Cancellations

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In this case it is just a 'shelving'.

Though not canceled, Happy Hour is the first fall show to be shelved.


This means it could come back later in the season after the sports/holiday programming (? - or whatever is going on) depending on whether or not they have anything else to fill the gap.

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CBS gives 'Smith' the boot
2:53 p.m. EDT, October 6, 2006

NEW YORK -- Here's something Ray Liotta and Virginia Madsen won't be putting on their resumes: stars of the first new TV show to bite the dust this fall.

"Smith," the Tuesday night CBS drama with Liotta leading a band of high-stakes thieves, is off the schedule, the network said Friday. It will be replaced temporarily by reruns of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and "Criminal Minds."

Networks don't like to use the word "cancel" -- it sounds so messy -- but the show's producers have been given no promise that it will return.

Its last episode had only 8.4 million viewers on Tuesday, according to Nielsen Media Research. It faced tough competition in the time slot from NBC's "Law & Order: SVU" and ABC's "Boston Legal."

Meanwhile, NBC announced the sort-of cancellation of its Wednesday night serial drama "Kidnapped," which stars Jeremy Sisto. NBC gambled by putting the show in the time slot held for a long time by "Law & Order," and it failed miserably.

"Kidnapped" will be moved to the television purgatory of Saturday nights, starting October 21. Its producers have been told to wrap up the serialized drama's story lines by the end of the show's 13-episode order, NBC said.

Networks have been wrestling with how to satisfy fans who've gotten involved in serialized dramas when the ratings are poor enough for the show to be canceled.

Fox has put its new comedy "Happy Hour" on hiatus, but insists it will return.

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CW Stops Runaway in Its Tracks

The fledgling CW network has given the hook to its first show, Donnie Wahlberg and Leslie Hope's Runaway, which struggled out of the gate and only averaged 1.8 million total viewers, even in a new Sunday time slot. For the time being, says Reuters, CW will fill the Sunday 9 pm slot with repeats.

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ABC pulls 'Day Break'
Network also cancels quizzer 'Show Me the Money'

By JOSEF ADALIAN

"Day Break" is done.

ABC has decided to yank the Wednesday drama from its sked, effective immediately. It'll be replaced by repeats of unspecified comedies.

Skein had been set to ankle the ABC sked after its Dec. 27 broadcast. After it cratered in the ratings this week, however, net opted to pull the plug.

Meanwhile, ABC Friday decided to yank another one of its underperfoming newbies. Quizzer "Show Me the Money" has been shown the door, with the Alphabet pulling the show from its lineup immediately.

It'll be replaced by "America's Funniest Home Videos."

Read the full article at:
Variety.com - ABC pulls 'Day Break'

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Fox Cancels 'The O.C.'
By James Hibberd
Fox has canceled its teen soap drama "The O.C."

The show's last episode will air Feb. 22, finishing out its fourth season, the network announced Wednesday.

"'The O.C.' season four finale will also be the series finale," said Josh Schwartz, the show's creator and executive producer. "This feels like the best time to bring the show to its close. Thanks to the hard work of our cast, crew and writers, we have enjoyed our best season yet, and what better time to go out than creatively on top. ...For a certain audience, at a certain time, 'The O.C.' has meant something. For that we are grateful."

"The O.C." has fallen in the ratings every year it has been on the air. The first season in 2003 averaged a 4.2 rating among adults 18 to 49, according to Nielsen Media Research. The second averaged 3.3; the third 2.7.

This season, "The O.C." faced increased competition on Thursday nights from ABC's "Grey's Anatomy," CBS's "CSI" and NBC's comedy block. Since the move, the show has dived to a 1.8 average rating.

The show is produced by Wonderland Sound and Vision and College Hill Pictures in association with Warner Bros. Television Production.

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NBC Universal Pulls Plug on 'Mullally'

The first syndication casualty of the season got the axe Wednesday, as NBC Universal informed staff of "The Megan Mullally Show" that the series was being cancelled.

Production is being shut down immediately and airings of the first-run talk show strip will continue through the end of January in both originals and repeats. The series has been averaging a 0.8 rating this season, tying it for last among all series in the genre.

In a statement, NBCU wrote "We are very proud of the hard work and effort that our staff put into the production of this show. And our host, Megan Mullally, is truly one of the most talented people in our business. We are grateful to have partnered with her on the show and are appreciative for her tireless commitment, effort and dedication to this endeavor."

Executives at the distributor will be working with stations to find potential programming solutions to fill the hole left by "Megan's" departure.