Logo

Business

Executive Behind ‘Three’s Company,’ ‘Benny Hill’ and Other Hits Dead at 80

An executive who was behind a number of hit television shows has died at 80, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Donald Taffner Sr., who adapted a British format to create "Three’s Company" and brought "The Benny Hill Show" to U.S….

Which Heavyweights Did Eddie Murphy Beat Out to Host Oscars?

The announcement this week that Eddie Murphy will host the next Oscars telecast left out some juicy details — namely, which other heavyweight entertainers were eager to get the job. According to the New York Daily News, other stars who…

FX Drama Scores Record Ratings for Season Premiere

If there were any doubt whether FX has a hit on its hands with one of its critically acclaimed dramas, Tuesday night’s fourth-season premiere should put it to rest. The 90-minute rollout of “Sons of Anarchy” pulled in a series-record…

NBC Shuffles NFL Pregame Programming to Make Room for Obama Speech

NBC, which has the NFL regular season opener scheduled for Thursday night, has announced some programming changes to accommodate a key jobs speech by President Obama, NBCSports.com reports. Obama will address a joint session of Congress at 7 p.m. ET,…

Labor Day Surprise for Highest-Rated Broadcaster

The highest-rated broadcast network on Labor Day in total viewers and among people 18 to 49 years old was the Spanish-language network Univision, as viewing was generally low among English-language broadcasters, reports The New York Times’ ArtsBeat blog. Univision averaged…

Yahoo Fires Chief Executive Via Phone Call

Yahoo! fired Chief Executive Carol Bartz with a phone call from the company’s chairman, reports Bloomberg. Bartz sent a memo to the company’s employees Tuesday to let them know she was terminated by Chairman Roy Bostock, the story notes. “I…

ABC Buys Project Based on Aussie Novel Series

ABC has bought a project based on a series of books by Australian action thriller novelist Matthew Reilly, reports Deadline.com. The “Jack West Jr.” books are described as "Raiders of the Lost Ark" meets "National Treasure," the story says. The…

‘America’s Most Wanted’ — Canceled by Fox in May — Finds a New Television Home

"America’s Most Wanted," which has helped capture more than 1,100 fugitives in the U.S. and 30 countries, has found a new television home after Fox’s decision in May to cancel the show as a weekly program, reports Deadline.com. The new…

TNT Series Gets Syndication Deal

ION Television announced that it has acquired off-network rights to a top TNT series. ION acquired the rights to all seasons of “Leverage” from Electric Entertainment. Brandon Burgess, CEO of ION Media Networks, made the announcement today. The deal is…

‘Lie to Me’ Star Inks Deal With 20th Century Fox TV

20th Century Fox TV has signed one of the stars of "Lie to Me" to a talent holding/producing deal, reports Deadline.com. The deal with Tim Roth includes a first-look component, with Roth being able to pitch series projects to the…