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Fall 2006 NBC TV Network Programming Schedule

 Descriptions and Analysis

New Series in blue.

Click on underlined titles for information.

Here's the link to NBC's own 2006 Schedule website.

Midseason/On the Bench:  Raines.  

Series

America's Got Talent:

The Black Donnellys: – This gritty crime drama is based loosely on the life of creator Bobby Moresco and follows four young, working-class Irish brothers and their involvement in New York City organized crime. .  Paul Haggis (Crash) co-produces

Friday Night Lights:  The respected 2004 feature film about small town Texas high school football -- and the folks who care about it -- comes to TV.  Kyle Chandler (King Kong, Early Edition, Grey's Anatomy, Homefront, Tour of Duty) takes over Billy Bob Thornton's coach role, and Connie Britton (24, The West Wing, Spin City, Ellen, The Brothers McMullen) reprises her role as his wife.  The football team and students are played by a talented batch of young-ish actors including newcomer Zach Gilford, Adrianne Palicki (Rumor Has It, South Beach, North Shore, Supernatural), Jessie Plemons (Grey's Anatomy, The Flyboys), Minka Kelly (What I Like About You), Scott Porter (Altar Boyz, Descent), Aimee Teegarden (Hannah Montana), Gaius Charles (The Book of Daniel), and Taylor Kitsch (The Covenant, Snakes on a Plane, John Tucker Must Die).  Extremely tough competition including Dancing with the Stars and in January, American Idol, will make Friday Night Light's transition to TV a tough win, but are those football games, eh?

Heroes:  Milo Ventimiglia

In this epic drama, after his father disappears, a genetics professor discovers there are people out there with super powers: a young dreamer who can fly; a high school cheerleader who is indestructible; a prison inmate who wakes up to find himself on the outside of his cell; plus other extraordinary tales. All discover their ultimate destiny is to save the world.

Kidnapped:  Timothy Hutton  Jeremy Sisto, Delroy Lindo, Dana Delany, 

 Everyone is suspect in this serialized thriller in which a teenage son of a wealthy New York City family is kidnapped.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip:  Bradley Whitford (Josh from West Wing), Amanda Peet (Changing Lanes, Syriana, The Whole Nine Yards) and Matthew Perry (Friends, The Whole Nine Yards) headline the cast in ex-West Wing production team members Aaron Sorkin and Thomas Schlamme's behind-the-scenes dramatic saga set at a late-night SNL-type comedy TV series.  Peet's prez of a TV network, and Whitford and Perry are hot writers brought in to revitalize the floundering show.  A top-notch supporting cast is on hand, too, including Steven Weber (Wings, The D.A.), Sarah Paulson (Deadwood), D.L. Hughley (The Hughleys), Nathan Corddry (The Daily Show), Evan Handler (Sex and the City, The West Wing, Hot Properties), Carlos Jacott (Big Love), Timothy Busfield (thirtysomething, The West Wing, Without a Trace).      

30 Rock: Veteran SNL performer and writer Tina Fey (Mean Girls) exec-produces and stars in NBC's second TV-as-workplace entry this season in this sitcom about the hyper and (hopefully) hilarious goings-on backstage at a late-night comedy series.  Ms. Fey plays a single, career-girl writer; Tracy Morgan (SNL, Little Man, Martin), Jane Krakowski (Ally McBeal), Rachel Dratch (SNL, King of Queens), Scott Adsit and Jack McBrayer (both Second City prodigies), provide the rest of the comic provenance.  Actor Alec Baldwin, who's proven himself adept at both drama and comedy, co-stars as the pompous network suit riding their backs.  NBC's got it covered; with Studio 60 examining the angst of big-time TV comedy, 30 Rock takes on the comedy of comedy.  Great credentials could make a great show here; too bad it isn't stacked up next to NBC's other successful comedy entries My Name is Earl or The Office, but 30 Rock will have to make a go with newbie 20 Good Years as its lead-in, at least until some schedule changes.          

Tracy Morgan Tracy
Rachel Dratch Jenna
Scott Adsit Pete
Jack McBrayer Kenneth
Alec Baldwin JackNBC.com 30 Rock

Emmy Award winner Tina Fey writes, executive produces and stars in this workplace comedy about backstage at a frenetic TV variety show. Tina stars as Liz Lemon, a single comedy writer in New York City , living the dream life until she meets the brash new network president played by Alec Baldwin. The show also stars Tracy Morgan among others.

20 Good Years: Jeffrey Tambor  Starring John Lithgow and Jeffrey Tambor about two mismatched New York buddies who realize they have about 20 years left to enjoy life with no regrets.

Returning Shows

America's Got Talent

The Apprentice:  In this latest twist on the "running the gauntlet" reality show, 12 ambitious young men and women compete for the chance to worship at the business-savvy knees of Donald Trump and his army of corporate minions.  It's Ivy League vs. street smarts as contestants running the gamut of education and class vie for the honored position, and after each is eliminated, they undergo a vicious exit interview with Trump and company.  I'll bet it won't hold a candle to the marvelous Ali G interview with Donald Trump where the mogul was clueless, humorless and exceptionally rude.  NBC is introducing The Apprentice on 1/8/2004, on a Thursday after Friends, then it will move into its Wednesday night 8pm time period the next week.  Though I don't doubt this will probably garner lots of curious viewers, I'm hoping it will make "ambition" even more of a dirty word than I already think it is.  Update 1/30/04:  The Apprentice is highly successful in the ratings, and Trump is writing a book on the experience.  Oh, the humanity!  And of course it's back for another round in the 2004/2005 fall season.  Update 7/06:  Is the franchise running out of steam, after the Martha Stewart version failed to set new audience records?  Couldn't happen soon enough in my book, but it'll be back for the 2006/2007 season.      

Las Vegas:  The exciting thing about this drama, set guess where, is the presence of James Caan, who's been in quite a few TV movies but this is his first time headlining a series of his own.  He's Big Ed Deline here, boss of a surveillance company, ex-CIA agent, and all tough-guy as he grabs his piece of the unique and dynamic landscape that is Las Vegas.  Can primetime TV handle two Vegas-based shows?   This one won't have quite the dead body count as CSI, but we can expect lots of high stakes gambling, crooked wannabes and beautiful ladies of the night.  Sounds like place that might suit James Caan rather well, doesn't it?  He might be almost a senior citizen, but Caan could lend a nice grizzled touch to Monday night, though he'll be up against the strongest CBS comedies and will have to fend off football in the fall.  If Las Vegas can pull it off, it will offer the only action drama in the time period, but will that be enough?  Although the city of Las Vegas would seem like such a sure thing in terms of an exciting setting, the truth is much iffier, and if this show focuses too much on the gambling aspect of the town it won't work for long.  Let's see what happens.  Caan could make this very watchable. Las Vegas also stars an attractive multi-ethnic cast including Josh Duhamel (All My Children), Vanessa Marcil (General Hospital, Beverly Hills 90210), Nikki Cox (ex-Mrs. Bobcat Goldthwait), James Lesure, Marsha Thomason (Black Knight) and actress/model Molly Sims.  Premiere Date:  9/29/03.  Updated Info 8/20:  Las Vegas will now premiere on 9/22 at 10pm, after a special two-hour Las Vegas-set Fear Factor episode.  It will go back to its 9pm slot on 9/29, and Third Watch will follow.  Review 10/7/03:  Las Vegas seems to be holding its own against CBS' powerhouse Monday comedy block so far, and that's a bit of good luck for this stylish and snazzy drama.  The model for this show is more Hotel than FX's cancelled comedy/drama Lucky, with of course a pedal to the metal nod to Vegas' Dan Tana, and that's not a bad bunch of influences.  There are just enough gambling-specific storylines to justify the setting, but not so much that the whole thing bogs down in the arcanum of running a casino.  The rest of the time there's a lot of sexually-related adventuring, with plenty of gorgeous girls -- even quite a few intelligent ones, too -- around, and then a bunch of other silly stuff involving casino guests; here's where the show even sometimes feels a little like The Love Boat.  It's all part of the fast-paced whirl of light and color that keeps Las Vegas whooshing along, and the cast is more than up to keeping up with the action.  James Caan is great as Ed Deline, and it was a treat to see Cheryl Ladd in the pilot as his ex-wife (not sure if she'll be back, though).  The younger contingent is uniformly attractive and capable, too, and the whole Las Vegas package is a great big neon-flashing come-on for a willing audience.  If this can fend off the competition that's still to come, namely Fox's Skin, chances are pretty good that Las Vegas could beat the odds and end up a success.  Update 10/15/03:  NBC has given Las Vegas its full 22 episode season order, the first pick-up for the network this season.  Update 10/21/03:  NBC will run Las Vegas encores in the Saturday 8 - 9pm slot during November sweeps, with various Law & Order franchise episodes airing from 9 - 11pm.  Update 1/30/04:  Las Vegas has been given an early 22-episode order for the 2004/2005 season.  Update 9/05:  Still going strong.  Update 7/06:  Back again for the 2006/2007 season! 

Medium:

My Name is Earl:   One of hip director Kevin Smith's favorite actors, Jason Lee (Dogma, Mallrats, the awful Dreamcatchers -- but don't hold that against him) gets his chance at sitcom success in this highly-anticipated series about a hapless loser who wins a lottery, discovers the concept of Karma, and determines to change his life around, making amends to those he screwed over in the past.  Lee -- who has an amazing second life as a kewl pro skateboarding impresario -- has a likeable screen persona and handsome-but-not-too-handsome looks that could translate very well to the weekly series grind, and we know he can do comedy.  Fellow Smith-fave Ethan Suplee (Boy Meets World, The Butterfly Effect) plays Earl's loyal brother, Jaime Pressley (Ringmaster, Joe Dirt) Earl's scheming sexy ex-wife, and Nadine Velazquez (The Bold and the Beautiful) is a sensible gal pal along for the fun.  Some of us may recall the way-out-of-proportion backlash against UPN's innocuous and I thought goofily charming lowbrow comedy The Mullets a few seasons ago; it's fascinating to see the same lower-middle-class milieu getting the thumbs up this year.  Tastes change, and NBC's no doubt hoping Earl can become a winner and perhaps a contender in the future for a berth on their seriously floundering Thursday comedy night.  Jason Lee is reason enough to hope this one makes it.  Premieres September 20th.  Update 10/12:  My Name is Earl's early performance success has encouraged NBC to give it a full-season pick-up order.  Good work!

The Office: 

Midseason/On The Bench

Raines:  Perennial oddball-portrayer Jeff Goldblum (Juraissic Park, Independence Day, Tenspeed & Brownshoe) joins the "I see dead people" school of police work as a homicide detective who's visited by victims' unsettled spirits.  With a premise that's been done (at least once) before, most appealingly by Fox's defunct Tru Calling a season or so ago, Goldblum has the quirky goods if Raines wants to tread the seriocomic waters of say, USA's Monk. 

Andy Barker, P.I. – Andy Richter re-teams with co-writer and executive producer Conan O'Brien. Richter portrays an earnest CPA, Andy Barker, who until his accounting business fails has succeeded at everything. When he's mistaken for the retired private detective who used to occupy his office, he takes the case and has a sudden boost of new-found confidence and proves to be a problem-solver. 

The Singles Table – A group of five witty, single strangers meet at a wedding reception and decide to become good friends and maybe more than that in some cases.