Posted on 01/23/2006 2:27:08 PM PST by LdSentinal
PASADENA, California - My Name is Earl and The Office will be back for more. The West Wing, however, will leave office for good at the end of this season.
NBC Entertainment president Kevin Reilly told reporters yesterday at the winter meeting of the Television Critics Association that Earl and The Office will return this fall with full, 22-episode seasons.
The early announcement took many analysts by surprise, as the major U.S. networks usually don't tip their hand until the official fall programming announcements in May.
Reilly said the network currently has "no plans" for Friends spin-off Joey, however. Joey was nowhere to be found when Reilly announced NBC's spring schedule to reporters.
Reilly didn't rule out Joey's return at some point but there are no immediate plans for the Matt LeBlanc comedy. Not so long ago, Joey was considered to be the lynchpin of NBC's Thursday night lineup.
NBC's fortunes have dipped dramatically since the heyday of Seinfeld, Frasier and Friends.
As a result, the network has once again tampered with its schedule, in the hope that some programs will do better on other nights.
Inevitably, NBC's changes will affect Global/CH and CTV, as the Canadian networks simulcast broadcasts wherever possible, so as not to split the audience and lose potential advertising revenue.
- My Name is Earl and surprise sophomore hit The Office have moved permanently to Thursdays, one of the most heavily watched nights of the week and the most sought after night for movie advertisers looking to boost their weekend openings.
- The move has paved the way for Scrubs to find a permanent home on Tuesdays. The critically acclaimed comedy with Zach Braff and Ottawa's Sarah Chalke continues to languish in the ratings, however, and is expected to be scrubbed at the end of the season.
- Similarly, The West Wing has struggled in its new home on Sundays, despite a creative resurgence this year. The West Wing will officially leave office on May 14.
- A new edition of The Apprentice will air on Mondays at 9 p.m., beginning Feb. 27, following the Olympics. To make room for The Apprentice, Las Vegas will move to Fridays, starting March 3. The Apprentice airs in Canada on Global; Las Vegas airs on CH.
- ER continues to draw a sizeable audience on Thursdays and will probably be renewed for a 13th season when the network officially unveils its fall schedule in May.
- Medium, one of NBC's few hits, will stay where it is, on Mondays. ER and Medium air on CTV.
CTV also owns the Canadian rights to The West Wing, but has yet to schedule it. Crossing Jordan and NBC reality hits Fear Factor and The Biggest Loser air on Global.
- Law & Order will move an hour earlier, to Wednesdays at 9 p.m., starting in March, where it will be followed by the new caper drama Heist.
Law & Order's move will pit it directly against ABC's Lost and UPN's Veronica Mars, two of the best dramas on television.
Ironically, the Canadian rights to all three programs are controlled by CTV, which has yet to find a permanent place on its schedule for either Law & Order or Veronica Mars.
Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Crossing Jordan continue to perform on Sundays and will probably return in the fall. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is the undisputed hit of the Law & Order franchise, and will continue to anchor Tuesday nights.
- The Book of Daniel, NBC's primetime soap opera featuring Aidan Quinn as a morally conflicted priest, did not win a spot on the spring schedule, and is presumed dead. Only six episodes were filmed.
Reilly said the network's reluctance to order more episodes had more to do with the series' sluggish ratings performance than any ongoing controversy. As of last week, five NBC affiliates in the U.S. were refusing to air the program, and a lobby group called the American Family Association has launched an advertising boycott.
"We're going to continue to put on creative programming, regardless of any possible controversy," Reilly said. "In the end, though, the audience has the final vote."
Over at ABC Commander in Chief is taking on too much water to stay afloat.
I hope "The E Ring" is renewed for another year.
I like that show!
Meanwhile, if they brought back Green Acres, Little House on the Prairie and The Waltons, I bet they'd do great. They won't try it, because they don't want to admit it.
Around the world, the lynchpins of the Axis of Weasels are losing office (Martin, Schroeder, probably Chirac), and, at home, the liberal propaganda shows are dying, too...hmmm.
"In the end, though, the audience has the final vote"
Good to know that they still think that way.
"In the end, though, the audience has the final vote"
Good to know that they still think that way.
People simply won't watch network TV period. Not in a universe of 200+ channel cable and satellite TV channels.
Besides, you can see most of the older shows on cable/satellite anyway.
They're dead, Jim.
The Beverly Hillbillies was 10 times better than West Wing and Geena Davis' vehicle. Those were the good old days.
What took so long? And the liberal agenda goes......buh bye
It's Over Johnny!!
"We're going to continue to put on creative programming, regardless of any possible controversy," Reilly said. "In the end, though, the audience has the final vote."
The audience, or the lack thereof, has the final vote. Why do they feel we are participating in censorship when we choose not to watch a program and tell the sponsors and/or producers why we do not watch?
"- The move has paved the way for Scrubs to find a permanent home on Tuesdays. The critically acclaimed comedy with Zach Braff and Ottawa's Sarah Chalke continues to languish in the ratings, however, and is expected to be scrubbed at the end of the season."
Sigh. Must they cancel every sitcom that I enjoy?
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