Access Atlanta > Entertainment > Radio Talk > Archives > 2007 > September
September 2007
9/30: Peachtree TV takes over WTBS-TV
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Watch for a major change Monday morning at 6 a.m.: WTBS-TV will no longer simulcast the national TBS feed. Instead, it will become Atlanta-only Peacthree TV with its own schedule packed with sitcoms, movies and next year, the Braves.
TBS, which aired its final local Braves game Sunday, will keep airing weekly Sunday baseball games and some playoff games while Peachtree TV will air 45 Braves games next year.
For folks with rabbit ears, this means no more TBS but Peachtree TV will offer up many of the same sitcoms, mostly at different times e.g. “Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” “King of Queens,” “Friends,” “Family Guy,” “The Steve Harvey Show” and “Seinfeld.” “Sex & the City” and “Everybody Loves Raymond” air on WATL-TV so Peachtree couldn’t pick those up. You’ll miss early 90s cheesefest sitcom “Saved by the Bell,” which airs from 7 to 9 a.m. weekday mornings on TBS.
If you have Comcast Cable, no worries. While Channel 7 becomes Peachtree, Channel 39 is going to take the nataional TBS feed. ABC Family, which used to be on Channel 39, moves to Channel 54. Oxygen, formerly on 54, goes to 198. (If you have analog cable, that means bye bye to Oxygen.) You’ll also get both feeds if you have Direct or Dish TV.
Peachtree TV will air a film every night at either 8 or 9 because the station execs said research showed Atlantans were bigger movie watchers than the national average. During the day, comedies include “The Nanny,” “Mad About You,” “Cosby Show,” “All in the Family,” “Diff’rent Strokes” and “Sanford & Son.”
Over time, Peachtree TV will start adding local content besides the Braves. There will be a community affairs show on Sunday mornings (as required by the FCC for broadcast networks.) There will be a locals-only special of the Dave Matthews concert at Piedmont Park in mid-September on October 24. Plus, weather and traffic will be included throughout the day. Down the road, the network is considering anything from a morning show to a talk show to a late-night show.
9/30: Eric Von Haessler/Jimmy Baron podcast
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you miss Eric Von Haessler, formerly of the Regular Guys and Jimmy Baron, formerly of 99X, they are seeing if they have any chemistry together by trying out a weekly News Jog podcast.
Here’s a sampling in which Eric and Jimmy gab about Halo 3, Michael Jackson and Meg White. They are joined by Leonard Sharing and former Regular Guy Tim Andrews.
More info here at Eric’s web site. He says can to subscribe to the News Jog on iTunes and search under “News Jog.”
The other Regular Guy Larry Wachs, in the meantime, promises some news by October 15 about potential employment.
9/28: Yolanda Adams at Spelman
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I checked out Yolanda Adams’ visit to Spelman College’s chapel this morning and snapped some photos. Among her guests were Bernice King, the Anointed Pace Sisters, Beverly Crawford and Deitrick Haddon. Her syndicated show, usually done out of Houston, is visiting Atlanta and she chose Spelman for her first big radio appearance because she wants to influence the young women who attend the school. Adams started at Praise six months ago as the syndicated morning host with Brother Larry Jones.
Brother Larry Jones, Yolanda’s partner on the show
Deitrick Haddon
Anointed Pace Sisters
ABOVE: Yolanda points to Beverly Crawford while she performs.
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9/29: TV tidbits
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Eureka” on SciFi has been renewed for a third season. “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” will be on at least through 2011 and “Extra” has been given a greenlight through 2012.
And did everyone survive the first official week of the new fall season intact? Any new shows you liked? I am looking forward to the second episode of the CW’s “Reaper” in hopes that it can at least approach the quality of the first one. I still haven’t seen all of “Moonlight,” which debuted Friday on CBS. The opening wasn’t half bad. The Ridley Scott-directed “Numb3rs” last night was taut and well acted. It’s good to see the actor Dylan Bruno, who plays Colby, get a juicy part getting tortured by Val Kilmer! I also watched part of “Las Vegas” but they seemed to stuff way too many over-the-top plotlines on top of each other (A kidnapping! A shooting! A bomb! A robbery!) and it felt muddled. The show is supposed to be silly and soapy but this felt just absurd.
With “Ugly Betty,” the “Sixth Sense”-style twist was effective on a sad, emotional level but on the humor size, it lacked some of the zing of last year. And “The Office” felt bloated and overly long because the greedy suits felt the show needed to be stretched an hour its first month. Dumb. “My Name is Earl,” I felt, was more consistently funny over its hour-long opener with Earl in jail though naturally, “The Office” always pulls off some great moments even in mediocre episodes. I do miss the Jim/Pam tension now that they’re a couple but the fact they are hiding it from everybody could be fun. Local boy Brian Baumgartner, as Kevin, is confounded that they aren’t together and hilariously combines their names so they’re PB & J.
I enjoyed the fourth-season debut of “Desperate Housewives,” which comes back tonight, and I also recommend “Brothers & Sisters” if you haven’t jumped on board yet. I’m also into the new “Beauty & the Geek” and have become quite enamored with “Weeds.” “America’s Next Top Model” feels same ol’ same ol, as does “Survivor: China” but neither is appreciably worse than in previous years.
9/28: Project morning show starts 10/1 (UPDATED)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Above: That’s Shaffee on the left, “Giant” Brian on the right
More than two months after “Giant” Brian Carothers was named the new morning show host for Project 9-6-1, his show is finally coming on air this Monday. Brian invited me to show up at 8 a.m. so I’ll try to live blog from there like I did when the new 99X Morning Show started a year ago.
At 5 p.m. Friday, Project introduced Giant Brian on air with a side guy named Shaffee, a wrestler/rapper from Michigan. “We’ll be the Viva morning show with the green card. We’ll be the white V-103 morning show. We’ll be the new Morning X with talent.” Pause. “I know what you’re thinking: 99X still has a morning show? Leslie Fram died four years ago. Thanks to Energizer, she’s still running strong.”
Here’s their MySpace page..
Carothers was the producer at a Philly rock station morning show. This will be Carothers’ first gig as the lead man. Here was the original blog entry on him on July 7..
The rock station has gone its first ten months without a morning show, opting for music, with good ratings. But most rock stations have personality-based morning shows and Project is going for it. Since Fred Toucher and the Regular Guys were ousted last year, Atlanta FM radio has been sorely lacking in that edgy, testosterone-filled morning radio for males who like a bit of Howard Stern-type humor with their coffee. We’ll see if Brian fits the bill.
9/28: Loaf best ofs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Best radio station: WREK-FM (91.1) (last year was WRAS-FM)
Best rock radio station: Album 88 WRAS-FM (last year was Dave FM)
Best urban radio station: V-103 ( last year was Hot 107.9)
Best country station : Eagle 106.7 (same as last year)
Best jazz station: WCLK-FM (91.9)
Best local sports radio host: Chris Dimino
Best radio station from Red-State Insanity: WABE-FM (90.1)
Best local TV anchor: Monica Pearson (last year was John Pruitt)
Best radio drag queen: Miss Sophia (V-103)
Readers picks:
Best local do-gooder: Clark Howard
Best person we love to hate: Neal Boortz (same as last year)
Best person we hate to love: Neal Boortz
Best overall radio station: Dave FM (last year was the Buzz, now defunct)
Best morning drive-time radio show: Bert Show (same as last year)
Best rock radio station: Project 9-6-1 (last year was the Buzz)
Best urban radio station: 95.5 The Beat (last year was V-103)
Best country music radio station: Kicks 101.5
Best jazz radio station: Jazz 107.5
Best noncommercial radio station: Album 88 (same as last year)
Best radio DJ: Mara Davis
Best local tv anchor/ local tv or newspaper reporter: Monica Pearson
Best local sports radio show host: 2 Live Stews
Best local political Web site: Neal Boortz’s Web site
9/27: TV ratings for the week
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Before I get to the ratings, I just wanted to link to a print story I did about former Atlantan Chris Lowell, who stars in ABC’s “Grey’s” new spinoff “Private Practice.”. He gave me some funny quotes.
In this early TV season, people are still into big shows such as “House,” “NCIS,” “Dancing With the Stars” and “Heroes,” but CBS is seeing dropoffs in many of its aging shows such as “Survivor,” (a series low debut of 15.4 million) “CSI: Miami” and “Two and a Half Men.”
And among new shows through Tuesday, none showed signs of being an out-of-the-gate hit. A few did okay, most are in that grey zone of “wait and see” and a couple stumbled immediately.
WINNERS
PBS’s “The War” —Â This huge Ken Burns miniseries about “World War II” brought in epic ratings of 15.5 million its debut Sunday. That was bigger than any commercial telecast except for football that night on NBC.
Fox’s “Back To You” - It’s premature to label anybody a true winner based on one airing because people may quickly abandon ship but this sitcom featuring Kelsey Grammer and Patrician Heaton did respectably well, bringing in 9.5 million viewers Sept. 17. We could be deeming this a loser next week if it drops off sharply.
CBS’s “The Big Bang Theory” - Two geniuses and a ditz also opened passably with about 9.4 million viewers, building upon a so-so opening for “How I Met Your Mother.”
FX’s “Burn Notice” - The two-hour first-season finale Sept. 18 smoldered nicely with a series-high 4.8 million viewers.
Fox’s “Family Guy” - Those “Star Wars” fans gave this sturdy animated series a boost, bringing in 10.8 million viewers Sunday, a big number for this show and larger than “The Simpsons” an hour earlier.
CBS’s “Cane” —Â This drama starring Jimmy Smits about a powerful Latin sugar-cane family opened at about 11.1 million, similar to “Smith” a year ago, which was cancelled after three episodes. It did build on 9 p.m. show “The Unit.” So for now, it’s a winner.
The CW’s “Reaper” —Â This is the best new show of the year based on its first episode but being on the CW, it didn’t get a huge viewership, bringing in a modest 3.2 million viewers. But the fact it built upon the audience of “Beauty & The Geek” (3 million) at 8 is a good sign.
ON THE FENCE
CBS’s “Kid Nation —Â After all the hype, this show about kids left in a ghost town reaped only 9.4 million viewers Sept. 18, a modest figure for CBS. If it can stay in that arena, CBS won’t complain too much but the chances of it building audience is slim.
**The CW’s “Gossip Girl” — For the CW, 3.5 million for its opening frame Sept. 17 wasn’t half bad for this teen drama but given how much the CW hyped this baby, it’s really rather disapointing. And it held only 70 percent of the “America’s Next Top Model” audience.
Fox’s “Kitchen Nightmares” —Â Gordon Ramsay’s overall audience of 6.6 million was just lukewarm but his show ranked no. 1 for its time frame among 18 to 49 year olds Sept. 17 at 9. This was a week before two highly touted freshman shows “Bionic Woman” and “Private Practice” open, though.
LOSERS:
Fox’s “Nashville” - This “Hills”-like show about up-and-coming country singers sang a sad sad ratings song and after two airings has been dumped, probably forever, with repeats of “K-Ville” filling in Fridays until baseball.
NBC’s “Journeyman” — Monday’s debut of this time-travelling drama only held about 60 percent of the “Heroes” numbers and dropped off sharply in its second half hour. That bodes ill for its future.
The CW’s “Online Nation” and “CW Now” These two low-budget shows opened miserably Sunday at the 7 p.m. hour with audiences of just 1 million viewers each.
The differences in Atlanta viewing habits vs. the rest of America can be stark. WAGA-TV, the Fox affiliate, tends to outperform most of its counterparts nationwide, which makes sense given that Atlanta is a younger city. As a result, it owned 8 of the top 10 in Atlanta. Amazingly, “Prison Break” was the top show in Atlanta but ranked just 34th nationwide. Only one program (NFL Sunday football) was both in the top 10 locally and nationally.
Week of Sept. 17
Rank, show, network, date, ratings point with each point represents 22,055 metro Atlanta households (national rank)
“Prison Break” Fox, 9/17, 9.5 (34)
“Sunday Night Football” NBC, 9/23, 9.5 (1)
“K-Ville” Fox, 9/17, 9.2 (21)
“Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader,” Fox, 9/20, 8.3 (25)
“The OT (NFL football post-game),” Fox, 9/23, 8.3 (16)
“The Simpsons” Fox, 9/23, 8.2 (15)
“Back To You,” Fox, 9/19, 7.9 (17)
“The Biggest Loser 4,” NBC, 9/18, 7.5 (27)
“Don’t Forget the Lyrics,” Fox, 9/20 7.2 (24)
“Til Death,” Fox, 9/19, 7.0 (32)
SOURCE: Nielsen Media Research
9/26: Bynum guest DJ on Praise Thursday
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Juanita Bynum, the Pentecostal televangelist who recently filed for divorce from Bishop Thomas Weeks III after his alleged assault on her in August, will be a guest DJ Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Praise 97.5, filling in for Sonya Hamm.
And on Friday from 6 to 10, syndicated morning host and gospel legend Yolanda Adams will be in Atlanta at the Spelman College chapel doing her show live. That’s open to the public.
9/25: 2 Live Stews hosting TV One show
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
TV One has cast Doug and Ryan Stewart, known of “The 2 Live Stews” are making their first foray away from sports as hosts of the second season of “Black Men Revealed,” which will return during first quarter next year.
The eight-episode, one-hour show invites males from various experiences and backgrounds to discuss frank topics surrounding the myths and truths of black men.
The Stews syndicated sports show, heard locally on 790/The Zone from 3 to 7 weekdays, is now in 23 markets and airs nationally on XM Channel 169 The Power. They’re also currently doing “First Take” on ESPN2 a couple times a week up in Bristol, Ct.
9/25: Tom Sullivan new “Atl & Co.” co-host
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
WXIA-TV has finally decided on its new co-host for “Atlanta & Company”: Tommy Sullivan, who has been the primary backup for Ryan Cameron, who has left for his own talk show on Starz. He will work with existing host Holly Firfer. Sullivan has been at Star 94 since he was a teen-ager and is part of the Steve & Vikki morning show. He starts officially Monday with new graphics and music.
“Tom did a really good job on the show,” said Laura Hale, vice president of programming and marketing for WXIA-TV. “He has been completely loyal. When he’s been on the show, he’s done his homework. He’s been a great friend to the show. And we got a lot of good feedback.”
Among the finalists WXIA considered included Jimmy Baron, Tom Clark and Conn Jackson. Some of them will be used as potential backups. “We discovered a lot of talent and great potential out there,” he said.
Here’s Sullivan’s bio on Star 94’s Web site
9/25: On set at Ryan’s show
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
New Starz pay cable variety show “Ryan Cameron Uncensored” is more like the V-103 Ryan Cameron than the “Atlanta & Company” Ryan Cameron. In fact, he takes the title seriously by cursing freely. It’s almost jarring since he has to keep it clean on the radio and broadcast TV.
“Let me hear your favorite curse word!” asked Cameron on the first show set to air sometime in November and taped at Center Stage in Midtown. Dressed in a tan suit, yellow tie and rust-colored shoes, Ryan did a few jokes about rich celebrities and their babies and later did a “retro report” in which he waxed nostalgic about the song “Flashlight” and aped Flavor Flav.
Ryan called in all his chits to his Atlanta celebrity buddies. The first day, he taped interviews with soft-spoken Falcons running back Warrick Dunn (above, left) and hip-hop mogul Jermaine Dupri. His musical guests were Ne-Yo (above, right), Yung Joc and Jagged Edge.
Ne-Yo repeated an earlier story he had said to other media about how he had a few songs he had set aside for Britney Spears before her haircut but he said her people stopped responding to him so he gave the songs to the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls. “The news came out that I gave Britney’s music away,” he said. “But until Britney cuts me a check, it’s my music!” He also said he’s working on songs with Michael Jackson. He said M.J. told him he likes Ne-Yo’s stuff. “It’s crazy,” Ne-Yo noted. “He sang one of my songs back to me.”
Later, during the second taping, Jermaine Dupri was surprised to hear Ryan curse, too. Ryan explained that this is pay cable, he can say anything. A guy in the audience during Q&A asked JD, tongue partly in cheek, “When the * are you going to marry Janet? And can I come to the G* bachelor party?”
JD: “When I get married, you can come, as long as you’re clean.”
Ryan asked him when he and Janet would hit the aisle. “When I turn 50. It’s a long time away man… I believe if I get married, I have to give it the time. I don’t have the time now.”
And here’s Jagged Edge on Ryan’s set with Ryan seated behind them:
9/24: Glenn Beck back on GST
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After a failed experiment with Mike McConnell in midmornings on WGST-AM, Program Director Randall Bloomquist has decided to bring back conservative talker Glenn Beck.
Beck aired from 2001 to 2005 in Atlanta in that same 9 to noon time slot with mediocre results. But given his higher profile since he started his CNN Headline News show, he might do better this time around. “Since Glenn’s departure we have received regular listener feedback asking for his return,” Bloomquist said in an email.
Bloomquist characterized McConnell as a “talented and successful broadcaster whose style just didn’t click in Atlanta. Mike will continue to be heard on The Weekend, which airs Saturdays Noon - 3pm.”
That slot has been trouble for GST for quite awhile. Dr. Laura had it for a couple of years before Beck and her numbers were nowhere near what they had been when she was on WSB-AM. And Denny Schaffer came from Toledo Ohio in 2005 but never gained a foothold here before he was let go late last year. McConnell was a syndicated product from Cincinnati.
9/24: Georgia Radio Hall of Fame inductees
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Marietta Conference Center and Resort hosted old media and new media at the same time Saturday night. The inaugural Georgia Radio Hall of Fame dinner upstairs featuring names of yore such as Gary McKee, Tony “The Tiger” Taylor and Sam Hale.
Downstairs, 250-plus YouTube videographers were gathered partying and, well, videotaping each other at what’s called a “meetup” dubbed SouthTube. The folks there included names of the new world such as Granny Tube, Lemonette and Mikma.
But we’ll focus for now on the old school radio folks. Retired Atlanta radio folks John Long and Sam Hale helped put the dinner together and created the non-profit organization to collect and save Atlanta radio history and honor some of the biggest names from decades yore and current day.
The 12 living Hall of Fame inductees, of which seven attended the dinner, were:
Jerry Blum(above, with McKee on the left): He was the station manager for former powerhouse top 40 station 790/WQXI-AM and was the model for Arthur Carlson on “WKRP in Cincinnati.”
Neal Boortz: We know who he is.
Kent Burkhart: He helped program WQXI in its heyday and became a monstrously influential radio consultant nationwide.
Bill Drake (above): He was a jock on WAKE-AM. Here’s his bio.
Paul Drew: A great night-time WAKE and WQXI jock who helped bring the Beatles to Atlanta in 1965.
Clark Howard: No shock here.
Hugh “Baby” Jarrett (above): He has worked at WPLO, WFOM, WSBS and most recently WWEV-AM. He also appeared in many Elvis Presley films.
Rhubarb Jones: He’s the longest running morning jock in Atlanta since 1985 and remains the voice of Eagle 106.7. He credited Gary McKee with inspiring him to go into radio at all.
“Officer Don” Kennedy (above with Rhubarb): He ran a “Popeye Club” series on WSB-TV in the late 1950s that was extremely popular. He also helped start WKLS-FM, which later became 96rock and now is Project 9-6-1. He now does a syndicated radio program called “Big Band Jump.”
Gary McKee(above): He was the morning man on WQXI from 1971 to 1989 and worked at WSB-AM, WSB-FM and Z93 before he retired in 1999. I did an update on him a few months ago and I have to say he’s an incredibly eloquent writer. I was psyched to finally meet him in person. He was also very gracious accepting the award, crediting his staff and saying he was probably a bit self-centered at a point early in his career but realized it was truly a team effort and made sure everyone sounded good.
Larry Munson: The voice of the Bulldogs since 1966 who recently has stopped overing away games.
Ludlow Porch (above): This lighthearted talker worked at Ring Radio and WSB-AM and still airs a syndicated show. I met him for the first time and he recently got out of the hospital for heart problems. But he was in good spirits despite being in a wheelchair.
The emcee was Conan O’Brien’s announcer Joel Godard (above), a Milledgeville native and Emory grad who worked briefly at WQXI as a sales guy and later DJed at beautiful music WARM-FM (99.7) before it became a top 40 station Power 99 and 99X. I’ll post a separate blog entry about him later this week.
A few months ago, the group named 22 inaugural “legendary” posthumous honorees whose names can be found here.. Among the names included “Skinny” Bobby Harper (who was considered the model for Johnny Fever on “WKRP in Cincinnati”), WSB-AM legend Elmo Ellis (who shaped that station from the 1950s through the 1980s), “Price is Right” announcer Rod Roddy (who worked at WQXI), WXIA-TV weatherman Guy Sharpe (who did radio as well) and WQXI-AM afternoon jock Pat Hughes. Living relatives and friends of the 22 were given a chance to speak at the ceremony. And the video bios of each of the 22 were lovingly and professionally done.
9/22: Advance views of several new shows
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The first episodes of Chuck, The Big Bang Theory and Friday Night Lights are all available on preview mode several days ahead of their debut on Yahoo TV.. Check’em out. FNL has a disturbing plot twist that belies the nature of the characters in question but otherwise, it’s great to see everyone back.
And Fox is offering several of its season debuts on iTunes for free for two weeks after their debut. K-Ville, Back To You, Kitchen Nightmares and Prison Break are already available and Bones will be available after next week’s debut.
9/21: Ryan Cameron’s new TV show
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
V-103’s popular afternoon host Ryan Cameron left WXIA’s “Atlanta & Company” for a reason: he has a new gig on the Starz pay cable network called “Ryan Cameron Uncensored” in which he’ll host a weekly talk show. An air date has yet to be set, according to Chelsye Burrows, a spokeswoman for Starz. She said taping begins Monday in Atlanta.
His promotional packet says the show will include “man-on-the-street comedy with poignant in-studio interviews and commentary.” The music director is Rodney Jerkins, who has worked with Whitney Houston, Madonna and Beyonce.
Starz has 16.1 million paid subscribers and includes several channels. Cameron’s show, which has been commissioned for six episodes, will be on the Starz on Black channel. That channel targets African Americans.
Cameron’s not a stranger to TV. Before his two years on “Atlanta & Company,” Cameron did a brief stint hosting a Turner South comedy show and in the 1990s won a local Emmy for hosting a noon-time TV news magazine on WXIA-TV.
9/21: TV ads in Times Square
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sure, we have billboard-itis in Atlanta but billboards are the attraction in New York’s Times Square, not a disease. Yesterday, I snapped some shots of the billboards in the vicinity (and even on subway poles.) The CW and NBC seem to be especially aggressive in spending bucks to promoste shows such as “Gossip Girl” (which opened at a disappointing 3.6 million for the CW Wednesday night) and “Chuck” for NBC, which opens next week.
This ad climbs up a buildling at least 12 stories:
9/20: Update on GMA’s Robin Roberts
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I have a friend who works at Good Morning America and she hooked me up so I could visit the GMA studios this morning while visiting some friends and family. Reba McEntire performed and ran into a few Georgia fans in the audience (below).
ABOVE: Atlanta’s Trudy Munz (holding the poster), with her daughters Terri (l, from Kennesaw), Tamara (m, from Marietta) and Sherry (r, from Kennesaw). Sherry is the big Reba fan.
On my lame camera, I took lots of blurry shots of Reba. Here was the best of the lot below:
I also stopped by after the show to say hey to Robin Roberts, GMA co host who used to work as an anchor in Atlanta on WAGA-TV back in the late 1980s and also worked with Mike Roberts on the V-103 morning show.
Roberts last month had surgery for breast cancer and has been public about the diagnosis. She is having chemo today at 12:30 p.m. as a way to ensure her breast cancer won’t recur. “I’m young, I’m going to live a long life. It’s the recurrence that can be a little tricky,” she said. “They feel confident they got it all but they want to make sure I don’t have embers that ignite agian. Between the chemo and the radiation, that ought to douse the suckers!”
“It’s good to be hanging out at work because had I not been at work, I’d be at home,” she added, huddled in a corner with her thumb in her mouth. She’ll have to do chemo through February, followed by a round of radiation. Her colleagues are all getting flu shots to minimize the chance of transferring it to her while she’s in a situation where her immune system is compromised. “Just in case cancer is contagious,” joked reporter Chris Cuomo.
I met Robin a few months ago at the Margaret Mitchell House where she was promoting her book. She actually recalled that I had talked about some of the changes going on at the paper and asked me about it. She’s as personable as you can imagine.
As I left the GMA studios on Times Square at 9:30 a.m., I caught Leeza Gibbons shooting what looked like an infomercial of some sort promoting her makeup line Sheer Cover. Part of the backdrop was a monstrous billboard for “Dancing With the Stars,” which she participated in this past spring. Here are a couple of photos I took:
9/20: Emmy ratings cloudy, ‘Sunny’ sunny
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Most awards show in recent years have seen a dive in ratings. The Emmys, facing an NFL football game, is part of that trend, hitting its second lowest ratings in history Sunday night.
Ryan Seacrest hosted a Fox telecast that drew just 13 million viewers compared to 15.3 million for the Chargers-Patriots game on NBC. This compares to 16 million a year ago and 20 million two years ago.
WINNERS
FX’s “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” — Danny Devito and his whacky crew found very sunny ratings, bringing in an average of 2.1 million for its third-season debut episodes. That’s by far the biggest ratings performance the show has ever had, with an impressive 77 percent of listeners ages 18 to 49. Those silly PC/Mac parody promos probably helped.
VH1’s “Rock of Love” - So Flavor Flav isn’t the only magical bachelor for VH1. Bret Michaels of Poison has joined him. The season’s penultimate episode for “Rock of Love” pulled in a series high 3.5 million viewers, up from 1.6 million who saw the first episode. It’s now a battle between a stripper and a pink-haired gal with tons of tats.
ABC’s “The View” — The week of Sept. 3, this gabfest with Whoopi Goldberg as the new moderator pulled in 3.5 million viewers, the most for a premiere in the show’s history, even more than the week Rosie O’Donnell started a year ago.
ABC Family’s “Greek” — After averaging about 1.1 million its first eight episodes, this drama about frats and sororities brought in a series high 1.39 million Sept. 10
Fox’s “K-Ville” — Sept. 17 — Although its lead-in “Prison Break” (see below) disappointed, this drama about cops in past-Katrina New Orleans actually grew audience, finishing at about 9 million viewers, better than last year’s “Vanished” in the same time slot.
CBS’s “Big Brother 8” — Dastardly Dick Donato won the vote 5-2 over his whiny daughter Danielle to take home $500,000 and 8.5 million fans caught the spectacle, up a smidge from 8.4 million last year for the all-star edition. Given that this is the show’s eighth season, CBS should be thrilled.
ON THE FENCE
FX’s “Rescue Me” — After a summer without a lot of buzz, this fourth season finale brought in 2.7 million viewers Sept. 11, a modest dropoff from 3.1 million for the season three finale.
LOSERS
HBO’s “Tell Me You Love Me” - The debut of this sexually explicit relationships drama averaged just 910,000 viewers Sept. 9, which is relatively low for HBO.
Fox’s “Prison Break” — As noted earlier, this new version of “Break” in which Scofield and his enemies are stuck in a nasty Panamanian jail only brought in 7.4 million Monday, down from 9.4 mil a year ago. Scofield’s full-body tattoo was useful for his escape season one and even a bit last year during the great escape but now that it’s useless, the poor producers are forcing him to wear long-sleeve shirts in the middle of what looks like 90 degree heat with no explanation.
Fox’s “Nashville” - This show about up-and-coming country singers, clearly geared to the MTV crowd, brought in only 2.7 million its debut last Friday, which is less than “The Hills” on MTV.
The CW’s “Beauty & The Geek” - The fourth-season debut of this reality show bridging the gap between hot babes and socially-challenged guys brought in only an estimated 3.3 million Tuesday, down from 4.9 million a year ago. The CW pretty much closed shop over the summer so that may have hurt its ability to promote its fall lineup. Of course, we’ll learn more later today how well “Gossip Girl” did last night. That is a bellweather new show for this sophomore network, one that it has been promoted heavily. If “Gossip” fails to break 4 million, the network should be very very worried about its prospects this fall.
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9/19: On Seinfeld, Kid Nation, 24 teasers
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m off today so I’m simply going to pimp two stories and a Buzz item I wrote for the print edition. If I have spare time, I’ll post some weekly ratings info, too.
One is about a Watkinsville, GA resident Lisa Mende who had a memorable role on “Seinfeld” in which she uttered the lines “Jerry, you gotta see the baby!” Here’s the link. The actress who played Mulva/Dolores is also an Atlantan named Susan Walters, who had a prominent role in “The Young & The Restless” from 2001 to 2005.
And I did a piece on CBS’s “Kid Nation,” which debuts tonight. There are seven Georgia kids on the show. Here’s the story.
Here’s an item about Ron Clark at the Emmys in yesterday’s Buzz. TNT flew him out there in celebration of the film “The Ron Clark Story” getting nominated for an Emmy. (The film lost but Clark got plenty of schmooze time with potential donors for his academy.)
Fox did release some teasers about “24” in January (debuting on Sunday January 13 and continuing in its normal time slot at 9 on Monday January 14). CTU is dismantled, Jack Bauer is on trial and Tony Almeida shows up again after being left for dead in season five. Even though CTU is gone, Chloe and Bill survive for another day.
Oh, and Fox introduces “Back To You” tonight (8 p.m.) with Patricia Heaton and Kelsey Grammer. If you want trite, obvious jokes that feel dated before they’re even uttered, well, have at it. And if your’e into the shenanigans of “O.C.”-style rich teens, set in New York, “Gossip Girl” (9 p.m. the CW) is perfectly adequate entertainment although parents might find all the casual, glamour-filled underage drinking a bit disturbing.
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9/18: Hometown actors
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s a list of actors/hosts on broadcast TV shows that I know who have lived in metro Atlanta for some period of their lives. If you happen to know others, please email me at rho@ajc.com:
ABC
Atlanta, Joy Lauren (above), DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (Danielle Van De Kamp)
Atlanta, Chris Lowell, PRIVATE PRACTICE (William Cooper)
Atlanta. Ty Pennington, EXTREME MAKEOVER: HOME EDITION (host)
Fayetteville, Gary Anthony Williams (above), BOSTON LEGAL (Clarence/Clarice)
Freeholme, Josh Holloway, LOST (Sawyer)
FOX
Dunwoody, Ryan Seacrest AMERICAN IDOL (host)
Alpharetta, Jeff Foxworthy, ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5th GRADER? (host)
CBS
Lawrenceville, Jennifer Ferin, AS THE WORLD TURNS (Jennifer Munson)
Marietta, Robert Patrick (above), THE UNIT (Col. Tom Ryan)
NBC
Conyers, Jack McBrayer (above), 30 ROCK (Kenneth Parcell)
Atlanta, Kenan Thompson, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE
Atlanta, Ed Helms, THE OFFICE (Andy Bernard)
Atlanta, Brian Baumgartner (above) THE OFFICE (Kevin Malone)
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9/18: Dave FM charity CD
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Taking a cue from the many years 99X did “Live X” charity CDs using live cuts from special 99X-only mini-concerts, Dave FM has released a similar live CD, available at Starbucks starting today.
These 13 tracks are culled from “Friends of Dave” concerts the past three years. The set list includes the Fray’s “How To Save a Life,” Shawn Mullins’ “Shimmer,” Goo Goo Dolls’ “Better Days,” KT Tunstall’s “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree,” and Marc Broussard’s “Home.” The track listing is here..
The monies will go to Park Pride, a non-profit group that helps improve parks around metro Atlanta.
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9/16: Farewell to the Sopranos
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
HBO’s biggest series “The Sopranos” received a big sloppy farewell kiss from the Emmy voters with the big drama series victory. It’s well deserved and no, the Emmys didn’t black out the screen.
As usual, the Emmy voters went for the same ol’ same ol in several categories: James Spader winning a third time for best actor in a drama, (beating out James Gandolfini and Hugh Laurie, to name a couple) Jeremy Piven winning again for best supporting actor in a comedy, “The Amazing Race” winning for a fifth time for best reality competitive series over “American Idol,” “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” winning for a fifth time for best variety, music or comedy series. And America Ferrara’s victory was no surprise for best actress in a comedic series.
The Emmy voters also love icons Tony Bennett, whose music special won several awards, and Helen Mirren, who picked up a fourth Emmy with “Prime Suspecct.” Robert Duvall and AMC’s “Broken Trail” took home a bunch of Emmys, including best miniseries, showing that they also embrace big sweeping historical dramas. (That also helped out HBO’s “Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee,” which won for best made-for-TV movie.)
But there were a few upsets. NBC’s poorly rated “30 Rock” beat the likes of “Ugly Betty,” “The Office” and “Entourage” to win best comedy series in its freshman year. A similar victory for Fox’s similarly ratings-challenged “Arrested Development” failed to boost its fortunes so it’s doubtful an Emmy win will necessarily help Tina Fey’s show. But she did thank the “dozens and dozens” of viewers. (Actually, the show ranked 109th and averaged about 5.5 million viewers.)
And in another surprise upset, Ricky Gervais took home best actor in a comedic series, beating out perennial winner Tony Shahloub for “Monk” as well as Steve Carell, who did come up in Gervais’ place as a joke since Gervais wasn’t around to pick up the award. He also won over favorite Alec Baldwin, who won the Golden Globe earlier this year in a similar category.
Finally, few people were betting on Katharine Heigl to win best supporting actress in a drama over the likes of castmates Sandra Oh and Chandra Wilson, plus Rachel Griffiths in “Brothers & Sisters.”
Amusingly, the announcers misprounced both Heigl’s name (saying High-jul instead of High-gull) and Steve Carell’s name (the guy just botched it completely.) Heigl was the only one to point it out. I’m sure the announcer turned beet red after that. (I know the feeling since I mispronounced “Good Day Atlanta’s” Suchita Vadlamani’s first name a few weeks ago—it’s Su-CHEE-tha, not Su-JEE-ta— but I didn’t do it in front of 20 million people.)
A lot of “Office” fans were probably rooting for Jenna Fischer in the supporting actress in a comedy series but Jaime Pressly is downright hilarious in “My Name is Earl” and took home her first trophy. And I thought Michael Emerson was more deserving than Terry O’Quinn for the lone “Lost” win: best supporting actor in a drama. (Masi Oku and the “Heroes” gang were essentially shut out of any major category wins.)
Other shows that came home empty handed in the big categories included “Two & a Half Men,” “Desperate Housewives,” “House” and “The Office.” And though Kyle Chandler of “Friday Night Lights” got to present, that show was shut out of the biggies. None of the “CSI” or “Law & Order” shows got much love either.
The experiment of setting the auditorium “in the round” didn’t appear to sit well with a lot of the actors, who had to spend time looking at the backs of peoples’ heads. Spader even said it pointedly that even after millions of rock concerts, those were the worst seats he’s ever had.
Visually, I thought it was interesting to do it in the round. And I was bemused to notice a glitch which had the logo of “Ugly Betty” stuck prominently on one of the TVs for a major portion of the show. Twice, the censors had to cut away. First was courtesy of Ray Romano with a joke about his former “Raymond” mate Patricia Heaton sleeping with her new castmater on Kelsey Grammer but using an FCC-unfriendly word.
Then there was Sally Field, who won for best actress in a drama. She apparently dropped the GD bomb during a rare politicized statement. We didn’t hear it, but she paraphrased it later at a press conference, minus the obscenity: “I wanted to pay homage to the mothers of the world. And I very very seriously think that if mothers ruled the world we wouldn’t be sending our children off to be slaughtered.”
Host Ryan Seacrest was as comfortable as he always is in hosting anything. He made a reference to Simon Cowell but no camera actually showed Simon being there. He also made a joke about “Weeds” and referenced Paula Abdul. Alas, it’s all in the family. The writers gave him a few good jokes, though the biggest laugh came when he simpy said hi to Teri Hatcher, who he “dated” one time and a kiss between them landed in the tabs. Sure, he was no Conan O’Brien but the show moved along, albeit uneventfully.
And though the supposed hardest working host in Hollywood worked the pre-show on E!, Seacrest was nowhere to be found during the post-show. Where’s your work ethic, Seacrest?
9/16: Sunday fall preview
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Like Thursday, this is a relatively stable night. CBS moves “Shark” to Sunday from Thursday and introduces the ill-fated “Viva Laughlin.” The CW debuts a couple of low-cost shows (an entertainment news show and another one featuring online video) as well as an ambitious familiy drama set in South Africa. And Fox dumped the execrable sitcom crapfest “War At Home” and moves the much more palatable “King of the Hill” into the 8:30 slot.
7 p.m.
“60 Minutes” CBS (9/23) Yes, Andy Rooney is still alive. Rating outlook: This show’s average viewer seems to be about Rooney’s age, but to CBS’s credit, it’s the only serious newsmagazine journalism left on primetime. It was once a No. 1 show (for five years) but is now only ranked 26th last year with 13.2 million and 68th among 18 to 49 year olds. Expect more of the same in its 40th year in existence.
“The OT” Fox (9/23) This is the post-game to the afternoon NFL game, which often delays the animated series that follows. Ratings outlook: Early NFL games on NBC and ESPN have not done as well as last year’s games but popularity is still huge compared to other sports.
“Football Night in America” NBC (9/9) The pre-game to the night game. Ratings outlook: Still a touchdown, of course.
“America’s Funniest Home Videos” ABC (10/7) Believe it or not, this show debuted as a regular series January 14, 1990 and will be around as long as viewers find random folks getting hit in the crotch funny. Ratings outlook: This show brings in okay numbers and probably will be in 10 years despite the immediacy of YouTube.
“CW Now” the CW (9/23) This is supposed to be yet another entertainment news show, like we don’t have enough of these already. Ratings outlook: Minimal, but what else is the CW going to show besides repeats at this hour.
7:30 p.m.
“Online Nation” the CW (9/23) Trying to tap the creativity of the Web, the CW scours the Internet for cool videos. In other words, cheap err… cost effective programming. Ratings outlook: See “CW Now.”
8 p.m.
“Extreme Makeover:Home Edition” ABC (9/30) The show hits Hawaii as it goes for the goal of hitting all 50 states. Ratings outlook: As the show approaches episode 100 in its fifth season, it’s losing steam as people are tiring of the formula. Numbers slipped a bit last year, averaging 13.4 million viewers (25th) from 14.7 million in 2005-06 (19th) but still landed 17th among 18 to 49 year olds. Only a miracle middle-age makeover could reverse the trend - and it’s held up better than, say, “The Apprentice.”
“Sunday Night Football” NBC (9/9) John Madden is still around with that magic pen of his. Ratings outlook: It’s a top 15 show, with even better numbers among 18 to 49 year olds (ranked 7). There’s no reason for that to change.
“The Simpsons” Fox (9/23) Guest voices this year include Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Dan Rather, Jack Black and Steve Buscemi as the show enters its 19th season. Ratings outlook: The show has been gradually losing steam over the years and now is down to 60th overall with 8.6 million viewers (vs. 9.1 million a year ago) but 28th among 18 to 49 year olds. The summer film might give the show a temporary boost but growth prospects at this point are slim.
“Viva Laughlin”(above) CBS (10/18) This drama could be the worst show in primetime and has brought back ignominious comparisons to “Cop Rock” with its characters singing (and singing badly). Ratings outlook: “The Amazing Race” is being held until the spring — for this??? If there’s a guaranteed bomb, this is it. Watch it open at 8 million and sink into oblivion.
“Life is Wild”(above) the CW (10/7) With “7th Heaven” gone, this is the CW’s attempt at a family friendly replacement with a bit of Animal Planet thrown in. The plot is basically an American vet brings his family to South Africa for a year. Ratings outlook: If this can even crack 3 million viewers, the CW execs would be thrilled.
8:30 p.m.
“King of the Hill” Fox (9/23) Guest voices include Tom Petty, Fred Willard and Ted Danson. Ratings outlook: This unheralded show barely made it for renewal for its 12th season. It ranked just 109th place but it usually aired in the 7 o’clock hour. It should do much better at 8:30 between “Simpsons” and “Familiy Guy.”
9 p.m.
“Desperate Housewives” ABC (9/30) Former Atlantan Joy Lauren’s character Danielle is preggers and Bree is covering for her. And did Edie die? Plus, a gay couple moves onto Wisteria Lane, along with yet another family with a dark secret. Ratings outlook: The show improved creatively in its third season after a rough sophomore year, but ratings dropped an alarming 21 percent to 17.5 million (ranked 10th), down 25 percent 18 to 49 (ranked 5th). The gloss is gone as newer shows get the buzz, but that doesn’t mean the show can’t hang on in the top 10 another year.
“Cold Case” CBS (9/23) An all-Nirvana episode is forthcoming. Ratings outlook: This show has been amazingly consistent and averaged 14.4 million viewers last season, virtually the same as the year before. After four seasons, this will likely remain a sturdy performer for CBS for many more.
“Family Guy” Fox (9/23) For the 100th episode, Stewie finally offs Lois and there’s a Star Wars spoof. And Paris Hilton guest voices along with the three “Idol” judges. Ratings outlook: In its revived state, this sitcom continues to keep chugging along. And it has one of the highest discrepancies between overall ratings (71st) and the 18 to 49 demo (28th).
“America’s Next Top Model” (repeat) No need to comment on the CW’s inability to come up with original programming here.
9:30 p.m.
“American Dad” Fox (9/23) This poor man’s “Family Guy”/”Simpsons” will feature parodies of “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” and “Kill Bill.” Ratings outlook: Animation ages well. The show does fairly well, averaging 7.3 million viewers in season two, and those numbers probably won’t change.
10 p.m.
“Shark” CBS (9/23) Kevin Pollack plays the new boss to James Woods’ Shark and Jeri Ryan joins his team instead of being his boss, which should give her more to do. Ratings outlook: Sophomore years are crucial for shows like this because if it’s truly a hit, it should really build audience this year. And given the CBS audience, it should do just fine in this new time slot. It ranked 24th last year overall, 37th among 18 to 49.
“Brothers & Sisters” ABC (9/30) Nora starts dating a staunch Republican played by Danny Glover. And Justin returns from Iraq severely injured (no way they were going to kill hiim!) Ratings outlook: Although it only held about 2/3 of the “Desperate Housewives” numbers (11 million), that’s actually very respectable for a freshman series. Given how well the show ended creatively last spring, ABC should expect even better numbers this year.
9/14: Guest hosts on Atlanta & Company
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The search for Ryan Cameron’s replacement as co host on WXIA-TV’s “Atlanta & Company” continues.
The guest hosts the past two weeks on “Atlanta & Company” (which airs weekdays at 11) have included a couple of non-media types, theater director Kenny Leon and former Braves player and sports commentator Brian Jordan. But given Leon’s busy schedule and Jordan’s discomfort with any non-sports related topic, neither are likely in consideration. Creative Loafing’s dry wit Andisheh Nouraee, who has been an occasional guest on the show in the past, said he did it more as a lark.
Others who tried out and are interested in the job were V-103’s Frank Ski, syndicated TV host Conn Jackson and 680/The Fan sports guy Robb Tribble. Jackson said he’d love to have the job and had a good time making guacamole.
And here’s former 99Xer Jimmy Baron this past Monday interviewing Steve Wilkos, former securty guard for Jerry Springer promoting his new show, which airs at 2 p.m. weedkays on WATL-TV. (www.99xwatch posted it on YouTube):
“I thought it went very well,” Baron said Friday. “I was pretty happy. It’s like radio: once you do it every day, you get better incrementally. Holly and I have worked together and I think we felt there was decent chemistry.” Why did he wear a suit? “Personally, I feel when you’re on TV, you should dress nice than the average person watching out of respecvt. Maybe I’m old fashioned that way.” And how about his habit of flipping a pen? He didn’t even know he was doing that but he’ll take note of it.
Today, the show’s regular sub Tom Sullivan from Star 94 co-hosted with Firfer. He’s very much in the running to take over full time and is comfortable in the role.
I wasn’t sure if the guesting would continue next week or how quickly they plan to hire the replacement. Laura Hale, WXIA’s VP of programming and marketing, didn’t return a call for comment Friday.
9/14 Friday fall preview
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Friday is the second-least important night for broadcast networks, behind the dead zone called Saturday. But at least they’re still trying, with four new shows set to air. (New shows in bold)
8 p.m.
“Deal or No Deal” NBC (10/5) This is the second weekly helping of this Howie Mandel game show. Ratings outlook: Definitely worse than the midweek edition but 10 million is a do-able number.
“Ghost Whisperer” CBS (9/28) Jay Mohr is now a full-time cast member playing a professor and the show producers promise scarier storylines and a building mythology about the town Melinda lives in and its past with ghost whisperers. Ratings outlook: Jennifer “Love” Hewitt and her cleavage help draw the younger viewers as the show remains a steady performer in the 9 million viewer range.
“20/20” ABC (10/12) This is set at a new, earlier time slot. Newsmagazines used to be a staple part of the primetime schedule but this and “60 Minutes” are the only regular programs left. Ratings outlook: Newsmagazines, unless some big hot scandal is going on, tend to skew very old, which advertisers don’t prefer. And numbers for “20/20” last year were fairly lukewarm, around 7 to 8 million viewers. It should be about the same this year, though it’s on at the earlier hour when fewer people are watching TV.
“The Next Great American Band” Fox (10/19) Fox seeks out, well, the next great American band. Ratings outlook: Fox is downplaying this show, which might be perceived as a time filler before the next “American Idol.” But given the competition, it could do surprisingly well, especially among younger viewers.
“WWE Smackdown” the CW (all the time) This is the only show that pretty much airs fresh all year around. Ratings outlook: It brings in its crew of 4 million wrestling fanatics week in and week out.
9 p.m. Three new shows in one time slot so this is open game!
“Friday Night Lights” NBC (10/5) Kyle Chandler’s coach Taylor is off at his new Austin college football coaching gig, but you know he’ll be back soon with the Panthers. Ratings outlook: Like “30 Rock,” NBC is hoping people who ignored this character-driven, achingly cinematic show season one will catch it now that it’s actually on Friday nights. If it can bring in even 8 million viewers NBC would be ecstatic. And it’s up against three new shows.
“Women’s Murder Club”(above) ABC (10/12) Based on the popular James Patterson books, four women (an attorney played by “Law & Order” alum Angie Harmon, a coroner, a lawyer and a reporter) team up to solve crimes. Harmon tells TV Guide that it’s “CSI” meets “Sex and the City.” Ratings outlook: This is a wide open time slot and this decent crime drama could end up being the winner in the end.
“Moonlight CBS (9/28) Since the pilot, this show has been rewritten and recast except for the lead, Jason Dohring, who plays a good-hearted private detective/vampire. Ratings outlook: A long shot. It’s clearly an attempt to bring in some sci-fi fans into the mix on Friday nights for CBS.
“Nashville”(above) Fox (9/14) This show looks and feels like “Laguna Beach,” except the hot country singer wannabes are a bit older and wiser if still packed with hormones. Ratings outlook: Fox has had trouble on Friday nights for years and it’s doubtful this rather narrow-appeal show will bring in the numbers to survive.
10 p.m.
“Numb3rs” CBS (9/28) Dylan Bruno’s Colby was exposed as a spy during the finale in May, and now we learn about the man who helped expose him, played by Val Kilmer. Ratings outlook: With 12 to 14 million viewers, this has been the top show on Friday nights for the past couple of years and will continue to be the top gun in its fourth season unless one of the new shows (most likely “Women’s Murder Club”) breaks out.
“Las Vegas” NBC (9/28) Ed (James Caan) is leaving as the casino owner, replaced by Tom Selleck’s character. Nikki Cox is out, too. Ratings outlook: This guilty pleasure of a dramedy is in a new time slot after airing at 9 last season. The move probably won’t affect the numbers too much, which hover around 10 million.
“Men in Trees” ABC (10/12) Ratings outlook: James Tupper (Jack) and Anne Heche (Marin) are items off the screen but the producers keep them apart on the screen. This show, which will air 27 episodes including the five that were held from the spring, returns to Fridays, now at 10, it’s third time slot. It didn’t do that well after “Grey’s” but expectations are far lower on Fridays so if this sophomore show even breaks 8 million, it will survive.
9/13: Randy & Spiff w/ Guiliani/ V-103s For Sisters Only
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
For those of you starving for radio news, there isn’t much to feed you. Here’s what I got:
WGST’s Randy & Spiff gabbed with presidential candidate Rudy Guiliani yesterday. Catch the interview here.. They talk about illegal immigration and terrorism, as well as his love for the New York Yankees.
And V-103/WAOK-AM is prepping for one of its biggest events of the year this weekend: For Sisters Only. It’s two days at the Georgia World Congress Center. Among the musical acts: Musiq Soulchild, Mario, Soulja Boy, Hurricane Chris, D.J. Unk and Carl Thomas. There are classic cars, a kid zone, an authors area, a CoverGirl makeover/massage/fashion area and a Get Fit pavilion. More details here..
WABE-FM is airing a big multi-day special on the Atlanta Beltline starting tomorrow morning during “Morning Edition.”
And Friday night, Star 94, which normally caters to marred soccer moms, is holding a singles party called the “Little Black Dress” party at the Loft. This is eight days before Q100’s big singles shindig Smyrnabration
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9/13: Thursday fall preview
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This is the most stable night of the week, with only one new show in the offing: Big Shots. It’s also the most lucrative night for broadcast networks, who imbibe movie studio advertising at top rates.
8 p.m.
“Survivor: China” CBS (9/20) - An Atlanta school teacher Sherea Lloyd is part of the crew this year, along with a WWE wrestler, a professional poker player and a Christian talk show host. And instead of an island, they’ve chosen an isolated part of China with a big fake temple as the backdrop of the tribal council. Ratings outlook: The show has shed a lot of viewers the past two years but is still a top 20 hit. It will probably keep slipping, though at least the competitors are exactly the same as they were in the spring.
“Ugly Betty” ABC (9/27) Plenty of cliffhangers to resolve and Betty’s true love Henry comes back but obviously, producers will create new obstacles to keep them apart. Ratings outlook: “Betty” opened strong, ended a bit weak in the ratings department. It will probably retain 11 to 12 million in the fall and place a solid second behind “Survivor.”
“Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” Fox (9/6) Alpharetta’s Jeff Foxworthy & the gang was the first show out of the gate this new 2007-08 TV season. He’ll introduce a new group of fifth graders next month. Ratings outlook: This surprise hit blunted some of the “Betty” numbers in the spring, but given the pattern of other game shows, it will be a bring in a steady 8 to 9 million viewers for awhile, then start slipping in the spring.
“My Name is Earl” NBC (9/27) The charm wore off slightly in season two but now Earl’s in jail and will be for a few episodes. That twist should add some fresh spice to this comic souffle. Ratings outlook: Earl had held his own and will continue to battle Foxworthy for third place.
“Smallville” the CW (9/27) The show introduces SuperGirl, Superman’s sis. Ratings outlook: This old WB mainstay is getting a bit long in the tooth as it enters season seven. Its better days are behind it and will continue to shed viewers who are checking out other shows.
8:30 p.m
“30 Rock” NBC (10/4) Former Conyers’ resident Jack McBrayer was a breakout star amid mucho star power as the happily clueless page Kenny. This year, guest stars such as Jerry Seinfeld, Nathan Lane and LL Cool J will pop in. Ratings outlook: It’s make or break for a show that ranked 137th last year and was given a reprieve thanks to management support and critical praise. NBC’s patience, hopefully, will be rewarded but it’s a long shot at best.
9 p.m.
“Grey’s Anatomy” ABC (9/27) Addison (Kate Walsh) has gone off to some spinoff and Burke (Isaiah Washington) was cut for reasons that have nothing to do with the fictional character. Ultimately, creator Shonda Rhimes hopes to right the ship after a shaky season three spring. Ratings outlook: This is a top 5 show and will likely stay that way at least through the fall, but Rhimes may have to shake things up to keep viewers hooked.
“CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” CBS (9/27) . We’ll hopefully find out soon if actress Jorja Fox sticks around after her character Sara gets kidnapped. And the miniature killer plotline that threaded through last year’s shows will be resolved in the first episode. Ratings outlook: The arrival of “Grey’s” last year cut CSI’s audience by about one quarter but it’s still a monster hit as it enters its eighth season. Like “ER,” even if CSI keeps losing 20 percent of its audience each year, that’s coming from such a large base, it can survive at least another three seasons.
“The Office” NBC (9/27) The show will open with four supersized one-hour episodes. It should be fun to see Ryan (B.J. Novak) become Michael’s boss and Michael’s former boss shacking up with him. Ratings outlook: This show pulls in great numbers among younger viewers and it should continue to hold its own.
“Don’t Forget the Lyrics” Fox (9/6) Like “The Singing Bee,” expect famous singers to pop in and help out. Ratings outlook: This show did well in the summer, averaging more than 8 million viewers. Fox would be thrilled if it kept that up and as the only reality show during this hour, it just might do it.
“Supernatural” the CW (10/4) Jensen Ackles’ Dean knows he only has one year to live so he lives it up. Ratings outlook: This show has ridden on the coattails of “Smallville” and will need a minor miracle to survive past this third season. Then again, this is the CW so you never know.
9:30 p.m.
“Scrubs” NBC (10/25) With “The Office” getting “supersized” for a month, “Scrubs” debuts late in its seventh and final season. The producer tells Entertainment Weekly the focus won’t be on whether Elliott and J.D. get together or not but it’s hard to tell how serious he’s being. Tom Cavanagh will be guesting again. Ratings outlook: Its ratings have never been very good, but it’s a funny show whose very survival has hinged on how weak the sitcom world really is right now.
10 p.m.
“Without a Trace” CBS (9/27) Brace yourself for a CSI/Trace crossover and Poppy Montgomery’s real-life pregnancy is incorporated into the show. Ratings outlook: About 3 million viewers vanished without a trace after this drama moved from Thursday (18.5 million) to Sunday (14.7 million). Coming back to Thursday should help get some of those fans back as it enters its sixth season.
“ER” NBC (9/27) Goran Visnjic and Noah Wyle will be back for a few episodes. Ratings outlook: This creaky drama is in its 14th and probably final season with ratings down to 11.5 million last year after peaking at 32 million back in 1995.
*”Big Shots”(above) ABC * (9/27) Four men with high-powered jobs have far more trouble in their relationships, of course. In other words, “Sex and the City” with guys who seem to have plenty of time to hang out at the country club and not actually run their multi-billion dollar companies. Dylan McDermott is the most notable player. Ratings outlook: This show will need to improve its wit to match its plotlines. And yes, Dylan crosses pathes with a transexual, the same subplot which is seen in ABC’s “Dirty Sexy Money.”
9/12: Wednesday fall preview
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This night is truly up for grabs. ABC gives us three new shows on one night while every other network debuts at least one. There will be casualties but plenty of opportunity to shine, too. (New shows in bold face)
8 p.m.
“Kid Nation” CBS (above) (9/19) Yes, the media has been hot and heavy on this one for weeks. It’s 40 kids (seven from Georgia) building a “society” without parents. Ratings outlook: Impossible to predict beyond some solid tune-in the first week. CBS hasn’t sent critics advance copies.
“Deal or No Deal” NBC (9/17) So far, nobody has won the top prize of $1 million so they are going to make some temporary changes to increase the odds. Ratings outlook: By airing this two or three times a week for more than a year fatigue started setting in this past spring. After resting the show over the summer, can NBC get a bit more juice out this?
“Back To You” (above) CBS (9/19) Kelsey Grammer returns to Pittsburgh as a disgraced TV anchor, joining his former co-anchor played by Patricia Heaton (“Everybody Loves Raymond.”) Ratings outlook: This show feels dated and anybody under the age of 30 will flee quickly.
“Pushing Daisies” (above) ABC (10/3) Ned Baker can revive the dead with a single touch but kill them with a second touch. As a child, he revived his childhood sweetheart but now that she’s back in the picture, they can’t touch — or she dies. Ratings outlook: TV viewers do like outside the box shows (see “Lost” and “Heroes”) but this one may be too out there to draw a big crowd.
“America’s Next Top Model” the CW (9/19) - Tyra Banks will dish out more of the same as would-be models claw for that title, though there is an “eco” theme. Ratings outlook: In its ninth incarnation, this show has become one of the sturdiest reality shows around and should continue to hold on to its 3.5 million viewers week in and week out.
8:30 p.m.
“Til Death” Fox (9/19) Go figure: two “Everybody Love Raymond” alums back to back on another network. This sitcom — now in its sophomore year —Â is far funnier than “Back to You.” Ratings outlook: A decent performance post “Idol” this past spring saved it from cancellation. It’s going to have to pick up the pace this fall to survive a third year.
9 p.m.
“Private Practice” (above) ABC (9/26) Kate Walsh’s Addison moves to a wellness clinic from her safe climes at Seattle Grace in this “Grey’s Anatomy” spinoff. Since last spring’s “intro” crossover episode, Audra McDonald replaces Merrin Dungey as Addison’s best friend, but otherwise, the show tries to blend drama, comedy and romance, a formula that has worked well for “Grey’s.” Ratings outlook: This is virtually guaranteed a huge first-week audience (my guess: 18 million) and will probably hold up okay if viewers glom onto this new crew which includes Taye Diggs and Tim Daly.
“Criminal Minds” CBS (9/26) Mandy Patinkin is out and Joe Mantegna is in. This is the only returning show in this time slot. Ratings outlook: A new lead for this type of crime show doesn’t necessarily mean viewers will jump ship. The 15 million loyal viewers should give Mantegna a chance but itchy remote control fingers are ready to check out the new stuff if he doesn’t meld well with the rest of the FBI unit.
“Bionic Woman” (above) NBC (9/26) Jaime Sommers, the woman with mechanical legs, ear, eye and arm, is reincarnated in this more serious, sleeker take on the ’70s version. Ratings outlook: So-so. The sci-fi audience will tune in and the broader “Heroes” crowd might check it out but will it have broad enough appeal?
“Kitchen Nightmares” Fox (9/19) In this offshoot of a British series, Gordon Ramsay from “Hell’s Kitchen” tries to turn around U.S. restaurants. Ratings outlook: Fox’s expectations are probably modest. Fans of Ramsay will eat this up, but it probably won’t match “Hell’s Kitchen” summer numbers when there’s less competition.
“Gossip Girl” the CW (9/19) Based on Cecily von Ziegesar’s best-selling books, this show revolves around the lives of rich, pampered New York City high school students who live on their Blackberries and cel phones. Kristen Bell of “Veronica Mars” narrates. Ratings outlook: IMHO excellent. The first episode throws enough intrigue and attitude to deserve future looks.
10 p.m.
“CSI: NY” CBS (9/26) As we enter season four, not a lot of major changes afoot. Ratings outlook: The show isn’t quite as big as its the original or Miami, but with its 15 million weekly viewers, it should stomp the life out of its two new rivals. Last year, “CSI:NY” buried doomed “Kidnapped” on NBC and disappointing “The Nine” on ABC.
“Dirty Sexy Money” ABC (9/26) This is a frenzied attempt to bring back the gold ol’ days of “Dynasty” and “Dallas” through the eyes of a family attorney who has to constantly steer a rich family out of trouble. Ratings outlook: With “Private Practice” as its lead in, it will certainly get in some curious viewers but it better sharpen up its writing and character development if it’s going to have any long-term traction.
“Life” NBC (9/26) Detective Charlie Crews comes back to work after spending 12 years in jail for a murder he didn’t commit. Color him bitter in a House sorta way. Ratings outlook: Not terminal by any stretch. It could appeal to the old “Law & Order” crowd. NBC will be thrilled if it can bring in 10 million or more viewers on a consistent basis.
9/11: ‘The Closer” breaks ratings record
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
WEEKLY TV RATINGS ANALYSIS
Atlanta-based TNT’s “The Closer” Monday night drew a series record 9.2 million for its season three finale. It’s also the top ad-supported basic cable scripted telecast in TV history.
Note the restrictions. Several cable shows have done better. But series on HBO (“The Sopranos”) and Disney (“Hannah Montana”) don’t count because neither are “ad supported.” NFL football and that presidential debate in 1992 don’t count either because they’re not scripted.
Nonetheless, TNT should be psyched that its audience continued to watch “The Closer” in even greater numbers than the first two seasons, with the show averaging 7.7 million viewers over 13 episodes. That’s up from about 6.7 million season two and 5.5 million in 2005. We now just have to wait to see if Kyra Sedgwick wins an Emmy to accompany her Golden Globe.
WINNERS
TBS’s “My Boys” - Despite relatively modest ratings (an average of 1.3 million viewers through six episodes), this comedy starring Jordana Spiro as a tomboy sports writer received a third season green light this week. That’s about half of what fellow comedies “The Bill Engvall Show” and “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne” usually pulls in.
CMT’s “Dale” - NASCAR fans raced to CMT To see this authorized bio about the late Dale Earnhardt, bringing in 3.1 million viewers, the most in CMT’s history.
ABC Family’s “Lincoln Heights” - This show about a cop moving into a dangerous neighborhood its first year used to air at 7 p.m. when fewer eyeballs are around. During that time slot, the show earlier this year averaged about 1 million viewers. Now at 8 p.m. on Tuesdays, the debut of season two raked in 1.6 million people, a series high.
Fox News’ New Hampshire debate Last Wednesday’s Republican debate attracted the biggest debate numbers so far at about 3.2 million viewers.
HGTV’s “Deserving Design” Riding the wave of “Design Star” Sunday, the debut of Atlanta interior designer Vern Yip’s new show pulled in a solid 2.7 million viewers, holding 82 percent of the “Design Star” crowd. We now await to see how it does on its own in its regular time slot of Wednesday (though another new episode follows the “Design Star” finale this Sunday.)
Showtime’s “Californication” This racy show starring David Duchovny received a second-season order of 12 episodes, set to air next summer. It has brought in about 800,000 viewers a week, a tidy sum for Showtime.
ON THE FENCE
MTV’s “VMA Awards” - After hittings its lowest point in several years last year with 5.8 million viewers, this year’s version on Sunday, which included a disastrous opener by Britney Spears, perked up to 7.1 million. The problem: That’s still down from 8 million in 2005 and 10.3 million in 2004.
NFL football: NFL football is still a big draw but not as much as last year. The Colts-Giants game a year ago debuted at 22.6 million. This year, the Cowboys-Giants matchup only drew 18.7 million, down about 17 percent. The Thursday opener dropped off about 7 percent, from 19.2 million (Dolphins-Steelers) to 17.8 million for the Colts-Saints. ESPN also saw drops of 12% and 19% respectively year over year for its first Monday Night Football games Sept. 10, with the Bengals vistory over the Ravens drawing 11.1 million and the ‘49ers over the Cardinals at 8.5 million.
Bravo’s “Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style” - This show featuring makeovers of fashion-deficient women last Thursday made it work okay, drawing a respectable-for-Bravo but not amazing 982,000 viewers.
LOSERS
SciFi’s “Flash Gordon - This critical clunker a month ago opened at more than 2 million viewers. By last Friday, its numbers were down like a flash to 864,000, fewer viewers than a couple of repeats of “Star Trek Enterprise” and the finale of the goofy “Who Wants to Be a Superhero.”
SoapNet’s “I Wanna Be a Soap Star 4” - This reality show brought in just 209,000 viewers last Tuesday, far below what most repeats of “General Hospital” and “All My Children” roped in.
WE’s “American Princess” - Few women are paying attention to this competition in which contestants try to become the most sophisticated “princess” they can be. Only 192,000 people checked it out this past Wednesday.
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9/11: Project morning show to come eventually
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you’re still wondering about the new morning show on Project 9-6-1, the station is taking its time putting the team together with Giant Brian Carothers, who left a rock station in Philadelphia in early August. Clay Hunnicutt, vp of operations for Clear Channel Atlanta, said the station is only going to air the show up when it’s ready. And given that Project has been doing okay playing music in the mornings against rival 99X, there’s no rush.
Brian’s myspace page at one point (still cached in Google) says he’s in Atlanta , but he recently changed it to “who knows now, Pennsylvania” as his locale and dumped any reference to 99X. In the version a few days ago, he had a picture of 99X morning host and program director Leslie Fram as “who I’d like to meet” and took an existing bio of Leslie’s and inserted his name instead. Here’s the beginning of the faked bio:
He’s been dubbed the First Gentleman of Modern Rock, God of the Airwaves and one of the most powerful men in radio. Giant Brian, Program Director for Cumulus - Atlanta WNNX-99X and one of 99X’s favorite on-air personalities, is truly one of the South’s most precious gems.
He also linked to a 99X Live X performance of the Plain White T’s off YouTube with the following commentary:
I love really overplayed girl music. Check out the latest concert I was at. This is a great performance. I met some really cool 13 year old girls at this show that wanted to hook up with me.
The Powers That Be must have told him to cut it out. Giant Brian’s new boss Chris Williams used to be 99X’s program director under Leslie Fram, who after he left blamed Williams for much of the woes that hit 99X. Last year, Williams’ former Buzz morning host Whip made fun of Fram, calling her “Old Man Fram.”
Speaking of 99X, former morning sidekick Jeremy Powell (AKA Fat Kid) has been let go from his night jock job at Chattanooga rock station the Mountain 96.5 after just 15 months. 99Xwatch.org broke the news,. Fat Kid said he had no idea why he was cut, that he wasn’t given any warning and that they gave him the usual “we’re going in a different direction” platitude. He did comedy bits that evoked the old Toucher show such as playing bits from cassette tapes purchased at the discount rack and doing an “inner monologue” over Mike Vick or Larry Craig press conference comments. He feels he has to do personality radio because he lacks that natural “DJ” voice and sounds like a “14-year-old girl.”
Plus, in case you missed it, I wrote a print story Monday about Marietta resident and “Good Eats” guru Alton Brown.. He’s very self deprecating. Amazingly, the Food Network aired 23.5 hours of the guy on three shows the week of August 20, bringing in more than 19 million viewers. And next month, he hosts “The Next Iron Chef” reality competition program.
9/11: Tuesday TV shows
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tuesday features four new shows intermixed with plenty of reality and a few dramas.
8 p.m.
“NCIS” CBS (9/25) Season five means the magic 100th episode and supposedly, one major star dies this year. Ratings outlook: This is the type of drama that does fine against “Idol” and despite some ratings loss last year, is a CBS staple.
“The Biggest Loser” NBC (9/11) We have a Riverdale, GA rep this year, a music teacher named Bryan Washington. Ratings outlook: This has been a consistent performer for NBC, neither a big draw nor a big loser, so to speak, and should stay in the 7 to 8 million viewership range.
“Bones” Fox (9/25) It’s season three. When will Bones and Booth finally get together? Ratings outlook: It’s a steady, middle-of-the-road performer and will likely stay that way.
“Beauty & the Geek” the CW (9/18) The 4th incarnation will feature for the first time, a hottie guy and a nerdy gal. Ratings outlook: Steady as they go.
“Cavemen” ABC (10/2) The Cro-Magnons live among us. Thanks, Geico! Ratings outlook: This show will definitely need life insurance because its future is bleak.
8:30 p.m.
“Carpoolers” ABC (10/2) Four middle-class guys including Jerry O’Connell carpool and their lives intertwine. Ratings outlook: This isn’t a car crash, but its ratings future is hardly in the fast lane.
9 P.M.
“House” Fox (9/25) With his main staff gone, House will now pare down would-be replacements “Survivor” style! Ratings outlook: In season four, they’ll be no need for a ratings doctor.
“Dancing With the Stars [results]” ABC (9/25) Ratings outlook: A 10!!!
“The Unit” CBS (9/25) Political powers are trying to rip this secret military unit apart in its third season. Ratings outlook: This show skews super-old so it’s going to be tough going.
“The Reaper” the CW (9/25) Best new show on TV. Ratings outlook: It’s a rough time slot but the buzz is good and should draw plenty younger viewers. If it stays above 3 million viewers, it won’t die.
9:30 p.m.
“The Singing Bee” NBC (9/25) - Expect some celebrity singers to join the party from this modest summer hit which made it to fall. Ratings outlook: It’s a cheap show to produce so expectations are low. With the competition, it won’t do as well as it did over the summer when it pulled in 8 to 9 million viewers.
10 p.m.
“Law & Order: SVU” NBC This is the only Law & Order on the fall schedule with the original bumped to midseason and Criminal Intent off to USA. Ratings outlook: It averaged 12 million last year, down from 14 million season seven, so the trend is down.
“Cane” CBS — A wealthy family . Jimmy Smits stars. Ratings outlook: This has been one of the few problem time slots for CBS. Last year, “Smith” and “3 lbs” bombed here. This is far better than either of those shows and faces off against two aging dramas but will the appeal be too narrow?
“Boston Legal” ABC (9/25) Several cast members were cut, though teh core of William Shatner, James Spader and Candice Bergen remain. John Larroquette joins the cast, too. Ratings outlook: No place but down at this stage of the game.
9/10: Monday TV shows
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m going to do a day-by-day analysis of the fall lineup of the five major networks every day this week.
We’ll start with Monday with new shows in bold face.
8 p.m.
“Dancing With the Stars” ABC (9/24) - It’s back for its fifth cycle, now starting on Monday instead of Tuesday. So far, the show become a reliable powerhouse for ABC that eats up plenty of hours. Among the new C listers on board: Jane Seymour, Wayne Newton, Jennie Garth, Marie Osmond and Scary Spice. Ratings outlook: The show has built up to become a consistent 20 million viewer winner and should stay in the high teens. Moving to Mondays probably won’t make too much of a difference. Who knows if this is the time fans start getting bored with the paso doble and Bruno Tonioli’s goofy commentary.
“Prison Break” Fox (9/17) Yes, Michael Scofield is back in jail but now, an out-of-control Panama jail. It’s always been a well-executved show so if you can buy the absurdities of it all for a third round, good luck. Ratings outlook: The show held its season two, averaging 8 to 9 million viewers. I don’t see much upside here, only down.
“How I Met Your Mother” CBS (9/24) This lighthearted sitcom took a big dip its second season, not a good sign. But CBS likes it and is hoping season three can “suit up” nicely. And Robin Sparkles better come back! Ratings outlook: Having “Dancing” around will probably hurt more than losing “Deal or No Deal” but my guess is 8 to 9 million a night is fair.
“Chuck” NBC (9/24) Chuck is just an ordinary schmoe working as a Geek Squad-type dude who happens to get a bunch of government secrets inserted in his head and now can play a hero. The pilot was goofy in a good way. Ratings outlook: With “Heroes” on at 9, “Chuck” shouldn’t do too badly though it’s facing heavy artillery. NBC will surely be thrilled if it can beat “How I Met” and “Prison Break” 18-49.
“Everybody Hates Chris” the CW (10/1). This critically acclaimed show got buried its sophomore year on Monday nights. At least Chris Rock finally shows up in its third-season debut. Ratings outlook: Poor. But this is the CW so that won’t matter too much.
8:30 p.m.
“The Big Bang Theory” 8:30 p.m. CBS (9/24) Two geniuses grapple with a hottie blonde who moves in next door. It’s a bit broad but the two leads Jim Parsons and Johnny Galecki have good comic timing. Ratings outlook: If it can even hold “How I Met” numbers, the geeks shall survive.
“Aliens in America” 8:30 p.m. the CW (10/1) More geeks! This time, it’s a geek teen whose parents think his cool quotient would go up in high school if they brought in an exchange student. The twist: he’s a Muslim Pakistani kid! The pilot has its share of laughs. Ratings outlook: Really poor but again, we’re talking the CW so 3 million viewers would keep the show from being deported.
9 p.m.
“Two and a Half Men” 9 p.m. CBS (9/24) This has been the biggest sitcom on TV and shows no signs of drooping. And for better or worse Janeane Garofalo will be playing a gal who dates Jon Cryer’s Alan. Ratings outlook: “Dancing” will eat a bit into its audience and in its fifth season, will unlikely see any growth.
“Heroes” 9 p.m. NBC (9/24) After a promising first season, there’s plenty of hype and expectations for season two. But like “Lost” and “Desperate,” “Heroes” will have to fight that evil nemesis High Expectations. Ratings outlook: If a show is going to grow, this is the time. It should open big but it’s going to have to keep feeding the beast to stay big.
“K-Ville” 9 p.m. Fox (9/17) This is a new series starring Anthony Anderson as a cop in post-Katrina New Orleans. The pilot is a bit grim and overwrought, but Anderson truly envelops the anger his character has built up. Ratings outlook: It’s better than last year’s “Vanished” but it might vanish just as quickly. If it can keep 80% or more of the “Prison Break” numbers by its fifth episode, it might have a shot to at least survive the year.
“Girlfriends” 9 p.m. the CW (10/1) As it enters season eight, this sturdy CW sitcom is the longest-running show on the network and longest running sitcom on TV. Ratings outlook: Last year, the Monday night lineup took a major dive. This had been considered part of the “African American” comedy block UPN used to own but with “Aliens in America,” the CW is attempting to broaden the scope a bit. It will probably end up with 2 to 3 million viewers a week like last year.
9:30 p.m.
“Rules of Engagement” CBS (9/24) This snoozer of a sitcom does complement “Two & a Half Men” well and did better than “The Old Adventures of New Christine” (which returns later in the year.) Hey, at least Heather Locklear is set to pop pin a couple of episodes, perhaps to canoodle with David Spade. Ratings outlook: If only ABC could offer up something decent, this show would take a nosedive. But that’s probably not going to happen.
“Samantha Who?” ABC (10/15) Christina Applegate wakes up with amnesia to find out her character is a beeyotch. Ratings outlook: We’ll be asking the same question as the title by next year because nobody will remember this show even existed. The “Dancing” lead in won’t help as it didn’t help “Help Me Help You” last year.
“The Game” the CW (10/1) This is CW’s only holdover from its inaugural year. Ratings outlook: It held the “Girlfriends” crowd but only a creative insurgence and some pixie dust could make this a true ratings hit.
10 p.m.
“CSI: Miami” CBS (10/1) Horatio has a son! Ratings outlook: The show slipped modestly in its fifth season, averaging about 17 million viewers, its lowest since season one. Competition looks weak enough that it might hold its own.
“The Bachelor” ABC (9/24) Believe it or not, we’re up to edition No. 11. The stud has no special qualities beyond being a stud, it appears, this time around - except he has a twin. Ratings outlook: It’s at 10, a slightly less competitive slot than 9, and should do just fine as counterprogramming to CSI.
“Journeyman” NBC (9/24) A news reporter travels time. Ratings outlook: Not even a time machine could save this loser.
9/10: 5 new shows to sample, 5 to avoid
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The five major broadcast networks will be shoveling out 28 new shows in the next two months, most in the next three weeks. The annual dog-and-pony show seems a bit arcane and given the amount of distractions the average person has, a major headache for everybody involved. It’s too much at the same time. And committing to shows can be like picking dates at a speed dating session: the track record is far less than 50%. In fact, only about one-third of new shows typically make it even to a second season.
But network execs figure if they throw enough out there, something will stick and hope they glom onto a hit on the level of “House” or “Grey’s Anatomy.” Are there any shows like that? There are characters with odd powers (time shifting in “Journeyman,” a crime-fighting vampire in “Moonlight), echoes of “Heroes,” plenty of ensemble rich people (“Gossip Girl” for teens, “Big Shots” for adults) and a few familiar faces (Kelsey Grammer, Jimmy Smits, Dylan McDermott). My predictive abilities are probably no better than most but here are five shows I’d recommend you as viewers should at least sample and five that may be worth watching only for the sheer pain they may cause.
It’s fair to say first impressions usually are correct, but many shows do vastly improve after their first episode (see “Brothers & Sisters” or “The Office”) while others fall apart rather quickly (such as one of my favorite pilots last year ABC’s “The Nine”).
Most of my thoughts are based on first episodes alone, many of which were not final versions. Networks have not sent out a handful of new shows to critics, including CBS’s controversial “Kid Nation,” CBS’s vampire drama “Moonlight” (in which almost the entire show was re-cast after the pilot), Fox’s “The Next Great American Band” (it debuts in late October) and two CW shows “CW Now” and “Online Nation.”’
In the upcoming “Reaper,” Sam (Bret Harrison) and his best friend Bert (Tyler Labine) work at a Home Depot-type store called the Work Bench. CREDIT: The CW
1- The CW’s “Reaper” (premieres 9/25 Tuesday, 9 p.m.)Â The premise: Sam, a slacker who found college “made me sleepy,” discovers on his 21st birthday that his parents had sold his soul to the devil, played with charming slyness by Ray Wise.
Why it works: The first episode script is sharply written with zippy dialogue, an incredibly funny sidekick in Tyler Labine and a fun premise that could work for years.
2- NBC”s “Bionic Woman” (premieres 9/26 Wednesday, 9 p.m.) The premise: In this much darker remake of the 1970s show, Jaime Sommers (played by Brit Michelle Ryan) is in a major accident and given replacement parts. She is then forced to work for the government and fight crime.
Why it works: Like “Battlestar Galactica,” the producers managed to drop all the campy aspects of their ’70s counterparts and create a promising crime thriller with enough intrigue for me to see more.
3- ABC’s “Pushing Daisies” (premieres 10/3 Wednesday 8 p.m.) The premise: Ned can revive the dead, but if he touches them again, they die for good. He uses his powers to get info about murders but then he runs into his childhood love who he revived as a child - yet he can’t touch.
Why it’s engaging: This is easily the oddest duck in the bunch. Bryan Fuller (“Heroes”) and Barry Sonnenfeld (“Men in Black” overwhelm the screen with whimsical touches: music straight out of a Tim Burton film, a fairy-tale-like narratve, an ultra-bright palette of colors and a romantic core that may make you gag or reel you in. It reminded me of the film “Big Fish.”
4- NBC’s “Chuck” (premieres 9/24 Monday 8 p.m.) The premise: Poor socially inept Chuck (Zach Levi) works at a Best Buy-style store but has his life turned upside down when he accidentally downloads a raft of government secrets and is forced to become a secret agent.
Why it’s worth catching: The premise is actually somewhat similar to the superior “Reaper.” In fact, the premise is so preposterous, it’s impressive the pilot episode works at all. But if you can past that hurdle, it’s just entertaining, with fun characters and a definite lightness in tone that makes it palatable.
5- CBS’s “Kid Nation” (premieres Wed. 9/25, 8 p.m.) The premise: 40 kids, ages 8 to 15, are set in a “ghost town” in New Mexico to create a society without parents. “
Why it’s worth catching: CBS didn’t send me an advance copy, but I’ve read plenty and if anything, it’s intriguing to see how these kids (including seven Georgians) interact. Given the controversy of child labor law problems, kids getting hurt (though none serious) and children being coached or re-shooting scnees, this is one of those shows that might be worth sampling just to see if it feels completely contrived or is actually engaging.
Five with problems
1- CBS’s “Viva Laughlin” (premieres Thursday Oct. 18 at 10, regular time slot Friday Oct. 21 at 8) The premise: Ripley Holden (Lloyd Owen) is trying to build a casino in Laughlin, Nev. but is facing problems after an investor kicks the bucket and casino kingpin Nicky Fontana (executive producer and guest star Hugh Jackman) makes his life difficult.
Why it has problems: In the pilot, the singing and dancing is painfully amateurish and incongruous to the dramatic portions. The plotting, the pacing, the dialogue, everything about it feels wrong. Don’t bet on this one to last.
2- ABC’s “Cavemen” (premieres Tues. 10/2 at 9) The premise: Three average cavemen live amongst us — or at least in modern-day San Diego, as opposed to Atlanta (where it was briefly supposed to be placed.) This was inspired by the amusing GEICO commercials where they seem to be upper middle class metrosexual types with “issues” over discrimination.
Why it has issues: ABC went back to the drawing board after an abysmally unfunny pilot. I have yet to see the new version, which will hopefully be better, but the entire premise seems doomed to fail.
3- NBC’s “Journeyman” (premieres Mon. 9/24 at 10) The premise: Dan Vasser (Scottish actor Kevin McKidd from “Rome”) plays a newspaper reporter who finds himself jumping into the past to key moments where he could impact the future.
Why it has issues: Sure, Americans will buy ridiculous plotlines if they are executed well but this show’s first episode lacks a distinctive point of view or even a scintilla of logic or entertainment value to justify its existence.
4- Fox’s “Back to You” (premieres Wed. 9/19 at 8) The premise: Chuck Darling (Kelsey Grammer) gets canned by an L.A. TV station after a tirade ends up on YouTube and has to crawl back to a Pittsburgh TV station, where he reunites with his former co-anchor Kelly Carr (Patricia Heaton). The pair, as you can imagine, don’t get along..
Why it has issues: I actually got to see the first two episodes in final form and unfortunately, very talented actors given very mediocre material equals a show starkly lacking in humor and a stale stench not leavened by references to YouTube. The second episode, which revolves around Kelsey’s character killing off goldfish, seems to have been written by sitcom hacks fired by “WKRP in Cincinnati” in 1977. Avoid.
5- ABC’s “Dirty Sexy Money” (premieres 9/26 10 p.m.) The premise: Nick George (Peter Krause from “Six Feet Under”) tries to avoid the Darling family but gets sucked into the family shenanigans after the company lawyer - his dad - dies. In fact, he gets bribed into taking over for his dad.
Why it has issues: When characters are this one dimensional (Paris Hilton, anyone?), a show needs great writing to compensate and the pilot fails to drum up a reason to care about anybody on the show. If only Marc Cherry (executive producer of “Desperate Housewives”) could come in and help the show live up to its provocative title.
For the next week or so, I’m going to pump out guides on each of the six days in which broadcast networks are debuting shows. I’ll handicap show survival chances and provide some teasers on existing shows, too. Why six and not seven? Saturday, as most people know, is pretty much a death zone of repeats and “Cops” and not worth reviewing.
9/10: Britney gave us less
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABOVE: Britney is falling.. and she’s not getting up CREDIT: AP
Britney’s so-called comeback effort on the MTV VMAs tonight showed us rudimentary dancing that was seriously embarrassing. She seemed semi-comatose while singing (or lip-synching) “Gimme More.” I kept thinking, “Gimme Something, Anything!” Even the folks in the audience, including 50 Cent and Chris Brown, couldn’t pretend to be impressed. Boredom: 1 Britney: 0. Watch it here, at least until MTV finds out and takes it down..
I’m sure Justin was happy to be in some separate suite rockin’ his own party at the Palms Casino.
Sarah Silverman came out and did a few not-so-funny jokes about Britney. Example:
“Just a few years ago, she was this sweet innocent little girl in slutty clothes writhing around with a python.” Pause. “It’s not nice calling Madonna a python.”
Her Cee-lo joke was amusing. She said she was talking to him backstage and asked him if he encountered racism growing up in Atlanta. He said, “I’m Kanye West.”
Later, Chris Brown made up for Britney’s sleepy appearance with a show-stopping, finely choreographed performance with a bonus cameo by Rihanna and an homage to Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean.”
9/8: Q&A with NPR CEO
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This is a story running in Sunday’s Arts & Books section:
While commercial radio has been trimming back news coverage for years, National Public Radio has eagerly filled the gap. And audiences have responded. NPR stations have doubled their listening over the past decade, with 26 million people nationwide catching NPR programming in any given week.
Ken Stern, chief executive officer of Washington D.C.-based NPR, recently visited the modest headquarters of Atlanta’s NPR-affiliated WABE-FM station, off Cheshire Bridge Road. We talked with him there:
Q: Why do you think NPR has been able to grow so much the past decade?
A: We’re growing our news staff, unlike commercial media. While newspapers are shutting down foreign bureaus, we now have 18. This creates a better environment for us. And the local affiliates like WABE are beefing up their own local news operations.
Q: What have you done with the Joan Kroc donation [the $200 million bequest from 2003]?
A: Well, we aren’t allowed to spend the $200 million, just the interest, which is about $10 million a year. The one thing we have done is invest in news. We said we’d hire 50 people. We’ve hired 75. We’ve expanded our presence in Kabul and Baghdad and added a third bureau in Africa. We also did some domestic expansion and are in 17 cities.
Q: Do you have any direct presence in Atlanta?
A: No. There’s no NPR reporter in Atlanta. But one of our strengths is our affiliates. They’re an extension of the network. WABE has at least two very good reporters. They’re looking for a third. [I was later told that Ken was wrong. There is an Atlanta-based Southeast NPR correspondent Kathy Lohr.]
Q: Do you think HD radio [which allows stations such as WABE to offer all-classical and all-news/talk formats] will have any impact anytime soon?
A: It may take five years. It’s going to be slow. There are 800 million radios and people don’t retire them very quickly.
Q: I presume they have to get HD into cars like satellite radio, right?
A: They’re starting to go into some top-end vehicles. But the auto companies had a stake in satellite radio so they had an interest in getting them installed. That’s not the case with HD. Demand has to come from the listeners. That will take time.
Q: How about Internet radio? Won’t that hit cars soon, too?
A: Internet radio is going to be big. Who doesn’t want infinite choices? We’ve talked about this with WABE. Any radio station whose principal service is redistribution of other programming has a challenge. A station has to add value, which WABE does. They join national and local content. And that’s why WABE and public radio are well positioned for the future.
Q: What are your thoughts on podcasting?
A: NPR is one of the world’s largest podcasters. We see listening habits of younger listeners are changing dramatically. Public radio needs to be there. Podcasting challenges our primary sources of distribution. We already are the technology backbone for WABE-specific podcasts. And we are launching a new music supersite in October which combines content from both NPR and our member stations. At least 500 stations do a lot in the music space but you can’t find it. We’ll bring it all together.
Q: Are you creating shows geared specifically to a younger audience?
A: We started something called “Rough Cuts” at npr.org/roughcuts. It’s pilot shows, and we’re asking people for feedback. That’s how we started “Tell Me More” with Michelle Martin [a show heard locally on WCLK-FM]. The underlying premise is to bring more diversity of voices out there.
Q: I’ve heard after huge growth earlier this decade, listening has plateaued.
A: This is a time everyone is losing audiences. We’re holding our own in the very least. We expect next year to be a good year with the election. We’re also planning a big series on China.
9/8: Vern Yip’s “Deserving Design”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I wrote a short story for Saturday’s print edition about Atlanta interior designer Vern Yip’s new HGTV show “Deserving Design.”
By RODNEY HO / rho@ajc.com
When Atlanta interior decorator and then-“Trading Spaces” star Vern Yip made his first appearance on “Oprah” in 2003, he recalled that the queen of TV talk bestowed gifts on a waitress who made huge sacrifices to put six of her kids through college.
“That’s when the idea clicked in my head,” he said. “I wanted to marry my gift for design and my desire to help people.”
It took four years, but Yip’s wish has finally come true with his first solo show on HGTV, called “Deserving Design.” It debuts at 10 p.m. Sunday after the network’s hit reality competition “Design Star” (in which Yip is a judge), then goes to 9 p.m. Wednesdays.
“Deserving Design” is a bit like an economy version of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” the hugely successful ABC show starring former Grant Park resident and “Trading Spaces” alum Ty Pennington.
Each week, Yip goes to a home in need of a makeover and over four days transforms two rooms. In each case, the recipient has done something inspiring that in Yip’s mind “deserves” the gift.
HGTV liked the concept so much that it gave the go-ahead last year for 27 episodes, sight unseen. He shot five episodes in Los Angeles before moving to Atlanta in the spring for the next 22. So far, he’s been all over metro Atlanta, from Peachtree City to Alpharetta, from Buckhead to Marietta.
“I’m super-excited to showcase my home city for the past 15 years and the people who do great things here for themselves and other people,” said Yip, who has a master’s degree in architecture and an MBA from Georgia Tech.
Yip’s been seen around town with cameras in tow shopping at big chains such as Crate & Barrel and Restoration Hardware, specialty stores such as Myers Carpet in Atlanta and Jackson Fine Art Gallery in Buckhead and cultural spots such as the High Museum and the Atlanta Botanical Garden.
He’s tackled bathrooms, kitchens, a nursery, a pool pavilion and a wedding reception. Among the more memorable families, Yip said, was a couple in Dacula who run Camp Horizon for physically and emotionally abused children. He also helped out a Duluth family that just had quadruplets. He’s currently working with a Norcross family that hosts an annual haunted house, with donations given to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
When seven months of continuous shooting ends in October, Yip said he plans to relax, spending two weeks in southern Asia, including Cambodia and Thailand. “I love traveling there,” Yip said. “It’s inspiring from a design standpoint. I love the culture. I love the food. Thai food is my favorite.”
But the break will be brief: HGTV will be coming to Yip’s Atlanta home to shoot a Christmas special in December that won’t air until 2008. “They do like to plan ahead,” he said.
TWO GOOD
Vern Yip’s take on the final two “Design Star” contestants:
—Â Todd Davis, 34, from San Francisco: “I love that Todd has such a clear, definitive voice as a designer. It’s an original voice. His work is almost like an art installation. He’s a risk taker.”
—Â On Kim Myles, 33, from New York City: “I think Kim has such a sophisticated sense of style. She’s very chic. And she’s a great personality on camera. She exudes warmth. She’s very relatable.”
9/7: Night’s out for 99X’s Dekker, mild Dave shift
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Above: A shot of Dekker from the 99X MySpace page
After about two years doing the 7 to midnight shift, 99X’s night-time jock Dekker has been moved to a new job at the station focused on the Web site, replaced by a pair heard on the weekends, Matt C. & Lewis.
Dekker will be doing podcasts, videos and blogs and provide “over-the-air content throughout the day” on the station, according to a press release.
It’s hard to interpret this one because the station’s ratings have been fairly weak in recent times across all day parts. The night-time numbers among 18 to 34 year olds has been especially inconsistent, probably reflective of the fact Arbitron has a hard time getting people in that demo to fill out diaries, making the accuracy of the numbers even more suspect than usual. Dekker over the past year has ranked 16th, 9th, 5th and in the most recent spring book, 18th among 18 to 34 year olds. The weekly number of listeners has been consistently around 45,000 or so listeners the past year, but the amount of time spent listening has jumped around.
Assuming Dekker didn’t get a pay cut and Matt C & Lewis got raises, this at least indicates an increase in spending on the part of 99X’s owners Cumulus.
Matt C was the assistant promotions director and Lewis was a full-time street team coordinator and both had been at 99X for years. They had a Saturday night show for awhile. Dekker’s final shift is tonight.
Meanwhile, there are finally small signs of change over at Dave FM under the new program director Mike Wheeler. From 2004 until recently, there has been an unspoken ban on three acts that Dave’s predecessor Z93 played to death: the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac and Elton John. But in recent days, songs by Elton John (“Harmony,” “Levon”), the Eagles (“Hotel California”) and Fleetwood Mac (“Tusk”) have popped into rotation. There also seem to be more Beatles cuts (“Norwegian Wood,” “Come Together”) and the return of more current tunes into the regular daytime rotation such as Bruce Springsteen’s new one “Radio Nowhere.” Otherwise, you’ll still hear plenty of John Mayer, the Police, Tom Petty, U2 and INXS.
9/6: Britney on VMAs, Sherri on The View
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
MTV just sent out a press release confirming that Britney “Desperate For a Comeback” Spears will open the MTV Video Music Awards Sunday with “Gimme More.” Star and Q100 are playing the single, which is very techno. You can hear it here.. The VMAs, also in need of a comeback, have been in a four-year ratings slump.
According to the New York Times, the awards show won’t be done in a single location with a big stage. “MTV is taking a shotgun approach, scattering cameras around the hotel, with artists performing and receiving awards in decorated suites and the hotel’s own concert hall,” the newspaper wrote.
And “The View” has tapped frequent guest host Sherri Shepherd as the fifth regular, following newcomer Whoopi Goldberg, according to USA Today.. Goldberg’s debut Tuesday brought in 3.4 million viewers compared to 4.4 million for Rosie’s first show a year ago.
9/6: Pavarotti tribute on WABE tonight
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tonight at 8, WABE-FM will air a two-hour special in tribute to the legendary tenor, Luciano Pavarotti, who died Wednesday from pancreatic cancer at the age of 71. A look at the life of this operatic superstar, celebrating his amazing voice and charismatic personality through classic recordings and Pavarotti’s own storytelling will air on “Performance Today.”
I’ll update this as I hear about any TV specials on the way.
9/6: Kevin Steele, Tim Rhodes updates
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tim Rhodes, yet another expat from 96rock who did both mid-day and afternoon shifts there for years, was fired early last year before the station became Project 9-6-1. He tried out for Dave FM but otherwise, I hadn’t heard much from him until this week: Rhodes is now doing an afternoon show at Bulldog 103.7, a rock station in the Athens area. He started this past Saturday and drives in from Lawrenceville, according to program director Kevin Steele, who also does afternoons at Magic 102.1, a soft rock station.
Steele did mid-days for Star 94 for a decade until 2003. He then worked at J93.3 and continues to work occasional fill-in weekend shifts for Kicks 101.5.
In a phone interview today, Steele said the stations, owned by Southern Broadcasting, can’t pay the salaries of Atlanta radio cohorts, but “it’s livable and it’s fun. I’ve had more fun here than in the last 15-20 years.”
Tim Rhodes, in a posting on radio-info.com, echoes Steele’s sentiments: “I’m having a blast. I was never in it for the money anyway. We have a veteran programmer in Kevin Steele (10 years Star94), a deep playlist, and some talented people on-air.”
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9/6: Drew Carey powerful, Star Jones dimming
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Weekly TV ratings roundup
This is one of the slowest weeks for TV, with many summer shows wrapping up or preempted, broadcast network prepping for the new fall season and Labor Day weekend stealing away eyeballs.
WINNERS
HBO’s “Big Love” — Sure, this show is no “Sopranos” but HBO should be happy to see the finale August 26 finish at a season high 2.9 million. The show took a bit of a dive this season when it moved to Mondays but since “John From Cincinnati” ended, HBO gave it the prime Sunday night slot. And the show has steadily improved. Sure, Roman’s recovery has been nothing short of miraculous but it’s good to see Margene grow and Barb start “coming out” to the neighbors with the polygamy.
CBS’s “Power of Ten” — This fun game show hosted by the hilarious Drew Carey looks like a keeper, retaining a steady 8 to 9 million viewers last week in two airings. If any of CBS’s shows stumble (“Viva Laughlin” anybody?), this will be a quick and easy fill in this fall.
MTV’s “Real World” — I deemed this a loser after a weak opening but the show, which features North Georgia boy Cohutta, has seen an increase in audience four weeks in a row, bringing in 2.6 million in August 29, up from 1.6 million August 8. “The Hills” also hit a season high with 4.2 million August 27 in its third outing.
LOSERS
HBO’s “Entourage” — This long, less than inspiring fourth season finally came to an end, but a lot of fans didn’t stick around. The show opened the season at about 4 million viewers and ended at about 2 million. The number was depressed by the fact it landed on a Sunday during Labor Day weekend when folks are out with family and friends and less likely to be in front of the TV.
Court TV’s “Star Jones” — Jones on her new solo talk show opened August 20 at a promising 452,000 viewers, triple what its predecessor had a week earlier. But the show steadily lost audience that first week, finishing with 294,000. Then things got worse last week when the show averaged just 180,000. Naturally, Friday was the day before Labor Day so that isn’t a fair measurement per se but the top audience she could draw was 251,000 August 29.
I also got for the first time the top broadcast shows in Atlanta. Here’s the top 10 from the week of August 26:
“House” (repeat) Fox August 28 ratings point: 8.7 (each ratings point represents about 22,000 Atlanta households)
“Tyler Perry’s House of Payne” TBS August 29 9:30 edition 7.7
“Tyler Perry’s House of Payne” TBS August 29 9 p.m. edition 7.0
“Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” Fox August 30 6.8
“Don’t Forget the Lyrics” Fox August 30 5.9
Pre-season football ABC Sept. 1 5.8
“Without a Trace” CBS August 30 5.5
Falcons pre-season game CBS August 27 5.4
“20/20” ABC August 31 4.9
“Monica Pearson’s Close Ups” August 28 4.6
SOURCE: Nielsen Media Research
9/5: Campbell leaving WSB, Atlanta & Co. tryouts
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Long-time newswoman Lisa Campbell of WSB-AM just called me to say she is leaving the station in February after more than 15 years. We calculated over that time, she has read more than 37,000 newscasts, chronicling hundreds of fires, car wrecks and murders all over metro Atlanta.
“I couldn’t do this blood and gore and grime anymore,” she said. She gave six months notice and said there is “no bad blood” (no pun intended) between her and the radio station. “WSB has been great to me,” she said. She plans to go into consulting.
Also, V-103’s Ryan Cameron’s last day at WXIA-TV’s infomercial/entertainment hybrid “Atlanta & Company” was Friday. Dave FM morning personality Holly Firfer is staying on as the co-host for the show, which airs at 11 a.m. weekdays and repeats in the middle of the night at 3:35 a.m.. For the next two weeks or so, WXIA’s VP of programming and marketing Laura Hale said the show will ape “The View” and throw in different guest hosts each day for at least two weeks. She won’t tell me who the hosts will be, wants it to be a “surprise.” It’s fair to say former 99Xer Jimmy Baron will pop in next Monday. Today, it’s Cameron’s morning co-hort at V-103 Frank Ski. Star 94’s Tom Sullivan, a regular fill-in, is still in the running, Hale said.
In other words, expect a lot of radio personalities vying for the job, of course. The show, which debuted two years ago, gets rather abysmal ratings, finishing fourth behind “The Price is Right” on WGCL, WAGA’s judge shows and WSB-TV’s “The View.” But WXIA-TV generates extra income through pay-for-play advertisers who the hosts have to interview for a stipulated amount of time, no matter how boring the subject matter.
The show also shills NBC programs to the hilt, doing satellite interviews with participants on shows ranging from “The Biggest Loser” to “My Name is Earl.” Today, Holly interviewed Tim Gunn for his new show “Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style,” which airs on Bravo, which is owned by NBC Universal. This was followed by a promo with Frank Ski interviewing the host of a new WATL-TV show “Temptation.” WATL-TV is owned by Gannett, which owns WXIA-TV. Finally, there was a feature about “Heroes,” which airs, of course, on NBC. In other words, it’s unlikely you’ll see cast members from “Lost” or “CSI” on “Atlanta & Company.”
The show does offer entertainment news (Shaq divorces, Halle Berry is pregnant!), air features for charity organizations such as the Humane Society and bring in non pay-for-play guests on occasion, too, the way Fox’s pure news/entertainment show “Good Day Atlanta” does all the time. Occasionally, there is live music performances or cooking segments.
9/5: Radio song of the summer
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Hot in Herre.” “Crazy in Love.” “SexyBack.” Those were some big summer radio songs this past decade, the ones you blasted with the top down and the stereo on 11. And if you go back further, you could cite many more, such as “School’s Out,” “Under the Boardwalk” and “Summertime.”
This past summer, my pick would be Sean Kingston’s “Beautiful Girls” because of its reggae feel and its ubiquity across multiple radio stations, from V-103 to Star 94. Using that classic “Stand By Me” sample, Sean’s song possesses a warm lilt to it, an easygoing vibe that just evokes cold iced tea and sand between your toes. It also includes that memorable use of the word “suicidal,” which MTV and VH1 bleeps out (but none of the local radio statons do.).
Sean Ross, a radio business analyst at Edison Media Research, parses out his thoughts here.
9/4: TBS’s Engvall gets 2nd season
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Not surprisingly, TBS has given its third sitcom “The Bill Engvall Show” a second season of 10 episodes.
The show finale is tonight. So far, it’s averaged 2.7 million viewers through seven episodes and 1.5 million 18 to 49 year olds. While that would be instant cancellation on ABC, it’s a very good number for TBS and just below “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne.” Creatively, the show doesn’t break any new ground but has its fair share of laughs.
TBS already has a 100-episode commitment to “House of Payne.” The network question mark is now “My Boys,” which has seen its ratings sink its first four episodes in its second season.
Engvall will also host a TBS special for November 17 in Vegas called “Blue Collar Comedy: The Next Generation.”
9/4: ABC’s Cavemen not in Atlanta after all
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABOVE: This is the original “Cavemen” promo shot, which definitely feels more San Diego (or Virginia Beach) than Atlanta.
The ABC sitcom “Cavemen” based on the GEICO commercials hasn’t even aired yet and it’s moved locations three times. Earlier this year, the show was originally set in modern-day Atlanta but when the pilot episode was shot, they moved it to Virginia Beach. (The show is actually produced in Los Angeles so the location is purely fictional.)
ABC muckety-mucks decided that pilot wasn’t funny enough and re-shot it from scratch, even subbing out a caveman. In early July, a publicist told me that the show was moving back to Atlanta. But Jeff Fortis, an ABC spokesman, Tuesday said for logistical reasons, “Cavemen” is now set in San Diego.
“They wanted to do it in the South, but it’s kind of hard to replicate the South” in Los Angeles, Fortis said. “There are only so many magnolia trees they could find.” In all seriousness, “the city isn’t a character on the show, like ‘NYPD Blue,’ just a background.” The producers didn’t want to base it in Los Angeles, but they realized it was easier to make L.A. look like San Diego than Atlanta.
The show is set to debut October 2.
I’ll be getting the new pilot next week and I’ll definitely tell you if it’s even worth gawking at for a few minutes.
9/4: Southside Steve’s job shift (UPDATED)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After eight months as the in-studio sidekick to Rhubarb Jones and Dallas McCade, former 96rock regular “Southside” Steve Rickman has seen his job duties changed. He’s now going to do taped bits (such as interviewing drunk folks and pretending to fall asleep at a drive-through window) and live remotes in the mornings.
Rickman, who obviously wants to play the good soldier, would only say the following:
“I’m known for my street bits and my street presence. And the Eagle has decided to utilize those abilities and get my face out to the audience.”
I got Rickman’s comments late Friday. His boss Victor Sansone got back to me Wednesday. “He’s one of the best street guys in the city,” Sansone said. “The clients love him. We like him. We’re trying to find a place for him that fits. Now that everyone knows who he is [among the Eagle listeners,], we can put him on the street and do what we intended to do.” He also notes that Rickman helps out with the Southern rock show on Friday nights and is their best all-around “designated hitter.”
The ratings showed a noticeable rise in the winter but fell back a bit in the spring. So it’s too soon to say if his presence will be a net positive for the Eagle or not, though he definitely brings an edgier flair than what the morning Eagle audience may have been used to, given he’s a single guy who still likes to party. And another debatable question is whether the chemistry has worked between him and Rhubarb, who is the longest-running morning host in Atlanta —Â more than 20 years.
9/1: CHIPS star at Dragon*Con
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I love Dragon*Con for the pure visual spectacle that it is, even though my sci-fi knowledge is woefully deficient. And I’m actually out of town this weekend visiting inlaws. But fortunately, the festival starts Friday at 1 p.m. so I checked the schedule and saw Erik Estrada was on the schedule. Score! I figured the gabby CHIPS man would have a lot to say - and he did. Sure, the crowd wasn’t a full room of 500 like last year’s George Takei or even the 100-plus who ogled Traci Lords, but he still drew a respectable 75 fans.
Above is a shot I took of Estrada at the “Walk of Fame” autograph room with the likes of David Faustino (“Married…With Children”) and Richard Hatch (the original “Battlestar Galactica”) and Elisabeth Rohm (“Law & Order”) came by to make a few bucks signng autographs and posing for pictures. As I noted in an earlier blog, the star power at this particular con is not terribly high; it mostly consists of folks who are not working on TV. Most broadcast shows are deep into their production schedule and flying to Atlanta for three days is out of the question. Thus, no major stars from shows like “Lost,” “Heroes,” or, say, even new shows such as “Bionic Woman” were in sight.
Nonetheless, if I had had more time, I would have loved to have spoken to the likes of Erin Gray (“Buck Rogers”), who walked by me at the Walk of Fame and looked stunning and William Katt, a now fuly-gray haired “Greatest American Hero.” But alas, I had no time.
So I focused on Estrada (“The Surreal Life,” “Armed & Famous”) for this Peach Buzz item:
This weekend’s Dragon*Con is still mostly about costumed Jack Sparrows, Darth Vaders and garden variety wenches, but the sci-fi/fantasy orgy throws in a few random pop-culture icons — including former “CHiPs” actor Erik Estrada.
Though Estrada’s sci-fi cred is zero, his cheese cred is off the charts.
And during a Q&A session Friday with Estrada at the Hyatt Regency, Ponch had no problems mocking himself and his penchant for reality shows.
“I don’t mind laughing at myself,” he said. “But I don’t like comedians who are vicious and don’t know me.”
An example: George Lopez. Lopez asked him to be on his sitcom and Estrada said he had a conflict. But Lopez bad-mouthed him on talk shows. “It didn’t hurt my feelings,” Estrada said. “It [expletive] me off!”
When Buzz asked him about his “Surreal Life” castmate, the late Tammy Faye Bakker, Estrada said: “We were like brother and sister. I sent her an invite last year when I had my Hollywood Walk of Fame star ceremony, but she couldn’t make it. She called me crying. But she was dealing with her cancer. She really walks with Jesus. I made sure nobody in that [‘Surreal Life’] house was ever rude to her. I’d get in their face.”
After the session, he was escorted quickly to the “Walk of Fame” autograph room ($25 for an 8x10, $15 for a photo with him), where he joined the likes of James Marsters (Spike on “Buffy”) and William Katt (“The Greatest American Hero.”)
“Brad Pitt coming through!” he joked, gladhanding admirers on the way. “Tony Orlando coming through!
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