Patti Blagoveich is in discussions to appear on NBC’s upcoming revival of I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here. If you recall, her husband Rod – the former governor of Illinois – tried to get on the show, but a judge denied the request – since he would travel outside the country. Now, just in case The Tribune – […]
The very first Think Tank yours truly wrote back on November 28, 2006 dealt with the follies of the National Hockey League and its Chicago franchise, and those of broadcasters (over-the-air TV stations and networks), sharing the same tale of missteps and woe. After the Chicago Blackhawks fired head coach Trent Yawney, yours truly wrote this on a comment board […]
Reaper, the quirky dramedy currently airing on Tuesday on CW, may be headed for first-run syndication. The series – now in its second season – would be sold to CW affiliates for airing on Sunday nights at either 7 or 8 p.m. However, Disney-ABC Television Distribution could sell the show to a My Network TV affiliate, independent station, or even […]
It’s official: the Chicago Blackhawks have surged to the top of Chicago’s sports chain (I didn’t think it was possible either, but wow!) Last night’s thrilling Game 6 between the Blackhawks and the Vancouver Canucks scored a 7.8 household rating on Comcast SportsNet, which is believed to be the highest-rating ever for a hockey game on the regional sports channel. […]
I’ll tumble for the 4 pack – the week’s winners and losers: Winners of the week: The Chicago Blackhawks. Great job by the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday Night taking a 3-2 lead over the Vancouver Canucks. The Cinderella run continues. Go Hawks! (UPDATE: The Hawks defeated the Canucks tonight 7-5 to go to the Western Conference Finals for the first […]
Live long and prosper – at the box office. J.J. Abrams’ (Lost, Alias) reboot of Star Trek finished first this weekend with a haul of $76.5 million. It was a hit with critics as well, with an impressive 96 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. So in honor of the new Star Trek’s success, William Shatner – who looks like T.J. […]
A lot of items in The Grab Bag today: – Warner Bros. and HBO has sold the sitcoms Entourage and Curb Your Enthauism to the Tribune station group for late-fringe time periods begining in 2010 on all-barter basis (meaning stations don’t have to pay a dime – just surrender half of their ad inventory to the syndicator.) Locally, you can […]
So many local TV items today, so we’ll just stick them here in one post: – Fox-owned WFLD-TV announced the elimination of six full-time jobs today as well as a dozen vacation relief positions. This comes as ad revenues for the station plunged thirty percent from a year ago, reflecting general weakness in the economy and the lack of ad […]
After initially denying they were giving Sunday back to the affiliates, The CW announced yesterday it was – finally waiving the white flag after getting pummeled in the ratings over the last few years. The CW’s ratings – and its predecessor The WB – ratings were so bad, the network decided last year to lease the Sunday night time slots […]
Kind of a sad day for yours truly, since I credit this magazine and the now-defunct TV/Radio Age for stoking my interest in this business… Crain’s Communications announced today it is folding its print version of Television Week and at the same time, launching a spinoff titled NewsPro as a print monthly. NewsPro is currently a monthly feature launched in […]
Here’s Ben “Party All The Time” Silverman now, driving the Losermobile for another pathetic season at Nothing But Crap. All Aboard! Pathetic, weak, terrible. And that just explains Heroes and Parks and Recreation. But no Chuck – at least not yet. Easy call to renew the Amy Poheler tripe but couldn’t renew a show with a rabid fan following. Typical […]
In perhaps the lowest amount ever paid for a TV or radio station in North America history, three small Canadian stations were sold on Friday – for a buck each. Cable MSO Shaw Communications purchased CHWI-TV in Wheatley (Windsor), Ont.; CKX-TV in Brandon, Man.; and CKNX-TV in Wingham, Ont. from CTVglobemedia. All three stations are branded “The A Channel”. CTVglobemedia […]
The past week’s winners and losers: Four cheers of the week – Bulls-Celtics Playoff Series. Even though the Bulls did not win, admit it: It was the most entertaining playoff series in years. Thanks for the ride. – … but the Blackhawks are still in! They advanced past Calgary in the first round and now facing Vancouver in the second, […]
Well, I suppose its a sign of the times… Chicago’s news outlets announced they will pool their raw video in order to keep expenses down. The news-sharing model was adopted by NBC-owned WMAQ-TV and Fox-owned WFLD-TV last fall (along with sharing a job), but now they have invited CBS-owned WBBM-TV and CW affiliate WGN-TV to join in. This means a […]
Comcast, TNT score big ratings Game 6 of the first-round playoff matchup between the Boston Celtics and the Chicago Bulls was one for the ages. The triple-overtime thriller – in which the Bulls beat the Celtics 129-127 – was the highest-rated first-round game ever, drawing a 3.5 household rating and 5.4 million viewers overall according to Nielsen. TNT also led […]
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