The Big Bang Theory

CHICAGO – Two of our most promising new shows of 2012 were respectably sampled last night on the first Thursday of the Fall season as viewers turned “Elementary” into a solid first-week hit and enough people checked out “Last Resort” opposite the #1 show of the evening to call that a success as well. CBS won the night easily while ABC has plenty to be happy about. FOX should be more concerned and NBC may just want to go dark on the night that they used to own in the ratings.

CHICAGO – I don’t think even the people who made it thought that “The Big Bang Theory,” which recently had its fifth season released on Blu-ray and DVD, would be such a massive success. And it shows no signs of slowing down. Since the comedy debuted in 2007, it has doubled its viewership, averaging almost 16 million viewers a week in its fifth season, making it easily one of the top ten shows of the year. And Jim Parsons is the odds-on favorite to win a third straight Emmy for Best Actor in a Comedy Series next weekend.

CHICAGO – The 64th Annual Emmy nominations were announced this morning and AMC’s “Mad Men” and ABC’s “Modern Family” were the big winners. Check back to HollywoodChicago.com for a list of the biggest snubs this year and stay tuned for all of your 2012 Emmy coverage.

CHICAGO – With Emmy nominations coming out this week and the cast appearing at San Diego Comic-Con last week, CBS’s mega-hit “The Big Bang Theory” has been in the press more often than it typically is in the middle of its off-season. Add to this bizarre mini-wave of publicity the fact that Warner Bros. has corrected an oversight and recently released the first two seasons of the Emmy winner on Blu-ray, having previously been available only on DVD (the 3rd and 4th seasons were released on Blu-ray already). Both sets are light on special features but offer multiple viewing options (Blu-ray, DVD, Ultraviolet), which should make Leonard & Sheldon addicts very happy.

CHICAGO – The 64th Annual Emmy Nominations will be announced this Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 7:40AM CST by Nick Offerman (“Parks and Recreation”) and Kerry Washington (“Scandal”). We’ve already made clear what should be nominated in this feature but what will be nominated?

CHICAGO – In the most interesting scheduling move of the Fall 2012 TV announcements, CBS is going to move “Two and a Half Men” to Thursday nights following “The Big Bang Theory.”

CHICAGO – America’s #1 TV network showed a sign of their force today by renewing EIGHTEEN programs from their reliable hits to shows that many considered to be on the bubble. The renewals include four comedies, nine dramas, three reality series, and two newsmagazines and include programs that currently air on every night of the week. CBS really is in charge.

CHICAGO – Unlike the massive housecleaning at NBC announced today, things won’t change much at mid-season for the #1 network in total viewers, but CBS did make official that the Rob Schneider vehicle “¡ROB!” will get the cozy post-“The Big Bang Theory” slot on Thursday nights, starting January 12th.

CHICAGO – It has felt for a few years like everything CBS threw against the wall would stick. Sure, shows like “The Defenders” and “$#*! My Dad Says” got canceled but they weren’t bombs. Ladies and gentleman, we are happy to report that the new Kevin Dillon sitcom “How to Be a Gentleman” is an official bomb. With a household rating of only 5.5, the show dropped a remarkable 41% from its lead-in (“The Big Bang Theory”) and was even down 18% from the second episode of “$#*! My Dad Says” at this time last year. Thanks for ignoring this mess.

CHICAGO – The overnights for the first new Thursday of the Fall 2011 season are in and there were no major surprises. Every network has something to be happy about and something to worry about, depending on who’s spinning the story. “The X Factor” maintained from its opening night numbers and “The Office” proved it may not need Steve Carell, while “Person of Interest” and “Charlie’s Angels” were well-sampled.