CYNTHIA TURNER’S
CYNOPSIS

05/10/04

Good morning. It’s Monday, May 10, 2004, and this is your first early morning briefing.

NBC takes Friday night with a 2.9/11 A18-49 rating according to data from Nielsen Media Research.  ABC was second for the night with a 2.3/9, followed by CBS 2.3/8, Fox 1.3/5, UPN 1.1/4. WB 1.0/4.   At 8pm ABC won the hour with a 2.4/10 with its back to back George Lopez sitcoms. CBS and NBC tied with a 9 share for the hour, followed by Fox’s 5 share, and WB and UPN’s 4 share.  At 9pm NBC was in front with  a 3.0/11 for the second hour of Dateline. ABC’s sitcoms ranked #2 from 9-10p with a 2.4/9, with CBS close behind posting a 2.4/8 for JAG.  UPN pulled a 4 share, WB a 3.  NBC also won the 10p hour with Third Watch’s 3.5/12.  CBS’ Cold Case [r] earned a 2.5/8, and ABC’s 20/20 delivered a 2.2/7.

Friends HH rating of 29.2 – closest guess from Cynopsis subscribers came from Lance Hanish, LBC Advertising who guessed a 32.0 HH Rtg.

Series Finale:  The Parkers – UPN 8pm

Next week is the broadcast networks upfront presentations to advertisers, where they will formally announce their fall schedules (or in Fox’s case, their launch dates of new shows will be announced).  To that end, all this week, Cynopsis will recap what we alreadyknow – what has been renwed, what’s on the bubble, and what has already been ordered for next season, and what is going away.  Beginning with NBC:

• News series receiving orders:  Joey (Warner Bros.) picks up where Friends leaves off – beginning with Joey’s move to LA. Father of the Pride (Dreamworks) stars John Goodman, Orlando Jones, Carl Reiner and Cheryl Hines is an animated CGI format series about the family of white lions who work in Vegas for Siegfried & Roy.  The Contender (Mark Burnett Prods/DreamWorks) has been ordered for midseason with 16 eps.  Law & Order: Trial by Jury (Universal) expands the Law & Order franchise by one more, this time primarily from the jury’s POV and including Jerry Orbach from L&O.  Plain Jane (NBC Studios) is the mirror image of Average Joe
• Renewals for Next Season: American Dreams, The Apprentice,  Average Joe, Crossing jordan, Dateline, ER, Fear Factor, Las Vegas, Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Scrubs, Third Watch, West Wing and Will & Grace.
• Returning this summer – For Love or Money (June 7 at 9p), Last comic Standing (June 8 at 8pm), Who Wants to Marry My Dad? (June 14 at 10p)
• New shows expected this summer:  American Princess (Granada TV), Come to Papa (Warner Bros. Television/NBC) debuts June 3 at 830p, The Next Action Star (Silver Pix Television, GRB Ent/NBC) begins on June 15 at 8p, The One That Got away (NBC Studios)
• No official decision yet: Happy Family, Whoopi, Good Morning Miami, The Tracy Morgan Show, Miss Match,

Alan King, comedian, actor, author, 76, died at a Manhattan hospital last evening from lung cancer. A standup comic from the 1950’s, King was on the Ed Sullivan show more than 90 times, and later on The Tonight Show. He traveled with Tommy Dorsey’s orchestra and played many of the top nightclubs across the country. When he was asked to perform for Queen Elizabeth II, he was introduced to Her Majesty.  She said, How do you do Mr. King? and he said How do you do, Mrs. Queen? Fortunately, Prince Phillip laughed.  King appeared in numerous films and on Broadway in Guys and Dolls, as well as produced several B’way plays including The Lion in Winter.  He was also known to frequent throughout his career the Friar’s Club in NYC, where he also hosted many a celebrity roast.

AMC announced their new slate of original programming and it includes a series of specials, a new series, and a few returning.  Among the specials is a partnership with Entertainment Weekly magazine, celebrating AMC’s 20th anniversary with five original specials, each paying tribute to 20 great movie moments.  The five specials are 20 Scariest Movies, 20 Greatest Holiday Movies, 20 Guilty Pleasure, 20 Greatest Films of the 70’s; and 20 Greatest Films of the 80’s, all produced by Dakota Films in assoc with Entertainment Weekly. The first sepcial is scheduled for October.  Also coming to AMC is a new original series called Into Character, a 13 part series where an ordinary person becomes one of their favorite film characters in an effort to reach a goal they otherwise wouldn’t reach.  One guy wants to become a prize fighter, modeled after Rocky, and go three rounds in front of a Philadephia crowd; another wants to prove to his future inlaws he has what it takes and becomes La Bamba. Into Character is produced by Axial Entertaintment for AMC.  Two returning series are DVD_TV and The AMC Project.

According to Variety, USA Network has several new original series in the hopper with plans to move forward once the strength and resources of NBC are brought to bear.  Among the originals in development are Edison (Touchstone TV) about an undercover cop who has become so accustom to lying that while his career is doing terrifically well, his personal life leaves something to be desired; and Before the Fact based on a UK Channel 5 format, is about a real police force which follows repeat offenders in an attempt to catch them before they commit their next crime.   Also – one quick programming note: USA’s Touching Evil will move to Monday nights starting tonight.

Weekend Box Office Estimates: May 7-9, 2004
Van Helsing (Universal)         $54.2 million – opening weekend
Mean Girls (Paramount)          $14.0 million – 2 wk total $42.4m
Man on Fire (Fox)               $7.9 million – 3 wk total $56.0m
New York Minute (Warner Bros.)  $6.2 million – opening weekend
13 Going on 30 (Sony)           $5.5 million – 3 wk total $42.5m
Laws of Attraction (New Line)   $3.5 million – 2 wk total $11.9m
Kill Bill Vol. 2 (Miramax)              $3.0 million – 4 wk total $57.8m
Godsend (Lions Gate)            $2.7 million – 2 wk total $11.3m
Envy (DreamWorks)               $2.6 million – 2 wk total $10.1m
The Punisher (Lions Gate)       $1.2 million – 4 wk total $32.1m
Source: Box Office Mojo

Attention all pirates – be forewarned. An LA Superior Court sentence a 34 year old digital pirate to 42 days in jail and three years probation after being caught taping the movie The Alamo last month. The projectionist noticed the camcorder light, and via the aid of night goggles (night goggles in a movie theatre?), the pirate was confirmed, and collared.  He was ordered to surrender the camera during his jail time.

No big secret who won Thursday night – NBC had it wall to wall with an overall 18.7/45 A18-49 rating according to Nielsen Media Research.  CBS trailed by 30 share points, ranking #2 with a 6.2/15.  At 8pm Friends Retrospective delivered a 16.2/43 – this is considered a set warmer (in the olden days, you had to warm up the set for a spell before you got a picture). CBS’ Survivor All Stars earned a very respectable 6.9/18.  At 9pm the series finale of Friends had more than half the A18-49 population watching — 24.4/53.  The highest demo number came from W18-34 with an unbelievable 29.6/63, and an overall 51.1 million total viewers. CSI found an audience with a 6.5/14 and 20.4 million total viewers.  At 10p ER held the Friends momentum with a 15.6/37; tho Without a Trace did well on a tough night with a 5.2/12. 

As is the norm of late, Fox won the Saturday night race for A18-49 ratings with an overall 2.4/9 according to Nielsen Media Research.  NBC followed at #2 with a 2.1/8, wtih ABC 2.0/7 and CBS 1.6/6 trailing.  At 8pm Fox’s regularly Saturday fare Cops x2 won the hour with a 2.3/9, while ABC and NBC tied at a 6 share, CBS a 5 share.  At 9pm America’s Most Wanted on Fox earned a 2.4/9, ahead of ABC’s Extreme Makeover HomeEdition [r] which found an 8 share; NBC delivered a 7 share, CBS a 5.  At 10p NBC jumped out in front with L&O: SVU 2.9/9, with a steady ABC ranking #2 with the end of a 2-hour Extreme Makeover Home Edition (2.5/8), and CBS’ final hour of its movie Hannibal 2.1/7.

By the by, if it’s not your usual habit, you may want to pick up a copy of The New York Times newspaper tomorrow.  There is a special pull out section called Television Upfront that may be of interest.

John J. Sie, founder, Chairman/CEO of Starz Encore Group has announced he will retire effective June 30 from the CEO position, though he will retain the title of Chairman. That he is retiring is not really news since he announced a year ago retirement was on the radar, sticking with it until SVOD became viable component of the Starz Encore format. Starz on Demand is now available in more than 11 million cable households with more coming.  Moving into the CEO position on an interim basis will be President/COO Mark Bauman, until a permanent CEO can be named.  At that point, Baumon will also retire. Robert Clasen has been named President/COO.

Colleen Seldin has been named SVP/Worldwide Operations for Miramax Films, reporting to Rick Sands, COO, and based in Miramax’s NY offices.  Colleen will continue with Miramax’s int’l business divisions including theatrical distribution, and will also be involved with worldwide home entertainment and television.  She has been with Miramax since 1999.

Thursday, May 6, 2004. Fast Affiliate Household Ratings for all Networks. Fast affiliate numbers which reflect time period data, not program data, and can change slightly once the finals come in, particularly for LIVE programming (i.e. Football). Source Nielsen Media Research. Time Period Averages Only. [p] = Premiere; [o] = Original; [r] = Repeat

NBC     23.6/36 Special: The One with All the Other Ones-A Friends Retrospective 21.6/34, Friends [Series Finale] 29.2/42, ER 19.9/31

CBS     11.4/17 Survivor: All Stars 10.8/17, CSI 12.9/19, Without a Trace 10.5/16

ABC     3.7/6   Extreme Makeover: Friends Helping Friends 3.4/5, Primetime Thursday  4.3/7

FOX     2.8/4   Special: Cops: Crimes Of Passion Special Edition  (OTO)  2.8/4

UPN     2.8/4   WWE Smackdown  2.8/4

WB      1.8/3   Steve Harvey’s [r] 1.8/3, Steve Harvey’s [r] 1.9/3, Steve Harvey’s [r] 1.7/3, Steve Harvey’s [r] 1.7/2

A18-49  NBC 18.7/45, CBS 6.2/15, ABC 1.8/4, Fox 1.5/4, UPN 1.5/4, WB 0.9/2

Friday, May 7, 2004. Fast Affiliate Household Ratings for all Networks. Fast affiliate numbers which reflect time period data, not program data, and can change slightly once the finals come in, particularly for LIVE programming (i.e. Football). Source Nielsen Media Research. Time Period Averages Only. [p] = Premiere; [o] = Original; [r] = Repeat

NBC     6.2/12  Dateline 5.9/11; Third Watch 6.3/12

CBS     6.2/12  Joan of Arcadia 5.7/11, JAG 6.6/12, Cold Case (OTO)[r] 6.3/12

ABC     4.7/9   George Lopez  4.1/8, George Lopez [r] 4.4/9, Hope & Faith 4.6/9, Hope & Faith [r] 4.3/8, 20/20 5.4/10

FOX     2.5/5   Fox Movie: Spy Kids 2.5/5

WB      1.8/4   Reba 2.3/5, What I Like About You 1.9/4, Grounded for Life 1.7/3, Run of the House 1.5/3

UPN     1.7/3   Movie: Shaft 1.7/3

A18-49  NBC 2.9/11, ABC 2.3/9, CBS 2.3/8, Fox 1.3/5, UPN 1.1/4. WB 1.0/4

Saturday, May 8, 2004. Fast Affiliate Household Ratings for all Networks. Fast affiliate numbers which reflect time period data, not program data, and can change slightly once the finals come in, particularly for LIVE programming (i.e. Football). Source Nielsen Media Research. Time Period Averages Only. [p] = Premiere; [o] = Original; [r] = Repeat

NBC     4.8/10  Most Outrageous Game Show Moments 3.5/7, Most Outrageous Game Show Moments 4.4/8, L&O: SVU 6.6/13

FOX     4.1/8   Cops 3.5/8, Cops 4.1/8, AMW 4.3/8

CBS     3.4/7   Movie: Hannibal 3.4/7

ABC     3.5/7   Extreme Makeover Home Edition [r] 3.1/6, Extreme Makeover Home Edition (2 hrs) [r] 3.3/7

A18-49  Fox 2.4/9,  NBC 2.1/8, ABC 2.0/7, CBS 1.6/6

A MESSAGE FROM WARNER BROS. DOMESTIC CABLE DISTRIBUTION

Source: NHI Explorer, 4/26/04-5/2/04.  Cvg  Ratings.  Ad-supported cable only.  Cable rank ties MT:Murder-Memory with A18-49 and ties Punk’d, So. Park, Osbournes, MT: Stalking Back, MT: The Accident, 5^th Element, L&O:SVU with A25-54.  Comedy Central rank ties So. Park w/A25-54.

The History Channel presents This Day in History:
1994 – After suffering years as a political prisoner in the struggle against apartheid, Nelson Mandela is inaugurated as the first black president of South Africa.

Answer to Friday’s Trivia Question:  What primetime TV character is afraid of flowers, particularly after that “bumble bee incident”?  RICHIE CUNNINGHAM – Happy Days.  Kudos to: Amy Honig-Mediacom/NY; Steve Benitez-YES Network/NY; Cary Miller-Verance/LA;  Muhammad Eldereiny-RPA/LA.

A MESSAGE FROM COMCAST SPOTLIGHT

Comcast Spotlight now has the ability to segment markets both geographically and demographically. Adtag and Adcopy enable advertisers to be more targeted than they could ever be with broadcast. Comcast Spotlight – Spot cable finally delivers. For more information click here.

Today’s Trivia Question:  What will the Papadalupapadipu plant do for you? (click here to respond to the trivia question and please be sure to include with your answer your name, company, city and time zone. Only the second four correct responses from each time zone will be listed in tomorrow’s kudo list.)

Later — Cyn

Cynthia Turner’s Cynopsis
05/10/04  5:22am
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Copyright Cynthia Turner 2004

A MESSAGE FROM OUTDOOR LIFE NETWORK

OLN^® – A Network For All Seasons

Delivering superior programming for men

Spring: NASCAR Outdoors – 75 million race fans for the taking.
Summer: Tour de France – 2003’s million plus viewers can’t be wrong.
Fall: Gravity Games – The most popular action sports event ever.
Winter: Picabo Street’s SnowZone – A proven favorite of male viewers in prime.

JOB OPENING:  CT based CABLEready wants fun, INTERNATIONAL SALES PERSON to join our vibrant company;5 yrs exp or less; entry level considered; multi-lingual pref; see website for details. http://www.cableready.net/IWantYou.html    (5/15)

JOB OPENING:  MANAGER, PROGRAM PLANNING, VH1/NYC. Ext. knwldg. of ent. industry & VH1 prgming, create skeds/stunts/themes, track prog. info, Excel/PPT/PTS, Min. 3 yr. in program planning.EOE/M/F/D/AAP Apply www.mtvncareers.com (5/15)

JOB OPENING:  MANAGER OF PUBLIC RELATIONS/TBS & TNT/ATL: Develop and execute campaigns for original movies and series. Series experience a plus. 7+ years TV PR experience req. Send resume/cover letter:
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JOB OPENING:  AD SALES ASSISTANT (entry-level), TV One/ NY office. Please see our web site for a detailed job description and other exciting career opportunities. www.tv-one.tv (5/14)

JOB OPENING:  DIRECTOR, PGMING RESEARCH, Comedy Central/NY. 6 yrs primary/secondary research exp pref w/ cable/bcst net. Expert: N-Power/Nielsen Systems. Strong leadership/presentation/writing skills req. Apply: www.mtvncareers.com (5/14)

JOB OPENING:  SR MANAGER, PROGRAMMING RESEARCH, MTV/NY. 5+ yrs quantitative research exp pref. Expert in all Nielsen software. Must: strong writing, presentation, analytical skills, and management exp. Apply: www.mtvncareers.com (5/14)

JOB OPENING:  TIME SALES ADMINISTRATOR/Lifetime TV NY. Primary resp. are scheduling, placement, trafficking of all time sales pgms. See www.lifetimetv.com/about/jobs for more info; email resume/cover ltr:
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JOB OPENING:  MGR., STATION RELATIONS – Los Angeles. Primary station contact for 1st-run daytime show. Coordinate promo campaigns, station requests, liaison with prod/talent. Syndication background req’d. Resume to
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JOB OPENING:  Successful NY based television music company seeks DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION.  Top-notch client relation skills, great with budgets, and an excellent manager of production staff.  Email resume to:
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JOB OPENING:  MGR MKTG, Disney Consumer Products, Baby Einstein. Develop marketing plans supporting Little Einstein.Full job desc/apply: https://dcpcareers.disney.go.com/dcpcareers/submit.jsp?Source=Synopsis&Requisition=CP42982 (5/13)

JOB OPENING:  FREELANCE PUBLICIST/TBS & TNT: Motivated, organized freelance publicist with reality TV exp. Must be able to strategize/execute a plan, handle media, talent. Send resume/cover letter:
(5/13)

JOB OPENING:  SENIOR ANALYST, SYN. RESEARCH, Buena Vista TV, LA. 2+ yrs. exp. Proficiency w/Nielsen Gal. Expl., Mkt. Brks, WRAP, Word, Excel & Powerpoint necessary.  Please send resumes to
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JOB OPENING:  BCST DESIGNER, Comedy Central/NY. Bcst/Motion Graphic Dsgnr & Animator. Strong design/typogrph skills/After Effects  Photo Shop/Illstr. Prior exp net/des house a+. Print/Flash/3D Bkgd need not apply. www.mtvncareers.com (5/12)

JOB OPENING:  SR DIR BIZ DEV, MTV/NY. Gaming/digital media/strategic planning exp req. Identify/analyze/dev new biz ops/strategies. 5+yrs in field. Must: PPt/Excel(fin. modeling) & pres. skills.MBA a +. Apply www.mtvncareers.com (5/12)

JOB OPENING:  MGR CONSUMER PROD MKTG & RETAIL DEV, MTV/NY. 4-5 yrs exp brand mgmt/licensing/ &/or ent mktg. Strong pres skills. Strat & creat thinker/ team player. Fast paced env. Prof Excel & PPt. Apply www.mtvncareers.com (5/12)

JOB OPENING:  AD SALES RESEARCH ANALYST/Discovery Networks-NY: Min 2 yrs research exp. Knowledge of Nielsen/MRI required, strong communication & computer skills necessary.  Send resume/cover letter:
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JOB OPENING:   SR. RESEARCH ANALYST, TBS/TNT Ad Sales, NY 3-5 yrs Nat’l rsch exp; strong analytical/communication skills, ability to interpret data; proficiency in Nielsen data/systems; www.turner.com req # 24281BR   (5/11)

JOB OPENING:  INTERACTIVE SALES PLANNER-CNN/NY. Acct tracking, prep proposals/pres., research. Participate in Turner Sales Training pgm. Strong Comm. skills, college deg. Interactive exp a +. Resume:
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SITUATION WANTED ADS, POSTED BY THOSE LOOKING TO BE HIRED —

SITUATION WANTED:   CDN ASSOCIATE PRODUCER with specific experience booking, promoting, and producing CDN comedians. Enthusiastic, organized, committed. Toronto based, willing to travel. Contact
or call 416-236-0089  (5/15)

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SITUATION WANTED:   GRAPHIC DESIGN STUDIO – specializing in print design for the entertainment industry. Appearing in Multichannel News and Cable World for clients such as IFC and the Bravo Network. Contact:
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SITUATION WANTED:   Former producer/Aspiring actor would be great LA-based PERSONAL ASSISTANT. Extremely reliable, pleasantly affable, and a good, solid East-Coaster. Resume and references upon request.
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WHAT’S ON TONIGHT:  MONDAY, MAY 10, 2004

COURT TV:       The I-Zone, Forensic Files, The Investigators
ABC             Wonderful World of Disney: A Wrinkle in Time
CBS             Yes Dear, Still Standing, Raymond, Two and a Half Men, CSI: Miami
FOX             The Swan, The Swan
NBC             Fear Factor, Las Vegas, The Restaurant
PAX             AFV, AFV, Early Edition, Diagnosis Murder
UPN             The Parkers [series finale], Eve, Girlfriends, Half & Half
WB              7th Heaven, Everwood
TELE            Prisonera, El Alma Herida, Mujeres Apasionadas
UNIV            Mariana de la Noche, Bajo la Misma Piel, Cristina