Day: August 10, 2024

Hallmark joins the plus party, in a big way

No one would accuse Hallmark of being trendy or jumpy.
The company has been around for 114 years, still family-owned. For years, its cable channels seemed to keep re-making the same movie.
But now it’s joining TV’s biggest trend – streaming services with a “+” in their names. And it’s doing it in a surprisingly ambitious way with everything from a mini-series (“Holidazed, shown here with Erin Cahill) to reality shows.
“Hallmark+ will be more than just a streaming platform,” Mike Perry, the Hallmark CEO, said. “It will be the very best of Hallmark all in one place.”
Details arrived Aug. 14 (see separate story), but the general idea was sketched earlier, at Television Critics Association sessions:
Read more…

Best-bets for Aug. 12: NBC’s summer shows return

1) “American Ninja Warrior,” 8-10 p.m., NBC. For 17 days, NBC’s summer shows were sidelined by the Olympics. Now they’re back, led by “Ninja” (shown here) on Mondays and “America’s Got Talent” on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Also: “Chicago” and “Law & Order” reruns (Wednesdays and Thursdays) and “Saturday Night Live.” Read more…