The cable network will expand its scripted fare repeats and a new third season of the comedy.

Tyler Perry

In addition to inking the multihyphenate to an overall deal and greenlighting a scripted comedy and drama, the cable network has acquired Perry's For Better or Worsefrom TBS.

In addition to acquiring the first 45 episodes of the scripted comedy that originally aired on TBS, OWN will produce a third season of the series -- which ranked as basic cable's top show among African-Americans.

The original cast -- Tasha Smith, Michael Jai White,Crystle Stewart, Kent Faulcon, Kiki Haynes andJason Olive -- all will return and begin production on season three in April in Atlanta.

"For Better or Worse is a great addition to our growing lineup of scripted programming from Tyler,” OWN president Erik Logan said. “We’re excited to build out OWN’s slate of original shows.”

For Better or Worse joins Perry's two other scripted efforts at the network: The Haves and the Have Nots, a drama about the dynamics of the affluent Cyrer family and the impoverished family of their housekeeper, Hanna, and the obstacles and secrets that exist within both, and Love Thy Neighbor is a multicamera comedy set at Love's Diner, where every day the menu serves up good food, great laughs, valuable life lessons and a lot of love for its zany neighbors.

OWN inked Perry -- the prolific writer, director, producer and actor behind the Madea features, among several other stage and small-screen projects -- to a multiyear pact in October to produce original content for the cabler.

Before the deal, Perry's TV efforts were housed at Turner-owned TBS, where the network launched half-hours Tyler Perry's House of Payne and Meet the Browns.

For Better or Worse hasn't been the ratings performer TBS had hoped it would be, after both House of Payne and Browns triggered 90-episode renewals as part of their 10/90 package at the cable network.

Congrats to the top black media moguls in the business. The beautiful Oprah Winfrey & her new business partner Tyler Perry...This will bring her network even further up in the ratings. What are you naysayers going to say now??

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

What are you naysayers going to say now??

That Oprah is nothing but a scumbag that wants more money than she already has

Oprah gets on my nerves alot but I thought she had better taste than this.

This Tyler Perry series is beneath her and the network. It will ruin the tone.

SynthiaRose said:

Oprah gets on my nerves alot but I thought she had better taste than this.

This Tyler Perry series is beneath her and the network. It will ruin the tone.

Ruin the tone??? I didn't know, her network had a tone....

I don't watch OWN, or anything on tv created by Tyler Perry, so I can't really comment on the aristic merit of either. But it does seem like, as two very powerful black producers, their working together makes obvious sense. I'm surprised it hasn't happened before now, particularly when you consider she has a network and he creates content.

Hell I can't find OWN on my cable and Funkpil doesn't hang out here much to keep a sister straight. :lol:

Even so, I agree with Cerebus. This makes sense and Oprah needs to do the same thing FOX and others did, start off with Black programming then ditched it when you've made enough money to air other things. Cynical I know but...

Her channel's in no mans land, I really don't think anything can save it.

=========================

[Edited 2/20/13 22:55pm]

Meh, congratulations to them both and all the actors and production staff who weren't getting work in Hollywood that they'll continue to employ.

Oprah's channel is not in no mans land. It has rebounded & is bringing in major profit now. Also glad peeps are realizing how good it is that two major moguls like Oprah & Tyler have joined forces. It needs to be recognized & done more often.. The Smith family has already done it with Shawn Carter....Creating the successful musical Fela starring Michelle Williams from the successful group Destiny's Child...

shorttrini said:

SynthiaRose said:

Oprah gets on my nerves alot but I thought she had better taste than this.

This Tyler Perry series is beneath her and the network. It will ruin the tone.

Ruin the tone??? I didn't know, her network had a tone....

Every network has a signature tone ... a unifying essence that runs through its programs and gives a network its distinct personality.

What are you talking about?

__________________________________

I also don't understand this repeated sentiment that because they are black and successful they should work together -- with no regard for the differing sensibilities. I knew Tyler was doing a series for Oprah but I did not expect him to transfer this series.

I had the misfortune of watching it because Whitney's daughter Bobbi Kristina was on several episodes, prompting me to watch and see if she could act. I could barely endure it. It was terrible. I watch a lot of OWN programming and find it inspiring, intriguing, funny or simply well made. Of coruse there are a couple of duds. And this addition will be one more dud that will have me flipping channels.

__________________________________

TD3 said:

Her channel's in no mans land, I really don't think anything can save it.

I don't understand this comment either. The idea of OWN as a failing network is an outdated sentiment. For a network this young, OWN is doing well, climbing in increments one quarter at a time. OWN now has several successful programs and the ratings to go with it.

Here is an industry mag story about OWN's turnaround:

A Humbled Oprah on Her Ne...urnaround (Dec. 2012)

Oprah Winfrey's Network S...of Trouble (Oct. 2012)

Black Viewers Boost Own's Ratings

KCool said

It needs to be recognized & done more often.. The Smith family has already done it with Shawn Carter....Creating the successful musical Fela starring Michelle Williams from the successful group Destiny's Child...

I really don't know how producing a critically-acclaimed Broadway musical -- that was destined for success even before Jay and Will got involved -- can be compared to taking a poorly made and low-performing TBS series and transferring it to a network of higher caliber to run amidst (and therefore ruin) a palette of higher quality programming. It seems like people are only praising the move because these two are black.

[Edited 2/21/13 7:44am]

Please don't turn this thread into a racial thread or I will have it shut down...

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

Please don't turn this thread into a racial thread or I will have it shut down...

You should shut it down for the mere fact that this comment is ludicrous.

You initially praised the partnership due to race and the "black moguls" involved in the first post. The thread continued a racial focus when several people defaulted to praising it primarily due to race. No need to get hysterical because someone objects to the shortsightedness of viewing this move through a racial lens. I don't think shutting the thread down will be a loss. Do it.

[Edited 2/21/13 8:16am]

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

Oprah's channel is not in no mans land. It has rebounded & is bringing in major profit now. Also glad peeps are realizing how good it is that two major moguls like Oprah & Tyler have joined forces. It needs to be recognized & done more often.. The Smith family has already done it with Shawn Carter....Creating the successful musical Fela starring Michelle Williams from the successful group Destiny's Child...

Yes, it is. From what I read, her network lost 330 million in 2012. Which isn't a smoking gun by no means because new networks take a few years to turn a profit. The thing is, Winfrey made a some mistakes coming out of the gate, she's admitted to this. Why she didn't start out with a show of her "own" on her network is beyond me and she didn't think through the type of programming she wanted to air. Even so that channel is in a horrible location, I think Winfrey numbers would've been better if she was in a better spot. I wish her luck but she's in a up hill climb.

It's quite clear her network is failing for numerous reasons. She didn't really think it through at all.

I don't know where you getting your info from. But your dead wrong. Oprah's network has turned big profits since she started her much sought after interview segments..Her network OWN is on the climb. It always takes new networks a while to turn in profits anyway...

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SynthiaRose said:

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

Please don't turn this thread into a racial thread or I will have it shut down...

You should shut it down for the mere fact that this comment is ludicrous.

You initially praised the partnership due to race and the "black moguls" involved in the first post. The thread continued a racial focus when several people defaulted to praising it primarily due to race. No need to get hysterical because someone objects to the shortsightedness of viewing this move through a racial lens. I don't think shutting the thread down will be a loss. Do it.

[Edited 2/21/13 8:16am]

I wouldn't even give you the pleasure of doing it sweety....

Timmy84 said:

It's quite clear her network is failing for numerous reasons. She didn't really think it through at all.

She has the time, money, fan base interest (we're still talking about it) and investors to keep working on it.

She's already tossed a couple of the people she started the network with. Now she's acquiring a Tyler Perry property. To me, that shows she's actually trying to turn it around.

When the network started it wasn't an HD channel, now it is. More trying.

She's still getting HUGE stars to do her specials, which she could probably do on another network for a massive paycheck. Doing it on her network, to me, shows she cares enough to keep trying.

Personally, I think she'll turn it around. There are plenty of channels that have changed their format and even their name numerous times. OWN is still in it's infancy, but it gets all this attention because it's "Oprah's channel".

Lastly, in regards to a different point, and I don't mean this to be argumentative, but it ain't that hard to find on the dial and some people are watching it. Where I live, OWN sits right around a bunch of other channels that I watch on a regular basis. It's not hard to find. And my 63 year old, white mother, who watches all those Oprah specials, has commented she would watch it more if there was "good shows" on it. Now, I'm not sure Tyler Perry's joint is going to help her much. But I do believe people want the network to succeed. Most people really like Oprah, even if they don't like to admit it.

Cerebus said:

Timmy84 said:

It's quite clear her network is failing for numerous reasons. She didn't really think it through at all.

She has the time, money, fan base interest (we're still talking about it) and investors to keep working on it.

She's already tossed a couple of the people she started the network with. Now she's acquiring a Tyler Perry property. To me, that shows she's actually trying to turn it around.

When the network started it wasn't an HD channel, now it is. More trying.

She's still getting HUGE stars to do her specials, which she could probably do on another network for a massive paycheck. Doing it on her network, to me, shows she cares enough to keep trying.

Personally, I think she'll turn it around. There are plenty of channels that have changed their format and even their name numerous times. OWN is still in it's infancy, but it gets all this attention because it's "Oprah's channel".

Lastly, in regards to a different point, and I don't mean this to be argumentative, but it ain't that hard to find on the dial and some people are watching it. Where I live, OWN sits right around a bunch of other channels that I watch on a regular basis. It's not hard to find. And my 63 year old, white mother, who watches all those Oprah specials, has commented she would watch it more if there was "good shows" on it. Now, I'm not sure Tyler Perry's joint is going to help her much. But I do believe people want the network to succeed. Most people really like Oprah, even if they don't like to admit it.

What I don't get is why she didn't just simply move her talk show from ABC to OWN unless she couldn't for legal reasons. I understand, it's still a young channel but you think Oprah would've known how her audience rolled after almost 30 years.

Here's the problem with her network, and with Oprah herself. After coming off of a successful series like the her show, she has NO IDEA or has forgotten what it is like to fail. When one has not experienced failure, they have no idea of how to handle it, when it happens. Couple that, with the fact that she just jumped right into running a network without a break or having a clue as to what to run it, she was bound to fail. It's not about black or white, it's about her biting off more than she could chew, because her insanely inflated ego, got in the way...

Cerebus said:

Timmy84 said:

It's quite clear her network is failing for numerous reasons. She didn't really think it through at all.

She has the time, money, fan base interest (we're still talking about it) and investors to keep working on it.

She's already tossed a couple of the people she started the network with. Now she's acquiring a Tyler Perry property. To me, that shows she's actually trying to turn it around.

When the network started it wasn't an HD channel, now it is. More trying.

She's still getting HUGE stars to do her specials, which she could probably do on another network for a massive paycheck. Doing it on her network, to me, shows she cares enough to keep trying.

Personally, I think she'll turn it around. There are plenty of channels that have changed their format and even their name numerous times. OWN is still in it's infancy, but it gets all this attention because it's "Oprah's channel".

Lastly, in regards to a different point, and I don't mean this to be argumentative, but it ain't that hard to find on the dial and some people are watching it. Where I live, OWN sits right around a bunch of other channels that I watch on a regular basis. It's not hard to find. And my 63 year old, white mother, who watches all those Oprah specials, has commented she would watch it more if there was "good shows" on it. Now, I'm not sure Tyler Perry's joint is going to help her much. But I do believe people want the network to succeed. Most people really like Oprah, even if they don't like to admit it.

When did that happen? Its not in HD on my Directv......

Wha?? all we have to do is turn your nonsense threads into racial ones and youll shut it down.

Noted for future references.

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

Cerebus said:

She has the time, money, fan base interest (we're still talking about it) and investors to keep working on it.

She's already tossed a couple of the people she started the network with. Now she's acquiring a Tyler Perry property. To me, that shows she's actually trying to turn it around.

When the network started it wasn't an HD channel, now it is. More trying.

She's still getting HUGE stars to do her specials, which she could probably do on another network for a massive paycheck. Doing it on her network, to me, shows she cares enough to keep trying.

Personally, I think she'll turn it around. There are plenty of channels that have changed their format and even their name numerous times. OWN is still in it's infancy, but it gets all this attention because it's "Oprah's channel".

Lastly, in regards to a different point, and I don't mean this to be argumentative, but it ain't that hard to find on the dial and some people are watching it. Where I live, OWN sits right around a bunch of other channels that I watch on a regular basis. It's not hard to find. And my 63 year old, white mother, who watches all those Oprah specials, has commented she would watch it more if there was "good shows" on it. Now, I'm not sure Tyler Perry's joint is going to help her much. But I do believe people want the network to succeed. Most people really like Oprah, even if they don't like to admit it.

When did that happen? Its not in HD on my Directv......

I've had Cablevision for 2 years and it's been in HD, ever since.

OPRAH IS NOT A LESBIAN!!!!!!!

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

That show is weak.

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