Also: The Drive reclaims the top spot in Chicago radio ratings; Young Sheldon redeems himself [Editor’s Note: The second item of this piece was updated on May 21.] Wrapping up the upfronts: ABC released its fall schedule last week as part of a Disney upfront presentation that hardly mentioned the network. And little wonder – there isn’t much to talk […]
Twentieth’s game shows canceled, and other news of note For the first time in a long time, it’s time for The Grab Bag – items not good enough for individual posts – but good enough to be written here: – Ricki returns. In a report confirmed by B&C and TVNewscheck, Ricki Lake signed a deal with Twentieth Television to launch […]
Another GM shake-up at Fox-owned WFLD-TV and WPWR-TV has led Pat Mullen out the door after three rather unproductive years at the duopoly, and was replaced by Michael Renda of sister station WTXF-TV in Philadelphia, which is also a Fox O&O. In turn, Patrick Paolini takes over the WTXF job after his stint as vice president and director of sales […]
“Is that your final answer?” is becoming a popular phrase in Chicago again. While Who Wants To Be A Millionaire has not caught fire in the ratings like it did in August 1999 when it first premiered, it has rekindled its love affair in the Windy City. According to Nielsen, Millionaire’s return to ABC’s prime-time lineup has paid dividends for […]
Broadcasting & Cable is reporting that two Sony-distributed courtroom strips (Judge David Young and Judge Karen) are expected to be canceled soon. Young will exit after two seasons and Karen after only one. The possible moves come as the tough economy has taken a toll on the first-run syndication business, as ratings and revenue coming in are very low for […]
The president of Debmar-Mercury is calling out the first-run syndication business. In an interview with Broadcasting & Cable, Mort Marcus says we might be seeing more syndie cancellations coming in the next several months as the economy continues to become worse. Marcus, who runs the company responsible for syndicating South Park, Family Feud, Trivial Pursuit, and the upcoming Wendy Williams […]
Here’s a look at some of the new syndicated programs and how they are faring thus far, based on info culled from Broadcasting & Cable and TV Week: Legend of the Seeker. Disney-ABC’s first syndicated scripted hour in a decade has made a strong impression in the ratings, with a 2.9 Nielsen household rating and 4.2 million viewers for its […]
The new five first-run strips debuting in syndication last week entered the new world of expectations – holding the lead-in and at least matching the year-ago time period share. The five programs are Deal or No Deal from NBC Universal Television Distribution; The Doctors from CBS Television Distribution; Family Court with Judge Penny from Program Partners; The Bonnie Hunt Show […]
The new syndication season begins next Monday, and its going to be tougher to launch a new show than ever before, thanks to the upcoming election and the exploding number of alternative choices available in the marketplace. There are seven new first-run strips invading the airwaves this year, but all of them will have to face competition from cable news […]
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 […]
Another installment of T Dog’s Groovy Grab Bag: – Fox has decided to replace Moment of Truth on Thursday nights this fall with Hole in the Wall, a Japanese-like game show which debuts on Sept. 11. Let’s hope it doesn’t turn out like a similar show ABC aired this summer. For the record, the last time Fox aired something close […]
– Syndicated repeats of Fox’s hit Bones has been cleared 45 percent of the country, including all of the Fox O&Os, not to mention station groups belonging to CBS, Tribune, and Bahakel. Weekday airings of the program were sold to TNT. -CBS’ Judge Judy has been re-upped until 2012. – As mentioned earlier, Program Partners has renewed Merv Griffin’s Crosswords […]
Back after a hectic day yesterday – attended John Stroger’s funeral (R.I.P) at my church – not to mention battling a slight cold… But I’m back and ready to roll with a lot of stories for ya, so watch the blog today! First up… With the National Association of Television Executives convention set to get underway Monday in Las Vegas, […]