... American Idol returned on Wednesday for its 10th season of crushing people's dreams, and once again it dominated the ratings by drawing 26.2 million viewers and a 9.7 in the adult demographic. However, the numbers represent the biggest drop to date for the series' season premiere, as the adult demo shaved off 18 percent from last year's premiere. Whatever, it squashed the competition, including former judge Paula Abdul's new show Live to Dance, which is now limping out with a 1.0 adult rating. Ouch. ABC's comedy block did fine with Idol's return, with hit comedy Modern Family still pulling in 11 million viewers and a strong 4.6. [TV By the Numbers]
... ABC is adjusting its nightly schedule by adding six minutes to Jimmy Kimmel Live and starting the talk-show at midnight, rather than its usual 12:06am start time. Kimmel's lead-in Nightline will drop six minutes from its runtime to accommodate the move. [USA Today]
... Look out, Skins! Beans-cheese-tortilla purveyor Taco Bell has withdrawn its ads from your broadcasts after being pressured to boycott the show by the Parents Television Council. The PTC is asking companies to yank advertising dollars from the racy new teen drama because they claim it's essentially child pornography. Will other companies follow suit? Will Skins just get ad dollars from Girls Gone Wild, instead? [THR]
... AMC loves zombies and meth dealers, but a new show will feature the most dangerous creatures of all: music industry executives. The Man With the Golden Ears is currently in development at the network, and follows an aging record exec who tries to revive his career while dealing with his trio of teenage daughters and a new boss. The show is based on a Danish TV series. [EW]
... ABC's reboot of Charlie's Angels has its first butt-kickin' lady. Annie Ilonzeh (General Hospital) will play the modern-day take on Kate, also known as "the serious one." I think she's qualified because she's hot. [Deadline Hollywood]
... Actress Loretta Devine is returning to Grey's Anatomy to reprise her role as Adele Webber, one of the show's original characters. She'll be coming to Seattle Grace because she's fallen ill and needs medical attention. [E! Online]
... Battlestar Galactica creator Ronald D. Moore is closer to bringing a new fantasy series to broadcast television. Moore's 17th Precinct, about police in a world that's ruled by magic instead of science, has just received a pilot order from NBC. It's being described as "Harry Potter for adults." And please, get your mind out of the gutter. [EW]
... Also getting picked up to pilot is ABC's Last Days of Man, the comedy that was originally planned to star Tim Allen. The show follows a central male figure who "is fighting for his manhood in a world that is being increasingly dominated by women." [EW]
Follow TV.com writer Tim Surette on Twitter: @TimAtTVDotCom
17th Precinct sounds like it could be something. Once they drop the Potter-reference... And by the way: does a six minute shift really count as a "move"?
Ron did an amazing job with Battlestar Galactica so I'll definitely watch 17th Precinct if it makes it to television.
That's great that Adele is returning to GA! I'm excited about "17th Precinct" - it might be interesting.
wow that's great that adele will be coming back to grey's, also very happy all abc comedies were fine because they were very funny.
On Wed. it was going againgst ABC comedy. On Thu. they had it against "Big Bang Theory". That coula hurt some people
With those sort of ratings American Idol will probably only last another five or ten years. :) 17th Precinct sounds interesting, although it sounds like it could be more H.P. Lovecraft than H. Potter. As long as they don't spend all their time talking about using magic and just get on with doing it.
American Idol Season 10 plays like a mockumentary. No joke. Just sadness.