CBS Television Distribution has landed the distribution rights for TV Land’s hit show, “Hot in Cleveland.” The show, which stars Betty White, Wendie Malick, Jane Leeves and Valerie Bertinelli had the highest-rated telecast in TV Land’s 14-year history. The show has also launched its third season on the network, airing at 10 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CT.
Scott Koondel, President of Distribution for CTD, said how viable the show is for distribution. “When ‘Hot in Cleveland’ debuted it was immediately hailed as an instant classic by TV critics, in the same vein as traditional four-camera sitcoms such as ‘Everybody Loves Raymond,’ ‘Friends,’ ‘Seinfeld’ and ‘Frasier,’ ” he said. “In a marketplace where the sitcom pipeline is dry, there is a pent-up demand by stations for a big, broad-skewing sitcom like this. It will seamlessly slip into any TV station’s lineup.”
Larry W. Jones, President, TV Land and Eddie Dalva, EVP, Content and Program Enterprises, Entertainment and Music Groups, Viacom Media Networks also agree. “‘Hot in Cleveland’ placed TV Land at the forefront of the recent sitcom resurgence and boosted our position as a destination for original programming,” said Jones. “Our audience has fallen in love all over again with these four sitcom veterans and we’re sure the viewers who discover the show in syndication will fall in love with them too.”
“‘Hot in Cleveland’ has been a huge success for TV Land, and we see great potential for it in the off-network broadcast marketplace,” said Dalva. “We’re thrilled to be working with the top syndicator in the business, CBS Television Distribution, to sell the show so even more people can enjoy it.”
“Hot in Cleveland” revolves around three friends (Malick, Leeves, Bertinelli) who move to Cleveland and rent a house that also has a caretaker, Elka Ostrovsky (White).
