NBC Hopes for a Boost From Seinfeld

By Susan Young

JERRY SEINFELD is back on NBC tonight.

The former King of Thursday comedies gives “30 Rock” a boost at 8:30 p.m. in the show’s season opener that has conniving network head Jack (Alec Baldwin) digitally inserting Seinfeld into the network’s fall shows to goose up the sagging ratings.

Seinfeld finally agrees, but not before getting in plenty of plugs for his new animated film, “Bee Movie,” including a breaking- the-fourth-wall moment when he reminds us it opens on Nov. 2.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

When Seinfeld was in San Francisco last week hawking the movie — complete with a bee-decorated trolley car and a yellow carpet arrival — he says he still has a soft spot for his old network.

“What are they in, like, fourth place? I still love them,” Seinfeld says.

So why is it so hard for NBC and the other networks to capture the comedy magic?

“People sometimes are a little overconfident in what it takes to make a good show,” Seinfeld says. “I remember when Larry (David) and I were doing the show, and we’d hear that some successful producers were signed to put two more on the air. We’d scratch our heads. Two? It was impossible just to do one.”

NBC’s not the only network with sagging issues.

CBS’ once powerhouse “Survivor” began its new season several points down the ratings chart last week with only repeats as its chief competition. At 8 tonight it faces off with the season premieres of ABC’s “Ugly Betty,” NBC’s comedy block of “My

the vampire so we can get the ground rules set up (sleeps in a freezer, not a coffin, can go out in the daylight but has extreme sensitivity and so on). We also discover that he’s a good vamp who saved a little girl from getting munched on by his old girlfriend Coraline (Shannyn Sossamon). The girl, Beth (Sophia Myles), has grown up to be a Web-based investigative reporter, and Mick’s new love interest.

The second episode saw “Angel” producer David Greenwalt putting his stamp on, with a little more darkness and wit. But creative differences led to Greenwalt’s exit. We haven’t seen the third episode, but this time they’re testing the waters with Chip Johannessen of “Millennium,” the old “X-Files” spin-off.

The series tries to be “Angel,” with a bit of “Forever Knight” tossed in, but it comes off as derivative and not very interesting.

Reach Susan Young at syoung@bayareanewsgroup.

Originally published by Column by Susan Young.

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