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Posts published in “TV”

Shonda Rhimes Sells New FBI Drama Series "Under The Gun" to NBC

By goodblacknews on September 8, 2012

The prolific series creator/writer/showrunner Shonda Rhimes, in a pairing with Grey’s Anatomy writer Peter Nowalk, has sold an FBI drama titled Under The Gun, to NBC.
What’s it about?
Under the Gun revolves around Erin Kain, a woman who goes to work for the FBI as she struggles to make sense of a terrible event in her past that ruined her life and tore her family apart. While her young and fragile appearance doesn’t typically suggest that she’s best suited to work as a field agent, her dark past helps her get inside the head of criminals who were normal one day and cracked the next. 
Nowalk will write the script and executive produce along with Rhimes and her Shondaland producing partner Betsy Beers.
As THR notes, this new sale marks the first one of the 2012/2013 season for Rhimes who sold four new dramas – three to ABC and one to Fox – last season. One of them, the period drama Gilded Lilys, was ordered to pilot, but didn’t get picked up as a series.
Her last season freshman hit series Scandal (one of the 4) will make its season 2 debut in less than 3 weeks.
BY TAMBAY A. OBENSON via blogs.indiewire.com

CBS Lands Eddie Murphy and Shawn Ryan Redo Of "Beverly Hills Cop"

By goodblacknews on September 5, 2012
The revival of “Beverly Hills Cop,” which landed at CBS Tuesday with a pilot production order and hefty penalty if not picked up to series, started with talk last fall between Eddie Murphy and Brett Ratner of doing a fourth installment of Paramount’s action-comedy franchise.
Murphy and Ratner had finished working on “Tower Heist” earlier in the year and were preparing to team up for the Oscars (though that was not to be for either man). But even before “Tower Heist” opened to underwhelming B.O., Murphy had reservations about bringing his Axel Foley character back to the big screen. He did, however, think it could work as a TV series if the storyline centered around the character’s son, also on the Beverly Hills police beat.
As Murphy’s reps at WME helped him shape the concept, they suggested a range of comedy writers to execute the next-generation concept. But Murphy’s focus was very clear: He didn’t want a comedy writer, he wanted a seasoned cop writer. Enter Shawn Ryan, creator of “The Shield” and one of TV’s most sought-after showrunners.
Ryan pounced on the idea within minutes of being pitched the idea on the phone by his WME rep, and he and Murphy clicked at their first lunch meeting.

CBS Lands Eddie Murphy and Shawn Ryan Redo Of “Beverly Hills Cop”

By goodblacknews on September 5, 2012
The revival of “Beverly Hills Cop,” which landed at CBS Tuesday with a pilot production order and hefty penalty if not picked up to series, started with talk last fall between Eddie Murphy and Brett Ratner of doing a fourth installment of Paramount’s action-comedy franchise.

Murphy and Ratner had finished working on “Tower Heist” earlier in the year and were preparing to team up for the Oscars (though that was not to be for either man). But even before “Tower Heist” opened to underwhelming B.O., Murphy had reservations about bringing his Axel Foley character back to the big screen. He did, however, think it could work as a TV series if the storyline centered around the character’s son, also on the Beverly Hills police beat.

As Murphy’s reps at WME helped him shape the concept, they suggested a range of comedy writers to execute the next-generation concept. But Murphy’s focus was very clear: He didn’t want a comedy writer, he wanted a seasoned cop writer. Enter Shawn Ryan, creator of “The Shield” and one of TV’s most sought-after showrunners.

Ryan pounced on the idea within minutes of being pitched the idea on the phone by his WME rep, and he and Murphy clicked at their first lunch meeting.

Terrence J to replace Ryan Seacrest on ‘E! News’

By goodblacknews on September 4, 2012
Think Like a Man Premiere Terrence Jenkins - P 2012
Fernando Leon/Getty Images

The former BET host will join Giuliana Rancic at the news desk, while his predecessor Ryan Seacrest continues as E! News managing editor.

Terrence Jenkins will slip into Ryan Seacrest‘s former slot as co-host of E! News.  With the multi-hyphenate relinquishing his news duties as part of a wide-ranging deal he signed with NBC Universal this past spring, E! has hired the former 106 & Parkco-host to join Giuliana Rancic at the weekday anchor desk beginning November 12. As part of his new role, Jenkins (formerly known as Terrence J) will work on personality profiles and will report for the news program.

Blair Underwood Signs Development Deal With Universal TV

By goodblacknews on August 14, 2012

Blair Underwood has signed a major development/talent holding deal with Universal Television. Under the pact, the studio will develop a starring vehicle for the actor, with him and Tagline Television attached to produce.

Producer Debra Martin Chase Signs Deal With ABC Studios – Deadline.com

By goodblacknews on August 14, 2012

EXCLUSIVE: Feature producer Debra Martin Chase is making a major move in television with a two-year overall deal at ABC Studios. Under the pact, Chase will develop series projects through her company, Martin Chase Prods., with the help of a dedicated TV executive she is in the process of hiring.

BET Founder Robert Johnson And Tracy Edmonds To Develop Inspirational YouTube Channel ‘ALRIGHT TV’

By goodblacknews on August 6, 2012

BET founder and chairman of the RLJ companies, Robert Johnson, is developing a faith-friendly channel on YouTube. ALRIGHT TV will produce entertainment, comedy, reality, self-help, music, talk programs and hopes to provide inspirational content to viewers of all ages.

Film Activist Thomas Allen Harris Documents Role of Photography in Shaping African-American Identities

By goodblacknews on July 25, 2012
Thomas Allen Harris is a film activist, leveraging the platform of documentary filmmaking as a tool to empower, educate, and shed light on many under-the-radar stories within our combined histories. Harris is now on a new threshold of activist filmmaking, one that aims to validate a community as authors of their own image. Through A Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People is a feature-length PBS documentary, the first of its kind, exploring the role of photography, from the 1840s to present, in shaping the identity of African Americans.

R.I.P. Sherman Hemsley: "The Jeffersons" Star Dies at 74

By goodblacknews on July 24, 2012

Hemsley was discovered by producer Norman Lear on stage in New York. He first played George Jefferson on ‘All in the Family.’ ‘The Jeffersons’ ran for 11 seasons. Sherman Hemsley, who was rooted in the minds of millions of television viewers as Archie Bunker’s bombastic black neighbor, George Jefferson, in“All in the Family” and later as the star of his own long-running sitcom, “The Jeffersons,” has died. He was 74.

R.I.P. Sherman Hemsley: “The Jeffersons” Star Dies at 74

By goodblacknews on July 24, 2012

Hemsley was discovered by producer Norman Lear on stage in New York. He first played George Jefferson on ‘All in the Family.’ ‘The Jeffersons’ ran for 11 seasons. Sherman Hemsley, who was rooted in the minds of millions of television viewers as Archie Bunker’s bombastic black neighbor, George Jefferson, in“All in the Family” and later as the star of his own long-running sitcom, “The Jeffersons,” has died. He was 74.