moodys) - Chelsea appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Maz Jobrani (Superior Donuts/The Knights of Prosperity/Better Off Ted) - Maz is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Kristin Chenoweth (Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin talks about Queen of Versailles on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Zachary Quinto (Big Mouth/So Notorious) - Zachary talks about Brilliant Minds on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Tony Shalhoub (We Are Men/Stark Raving Mad/Wings) - NBC's Today catches up with Tony in the 9am hour.
Aziz Ansari (Master of None/Parks and Recreation) - Aziz talks about Good Fortune on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Penn Badgley (Do Over) - Penn talks about Crushmore: Essays on Love, Loss, and Coming-of-Age with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Mira Sorvino (Shining Vale) - Mira joins Sherri to talk about starring in Chicago the Musical on Broadway on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Cristela Alonzo (Cristela) - Cristela stops by Sherri's Laugh Lounge on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Penn Badgley (Do Over) - Penn talks about podcast Podcrushed on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Arnold Schwarzenegger (FUBAR) - Real Time with Bill Maher features a one-on-one interview with Arnold on HBO at 10pm.