Is CBS sending 'Three Rivers' up a river?

We know CBS's "Three Rivers" stood a chance of doing well in local ratings because of 1) The ratings strength of KDKA in prime time and 2) Local interest in Pittsburgh-set shows as seen in local ratings for CBS's "The Guardian," which was canceled as the 12th most popular prime-time show in Pittsburgh (No. 38 nationally).

That makes CBS's decision to premiere "Three Rivers" this Sunday particularly foolhardy - especially for KDKA - because it airs opposite a Steelers game on NBC's "Sunday Night Football" on WPXI.

Although Pittsburgh is just a small part of the national ratings picture, local viewing of the Steelers will not help the national ratings for "Three Rivers." And don't discount the national impact of the Pittsburgh diaspora: Many former Pittsburgh are also likely to watch the Steelers over "Three Rivers."

Life imitates 'Mad Men' art

After Betty Draper (January Jones) showed a surprising interest in politics in Sunday's "Mad Men" episode (actually, more of an interest in one particular bureaucrat), Politico notes that Jones "lobbied Capitol Hill Tuesday on behalf of shark conservation."

"Jones, who is the new spokesperson for Oceana's campaign to save sharks, urged Congress to pass the Shark Conservation Act of 2009. The legislation would "close loopholes in existing legislation and put an end to shark finning, the process of cutting off the fins and discarding the carcass at sea," according to Oceana."

Matt LeBlanc in Showtime series

This sounds promising:

MATT LEBLANC MAKES FRIENDS OF SHOWTIME & BBC IN SITCOM SATIRE

Six "Episodes" of Comedy-Within-a-Comedy to Premiere in 2010

LOS ANGELES, CA - (September 30, 2009) - "Friends" star Matt LeBlanc and creators David Crane ("Friends," "The Class") and Jeffrey Klarik ("The Class," "Mad About You") have teamed up on a fresh new send-up of the television business entitled EPISODES, a single-camera comedy series about a British couple whose hit UK show is turned into a dumbed-down American sit-com starring LeBlanc (as himself), it was announced today by SHOWTIME President of Entertainment Robert Greenblatt.


Crane and Klarik created the series and Jimmy Mulville will also serve as executive producer through his successful Hat Trick production company ("Whose Line Is It Anyway?," "The Kumars at No. 42", "Worst Week").  EPISODES, a co-production of Showtime and the BBC, will begin shooting the six episodes in London and Hollywood this winter for a 2010 debut on SHOWTIME and BBC Two.


"What a thrill to have two giants of the comedy world like Klarik and Crane to satirize what they know best: the making (or un-making) of art," says Greenblatt. "We jumped at the chance to get involved with this ***-eyed look at network television told through the eyes of unsuspecting British producers who don't know what hit them when they enter the lion's den of Hollywood. And Matt LeBlanc -- wryly sending up his own image -- is icing on the cake.  This show complements our eclectic and critically-acclaimed line-up of half-hour comedies beautifully."


"Jeffrey and David have a great idea -- I love it," said Matt LeBlanc.  "I am really excited to be working with Showtime and the BBC.  And I am so glad I got the part, seeing someone else play Matt LeBlanc would have been devastating."


When a successful British husband-and-wife comedy team are lured by Hollywood to produce a new version of their hit series for a stateside audience, they're initially thrilled at the prospects.  But they soon realize what the American execs have in store for their precious show - including replacing the erudite British lead with the quintessential comedy star, Matt LeBlanc - and begin to sink deeper into the quicksand that is the TV business.  Before long it's clear that not just the couple's show is at stake, but perhaps even their marriage.


Television veterans Klarik and Crane will draw upon their storied experiences in the network wars and behind-the-scenes "too many cooks" tinkering to bring to life a vivid collection of characters trying to hold onto their sanity in an insane world.  Klarik and Crane said: "To work with either Showtime or the BBC on this project would have been terrific.  To have both involved is more than we could hope for.  We feel like we have found the two perfect homes for this show."


"It is very exciting to be making this wonderful production for Showtime and the BBC," added producer Mulville.  "Both networks have an outstanding portfolio of exciting and innovative comedies, and it is an honor to be included amongst them.  The scripts are brilliantly funny, and with Matt LeBlanc playing a hilarious version of himself, EPISODES promises to be one of the treats of 2010."

'Cougar Town' cameo

Tonight on ABC's "Cougar Town" (9:30 tonight, WTAE), the show's creator, Bill Lawrence, and producer Randall Winston have cameo appearances in a montage sequence of polaroid photos while Cox's character is out acting young. Both of them play cops.

"Cougar Town" opened to big ratings last week but the feedback I've heard suggests it's a polarizing show. I've not heard from a woman yet who liked the pilot. I'll be interested to see if the ratings tumble in week two.

On the other hand, the feedback I've heard on "Modern Family," which also opened with strong ratings, has generated nothing but positive feedback. It's my favorite new fall show so my fingers are crossed that it will hold up tonight and in the weeks ahead.

Pittsburgh G-20 on 'Daily Show'

7:48 p.m. Just got around to watching last night's "Daily Show" (it was one of those days) and there's coverage of the G-20 protesters in Pittsburgh.

There's some funny stuff in this clip but no sign of John Oliver's report from the scene. Last I heard from my Comedy Central contact, it's due to air Thursday at 11 p.m.

Ken Burns' latest opus

Sunday the Post-Gazette's Diana Nelson Jones reviewed Ken Burns' "The National Parks: America's Best Idea" and I wrote a feature story about the program. I didn't have time to watch the whole thing and with Diana's request to review it, I didn't have to. But I wish I could have seen it all because unlike some Burns productions -- "Baseball" and "Jazz" -- this one is on a topic I'm quite interested in.

My father worked for the National Park Service and I love vacactioning in the parks. The first night of the Burns film lost my interest after the first hour; Diana told me nights two (8 p.m. last night, WQED) and six (8 p.m. Friday) were her favorites. So I watched those two installments and they definitely reignited my desire to someday see all of this nature mini-series that's filled with amazing images of wildlife and beautiful desolation.

But one thing that nags at me is Burns' decision to use producer/writer Dayton Duncan as an on-camera expert. Granted, a documentary is not journalism, but the approach still struck me as sort of wrong. I was happy one of my colleagues asked Burns about his decision at press tour last month. Here's what Burns and Duncan said:

KEN BURNS:  Yeah, let me start there.  You are right. There is a sort of unwritten rule that you kind of don't do that unless, of course, you are the avuncular host whose ideas are themselves the compelling part and raison d'etre for the show or whatever it is itself.  But in this case, I've never done that with the exception of Dayton.  And that's because quite often the work that we've done, mostly about the American landscape, THE WEST, LEWIS & CLARK, MARK TWAIN and HORATIO'S DRIVE, before this, he has known as much, if not more, than almost anyone else on the planet about that particular subject.  And he doesn't see the questions.  He doesn't have any say in the editing room about what stays or what doesn't stay.  He doesn't have a sense of where stuff goes when we initially try it.  We treat him exactly the same way we would treat any of our talking heads.

 And what I think he brings, because we do our interviews before the script has in any way congealed -- I mean, so many of my colleagues will go and say, "Look, we're on  page 23 of Episode 7, can you get us from paragraph 2 to paragraph 3?  That was terrific.  Say it again.  Do it again."  We just listen to Shelton.  I just listen to Dayton and try to find those bytes that may or may not work.  So there's some episodes where he's not in it. What we think is less the thumb on the scale than it is a chance for us to continue to show our sense that history ought not to be the excavation of dry dates, facts and events, but could be some emotional archaeology that would touch something higher.  And I know of no one in all of the subjects that we've done that understands that particular subject in a way that is so emotionally compelling as Dayton.  So the fact that he's my friend, the fact that he's my co-producer and the writer of this series is actually something that we are able, in a kind of church-and-state way within our process, to completely separate.  And the interview that we do, the best parts get extracted, just as the interview with Shelton, unexpectedly glorious and then goes into the mix.  And stuff goes in and goes out, and the decision is entirely mine.  But I think you would agree, if you had the opportunity to see the whole film, that Dayton's contribution is so -- as it was in THE WEST, as it was in LEWIS & CLARK, where he and the late Stephen Ambrose essentially were the talking heads, anchor us in an important not only historical and factual way, always critical, but in that emotional dimension that I think provides the glue that makes these complex past events stick and remain permanently part of the viewer's reception of the information.

DAYTON DUNCAN:  I was just going to add that when I see those things, as a writer, like you in the form of reporter, everything I see, I think, God, I should -- I'd like to be able to edit that, you know.  I wish I could say it better.  I wish that I was as automatically eloquent as Shelton.  And as a producer, it helps me in those times when I'm interviewing somebody to understand, having been on the other side of it -- you know, when Ken  tells me, "It's time for you to sit down and I'm going to ask you questions now," it helps me empathize with them, to know that that next night and the night after that, all they are going to do is lie awake saying, you know, when I was asked that question, what I should have said was this. And I get the same opportunity that they do, which is that you don't get the chance to go back.

Also, here's a fantastic Time magazine essay on Burns' film that's quite timely.

Harding out as WPXI news director

UPDATED BELOW: WPXI general manager Ray Carter said he and news director Corrie Harding have come to a mutual decision that Harding will leave his role at Channel 11 effective immediately.

Harding joined WPXI in 2005 after working as an assistant news director and managing editor at WBNS in Columbus.

Carter told the news staff at 4 p.m. today.

"The ratings are not terrible, it's not as though we're in such a position that we're hemorraging audience," Carter said. "There are just times in business as there are in professional sports that you need to make a change for the good of the team or company. In this case, both Corrie and I have agreed to make a change."

WPXI's No. 2 in the newsroom, Melissa Knollinger, left the station under mutual agreement two weeks ago, Carter said. While a search for Harding's replacement is conducted, Carter, who spent 16 years as a news director, will be in charge of the newsroom.

"The opportunity for somebody who has as much experience in news [as I do] to go into the newsroom and spend the better part of my day in there will give me a good opportunity to see what's effective and what works and what still needs some attention," said Carter, who joined WPXI as GM in 2001 after working as news director at Cox-owned WSB in Atlanta. Cox also owns WPXI.

The timing of the change might seem to link it to the station's coverage of the G-20, except that WPXI did a pretty good job with that event. (It was WTAE that was not quite up to snuff.)

"No, in fact our G-20 coverage was terrific," Carter said. "The numbers were fabulous. The news department operated at the highest level for G-20. We are very pleased with our performance for that. It's more of a cumulative situation. Both Corrie and I have come to an agreement that it's in both our interests to go our separate ways."

Harding did not respond to calls seeking comment.

After deadline for the print edition I heard from Harding about his departure from Channel 11.

"Ray and I had a great conversation and came to a mutual decision," he said. "Ray runs the television station and needed to make the decision he feels is right and I need to make the decision I feel is right for me, too. The good part about it is he and I have had an incredibly good relationship and were able to work through it so everything is good. That's how I feel right now.

"I feel like I have a lot of give and I'll figure out a way to do that," Harding said, "whether it's here [in Pittsburgh] or somewhere else."

I've been meaning to write a state-of-the-stations column for a couple months now. Looks like there's more reason to do it now. Soon...

'Lie to Me' returns

Fox's "Lie to Me" (9 tonight, WPGH) returns for a second season with a new showrunner at the helm: Shawn Ryan, creator/exeuctive producer of "The Shield."

"Lie to me" remains a procedural and a good one at that but the show seems to building in more focus on its regular characters, which began last season. That's certainly something Ryan excels at.

Three stories run through tonight's episode: A young woman (Erika Christensen) claims she had a psychic vision of a murder, the Lightman Group has to vet a potential Supreme Court nominee and the ex-wife (Jennifer Beals) of Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) drops a bombshell on him.

"Lie to Me" is not a show I would watch every week but I would certainly watch it over NBC's "Heroes," which I have officially given up on. (I actually recorded last week's "Heroes" season premiere but never got around to watching it after hearing not-great reviews from friends who did watch.)

G-20 jokes on 'SNL'

UPDATED BELOW: Along with the F-bomb, there were a few not-all-that-funny jokes about the G-20 on "SNL" this weekend.

Seth Meyers, who has a soft spot for Pittsburgh, noted the G-20 summit was held in Pittsburgh, complete with graphic of the city skyline.

"When asked, most Americans said they don't really know what the G-20 is about," Meyers said, "but it probably has something to do with Gatorade."

Also in "Weekend Update," French Def Jam comedian Jean K. Jean (Kenan Thompson) said, "I love the G-20 summit, that's where we get to show the world how France does it. Nicholas Sarkozy shows up with Carla Bruni on his arm and, BAM! It's three rivers of champagne flowing in Pittsburgh."

Still no word from my Comedy Central contact about the John Oliver report from Pittsburgh will air but it seems likely that it would be on Monday's broadcast (11 p.m.).

The John Oliver-fronted "Daily Show" segment from Pittsburgh is currently scheduled to air in the Oct. 1 episode of "The Daily Show," although that is always subject to change as the show's content is not locked in until the day of air.

2009 regional Emmy winners

As usual, WQED fared best in the 2009 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards, winning three. KDKA and WTAE had two awards each and FSN Pittsburgh received one. Not every station entered, as we noted in a report on local nominations.

Local winners (and in some cases, ties) in the 2009 Mid-Atlantic Emmys are:

FEATURE NEWS REPORT- SERIES

"Fabulous Freebies"- CBS3

Jim Donovan, Reporter

Jennifer Coleman, Producer

Mike Henry, Editor

 
"Rebuilding Together"- WTAE-TV

Wendy Bell, Anchor/Reporter

Michael Lazorko, Editor

Andrew Cunningham, Photographer

 
ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAM FEATURE OR SEGMENT

"OnQ: Madame Dawson's Opera Company"- WQED Multimedia

David Solomon, Writer/Producer

 
ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAM OR SPECIAL

"WTAE Celebrates 50 Years"- WTAE-TV

Richard Cook, Producer

Sally Wiggin, Host/Associate Producer

Michael Lazorko, Associate Producer/Editor

Dan Henninger, Broadcast Operations Manager

 
DOCUMENTARY

"Gardens of Pennsylvania"- WQED Multimedia

Doug Oster, Producer/Host

Nathalie Berry, Supervising Producer

Dave Forstate, Photographer

 
"Making the Blue Band"- WPSU-TV

Jeffrey A. Hughes, Executive Producer

Cole Cullen, Producer/Editor

 
PROMOTION- NEWS & PROGRAM- SINGLE SPOT OR PSA

"A Good Life"- KDKA-TV

Greg Loscar, Promotion Manager


PROMOTION- NEWS & PROGRAM- CAMPAIGN

"Real Fans Watch Comcast SportsNet"- Comcast  SportsNet

Eugenia Lawless Krug, Executive Producer

Kimberly Stewart, Sr Marketing Manager

Mark Christy, Editor/Designer


"Smell Test"- FSN Pittsburgh

Christopher Au, Producer

Mike Pearrow, Producer


NEWS EXCELLENCE

"KDKA-TV"

Anne Linaberger, Acting News Director

MUSICAL COMPOSITION/ARRANGEMENT

Dave Hab, WQED Multimedia

Tim Burns, PBS Kids Sprout