Charlie Piane - Page 40

Led by two primetime NFL telecasts, which were the #1 and #2 programs of the week in adults 18-49 and other key measures, NBC won the week of December 27-January 2 in adults 18-49, total viewers and virtually all other key measures, averaging a 2.9 rating, 8 share in adults 18-49 and 8.5 million viewers overall, according to in-home viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research. This marks NBC's third weekly victory in the last four weeks in the key demographic of adults 18-49.

First Folio's Season of Suspense will continue with Noël Coward's comedy of the supernatural, Blithe Spirit. Charles Condomine's life takes an unexpected twist when the eccentric medium Madame Arcati unwittingly conjures up the ghost of his first wife Elvira. Caught between the spirit of his dead spouse and the disbelief of his current one, Charles struggles to maintain his marriage and his sanity.

It has been widely reported that Fox's 'American Idol' will be revamped for its upcoming season. The Hollywood Reporter has now published a list of the changes.

This February Goodspeed Musicals will hold local auditions for its 2011 season. Local Non-Equity auditions will be held on Saturday, February 5, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Local Equity auditions will be held on Sunday, February 6, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in East Haddam, Conn.

Broadway In Chicago is happy to announce that individual tickets for the Tony Award-winning production of HAIR: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical will go on sale on Friday, January 7 at 10:00 a.m. through all Broadway In Chicago ticketing outlets. The National Tour of HAIR comes to Chicago's Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre for a limited, two-week engagement March 8 - 20, 2011.

Broadway Sessions, the long running weekly musical theater themed evening at The Midtown Theater, welcomes stars from the Broadway hit Rock of Ages as it moves to it's new night, Thursdays, on January 6th.

The Australian Bee Gees Show - A Tribute to the Bee Gees, will make its exciting debut at Excalibur Hotel and Casino Tuesday, Feb. 1 when the talented tribute band brings the music of the famous Gibb brothers to the Las Vegas Strip.

BroadwayWorld.com presents Twitter Watch, which brings you only the best and most interesting reports straight from the mouths of Broadway stars, shows and more on the hot social networking service - Twitter! Winner of the 'most creative' response amongst the hundreds that we received (including nearly everyone on the list ... and many who weren't picked) after posting BroadwayGirlNYC's list of 'The Top 100 Theatre Tweeters You Must Follow on Twitter' went to Harvey Fierstein. The four-time Tony Award-winner is returning to Broadway February 15, starring as Albin in the 2010 Tony Award-winning revival of LA CAGE AUX FOLLES. The Broadway favorite will appear opposite six-time Emmy Award nominee Jeffrey Tambor ('Arrested Development,' 'The Larry Sanders Show') will make his Broadway musical debut as Georges.

Playwrights Horizons announced in December that it had commissioned FAR FROM HEAVEN, a new musical with book by Tony Award winner and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Richard Greenberg (Take Me Out, Three Days of Rain), music by Tony Award nominee Scott Frankel (Grey Gardens) and lyrics by Tony Award nominee Michael Korie (Grey Gardens, The Grapes of Wrath).

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) and Weigel Broadcasting Co. announced today plans for the national launch of Me-TV, a television network offering classic television sitcoms, dramas and classic commercials and targeted for digital broadcast stations, it was announced today by Jim Packer, co-President, MGM Worldwide Television and Norman H. Shapiro, President of Weigel Broadcasting.

Spring fever is coming 'atchoo' on VH1 with six new series set to premiere in March and April 2011 followed by some summer lovin' with VH1's 'Tough Love' guru Steve Ward. March madness kicks off with three new series 'Ton of Cash,' 'Love & Hip Hop' and 'Beverly Hills Fabulous' followed by 'Audrina,' 'Wedding Wars' and 'Saddle Ranch' in April. Summer kicks-off muy caliente when Steve Ward travels to Miami for 'VH1 Tough Love Miami' to help relationship-challenged women to make a splash in the dating pool. From capturing a young starlet's rise in Hollywood and couples competing for the wedding of their dreams to following a group of women behind some of the biggest names in hip hop and going inside the over the top world of a posh Beverly Hills salon and the LA restaurant world, VH1 gives you a never-before-seen look into competition, life and love.

The winter season debut of last year's breakout hit 'Pretty Little Liars' stood as ABC Family's No. 2 telecast ever in Women 18-34 (1.2 million/3.5 rating) and Females 12-34 (2.5 million/5.3 rating), ranking No. 1 in hour across all TV in the key demos.

This April, Mark Burnett and VH1 are teaming up to give viewers a never-before-seen look into the life of Audrina Patridge, a favorite of MTV's 'The Hills' and ABC's 'Dancing With The Stars,' on VH1's 'Audrina.'

For the just-completed 4th Quarter, ABC News' 'Nightline' ranked No. 1 among Total Viewers (3.93 million) and Adults 25-54 (1.61 million), beating NBC's 'The Tonight Show' and CBS' 'Late Show with David Letterman,' according to Nielsen Media Research. This represents the first-time ever that 'Nightline' outperformed its late-night rivals in Total Viewers during a 4th quarter. In addition, 'Nightline' topped both the 'Tonight Show' and the 'Late Show' in the key Adults 25-54 news demo for the first-time-ever during the course of a quarter.

During the week of December 27, 2010, ABC aired 5 of the Top 10 non-sports TV programs in Adults 18-49, including 3 of the Top 4 and the No. 1 scripted show with 'Desperate Housewives': 'Desperate Housewives' - No. 1, 'Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve 11' - No. 3, 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition' - No. 4, 'Brothers & Sisters' - No. 8 and 'Modern Family' - No. 10. ABC's 'Desperate Housewives' was also the most-watched scripted program overall for the week.

WE tv has renewed its original series Downsized for a second season, ordering 10 all-new episodes set to premiere this summer. The show features the nine-member Bruce family of Arizona as they continue on their path to economic recovery after being hit hard by the recession. The series will air on Tuesday nights, continuing to build on WE tv's strategy of creating a weekly Tuesday night destination dedicated to programming about the wild ride of family relationships, seen from a woman's perspective.

WE tv today announced a pair of original series premiering in 2011 which epitomize the network's refreshed brand position and new tagline, 'life as WE know it.' Premiering Tuesday, April 12, Braxton Family Values takes a candid look at the relationship between singer/songwriter Toni Braxton, her mom, and four sisters, all aspiring singers themselves. Debuting Tuesday, June 21, Staten Island Cakes is a humorous and heartwarming series that follows Vinny Buzzetta, a 21-year-old, self-made pastry prodigy and sought-after cake maker. Vinny's professional success has come with the help of his loud, outspoken Staten Island family - particularly his mother - as they live and work together.

60 MINUTES was one of America's five most-watched programs again, drawing 12.85 million viewers to finish at #5 for the week. It was the fourth straight time the news magazine made the upper half of Nielsen's Top 10 list. America's number-one news program has finished in the top 10 nine times over the broadcast's 14 telecasts this season -- six times ranking at #5 or higher.

CBS began the new year with a Monday sweep of viewers and key demographics that saw HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER and RULES OF ENGAGEMENT deliver their largest audiences since March while TWO AND A HALF MEN scored its most viewers since May, according to Nielsen preliminary live plus same day ratings for Jan. 4.

ABC's season opener of The Bachelor from 8-10pm drew an average audience of 9.0 million viewers and a 2.9/7 in Adults 18-49, taking second place to CBS' original comedy block. The Bachelor ranked #1 in its time period with Adults 18-34 (tied w/CBS comedy block) and won its slot by 20% in Women 18-34, qualifying as the #1 TV show of the night on the latter measure. The veteran ABC unscripted series built steadily throughout its broadcast in viewers and young adults, surging by 19% in Adults 18-49 from its first half-hour to its final half-hour.