This Week on TV (9/1-9/7)

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Award Shows, Comedy, Daytime, Food & Home, Games, Kids, Music, Prime Time, Reality, Specials, Talk Shows, ABC, Bravo, Cable, CBS, FX, FOX, HBO, MTV, NBC, The CW, TNT-HD, America's Next Top Model, Entourage, Prison Break

(You can view TV Envy’s Fall Television Programming Schedule here.)

MONDAY (9/1)
Labor Day Marathons: The Closer (TNT), Beverly Hills, 90210 (SOAPnet), Scrubs (TV Land), Dirty Jobs (Discovery), My Wife and Kids (ABC Family), Star Trek: The Next Generation (Sci Fi), House of Payne (TBS), CSI (Spike TV), Anthony Bourdain (Travel), That ‘70s Show (FX)

• Gossip Girl (CW, 8pm):  Season 2 premiere. “Summer in the Hamptons winds down as Serena and Nate carry on a cover-up scheme to make others think they’re dating.” A few choice pics sent to Gossip Girl should do the trick.
• Prison Break (FOX, 8pm):  Season 4 premiere. “Michael is in LA looking to even the score with Gretchen for Sara’s death.” I think Gretchen should really apologize for all of last season.
• One Tree Hill (CW, 9pm):  Season 6 premiere. “Lucas’ chosen lady meets him at the airport, while Dan’s accident proves life-threatening.” Sorry. So not caring who Chad Michael Murray picks these days.
• Raising the Bar (TNT, 10pm):  Series premiere. “Idealistic public defender Jerry Kellerman (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) fights for a man he’s sure is innocent, but holding a court is a judge who loathes Kellerman.” Gosselaar’s new hair has been generating some passionate opinions.

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Brian Williams Takes a Turn on Meet the Press

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: NBC, News

Although the network is smack in the middle of an exciting political year, NBC has decided against making rush decisions on its empty posts.

After Tim Russert’s passing last Friday, Tom Brokaw assumed the role of guest host on Meet the Press. Now the current anchor of Nightly News, Brian Williams, will have his turn this weekend. (He was only asked to do the job this Thursday.)

For now, it appears temporary substitutions are something we’ll have to get used to for the weeks to come. (The situation feels similar to when Roger Ebert first began his medical absence from Ebert & Roeper.)

The network knows Russert’s shoes - on the set and in the Washington bureau - will be hard to fill and it’s not a decision anyone wants to take lightly. As NBC News’ president (Steve Capus) put it, “Tim left us as he was at the top of his game. It took someone with Tim’s enormous skills and qualities as a human being to juggle all those things and do so brilliantly.”

Read More | Hollywood Reporter

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Networks Team Up for Cancer

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Specials, ABC, CBS, NBC, News

Although the nightly competition between Charles Gibson and Brian Williams is quite tight, the two journalists - along with Katie Couric - combined forces today to promote a joint project. In a rare event, the trio hit all three morning shows to deliver the special news. This meant a return to old stomping grounds for both Couric (Today) and Gibson (Good Morning America).

Together they announced that ABC, NBC and CBS will be simultaneously devoting one hour to the same cause: the fight against cancer. Stand Up 2 Cancer, a commercial-free telethon airing September 5th, will aim to raise funds for research.

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Read More | Hollywood Reporter

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Late Night Repeats for Writer-less Talk Shows

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Daytime, Late Night, Talk Shows, ABC, Cable, NBC, Syndication, General Hospital, Saturday Night Live, News

If the Writers Guild of America strikes on Monday as scheduled, you can expect a slate of late-night reruns to put you to bed.  Assuming a last-minute Sunday mediation session doesn’t prevent the 12,000 WGA members from walking out, daily productions ranging from The Colbert Report to Late Night with Conan O’Brien will immediately go into repeats.  So much for November sweeps.

The impact will not necessarily be limited to evening fare; daytime chatfests like The Ellen Degeneres Show may be affected as well.  Fortunately soap operas like my fave, General Hospital, have stockpiled scripts that should leave them immune for months to come.

Tonight’s Saturday Night Live with Brian Williams could also be the last Lorne Michaels production for some time.  But given SNL’s lame tendency to air repeats anyway, who’d even notice?

Read More | Hollywood Reporter

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