“Don’t Forget The Lyrics!” Cleared in 65% of Country
Deal or No Deal may be leaving syndication, filling a void for game show fans. Luckily, for those of you looking for a new one, you’ll probably be able to find the revival of Fox’s hit singing competition Don’t Forget The Lyrics! near you. Lyrics has been picked up in 65% of the country, equaling its companion show Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? which is also cleared in 65% of America. So most likely if you are watching Fifth Grader you’ll be seeing Don’t Forget The Lyrics! on the same channel close to the same time.
Lyrics has been sold in the top 20 markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, Boston and Dallas. Likewise if you’ve got stations from the broadcast groups Fox, Sinclair, Local TV, Gannett, Newport, Venture and Morgan Murphy Media, check to see if you’re getting the Mark McGrath hosted music quiz. Lyrics will also air on MyNetwork, paired with Fifth Grader again, and also on VH1. It’s following the same business model as Fifth Grader did, which worked beautifully. If it can stay above 1.0, it’ll be around for another season as well. Lyrics will produce 160 episodes for the first season, all taping in a two month period to save costs.
This comes after B&C did a very nice write up on the genre, plugging the great ratings for The Price is Right and Let’s Make A Deal, as well as the Lyrics info. As soap operas are dying down, more game shows are being looked at after the financial success of Deal. Game shows are being looked at heavily to plug the hole left by As The World Turns, and as we previously reported our sources are saying a slew of shows are being presented to CBS with two early favorites being Pyramid and an adaptation of the board game Catch Phrase. It’s not guaranteed that it’ll be a game show, though. As one syndicator was quoted in B&C saying, “I don’t look at game shows as a format that might work because they are inexpensive. I look at it from the point of view of, ‘Does this show have a chance to get a rating?’” So far, if done correctly, the ratings have been doing well so if they can keep up the momentum, we may see more. A lot is riding on Minute to Win It, which may bring some confidence back to the primetime game show. All in all it looks to be a very exciting year for the genre.
Will this be partnered with "5th Grader" for most affiliates?
Probably. It will depend on the market. If it is like the Yongstown, Ohio market….then they would have to drop their 5:30 newscast, or pawn it off on their second digital channel.
If a lot is riding on Minute to Win It, we're doomed.
If a lot is riding on Minute to Win It, we're doomed.
Elementary school-level questions and pop song lyrics…isn't there something more deserving of a huge cash prize?
Elementary school-level questions and pop song lyrics…isn't there something more deserving of a huge cash prize?
Elementary school-level questions and pop song lyrics…isn't there something more deserving of a huge cash prize?
You mean like playing Hangman, or taking a multiple choice test, or emptying a box of tissues with one hand in sixty seconds?
Personally, I'd rather see 5th grade teachers playing than the 5th grade dropouts they have on that show. They are certainly more deserving.
You mean like playing Hangman, or taking a multiple choice test, or emptying a box of tissues with one hand in sixty seconds?
Personally, I'd rather see 5th grade teachers playing than the 5th grade dropouts they have on that show. They are certainly more deserving.
Does anyone know if WGNO (local ABC affiliate with 5th Grader) has picked up Lyrics?
Yeah, it's called "Millionaire."
Yeah, it's called "Millionaire."
In my neck of the woods here in Philly, there are 2 options. Either 1) drop its 10 PM newscast to make room for DFTL(highly unlikely) or 2) Either keep 5th Grader at 10:30 PM & put DFTL at a "decent" time or pit DFTL at 10:30 PM & put 5th Grader at another time slot. I'm leaning towards option 2.
In my neck of the woods here in Philly, there are 2 options. Either 1) drop its 10 PM newscast to make room for DFTL(highly unlikely) or 2) Either keep 5th Grader at 10:30 PM & put DFTL at a "decent" time or pit DFTL at 10:30 PM & put 5th Grader at another time slot. I'm leaning towards option 2.
In Spokane, WA, KXLY-TV Channel 4 (Morgan Murphy Media) will be 2X Lyrics after Rachael Ray at 4 PM where it will be replacing DOND which will be moving to late night in a few weeks. In Seattle, KCPQ/KMYQ will be having the show and in PDX (Portland, OR), KRCW (NW32TV) will air Lyrics at 5 PM weeknights this fall.
143 stations….not bad. Now the $64,000 question: What channel will it be on in Shreveport? My money’s on KTBS (the ABC affiliate here), which will have a gap at 4pm once Deal or No Deal goes off the air in September.
@Andrew Jordan: WGNO airs 5th Grader, so chances are they will air Lyrics as well.