Tyler Perry may launch Cable TV Network

By TV Insider
JR Staff Writer

In 2004, Tyler Perry made a deal with Lionsgate to turn a number of his plays into films. Each film Perry developed with Lionsgate became a box office hit. Following his 2006 films, Tyler Perry decided to create a sitcom. Perry established a deal with a syndication company and pitched to TBS.

Following the success of "House of Payne" in syndication, TBS picked up 100 episodes of the series. Quickly, Tyler Perry became one of TBS' biggest producers. On the heels of his first sitcom, came his second, "Meet the Browns." Both sitcoms were tremendous successes for Perry and TBS.

Before the premiere of "Meet the Browns," Tyler Perry announced he may launch his own television network. In 2009, there were rumors he would be partnering with Turner, the parent company of TBS, to launch this network. Having a net worth well over $300 million, Tyler Perry could easily launch his own network without the help of anyone.

Earlier this year, Tyler Perry decided to end "House of Payne," however he will soon be bringing more sitcoms to TBS. Still, there are rumors of a Tyler Perry network. Tentatively titled Tyler TV, the network will show reruns of old Perry sitcoms, along with a number of his films. There is no set launch date for this television network.

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Bow Wow and Ice Cube team up for New Sitcom

By TV Insider
JR Staff Writer

Years ago, Bow Wow announced he was going to be starring in a television sitcom. During this time, The WB was still trying to attract a larger audience. Initially, the sitcom was intended to begin airing in 2003. Bow Wow rapped of the television program on "Fresh Az Imiz."

Before the sitcom, which was tentatively titled "Bow" could broadcast, The WB merged with UPN to become The CW. The merger left many black sitcoms out in the cold. Tyler Perry soon came to the rescue with his partnership with TBS. He provided the hit sitcom, "House of Payne" and later "Meet the Browns."

Ice Cube has also been a major success in the film industry and he partnered with Perry's partners. The result of these deals was his own sitcom deal with TBS. Currently, "Are We There, Yet?" is sandwiched between Tyler Perry's sitcoms and is a ratings hit, itself. Ice Cube has built a solid relationship with Bow Wow, as he has had roles in two major films produced by Cube.

After hitting it off, Ice Cube and Bow Wow have decided to take things to a higher level. The two rappers intend to launch a new sitcom, likely to air on TBS. As is currently stands, the show has no title, but the contracts have been signed. Writers are currently being selected for the new series. Jermaine Dupri has been selected to provide music for the show. While no theme has been announced, Bow Wow did hint towards his mentor, Dupri, providing music the way Quincy Jones did for "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."

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"The Game" to overtake Tyler Perry's Sitcom Empire

By TV Maverick
JR Staff Writer

After building a successful film franchise, Tyler Perry branched out into sitcoms in 2006. He financed the first series, "House of Payne," himself and some local television stations picked up the show. The series was popular and TBS decided to work long-term with Tyler Perry.

In 2007, Tyler Perry premiered "House of Payne" on TBS and it became cable's highest-rated original sitcom. Two years later, he premiered another hit with "Meet the Browns." Currently, those shows are the most popular on cable television.

But, now that "The Game" is with BET, the series has surpassed the numbers it made on The CW, a channel with only a small reach. When "The Game" ran syndicated episodes on BET, it was many viewers' first time ever watching the show. Many people had planned to watch the fourth season when it returned on The CW, but that never happened. When it became clear that "The Game" was not coming back, fans pleaded with BET to save the series.

When "The Game" premiered on Tuesday, the viewing audience at 7.7 million set a cable record. With a good plot behind the series and a cliffhanger, ratings are only going to get higher for the show. Tyler Perry has built a cable empire with his TBS sitcoms, but it is only a matter of time before BET and "The Game" begin to bring in regular ratings much higher than that of Tyler Perry and his sitcoms.

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