SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

SitcomsOnline Digest: Elle Renewed for Second Season; NBCUniversal to Separate from Comcast

Happy Independence Day, and welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we're hearing about the renewal of a series that just premiered, a media divorce, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

• That was quick, Elle has already been renewed for a second season. (TV Insider)
• With all of the media mergers that have been happening lately, a "divorce" was bound to happen, and it looks like our first one is coming with Comcast looking to separate from NBCUniversal. (Deadline)
• Rob Reiner had a final (we think) TV appearance playing George Washington in last night's episode of Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Happiness. (Variety)
• Joby Baker, who starred alongside Ronnie Schell (who died just a few weeks ago) on Good Morning, World, has died. (Deadline)
• STARZ has picked up a spinoff of S.W.A.T. (SitcomsOnline)
• June 30 is now Marla Gibbs Day in Chicago. (SitcomsOnline)

WEEKLY PLANNER (JULY 4 - JULY 10)

SitcomsOnline Digest: HBO Renews It's Florida, Man; Simpsons Voice Actor Announces Retirement

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we're learning of the renewal of an HBO series, a retirement from The Simpsons, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

• It's not the high budget style we've gotten used to from HBO, but It's Florida, Man has been successful enough to get another season. (Deadline)
• With The Simpsons being in season 36, which is longer than most people spend in a single job, it shouldn't be surprising that cast members would want to retire, and we've officially got our first retirement with Pamela Hayden announcing she has retired from the series. (Hollywood Reporter)
• Meanwhile, amid speculation that The Simpsons and other animated series could potentially be moving from Fox to Hulu, Fox has renewed their deal with Hulu, somewhat quashing those rumors. (Deadline)
• What are people watching on streaming media right now? Lost, apparently. (Hollywood Reporter)
• Comcast is joining the "cord cutting" trend of most Americans by splitting off most of their cable networks to a separate company, with the exception of Bravo. (Variety)
• Norah O'Donnell has officially announced that her last day as anchor at CBS will be on January 24. (TV Insider)
• We have midseason updates from NBC. (SitcomsOnline)

WEEKLY PLANNER (NOVEMBER 23 - NOVEMBER 30)

• Marlo Thomas turned 87 this past week, and this weekend, Catchy Comedy has a That Girl binge.
• A new season of Children Ruin Everything arrives Friday on The CW.
• Antenna TV is having a marathon of The Jeffersons for Thanksgiving, while Rewind TV is having a marathon of Who's the Boss?

SitcomsOnline Digest: Simpsons Themed Monday Night Football Alternate Telecast in December; MeTV Planning for Christmas

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! We're back to a slow news week as election week is upon us, and we know the broadcast networks have that to get through this week, but nonetheless, we have news about a special Monday Night Football telecast, MeTV Christmas plans, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

• A Simpsons-themed Monday Night Football alternative telecast is coming to Disney+ in December. (Deadline)
• MeTV has a busy schedule ahead for Christmas. (Cord Cutters News)
• Comcast is considering selling off their cable networks to a subsidiary owned by shareholders. (Cord Cutters News)
• For election night coverage this year, there is a new option at Amazon Prime, where Brian Williams will not be left out of this election. (Deadline)
• Peacock has renewed Days of Our Lives for a 61st season. (TVLine)
• Georgie & Mandy's First Wedding has now gotten a full season pickup at CBS. (SitcomsOnline)

WEEKLY PLANNER (NOVEMBER 2 - NOVEMBER 8)

• Catchy Comedy has an ALF binge this weekend.

New Audio Comedy Premiering in October; Affion Crockett Comedy Special Coming to Xfinity

Audible, Inc., the leading creator and provider of premium audio storytelling, announced a new scripted science-fiction comedy Third Eye, written and created by actor, producer, writer and streamer, Felicia Day (The Guild, Geek & Sundry) and featuring author Neil Gaiman (The Sandman) as The Narrator. Set to premiere on October 5, the Audible Original produced alongside Clamor, stars Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings), LilyPichu (Offline TV), Wil Wheaton (Ready Player One), London Hughes (The Netflix Afterparty), Danny Pudi (Mythic Quest, Community), Alan Tudyk (Resident Alien), Hudson Yang (Fresh off the Boat), and Christopher Judge (God of War). Post-production for the Audible Original will be handled by Mumble Media, a worker-owned podcast production cooperative.

Third Eye tells the story of Laurel (Felicia Day), a "Chosen One" wizard still grappling with the fallout of failing a decade earlier in her fight with the ultimate evil Tybus (Christopher Judge). Day will write and star in the project, as our heroine is forced to overcome her tattered reputation and self-loathing in order to save her friends, eventually uncovering shocking secrets on the way toward re-confronting old enemies. The series takes listeners on a comedic ride, with one-of-a-kind characters including Kate Chen (LilyPichu), a quirky, teenage human girl on a quest for knowledge about the supernatural world; Frank Fletcher (Sean Astin), a cranky, stubborn vampire; Robigus (Wil Wheaton), the local San Francisco enforcer for Tybus the Terrible and a constant thorn in the side for Laurel; and Sybil (London Hughes), an exiled Faerie princess in her 20s who exemplifies "hot mess." With a storyline written as a love letter to the fantasy genre, listeners can expect an abundance of iconic geek and gaming culture Easter eggs cleverly woven throughout the series.

Affion Crockett, Delmar Washington, and Comcast NBCUniversal are announcing a new partnership to release Affion Crockett Presents: Microphone Masters, an innovative comedy special this fall, exclusively on Comcast's Black Experience on Xfinity platform. Launched in 2021, Black Experience on Xfinity features the ultimate in Black storytelling from Black programming partners and film studios and has released a variety of original documentaries and specials, like this one, showcasing Black talent and content creators. The premiere special will feature three emerging comedians - Ron G., Kanisha Buss, and Brandon Lewis. All three featured comedians have already left a mark in their growing careers - including Kanisha guest starring on The Chappelle Show and Brandon hosting Roast Me, and All Def Digital with over 4 million subscribers. Affion Crockett Presents: Microphone Masters, will be the first ever standalone comedy special for each comedian. Beyond the planned individual sets, each comedian’s one-hour broadcast will also include behind the scenes footage of the pre-taped show filmed in Los Angeles, as well as one-on-one interviews for a more intimate and personal look at all three performers.

Comcast to Launch 2 New Networks; Disney Sitcom Launches Jan. 25

E!, style Acquire Sex and the City; Big Bang Theory Gets Two and a Half Men Slot On May 3, Wife Swap Not Airing Again

I'm back after a few days away, but Todd did a great job filling in!

Comcast-owned networks E! Entertainment and style have acquired the rights to all 94 episodes of Sex and the City starting in January 2011. Sex and the City of course aired on HBO for six seasons from 1998-2004 and has been airing on TBS in repeats since 2003. Currently on TBS it airs weeknights in the 1am hour, but they will be losing the rights to the show when E! and style's deal starts. The series is not needed on TBS anymore, especially since Conan O'Brien will start his talk show in the fall, giving Sex and the City the boot since one hour (or two since there will likely be an encore of the talk show) of late night will be removed because of his new talk show.
The Comcast deal let's it air on E! and style as well as limited digital, VOD and mobile rights starting in Jan. 2011. In a previously done deal, E! already has the rights to the first Sex and The City movie, which will debut on E! in July 2012.

We have some notable network notes for you. CBS is trying The Big Bang Theory in Two and a Half Men's 9pm half-hour on Monday, May 3 - the first Monday of May sweeps! This is really a forced thing, because Two and Half Men had its episode order cut by two (the Charlie Sheen rehab situation) and doesn't have enough new episodes left in May. As a result, CBS has announced it will air an all-new episode of The Big Bang Theory at 9pm on May 3, followed by a repeat in its regular 9:30pm half-hour. Two and a Half Men will return with its final three episodes of the season starting May 10 at 9pm, with the season finale airing on May 24.
View more CBS schedule updates for May.
Moving on to other network notes, as I predicted, once again ABC will preempt Wife Swap this Friday (April 16) for previous week's rerun of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution at 8pm leading into an all-new episode. I suspect this will happen again next week (April 23), as Food Revolution will have its season finale next week. If that is the case, Wife Swap will return April 30 with back-to-back episodes, as previously scheduled. Then it should air weekly at 8pm, leading into Primetime: What Would You Do? at 9pm starting May 7.

ABC Announces March 2010 Return Dates for FLASHFORWARD and V; Comcast to Manage NBC with Merger with GE

ABC has announced a few more midseason dates! First off, as you all saw last night at the end of FLASHFORWARD, ABC said it will bring the show back in March now instead of January, so it can air repeat-free and avoid the Winter Olympics (Feb. 12-28). FLASHFORWARD will return on Thursday, March 4, 2010 at 8pm for 12 straight repeat-free weeks. 14 hours are left of the 24 hour season, so two times ABC will air two-hour episodes to fit them in during these 12 weeks.
Meanwhile, ABC has also announced that V will return Tuesday, March 30, 2010, but not in its 8pm slot it had in November. It will air at 10pm following LOST! 9 episodes remain in the first season.
As previously announced, Ugly Betty will air Wednesdays at 10 starting Jan. 6, Shark Tank Fridays at 9 starting January 8, and LOST will return Feb. 2, airing Tuesdays at 9pm.
There is still plenty of other midseason news to come for ABC, such as a return date for Dancing with the Stars, and premiere dates for Jamie Oliver series, The Deep End, Happy Town, and Romantically Challenged. ABC also has Wife Swap and Primetime: What Would You Do? waiting on the bench. As soon as they announce it, we'll let you know. So far only Fox has announced its full second half schedule. NBC has only announced Jan/Feb, while CBS has not announced anything yet. The CW has announced a bit, as well as ABC...but nothing full yet. So, stay with us, but for now view more on this FLASHFORWARD and V return dates!

Comcast and General Electric officially announced that they have signed a definitive agreement to form a joint venture that will be 51 percent owned by Comcast, 49 percent owned by GE and managed by Comcast. The joint venture, which will consist of the NBC Universal businesses and Comcast's cable networks, regional sports networks and certain digital properties and certain unconsolidated investments, will be well positioned to compete in an increasingly dynamic and competitive media and digital environment.
The joint venture will provide consumers the broadest possible access to content, and support high-quality, award-winning content development across all platforms including film, television, and online. It will be anchored by an outstanding portfolio of cable networks and regional sports networks that will account for about 80 percent of its cash flow, including USA, Bravo, Syfy, E!, Versus, CNBC and MSNBC. The joint venture will be financially strong with a robust cash-flow-generation capability.
View the full press release, so you know the full details of this deal.

Comcast's TubeTime Brings Back Diff'rent Strokes, What's Happening; WGN Acquires American Gladiators Revivial Reruns

Comcast's onDemand service TubeTime is bringing back Diff'rent Strokes and What's Happening!! onDemand! The first 5 episodes of each are available again to view at your leisure! These two have been on Comcast's TubeTime previously and now they both return.
TubeTime still has Facts of Life, Three Stooges, Gidget, Larry Sanders Show and Sanford & Son on their service, too. So fans of those series, not to worry...they will remain. It looks like since we last reported, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, Who's the Boss?, One Day at a Time, and Silver Spoons are off the service for now. For those wondering Facts of Life episodes are currently in the sixth season on TubeTime, while Three Stooges are in the fourth season, Gidget at the end of the first season, Larry Sanders Show is in the second season, and as is Sanford & Son. Let's hope they get to season three of Diff'rent Strokes quickly, since starting with that season it is not on DVD yet. What's Happening!! is already complete on DVD, so it would have been better if it was follow-up series What's Happening Now!! instead, since only one season of that is on DVD. In addition to that, I'm hoping the following pop-up on TubeTime in the future: Dennis the Menace, Sanford, Benson, 227, Archie Bunker's Place, Maude, and hoping some return like Silver Spoons. Maybe wishful thinking on some? TubeTime only provides Sony owned series to Comcast.

WGN America has acquired reruns of the revival of American Gladiators that aired on NBC last year. The series will air Thursday nights at 9pm ET starting Thursday, June 25. American Gladiators will follow WWE Superstars on Thursday nights and that should finally give WGN America a good companion to WWE Superstars.
In other schedule news, Around the World for Free will wrap up its season on Monday, June 22, then a series of specials will air in July on Mondays at 9pm ET titled Lance Burton, Master Magician. Once that wraps, a second rerun of AFV will return on Monday nights. The special ASA Action Sports World Tour will air at 9pm ET on Thursday, July 9 (that will shift American Gladiators to Wednesday at 9pm ET for that week only).
And as for classic TV, there will be plenty of it this fall and we will get to that soon! One hint is one show that airs on the network will be celebrating an anniversary, and WGN America will air an anniversary marathon! We will tell you that soon! So keep checking back!

Comcast onDemand's TubeTime Adds More Series, Removes Some; Comcast onDemand's TheWB Adds More; Scrubs Returns Tonight

Comcast onDemand's channel TubeTime, owned by Sony Pictures Television, has added four more series to its onDemand slate this past week. Gidget, The Larry Sanders Show, The Three Stooges, and Sanford & Son have been added with the first four episodes of each series. Now gone from the service are Silver Spoons and One Day at a Time. It is unfortunate because they didn't get to finish the run on either. They even had episodes beyond season one for those two, and both haven't had any DVD releases after season one. Still on the service will be The Facts of Life, Who's the Boss?, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, and Party of Five. It's nice Facts of Life and Who's the Boss? are still on it since they are on seasons 5 and 4 respectively, and they haven't been released on DVD after seasons 3 and 1 respectively. I don't understand a few of these additions to the slate like Sanford & Son, which is already complete on DVD and is on television on TV Land & TV One. It would have been better if they kept Silver Spoons or One Day at a Time. What would have been better was if they added Sanford Arms or Sanford instead of the heavily seen Sanford & Son. What I'd like to see return or come to TubeTime: Diff'rent Strokes, Silver Spoons, One Day at a Time, What's Happening Now!!, Benson, Maude, 227, Archie Bunker's Place, Sanford, Sanford Arms, Grady, Hello Larry, Checking In and more. All of those are from Sony Pictures, so they could come. We'll keep you up to date as always.

Sticking with more Comcast onDemand news...a few weeks ago we told you that Comcast has added TheWB onDemand channel to its onDemand service. They launched with Warner Bros. owned series Martin, All of Us, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper and Jack & Bobby. More episodes of those shows are added each week, and this week they added three more series to the onDemand channel! Three dramas from this decade have been added: One Tree Hill, The O.C., and Veronica Mars. The first 5 or 6 episodes of those were added, while the existing series are now up to the first 8 episodes. So far they seem to be skewing with the newer series, with Mr. Cooper and Martin as their oldest series. Hopefully they add more sitcoms, and more from the past. Some shows hat would be perfect for this service would be Alice, Perfect Strangers, Hogan Family, Head of the Class, Welcome Back Kotter Gilligan's Island, and Chico and the Man. Just my thoughts. All of those are not seen anywhere nationally. Hopefully some of those will come soon. We'll let you know if we get further updates.

Just a reminder that Scrubs returns for an all-new season, its eighth season, tonight at 9pm with two back-to-back episodes...on ABC! I saw both episodes last month, and they were pretty funny, especially the first one...check out my comments. I was never big on this show but did watch a handful of episodes in the past.
Also premiering tonight leading into Scrubs at 8pm ET will be Homeland Security USA, a look at how the Homeland Security Division does its job. It is pretty interesting. I also saw that premiere a few weeks back and I think many will like it also...check out my comments.
Finally, I have to mention this because I'm from the town, but Primetime: What Would You Do? returns tonight at 10pm on ABC and will feature my town of Linden, NJ! I am so actually excited. What Would You Do? explores how people react when they witness blatant racial discrimination. In this scenario, Latino men and women attempt to place an order in broken English at All Aboard Bagel and Deli in downtown Linden, NJ. But their requests are met by extreme prejudice from the cashier. Hidden cameras capture how customers respond to the scenario. Find out what happens tonight at 10pm.

Comcast onDemand Adds Classic Warner Bros Channel; BET Adds Fresh Prince Marathon to Holiday Slate

Back in September we told you Warner Bros. has partnered with Comcast to have some of their shows stream online for free on Fancast.com and that they were going to develop an onDemand service by 4th quarter. Well it is now 4th quarter obviously, and they have added that onDemand service on Comcast cable systems! The onDemand channel is called "TheWB" under TV Entertainment on Comcast onDemand. As of now get the first 5 or 6 episodes of urban sitcoms Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, Martin, All of Us, and short-lived drama Jack & Bobby. We don't have a list at press time of what other series they will be adding in the future, but given their vast library, you can expect about anything, especially what is on Fancast.com, which I will tell you in a bit. I'll keep you up to date on any happenings. Hopefully we get more classics on the onDemand service, though. Wouldn't it be nice to have series such as The Hogan Family, Perfect Strangers, Gilligan's Island and the drama Life Goes On at our leisure anytime on TV?
Comcast's Fancast.com has added a lot of Warner Bros. owned series to their website since we last reported. Back in September they only had more current stuff like Smallville, One Tree Hill, and Friends, but now we also get the classics! It seems Warner/AOL's In2TV doesn't really work anymore, so Fancast.com is now the place to go for classic Warner Bros. TV. They have added about 17 series with many episodes of each to their Classic Warner Bros. TV slate. Among the series are Perfect Strangers, Gilligan's Island, Head of the Class, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, Growing Pains, Mama's Family, Welcome Back Kotter, CHiPs, Eight is Enough, Lois & Clark, and Wonder Woman! All these have been on In2TV, so it is nothing really new, but still nice to have! These episodes on Fancast.com are not in any order and are random episodes...most of them have Christmas themed episodes among their listings, so catch Balki trying to give Mr. Gorpley the Christmas spirit on Perfect Strangers.
One more way to watch Warner Bros. TV is through TheWB.com, but that is mainly for more current series though they do have a few classics in there like In Living Color, as we have told you in the past. Original web series are also on TheWB.com.

Late last week we gave you details on BET's sitcom marathons this week (hope you're enjoying Family Matters today!), but now they have announced one more marathon! The marathon will be on Monday, December 29 and will be the sitcom ... The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air! How is that possible? As with Family Matters, they have borrowed it from sister Viacom station Nick at Nite, and this the series is NOT joining the line-up. It is just for this marathon. The marathon airs from 4pm-10pm, since Viacom doesn't have access to air the series in daytime, due to TBS owning that period for the series. The marathon will encore from 11pm-4am. In other BET week of December 29 news, One on One will lead into the Fresh Prince marathon in the daytime from 1pm-4pm. One on One will also have a mini-block on Tuesday, December 30 from 1pm-6pm. Hell Date returns to the schedule airing in the late night from 3-4am on weekdays. Nickelodeon series Romeo! and Just Jordan return on Saturday, Jan. 3 with back-to-back episodes from 9-11am leading into a six-episode block of The Proud Family from 11am-2pm and then One on One from 2-5pm.
Stay tuned early next week when we give you BET's January schedule (starts 1/5) which will feature The Proud Family, as we mentioned, and also another series...this a long-running talk show that is no longer airing! Find out what that is next week!
For now, once again view the BET Classic Sitcom Holiday marathon episodes list, which now featured Fresh Prince.

WB Shows on Fancast, TheWB.com, and on Comcast onDemand; Mama's Family Back on CMT; Saved by the Bell Removed from The N

Late last month, Warner Bros. launched TheWB.com. It features hit shows from the old The WB (Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and some shows that fit that genre from the Warner Bros. library (The Loop, Firefly). The shows are also coming to Comcast's Fancast this week as well. Among the series coming to Fancast are The Ben Stiller Show, Everwood, Friends, Gilmore Girls, Jack & Bobby, Mad TV, The OC, Martin, One Tree Hill, Smallville, and Veronica Mars.
TheWB.com's inaugural distribution partner will be Comcast, which will offer programming on multiple advertiser-supported platforms, including its online entertainment destination, Fancast.com, and its video-on-demand (VOD) service. Selected series available on the cable VOD (onDemand) platform include The OC, One Tree Hill and Veronica Mars, among others, all at no additional cost.
Comcast will also have access to classic TV content from Warner Bros. on Fancast.com and VOD (Comcast onDemand), which includes more than 700 episodes of series like CHiPs, Falcon Crest, Alice, The Jetsons, Gilligan's Island, Spenser: For Hire, The Fugitive, Wonder Woman and dozens more. The Comcast onDemand series and classic series is coming in the 4th quarter (between Oct-Dec), and we will let you know exactly when and the full list of series at launch time soon...so stay tuned! Additionally, Warner Bros. announced that Comcast and Fancast.com will also serve as an inaugural distribution partner for programming from the newly announced KidsWB.com, a premium, ad-supported destination built around youth-oriented, immersive entertainment.

Mama's Family is back on CMT this Saturday! The sitcom has been airing on and off since the end of December 2006 with a brief weekday run in June of last year. Check our labels below for Mama and CMT so you can see how it was airing in the past.
You can join Mama this Saturday night from 10pm-2am ET following a marathon of reality series Trading Spouses. Episodes 3-10 will air of Mama's Family this Saturday night.
Will Mama's Family see another marathon or in different blocks like it did before? We will let you know, but as of now, this is the only sighting for it. Fans should be happy as this is the first time the series is airing since ION took it off three months ago.

Starting tomorrow (Tuesday, September 16), The N will remove Saved by the Bell from its everyday timeslot of 7:00pm & 7:30pm ET/PT. An extra episode of Ned's Declassified and Zoey 101 will air instead now. So, Ned's Declassified will air 6-7:30 and Zoey 101 from 7:30-9. No reason was given for the change, but maybe it has to do with ratings, we're guessing. We'll let you know when and if Saved by the Bell returns. The rest of the schedule will remain the same as we posted previously, so only the 7pm hour is changing. I'm surprised Growing Pains is still airing weekdays at 11am-12pm, but I'm not complaining!

Hallmark Channel Fall 2008 Schedule With Cheers; Comcast Launches MGM's Impact Action onDemand

We continue the fall 2008 schedules for cable and today we take a look at The Hallmark Channel's Fall 2008 schedule. Now, their fall schedule schedule will start in October and they really have no changes at all! I believe their weekday line-up of dramas (Little House, Murder She Wrote, etc) and comedic drama M*A*S*H are doing well that they don't want to change anything yet. Now we already announced that Cheers is coming this fall previously, and now we have when it will air. Since we just said weekdays will have no changes at all, that will leave Cheers to just weekends, and they will air four episodes a week on Sundays from 10am-12pm starting Saturday, October 5. Hopefully it can do well there and then they can transition it to weekdays possibly?
Also joining the Hallmark schedule is the first-run syndicated series NASCAR Angels (it will also remain on your locals weekly as well) airing Sunday mornings at 8am, replacing one of the M*A*S*H airings, so M*A*S*H Sunday airings will now be 8:30am-10am.
Original movies for the month are Ladies of the House on Oct. 18 and Generation Gap on Oct. 25 both from 9-11pm.
We're sorry that there are not many changes or that Cheers is not on any other day, but we just report what we get and see! Anyway, view the Hallmark Channel Fall 2008 Schedule.
Stay tuned for Canada cable schedules, ION Television, WE tv, Nick at Nite, BET, and NYC local channels fall line-ups in the coming days.

Comcast Corporation and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) today announced a partnership to launch Impact, the first video-on-demand (VOD) channel dedicated exclusively to action programming. The new channel, available first to Comcast customers this week, features a host of exciting and popular action films and television shows, many available in high-definition (HD), that will captivate adventure seekers and fans of action, one of the fastest growing movie categories at the box office.
Within the first year, Impact will premiere many of the most successful films in action history, including movies from the James Bond series, Rocky, Terminator, Magnificent Seven and RoboCop. Impact will also kick-off its programming with some of its most popular action stars from the MGM library such as Chuck Norris, Sylvester Stallone and Charles Bronson. As an ongoing part of this VOD channel, there will be special programming themes created around the popular action genres including thrillers, crime, espionage, westerns, war films and martial arts.
It looks like this onDemand service will primarily be movies, though. We will try to get a list of MGM action TV series coming to Impact soon.

House of Payne Scores Big for TBS; CBS News; More TubeTime and Fresh Prince News

The unprecedented deal that brought Tyler Perry's House of Payne to TBS has now resulted in a record-breaking victory, as the series claims ad-supported cable's #1 sitcom telecast of all-time in delivery of adults 18-34, adults 18-49, adults 25-54, viewers and households, according to preliminary data from Nielsen Media Research. The show, which grew a strong 12% from the first episode to the second, also provided TBS with the network's top series telecast of all-time among all key adult demos, households and viewers, as well as ad-supported cable's top scripted telecast for the year to date among adults 18-49 and adults 25-54.
The sitcom centers on the lives of three generations of an African-American family living under one roof, runs each Wednesday with back-to-back episodes at 9 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. (ET/PT) on TBS.
The 9:30 p.m. telecast this past Wednesday now ranks as ad-supported cable's top sitcom telecast of all-time among adults 18-34 (1,416,000); adults 18-49 (3,056,000); adults 25-54 (2,985,000); viewers (5,820,000); households (3,551,000). It also scored a strong 3.8 household coverage rating/3.2 national rating.
The 9 p.m. episode ranks second to the 9:30 p.m. episode on the list of ad-supported cable's top sitcom telecasts of all time among adults 18-49 (2,723,000); adults 25-54 (2,728,000); viewers (5,206,000); households (3,320,000). It also scored a very strong 1,174,000 delivery among adults 18-34, as well as a 3.5 household coverage rating/3.0 national rating.
Wow! 5.21 million and 5.82 million for even a network sitcom these days is decent!

CBS has picked-up an additional sitcom for mid-season! Last week The CW picked up an additional sitcom, now CBS will pick up the sitcom The Captain for mid-season. CBS has ordered six episodes of this single camera sitcom. The series stars Fran Kranz, Chris Klein and Jeffrey Tambor. The series centers on a young writer whose life changes when he moves into a legendary Hollywood apartment building.
Thanks to the fans, rookie drama series Jericho will return next season! After upfront last month, the network canceled the series, but thanks to fans, the show will return. CBS has ordered seven episodes of Jericho for mid-season next year.

We have some more Comcast TubeTime news. In addition to yesterday's story, two more series are also added to the OnDemand service. '90s sitcom Ned & Stacey and the classic drama Fantasy Island. It appears Diff'rent Strokes and What's Happening!! will leave since no new episodes are appearing, but Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie has new episodes. Soap will return will new episodes on June 18.

In Nick at Nite news, we will see yet more Fresh Prince this weekend, as the network will pre-empt their Fri-Sun programming this week and air Fresh Prince from 10:30pm-5am on Friday & Saturday and 9:30pm-5am on Sunday. Excited???

SitcomsOnline.com Exclusive: Interview with AmericanLife TV's Mark Ringwald; Comcast Adds 'Boss', 'Pegs,' and Returns 'Facts'

We have had the pleasure to interview Mark Ringwald, VP of Programming for AmericanLife TV! AmericanLife TV Network of course is the only full-time cable network devoted to America's 78 million "baby boomers." AmericanLife TV Network delivers entertaining classic TV shows along with award-winning originals to create its 24-hour schedule. The network reaches over 10.5 million subscribers across the US. The network started out in 1985 as the Nostalgia Channel, then it was renamed to GoodLife TV, and now we have AmericanLife TV. Despite the name changes, the network always focused on classic TV.

Mark Ringwald has been good to us for quite some time. He has always provided prompt responses to SitcomsOnline and we thank him for that. This will be our first public interview with him, so I hope you all get a good taste of this fine cable network. So, without further adieu here is our interview with Mark Ringwald, VP of Programming for AmericanLife TV:


"Seven Questions with AmericanLife TV's Mark Ringwald"


SitcomsOnline: Hi Mark, this is Pavan from SitcomsOnline.com, hope you remember me from our previous conversations? First off let me say thanks for this opportunity and for your time. We are very excited for the 20th TV library deal that AmericanLife has struck. How will we see these shows eventually? We know the Sunday night line-up will change in June with Hill Street Blues, St. Elsewhere and L.A. Law.
Mark: Yes I do and it is always great to talk to you and your readers about great classic TV series.
We are going to be introducing a new night of series each month through October, so that by then there will be at least a few new series on every night. And we have started off with three big dramas. I told our promotions staff that we should create promos just using the theme songs, because they are so popular. In fact after screening the first couple of episodes, I can't get the theme to St. Elsewhere out of my head. I've been humming it in meetings!

SitcomsOnline: As of now, we have heard that you guys possibly have a library deal with CBS Paramount as well. Mission: Impossible was announced, but can we expect any more shows?
Mark: The deal with CBS Paramount was only for the one series, although we license Combat from them also. There is some similarity, at least in my mind, between the two series. They were both so well written and so well acted that it never occurs to you that they are over 30 years old. If you like great television and you start watching a show like Mission: Impossible, then there is no way you can change channels, which is good for AmericanLife TV.

SitcomsOnline: We really love your Saturday line-up of classic sitcoms such as Chico and the Man and Welcome Back, Kotter. Will we see more sitcoms join the line-up, via the Fox, CBS or Warner deals? Also, how are the classic TV shows doing in the ratings?
Mark: Look for a new night of comedies, similar in stature to the dramas, to premiere in July. And because we are not chasing the 18 to 34 audience, we are not relying on ratings as much as the response from viewers. So keep those cards and email coming!
http://www.americanlifetv.com/contact.php

SitcomsOnline: The Warner Bros. deal has carried the network for a number of years. How long will this deal last and can we expect more shows from this library anytime soon?
Mark: At this point a lot of the shows have been airing close to five years, so it is time they took a rest. I am sure we will be doing another deal with them soon; they are after all one of the largest studios.

SitcomsOnline: Fans have asked us quite frequently if AmericanLife will also add classic TV in the mornings/afternoons on weekdays in addition to primetime? Will we see series aired multiple times a week rather just once a week in the future? Most of the classic TV ALN airs is unedited, can we continue to expect that?
Mark: The only problem we have is that there aren't enough hours in the day. As a destination for Baby Boomers our goal is to provide entertainment, information and lifestyle programming that specifically caters to them. So we have to provide a balance of programming. There are fans (including me) of Fixing Dinner and 'Til Debt do Us Part also.
As far as editing, we will continue to air the classic programs uncut. I hate watching badly edited programs as much as the next guy.

SitcomsOnline: I have to ask a personal question here. I am a fan of '80s comedies, and am wondering if Mr. Belvedere and Small Wonder are part of the 20th TV deal? ALN has aired a few '80s comedies in the past such as My Sister Sam, so these would be nice, too. Perfect Strangers from Warner Bros. would also be nice to see.
Mark: Mr. Belvedere is part of the package, but we have no immediate plans to schedule it. Thanks for the suggestions!

SitcomsOnline: Finally, you guys have been known as "the only independent network devoted to the Baby Boomer generation." Competing cable network TV Land has also announced recently that they will also cater to the Baby Boomer generation by adding shows they grew up with (you know, M*A*S*H, Andy Griffith Show, etc) and shows they watch now (Scrubs). Any thoughts on this? And will AmericanLife follow that motto or just air shows that boomers grew up with?
Mark: Our philosophy is that the classic television shows must take them back to a better (a least in quality of the shows) time. If we air a more contemporary show, it must reflect back on those earlier times.

SitcomsOnline: I thank you once again for your time and wish you continued success!
Mark: Thank you very much.

EDIT, 6PM ET: Due to an overwhelming response regarding coverage of this channel, readers flocked in and asked us if AmericanLife will be on more cable or satellite systems soon. Mark kindly got back to us and gave us this response:
Cable companies, Dish and Direct TV have lots of demands for the "space" they have. Beyond lots of channels there is Video on Demand, telephone and high speed internet and now HD programming. We often hear from them that, "consumers haven't been asking for AmericanLife TV." Of course if people haven't heard of us, how do they know they want us, so for those of you that do know about us, please keep calling your cable or satellite operator and letting them know, "I want my AmericanLife TV!!!"

For more information on AmericanLife TV, including to see if it is available in your area or how to get the network, log-on to their website at http://www.americanlifetv.com. And as always, stay tuned right here on the blog for scheduling updates for this wonderful network!

Comcast's free OnDemand service TubeTime will add the short lived '80s sitcom Square Pegs starring Sarah Jessica Parker. The service will also add the long running ABC sitcom Who's the Boss? starring Tony Danza and Alyssa Milano. Both shows should be available to view on the service starting now. The Facts of Life will return to the service after nearly a year and should be available to view now as well.
I'm not sure yet if the current line-up of Diff'rent Strokes, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, Soap and What's Happening!! will remain, but most likely they will. We will let you know when we find out.

We'll be back with more news, if there is anything.

What's Happening!! Comes to Comcast's TubeTime; Nick at Nite Change; GSN Salutes Bob Barker

We have a busy day of news for you today. First off, the classic '70s sitcom What's Happening!! is now on Comcast On-Demand's TubeTime channel! Yes, you can watch Rerun and the gang anytime you want now! If you don't have the DVDs yet, then this is your chance to watch the show and if you like it, you can buy the DVDs! What's Happening!! will be broken up into two categories: Best of Rerun Episodes and Classic Episodes. I'm sure we will see the episode "Burger Queen" in there. The show joins Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, Diff'rent Strokes, and Soap in the TubeTime service. Boy that is better than TV Land! Hopefully TubeTime adds the follow-up series What's Happening Now!! to its service in the future, as that show is not available on DVD yet, but the first season is coming June 12! You can also catch the follow-up series on TV Land weekdays at 7am ET/PT.

Nick at Nite has made a change for this weekend. Yes, they will have another Fresh Prince marathon. Oh boy, aren't you so happy? The marathon will air this Friday, Saturday and Sunday (May 4-6). Friday & Saturday from 11pm-5am (except 1-2am is America's Funniest Home Videos) and Sunday from 10pm-5am (except 12-1am is America's Funniest Home Videos). Nick at Nite is in the middle of launch week for AFV, as it is airing back-to-back episodes this week with an encore of those episodes three-hours later. It will settle into its Sun-Thurs 9pm & 12am and Fri-Sat 10pm and 1am slots starting next week.

GSN pays tribute to Bob Barker, legendary host of television's longest running game show The Price is Right, with rarely-seen episodes of Barker appearances on classic game shows. GSN SALUTES BOB BARKER includes special episodes of I'VE GOT A SECRET, FAMILY FEUD, MATCH GAME and TATTLETALES featuring Barker and airs Tuesday, May 15 through Saturday, May 19 on GSN.
Barker, the eighty-three year old host of The Price Is Right, recently announced plans to end his 35-year run as host of the iconic daytime game show in June.
To view the schedule of GSN's Bob Barker Salute marathon, click HERE.

And finally as a heads-up, you will want to come back here tomorrow as we will give full details on ION Television's upfront! Will they announce more shows or expansion of the schedule? We'll find out tomorrow. We know they will announce something and the major announcement is probably going to be the details of the RHI programming block (Fri-Sun 7-11pm, starting June 29).

'Barker' Pulled from NBC Thursday; 'Strokes' Back on Comcast's Tube Time

New sitcom Andy Barker, P.I., which has been airing on NBC Thursdays at 9:30, will be pulled effective immediately and replaced by Scrubs. NBC plans to air the last scheduled episode on Saturday, April 14 at 8 followed by the sixth episode which was supposed to be an online only episode, but now NBC will just burn it off on-air. So how does it look for a season two for this show? A zero chance. Looks like a strike three for Andy Richter, as this is his third sitcom that has failed (Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Quintuplets, Andy Barker). If NBC just pulled it and decided to bring it back and launch it later, it would have seemed like it had a chance at least to come back, but after banishing its last airings on a Saturday, it looks even worse. How will the ratings be? If it gets 3 million, I'll be surprised. If it gets a 1.0 18-49 rating, I'll be surprised. And those numbers are bad. Such a sad state for sitcoms these days (ratings wise)...

Comcast's On-Demand channel TubeTime has returned classic '80s sitcom Diff'rent Strokes to its service. Instead of going in order, this time the show is categorized into three categories: Classic Episodes, Very Special Episodes, and Janet Jackson Episodes. Among the classic episodes are the pilot, "The Spanking," "Arnold's Hero," and "Birds & Bees." The Very Special Episodes are the classic multiple part episodes that the show is famous for, some include: "The Bank Job," "The Bicycle Man", and "The Wedding." And the Janet Jackson episodes include: "First Love," "The Music Man," and "The Houseguest." Now some are not available yet, as new episodes are added each week, so keep checking the Comcast website by clicking HERE.
Let's hope we get Season 3 on DVD sometime soon. I hope by the end of the summer.