Wednesday, March 07, 2012
ABC Family Acquires The Middle For Fall 2013, Also In Local Syndication; TV One's March Sitcom Madness
Warner Bros. Television has sold the ABC hit family sitcom The Middle into broadcast syndication and cable for Fall 2013! In broadcast syndication, Tribune Broadcasting stations will air it in 11 markets, including WPIX-CW New York, KTLA-CW Los Angeles and WGN-CW Chicago. Also, Sinclair Broadcast Group has picked up the sitcom in 19 markets, including Pittsburgh and Baltimore. The Middle has been cleared on stations reaching 92% of TV homes so far, having also been sold to stations owned by CBS, Communications Corp., Raycom, Newport, Belo, Cox, Local TV, New Age Media, Titan, Grant, News Press & Gazette, Barrington, Mission, Venture, LIN, Pappas, Weigel, Acme, and others. A full list of stations will be available closer to fall 2013. More clearances will come.
As for cable, The Middle has been acquired by ABC Family for also fall 2013. This marks the first major current sitcom acquisition by the network, as the other comedies they previously acquired were of canceled sitcoms like My Wife & Kids and 8 Simple Rules or older comedies like That '70s Show and Full House. The hit family sitcom will likely air in the early evenings, probably sometime between 6-8pm during family time. We'll have more on that as we get closer to fall 2013, as we are still a while away!
The series premiered in fall 2009 on ABC (Wednesdays at 8PM) and is currently in its third season. By the time the series hits syndication, it will have four full seasons of episodes to air five-days-a-week. Two-time Emmy winner Patricia Heaton stars in this warm and witty single-camera comedy about raising a family and lowering your expectations. Middle-aged, middle class and living in the middle of the country in Orson, Indiana, Frankie Heck is a harried wife and working mother of three who uses her wry wit and sense of humor in an attempt to get her family through each day intact. The Middle stars Patricia Heaton as Frankie, Neil Flynn as Mike, Charlie McDermott as Axl, Eden Sher as Sue, Atticus Shaffer as Brick and Chris Kattan as Bob. It is created and is executive produced by Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline.
It's March and sports fans know that March means it's time for March Madness (the college basketball tournament). TV One will have its own March Madness with Sitcom Madness! TV One will air sitcom marathons every weekday all-month long from 11am-5pm. The stunt started this week on Monday (March 5) and will continue through Friday, March 30, so you have plenty of time to join the Sitcom Madness! On Mondays, TV One will air six hours of Martin in March. On Tuesdays, spend the day with twelve helpings of The Jeffersons from 11am-5pm. The sitcoms continue mid-week with Good Times on Wednesdays. On Thursday, it's not a half marathon but we get a Half & Half marathon. And close the week out on Fridays with Eve. That's five different sitcoms, so what show do you think is the best show from these five if TV One were doing a bracket style elimination? Luckily they're not, so you can watch all five series if you like them!
Everything else on TV One in March will remain as it is, as the 11am-5pm portion is preempted this month for these marathons. No other stunts are planned, so it's all about the Sitcom Madness in March!
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Thursday, February 5
Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "A Pregnancy Test and an Old Man’s Gallbladder" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Georgie’s jealousy rears its head when Mandy gets sent on an overnight work trip with her ex and current boss, Scott (Christopher Gorham). Meanwhile, Jim and Audrey panic when they find a pregnancy test in Connor’s trash.
Ghosts - "Viking Wedding" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Sam and Jay try to impress their trendy city friends while a misplaced bookcase threatens Thor’s ability to deliver an important speech. Also, Isaac rallies the ghosts to help the couple navigate a tough customer service ordeal.
Animal Control - "French Bulldogs and White Broncos" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Frank scrambles to find a date for a romantic sunset horse ride; Patel hosts a "sip 'n snip" fundraising event.
Going Dutch - "None of the Good Guys" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Captain Maggie is cursed with dating bad men and Sergeant Dana convinces her to go to a single's mixer; the Colonel deals with an anonymous protestor that has infiltrated the base.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of February 2)
Thursday, February 5
- Odessa A'zion (I Love LA/Fam) - Catch Odessa on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Halle Berry (Living Dolls) - Halle appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Nick Jonas (Jonas) - Nick is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- John Early (The Afterparty/Search Party) - John appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory/8 Simple Rules/Ladies Man) - Andy Cohen interviews Kaley on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 10pm on Bravo.
- Lea Michele (The Mayor) - Lea talks about Broadway's Chess on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Craig Ferguson (The Drew Carey Show) - Comedian and host of the hit game show Scrabble Craig Ferguson is here to play a game with Tamron on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
- Gabby Sidibe (Difficult People/The Big C) - Gabby tells Sherri about directing Mary J. Blige Presents Be Happy on Lifetime on Sherri, so check your local listings.
- Lena Waithe (Master of None) - Lena talks about her playwriting debut with Trinity at Baltimore Center Stage on Sherri, so check your local listings.
- Paula Pell (The 'Burbs/Girls5eva/Mapleworth Murders/A.P. Bio) - Paula hits the news with Drew and Ross then chats with Drew about her new show The 'Burbs on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Kevin Hart (Lil Kev/Die Hart/The Big House/Undeclared) and Kenan Thompson (Kenan/Kenan & Kel) - Kevin and Kenan are guests 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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