Bachelorette Wedding on ABC Set for December 16th

If you're a follower of the Bachelor and Bachelorette franchise on ABC, you'll want to know that at least one of the many couples from the show are getting married.  (The truth is that only one former Bachelorette, Trista, actually did marry the man she picked - Ryan - way back when.)

Ashley Hebert and J.P. Rosenbaum, the second "Bachelorette" couple to ever walk down the aisle, will share their event with viewers on "The Bachelorette: Ashley and J.P.'s Wedding," airing on SUNDAY, DECEMBER 16 (9:00-11:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network. 

The happy couple has, astonishingly, requested that Chris Harrison (host of the show) officiate at the wedding.

The couple, engaged in Fiji at the end of Ashley's season in August 2010, will let viewers in on all the festivities and pre-activities, including the bachelor and bachelorette parties. 

Past "Bachelor" and "Bachelorette" couples, stars and participants (to be announced at a later date) will be on the guest list to help the couple celebrate, along with their families and friends. 

Hosted by Chris Harrison, "The Bachelorette: Ashley and J.P.'s Wedding" is a production of Next Entertainment in association with Warner Horizon Television. Mike Fleiss and Martin Hilton are executive producers. The special will be broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with stereo sound. A TV parental guideline will be assigned closer to airdate.

"The Bachelorette: Ashley and J.P.'s Wedding" will be available on ABC.com the day after airing on the network for users to watch online. For more information on "The Bachelorette: Ashley and J.P.'s Wedding" please visit ABC.com.

New Bake-Off Show for CBS

In a run at all the popular cooking and baking shows on Fox, the Food Network and Bravo, CBS is getting into the act.

The network is holding open casting calls for its new competition baking reality series based on the hit UK format “The Great British Bake Off,” where skilled amateurs with a passion for baking can prepare their signature dish for a chance to compete on the series.

Potential applicants who think they have what it takes to “whip” the competition, should grab their baking utensils and sign up for an open casting call by visiting http://www.cbs.com/bakingshow.

The following cities are hosting open casting calls:

Los Angeles                                                         Chicago     

Saturday, Dec. 1, 2012 (11:00 AM-4:00 PM)             Saturday, Dec. 8, 2012 (11:00 AM-4:00 PM)

Chefs Inc.                                                              Kendall College

10955 West Pico Blvd.                                           900 N. North Branch St.

Los Angeles, CA 90064                                          Chicago, IL 60622

Nashville                                                              Dallas

Saturday, Dec. 8, 2012 (11:00 AM-4:00 PM)             Saturday, Dec. 15, 2012 (11:00 AM-4:00 PM)

Market Street Emporium                                         DUO – All Things Culinary

112 2nd Ave. North                                                 7721 Inwood Road

Nashville, TN 37201                                                Dallas, TX 75209 

New York

Saturday, December 15, 2012 (11:00 AM-4:00 PM)

Flatotel

135 W. 52nd St. 

New York, NY 10019

Vice President Biden on Parks and Recreation

Here's a photo from tomorrow night's edition of "Parks and Recreation" which will have a guest appearance by Vice President Joe Biden.  The episode airs at 9:30 p.m.

In “Leslie vs. April” filmed in top secret last July, Biden appears with Amy Poehler (as Leslie Knope) and Adam Scott (as Ben Wyatt).

After successfully running a campaign for Congressman Murray in Washington, D.C., Ben decided it was time to move back to Pawnee, where he proposed to Leslie. In the scene with Vice President Biden, Ben and Leslie find themselves back in the nation’s capital to gather Ben’s personal belongings -- but Ben arranges a surprise meeting for Leslie.

The scene with Vice President Biden was shot in the Vice President’s Ceremonial Office, also known as the Office of the Secretary of the Navy. The historic chamber was recently restored to its original style. The office's large formal desk was first used by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1902 and has been used by many other Presidents and Vice Presidents since. The inside of the top drawer has been signed by many of the office-holders since the 1940s, including Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower and Walter Mondale.

"Vice-President Biden is both Leslie's political hero and her number-one celebrity crush, so meeting him is obviously a huge moment for her,” said Mike Schur, executive producer of “Parks and Recreation.” “We looked at a number of actors to OK the role of 'Vice-President Joe Biden,' and ultimately, Joe Biden himself gave the best audition."

"Meeting Vice President Biden was a thrill for me and for Leslie,” said Poehler. “He was a good sport and a great improviser. The Vice President maintained his composure while I harassed him and invaded his personal space. The nation of ‘Parks and Rec’ will be forever grateful."

During the same visit to Washington, the show – which typically films in Los Angeles -- also filmed a scene with Senators Olympia Snowe, Barbara Boxer and John McCain for the series’ season premiere episode which aired September 20.

ABC Brags About Daytime Ratings, But Read Between the Lines

While it may be true that ABC Daytime is doing well in the ratings among young women, 18-34, there's more to be read beneath the surface of what the network is saying in news releases.

ABC announced recently that for the week of October 22nd, it was daytime's top-rated network for the 8th consecutive week in Women 18-34 (0.6 rating/211,000), and for the 4th straight week in Women 18-49 (0.9 rating/584,000 - tie).

The news is not so great among total viewers and for all shows.

For instance, while General Hospital is doing very well in its new 2 p.m. time slot, The View is not doing quite as well as it did last season.  General Hospital tied The View as Daytime's number one program in Women 18-34 (0.7 rating/237,000), spiking to a 22-week high in the demo - since week of 5/21/12.  That's good news for GH, but not for The View.

Ratings for The View dipped by 12% in total viewers (3.66 to 3.23 million) since last year at this time, 23 percent in women 25-54 (993,000 to 768,000) and 15 percent among women 18-49 (745,000 to 631,000). Women 18-34 increased by four percent (228,000 to 237,000).

For the 4th consecutive week, "General Hospital" ranked as the top program in daytime in Women 18-34 (0.7 rating/248,000), posting its largest competitive advantage over Young & the Restless on CBS in 14 months and its second-biggest edge in close to 4-1/2 years (+31% - 248,000 vs. 189,000), since weeks of 8/22/11 and 6/23/08, respectively.  Compared to One Life to Live (in the 2pm time slot last year), General Hospital gained 7% in total viewers and 13% in women 18-34.

While the network said The Chew "soared" to its most-watched week in 23 weeks in Women 18-49 (421,000) - since week of 5/14/12 - and registered season highs in Women 18-34 (149,000) and Women 25-54 (536,000), it only drew 2.27 million total viewers for the week.  That's a 5% increase for the year, but it's not huge compared to The Talk  on CBS which rose 13%.  (The two shows are tied for viewers at the moment.)

Furthermore, year-to-year, The Chew lost 16% among women 18-49 (500,000 to 421,000) and 19% among women 25-54 (658,000 to 536,000).

E! Has Special Programming for Twilight Film Finale

E! is making a big deal about about the final installment of the Twilight films, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part 2, with a look back at the stars and the stories of the series. E! News will focus on the relationship between Kristen Stewart (aka Bella Swan) and Robert Pattinson (aka Edward Cullen) with a 5-part series airing nightly this week.

On November 12th E! will air a half-hour Twilight special, Rob & Kristen: Immortal Love.

Then, during the week of November 12th E! News will spotlight the celebrity fashions of the Twilight cast – tracking the styles of the actors and actresses, including Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene and Nikki Reed.

Tonight, E! News will take viewers on a trip back through the rumor mill, focusing on when Pattinson and Stewart attempted to keep their relationship a secret from fans and the paparazzi.

Tomorrow, they'll highlight Kristen’s cheating scandal.

Thursday, it'll be the aftermath, with a rehash of the fans' emotional reaction, Rob's leaving their home, Kristen saying she still loves Rob, and then her public attempts to win him back. 

With reports that the couple has reunited, Friday will bring fans the supposed scoop about where the relationship stands currently.

Vegas and Elementary Given Full Season Run by CBS

Dennis Quaid in Vegas.

CBS has given full season “back nine” orders to television's top two freshman series — VEGAS and ELEMENTARY.

“VEGAS and ELEMENTARY have opened strong, delivering big audiences and winning performances in important time periods,” said Nina Tassler, President, CBS Entertainment. “Each of the shows has rich characters, big stars and a unique visual style that have stood out in the crowd, helping make two of our strongest nights even stronger.”

VEGAS, the #1 new series of the season and ranked sixth overall, wins its Tuesday (10:00-11:00 PM) time period in viewers and key demographics, averaging 14.94 million viewers, 2.7/08 in adults 18-49 and 3.8/09 in adults 25-54. VEGAS has improved the year-ago time period by +8% in viewers.

ELEMENTARY, the #2 new series of the season and ranked ninth overall, also wins its Thursday (10:00-11:00 PM) time period in the key ratings measures, averaging 14.30 million viewers, 3.5/10 in adults 18-49 and 4.6/11 in adults 25-54. Compared to the time period last year, ELEMENTARY is up +17% in adults 18-49 and +10% in adults 25-54.

VEGAS stars Dennis Quaid, Michael Chiklis, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jason O'Mara, Taylor Handley and Sarah Jones. Greg Walker, Nicholas Pileggi, Cathy Konrad, Arthur Sarkissian and James Mangold are executive producers for CBS Television Studios.

ELEMENTARY stars Jonny Lee Miller, Lucy Liu, Aidan Quinn and Jon Michael Hill. Rob Doherty, Sarah Timberman and Carl Beverly are executive producers for CBS Television Studios.

Post-Superbowl Show Announced by CBS: Is it a Big Deal?

CBS announced today that its hit freshman drama ELEMENTARY, which provides a modern take on Sherlock Holmes in New York City, will receive what CBS called the coveted post-Super Bowl slot. A special episode of ELEMENTARY will be broadcast following CBS Sports' coverage of SUPER BOWL XLVII, on Sunday, February 3rd.

Is this a big deal? Does the time slot after the Super Bowl make a difference to a show's success anytime thereafter?

You can decide for yourself.

Here's a list of post-Super Bowl shows from the past 20 years:

Year	Superbowl	Network	Show	Viewers	Share
2012	XLVI	NBC	The Voice	37.6 Million	NA
2011	XLV	Fox	Glee	26.8 Million	NA
2010	XLIV	CBS	Undercover Boss	38.6 Million	NA
2009	XLIII	NBC	The Office	22.9 Million	21%
2008	XLII	Fox	House	29 Million	27%
2007	XLI	CBS	Criminal Minds	26 Million	26%
2006	XL	ABC	Grey's Anatomy	37.8 Million	27%
2005	XXXIX	Fox	The Simpsons	23 Million	22%
			American Dad!
2004	XXVIII	CBS	Survivor: All-Stars	33.5 Million	32%
2003	XXXVII	ABC	Alias	17 Million	20%
2002	XXXVI	Fox	Malcolm in the Middle	21.4 Million	21%
2001	XXXV	CBS	Survivor: The Australian Outback	45 Million	39%
2000	XXXIV	ABC	The Practice	23.8 Million	27%
1999	XXXIII	Fox	Family Guy	22 Million	21%
			The Simpsons
1998	XXXII	NBC	3rd Rock from the Sun	33.6 Million	34%
1997	XXXI	Fox	The X-Files	29 Million	29%
1996	XXX	NBC	Friends	52 Million	46%
1995	XXIX	ABC	Extreme	22.5 Million	25%

As you can see, only Friends, Glee and The Office have been incredible hits. And these shows were not broadcast after the game during their Freshman seasons. So, the answer to me, is no. Hyping a show after the Super Bowl presents only a minimal advantage, if any.

ELEMENTARY, which has won its Thursday (10:00-11:00 PM) time period in key ratings measures in every broadcast against regularly scheduled programming this season, is averaging 14.2 million viewers, 4.6/11 in adults 25-54 and 3.5/10 in adults 18-49. ELEMENTARY ranks as the #2 new series on television this season, only slightly behind CBS’ VEGAS (14.5 million viewers).

The series has also opened strong in international markets. ELEMENTARY is the number one new series in Canada, airing on the Global Network, where it wins its time period in viewers and key demographic categories. In the UK, ELEMENTARY ranks as Sky Living's third highest rated series since 2002, and the top-rated launch of a drama acquisition in the channel's history.

ELEMENTARY stars Jonny Lee Miller as eccentric, mischievous detective Sherlock Holmes and Lucy Liu as Dr. Joan Watson, a former surgeon turned sober companion. Following his fall from grace in London and a stint in rehab, Sherlock escapes to Manhattan where his wealthy father forces him to live with his worst nightmare – a sobriety coach. Now running free in New York solving crimes, it’s simple deduction that he’s going to need someone to keep him grounded, and it’s elementary that it’s a job for Watson.

Also, Aidan Quinn stars as Capt. Thomas Gregson, who knows from previous experience working with Scotland Yard that Sherlock is brilliant at closing cases, along with Jon Michael Hill, who portrays Det. Marcus Bell, a top-notch investigator who is initially skeptical of Holmes and his unorthodox methods.