TV.com

TV.com is set to stream episodes of ‘Home and Away’ and ‘Neighbours’ for free to viewers in the UK.

The entertainment site, which is owned by CBS Interactive — a subsidiary of US broadcaster CBS, have partnered with the soaps’ UK broadcaster Five.

The move will give British audiences access to shows from Five’s catch-up TV service, Demand Five, which houses around 250 hours of content, including the two Australian soaps.

Five’s head of digital media, Jonathan Lewis, said, “Our partnership with TV.com is a further example of Five’s strategy to expand and grow the reach of its content beyond the smallscreen to premium secure digital platforms.”

It’s the first European partnership for TV.com, who are set to compete with the Fox, NBC and ABC backed Hulu.

Just last week, Hulu’s director of international business development Simon Gallagher announced the company’s plans to expand internationally, with both Australia and the UK in their sights.

TV.com which also operates in Australia, are believed to be considering similar distribution arrangements locally. The site could provide a single online destination for viewers to access programs from all free-to-air broadcasters.

Source: Variety, CBS Interactive

Poppy Montgomery

Australia’s Poppy Montgomery has landed a role in the upcoming ABC pilot ‘True Blue’.

The drama revolves around six former best friends who rose through the ranks at the San Francisco Police Department. As the group reunite to solve the murder of one of their own, past rivalries and old flames are reignited.

Montgomery will play the hard-working Katherine Miller, the department’s only female police captain, who struggles to balance her demanding career and complicated personal life following a divorce.

Before landing her seven-year gig on CBS’ ‘Without a Trace’, Montgomery rose to fame following her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in the made-for-television movie ‘Blonde’.

Source: TV Guide

Media Release

UNDERCOVER BOSS IS COMING TO TEN

Highest rating reality show premiere to call TEN home

10 February 2010 Network Ten is pleased to confirm that it has secured the tape and format rights to the new CBS reality series Undercover Boss.

Undercover Boss, which launched to 38.6 million viewers in the US, making it the highest rating* premiere of a reality show on record, follows high-level chief executives as they slip anonymously into the rank and file of their companies.

Each week a different executive will leave the comfort of their corner office for an undercover mission to examine the inner workings of their company.

While working alongside their employees, they will see the effects their decisions have on others, where the problems lie within their organisation and get an up-close look at both the good and the bad while discovering the unsung heroes who make their company run.

US companies whose chief executives will make the undercover journey include such corporate giants as Waste Management, 7-Eleven and Hooters.

David Mott, chief programming officer said: “We are thrilled to own such a great program. It is, without a doubt, an hour of feel-good television for workers from all walks of life.

“The concept of Undercover Boss is simple and brilliant, and it’s gratifying to see these CEOs learn how tough everyday work and life can be,” Mr Mott said.

Undercover Boss is a perfect addition to TEN’s program schedule and will air later in the year.

Source: Network Ten

Laura Prepon, Bret Harrison and Michael Kelly

Laura Prepon (‘October Road’, ‘That ’70s Show’) is set to star opposite Danny Wallace (‘The IT Crowd’) in ABC’s ‘Awkward Situations’ pilot.

The comedy centres on Wallace, who stars as himself following his move to the States, only to discover that his everyday behaviour clashes with American values. Pepron will play his wife Meg, who works in a smoothie shop with a former fling, played by Matt Letscher.

Meanwhile, ‘Reaper’ star Bret Harrison has landed the lead in an untitled CBS pilot from Adam Goldberg (‘Aliens in America’, ‘Fanboys’).

The single-camera comedy, which will be directed by Seth Gordon, revolves around twentysomething geniuses (one played by Harrison) who crack computer security systems

Finally, ‘The Sopranos’ alum Michael Kelly has joined CBS’ upcoming ‘Criminal Minds’ spin-off.

Kelly will play a member of an outside FBI profiling team, lead by Cooper (Forest Whitaker).

The backdoor pilot will air later this season as an episode of ‘Criminal Minds’.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Alex O'Loughlin

According to Entertainment Weekly, Australia’s Alex O’Loughlin is the front runner to star in CBS’ revamped ‘Hawaii 5-O’ pilot.

The network have been looking to find a new project for O’Loughlin, after ‘Three Rivers’ was cancelled due to low ratings late last year.

“We love him,” said CBS president Nina Tassler during a press tour last week. “[We] want him to stay around a long time.”

‘Hawaii 5-O’ will mark O’Loughlin’s third drama project with the network, which began with the short lived vampire series ‘Moonlight’ in 2007.

‘Fringe’ co-creators Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci will write and produce the upcoming pilot, which will shoot on location in Oahu in the coming months.

The original series of ‘Hawaii 5-O’ ran for 12 seasons on CBS from the late 60’s. It starred Jack Lord as Steve McGarrett, a Hawaii State Police detective who answered only to the governor.

Source: Entertainment Weekly

'The Good Wife's' Julianna Margulies and 'NCIS: LA's' Chris O'Donnell

Following ABC’s renewal of ‘Cougar Town,’ ‘The Middle’ and ‘Modern Family,’ CBS has followed suit renewing freshman dramas ‘NCIS: LA’ and ‘The Good Wife.’

The prospects of a second season of ‘NCIS: LA’ was never in doubt but ‘The Good Wife’ was one of CBS’s bubble shows, so this erases any doubts about the show’s future.

Last year, Les Moonves CEO of CBS announced they only have enough room for three or four pilots a year. So does this put a cloud over ‘Gary Unmarried,’ ‘Old Christine,’ ‘Medium’ and ‘Numb3rs’?

CBS is in a position most networks would love to have, they have so many successful shows that by the end of the season, shows that would be deemed a success on other networks get canned by CBS.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

According to The Wall Street Journal, CBS Corporation and The Walt Disney Company are seriously considering a proposal from Apple to kill off cable TV with a subscription based TV show service through iTunes.

The report explains that under Apple’s proposed subscription model, users would have “access to some TV shows from a selection of major networks” and basic cable channels for a flat monthly fee of around $US30.

CBS Corp. could offer programs from both CBS and The CW, including ‘NCIS’, ‘The Good Wife’ and ‘90210′; while The Walt Disney Co. could offer programs from ABC, ABC Family and Disney Channel, including ‘Lost’, ‘Desperate Housewives’, ‘Greek’ and ‘Hannah Montana’.

As to how this could kill off pay TV, the WSJ notes that the networks could actually make more money per subscriber via iTunes than they do from cable TV providers, with broadcast networks receiving up to $US2-$US4 per subscriber, and basic-cable networks receiving $US1-$US2 per subscriber.

While CBS and Disney have plenty to gain from an iTunes subscription service, the two companies are also quite nervous about giving Apple more control and market-share. Apple already have a stranglehold over TV episode pricing on iTunes, with all episodes priced at a fixed $US1.99 — which lead to a brief fallout with NBC in 2007.

Even if Apple can win over CBS and Disney, the California-based company will have a tough time convincing other networks to join the bandwagon, with NBC Universal and Warner Bros. Television holding significant cable TV interests — with Comcast’s recent acquisition of NBC and Warner’s own TimeWarner Cable.

How this could affect the Australian market remains to be seen. Although it’s worth noting that all major US networks and content providers (sans CBS) currently distribute shows via the Australian iTunes Store.

Provided the local networks have no objections (though that could be a whole other can of worms), would you be interested in seeing a subscription based iTunes TV show service?

Source: The Wall Street Journal via Apple Insider

The cast of 'Three Rivers'.

It took longer than everyone thought but medical drama ‘Three Rivers’ starring our own Alex O’Loughlin has been pulled from CBS’s schedule, effective immediately.

‘Three Rivers’ was plagued with criticism from critics and production retooling and it was inevitable the freshman drama would see the axe. The show premiered to below par numbers and despite stabilizing numbers, figures were not up to CBS’s standards.

CBS will air repeats in its place and the remainder of the episodes which are currently in production will air, according to CBS. You might remember something similar happened to’The Ex-List’ last year, CBS promised it would return but we haven’t seen it since.

‘Three Rivers’ was shortlived here as well with Ten axing it after one episode.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Rob Morrow stars in CBS' 'Numb3rs'.

As television ratings for ‘Numb3rs’ take a stumble, CBS have decided to cut back the number of episodes set to be produced this season from 22 down to 16.

The crime procedural, now in it’s sixth year, has struggled to maintain its audience share this season, with the series averaging a 1.7 rating/6 share among adults 18-49 and 7.9 million viewers overall — down from the seasonal average of 10.3 million viewers overall.

CBS declined to comment on whether or not this would be the final season of ‘Num3rs’, however with the series already having reached its syndication run of 100 episodes, its believed the network and studio are unlikely continuing to keep such a high cost drama in production.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Jon Foster, Jenna Elfman and Grant Show star in CBS' comedy 'Accidentally on Purpose'.

CBS has upped their order for the Monday night comedy ‘Accidentally on Purpose’.

The Jenna Elfman comedy has been a solid performer on Monday nights, where it shares the lineup with powerhouse comedies ‘How I Met Your Mother’, The Big Bang Theory’ and ‘Two and a Half Men’.

While ‘Accidentally’ is the lowest-rated series of the lineup, it has seen an improvement on its retention from the ‘How I Met Your Mother’ lead-in.

This past Monday, ‘Accidentally’ also hit a season high among total viewers.

The network haven’t ordered a full season, due to the mid-season return of ‘Rules of Engagement’.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Alex Kurtzman and Robert Orci

According to Variety, CBS have given a pilot commitment order to a reboot of ‘Hawaii Five-O’, following a pitch from Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Peter Lenkov on Thursday.

The trio will serve as executive producers on the CBS Television Studios project.

Lenkov (‘CSI: NY’) will pen the pilot, under supervision from Kurtzman and Orci, and will serve as showrunner should the project be picked up to series.

The original ‘Hawaii Five-O’, created by Leonard Freeman, was filmed on location in Hawaii. The reboot is also expected to shoot on in the Pacific to take advantage of tax credits for film and TV productions offered by the state.

Hawaii has hosted several television productions over the years including ‘Fantasy Island’, ‘Magnum P.I.’ and ‘Baywatch Hawaii’.

Capital city, Honolulu is the current base of ABC’s ‘Lost’, which will wrap up this season. Scoring another major television production will be a big win for the Hawaii Film Office.

Writing duo, Kurtzman and Orci were behind two of this years biggest box office hits, ‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen’ and ‘Star Trek’. The pair also co-created ‘Fringe’ with frequent collaborator J.J. Abrams for FOX.

Source: Variety

Jennifer Garner starred as super spy Sydney Bristow in J.J. Abrams' spy series, 'Alias'.

UPDATE: It now looks like NBC secured the project.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, a new spec script from J.J. Abrams has sparked a bidding war between three major US networks.

NBC, ABC and CBS are all said to be vying for the spy genre project, with NBC said to be out in front.

The spec script, written by Abrams and fellow long time collaborator Josh Reims, revolves around two spies working together, who are also husband and wife.

The duo previously collaborated on The WB college drama ‘Felicity’ and ABC’s short lived series ‘What About Brian’.

The new project would also mark Abrams’ return to the spy genre, following the conclusion of his hit spy series ‘Alias’, on ABC back in 2006.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

'The Vampire Diaries' coming soon to The CW and GO!

The season will kick-off with The CW’s sophomore drama ‘90210’. You might remember that ‘90210’ premiered to The CW’s biggest numbers in history (4.65M, A18-49: 2.6/7) but those viewers abandoned it in droves with the finale only mustering a little more than half that audience (2.49M, A18-49: 1.3/3). This is a make or break season for the remake and if it continues to shed viewers it will not only damage The CW’s brand but will have a detrimental effect on the heavily promoted freshman drama ‘Melrose Place’ 2.0. The CW is pinning their hopes on ‘Melrose Place’ and their other fall freshman ‘The Vampire Diaries’, which was inexplicably added to their Thursday line-up at the expense of The CW’s highest rating drama ‘Smallville,’ which has now been bumped to Fridays. If both ‘Melrose’ and ‘Vampire’ fail, it may well be the final year for the struggling network as CBS and WB cannot continue to run a network at a loss in this sort of climate. Elsewhere, Tuesdays will be a little dull with procedurals occupying CBS and reality on ABC, NBC and Fox. However, recently the alphabet made a late change noticing a chance to pounce in that timeslot, by pushing mid season sci-fi drama ‘V’ forward for a November 3 start.

The following night sees the fall premiere of summer reality show, ‘So You Think You Can Dance.’  Fox’s decision to air a second cycle of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ was quite bizarre, the show captures a solid but not spectacular audience during the summer and who’s to say airing it twice a year won’t damage the franchise? Fall has always been the achilles heel for the News Corp. Network and no doubt ‘Dance’ will improve on past year offerings, but will viewers return for future seasons? The decision to move ‘Dance’ to fall was to provide some lead-in support for freshman drama ‘Glee,’ which squandered its ‘Idol’ lead in when Fox aired a sample episode behind one of Idol’s final 2009 episodes, in the ended it averaged only 9.62M, A18-49: 4.4/11.

The aforementioned ‘The Vampire Diaries’ has its series premiere on Thursday, September 10 and it will be partnered with The CW’s other sci-fi drama ‘Supernatural’. The CW greenlighting ‘Diaries’ was no surprise as they wanted to capitalise on the ‘Twilight’ and ‘True Blood’ hype. Even though ‘Diaries’ has generated a lot of negative press, initial sampling will be large but the million dollar question is how long will the audience give it? The following Thursday sees the return of JJ Abram’s latest demo hit ‘Fringe’. ‘Fringe’ will have its work cut out going up against heavyweights, ‘CSI’ and ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ which both return on September 24. ‘Fringe’s’ departure from a solid lead in indicates the confidence Fox has in the sophomore drama, however in comparison to Abram’s previous projects, ‘Fringe’ focuses less on mythology and more on individual episodes which should make it easier to follow but less intriguing to the dedicated fans. Another huge Thursday development is the movement of last year’s freshman hit ‘The Mentalist’ to 10/9c following CSI. CBS is grooming it as the next CSI, which I might add has lost a lot of steam since the departure of William Petersen, however the timeslot is somewhat of a bogey one for CBS as nothing has remained there for more than one year.

Thursdays also see the return of ‘Survivor’ for its 19th season, the 6th season of the Office, the 2nd season of ‘Parks and Recreation’ and the debut of critical darling ‘Community’ which all premiere on September 17. For those waiting for ’30 Rock’ it returns on October 15. The biggest premiere to Thursdays is ‘Flash Forward’, which is being promoted by ABC as the new ‘Lost.’  ‘Flash Forward’ looks to be the biggest show to come out of the states since ‘Lost’ and ‘Desperate Housewives’ and it comes with a lot of buzz. Just recently, the directors noted, they will need at least three seasons to complete the arc they have planned. In a nutshell, ‘Flash Forward’ follows the life of an FBI agent who investigates the reason for a mysterious event, which sees everyone blackout for two minutes and seventeen seconds, travelling six months into the future.

The following two Mondays see the return of ‘WTF’ (No, not What The Beep, but Watch This Fall) drama ‘Gossip Girl’ and veteran ‘One Tree Hill’. This fall, Dawn has decided to do a switcheroo with the two, moving her baby ‘Gossip’ to a higher household viewing time and avoiding direction competition with ‘House’. The aforementioned ‘House’ and the trouble ridden ‘Heroes’ both return with two hour premieres on September 21. It has been quite a steep fall for ‘Heroes’, if Kring can’t stop the bleeding, this might be the end of the one season wonder. The following Monday sees NBC launch their new high-octane medical drama ‘Trauma,’ a number of photos/clips for this show have being doing the rounds on the internet, so expect a large initial sampling. ‘Lie to Me’ will occupate the post ‘House’ slot as Fox tries to groom this as a replacement for ‘House’. Over at CBS, ‘How I Met Your Mother’ has been moved to 8/7c providing some lead in support for the dead on arrival ‘Accidently on Purpose’. ‘Two and a Half Men’ remains, but ‘The Big Bang Theory’ moves to the post ‘Men’ slot. ‘Bang’ was trialled in the slot late last year or early this year and maintained close to 100% retention, so look for ‘Bang’ to reach series highs again.

Wednesdays will be interesting for a number of reasons, ABC has a completely new line up with critical darlings ‘Modern Family’ and ‘Cougar Town’ occupying the key 9/8c and 9:30/8:30c timeslots. ‘Cougar Town’ follows Jules (Courtney Cox), a recently divorced single mother exploring honest truths about dating and aging in our beauty and youth obsessed culture, while ‘Modern Family’ explores the complications that come with being in a family in this day and age. The entrees ‘Hank’ and ‘The Middle’ debut the following week. ‘Eastwick’ a cross between ‘Valentine’ and ‘Sex and the City’ also debuts in the same week as ‘Modern Family’ and ‘Cougar Town’, but things don’t look good for the romantic drama.

The landscape for Fridays has completely changed; networks are finally getting aggressive with their programming. There is less reality from the other three networks which might finally give CBS’ combo of Ghost Whisperer, Cold Case and Numb3rs some headaches. Fox kicks off with a comedy hour with waiting to be cancelled ‘’Til Death’ and ‘Brothers’ followed by the ever improving and surprise renewal ‘Dollhouse’ which all premiere on September 25. The CW veteran ‘Smallville’ has been yanked to Thursdays along with the ever fading ‘Ugly Betty’.

Nothing much has changed on Sundays, with ABC’s ‘Desperate Housewives’ and ‘Brothers and Sisters’ starting on September 27. Fox has shuffled their line up knocking out the every reliable – ‘King of the Hill’, for Seth McFarland’s new, albeit belated project ‘The Cleveland Show’. ‘The Simpsons’, ‘Family Guy’ and ‘American Dad’ all return for their 21st, 8th and 5th season respectively. ‘The Cleveland Show’s’ pilot has been leaked for a while and it doesn’t look too different to ‘Family Guy’ or ‘American Dad’.

Finally, the biggest news this fall is Jay Leno moving to primetime, which begins daily from September 14, 10/9c. All eyes will be on the ratings for ‘The Jay Leno Show,’ but NBC isn’t expecting much, as long as it remains profitable, NBC will be satisfied. Jay Leno recently said he doesn’t expect his show to beat first run CSI, but hopes to push CSI repeats to the limit. The format of the show is: Leno will begin with a 10 second opening sequence which leads into a monologue. He will have at least one special guest a night and music will come from multiple acts. Jaywalking and newspaper headlines will be held until the end of the show to give News affiliates a strong lead in. Leno also gave us a snippet of the ‘Green Car Challenge’ where you can see, as Leno puts it, “who is faster, Shaquille O’Neal or Cameron Diaz.” There will be pre-recorded segments from D.L Hughley and Rachel Harris.As always, this is will be an interesting fall, with networks trying something different.

I hope everyone enjoys the fall TV season and wish for everyone’s favourite TV show to survive.

Premiere Dates

• ‘90210’ 2nd Season Premiere September 8
• ‘Melrose Place’ Series Premiere September 8
• ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ Fall Premiere September 9
• ‘Glee’ Series Premiere September 9
• ‘The Vampire Diaries’ Series Premiere September 10
• ‘Supernatural’ 5th Season Premiere September 10
• ‘One Tree Hill’ 7th Season Premiere September 14
• ‘Gossip Girl’ 3rd Season Premiere September 14
• ‘The Jay Leno Show’ Series Premiere September 14
• ‘The Beautiful Life’ Series Premiere September 16
• ‘Bones’ 5th Season Premiere September 17
• ‘Survivor’ 19th Season Premiere September 17
• ‘Parks and Recreation’ 2nd Season Premiere September 17
• ‘Fringe’ 2nd Season Premiere September 17
• ‘The Office’ 6th Season Premiere September 17
• ‘Community’ Series Premiere September 17
• ‘Heroes’ 4th Season Premiere September 21
• ‘House’ 6th Season Premiere September 21
• ‘How I Met Your Mother’ 5th Season Premiere September 21
• ‘Accidently on Purpose’ Series Premiere September 21
• ‘Two and a Half Men’ 7th Season Premiere September 21
• ‘The Big Bang Theory’ 3rd Season Premiere September 21
• ‘Castle’ 2nd Season Premiere September 21
• ‘CSI: Miami’ 8th Season Premiere September 21
• ‘NCIS’ 7th Season Premiere September 22
• ‘The Goode Wife’ Series Premiere September 22
• ‘The Forgotten Series’ Premiere September 22
• ‘Mercy’ Series Premiere September 23
• ‘Criminal Minds’ 5th Season Premiere September 23
• ‘Modern Family’ Series Premiere September 23
• ‘Cougar Town’ Series Premiere September 23
• ‘Eastwick’ Series Premiere September 23
• ‘Flash Forward’ Series Premiere September 24
• ‘The Mentalist’ 2nd Season Premiere September 24
• ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ 6th Season Premiere September 24
• ‘Brothers’ Series Premiere September 25
• ‘Smallville’ 9th Season Premiere September 25
• ‘Dollhouse’ 2nd Season Premiere September 25
• ‘The Amazing Race’ 15th Season Premiere September 27
• ‘The Simpsons’ 21st Season Premiere September 27
• ‘The Cleveland Show’ Series Premiere September 27
• ‘Desperate Housewives’ 6th Season Premiere September 27
• ‘Brothers and Sisters’ 4th Season Premiere September 27
• ‘Family Guy’ 8th Season Premiere September 27
• ‘American Dad’ 5th Season Premiere September 27
• ‘Lie to Me’ 2nd Season Premiere September 28
• ‘Trauma’ Series Premiere September 28
• ‘Hank’ Series Premiere September 30
• ‘The Middle’ Series Premiere September 30
• ‘Private Practice’ 3rd Season Premiere October 1
• ‘Ugly Betty’ 4th Season Premiere October 9
• ‘30 Rock’ 4th Season Premiere October 15
• ‘V’ Series Premiere November 3
• Cable Premiere Dates
• ‘Dexter’ 4th Season Premiere September 27
• ‘Californication’ 3rd Season Premiere September 27
• ‘Stargate Universe’ Series Premiere October 2
• ‘Sanctuary’ 2nd Season Premiere October 9

CBS today announced their plans for the fall television season, including the addition of four new series to the schedule.

New to CBS is the ‘NCIS’ spin-off aptly titled ‘NCIS: Los Angeles’, ‘Three Rivers’ starring Australian actor Alex O’Loughlin, ‘The Good Wife’ with Emmy award-winner Julianna Margulies and a new Jenna Elfman comedy ‘Accidentally on Purpose’.

Returning to screens this September are top rated series including, ‘Two and a Half Men’, ‘How I Met Your Mother’, ‘The Mentalist’, ‘The Big Bang Theory’, ‘CSI: Miami’ and ‘Ghost Whisper’. ’Medium’ will also makes to move to CBS next season.

Following is the 2009-2010 CBS Television Network primetime schedule:

CBS TELEVISON NETWORK 2009-2010 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE

(N=New, NT=New Time, all times ET/PT)

MONDAY

8:00-8:30 PM HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (NT)
8:30-9:00 PM ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE (N)
9:00-9:30 PM TWO AND A HALF MEN
9:30-10:00 PM THE BIG BANG THEORY (NT)
10:00-11:00 PM CSI: MIAMI

TUESDAY

8:00-9:00 PM NCIS
9:00-10:00 PM NCIS: LOS ANGELES (N)
10:00-11:00 PM THE GOOD WIFE (N)

WEDNESDAY

8:00-8:30 PM THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE
8:30-9:00 PM GARY UNMARRIED
9:00-10:00 PM CRIMINAL MINDS
10:00-11:00 PM CSI: NY

THURSDAY

8:00-9:00 PM SURVIVOR
9:00-10:00 PM CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION
10:00-11:00 PM THE MENTALIST (NT)

FRIDAY

8:00-9:00 PM GHOST WHISPERER
9:00-10:00 PM MEDIUM
10:00-11:00 PM NUMB3RS

SATURDAY

8:00-9:00 PM CRIMETIME SATURDAY
9:00-10:00 PM CRIMETIME SATURDAY
10:00-11:00 PM 48 HOURS MYSTERY

SUNDAY

7:00-8:00 PM 60 MINUTES
8:00-9:00 PM THE AMAZING RACE
9:00-10:00 PM THREE RIVERS (N)
10:00-11:00 PM COLD CASE (NT)

See more CBS announcements in our special coverage section.

CBS ANNOUNCES 2009-2010 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE

America’s #1 Network Adds Four New Series to Top-Rated Lineup

New Dramas Star Chris O’Donnell and LL COOL J, Julianna Margulies and Alex O’Loughlin New Comedy Stars Jenna Elfman

“The Mentalist” Moves to Thursday at 10:00 PM Pairing TV’s #1 New Show With TV’s #1 Drama (“CSI”)

“The Big Bang Theory” Moves to Mondays at 9:30 PM Forming a Comedy Power Hour With “Two and a Half Men”

Ordered for Midseason:

New Dramas “Miami Trauma” and “The Bridge”

New Alternative Series “Arranged Marriage” and “Undercover Boss,”

Comedy “Rules of Engagement”

CBS, the only major broadcast network to grow its audience in all key ratings measures this season, announced today the addition of four new series to strengthen its already top rated primetime lineup for the Fall 2009-2010 season.

The new series include three dramas and one comedy. Chris O’Donnell and LL COOL J star in NCIS: LOS ANGELES, a spinoff from the hit drama NCIS; THE GOOD WIFE stars Emmy Award winner Julianna Margulies in a legal drama about a steadfast wife and mother who boldly returns to work as a lawyer when her husband is imprisoned for a high profile political scandal; THREE RIVERS, a medical drama that stars Alex O’Loughlin as the head of a renowned transplant surgery team, and ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE stars Golden Globe Award winner Jenna Elfman in an ensemble comedy about a successful, single journalist who accidentally gets pregnant by a much younger man.

The freshmen series will join 18 returning series on the current CBS schedule.

CBS will return the season’s #1 drama/scripted program – CSI; #1 comedy – TWO AND A HALF MEN; #1 new series – THE MENTALIST and the #1 news magazine – 60 MINUTES, along with two franchise reality series – SURVIVOR and the six-time Emmy Award winner THE AMAZING RACE.

The other returning series include: THE BIG BANG THEORY, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, CSI: MIAMI, NCIS, THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE; GARY UNMARRIED, CRIMINAL MINDS, CSI: NY, GHOST WHISPERER, NUMB3RS, 48 HOURS MYSTERY and COLD CASE.

Ordered for midseason is a new fast-paced medical drama, MIAMI TRAUMA, from executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer; the new police drama THE BRIDGE; the returning comedy RULES OF ENGAGEMENT; and the new alternative series ARRANGED MARRIAGE and UNDERCOVER BOSS.

On the strength of its scripted series, and the success of its two reality franchises, CBS will win the 2008-2009 television season in viewers, its sixth victory in the past seven years, and in adults 25-54 (projected tie with Fox). CBS is the ONLY network to post ratings gains over the last season in all key measures: +12% in viewers, + 3% in adults 18-49, and +8% in adults 25-54.

This top-rated schedule will serve as the springboard to introduce four new series – all of which have established franchises as a lead-in.

The 2009-2010 schedule:

On Mondays at 8:00 PM, the critically acclaimed ensemble comedy HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER opens the night and serves as a strong lead-in for the new comedy ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE at 8:30 PM. From 9:00-10:00 PM, television’s top comedy TWO AND A HALF MEN and the genius comedy THE BIG BANG THEORY form a power comedy hour. CSI: MIAMI, a perennial time period winner, completes the night at 10:00 PM.

On Tuesdays, NCIS kicks off the night at 8:00 PM, providing a seamless lead-in for its spin off NCIS: LOS ANGELES at 9:00 PM, followed by new legal drama THE GOOD WIFE at 10:00 PM.

Wednesday returns intact with the comedy block THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE and GARY UNMARRIED from 8:00-9:00 PM, as well as the crime drama tandem of CRIMINAL MINDS and CSI: NY from 9:00-11:00 PM.

On Thursdays at 8:00 PM, SURVIVOR returns to the time period it has won every year since 2004. And from 9:00-11:00 PM, CBS is pairing television’s #1 drama, CSI, with television’s #1 new series, THE MENTALIST.

On Friday, CBS plans to add the popular drama series MEDIUM at 9:00 PM, starring Emmy Award winner Patricia Arquette, to its top-rated Friday night lineup, forming a hauntingly compatible two-hour block with GHOST WHISPERER at 8:00 PM. NUMB3RS caps the night at 10:00 PM.

The Saturday night lineup remains intact, anchored by the night’s highest-rated show, 48 HOURS MYSTERY.

As always, 60 MINUTES kicks off Sundays at 7:00 PM, followed by the six-time Emmy Award winning reality series THE AMAZING RACE at 8:00 PM, which leads into the new medical drama THREE RIVERS at 9:00 PM. The crime drama COLD CASE anchors at 10:00 PM.

The new DRAMAS:

NCIS: LOS ANGELES is a drama about the high stakes world of undercover surveillance at the Office of Special Projects (OSP), a division of NCIS that is charged with apprehending dangerous and elusive criminals that pose a threat to the nation’s security. By assuming false identities and utilizing the most advanced technology, this team of highly trained agents goes deep undercover, putting their lives on the line in the field to bring down their targets. Special Agent “G” Callen (Chris O’Donnell) is a chameleon who transforms himself into whomever he needs to be to infiltrate the criminal underworld. His partner is Special Agent Sam Hanna (LL COOL J), a former U.S. Navy SEAL who has seen action in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and a surveillance expert who uses state of the art monitoring equipment to look out for those in the field and feed them crucial information. Both Callen and Hanna report to Special Agent Lara Macy (Louise Lombard), the OSP team leader responsible for directing the operations and making life-or-death decisions. Assisting the team is Special Agent Kensi Lo (Daniela Ruah), the exceptionally bright daughter of a slain Marine who lives for the adrenalin rush that comes with undercover work, and Operational Psychologist Nate Getz (Peter Cambor), adept at getting into anybody’s head, profiling the target and monitoring agents’ states of mind before, during and after missions. Armed with the latest in high tech gear and sent regularly into life-threatening situations, this tight-knit team relies on each other to do what is necessary to protect national interests. Shane Brennan (“NCIS”) is the executive producer for CBS Television Studios.

THE GOOD WIFE is a drama starring Emmy Award winner Julianna Margulies as a wife and mother who must assume full responsibility for her family and re-enter the workforce after her husband’s very public sex and political corruption scandal lands him in jail. Pushing aside the betrayal and crushing public humiliation caused by her husband Peter (Chris Noth), Alicia Florrick (Margulies) starts over by pursuing her original career as a defense attorney. As a junior associate at a prestigious Chicago law firm, she joins her longtime friend, former law school classmate and firm partner Will Gardner (Josh Charles), who is interested to see how Alicia will perform after 13 years out of the courtroom. Alicia is grateful the firm’s top litigator, Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski), offers to mentor her but discovers the offer has conditions and realizes she’s going to need to succeed on her own merit. Alicia’s main competition among the firm’s 20-something new recruits is Cary (Matt Czuchry), a recent Harvard grad who is affable on the surface, but will use any means to ensure that he, not Alicia, secures the one full-time associate position that’s available. Fortunately, Alicia finds an ally in Kalinda (Archie Panjabi), the firm’s tough in-house investigator. Gaining confidence every day, Alicia transforms herself from embarrassed politician’s scorned wife to resilient career woman, especially for the sake of providing a stable home for her children, 14-year-old Zach (Graham Phillips) and 13-year-old Grace (Makenzie Vega). For the first time in years, Alicia trades in her identity as the “good wife” and takes charge of her own destiny. Tony Scott, Ridley Scott, Robert King, Michelle King, Dee Johnson and David Zucker are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios.

THREE RIVERS is a medical drama that goes inside the emotionally complex lives of organ donors, the recipients and the surgeons at the preeminent transplant hospital in the country where every moment counts. However, dealing with donor families in their darkest hour and managing the fears and concerns of apprehensive recipients takes much more than just a sharp scalpel. Leading the elite team is Dr. Andy Yablonski (Alex O’Loughlin), the highly-skilled workaholic lead organ transplant surgeon, whose good-natured personality and sarcastic wit makes him popular with his patients and colleagues. His colleagues include Dr. Miranda Foster (Katherine Moennig), a surgical fellow with a rebellious streak and fiery temper who strives to live up to her deceased father’s excellent surgical reputation; Dr. David Lee (Daniel Henney), a womanizing surgical resident who’s broken as many hearts as he’s replaced; Ryan Abbott (Christopher J. Hanke), the inexperienced new transplant coordinator who arranges the intricately choreographed process of quickly and carefully transporting organs from donor to patient; Dr. Sophia Jordan (Julia Ormond), the head of surgery and a dedicated medical professional; and Pam Acosta (Justina Machado), Andy’s no-nonsense operating assistant and best friend. In this high stakes arena, in which every case is a race against the clock, these tenacious surgeons and medical professionals are the last hope for their patients. Carol Barbee, Curtis Hanson and Carol Fenelon are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios.

The new COMEDY:

ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE is a comedy starring Golden Globe Award winner Jenna Elfman as Billie, a single woman who finds herself “accidentally” pregnant after a one-night stand with a much younger guy, and decides to keep the baby… and the guy. A newspaper film critic, Billie is barely surviving a humiliating breakup with her charming boss, James (Grant Show), who’s still trying to resume their relationship. Suddenly expecting a child with her “boy toy,” Zack (Jon Foster), Billie and Zack make an arrangement: to live together platonically. Billie’s party girl best friend Olivia (Ashley Jensen), and Abby (Lennon Parham), her conventional, younger married sister, eagerly look forward to the new addition and offer their own brands of advice and encouragement. But when Zack and his freeloading friends, including Davis (Nicolas Wright), start to turn her place into a frat house, Billie isn’t sure if she’s living with a boyfriend, a roommate, or if she just has another child to raise. Lloyd Braun, Gail Berman, Gene Stein and Claudia Lonow are the executive producers for CBS Television Studios. Pamela Fryman directed the pilot.

The new MIDSEASON DRAMAS:

THE BRIDGE is a drama about a tough and dedicated police officer who is voted to become the police union’s dynamic leader. To serve the public as well as his 8,000 fellow officers, charismatic Frank Leo (Aaron Douglas) battles criminals on the street, corruption in the ranks and his own bosses. On the force is his able partner and confidante Tommy Dunn (Paul Popowich), who rides with Frank across the bridge that spans the divide between the rich and the poor in the area they patrol; Staff Sergeant Bernie Kantor (Frank Cassini), a voice of reason and moral sounding board; Jill (Inga Cadranel), a detective with a lot of attitude who is moving up the ranks; Billy (Theresa Joy), a young female cop who is determined to prove herself to the guys; and Ed Wycoff (Michael Murphy), the shrewd Chief of Police. Abby St. James (Ona Grauer) is a sharp prosecutor who begins working with the police union, and shares a mutual attraction with Frank. In his new position, Frank Leo takes on the politically-motivated department brass… and makes many powerful enemies in the process. Craig Bromell, Adam J. Shully, Laszlo Barna, Alan Di Fiore and Robert Wertheimer are executive producers for E1 Entertainment, 990 Multi Media Entertainment Company and Jonsworth Productions in association with CTV and CBS Television Studios.

MIAMI TRAUMA is about a team of expert surgeons who work at one of the premiere trauma facilities in the country, where only patients with life threatening injuries are treated. Dr. Matthew Proctor (Jeremy Northam) is new to the trauma team, after a tour of duty in a MASH unit during the Gulf war. Dr. Eva Zambrano (Lana Parrilla) is a workaholic surgeon who is more comfortable in her scrubs than she is out in the real world. Dr. Christopher Deleo, “Dr. C.,” is a playboy who thrives on the high-stakes of trauma medicine and is, by his own description, a genius redneck. Dr. Serena Warren (Elisabeth Harnois) is fresh out of medical school, and head nurse Tuck Brody (Omar Gooding) keeps the doctors on track and the patients’ families updated in this chaotic corner of the medical profession. Together, this team of doctors excels in the “golden hour,” the 60 minutes after being critically injured, when a patient’s life hangs in the balance. Jerry Bruckheimer, Jeffrey Lieber and Jonathan Littman are executive producers for Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Warner Bros. Television Distribution.

The new MIDSEASON ALTERNATIVE series:

ARRANGED MARRIAGE is a series that brings the tradition of arranged marriages, which is still practiced successfully by many cultures throughout the world, to the U.S., where it is virtually an inconceivable option for most single Americans. Three adults who are anxious to get married, but who have been unsuccessful in their own search for a mate, choose a life-altering path. They rely on their closest family and friends, those who love and know them best, to choose someone for them to marry based on shared goals, values, experiences and the commitment to make it work. The series intimately documents these three arranged marriages, starting with the first meetings of the families and the wedding day; and then follows the couple through the day-to-day joys, challenges, and emotional tumult that results from their arranged union. Emmy Award nominees Jane Lipsitz and Dan Cutforth are executive producers for Magical Elves Inc.

UNDERCOVER BOSS is a new reality series that follows high level corporate executives as they slip anonymously into the lowest level jobs within their companies. Once undercover, they’ll get their hands dirty with the rank and file, find out what their employees REALLY think of them and discover how smoothly their companies are REALLY run. In the process, these senior executives learn about themselves, the perception of their company and the spirit of their work force. Stephen Lambert is the executive producer for Studio Lambert, Ltd.

Following is the 2009-2010 CBS Television Network primetime schedule:

CBS TELEVISON NETWORK

2009-2010 PRIMETIME SCHEDULE

(N=New, NT=New Time, all times ET/PT)

MONDAY

8:00-8:30 PM HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (NT)

8:30-9:00 PM ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE (N)

9:00-9:30 PM TWO AND A HALF MEN

9:30-10:00 PM THE BIG BANG THEORY (NT)

10:00-11:00 PM CSI: MIAMI

TUESDAY

8:00-9:00 PM NCIS

9:00-10:00 PM NCIS: LOS ANGELES (N)

10:00-11:00 PM THE GOOD WIFE (N)

WEDNESDAY

8:00-8:30 PM THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE

8:30-9:00 PM GARY UNMARRIED

9:00-10:00 PM CRIMINAL MINDS

10:00-11:00 PM CSI: NY

THURSDAY

8:00-9:00 PM SURVIVOR

9:00-10:00 PM CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION

10:00-11:00 PM THE MENTALIST (NT)

FRIDAY

8:00-9:00 PM GHOST WHISPERER

9:00-10:00 PM MEDIUM

10:00-11:00 PM NUMB3RS

SATURDAY

8:00-9:00 PM CRIMETIME SATURDAY

9:00-10:00 PM CRIMETIME SATURDAY

10:00-11:00 PM 48 HOURS MYSTERY

SUNDAY

7:00-8:00 PM 60 MINUTES

8:00-9:00 PM THE AMAZING RACE

9:00-10:00 PM THREE RIVERS (N)

10:00-11:00 PM COLD CASE (NT)

About CBS Television

CBS was established in 1928, when founder William S. Paley purchased 16 independent radio stations and christened them the Columbia Broadcast System. Copy/pasted from Futon Critic Today, with more than 200 television stations and affiliates reaching virtually every home in the United States. The Network has the Number One drama/scripted program, CSI; Number One sitcom, TWO AND A HALF MEN; Number One newsmagazine, 60 MINUTES; and Number One daytime drama, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS. Its programming arms include CBS Entertainment, CBS News and CBS Sports.

About CBS Corporation

CBS Corporation (NYSE: CBS.A and CBS) is a mass media company with constituent parts that reach back to the beginnings of the broadcast industry, as well as newer businesses that operate on the leading edge of the media industry. The Company, through its many and varied operations, combines broad reach with well-positioned local businesses, all of which provide it with an extensive distribution network by which it serves audiences and advertisers in all 50 states and key international markets. It has operations in virtually every field of media and entertainment, including broadcast television (CBS and The CW – a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment), cable television (Showtime Networks and CBS College Sports Network), local television (CBS Television Stations), television production and syndication (CBS Television Studios and CBS Television Distribution), radio (CBS Radio), advertising on out-of-home media (CBS Outdoor), publishing (Simon & Schuster), interactive media (CBS Interactive), music (CBS Records), licensing and merchandising (CBS Consumer Products), video/DVD (CBS Home Entertainment), in-store media (CBS Outernet) and motion pictures (CBS Films). For more information, log on to http://www.cbscorporation.com/.

Lucy Hale as Rose Baker in 'Privileged'.

As the CBS and CW upfronts draw closer, both networks have started making official announcements of cancellations and early pick ups.

On the CBS front is the cancellations of ‘Eleventh Hour’ and the long running crime drama ’Without a Trace’ which starred Australia’s Anthony LaPaglia and Poppy Montgomery.

Over at the CW the cancellations are equally as devastating, including ‘Reaper’, ‘The Game’, ‘Everybody Hates Chris’ and the worst news of all ‘Privileged’.

Despite much talk about ‘Privileged’ returning as a midseason replacement, The CW’s strong development plate left little room for a number of bubble series on the green network.

“It’s truly heartbreaking,” said ‘Privileged’ series creator Rina Mimoun. “I’m so grateful to everyone out there who supported our little show and fell in love with Megan Smith. She was the most delightful character I’ve ever had the pleasure to write and watching JoAnna Garcia bring her to life every day was a gift I will never forget. I’m incredibly proud of the work we did and forever indebted to all the fans, critics and to Warner Bros. for being so wonderful and supportive. I will miss this more than you know.”

So long ‘Privileged’, we hardly knew you.

On a lighter note, CBS have renewed ’Numb3ers’, ‘How I Met Your Mother’, ‘Gary Unmarried’, ‘Rules of Engagement’, and ‘The New Adventures of Old Christine’.

The CW have officially picked up ‘Melrose Place’, ‘Vampire Diaries’ and ‘The Beautiful Life’ for next season.

Stay tuned for more announcements from the CBS and CW upfronts over the next two days.

Source: Entertainment Weekly

Dash Mihok joins the cast of CBS' comedy pilot, 'The Fish Tank'.

Dash Mihok (‘William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet’) will play the offbeat neighbour on CBS’ comedy pilot ‘The Fish Tank’, which centers on a teenager (Drake Bell) living alone in his family’s house.

The Ben Stiller-directed comedy pilot ‘The Station’, is gaining momentum with Rob Huebel (‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’) and Julio Oscar Mechoso (‘Cane’) joining the cast. The 20th Century Fox TV pilot revolves around covert CIA operatives in South America, which includes Mechoso. Huebel will play an assassin.

Kevin Rahm (‘Desperate Housewives’) and Jeff Davis are joining ABC Studios’ comedy pilot presentation ‘This Little Piggy’, about a man (Davis) and his sister who move in with their eldest brother (Rahm).

Alison Brie (‘Mad Men’) has joined the cast of Sony Pictures Televison’s ‘Community’, as a student at the community college set comedy pilot.

Clockwise: Scott Porter, Nick Kroll, James D'Arcy and Nora Zehetner

Scott Porter (‘Friday Night Lights’) has joined Fox’s drama pilot ‘Masterwork’, which centers on a globe-trotting FBI agent (Australia’s Matt Passmore), a specialist in the acquisition of stolen art.

Porter will play another agent tracking down international art thieves and Passmore’s wingman.

Nick Kroll (‘Cavemen’) and Nora Zehetner (‘Heroes’) have landed lead roles on Fox’s comedy pilot ‘Cop House’, set at a halfway house for troubled cops.

Kroll will play an overzealous cop with an enormous ego and delusional fantasies. Zehetner will play the house psychologist, who runs group-therapy sessions.

‘Cop House’ will be directed and executive produced by Brett Ratner (‘Prison Break’, ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’).

Brit. James D’Arcy (‘Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World’)  has been tapped to star on CBS’ drama pilot ‘The Eastmans’, about a complicated family of doctors.

D’Arcy will play the eldest of five Eastman children, a top vascular surgeon.

More Australians have landed a roles in upcoming US drama pilots.

Matt Passmore, who’s currently starring in Nine’s ‘Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities’ and ABC1’s ‘The Cut’, has landed the lead on FOX’s ‘Masterwork’.

The pilot, from ‘Prison Break’ creator Paul Scheuring, centers on an FBI agent (Passmore), a specialist in the acquisition of stolen art and a fine-arts expert who teams with an MI-5 agent played by Brit, Natalie Dormer. Tom Ellis will play her fiance, a special agent at Scotland Yard.

‘Masterwork’ will be Passmore’s first big break in the US, having had a successful career in a number of high profile Australian dramas, including ‘McLeod’s Daughters’, ‘Last Man Standing’ and ‘Blue Heelers’.

Meanwhile, David Lyons (‘Sea Patrol’, ‘ER’) has landed a role in NBC’s ‘Day One’ pilot, which follows a group of survivors after a apocalyptic world wide event.

Finally, Miranda Otto (‘Cashmere Mafia’) is set to star in the CBS drama pilot ‘A Marriage’, from Marshall Herskovitz and Ed Zwick (creators of ‘thirtysomething’), which is said to be the dissection of a marriage.

'Two and a Half Men' and 'The Big Bang Theory' are close to landing major deals from CBS.

CBS is close to giving a major commitment to no. 1 comedy ‘Two and a Half Men’ and surprise hit, ‘The Big Bang Theory’, say The Hollywood Reporter.

“Men’ is apparently close to getting a three season commitment, while ‘Bang’ could be locked in for another two seasons — despite the show being considered a slow starter just last year.

Both comedies are produced by Warner Bros. TV and were co-created by Chuck Lorre.

‘The Big Bang Theory’ has continued to set new series highs this season, with ‘Two and a Half Men’ as it’s lead-out on CBS.

‘Bang’ hasn’t had the same fanfare locally, with Nine dropping the show from it’s schedule. Perhaps the strong vote of confidence from CBS may persuade Nine to give ‘Bang’ another go.

'Survior' host, Jeff Probst.

Reality series Survivor has been renewed for two additional cycles next season by CBS. They will mark the 19th and 20th series of the reality competition series.

Jeff Probst, who won last year’s first Emmy Award for best reality host, will continue as host.

“Survivor is one of CBS’ signature series and symbol of enduring quality and entertainment on primetime television,” CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler said.

The previous series of Mark Burnett’s hit reality show, Survivor: Gabon, averaged around 13.8 million viewers, dominating its Thursday 8 p.m. slot.

Thunder Road a new reality show involving contestants driving cars through an obstacle course is racing against other CBS reality projects which include Magical Elves’ arranged-marriage series, Live Like You’re Dying from Mark Burnett and Jeff Probst and investigative pilot called Missing You for a primetime spot in fall 2009. What the.. who would want to watch those pilots when you can see burning rubber and metal on metal contact?

Thunder Road is created by Scott Messick and Justin Hochberg with Messick and McG as executive producers.

LL Cool J and Chris O’Donnell have reportedly been cast in CBS’ spin-off of NCIS.

LL Cool J will play a Sam, a tough but charming former Navy SEAL who works undercover for the NCIS unit in L.A. and is an expert on the Middle East.

O’Donnell is set to play Callen, a role previously described as “a human Transformer who can change personas as easily as you or I change clothes.”

The back door pilot for the spin-off series will air as one half of a two-part episode of NCIS later this season.

Aussie NCIS showrunner Shane Brennan created the untitled spin-off and will serve as an executive producer should the spin-off go to series.

Update: It’s official, Chris O’Donnell has officially been cast.

• TiVo Australia announces free online movie downloads (via Blockbuster) and online interactive features.

• Showtime renews Californication for a 12-episode third season.

• ABC announces mid-season replacements Cupid, Castle and The Unusuals.

• CBS announces mid-season replacements Harper’s Island and Game Show in My Head.

• Reaper returns March 17 on The CW.

• The Office scores post-Super Bowl slot on NBC.

• The Mentalist (3.8/9) beats Fringe (3.7/9) in target demo for the third week in a row.

Sources: Variety, The Australian

What an interesting fall it has been, with a number of good performances from The Mentalist, Smallville, Supernatural and Gossip Girl to name a few and many casualties in My Own Worst Enemy, Dirty Sexy Money, Eli Stone, Pushing Daisies, Do Not Disturb, Lipstick Jungle, The Ex-List, Easy Money, Valentine, In Harm’s Way and Til Death. Here is how I rate each show.

Winners

The Simpsons: Back for its 20th season, The Simpsons has been Fox’s Sunday night stable mate pulling in an average of ~9M viewers this season. Couple this with the highest rating Treehouse of Horror episode in five years. Simpsons is definitely a winner for Fox even though the jokes seem to be recycled over and over again.

Family Guy: Has not dropped out of the weekly top 10 in the 18-49 bracket and dominates the 18-34 demo against the likes of Desperate Housewives and NFL. Has a number of years left in it.

Desperate Housewives: Now into its fifth season, the housewives seem to never age. Viewership has diminished due to a lacklustre third season (?), nevertheless it is Sunday’s night top scripted drama in total viewers and 18-49 demo.

Chuck: Against some tough opposition, Chuck managed to remain around the 6.5M mark and over the 2 rating in key demos in the fall.

Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother: Continually defies the critics, occasionally winning the timeslot in the key demos and has slowly built an audience over the fall season.

Two and a Half Men: Veteran CBS comedy which defies logic and reaps in excess of 14M viewers every week.

CSI: Miami and CSI: NY: The two spin-offs constantly pull in the masses and in Miami’s case building on its lead in.

Gossip Girl: Season 2 has been somewhat of a break through season for the teen drama, hitting series high numbers and providing a suitable and beneficial lead in for One Tree Hill.

One Tree Hill: After falling below the 3M mark during its 3rd, 4th and 5th seasons, One Tree Hill has bounced back nicely, regularly rating in the mid to low 3M range.

House: The move to 8/7c hasn’t helped its numbers, but it is taking one for the team as Fox continue to develop Fringe. Still pulls in massive demos for the news corp. network.

The Mentalist and NCIS: Against the House and Dancing juggernauts these two dramas have performed admirably, especially The Mentalist which does particularly well for the eye in the demos.

90210: Was off to a flying start, but numbers have settled around the 3M mark. Occasionally out-rates CW’s other teen dramas in One Tree Hill and Gossip Girl.

Criminal Minds: Behind the CSI franchise, it is CBS’s best rating demographic show amongst all the crime procedurals.

30 Rock: Has been nurtured nicely and off the back of the US election and Tina Fey’s extra exposure, numbers have soared to series highs.

The Office: The peacock’s best rating show in the fall, challenges the likes of Grey’s Anatomy, House and Desperate Housewives for the 18-49 crown.

ER: In its final season and still pulling in the viewers left, right and centre. Also defeats the likes of lead in assisted shows Life on Mars and Eleventh Hour in the key demos. One of NBC’s top rating shows of the fall.

CSI: Still pulling in the masses in its ninth season, also stays competitive in the demos against the demo king Grey’s Anatomy.

Grey’s Anatomy: Numbers have died down for the once ratings juggernaut, but it is still the week’s top rating demo show.

Supernatural and Smallville: Are up year-on-year and ratings can not be better with Supernatural soaring to series highs. Well deserved winners.

On the Bubble

King of the Hill: The recently cancelled animated comedy just misses out on the winners list. Regularly winning its timeslot in the 18-34 demo and hovering around the 6-7M mark week in week out. What were the execs at Fox smoking when they swung the axe?

American Dad: My favourite animated comedy of them all, does well in the demos but poor retention out of Family Guy has it a bee’s d**k away from a winner.

Amazing Race: Has slipped significantly in the demo, sometimes even dropping below the 2 rating in the 18-34 demo.

Cold Case: Solid numbers for veteran CBS, but its demos aren’t what CBS are looking for. If not for NFL overrun, CBS would be dead last in the demos on Sundays.

Brothers and Sisters: Averages 10M every week and a 4 rating in the demos, but losing a third of a compatible lead in is not good enough. Anymore it would’ve been a loser.

Heroes: Has lost a lot of steam, in previous seasons in has dominated the demos with nothing coming close to it, but this season Two and a Half Men constantly beats it in the key demos.

Prison Break: Has been stable across the fall season and regularly clears the 2 rating in the demos.

Old Christine and Gary Unmarried: Numbers for a relatively easy timeslot are soft, but CBS haven’t had another comedy block outside of Mondays, so this deserves a little credit, only just.

Samantha Who?: Just makes it into this list, retention out of Dancing with the Stars is a paltry 50 odd percent, but nothing else has done better out of Dancing. My judgement on Samantha Who? might change when the ratings for last night are released early tomorrow morning our time.

Boston Legal: After surviving the culling last year, Boston Legal continues to out perform a number of the alphabet’s other shows even though it is in its final season.

Fringe: Still a work in progress and if it weren’t for a House lead-in would be in the trash by now. Nevertheless, does well in the demos and is Fox’s best rating drama since House itself.

Law and Order SVU: Has tumbled to series low numbers, but still a consistent performer for an otherwise struggling network.

The Biggest Loser: Constantly slides under the radar for NBC, it is one of NBC’s best performers in demos.

America’s Next Top Model: Initially numbers were soft but has built as the season progressed, with the finale pulling in 4.8M and was the night’s top rating program amongst the 18-34 demo.

Private Practice: Best of a bad bunch on a Wednesday night, numbers will improve once it proceeds its sister show, Grey’s Anatomy.

Ugly Betty: Hasn’t reached the highs of its inaugural season, but still one of ABC’s better shows.

Life on Mars and Eleventh Hour: Poor retention out of lead in, but numbers have been acceptable.

Survivor: The reality veteran continues to kick off CBS’s Thursday night with a bang.

Ghost Whisperer and Numb3rs: Solid but not spectacular Friday night performers.

Everybody Hates Chris and The Game: Numbers are down on Smackdown, but approx 1.5-2M isn’t a bad effort for The CW.

Losers

The Unit: Moving it from Tuesday night to Sundays has sugar coated some flaws but retention out of Cold Case is good, however demos are a worry.

In Harm’s Way, Easy Money and Valentine: all lasted less than 6 weeks, could only muster 1M or so viewers and couldn’t even crack a point in the demo.

My Own Worst Enemy: The recently cancelled drama had a lot of potential, but numbers just didn’t stack up.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: Continues to bleed viewers from its series premiere, with its last airing netting less than 5M viewers. It might have a core fan base, but that is where it ends.

Privileged: Even though its one of my favourites of the new fall season, numbers have been poor out of a compatible 90210.

Eli Stone: Poor retention out of Dancing which eventually led to its cancellation.

Without A Trace: No longer appeals to the masses, but averages reasonable numbers for procedural kings CBS.

Pushing Daisies: Struggled in a relatively easy slot, with figures slipping below the 5.5M mark and 2 rating in the demo.

Dirty Sexy Money: Another sophomore drama culled due to ABC’s stupidity, however ratings were poor and cancellation was justified.

Stylista: What were The CW thinking here? Project Runway, Shear Genius to name a few.

Knight Rider: Exciting show which hasn’t caught on to the masses.

Life: Has lost its oomph factor from its freshman season and even with the shift to a more viewer friendly timeslot, numbers have been poor.

Lipstick Jungle: Numbers have headed south since its season two premiere.

Do Not Disturb and Til Death: Should have never green lit these two shows.

Deal or No Deal: Viewer fatigue has finally set in for this once stable performer.

My Name is Earl: Novelty is wearing off this once funny comedy.

Kath and Kim: Hasn’t worked out for NBC, but has the potential to be a good comedy.

Kitchen Nightmares and Hole in the Wall: Down year-on-year in that timeslot.

The Ex-List, Crusoe, Are you Smarter than a 5th Grader and Don’t Forget the Lyrics: Crusoe and Ex-List both couldn’t crack it on Friday, averaging ordinary numbers. The shift to Fridays for 5th Grader and Lyrics hasn’t worked out with both pulling less than its Thursday numbers.

Worst Week: Poor retention out of Two and a Half Men.

Tuesday night saw ABC dominate with the finale of Dancing with the Stars and the umpteenth repeat of A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, 20.58M; A18-49: 5.1 (rating)/14 (share); A18-34: 3.4/10 and 11.1M; A18-49: 3.5/9; A18-34: 2.6/8 respectively. What will the alphabet do now that Dancing with the Stars is finished? Their Mondays and Tuesdays will certainly collapse.

Fox were a close second in the 18-49 demo but took the crown in the 18-34 demo with House and Fringe (more House than Fringe). House finished with 12.49M; A18-49: 5.0/14 and A18-34: 4.9/15. While Fringe may be a work in progress, its numbers aren’t promising (8.73M; A18-49: 3.9/10; A18-34: 3.6/10) and loosing nearly 3M from its first half hour (first five minutes of the first half hour includes the last 5 minutes of House).

Over at CBS, NCIS managed 18.16M; A18-49: 3.7/10; A18-34: 2.1/6. The Mentalist which followed continues to be the highest rating freshman drama (15.91M; A18-49: 3.6; A18-34: 2.3/6) with Without a Trace completing the night, 10.37M; A18-49: 2.5; A18-34: 1.6/5. CBS’s Tuesday line-up has held up well against the Dancing with the Stars juggernaut and ratings are sure to improve once Dancing is out of the way.

Capping off the night, NBC had a two hour special of The Biggest Loser netting an unusually low 6.77M; A18-49: 2.6/7; A18-34: 2.2/7. Numbers might have been down last night but it deserves more credit for its 2008 performances given NBC’s troubles this year. However, Law and Order: SVU is loosing steam with a series low rating in the demos (8.55M, A18-49: 3.2/9; A18-34: 2.9/8)

Meanwhile on Cable:

Star Wars: Clone Wars (Cartoon Network, 9pm Friday) 2.775M
Sons of Anarchy (FX, 10pm Wednesday) 2.457M
Mythbusters (Discovery, 9pm Wednesday) 2.348M
South Park (Comedy Central, 10pm Thursday) 2.255M
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX, 10pm Thursday) 1.297M
True Blood (HBO, 9pm Sunday) 2.4M
Entourage (HBO, 10pm Sunday) 2M

Sorry no Summer Heights High numbers

Source: Nielsen TV Ratings

• Despite not announcing a title, NBC will be launching a new dance show set to air on the peacock early next year.

• Whilst on NBC, there are rumours NBC may bring back Knight Rider originals, David Hasslehoff and the original K.I.T.T, William Daniels on a permanent basis.

• Still on NBC, they have ordered an additional 6 episodes of veteran Sci-fi drama Medium. This brings the episode order for its fifth season to 19. Also, look out for an earlier than usual return this year as a result of My Own Worst Enemy’s axing.

• A network spokesman has confirmed CBS has ordered a ‘full season’ of freshman comedy Gary Unmarried. This brings the episode order for the ABC Studios and CBS Paramount produced show to 20, with an additional two scripts for a possible 22 episode order.

• CBS’s other freshman comedy Worst Week has also been given an extra three episodes.

• A USA Network spokesman confirmed veteran dramady Monk has been renewed for an 8th and final season. The series will finish off with 16 episodes. The 7th season is currently on hiatus and will be back in the new year, however there will be an annual Christmas Special on the 28th of November.

Sources: Hollywood Reporter and TV by the Numbers

NBC recently announced a shuffle to its line up with Life switching timeslots with Lipstick Jungle. And going by last night’s numbers or should I say the switch in timeslots? We won’t be seeing Lipstick Jungle back after its 13 episode order. Lipstick Jungle finished with a series low, 3.18M and 0.9 rating / 3 share (A18-49). Preceding Lipstick Jungle was NBC’s new fall show Crusoe, which netted a season low of 4.17M A18-49: 0.8/3. NBC has made it public that Crusoe is a mini-series so only 13 episodes have been ordered, however if NBC knew this was a hit they would not have shoved it on Fridays. Anyway, any suggestions for NBC, what can they do with their Fridays?

CBS won the night with its crime triple, Ghost Whisperer pulled 9.41M; A18-49: 2.2/8 followed by an NCIS repeat which nearly doubled last week’s axed occupant, The Ex-List with 11.21M; A18-49: 2.3/ 8. This improved lead-in inturn gave Numb3rs season high ratings, 10.62M; A18-49: 2.3/ 8. It is unbelievable how a repeat was last night’s top rating show.

Source: Nielsen Media Research data

Two more seasons of Dexter

Peabody Award winning show Dexter has been renewed for another two seasons.

Currently in its third season, Showtime has order 12 episodes each for Seasons 4 and 5.

Dexter is Showtime’s top rating drama with 2.5M every Sunday, a 16% jump year-on-year.

“Dexter’s enormous success is a tribute to the great achievements of its cast, the producing team, the author of the original book, and the gifted Michael C. Hall,” says Showtime Entertainment President Robert Greenblatt. “I thought at best we would attract a devoted cult audience but soon realized that, ironically, this show is so thematically rich and layered with humanity that audiences of all kinds have flocked to it.”

Starring Michael C. Hall as Dexter, the good guy doing bad things (or is it the bad guy doing good things?), the show follows the life of Dexter, who by day is a conflicted blood-spatter expert for the Miami police department and a serial killer by night.

Dexter airs on Network Ten and Showcase, Network Ten will air season 2 next year with season 3 slated for January 2009 on Showcase

More Private Practice

Despite sinking ratings, ABC has ordered the back nine episodes of its medical soap, Private Practice. Interrupted by the writer’s strike last year, ABC decided to hold off the post-strike episodes of season 1. However, this decision has only had a detrimental effect on ratings with season 2 down significantly on last season (33% and 30% in total viewers and 18-49 demo respectively). Nevertheless, it is the strongest show on otherwise a weak Wednesday night for the ABC.

Seven have yet to screen season 2 of Private Practice.

In other news, the weak link in CBS’s Monday comedy line up, Worst Week has been given two more scripts.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

The Mentalist Gets Back-Nine

CBS crime drama, The Mentalist, which stars Australia’s Simon Baker, has been given a full season order. It’s the first new CBS series to be given a back-nine order.

Locally, the Nine Network can finally rejoice, it looks like this season wont be a complete bust. After several years of picking up US series which were cancelled within the first 13 episodes, they finally have a couple in the bag which ought to gain a second season, provided the US ratings stay strong.

The Mentalist joins fellow Nine Network drama, Fringe and The CW’s 90210 on the freshman full season order conveyer belt.

Gossip Girl Extended

Meanwhile, The CW’s Gossip Girl has been given a two-episode extension to it’s full season order, bringing the total to 24 episodes. The additional episodes are to make up for the shortened previous season, due to the writers strike. The extension comes as the teen drama continues to reach series highs for the green network.

ABC have cleaned up on the first night of ratings for the US fall season, boasting the largest overall audience figures of all networks. CBS won in the demos with its CSI: Miami/Monday night comedy block.

ABC’s Dancing With the Stars won its timeslot from 8pm to 10pm with massive overall audience figures (5.3/13 in 18-49, 21.34m), setting up a huge lead in audience for legal dramedy Boston Legal. It made for the largest audience on the opening Monday of the season in nine years for the alphabet network.

The CBS comedy block scored highly in the young adult demo with The Big Bang Theory (3.6 rating/10 share in adults 18-49, 9.32 million viewers overall) and How I Met Your Mother (4.0/10, 9.79m) which scored its highest season premiere ever. Two and a Half Men gained on its previous years figures (5.3/12, 14.48m), while newcomer Worst Week closed the night (3.8/8, 10.87m).
NBC didn’t fair as well with overall audience figures. Heroes scored its lowest season premiere ever, however still holding up quite well in the demos (5.0/12, 10.09m).

FOX’s Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2.3/6 in 18-49, 5.89m) and Prison Break (2.5/6, 5.84m) failed to impress as usual, having the unfortunate disadvantage of starting several weeks before ratings season.

The CW remained steady in its demos with Gossip Girl (1.6/4, 3.33m) and One Tree Hill (1.5/3, 3.14m), placing the green network third for the night in women 18-34 (3.6/9). Gossip Girl also scored its second best 18-34 score to date (2.4/7).

Australia’s Simon Baker (The Guardian, Smith) makes a return to network television in the new CBS drama The Mentalist. Baker plays Patrick Jane, a former psychic medium who now acts as a consultant to the CBI (California Bureau of Investigation).

The Mentalist also stars Robin Tunney (Prison Break), Owain Yeoman (The Nine), Tim Kang (The Unit) and Amanda Righetti (Reunion). 

See Nine’s promo below.

The Mentalist premieres September 23 on CBS and will be fast-tracked by the Nine Network.