ABC adding five new series
ABC is performing some scheduling gymnastics to get the remainder of its midseason slate on the air, with four new series joining the previously slated “Sons & Daughters” in March and April.
Left out of the mix so far, however, is “Alias” – which originally was scheduled to return in March for its final episodes.
First up among the new shows is the unscripted series “Miracle Workers,” which debuts at 10 p.m. March 6. A feel-good show in the vein of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” it follows a team of doctors and nurses who help people overcome overwhelming medical issues.
It will air for four weeks before giving way to the drama “What About Brian,” starring Barry Watson (“7th Heaven”) as a single guy in his 30s. It premieres on a Sunday, April 2, before moving to its Monday home the following night.
March 16 brings the two-hour debut of “American Inventor,” a series executive-produced by “American Idol’s” Simon Cowell that gives would-be Edisons a chance to show off their ideas.
ABC’s final midseason entry is “The Evidence,” a crime procedural from “ER” executive producer John Wells that debuts at 10 p.m. March 22. (“Invasion” will go on hiatus and return in April.)
The network previously announced that “Sons & Daughters,” a comedy from “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels, will take “Commander In Chief’s” Tuesday night spot for six weeks starting March 7.
Simon goes Vegas
Simon Cowell is fast becoming a jack of all talent-judging trades.
Along with ABC’s “American Inventor,” the acid-tongued “American Idol” judge is getting into business with NBC to find the next great Las Vegas headliner.
The yet-untitled show will bring aspiring performers from across the country together in a competition to be the featured act in a Vegas showroom.
“Personally, I hope to find the next Siegfried and Roy,” says Cowell. “I promise this is going to be a fun ride.”
‘Flight 93’ takes off
A television movie about one of the doomed Sept. 11 airplanes was A&E’s most-watched program ever – a sign that audiences may be ready for a coming spate of movie and TV projects dramatizing the terrorism of five years ago.
“Flight 93,” about the hijacking of the United Airlines plane and passengers’ efforts to retake it, drew 5.9 million viewers when it premiered Monday, making it the most-watched A&E program since the channel launched in 1984. (It repeats today and Sunday at noon, cable channel 52 in Spokane, 37 in Coeur d’Alene).
Among other upcoming projects about the terrorist attacks are an ABC miniseries and several feature films, including one from director Oliver Stone and starring Nicolas Cage.