Keely's Korner

CELEBRITY NEWS: APRIL 27, 2020
http://www.imdb.com/news/celebrity

Lizzo (R&B Singer) – 32 years old
William Moseley (E!’s The Royals/ “The Chronicles of Narnia” movies) – 33 years old
Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy) – 36 years old
Sally Hawkins (“The Shape of Water”/ “Paddington” movies) – 44 years old
Nigel Barker (America’s Next Top Model/ Fashion Photographer) – 48 years old
Chrissy Lampkin (VH1’s Love & Hip Hop: New York) – 49 years old
Cory Booker (New Jersey Senator) – 51 years old
Rande Gerber (Businessman/ Cindy Crawford’s Husband) – 58 years old
Sheena Easton (Pop Singer) – 61 years old
Paul “Ace” Frehley (KISS) – 69 years old
Silas “Si” Robertson (Duck Dynasty) – 72 years old

FIRST LOOK
http://www.eonline.com/news

ON TELEVISION (MONDAY 4/27/20
ID: Southern Gothic (Premiere) at 10pm
NAT. GEO.: Ultimate Treasure Countdown (Premiere) at 9pm
NETFLIX: Never Have I Ever (Premiere)
TRAVEL CHANNEL: Mummy Mysteries (Premiere) at 10pm
ACORN TV: Deadwater Fell (Finale)
AMC: Dispatches From Elsewhere (Finale) at 10pm
FOX: Prodigal Son (Finale) at 9pm
FX: Breeders (Finale) at 10pm

NBCUniversal will hold a virtual event on Monday, May 11, the day that had been slated for its Upfront presentation. “One Industry Update” will feature a “state of the marketplace” conversation and Q&A, offer updates on One Platform and introduce new offerings. NBCU, along with the other major media companies, canceled its Upfront event in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Source: Cynopsis)

How would Leslie Knope deal with social distancing? Parks and Recreation fans will find out five years after the NBC comedy left the air – the cast is reuniting for NBC and Universal Television’s A Parks and Recreation Special, set to air Thursday, April 30 at 8:30p. “Like a lot of other people, we were looking for ways to help and felt that bringing these characters back for a night could raise some money,” said executive producer Michael Schur. “I sent a hopeful email to the cast and they all got back to me within 45 minutes.” State Farm and Subaru of America will each make matching donations of $150,000; combined with NBCUniversal and the writers/producers/cast of the show, a total of $500,000 in matching donations will be made through May 21.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Season three of documentary news series Axios continues on HBO tonight at 11p, ramping up production with episodes biweekly for the rest of the year. “While the way we report has changed in recent weeks due to the ongoing pandemic, the stories we are telling have only grown in importance and we look forward to bringing even more of them to the forefront in these new episodes on HBO,” said Jim VandeHei, Co-Founder and CEO of Axios. “It is more important than ever that we provide viewers access to top leaders and decision makers and help them cut through the noise of the 24-hour news cycle with our Smart Brevity format.” The show will also be available on HBO’s streaming platforms.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Fuse Media is just getting started with its social responsibility initiative, Be Change. “Our Be Change initiative launched with a simple message of Be Change: Be Home, encouraging social distancing among our young audience, and we continue to build on that with calls to Be Connected, Be Healthy and Be Thankful in the coming weeks,” Mark McIntyre, Fuse Head of Marketing, tells Cynopsis. “Beyond pandemic-related themes will be calls to action like the one we launched last week around environmental responsibility with Zero Hour – the second year we have partnered with this incredible organization – and we look forward to tapping into similar partnerships as we roll out more in the coming months.”
(Source: Cynopsis)

BET’s Saving Our Selves: A BET COVID-19 Relief Effort raised over $16 million in commitments. Funds will support over 50 organizations across the country providing emergency resources to African Americans hit by the health and financial crisis.
(Source: Cynopsis)

When the COVID-19 crisis is over, the top streaming platforms “will emerge with the lion’s share of scripted content production,” said MoffettNathanson in a report, “Say Goodbye to Hollywood,” predicting the impact of the pandemic on TV. “We believe the linear TV industry should emerge in an even weaker state post this period with fewer subscribers, lower spending on original scripted content,” said analysts. “John Landgraf’s concept of ‘Peak TV’ will finally move to ‘post-Peak TV’ as cable, premium and broadcast networks look to rein in their spending.” As for advertising, “We are expecting to see major cuts in TV ad spend over the next few quarters,” said the report. “In the mid-term, the shifts in consumer behavior towards streaming should move more ad spend to AVOD platforms like Roku, Pluto and Peacock, or SVOD hybrids like Hulu and CBS All-Access.”
(Source: Cynopsis)

Celebrity contractor Eric Eremita (Love It or List It) was released after a month in the hospital, where he was on a ventilator after contracting COVID-19. “The power of prayer is really strong!!” he tweeted, saying he’s “learning to walk again.”
(Source: Cynopsis)

Also on the mend is George Gray, the announcer for The Price Is Right. Gray suffered three massive heart attacks but is now “recovering well” in Arizona. The 53-year-old attributed his heart issue to genetic factors – and said if coronavirus hadn’t kept him at home, instead of on a planned vacation at a remote location in Thailand, he may very well not have survived.
(Source: Cynopsis)

SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP said they will start negotiations – via videoconference and under a formal media blackout – today for a new film and TV contract. The current contract expires June 30.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Marc Smerling (Catfish) launched Brooklyn-based TV and podcast production company Truth Media. The company will look for true crime stories to turn into podcasts and develop as series. First project out of the gate is A Wilderness of Error, a non-fiction series produced by Blumhouse Television for FX Networks.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Bering Sea Gold returns to Discovery for a new season on Friday, May 15 at 8p. The net has viewers who need a refresher covered, with a catch-up special airing May 8 at 10p.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Streamer BritBox will release limited series Honour, telling the true story of a woman killed by her family because of a relationship they considered shameful, in fall 2020. The BritBox Original comes from Liza Marshall’s (Temple, Riviera) Hera Pictures in association with Buddy Club.
(Source: Cynopsis)

HBO’s I May Destroy You, following a woman whose life changes after she’s sexually assaulted in a nightclub, debuts in June. The half-hour series is created, written, executive produced by and starring Michaela Coel (Chewing Gum).
(Source: Cynopsis)

Streaming service Local Now introduced a new daily series featuring Dr. Wendy Walsh to offer advice and insight on mental health topics during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Wendy Walsh Is Here for You is available now.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Who’s Zooming who? Facebook is rolling out video calling feature Messenger Rooms, allowing users to host up to 50 people to a video call, with no time limit. Users who create a Messenger room from Messenger or Facebook can invite anyone to join, including people without Facebook, and can remove people from a call and lock a room. Facebook is also increasing What’sApp’s video call person limit from four to eight people.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards 2020: Celebrate Together will be hosted by Victoria Justice (Victorious) on Saturday, May 2, at 8p. The virtually produced show will reveal the winners through “creative orange-blimp acceptances.”
(Source: Cynopsis)

HGTV’s marathons on tap this week are Home Town, Love It or List It, Brother vs. Brother: Jonathan vs. Drew, Property Brothers: Forever Home, House Hunters and Unsellable Houses. Bingeing begins at 6a.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Food Network celebrates Mother’s Day weekend with mom-centric episodes, including a new Pioneer Woman: Staying Home on Saturday, May 9 at 10a, a self-shot episode featuring quarantine recipes.
(Source: Cynopsis)

FilmOn TV Networks is free for 30 days, available as an Android and iOS app and on the mobile web. In addition to classic movies, vintage television, music videos, news, and international programming are channels devoted to MMA, football, soccer, basketball, boxing, auto racing, tennis, wrestling – and darts and snooker.
(Source: Cynopsis)

RATINGS

The first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday had a record 15.7 million viewers for opening night across ABC, ESPN, NFL Network, ESPN Deportes and their digital channels, up 37% versus 2019.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Global Citizen announced estimated viewership and engagement numbers for the One World: Together At Home global broadcast special, saying more than 270 million people tuned in to the show and its related content across television and digital platforms. And that’s not counting viewership numbers in Africa or the Middle East, or from markets where the special has not yet aired.
(Source: Cynopsis)

Discovery’s portfolio of networks delivered its largest Live+3 gross audience in over a year for the week April 13 among P25-54 viewers in Total Day. In Primetime, Discovery networks accounted for 4 of the top 10 networks among P25-54 (TLC #2, Discovery #8, HGTV #9, Food Network #10) and W25-54 (TLC #2, HGTV #3, Food Network #6, Discovery #9). Among the highlights, Food Network scored its highest-rated week ever among both P25-54 and M25-54 in Total Day, and the week ranks as the highest-rated week in DIY history in Primetime and Total Day among P25-54, P18+, M18+, and P2+. Cooking Channel saw its highest-rated week ever in Primetime among P25-54.
(Source: Cynopsis)

TLC’s 90-Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days hit its highest Live+3 Nielsen number yet last Sunday, scoring a 2.91 rating among P25-54, 3.87 among W25-54 and 4.4 million total viewers. Along with after-show 90-Day Fiance: Pillow Talk, the show shot TLC to #1 on the night.
(Source: Cynopsis)

The April 18 episode of Cold Justice was its most-watched episode on Oxygen, delivering 1.01 million total viewers.
(Source: Cynopsis)

TV announcer Jerry Bishop died April 21 of heart disease. He was 84. Bishop had been the announcer for Judge Judy since its first season, in 1996. “He had a golden heart and a generous spirit,” said Judy Sheindlin. “I adored him and will miss him.”
(Source: Cynopsis)