Cynopsis

03.26.09

Good morning. It’s Thursday, March 26, 2009, and this is your first early morning briefing.  Also, coming to you later on this morning is the Cynopsis and Cynopsis: Kids! MIP TV 2009 Shopping Guide with a listing of more than 100 distributors and their top five offerings for the market.  Keep an eye out for that one!  I’m headed to Cannes myself, arriving there tomorrow afternoon, but you can count on your editions arriving on time as usual all week.  And if I have my usual mishaps and translation problems while there, you’ll read about it here. 

Tonight’s Premieres:
ABC: In the Motherhood at 8p,  Samantha Who? at 830p
Fox Reality Channel: American Idol Extra at 1a

President Obama’s second primetime press conference Tuesday night culminated a week-long whirlwind of media appearances. The one-hour event at 8p aired live on 11 networks including ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Telemundo, Univision, CNBC, CNN, FOX News Channel, MSNBC and mun2  with a combined audience of 40.4 million viewers and a combined HH rating of 25.9.

President Obama’s second primetime press conference Tuesday night culminated a week-long whirlwind of media appearances. The one-hour event at 8p aired live on 11 networks including ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Telemundo, Univision, CNBC, CNN, FOX News Channel, MSNBC and mun2  with a combined audience of 40.4 million viewers and a combined HH rating of 25.9.

No foolin’ – Fox Reality Channel’s new original series, Busted & Disgusted debuts April 1 at 9p and promises viewers a collection of the most tasteless human acts caught on surveillance video. Busted & Disgusted, from Busted Productions and clip show producer Danny Wolf, offers up 10 total episodes including one showing an angry hospital patient using a bedpan as a tool for revenge and another showing a bartender using a swizzle stick in a creative way. I think you get the picture.

Tonight on Fox Reality Channel, catch the season four premiere of American Idol Extra opening at 1a, shifted to a special time because of President Obama’s second press conference on Tuesday night. American Idol Extra will fall into its regular time period of Thursdays at 7p and again at 10p starting next week on April 2. Viewers can also catch the network’s American Idol Extra exclusive sneak peek each Wednesday at 1a beginning April 1.

Logo ordered a second helping of RuPaul’s Drag Race, the first-ever reality series featuring drag queens. Season two will launch in early 2010 and is produced by World of Wonder Productions.

Tuesday night’s season finale of Bad Girls Club on Oxygen was the top telecast for the day with W18-34 among all cable networks and became the series’ most watched telecast among total viewers. Bad Girls Club’s final episode also generated a lot of online activity as it was one of the top ten topics on Twitter.

Yesterday, the Hearst Corporation announced it will make a tender offer starting in mid-April for all outstanding shares of Series A Common Stock of Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc. not currently owned by Hearst at a proposed premium price of $4.00 per share in cash. Following this tender offer, Hearst will purchase any remaining shares not currently own through a “short form” cash merger at the same per share cash price as the tender offer. As of now, Hearst owns 67% of the outstanding shares of Series A Common Stock and 100% of the outstanding shares of Series B Common Stock, representing an approximate aggregated 82% of both the outstanding equity and overall voting rights of Hearst-Argyle. Once these transactions are complete, Hearst-Argyle will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hearst.

UPFRONT 2009: ION

ION revealed its 2009-2010 slate yesterday in a small informal press briefing, emphasizing two specific pieces of news: three new acquisitions, each of them Canadian series premiering for the first time in the US; and that the network will be commissioning 12 original movies – debuting monthly – with the first scheduled to premiere around the Christmas holiday.

As for the three new series:

• Durham County – about an urban cop who moves his small family to the country where he continues his job as a homicide detective. Scheduled to debut Fall 2009.
• The Border – a procedural crime drama where the majority of the action is focused on the border between the US and Canada. Slated to premiere in 1st or 2nd Qtr 2010.
• The Guard – a drama about the Coast Guard Search and Rescue team in their day to day job of saving lives. Premieres in 1st or 2nd Qtr 2010.

 
ION’s prime time M-F schedule next season will include stripping Ghost Whisperer weeknights at 8p; Criminal Minds at 9p, and original and acquired dramas (including Boston Legal and NCIS) at 10p. Movies will air on Sat/Sun prime time.

ION is currently available in 94 million homes and targets A25-54 with its general entertainment programming.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM ACADEMY OF TELEVISION ARTS & SCIENCES

Twentieth Television, Inc. confirmed the new syndicated version of Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? has boosted its market list to 95 total, representing 80% of the US. Jeff Foxworkthy will host the half-hour edition from Mark Burnett Productions in association with Zoo Productions. Stations ready to debut the game show in syndication include Tribune’s WPIX/New York; WPHL/Philadelphia; KDAF/Dallas; KCPQ-KMYQ/Seattle; KTXL/Sacramento; KRCW/Portland; WXIN- WTTV/Indianapolis; WTIC-WTXX/Hartford-New Haven; FOX Television Stations’ KTTV/Los Angeles; WFLD-WPWR/Chicago; WFXT/Boston; WAGA/Atlanta; WTTG-WDCA/Washington, D.C.; KRIV-KTXH/Houston; WJBK/Detroit; WUTB/Baltimore; WBNX/Cleveland; Sinclair’s WUCW/Minneapolis; WPGH-WPMY/Pittsburgh; WLFL-WRDC/Raleigh; WZTV-WUXP/Nashville; Cox’s KTVU-KICU/San Francisco; WRDQ/Orlando; WAXN/Charlotte; McKinnon’s KUSI/San Diego; and Local TV’s WDAF/Kansas City; KTVI-KPLR/St. Louis; KDVR-KWGN/Denver.

Sundance Channel is cheering “Vive la France!” as parent company Rainbow Media Holdings LLC, (Rainbow Media), made a carriage agreement with Numericable, a cable broadband operator in France. This is the first international distribution agreement for Sundance Channel which currently reaches 30+ million US subscribers. With this deal, Sundance Channel will reach approximately 9.5 million households in France via Numericable which has planned a three-phase rollout: an initial VOD launch followed by channel premieres in standard-def and hi-def. Sundance Channel will air in English on Numericable with French subtitles.

TLC gave a nod to a sweet project called Cake Boss about New Jersey baker Buddy Valastro, reports THR. The docu-soap follows the celebrity baker and his family business, Carlo’s Bakery as he creates elaborate confections for the likes of Britney Spears and featured spots on such shows as The Sopranos and Today. The pilot episode of Cake Boss will debut April 19 and the full series launches in early June.
 
Canwest’s new original Canadian series pilot The Dealership has been approved and will begin production soon with Tricia Helfer, William Devane and Patrick J. Adams tagged to star. The one-hour pilot, set in the world of luxury cars, centers on beautiful sales manager Rachel Carson (Helfer) of Carson Luxury Auto Gallery who runs the dealership in the midst of the recession with help from her unreliable brother (Adams) and her father (Devane) who comes out of retirement. The Dealership is produced by Verite Films with Virginia Thompson as creator/executive producer, Andrew Wreggitt as writer/showrunner, Robert de Lint, Jeff Beesley, Bernard Bourret and Ty Hyland as producers for the pilot and Ken Girotti as director. Fremantle Media Enterprises will be the worldwide distributor.

TV One and K2 Pictures announce the production of new series Life After, a behind-the-scenes chronicle of tragic and triumphant life-changing stories from celebrities such as Bell Biv Devoe, Al Reynolds and Jaimee Foxworth. The eight episode series will premiere on TV One this fall. Erica Forstadt, Robert Katz and Jay Peterson will executive produce and Robyn Greene Arrington will be executive in charge of production for TV One.

Action sports lifestyle network FUEL TV approved a sixth season of Drive Thru its surfing adventure series featuring a group of pro surfers in a particular location. Production begins next month on six new episodes Down Under as cast and crew head to both the East and West Coasts of Australia. Three-time ASP World Surf Champion Andy Irons joins series regulars Pat O’Connell, Benji Weatherley, Donavon Frankenreiter and Mark “Occy” Occhilupo and Shane Dorian who rejoins the cast after six years. 14 Day Productions produces the series around a two-week stint in the chosen destination. Previous Drive Thru seasons have highlighted wave action in South Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, South and Central America and New Zealand. Drive Thru: Australia premieres November 18 at 830p with repeats airing Thursdays at 8p in the SurfSpot programming block.

CYNOPSIS DIGITAL – TODAY’S TOP STORY:  True to form in following Netflix’s moves, Blockbuster signed an integration deal with Tivo to give the DVR provider’s some 800,000 broadband-connected subscribers access to its online rental service, Blockbuster on Demand. (Tivos connected to phone lines cannot access the service.) The new partnership, which will include a joint marketing campaign, also includes a plan to sell Tivo set-tops and subscriptions in Blockbuster’s 4,000+ outlets in the U.S.   Full edition: CYN DIGITAL.

CYNOPSIS KIDS – TODAY’S TOP STORY:   Momentum and a changing voice (think adolescent boy) were among the major themes underscored at Cartoon Network‘s upfront presentation of its 2009-2010 season in NYC yesterday.  The network’s plans include entering into the reality TV genre, creating a new sports-centric programming block, and introducing 19 new programs/pilots/movies, many of which are live-action, as well as 164 episodes of returning series.  In doing so, Cartoon Network stepped out on its evolutionary path to become what it described as a “dominant youth culture brand,” that not only understands boys, including boys 6-11, but girls and older kids too, while creating “un-sanitized” “TV for kids, not kids TV”.  NBA commissioner David Stern, who discussed Cartoon Network’s new partnership with the NBA announced earlier in the week, revealed that Boston Celtic Eddie House and his 7-year-old son Jaelen will be the stars of the first project together, the short-form series My Dad’s a Pro.  So pleased with the NBA’s new relationship with the network, Stern quipped to those assembled, “If I were a buyer, I would buy.” Full edition: CYN KIDS.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM INSTITUTE FOR MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT

Top 10 M-F Syndicated Strip Series for the week of 3/9-3/15/09 ranked by HH Rtg
Wheel of Fortune (CTD)                                   7.1 AA
Jeopardy (CTD)                                               5.9 AA
Oprah Winfrey Show (CTD)                                5.4 AA / 5.6 GAA
Two and a Half Men (WB)                                 5.0 AA / 6.6 GAA
Judge Judy (CTD)                                            4.5 AA / 7.0 GAA
Entertainment Tonight (CTD)                             4.2 AA / 4.3 GAA
Family Guy (2/T)                                             3.9 AA / 4.6 GAA
Dr. Phil Show (CTD)                                         3.8 AA / 3.8 GAA
Seinfeld (SPT)                                                 3.7 AA / 4.2 GAA
Everybody Loves Raymond (CTD)                        3.1 AA / 4.1 GAA
Source: NSS Galaxy Explorer, Live+SD

Top 10 M-F Syndicated Strip Series for the week of 3/9-3/15/09 ranked by A18-49 Rtg
Family Guy (2/T)                                            2.8 AA / 3.2 GAA
Two and a Half Men (WB)                                2.6 AA / 3.4 GAA
Seinfeld (SPT)                                                2.4 AA / 2.8 GAA
Oprah Winfrey Show (CTD)                              1.9 AA / 1.9 GAA
King of Queens (SPT)                                      1.8 AA / 2.1 GAA
Everybody Loves Raymond (CTD)                      1.8 AA / 2.4 GAA
Wheel of Fortune (CTD)                                  1.7 AA
King of the Hill (2/T)                                       1.7 AA / 2.0 GAA
Jeopardy (CTD)                                              1.6 AA
Friends (WB)                                                  1.6 AA / 1.9 GAA
Source: NSS Galaxy Explorer, Live+SD

Tuesday – A18-49 Analysis: NBC emerged a winner Tuesday night among A18-49 with 4.1/11 A18-49 according to final national ratings from Nielsen Media Research. During the 8p hour, most major networks carried live coverage of President Obama’s second press conference with no individual ratings data available. At 9p, CBS’ NCIS barely pulled off a #1 at 4.0/10 while ABC’s Dancing with the Stars Results went toe-to-toe at 3.9/10. NBC was the biggest winner through 10p as The Biggest Loser posted a 4.5/12 ahead of second place The Mentalist on CBS with 3.9/10.

Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Tuesday, March 24, 2009 (March Sweep Day 20) time period averages. Source: NTI Galaxy, as dated.  Live+SD

CBS: 11.1/17       President Obama Press Conference [no ratings data available], NCIS 11.2/17, The Mentalist 11.2/18

ABC: 7.8/12           President Obama Press Conference [no ratings data available], Dancing with the Stars Results 10.3/16, Primetime: What Would You Do? 5.2/9

NBC: 6.2/10           President Obama Press Conference [no ratings data available], The Biggest Loser 7 6.2/10

FOX: 2.6/4               President Obama Press Conference [no ratings data available], House [r] 2.6/4

UNIV: 2.1/3           President Obama Press Conference [no ratings data available], Manana para Siempre 2.5/4, Aqui y Ahora 1.7/3

CW: 1.1/2             Reaper 1.6/3, 90210 [r] 0.6/1

MNT: 1.1/2            Street Patrol 1.1/2, Street Patrol 2 1.1/2, Jail 1.2/2, Jail 2 [r] 1.2/2

TELE: 0.7/1           Dona Barbara 0.7/1, El Rostro de Analia 0.8/1, Sin Senos No Hay Paraiso 0.8/1, Cartel T 0.7/1

A18-49: NBC 4.1/11, CBS 3.9/10, ABC 3.3/8, UNIV 1.8/5, FOX 1.6/4, CW 0.7/2, MNT 0.6/2, TELE 0.6/2

Scott Richman, SVP/GM of Interactive with MSG Media will take on the expanded responsibility of supervising the Fuse digital department including fuse.tv, Fuse VOD and Mobile. To date, Scott has integrated all of MSG’s digital properties under the MSG Media banner and will do the same with Fuse’s multiplatform assets. He will continue to report to Michael Bair, President, MSG Media.

TV One rehired Eric Claytor as VP/Affiliate Relations/Western Region and National Accounts based in Denver. Prior to this appointment, Eric was Director/Affiliate Relations, Western Region with The Sportsman Channel since 2006 and before that joined TV One in 2003 where he first served as Affiliate Account Manager and later as Affiliate Account Director for the Central and Northeast Regions.

Break Media added Jennifer Logan to its sales team as Sales Manager for the southeast region. Jennifer will be based in Dallas and will manage the office there in addition to developing sales in the southeast region with emphasis in Texas and Florida.

Barry Frey was upgraded to EVP/Advanced Platform Sales with Cablevision Systems Corporation up from SVP. In his new position, Barry will continue to manage the Advanced Platforms Sales unit, reporting to David Kline, President/COO of Rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation.

Discovery Communications announced a handful of staffing changes and additions within its Discovery Enterprises International program sales and licensing group:

• Holly Roessler was tapped for the new position of Director/Sales Support and Marketing to oversee ongoing sales support and marketing efforts for international program sales and home video licensing efforts. Based at company headquarters in Silver Spring, MD, Holly reports to Caleb Weinstein, SVP, Discovery Enterprises International.
• Elliot Wagner was upped to Director/Private Networks and North American Program Sales where he manages worldwide private networks deals such as airlines and hotels in addition to program sales activity for the US and Canada. Elliot report also to Caleb Weinstein and is located at Silver Spring.
• Fiona Wallace was named Director/Licensing for the UK and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). She will direct the sales and distribution of consumer product lines across Discovery’s brands and properties in the UK and EMEA. Based in London, Fiona will report to Jo Edwards, VP/Licensing, Discovery Enterprises International.
• Diana Carrizosa will become Director/Licensing for Latin America. Diana will direct the company’s licensing efforts in the Latin America region and is charged with increasing the existing merchandise and home video lines and developing new activity with partners, retailers and consumers. Based in Miami, Diana reports to Jo Edwards.
• Richard Henson was promoted to Director/Program Sales for Asia-Pacific where he will promote the company’s program sales business in this region as well as analyze opportunities involving current and potential clients. Based in Sydney, Richard reports to Caleb Weinstein.

This day in History:  1937 – Spinach growers in Crystal City, TX, erected a statue of Popeye.

Answer to Yesterday’s Trivia Question:    Can you name the 2 shows: They premiered 6 years apart. Both are multiple Emmy winners, set in police stations, feature seamless multi-ethnic casts, but one is a comedy and the other is a drama.  What are they? BARNEY MILLER (1975) and HILL STREET BLUES (1981)  Kudos to: The entire free world … except for those half dozen who said NYPD Blue.  No kudos for you.

Today’s Trivia Question: This co-star of a current prime time drama, has appeared as the same character in 9 series; one of them a comedy.  Who is he and who is the character?  (Email
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.)

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM SCRIPPS NETWORKS

Source: Simmons Multimedia Engagement Study 2008 W5-8. Women 25-54 w/HHI $75K+ ranking among 80 ad-supported networks. For source details and marketing opportunities, visit ScrippsNetworksAdSales.com.

Later — Cyn
03.26.09

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A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE from ACADEMY OF TELEVISION ARTS & SCIENCES

Cyn opsis CLASSIFIEDS – For More classifieds, visit the Cynopsis.com classifieds page here    .

JOB OPENING:VP, BUSINESS & LEGAL AFFAIRS/AMC/NY: Deal Maker to Negotiate production/programming/talent agreements etc. for AMC NETWORK. L.A. Contacts, JD, 10+ yrs experience required.
(4/2)

JOB OPENING: DIGITAL MEDIA ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE/Discovery Communications/New York: Sell national advertising across Discovery’s Digital assets- online, vod, mobile. 2+ yrs digital sales exp required. Apply: www.discovery.com Req#8869 (4/1)

JOB OPENING: DVLPMT EXEC: Creative/aggressive for PT rsrch & dvlpmnt. Exp’d in shaping raw ideas into breakout formats. Knwldgbl of cable TV programming with experience in creating shows. Resumes:
(3/31)

JOB OPENING: VP/SVP CONSUMER/NY: Beauty/Entertainment PR account. Manage large consumer packaged goods biz. Prior exp managing large $1mil+ accounts. Relationships in ent/beauty world a must. Apply:
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JOB OPENING: SR. DIR, CLIENT DEVELOPMENT/NY/Ent-Media research co: Develop new/expand existing biz for research prod/custom services. Min 3 yrs market research sales exp. http://www.epollresearch.com/corp/aboutus/careers.view (2/27)

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

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SUMMER INTERNSHIP/CREDITS ONLY: ScribbleTown.com needs a web dvlopng intern for a Flash/HTML website. You would come in once or twice a wk to upload images & make adjustments. Great exp with fun content! Contact Arlene at
(4/1)

SUMMER INTERNSHIP CREDITS ONLY: MKTG/ON-AIR : Fox Reality Channel-LA – summer intern for mktg & on-air production. 30-40 hrs/wk. Majors: Mktg, Adv, PR/Comm, TV/Film. Skills: Writing & computer; On-Air Pro/Avid a plus.
(3/27)

SUMMER INTERNSHIP CREDITS ONLY: Multiplatform media company seeks organized and energetic intern for fast-paced, lifestyle entertainment company, email
with Intern in subject line. (3/27)

SITUATION WANTED ADS, POSTED BY THOSE LOOKING TO BE HIRED …  There is no charge for placing your Situation Wanted ad … for more information contact Trish Pihonak at

SITUATION WANTED: PRODUCTION MAKEUP ARTIST/NY: Over 20 years experience including keying top-rated network and cable TV shows, print, and film. Creative artistry, competitive rates. Email:
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SITUATION WANTED: 5 PRIME TIME EMMYS/ DOC. PROD, DIR., WRITER in L.A. Credits: National Geo, PBS, Discovery, History CH, TLC and MSNBC. Contact email:
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SITUATION WANTED: FIELD PRODUCER/ DIRECTOR:LA/ Docusoap, Lifestyle, Infotainment,Feature Doc + more. Resonant leader, keen director/ writer, strong storyteller + showrunner. 8+ yrs. Will travel.
917.716.7277 (4/1)

SITUATION WANTED: PRODUCER-WRITER, SHOWRUNNER/NY w/org. series on PBS, Nick, Noggin, Fox, Discovery Kids, BBC.20+yrs developing, writing, producing & making co-pro and merch deals.
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SITUATION WANTED: MEDIA PRO 15 yrs experience in network buying, product integration and multi-media promotions. LA based, available for freelance, project-based or permanent position. Thanks for your time! Contact
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SITUATION WANTED: PROJ/OPS MGR: NYC Seeking the opp to work in on-air promos again, but open to other opps as well. Sev yrs cable on-air promo/new media & adops exp. Mang day-to-day ops of projs & campgs.
(3/31)

SITUATION WANTED: RESEARCH DIRECTOR Save money over a full time director. Let’s talk.20+ yrs Media, Nielsen, Hispanic, & Sales experience. Email:
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SITUATION WANTED: INTERACTIVE MEDIA SPECIALIST: LA. Newly available w/18 yrs of media experience & MBA. Need high-performance campaigns integrating online & non-traditional media? Avail F/P or freelance.
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SITUATION WANTED: ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE (NY) TV Ad Sales prof. seeks full-time media sales job. 5 years experience w/ stations (ABC, CBS, NBC) in top markets. Would like to stay in media, but open to opps. Email
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SITUATION WANTED: REALITY EDITOR in L.A. Credits: MTV, VH1, A&E, E!, Oxygen, Style. Avid & FC. Contact email:
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SITUATION WANTED: CREATIVE PRODUCER/NY looking for immed opp-22 yrs exp in series prod for Nick, Animal Planet, Discovery. Proven pro, innovator, skilled, hardworking. Develop, write, produce content for all media
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SITUATION WANTED: Recent graduate educated & experienced in audio, video, & television production. Very passionate and hard working; looking to get my foot in the door. Contact: Griffin Campbell 9082682078/
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WHAT’S ON TONIGHT –  THURSDAY, MARCH 26, 2009

ABC: In the Motherhood [p ], Samantha Who? [p ], Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice
AZTECA: Lo Que Callamos Las Mujeres Edicion Especial, Historias Engarzadas, Al Extremo
CBS: NCAA Basketball Tournament
CW: Smallville, Supernatural
FOX: American Idol, Hell’s Kitchen
ION: Movie: Batman Forever
MNT: My Thursday Movie: The Man in the Iron Mask
NBC: My Name is Earl, The Office [r], The Office, 30 Rock, ER
PBS: This Old House, Antiques Roadshow [r], Gershwin at One Symphony Place
TELE: Dona Barbara, El Rostro de Analia, Sin Senos No Hay Paraiso, El Cartel
UNIV: Premio Lo Nuestro 2009

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