SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Cougar Town Viewing Party Tour Kicks-Off; Big Bang New Year's Eve Marathon On TBS

As we get closer to a premiere date for Cougar Town season three (likely will be announced at the ABC TCA Winter Press tour on Jan. 10), the producers of Cougar Town have set up a very cool cross-country Cougar Town Viewing Party tour! The festivities began yesterday (Tuesday, Dec. 27) in Sarasota (where the series is set), Louisville, and Atlanta. Josh Hopkins (who plays Grayson) and Ryan Devlin (who plays Smith) were on hand in Louisville at Drake's St. Matthews to thank fans for coming. In Sarasota, executive producer Kevin Biegel was there along with actors Ian Gomez (who plays Andy) and Brian Van Holt (who plays Bobby) at Michael's On East. And in Atlanta, actor Dan Byrd (who plays Travis) and writer Katy Purdy were on hand at Dantanna's. Fans got to watch two (or three in some cases!) episodes from the upcoming third season of the sitcom, drink wine (maybe out of Big Carl, and yes R.I.P. Big Joe), got a Cougar Town US Tour t-shirt and play the very fun Penny can game that they play on the show with some of the stars on hand! How cool is that? Can this show get any cooler? It's "100% Cougar Free" and "Badly Titled," but it is one of the best ensembles on television and you need to watch it when it returns to ABC.
The next wave of viewing parties are in San Diego on Thursday, January 5; in Los Angeles on Friday, January 6 (with set visit) and in Chicago on Saturday, January 7. Fans who submitted their ticket request will get a confirmation this week. Much more tour dates to come and three more cities will be announced on January 4 by executive producer Bill Lawrence on Twitter: @VDOOZER. Among the cities that will have viewing parties in January/February are New York City (three different events), Boston, Las Vegas, Austin, San Francisco, Phoenix, Philadelphia, somewhere in Connecticut, and two more in Los Angeles. So go follow him and make sure you attend one of these viewing parties in your area because a cast member and writer/producer will definitely be on hand! Start practicing your penny can shot!

TBS will say goodbye to 2011 with a big bang! They will say goodbye to 2011 and hello to 2012 with The Big Bang Theory New Year's Eve Marathon. Watch The Big Bang Theory starting at 7pm ET with ten smart episodes running through 12 midnight as we start 2012. Among the storylines are Raj inviting Penny to go the People Magazine party, but the only way he can talk to Penny is while being drunk, which puts a halt to their friendship. The season two finale, where Sheldon meets with the University's Dean, who requests that he leads an arctic expedition to the North Pole, so Sheldon asks the guys if they would like to come along. And the marathon closes out with a season four episode where Penny's father shows up and she asks Leonard for help by pretending to still be her boyfriend.
Marathon episode list: "The Griffin Equivalency," "The Monopolar Expedition," "The Financial Permeability," "The Cornhusker Vortex," "The Cooper-Nowitzki Theorem," "The Vengeance Formulation," "The Gothowitz Deviation," "The Justice League Recombination," "The Bat Jar Conjecture" and "The Boyfriend Complexity."
Stay with us on Friday for our annual look at marathons on New Year's Eve and Day. We have given you some already but we will remind you of those, too. Come on back for that and stay tuned tomorrow for our annual look at this year's passings of sitcom stars. They may be gone, but they are not forgotten.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Wings Comes To ReelzChannel TV; Cold Case Begins Jan. 9 On ION Television

So Wings has just left USA Network as we mentioned, but it has quickly found another cable home. ReelzChannel TV has picked-up the rights to air the '90 sitcom and will begin airing it on Tuesday, Jan. 3. The sitcom will air in better time periods than the filler style airings it was getting on USA Network. ReelzChannel TV will air it weekdays at 2:00pm & 2:30pm ET and it will encore in the late night at 1:00am & 1:30am ET. The sitcom joins the ReelzChannel line-up filled with other '90s style comedies. To recap their schedule, they have Spin City in the 9am hour, followed by an hour of Becker, a half-hour of 3rd Rock from the Sun at 11am, then a break for an original series, an hour of Cheers at 12 noon, then another hour of Spin City at 1pm leading into Wings at 2pm. Then at 3pm we have another hour of Cheers, followed by a triple shot of Coach from 4-5:30pm. An original series follows, then the 6pm hour has more Becker and the 7pm hour has back-to-back 3rd Rock from the Sun. Movies air in primetime at 8pm and 10pm, then sitcoms return at 12 midnight with yet another hour of Cheers leading into Wings at 1am. More originals air after that from 2-4am, then paid programming rounds out the night until 7am.
On weekends, for sitcoms we have Spin City at 10:30am, followed by an hour of Wings at 11am. Then sitcoms return in early evening with Becker at 6pm and Cheers at 7pm. Cheers also airs in late night if a movie doesn't go over, anytime after 10pm. With the addition of Wings, ReelzChannel has a nice group of similar style sitcoms that ran in the 90s. Perhaps for the future they could add more sitcoms like Night Court, Mad About You, Suddenly Susan and Caroline in the City? They would certainly fit. Anyway, for now it is just the addition of Wings to a nice sitcom line-up. Get on board for Tim Daly, Steven Weber, Crystal Bernard, David Schramm, Rebecca Schull, Thomas Haden Church, Amy Yasbeck, Farrah Forke, and Tony Shalhoub. Stay with us for any further updates.

We told you ION Television has acquired the drama Cold Case, but now we have a start date and timeslots! The crime drama will launch on the network on Monday, Jan. 9, 2012 and air at 7pm, 8pm and 9pm. The drama will air in these time periods on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. On Fridays it will air in a four episode block from 5pm-9pm and then back-to-back at 11pm & 12am. ION will be airing 15 episodes per week (with six of those on Fridays).
The drama joins a line-up of other dramas like Criminal Minds, Ghost Whisperer, Monk, Without a Trace, Flashpoint and Psych. ION also airs sitcom George Lopez and theatrical movies. There are no other real schedule changes besides the addition of Cold Case.
Cold Case is a procedural drama about Lilly Rush (Kathryn Morris), a dedicated female detective in the Philadelphia homicide squad, who finds her niche when she's assigned to "cold cases" -- crimes that have never been solved. Previously, she used her instinctive understanding of the criminal mind on current murders. Now, she's interrogating witnesses whose lives and circumstances have since changed, making use of today's new science and finding fresh clues to solve cases that were previously unsolvable -- all of which appeals to this smart, driven detective.

Monday, December 26, 2011

Hallmark Channel Gets Bob Newhart Show; Three's a Crowd Back With Second Cycle On Antenna TV

The Hallmark Channel has acquired the cable rights to the classic '70s sitcom The Bob Newhart Show! The classic comedy will begin next week on Monday, Jan. 2, 2012 and will air every weekday morning in a block from 8-10am with four episodes every morning. The cable network has been airing Christmas movies since Thanksgiving so the sitcoms have taken a back seat since, but they will return on Jan. 2. Essentially the block will replace The Golden Girls from 8-10am. This is the first schedule change in quite some time for Hallmark, so we will recap to you their line-up. Mornings begin with I Love Lucy from 5am-8am leading into Bob Newhart from 8am-10am. Mr. Newhart and company will lead into the Martha Stewart at Home block from 10am-3pm. Then afternoons and evenings will remain the same with back-to-back-to-back hours each of The Waltons from 3-6pm and Little House on the Prairie from 6pm-9pm. In primetime, Frasier also remains from 9pm-12am, followed by The Golden Girls from 12am-2am. Cheers gets an hour late nights from 2-3am, leading into more Frasier from 3am-5am.
On weekends, we have I Love Lucy still from 5-8am leading into The Golden Girls from 8-10am. Movies take over from 10am-12am and then more The Golden Girls airs from 12am-2am, followed by a block of Frasier from 2am-4am and finally an hour of Cheers from 4-5am. Marathon wise, you can catch a marathon of The Golden Girls on Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday on Monday, January 16, 2012 from 3pm-2am.
As for The Bob Newhart Show, it currently also airs on digital broadcast TV on MeTV Network. It also airs on cable on FamilyNet since this past fall every evening and in primetime, so Hallmark will share the rights with FamilyNet. So now if you don't get MeTV or FamilyNet, you'll be able to watch Bob on The Hallmark Channel, as mostly everyone with cable has this network. Stay with us for further information.

If you missed the first cycle of the short-lived Three's Company continuation series Three's a Crowd starring John Ritter on Antenna TV this past summer now you have another chance to watch all 22 episodes! Just like how Antenna TV aired a second cycle of The Ropers, they will air Three's a Crowd again in the Three's Company time period of Mon-Thurs from 8-9pm (with an encore from 12-1am) starting Thursday, Dec. 29, 2011. This will be only for 11 nights, since it only had 22 episodes and they air two episodes a night. Three's Company is tentatively scheduled to return with its first episode on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012. That will be the start of the long-running series' third cycle on Antenna TV. You can catch the series finale on Wednesday, Dec. 28 before Three's a Crowd takes over for the next eleven nights.
I just love how they incorporate both The Ropers and Three's a Crowd into the Three's Company cycle. You'll see The Ropers series again on Antenna TV for the third time when those characters leave Three's Company at the end of season three. If my calculations are correct, it will be sometime in early March. So you'll see The Ropers in the second half-hour of the Three's Company hour and air for 28 nights, as they will only air one episode a night and the series had 28 episodes. Stay with us for further information as always!

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Week 14 TV Ratings and Analysis; How the Sitcoms Did

2011-12 Week 14 TV Ratings (first four nights, Mon-Thu):

Households: N/A
Total Viewers: N/A
Adults 18-49: N/A

Week 14 (Dec. 19-25) Analysis: Week 14 is Christmas week with the only originals really were on Fox for The X Factor. The first four night network averages are not available to us, but we can project, Fox is on top in all categories. CBS follows in second in everything. And then NBC is in third and ABC in fourth, as NBC had some original programming. When the week is over with, Fox should hang on and win the week in all categories. NFL games were on Saturday this week, but the primetime game on NBC is still on tonight, so NBC could be a player for the week to be second. If not, CBS will be second in all categories this week. ABC will be in fourth but should be boosted by the NBA 5pm game into primetime a bit. As for last week, week 13, CBS easily won the week in all categories thanks to a lot of original programming. It was an atypical week again, with NBC in second place everywhere thanks to an NFL game on Sunday night of course. In third place was Fox but ABC was right on its tail but still was in fourth. Repeats galore.

On Monday, it was a really quiet night with Fox edging out CBS for the win. Starting first with ABC, Kung Fu Panda Holiday Special started it off with 4.54 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, followed by the 1981 classic A Chipmunk Christmas doing 4.53 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating. Both were new to ABC. At 9pm week five of game show You Deserve It did only 3.52 million and only a 0.9 18-49 rating, but on par with the previous week. Finale is tomorrow night. At 10pm, a repeat of Castle did 4.06 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, off a tenth week-to-week. For CBS, How I Met Your Mother was a repeat doing 6.15 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, followed by a repeat of 2 Broke Girls doing a better 7.2 million and a 2.6 18-49 rating. Wow, the best performance of the night. At 9pm, a repeat of Two and a Half Men did 7.95 million and a 2.3 18-49 rating, not the best performance of the night. A repeat of Mike & Molly followed and did 7.77 million and a 2.2 18-49 rating, only down a tenth from its lead-in. A repeat of Hawaii Five-0 was next doing 7.03 million and a 1.8 18-49 rating, winning its time period. Fox aired the two-hour Terra Nova finale and did 7.24 million and a 2.2 18-49 rating, better than previous week by a tenth. I don't think this show will return next season. House was preempted. NBC started the night with night one of new game show Who's Still Standing? and did only 5.57 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, down from previous week's Fear Factor premiere by a lot. Then at 9pm Fear Factor aired and did 6.37 million and a 2.5 18-49 rating, down a full point from previous week. I was right about it going down a lot thanks to the terrible lead-in. At 10pm, NBC aired a new episode of Rock Center with Brian Williams and it did an embarrassing 4.26 million and a 1.2 18-49 rating, but up a tenth from previous week. The CW preempted Gossip Girl again with two repeats of Hart of Dixie doing 1.34 million and a 0.4 18-49 rating at 8pm and then at 9pm it did 1.04 million and a 0.3 18-49 rating, down some week-to-week.

On Tuesday, CBS and NBC shared the lead. First, CBS had a repeat of NCIS do 12.37 million and a 2.0 18-49 rating. Then NCIS: Los Angeles was a repeat too doing 11.43 million and 2.1 18-49 rating, building from its lead-in. And at 10pm, Unforgettable was a repeat as well and did 8.09 million and 1.7 18-49 rating. ABC started with new comedy Last Man Standing with Tim Allen leading the night off doing 5.63 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating for a repeat. At 8:30pm another repeat followed doing 5.4 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, building from its first airing. Then at 9pm, ABC aired a repeat of The Middle and did 4.21 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, down some from previous week repeat. Then at 9:30pm a repeat of Suburgatory did 3.32 million and a 1.0 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. Body of Proof was next at 10pm and was also a repeat doing 4.55 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. Fox aired a repeat of Glee and did 3.17 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, not repeating well. Then the comedies took the 9pm hour with the first repeat of New Girl doing 2.83 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, not repeating well. Then at 9:30pm a Raising Hope repeat did 2.72 million and a 1.0 18-49 rating, not good but still held on to most of its lead-in's numbers. NBC was next with night two of new game show Who's Still Standing? doing 5.84 million and a 1.9 18-49 rating, much better than night one. Then at 9pm, with The Biggest Loser over until Jan. 3, NBC aired a repeat of SNL: A Very Gilly Christmas from 9-11pm doing 5.79 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, solid but down from last season. NBC preempted Parenthood again this week and it will return in January. The CW aired a repeat of 90210 that did 730,000 viewers and a 0.3 18-49 rating. Then the Sarah Michelle Gellar drama Ringer was a repeat and did 650,000 viewers and a 0.2 18-49 rating. Both on par with previous week.

Wednesday it was Fox on top with night one of the X Factor finale. First off, CBS started the night off with the annual special Home for the Holidays doing 4.13 million and only a 0.8 18-49 rating. Veteran drama Criminal Minds was a repeat and did 6.78 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, which is below normal. At 10pm, CSI was a repeat doing 7.35 million and a 1.6 18-49 rating, building from its lead-in. ABC was in repeats for its Laugh On comedy block with The Middle doing 5.38 million and a 1.4 18-49 rating, which is solid but down some from previous week. Suburgatory followed at 8:30pm with 4.84 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, building from its lead-in's 18-49 rating but down a tenth week-to-week. The mega hit Modern Family was next at 9pm and it did 6.4 million and 2.2 18-49 rating for a repeat, which was only off a tenth from previous week. At 9:30pm, Happy Endings was a repeat and did 3.74 million and a 1.4 18-49 rating. The more exposure the better for this hilarious show. At 10pm a repeat of the addicting Revenge did 3.3 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating, the best 10pm repeat numbers for ABC for the week. Fox aired part one of The X Factor finale from 8-9:30pm doing 11.23 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating, down a tenth from previous week. Then week four of new comedy I Hate My Teenage Daughter followed at 9:30pm and did 5.78 million and a 2.0 18-49 rating, up some from the previous week with lesser competition. It's not scheduled after December, so that's what Fox thinks of this show. Will it ever return in spring? NBC opened the night with night three of Who's Still Standing? instead of Up All Night and Whitney repeats, and did 5.66 million and a 1.7 18-49 rating, which was down from night two. At 9pm, Harry's Law was preempted for a repeat of A Michael Buble Christmas special doing 4.33 million and a 1.0 18-49 rating, better than previous week in the time period, ouch. And at 10pm, Law & Order: SVU was a repeat and did 3.98 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. The CW had an encore of Gossip Girl do only 630,000 viewers and a 0.2 18-49 rating. Then The CW aired an encore of the Gaga by Gaultier special at 9pm and did 930,000 viewers and a 0.3 18-49 rating.

Thursday it was Fox with the win with the only original programming of the night. First, ABC opened the night with the first Prep & Landing special 3.84 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating for its second airing of the season. Then an encore of Prep & Landing 2: Naughty vs. Nice did 3.65 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating for its second showing of the season. At 9pm, the second showing of I Want A Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown aired doing 3.64 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, holding on its animation lead-in. At 10pm, a repeat of Grey's Anatomy at a special time did just 2.51 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating, as Private Practice was preempted. CBS opened with a repeat of The Big Bang Theory at 9.28 million and a 2.6 18-49 rating, great for a repeat but down some from previous week. Then, a repeat of Rules of Engagement was next doing 6.77 million and a 1.9 18-49 rating, at least they didn't air a new episode and burn it off. A repeat of Person of Interest followed with 8.14 million and a 1.7 18-49 rating. A repeat of The Mentalist followed and did 8.47 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, skewing older than the lead-in even. Fox started with the finale for The X Factor doing 12.59 million and a 3.8 18-49 rating, up from previous week's episode which was only an hour. Great numbers for the finale, but it is no where near the big hit everyone expected. NBC preempted Community and Parks and Recreation repeats with night four of Who's Still Standing? doing 5.23 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, tying its low from Monday...but better than comedy repeats for sure. The Office was next at 9pm doing only 2.22 and a 0.9 18-49 rating for a repeat, down some from previous week. At 9:30pm Whitney was a repeat (yes another repeat of this) with only 1.92 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating, even lower than previous week. NBC's drama bust Prime Suspect was new and did only 4.44 million and a 1.0 18-49 rating, but up some from previous week. The CW's big gun Vampire Diaries and new drama The Secret Circle were repeats that did only 860,000 viewers/0.3 18-49 rating and 580,000 viewers/0.2 18-49 rating -- both down some week-to-week.

Now, final numbers for Friday and Saturday are not available, but ABC won a very slow Friday night with holiday specials, as the second showing of Shrek the Halls led the night. NBC's Chuck was new but low at 8pm.
Saturday numbers have NBC winning the night with the second showing of the season of the holiday movie It's a Wonderful Life. Every other program for the night was a 1 or under 18-49 rating.

Tonight ABC Sunday is in repeats as AFV & Once Upon a Time, Desperate Housewives and Pan Am are not on as ABC airs the an NBA overrun thru 8pm and the animated special and movie How The Grinch Stole Christmas that should all do decent. ABC Sunday returns with new episodes on Jan. 8. NBC will win the night with the NFL with the Packers and Bears, but it will be below normal with the NBA on ESPN and Christmas in general. CBS has an all-new of 60 Minutes, followed by repeats of CSI, The Good Wife and CSI: Miami. Fox has the animated comedies from 7-10pm, but they are repeats.

As for the week (week 14), it's should be Fox with the win unless they completely blow their lead. I'm guessing NBC will be second in 18-49, if the NFL game does decent, if not CBS will remain second. ABC could be third in HH/viewers if NBA overrun does decent, but fourth in 18-49 is a given. As for the coming week (week 15), its the slowest week of the year so far, but Saturday will be above average with Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest.

Week 14 How the Sitcoms Did

Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for Week 13 -- Dec. 12-18)

The Simpsons (Fox) - A repeat did 5.06 million and a 2.3 18-49 rating, which is not bad at all actually.
The Cleveland Show (Fox) - A repeat at 7:30pm did 3.76 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating.
Allen Gregory (Fox) - Its final airing ever likely did 3.38 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating. And it was all-new. Not good.
Family Guy (Fox) - A one-hour repeat did 4.55 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, which is below normal for a repeat of this show.
American Dad! (Fox) - A repeat at 7pm did 2.35 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating, but nothing was expected here anyway. Regular 9:30pm airing was preempted.

Monday Sitcoms

How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - A repeat did 6.15 million and a 2.1 18-49 rating, which is decent.
2 Broke Girls (CBS) - A repeat did 7.2 million and a 2.6 18-49 rating, while down that is down from previous week's repeat, it was the top program of the night.
Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 7.95 million and a 2.3 18-49 rating for a repeat is good, but actually dropped from its lead-in in the 18-49 demo.
Mike & Molly (CBS) - A repeat did 7.77 million and a 2.2 18-49 rating, for excellent retention from its lead-in.

Tuesday Sitcoms

Last Man Standing (ABC) 2 airings - The first repeat in its 8pm half-hour did 5.63 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, which is OK. Another repeat followed and did better with 5.4 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, but down some from previous week when it had an original episode lead-in.
The Middle (ABC) - A repeat at 9pm posted 4.21 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, down some from previous week's repeat.
Suburgatory (ABC) - A repeat at 9:30pm did 3.32 million and a 1.0 18-49 rating, down some from previous week.
New Girl (Fox) - A repeat did 2.83 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, which is not good.
Raising Hope (Fox) - A repeat did 2.72 million and only a 1.0 18-49 rating, which is not good but held most of its lead-in's ratings.

Wednesday Sitcoms

The Middle (ABC) - A repeat did 5.38 million and a 1.4 18-49 rating, off some week-to-week.
Suburgatory (ABC) - A repeat did 4.84 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, building from its lead-in and down only a tenth from previous week.
Up All Night (NBC) - preempted.
Whitney (NBC) - preempted.
Modern Family (ABC) - A repeat did 6.4 million and a 2.2 18-49 rating, the best repeat performance of the night for the second straight week and only down a tenth from previous week.
Happy Endings (ABC) - A repeat did 3.74 million and a 1.4 18-49 rating.
I Hate My Teenage Daughter (Fox) - Week four following The X Factor finale did 5.78 million and a 2.0 18-49 rating, up some from previous week. Still not good.

Thursday Sitcoms

The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - A repeat did 9.28 million and a 2.6 18-49 rating, great for a repeat but down some from previous week.
Rules of Engagement (CBS) - A repeat did 6.77 million and a 1.9 18-49 rating.
Community (NBC) - preempted.
Parks and Recreation (NBC) - preempted.
The Office (NBC) - A repeat did 2.22 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. Terrible.
Whitney (NBC) - A repeat did only 1.92 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating, also down some from previous week.

Friday Sitcoms

None.

Saturday Sitcoms

None.

Airing tonight (Sunday) are repeats of Fox's animated comedies from 7-10pm, but of course all repeats.

Summing it up. Repeats of 2 Broke Girls, The Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men, Mike & Molly, Modern Family, How I Met Your Mother were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (such as repeats of Last Man Standing, The Middle) or just plain old terrible (such as repeats of The Office, Whitney).

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Digital Digest: More of Old Christine from Warner Archive; Barney Miller - The Complete Series DVD Review

Merry Christmas, and welcome to Digital Digest! Our scope of coverage will be INCREDIBLY light for these last two weeks of 2011 (simply because there really isn't much in regards for news this week, and there won't be next week), but we'll give it our best as usual. But we do have something new for our blog reviews this week, as we'll begin reviewing some of the complete series sets that we were unable to review in the past for various reasons (though we'll continue to do regular and complete reviews for the sets when the studios send us the releases in a timely fashion). This week, we'll take a look at Shout! Factory's October release of Barney Miller - The Complete Series. Let's get rolling!

DIGITAL NEWS

Looking for the fifth season of The New Adventures of Old Christine? Warner Archive announced on their Facebook page that they are working on an upcoming release for The New Adventures of Old Christine, but exact details and a release date aren't in the pipeline just yet, aside from the fact that it will indeed be a manufacture-on-demand product. We'll have more on this when we know more.

TV Land wrapped up the first season of the Fran Drescher sitcom Happily Divorced a few months ago, but now it is coming to DVD with the release of Happily Divorced - Season One. The two disc set is to be released on March 6 at a $22.99 MSRP.

Shout! Factory has been rather quiet on their releases for Simon & Simon for about a year and a half now, but the silence comes to an end in February with their release of Simon & Simon - Season Six. The set will be released February 21 as a Shout! Select exclusive, at a $49.99 MSRP.

UPCOMING WEEK PREVIEW

Tuesday (December 27) is, not surprisingly, one of lightest release dates of the year. The only release of any significance coming on Tuesday is Happiness is Peanuts - Friends Forever. We hope to have a review of this soon in Digital Digest.

Complete Series DVD Review: Barney Miller - The Complete Series (Shout! Factory, $159.99)

by skees53

Note: This is our first Complete Series Review on Digital Digest. We will include these in Digital Digest from time-to-time, roughly once a month or so, to briefly cover complete series that we did not cover in the past. The purpose of these reviews is not to provide a full-fledged review of the set with all of the details that we normally provide in our reviews, but rather to discuss similarities and differences from previous releases, new special features, new packaging, and other details pertaining to the new release. We will continue to feature complete reviews of these sets anytime that we receive review copies from the studios in a timely fashion.

Barney Miller had a rough time getting going before it debuted in 1975. At the time, network schedules were flooded with police series, all of them action dramas, so who would want to see a police sitcom? These struggles were demonstrated even further with the failure of the original pilot for the series, The Life and Times of Captain Barney Miller, but ABC went ahead and gave the series a chance anyway, although as a mid-season replacement. Who knew that the series would end up lasting eight years?

Similarly, the series had a rough start on DVD. In 2004, the very early days of TV on DVD, Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment (now Sony Pictures Home Entertainment) released the first season, and nothing was heard from them again, until 2008 and 2009 when they released the next two seasons, respectively. But once again, the series became stalled, until October 2011, when Shout! Factory brought it all to a glorious conclusion with their release of Barney Miller - The Complete Series, a 25 disc set containing every episode of the series, and even the first season of the spinoff series, Fish.

The set is packaged inside of four Viva-cases (and one slimcase, for the first season of Fish), with each case containing two seasons. The cases are housed inside of a larger (and rather sturdy) cardboard box that is designed to look like the door to the Squad Room Detectives on the front, except the lettering is replaced with the title for the set. On the back of the box, we have a description of the set, along with a "Duty Roster" that lists all of the special features contained on the set. Each of the cases inside has a different cast photo relating to the seasons included in the case. On the back of each case, there is a listing of all of the episodes in the case, along with original airdates. But proceed with caution, because some of these (particularly from the first season) are wrong. You'll find out why a bit later in this review. The back of the case with the Fish episodes gives descriptions of each of the episodes. But if you want descriptions for the main series episodes, don't fret--they are included! There is a very nice episode booklet included with the set that contains descriptions for all of the episodes, as well as a brief history of the series.

So, what is the deal with the wrong episode listings for the first season? The menus on the set tell the whole story. As we mentioned, Sony released the first three seasons of the series irregularly over the years, but didn't bother with the final five seasons. When Shout! Factory decided to release the complete series, they had those three releases to work with already. Normally, in such a situation, Shout! Factory would redo such DVDs to go along with their additional seasons that they are releasing, and they did in fact change the artwork on the discs and the packaging for the discs. But it appears, either due to budget issues or time constraints (or perhaps both), Shout! Factory left the first three seasons as they initially appeared on DVD, complete with the original menus, original special features, and original copies of the episodes.

When you get to Season Four, you'll notice a marked improvement in the menus. They aren't quite as bland or cheap looking as the first three seasons. The main menu starts with a shot of the New York City skyline, as the theme song begins to play. Then, the menu goes to a shot of the door for the squad room, with opaque windows where you can just barely see people moving inside the squad room. The options on the menu include Play All and Episodes. Selecting Episodes takes you to a menu just like the duty roster with a text list of all of the episodes on the disc.

Since the first three seasons are taken directly from the Sony releases, one may immediately remember that Sony included two syndicated episodes, "Ramon" and "The Bureaucrat" on their release of the first season. Shout! does a little bit to relieve one of these problems, with their inclusion of an unedited version of the episode "Ramon" on Disc 3 in the season 8 episodes, but unfortunately, "The Bureaucrat" is still the syndicated version on this set, and there is no remedy for it. Throughout the remainder of the set, every episode pretty much runs at 25 minutes, but there is a slight snag in the seventh season on the episode "Rachel," as the episode runs at a bit over 23 minutes. I'm not sure what, if anything, is missing here, but that is definitely a little short. You'll find virtually every logo that Sony has used from the early 90s up until today on the episodes. There is very little consistency on the logos, so you may find a Sony Pictures International logo on one episode, and the mid 90s Columbia Pictures Television on the next.

The quality of the episodes on the set shows some variance throughout. Most of the episodes look decent, but there are some that look very unfocused on the video quality and there are some defects on some of the episodes. The mono audio is perfectly adequate throughout. The final episode of the series actually has a disclaimer stating that it was the "best possible copy" that they could find, but honestly, I didn't think that it looked any worse than some of the other episodes on the set.

The set includes some new special features that were created exclusively for this set, but you won't find them until you get to Disc 3 of the eighth season. First, we have a commentary on the final three-part episode, "Landmark," with Tony Sheehan, Jeff Stein, and Frank Dungan. All of them participate on all three parts of the episode. You'll find much more on this disc, though. First, we have "Inside the 12th Precinct" (29:18) where we see interviews with Hal Linden, Abe Vigoda, Max Gail, and even recent (before his death) interviews with Steve Landesberg. "Salute to the Old One Two" (24:07) is a similar featurette, except this one focuses primarily on the set that was used for the series. "Inside the Writers Room" (16:29) is an interview about the writing of the series, with writers Jeff Stein and Frank Dungan. But what I found to be the most interesting special feature is "The Life and Times of Captain Barney Miller" (26:44), which was the original pilot for the series. It has a much different feel from the series that eventually evolved, with a mostly different cast (although Hal Linden and Abe Vigoda are in the original pilot) and different format. In this episode, the first half of the episode follows Barney's day at work, while the second half follows his life at home. You can even compare this episode to the unedited version of the episode "Ramon" (25:10), which as previously mentioned, appears on this disc. Finally, we have "You Don't Know Jack: Excerpt from the Jack Soo Documentary" (7:39). This is just an excerpt from a full-length documentary that was produced about Soo.

As for the special features that were carried over from the previous releases, the first season still contains the rather scant text biographies of the cast members, and the second season still contains the Minisodes from The Facts of Life and Charlie's Angels. These aren't particularly worth viewing, but they are there.

All in all, this is a great set and well-worth the cost at the MSRP, but considering you can find it much cheaper than the MSRP at most places, it becomes an excellent deal. Since this is the only place you can find seasons 4-8 at the present time, it is a no-brainer that you should pick up this set if you don't already own the series, and even if you own the first three seasons, you'll want to upgrade to this set. It is unfortunate that they did not redo the first three seasons on this set to match the remaining seasons, but it isn't a major disaster, if you don't mind a few edited episode slipups (though some people certainly are bothered by such issues).

Complete Series Set Score:

(4.5/5 stars)
Worth Upgrading? Yes

To purchase Barney Miller - The Complete Series, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:
Amazon.com

To purchase individual season sets of Barney Miller, click below and help support SitcomsOnline.com:

The First Season (Amazon.com)

The Complete Second Season (Amazon.com)

The Complete Third Season (Amazon.com)

Seasons 4-8 are not available individually at this time.

Related links:
SitcomsOnline.com DVD Reviews Page

Barney Miller on TV.com

CLICK OF THE WEEK

TV Tango (www.tvtango.com) - If you are a regular reader of our blog, you'll recognize this website as one that we often refer to, but you may not have necessarily clicked on it since we often summarize what we are interested in and refer you to check out the site for further information. In fact, we referred to this website just yesterday in discussing what is coming up for special marathons this holiday weekend. But since the website does have information on special marathons this weekend, we thought we'd also try to introduce you to the rest of the website and everything else that it has to offer for our Click of the Week this week.

The site proclaims to be the "ultimate TV database," and on the main page, you can type in any TV series that you are interested in and find information about it from all of the major TV websites, as well as TV Tango's own database. But there is so much more to the site than just the database. There is a TV Listings page where you can find out what is on tonight and tomorrow night on the major networks, but what is even more fascinating is the ability to go back in time and see what aired on, for example, the day that you were BORN, assuming you were born after 1950. Some dates even have episode titles listed. There is also a very nice blog on the site that you should check out that is updated a few times a week with interviews and other nice features. It isn't really a news blog, but rather a blog with unique features. There are other features on this website as well that make this site definitely worth checking out this holiday weekend.

That's all for this Christmas weekend. Until next time, keep it digital!

Friday, December 23, 2011

2011 Christmas Eve and Christmas Day TV Marathons/Movies; Sitcom Stars On Talk Shows (Week of December 26, 2011)

Welcome to a special Christmas style edition of the News Blog! That means we will recap all of the holiday episode stunts, marathons and holiday movie stunts on TV this holiday weekend, includes Christmas Eve and Christmas Day!
Some of the major TV stunts we mentioned already were ABC Family's 25 Days of Christmas concluding on Sunday after 25 days. That is our pick of course! TV Land's 12th Annual Merrython starts tomorrow night and runs into Sunday with classic holiday episodes of many TV series! Our pick of the weekend is on Antenna TV! Today they have a Mad About You marathon but this weekend they will have a Christmas episode marathon beginning at 1pm on Christmas Eve! MeTV Network will also have a "Merry-thon" of their own with holiday episodes and specials of their series. TV One will also celebrate the holidays with holiday episodes tonight starting at 9am on Christmas Eve with Christmas episodes of their sitcoms like Good Times and Martin! And finally, we also mentioned that ION Television will have a Christmas episode marathon of their series on Christmas Eve with episodes from Monk, Psych, George Lopez and My Name is Earl.

Some of the stuff we have not mentioned, first for Christmas Eve, are Boomerang's Christmas Party starting at 6am on Christmas Eve and continuing all day on Christmas Day with many holiday animated episodes and specials such as A Flintstone Christmas, Tis The Season To Be Smurfy and The Jetsons Christmas episode! Centric has a Sister, sister marathon on Christmas Eve from 11am-10:30pm and then again on Christmas Day from 6am-8pm. Nick at Nite has Christmas episodes of their sitcoms on Christmas Eve starting at 10pm and also on Christmas Day starting at 8pm with regulars like Friends, George Lopez, The Nanny and Family Matters. Oxygen spends Christmas Eve with a Roseanne marathon starting at 10:30am. TV Guide Network will also showcase holiday episodes of their sitcoms starting at 12:30pm on Christmas Eve and again on Christmas Day beginning at 4pm with Dharma & Greg, Ugly Betty, Cybill, Designing Women, and Veronica's Closet. USA Network has a NCIS marathon on Christmas Eve starting at 10am. Chiller has a Fear Factor marathon on Christmas Eve starting at 9pm, but before there there is a Harper's Island marathon starting at 6am. style has a Sex and the City marathon on Christmas Eve starting at 1pm, following a Tia & Tamera marathon. And it's time to play the feud with your family, spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with game show Family Feud with a marathon on Christmas Eve starting at 9am!

Some Christmas Day marathons we have not mentioned include, A&E's Christmas Day marathon of Criminal Minds starting at 5pm, BBC America's Doctor Who marathon starting at 6am, IFC has a Malcolm in the Middle Christmas Day marathon beginning at 12 noon, following a marathon of Freaks & Geeks from 6am-12pm. OWN will air an Oprah Winfrey Show marathon from 10am-8pm on Christmas Day, while Science Channel has a Firefly Christmas marathon from 9am-6am. The Sundance Channel will air the short-lived series My-So Called Life with a Christmas Day marathon from 10am-4pm. TeenNick spends Christmas Day with a marathon of Drake & Josh from 1-9pm. Like reality? style has a Supernanny marathon on Christmas Day from 6am-12pm.

Movie wise, for the 15th year in a row Turner will have its annual A Christmas Story (1983) 24-hour movie marathon on TBS from 8pm Christmas Eve through 8pm Christmas night! FX is doing a Holiday movie marathon featuring movies like Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who, Christmas with the Kranks & Alvin and the Chipmunks starting at 8am to 12am on Christmas Day. Spike TV has a Jaws movie marathon on Christmas Eve from 9am-4am. Lifetime, LMN, Hallmark and Hallmark Movie Channel continue holiday movies marathons on Christmas Eve and Day.
Check out a full holiday marathon list from our friends at TVTango.com, which even includes holiday episodes of series airing on their normal time.

Stay tuned this time next week for our annual look at marathons on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day! Join us then!

It's Friday, so it is time for "Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows" for the coming week. This is where we list what sitcom stars are appearing on talk shows for the coming week, the stars are both current and past sitcom stars, so this is for all sitcom fans of all eras!
For the week of December 26-30, 2011, we have many current sitcom stars and past sitcom stars on TV talk shows! All times listed are Eastern. So get your DVR's (or whatever you use) ready! Ready? Here is all what you need to know for the coming week!

Monday, December 26, 2011

Judy Greer (Two and a Half Men/Mad Love/Miss Guided) - Watch Judy on a repeat of the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson at 12:37am on CBS.
Tom Hanks (Bosom Buddies) - Tom appears on a repeat of Conan at 11pm on TBS.
Kevin James (The King of Queens) - Kevin is a guest on a repeat of LIVE! with Kelly, so check your listings.
Betty White (Hot in Cleveland/The Golden Girls/The Mary Tyler Moore Show) - Betty drops by on a repeat of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon at 12:37am on NBC.
Kathy Griffin (Suddenly Susan) - Kathy appears on the New Year's Eve show of Anderson, so check your local listings.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Atticus Shaffer (The Middle) - Catch the young and talented Atticus on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12am on ABC.
Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family) - Eric chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Ana Gasteyer (Suburgatory) - Ana appears on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother/Doogie Howser, M.D.) - Neil guest co-hosts repeat of LIVE! with Kelly, so check your listings.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Betty White (Hot in Cleveland/The Golden Girls/The Mary Tyler Moore Show) - Watch the legendary Ms. White on a repeat of the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson at 12:37am on CBS.
Steve Harvey (The Steve Harvey Show) - Steve appears on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Ariel Winter (Modern Family) - Ariel is a guest on a repeat of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check listings.
Kevin Nealon (Weeds) - Kevin appears on a repeat of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check listings.

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Louis C.K. (Louie) - Catch Louie on a repeat of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno at 11:35pm on NBC.
Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) - Tune in to see Jim on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12am on ABC and later on a repeat of the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson at 12:37am on CBS.
Damon Wayans, Jr. (Happy Endings) - Damon appears on a repeat of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon at 12:37am on NBC.

Friday, December 30, 2011

Tom Hanks (Bosom Buddies) - Watch Tom on a repeat of The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
Kathy Griffin (Suddenly Susan) - Kathy appears on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12am on ABC.
Alan Alda (M*A*S*H) - Alan is a guest on a repeat of the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson at 12:37am on CBS.
Whitney Cummings (Whitney) - Whitney chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Ted Danson (Cheers/Becker) - Tune in to see Ted on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.

Leave us comments on our message board or Tweet/Facebook us to let us know what you think of this Friday feature! We do listen!

Thursday, December 22, 2011

The Hub Presents A Wonder Years and Happy Days Christmas Marathon Tonight; ABC Family Sitcom Pilot Updates

The Hub is presenting a sitcom marathon tonight featuring 5 Christmas episodes each of The Wonder Years and Happy Days! The marathon starts tonight at 7pm and will run through 12am ET. Both series had five Christmas episodes and they will all air tonight back-to-back. The Wonder Years airs tonight from 7pm-9:30pm, followed by the Fonz in Happy Days from 9:30pm-12am. Both series of course air regularly on the cable network each night, with The Wonder Years at 9pm and Happy Days at 10pm. The Hub has been airing Christmas episodes of their other sitcoms all week, like Family Ties, Doogie Howser and Laverne & Shirley. If you missed them, not to worry, they will keep reairing them until Christmas ends on Sunday night.
In other scheduling news for The Hub, we have to mention that on New Year's Eve, The Hub will say goodbye to 2011 and say hello to 2012 with a marathon of the '60s Batman from 11pm-6am! Holy marathon, Batman! Join Adam West and Burt Ward as Batman and Robin as they face off against Catwoman, The Penguin, Mr. Freeze, and of course The Joker. Batman regularly airs at 11:30pm on The Hub.

ABC Family wrapped production on their new sitcom pilot, Baby Daddy, which taped in Los Angeles two weeks ago. Baby Daddy stars Cameron Deane Stewart, Chelsea Kane (Dancing with the Stars), Sydney Park, Tahj Mowry (Smart Guy), Derek Theler with Melissa Peterman (Reba) guest starring. The pilot is about Ben (Stewart) who, in his 20s, becomes a surprise dad to a baby girl when she's left on his doorstep by an ex-girlfriend. Ben decides to raise the baby with the help of his mother, his brother, Danny (Theler), his best buddy Ben (Mowry) and his close female friend, Riley (Kane), who is harboring a secret crush on him. This multi-camera comedy shot in front of a live audience at the Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood.
Meanwhile, ABC Family also began production on their new sitcom pilot, Village People, that taped in Los Angeles. The multi-camera half-hour comedy stars Jennie Garth (What I Like About You, Dancing with the Stars), John O'Hurley (Seinfeld, Family Feud), Sadie Calvano, Sebastian Sozzi, and Rachel Cannon (Two and a Half Men). The pilot follows Alexa (Garth), a single, high-powered career woman looking to start a family and ends up taking in the pregnant teenager (Calvano) she was planning to adopt from. Garth is also Executive Producer.
We will let you know if and when any of these get picked-up to series. Pilots have been shot, now it is up to ABC Family to decide if they will go to series or not. One of these will probably make it and air with ABC Family's sitcom Melissa & Joey. Stay tuned...

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Cloo Schedules Mannix, Get Smart Marathons; Betty White's 90th Birthday Celebration On NBC

We hinted a few weeks back that Cloo (aka Sleuth) will air some Old School Saturday marathons in 2012. Now we can reveal the shows that will get the Old School Saturday marathon treatment. First off, the marathons will now be called "Cloo Classics" in 2012. If you're not familiar with these marathons, they are classic series marathons once a month on a Saturday. For the first two months of 2012, they have scheduled series they do not air regularly, so that is why we are bringing you this story because they usually air series they already air or air on other Universal-owned cable networks.

The first "Cloo Classics" marathon is on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012 with 24-hours of the late '60s/early '70s drama Mannix beginning bright and early at 6am ET. The series of course starred Mike Connors as Joe Mannix. For this marathon, Cloo will air various episodes, mostly from seasons 3-5. Then a few weeks later in February, Cloo will air a "Cloo Classics" marathon of a sitcom! On Saturday, Feb. 18, 2012 from 6am-12pm, Cloo will air six-hours of the '60s comedy Get Smart starring Don Adams. It's too bad it isn't a full 24 hours like Mannix, but I guess we "missed it by that much?" These are NOT going to be joining the line-up, but hopefully they do well and perhaps they can be considered for the line-up like how classics T.J. Hooker and Charlie's Angels air regularly on sister network Universal HD. Both Mannix and Get Smart come from CBS Television Distribution. Sister network USA Network also obtained rights to a CBS Television Distribution comedy in Cheers, as we announced. Is there some sort of deal between Universal cable networks and CBS Television Distribution or is it just a coincidence?

Elsewhere on Cloo in January and February, there will be a Psych marathon on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and a President's Day "Mount Rushmore" marathon featuring MacGyver, Monk, Walker, Texas Ranger, and T.J. Hooker. Finally, also of note on sister network Universal HD, catch a Charlie's Angels Supergirls Marathon starring Farrah Fawcett, Jaclyn Smith and Kate Jackson on Super Bowl Sunday (Sunday, Feb. 5) from 6am-6am. Who needs the NFL when you have Farrah?

Some of Hollywood's biggest stars -- including Mary Tyler Moore, Hugh Jackman, Jay Leno, Amy Poehler and Carol Burnett -- will celebrate the birthday of one of the world's most beloved entertainers in Betty White's 90th Birthday: A Tribute to America's Golden Girl on Monday, January 16 for 90-minutes (in honor of Betty turning 90!) from from 8-9:30 p.m. ET on NBC. White's Hot in Cleveland co-stars Valerie Bertinelli, Wendie Mallick and Jane Leeves, along with her Mary Tyler Moore Show co-stars Ed Asner, Valerie Harper and Gavin MacLeod, will also be on hand to deliver birthday wishes, as will Joel McHale, William Shatner and many more. The special, taping at the Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, will include special musical performances, surprise appearances and comedy, featuring the irreverent tone, spirit and energy that is the hallmark of Betty's six-decade career in show business. White will take the stage to share some memories and give thanks to those who've come to honor her.

From her first words on radio in 1947, to her current TV Land series Hot In Cleveland, viewers will be taken on an unprecedented journey through Betty's storied career. Her work on game shows, talk shows, CBS's The Mary Tyler Moore Show and NBC's The Golden Girls will be featured, along with her work in movies and commercials. And most importantly, Betty will be saluted for her favorite role: making the world a better place for animals. It's just too bad no one from The Golden Girls is with us anymore to celebrate Betty turning 90. Betty turns 90 the following day on Tuesday, Jan. 17.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Close Out 2011 and Ring in 2012 With The Honeymooners Marathon on WPIX; Possible Syndication for Hot in Cleveland On The Way

As we hinted last month, WPIX in New York will continue their tradition of airing The Honeymooners on New Year's Eve. From the Gotham Bus Company depot to the Raccoon Lodge, WPIX11 is NY's home for The Honeymooners. New Yorkers have been ringing in the New Year with Ralphie Boy on WPIX11 since 1996, when The Honeymooners Marathon (which began airing on the station in 1976) moved to New Year's Eve. This year, the marathon of 38 classic episodes begins Saturday, December 31, 2011 at 11pm and runs for 19 consecutive hours to 6pm on New Year's Day - Sunday, January 1, 2012. No break for kids series or news this year, so stay up for 19 straight hours for non-stop laughs!
The PIX11 Honeymooners Marathon featuring our favorite Brooklyn residents Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleason), Ed Norton (Art Carney), Alice Kramden (Audrey Meadows) and Trixie Norton (Joyce Randolph) will include the following episodes which will air in original broadcast order: "TV or Not TV," "Funny Money," "The Golfer," "A Woman's Work is Never Done," "A Matter of Life and Death," "The Sleepwalker," "Better Living Through TV," "Pal O'Mine," "Brother Ralph," "Hello Mom," "The Deciding Vote," "Something Fishy," "The Man from Space," "A Matter of Record," "Oh, My Aching Back," "The Babysitter," "The $99,000 Answer," "Ralph Kramden, Inc.," "Young at Heart," "A Dog's Life," "Here Comes the Bride," "Mama Loves Mambo," "Please Leave the Premises," "Pardon My Glove," "Young Man with a Horn," "Head of the House," "The Worry Wart," "Trapped," "The Loudspeaker," "On Stage," "Opportunity Knocks But," "Unconventional Behavior," "The Safety Award," "Mind Your Own Business," "Alice and the Blonde," "The Bensonhurst Bomber," "Dial J for Janitor," and "A Man's Pride." So they are airing the classic 39 episodes, with only the Christmas episode missing from this list. But as we mentioned, on Christmas Eve, WPIX will air the Christmas episode of The Honeymooners at 11:30pm.

CBS Television Distribution has acquired the exclusive broadcast domestic distribution rights for TV Land's hit sitcom Hot in Cleveland. The series premiered on TV Land in June 2010, opening to an audience of nearly six million viewers in live+seven day viewing, the largest in the network's history. The first season consisted of ten episodes. Through its past two full seasons, the sitcom has averaged 3.5 million total viewers, according to Nielsen. It was such an immediate hit that in July 2010, TV Land renewed it for a second season after just a month, which premiered in January 2011 for 22 episodes. Production on season three began in September and began airing on November 30 and 24 total episodes will air this season. By the end of this production cycle, there will be 56 episodes of the show. Local broadcast stations want to have at least 88 episodes of a series available in order to air it five days a week. If the ratings continue to be decent, look for them to reach that goal, especially since they are already thinking of syndication. CBS and TV Land will begin selling the series to broadcast stations in six to nine month, so stay with us and we'll let you know where it is headed in the land of reruns.

Monday, December 19, 2011

That Girl Coming To MeTV Network In January 2012, MeTV Merry-thon, & More Affiliates Added

That Girl is coming to MeTV Network's regular schedule on Monday, January 2, 2012 airing weekdays at 9:30PM ET/8:30PM CT and Sundays at 3:00 & 3:30PM ET. The hit show follows the antics of Ann Marie, played by Marlo Thomas, as she tries to make it big as an actress while living in New York City. The first 12 episodes will begin during a That Girl marathon on MeTV on New Year's Day beginning at 11AM ET/10AM CT through 5PM ET/4PM CT. As for the regular schedule, Taxi (which was airing weekdays at 10:30pm) will depart the weekday schedule and The Odd Couple will move from 9:30PM to 10:3 PM ET. Also, Bosom Buddies, which was airing Sunday afternoons at 3:00 & 3:30 PM ET, will take a break from the schedule. MeTV says, since their library of iconic and beloved shows are so expansive, they rest some shows from their line-up to make room for others. So, enjoy their new winter schedule and they thank you for watching MeTV Network! There will be no other changes to the MeTV line-up in January, so enjoy That Girl! View the episode info for the New Year's Day marathon.

Moving a bit earlier, MeTV will celebrate Christmas in style. Wake up Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to memorable holiday entertainment. Enjoy such holiday specials as The Little Drummer Boy, The Fat Albert Christmas Special and Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol when you tune in to the "MeTV Merry-Thon," Saturday and Sunday morning on MeTV! And if you're not in to that, you can also catch holiday-themed episodes from their classic series including The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Laverne & Shirley, Bonanza, The Bob Newhart Show, The Brady Bunch, Happy Days, Dobie Gillis, M*A*S*H, Taxi and The Honeymooners on Christmas Day. See the complete MeTV Merrython schedule.

MeTV also announced affiliation agreements with Gannett-owned KTVD-TV, Denver and Dispatch Broadcast Group-owned WTHR-TV, Indianapolis. Both affiliates will launch on January 1, 2012. KTVD-TV will carry MeTV over the air on channel 20.2, as well as on Comcast cable channel 250. WTHR-TV will carry MeTV over the air on channel 13.3, as well as on Comcast cable channel 248. With the addition of these two affiliates and other pending affiliation agreements, MeTV will cover well over 71% of the country. MeTV also recently got permission to air the network on WSAH, which is available close to the New York City area, but is actually operating from Bridgeport, Connecticut. MeTV replaces RTV on WSAH, but no idea when yet. So stay with us for further information on that and all other affiliate clearances!

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Week 13 TV Ratings and Analysis; How the Sitcoms Did

2011-12 Week 13 TV Ratings (first four nights, Mon-Thu):

Households: N/A
Total Viewers: N/A
Adults 18-49: N/A

Week 13 (Dec. 12-18) Analysis: Week 13 had more repeats and specials than new episodes and was slower than week 12 obviously. The first four night network averages are not available to us, but we can project, CBS is on top in all categories. Fox follows in second in everything. And then ABC is in third and NBC stuck in fourth again for now until NFL helps it tonight. When the week is over with, CBS will win the week in all categories for the second straight week as the NFL overrun is with them again tonight. Fox should be second in all categories this week, but that didn't happen last week so they might not. NBC should go ahead of ABC for third in 18-49 because of the NFL game tonight. There is a chance NBC could go ahead of Fox in 18-49, as it did in week 12. As for last week, week 12, CBS won the week in all categories. It was an atypical week again, with NBC in second place everywhere thanks to a huge NFL game on Sunday night. In third place was ABC in HH/viewers, but Fox was third in 18-49, so that left ABC fourth in 18-49 and Fox was fourth in HH/viewers.

On Monday, CBS was all-new for the night mostly and came on top. Starting first with ABC, I Want A Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown started it off with 5.31 million and a 1.4 18-49 rating, down of course from previous week's classic special. At 9pm week four of game show You Deserve It did only 3.38 million and only a 0.9 18-49 rating, down a tenth from the previous week. The show should be pulled but for some reason it is still airing tomorrow night. At 10pm, a repeat of Castle did 4.14 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating. For CBS, How I Met Your Mother was preempted for a special all-new 2 Broke Girls at a special time doing 12.5 million and a 4.2 18-49 rating, but down some from previous week's 8:30pm airing and also from Mother at 8pm the previous week. Still an excellent showing. A repeat followed in its normal 8:30pm time period doing 10.19 million and a 3.2 18-49 rating. Wow. At 9pm, a new Two and a Half Men, with new star Ashton Kutcher, did 14.88 million and a 4.7 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. A new episode of Mike & Molly followed and did 12.77 million and a 4.0 18-49 rating, off a tad week-to-week. A new episode of Hawaii Five-0 was next doing 11.17 million and a 2.8 18-49 rating, also off some from previous week. Fox aired a new Terra Nova and did 6.88 million and tying a series low of a 2.1 18-49 rating. 2-hour finale tomorrow night might be the last time it ever airs. A repeat of House followed with 4.23 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating. NBC got its best Monday of the season the return of Fear Factor doing 8.78 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating at 8pm and then in its normal time period of 9pm it did even better with 8.52 million and a 3.5 18-49 rating. Isn't it sad in the middle of December it gets its best Monday performance of the season? Look for a new game show launching tomorrow night at 8pm leading into Fear, which could be down big if that show bombs. At 10pm, NBC aired a new episode of Rock Center with Brian Williams and it did an embarrassing 4.0 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, up a few tenths from previous week's series tying series low. The CW preempted Gossip Girl with two repeats of Hart of Dixie doing 1.41 million and a 0.4 18-49 rating at 8pm and then at 9pm it did 1.31 million and a 0.5 18-49 rating. An above average CW repeat performance for sure.

On Tuesday, CBS and Fox tied for the lead in 18-49. First, CBS had a new NCIS do 19.13 million and a 3.6 18-49 rating, great but below normal. Then NCIS: Los Angeles was new too doing 16.4 million and 3.0 18-49 rating, also below normal but that total viewer number is way higher than normal. And at 10pm, Unforgettable was new as well and did 11.3 million but only a 2.2 18-49 rating, still not bad. ABC started with new comedy Last Man Standing with Tim Allen leading the night off doing 7.51 million and a 2.2 18-49 rating, down some from the previous week but it was the only new ABC scripted series of the week, so perhaps everyone thought it was a repeat. At 8:30pm a repeat followed, as Man Up! is now gone, going 6.17million and a 2.0 18-49 rating, up from the time period the previous week, when Man Up! aired. Ouch. Then at 9pm, ABC aired a repeat of The Middle and did 4.56 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, up solidly from previous week repeat. Then at 9:30pm a repeat of Suburgatory did 3.75 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. Body of Proof was next at 10pm and was also a repeat doing 4.81 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating. Fox aired an all-new Glee and did 7.13 million and a 3.0 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. Then the comedies took the 9pm hour with New Girl doing 6.82 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating, down a tenth week-to-week but still skewing very young. Then at 9:30pm Raising Hope did 4.98 million and a 2.3 18-49 rating, up a tenth from previous week but needs to do better. NBC was next with the special William & Kate: Inside the Royal Marriage doing 5.25 million but just a 1.2 18-49 rating, lower than Buble's special the previous week. The Biggest Loser finale aired at a special time of 9-11pm doing 7.81 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating, up some from the previous week but its lowest rated fall finale ever. NBC preempted Parenthood again this week and it will return in January. The CW aired a repeat of 90210 that did 760,000 viewers and a 0.3 18-49 rating. Then the Sarah Michelle Gellar drama Ringer was a repeat and did 610,000 viewers and a 0.2 18-49 rating, down from previous week. Under-performing.

Wednesday it was CBS on top with all-new episodes. CBS started the night off with Survivor: South Pacific doing 10.87 million and a 3.1 18-49 rating, down some from previous week. Veteran drama Criminal Minds was new and did 12.88 million and a 3.4 18-49 rating, on par week-to-week. At 10pm, CSI was new doing 12.23 million and a 2.9 18-49 rating, up from previous week and above average against a repeat of SVU. ABC was in repeats for its Laugh On comedy block with The Middle doing 6.08 million and a 1.6 18-49 rating, which is solid. Suburgatory followed at 8:30pm with 5.09 million and a 1.6 18-49 rating, holding on to all of its lead-in's 18-49 rating. The mega hit Modern Family was next at 9pm and it did 6.64 million and 2.3 18-49 rating for a repeat. From 9:30-11pm ABC preempted Happy Endings and Revenge for Barbara Walters Presents The 10 Most Fascinating People of 2011 that did a solid 8.39 million and 2.3 18-49 rating, down from last season but that was after a Oprah finale interview which did big. Fox aired The X Factor from 8-9:30pm doing 10.79 million and a 3.4 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. Then week three of new comedy I Hate My Teenage Daughter followed at 9:30pm and did 5.06 million and a 1.8 18-49 rating, down some again from the previous week. It's not scheduled after December, so that's what Fox thinks of this show. Will it ever return in spring? NBC opened the night with a repeat of Up All Night doing 3.47 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating. A repeat of Whitney followed with a similar 3.24 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, which was down from the time period the previous week. I think Whitney will bomb big at 8pm in January. At 9pm, Harry's Law was a repeat too and did 4.06 million and a very low 0.7 18-49 rating. And at 10pm, Law & Order: SVU was a repeat and did 4.35 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, growing out of its lead-in. The CW had an encore of Top Model do only 1.24 million and a 0.4 18-49 rating, down a tenth from previous week. Then The CW aired an encore of this year's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at 9pm and did 1.62 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating, not bad for an encore. Their dramas can't do that for repeats.

Thursday it was CBS with the win opposite repeats. First, ABC opened the night with the second showing of special A Charlie Brown Christmas doing a solid 6.4 million and a 1.8 18-49 rating, almost on par with previous week's Winter Wipeout holiday special. From 9pm-11pm, Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice were preempted, as ABC aired the special The Year with Katie Couric that did 5.54 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating. Not bad for a December special. CBS opened with a repeat of The Big Bang Theory at 10.17 million and a 2.9 18-49 rating, great for a repeat. Then, a new Rules of Engagement was next doing 9.53 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating, solid and only down some from previous week. A new episode of Person of Interest followed with 12.93 million and a 2.8 18-49 rating, its normal showing and on par week-to-week. A new The Mentalist followed and did 13.16 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating, also on par with previous week. Fox started with The X Factor doing 9.87 million and a 2.9 18-49 rating, exactly the same as previous week. Finale is this week, but does anyone care in the holiday season? Then at 9pm, a repeat of Bones did 5.28 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating. Weird that they are airing a repeat already since it came in November. NBC aired repeats of its comedies and you know that isn't pretty, as Community did 2.26 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating. Parks and Recreation followed with only 1.73 million and the same 0.7 18-49 rating, skewing younger than the lead-in. The Office was next at 9pm doing 2.41 and a 1.1 18-49 rating, the best of the low rated NBC repeat line-up. I seriously think this show will be low-mid 2's in 2012 for new episodes. At 9:30pm Whitney was a repeat (yes another repeat of this) with only 2.01 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, and NBC is going to have this show lead off for them on Wednesdays. It'll be a Community II, or maybe even worse. NBC's drama bust Prime Suspect was new and did only 3.7 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating. The CW's big gun Vampire Diaries and new drama The Secret Circle were repeats that did 1.02 million/0.3 18-49 rating and 880,000 viewers/0.3 18-49 rating -- both on par really week-to-week.

Now, final numbers for Friday and Saturday are not available, but NBC won a very slow Friday night with all new episodes, as CBS was in repeats. NBC's dramas were on par really from previous week with Grimm leading the way at 9pm. Fox aired holiday specials and ABC was on par with its previous Friday led by the two hour Extreme Makeover: Home Edition holiday episode.
Saturday numbers have Fox winning the night with the two-hour AMW special. Every other series on the night was under a 1 18-49 rating, with CBS' 48 Hours Mystery the only one that did a 1.

Tonight ABC Sunday is in repeats with its first two-hours of AFV & Once Upon a Time. Desperate Housewives and Pan Am are not on as ABC airs the holiday movie The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause that should do decent. ABC Sunday returns with new episodes on Jan. 8. NBC will win the night with the NFL with the Ravens and Chargers, but it will be below normal. CBS has an all-new of 60 Minutes, but The Good Wife and CSI: Miami, are preempted for the Survivor finale, but CBS will be delayed due to the NFL overrun. Fox has the animated comedies from 7-10pm, but they are repeats except for Allen Gregory.

As for the week (week 13), it's should be CBS with the win since they have been leading and the NFL overrun tonight and Survivor finale will confirm the win. I'm guessing Fox will be second in 18-49, but NBC could be a player if the NFL game does above average, but I don't think it will. ABC could be third in HH/viewers, but fourth in 18-49. As for the coming week (week 14), we have a whole bunch of repeats, holiday specials, but The X Factor has its two-night finale this week.

Week 13 How the Sitcoms Did

Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for Week 12 -- Dec. 5-11)

The Simpsons (Fox) - A new episode did 6.43 million and a 3.0 18-49 rating, down a full point from previous week when it had a direct NFL lead-in in the east/central zones causing a big uptick in those time zones.
The Cleveland Show (Fox) - A new episode at a special time of 8:30pm did 5.07 million and a 2.3 18-49 rating, down some from previous week when it aired at another special time of 9:30pm.
Allen Gregory (Fox) - preempted, likely its final episode ever airs tonight.
Family Guy (Fox) - An all-new episode did 6.1 million and a 3.1 18-49 rating, down a half a point from previous week's NFL boosted airing.
American Dad! (Fox) - A new episode at 9:30pm did 5.0 million and a 2.5 18-49 rating, on par with previous week's Cleveland airing in the time period.

Monday Sitcoms

How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - preempted.
2 Broke Girls (CBS) 2 airings - A new episode at a special time of 8pm did 12.5 million and a 4.2 18-49 rating, while down from its normal 8:30pm airing a bit, this is still excellent. A repeat at 8:30pm even impressed with 10.19 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating.
Two and a Half Men (CBS) - 14.88 million and a 4.7 18-49 rating is excellent but also down from previous week. Still great for middle of December.
Mike & Molly (CBS) - A new episode did 12.77 million and a 4.0 18-49 rating, which is solid and only off some from previous week.

Tuesday Sitcoms

Last Man Standing (ABC) 2 airings - An all-new episode in the 8pm half-hour did 7.51 million and a 2.2 18-49 rating, down from previous week's episode. Perhaps people thought it was a repeat. A repeat followed and did decent with 6.17 million and a 2.0 18-49 rating, better than Man Up! from the previous week.
The Middle (ABC) - A repeat at 9pm posted 4.56 million and a 1.5 18-49 rating, up a good number from previous week repeat. Better lead-in helped.
Suburgatory (ABC) - A repeat at 9:30pm did 3.75 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. I am expecting more fans to watch the repeats the next few weeks and when it comes back in January with new episodes, watch out for possible series best numbers on Jan. 4 or 11.
New Girl (Fox) - A new episode did 6.82 million and a 3.3 18-49 rating, which is very good and young skewing, but down a tenth from previous week. Hasn't held up as well as 2 Broke Girls.
Raising Hope (Fox) - A new episode did 4.98 million and only a 2.3 18-49 rating, which is actually up some from previous week.

Wednesday Sitcoms

The Middle (ABC) - A repeat did 6.08 million and a 1.6 18-49 rating.
Suburgatory (ABC) - A repeat did 5.09 million and a 1.6 18-49 rating, holding on to 100% of its lead-in again and skewing younger.
Up All Night (NBC) - A repeat did only 3.47 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating.
Whitney (NBC) - A repeat of this series followed with 3.42 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating.
Modern Family (ABC) - A repeat did 6.64 million and a 2.3 18-49 rating, the best repeat performance of the night.
Happy Endings (ABC) - preempted.
I Hate My Teenage Daughter (Fox) - Week three following The X Factor did 5.06 million and a 1.8 18-49 rating, for another series low.

Thursday Sitcoms

The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - A repeat did 10.17 million and a 2.9 18-49 rating, great for a repeat but the 2 Broke Girls repeat was higher rated on Monday night for tops for the week in repeats.
Rules of Engagement (CBS) - A new episode did 9.53 million and a 2.7 18-49 rating, down some from previous week when its lead-in was new. Not bad.
Community (NBC) - A repeat did only 2.26 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating.
Parks and Recreation (NBC) - A repeat did just 1.73 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating.
The Office (NBC) - A repeat did 2.41 million and a 1.1 18-49 rating, as this show repeats terribly for an anchor.
Whitney (NBC) - A repeat did only 2.01 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, should be better for a multi-cam series.

Friday Sitcoms

None.

Saturday Sitcoms

None.

Airing tonight (Sunday) are repeats of Fox's animated comedies from 7-10pm, but Allen Gregory is new at 8:30.

Summing it up. Two and a Half Men, 2 Broke Girls, Mike & Molly, New Girl, The Big Bang Theory, Modern Family, Rules of Engagement were impressive for the week. Everything else was OK (such as Last Man Standing, Raising Hope) or just plain old terrible (such as NBC Thursday repeats, I Hate My Teenage Daughter).

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