or


[09/18/06 - 12:00 AM]
Bravo Inks Deal with Img Media to Produce "Better Half" -- a Six Episode One-Hour New Original Reality Competition Series

[via press release from Bravo]

BRAVO INKS DEAL WITH IMG MEDIA TO PRODUCE "BETTER HALF" -- A SIX EPISODE ONE-HOUR NEW ORIGINAL REALITY COMPETITION SERIES

BRAVO INKS DEAL WITH IMG MEDIA TO PRODUCE "BETTER HALF" -- A SIX EPISODE ONE-HOUR NEW ORIGINAL REALITY COMPETITION SERIES

SERIES TO BE HOSTED BY "CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM" STAR SUSIE ESSMAN

PRODUCTION BEGINS SHOOTING THIS MONTH IN NEW YORK CITY

NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 18, 2006 - Bravo partners with IMG Media to bring viewers "Better Half," which was previously announced as a series in development under the title "War of the Wives." Hosted by "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star Susie Essman, this new one-hour six episode competition series begins production this month in New York City. The announcement was made by Frances Berwick, EVP, Programming & Production, Bravo.

In each episode, the spouses/mates of two trained professionals, such as chefs, comedians, party planners, hairstylists, square off in competition. The professionals have two days to coach their novice partner to take on their jobs and beat the opposing "better half" in a final challenge for a lucrative prize. Each week, three judges renowned in the featured line of work will assess how well each couple executed the job handoff. Skilled in managing her own "better half," the outspoken and honest Essman will shadow, needle and critique how the couples listen, learn and love without killing each other first.

"'Better Half' puts a new spin on Bravo's reality competition programs that explore creative professions," said Berwick. "It's a fresh perspective to see the process of a specialist teach a novice their trade and see inside of that creative profession. There's also the added drama of the experts training their partners. I don't know many people who like having their spouse tell them what to do. "

Susie Essman has played the venomous Susie Greene for all four seasons of the critically-acclaimed HBO comedy series, Curb Your Enthusiasm. Susie is the no-nonsense wife of Larry David's cheerful agent Jeff Greene. Essman's streetwise vernacular also suggests the contrast between Curb's L.A. setting and her real life preferred location--New York. The Manhattan-based Essman is a veteran of the world of standup comedy, logging thousands of performances on the Gotham comedy circuit. She has appeared in her own half-hour HBO comedy special, hosted the American Comedy Awards, and performed on Comedy Central's "The Friar's Roast of Jerry Stiller", "Politically Incorrect" and "Latenight with Conan O'Brien". Her other television credits include appearances on "Law and Order", "Law and Order: Criminal Intent" and "The King Of Queens". Essman has appeared in the films "Keeping The Faith", "The Siege", "Volcano," "Punchline" and "The Man." Her talent and audacity made her a natural choice to perform off-Broadway in the play "The Vagina Monologues." Susie was the voice of Helen Higgins in the puppet animation/crank call series "Crank Yankers" on Comedy Central.

IMG Media also produced "Battle of the Network Reality Stars" for Bravo. Susan Horowitz and Steve Mayer are executive producers and David Snyder is co-executive producer for IMG.

IMG Media produces and distributes over 10,000 hours of sports, documentary, drama, comedy, entertainment, popular factual and children's content annually, over multiple platforms across 200 countries. It also represents the broadcast rights to many of the world's premier sporting events. Currently, IMG Media has numerous new programs in development and has produced series that include "Race to the Alter" for NBC, "Ice Diaries" for TLC and "Battle of the Network Reality Stars" for Bravo. IMG Media is well known for its production of "Christmas at Rockefeller Center," "Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular," and "Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials." IMG Media also produces a complement of sports productions such as "World's Strongest Man," "Battle of the Gridiron Stars" and "ESPN's Tennis Masters Series." For more information visit www.imgworld.com.

Bravo is the cable network that plugs people into arts, entertainment and pop culture with original programming, acclaimed drama series, movies, comedy and music specials, and by showing a whole different side of celebrities. Currently available in more than 80 million homes, Bravo is known for breaking exciting new personalities, shaking up the way we look at style, media, fame and Hollywood, pulling back the curtain on the creative process and making influential and inventive original programming. Its critically acclaimed original programming includes the Emmy nominated "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List," 12-time Emmy nominated "Inside the Actors Studio," "The Real Housewives of Orange County," "Top Chef," "Celebrity Poker Showdown," as well as the 2004 Emmy winner for Outstanding Reality Program "Queer Eye," and the four time Emmy-nominated hit competition series "Project Runway."

Bravo is a program service of NBC Universal Cable Entertainment, a division of NBC Universal one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Bravo has been a NBC Cable Network since December 2002 and was the first television service dedicated to film and the performing arts when it launched in December 1980. For more information visit www.bravotv.com.





  [september 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
     


· BATTLE OF THE NETWORK REALITY STARS (BRAVO)
· BETTER HALF (BRAVO)
· CRANK YANKERS (COMEDY CENTRAL)
· CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (HBO)
· KING OF QUEENS, THE (CBS)
· LAW & ORDER (NBC)
· LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT (USA)
· RACE TO THE ALTAR (NBC)





[07/16/25 - 04:01 PM]
ESPN Airs Another of Its Most-Watched WNBA Games Ever: Indiana Fever vs Connecticut Sun Averaged 1.7 Million Viewers, Up 48% from Last Year's ESPN Average
Said telecast peaked with 2 million viewers.

[07/16/25 - 12:23 PM]
FOX's Biblical Event Series "The Faithful" Casts Minnie Driver, Jeffrey Donovan and Natacha Karam
Plus: Danny Cannon has been tapped to direct and executive produce the premiere.

[07/16/25 - 12:01 PM]
Emmy and BAFTA Award Nominee Jack Lowden Will Star in "Berlin Noir," Apple's Upcoming Adaptation of Philip Kerr's Bestselling Crime Novels
Germany, 1928. A newly-promoted detective. A string of gruesome murders. Welcome to Berlin Noir.

[07/16/25 - 12:00 PM]
Video: "Murder 360" - Official Trailer - Paramount+
Stream the new original docuseries premiering August 5, exclusively on Paramount+.

[07/16/25 - 11:00 AM]
"The Walking Dead: Dead City" to Return for Third Season, with "Walking Dead" Veteran Seth Hoffman Joining as Showrunner
Hoffman marks?his return to the Walking Dead Universe having spent three years as co-executive producer and writer on "The Walking Dead."

[07/16/25 - 09:35 AM]
Video: FX's "Necaxa" - Official Trailer & Key Art Available Now
Eva Longoria teams up with Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds for FX's newest football docuseries following one of Mexico's oldest and most storied clubs, Club Necaxa.

[07/16/25 - 09:07 AM]
The CW Network Picks Up Hit Drama Series "Sullivan's Crossing" for Season 4
The announcement follows the previously confirmed Season 4 renewal by Bell Media's CTV and Crave, and Fremantle.

[07/16/25 - 09:01 AM]
"Geek Girl" Season 2 Start of Production Announcement
Joining the cast is Layton Williams, who will play the role of Onassis.

[07/16/25 - 07:25 AM]
AXS TV Salutes the Female Trailblazers of Rock, Pop, Motown & More with the "Women in Music" Marathon, Airing August 2 & 3 Starting at 11A ET
From soulful songstresses and enduring pop queens, to the rock trailblazers who turned the boys' club upside down, AXS TV celebrates some of the most legendary female artists of all time.

[07/16/25 - 07:06 AM]
The Nader Sisters Trade the Louisiana Bayou for New York City in New Reality Series "Love Thy Nader," Premiering on Hulu and Freeform
The bold coming-of-age reality series follows the unapologetic and determined Nader sisters - Brooks, Sarah Jane, Grace Ann and Mary Holland - who left their humble beginnings in the Louisiana bayou for the glamour and grind of New York City.

[07/16/25 - 07:01 AM]
Video: "Stranger Things 5" - Official Teaser - Netflix
Every battle has led to this.

[07/16/25 - 05:31 AM]
"Turn of the Tide" Is Back: The Second Season Arrives on Netflix October 17
In this new season, Eduardo (José Condessa), three months after his departure, returns to find a completely different reality in Rabo de Peixe.

[07/16/25 - 02:01 AM]
Video: "Memento Mori" - Season 3 - Official Trailer - Prime Video
The final season arrives August 1 on Prime Video.

[07/16/25 - 01:01 AM]
Video: "Love Is Blind: UK" Season 2 - Official Teaser - Netflix
A new batch of singles in the UK search for love sight unseen. Who will make it from the pods, to living together, to all the way up the aisle?

[07/15/25 - 02:46 PM]
Apple Lands Record-Breaking 81 Emmy Award Nominations with "Severance" Leading As This Year's Most-Nominated Series and "The Studio" Becoming the Most-Nominated Freshman Comedy in History
Additionally, with top program nominations for drama "Slow Horses" and comedy "Shrinking," Apple TV+ becomes the only network to have multiple titles nominated in the Outstanding Comedy and Drama series categories.