SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

The N Revamps April Schedule, Adds Brothers Garcia; ABC Brings Back Murder Club, Moves Legal and Trees, ABC Summer Slate Announced

The N is totally revamping its schedule almost starting next week (Monday, April 7). Weekdays 6am-3pm will remain the same as it is now, so we still will have Growing Pains in the noon hour. It looks like All That didn't do "all that" well for The N because the only slot it will air now is weekdays at 7am. Replacing it weekdays at 3pm is an hour of Instant Star. The four in a row block from 4pm-4am will be basically gone now. 4-5pm weekdays will see the sitcom Brothers Garcia join the line-up. The series was a Nickelodeon sitcom from 2000-2003. An hour each of Kenan & Kel, Zoey 101 and Saved by the Bell follows until 8pm. In primetime we get more Kenen & Kel in the 8pm hour, followed by an hour each of Fresh Prince, Zoey 101 and Saved by the Bell until midnight. The four in a row block from 12-2am will remain with Kenan & Kel on Mondays, Fresh Prince on Tuesdays, One on One on Wednesdays and Degrassi on Thursdays. Degrassi will air a ton on weekends, Fridays 7pm-6am, 6:00pm-12:30am on weekends, and 3-6am on Saturday nights. Weekends will see some changes as well, with Brothers Garcia airing in the 9am hour and 12pm hours. To see the FULL new line-up, I really advise you to click HERE.

We were the first ones to tell you on our messages boards last week that ABC was going to move Women's Murder Club to Tuesdays at 10PM starting April 29...and we were right!
Women's Murder Club will return with original episodes on Tuesday, April at 10:00 p.m., ET/PT, on ABC. The one-hour series from James Patterson will air for three weeks (April 29, May 6 and May 13) in that time period.
As a result, Boston Legal will move to Wednesday nights at 10:00 p.m., as of Wednesday, April 30, where it will air for three weeks, on April 30, May 14 and May 21, with a preemption for an ABC News special on May 7. Boston Legal will still return on Tuesday, April 8 and air on April 15 and 22 as well in its Tuesday night at 10:00 p.m. time slot.
MEN IN TREES will return on Wednesday, May 28 at 10:00 p.m., ET/PT, following Boston Legal's run for its final three episodes of the season.

ABC announces its summer schedule with the premiere of eight original series, including the return of The Bachelorette on Monday, May 19 (9:00-11:00 p.m....moves to 10:00pm the following week), following the performance show finale of Dancing with the Stars; The Mole on Monday, May 26 (10:00-11:00 p.m.); Wipeout on Tuesday, June 24 (8:00-9:00 p.m.); I Survived a Japanese Game Show on Tuesday, June 24 (9:00-10:00 p.m.); ABC News' Hopkins on Thursday, June 26 (10:00-11:00 p.m.); Dance Machine on Friday, June 27 (8:00-9:00 p.m.); High School Musical: Summer Session on Sunday, July 20 (8:00-9:00 p.m....will air Sundays and Mondays at 8:00pm); and Wanna Bet on Monday, July 21 (9:00-10:00 p.m.).
For details on each summer program, click HERE!

Network Notes, Includes More According to Jim; WPIX Brings Back Honeymooners; Oprah Talks to Shatner and Winkler

We have some network notes for you today. ABC announced its post-strike schedule and series already, but now we could have two more series return this season with new episodes! ABC will have 6 more According to Jim episodes this season! 12 episodes were shot of the sitcom before the strike ended now 6 more will be shot following the strike (taping resumes March 7)! So, the show will fullfill its 18 episode order for the season. Currently, the show is airing Tuesdays at 9PM on ABC but after March 11, the show will be on the move to another timeslot, as Dancing with the Stars: The Results will take over in that slot. By March 11, 11 of the 12 episodes would have aired. We will let you know when ABC will air the remaining episodes of the season when they announce it. This will likely be the final episodes, so be sure to tune in to Jim and the gang. And as a heads-up, this week the show will announce a major storyline plot...so tune in!
The other ABC show that could return this season with new episodes following the strike is the new hit drama Women's Murder Club. The drama has been a decent hit on Friday nights and ABC has found a new showrunner and thus 3 new episodes will be produced and could be on the air by April. No word when they will launch yet, but I am assuming it will remain Fridays at 9, as ABC certainly needs help 8-10pm on Fridays as repeats of other series are doing nothing there. We will let you know as soon as ABC announces!
Moving on to NBC, they have all but confirmed that Las Vegas will not return this season with new episodes or next season. So, the finale that aired a few weeks ago, could be the series finale. NBC also will not return new series Bionic Woman and Journeyman, as we stated previously. However, we might have some good news for the struggling Lipstick Jungle. NBC has ordered 6 more scripts, so that is a good sign. Maybe NBC will order those scripts to episodes and have it air in the summer, as NBC is going for a 52-week season rather than Sept-May only.

Last week we announced what will happen to WPIX, WWOR and WNYW in New York when Everybody Loves Raymond moves from WPIX to WWOR. There was one TBA timeslot that I couldn't announce until today. The TBA slot was for Sunday nights from 1-2am on WPIX. So, the TBA slot will be...The Honeymooners!
For over 30 years, the WPIX-TV (CW11) has been New York's home for The Honeymooners. Now, the CW11 will begin a year-long Honeymooners Viewer's Choice Hour to run every Sunday night. See all 108 episodes of hamana-hamana-hamana hijinks with Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleason), Ed Norton (Art Carney), Alice Kramden (Audrey Meadows) and Trixie Norton (Joyce Randolph) in a weekly viewer's choice hour commencing Sunday, March 16 from 1-2 am.
Beginning on March 7, Honeymooners fans can visit CW11.com to vote for their favorite episodes. Each week, the two episodes with the most votes will air in the Viewer's Choice Hour on the CW11 on Sunday nights.
Can't remember the title of your favorite episode? CW11.com will feature a short clip from all 108 Honeymooners episodes (with title, cast and summary information) on the voting page. Each week, viewers can log on and vote for the two episodes they want to see on air that weekend. On Sunday nights at 1am the CW11 will air back-to-back-episodes of the top two vote-getters. Once an episode has aired it will be removed from the polls and all episodes will air only once.
Great news and start voting on March 7! To discuss this news with other fans, click HERE!

Oprah gave us a Cosby Show kids reunion a few weeks ago, and she has talked to classic TV stars such as Phylicia Rashad and Valerie Bertinelli about their current projects in the past few days, but now she will have a legends episode with two classic TV legends and a music legend tomorrow (Tuesday, February 26, check local listings for time and channel in your area).
Here is what Oprah says: Our viewers have been asking for him, and now he's rocking out on our stage. It's rock legend Rick Springfield! Watch as Rick makes one unsuspecting fan's big dream come true! Then, Oprah chats with one of the most recognized people on planet Earth, beloved TV icon William Shatner (Star Trek)! He shares what it has meant to him to be loved by millions as Captain Kirk and how he has been able to reinvent himself again and again over his half-century career. Plus, Oprah talks to TV's "coolest" legend..."The Fonz!" Henry Winkler (Happy Days) talks about his place in TV history and how he has managed to use his celebrity to help children with learning disabilities.

Stay tuned tomorrow for some big news (everyday is a big day now it seems, Oprah must be proud of us)...the launch schedules for ME-Too in Chicago and ME-TV in Milwaukee! Lots of Classic TV!

Real Story on Bob Barker's Retirement? New Book By Chris Mann Coming; ABC Modifies Fall Friday Schedule

The great Chris Mann, who Three's Company fans know and love (as he wrote the excellent book Come and Knock on Our Door), just did an article for RadarOnline.com regarding the real dirt and scoop on why possibly Bob Barker announced his retirement from The Price is Right earlier than planned. Click HERE to view this great multiple page article. Chris interviews a lot of people for it and it really is interesting. Remember to tune in tomorrow (Friday) for Bob Barker's final episode of The Price is Right at 11am ET or in primetime at 8pm ET/PT on CBS! You don't want to miss this piece of television history...so come on down!
In addition to this article, Chris is working on a tell-all book on the show. I can't wait to read it, as this show had a lot of backstage problems, mostly with Bob and his "beauties" -- from sexual harassment to being fired because of weight gain. Good luck Chris!

ABC has not announced this yet, but the Men in Trees' official website has a blog, which the creator of the series informs fans of updates. The creator has learned that ABC will shuffle the timeslots for all three shows slated for the night. Here it is in her own words:
Season Two (of Men in Trees) will start airing Fridays at 9:00 pm (our launch slot) starting at the end of September or beginning of October. NOTE: ABC officially announced we were on at 8pm on Fridays, this has been changed to 9pm. We are now premiering in the 9:00pm time slot, after 20/20, which will move from 10pm to 8pm. So, don't get confused. 9:00 pm, Friday nights. We will be followed by new drama Women’s Murder Club at 10pm.

There you have it. I'm sure she is correct, but it won't be official until ABC actually announces it.