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NBC shakes up its Thursday night

By wire services
Published December 2, 2005

NBC is making big changes to its prime-time lineup for Thursday - the night it owned in the era of "must-see TV" - by instituting a two-hour comedy block led by My Name Is Earl.

Banished from the night, and temporarily off the air, is Joey, the spinoff that lost all the energy and most of the viewers from Friends.

Thursday's announcement represents NBC's attempt to recapture its magic on what is the most lucrative night of the week in television advertising. Through The Cosby Show, Cheers, Seinfeld and Friends, NBC dominated Thursday for nearly two decades, but CBS's night of Survivor, CSI and Without a Trace now rules.

Starting Jan. 5, NBC's Thursday lineup will be Will & Grace, in its final season; the new buddy comedy Four Kings; the strong freshman show My Name Is Earl; and The Office. ER will remain in its customary spot at 10 p.m.

Joey will return in March, after NBC broadcasts the Winter Olympics, network president Kevin Reilly said.

ABC's Lost and CBS's King of Queens took top family-friendly honors Wednesday at the seventh annual Family Television Awards.

Lost was named best drama and King of Queens won for best comedy.

CBS's Amazing Race won for best reality program and UPN's Everybody Hates Chris won for best new series.

Best movie honors went to the TNT film The Wool Cap. The WB's long-running family series 7th Heaven took home a lifetime achievement award.

Two leading players on ABC also were recognized. Ty Pennington was named best reality host for his work on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, and Jim Belushi, star of According to Jim, won best actor.

Reba McEntire, star of the Reba series on the WB, was named best actress. McEntire also hosted the hourlong awards program at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, which is scheduled to air Dec. 11 on the WB.

Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck are the parents of a girl, delivered at a Los Angeles hospital after labor was induced Wednesday night, Us Weekly reported Thursday. The couple were planning on naming their daughter Violet. The child is the first for Affleck, 33, and Garner, 34. They married June 29.

Mariska Hargitay, star of Law & Order: SVU, is pregnant, her agent said Wednesday. This will be the first child for Hargitay and her husband, actor Peter Hermann, who often guest stars on SVU, agent Erwin More said. Hargitay and Hermann were married in August 2004.

[Last modified December 2, 2005, 07:15:04]