ABC Family Rebranding to Freeform; Mary Tyler Moore: A Celebration on PBS

Wednesday, October 07, 2015

ABC Family Rebranding to Freeform; Mary Tyler Moore: A Celebration on PBS

ABC Family President Tom Ascheim announced that ABC Family will be renamed and rebranded as Freeform in January 2016. This evolution builds on ABC Family's existing strategy of super serving "Becomers" - a life stage that spans people who are 14-34. The name, look, feel and attitude of the network will capture the nature of the Becomer audience and the modern way this audience generates and consumes media. The name Freeform speaks to the mindset and attitude of what the channel has defined as Becomers. Traditionally, Becomers are in high school, college and the decade that follows and are navigating the wonderful, fun, exciting, and scary time in life when you experience the most firsts - first car, first apartment, first job, first love, first heartbreak - all the firsts that exists between who they are and who they want to become. Becomers represent a life stage rather than a generation. Eleven years ago, ABC Family was ahead of the curve when it began super-serving Millennials to become their entertainment staple. Today, nearly 70% of 12-34 year olds are Millennials, but in five years, Millennials will be less than half of the target. Becomers are 69 million strong in the US, with an estimated spending power in the trillions. There are two billion Becomers worldwide.

The audience's identity and experience are fluid as they explore endless possibilities and their passions take shape. Freeform personifies this fluidity and will deliver ideas, forms of content and ways of interacting with the brand. Freeform is inspired by the interconnection between content and audience, media and technology, interactive and linear, life stage and life style and the way Becomers interact with them all. The network remains committed to the critically acclaimed original series and programming stunts that have become pop-culture phenomena and made it so successful with the Becomer audience. Pretty Little Liars, The Fosters, Young and Hungry and Baby Daddy will all return in early 2016 for their winter premieres alongside the world premieres of new original series Shadowhunters and Recovery Road. Freeform will also continue the programming trajectory announced this April and will double the networks original programing over the next four years. New series pick-ups and series returns will also be announced later this month.

During the 2014/15 season, ABC Family landmarked as cable TV's #1 network in Prime for the first time in the channel's 15-year history in Women 18-34 and was the #1 ad-supported cable TV network for the fourth-consecutive season in Females 12-34. In addition, ABC Family extended its streak as a Top 5 cable TV network to seven-straight seasons in Women 18-49 and placed among the Top 10 for the seventh season in a row in Adults 18-34 and Viewers 12-34.

Mary Tyler Moore

On the eve of the 45th anniversary of the premiere of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, PBS announces a new documentary about the TV legend featuring new interviews with an array of Moore's colleagues, friends and admirers. Mary Tyler Moore: A Celebration airs October 13, 2015, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET (check local listings). Not only did Moore "turn the world on with her smile," as her show's theme song declared, she also influenced a generation of women to become more independent and to pursue successful and fulfilling careers. Moore's own 50-plus-year career has spanned award-winning films and Broadway shows, as well as two beloved television series that broke ground and continue to entertain viewers. Mary Tyler Moore: A Celebration includes heartfelt interviews with Dick Van Dyke, Betty White, Valerie Harper and many others who recall Moore's career highlights and underscore the importance of her television characters in shaping today's society.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Thursday, April 2

Young Sheldon - "A House Sale and Serious Woman Stuff" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Sheldon learns the house next door is for sale, he takes it upon himself to find the perfect neighbors. Also, Missy is torn when she’s forced to pitch against her boyfriend at the baseball game.

Man with a Plan - "The V-Word" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When Andi’s doctor advises her to stop taking birth control pills, Adam and Andi disagree on an alternate option.

Mom - "Texas Pete and a Parking Lot Carnival" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Bonnie worries about her therapist, Trevor (Rainn Wilson), when his life hits a serious rough patch. Also, Christy comes to Marjorie’s aid when she has trouble adjusting to a new job.

Broke - "Pilot" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Jaime Camil and Pauley Perrette star in a new comedy about a single suburban mother, struggling to make ends meet, who finds her estranged sister and her sister’s outrageously wealthy husband in need of a place to live after the couple’s money dries up.

Last Man Standing - "Keep the Change" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Mike and Vanessa invite Jen's father to her graduation, Jen struggles with accepting his "plus one" -- his girlfriend Fiona; the Outdoor Man crew debates over which word was said in a viral audio recording that's been tearing the internet apart.

Last Man Standing - "Mysterious Ways" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Vanessa is secretly obsessed with Jen's new video game.

Superstore - "Customer Safari" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Amy joins Jonah for lunch with his parents and brother, but she's caught off guard by their family dynamic. Dina worries about being fun and spontaneous when her new boyfriend surprises her at work. Meanwhile, Garrett and the other employees create a game around the store's weird customers, with a suspicious Glenn hot on their tails.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine - "Admiral Peralta" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Jake and his father deal with unsettled family business. Amy and Rosa work a high-profile case. Terry wants to join the NYPD band.

Will & Grace - "Bi-Plane" (NBC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Will and Grace decide to intervene when they discover Grace’s niece (guest start Billie Lourd) is dating a bisexual man (guest star Peter Graham). Jack gets permission from his husband, Estefan (guest star Brian Jordan Alvarez), to sleep with his celebrity hall pass, guest star Ryan Phillippe. Karen struggles to adapt when her assistant, Friday (guest star Vanessa Bayer), books them on an economy flight.

Indebted - "Everybody's Talking About Neighbors" (NBC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
After realizing Debbie and Stew are forcing the neighbors to socialize, Dave and Rebecca try to convince them to keep to themselves, insisting neighbors should just be neighbors.

Better Things - "New Orleans" (FX, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Sam goes to a wedding.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 30)

Thursday, April 2

Jennifer Aniston (Friends/Muddling Through/Ferris Bueller/Molloy) - Catch Jennifer Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12:05am on ABC.
Amy Poehler (Bless the Harts/Parks and Recreation) - Amy is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Cedric the Entertainer (The Neighborhood/The Last O.G./The Soul Man/The Steve Harvey Show) - Cedric appears on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Rob Huebel (Medical Police/Transparent/Burning Love) - Rob is a guest on A Little Late with Lilly Singh at 1:35am on NBC.
Sean Hayes (Will & Grace/The Millers/Sean Saves the World) - Sean stops by Conan at 11pm on TBS.
Kyle Richards (Down to Earth) - Kyle is a guest on Watch What Happens: Live at 11pm on Bravo.
Jaime Camil (Broke) and Pauley Perrette (Broke) - Jaime and Pauley talk about Broke on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT. Jaime will also be on People Now at 1pm.
Mario Cantone (Sex and the City) - Mario appears on a repeat of The Wendy Williams Show, so check your local listings.
Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly/Samantha Who?) - Melissa is a guest on a repeat of The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Tisha Campbell (Outmatched/Dr. Ken/Rita Rocks/My Wife and Kids/Martin) - Tisha talks about Outmatched on a repeat of Access Daily, so check your local listings.
Marsai Martin (black-ish) - Marsai appears on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.