CYNTHIA TURNER’S
CYNOPSIS

06/17/04

Good morning. It’s Thursday, June 17, 2004, and now on with your first early morning briefing. 

Unconfirmed reports suggest Pat O’Brien and Good Morning America/Antique Roadshow’s Lara Spencer will be named co-hosts of Paramount‘s newest syndicated series The Insider.  Per Paramount, nothing has been decided yet and casting should be complete by early July.   Adding credence to the O’Brien rumor was the announcement yesterday from NBC Universal he would be leaving Access Hollywood.  Stepping in as the full time anchors for A.H. next season are – Nancy O’Dell and Billy Bush moves from East Coast correspondent to anchor.  O’Brien has been with A.H. for 7 years.   Paramount’s The Insider is scheduled to make its syndication debut on September 13.

Tribune has added to its syndicated barter movie package with ten additional titles from DreamWorks SKG.  The titles include Catch Me If You Can, The Ring, Old School, House of Sand and Fog and Seabiscuit.  These will be added to the other 34 titles already in Tribune’s barter film package, which has already been cleared in 70% of the US, and begins airing on local stations around the country in 2005. Tribune’s agreement with DreamWorks will now extend to the studio’s 2003 domestic theatrical releases and represents one of the largest domestic television distribution deals in the industry.

The Style Network, currently available in 35 million households, is the new home to Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.’s Martha Steward Living, scheduled to air in primetime. The show is set to begin airing this month, weeknights at 8pm.  Additionally, as part of their multi-year licensing agreement, Style will also produce four new original specials about weddings.

UPN has made a midseason order with Jenny McCarthy’s sitcom, The Bad Girl’s Guide (Flame/Paramount), based on the book The Bad Girl’s Guide to Getting What You Want by Cameron Tuttle, according to Hollywood Reporter.  UPN has ordered the pilot plus 12 eps.

TBS debuted S#x and the City on Tuesday night with two eps – at 10p and 10:35p.  The first episode delivered a 3.0 US HH Rtg with 4.0 million viewers; the second ep earned a 2.5 US HH Rtg with 3.43 million viewers in attendance.   In the demos, S#x delivered 2.3 million A18-49 at 10p, and 2.03 million for the second show; and among W18-49, at 10p 1.64 million, and at 1036p 1.54 million.  In both demo cases according to TBS, those numbers mark an all-time ad-supported record for an off-net series telecast.  (No need to send in notes about using a pound sign in the middle of the title of this show – it is done by design to avoid the spamblockers.)

Comedy Central is calling it quits after six seasons of The Man Show.  According to Variety, the Sunday night 10pm-er will not produce any new episodes, and the remaining three originals will air over the course of the new few weeks.

While there were no new premieres on Tuesday night, there was the NBA Finals Game #5 – a real final with Detroit’s decisive win, and ABC’s decisive win with a 9.4/26 A18-49 rating according to Nielsen Media Research preliminary ratings supplied by ABC.  The game ran from 9-11:49pm, had 21.8 million viewers, and qualifies as the highest rated Game 5 for an NBA Championship series in 6 years.  It was also ABC’s most watched Tuesday night in more than three years, and its strongest A18-49 night in more than 3 years. For the entire series, ABC’s coverage of the 2004 NBA Finals was up significantly from last year:  Total viewers 17.9m vs. 9.9 million; A18-49 averaged 7.9/23 vs. last year’s 4.1/13. 

Tuesday night was also week #2 for The Jury on Fox, which aired in back to back eps a week ago.  Tuesday night The Jury aired in its regular time period at 9pm and earned a 1.5/4 A18-49 (ranking #3 in the time period), up 15% vs. the 9p episode last week, and was also up week to week among A25-54 (1.6/4 vs. 1.4/4).   Also airing on Tuesday night was the third week of Summerland on the WB, which bettered its W18-34 demo rating week to week with a 2.4/7 +20%, and increased its W12-34 audience by a share point (2.9/8).  Summerland continues to excel and win its time period among female teens, delivering a 4.2/12.

By the by, have you caught any of Bravo‘s new series Blow Out? Hairdresser, or is it hair designer, Jonathan Antin heads up the reality as he opens a new salon in Beverly Hills.  This show is filled with so many great characters with greater egos (the characters you love to hate, ones you pull for, ones you hope will be fired but then they’ll be gone and that’s not as fun), its hard to put down.  The only complaint after the first couple of episodes? An annoyingly contrived chat between Jonathan, a stylist and a customer about the wonders of American Express’ Open service.  Surely there’s another way to bring the sponsor into the picture.  This seems to be the one area of product placement a precious few have arguably mastered.

Coming to MTV2 on July 11 at 8pm is Battlegrounds, a basketball series featuring top players from the US and Europe competing in a head to head single elimination contest.  The winner dribbles away with $50k in cash, a boat load of Nike products and personalized Nike iD shoes.  The show is hosted by John Salley, former NBA-er.  Each episode airs first and exclusively on MTV2, with repeats airing on MTV.  MTV and Nike partnered together a year ago for a special Battlegrounds tournament (Sept 2003); the success of that special led to the series this year.

Note to Self:  Matt Lauer will chat with Michael Moore on Friday’s Today and inside Dateline, and will also be on Late Show with David Letterman Friday night.  Now that should be interesting.
 
Alix Jaffe has been upped to VP/Current Programs, CBS Entertainment, it was announced by David Stapf, SVP/Current Programs, to whom she reports.  Alix will oversee all the creative aspects for the Network on the hit comedies THE KING OF QUEENS and STILL STANDING as well as the new series LISTEN UP, starring Jason Alexander.  She will also continue to have oversight on the midseason comedy

Univision Radio has appointed Timothy Ward as VP/CFO of Univision Radio, Inc.  Timothy will have responsible of Univision Radio’s internal financial reporting and analysis, cash management, and radio station acquisitions.

Kevin Hamburger has been named SVP/Production, Telepictures Productions. Kevin will be responsible for overseeing the production staffs on all of Telepictures Productions’ television series, which includes first-run syndication.  His appointment was announced by Hilary Estey McLoughlin, EVP & GM/Telepictures Productions.

ABC Primetime Entertainment Division President Stephen McPherson has named Francie Calfo as EVP/Development, ABC Primetime Entertainment. Francie will work closely with both the Comedy and Drama Development teams, overseeing all scripted series development for the network’s Primetime Entertainment division.

Tuesday, June 15, 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

ABC     9.8/16  8 Simple Rules [r] 7.5/14, Hang time 7.6/13, NBA Finals – Game 5 11.0/18       
                *Due to the nature of live sports, Fast Nationals for ABC are approximate.

NBC     5.6/9   Next Action Star 3.7/7, Last Comic Standing 6.2/10, L&O: SVU [r] 6.8/11

CBS     5.1/9   Navy NCIS [r] 6.6/12, The Guardian [r] 4.0/7, Judging Amy [r] 4.7/8

FOX     2.9/5   The Bernie Mac Show [r] 2.7/5, The Bernie Mac Show [r] 3.0/5, The Jury 3.0/5

WB      2.1/4   Gilmore Girls [r] 1.8/3, Summerland 2.5/4

UPN     1.5/3   One on One [r] 1.5/3, All of Us [r] 1.5/3, Top Model: Cycle One [r] 1.5/2

A18-49  ABC 6.3/18, NBC 3.5/10,CBS 1.7/5, FOX 1.6/5, WB 1.2/4, UPN 0.8/2

A MESSAGE FROM WARNER BROS. DOMESTIC CABLE DISTRIBUTION

The History Channel presents This Day in History:
1972 – The Watergate scandal begins when five men are arrested for breaking into the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate, an office/hotel/apartment complex in Washington, DC. The following day it was revealed that one of the men was the security coordinator for President Richard Nixon’s Presidential reelection committee.  

Answer to yesterday’s Trivia Question:  What was Colonel Sherman Potter allergic to? TOMATO JUICE.  Kudos to:  Joanna Rotchford-JRZ/Atlanta; David Bank-RBC Capital Markets/NY; Hank Bordowitz-The Bordowitz Media Werx/NY; Tim Murray-NCC/NY; Yvette Clark-KTVT & KTXA/Dallas; Ellen Chauncey-Time Warner Telecom/Boise; Eric Turner-Eagle TV Sales/Dallas; Tara Gallahue-Insight Media/Champaign IL; Evan Weinstein-The Amazing Race/LA; Julie Senik-RPA/Santa Monica; Karen Oberhofer-IMP/Seattle; Jeff Meshel-NBC/Burbank; and Glenn Forbes-Forerunner Films/Toronto.

Today’s Trivia Question:   Who drove a Tarantula (with finger tip control, chrome trim and bucket seats)? (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
06/17/04  5:07am
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CYNOPSIS CLASSIFIEDS

JOB OPENING:  PROGRAM EXECUTIVES, Discovery Networks, Silver Spring, MD. Anticipated need for executives with 5+ yrs exp. as senior/exec. producer or TV programming/development exec. E-mail resume to:
   (6/24)

JOB OPENING:  FREELANCE FIELD PRODUCER, MSNBC/NJ: Seasoned net bureau producer, 5+ yrs field exp.Background in Politics pref. NJ based with 3-4 days travel per wk. Email resume:
or fax:  201-583-5819  (6/24)

JOB OPENING:  BUDGET COORDINATOR. Primary resp to track daily prod expenses & budget reconciliation.Pls visit our website www.lifetimetv.com/about/jobs for more info or email your resume/cover ltr to
     (6/24)

JOB OPENING:  MGR OF PROGRAMMING/National Geographic Channel, Washington DC. 3+ yrs TV exp, pgming pref; 1-2 yrs mgmt exp. Great comm skills; Nielsen rtgs/stats exp, serious multitasker, solid comp skills. Apply: www.foxcareers.com
(6/24)

JOB OPENING:  CONSUMER ENT. PUBLICIST/LA PR FIRM, 5+ yrs. exp.; proven track record w/TV, Video,Talent, Products; strong media contacts; excellent writer & pitcher; supervisory exp.; solid references. Apply: laprjobs
   (6/24)

JOB OPENING:  ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE/Galavision cable ntwk, Dallas.  2-3 yrs TV ad sales; excellent written/ verbal skills reqd. Natl Nielsen data and dealmaker software knowledge helpful.  Email:
  specify Dallas. (6/23)

JOB OPENING:  RESEARCH DIR/Discovery Health/Silver Spring, MD. 7+ yrs TV/media/Mkt Res. exp. Strong primary/Nielsen res. skills. Strategic thinker w/strong analytical & comm skills. Apply: http://corporate.discovery.com, Job #1446  (6/23)

JOB OPENING:  RESEARCH MGR, FitTV/Silver Spring, MD. 5+ yrs TV/media/Mkt Res. exp. Solid quant & qual research skills req. Nielsen exp a +. Strong analytical/comm. skills a must. Apply: http://corporate.discovery.com, Job #1499  (6/23)

JOB OPENING:  RESEARCH ASSOC, Travel Channel/Silver Spring, MD. 2-3 yrs media/mkt research exp. Strong data analysis; Nielsen sftwr/equiv. a +. Create presentations, rprts, analysis. Apply: http://corporate.discovery.com, Job #1170  (6/23)

JOB OPENING:  SUPERVISING PRODUCER, Discovery Channel/Silver Spring, MD. 5-6 yrs advertising/on-air promotions exp. as writer/producer, promo editorial, field prod exp. Apply at http://corporate.discovery.com, Job #1443  (6/22)

JOB OPENING:  AFFILIATE SALES/DATABASE COORDINATOR-Oxygen-NY. Manage dept. database (Medea) Track sub info, act as launch support. Support 6 reps, maintain materials. Cov’r Letter /resume to Neily Buff at
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JOB OPENING:  SR RESEARCH ANALYST, CARTOON NETWORK/KIDS WB/ADULT SWIM, NY Ad Sales. Strong analytical/writing skills. Nielsen software experience.  2+ yrs exp as rsch analyst req’d. Apply to:
req #26841BR   (6/19)

JOB OPENING:  ACCT EXEC, ABC Cable, IL, to increase distribution; 5yrs sales exp; heavy new client dev sell’g to VP level affiliates; Chicago-based w/ 50% travel to MI & OH. Ref: Cyn40590AcctRep; RESUMES:
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JOB OPENING:  New York based broadcast design shop seeks full time GRAPHICS / ANIMATION PRODUCER (5 yrs industry experience).  Excellent client skills a must. Resume and cover letter to

NO CALLS / FAXES  (6/18)

JOB OPENING:  MARKETING RESEARCH MGR/CNN Newsource Sales, Atlanta. 5+ yrs research exp. in sales. Resp. for analysis of client bases/mktplaces, create ops for sales, mktg strategies. Apply online www.turnerjobs.com #25854. EOE  (6/18)

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SITUATION WANTED:  MBA candidate from MIT (Finance) and MFA from Columbia University (Screenwriting) seeks INTERN related assignments. Looking to learn from Marketing Exec’s and Strategists.646.418.9213 or
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SITUATION WANTED:  Dynamic TELEVISION PRODUCER looking for new project! Wide range of production experience, field and post. Creative, detail oriented, multi-tasker. NYC based. Will travel.
, 646-325-4509  (6/23)

SITUATION WANTED:  Organized, efficient, multi-tasker, with BA Comm/Mktg/Psych seeking ENTRY-MID LEVEL POSITION IN TV in NYC. Please contact: 
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SITUATION WANTED:  Dynamic TELEVISION PRODUCER looking for new project! Wide range of production experience, field and post. NYC based. Will travel.
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SITUATION WANTED:  ON-AIR PROMO STRATEGIST/NY specialty in forecasting/analysis, long/short term promo planning & campaign execution. News/entertainment, 7+ years mjr cable net experience: CONTACT:
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SITUATION WANTED:  DIRECTOR-3 time Emmy Award-Winner seeks new project to dive into. Extensive experience with children’s (esp. puppets), talk & specials. Creative/Musical/Collaborative. Reel/resume on request.
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WHAT’S ON TONIGHT:  THURSDAY, JUNE 17, 2004

COURT TV:       The I-Zone, Forensic Files, Body of Evidence, The Investigators
ABC             Extreme Makeover [r], Extreme Makeover [r], Primetime Thursday
CBS             CSI: Miami [r], CSI [r], Without A Trace [r]
FOX             North Shore [r], Tru Calling [r]
NBC             Friends [r], Come to Papa, Will & Grace [r], Scrubs [r], ER [r]
PAX             AFV, AFV, Early Edition, Diagnosis Murder
UPN             WWE Smackdown
WB              Pepsi Smash, Summerland [r]
TELE            Prisonera, El Alma Herida, Protagonistas VIP
UNIV            Mariana de la Noche, Amarte es mi Pecado, Aqui y Ahora