Cynopsis

11/26/07

Good Morning.  It’s Monday, November 26, 2007 and this is your first early morning briefing. 

Writers strike update: Negotiations begin today between the WGA and the AMPTP, while simultaneous rallies will be going on in NY and LA.  Joining a solidarity rally in Washington Square Park in NYC will be members of WGAW, SEIU, SAG, UNITE-HERE, UFT national and NYS AFL-CIOs, the New York City Labor Council, celebrities and more. While in LA, WGAW rallies are scheduled in front of the CBS, Paramount, WB, Universal, Sony, Disney, NBC and Fox Studios. On Wednesday, in recognition of International Day of Solidarity, members of the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds will hold demonstrations in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, English and French Canada, the U.K., Mexico and France.

Tonight’s Premieres:
ABC: Notes from the Underbelly at 930p

For those hoping to catch a Broadway show in New York during the holiday season take heart, the striking stagehands and theater producers returned to the negotiating table on Sunday, almost two full weeks since stagehands walked out of their jobs shutting down about two dozen plays and musicals. One holiday-themed musical resumed despite the strike as Supreme Court Justice Helen Freedman ordered the $6 million Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas production to be reopened due to the show’s limited run which ends January 6.

Twentieth Television, Inc.’s third syndicated court series, Cristina’s Court has been renewed through the 2008-2009 season. The company previously announced the renewal of Divorce Court and Judge Alex for the upcoming season.

TBS’ debut of the sketch comedy series Frank TV last Tuesday night (11p) delivered 2.9 million total viewers.  In demos, the premiere brought in 1.85 million A18-49 viewers and 1.71 million A25-54 viewers.

Update on clearances for the Bonnie Hunt Show being distributed by Warner Bros – the show has now been picked up in 17 of the top 20 markets, and has an overall clearance of 75% of the country.

A new edition of Making News is coming to TV Guide Network, this one based at the New Vision Television stations in Savannah, Georgia – WJCL and its in-market sister station WTGS. The first of the 13 episodes is due to premiere on June 2, says Variety.

Thanksgiving Weekend Box Office Estimates: Nov 23-25, 2007
Enchanted (Buena Vista)                          $35.3 million – opening weekend
This Christmas (ScreenGems)                    $18.6 million – opening weekend
Beowulf (Paramount)                               $16.2 million – 2 wk total $56.4m
Hitman (Fox)                                          $13.0 million – opening weekend
Bee Movie (Paramount/Dreamworks)           $12.0 million – 4 wk total $112.1m
Fred Claus (Warner Bros.)                         $10.7 million – 3 wk total $53.1m
August Rush (Warner Bros.)                      $9.4 million – 2 wk total $13.3m
American Gangster (Universal)                   $9.2 million – 4 wk total $115.79m
The Mist (MGM/W)                                  $9.1 million – opening weekend
No Country for Old Men (Miramax)              $8.1 million – 3 wk total $16.4m
Source: Box Office Mojo

Joining the cast of CSI: Miami as a recurring character will be Elizabeth Berkley as Julia Winston, aka Horatio Caine’s ex wife.  In her first episode, her billionaire husband is murdered.

TNT has added to its cast of the pilot project Leverage with Beth Riesgraf and Gina Bellman.  The set up is simple – an insurance investigator brings together a band of thieves to conduct his own thievery.  Riesgraf is an accomplished burglar, and Bellman a con artist.  The project stars Timothy Hutton as the insurance investigator turn thief.

ABC‘s comedy pilot The More Things Change … from Regency TV has signed Chris Johnson to star in the role of Rick, the central guy in this four-man buddy project.

You remember Men Behaving Badly?  Well, this has nothing to do with that.  Gods Behaving Badly is a new project from Red Hour Films based on the new novel of the same name by author Marie Phillips, reports THR.  The novel has been optioned for a comedy project, where as it turns out, ancient Greek Gods have been living together in a house in London since the mid 1600’s, and while they have been running things from this house, they’re now getting bored. The book is due out here in the US on December 10.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM CABLEU

American Public Television (APT) recruited Gerry Field as VP/Technology and Distribution Services to add new technical strategies allowing APT to more efficiently deliver its programs to more than 355 public television stations across the country. Gerry will also manage the IT and distribution services divisions. Additionally, APT hired Jamie Haines, APR as Director/Communications to lead the company’s promotion and publicity initiatives. Jamie will also supervise business-to-business marketing. Furthermore, APT advanced Virginia (Ginny) Hamilton to Manager/Distribution Services where she handles assisting producers with APT’s technical program specifications among other duties.

Today in Cynopsis Kids

• Sorpresa to get re-brand
• Coolabi and Blue-Zoo deal with Disney Channel Worldwide
• Bevy of international kid series sales

Today in Cynopsis International 

• MarCap ups its stakes in EM.Sport Media and Highlight Communications
• Trekkies announcement! CBS Paramount International Television inks Virgin Media on-demand deal for Star Trek content
• Disney on verge of inking another U.K. option deal?

Today in Cynopsis Digital, listen to the audio version here or subscribe to the iTunes Cyn Digital podcast 

• The Romantics let Activision know What They (Don’t) Like About Guitar Hero
• MoveOn.org joins the uproar against Facebook’s Beacon system; EU also concerned
• New French law authorizes ISPs to stop file sharers in their tracks

Tuesday – A18-49 Analysis:  FOX held onto its Tuesday night power base with 4.9/13 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. CBS came out on top at 8p with NCIS at 3.7/10, while the Charlie Brown specials on ABC averaged a second place 3.4/9. FOX was the big winner during 9p with House at 6.8/16 and ABC’s Dancing with the Stars Results was next at 4.9/12. ABC took over the lead at 10p as The Bachelor wrap-up show did a 4.1/11.

Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Tuesday, November 20, 2007 (November Sweep Day 20) time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

ABC: 9.2/14          A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving 5.9/10, He’s a Bully Charlie Brown 5.8/9, Dancing with the Stars 13.0/19, The Bachelor: After the Final Rose 8.7/14

FOX: 7.6/12           Bones 5.2/8, House 10.0/15

CBS: 7.5/12           NCIS 10.8/17, The Unit 6.7/10, Cane 5.1/8

NBC: 5.8/9            The Biggest Loser 4 [2 hours] 4.8/7, Law & Order: SVU 7.8/13

UNIV: 2.0/3           Amar sin Limites 1.8/3, Destilando Amor 2.8/4, Como Ama una Mujer 1.3/2

CW: 1.4/2             Beauty and the Geek 1.7/3, Reaper [r] 1.1/2

TELE: 0.6/1          Madre Luna 0.7/1, Esclava Isaura 0.6/1, Pecados Ajenos 0.5/1

A18-49: FOX 4.9/13, ABC 4.1/11, NBC 3.4/9, CBS 2.9/8, UNIV 1.7/4, CW 1.0/3, TELE 0.4/1

Wednesday – A18-49 Analysis: On Thanksgiving Eve, CBS was #1 Wednesday night at 3.1/9 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. ABC’s Pushing Daisies won the time period at 8p with 2.3/7. Then the last two hours belonged to CBS: Criminal Minds did best at 9p with 3.8/11, followed by a winning CSI: NY at 10p with 3.7/11.

Note: We are in the midst of the November sweep, so it we should mention overall TV usage levels (Hut/Put) were down due to Thanksgiving; versus the previous week Adults 18-49 levels were at -10% (33.9% vs. 37.7%) and Households down by -5% (58.6% vs. 62.2%).

Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Wednesday, November 21, 2007 (November Sweep Day 21) – time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

CBS: 7.6/13       Kid Nation 4.3/7, Criminal Minds 9.6/16, CSI: NY 8.9/15

NBC: 5.4/9          Phenomenon 3.8/7, Deal or No Deal [2 hours] 6.2/10

ABC: 5.0/8          Pushing Daisies 4.7/8, Private Practice 5.7/9, Dirty Sexy Money 4.5/8

FOX: 3.3/6           Back to You [r] 3.6/6, ’til Death [r] 3.1/5, Kitchen Nightmares 3.3/5

UNIV: 2.0/3         Amar sin Limites 1.5/3, Destilando Amor 2.6/4, Don Francisco Presenta 1.9/3

CW: 1.7/3           America’s Next Top Model 2.5/4, Gossip Girl [r] 1.0/2

TELE: 0.6/1        Madre Luna 0.7/1, La Esclava Isaura 0.6/1, Pecados Ajenos 0.4/1

A18-49: CBS 3.1/9, NBC 2.5/7, ABC 2.3/7, FOX 1.9/6, UNIV 1.7/5, CW 1.1/3, TELE 0.4/1

Thursday – A18-49 Analysis: CBS took home the prize Thursday night with 3.6/11 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. Despite some different programming for the holiday night, the usual winners prevailed: CBS’ Survivor won at 8p with 3.6/11, and ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy was #1 at 9p with 5.0/14. During 10p, CBS’ Without a Trace was first with 3.1/9 while the return of ABC’s October Road was third overall at 2.2/7.

Note: overall TV usage levels (Hut/Put) were down due to the Thanksgiving holiday; versus the previous week Adults 18-49 levels were -13% (33.8% vs. 38.9%) and Households were down -11% (57.0% vs. 64.1%)

Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Thursday, November 22, 2007 (November Sweep Day 22)  time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

CBS: 7.4/14      Survivor: China 6.2/12, CSI 8.5/16, Without a Trace 7.5/14

ABC: 5.7/11        Ugly Betty 4.6/9, Grey’s Anatomy 8.2/15, October Road [p] 4.1/8

NBC: 3.7/7          NBC Movie: The Incredibles 3.9/7, The Office [r] 2.6/5

FOX: 2.4/5          FOX Movie: Dodgeball 2.4/5

UNIV: 1.3/2         Yo Amo a Juan Querendon 1.1/2, Gran Noche de Destilando Amor 1.4/3

CW: 0.8/1           Movie: Raise Your Voice 0.8/1

TELE: 0.4/1         Su Excelencia [7p start] 0.3/1, Sube y Baja 0.4/1

A18-49: CBS 3.6/11, ABC 3.1/9, NBC 2.5/7, FOX 1.5/5, UNIV 1.1/3, CW 0.4/1, TELE 0.4/1

 
Friday – A18-49 Analysis: CBS was #1 Friday night at 2.5/7 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. Ghost Whisperer on CBS won at 8p with 2.7/8. At 9p, NBC’s movie presentation did best at 2.4/7, just a trifle better than UNIV’s Destilando Amor at 2.3/7. A tie for first happened during 10p as CBS’ Numb3rs and NBC’s movie both posted a 2.6/8.

Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Friday, November 23, 2007 (November Sweep Day 23) – time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

CBS: 5.8/10       Ghost Whisperer 6.3/11, Moonlight 4.7/8, Numb3rs 6.3/11

ABC: 4.4/8          Men In Trees 3.8/7, Women’s Murder Club 5.3/9, 20/20 4.1/7

NBC: 4.4/8         Movie: The Family Man [r] 4.4/8

CW: 2.8/5           Friday Night Smackdown! 2.8/5

FOX: 2.1/4         The Next Great American Band 1.6/3, Don’t Forget the Lyrics! 2.5/4

UNIV: 1.9/3        Amar sin Limites 1.5/3, Destilando Amor 2.7/5, Alejandro Fernandez: Un Regalo Navideno 1.5/3

TELE: 0.4/1        Movie: Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls [7p start] 0.4/1, Movie: Shanghai Noon 0.4/1

A18-49: CBS 2.5/7, NBC 2.2/7, ABC 1.6/5, CW 1.6/5, UNIV 1.5/5, FOX 1.3/4, TELE 0.4/1

Saturday – A18-49 Analysis: ABC trounced the competition Saturday night with 3.3/10 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. ABC owned the night as the college football “Border Showdown” between Missouri and Kansas won each hour: at 8p ABC pulled a 3.2/10 and an almost equal 3.2/9 at 9p. ABC’s ratings spiked a little during 10p to 3.3/10.

Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Saturday, November 24, 2007 (November Sweep Day 24) – time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

ABC: 6.1/11          Saturday Night Football: Missouri vs. Kansas 6.1/11

FOX: 4.2/7            Cops 3.9/7, Cops [r] 4.3/8, America’s Most Wanted 4.2/7

CBS: 4.1/7            CSI: Miami [r] 3.4/6, CSI: NY [r] 4.0/7, 48 Hours Mystery 4.9/9

NBC: 2.9/5            Movie: The Incredibles [r] 3.1/5, The Office [r] 2.1/4

UNIV: 1.4/2          Sabado Gigante 1.4/2

TELE: 0.5/1          Cine de Impacto [7p] 0.4/1, Cine de Impacto 0.5/1

A18-49: ABC 3.3/10, FOX 2.2/7, NBC 1.9/5, CBS 1.4/4, UNIV 1.0/3, TELE 0.4/1

This day in History: 1922 – In Egypt, Archaeologist Howard Carter peered into the tomb of King Tutankhamen.

Answer to Yesterday’s Trivia Question: In the movie Joe vs. the Volcano starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, what beverage are the Waponi islanders particularly fond of?  ORANGE SODA (“JUMP” SODA)  Kudos to: Barry Pollack-The Maia Group/NY; Jessica Bricker-PBS/Arlington, VA;  Ivan Tafur-Initiative/Atlanta; Christine Cipriani-Rainbow Media/NY; Greg Leslie-Winnercomm/Tulsa, OK; Bart Greenberger-WBUI/Decatur, IL; Paul Schoen-Kiewert-NCC/Dallas; Kent Kimberlain-Spotplus/Dallas; Susan Chalfant-Fox Interactive Media/Beverly Hills; Steve Truitt-KNBC/LA; Jake Guswa-Warner Bros/Burbank; Darren Reyes-Comcast Spotlight/San Francisco

Today’s Trivia Question:  This mystical, mysterious village and its inhabitants only appear for one day every century. The villagers must never leave or they will disappear forever. Where is this?    (
with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: Only the second four correct answers from each time zone will be mentioned; and once you’ve been mentioned in any of the Cynopsis editions, you can’t be mentioned again that calendar week.)

Later  — Cyn
11.26.07

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JOB OPENING:  2 SALES PLANNERS/Galavision/NY: Generate upfront/scatter plans. Handle all aspects of ongoing deal maintenance/stewardship. Dealmaker/VCI/media experience & Spanish a plus. Apply:
. EOE   (12/1)

JOB OPENING:  PROJECT MANAGER,AD SALES RES (Syn/Digital/NY-Warner Bros.) strong math and pres. writing skills. Adept w/Nielsen,digital measurements, Galaxy, Npower, Adviews, MRI. Email:
RE: UCTC/91155BR    (12/1)

JOB OPENING:  DIR OF PROGRAMMING/Rainbow/NYC: Develop & supervise production of Sportskool programming; oversee integration of branded content; assist in creating scheduling strategy. Apply to req 4926BR at www.cablevision.jobs    (12/1)

JOB OPENING: SR CLIENT ANALYST/MSA Media/NY: Manage cable nets on Gabriel/other SW. Perform biz svcs, issue resolution, training, Jr Acct mgmt duties, prod planning. Must have tech knowledge. Send res & $ req to
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JOB OPENING:  MTV EXEC PROD/NYC: 8+ yrs exp in TV production incl Sr and/or Supervising Producer exp. Extensive knwldge US market/pop culture. Strong mngmt exp; travel and work late hours. EOE/M/F/D/AAP. Apply www.mtvncareers.com      (12/1)

JOB OPENING:  VP RESEARCH MTVTr3s/NYC: 10-15 yrs media/market research exp. Strong analy sk + broad range qual/quant methodologies; Knwldge re key issues US Hispanic advertising industry. EOE/M/F/D/AAP. Apply www.mtvncareers.com    (12/1)

JOB OPENING:   PROMOTIONS & MARKETING MANAGER/Cartoon Network/[adult swim], NY:  Must have 3-5 yrs of exp in promos/mkting, advertising. Strong project mgmt, client service. Apply online via www.turnerjobs.com , Req# 90869    (12/1)

JOB OPENING:  SALES ASST/TV/DVD Dist. Co. in Norwalk, CT: Seeks energetic multi-tasker. Proficient in all MS Office apps. Accounting software knwldg  a +. Terrific hands-on experience! Send resume to:
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JOB OPENING:  MANAGER, PROGRAM PLANNING/MTV/NYC: 4+yrs TV prgm scheduling exp, Strg interpersnl & Excel skills, Knwldge of MTV brand /prgming/TV ratings & Entertainment industry. EOE/M/F/D/AAP. Apply www.mtvncareers.com   (12/1)

JOB OPENING: TV ACQUISITIONS MGR/Orange, CA: Research, screen, select and schedule content for inflight entertainment. Experience of global TV markets, negotiation, planning and attention to detail are musts.
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JOB OPENING: SALES PLANNER/Gorilla Nation Media/NYC: – Support sales team in managing proposals & campaign management. 1-2 yrs online sales & planning experience; Microsoft office exp. Apply at
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JOB OPENING: VP CREATIVE DIR/Fuse TV/NY: Responsible for the overall dir, conception, creation, dvlpmnt & implementation of all On-Air promotions and packaging for all marketing platforms. Please send resume to
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JOB OPENING: WRITER/PRODUCER/Discovery Communications/LA: Conceive, write & produce TV & Radio campaigns for TLC On-Air promotions & mktg. Please apply online at www.discovery.com/corporate to job opening number 5931. EOE M/F/V/D (11/30)

JOB OPENING: NETWORK CABLE BUSINESS ANALYST/NY: Exp. With VCI software required. Background in Traffic & Ad Sales. Strong documentation & training skills needed. 
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JOB OPENING: COORDINATOR, CUSTOM RESEARCH/NHL: 3+ yrs exp in ad sales rsrch. Extensive exp with custom research (e.g. Simmons/Scarborough/MRI) req’d. Strong knwldg of Excel and Power Point a must. Apply:
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JOB OPENING: WDCW Washington DC seeks BROADCAST SALES VETERAN with 4+ years of exp. Aggressive seller with successful agency and direct business exp. Stellar presentation and negotiating skills required. 
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JOB OPENING: Rainbow/NYC: PROD MGR, ONAIR PROMOS for VOD cable nets; create & oversee budgets & project mngmt for post-prod/shoots/gfx. 3+ yrs ent/media exp. Strong detail/org/comm skills. www.cablevision.jobs.com req 4856BR. (11/28)

JOB OPENING: Rainbow/NYC: ASSOC. PROD, ONAIR PROMOS for VOD cable nets; write/produce/edit promos on FCP. Writing test req. Oversee digital file mgmt. Apply to req 4780BR at www.cablevision.jobs.com (11/28)

JOB OPENING: VP CONSUMER/AFFILIATE MKTG/Fuse TV/NYC: Establishes strategic mktg, promos & ad campaigns for Fuse, drive awareness & promote brand attributes to the trade, press & consumer.  Please send resume to
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JOB OPENING: COORDINATOR, PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT/NY: 2 yrs devo or agency exp to maintain databases, draft deal memos and conduct research for fastest growing ad-supported cable network. To apply go to www.turnerjobs.com req# 90639 (11/28)

JOB OPENING: DIGITAL AE/History/A&E/LA: Sell digital advertising solutions to clients/agencies. Dvlp new business. Client service and acct mgmt. 4 yrs in sales -min 2 yrs digital sales. Apply: www.aetn.com/careers.html (11/28)

JOB OPENING: VP, PROGRAMMING & DEVELOPMENT/ EGO TV/LA: Scout, produce web and mobile video content for new Gen Y network. Must have strong talent agency relationships. 10+ yrs  exper. Resumes to
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JOB OPENING: ON AIR TALENT/Web/NY:Looking for a 30-45 yr old female talent. To host a weekly prgrm on the latest in books, CD’s, DVD’s. Needs to appear knwldgble & authoritative, ditzy need not apply. Contact:
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JOB OPENING: EXP’D CO-EP SHOW RUNNER/Powderhouse Productions: Develop and execute a stripped one-hour infotainment series for a major cable net. Science-tech background, web integration, a big plus. Resume to:
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SITUATION WANTED:  Script Coordinator with previous work experience in animation industry seeks script or production coordinator position in Vancouver, BC.
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SITUATION WANTED: CASTING DIRECTOR: Commercials, shorts, music videos. Very experienced Reality Casting Director/Frmr Talent Agent would love to do scripted! Great eye for talent of all kinds! Contact:
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WHAT’S ON TONIGHT – Monday, November 26, 2007

ABC: Dancing with the Stars, Samantha Who?, Notes from the Underbelly [p ], October Road
CBS: How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory [r], Two and a Half Men, Rules of Engagement [r] CSI: Miami
CW: Everybody Hates Chris, Aliens in America, Girlfriends, The Game
FOX: House [r], Bones [r]
ION: Mama’s Family, Mama’s Family, Who’s The Boss?, Who’s The Boss?, 48 Hours on ION TV
MNT: Breaking the Magician’s Code: Magic’s Biggest Secrets Finally Revealed [r], Celebrity Expose
NBC: Chuck, Heroes, Journeyman
PBS: Antiques Roadshow [r], America at a Crossroads
TELE: Madre Luna, La Esclava Isaura, Pecados Ajenos
UNIV: Amar sin Limites, Destilando Amor, Cristina

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