BREAKING NEWS: NBC announces mid-season schedule

In Breaking News, NBC just announced today its midseason schedule, beginning in January 2011. For those many callers who've asked me on Sirius OutQ's The Frank DeCaro Show whether Parks & Recreation would be returning, take note of the revised Thursday schedule below.

Thursday's moves represent a risky strategy for NBC; scheduling six back-to-back comedies to fill up prime time is a move no network has attempted (outside of Fox's animation domination on Sundays) since the early '90s. My prediction is that some of the shows, like Outsourced at 10:30, won't have enough ratings power to survive.

But I like that this schedule shows that NBC knows they need to make some moves to recover from a disastrous recent history -- and here, they're making quite a few of them. Who knows -- people wondered whether ABC would be able to launch 4 new comedies back-to-back on Wednesdays in the fall of 2009, and they ended up with 3 of the shows surviving, and a major hit in Modern Family. So, NBC, I guess time will tell... Here's the announcement and schedule:

11/15/2010 03:15 NBC ANNOUNCES NEW MID-SEASON SCHEDULE

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. – November 15, 2010 – NBC today made several mid-season schedule announcements, including the premiere dates for four new series – the dramas “The Cape” and “Harry’s Law,” the comedy “Perfect Couples” and the alternative series “America’s Next Great Restaurant.” The lineup also includes series time period changes for “Law & Order: Los Angeles,” “Chase,” “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” and “Parenthood.”

Additionally, returning series “Parks and Recreation,” “The Biggest Loser: Couples,” “Who Do You Think You Are?,” “Minute to Win It,” “The Marriage Ref” and “The Celebrity Apprentice” resume on the schedule while other moves maximize the amount of original, non-repeat programming on the network.

Following are night-by-night details:

Mondays
The new action-filled drama “The Cape” will premiere with a two-hour episode on Sunday, January 9 (9-11 p.m. ET). An encore broadcast of the two-hour episode airs Monday, January 10 (9-11 p.m. ET) with new episodes starting in its regular time period on January 17 (9-10 p.m. ET). The highly buzzed-about drama “The Event” returns with a two-hour edition on Monday, February 28 (9-11 p.m. ET) and begins airing in its regular 9-10 p.m. (ET) time slot on March 7. The new drama “Harry’s Law” debuts at 10-11 p.m. (ET) starting on January 17. “Parenthood” will return on January 4 with new episodes in its current time period (Tuesdays, 10-11 p.m. ET) and will move to Mondays on March 7 at 10-11 p.m. (ET) with original episodes to complete its second season. “Chuck” continues at 8-9 p.m. (ET) on January 17.

Tuesdays
The new season of “The Biggest Loser: Couples” premieres on Tuesday, January 4 at 8-10 p.m. (ET). “Law & Order: Los Angeles” will move to Tuesdays at 10-11 p.m. (ET) on February 8.

Wednesdays
Beginning January 5, “Minute to Win It” returns at 8-9 p.m. (ET). The freshman drama “Chase” relocates to a new night and time at 9-10 p.m. (ET) beginning January 12. “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” moves to a new time beginning with a two-hour episode from 9-11 p.m. (ET) on January 5 before resuming in its regular time of 10-11 p.m. (ET) the next week. The new alternative series “America’s Next Great Restaurant” premieres from 9-10 p.m. (ET) on March 16.

Thursdays
The new Thursday-night lineup features wall-to-wall comedy beginning January 20 with “Community” at 8-8:30 p.m. (ET) followed at the new comedy “Perfect Couples” at 8:30-9 p.m. (ET). “The Office” continues at 9-9:30 p.m. (ET) and “Parks and Recreation” returns from 9:30-10 p.m. (ET). NBC opens a new hour of humor with “30 Rock” moving to 10-10:30 p.m. (ET) and the freshman series “Outsourced” concludes the night at 10:30-11 p.m. (ET).

Fridays
The alternative genealogy series “Who Do You Think You Are?” returns on January 21 (8-9 p.m. ET). “Dateline NBC” will return on January 7 (9-11 p.m. ET).

Sundays
“The Marriage Ref” returns for its second season on March 6 (8-9 p.m. ET) followed by the return of “The Celebrity Apprentice” (9-11 p.m. ET), also on March 6.

For more detailed information and photography on these and other NBC series, please log on to www.nbcumv.com.

The premieres of the new January-March program schedule follow in a grid (all times ET); new series are capitalized.

MONDAYS
8-9 p.m. – “Chuck”
9-10 p.m. – “THE CAPE” will premiere with a two-hour episode on Sunday, January 9 (9-11 p.m.). New episodes start in its regular time period on January 17 (9-10 p.m.)
10-11 p.m. – “HARRY’S LAW’ (beginning January 17)
9-10 p.m. – “The Event” (returns on February 28, 9-11 p.m.; resumes in its regular time slot March 7)
10-11 p.m. -- “Parenthood” (debuts in this slot March 7 with all originals)

TUESDAYS
8-10 p.m. -- “The Biggest Loser: Couples” (beginning January 4)
10-11 p.m. – “Parenthood” (beginning January 4 for four episodes)
10-11 p.m. -- “Law & Order: Los Angeles” (beginning February 8)

WEDNESDAYS
8-9 p.m. -- “Minute to Win It” (beginning January 5)
9-10 p.m. –“Chase” (beginning January 12)
10-11 p.m. – “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (originals beginning January 5 with two-hour episode, 9-11 p.m. ET)
9-10 p.m. – “AMERICA’S NEXT GREAT RESTAURANT” (beginning March 16)

THURSDAYS (all beginning January 20)
8-8:30 p.m. – “Community”
8:30-9 p.m. – “PERFECT COUPLES”
9-9:30 p.m. – “The Office”
9:30-10 p.m. – “Parks and Recreation”
10-10:30 p.m. – “30 Rock”
10:30-11 p.m. – “Outsourced”

FRIDAYS
8-9 p.m. -- “Who Do You Think You Are?” (beginning January 21)
9-11 p.m. – “Dateline NBC” (beginning January 7)

SUNDAYS
7-8 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
8-9 p.m. – “The Marriage Ref” (beginning March 6)
9-11 p.m. – “The Celebrity Apprentice” (beginning March 6)

Don't Miss Better Off Ted, tonight on ABC

Last Tuesday, Scrubs returned to ABC with a double-episode premiere of its new "2.0" format, set in a medical school. The ratings, unfortunately, were abysmal.

Tonight, following Scrubs, is the return of my favorite new show of last season, Better Off Ted. If you haven't yet sampled the show, set in the hilariously amoral corporate offices of conglomerate Veridian Dynamics, you're missing some of the edgiest, most pointed and yet silliest writing to be found in today's TV comedy. And some of the best performances, like standouts Portia DeRossi, as the driven and icy blonde boss Veronica, and Andrea Anders as the neurotic and moral underling Linda.

Yesterday, on Sirius OutQ's The Frank DeCaro Show, another of the show's stars, out gay actor Jonathan Slavin, who plays the hilariously put-upon lab researcher Phil, noted that ABC hopes that the pairing of Scrubs and Ted will click, since they both have such a smart comic sensibility. (I would also add that if you are/were a fan of either Arrested Development or 30 Rock, you should check in tonight with Ted.)

Personally, I wish ABC had given Ted the berth in its more successful Wednesday lineup which used to be occupied by Kelsey Grammer's now-cancelled Hank, and which now temporarily houses repeats of this season's best new comedy, Modern Family. Let's hope that Scrubs and Ted, two shows worth watching, can cause some uptick in the numbers at ABC -- although with CBS' combination of NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles and The Good Wife catching fire this season, it's going to be a tough battle.

So check out the following clip from last season's finest half-hour, entitled "Racial Sensitivity" (in which Veridian's new automatic light sensors are unable to sense the presence of black people, effectively locking them in dark rooms at work) and then, if you still can't miss your LL Cool J fix -- and who could blame you? -- set your DVRs for a season pass of Ted.

Better Off Ted
Tuesdays at 9:30 Eastern
ABC

Meredith Baxter, the Frank DeCaro Show Interview

For those of you who missed Meredith Baxter in her radio exclusive interview on The Frank DeCaro Show this morning, here are a few clips from the interview:

Elyse Keaton, Lesbian Mom

This morning on The Frank DeCaro Show, on Sirius XM OutQ Radio, fabulous Family Ties star Meredith Baxter stopped by, to make the announcement that she is indeed a lesbian.

Baxter says that although she's an extremely private person, she decided to make the announcement in order to help the community, in order to put a friendly face on the lesbian label and to do her part hopefully to convince voters not to continue to take away our rights.

The 62-year-old actress, famous for her TV roles from Bridget Loves Bernie (which, Baxter playfully suggested at Frank's prompting, could now be "Bridget Loves Bernice") and Family in the '70s through, of course, '80s iconic series Family Ties, had pre-taped an appearance for NBC's Today, which aired earlier this morning -- but had recorded her interview with Frank even before that, making Sirius XM her first stop in breaking the news.

Congratulations, Meredith -- we loved you back then, and love you now -- if possible, even more. And now it all makes sense -- no wonder Elyse was such a beautiful, understanding mom!

(Catch a replay of the interview during Frank's 3rd hour today, at 1:15 PM Eastern/10:15 AM Pacific, as well as during the 10PM Eastern rerun of the entire show tonight.)

One Big Gay and Happy

Tune in tomorrow to The Frank DeCaro Show, when in the first hour, Frank will host a beloved TV icon who has an important announcement to make!

That's The Frank DeCaro Show,
Wednesday, December 2
11AM-12PM Eastern, 8-9 AM Pacific
OutQ
Sirius 109 / XM 98

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Here's a goodie from today's broadcast of The Frank DeCaro Show that's headed straight for our collective pop culture archives: original Munchkin Karl Slover sings "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." Check it out!

The Frank DeCaro Show
Monday to Friday, 11AM - 2PM Eastern, 8-11AM Pacific
Sirius OutQ
Sirius 109 / XM 98

Better Off Ted returns next week

Fans of Better Off Ted, worry not:  even though it may not have aired tonight as originally scheduled, the show is not gone.  Not for at least one more week, anyway.

The laugh-out-loud comedy -- if you haven't found it yet, I urge you to catch it -- was due to air its sixth episode tonight, but was preempted by President Obama's press conference to mark his first 100 days in office.  (Wow, how I still love typing that phrase:  "President Obama!")

In fact, as is customary, ABC, CBS and NBC all set aside their regularly scheduled programming in tonight's 8PM hour in order to bring us the president's address.  But in a historic -- and troubling -- move, Fox opted not to use its place in the public trust to bring us the words of the leader of the free world, instead thinking we might be better served by an hour of Lie To Me (which really just sounds more like a speech from the previous administration.)

Anyway, the President's speech meant that Better Off Ted will now air its season (and hopefully not series) finale next week.  But it won't be on Wednesday night, which will be reserved for the Scrubs season (and hopefully series) finale.  So mark your calendars and set your DVRs, because next week, Better Off Ted airs on Tuesday night (5/5) instead, at 8:30 PM.

To promote the date and time change, the show's creator Victor Fresco has created a clever commercial parody, along the lines of the fake ads for evil megacorporation Veridian Dynamics which air as part of the show.  Check it out below:

And to learn more about Better Off Ted, listen to The Frank DeCaro Show on OutQ (Sirius satellite radio channel 109 or XM channel 98) tomorrow, Thursday, April 30, at 11AM Eastern/8AM Pacific, for an interview with Ted's delightfully funny female, Andrea Anders.  And to hear series creator Victor Fresco's interview about the show from Frank's show last week, click here.

And check out Better Off Ted.  I guarantee, you'll like it.  Everyone does -- except maybe President Obama?  Otherwise, why would he schedule an address that could harm a fledgling comedy?  Maybe Veridian Dynamics was a big campaign contributor.

Breaking News: Curb Your Enthusiasm to return!

For Jay, who called into my Must Hear TV segment on The Frank DeCaro Show this afternoon, asking about the return of Curb Your Enthusiasm: news hot off the Variety press says that Curb is slated to go back into production in December, to make 10 episodes which will air in 2009.
Click here for the story.

Catch Me on Twist

For an on-air version of Must-Hear TV, catch me in two radio appearances this week:

In my regular Wednesday slot on The Frank DeCaro Show, on Sirius' OutQ station, channel 109. 1:15 PM Eastern, 10:15 AM Pacific!


And this weekend, I'll be talking TV on Twist, the fabulous gay music and entertainment countdown airing on local stations in New York, L.A., Washington, San Francisco, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Albuquerque and Indianapolis. Check their web site, http://www.radiowithatwist.com/ for local stations and showtimes --and other fun goodies from hosts Dennis Hensley, Ben Harvey and Melissa Carter.


See you on the air!

NEW -- "Follow" Must-Hear TV!

As those of you familiar with RSS and Blogger undoubtedly already know, now there are quite a few ways you can keep getting daily helpings of Must-Hear TV dinners, delivered directly to your screen.

1) Near the upper right hand corner of the Must-Hear TV blog, you'll find a box titled Followers of Must-Hear TV. If you're a Blogger member, just click on the "Follow" link, and new posts from Must-Hear TV will be automatically mixed in to the news you receive on Blogger and/or Google Reader.

2) Directly under the Followers box is another way to subscribe to Must-Hear TV. In the box titled Get Blog Feed Subscription, simply click to subscribe to RSS feeds. The cool thing here is, you can also click to have post Comments mixed in to your news as well.

3) And if you'd prefer to receive your Must-Hear TV delivered via email (usually just after midnight), there's a box titled Get Email Subscription to Must-Hear TV where you can type in your email address. You'll be asked to verify a word image, and then will receive an email containing an activation link.

Join me for some daily fun, and let's talk... Must-Hear TV!

Radio Recap, September 10, 2008

It's time for a RADIO RECAP
"Must Hear TV" on "The Frank DeCaro Show" on Sirius OutQ 109
Wednesdays, 1-2 PM

In news from today's "Must-Hear TV" report...

• In week 2 of season 2, Gossip Girl continues to show signs of improving ratings, and of ruling Monday night -- as least as far as young women are concerned. The show, along with sixth-season lead-out One Tree Hill, powered the CW network this past Monday to its second consecutive win among Women 18-34, Females 12-34 and Female Teens. That represents impressive gains for both shows in these key, advertiser-craved demos. Of course, the shows' real network competition won't show up for battle for a few more weeks now, but with these results, CW is hoping that by then, Gossip will have become a habit.

• NBC-owned USA Network has announced an unusual approach to the upcoming eighth season of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Lately, the show has exhibited sort of a split personality, with differences in tone depending upon which of its two leading-man-and-lady combos shows up that week. Now, the split is becoming even more formal: the show will now be written by two separate writing teams. One team will tackle writing for the Vincent D'Onofrio/Kathryn Erbe partnership, while the other takes on new cast member, Academy Award and Emmy nominee Jeff Goldblum and Julianne Nicholson. We'll see the results when Criminal Intent returns to USA, on Thursday, November 6 at 10 PM Eastern.

• This year, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is giving the general public a voice in its Emmy Awards Telecast -- sort of. No, we won't be voting on Best Actress in a Comedy (I couldn't decide between Tina Fey and Julia Louis-Dreyfus anyway!) -- but we can weigh in on TV's top 10 comedic and dramatic moments of all time.
  
  Along with Ken Ehrlich Productions and a select group of journalists, The Academy originally selected a list of 40 possible winners; with more than 100,000 votes already cast by the public, the list has been narrowed down to 20, with 10 candidates in each category. According to the Academy's press release, "the list includes many of TV's highest-rated moments, as well of some of its most emotional, funny and dramatic scenes," as varied as The Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, the entire Cosby family singing a Ray Charles song, hearing the "Good night"s on The Waltons, and the disappearance of the island on Lost.
  
  Voting continues through September 15 at emmys.abc.com, with winners to be announced in a special segment on this year's 60th Primetime Emmy Awards telecast, airing live on ABC on Sunday, September 21 at 8 PM Eastern.

Well that's it for me -- my theme music is playing me out. Tune in next Wednesday for the next installment of...

"Must Hear TV!"

Radio Recap 9/3/08

It's time for a RADIO RECAP
"Must Hear TV" on "The Frank DeCaro Show" on Sirius OutQ 109
Wednesdays, 1-2 PM

In news from today's "Must-Hear TV" report...

• Gossip Girl is a hit! Monday night's season 2 premiere drew the show's Best Ratings EVER in Adults 18-34, Women 18-34, Adults 18-49 and Women 18-49. And the rising tide of Gossip lifed One Tree Hill's boat as well, leading the show to deliver big time ratings. Monday's season 6 premiere outperformed last season’s premiere, and either beat or matched the show's best ratings since the 06-07 season. Of course, all this is just based on one week's worth of results, and the heavy competition is due back on the air soon enough. Stay tuned!

• Speaking of huge hits, due undoubtedly to the promotion the show got when star Mark-Paul Gosselaar appeared on The Frank DeCaro Show, Raising The Bar is a big fat hit. 7.7 million viewers caught the show's Labor Day series premiere, setting the record as ad-supported cable's biggest series launch of all time (!) Some more stats to throw at you:



• Raising The Bar's 5,709,000 households outpaced the 2005 series launch of TNT's The Closer among households (5,259,000) and the 2004 series launch of USA's The 4400 among viewers (7,407,000).


• Raising The Bar supplanted USA's In Plain Sight among viewers (5,253,000); households (3,809,000); adults 18-49 (2,298,000); and adults 25-54 (2,567,000).

Again, time will tell if Steven Bochco's legal drama can stand up to heavier network competition. But for now, all hail the new king of cable!

• In what may not be a great sign for these two series, both Fox's new sitcom Do Not Disturb (premiering on the early side, 9/10) and CBS' sci-fi-ish drama Eleventh Hour (premiering on the late side, 10/9) have decided to skip over their original pilots, and instead air a different episode as their series' first. I haven't heard any scuttlebutt about why these shows are going that route, but I do know that it's often not a good sign -- it means the pilot was deemed not strong enough to open the show with. Of course, some series have re-ordered their episodes, burying weaker ones later in the season, and gone on to become monster hits -- for example, The Golden Girls. It'll be interesting to keep an eye on these shows, and see what happens in hindsight.
  

And you callers asked...

• Marc in VT: Nip/Tuck is returning to FX sometime in 2009 -- but the network has yet to announce a specific date.







• Chris in Dallas: Damages will certainly be back on FX for a second season -- it was a huge hit. It, too, will be sometime in early 2009, although we know not when at this point. But the network is high on the show, and has announced some casting coups for the show's return, including the return of Ted Danson as Arthur Frobisher, and the appearances of more such name actors as Timothy Olyphant and William Hurt.





• Carol in NJ: I'm as curious about True Blood as you are! I haven't seen any of the show, but from the panel HBO presented at the Television Critics' Association, it looks smart and funny -- that's Alan Ball for you!

• Shirley in Houston: Fear not, Ghost Whisperer will be back. True, it will be without my former NJ neighbor Jay Mohr, who has graduated to starring in his own CBS show, the Wednesday night sitcom Gary Unmarried (which I've seen, and which is refreshingly funny.) Ghost Whisperer returns to CBS' Friday lineup for its 4th season on 10/3.

• Talia in MA: It's not your imagination, nor is it your TiVo malfunctioning! Saving Grace is a hit, so it's not off the air -- but it is taking a break. (You can't expect Holly Hunter to stay that messed up for that many weeks straight!) TNT has carved its second season into two halves; the first 7 episodes just finished airing, and the latter 8 are set to air sometime in 2009.

• Steve in NJ: You're right -- Jane Kaczmarek's clerk in Raising the Bar, Charlie (Jonathan Scarfe) is indeed secretly gay. Finally, a new gay character to root for on a high-profile new show! It's been a while. By the way, for the rest of you callers -- like Barb in Allentown and Jason in Dallas -- who called in to ask if the show will get better in future episodes, click here for a review on TVSquad which claims just that.



• Will: Showtime has indeed ordered a 3rd season of Brotherhood -- but hasn't said when in 2009 the episodes will air.









• Barry: I checked tvshowsondvd.com and looked around, and I see no news, current or announcements, of Paradise Falls coming to DVD anytime soon. Sorry!

Well that's it for me -- my theme music is playing me out. Tune in next Wednesday for the next installment of...

"Must Hear TV!"

Radio Recap, August 6, 2008

It's time for a RADIO RECAP
"Must Hear TV" on "The Frank DeCaro Show" on Sirius OutQ 109
Wednesdays, 1-2 PM


In news from today's "Must-Hear TV" report...

• SciFi Network announced that it's running Stargate Atlantis into this fall, using the series as a lead in to its new show: Sanctuary, which stars Stargate alumna Amanda Tapping.
  
  Starting August 15, Stargate Atlantis repeats will air on Fridays at 9, followed by an original episode at 10. Then, on Friday October 3, Sanctuary premieres in that time slot (9 PM); Stargate resumes airing at 9 on October 10, with Sanctuary sliding back to 10 PM. Got all that?

• In other SciFi news, its series Eureka started season 3 with great ratings, finishing the day as the #1 show on cable for adults 25-54. With 2.8 million total viewers, the show scored its highest numbers since its series premiere on July 18, 2006.

• And in even more SciFi news: Battlestar Galactica executive producer Dave Eick told the geeks crowd at ComicCon last month that the series' remaining episodes (so far, we know 10 are planned) will have to be extra long, in order to wrap up all the show's remaining plotlines and story arcs. It's not clear whether the remaining weeks of Battlestar will be artificially "super-sized," a la NBC, or just extended for some episodes to two hours instead of one. Stay tuned!

And you callers wanted to know:

• Brian in Toledo asked why there are no sitcoms with fantasy elements on the air anymore, like The Munsters, The Addams Family or Alf. I'd say that's just because those types of shows tend to pop up in clusters -- when one works or seems to have buzz, others follow. (The Munsters and The Addams Family, as Frank pointed out, both debuted and were cancelled within weeks of each other!) I'd cite Third Rock from the Sun as a good recent example from the '90s. But you're right -- the abject failure of Cavemen may keep "high concept" sitcoms out of vogue for quite a while to come.

• Greg in Michigan wanted to know if there are any shows coming this fall with gay themes, a la Will & Grace (or even the gayest show ever, Ugly Betty.) Other than the L Word spinoff, which won't be here for a while, I don't know of any which will be that gay. But I do know that a few new series will be showcasing gay characters. Stay tuned to this blog for interviews with Chris Diamantopoulos, who plays Debra Messing's character's gay BFF Rodney on USA's series version of The Starter Wife starting in October, and with gay writer Abraham Higginbotham, whose sitcom Do Not Disturb starts on Fox in early September, complete with the hilarious Jesse Tyler Ferguson playing a gay hotel worker.

• Tom in Miami asked about the status of the rumored Noah's Arc movie. Well, Tom, it's a rumor no more -- click here on afterelton.com for a video of the show's creator Patrik-Ian Polk and star Darryl Stephens talking all about Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom.

And to answer your DVD questions:

• Tom in Miami: Gimme a Break season 1 was released on 2/14/06. Season 2 so far seems to be available only in Canada. Maybe they just like Nell Carter better than we do.

• Jim in OK: The Waltons is up to season 7 on DVD, which was released on April 29 of this year. So, only 2 more seasons to go for your collection.

• Jeremiah in Denver: all 4 seasons of Knight Rider have been out on DVD for a few years now. Just in time for you to catch NBC's remake this fall.

• Mark in FL: So far, the only way you can get the 1967-78 The Carol Burnett Show on DVD (other than the 2004 special Let's Bump Up The Lights or the 2002 reunion special/retrospective Showstoppers) is to order it by subscription from Guthy-Renker, at 1-800-720-3311. I doubt we'll ever see a major consumer release of every one of the show's 11 (!) seasons.

• Nikki in IL: Sorry, but China Beach is still not released. You're not alone in asking for it, though. In fact, you can click here to sign the petition to bring the show to DVD. (As Frank pointed out, for a while there, you could catch airings of the show on the American Life Network -- but no more).

• Greg in Minneapolis: You're not alone in your frustration, either, about the haphazard way Fox has been releasing seasons of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. There was a huge gap of time between seasons 1 and 2 (almost 3 years), while the studio pondered whether to release further years at all. Now, since season 4 came out in 2006, they seem stalled again. Click here to sign the petition to get season 5!

Well that's it for me -- my theme music is playing me out.

Tune in next Wednesday for the next installment of...

"Must Hear TV!

Radio Recap -- July 30, 2008

It's time for a RADIO RECAP
"Must Hear TV" on "The Frank DeCaro Show" on Sirius OutQ 109
Wednesdays, 1-2 PM



In news from today's installment of "Must-Hear TV"...

• Audiences are already mad for season 2 of AMC's Mad Men. Sunday night's premiere more than doubled the season 1 average for viewers (2.0 million vs. 915,000), and also grew significantly in the all-important Adults 18-49 and 25-54 demos.



And I'm telling you if you're just tuning in to this destined-to-be-a-classic show, stick around. I've seen episode 2. And whereas episode 1 laid a lot of groundwork, there are now some juicy surprises coming already this Sunday...






• All you callers who constantly ask about this one -- and with John Barrowman as the lead, why wouldn't you? -- BBC America announced at ComicCon last week in San Diego that they will be carrying Season 3 of the Doctor Who spinoff series Torchwood. 5 new episodes are being produced in the UK for airing in 2009, with BBC America airing them here shortly thereafter.



I know a lot of you will be saying "Any casting news?" And "why only 5 episodes?" The answers so far appear to be "No comment" on both fronts.

• I know from witnessing it first-hand (click here for a link to my coverage of an Extreme Makeover for the Vitale family of Long Island) that Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is the real deal. This show changes lives for the better, empowers neighbors to help, and has a cast of talented designers who really care. Recently, there have been news reports of winners unprepared for the tax bills accompanying their new digs, and now comes the first report I've heard of a pending foreclosure.



According to tvguide.com, the Harper family of Georgia used their new mini-mansion, built with the goodwill of 1800 of their nearest and dearest, as collateral on a $450,000 loan to prop up their construction business. When the business failed, the loan defaulted, and now for what I think is the first time, an Extreme Makeover house can be yours, second hand, at an auction beginning August 5. Doria and I had slightly differing opinions on this story (no, I love you more, Doria!). What's yours?





• Casting news for another show a lot of you are asking about: the ABC adaptation of the British drama Life on Mars. We've already talked about the series lead Jason O'Mara, playing modern-day detective Sam Tyler who is mysteriously transported back to 1973. Now from tvguide.com comes word that the show has cast one of its key female roles: Gretchen Mol, who you may know from the 2005 HBO movie The Notorious Bettie Page (a film which Frank and I like to call "The Notoriously Boring Bettie Page"), as 1973 pioneering female detective Annie.

• Extra's own little Eve Harrington, namely Mario Lopez, has pushed past current anchors Mark McGrath and Dayna Devon, and now has the show all to himself. McGrath is reportedly going back to making music with Sugar Ray, and Devon is swapping with Lopez, becoming a special correspondent rather than host. Season 15 of Extra, with Lopez alone at the helm, starts September 15.

And you callers asked...

• Brian in Toledo wondered why Fox seems to be even more trigger-happy than the other networks in cancelling decent shows. Good question! Yes, they originally goofed with Family Guy -- how cool that they were able to rectify that mistake? (Yes, Frank, I said "rectify.") To be fair, they did stick with Arrested Development through 3 seasons, and nurtured 24 when it wasn't quite yet a hit. And other networks cancel things awfully fast these days too --remember ABC, with its 1 aired episode of Emily's Reasons Why Not, or CBS, which showed Viva Laughlin exactly twice?



But it's true -- Fox has blown through an awful lot of shows which should have lasted longer. As I often posit, the News Corporation itself is kinda schizoid, with its conservative news operation and its sometimes raucous network. And so that network seems to be as well -- the development people seem to go for edgy or experimental comedies -- think Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Greg the Bunny, The Tick -- and then the scheduling people seem to chicken out. Someone from Fox please weigh in -- am I right?





• Tom in Miami asked about The Riches. At the Television Critics of America conference in Los Angeles 2 weeks ago, FX president John Landgraf was asked that very question: is the show coming back? The answer: it's not decided as of this time (this was July 15.)

• John in Texas asked about the L Word spinoff, and the news is: it's happening. According to Showtime president Robert Greenblatt at the TCA convention on Saturday, July 19, they even know which L character is about to get her own show -- but the actress doesn't even know yet! The show will go forward, with L Word producer Ilene Chaiken at the helm, after the mothership wraps production on its sixth and final season this year.

• Ray in Ossining, I have no news on when Empty Nest might be coming to DVD, and neither does my bible, http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/. But it seemed to me to have taken too long for The Golden Girls to come out on DVD, so it might be a while. And John -- as Frank said, it's hard to figure out the logic of why some things come out so slowly on DVD, and in this case why Footballers' Wives DVDs would be so far behind the UK run. Let's ask BBC America -- is it because you guys want us watching them on air first?

Well that's it for me -- my theme music is playing me out. Tune in next Wednesday for the next installment of...

"Must Hear TV!"

Welcome to Must-Hear TV!

Hey, everyone --

Welcome to my entertainment blog, "Must Hear TV," the companion to my on-air weekly spot on "The Frank DeCaro Show" on Sirius OutQ radio (Channel 109, Wednesdays 1-2 PM.)

As an introduction to this blog, here's a bit more about me:

Jim Colucci is a freelance entertainment writer whose work has appeared in such publications as TV Guide, Inside TV, Quick & Simple, InTouch, Rosie, The Advocate, Next and CBS' Watch magazine, where he serves as a contributing editor.

In addition to writing about the subject, Jim also delivers a weekly on-air report, “Must Hear TV,” as a correspondent for “The Frank DeCaro Show” on Sirius satellite radio.

In the fall of 2004, Time Inc. released Jim’s official, authorized companion book to one of NBC’s biggest comedy hits, entitled Will & Grace: Fabulously Uncensored. His second TV book, The Q Guide to The Golden Girls, was released by Alyson Books in September, 2006.

In television, Jim co-created an original animated pilot for the Disney Channel, and contributed comic material to four annual Oscar-themed comedy specials airing on Comedy Central, hosted by his partner, Frank DeCaro of The Daily Show With Jon Stewart.

Jim has written for entertainment media since his days as the Film Editor for The Daily Pennsylvanian, the college newspaper at the University of Pennsylvania, where he graduated with a degree in marketing from the Wharton School of Business. Originally from Wayne, New Jersey, he now lives in New York City with Frank and their mischievous Boston terrier, Herman.

Please also do visit me at http://www.jimcolucci.com/ for TV-related clips, photos and other goodies -- the likes of which will soon appear here.