CYNTHIA TURNER’S
CYNOPSIS

08/11/04

Good morning. It’s Wednesday, August 11, 2004, and this is your first early morning briefing.

Bill Clinton does it again in late night – this time on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Former President Clinton appeared on the Daily Show on Tuesday, August 9, and 1.3 million A18-49 viewers tuned in, a total viewership of 1.9 million.  That makes the Bill Clinton Episode, the most watched Monday episode of Daily Show in the history of Daily Show in both total viewers and A18-49, and in the time period the #1 basic cable show among A18-49.

TNT‘s limited series The Grid finished up its six hours with an average 3.2 million viewers, and in key demos 1.2 million A18-49 and 1.5 million A25-54.  In each of the key demos, The Grid showed marked improvement over the same time frame a year ago, +12% among A18-49 and +25% among A25-54.

For it’s second outing, A&E’s Growing Up Gotti – the show that earned an additional 7 ep order (for a total of 20) after the network saw the returns on the premiere episode, has pulled in 2.6 million viewers.  Good, but down from the 3.2 million it delivered on the premiere. In adult demos, Gotti averaged 1.5 million A18-49 and A25-54 viewers.

The second week of August was a big one for USA Network, taking the title of having the three most watched programs on basic cable with Monk, The Dead Zone and the finale of The 4400.  Monk had its biggest night thus far this season with 5.8 million viewers and delivering a 2.1 A18-49 rating.  The Dead Zone averaged 4.6 million viewers, up in key adults demos over last season’s averages.  And The 4400 finale was the most watched program on basic cable for the week, delivering a 4.8 HH Rtg, and a 2.9 A18-49 and 3.3 A25-54 rtg according to figures from USA.  The full run of The 4400 averaged 5.9 million viewers each week.

ABC takes Monday night with the Hall of Fame football game delivering a 3.9/11 A18-49 rating and 10.2 million viewers, down by approx 1 million viewers vs. last year, according to Nielsen Media Research. Among men, the game pulled in a 5.2/15 M18-49 and a 4.6/15 among M18-34. Elsewhere, NBC’s Fear Factor [r] was #1 behind football at 8pm with a 2.7/9, while Fox’s North Shore [original episode]  and CBS sitcoms tied at 8pm with an 7 share.  At 9pm, CBS’ Raymond and 2-1/2 Men ranked #2 with a 3.8/10, followed by Fox’s Trading Spaces [r] with a 2.9/8. NBC’s two hour finale of For Love or Money earned a 2.8/8.  At 10p, CSI Miami pulled ahead of football with a 3.7/10 vs. 3.5/10 for football.

Kenneth Branagh has signed up for HBO‘s movie Warm Springs, a film about FDR in the days before he entered the White house. Branagh will play FDR.  The movie is slated for 2005; production begins in the next couple of months. About time Branagh got a little more face time on US TV.

Sometimes an order of more eps doesn’t pan out.  While nothing has been officially decided yet, Method & Red may not be in need of the three more eps the network had previously ordered.  As the Fox show readies for a scheduled break before returning on September 8 where it will air following original episodes of The Bernie Mac Show, the net is putting a hold on the add’l eps to see if they will really be needed.

NBC Universal‘s syndicated series Starting Over (Bunim-Murray Prods) starts its second season on September 13 and there have been some changes/additions. The show has moved from Chicago to LA; Iyanla Vanzant (motivational speaker and former syndicated tv talk show host) joins the show as a life coach along with Rhonda Britten; clinical psychologist Dr. Stan Katz also joins the professional ranks.  Housemates/cast members will include two returning from last season, and five new members.

Viacom is creating CBS Paramount International Television by merging CBS Broadcast International and Paramount International Television.  The restructure/merger is intended to centralize and maximize the company’s international TV distribution and programming operations. CBS Paramount International Television 60,000+ hour library will contain Paramount’s network and syndicated programming, Paramount Pictures titles, CBS News and Entertainment series, King World’s syndicated regular shows and Spelling Television series. Armando Nunez, Jr. (previously CBS Broadcast International pres) will head up the new company as president.  He will be responsible for the catalogues international distribution and manage the company’s 9 offices around the globe and the company’s movie channels’ joint venture in Asia, Australia, Brazil, India, and Latin America.  Paramount International Television’s president, Gary Marenzi, will be leaving the company due to the changing structure.  Armando will report to Roger King, the CEO/CBS Enterprises and King World Productions and Joel Berman, President/Paramount Worldwide Television Distribution.

Top Ten Basic Cable Ad Supported Network Rankings among Total Viewers for the of Aug 2-8, 2004:
Primetime       (000)   Total Pgm Day   (000)
USA             2908    NICK            2164
TNT             2114    CARTOON 1547
CARTOON 1882    NAN*            1415
TBS             1796    USA             1158
FOX NEWS        1783    TNT             1151
NAN             1712    LIFETIME        1059
LIFETIME        1700    TBS             965
ESPN            1570    FOX NEWS        920
A&E             1416    ESPN            784
FX              1374    ABC FAMILY      681
Source Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research Data.
All ratings based on Total U.S. Television Universe of 108,400,000 homes
* = Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24 hour day. Primetime listing only includes those networks broadcasting more than 51% of the primetime hours (M-Su 8p-11p)

Top Ten Basic Cable Ad Supported Network Rankings among A18-49 for the week of Aug 2-8, 2004:
Primetime       (000)   Total Pgm Day   (000
USA             1224    NAN*            615
TBS             999     TBS             563
TNT             943     TNT             537
FX                      804     USA             530
COMEDY          784     LIFETIME        492
LIFETIME        770     ESPN            477
ESPN    754     NICK            398
DISCOVERY       630     FX              382
A&E             607     CARTOON 351
SCI FI          569     COMEDY  347
Source Turner Research from Nielsen Media Research Data.
All ratings based on Total U.S. Television Universe of 108,400,000 homes.
* = Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24 hour day. Primetime listing only includes those networks broadcasting more than 51% of the primetime hours (M-Su 8p-11p)

For all you New Yorkers – the consensus of what different companies are doing in NYC during the Republican National Convention at the end of the month is fairly consistent depending on the location of the offices.  Among those companies responding to the query with offices in or near Times Square and/or MSG (RNC location), many will be closed, or have encouraged their people to arrange for vacation time that week.  As the office addresses move a little further way from the heart of the RNC, the responses have been to allow personnel based in Long Island and New Jersey to work from home that week, while NYC employees and those from upstate and Connecticut will keep regular office hours. And further away from the RNC, the majority of the responding companies say it will Business as Usual.  For those working that week, you’ll want to know in advance various street closings around the major venues, Penn Station has only two entrances open, some bus routes will be re-routed, etc. Check with your HR folks who probably have already disseminated the scheduled skinny to the staff.

Scripps Networks President Ed Spray has announced he will retire at year’s end.  Succeeding Spray will be John Lansing  effective January 2005. Lansing has been with Scripps for nine years, most recently as EVP/Scripps Network since January 2004. He has worked closely with Spray and the top executives at all of the company’s networks to ensure the distinctiveness of each brand and to further improve programming production efficiencies.

Maria Grasso has been upped to SVP/Drama Development at The WB Network; and Clay Spencer has joined the network as VP/Drama Development, coming to the network from The Greenblatt Janollari Studio.  The announcements were made today by David Janollari, President, Entertainment and Carolyn Bernstein, Executive Vice President, Drama Development, to whom they will report.

Monday, August 9, 2004. Fast National 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     6.8/12  Hall of Fame Game:  Denver Broncos vs. Washington Redskins 6.8/12

CBS     6.5/11  Still Standing [r] 4.6/8, Yes Dear [r] 4.9/8, Raymond [r] 7.6/12, 2-1/2 Men [r] 7.4/12, CSI Miami [r] 7.3/12

NBC     4.6/8   Fear Factor [r] 4.7/8, For Love or Money [finale] 4.6/8

FOX     3.6/6   North Shore 3.4/6, Trading Spouses [r] 3.9/6

WB      1.6/3   7th Heaven [r] 1.6/3, Summerland [r] 1.6/3

UPN     1.7/3   One on One [r] 1.7/3, Half and Half [r] 1.8/3, Girlfriends [r] 1.6/3, Girlfriends [r] 1.6/3

A18-49  ABC 3.9/11, CBS 3.3/9, NBC 2.8/8, Fox 2.6/8, UPN 1.0/3, WB 0.9/3

A MESSAGE FROM WARNER BROS. DOMESTIC CABLE DISTRIBUTION

Source: NTI Explorer, Week ranks= 9/22/03-8/8/04, excludes specials.  Rank based on HH Rating.

The History Channel presents This Day in History:
1970:  The spork is patented, by the Van Brode Milling Company of Massachusetts.  The spoon-like utensil, with the tines of a fork, was said to have been introduced into Japan by the U.S. Army to wean the population there from the use of chopsticks.  Its inventor is unknown.

Answer to Friday’s Trivia Question:  Who penned the novel Murder at the Stratley?  DICK LOUDIN – Bob Newhart Show. Kudos to:  Joe Coppola-NY; Robin Kenwood-ITN Networks/NY; Vivian Guardino-MTVN/NY; Marc Wollis-Golf Channel/Orlando; Jeff Arthur-MTVN/Chicago; Kathy Carlson-Cuneo Adv/Bloomington; Rusty Rickets-WXIN/Indianapolis; Katie Murphy-KMOT/Minot; Ken Dubow-Modern Ent/LA; Dave Sikula-Yahoo!/Sunnyvale; Gayle Reznik-Core FA/Toronto.

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:  Who were two notables from the Devil’s Hole Gang? (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.)

A MESSAGE FROM COURT TV

Later — Cyn

Cynthia Turner’s Cynopsis
08/11/04  5:14am
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CYNOPSIS CLASSIFIEDS

JOB OPENING:  SR.ANALYST/AD SALES RESEARCH, Lifetime Television, NY. Solid bcst or cable research exp. Analyze rtgs & pgm perf. Knwldg of research systems a must. Email salary req:
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JOB OPENING:  COORD, AWARD & FEST ENTRIES/TALENT TRAVEL,SHOWTIME/NY. 4+ yrs exp w/high volume & multi-deadlines. Cable/net/fest/ent pr/agency, studio bckgnd req. Resume/ref. must verify. Apply:
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JOB OPENING:  DIRECTOR, RESEARCH (RATINGS), FOX Broadcasting/LA. 3-5 yrs res exp, tv or agency Strong analyticals/strategic thinker; qual+quant; Nielsen systems (local&national). Apply: www.foxcareers.com
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JOB OPENING:  MANAGER, RESEARCH, FOX Broadcasting/LA. 2+ yrs res exp, tv or agency Strong analyticals/strategic thinker; qual+quant; Nielsen systems (local&national). Apply: www.foxcareers.com
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JOB OPENING:  PRODUCERS EXEC ASSIST for new PBSKIDS show from Shadow Projects, Inc, must be able to work local in Hamptons, Long Island, NY area. Email resume (MS word)/& cover letter to
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JOB OPENING:  DIRECTOR, AFFILIATE SALES/Oxygen Net, NY. Manage dist., mktg, local ad sales for major nat’l acct. Mgmt of 4 mgrs; extensive travel. Cable sales exp a must. Resume: gbeidl
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JOB OPENING:  BROADCAST PLANNER-BUYER/Blitz Media, Boston. Strong negotiator w/advanced knowledge of media options. Proficient in Excel. DRTV exp. preferred. Min 4 yrs. buying/planning exp. Email resume to
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JOB OPENING:  MTV Networks/FIELD MKTING DIRECTOR.  Develop/assist in all MTVN local mkting activities that support the affiliates field office objectives, and are aligned w/ASM strategies and goals.  Apply: www.mtvncareers.com
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JOB OPENING:  RESEARCH ANALYST, Screenvision Cinema Network, NY:  2-4 years exp;  proficient with Nielsen and research resources.  Ability to analyze data and respond to requests.  Submit resumes to:
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JOB OPENING:  PRODUCER/SHOOTER for major cable network/NY. Starts immed; approx 8 wks. 5+ yrs exp in DV shooting/prod reality-docs. Show sensitivity to characters; build story arc. Email w/o attachments:
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SITUATION WANTED:  TV/Film Animation Producer (16+ years) looking for Sr. Exec. Level Position in Production; Development or Programming.  Interest in toy/gaming as well. NYC/LA/SFO. Query for resume/credits. 
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A MESSAGE FROM CYNOPSIS AD SALES

WHAT’S ON TONIGHT:  TUESDAY, AUGUST 10, 2004:

ABC             My Wife & Kids x2 [r], The Drew Carey Show x2 [r], In the Jury Room (OTO)
CBS             60 Minutes, King of Queens [r], King of Queens [r], 48 Hours
FOX             2004 Teen Choice Awards (OTO)
NBC             Most Outrageous Game Show Moments #2 [r], Law & Order [r], Law & Order [r]
PAX             On the Cover, Balderdash, Early Edition, Diagnosis Murder
UPN             Amish in the City, The Player
WB              Smallville [r], Smallville [r]
TELE            Prisonera, Gitanas, Protagonistas VIP
UNIV            Mariana de la Noche, Amarte es mi Pecado, Don Francisco Presenta