A new size for the Trib; A new FCC Chairman (hooray!); Stargate Atlantis exits with a bang; Fox cancels Prison Break. – One advantage the Chicago Sun-Times had over the Trib was its tabloid-like size and the ease of reading it on the bus or on the “L”. Now, that’s gone. Oh-oh… Chicago Tribune introduces a new size: The paper […]
Foxhas announced it is trading in Sonic the Hedgehog – for a bunch of people riding around in Hoveround chairs. In a move that ends children’s programming on Fox after 18 years, the network announced it is dropping the 4KidsTV block it had been airing on Saturday mornings. This comes after 4Kids sued Fox for a refund, alleging it owed […]
After a run of fourteen seasons, King of the Hill is stepping down from its throne. Fox officials confirmed the venerable animated series will end its long run during the 2009-10 season, which it is scheduled for thirteen episodes. The program, created by Mike Judge, was about a propane salesman living in Texas with his wife Peggy and his son […]
In this week’s edition, we have a renewal, a couple of layoffs, and two firings… T Dog’s Fabulous Four Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill. Say what you want about The CW (I know I have), but last Monday’s duo finished second in its time period among women 18-34 (with One Tree finishing first among women 12-24), doing what the […]
– WWE’s move of Friday Night Smackdown to My Network TV drew 3.2 million in its first airing Friday night, finishing first in the time period among males 18-34 and 18-49, and giving the small net its largest audience ever. However, the premiere of Star Wars: The Clone Wars on Cartoon Network drew 4 million viewers, setting a record as […]
This is in my four for edition four of Who’s in Your Four this week. Fore! – 90210. Scored the highest ratings in the history of the two-year old network. – Raising the Bar, indeed. Now Turner’s cable networks can actually air a promo with a claim that’s actually true: Despite lukewarm reviews, TNT’s new legal drama Raising the Bar […]
The week’s winners and losers: T Dog’s Fab Four – Michael Phelps. The best Olympian. Ever. – NBC and the Summer Olympics. The numbers posted by the event are on the pace to be the most watched Olympics. Ever. – Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. A slight revamp and an upgrade to early fringe (5 p.m.) at WGN-TV in […]
It looks like there’s another television show that is going to outlive all of us… Scooby-Doo, a program that been around in one form or another since 1969, is spurning a live-action movie for Cartoon Network that’s being billed as a prequel to the two-live action movies. Titled Scooby-Doo: In The Beginning, it details how the Mystery, Inc. gang met. […]
Fox’s presentation at the Television Critics Association tour continued with Fox’s Animation Domination Sunday block with Simpsons creator Matt Groening, Family Guy’s and American Dad’s Seth MacFaralane, and King of the Hill’s Mike Judge. Highlights from the panel: – Best line of the day: “Is this where Karl Rove sat? Because I don’t want to get AIDS.” – Seth MacFarlane. […]
It’s official. The Simpsons is poised to surpass Gunsmoke as the longest-running prime-time scripted TV show in history after Fox revealed to a Newsday reporter (albeit reluctantly) that the network has started production on the 21st year, slated to air in the 2009-10 season. Gunsmoke ran on CBS from 1955 to 1975, running twenty seasons. Law & Order, which debuted […]
Turner’s networks took center stage on Friday at the TCA Tour with a added bonus – a preview of Cartoon Network’s Clone Wars: –CNN: The all-news network unveiled its latest gizmo: A high tech touch screen used during this election system to break down election returns from counties. Yours truly saw this first-hand when it was used during the Indiana […]
The people behind the voices of The Simpsons have signed a new four-year deal to continue with the program. The deal means the voice actors will now make $400,000 per episode – considerably more than they were previously making. The deal does not include Harry Shearer, who has reportedly clashed with producers of The Simpsons in the past. His fate […]
Yes, I’m going to be around for four more years, so deal with it. I credit Dr. Smith from Lost in Space for my wonderful character change. He’s quite smart! He deals with that robot… I deal with Brian. It’s the same thing, basically… Television’s wackiest animated family (besides The Simpsons, that is), is returning for four more seasons. In […]
KidsWB.com relaunches as well; The CW announces new name for its Saturday morning lineup The WB died in the merger with UPN to form The CW two years ago, but now the frog is being resurrected online. Time Warner announced Monday it is relaunching The WB brand online along with a revamped KidsWB website. The WB launches as a beta […]
Cartman. A Twentieth Television Production. Debmar-Mercury has replaced Tribune Entertainment with Twentieth Television as national advertising representative for syndicated reruns of South Park, meaning Twentieth will now sell the national barter ad time for Cartman and friends, effective immediately. Tribune helped clear the off-Comedy Central sitcom in several markets in 2004 and 2005. But the ironic thing here is, South […]
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