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, […]
In a deal that helps set a precedent, NBC Universal’s cable networks have acquired exclusive cable off-network rights to Twentieth Television’s hour-long drama Glee and half-hour sitcom Modern Family. USA Network- which hasn’t bought a major sitcom for its first cycle since Major Dad and Wings in the early 1990’s, gets Modern Family for a reported $1.4 million per episode […]
Here’s what going on: – WGN-AM’s Garry Meier is starring in his own TV special, set to air on WCIU July 11 at 10:30 p.m, titled The Garry Meier Special. Among the featured interviews: George Wendt (Cheers), Cubs broadcaster Len Kasper, Richard Lewis (Anything But Love), Tim Kazurinsky, and the lady who pick the lottery numbers. This sounds awfully like […]
Off-net sitcom clears five more markets. Weigel’s WDJT/WMLW in Milwaukee gets syndie rights to show. Warner Bros. red-hot Big Bang Theory has now cleared five more markets a month after the show cleared ten Fox-owned and operated stations, including WFLD-TV and WPWR-TV in Chicago. Among the five markets cleared is Milwaukee, whose CBS-affiliated WDJT-TV purchased the show to air on […]
The most aggressive moves front the upfront didn’t come from the three other major networks – it came from the front runner, CBS. CBS unveiled its 2010-11 lineup Wednesday in front of advertisers in New York City, and it came with some surprises: the biggest one of them all is the move of hot comedy The Big Bang Theory to […]
WFLD/WPWR picks up show as part of ten-market Fox deal Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution has sold The Big Bang Theory to Fox-owned stations and Turner Broadcasting for a fall 2011 start. The cable deal has TBS paying a record-breaking $1.5 million per episode (for a cable network) for the rights to air the show in primetime four or […]
Law & Order’s fate hanging in the balance It was a day for cancellations. In a move that does not surprise anyone, The Thursday night science-fiction series’ ratings declined significantly throughout the season in the key adults 18-49 demographic. Last Thursday’s airing of FlashForward finished in last place among adults 18-49 in its time period, even behind CW’s Vampire Diaries, […]
Are these guys worth $4 million per episode? You bet your behind it is. Is the high-priced off-network sitcom on its way back? With the upcoming sale of The Big Bang Theory, we may soon find out. Not since the days of Friends, Seinfeld, The Simpsons, and The Cosby Show have we seen a sitcom come close to the $4 […]
The deals made by Tribune, Fox, and Weigel’s WCIU for Family Guy last week showed a return of cash into the syndication marketplace, something that has lacking for the past year or so. But hold the bubbly; in fact, you might have to take the bottle of champagne back to the store. It turns out Tribune paid less to renew […]
A week of shock and awe – literally. A Halloween edition of T Dog’s Four Pack: Treats – White Collar. USA had a lot of goodies in its bag – to the tune of 5.3 million viewers for the debut of its new Friday night drama White Collar. With the continued success of Dexter on Showtime, being a criminal has […]
Don’t drop Cheryl, Tom! Or she’ll be like The Tribune… All right, I’ve seen some absurd items on Chicago Tribune’s editorial page before… but this one takes the cake. One of Wednesday’s editorials in the paper was titled “Dancing With DeLay” , about former disgraced Texas congressman Tom DeLay competing on the newest season of Dancing With the Stars. You’ve got […]
For the 61st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards – it was deja vu – the year of the Repeat – as in repeat winners. For the third year in a row, 30 Rock won for Outstanding Comedy Series, while Mad Men swept its way to its second straight Outstanding Drama Series win. Another repeat winner came in the reality category, with […]
I can see it now… Goofy and Captain America starring in the new buddy comedy, The Goofball and the Superhero. Maybe not. But the owners of those properties are hooking up with each in a $4 billion dollar cash and stock deal. In a rather rare merger deal in this magnitude in this economic climate, The Walt Disney Co. announced […]
The comic book and pop culture gathering in San Diego every July called Comic-Con ended on Sunday. Over 100,000 people attended the four-day geekfest, drawing more bodies than a Nationals-Padres three-game series would’ve drawn – or any homestand involving the Padres. Comic-Con has grown to be a important marketing vehicle for Hollywood studios – its now seen as an important […]
The Tiffany Network unveiled its 2009-10 schedule to advertisers at Upfront Week. The Church of Tisch is keeping the status quo on some nights and has made changes to others, including the addition of former NBC stalwart Medium to Friday nights, leading out of Ghost Whisperer. Click here to read the press schedule and look at the lineup. Three new […]
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