CYNTHIA TURNER’S
CYNOPSIS

02/10/04

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

Hands down, the winner on Sunday among all key demos was CBS with the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, according to Nielsen Media Research.  CBS delivered an average of 23.6 million viewers from 7p-11p on Sunday night, with an overall 9.6/23 A18-49 rating. ABC was #2 with a 3.2/8, followed by NBC 3.1/7, Fox 2.8/7, WB 1.6/4.  During the Grammys, 8-11p, the total viewership tally avg’d 27.2 million, with a 11.9/27 A18-49, 12.4/26 A25-54, 12.2/31 A18-34 and among the teens, a 10.4/28.  CBS also began the evening in front with 60 Minutes posting a 2.7/8 A18-9 rating, wtih NBC and Fox tied each posting a 7 share. At 8pm, second to the Grammys, again there was a tie between NBC and Fox, each with an 8 share, WB posted a 5 share for Charmed.  At 9p ABC’s movie Pearl Harbor moved into #2 with a 4.0/9, beating an original ep of L&O: CI (3.1/7).  ABC held its #2 status at 10p with a 4.1/10, slightly ahead of a second ep of L&O: CI on NBC (3.5/9).

Jordan Levin, co-CEO of The WB, announced Charmed has been picked up for another season, its seventh season.

Coming to a cable MSO near you starting February 11 at 12pm, is a new cable called Real Hip Hop Network, marking itself as the first network to deliver exclusive hip-hop content 24-hours a day. Behind the effort is SSM Media & Entertainment Group, headed by Atonn Muhammed, President/CEO, his partner Bryan Tucker and industry veteran Reese Schonfeld, co-founder of CNN/CNN Headline News and The Food Network. As EVP/Strategy is former MTV/VH1/Nick executive David Houle.  RHN will also tap the expertise of Pseudo Entertainment and reach into their extensive 15,000 volume proprietary video library.  For further info on The Real Hip Hop Network, check out http://www.ssm-media.com/

Sony Pictures Television has cleared Pat Croce: Moving In on the Fox stations in NY (WNYW/WWOR), LA (KTTV/KCOP) and Chicago (WFLS/WPWR) for a fall 2004 launch. To date, the show has been clear in 18 of the top 20 markets.

TechTV has picked up the exclusive North American television rights to Last Exile, the Japanese anime series from Gonzo Entertainment and distributed by Geneon Entertainment (USA) Inc. The network will premiere the series in prime time beginning Monday, March 8 at 10P.  The network adds this anime series to its others featured in its regular late night anime block, Anime Unleashed. 

Forever Eden will get its network debut on Fox on March 1 and 2, with the added benefit of an American Idol leadin.  Thereafter, Eden will move into its regular time period, that is Thursdays at 9p as of March 18.

The owners of the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche, Kroenke Sports Enterprises, is launching its own regional cable network in September.  The games had been carried on Fox Sports Net, a deal which expires at the end of the current NBA/NHL season, and a deal which will not be renewed by Kroenke.  Instead, Stan Kroenke is busily negotiating with various cable and satellite providers for carriage, with an eye toward a basic or expanded basic cable channel. In addition to the Avalanche and Nuggets games, the still unnamed network will carry lacrosse games of the Kroenke owned Colorado Mammoth as well as a variety of college and high school games in and around the region. The network will be operated by KSE Media Ventures LLC.

Development and Casting News:

• CBS‘ The Webster Report pilot has cast Stanley Tucci about an off-the-beaten-track NYC private investigator, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
• ABC‘s pilot Desperate Housewives (Touchstone TV) has added Felicity Huffman to the cast as another one of the four wives.  Mentioned here yesterday was the casting of Eva Longoria (LA Dragnet) as another wife with a secret life. Also at ABC, Jason Segal has been cast in the pilot Harry Green and Eugene (Littlefield Co/Paramount), about a private detective and his less able brother.
• Fox‘s pilot Doing It which centers on the lives of three teenage boys, has cast D.B. Sweeney and Lisa Darr as the parents of one of the three boys.  Elsewhere at Fox, Oahu, set in a luxury hotel on Hawaii, has cast Kristoffer Polaha as the Hotel Manager.
• NBC has ordered a pilot of the Craig Doyle 30m comedy project, Weekends.

Canada’s CBC will also be employing the use of the 7-second delay as it airs Coach’s Corner, part of its Hockey Night in Canada series, one of the most popular and most viewed programs in Canada, according to Variety.  On January 24, the host of Coach’s Corner, Don Cherry, insulted his French-Canadian viewers when he said the only hockey players who wear protective visors on their helmets are “Europeans and French guys.”  His remarks are under high scrutiny at the moment from the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (their FCC) which is conducting their own investigation.

Gina Smith, SVP/sales for cable rep firm NCC in New York, was killed in a car accident on Sunday night in Connecticut.  She was 47.  Greg Schaefer, President/NCC said:  “Gina was a rare spirit, and she became a leader, guiding force and friend to many of us at NCC, our clients and our affiliates in the short time she was here. She will be remembered forever and missed terribly.” Gina had been with NCC since November, making the move to cable after years with NBC as SVP/Ad Sales for Telemundo.

Richard Wolf has been named SVP/Telecommunications and Network Origination Services, in the Broadcast Operations and Engineering division of the ABC Television Network. The announcement was made by Preston Davis, President/Broadcast Operations and Engineering for the ABC Television Network, to whom Mr. Wolf will report. 

Also at ABC, Heidi Lobel has been named SVP/ABC Daytime Network and SOAPnet Sales, it was announced by Mike Shaw, President/Sales and Marketing for the ABC Television Network, to whom she will report.

Sunday, February 8, 2004. Fast Affiliate 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

CBS     14.2/22 60 Minutes 8.7/14, 46th Annual Grammy Awards 16.1/24

ABC     6.1/9   Movie: Pearl Harbor 6.1/9

FOX     3.9/6   King of the Hill 3.6/6, Oliver Beane [p] 3.7/6, The Simpsons 5.2/8, Bernie Mac 3.8/5, Malcolm 3.8/5, Arrested Development 3.1/5

NBC     7.2/11  Dateline 8.5/13, Law & Order: CI 7.5/11, Law & Order CI [r] 7.6/12

WB      2.2/3   Smallville [r] 1.7/3, Charmed 2.8/4, Surreal Life 2.2/3

A18-49  CBS 9.6/23, ABC 3.2/8, NBC 3.1/7, Fox 2.8/7, WB 1.6/4

A MESSAGE FROM COURT TV

The History Channel presents This Day in History: 
1962 – The Soviet Union frees captured U.S. spy plane pilot Gary Powers.

Answer to Monday’s Trivia Question: This ‘domestic’ has reportedly been known to throw hatchets at the Good Humor Man, howl at the moon and even make necklaces out of chicken necks.  Who is this person? SUZANNE SUGARBAKER’S MAID, CONSUELA.  Kudos to: Matt Meachem-Tribune Media Services/Glenn Falls; Abby van Horne-IMG TWI/New York; Joanne Milano-RJ Palmer/NY; Amy Fidler-Nickelodeon/NY; Marge Pistulka-Empower MediaMarketing/Naperville; Jim Smith-Healing Touch Massage/Dallas; Amanda Kilman-Oklahoma City; Robert Ray-HDNet/Dallas; Frank Hagan-Termite Art Prods/LA.

Today’s Trivia Question:  What was the name of the magazine where Mr. Eddie’s Father worked on the Courtship of Eddie’s Father?   (
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
02/10/04  5:18am
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WHAT’S ON TONIGHT:  TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2004

COURT TV INVESTIGATES…

COURT TV:       Special: RFK: Our Children, Our Future (OTO), Forensic Files, The Investigators
ABC             8 Simple Rules, I’m with Her, According to Jim, Less than Perfect, NYPD Blue
CBS             Navy NCIS, The Guardian, Judging Amy
FOX             American Idol, 24
NBC             Supersized Tues: Friends (OTO), Will & Grace (OTO), Scrubs (OTO), Law & Order: SVU
PAX             AFV, Early Edition, Diagnosis Murder
UPN             One on One, All of Us, Top Model
WB              Gilmore Girls, One Tree Hill
TELE            Amor Descardo, El Alma Herida, Mujeres Apasionadas
UNIV            Velo de Novia, Te Amare en Silencio, Casos de la Vida Real