Sunday, September 16, 2007
Summer Week 16 Sitcom Ratings
Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for week of Sept. 3-9)
- The Simpsons (Fox) 2 episodes - 6.01 and 6.42 million for 2 repeats, much better than previous week's 3.85 million and 4.85 million ... thanks to the return of the NFL!
- Family Guy (Fox) 2 episodes - 6.06 and 6.24 million for 2 repeats, again better than last week's 5.15 and 5.18 million.
- How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - 5.3 million for a repeat, up a bit from previous week
- Old Christine (CBS) - 5.78 million for a repeat, a tad up from last week.
- Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 9.95 million for a repeat, up from the previous week.
- Rules of Engagement (CBS) - 7.52 million for a repeat, up quite a bit from last week.
- Everybody Hates Chris, Girlfriends, The Game (The CW) - Repeats of these sitcoms did OK with the 8pm edition of Chris, the highest at 2.08 million.
Tuesday Sitcoms
- None
- According to Jim (ABC) 2 episodes - 4.12 and 4.25 million for 2 repeats, down a bit from previous week.
- 'Til Death (Fox) 2 episodes - Just 3.57 and 3.86 million for 2 repeats. Actually up from previous week!
Thursday Sitcoms
- 30 Rock (NBC) - An encore dropped quite a bit from the lead-in to 3.97 million.
- The Office (NBC) -The encore aired after Bush's speech in the ET/CT zones and did 3.84 million. Scrubs was pre-empted.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Our Emmy Awards Picks; Solomon's Weekly Rant: Nick at Nite's Double Airings of Its New Shows; The Unclassy Addition to The View
Here are our picks:
COMEDY SERIES
30 Rock
Entourage
The Office
Two and a Half Men
Ugly Betty
OUR PICK: Ugly Betty. What a tough category, 30 Rock and The Office can also win, too.
DRAMA SERIES
Boston Legal
Grey's Anatomy
Heroes
House
The Sopranos
OUR PICK: Grey's Anatomy. I think The Sopranos will not win like how Cheers didn't win in its final season.
LEAD ACTOR, COMEDY SERIES
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Steve Carell, The Office
Ricky Gervais, Extras
Tony Shalhoub, Monk
Charlie Sheen, Two and a Half Men
OUR PICK: Tony Shalhoub, Monk. Really anyone can win here but Sheen.
LEAD ACTRESS, COMEDY SERIES
America Ferrera, Ugly Betty
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Felicity Huffman, Desperate Housewives
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures of Old Christine
Mary Louise Parker, Weeds
OUR PICK: America Ferrera, Ugly Betty. Huffman or Parker can win, but Ferrera is a huge favorite here.
LEAD ACTOR, DRAMA SERIES
James Gandolfini, The Sopranos
Hugh Laurie, House
Denis Leary, Rescue Me
James Spader, Boston Legal
Kiefer Sutherland, 24
OUR PICK: James Gandolfini, The Sopranos.
LEAD ACTRESS, DRAMA SERIES
Patricia Arquette, Medium
Minnie Driver, The Riches
Edie Falco, The Sopranos
Sally Field, Brothers and Sisters
Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer
OUR PICK: Edie Falco, The Sopranos. I'd want Sally Field, but no chance I think. Sedgwick can win, too.
SUPPORTING ACTOR, COMEDY SERIES
Jon Cryer, Two and a Half Men
Kevin Dillon, Entourage
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother
Jeremy Piven, Entourage
Rainn Wilson, The Office
OUR PICK: Jeremy Piven, Entourage.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS, COMEDY SERIES
Jenna Fischer, The Office
Conchata Ferrell, Two and a Half Men
Elizabeth Perkins, Weeds
Jaime Pressly, My Name is Earl
Holland Taylor, Two and a Half Men
Vanessa Williams, Ugly Betty
OUR PICK: Jenna Fischer, The Office.
SUPPORTING ACTOR, DRAMA SERIES
Michael Emerson, Lost
Michael Imperioli, The Sopranos
T.R. Knight, Grey's Anatomy
Terry O'Quinn, Lost
Masi Oka, Heroes
William Shatner, Boston Legal
OUR PICK: Terry O'Quinn, Lost. Imperioli can also win, but give it to O'Quinn!
SUPPORTING ACTRESS, DRAMA SERIES
Lorraine Bracco, The Sopranos
Rachel Griffiths, Brothers and Sisters
Katherine Heigl, Grey's Anatomy
Sandra Oh, Grey's Anatomy
Aida Turturro, The Sopranos
Chandra Wilson, Grey's Anatomy
OUR PICK: Sandra Oh, Grey's Anatomy. This is Oh's year, unless the Emmy people give Bracco one last hurrah.
Solomon's Weekly Rant
Saturday, September 15, 2007
"Nick at Nite's Double Airings of Its New Shows; The Unclassy Addition to The View"
By Solomon Davis
Since the beginning of this month, Nick at Nite wanted viewers to know that they have added two new sitcoms by overloading the programming schedule with back-to-back episodes of Home Improvement and George Lopez everyday of the week. You would think that since these shows are currently in the introduction phase on Nick at Nite's schedule, that one airing a night would be the proper way to present the shows to new viewers. But the word "balanced" has never been a part of Nick at Nite's programming vocabulary just "overload." And let's say viewers started liking one of the new shows on the schedule, I'm sure they don't want to keep watching them over and over and lose the opportunity to see the shows they were already watching on Nick at Nite before September. That's why there should be a balance between the new shows and older shows on Nick at Nite's schedule so that a new viewer of the new additions can gradually get into the show. Seven airings a week is a nice way for someone to get into a new show instead of 27 airings which quickly leads to "STALE CITY." Nick at Nite's primetime schedule actually has the look of a closet filled with clothes with the two newest outfits in the front and the older outfits pushed to the back so that the newer outfits can be worn on more frequently during the week.
The View, which airs on ABC's daytime schedule every Monday to Friday at 11am, has added a new person to the show which appears to be the biggest mistake of this television season. The unclassy addition to the show is Sherri Shepherd, a comic who loves to tell inappropriate jokes and has yet to show any kind of intelligence. I thought the purpose of her addition was so she could blend in with the other ladies during discussions not try and make everyone laugh every time she opens her mouth. Her most unlcassy moment was on Monday when she said that she took pole dancing lessons in the past because she had a dream of being a stripper. Now would an intelligent comic want to generate laughs from that kind of humor? Only a comic who is comfortable with looking like a fool would tell inappropriate jokes like that to hear laughs from the crowd. And what makes it so sad is that no one laughed at that ridiculous joke which made her look very stupid. Also it's obvious that Sherri is bored when the discussion is serious because she can't tell jokes and never adds anything to the conversation. Sherri should learn from Whoopi and Joy because she has yet to show the ability to be intelligent and funny in the same hour. Just because you are a comic doesn't mean you have to be silly all the time and not show your intelligent side. Which is why I feel The View should have added a woman who could contribute to intelligent conversation instead of adding a woman who is nothing but an unfunny clown who lacks class and intelligence.
My TV Highlight of the Week: Monday, September 10, 2007 - Patricia Heaton saying to Kelly Ripa on Regis and Kelly, "I wonder what you did to get this job?"
My TV Lowlight of the Week: Thursday, September 13, 2007 - As I mentioned, Sherri Shepherd's statement about taking pole dancing lessons because she had dreams of being a stripper when she was younger.
Agree or disagree with Solomon? Discuss it here.
DISCLAIMER: Remember, Solomon is not the voice of SitcomsOnline. He is just stating his opinions and does not reflect what SitcomsOnline says or thinks. It is just his 'View' but it is always quite entertaining.
Friday, September 14, 2007
Perfect Strangers Joins ION Television in October; Peachtree TV Launch Schedule; TV Land Schedule Changes, Includes Return of Night Court
Since Perfect Strangers will air at 8:30 p.m., that means Mama's Family will be shifted to 7:30 and 8pm, instead of 8-9pm. Designing Women, which was 7-8pm will now just be a half-hour at 7pm. Diagnosis Murder will be leaving the line-up and will be replaced by another old faithful...Doc, Mon-Fri at 6pm.
Then starting October 8, 48 Hours will join the line-up and will air Monday and Wednesday nights at 10PM. Tuesday nights will be Sue Thomas F.B.Eye and Thursday nights will be more Doc. This means starting Oct. 8 The Wonder Years will be off the line-up. Still no sign of the rescheduled Firebrand TV.
For complete details on the schedule, including the RHI movies for the month, click HERE!
Continuing our massive Friday of schedules, we move on Peachtree TV. Peachtree TV is of course the new WTBS in Atlanta. Their new call letters will be WPCH. Their launch schedule starts October 1 and will have sitcoms all day long! Among the highlights are Diff'rent Strokes from 8-9am, All in the Family from 9-10am, The Jeffersons from 11am-12pm, Sanford & Son from 12-1pm, and The Cosby Show from 2-3pm. New game show Temptation will air 10-11am, the only non-sitcom from 7am-8pm. Looking at that show's ratings, it will be gone soon anyway. In the Heat of the Night will air late nights and weekends, and America's Funniest Home Videos will air on weekends.
Atlanta just got a bit better! They are not close to Chicago's ME-TV yet, but this is a start! To view the FULL schedules, I urge you to click HERE!
Finally, the other day we told you the new regular schedule for TV Land November that was starting on Oct. 29. Guess what? It will start on Oct. 1 now! Everything will be the same as that schedule we gave you but the 8-10pm weekday marathons and Designing Women don't start until week of Oct. 15. And also Wednesday mornings 7-8am will be Night Court now instead of Gunsmoke! Until Designing Women comes, 11am will be an extra Green Acres and 1:45am will be an extra Three's Company.
I urge you to click here to see the revised October schedule that will go into November as well!
Thursday, September 13, 2007
TitanTV Acquires Jury Duty, New Series that Features Classic TV Jurors; WTBS Peachtree TV News; Alyssa Milano Goes Baseball!
Jury Duty, which is presided over by high-profile attorney Bruce Cutler, features a jury of rotating celebrities and classic TV stars including Phyllis Diller, Ed Begley Jr., Bruce Vilanch, Paula Poundstone, Kevin Sorbo, Scott Hamilton, Dick Van Patten and Tiffany, among others. The series is cleared in over 85% of the U.S., including New York City (WPIX, weeknights at 4:30am).
As we mentioned previously, WTBS, TBS's local broadcast platform in Atlanta, is about to undergo an extensive re-branding initiative and line-up change that will result in an entirely new local, independent station, completely separate from the national cable network. The newly re-branded Peachtree TV will launch on Monday, Oct. 1.
Driven by an Atlanta-centric, hyper-local sensibility, Peachtree TV will feature nightly blockbuster prime-time movies and a daytime line-up packed with popular sitcoms targeted to Atlanta's local audience. In addition, Peachtree TV will bring local viewers 45 regular-season Atlanta Braves baseball games in 2008.
While Peachtree TV takes over the local broadcaster position currently held by WTBS, TBS's national cable feed will become available to Atlanta's local cable and satellite customers, offering the network's signature comedy programming. On Oct. 1, TBS will move to Comcast channel 39 and Direct TV channel 247. TBS will remain on Dish Network channel 139.
The channel's daytime line-up will feature a stable of sitcom hits, including the Atlanta syndication premieres of Family Guy and Still Standing, as well as such series as The King of Queens, The Cosby Show, Seinfeld, Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Friends and Frasier.
In Fall 2008, Peachtree TV's line-up will feature two shows that are currently attracting large audiences in the Atlanta market. The long-running and extremely popular talk show Montel, hosted by Montel Williams, will join the daytime line-up as a Peachtree TV exclusive in Atlanta. Also next year, Tyler Perry’s House of Payne, which premiered this past summer on TBS and set an ad-supported cable record for the #1 sitcom telecast of all time, will premiere in local syndication in Atlanta on Peachtree TV. In 2009, The Office and My Name is Earl will join the line-up as Atlanta syndication premieres.
Moving on to the national TBS, Alyssa Milano is coming to TBS...sort of. She will be covering baseball online for TBS Hot Corner on MLB.com
TBS Hot Corner is a new broadband channel from Turner Broadcasting's TBS, which will be broadcasting the major league division series and the National League Championship Series for the first time this season.
She will have a recurring role on the NBC sitcom My Name is Earl this fall and already has a popular blog on MLB.com and this year launched a baseball-themed clothing line.
Beginning Sept. 17, Milano will contribute regular reports and features from major league stadia as teams race to make the playoffs. The reports will range from interviews with players, coaches and fans, to features on calorie counting at the park and the best in baseball attire.
Baseball just got a bit hotter!
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Bush Speech Thursday at 9 to Delay Programming; TBS Reportedly Renews My Boys for Season 3
ABC will just delay the encores of Grey's Anatomy and MEN IN TREEES by 25 minutes or so and air them immediately following the speech in the Eastern and Central time zones. Mountain and Pacific will air the entire primetime from 8-11pm, following the speech.
CBS has not announced what they will do yet, but it will likely be similar to ABC and air CSI and Without a Trace on a delay in Eastern and Central time zones.
FOX will not air an all-new episode of Don't Forget the Lyrics at 9:00pm now. Instead, a repeat of the show's premiere will air. The Eastern and Central time zones will join that in progress when Bush's speech ends. The Mountain and Pacific time zones, the speech will lead into a new Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (which will air at 8pm ET) and the repeat of Lyrics.
NBC plans to move the 9:00pm repeat of The Office to 9:30, following the speech, instead of Scrubs, in the Eastern and Central time zones while Mountain and Pacific viewers will see both shows.
TBS has reportedly renewed original sitcom My Boys for a third season. No official announcement has been made yet, but we will certainly let you know when they do. The reports are saying that 8 episodes have been ordered thus far. The second season finale aired on Monday night on TBS.
We will have ION's October schedule probably tomorrow or Friday. So just a heads up. Check back with us!
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
TV Land November 2007 Highlights; Internet's TV4U.com Adds Classic Sitcoms Like The Lucy Show
We also have sitcoms now from 5-8pm on Saturdays! Back-to-back episodes of Good Times, The Jeffersons and Sanford & Son.
To see the FULL line-up that is starting in November, please click HERE!!
Let's move on to the stunts for November. Friday Night Movies for the month include Young Frankenstein, Beaches and Saturday Night Fever.
The members of 4077 maintained contact with the outside world through letters. Characters would write letters to their loved ones, thereby becoming the narrators for those episodes. They were shown the love as well during "mail call," where they would receive letters – some good, some bad, but all funny! That's right another mail call marathon for M*A*S*H from Nov. 10-11, 9p-1:30a both nights.
Oprah. Heather Locklear. Homer Simpson. Regardless of age, TV genre or lifeform, there are select TV personalities whose work is timeless and whose popularity is endless due to the impact they have made through television. Entertainment Weekly and TV Land Present: The 50 Greatest TV Icons, counts down the iconic personalities who have made their indelible mark via the small screen on November 16 from 8-10p.
And finally, as we mentioned earlier, celebrate Thanksgiving with your favorite frontier family! Join the Ingalls for this special 3-hour Thanksgiving feast, featuring a look back at the most memorable Little House on the Prairie moments in these heart-felt retrospective episodes. Along with the standard turkey and apple pie, you'll get a side of family love and great memories in Walnut Grove.
Again, for more November insight, click HERE!
TV4U, which presents free internet television on a 42 channel broadband network TV4U.Com, will provide seven channels of free internet TV programming to the new Classic TV service, which will be available in September exclusively on HP consumer notebook PCs and accessed through HP QuickPlay software. The service will allow HP viewers, thru their internet connection, to access all programming at no charge and offer the option to buy DVD or video download versions of the programs at popular prices. In all, more than 5,000 classic programs are being made available to HP consumer notebook PC users through this unique service.
TV4U is programming seven HP Classic TV channels - Action, Comedy, Classic Commercials, Drama, Sports, Variety, and Western.
Action programming includes Combat, Burke's Law, Peter Gunn, Sea Hunt, Flash Gordon, Dick Tracy, Robin Hood, Long John Silver, Ramar of the Jungle, Sky King, Zorro, Lassie, Fury and a wide collection of Kung Fu Classics.
Comedy programming includes The Lucy Show, Dobie Gillis, Love That Bob, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Green Acres, Mothers in Law, Our Miss Brooks, Gomer Pyle, USMC, Topper, The Three Stooges, Petticoat Junction, Life of Riley and others.
Classic Commercials includes the campiest, funniest and most nostalgic commercial spots produced in the history of TV. From the Miller Lite 'Taste Great Less Filling' to Maypo, to Mikey, to future stars just getting their start, each is a treat in its own right.
Drama Channel includes Arrest and Trial, The Loretta Young Show, Four Star Theater, GE Theater with Ronald Reagan, Studio One, Dragnet, Mannix, Highway Patrol, Ellery Queen, Mike Hammer, Alfred Hitchcock, One Step Beyond and series from the Golden Age of Television as well as many early soap operas.
Sports includes complete game action from some of the greatest sports events of the past 60 years. Muhammad Ali, Floyd Patterson, Pele, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Lawrence Taylor, Richard Petty and Isaiah Thomas are just some of the stars who will appear.
Variety programming includes Hollywood Palace, Milton Berle, Red Skelton, Jack Benny, Mike Douglas, Liberace, plus a wide variety of classic game shows such as The Price is Right, Truth or Consequences, Break the Bank, Beat the Clock, Concentration and many more.
Western Channel includes John Wayne movies, The Deputy with Henry Fonda, Sugarfoot, Stoney Burke, Shotgun Slade, The Rifleman, Jim Bowie, Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson and a wide variety of legendary spaghetti westerns with stars like Lee Van Cleef as well as Bonanza, Wagon Train, Rin Tin Tin, The Lone Ranger, Cisco Kid and Roy Rogers.
Monday, September 10, 2007
TV Land Acquires Hillbillies and Hogan's Heroes; ION Acquires NFL Highlights Show; Reminder for George Lopez on Nick at Nite
Then the other show people were wanting to know is Hogan's Heroes. The '60s sitcom will join the network in June 2008. As previously mentioned, Mad About You and Murphy Brown will come to the network in summer marathon form in July 2008, while Scrubs comes in Fall 2008.
But before all that, Designing Women is coming to TV Land this October...weeknights at 9pm starting Oct. 15.
We will have more on Hillbillies and Hogan's Heroes when available.
ION Television announced today that it has secured the rights to air the NFL Films production, NFL Game of the Week, for the 2007 season. The highly-acclaimed highlights series will premiere on ION Television's nationwide broadcast network from 6:00-7:00 PM ET on Saturday, September 15, with the Giants-Cowboys game from Kickoff Weekend, which Dallas won 45-35. A new episode will air each week of the 17-week NFL regular season.
Each week of the NFL season, NFL Game of the Week showcases that week's best game in a one-hour program, and tells the story of the game that viewers didn't see on the original broadcast. Presenting the action from a wide variety of angles, including specially-shot game footage, pre-game and post-game commentary and previously unheard sideline sound from players and coaches, Game of the Week brings fans closer to the action than ever before.
NFL Films President Steve Sabol, a 36-time Emmy Award-winner, will continue to host the series, which premiered in syndication in 1965. It has aired on the NFL Network since 2003.
In addition, ION Media Networks also has secured the rights to air a brand-new half-hour series from NFL Films, entitled Stories of the NFL, which will take a behind-the-scenes look at the lives of NFL players when they’re not on the field. Using NFL Films' original music, candid interviews, voluminous archives and award-winning cinematographers, these half-hour episodes will "reveal the hidden gems of the NFL." The season of 21 original half-hour programs will begin airing on ION Television in February 2008.
Just a reminder that George Lopez premieres tonight at 10pm ET/PT on Nick at Nite for a full hour and will air Sun-Thurs 10-11pm and 1-2am, on Fridays at 10:30pm, 12:30am and 2-3am and Saturdays 11pm-12am and 2-3am.
The network will start with season 5 episodes and go in order from there. Also, on Saturdays and Sundays, the second episode of each night will start with season 3 and go in order from there. Weird.
And finally, the show also launches in local syndication today. Check your local listings, because they have two rotations...the first run, which will go in order starting with the very first episode. And a second run which will start with season four and go in order from there. Again check your local listings.
Sunday, September 09, 2007
Summer Week 15 Sitcom Ratings
Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for week of August 27-Sept. 2)
- King of the Hill (Fox) - Just 1.71 million for a repeat, but it built on the 1.43 million for the low-rated fox Fall Preview Special.
- The Simpsons (Fox) 2 episodes - 3.85 million at 8, and a decent 4.85 million at 8:30...both repeats
- Family Guy (Fox) 2 episodes - 5.15 and 5.18 million for 2 repeats...so Fox built on each half hour...not bad.
- How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - 5.17 million for a repeat, on par with previous week's 5.25 million.
- Old Christine (CBS) - 5.68 million for a repeat, on par also from previous week's 5.71 million. Remember this show won't return with new episodes until mid-season.
- Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 9.11 million for a repeat, down from the previous week's impressive 10.31 million for a repeat.
- Rules of Engagement (CBS) - 6.8 million for a repeat, but didn't hold the audience from the lead-in as well...previous week it did 7.62 million.
- Everybody Hates Chris, Girlfriends, The Game (The CW) - Repeats of these sitcoms did all under 2 million this week with the 8:30 edition of Chris, the highest at 1.88 million.
Tuesday Sitcoms
- None
- According to Jim (ABC) 2 episodes - 4.66 and 4.21 million for 2 repeats, on average better than the previous week's 4.31 and 4.3 million.
- 'Til Death (Fox) 2 episodes - Just 3.09 and 3.07 million for 2 repeats. Why is this show coming back?
Thursday Sitcoms
Saturday, September 08, 2007
Mini-DVD Review: Brothers and Sisters - Season 1 (Sept. 18); Solomon's Weekly Rant: ION's Awful Weekends, NFL Network Glitch
Brothers and Sisters: The Complete 1st Season (Buena Vista, $59.99) brings the first season of the hit new family drama on DVD for the first time! We enter the complex world of the Walker family...who are of Irish-Jewish descent. Though they live very different and conflicting lives, the Walkers find unity under the family roof. Relationships bend but never break as they strive to find their own identities and embrace each other's differences. The series airs Sundays at 10PM on ABC and stars Calista Flockhart as Kitty Walker, Sally Field as Nora Walker, Rachel Griffiths as Sarah Walker Whedon, Ron Rifkin as Uncle Saul Holden, Balthazar Getty as Tommy Walker, Matthew Rhys as Kevin Walker, Dave Annabale as Justin Walker, John Pyper-Ferguson as Joe Whedon, Sarah Jane Morris as Julia, Kerris Dorsey as Paige Whedon, Emily VanCamp as Rebecca Harper, with Rob Lowe as Senator Robert McCallister, and Patrica Wettig as Holly Harper. With special guest star Tom Skeritt as William Walker.
This first season is very good. It starts off slow in the first episode or two but it really makes its mark with the episode "Affairs of State." The great Greg Berlanti came in at that time and drastically made this show better. Some classic episodes include "Northern Exposure," "Mistakes Were Made," "The Other Walker," "Game Night," "Grapes of Wrath," and "Matriarchy." Those episodes really stand out, but they are all very good after episode 3. The episodes run usually in the 42-43 minute range...unedited of course. The pilot runs 41:36 as the lowest and the longest is 43:30. There are about 8 chapter stops per episode, though the pilot has 6. The video is digitally mastered and is in widescreen and looks very good! The audio is great and sounds very good, as it is in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. This is from the 2006-07 season, so it has to be good.
Packaging has a nice white/lime outer box with head shots of the main cast on the front cover...the back cover has information on the set and has some screen shots from episodes and a nice family photo. There is also a section detailing the series and set, a lime-colored special features box with technical specifications also. Inside the box is a digipak case. The front of the digipak is the same as the box cover but the digipak cover has the head shots in a shadowy form...more lime. The back of the digipak has nice promotional photos of Sarah, Kitty and Nora. Opening the case once, we get a booklet holder on the left and three more promotional cast shots on the right (Joe, Kevin, Julia & Tommy). The booklet holder holds the episode guide booklet, with nice synopsis of each episode, along with nice photos on top of each page. We also get two other inserts for BVHE products. Opening the case once more, we get discs one and two in the middle, with three more cast shots of Justin, Holly, and Saul. Opening it one final time, now we see discs three and four, and discs five and six. The discs overlap, like most BV DVDs. Each disc is lime green and has two photos of cast members. Disc one has episodes 1-4 with photos of Saul & Nora. Disc two has episodes 5-8 and has photos of Joe and Sarah. Disc three has episodes 9-12 and has photos of the Senator and Kitty. Disc four has episodes 13-16 and has photos of Tommy & Julia. Disc five holds episodes 17-20 and has photos of Kevin & Justin. Finally, disc six has episodes 21-23 and the bonus features with photos of Rebecca and Holly.
The menu screen starts by showing us the stairs then it zooms in on to the wall by the stairs, where we see family portraits. It is really neat. Nice background music from the show is playing in the background. The options are Episodes, Bonus Features, Set Up, Play All. But before the main menu screen comes on discs one and six, we get some auto sneak peeks. Sean Peeks can also be found on disc six on the main menu. Set Up section has the option of subtitles in English, French or Spanish. Bonus Features are on discs 1, 2, 4 and 6. Disc 6 has all the actual extras, while the other discs have audio commentary. The Episodes option gives us the episode number and title to choose.
Moving on the bonus features. Disc one has audio commentary on the episode "Affairs of State" by creator Jon Robin Baitz, executive producer Craig Wright, Patricia Wettig (Holly) and Matthew Rhys (Kevin). Disc two has audio commentary on the episode "Northern Exposure" by creator Jon Robin Baitz, writer David Marshall Grant, and write/producer Molly Newman. What a classic episode! Disc four has audio commentary on the episode "The Other Walker" by writer Alison Schapker, writer Monica Breen, producer Marc Guggenheim, Dave Annable (Justin), and Emily VanCamp (Rebecca). Another good episode to comment on. The final audio commentary is on disc six for the season finale "Matriarchy" from executive producer/director Ken Olin, executive producer Sarah Caplan, and Balthazar Getty (Tommy).
That's just the commentaries! There is more on disc six! We have a very interesting and long featurette titled "Creating the Walker Family Tree" that runs 29 minutes. It has interviews with just about everyone involved. Then we have a short 6:13 featurette titled "Behind the Scenes with the Brothers." So catch up with Tommy, Kevin, and Justin here as they give us a tour of the set. Then we have a deleted episode titled "State of the Parties." This was supposed to be the original second episode. There is an introduction by creator Jon Robin Baitz explaining why they didn't use this episode. The episode runs 42:49 with the intro, and 42:03 without. It is interesting how different it is. We have another featurette titled "Family Business," that runs 4:34. Get a low-down on the Olin family, the real family behind the success of the series! We finally have 2:28 worth of Bloopers & Outtakes. Very fun to watch always.
I highly recommend this series and set. It is such a well written and acted show. I look forward to it every Sunday on ABC and can't wait until the second season starts on Sept. 30. But before that buy this set and see what I'm talking about if you have never experienced this great drama. And if you have, you must own this set because it is just about everything you can imagine. So get your family together and watch this together, and the good part about it is that you don't have to have a family business to watch it!
-- Reviewed by Pavan
(5/5 stars)To purchase the DVD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com
Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
Official Website
Brothers and Sisters TV.com Page
Solomon's Weekly Rant
Saturday, September 8, 2007
"ION's Awful Weekend Programming; Programming Glitch on the NFL Network"
By Solomon Davis
I never thought that a TV station would operate like a small coffee shop inside the building I work in during the week...open from Monday to Friday and closed on the weekends with an early departure on Fridays. That's the feeling you get from watching the programming on ION during the weekends. Just a programming schedule filled up with a bunch of paid programming and silly movies which can really be called end of the week "Fillers." There is not one sitcom on the schedule from Friday evening all the way to Monday, which is kind of odd since the sitcoms that air during the week, like Mama's Family and Who's the Boss?, do pretty well in the ratings for the network. The look of the weekend schedule just makes viewers think that if they rode pass the ION TV station in a car they would see a sign on the front door saying "closed until Monday." Maybe the programmers at ION feel 95% of America is outside partying like there is no tomorrow when the weekend arrives and like to save their weakest programs for the weekend. ION has to know that some people actually do like to stay home on the weekend and not paint the town red since it's Friday night. So until ION's weekend schedule changes to my liking, the word CLOSED should be displayed on the screen when viewers turn to the channel since ION programmers are wild party animals. However, just to note, the movies they air that I hate, do well on the network. Go figure.
I spotted a programming glitch on the NFL Network recently and was trying to figure out what caused this sudden error. This had to be a glitch because there was a program on the NFL network called College Football Now and I was sure i had the right channel which really had me confused. Now even though college football is similar to pro football, it still does not belong on a channel called the NFL network because it's NOT the NFL. That's exactly why you would never see a program called College Basketball Now on the NBA TV channel since that channel is devoted to pro basketball...the NBA. I do know that some NFL fans like to watch college football on Saturdays but if they want to stay updated on what's going on in College Football they can tune into ESPN/ABC on Saturday nights when the entire day of college football is discussed in full detail. So it would be nice if the NFL Network can just go back to being a 24 hour NFL channel instead of slipping in college football programs because it would be very easy to just rename the channel "The Football Network." Something tells me that College Football program is a small step in the direction of the NFL network airing something called "High School Football Wrap Up" in the upcoming weeks.
My TV Highlight of the Week: Thursday, September 6, 2007 - The return of the NFL season.
My TV Lowlight of the Week: Wednesday, September 5, 2007 - Barbara Walters thinking Whoopi Goldberg went to a commercial break and asked, "Are we still on camera?" on The View.
Agree or disagree with Solomon? Discuss it here.
DISCLAIMER: Remember, Solomon is not the voice of SitcomsOnline. He is just stating his opinions and does not reflect what SitcomsOnline says or thinks. It is just his 'View' but it is always quite entertaining.
Friday, September 07, 2007
Two and a Half Men Sweepstakes: Win a Trip to Malibu!
Fans of Two and Half Men can log on to http://warnervideo.com/twoandahalfmen for a chance to be the winning twosome to live the once-in-a lifetime, free-wheeling extravagant lifestyle of Charlie Harper in a Malibu Home coupled with VIP treatment, spa package and spending money. The sweepstake centers around users spreading the 'Two and a Half Men Hipster Card' to their friends (up to 5 per user/per day). The cards allow for users to be easily involved with their favorite show on television and share it with multiple friends.
The Two and a Half Days in Malibu sweepstake remains true to the brand and is specifically designed to reward and engage long standing fans, who played a critical role in the show’s success.
Good luck! Hopefully someone who reads this news from right here at Sitcoms Online wins!
We'll be back later if we have more news. So try to come on back. TGIF!
Thursday, September 06, 2007
New TV Book: Close-Ups: Conversations with Our TV Favorites; Remembering Courtship of Eddie's Father Star Miyoshi Umeki
Actress Miyoshi Umeki, who won an Oscar for her performance (first Asian to ever win one) as the doomed wife of an American serviceman in Sayonara and later starred in the Broadway musical Flower Drum Song, has died of cancer on Aug. 28.
Umeki also portrayed Mrs. Livingston, the housekeeper, in the ABC sitcom, The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1969-1972), which starred Bill Bixby and Brandon Cruz. In a 1969 Washington Post interview, Bixby called her "the best actress I've ever worked with." Her other TV credits include guest shots on sitcosm Mister Ed and The Donna Reed Show.
She will be missed. She was 78.
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
TV Land Officially Announces Bob Newhart 35th Anniversary Marathon; ION and ABC Notes
TVLand.com will stream all eight of these episodes online from Monday, September 10 through Sunday, September 16. Fans logging on to TVLand.com will also be able to view rarely-seen-footage of Newhart and the cast of the show as they accept "The Icon Award" at the third annual TV Land Awards as well as classic TV Land and Nick at Nite promos for the show and more.
Both tributes follow a celebration event hosted by TV Land and The Paley Center for Media (formerly The Museum of TV & Radio) in Beverly Hills on September 5.
For COMPLETE details, click HERE.
ION Television has delayed its launch of Firebrand TV. The show was set to air weeknights at 11pm starting Sept. 24, but it will be delayed. It might be delayed just for a week. We will know when the October schedule is in, which will be soon...so come on back for that. Time Life Music, which is the show currently airing in the slot, will air instead that week at 11pm.
Firebrand TV is a first-of-its-kind multi-platform experience that gives consumers interactive access to their favorite brands, products and promotions. Firebrand programs only the best TV commercials as a reflection of pop culture in an environment rich with consumer touch points.
Moving on to some ABC notes. ABC will let viewers catch up with Sunday's two best shows on Sunday, Sept. 23. At 9pm, ABC will air the special Desperate Housewives: Secrets, Lies and Suicide. Catch up on all the juicy moments from this past season, as the fourth season will premiere Sunday, Sept. 30 at 9pm! And at 10pm they will air Brothers & Sisters: Family Album. Members of the cast reflect on their favorite moments and recap the first season of this celebrated family drama, a week before the season premiere on Sunday, Sept. 30 at 10pm.
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
AmericanLife Launches OnDemand Service; TBS Renews Bill Engvall Sitcom for Season 2; TV Land Family Day Pledge Launches
Classic TV will feature such shows as Combat!, The Color Honeymooners and Mission: Impossible (in January).
Caring and Sharing TV features American Family, The Dr. Bob Show and specials such as A Journey to Darfur with George Clooney.
Cooking and Living TV features programming including This Food, That Wine, Embassy Chefs and Fixing Dinner.
Lifestyle TV features Alive and Well, Flea Market Mania and Save Our House, Save Our Family.
A quarter of the programming will be refreshed each week.
TBS has ordered a second season of 10 episodes of its hit sitcom The Bill Engvall Show. In addition, Engvall will host Blue Collar Comedy: The Next Generation, a special to be shot at HBO and AEG Live's The Comedy Festival (TCF) at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for premiere on TBS Saturday, Nov. 17.
The sitcom launched in July with one of ad-supported cable's Top 3 sitcom telecasts of all time and currently ranks right behind Tyler Perry's House of Payne on TBS as ad-supported cable's #2 sitcom among adults 18-49 for the year-to-date, according to data from Nielsen Media Research. The show casts Engvall as Bill Pearson, a family counselor whose own family is unpredictable, somewhat absurd and a little mixed up themselves. Nancy Travis (Becker) plays his wife, Susan, who is trying to make sure their three children turn out all right. Filling out the rest of the family, Jennifer Lawrence plays Bill and Susan's teenage daughter, Lauren, while their sons are played by Graham Patrick Martin as Trent, a sports and video game enthusiast, and Skyler Gisondo as Bryan, a musically talented neat freak with a pet snake. Tim Meadows co-stars as Bill's best friend. The show, which is produced by TBS, was created by Engvall and Michael Leeson, who served as executive producers with J.P. Williams and director James Widdoes.
TV Land's Family Table: Share More Than Meals has teamed up with The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University to once again celebrate Family Day -- A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children(TM) on Monday, September 24, 2007. Beginning today, people committed to eating together on Family Day can go to FamilyTable.info to register participation for their family, friends and loved ones.
The Family Table have set a goal of registering millions of Americans to pledge to have dinner as a family on September 24th and, hopefully, use Family Day as a catalyst to make family dinners a regular part of their lives.
TV Land will go dark for an hour from 6-7pm on this day to urge families to go eat together. In addition, a special marathon of TV families eating together will air the night before.
Monday, September 03, 2007
Labor Day Marathons; New Bug, Logo, Website for Nick at Nite Debuting Tonight
Besides the Jerry Lewis Telethon, there are other marathons out there. Home Improvement week launches tonight on Nick at Nite.
Spike TV will have a CSI marathon, while A&E will do a CSI: Miami marathon. Disney Channel will showcase the sitcom The Suite Life of Zach & Cody from 10am-8pm. TV One will have a Cedric the Entertainer Presents marathon starting at 12pm. G4 will do a Cops marathon starting at noon, while Oxygen will air the short lived drama Pasadena. ABC Family will present the first nine episodes from the second season of Kyle XY from 11am-8pm, leading up to the season finale at 8pm. TNT will present The Closer from 10am-9pm, leading up to a new episode at 9pm. FX will have a morning King of the Hill marathon followed by a Damages marathon from 3-8pm, a five-episode marathon that begins with the series pilot. USA Network started a Law & Order: SVU marathon at 6am that will run until 7pm. Hallmark looks for murder with a Murder, She Wrote marathon that starts at 8am. TV Land will present a two-part episodes of Gunsmoke marathon from 12-6pm. On Sci-Fi, it is a Dead Like Me marathon from 8am-6pm. SOAPnet goes to The O.C. with seven episodes about Summer explore her relationship with Seth, her high-school years and her transformation at college. Rachel Bilson stars.MTV will showcase America's Next Top Model from 9am-9pm. On Bravo, pro tennis player Mark Philippoussis goes for a love match in an eight-episode block of the dating-competition show Age of Love from 8am-4pm, followed by Top Chef, the culinary drama boils over in a block of six Season 3 episodes from 4pm-10pm. CourtTV will be patrolling the beach in Beach Patrol from 9am-6pm. BET will have a block of episodes of the faux reality dating show Hell Date from 9am-1:30pm featuring actors and actresses appearing as potentially perfect partners. E! will showcase Sunset Tan and Dr. 90210 from 8am-5pm. Discovery Channel will air an all-day marathon of Dirty Jobs from 9am-12am...wow. TLC will air the series Little People, Little World from 9am-8pm. History Channel will air The Universe from 8am-8pm. Animal Planet will showcase a daughter and father marathon, first up is Bindi the Jungle Girl from 8-11am, followed by her late father's classic series The Crocodile Hunter from 11am-8pm. On HGTV, seven episodes of the design competition Design Star will air starting at noon. First up: the contestants are chosen from thousands of applicants.
Hope you found something at least! Movies are on TBS, Comedy Central, and Lifetime if you can't find anything.
Nick at Nite will have a new logo. It looks similar to Nickelodeon's. Their website has changed it already, but the new look and bug will likely premiere tonight when Home Improvement launches on the network. So take a look on air and on the website!
Sunday, September 02, 2007
Network Fall 2007 Preview TV Specials
The first special is ABC Fall First Look: The New Wednesday! (local affiliate exclusive window was 8/11-17): Get a sneak peek at the incredible ABC dramas coming your way this fall on The New Wednesday, Pushing Daisies, Private Practice and Dirty Sexy Money. The writers and editors of Entertainment Weekly share their insights on the all-new Wednesday lineup.
You can catch this anytime at abc.com right now if your local ABC channel already aired it. ABC Family will air it at 11:59pm on Monday, Sept. 24.
Next up is, ABC Fall First Look: Bigger Bolder Thursday! (local affiliate exclusive window was 8/18-24): Last season it was the biggest night on television, and this fall it's back, bigger and bolder! Get a sneak peek at ABC Thursdays with the editors of People Magazine. They'll share their thoughts on Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy and the all-new Big Shots, plus a sneak peek at Friday's Women's Murder Club.
You can catch this anytime at abc.com right now if your local ABC channel already aired it. ABC Family will air it at 12:30am on Monday, Sept. 24 (early Sept. 25). WABC in NY will air it Sunday, Sept. 9 at 1:30pm.
The final one is called, ABC Fall First Look: The New Funny! (local affiliate exclusive window was 8/25-9/2): Get primed for a fall filled with new laughter. The editors of TV Guide provide a sneak preview of the comedies coming your way this fall on ABC -- Samantha Who?, Carpoolers and Cavemen -- plus a look at the award-winning Ugly Betty.
You can catch this anytime at abc.com after Sept. 2 if your local ABC channel already aired it. ABC Family will air it at 11:59pm on Monday, October 1. WABC in NY will air it Saturday, Sept. 15 at 2:30pm.
CBS has not issued any information yet if they are going to have an actual half-hour Fall Preview special, but you can go to CBS.com and view clips of their new programs.
NBC has aired its fall preview specials on its local affiliates, website and NBC owned cable channels. Greg Grunberg of the Emmy Award-nominated hit drama Heroes hosts The NBC Primetime Preview Show -- a 30-minute program showcasing an upfront look to be conveyed on a variety of media platforms beginning August 11 through September 23. The annual Fall program will be offered to NBC's 232 television stations (check local listings) as well as other channel entities such as USA, SCI FI, Bravo, UniHD, Chiller, mun2, MSNBC, CNBC, Sleuth, NBC2Go, on-demand and broadband. NBC stations can also run it on their websites while NBC.com will also run it as well. In addition, the program will be screened on selected United Airlines flights. It will be broadcast nationally on NBC on Saturday, September 8 at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Summer is nearly over, but Fox is hotter than ever with an inside look at the new fall lineup. Hosted by Wayne Brady of Don't Forget the Lyrics!, this half-hour features exclusive clips from new and returning shows, including powerhouse dramas House and Prison Break and never-before-seen footage from the hot new series K-Ville and Back to You. Catch an exciting glimpse of the new season on Fox Fall Preview 2007 airing Sunday, Sept. 2 at 7:00PM ET/PT on Fox. That's tonight. If you miss it then, check your local Fox affiliates to see if they will be airing it at any other day and time. In NY, you can catch it again on WNYW on Sept. 8 at 1am and Sept. 9 at 1pm, among other days. Just check your listings.
Moving on to The CW. It too has a half-hour special just for affiliates it seems. If you miss it on your local CW, you can catch it on your CW channel's website. Among the times it will air here in NY on WPIX are Sept. 4 at 2:30am and Sept. 9 at 10am. Titled, CW Fall Preview 2007, this half-hour special is hosted by Erica Durance of Smallville. So check your local listings!
Saturday, September 01, 2007
CD Review: The Simpsons Testify; Interview with Composer Alf Clausen; Solomon's Weekly Rant: Bob Newhart 35th Anniversary; Comcast's Tube Time
The Simpsons Testify - A Whole Lot More Original Music From the Original Television Series (Shout!, $18.98) contains 41 musical tracks from one of the greatest series of all time, as selected by the award-winning music composer of the series, Alf Clausen. The CD contains music from 1999 all the way up through 2007, all tracks coming directly from the episodes (plus there are four tracks that were previously unaired on the series that are thrown in as a nice bonus). Fans of the series are certain to recognize many of the tracks, including "Ode to Branson," "They'll Never Stop the Simpsons," "Baby Stink Breath," "Homer & Marge," "Everybody Hates Ned Flanders," "Who Wants a Haircut?," and more songs and medleys from all of the great episodes from the past few seasons. Some of the songs even have well-known guests performing all or parts of a song, including Shawn Colvin, Los Lobos, Weird Al (performing "Homer & Marge," a great parody of John Cougar's "Jack & Diane"), David Byrne, The B-52's (parodying their own "Love Shack" with "Glove Slap"), Baha Men, and Rick Gervais.
The CD includes a nice booklet (just like the DVDs of the series, you can't do anything for The Simpsons without a nice booklet) that gives listeners all of the information that they need to know about each and every track contained within the CD, including the episode each track was recorded for, the characters that are included in the song, and the artists that performed the song. And even more like the DVDs (with their introduction by Matt Groening), there is even an introduction from Alf Clausen at the beginning of the booklet--very nice!
Honestly, it is hard to imagine what the series would be like without some of these great songs. It is almost bizarre to consider that musical tracks for a TV series could be this good, and in some cases (particularly "Homer & Marge" and "Everybody Hates Ned Flanders") can be addictive songs that you just can't get out of your head. The CD gives listeners an alternative method for listening to all of these great songs without having to watch the episodes on TV or wait for the DVDs to be released. Of course, the songs are nice to see with the original episode as well (the episode kind of helps to serve as a "video" for the music), but these songs are a rare exception in music created for a TV series where the music just by itself is excellent. For those that are interested in even more music from older seasons of the series, there are some other CDs out there that are similar to this, which are worth picking up if you are interested. But I have a feeling this will by no means be the last CD of this type--like they say in "They'll Never Stop The Simpsons," have no fears cause they'll have stories for years!
-- Reviewed by skees53
(5/5 stars)To purchase this CD, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com
Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com Full DVD Reviews Page
The Simpsons Official Website
The Simpsons TV.com Page
Official Website for the Legendary Alf Clausen
Alf Clausen's Credits
As part of this release, we were fortunate enough to be able to have Alf Clausen take a few minutes to talk to us, the composer that is behind all of this great music on the CD. The interview, conducted by skees53, is as follows:
Sitcoms Online: I was reading about your education and training on your website and noticed that you had aspirations to become a music instructor. Yet instead, you became a composer for TV shows and movies, for many great series including The Simpsons. Did you ever anticipate going this route, particularly considering how music historically has not been part of TV shows?
Alf Clausen: Well, it was interesting because I grew up in a small town in North Dakota, Jamestown North Dakota, and for the most part, folks in North Dakota don't know much about the music industry. So, when I grew up, I really didn't have any idea that one could make a living as a composer and arranger in television. Little by little, as I completed my education and started getting into the business, I discovered that one really could make a living doing that. From an early age of 17, I was fascinated with the way music was put together from the standpoint of composition and the standpoint of orchestration, and I fell in love with Henry Mancini's music. I was very much influenced by his film music and that is what kind of drew me into this in the first place. And little by little, it just started working and I discovered that I really could make a living doing this.
Sitcoms Online: So pardon us if this sounds like a dumb question, but what exactly does a music composer do, particularly on a series like The Simpsons?
Alf Clausen: Well, my duties are two-fold on The Simpsons. The first part is called the underscore composer, which means that I compose all of the original background music that you hear on the show. So I get together with the executive producer and we look at the episode every week and decide which spots are going to contain music and he gives me his read on the emotional content of every one of the music cues, and from that point on, it is my job to then compose the music according to the guidelines that he has given me, compose it to time so that it actually fits in the scene. It's my responsibility to decide what kind of orchestra I'm going to use (we have a 35 piece orchestra every week), make sure the musicians get called to show up at the right place and right time, make sure the studio is booked, make sure all of the music is composed, arranged, and copied, and that I show up the following Friday and record all of the music. I conduct the orchestra myself. We have a fairly large crew as well. My job is kind of like an executive position, making sure all of those pieces fall into place, and I turn in the music at the end of the recording session and it fits the show in the way they want it. The other part of my job is as the songwriter. I write all of the original songs for the show and the job is pretty much the same except that the timeline is different. I do those about 7-8 months before the show airs, and I write the songs to the lyrics that the writers have crafted, but I produce the demos of the songs, I produce the final tracks of the songs, and make sure they are all the way the producers want them.
Sitcoms Online: I've noticed that you've done a lot of work with a lot of live-action series, yet The Simpsons is an animated series. How similar or different is this?
Alf Clausen: Its really quite similar in scope and in process because my job as an underscore composer is to compose original music that supports the dialog and action on the screen, and that process is the same whether its a sitcom, a drama show like Moonlighting (which I did before I got on The Simpsons), whether its a feature film, etc., the process is basically the same. In television, what I like about it is the instant gratification part where I can look at an episode on Friday and record the music the following Friday, its mixed on Monday and Tuesday, and goes on the air on Sunday. Its a very quick turnaround as opposed to films where it can sometimes take years.
Sitcoms Online: If The Simpsons hadn't come along or if it hadn't become the success that it is today, where do you think you would be in your career today?
Alf Clausen: On the unemployment line. No, only kidding! Well, that is hard to know because I had a certain amount of success before coming to The Simpsons all the way back to being the musical director of The Donny and Marie Show on ABC in the early part of my career, which was a top 10 show on ABC, so I've had a very good career up to the point where I did The Simpsons. I was the composer on the Moonlighting series for four years, on the sitcom ALF (no relation), a lot of movies of the week, some feature film work, and all of the kind of stuff, so I'm sure that my career would have gone on and probably I would have ended up working in feature films more than television.
Sitcoms Online: So basically just in a different direction?
Alf Clausen: Yeah, it was interesting, because I'd never done animation before, and they'd asked me if I'd ever done animation when they interviewed me for this job, and I said no, but that didn't deter them and they liked my credentials and they liked my music and decided to hire me.
Sitcoms Online: You never quite know what is going to come along in the future, so we don't know yet if The Simpsons will be what you are best known for, but if it is, would this be a legacy that you would be proud of?
Alf Clausen: Oh, absolutely... absolutely! I'm VERY proud to tell my friends what I do for a living and for the most part, they say "oh my god, that's wonderful, what's it like not having to work for a living?" They think I have all of this fun on the show all the time. Then I have to very subtly inform them that I work a few more hours than they do every week because I put in 80-90 hours a week sometimes when I'm doing the score for a show.
Sitcoms Online: It seems like it would be a great job, with The Simpsons being such a great show and everything.
Alf Clausen: Oh well it is, and the peripheral part of it is wonderful as well, the chance to release a CD like this of my music, that is a real treat and this is the third one and the reception of the first two has been wonderful, and it looks like it will be for this one as well.
We thank Mr. Alf Clausen for his time and wish him continued success. We are so honored we had a chance to interview him. A living legend indeed.
Solomon's Weekly Rant
Saturday, September 1, 2007
"Why is TV Land Celebrating Bob Newhart 35th Anniversary?; Comcast's Tube Time is Behind Time"
By Solomon Davis
For years I thought that a TV show had to currently be on the TV Land's programming schedule to have an anniversary celebration. Especially since in the last 3 years there were no celebrations for shows like Rhoda, Chico and the Man, and The Jeffersons. None of those of shows were on TV Land at the time of their anniversary and received no type of recognition. But in ten days, TV Land is actually going to celebrate the 35th Anniversary of The Bob Newhart Show. And after checking the TV Land schedule, just like I thought The Bob Newhart Show wasn't on listed anywhere in the regular schedule. So why is this anniversary so special to TV Land when all the other great shows from that decade were not recognized at all? It's quite obvious to me that someone in control of TV Land programming is a huge fan of this show because of this special treatment for a show that hasn't been on TV Land's schedule in years. So after contacting TV Land and asking why was The Bob Newhart Show's 35th Anniversary was so special to them, they responded to me and gave me a very unacceptable answer. I was told that the Bob Newhart anniversary is being celebrated because it's one of the premiere sitcoms of all time. So if that's true then why isn't there a marathon scheduled for Maude's 35th Anniversary in the month of September? This is just another one of those TV Land programming curve balls once again thrown to viewers by the people at TVPlanet.
Do the people at Comcast have any idea that there is a DVD release schedule on TVShowsonDVD.com? I don't think they do because if they did, Tube Time (On Demand service for classic TV from Sony) wouldn't need to be updated with the right sitcoms. By having the first seasons of Who's the Boss, Diff'rent Strokes, and The Facts of Life on Tube Time, means that Tube Time is "Behind Time." Why do viewers need to watch shows on Tube Time that they can buy on DVD? And what's even worse is that Tube Time also has What's Happening!! which is already complete on DVD which can also make Tube Time "Confused Time." Why not give us What's Happening Now!! instead? Comcast needs to really build a new department called research so that the right Sony shows can be featured OnDemand. If the people at Comcast had done any research, they would have viewers watching the third season of Diff'rent Strokes, the second season of Who's the Boss, and the fourth season of The Facts of Life. No one wants to watch TV shows that they own or can buy out of the stores because that is called a pointless TV viewing experience. So until Tube Time adds more updated TV shows to watch, they can just retitle Tube Time and have everyone click on "Behind Time" when they are in a TV season already on DVD watching mood.
My TV Highlight of the Week: Monday, August 27, 2007 - Jay Leno returning back from vacation on The Tonight Show.
My TV Lowlight of the Week: Monday, August 27, 2007 - ESPN airing the entire Michael Vick press conference over and over and over. Stop it!
Agree or disagree with Solomon? Discuss it here.
DISCLAIMER: Remember, Solomon is not the voice of SitcomsOnline. He is just stating his opinions and does not reflect what SitcomsOnline says or thinks. It is just his 'View' but it is always quite entertaining.
Friday, August 31, 2007
ABC Family October Changes; JustMyShow Interviews M*A*S*H Stars
Let's move on to weekends. Back-to-back Step by Step replaces Sister, Sister from 8-9am, back-to-back Full House replaces Step by Step at 9-10am, and a Sabrina, the the Teenage Witch double shot replaces Full House 10-11am. Hope you're not confused! Other events for the month include a 7th Heaven 12-hour marathon on Oct. 7, 13 Days of Halloween stunts from Oct. 19-31, and more!
I suggest you view this information by clicking HERE!
M*A*S*H is turning 35 next month and our friend Eric from Just My Show is celebrating the big birthday with longtime cast members Mike Farrell (B.J.), William Christopher (Father Francis Mulcahy), and Jamie Farr (Klinger). And as a special guest, they have Todd Susman as well. Todd Susman served as the M*A*S*H PA announcer throughout the 11 year run of the series.
It is his longest podcast yet...over an hour and twenty minutes of M*A*S*H memories! Talk about a big M*A*S*H bash! And that is not all either. Like usual, special bonus clips are available including a 10 question segment with Mike Farrell!
Click HERE to view all this and you'll be happy you did!
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Important Nick at Nite and TV Land Schedule Changes; RTN in Reno in January
So, let's go back to the September schedule to see the fully updated schedule that will start Sept. 10.
In other Nick at Nite news, the movie Grease will air again tonight pre-empting programming from 9pm-11:30pm.
Moving on to TV Land, not many changes really, it is just minor stuff. The Saturday line-up for this Saturday only, September 1, will be changed a bit. We get a Sanford & Son afternoon-thon from 1-4pm, followed by three movies until 10pm, then Andy Griffith mini-marathon will air until 1:10am. I guess this is for Labor Day weekend. Click here to view this change.
The week of Sept. 17, What's Happening Now!! will return for a week at 7am. I guess because M*A*S*H will be airing a lot that week, with the anniversary marathon.
RTN is now coming to Reno, NV! They announced that it has entered into an agreement with COX Broadcasting to bring RTN programming to Reno, NV. The new affiliate will launch Jan. 7, 2008, on a digital channel of COX's KRXI-TV, a FOX affiliate that reaches more than 260,000 households in the Reno/Lake Tahoe area.
"RTN-Reno viewers will delight in seeing a young Michael Douglas in The Streets of San Francisco, one of the original procedurals that spawned many of today's hit shows," said Mark Dvornik, Executive Vice President of RTN, "and they will enjoy hearing Robin Leach say 'champagne wishes and caviar dreams' in Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous on their very own 'Prime Time all the Time' schedule."
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
ME-TV Chicago Fall Schedule; Dancing with the Stars: The Announcement
For the full COMPLETE schedule, I urge you to click HERE! You people in Chicago-land are lucky!!
Dancing with the Stars' fifth competition will start Sept. 24 on ABC and today they announced who will be in it! We had rumors of stars like Aaron Carter, Tori Spelling and Lou Ferigno coming on, but they didn't make it. Looks like some of TMZ's rumors were false. Rumors also swirled on stars like Mark Cuban, Wayne Newton and Jennie Garth, and those came true! Here is the announcement:
In a Dancing with the Stars first, twelve celebrities – six men and six women -- attempt to outshine one another on a fifth season of the hit series, which returns MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 (8:00-9:30 p.m., ET) on ABC. This marks the largest cast assembled to date. It includes an Emmy Award-winning actress, a Vegas icon, an Indy 500 champion, a Spice Girl, a daytime soap star, a Cheetah Girl and a former resident of 90210. As an added twist, viewers get a chance to size up the male vs. the female stars, as each gender hits the dance floor on separate nights during the first week of competition. The women will strut their stuff on Monday night, while the men show off their moves TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 (8:00-9:30 p.m., ET). One couple's fate will be determined the following night, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) on Dancing with the Stars the Results Show. Can the women outperform the men, or will the men dance circles around the women?
As announced today on Good Morning America, the twelve stars making their ballroom dancing debut are:
MELANIE BROWN – "Mel B.," a.k.a. "Scary Spice," is best known as a member of the Spice Girls, the hit British music group that put "girl power" on the map and took the world by storm in 1996. She is partnered with MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY, who returns for his fourth season.
SABRINA BRYAN – Actress and recording artist Sabrina Bryan starred as a member of an all-girl singing group in Disney Channel's original movie, The Cheetah Girls. She has also starred in The Bold and the Beautiful. Bryan is partnered with newcomer MARK BALLAS.
HELIO CASTRONEVES – The two-time Indianapolis 500 champion began the celebratory tradition of climbing the racetrack fence in 2001, racing for Team Penske. Castroneves teams with reigning champ JULIANNE HOUGH, who returns for her sophomore season.
MARK CUBAN – Cuban is the owner of the Dallas Mavericks NBA basketball team. He is the highly successful entrepreneur who founded HDNet, Broadcast.com and MicroSolutions. He is partnered with KYM JOHNSON, who returns for her third season.
JENNIE GARTH – Garth rose to stardom in the popular television series Beverly Hills: 90210. She since starred in the sitcom What I Like About You for four seasons. Garth's partner is newcomer DEREK HOUGH, brother of Season Four winner Julianne Hough.
JOSIE MARAN – Model/actress Josie Maran has graced the pages of some of the biggest magazines, including multiple covers for Glamour and appearances in Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Issue. Maran is paired with Season One winner ALEC MAZO, who makes his third appearance.
CAMERON MATHISON – Mathison joined the cast of All My Children in January 1989 as Ryan Lavery. His television credits also include The Drew Cary Show, CSI, JAG, What I Like About You, F/X: The Series. Mathison's partner is EDYTA SLIWINSKA, the only professional dancer to appear in all five seasons.
FLOYD MAYWEATHER -- "Pretty Boy" Floyd Mayweather is a six-time world champion in five different weight classes and the current RING and World Boxing Council Welterweight Champion of the World, with an astounding undefeated record of 38-0, with 24 knockouts. Mayweather teams with KARINA SMIRNOFF, who returns for her third season.
WAYNE NEWTON – The Legend, Mr. Las Vegas, is enjoying a career that few dare even dream about, having performed more live shows than any other single performer in Las Vegas history, with no signs of slowing down. He is partnered with two-time champ CHERYL BURKE.
MARIE OSMOND – Osmond won the hearts of fans as co-host of the popular variety program, The Donny & Marie Show. Osmond will be led by JONATHAN ROBERTS, who returns for his fourth season.
ALBERT REED – Model Albert Reed has been featured in national ad campaigns for Abercrombie & Fitch, Diesel Clothing, Arrow Clothing, Rayban and Reebok, to name a few. He teams up with ANNA TREBUNSKAYA, who returns for her second season.
JANE SEYMOUR - Actress/artist/author/activist/designer and Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning British born Jane Seymour is a star of motion pictures and television, including her six-season Western drama, Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman. She recently made steamy appearances on the ABC sitcom In Case of Emergency. Seymour is paired with TONY DOVOLANI, who returns for his fourth season.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
TV One Fall Schedule: Parent'hood Joins, All of Us Comes to Weekdays; Scott Baio VH1 Show to Return for 2nd Season
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