Fox On a Roll

The Fox network wasn't even on the air twenty years ago, its programming doesn't include prime-time shows in the 10:00 ET hour, and it doesn't have a nightly news cast (and, given the ultraconservative extremism of its sister cable news channel, that's not really a bad thing). However, it's taken the numero tres spot for the second year in a row, it's number one among viewers aged 18 to 49 (CBS is at the top overall among the broadcast networks), and it shows no signs of slowing down. That said, I still can't bear the thought of a fifth "American Idol" coming in January.

Anyway, they have a few new shows, mostly dramas, but more interesting is the news of which programs are returning. "That 70's Show," which only seems to have been on since the seventies,. will be back, as will "Arrested Development," a show critics love and most viewers ignore. The good notices it's gotten, though, will keep it on the air despite its failure to click with many Nielsen families. Now if I can just remember when it's on!

And to fans of "The Simpsons". . . , Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends! :-D The venerable animated show, which first premiered when George Bush the Elder was in the White House, will start its sixteenth season this fall.