TNT Greenlights Ray Romano’s Men of a Certain Age January 12, 2009 11:44 pm
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TNT has added another show to its lineup of original programming with the pick up Ray Romano’s midlife crisis drama Men of a Certain Age. 10 episodes were ordered by TNT and the network is targeting a January 201o premiere.
The pilot was written by Romano and Everybody Loves Raymond alum Mike Royce and is focused on three forty-year college buddies — Joe (Romano), Owen (Andre Braugher) and Terry (Scott Bakula) — who are each coming to terms with a midlife that hasn’t lived up to their expectations.
“The show isn’t ever going to be weighty tome,” said Royce, who calls his series a “dramedy.” “We’re really just trying to write out of our own experience and make the show relatable.”
Just last week, TNT gave similar 10-episode pickups to the Jada Pinkett Smith-starring medical drama Time Heals and the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced cop drama The Line, which stars Dylan McDermott. On January 26th the network will debut its fifth hour-long series, Trust Me, which stars Eric McCormack and Tom Cavanagh as Chicago ad executives.
Source: Variety
ABC Considering Bringing Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Back to Primetime January 12, 2009 11:23 pm
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Given the critical and commercial success of Golden Globe-winner Slumdog Millionaire, it’s hard not to have seen this coming. ABC is considering bringing Who Wants to Be a Millionaire back to its prime time lineup this summer.
The show went premiered on ABC 10 years ago, and the discussions revolve around an August return. TVWeek reports that the show would likely air as a “multi-night event over one or two weeks…as a commemoration of the 10-year anniversary of the show’s American debut.”
ABC also wants Regis Philbin to return as host, but since he’s currently working on another game show, CBS’s Million Dollar Password, it’s unclear if he’d be able to.
If the show does return, it would mark it’s second revival on ABC. Philbin hosted a few “Super Millionaire” events in 2004, with a top prize of $10 million. There’s also a five-day-a-week syndicated version, hosted by Meredith Viera, that has been on the air for several years.
66th Annual Golden Globe Awards Down By Double-Digits January 12, 2009 8:44 pm
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While The 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards was the most-watched non-sports program last night, it was far from a success for NBC. According to final national numbers, the event was off 5.43 million or 26% among viewers, 30% among households and 25% among adults 18-49 from the 2007 telecast.
- Households – 13.2/20 to 9.3/14 (-30%)
- Viewers – 20.04M to 14.86M (-26%/-5.18M)
- Adults 18-49 – 6.5/15 to 4.9/12 (-25%)
Broadcast TV Ratings for Sunday, January 11, 2009 January 12, 2009 7:09 pm
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The 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards: Live Blog January 11, 2009 7:57 pm
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Follow along as I live-blog the winners of this year’s Golden Globe Awards tonight as they are announced. Follow along after the jump and view a list of nominees here.
Video of the Day: SNL Digital Short – Orchestral Doogie Howser January 11, 2009 7:50 pm
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SNL has been on a roll of late. Neil Patrick Harris hosted Saturday Night Live last night, and was featured in this awesome new Digital Short. Watch it below.
Broadcast TV Ratings for Saturday, January 10, 2009 January 11, 2009 7:42 pm
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Broadcast TV Ratings for Friday, January 9, 2009 January 10, 2009 6:15 pm
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On the strength of the return of original programming and the second season premiere of Flashpoint, CBS easily won the night. Ghost Whisperer was the night’s most-watched program, but Flashpoint is really the highlight. It improved upon last July’s season premiere by an impressive 24% among viewers (+1.93M) and 16% among adults 18-49.
ABC followed in second place with better than average showings from Wife Swap and Supernanny, which returned with new episodes, and 20/20, which capped off the night as the network’s most-watched program.
NBC even got in on some of the good ratings, with the premiere of Howie Do It posting a respectable near 8-million viewers and improving upon last week’s time-slot occupant Deal or No Deal by 50% in the key A18-49 demo.
The CW failed to break 1.5 million viewers for either of its returning comedies Everybody Hates Chris or The Game, each of which was off by double-digits from their last new episodes.
Fox placed fourth place with a repeat of the movie Bruce Almighty.
Rose Bowl Up 10%, FOX BCS Games Up 13% (12% Overall) January 9, 2009 5:16 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in BCS National Championship Game, Broadcast TV Ratings, College Football, Nielsen TV Ratings, Sports, Television.add a comment
With the College Football season, and therefore Bowl season, over, it’s time to take a quick look at how the ratings turned out for this year’s set of major games: Rose Bowl; Orange Bowl; Sugar Bowl; Fiesta Bowl and the National Championship.
Here’s how the respective telecast’s this year stack up to last season (numbers in parenthesis for the 2009 numbers indicate the change from the year prior–red represents a decrease, green represents an increase):
Rose Bowl (ABC)
- 2009: Penn State vs. USC – 1/1/2009
- Households – 11.7/21 (+6%)
- Viewers – 20.60M (+10%/+1.85M)
- Adults 18-49 – 6.5/20 (+3%)
- 2008: Illinois vs. USC – 1/1/2008
- Households – 11.0/19
- Viewers – 18.75M
- Adults 18-49 – 6.3/18
Orange Bowl (FOX)
- 2009: Cincinnatti vs. Virginia Tech – 1/1/2009
- Households – 5.4/9 (-27%)
- Viewers – 9.32M (-22%/-2.64M)
- Adults 18-49 – 3.0/8 (-30%)
- 2008: Kansas vs. Virginia Tech – 1/3/2008
- Households – 7.4/12
- Viewers – 11.96M
- Adults 18-49 – 4.3/12
Sugar Bowl (FOX)
- 2009: Alabama vs. Utah – 1/2/2009
- Households – 7.8/13 (+11%)
- Viewers – 13.37M (+14%/+1.67M)
- Adults 18-49 – 4.3/12 (-9%)
- 2008: Hawaii vs. Georgia – 1/1/2008
- Households – 7.0/12
- Viewers – 11.70M
- Adults 18-49 – 4.7/12
Fiesta Bowl (FOX)
- 2009: Texas vs. Ohio State – 1/5/2009
- Households – 10.4/17 (+35%)
- Viewers – 17.06M (+40%/+4.90M)
- Adults 18-49 – 6.0/16 (+36%)
- 2008: West Virginia vs. Oklahoma – 1/2/2008
- Households – 7.7/13
- Viewers – 12.16M
- Adults 18-49 – 4.4/12
BCS National Championship (FOX)
- 2009: Florida vs. Oklahoma – 1/8/2009
- Households – 15.8/25 (+10%)
- Viewers – 26.77M (+16%/+3.70M)
- Adults 18-49 – 9.5/25 (+16%)
- 2008: LSU vs. Ohio State – 1/7/2008
- Households – 14.4/22
- Viewers – 23.07M
- Adults 18-49 – 8.2/21
Overall, the four BCS games on Fox and the Rose Bowl on ABC averaged the following numbers this year: 10.2/17 HH rating/share, 17.42M viewers, 5.9/16 A18-49 rating/share. In 2008, the same five games averaged the following numbers: 9.5/16 HH rating/share, 15.53M viewers, 5.6/15 A18-49 rating/share. That represents a change of 8% among households, 12%/1.90M among viewers and 5% among adults 18-49.
If you’re interested in separating out the Rose Bowl from the four BCS bowls, here’s the average, and comparison, of the four FOX BCS games:
- Households – 9.1/15 to 9.9/15 (+9%)
- Viewers – 14.72M to 16.60M (+13%/+1.88M)
- Adults 18-49 – 5.4/14 to 5.7/15 (+6%)
As you can see, despite the weak performance of this year’s Orange Bowl and the slight decrease among adults 18-49 for the Sugar Bowl, FOX still saw a solid increase in viewership over the year prior.
While I wish we could get a playoff system in college football, the sport remains very strong, as is evidenced by the ratings above. Then again, it’s hard to imagine interest wouldn’t grow even more if there was a playoff system. Is there really anyone out there that wouldn’t want to see a matchup between the Gators and Trojans (or even Utah, who afterall did go undefeated)?
Mad Men Season 3 and The Prisoner Premiere This Summer January 9, 2009 4:10 pm
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At AMC’s Television Association panel on Thursday, president Charlie Collier announced that the period series Mad Men will return for its third season this summer. That despite continued contract negotiations between producer Lionsgate TV and creator/executive producer Matthew Weiner:
“As long as we get the writers’ room up and running over the next few months, we’re fine (for a summer launch),” Collier told reporters after the sesh, adding that he’s optimistic that an agreement with Weiner will be reached soon.
AMC also announced that Mad Men will lead into the launch of The Prisoner, the network’s six-part series remake of the classic 1960s British drama of the same name.
Source: Variety
Broadcast TV Ratings for Thursday, January 8, 2009 January 9, 2009 4:00 pm
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FOX’s presentation of the FedEx BCS National Championship Game between the Florida Gators and Oklahoma Sooners propelled the network to an easy win, besting last year’s presentation by 16% among viewers and adults 18-49.
Elsewhere on the evening, ABC returned dramas Ugly Betty, Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice (which debuted in its new timeslot). The network finished in second place, but it was really at the expense of its programming. Ugly Betty and Grey’s Anatomy fell by double digits among households and viewers. The only bright spot was Private Practice which made a mostly successful jump to a new night, with growth of 37% among viewers and 43% among adults 18-49. Retention levels weren’t great–66% among viewers and 65% among adults 18-49–but it’s a good start.
NBC meanwhile suffered most from the decision to air new programming against the BCS Championship. All of the network’s shows fell by double digits (20%+ in most cases) and 30 Rock, which aired out of a repeat of The Office fell the most. The show was off a depressing 29% among viewers and 39% among adults 18-49.
CBS’s lineup of repeats were good enough to keep the network in third place. The CW was fifth among the five major networks with repeats of Smallville and Supernatural.
My full analysis follows after the jump. (more…)
Film Trailers to Feature Heavily at Super Bowl January 9, 2009 3:21 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Movie Trailers, Movies, News, Television.1 comment so far
Variety is reporting that movie studios will be premiering several trailers during NBC’s Super Bowl telecast on February 1st. A 30-second spot has been set at $3 million (up 11% from last year’s going rate of $2.7 million), but studios are are waiting so they can pay less for last minute spots. Here are some excerpts from Variety:
Confirmed for this year’s roster are high-profile titles like Paramount’s “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” “Star Trek” and “G.I. Joe”; Sony’s “Angels and Demons”; DreamWorks Animation’s “Monsters vs. Aliens”; and Universal’s “Land of the Lost” and its fourth installment in “The Fast and the Furious” franchise. Disney is also planning to use the game to raise the profile for Pixar’s next toon, “Up,” while a “Wolverine” spot is likely from Fox.
As of Thursday, Fox had yet to buy any time during the game. Should it do so at the last minute, “Wolverine,” “Night at the Museum 2” and “Ice Age” are the pics it’s most likely to promote.
Disney is remaining tight-lipped about its Super Bowl strategy, but it wouldn’t be surprising if it buys time for Dwayne Johnson starrer “Race to Witch Mountain” and Jerry Bruckheimer’s “G-Force.” The Mouse House typically airs two spots — one devoted to a toon and one to a live-action release.
Broadcast TV Ratings for Wednesday, January 7, 2009 January 8, 2009 7:27 pm
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HBO To Air Obama Opening Inaugural Ceremonies January 8, 2009 11:35 am
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HBO will be broadcasting President-elect Barack Obama’s opening inaugural ceremonies at the Lincoln Memorial on January 18th. The events leading up to the Inauguration on January 20th is being billed as a star-studded event with top performers from the music and entertainment fields. According to Obama’s Presidential Inaugural Committee, the ceremony will be free and open to the public, but HBO will get the exclusive rights to show it. HBO will make the 9o-minute event available for free to all consumers, regardless if they have a subscription to the premium network.
For those without cable or satellite subscriptions, Brent Colburn, a spokesman for Obama’s inaugural committee, said they “are working on details on how we can amplify the event beyond HBO.”
Entertainment for the event has yet to be announced, but sources have indicated that Barbra Streisand, Bruce Springsteen, Beyonce and Stevie Wonder have been approached about performing some time during the four days of events planned for Obama’s inaugural.
It’s still unclear if the event will be carried live, or via tape delay.
Source: Variety
Watch The Prisoner (the Original Series) Online for Free January 8, 2009 11:25 am
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In anticipation of its upcoming broadcast of the remake of The Prisoner that will star Jim Caviezel and Sir Ian McKellan, AMC is making available the entire original series on its website for free. Watch the series at this link. The Prisoner mini-series will premiere later this year.
Broadcast TV Ratings for Tuesday, January 6, 2009 January 7, 2009 3:46 pm
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Monsters vs. Aliens 3D Trailer to Run During Super Bowl January 6, 2009 2:33 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Monsters vs. Aliens, Movies, News, Television.1 comment so far
During NBC’s NFL playoff telecast on Saturday night, the network announced–watch the segment embedded below–that they would be broadcasting a 90-second 3D trailer for DreamWorks Animation’s Monsters vs. Aliens during the Super Bowl telecast on February 1st. The 3D trailer will be the first of its kind on broadcast television. The trailer will also been shown later in the month during a 3D episode of Chuck. Paramount released a press release on Sunday. Read it after the jump.
Monsters vs. Aliens hits conventional, In-Tru 3D and IMAX theaters on March 27, 2009.
Broadcast TV Ratings for Sunday, January 4, 2009 January 5, 2009 10:26 pm
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Broadcast TV Ratings for Saturday, January 3, 2009 January 4, 2009 11:05 pm
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Broadcast TV Ratings for Friday, January 2, 2009 January 3, 2009 7:45 pm
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BBC Names 11th Doctor [Update] January 3, 2009 3:12 pm
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Update: BBC has released video of Matt Smith reacting to the news that he’ll be the next Doctor. Watch it below.
The original article follows below.
The 11th Doctor will not be Patterson Joseph, and nor will recently rumored film actor Chiwetel Ejiofor take on the role. Instead, BBC has settled on relative unknown, and now youngest Doctor ever, Matt Smith. The 26-year-old actor will take on the iconic role by the show’s fifth season, which kicks off in 2010 and will likely be in the next Christmas special.
David Tennant, who plays the current Doctor, will still star in the 2009 TV specials.
Source: BBC
Broadcast TV Ratings for Thursday, January 1, 2009 January 2, 2009 9:49 pm
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Broadcast TV Ratings for Wednesday, December 31, 2008 January 1, 2009 3:20 pm
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Broadcast TV Ratings for Tuesday, December 30, 2008 December 31, 2008 8:36 pm
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Broadcast TV Ratings for Monday, December 29, 2008 December 30, 2008 7:47 pm
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