THE PROGRAMMING INSIDER
Friday, May 16, 2008

Prime-Time Metered Market Thursday Ratings:
CBS Wins; ABC Poised for Victory Among Adults 18-49

Coming Up in Fall 2008:
16 New Series; More Drama than Comedy

Ratings Box:
What’s Hot/What’s Not

On the Air This Weekend:
Prime-Time Programming Options

TV Tidbits:
Notes of Interest

TV Trivia Time:
I Survived Network Upfront Week!
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Prime-Time Metered Market Thursday Ratings:
CBS Wins; ABC Poised for Victory Among Adults 18-49

Thursday 5/15/08

HH
Rtg/Shr
CBS 8.8/14
ABC 7.7/12
NBC 5.4/ 9
Fox 4.8/ 8
CW 2.5/ 4

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-Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening (Thursday, May 17, 2007):
Fox: +60, NBC: - 2, CW: -11, CBS: -17, ABC: -28

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Note: The fast affiliate results for Thursday will be posted at PIFeedback by 12 p.m. ET. Go to the website, click on Ratings Box (the first category), then Last Night’s Results, and Thursday, May 15, 2008.

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-Yesterday’s Winners:
CSI (CBS), Grey’s Anatomy (ABC), Without a Trace (CBS)

-Yesterday’s Losers (Excluding Repeats):
My Name is Earl (NBC)

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-Ratings Breakdown:
It was a night of many season-premieres, with CBS’ CSI and Without a Trace; NBC’s My Name is Earl, The Office and ER; Fox’s Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? and Don’t Forget the Lyrics; and the CW’s Smallville and Supernatural all closing their seasons. With that in mind, CBS won Thursday in the overnights, beating second-place ABC by 14 percent. But even a rapidly declining Grey’s Anatomy still makes ABC the network to beat among adults 18-49. Finishing a distant third in the overnights was NBC, followed by Fox and the CW.

Minus Survivor in the competitive mix, ABC’s Ugly Betty opened the evening on a dominant note, with a 6.3 rating/10 share in the overnights from 8-9 p.m. Comparably, however, that was down by 30 percent in rating from the 8.6/14 on May 17, 2007. Second in the 8 p.m. hour was Fox’s Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? (5.5/ 9), which moves to Friday next season, followed by a repeat of CBS’ CSI (5.4/ 9), a one-hour edition of My Name is Earl (4.6/ 8), and the Smallville on the CW (2.8/ 5). While I recognize the importance of the fast affiliate results, My Name is Earl is just not positive.

First at 9 p.m., as usual, was CSI, with an 11.2/17 in the overnights. Comparably, that beat Grey’s Anatomy on ABC (9.8/15), which was not a season-finale, by 14 percent. But Grey’s Anatomy, of course, will win the hour among adults 18-49. Next was a one-hour edition of The Office (5.3/ 8), followed by Fox’s Don’t Forget the Lyrics (4.2/ 7), and Supernatural on the CW (2.2/ 3). Don’t Forget the Lyrics also moves to Friday next season.

CBS also dominated in the overnights at 10 p.m. care of Without a Trace at a healthy 9.9/16). Next was ABC’s Lost (7.2/12), followed by ER on NBC (6.3/11). Without a Trace will move into the Tuesday 10 p.m. next season, while new drama Eleventh Hour steps in.

Source: Nielsen Media Research data
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Coming Up in Fall 2008:
16 New Series; More Drama than Comedy

Now that the network upfront presentations are over, here are the new show tallies for fall 2008:

Number of New Shows Overall:
16 (versus 29 in fall 2007)

Breakdown:
Dramas: 10 (versus 16 in fall 2007)
Sitcoms: 4 (versus 6 in fall 2007)
Non-Scripted: 2 (versus 7 in fall 2007)

By Night:
Monday: 2
Tuesday: 6
Wednesday: 4
Thursday: 2
Friday: 2
Saturday: 0
Sunday: 0

Wednesday had the most number of new shows last fall, with 9. Next was Monday at 6, followed by Tuesday (5), Sunday (4), Friday (3) and Thursday (2).

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By Network:
ABC: 2
CBS: 5
NBC: 4 (excluding the three Saturday Night Live Election themed half-hours)
Fox: 2
CW: 3

ABC debuted 8 new series in fall 2007, followed by 6 for the CW, and 5 each for CBS, NBC and Fox.
The three-month strike, no doubt, took its toll on development for next season.

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New Shows by Network

ABC
Opportunity Knocks (non-scripted): Tuesday 8 p.m.
Life on Mars (drama): Thursday 10 p.m.

CBS
Worst Week (comedy): Monday 9:30 p.m.
The Mentalist (drama): Tuesday 9 p.m.
Project Gary (comedy): Wednesday 8:30 p.m.
Eleventh Hour (drama): Thursday 10 p.m.
The Ex List (drama): Friday 9 p.m.

NBC
My Own Worst Enemy (drama): Monday 10 p.m.
Kath & Kim (comedy): Tuesday 9:30 p.m.
Knight Rider (drama): Wednesday 8 p.m.
Crusoe (drama): Friday 8 p.m.

Fox
Fringe (drama): Tuesday 9 p.m.
Do Not Disturb (comedy): Wednesday 9:30 p.m.

CW
90210 (drama): Tuesday 8 p.m.
Surviving the Filthy Rich (drama): Tuesday 9 p.m.
Stylista (non-scripted): Wednesday 9 p.m.

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Ratings Box:
What’s Hot/What’s Not

-Week of May 12 Ratings Update:
While The Programming Insider was busy covering the network upfront presentations, here is what was happening in the world of ratings. What follows are the final national results from Monday, May 12 through Wednesday, May 14:

Households:
Fox: 9.2 rating/14 share, CBS: 7.1/11, ABC: 6.7/11, NBC: 4.5/ 7, CW: 1.8/ 3, MNTV: 0.7/ 1

Total Viewers:
Fox: 15.45 million, CBS: 11.08, ABC: 10.17, NBC: 7.03, CW: 2.65, MNTV: 1.03

Adults 18-49:
Fox: 5.8 rating/15 share, CBS: 3.0/ 8, ABC: 2.9/ 7, NBC: 2.3/ 6, CW: 1.2/ 3, MNTV: 0.4/ 1


Source: Nielsen Media Research data
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On the Air This Weekend:
Prime-Time Programming Options

Friday 5/16/08
Night 23 of the May 2008 Sweeps

ABC:
8:00 p.m. America’s Funniest Home Videos (season finale, two hours)
10:00 p.m. 20/20

CBS:
8:00 p.m. Ghost Whisperer (season finale)
9:00 p.m. Moonlight (series finale)
10:00 p.m. Numb3rs (season finale)

NBC:
8:00 p.m. American Gladiators (R, two hours)
10:00 p.m. Dateline

Fox:
8:00 p.m. Movie: A True Underdog Story (R)

CW:
8:00 p.m. Friday Night Smackdown!

MNTV
8:00 p.m. Movie: Disney’s The Kid (R)

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Saturday 5/17/08
Night 24 of the May 2008 Sweeps

ABC:
8:00 p.m. Movie: Hitch

CBS:
8:00 p.m. Cold Case (R)
9:00 p.m. CSI: Miami (R)
10:00 p.m. 48 Hours Mystery

NBC:
8:00 p.m. Medium (R)
9:00 p.m. Law & Order: Criminal Intent (R)
10:00 p.m. Law & Order (R)

Fox:
8:00 p.m. Cops
9:00 p.m. America’s Most Wanted

MNT
8:00 p.m. Movie: Rush Hour (R)

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Sunday 5/18/08
Night 25 of the May 2008 Sweeps

ABC:
7:00 p.m. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (season finale, two hours)
9:00 p.m. Desperate Housewives (season finale, two hours)

CBS:
7:00 p.m. 60 Minutes
8:00 p.m. The 43rd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards

NBC:
7:00 p.m. Dateline
8:00 p.m. The Office (R)
8:30 p.m. The Office (R)
9:00 p.m. The Office (R)
9:30 p.m. The Office (R)
10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU (R)

Fox:
7:00 p.m. King of the Hill (R)
7:30 p.m. American Dad (R)
8:00 p.m. The Simpsons (season finale)
8:30 p.m. King of the Hill (season finale)
9:00 p.m. Family Guy (R)
9:30 p.m. American Dad (season finale)

CW:
7:00 p.m. America’s Next Top Model (R)
8:00 p.m. Everybody Hates Chris (season finale)
8:30 p.m. Aliens in America (series finale)
9:00 p.m. The Game (season finale)
9:30 p.m. Girlfriends (R)

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TV Tidbits:
Notes of Interest

-24 – The Prequel:
Fox’s veteran 24, which never aired this season because of the writers strike, will whet the appetite of its hungry fans with a two-hour prequel on Sunday, Nov. 23 at 8 p.m. ET. Set a few months before day seven (and season seven) begins, Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer will battle an international crisis. It’s never a dull moment for this guy!

-Congratulations, Janice Rhoshalle Littlejohn!:
Today’s PI would not be compete with a “thumbs up” to journalist extraordinaire Janice Rhoshalle Littlejohn as she receives her Master of Professional Writing in Fiction from the University of California today. You did it, Janice! Congratulations and all the best to you.

-A Firm “Go” for Know Your Heritage, Hispanic College Quiz Show:
Time International has announced clearances in over 70 percent of the country for Know Your Heritage, Hispanic College Quiz Show in fall 2008. Hosted by Zoraida Sambolin, Know Your Heritage will encourage the appreciation of Hispanic-American contributions in a quiz show format. For more information contact Sean Deneny at 818/575-8428 or via email at sean@timelesstv.net

-Lifetime and Lifetime Movie Network in Summer 2008:
Lifetime Television and spin-off Lifetime Movie Network have announced the following schedule of original programming for this summer:

Lifetime
-Army Wives: season-premiere, Sunday, June 8, 10 p.m. ET (the first of 19 new episodes)
-How to Look Good Naked: season premiere in July (expanded one hour format)
-Movie - The Tenth Circle: Saturday, June 28, 9 p.m. ET
-Movie - Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal: Saturday, August 2, 9 p.m. ET
-Movie - True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet: Saturday, August 9, 9 p.m. ET
-Movie - True Confessions of a Go-Go Girl: Saturday, August 16, 9 p.m. ET

Lifetime Movie Network
-The Secrets of the Summer House: Sunday, June 1, 8 p.m. ET
-Nightmare at the End of the Hall: Sunday, June 22, 8 p.m. ET
-Little Girl Lost: The Delimar Vera Story: Sunday, August 17, 8 p.m. ET

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TV Trivia Time:
I Survived Network Upfront Week!

Which one of the following series will be returning in 2008-09 in midseason?

a) Back to You (Fox)
b) Bionic Woman (NBC)
c) Moonlight (CBS)
d) Rules of Engagement (CBS)
e) Shark (CBS)

The answer to the last trivia question…

Which one of the following TV characters would be the least likely to attend the network upfront presentations this week?

a) Alan Brady
b) Willie Lawrence
c) Mary McKinnon
d) Ricky Ricardo
e) Samantha Sanders

Is: b) Willie Lawrence, who was still a student when ABC drama Family aired. The other four were already professionals. Alan Brady (The Dick Van Dyke Show) and Mary McKinnon (The Mary Tyler Moore Hour) had their own variety shows, Samantha Sanders was Steve’s actress mother on Beverly Hills, 90210, and Ricky Ricardo was always in search of a TV gig.

-Current kudos goes to:
Harold Cooper, Audrey David, Phyllis Epstein, Bob Ingersoll, Colleen Roth

Sorry not premieres but finales.

Week-to-week Metered Market Ratings

UGLY BETTY
6 -> 5,9 -> 6,3

GREY'S
10,3 -> 10,2 -> 10,2 -> 9,8

CSI
11,4 -> 11,3 -> 11,5 -> 11,2

LOST
7,4 -> 6,8 -> 6,8 -> 7,2

WAT
9,6 -> 9,6 -> 9,7 -> 9,9

ER
5,7 -> 5,7 -> 5,7 -> 6,3

What happened to the NBC Network Upfront Presentation?   I looked through the week and saw everyone but the Peacock.   Did I miss something?

 

Instead, they had the "NBC Universal Experience," which was a carnival like setting complete with different booths, some NBC stars, little freebies and a lot of nonsense. And, you know what? I enjoyed it!

quote:

Originally posted by MacAtk:
What happened to the NBC Network Upfront Presentation?   I looked through the week and saw everyone but the Peacock.   Did I miss something?

 

quote:

Originally posted by Marc Berman:
Instead, they had the "NBC Universal Experience," which was a carnival like setting complete with different booths, some NBC stars, little freebies and a lot of nonsense. And, you know what? I enjoyed it!

...and they say there's no such thing as a Free Lunch!?!?!

Where might I find their projected Fall & Spring (2008-2009) schedule(s), like those you've provided for the other Big 3 (et.al.)?   Have they released one?

Here goes. I wrote this up on April 3.


NBC in 2008-09:
An Aggressive 65 Week Programming Slate

Hoping to get a jump on the competition, NBC has unveiled its prime-time programming initiatives for the 2008-09 season. But before you hear the news, keep in mind that in a period of four days last May, NBC changed about half of its announced schedule after the other networks presented. Fox also tried a similar maneuver, but failed to keep its word on several shows after key elements of the fall schedule did not deliver. So, what you are about to hear is certainly not etched in stone. On that note, the key goals are more original programming than it offered 10 years ago, fewer repeats, and an 8 p.m. hour devoted to family friendly programming.

NBC will introduce five new series next fall -- sitcom Kath & Kim; dramas My Own Worst Enemy, Knight Rider and Crusoe; and a three-week half-hour version of Saturday Night Live titled SNL Thursday Night Live. Only one night of the week, football populated Sunday, will not be changed from one year earlier. Four more series are slated to debut in the winter – dramas The Philanthropist, Merlin and Kings; and a spin-off of The Office (which will debut following an original telecast of The Office after Super Bowl XLIII). And summer 2009 will feature the additions of Canadian drama The Listener; and non-scripted hours America’s Toughest Jobs, Shark Taggers and Chopping Block. In total, that makes 13 new series.

Recent entry Lipstick Jungle has made the fall cut, with a move to Wednesday at 10 p.m. out of Deal or No Deal. But Law & Order is slated to return for season No. 19 in the hour in midseason. Fall 2007 entries Chuck and Life are returning, with an aggressive re-launch. And veteran ER will conclude next season, with 19 original episodes that will run consecutively in the Thursday 10 p.m. hour. After ER ends, Celebrity Apprentice will step in. Also returning to NBC in midseason is Friday Night Lights, which will share its broadcast window with DirecTV. Smmer 2009 returnees will include America’s Got Talent, American Gladiators, Last Comic Standing, Monk and Nashville Star.

Veteran sitcom Scrubs is ending its run on NBC (and could be moving over to ABC with a new season of originals). And also missing from the schedule are Bionic Woman, Journeyman, The Singing Bee, Amnesia and 1 vs. 100. Law & Order: Criminal Intent is expected to remain in originals on USA. Key upcoming programming events on NBC include the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, NFL Wild-Card playoff games, the 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards and the aforementioned Super Bowl XLIII.

Although I will save my personal thoughts on NBC’s plans for today’s PIPodcast (and, trust me, I have a lot to say), if anything fails to deliver this fall, this schedule will change. Since no line-up is ever perfect, consider the following schedules (broken out by Fall 2008, Winter 2009 and Summer 2009) tentative.

New series are capped.

FALL 2008

Monday
8:00 p.m. Chuck
9:00 p.m. Heroes
10:00 p.m. MY OWN WORST ENEMY

Tuesday
8:00 p.m. The Biggest Loser: Families (90 minutes)
9:30 p.m. KATH & KIM
10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU

Wednesday
8:00 p.m. KNIGHT RIDER
9:00 p.m. Deal or No Deal
10:00 p.m. Lipstick Jungle (new day)

Thursday
8:00 p.m. My Name is Earl
8:30 p.m. 30 Rock
9:00 p.m. The Office
9:30 p.m. The Office/SNL THURSDAY NIGHT LIVE*
10:00 p.m. ER (Final Season, 19 episodes to run consecutively)

*SNL Thursday Night Live will air for three weeks leading up to the presidential race.

Friday
8:00 p.m. CRUSOE
9:00 p.m. Deal or No Deal (new day and time)
10:00 p.m. Life (new day)

Saturday
8:00 p.m. Dateline
9:00 p.m. Knight Rider (Repeat)
10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU (Repeat)

Sunday
7:00 p.m. Football Night in America (to 8:20 p.m.)
8:20 p.m. Sunday Night Football

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WINTER 2009

Monday
8:00 p.m. Chuck
9:00 p.m. Heroes
10:00 p.m. THE PHILANTROPIST

Tuesday
8:00 p.m. The Biggest Loser: Couples (90 minutes)
9:30 p.m. KATH & KIM
10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU

Wednesday
8:00 p.m. KNIGHT RIDER
9:00 p.m. Deal or No Deal
10:00 p.m. Law & Order

Thursday
8:00 p.m. My Name is Earl
8:30 p.m. 30 Rock
9:00 p.m. The Office
9:30 p.m. THE OFFICE SPIN-OFF
10:00 p.m. ER/Celebrity Apprentice

Friday
8:00 p.m. Deal or No Deal
9:00 p.m. Friday Night Lights
10:00 p.m. Life

Saturday
8:00 p.m. Dateline
9:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU (Repeat)
10:00 p.m. Law & Order (Repeat)

Sunday
7:00 p.m. Specials/Dateline
8:00 p.m. Specials/MERLIN
9:00 p.m. Specials/Medium (new day and time)
10:00 p.m. Specials/KINGS

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SUMMER 2009

Monday
8:00 p.m. American Gladiators
9:00 p.m. AMERICA’S TOUGHEST JOBS
10:00 p.m. Dateline

Tuesday
8:00 p.m. Most Outrageous Moments
9:00 p.m. America’s Got Talent
10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU (Repeat)

Wednesday
8:00 p.m. SHARK TAGGERS
9:00 p.m. America’s Got Talent (Results Show)
10:00 p.m. Law & Order (R)

Thursday
8:00 p.m. The Office (Repeat)
8:30 p.m. The Office Spin-Off (Repeat)
9:00 p.m. Last Comic Standing
10:00 p.m. THE LISTENER

Friday
8:00 p.m. CHOPPING BLOCK
9:00 p.m. Dateline (two hours)

Saturday
8:00 p.m. Drama Encores
9:00 p.m. Drama Encores
10:00 p.m. Drama Encores

Sunday
7:00 p.m. Dateline
8:00 p.m. Monk
9:00 p.m. Nashville Star
10:00 p.m. Kings (Repeats)

New Program Descriptions


COMEDY

Kath & Kim
Based on the hit Australian sitcom, a divorced woman finds her life turned upside down when her daughter leaves her husband and moves in. Molly Shannon and Selma Blair star.

SNL Thursday Night Live
Saturday Night Live expands its Weekend Update coverage for three live half-hour shows focusing on the upcoming presidential elections.

Untitled The Office Spin-Off (Winter)
A single camera comedy series spun-off from The Office (detailed have yet-to-be confirmed).

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DRAMA

Crusoe
Based on the classic Daniel Dafoe novel, a castaway faces ongoing challenges as he and his native friend struggle to survive on a deserted island.

Kings (Winter)
Set in a modern metropolis, a brave young solider (Christopher Egan) rescues the king’s son (Ian McShane) from enemy territory in an attempt to bring peace to the land.

Knight Rider
The classic 1980s series about a man and his indestructible car is revived. Justin Bruening stars; former “A” list actor Val Kilmer is the voice of the new KITT car.

The Listener (Summer)
Produced in Canada, a young man who can read people’s thoughts finds himself acting upon them. Thirteen episodes have been ordered.

Merlin (Winter)
Set in the mythic city of Camelot, two ambitious young men (Colin Morgan, Bradley James) hope to live up to their family’s high expectations after becoming “legends.”

My Own Worst Enemy
A middle-class efficiency expert (Christian Slater) living a boring life in the suburbs and an operative who speaks 13 languages share one thing in common – the same body. But when the carefully constructed wall between the two breaks down, they are thrust into unfamiliar territory.

The Philanthropist (Winter)
An iconoclastic billionaire looks for ways to distribute his wealth and help people by using all of his resources, regardless of the risk.

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NON-SCRIPTED

America’s Toughest Jobs (Summer)
In this new reality/competition with a large cash-prize payoff, daredevils, cut-throat competitors and risk takers from around the country travel across America on an extended adventure that will test their physical moxie and mental stamina.

Chopping Block (Summer)
Celebrated chef and restaurateur Marco Pierre White (UK’s Hell’s Kitchen) will offer hopeful chefs/restaurateurs working as couples a chance to compete in America's greatest restaurant challenge.

Shark Taggers (Summer)
The Department of Fish and Game’s (DFG) volunteer shark tagging program is the focus of this new reality series.