ABC's body-dicing 'Extreme Makeover' scores
ABC’s “Extreme Makeover” proved on Wednesday that the network can find highly-rated programming to fill the void left by “The Bachelor.” All it takes apparently is a bit of shock value. The ABC special ranked No. 1 at 9 p.m. against CBS’s “Amazing Race 3” and NBC’s “West Wing” with an average 5.8 adult 18-49 rating. The special did far better in its second, post-surgery revealing half-hour. Its rating went up 21 percent to a 6.3, outpacing its nearest competitor by a full rating point. ABC was also the highest-rated network at 8 p.m. with “My Wife & Kids” and “George Lopez.” But NBC ranked No. 1 for the night on the strength of “Law & Order” at 10 p.m., which was the night’s highest-rated program. NBC had a 5.5 adult 18-49 rating, based on Nielsen fast nationals. ABC had a 4.2, Fox had a 3.5 and CBS had a 3.2. NBC also ranked No. 1 in households with a 10.1 rating and 16 share. CBS had a 6.6/10, ABC had a 6.4/10 and Fox had a 4.8/8. 

'Idol' producers claim Kelly broke no rules
"American Idol" producers and Fox executives are circling their wagons in the face of revelations that Kelly Clarkson, winner of the talent-search show, was no amateur after all. Responding to the news that Clarkson had a recording contract before appearing on the show--a circumstance that, if true, would have made her ineligible to compete--Fox said in a statement that Clarkson "did not breach any rules of the competition. She won the 'American Idol' competition fairly." Star magazine reported earlier this week that Clarkson had recorded five songs with the producing/songwriting teams of Gerry Goffin, Michael Blum and Barry Goldberg before winning a spot on "Idol." Lawyers for Fox and "Idol" appear to be taking the position that Clarkson recorded the songs as a demo rather than as part of a contract. The three songwriters have hired a lawyer to gain permission to release Clarkson’s previously recorded songs. They claim they’re OK with Clarkson’s current label, BMG, releasing them.

ABC toe-tags 'MDs,' slots 'Celebrity Mole'
ABC has begun its midseason housecleaning, and as expected, “MDs” was the first to go. The rookie medical drama, which averaged a dismal 2.0 18-49 rating Wednesdays at 10 p.m. versus NBC’s “Law & Order” and CBS’s “Presidio Med,” had been pre-empted the past few weeks by ABC News specials. The show shut down yesterday during production of the 11th episode. In its place, the network will air “Celebrity Mole” beginning in January. Part two of “Extreme Makeovers” will fill the slot next week. ABC is already searching for new makeover participants for another edition of the show, which attracted 13.2 million viewers this week. Another ABC midseason replacement series, “Regular Joe,” has recast two roles. Daniel Stern’s father will now be played by Judd Hirsch instead of Bill Macy, and the daughter will be Jackie Tohn instead of Kelly Karbacz. The pilot has already been shot.

Tina Brown on NYC newspapers: Stodgy, inert
New York City’s newspapers haven’t been terribly good to Tina Brown, chronicling her every misstep with a mixture of breathlessness and schadenfreude. Now the former Talk editor has returned the favor, complaining about the "stodge" and "inertness" of American dailies in her weekly Times of London column. Brown is particularly contemptuous of the western hemisphere’s most celebrated broadsheet. "The New York Times, which dominates our media landscape, is locked in a rictus of self-regard," she writes. The Wall Street Journal, she says, is "dense with purpose compared to the urbane Financial Times" (whatever that means), while the Daily News is "wholesomely proletarian." Brown does take a favorable view of the New York Post, apparently because it’s the only one of the lot that reads like a rowdy British tabloid. "[The Post] arrives in the morning with a squeal of tyres and a burst of gunfire," she writes. "It’s read urgently, like a ransom note. It has the city’s best collection of gossip columns by far." And who would know that better than Tina Brown?

We interrupt this newscast to bring you boobs
If no nudes is good news, then Salt Lake City viewers got a dose of the other kind Wednesday morning when the Mormon station KSL-TV station inadvertently cut away from its newscast to footage of bare-breasted women and a man with his hands down his pants. Complaints followed. Producers at the studio didn't know what was happening, as the footage never appeared on their monitors. KSL executives say they have no idea how the racy video made its way into the "Eyewitness News Today" broadcast. In fact, several of the 60 viewers who complained said they could still hear “Eyewitness News” anchor Terry Wood’s voice during the interlude. The station now believes the footage was from HBO’s adult comedy “Mr. Show with Bob and David.” The local cable provider, AT&T, said it could not have been the source of the video, but only AT&T customers saw it.

'Tonight Show' cancels stage-trashing rockers 
Maybe Jay Leno's getting too old for this rough and tumble talk show business. The "Tonight Show" host told the Australian band The Vines to take their attitudes elsewhere Monday when lead singer Craig Nichols started trashing the band's equipment during a sound check a few hours before taping was to start. In his opening monologue Leno said The Vines' appearance had been canceled because of their rowdy behavior. The Vines are known for behaving wildly onstage, but Monday's incident reportedly had more to do with Nichols taking liberal advantage of the show's complimentary bar cart. Leno has been offering his guest preshow cocktails since May 2001, when he reintroduced the tradition in hopes of promoting spontaneity from his guests. Perhaps the tactic succeeded a little too well.

December 13, 2002© 2002 Media Life

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