Chicago native, comedy legend Bob Newhart dies at 94

Stand-up comedian known for his phone props, starred in five network comedies Bob Newhart left his mark on television in many ways as a stand-up comedian and later as a sitcom star. His resume included an underrated (and unappreciated) sitcom set in Chicago and another TV show where the premise of running a Vermont inn for eight years was revealed […]

Betty White dies at 99

Longtime cultural icon passes just two and a half weeks before she turned 100 In a week filled with devasting deaths, here’s another one: Betty White – a beloved television icon and wonderful all-around person, died Friday, December 31 at the age of 99 – just two and a half weeks before she was to turn 100 on January 17. […]

Mary Tyler Moore dies

Iconic actress passes away at 80, was a trailblazer for women in Hollywood The television community is mourning the loss of Mary Tyler Moore who died Wednesday at the age of 80. She was known for playing two iconic characters: Lauria Petrie on The Dick Van Dyke Show and Mary Richards on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Born in Brooklyn’s […]

WCIU, CBS O&Os acquire “Hot in Cleveland”

The CBS-Weigel collation has struck again. CBS Television Distribution cleared TV Land’s off-cable Hot In Cleveland in 65 percent of the country for fall 2014, including WCIU in Chicago and several CBS-owned stations in the nation’s largest markets. This is the same collation that acquired Warner Bros.’ Mike & Molly and 2 Broke Girls for off-network syndication in 2014 and […]

T Dog’s Six Pack: Pour a wet beverage on me

It’s time to grab your favorite beverage (a six pack of it would be best…) because it’s time for T Dog’s Six Pack! In this edition, Jerry Bryant expands his business, Betty White’s is actually on her rockers celebrating her 90th birthday while the Rev. Michael Pflager is far off his.       Rounds of Hot Cocoa for everyone. […]

TCA: NBCUniversal unveils many big projects

The Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour kicked off last week from Pasadena, Calif. and up first among the Big Media companies were the networks of Comcast/NBCUniversal, which includes Bravo, E!, and NBC itself. This portion covers two days (Friday and Saturday), and what’s listed here is not listed chronologically, but by order of network: NBC – The fourth-place network’s […]

CBS to syndicate “Hot In Cleveland”

CBS Television Distribution has picked up the syndication rights of TV Land’s original sitcom Hot In Cleveland to sell to broadcast stations, eying a launch in either 2013 or 2014. The multi-camera shot series, which stars Betty White, has been a surprise hit for TV Land, averaging 3-to-4 million viewers during its two-season run.  TV Land has been branching out […]

TCA report: Part 1

It’s the Winter Television Critics Association tour where TV critics and bloggers escape the cold to come out to somewhat warmer Pasadena, Calif., a suburb of Los Angeles known for the wonderful Rose Parade, the Rose Bowl, and where Sheldon Cooper lives. Over the next few days, networks will trot out stars and execs to hawk their new shows and […]

TCA: Fox leaves "American Idol" questions unanswered

Fox’s 2010 TCA Presentation won’t be remembered for its three new shows (in fact, they’re quite forgettable), but for the questions it didn’t answer… Fox execs Kevin Reilly and Peter Rice talked about a lot of things pertaining to their network, but disappointed many at the press tour by refusing to answer any questions related to American Idol, especially on […]

T Dog’s Six Pack: The Emmys, "Hot In Cleveland", LeBron, and more

Three up, three down: The best and worst in media during the past week: What’s Hot. The Final Answer: Pay up, Mickey Mouse. A grand jury ruled in favor of Celador after The Walt Disney Co. skimmed the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire producer out of millions of dollars, thanks to “Hollywood Accounting.”  The jury awarded Celador $269 million, […]

T Dog’s Six Pack

Yes, T Dog’s Four Pack is back! But due to the struggling economy (ha, ha), yours truly is forced to cut one each from the winners’ pack and the losers’ pack – and merge the rest together to form T Dog’s Six Pack – three winners and three losers each in the same post – plus, Six Pack is a […]

Beautiful Betty tops Chicago ratings

Ugly Betty may be gone from the airwaves (did anyone notice?) but Beautiful Betty is blossoming! Betty White’s much ballyhooed hosting gig on Saturday Night Live – inspired by a Facebook campaign, won its time period with a 8.8 overnight metered-market household rating, according to Nielsen. Among adults 18-49 in the 25 Local People Meter markets, the program averaged a […]

T Dog’s Four Pack

The best and the worst in media for the week ending May 9: Winners: – Perfect. The City of Oakland and the word “perfect” often goes together as Playboy models and science-fiction conventions. But the city gets to celebrate for one day as Dallas Breaden pitched a perfect game Sunday for the hometown Athletics against the Tampa Bay Rays. Now […]