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LIFETIME TELEVISION ANNOUNCES SECOND SEASON PICK-UP OF HIT COMEDY SERIES RITA ROCKS
Star NICOLE SULLIVAN Leads Returning Cast
LOS ANGELES (March 2, 2009) � Rita Rocks, Lifetime Television's first original primetime comedy in 10 years, has been picked up for a second season. The 20-episode order was announced today by JoAnn Alfano, Executive Vice President, Entertainment.
The family comedy starring Nicole Sullivan premiered on October 20, 2008, and, in a unique programming strategy, stripped original episodes for a full week before moving into its regular timeslot (Tuesdays, 8:30 p.m. ET/PT). Developed as a companion to Lifetime's most popular comedy, Reba,
Rita Rocks met with early success and frequently built on or retained the Reba audience. Since its debut, the first season has cumed more than 36.4 million viewers.
"Rita Rocks is the first original comedy that Lifetime has launched in 10 years, so you can imagine how delighted we are to welcome it back for a second season," said Alfano. "It's smart, it's funny, and it appeals to anyone who has ever tried to carve out a little time for herself."
In addition to Sullivan, Rita Rocks stars Richard Ruccolo (Two Guys and a Girl) as Rita's husband, Jay, and Tisha Campbell-Martin (My Wife and Kids, Martin) as her friend and bandmate, Patty. Natalie Dreyfuss (He's Just Not That Into You) and Kelly Gould (Lucky Louie) co-star as Rita's daughters, and Raviv Ullman (Phil of the Future) portrays her teenage daughter's ever-present boyfriend, Kip.
ABOUT RITA ROCKS
Sullivan stars as Rita Clements, an overworked wife and mother trying to find time to find herself. Once the lead singer of a Bangles cover band, Rita traded a life in rock clubs for carpools and the PTA. With the hope of getting a little bit of the "old Rita" back, she forms a garage band with postal carrier Patty (Campbell-Martin) and unemployed neighbor Owen (guest star Ian Gomez).
Rita Rocks is produced by Media Rights Capital for Lifetime Television. Stan Zimmerman and James Berg (Gilmore Girls, Roseanne), Jeffrey Hodes and Nastaran Dibai (Hope & Faith, According to Jim) are executive producers. Alan Padula (8 Simple Rules, Home Improvement) is producer. Zimmerman and Berg are also the creators.
ABOUT LIFETIME TELEVISION
Lifetime is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, Lifetime is committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. Lifetime Television, Lifetime Movie Network, Lifetime Real Women and Lifetime Digital (including myLifetime.com) are part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.
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