Day: February 3, 2011

When NBC announced it would move 30 Rock to 10 p.m. Thursdays in 2011, comedy fans breathed a sigh of relief that they wouldn't have to see their Emmy-winning darling go up against, and get beaten by, $#*! My Dad Says on CBS. But have they seen the competition at 10 p.m. Thursday in January and February 2011? 30 Rock has it even rougher, ratings-wise, to fight for viewers. Your DVR and/or TiVo might be giving you fits as you try to figure out what to watch live, what to record, and what to wait for in later rebroadcasts on TV or online. Just look back one week. What were you watching last Thursday? Survey says… The Mentalist (repeat on CBS): 10.111 million viewers (1.9/5 rating in ages 18-49) Jersey Shore (MTV): 8.833 million viewers (4.5/13 in 18-49) 30 Rock (NBC): 4.922 million viewers (2.4/7 in 18-49) Fairly Legal (USA): 4.095 million (1.0/3) Beyond Scared Straight (A&E): 3.418 million (1.5/4) Private Practice (repeat on ABC): 3.332 million (1.0/3) NBA on (TNT) Miami Heat at New York Knicks: 2.784 million (1.1/3) TNA: Impact (SPIKE): 1.934 million (.6/2) Archer (FX): 1.529 million (.7/2) Greta Van Susteren (FOX News): 1.524 million Brad Meltzer's Decoded (HISTORY): 1.441 million viewers (.6/2) Winter X Games Day 1 (ESPN): 1.279 million (.7/2) Ed Show (MSNBC): 848,000 Anderson Cooper 360 (CNN): 459,000 Joy Behar Show (HLN): 369,000 This list doesn't include Bravo,...

When Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler told Oprah Winfrey on her show yesterday about the time when Aniston turned down Lorne Michaels and the chance to join Saturday Night Live, more than a few people may have been more than a little shocked. Aniston? On SNL? Here's the clip:   Now before you think this is some made-up story to help promote their upcoming movie: Just Go With It. Seriously. There's more than enough reason for Sandler to know not only who Aniston was in 1994, but also why he'd want her on his show. Because Aniston was 25 when Friends debuted in September 1994. And before that, she had performed sketch comedy on network TV in FOX's short-lived series, The Edge, which aired during the 1992-93 season. The Edge may not have had the staying power of In Living Color, but it did boast plenty of names of people you know today. MTV's Julie Brown was nominally the host, Edd Hall provided voiceovers, Bill Plympton provided animation sequences between sketches, and the cast included, in addition to Aniston: Wayne Knight (who went on to mess up Jurassic Park and torment Seinfeld as "Newman!"), Paul Feig (who went on to create Freaks and Geeks), Jill Talley and Tom Kenny (who later married, with future successes on Mr. Show and SpongeBob SquarePants), Rick Overton, and Alan Ruck! Kevin Nealon even...