Nets Set New Year Debuts

Looking to tap into high HUT levels and establish viewing habits, cable networks, including Food Network and A&E, are launching new series early in the new year.

"I don’t know if it’s the weather, people are sick of watching football, but we’ve always done extremely well in January," says Eileen Opatut, SVP-programming at Food Network, of the decision to premiere Mario Eats Italy and Wolfgang Puck this month. "July and January are traditionally our top-rated months."

A&E wanted to steer clear of such big broadcast events as the Olympics, the start of the fall season and the November sweeps in deciding to debut its first one-hour dramatic series, 100 Centre Street Jan. 15.

"We’ve done well in January, like with The Crossing [highest-rated] last year," says SVP-programming Allen Sabinson. "We also wanted to get some attention for a show we have high expectations for."

Food Network’s Mario Eats Italy pairs Mario Batali, host of the channel’s long-running series Molto Mario, with Steve Rooney, a regular on FN’s Good Eats, on a culinary journey throughout Italy. Food Network will run a dozen half-hour episodes, starting Jan 8 at 9 p.m. The duo, described by Opatut as "the Odd Couple of food" scour different Italian regions in search of delicacies, culture and fun.

"This is not a dry documentary with a voiceover announcing, ‘This is the Parthenon,’" says Opatut. "Mario is obsessed with Italian food. He spent three years as a chef at a little restaurant in Italy, and Steve is obsessed with everything else. This is not your typical travelogue."

Meanwhile, FN will be home to the first regular TV series from the award-winning, internationally renowned Puck, as 26 episodes have been ordered from Weller-Grossman Productions. The show, debuting Jan. 12 at 9 p.m., will follow Puck into the field and then to a small kitchen, where viewers and a studio audience will share in his prepatory tips.

Created by Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men, The Verdict), who has written four and directed 13 of the episodes, A&E’s 100 Centre Street tells the tales of the judges, lawyers and criminals working the New York City judicial system. Stars include Alan Arkin, Paula Devicq and LaTanya Richardson.

"Aside from being a great intelligent drama that we believe will have a strong appeal to educated, adult viewers, the series is shot live and in high-definition," Sabinson says. "It’s like a football game in that there are multiple cameras, with the director deciding what shots to use. 100 Centre Street will look different than anything else on commercial television."

A&E will tout the two-hour movie opener for 100 Centre Street with a telefilm take on The Great Gatsby, starring Academy Award winner Mira Sorvino.

A&E will also serve up a fresh batch of Behind Closed Doors with Joan Lunden, which airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. Sabinson says A&E derived solid Nielsen results from the nine shows that migrated to the cable network this October after previously airing on ABC.

"Joan has done some very interesting work," says Sabinson. "She spent time with World Championship Wrestling, in a maximum security prison and at the Miss America Pageant. Her previous shows were well-received. We expect these premiere episodes to do even better. Joan brings a following to our network, and Behind Closed Doors is one of our higher male-skewing shows."