Connie Britton
Nashville, the city, and Nashville, the country music industry, are expecting big things from Nashville, the new fall drama from ABC. The serialized drama, which stars Connie Britton as an country singer juggling her home life and struggling to remain a relevant artist, might not have made it on the air a few years ago.
But just as country music is moving toward the mainstream, the mainstream is gravitating toward country music — and TV execs, hungry for audiences, are eager to tap into country's loyal fan base. "We know from our proprietary research that about 96 million Americans qualify as country music fans, based on their listening habits and purchase behavior," says Country Music Association marketing director Cory Chapman. "That leads to a big opportunity for a network to go after that audience."
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Modern Family
If the stars and negotiations align, Modern Family should continue as planned.
"I expect the season to start on time," ABC chief Paul Lee told reporters at the Television Critics Association fall TV previews on Friday. "We're in the middle of negotiations. We're hopeful and optimistic to resolve it."
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Saving Hope
A few years ago, the broadcast networks finally woke up from their summer slumber and realized they'd ceded too much ground during the warmer months. Cable was winning the battle for the hearts and eyes of summer TV viewers by offering heavily promoted scripted fare — and the networks were mostly in rerun hell. "People got used to going away from the broadcasters in the summer," says The CW president Mark Pedowitz. "Now you're dealing with viewing patterns and trying to change them."
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Jennifer Nettles, Justin Miller
Sugarland singer and Duets mentor Jennifer Nettles is pregnant, People reports.
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The Choice
They aren't Voice-like numbers, but The Choice was the highest-rated new series on Thursday.
Summer TV: Get the scoop on all the new shows
The Fox dating series bowed to 4.2 million viewers and a 1.7 in the adults 18-to-49 demographic to win the 9 o'clock hour against Duets, which averaged ...
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Robin Thicke, Jennifer Nettles, Kelly Clarkson and John Legend
No offense, all other singing competitions, but Duets' judges have totally won us over.
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Stephen Moyer, Alexander Skarsgard, Lucy Griffiths
OK, let's face it, summer is here. Sure, it may not be June 21 yet, but even you calendar purists can admit that Memorial Day pretty much kicks off the season. Once ya start grilling encased meats, it's on. Which usually means your favorite shows aren't.
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Duets
Duets doesn't have a lot to sing about.
The series premiere of ABC's venture into singing competition shows bowed to 6.7 million viewers and a 1.7 in the adults 18-to-49 demographic Thursday. While it beat ...
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Duets' Olivia Chisholm and Robin Thicke
Seriously, TV? You couldn't give us 24 hours to catch our breath from the season that just ended with a frenetic bang Wednesday night:
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Kelly Clarkson
"Security! Security!"
Given Kelly Clarkson's urgent cries, one expects a fleet of beefy bodyguards to rush the pop star's dressing room on the set of her new ABC summer series, Duets. But as the seconds tick by, the only one bolting through the open door is Clarkson's teacup Maltese, who's decided to go exploring down the hall. "Security!" the singer yells again, calling after the spirited, ironically named pint-size pup. His escape quickly foiled, the...
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