'60 II' preem primed
'Nanny,' 'Maggie' dumped, 'JAG' tapped for Jan. 13 lead-in
Hoping to maximize tune-in for the newsmag spinoff's Jan. 13 premiere, Eye execs have decided to dump the web's usual underperforming Wednesday 8-9 p.m. duo of "The Nanny" and "Maggie Winters" on that night.
Instead of the laffers, CBS will air a special firstrun episode of its red-hot military actioner "JAG," which has confounded early season predictions and is now regularly winning its usual Tuesday 8 p.m. timeslot.
CBS is also giving "60 II" a lead-in boost for at least one week during February sweeps: The net has just inked a deal with crossover country crooner Shania Twain ("Still the One") for a one-hour concert spec to air in the pre-"60 II" slot the last night of the book, March 3.
The Eye scored solid Nielsen numbers during the November ratings period with a Celine Dion spec which aired in the same Wednesday 8 p.m. slot. Twain's hour is expected to mirror the format for the Dion spec, which featured the Canadian songstress and a few celeb guests performing her hits before a small crowd of loyalists.
"60 II" and the rest of the Eye's regular Wednesday sked will be bumped on Feb. 23 for the net's long-planned presentation of the 1999 Grammy Awards, originating from Los Angeles instead of New York this season.
As for the special "JAG" that will lead into the "60 II" preem, the episode's storyline will be linked to that of an original seg skedded to air in the show's regular timeslot the night before, on Jan. 12 -- giving regular "JAG" viewers an extra incentive to tune in Jan. 13.
For now, CBS programmers have no plans to dump or move "The Nanny" or "Maggie," both of which started strongly this season but soon slid in the ratings. The hope is that once launched, "60 II," like its Sunday relative, will be a ratings self-starter.
Should Eye execs decide to shift strategy Wednesdays 8-9 p.m., one series option would be "Payne," the new John Larroquette yukfest based on the classic Britcom "Fawlty Towers." Early buzz on the show has been positive, but with CBS' Monday lineup clicking on all cylinders, the web hasn't needed to rush the show on the air.
