NBC at TCA: Will & Grace renewed for a second season already

And other peacock network notes It was NBC day at the Television Critics Association press tour and the show everyone was talking about of course was the return of Will & Grace after 11 years off the air, while another big draw as This Is Us. Ahead of the Will & Grace presentation, NBC renewed the series for a second […]

A look back at The Great Talk Show Rush Of 1995

  The few, the proud: the fallen heroes of The Great Talk Show Rush Of 1995. The video above explains it all.  On Monday, three new syndicated talk shows debut in syndication, with new hosts Katie Couric, Jeff Probst, and the return of Ricki Lake. Along with Steve Harvey (whose show debuted Sept. 4) and Trisha Goddard (debuting Sept. 17), […]

Grab Bag: “Last Man Standing” stands tall

        Plus other news of note, including Rosie Show results; Brandmeier’s return; and a new game show in an unusual time slot. – Viewers welcomed back Tim Allen to network TV Tuesday night with open arms with strong sampling of his new sitcom Last Man Standing. On Tuesday, the series opened with  13.1 million viewers and grew […]

T Dog’s Six Pack: Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen

As you may know – if you’ve been following on Twitter – The T Dog Media Blog is leaving Blogger and is moving to a new home as part of the new website I’m launching officially on September 19, when the sixth season of The T Dog Media Blog begins. Visit http://www.tdogmedia.com to view the progress of the site as […]

T Dog’s Six Pack: Opposites Attract

This week in The Six Pack: Chicago media takes two steps forward and a few steps back – as usual. No, it’s not Paula Abdul dancing with an animated cat (or dead celebrities dancing with vacuum cleaners) but there is some animation, classic TV, and even a classic radio show in this week’s roundup: Winners Bob’s Burgers. In a surprise […]

TCA, Part 3: We OWN you

Obviously the biggest highlight of the Winter version of Television Critics Association Press Tour was a rare appearance by the Queen of Talk, Oprah Winfrey. She was at the press tour to promote her new cable network, The Oprah Winfrey Network, or OWN, which launched January 1 in place of Discovery Health. Discovery Communications owns half of the new joint […]

T Dog’s Four Pack

This was a week to get angry – from vicious hits on the ice to vicious insults on the Capitol steps, not exactly a feel good week. But there was some good, too – and March Madness did not disappoint. What worked for yours truly – and what didn’t: Winners:Rosie may be coming back to daytime. Okay, before you beat […]

TCA Notes

The major broadcast networks made their presentations at the Television Critics Association’s Winter Press Tour this week. Among the highlights: NBC – NBC announced Conan O’ Brien’s final night on Late Night will be on Feb. 20, just three months before he is scheduled to take over The Tonight Show from Jay Leno in Los Angeles. Replacing him is Jimmy […]

"Rosie Live!" dead on arrival

Dancing cupcakes? People spinning on their heads? Alanis Morrisette signing adult contemporary? It’s little wonder no one watched Rosie Live on Wednesday night, which tied ABC’s now-canceled Pushing Daisies as the lowest-rated original show of the evening. And judging by the reviews, no one missed anything. You’d think Rosie O’Donnell would bring back the fun of her old daytime show […]

Can syndication find the next hit?

Quick, when was the last true first-run syndicated hit? Though many syndicators would argue, it was six years ago with Dr. Phil averaging a 4.4 Nielsen rating in its freshman season. Before that, you would have to go all the way back to June 1996 for the last breakout hit – Warner Bros.’ The Rosie O’Donnell Show. And if you […]

Rosie to leave "The View". Now.

You’ve seen the headline before, only this time it’s now instead of June. This comes after Rosie got into a very heated argument with her “good friend” Elisabeth Hasselback on the show Wednesday on a quite decisive topic. Can’t say I told you so…

Rosie to leave "The View" (Updated)

Rosie O’Donnell announced that she is leaving The View today, after failing to come to contract agreement with ABC. She is expected to leave in mid-June. Her arrival to the talk show brought increased ratings for ABC, but also controversy, as she has feuded with Donald Trump, and has frequently criticized the Bush administration. O’Donnell is weighing many options, including […]