NBC Blinks

EDITOR'S NOTE: WELL, THE FALL LINE-UP HAS BEEN IN PLACE FOR ALMOST A WHOLE WEEK. THIS MIGHT BE SOME KIND OF RECORD, ACTUALLY.

SO HERE IS THE REVISED, 5-NET GRID.

SIGH.....

NBC Updates Its Fall Schedule
Last week, the five broadcast networks unveiled their fall schedules. NBC, which was the first to present its line-up, has now revised its schedule to counter some of the moves of its rivals, ABC, CBS, Fox and The CW.

NBC, as expected, announced that it is moving to another night its new Thursday night 9 p.m. EDITOR'S NOTE: ALL TIMES EST, OF COURSE. drama for the 2006-07 season, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, to Monday night at 10, and will replace it in that Thursday time period with hit game show Deal or No Deal.

But at the same time, in one of the most aggressive pre-season scheduling changes announced at any one time, NBC made programming shifts in its fall schedule on every other night of the week, except Saturday, which is a repeat night.

NBC Entertainment president Kevin Reilly said all strategy used in putting together the NBC prime-time schedule for next season which was announced at the network's upfront presentation on May 15, has now been replaced by the thinking, "Let's just launch our new shows in the most opportunistic time periods." EDITOR'S NOTE: YOU WOULD THINK....AND GO WITH ME ON THIS ONE...THAT THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE BEST IDEA ALL ALONG? (HMMMM???)

Studio 60 was scheduled to air Thursday nights at 9 p.m next season, but following NBC's announcement of its schedule, ABC said that it was moving its drama hit Grey's Anatomy from Sunday night at 9 to Thursday night at 9.

Studio 60 also would have had to face the CBS hit drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. So NBC moved it to Monday night at 10, replacing its veteran drama Medium, which will now be held until mid-season, when it will air on Sunday night at 10, when Sunday Night Football finishes its season on NBC. EDITOR'S NOTE: NO "MEDIUM" TILL JANUARY?! SNIFFLE. SORKIN BETTER NOT LET US DOWN ON "STUDIO 60";IT BETTER ROCK! (OF COURSE, THAT MEANS "MEDIUM" WILL HAVE VERY FEW REPEATS WHEN IT DOES FINALLY AIR, SO I GUESS THAT IS A GOOD THING?)

Reilly said once he had a chance to look at all his competitors' schedules, it became evident that other moves needed to be made. Rethinking Tuesday, Reilly believed premiering two new shows, Friday Night Lights and Kidnapped back-to-back was risky, so he decided to leave Friday Night Lights at 8 and will move in veteran drama Law & Order: Criminal Intent from Friday at 10 to Kidnapped's slot on Tuesday at 9, leading into Law & Order: SVU.

Kidnapped will move to Wednesday night at 10, and the occupant of that time period, Law & Order, will move to the Criminal Intent slot on Fridays at 10.

Other changes include flipping new sitcoms 20 Good Years and 30 Rock from 9 into the 8 p.m. time period, and moving that time period occupant, The Biggest Loser to 9 p.m.

Veteran drama Crossing Jordan, previously not scheduled to come on the air until mid-season, will now air at 8 p.m.Friday in the time period previously filled by Deal or No Deal.
EDITOR'S NOTE: GOT ALL THAT? CAUSE THERE WILL BE A QUIZ.

Reilly said moving Studio 60 to 10 p.m. Monday will allow the network to promote it better on Sunday Night Football telecasts, and that he expects the freshman show to steal some female audience from CBS' CSI: Miami. He said moving Criminal Intent so it leads into SVU will give the two shows compatible audiences and good viewer flow.

Here is an updated schedule, reflecting NBC's changes.

Unlike the other networks, CW and Fox only program prime-time shows from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m, with the exception of Sunday night when they start their programming at 7 p.m.

Fox also introduces a new schedule starting in January.

The CW has no Saturday night programming. EDITOR'S NOTE: AND IF WE'RE BEING HONEST, NEITHER DOES ANYONE ELSE.

SUNDAY
7:00
CW: "Everybody Hates Chris"/"All of Us"
Fox: Fall: Football overrun, comedy repeats; January:Comedy repeats/"King of the Hill"
NBC: "Football Night in America"

8:00
ABC: "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition"
CBS: "The Amazing Race"
CW: "Girlfriends"/"The Game"
Fox: Fall, January:"The Simpsons"/"American Dad"
NBC: "NFL Sunday Night Football"

9:00
ABC: "Desperate Housewives"
CBS: "Cold Case"
CW: "America's Next Top Model (Encore)"
Fox: Fall, January:"Family Guy"/"The War at Home"
NBC: "NFL Sunday Night Football"

10:00
ABC: "Brothers and Sisters"
CBS: "Without a Trace"
NBC: "NFL Sunday Night Football"

MONDAY
8:00
ABC: "Wife Swap"
CBS: "How I Met Your Mother/"The Class"
CW: "7th Heaven"
Fox: Fall:"Prison Break"; January: "Vanished"
NBC: "Deal or No Deal"

9:00
ABC: "The Bachelor"/ "Supernanny"
CBS: "Two and a Half Men"/"The New Adventures of Old Christine"
CW: "Runaway"
Fox: Fall: "Vanished"; January: "24"
NBC: "Heroes"

10:00
ABC: "What About Brian"
CBS: "CSI: Miami"
NBC: "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip"

TUESDAY
8:00
ABC: "Dancing With the Stars"/ "Set for the Rest of Your Life"
CBS: "NCIS"
CW: "Gilmore Girls"
Fox: Fall: "Standoff"; January: "American Idol: Performance"
NBC: "Friday Night Lights"

9:00
ABC: "Let's Rob…"/ "Help Me Help You"
CBS: "The Unit"
CW: "Veronica Mars"
Fox: Fall, January:"House"
NBC: "Law & Order: Criminal Intent"

10:00
ABC: "Boston Legal"
CBS: "Smith"
NBC: "Law & Order: SVU"

WEDNESDAY
8:00
ABC: "Dancing with the Stars"/ "George Lopez"/ "According to Jim"
CBS: "Jericho"
CW: "America's Next Top Model"
Fox: Fall: "Bones"; January: "Justice"
NBC: "20 Good Years"/"30 Rock"

9:00
ABC: "Lost"
CBS: "Criminal Minds"
CW: "One Tree Hill"
Fox: Fall: "Justice"; January:"American Idol: Results"/"The Loop"
NBC: "The Biggest Loser"

10:00
ABC: "The Nine"
CBS: "CSI: NY"
NBC: "Kidnapped"

THURSDAY
8:00
ABC: "Big Day" /"Notes From the Underbelly"
CBS: "Survivor: Cooks Island"
CW: "Smallville"
Fox: Fall, January:"'Til Death"/"Happy Hour"
NBC: "My Name Is Earl"/ "The Office"

9:00
ABC: "Grey's Anatomy"
CBS: "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation"
CW: "Supernatural"
Fox: Fall, January: "The O.C."
NBC: "Deal or No Deal"

10:00
ABC: "Six Degrees"
CBS: "Shark"
NBC: "ER"/ January:"The Black Donnellys"

FRIDAY
8:00
ABC: "Betty the Ugly"
CBS: "Ghost Whisperer"
CW: "Friday Night Smackdown"
Fox: Fall: "Nanny 911"; January: "Bones"
NBC: "Crossing Jordan"

9:00
ABC: "Men in Trees"
CBS: "Close to Home"
CW: "Friday Night Smackdown"
Fox: Fall: "Trading Spouses"; January: "The Wedding Album"
NBC: "Las Vegas"

10:00
ABC: "20/20"
CBS: "Numbers"
NBC: "Law & Order"

SATURDAY
8:00
ABC: "ABC Saturday Night College Football"
CBS: Crimetime Saturday
Fox: Fall, January: "Cops"
NBC: "Dateline Saturday"

9:00
ABC: "ABC Saturday Night College Football"
CBS: Crimetime Saturday
Fox: Fall, January: "America's Most Wanted"
NBC: Drama Encore

10:00
ABC: "ABC Saturday Night College Football
"CBS: "48 Hours Mystery"
NBC: Drama Encore
EDITOR'S NOTE: SOMETIME THIS WEEKEND I WILL TRY TO REPOST THE GRID I DID LAST WEEK....WAS IT ONLY JUST LAST WEEK? WHY IT SEEMS A WHOLE SCHEDULE AGO. (SNICKER).....WITH THESE REVISIONS, AND INCLUDING MY NEW-SHOW DESCRIPTIONS.