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ABC 2006 Fall Season ABC Fall 2006 Grid
New Show Descriptions Dramas: "Brothers & Sisters" (Sundays at 9 PM)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) The adult children of William Walker, along with their respective families, have gathered to celebrate Kitty's birthday. Little do they know that, on this day, their lives will take a dramatic turn. Kitty's radio success has led to a TV pundit job in Los Angeles, but her New York boyfriend just proposed. Down to earth Thomas
has joined forces with his sister, Sarah, a high powered executive and mother of three, in an effort to fix the family business. Kevin's well-ordered life is shaken by the news that his ex-wife is moving his adolescent son to Texas. Justin, a Gulf War vet, has kicked nicotine, but other addictions keep him from moving forward in his career and love life. These
siblings are about to find out that underneath the idyllic family fagade lie many secrets that threaten to either tear the family apart or bring them closer together. As told through the insightful eyes of the family's most outspoken and public sibling, Calista Flockhart stars alongside Rachel Griffiths and Ron Rifkin in this warm, humorous and relatable drama from producer Ken
Olin and Jon Robin Baitz, one of Broadway's most prominent playwrights. "Day Break" (Wednesdays at 8 PM; starts in November in the "Lost" timeslot)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) We've all had bad days...the kind of day where nothing goes our way and we just can't wait to put it behind us. Detective Brett Hopper is having one of those hellacious days...only he can't put it behind him because he's living the same day over and over again. On this particular day, Hopper will be accused of killing Asst. DA
Alberto Garza. He will offer a solid alibi which no one will believe. He will realize he's been framed. And he will run, discovering en route that not only he, but his loved ones, are also in danger. He'll then wake up and relive the same day over and over again. In order to break the cycle and move on, he will have to figure out who framed him and solve
the complex mystery surrounding Garza's death. He will also be forced to heal the fractured relationships with those he loves. Only when Harper figures out why his life is broken and how to fix it will he awaken to a brand new day. Taye Diggs stars in an action-packed, thrilling re-imagining of the Groundhog Day concept from director Rob Bowman and the writer
of After the Sunset. "Men in Trees" (Fridays at 8 PM)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Finding a good man in today's world isn't as difficult as some women think. You just have to watch out for the signs. You wouldn't drive with a blindfold on but, for some reason, women continue to date with one. Relationship coach Marin Frist knows what to look for, what to avoid, and what will make her happy. As the
many fans of her two bestselling books could tell you, we're all in charge of our own happiness. Marin's personal happiness includes the upcoming wedding to her "perfect man." But like many people full of advice, she fails to apply it to herself. On her way to a speaking engagement in Alaska, she learns that her fiancé has cheated on her...the wedding plans are
instantly over. Slapped in the face with personal failure, a snowstorm then leaves her stuck in a small town full of the one thing she really doesn't need...available men. Marin's friends and her publisher try to lend long-distance support, but the fact remains she's been living with her eyes closed for too long. Now that they're finally open, she sees the amazingly
beautiful world surrounding her, and for the first time she'll have the chance to stop and breathe. Now if she could just get the raccoon out of her hotel room, this place might be perfect. From the head writer of "Sex and the City" and the director of the Academy Award-winning Walk the Line comes a fun and sexy drama about finding love in the most unexpected
places. "The Nine" (Wednesdays at 9 PM)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) So much in life is beyond your control. You may go about your day like any other when suddenly a random moment, an accident, a blessing, even a stranger redirects your life forever. And on that day, it's up to you to decide if that moment will stop you in your tracks or lift you up to new heights. Nine people will face just
such an unexpected twist when they are caught in a bank robbery gone wrong and endure a 52-hour hostage standoff that will leave more than one person dead. When all is said and done, these people will never be the same. They will share the common bond of what happens inside the bank and will be forever affected and intertwined because of it. From the creator of "Without
a Trace" and an executive producer of "The West Wing" comes a dramatic character study that will keep audiences hooked with the mystery of what happened during the hostage standoff. Each episode will begin with a flashback to reveal another 10 minutes of the hostage crisis, uncovering why and how these nine strangers are still linked today. "Six Degrees" (Thursdays at 9 PM)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Who will you touch? Who will touch you? They say that anyone on the planet can be connected to any other person through a chain of six people, which means that no one is a stranger...for long. In this hour-long drama from the producers of "Lost" and "Alias," six very different New Yorkers go about their lives
without realizing the impact they're having on one another...yet. A mysterious web of coincidences will gradually draw these strangers closer, changing the course of their lives forever. Is it happenstance? Fate? Is there a greater force at work in our world, guiding us along and connecting our lives? This intriguing tale of intertwined destinies reminds
us that romance, success, peace, or forgiveness might be right around the corner, but they can also be lost in an instant. It's a story that underlines just how small the world really is, and how someone just five people away might be shaping our future right now. "Ugly Betty" (Thursdays at 7 PM)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) In the superficial world of high fashion, image is everything. Styles come and go, and the only constants are the wafer-thin beauties who wear them. How can an ordinary girl...a slightly plump plain-Jane from Queens...possibly fit in? If you took a moment to get to know Betty Suarez, you'd see how sweet, intelligent, and
hard-working she is. But few people do because, in the world of fashion, Betty is the oversized square peg in the petite round hole. When publishing mogul Bradford Meade hands the reigns of his fashion magazine, Mode, over to his son, Daniel, he specifically hires Betty as his son's new assistant...mostly because she's the only woman in NYC Daniel won't sleep with.
Though this "player" is reluctant to accept her at first, Betty's indomitable spirit and bright ideas will eventually win him over. Neither of them really knows the ins and outs of the fashion world, but the two of them are a formidable team against the label-wearing sharks who will do anything to see them fail. Executive producers Salma Hayek and Silvio Horta, the creator
of Urban Legend, bring the Latino television phenomenon "Betty La Fea" to an English-speaking audience. America Ferrera and Eric Mabius are the "Working Girl" couple who tackle the colorful, cutthroat world of fashion head on.
Comedies:
"Help Me Help You" (Tuesdays at 8:30 PM)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Whoever came up with the idea of group therapy? Take a bunch of people who are all really messed up in different ways and put them in a room together to try and help each other out. The group leader, Dr. Bill Hoffman, is probably the craziest and most self-obsessed of all, but his patients would never know it because he hides
behind his very respectable celebrity image as a bestselling author of phenomenally successful self-help books. Directed by Brian Dannelly (Saved, "Weeds"), the series explores the comical side of group therapy as members of the group apply the good doctor's advice to the real world with enthusiastic effort, until they begin to realize maybe Dr. Bill should be doing
the heavy lifting along with them. "The Knights of Prosperity" (Tuesdays at 8 PM)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) For almost 20 years, Eugene Gurkin has dreamt of opening a bar, but his dead end job on the late, late janitorial shift won't even fund a bottle of premium booze. In the wake of a co-worker's death, he catches an episode of television. Call it divine intervention, call it a dumb idea, but whatever it is takes hold of Eugene and
soon he recruits a group of misfits into his "gang" for a heist to finance their dreams. The target: Rock icon Mick Jagger's super-deluxe Central Park West apartment. Working together, this band of affable, new-age Robin Hoods, who have never even shoplifted a candy bar, are soon casing the joint and prepping for their crime. What they don't know is that there's a
much richer target for them...the chance to find hope, self-esteem, and confidence within themselves. From Jon Beckerman and Rob Burnett, producers of "Late Show with David Letterman" and creators of "Ed," comes a hilarious tale of haves and have nots. Mick Jagger appears in a cameo (he is not a series regular.) Reality Shows:
"Set for the Rest of the Your Life" (Tuesdays at 7 PM; starts in January following the end of "Dancing with the Stars 3")
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Just imagine: You're leaving the studio financially independent with a monthly payment for as long as you live! Yes, even if you are to live another 100 years. With a big smile on your face, you will be cashing a monthly check for the rest of your life. Now how does that sound? In this high-tension game show, the
contestant will first battle for the highest monthly check possible. Does he end up with $50 a month? $500 a month? Or will he receive well over $10,000 a month? The contestant's next battle is even more important: Time! Does he win that payment just for one month? For a quarter of a year, half a year, one year? For three, ten, twenty years
maybe? Or... for the rest of his life? And... did the contestant's partner, hidden in a sound-proof isolation booth away from where it's all happening, help to make that dream come true or turn that dream into a nightmare? "Set for the Rest of Your Life" is a game show for strong relationships only, that's for sure!
Midseason Shows:
"Big Day" (Comedy)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) If "24" married "Father of the Bride," their child would be "Big Day." Everything matters at a wedding, and the smallest imperfections can reverberate throughout the event as if lives actually hang in the balance. Choice of side salad? A trivial decision you would think, but for the mother of the bride,
this might as well be the most critical decision of her life, and if you're the caterer, you'd better get it right. That's just the beginning...the maid of honor accidentally drinks the best man's contacts after sleeping with him, and the father of the bride wants to stop the wedding. Things are about to get even more complicated for Danny and Alice, as their day turns into
a season-long roller coaster where nothing goes according to plan. Over the course of an entire season, each episode will focus on one day...Danny and Alice's wedding day. The writers of What Women Want and 13 Going on 30 take a full season to dissect the biggest day in any family's life. "Greg Behrendt's Wake-Up Call" (Reality)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Greg Behrendt, acclaimed author of He's Just Not That Into You, will address one couple's major issues and use his knowledge of relationships to give them the tools to fix theirs. Through his off-the-cuff comedy and bruised-and-battered romantic experience, Greg takes a close look from a different angle to give our couple advice
as a close friend, but also that of sage wisdom. "In Case of Emergency" (Comedy)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Who you were in high school is usually not who you end up being. Harry, Jason, Sherman, and Kelly all went to the same high school. Several years on since graduation, their lives haven't exactly turned out the way they planned. Diet guru Sherman will hijack a pastry truck and over-indulge after discovering his wife left him
and cleaned him out. In the face of a fraud indictment, financial whiz Jason will dodge the suicide bullet only to shoot himself in the foot...literally. Unhappily divorced, Harry goes for a relaxing "massage," only to discover his scantily clad "masseuse" is Kelly, their high school valedictorian. A series of emergencies will reunite this hapless brood and they'll
find, at the end of the day, that they've got each other in case of emergency. Director Jon Favreau directs Jonathan Silverman, David Arquette, Greg Germann, and Kelly Hu as a fresh quartet of emotionally and physically injured oddballs, and Lori Laughlin as the doctor who grounds them all. Together, they're proving that any colossal mistake can be overcome with a lot of
help from your friends...and pain killers. "Just for Laughs" (Reality)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) ABC has licensed six half-hour episodes of the hidden-camera comedy series. The series cuts across cultural boundaries and has universal appeal, entertaining audiences of all ages and demographics by mixing clever practical jokes, hidden cameras, and a few unsuspecting victims. "Notes from the Underbelly" (Comedy)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Andrew and Lauren have just found out they're going to have a baby, and they're having a difficult time following rule number one...keeping it secret. Suddenly switching to decaf, becoming a teetotaler at cocktail parties, and going to the OBGYN are all difficult to keep from family and close friends. Well...Andrew and Lauren are
about to learn that, when the secret gets out, the politics of parenthood can be just as demanding as raising a child. Sometimes all that "help" from loving but intrusive parents and "advice" from well-meaning but competitive friends who are trying to show you what great parents they are is not exactly what you're looking for. Knowing what's best for the child could be the
easiest part...maintaining your relationships with family and friends can be the real challenge. Director Barry Sonnenfeld and two producers of "Two and a Half Men" create a comic take on life's greatest adventure. As these friends watch their lives change to accommodate the little stranger, their relationships change in ways they never expected before they were
expecting. "Traveler" (Drama)
Premise: (From ABC's press release) Jay, Tyler, and Will are friends who have spent the last two years in grad school. They are about to depart on a summer trip when a simple prank to rollerblade through one of New York City's most famous museums makes Jay and Tyler prime suspects in a terrorist bombing that destroys the museum seconds later. Hopeful that Will can
help clear up this misunderstanding, they learn he's been missing since the explosion and think he may be dead. They're unable to turn to authorities when they realize they can't prove Will even exists. In every photo from the past two years, he has managed to block his face. Who will believe them? Friends, family, lovers? The boys are pawns in a
conspiracy that will take years to unravel, and the government may not have their best interests at heart. Their friendship will be tested like never before as they try to uncover the truth, while avoiding detection of not only the FBI, but everyone in America who has seen their faces on TV as suspects in the bombing. Director David Nutter, who has defined many series
including "The X-Files," "Without a Trace," and "Supernatural," along with the writer of Eight Below and the Oscar-winning producers of American Beauty combine "The Fugitive" with Enemy of the State in a taut, tense thriller of innocents on the run. Flashing back to the prior two years to illustrate the formation of this friendship
and Will's insidious behavior, this action-packed drama taps into our paranoia with pure adrenaline-fueled entertainment.
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