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"Bones" is not just a show that has a devoted fan base despite the fact that it ended its run more than seven years ago, it's also a show that had a longer run than most shows that have ever made it to air. Spanning 12 seasons and more than 240 episodes, few series in the history of television can ever say they enjoyed such a fruitful run. That said, creator Hart Hanson wasn't always confident that the show was going to go the distance. There was, however, one key moment that led him to believe the show had legs.
In a 2017 interview with TV Insider around the time that the "Bones" series finale was about to air, Hanson spoke about the moment in question. For him, it was the show's fourth episode. Titled "The Man in the Bear," the episode aired in November of 2005 as the series was trying to find its footing.
In a 2017 interview with TV Insider around the time that the "Bones" series finale was about to air, Hanson spoke about the moment in question. For him, it was the show's fourth episode. Titled "The Man in the Bear," the episode aired in November of 2005 as the series was trying to find its footing.
- 6/22/2024
- by Ryan Scott
- Slash Film
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It’s a bit of an irony that just as NBC’s “Must-See TV” juggernaut took off in 1994, execs there found themselves right in the middle of a completely different kind of televised spectacle: The O.J. Simpson arrest, trial and eventual acquittal.
Not only was then-nbc West Coast president Don Ohlmeyer one of Simpson’s best friends, but just a month before the killings of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman — followed by Simpson’s white Ford Bronco flight from justice and arrest — NBC had passed on a pilot starring the ex-football-star.
“It was just a strange time to be there because of Don’s loyalty to O.J.,” recalled Preston Beckman, who was NBC’s head of scheduling at the time, and one of Ohlmeyer’s and NBC Entertainment president Warren Littlefield’s key lieutenants. Ohlmeyer would occasionally bring up Simpson during the network’s afternoon meetings in their Burbank offices,...
Not only was then-nbc West Coast president Don Ohlmeyer one of Simpson’s best friends, but just a month before the killings of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman — followed by Simpson’s white Ford Bronco flight from justice and arrest — NBC had passed on a pilot starring the ex-football-star.
“It was just a strange time to be there because of Don’s loyalty to O.J.,” recalled Preston Beckman, who was NBC’s head of scheduling at the time, and one of Ohlmeyer’s and NBC Entertainment president Warren Littlefield’s key lieutenants. Ohlmeyer would occasionally bring up Simpson during the network’s afternoon meetings in their Burbank offices,...
- 4/12/2024
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
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Life hasn't changed much for "Bones" since it wrapped up in 2017. Throughout its 12-season run on Fox, Hart Hanson's procedural was never a ratings monster. But while other shows were dominating water cooler conversations, "Bones" was amassing a respectably sized and, just as importantly, loyal audience that only really began to peter off during its final seasons. By that point, the television landscape had changed so dramatically since it premiered in 2005, it was a miracle the show was even going at all! Similarly, while "Suits" has gained a surprisingly massive second wind on streaming in 2023, "Bones" has quietly kept puttering along at a steady pace as people either revisit the show or stream it for the first time.
Hanson has spoken on multiple occasions about the ways Fox tried to kill "Bones" early on during its tenure, frequently moving it to a different spot on the network's schedule with little to no advance notice.
Hanson has spoken on multiple occasions about the ways Fox tried to kill "Bones" early on during its tenure, frequently moving it to a different spot on the network's schedule with little to no advance notice.
- 12/10/2023
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
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Editors note: On October 10, Deadline posted a story summarizing a Medium column written by Jim McKairnes, a former SVP Planning for CBS who’s spent the past 13 years teaching TV history at the college level. The title of his piece was “Scheduling a TV Memoriam: An Rip Of Sorts for a Once-In-Demand Television Industry,” which, among other things, said that scheduling “is the word that’s slowly becoming irrelevant to the medium, having less and less meaning as television itself comes to mean more and more.”
Both the column and our subsequent writeup struck a chord with current and former executives, many of whom were eager to defend today’s linear schedulers — even though pretty much everyone acknowledged how much the job has changed over the years. So we asked former Fox and NBC executive Preston Beckman, who worked for 35 years in audience research, strategic program planning and scheduling before...
Both the column and our subsequent writeup struck a chord with current and former executives, many of whom were eager to defend today’s linear schedulers — even though pretty much everyone acknowledged how much the job has changed over the years. So we asked former Fox and NBC executive Preston Beckman, who worked for 35 years in audience research, strategic program planning and scheduling before...
- 10/12/2023
- by Preston Beckman
- Deadline Film + TV
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During a summer visit to Los Angeles this year, Jim McKairnes — a former SVP Planning for CBS who’s spent the past 13 years teaching TV history at the college level — had dinner with a fellow TV executive who shared concerns about the streaming world and how “viewers and the experience of watching and loving TV seemed to take a back seat to algorithms and optimizations.”
Around the same time, news broke that Kevin Levy was stepping down from his role as EVP Program Planning, Scheduling and Acquisitions at The CW. That’s when it dawned on McKairnes that the role of a scheduler, “the crafting of a 22-hours-a-week, 35-weeks-a-season primetime lineup worth jillions of dollars, just isn’t a thing anymore.”
So McKairnes sat down and wrote a piece for Medium called “Scheduling a TV Memoriam: An Rip Of Sorts for a Once-In-Demand Television Industry.” Along with offering a history...
Around the same time, news broke that Kevin Levy was stepping down from his role as EVP Program Planning, Scheduling and Acquisitions at The CW. That’s when it dawned on McKairnes that the role of a scheduler, “the crafting of a 22-hours-a-week, 35-weeks-a-season primetime lineup worth jillions of dollars, just isn’t a thing anymore.”
So McKairnes sat down and wrote a piece for Medium called “Scheduling a TV Memoriam: An Rip Of Sorts for a Once-In-Demand Television Industry.” Along with offering a history...
- 10/10/2023
- by Lynette Rice
- Deadline Film + TV
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Nielsen, the embattled ratings currency company, has entered an agreement to be acquired by a private equity consortium for the perhaps-shocking price of $16 billion, including debt. At this writing, Nielsen’s market cap wasn’t even $10 billion, so that’s a pretty hefty premium — 60 percent above its unaffected March 11 stock price, to be exact.
What do Evergreen Coast Capital Corporation, Brookfield Business Partners L.P., and their institutional partners (which will take the publicly traded company private) see that others do not? Evidently, a chance to fix what is essentially a measurement monopoly — albeit a very broken one that’s no longer accredited by the Media Ratings Council following an admission of undercounting TV viewers in recent years.
With a few assists from folks in the television industry, we attempted to lay out how to accomplish that lofty goal. Full disclosure: Our mission didn’t get off to a very good start.
What do Evergreen Coast Capital Corporation, Brookfield Business Partners L.P., and their institutional partners (which will take the publicly traded company private) see that others do not? Evidently, a chance to fix what is essentially a measurement monopoly — albeit a very broken one that’s no longer accredited by the Media Ratings Council following an admission of undercounting TV viewers in recent years.
With a few assists from folks in the television industry, we attempted to lay out how to accomplish that lofty goal. Full disclosure: Our mission didn’t get off to a very good start.
- 3/29/2022
- by Tony Maglio
- Indiewire
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Back when NBC boasted a “Must-See TV” swagger, two of that era’s most rambunctious architects were marketing co-head Vince Manze and program planning and scheduling chief Preston Beckman.
The duo, whose offices were next to each other, played a winning hand by strategically deploying and marketing the network’s wares, like “ER” and “Friends,” in all the right ways. And for a time, they were unstoppable.
That was more than two decades ago. But Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav, who was an NBC cable exec back then, never forgot Manze’s and Beckman’s competitive spirit.
That’s why Zaslav recruited his former colleagues to help launch streamer Discovery Plus, which is by far his most important initiative yet. Manze and Beckman were hired to consult with Discovery’s various marketing teams and help put the finishing touches on a launch plan for the service, which officially went live Jan.
The duo, whose offices were next to each other, played a winning hand by strategically deploying and marketing the network’s wares, like “ER” and “Friends,” in all the right ways. And for a time, they were unstoppable.
That was more than two decades ago. But Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav, who was an NBC cable exec back then, never forgot Manze’s and Beckman’s competitive spirit.
That’s why Zaslav recruited his former colleagues to help launch streamer Discovery Plus, which is by far his most important initiative yet. Manze and Beckman were hired to consult with Discovery’s various marketing teams and help put the finishing touches on a launch plan for the service, which officially went live Jan.
- 3/11/2021
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
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NBC’s “Young Rock” premiered recently to a 1.0 rating in the adults 18 to 49 demographic — which sounds awful but in 2021 qualifies as a tremendous debut. In an age when almost everything does between 0.4 and 0.8 in fast national Nielsen ratings, we’ve truly gotten to the point where live+ same day or even live+3 day and live+7 day numbers don’t mean anything anymore. That’s why it’s not a surprise that following the downsizing of NBC ratings guru (and former Variety ratings expert) Tom Bierbaum, the Peacock network just announced that it would stop the practice of issuing daily fast affiliate ratings reports altogether.
“We didn’t come to this decision lightly, but believe it’s important to accurately reflect how the television business is changing and, specifically, how these early ratings numbers are no longer representative of the performance of a particular show or series,” wrote NBC’s Stuart Levine,...
“We didn’t come to this decision lightly, but believe it’s important to accurately reflect how the television business is changing and, specifically, how these early ratings numbers are no longer representative of the performance of a particular show or series,” wrote NBC’s Stuart Levine,...
- 2/25/2021
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
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Television, it’s often been said without much exaggeration, was invented to sell soap. And the fall television season was invented to sell cars.
As Preston Beckman, a retired network scheduler who presided over the Must-See TV era of NBC and the peak of American Idol at Fox (and now tweets as the Masked Scheduler) put it to me recently, “I would always gauge the start of the fall season by the first episode of Bonanza — which would also be a preview of the Chevy cars that came out in the fall.
As Preston Beckman, a retired network scheduler who presided over the Must-See TV era of NBC and the peak of American Idol at Fox (and now tweets as the Masked Scheduler) put it to me recently, “I would always gauge the start of the fall season by the first episode of Bonanza — which would also be a preview of the Chevy cars that came out in the fall.
- 9/21/2020
- by Alan Sepinwall
- Rollingstone.com
The networks still want to be a part of your world, and the success last week of ABC’s “The Little Mermaid Live” was a reminder that they can — especially with the kind of appointment programming that the streamers still don’t do.
“The Little Mermaid Live” averaged 9 million viewers and a 2.6 rating among adults 18-49 in same-day ratings — numbers that aren’t huge but are remarkable in 2019, when fragmented audiences aren’t watching day-and-date TV like they used to.
“It was quite a surprise,” says Katy Mullan, executive producer at Done+Dusted, which was behind the special. “There aren’t many of these around anymore. In this day and age, we need something to watch together.”
And in a month where the industry is focused on the launches of direct-to-consumer services Apple Plus and Disney Plus, and preparing for the debut of several more entrants next year, that a...
“The Little Mermaid Live” averaged 9 million viewers and a 2.6 rating among adults 18-49 in same-day ratings — numbers that aren’t huge but are remarkable in 2019, when fragmented audiences aren’t watching day-and-date TV like they used to.
“It was quite a surprise,” says Katy Mullan, executive producer at Done+Dusted, which was behind the special. “There aren’t many of these around anymore. In this day and age, we need something to watch together.”
And in a month where the industry is focused on the launches of direct-to-consumer services Apple Plus and Disney Plus, and preparing for the debut of several more entrants next year, that a...
- 11/13/2019
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
When NBC Entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt said goodbye to his job in September after eight years, he became a free agent just when the largest players in media were taking a hard look at their management ranks.
At the time, a top TV producer dubbed Greenblatt a “lethal weapon” that could be drawn by any number of media and tech giants looking to shake up their leadership status quo.
For weeks, there were rumblings about the former head of NBC and Showtime moving into a plum post at Apple, or taking the helm of CBS Corp., or replacing Richard Plepler at the top of HBO. On March 4, Greenblatt landed as chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment and Direct to Consumer, overseeing HBO, TNT, TBS, TruTV and WarnerMedia’s nascent streaming services. WarnerMedia’s parent company, At&T, accelerated the pace of a restructuring that had already been contemplated in order to craft a...
At the time, a top TV producer dubbed Greenblatt a “lethal weapon” that could be drawn by any number of media and tech giants looking to shake up their leadership status quo.
For weeks, there were rumblings about the former head of NBC and Showtime moving into a plum post at Apple, or taking the helm of CBS Corp., or replacing Richard Plepler at the top of HBO. On March 4, Greenblatt landed as chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment and Direct to Consumer, overseeing HBO, TNT, TBS, TruTV and WarnerMedia’s nascent streaming services. WarnerMedia’s parent company, At&T, accelerated the pace of a restructuring that had already been contemplated in order to craft a...
- 3/19/2019
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
The sky is falling for network TV. Then again, the sky has been falling for decades — and yet, the broadcast networks are still here, despite all the gloom-and-doom prognosticators. But the first night of the new fall TV season was met mostly by a yawn from viewers, and will feed another cycle of the-networks-are-dying narratives.
Of course, there’s some truth to that. Just five years ago, NBC led the first night of premiere week with a 4.6 rating among adults 18-49, while ABC was in fourth with a 2.3 rating. This year, NBC led all networks on Monday night — with a 2.1, while fourth-place ABC landed with just a 1.2.
But on the positive front, the four major networks’ total viewer averages combined to 32.3 million on Monday night, up from 31.2 million on the first night of premiere week a year ago. And NBC launched new drama “Manifest” to a solid — hell, for 2018, a tremendous — 2.2 rating and 10.4 million viewers,...
Of course, there’s some truth to that. Just five years ago, NBC led the first night of premiere week with a 4.6 rating among adults 18-49, while ABC was in fourth with a 2.3 rating. This year, NBC led all networks on Monday night — with a 2.1, while fourth-place ABC landed with just a 1.2.
But on the positive front, the four major networks’ total viewer averages combined to 32.3 million on Monday night, up from 31.2 million on the first night of premiere week a year ago. And NBC launched new drama “Manifest” to a solid — hell, for 2018, a tremendous — 2.2 rating and 10.4 million viewers,...
- 9/26/2018
- by Michael Schneider
- Indiewire
A version of this story first appeared in the Sept. 11 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe. On Aug. 28, Fox Networks Group's senior strategist retired after a 35-year career as one of television's top schedulers. He oversaw everything from NBC's Must See TV era to Fox's American Idol chapter. On his final day on the job, Preston Beckman, 65, known in social media circles as The Masked Scheduler, shared tales from three and a half decades in the TV trenches. Securing America's favorite Friend … "When we picked up Friends,
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- 9/2/2015
- by Lacey Rose
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
CBS executive Dan Harrison will join Fox as executive vice president of scheduling, Fox announced Thursday. Harrison will report to Fox entertainment president Kevin Reilly and will be responsible for strategic program planning and scheduling. Fox is television’s No. 1 network among adults 18-49; CBS has the most viewers overall. Fox Networks Group senior strategist Preston Beckman welcomed back the man he called his former "sidekick." "While at NBC I hired Dan to be my sidekick and I am thrilled that he was interested in reuniting," Beckman said. "Dan is passionate about television...
- 1/19/2012
- by Tim Molloy
- The Wrap
One of the long-serving TV scheduling executives, Fox’s Preston Beckman, is stepping down from active duty to take on an advisory role for Fox Networks Group. Here is the release: Preston Beckman, Fox Broadcasting Company’s Evp of strategic program planning and research, will transition into a new role as Senior Strategist for Fox Networks Group, it was announced today by Peter Rice, Chairman of Entertainment, Fox Networks Group. In this new role beginning June 2012, Dr. Beckman will provide his expertise and strategic insight in scheduling, programming and research across all Fng entertainment divisions, reporting directly to Rice. “Fox has been incredibly fortunate to have Preston guiding our schedule for the past decade and seven consecutive years of No. 1 finishes,” said Rice. “His strategic mind and love of television make him the Muhammad Ali of scheduling executives, and we all look forward to working closely with him, here at Fox,...
- 1/6/2012
- by NELLIE ANDREEVA
- Deadline TV
Declining audiences for American Idol in the Us - and a similar trend in the UK - appear to signal an end to its success story.
The competition show enjoyed incredible growth for several years and now, in its seventh season, still attracts huge numbers for Fox in the Us.
Idol suffered its first year-on-year decline last year and this season the drop for its performance and result shows, on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, has been even more marked. So far the show has declined 8% from last year to average 28.9m. Demographic figures reveal it is also losing younger viewers - always coveted by broadcasters - more quickly than other groups.
Fox scheduling chief Preston Beckman believes one reason for the show's problems may be the writers' strike. Commentators believed reality shows would benefit, but Beckman says it pushed down audiences across . . .
The competition show enjoyed incredible growth for several years and now, in its seventh season, still attracts huge numbers for Fox in the Us.
Idol suffered its first year-on-year decline last year and this season the drop for its performance and result shows, on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, has been even more marked. So far the show has declined 8% from last year to average 28.9m. Demographic figures reveal it is also losing younger viewers - always coveted by broadcasters - more quickly than other groups.
Fox scheduling chief Preston Beckman believes one reason for the show's problems may be the writers' strike. Commentators believed reality shows would benefit, but Beckman says it pushed down audiences across . . .
- 4/24/2008
- by Dave_West_imdb_@digitalspy.co.uk (Dave West)
- Digital Spy
NEW YORK -- Fox Broadcasting Co. scheduling chief Preston Beckman took aim Wednesday at NBC's plans for a 52-week programming schedule, saying that it wasn't anything different than what Fox began to do five years ago with "American Idol" and "The O.C".
"I think what Jeff (Zucker) did was say, 'We want to be Fox, ' " said Beckman, who was in charge of NBC scheduling until he joined Fox in 2000.
NBC said Wednesday that it won't hold a traditional upfront presentation and instead will announce a 52-week program schedule in April. After that it will spend weeks meeting with advertisers and media buyers before having an informal party in mid-May, when its rivals will unveil their schedules.
Beckman, who traditionally is outspoken on industry matters, said that his former network is "probably the most clueless" when it comes to fall scheduling, whereas the other networks, especially Fox and CBS, are more stable.
"It's the 'Deal or No Deal, ' 'Law & Order' network," Beckman said of NBC.
Year-round scheduling isn't anything new. Many of the networks have talked about it, but Fox has been the most consistent in trying to implement it not only with reality but also with scripted series, starting with the August 2003 premiere of "The O.C".
NBC was reluctant to mix it up with its former executive and Fox, which is set to win the season in the key adults 18-49 demographic.
"I think what Jeff (Zucker) did was say, 'We want to be Fox, ' " said Beckman, who was in charge of NBC scheduling until he joined Fox in 2000.
NBC said Wednesday that it won't hold a traditional upfront presentation and instead will announce a 52-week program schedule in April. After that it will spend weeks meeting with advertisers and media buyers before having an informal party in mid-May, when its rivals will unveil their schedules.
Beckman, who traditionally is outspoken on industry matters, said that his former network is "probably the most clueless" when it comes to fall scheduling, whereas the other networks, especially Fox and CBS, are more stable.
"It's the 'Deal or No Deal, ' 'Law & Order' network," Beckman said of NBC.
Year-round scheduling isn't anything new. Many of the networks have talked about it, but Fox has been the most consistent in trying to implement it not only with reality but also with scripted series, starting with the August 2003 premiere of "The O.C".
NBC was reluctant to mix it up with its former executive and Fox, which is set to win the season in the key adults 18-49 demographic.
- 2/21/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Fox has tweaked its strike-affected midseason schedule, upgrading the time periods for new dramas New Amsterdam and Canterbury's Law and giving two midseason series, Amsterdam and The Return of Jezebel James, previews behind American Idol.
Fox was the first network to rejigger its midseason lineup on Nov. 7, the third day of the writers strike, and has made the most dramatic strike-related scheduling move, keeping the incomplete season of 24 on the shelf until next season.
Two months later, as the work stoppage is shaping up to be a long one, Fox brass took another look at its scheduling plans, said Fox's scheduling chief Preston Beckman.
"As we have new information on our needs, we thought it was time to adjust the schedule," he said. "We want to make sure we give all new shows every opportunity to find an audience because we may need them."
Amsterdam and Canterbury's were originally slated to air in the Friday 9 p.m. time period, premiering Feb. 22 and Apr. 11, respectively.
Now both shows have been relocated to Monday 9 p.m.
Fox was the first network to rejigger its midseason lineup on Nov. 7, the third day of the writers strike, and has made the most dramatic strike-related scheduling move, keeping the incomplete season of 24 on the shelf until next season.
Two months later, as the work stoppage is shaping up to be a long one, Fox brass took another look at its scheduling plans, said Fox's scheduling chief Preston Beckman.
"As we have new information on our needs, we thought it was time to adjust the schedule," he said. "We want to make sure we give all new shows every opportunity to find an audience because we may need them."
Amsterdam and Canterbury's were originally slated to air in the Friday 9 p.m. time period, premiering Feb. 22 and Apr. 11, respectively.
Now both shows have been relocated to Monday 9 p.m.
Kiefer Sutherland's tense drama 24 has become the latest TV show hit by the Hollywood writers strike, which began on Monday. Bosses at Fox, the network which airs the show in America - are refusing to air the new season of 24 until they are guaranteed the entire series can be aired without interruption. Fox scheduling chief Preston Beckman tells trade paper Daily Variety, "The viewers have told us that this is a show that needs to be digested with minimal, if any, interruptions." 24's new season was scheduled to debut in January. It now looks likely that the show won't hit TV sets until the spring. It will be replaced by Terminator TV spin-off Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, which was set to air later next year, and hit show Prison Break's hiatus has been cancelled. The show will continue to air after the holidays. Cast and crew have joined the picket lines on their breaks as they continue to work on the available scripted episodes. Desperate Housewives and Greys Anatomy are among the other hit shows hit by the strike. Late-night chats shows The Tonight Show and Late Show With David Letterman are running repeats this week because of the walkout.
- 11/9/2007
- WENN
Strike Zone: Latest news and updates
Three days in, the writers strike is hitting television hard as schedules are being juggled, overall deals suspended, production on series shut down and layoffs kick in.
Fox on Wednesday became the first broadcast network to announce a strike-affected midseason schedule minus its signature drama "24."
Meanwhile, 20th Century Fox TV became the latest TV studio to send out suspension letters to writers with overall deals, joining CBS Paramount Network TV, ABC Studios and Universal Media Studios.
20th TV also began notifying writers assistants Wednesday that they are being laid off effective immediately, but the studio will pay their health benefits through the end of the year, sources said.
Faced with the possibility of a partial Season 7 of "24," Fox has opted not to air the real-time drama at all this season.
"It's not a decision we wanted to make, but it's one based on how we feel the viewers expect us to schedule the show," said Preston Beckman, Fox's scheduling chief.
The decision to act quickly so early in the strike also was prompted by the large amounts of marketing money associated with the premieres of new series and the annual launch of "24." The network began airing promos for the upcoming season of "24" during the World Series and on a big screen in Times Square.
"Had we delayed executing and implementing of a strike schedule, it could've cost us a lot of money," Beckman said.
(For now, ABC is still sticking to its plan to air heavily serialized "Lost" in midseason, running the eight produced episodes, 10 short of the 18-episode order.)
Meanwhile, Fox's hit animated comedy "Family Guy" might go into repeats much sooner than scheduled if creator-exec producer Seth MacFarlane follows up on his threat not to authorize the completion of future episodes beyond the one airing Sunday.
Fox's high-profile new drama "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles," originally slated to run in tandem with "24," will now premiere Sunday, Jan.
Three days in, the writers strike is hitting television hard as schedules are being juggled, overall deals suspended, production on series shut down and layoffs kick in.
Fox on Wednesday became the first broadcast network to announce a strike-affected midseason schedule minus its signature drama "24."
Meanwhile, 20th Century Fox TV became the latest TV studio to send out suspension letters to writers with overall deals, joining CBS Paramount Network TV, ABC Studios and Universal Media Studios.
20th TV also began notifying writers assistants Wednesday that they are being laid off effective immediately, but the studio will pay their health benefits through the end of the year, sources said.
Faced with the possibility of a partial Season 7 of "24," Fox has opted not to air the real-time drama at all this season.
"It's not a decision we wanted to make, but it's one based on how we feel the viewers expect us to schedule the show," said Preston Beckman, Fox's scheduling chief.
The decision to act quickly so early in the strike also was prompted by the large amounts of marketing money associated with the premieres of new series and the annual launch of "24." The network began airing promos for the upcoming season of "24" during the World Series and on a big screen in Times Square.
"Had we delayed executing and implementing of a strike schedule, it could've cost us a lot of money," Beckman said.
(For now, ABC is still sticking to its plan to air heavily serialized "Lost" in midseason, running the eight produced episodes, 10 short of the 18-episode order.)
Meanwhile, Fox's hit animated comedy "Family Guy" might go into repeats much sooner than scheduled if creator-exec producer Seth MacFarlane follows up on his threat not to authorize the completion of future episodes beyond the one airing Sunday.
Fox's high-profile new drama "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles," originally slated to run in tandem with "24," will now premiere Sunday, Jan.
- 11/8/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Fox is adding the summer game show "Don't Forget the Lyrics" to its fall schedule and is tweaking the fall lineups on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
The network will create a game show night on Thursday, pairing current 8 p.m. anchor "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" with a one-hour "Lyrics" at 9 p.m.
The new reality series "Kitchen Nightmares", originally slated for the 9 p.m. Thursday slot, will move to 9 p.m. Wednesdays, where "Bones" was expected to air. "Bones" will now open at 8 p.m. Tuesday, while the rookie drama "New Amsterdam", earmarked for that slot, will be held for midseason.
The scheduling moves were prompted by the promising start of "Lyrics", which premiered in July.
"That allowed us to make moves that strengthen our schedule on three nights," said Preston Beckman, executive vp strategic program planning at Fox.
The karaoke-themed "Lyrics" originally ran as a half-hour behind established reality performers "So You Think You Can Dance" and "5th Grader".
"Last Thursday, we took the training wheels off, and it did tremendously well," Beckman said.
The network will create a game show night on Thursday, pairing current 8 p.m. anchor "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" with a one-hour "Lyrics" at 9 p.m.
The new reality series "Kitchen Nightmares", originally slated for the 9 p.m. Thursday slot, will move to 9 p.m. Wednesdays, where "Bones" was expected to air. "Bones" will now open at 8 p.m. Tuesday, while the rookie drama "New Amsterdam", earmarked for that slot, will be held for midseason.
The scheduling moves were prompted by the promising start of "Lyrics", which premiered in July.
"That allowed us to make moves that strengthen our schedule on three nights," said Preston Beckman, executive vp strategic program planning at Fox.
The karaoke-themed "Lyrics" originally ran as a half-hour behind established reality performers "So You Think You Can Dance" and "5th Grader".
"Last Thursday, we took the training wheels off, and it did tremendously well," Beckman said.
NEW YORK -- Scheduling wise, the big story heading into this season was ABC's decision to move "Grey's Anatomy" against CBS powerhouse "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" at 9 p.m. Thursdays. By all accounts, it was a success for "Grey"'s and put ABC into the profitable Thursday night mix for the first time since the days of "Barney Miller" and "Mork & Mindy."
ABC also moved rookie "Ugly Betty", originally slotted for Fridays, to the Thursday 8 p.m. hour, where it showed initial success and, later in the season, gave "October Road" a strong start after "Grey"'s that earned the series a renewal.
Even Fox, which has never been competitive on Thursdays, turned the lights on midseason with "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?"
The result? Thursdays are more competitive than ever.
"Thursday at 8 is approaching parity for the four networks," Fox scheduling czar Preston Beckman said. "That's an opportunity for us down the road."
CBS research chief David Poltrack thinks that CBS and ABC both survived the head-to-head battle at 9 p.m. because of DVRs.
ABC also moved rookie "Ugly Betty", originally slotted for Fridays, to the Thursday 8 p.m. hour, where it showed initial success and, later in the season, gave "October Road" a strong start after "Grey"'s that earned the series a renewal.
Even Fox, which has never been competitive on Thursdays, turned the lights on midseason with "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?"
The result? Thursdays are more competitive than ever.
"Thursday at 8 is approaching parity for the four networks," Fox scheduling czar Preston Beckman said. "That's an opportunity for us down the road."
CBS research chief David Poltrack thinks that CBS and ABC both survived the head-to-head battle at 9 p.m. because of DVRs.
- 5/25/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
NEW YORK -- Schedulingwise, the big story heading into this season was ABC's decision to move Grey's Anatomy against CBS powerhouse CSI: Crime Scene Investigation at 9 p.m. Thursdays. By all accounts, it was a success for Grey's and put ABC into the profitable Thursday night mix for the first time since the days of Barney Miller and "Mork & Mindy."
ABC also moved rookie Ugly Betty, originally slotted for Fridays, to the Thursday 8 p.m. hour, where it showed initial success and, later in the season, gave October Road a strong start after Grey's that earned the series a renewal.
Even Fox, which has never been competitive on Thursdays, turned the lights on midseason with "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?"
The result? Thursdays are more competitive than ever.
"Thursday at 8 is approaching parity for the four networks," Fox scheduling czar Preston Beckman said. "That's an opportunity for us down the road."
CBS research chief David Poltrack thinks that CBS and ABC both survived the head-to-head battle at 9 p.m.
ABC also moved rookie Ugly Betty, originally slotted for Fridays, to the Thursday 8 p.m. hour, where it showed initial success and, later in the season, gave October Road a strong start after Grey's that earned the series a renewal.
Even Fox, which has never been competitive on Thursdays, turned the lights on midseason with "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?"
The result? Thursdays are more competitive than ever.
"Thursday at 8 is approaching parity for the four networks," Fox scheduling czar Preston Beckman said. "That's an opportunity for us down the road."
CBS research chief David Poltrack thinks that CBS and ABC both survived the head-to-head battle at 9 p.m.
- 5/25/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
2006-07 SEASON WRAP
Overview: Patterns, measurements define season
Ratings rerun: Fox, CBS on top
Thursday, Monday are battlegrounds
Chart: Final series ranks
Network news makes headlines
NEW YORK -- It has been a wild and in some cases wacky season for network TV, culminating in a hunt for millions of missing viewers that is so complicated that it's worthy of its own episode of "CSI".
On the surface, it is status quo -- CBS extended its winning streak in total viewers to five years, while "American Idol"-powered Fox bagged a third consecutive season victory among adults 18-49.
But underneath, a sea change has been brewing.
"I think we'll look back and see 2007 as the watershed when all the things we talked about -- viewing behavior and audience measurement of that behavior -- all came together to start the new era," NBC research chief Alan Wurtzel said. "We've talked a lot about change and everything, but this is the first year we've seen it in a profound way."
At the beginning of the season, Nielsen Media Research introduced "most current" ratings, cuming the audiences that watch a show live as well as those that record it on a DVR and watch it up to seven days later.
But even with those additional viewers counted this season, primetime television viewing dropped significantly compared with last season.
The steepest decline was in live viewership, which fell 10% year-over-year among the four major broadcast networks. Adding in DVR viewership, which can boost shows' ratings by as much as 25% or more, the Big Four were still down 5%.
Things turned for the worse in the spring when many of TV's best and brightest fell to season or even series lows. That list includes "Desperate Housewives", "Lost", "Grey's Anatomy", "CSI: Miami" and "ER," among others. Even "Idol" wasn't immune though it hasn't seen a year-over-year decline.
The reasons seem myriad. Explanations include poor comparisons with the Winter Olympics, which boosted viewership levels last year, the lack of stunt counter-programming, a three weeks' earlier start to daylight-saving time, an abnormally high amount of repeats in February and March and a shift in viewing behavior brought on by the DVR, streaming video and the growing number of ways network TV is consumed these days.
"It's never one thing", said Fox scheduling czar Preston Beckman, who acknowledged that the early start to daylight-saving time and the increase in DVR penetration has changed the game.
He thinks that the networks also have learned the hard way that viewers are annoyed by their favorite shows going on hiatus or repeating.
Overview: Patterns, measurements define season
Ratings rerun: Fox, CBS on top
Thursday, Monday are battlegrounds
Chart: Final series ranks
Network news makes headlines
NEW YORK -- It has been a wild and in some cases wacky season for network TV, culminating in a hunt for millions of missing viewers that is so complicated that it's worthy of its own episode of "CSI".
On the surface, it is status quo -- CBS extended its winning streak in total viewers to five years, while "American Idol"-powered Fox bagged a third consecutive season victory among adults 18-49.
But underneath, a sea change has been brewing.
"I think we'll look back and see 2007 as the watershed when all the things we talked about -- viewing behavior and audience measurement of that behavior -- all came together to start the new era," NBC research chief Alan Wurtzel said. "We've talked a lot about change and everything, but this is the first year we've seen it in a profound way."
At the beginning of the season, Nielsen Media Research introduced "most current" ratings, cuming the audiences that watch a show live as well as those that record it on a DVR and watch it up to seven days later.
But even with those additional viewers counted this season, primetime television viewing dropped significantly compared with last season.
The steepest decline was in live viewership, which fell 10% year-over-year among the four major broadcast networks. Adding in DVR viewership, which can boost shows' ratings by as much as 25% or more, the Big Four were still down 5%.
Things turned for the worse in the spring when many of TV's best and brightest fell to season or even series lows. That list includes "Desperate Housewives", "Lost", "Grey's Anatomy", "CSI: Miami" and "ER," among others. Even "Idol" wasn't immune though it hasn't seen a year-over-year decline.
The reasons seem myriad. Explanations include poor comparisons with the Winter Olympics, which boosted viewership levels last year, the lack of stunt counter-programming, a three weeks' earlier start to daylight-saving time, an abnormally high amount of repeats in February and March and a shift in viewing behavior brought on by the DVR, streaming video and the growing number of ways network TV is consumed these days.
"It's never one thing", said Fox scheduling czar Preston Beckman, who acknowledged that the early start to daylight-saving time and the increase in DVR penetration has changed the game.
He thinks that the networks also have learned the hard way that viewers are annoyed by their favorite shows going on hiatus or repeating.
- 5/25/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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