or


[09/05/05 - 12:00 AM]
NBC Continues to Build Midseason Comedy Roster
By Brian Ford Sullivan (TFC)

LOS ANGELES (thefutoncritic.com) -- NBC continued to build up its unusually active midseason development slate over the weekend as the network had greenlighted the Greg Grunberg-led comedy pilot "Grand Union."

Grunberg ("Alias," "The Catch") stars as Tom McBride, a blue-collar family man who manages a local Long Island neighborhood grocery store in the project, which previously ran under the title "Father of the McBrides." Also cast in "Union" is Beth Lacke ("ER") as Grunberg's wife, Pat.

David Israel and Jim O'Doherty ("The Tracy Morgan Show," "Grounded for Life") are behind the project, which comes from NBC Universal Television and executive producer Tom Werner. It's believed Werner will produce through his Warner Bros. Television-based Werner-Gold-Miller banner along with Eric Gold and Jimmy Miller.

As for Grunberg, his involvement stems from an overall development deal the actor recently signed with the network.

Meanwhile, casting has begun on the Peacock's Tina Fey-led comedy pilot, a semi-autobiographical look at Fey's tenure on "Saturday Night Live."

Among the details revealed in the casting notice: Fey will play Lisa Lemon, the head writer of "Friday Night Bits" (the show-within-a-show), while the characters include Jack Donaghy (NBC's new VP of development), Pete Hornberger (Lisa's long-time producer and friend), Toofer (a Harvard-type staff writer), Frank (a heavy-set, working-class staff writer who butts heads with Toofer), Josh (an adorable young cast member known for his flawless impressions), Sarie (a Paris Hilton-esque assistant), Kenneth (a chirpy Clay Aiken-type NBC page) and Jonathan (Jack's nerdy assistant).

Lorne Michaels, David Miner and Joann Alfano serve as the executive producers of the NBC Universal Television/Broadway Video-based project along with Frey, who wrote the pilot script.

"Union" and the Fey project join the Peacock's already busy comedy development roster for midseason, which also includes the previously shot pilots "Filmore Middle" and "Lies and the Wives We Tell Them To" as well as the cast-contingent "I Love Faron Hitchman," "Bearaboo 2010" and untitled Mike Markowitz project.

Already on tap for midseason are the new comedies "Four Kings" and "Thick and Thin," not to mention the fifth season of "Scrubs."





  [september 2005]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· 30 ROCK (NBC)
· ALIAS (ABC)
· BARABOO 2010 (NBC)
· CATCH, THE (ABC)
· ER (NBC)
· FOUR KINGS (NBC)
· GRAND UNION (NBC)
· GROUNDED FOR LIFE (WB)
· I LOVE FARON HITCHMAN (NBC)
· LIES AND THE WIVES WE TELL THEM TO (NBC)
· SCRUBS (ABC)
· TEACHERS (NBC)
· THICK & THIN (NBC)
· TRACY MORGAN SHOW, THE (NBC)
· UNTITLED MIKE MARKOWITZ PROJECT (NBC)





[12/15/25 - 09:31 AM]
Most Valuable Promotions and Netflix Announce On-Air Talent for MVP's Jake vs. Joshua: Judgment Day, Live Only on Netflix on Friday, December 19 from Kaseya Center in Miami
On Friday, December 19, the Jake vs. Joshua preliminary card begins at 4:45pm ET / 1:45pm PT on Netflix's Tudum and MVP's YouTube Channel, with the main card starting at 8:00pm ET / 5:00pm PT, live only on Netflix.

[12/15/25 - 09:19 AM]
Driven by Strong November Viewership, ESPN Earns Third Straight Month of Year-Over-Year Audience Growth for Weekday Studio Programming
Highlights include "The Pat McAfee Show" having its most-viewed November of all time across linear and YouTube with 445,000 average viewers per show and "NFL Live" reaching its second most-watched November since 2016 with 445,000 average viewers.

[12/15/25 - 09:02 AM]
TNT Sports to Present Wall-to-Wall Coverage of Saturday's College Football Playoff First Round
Saturday's game crews will include Joe Tessitore, Jesse Palmer, Katie George and Quint Kessenich calling Tulane/Ole Miss, with Bob Wischusen, Louis Riddick, Kris Budden and Stormy Buonantony assigned to JMU/Oregon.

[12/15/25 - 09:00 AM]
CBS Announces All-New Special, "Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion Pt. 2," to Air Monday, Dec. 22 on CBS
This one-hour show gives viewers who loved the first special another opportunity to reminisce and revisit the laughter and joy from the original CBS series.

[12/15/25 - 08:01 AM]
The Wasteland Comes Bearing Gifts... "Fallout" Season Two Surprises with Early Release Date
The premiere episode will debut one day earlier on Tuesday, December 16, at 6:00 p.m. PT.

[12/15/25 - 07:01 AM]
USA Sports Announces Wednesday Night Primetime Schedule for 2026 LOVB Season on USA Network
USA Network's Match of the Week coverage begins with the first serve of the 2026 season on Wednesday, January 7, at 6 p.m. ET, featuring a rematch of the 2025 Championship when LOVB Nebraska faces defending champion LOVB Austin.

[12/15/25 - 07:01 AM]
Video: Peacock Releases Official Trailer, Key Art and New Episodic Imagery for "Ponies"
All eight episodes of espionage thriller series starring Emilia Clarke and Haley Lu Richardson will debut Thursday, January 15 on Peacock.

[12/15/25 - 07:00 AM]
Golden Globe-Nominated "One Battle After Another" - Including Best Picture - Begins Streaming Exclusively on HBO Max December 19
The film stars Academy Award, BAFTA and Golden Globe winners Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro, Regina Hall, and Golden Globe nominees Teyana Taylor and Chase Infiniti.

[12/15/25 - 05:41 AM]
Video: "Stranger Things 5" - Volume 2 Trailer - Netflix
With Hawkins' children ensnared by Vecna, the party faces unimaginable peril as they fight to bring them home.

[12/13/25 - 10:02 AM]
Flex Game! LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and Lakers Host Cade Cunningham and Eastern-Conference Leading Pistons on Tuesday, Dec. 30, at 10:30 P.M. ET on NBC and Peacock
NBC Sports' NBA coverage on December 23, December 29, and December 30 will now feature nationwide doubleheaders, with the entire country getting both games on NBC and Peacock.

[12/12/25 - 03:04 PM]
ESPN Scored Most-Watched Jimmy V Women's Classic Ever; Men's Classic Most-Watched in Five Years
The former averaged 1.0 million viewers, peaking with 1.3 million.

[12/12/25 - 01:46 PM]
ID Sets January Return for "People Magazine Investigates," Featuring More Ripped from the Headlines Cases That Captivated the Nation
The new season premieres Monday, January 12 at 9:00/8:00c on ID, with new episodes airing weekly.

[12/12/25 - 01:31 PM]
Hallmark Expands the Universe of "When Calls the Heart" with Prequel Series "Hope Valley: 1874" Starring Bethany Joy Lenz, Benjamin Ayres and Jill Hennessy
The eight-episode series begins production next week in Vancouver, BC and will premiere in March 2026 exclusively on Hallmark+.

[12/12/25 - 10:05 AM]
Meet the 14 Contestants Competing on "Fear Factor: House of Fear," Premiering Wednesday, January 14th at 9/8c on FOX
Dropped into an unforgiving, remote location, a group of strangers will live together under one roof, and face mind-blowing stunts, harrowing challenges and a twisted game of social strategy where trust is fleeting - and fear is a weapon.

[12/12/25 - 10:01 AM]
Video: What's Coming in Early 2026 - "Shrinking," "Monarch," "Hijack" & More - Apple TV
Also on tap are "The Last Thing He Told Me" and "Eternity."