or


[07/06/06 - 12:00 AM]
Twentieth Television and Tribune Broadcasting Close Off-Net Syndication Agreement on Hit Sitcom "Family Guy"

[via press release from Tribune]

Twentieth Television and Tribune Broadcasting Close Off-Net Syndication Agreement on Hit Sitcom "Family Guy"

Seth MacFarlane's Emmy Award Series to Premiere on Tribune Stations in Fall 2007

LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO, July 6, 2006 -- Twentieth Television has cleared Seth MacFarlane�s hit Emmy Award-winning animated sitcom "Family Guy" on the Tribune Broadcasting station group for a fall 2007 launch in off-net syndication. The announcement was jointly made today by Bob Cook, president and COO of Twentieth Television; and John Reardon, president of Tribune Broadcasting, a division of Tribune Company.

Under terms of the agreement, the series about the Griffin family (father Peter, wife Lois, their kids and a very brainy dog) that pokes fun at everyday middle-class life will premiere in 20 major markets, representing 37.8% of the United States. Tribune stations set to premiere "Family Guy" in off-net include WPIX/New York, KTLA/Los Angeles, WGN/Chicago, WPHL/Philadelphia, WLVI/Boston, KDAF/Dallas, WDCW/Washington, KHCW/Houston, KCPQ-KTWB/Seattle, WBZL/Miami, KWGN/Denver, KTXL/Sacramento, KPLR/St. Louis, KWBP/Portland, WXIN-WTTV/Indianapolis, KSWB/San Diego, WTIC-WTXX/Hartford, WXMI/Grand Rapids, WPMT/Harrisburg and WGNO-WNOL/New Orleans.

Regarding the announcement, Cook stated, "We are very pleased to have entered into this agreement on �Family Guy� with Tribune Broadcasting. From the genius of Seth MacFarlane, �Family Guy� is a pop culture phenomenon that has accomplished extraordinary popularity. We expect this success to continue during its off-net window for the Tribune station group."

"We�re always looking to acquire engaging, high-quality programs to refresh our local lineups," added Tribune�s Reardon. " �Family Guy� fits that description and we look forward to the show having a positive impact on ratings and revenues across our group."

Since its debut in 1999, the Emmy Award-winning series has attracted an impressively loyal following of devoted fans and has sold nine million combined DVD units, outperforming "The Simpsons," "South Park," "Seinfeld," "Friends" and "Everybody Loves Raymond." The show�s success on DVD, combined with the ratings records it set on the Cartoon Network�s Adult Swim block, prompted FOX to bring it back for a fifth season, making "Family Guy" the only series ever to return to television after being cancelled.

A multiplatform success, more than 500 "Family Guy" merchandise items have been licensed in over 10,000 consumer outlets, including such major retailers as Target, Wal-Mart and K-Mart. On the web, "Family Guy" was 2005�s third most searched television program of the year on Yahoo! and currently is the number one most downloaded cell phone television property, with 2.3 million ring tones, voice tones, wallpaper, ring backs and games downloaded to date. On stage, the hit "Family Guy Live!" events have sold out numerous performances in New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

"Family Guy�s" current season, its fifth, continues with more distinctively twisted and irreverently outrageous trials and tribulations of Peter Griffin (MacFarlane) and his not-quite-so-average family. Immersed in television�s most clever storylines and scripts, Lois (Alex Borstein) is Peter�s loving wife, who struggles to maintain a modicum of normalcy in their home life. Then there are their kids: angst-ridden, 16-year-old Meg (Mila Kunis), who only really wants to get noticed; 13-year-old Chris (Seth Green), a sweet-natured slacker; and 1-year-old Stewie (MacFarlane), a diabolically clever baby who�s already bent on world domination. Rounding out the Griffin household is Brian, the family dog who has a penchant for dry martinis and Shakespearean sonnets.

In addition to the regular cast, "Family Guy" has featured a diverse range of guest voice appearances, including Jennifer Love Hewitt, Lee Majors, Will Ferrell, Jimmy Kimmel, Drew Barrymore, Kiefer Sutherland, the legendary rock group KISS, James Woods, Phyllis Diller, Robert Downey, Jr., Carol Channing, and New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, among others.

The program won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance in 2000, and in 2002 won an Emmy for Outstanding Music and Lyrics. "Family Guy" has been nominated for Outstanding Animated Program in 2000 and 2005.

"Family Guy" is a 20th Century Fox Television production. MacFarlane is creator/executive producer and David Goodman is executive producer and show runner. Chris Sheridan also serves as executive producer.

:: :: ::

TRIBUNE (NYSE:TRB) is one of the country�s top media companies, operating businesses in publishing and broadcasting. It reaches more than 80 percent of U.S. households and is the only media organization with newspapers, television stations and websites in the nation�s top three markets. In publishing, Tribune operates 11 leading daily newspapers including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and Newsday, plus a wide range of targeted publications. The company�s broadcasting group operates 26 television stations, Superstation WGN on national cable, Chicago�s WGN-AM and the Chicago Cubs baseball team. Popular news and information websites complement Tribune�s print and broadcast properties and extend the company�s nationwide audience.

A leader in the U.S. program production and distribution arena, Twentieth Television is a unit of Fox Television and headed by Fox Television Stations� chairman Roger Ailes while CEO Jack Abernethy oversees day-to-day operations. Twentieth Television provides a wide array of first-run and off-network programming, as well as feature film packages, to the syndication and cable marketplaces. First-run programs distributed by Twentieth Television include �Geraldo at Large,� the news strip hosted by Geraldo Rivera, and the popular court shows �Divorce Court� and �Judge Alex,� the number one new first-run program of the 2005-06 season. In fall 2006, the company will launch the primetime drama strips �Desire� and �Fashion House� on the new general entertainment broadcast television network MyNetworkTV. Furthermore, the company is set to launch the new first-run syndicated court show �Cristina�s Court,� hosted by Cristina Perez, in fall 2006. Twentieth Television also oversees the domestic sales of one of the most extensive libraries of off-net programming in the entertainment industry. Last fall, the company launched the groundbreaking drama �24,� starring Kiefer Sutherland, and The Peabody Award-winning sitcom �The Bernie Mac Show� in off-net syndication. Twentieth Television sells national advertising units retained by the company in off-network, theatrical and first-run programming, as well as oversees advertising sales for DIRECTV.





  [july 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
      


· EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND (CBS)
· FAMILY GUY (FOX)
· FRIENDS (NBC)
· SIMPSONS, THE (FOX)
· SOUTH PARK (COMEDY CENTRAL)





[09/23/26 - 08:01 AM]
Video: "Gamechangers: Mother/Athlete" - Official Trailer - The Roku Channel
Five trailblazing WNBA players - Sheryl Swoopes, Bria Hartley, Skylar Diggins, Allison Feaster, and Natalie Achonwa - talk about the physical, emotional, and professional challenges of becoming mothers while competing at the highest level of the sport.

[09/23/26 - 07:31 AM]
AMC Global Media's October Highlights Include "Kill Jackie," "Yaga," "V/H/S/Mixtape," "Signora Volpe" and More
Other series premieres include "Archive X: Unexplained Phenomena" and "This is Not a Murder Mystery."

[09/23/26 - 07:26 AM]
OWN Announces October Premiere Dates for Iyanla Vanzant's Two New OWN Spotlight Specials
OWN Spotlight specials feature candid conversations and thought-provoking documentaries hosted by Oprah Winfrey and other creators, shining a light on the issues, stories, and achievements shaping Black communities.

[09/23/26 - 07:01 AM]
Roku Launches New Live Sports Talk Series "Pregame with Matthew Berry"
Produced by Berry's Fantasy Life, "Pregame with Matthew Berry" will stream Monday through Friday from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM ET on The Roku Channel's Roku Sports Channel.

[09/23/26 - 06:11 AM]
"CNBC Innovation Lab" Premieres on Saturday, September 26 at 4PM ET on CNBC
Hosted by Jon Fortt, CNBC will debut an in-depth, one-hour special, "CNBC Innovation Lab," examining how artificial intelligence is reshaping the labor market and society, particularly for younger workers entering an AI-driven world.

[09/23/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: "Ray Gunn" - Official Trailer - Netflix
In Metropia, a gigantic city in an alternate future as seen from 1939, private eye Raymond Gunn (Sam Rockwell) is drawn into a case involving aliens, murder and a multimedia star named Venus Nova (Scarlett Johansson).

[09/23/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: Apple TV Debuts Gripping Trailer for Season Two of Dark Comedy "Where's Wanda?"
Season two will make its global debut on Apple TV with one episode on Wednesday, October 21, followed by a new episode weekly through December 9, 2026.

[09/23/26 - 06:01 AM]
Video: "Masterplan" - Official Trailer - Prime Video
Stealing the Mona Lisa, it's a family affair.

[09/23/26 - 12:01 AM]
Netflix Announces Start of Production for "High Tides: The Film"
The film is the sequel to the popular series "High Tides," whose three seasons together spent over 24 weeks in the Dutch Netflix Top 10.

[09/22/26 - 04:15 PM]
Inside the Most Daring Jewel Theft in History, "Heist at the Louvre," New Podcast from "20/20" and the ABC News Podcast Network, Premieres Monday, Sept. 28
The series unpacks how thieves were able to pull off one of the most daring jewel heists in history, with host James Longman following the investigation and its aftermath to try to answer the central question: Where are the crown jewels now?

[09/22/26 - 03:08 PM]
Record-Breaking Week 3: ESPN/ABC Claim Every Saturday Window; "College GameDay" Continues Historic Start to the Season
ESPN networks delivered the top five most-watched games of Week 3 and accounted for two-thirds of all college football viewing.

[09/22/26 - 02:34 PM]
FOX's "America's Game of the Week" Scores Regular Season High 27,212,000 Viewers in Week 2
Said coverage was up +8% vs. last year's full season average of 25,269,000 viewers.

[09/22/26 - 02:17 PM]
Colts-Chiefs Overtime Thriller Is Most Watched Week 2 NBC "Sunday Night Football" Game Since 2015, Averaging 24.3 Million Viewers on NBC & Peacock
The audience for Colts-Chiefs peaked at 27.4 million viewers on NBC and Peacock in the second quarter (9:15-9:30 p.m. ET).

[09/22/26 - 12:16 PM]
Netflix's "Crew Girl" Renewed for Season 2
Season 1 of the coming-of-age teen drama series launched on September 10 and debuted in the Netflix English TV Top 10, where it has remained since its release, climbing up to #2 this week.

[09/22/26 - 12:02 PM]
Netflix to Live-Stream STARTO ENTERTAINMENT's New Year's Eve Countdown Concert Worldwide for the First Time
This concert began in 1996 as a charity event supporting recovery efforts following the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, and has since become an annual tradition for artists and fans to close out and welcome the new year together.