NBC Starts from Scratch with it’s New 2013 Fall Schedule

NBC had a crazy year this past season with a strong start in the fall, a disastrous winter and a slight recovery in the spring. However, most of the success was due to The Voice and the network cancelled a ton of its new shows from last season except for Revolution and Chicago Fire. That meant buh bye to the fantastic The New Normal plus Matthew Perry’s Go On, Deception, 1600 Penn, Animal Practice, Do No Harm, and Guys With Kids. But the network also dumped my favorite guilty pleasure Smash along with sophomores Whitney, and Up All Night. It was also the final season for 30 Rock and The Office. So, essentially NBC only has two returning sitcoms, Parks and Recreation and Community (for a final 13 episode season), the least it’s had in years. So, they are starting from scratch and turning to some big names like Michael J. Fox and Sean Hayes who will both return to the Thursday night comedy block alongside Welcome to the Family and Parenthood. Take a look at the full new schedule below and descriptions of the new shows. Plus for previews of the shows, and more information, head to NBC or TVLine.com.

NBC’s 2013 Fall Schedule:

MONDAY
8/7c The Voice
10 pm THE BLACKLIST (new crime drama starring James Spader as one of the world’s elite criminals helping out the FBI. It actually looks fantastic.)

TUESDAY
8 pm The Biggest Loser
9 pm The Voice
10 pm Chicago Fire

WEDNESDAY
8 pm Revolution
9 pm Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
10 pm IRONSIDE (a new remake of the 60′s police drama starring Blair Underwood)

THURSDAY
8 pm Parks and Recreation
8:30 pm WELCOME TO THE FAMILY (A blended family comedy with Mike O’Malley, Ricardo Antonio Chivera, Justina Machado and Mary McCormack whose teenage kids get pregnant and engaged.)
9 pm SEAN SAVES THE WORLD (A multi-camera comedy starring Emmy winner Sean Hayes as a gay man reconnecting with his 14-year-old daughter and dealing with his hectic work life.) * Judging from the first clips, this looks hilarious and it’s the new show I’m most looking forward to.
9:30 pm THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW (A new single camera show starring Fox as a family man yearning to get back to the work world after taking time to be with his kids and deal with his Parkinson’s diagnosis.)
10 pm Parenthood

FRIDAY
8 pm Dateline NBC
9 pm Grimm
10 pm DRACULA (A period drama about the famous bloodsucker starring Jonathan Rhys-Meyers)

SATURDAY
Encore programming

SUNDAY
7 pm Football Night in America
8:15 pm NBC Sunday Night Football

SUNDAY (Post-football/Winter 2013)
7 pm Dateline NBC
8 pm Nate Berkus’ AMERICAN DREAM BUILDERS (Reality)
9 pm BELIEVE (A new drama about a young girl with mysterious powers and the people who are hunting her with Kyle MacLachlan.)
10 pm CRISIS (A new thriller about an international conspiracy starring Gillian Anderson and Dermot Mulroney)

On tap for midseason: the return of Community plus new comedies About a Boy (based on the hit British indie film), The Family Guide, and Undateable. New dramas include Crossbones with John Malkovich, the Chicago Fire spinoff Chicago PD, and the hospital drama The Night Shift.

No word on the fate of Hannibal or The Celebrity Apprentice yet.

Cancelled: Go On, The New Normal, Smash, Whitney, Guys with Kids, Animal Practice, 1600 Penn, Up All Night, Do No Harm, Deception, Rock Center with Brian Williams
Final Season: 30 Rock, The Office

Leona Lewis is in “Trouble”

Grammy nominated U.K. pop sensation Leona Lewis is in big “Trouble”. Well, at least she is in her brand new single, “Trouble”. The great mid tempo shuffler is the first release from her long anticipated third album, Glassheart,  due on Oct. 15th. It updates her sound a bit from her first two releases, Spirit and Echo, and the single also features a rap from Childish Gambino (aka Donald Glover from Community). I really like this new direction she is taking and it certainly gives her a harder more current edge. I hope it does well. Her last single, the fantastic dance song “Collide” only charted on our dance charts in the U.S. despite being a big hit at her home in England. Since that single failed to connect with pop audiences, it seems they went back to the drawing board to get something a bit more America- friendly. What do you think? Do you like Leona’s new sound? Does Britain’s biggest winner from The X Factor have another worldwide smash like “Bleeding Love” on her hands? Check out “Trouble” below and let me know.

Leona Lewis “Trouble” (featuring Childish Gambino)

“Homeland”, “Breaking Bad” and “Parks and Recreation” Rule the Critic’s Choice TV Awards

Last night, the critics really had their say as the 2nd Annual Critic’s Choice Television Awards named their winners for the past TV season. Winning two awards apiece were Homeland (which took Best Drama and Actress for Clare Danes), Breaking Bad, Sherlock, Parks & Recreation and Modern Family. Big surprises were found in Community‘s win for Best Comedy Series and The Voice winning Reality Competition show… I’m especially happy for the wins for Amy Poehler and Cat Deeley by the way…. Take a look at all the winners below.

2102 Critics Choice TV Award winners~

Best Drama Series
Homeland – Showtime

Best Actor in a Drama Series
Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad – AMC

Best Actress in a Drama Series
Claire Danes – Homeland – Showtime

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Giancarlo Esposito – Breaking Bad – AMC

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Christina Hendricks – Mad Men – AMC

Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series
Lucy Liu – Southland – TNT

Best Reality Series
Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations – Travel Channel

Best Reality Series – Competition
The Voice – NBC

Best Reality Show Host
Tom Bergeron – Dancing with the Stars – ABC
Cat Deeley – So You Think You Can Dance – FOX

Best Talk Show
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon – NBC

Best Comedy Series
Community – NBC

Best Actor in a Comedy Series
Louis C.K. – Louie – FX

Best Actress in a Comedy Series
Zooey Deschanel – New Girl – FOX
Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation – NBC

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Ty Burrell – Modern Family – ABC

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy
Julie Bowen – Modern Family – ABC

Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series
Paul Rudd – Parks and Recreation – NBC

Best Animated Series
Archer – FX

Best Movie/Miniseries
Sherlock – PBS

Best Actor in a Movie/Miniseries
Benedict Cumberbatch – Sherlock – PBS

Best Actress in a Movie/Miniseries
Julianne Moore – Game Change – HBO

Most Exciting New Series
The Following (Fox/Warner Bros.)
The Mindy Project (Fox/Universal)
Nashville (ABC/Lionsgate)
The Newsroom (HBO)
Political Animals (USA/Warner Bros.)

The Critic’s Choice TV Noms love Breaking Bad, Parks and Rec, and Community!

Today’s Critic’s Choice TV Award nominations gave a big ole finger to the Emmys with nominations for a ton of newbies and deserving shows that are always ignored by the Academy. Among those who are often snubbed that the Critic’s supported today are Community which lead with 6 nominations plus performers from Happy Endings (Casey Wilson & Damon Wayans Jr., yay!), Fringe (John Noble), Sons of Anarchy (Katey Sagal, Charlie Huffman, Maggie Siff), SouthLAnd (Regina King, Lucy Liu), and Shameless (Emmy Rossum, Chloe Webb). New show grabbing a lot of love include New Girl with 3 nods including Zooey Deschanel and the hilarious Max Greenfield, Girls, Homeland, and Veep… Following Community (a show I don’t really like, but totally like several of its performers, most notably Allison Brie and Jim Rash), Parks and Recreation and Breaking Bad both totaled 5 nods with The Good Wife and Modern Family nabbing 4 mentions… Big ups to Cheryl Hines from Suburgatory, Michelle Dockrey from Downton Abbey, Cat Deely and So You Think You Can Dance, and RuPaul who are all in the running as well… For more on the show and the nominees which will be announced June 18th, head here, and take a look at all the contenders below.

2012 Critic’s Choice TV Award Nominees~

BEST COMEDY SERIES
The Big Bang Theory
Community
Girls
Modern Family
New Girl
Parks and Recreation
BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Don Cheadle (House of Lies)
Louis C.K. (Louie)
Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm)
Garret Dillahunt (Raising Hope)
Joel McHale (Community)
Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory)
BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Zooey Deschanel (New Girl)
Lena Dunham (Girls)
Julia Louis Dreyfus (Veep)
Martha Plimpton (Raising Hope)
Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreation)
Ashley Rickards (Awkward)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Ty Burrell (Modern Family)
Max Greenfield (New Girl)
Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation)
Danny Pudi (Community)
Jim Rash (Community)
Damon Wayans Jr. (Happy Endings)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY
Julie Bowen (Modern Family)
Alison Brie (Community)
Cheryl Hines (Suburgatory)
Gillian Jacobs (Community)
Eden Sher (The Middle)
Casey Wilson (Happy Endings)
BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A COMEDY SERIES
Becky Ann Baker (Girls)
Bobby Cannavale (Modern Family)
Kathryn Hahn (Parks and Recreation)
Justin Long (New Girl)
Paul Rudd (Parks and Recreation)
Peter Scolari (Girls)
BEST DRAMA SERIES
Breaking Bad
Downton Abbey
Game of Thrones
The Good Wife
Homeland
Mad Men
BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad)
Kelsey Grammer (Boss)
Jon Hamm (Mad Men)
Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy)
Damian Lewis (Homeland)
Timothy Olyphant (Justified)
BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Claire Danes (Homeland)
Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey)
Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife)
Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men)
Emmy Rossum (Shameless)
Katey Sagal (Sons of Anarchy)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones)
Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad)
Neal McDonough (Justified)
John Noble (Fringe)
Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad)
John Slattery (Mad Men)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Christine Baranski (The Good Wife)
Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad)
Christina Hendricks (Mad Men)
Regina King (Southland)
Kelly Macdonald (Boardwalk Empire)
Maggie Siff (Sons of Anarchy)
BEST GUEST PERFORMER IN A DRAMA SERIES
Dylan Baker (Damages)
Jere Burns (Justified)
Loretta Devine (Grey’s Anatomy)
Lucy Liu (Southland)
Carrie Preston (The Good Wife)
Chloe Webb (Shameless)
BEST MOVIE/MINISERIES
American Horror Story
Luther
Sherlock
Page Eight
The Hour
Game Change
BEST ACTOR IN A MOVIE/MINISERIES
Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock)
Bill Nighy (Page Eight)
Woody Harrelson (Game Change)
Idris Elba (Luther)
Dominic West (The Hour)
Kevin Costner (Hatfields & McCoys)
BEST ACTRESS IN A MOVIE/MINISERIES
Jessica Lange (American Horror Story)
Gillian Anderson (Great Expectations)
Julianne Moore (Game Change)
Patricia Clarkson (Five)
Lara Pulver (Sherlock)
Emily Watson (Appropriate Adult)
BEST REALITY SERIES
Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations
Hoarders
Sister Wives
Kitchen Nightmares
Pawn Stars
Undercover Boss
BEST REALITY SERIES — COMPETITION
The Pitch
Shark Tank
So You Think You Can Dance
The Voice
Chopped
The Amazing Race
BEST REALITY SHOW HOST
Tom Bergeron (Dancing with the Stars)
Nick Cannon (America’s Got Talent)
Cat Deeley (So You Think You Can Dance)
Phil Keoghan (The Amazing Race)
RuPaul (RuPaul’s Drag Race)
BEST TALK SHOW
Conan
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
The View
BEST ANIMATED SERIES
Archer
Adventure Time
Bob’s Burgers
Family Guy
Star Wars: The Clone Wars

NBC goes for Laughs with its new 2012 Fall Schedule

NBC has been mired in the ratings cellar for several years now, but with their new fall schedule, they are hoping to return to their 80′s and 90′s glory days. How are they gonna do it? Well, apparently, they are hoping to become the kings of comedy again. They did it with shows like Cheers, Seinfeld, Friends, Frasier, The Cosby Show, The Golden Girls and Will & Grace. So, why not make a big play with 4 nights of comedy programming, Tuesday thru Friday? That’s what they will be doing by bringing back Community, Up All Night, Whitney (what?!) and 30 Rock  (in its final season) for 13 more episodes plus full seasons of The Office (with all the stars returning except for James Spader and Mindy Kaling who has a new sitcom on Fox) and Parks and Recreation. They will add 4 more comedies to the mix: Go On starring Matthew Perry as a sportscaster, Animal Kingdom with Justin Kirk as a House-like veterinarian, Guys with Kids from producer Jimmy Fallon and The New Normal with Justin Bartha and Tony nominee Andrew Rannells (The Book of Mormon) as a gay couple who enlist a surrogate to help them start a family. The latter comedy is from Ryan Murphy (Glee, American Horror Story) and costars Tony winner Ellen Barkin and looks like a riot. I can’t wait…
The network also has 3 more comedies for mid-season with Save Me starring Anne Heche, 1600 Penn (a comedy set at the White House) and Next Caller about a foul-mouthed DJ played by Dane Cook. Dramas joining later in the year are Infamous and Hannibal (yes, that’s about Hannibal Lecter!)
Also on the drama side, NBC has added Revolution, Do No Harm and Chicago Fire. Revolution will follow a new fall edition of The Voice which will now air twice a year essentially turning it into a singing version of Dancing with the Stars or Survivor, and thus further reducing the likelihood of ever producing a true music hit maker. (But it can still get good rating for the network that has such a low bar)… Also returning will be the musical drama Smash at midseason (so it can air 18 episodes uninterrupted) along with a newly reconfigured The Biggest Loser.... Cancelled shows include Awake, The Firm, Harry’s Law (boo!!!), Are You There Chelsea, Bent and Best Friends Forever. For more on the new shows and clips of them, head to TV Line here. And check out NBC’s new fall schedule below.

MONDAY
8-10 p.m. – “The Voice”
10-11 p.m. – “REVOLUTION”

TUESDAY
8-9 p.m. – “The Voice”
9-9:30 p.m. – “GO ON”
9:30-10 p.m. – “THE NEW NORMAL”
10-11 p.m. – “Parenthood”

WEDNESDAY
8-8:30 p.m. – “ANIMAL PRACTICE”
8:30-9 p.m. – “GUYS WITH KIDS”
9-10 p.m. – “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”
10-11 p.m. – “CHICAGO FIRE”

THURSDAY
8-8:30 p.m. – “30 Rock”
8:30-9 p.m. – “Up All Night”
9-9:30 p.m. – “The Office”
9:30-10 p.m. – “Parks and Recreation”
10-11 p.m. – “Rock Center with Brian Williams”

FRIDAY
8-8:30 p.m. – “Whitney”
8:30-9 p.m. – “Community”
9-10 p.m. – “Grimm”
10-11 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”

SATURDAY
Encore programming

SUNDAY (Fall 2012)
7- 8:15 p.m. — “Football Night in America”
8:15-11:30 p.m. — “NBC Sunday Night Football”

SUNDAY (Post-football/Winter 2013)
7-8 p.m. – “Dateline NBC”
8-9 p.m. – “Fashion Star”
9-10 p.m. – “The Celebrity Apprentice”
10-11 p.m. – “DO NO HARM”

It’s Christmas with Katharine McPhee

I don’t know about you but it takes me a little while to get in the mood for Christmas music. I, for one, think it’s absolutely unacceptable to hear anything Christmas-y til at least Dec. 1st. So, now it’s Dec 10th and I’m finally ready for some Christmas music. This season there are new holiday albums out by the Glee cast, Susan Boyle, Annie Lennox and more, but one album that’s actually really good is the new holiday collection by American Idol runner-up Katharine McPhee, Christmas is the Time to Say I Love You. Like previous Idols Clay Aiken and David Archuleta who’ve released hit Christmas albums, McPhee has a perfect voice for these smooth winter time tunes and lovelorn ballads. She’s gotten a lot of airplay with previous Christmas singles “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” and now the first video for her new Xmas tune has been released. Check out Katharine’s “It’s Not Christmas Without You” below, and for more on Katharine and her burgeoning acting career (including roles in The House Bunny, Community and the upcoming Shark Night 3D), click here.

Katharine McPhee “It’s Not Christmas Without You”

Betty White Raps on “Community”~ Hilarious!

Hollywood’s “It” girl Betty White guest starred on the season premiere of Community last night and for those who tuned in they got a special treat. At the end of the episode, Betty rapped. Check it out. Hilarious!