Modern Family

In an annual rite known as Upfront Week, NBC, Fox, ABC, CBS, and the CW just presented their lineups for the 2012-13 TV season to advertisers in New York. The ceremonies took place in some of the city's most august concert Halls (Carnegie, Avery Fisher, Radio City Music) over four days. The broadcast companies introduced only 20 new series for the fall (down from 27 last season). NBC led the pack with six new shows. Fox and the CW had half that many. Like it or not, an awful lot of familiar faces will be returning in the fall.

LOS ANGELES - An anti-profanity crusader asked ABC on Tuesday to pull this week's Modern Family episode, in which a toddler appears to use a bleeped curse word. "Our main goal is to stop this from happening," said McKay Hatch, an 18-year-old college student who founded the No Cussing Club in 2007. "If we don't, at least ABC knows that people all over the world don't want to have a 2-year-old saying the 'F-bomb' on TV. " "We hope they know better," said Hatch. He was asking his club's membership, which he said totaled 35,000 in the United States and about three dozen other countries, to complain to ABC. ABC had yet to respond, he said Tuesday.

ABC WILL BE looking for a few more good men this fall. And to make sure they're not scared away by all the shows aimed at "affluent women" - a demo that ABC already overdelivers to advertisers, according to programming chief Paul Lee, who hopes to continue doing just that - it's making sure the guys won't have to stop and ask for directions. So on Tuesdays between 8 and 9, where the network that reinvigorated Wednesdays with "Modern Family" and "The Middle" is launching a "family comedy" block - two new sitcoms with "Man" in the title.

Winners announced at yesterday's 62nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences: Drama Series: "Mad Men," AMC. Comedy Series: "Modern Family," ABC. Actor, Drama Series: Bryan Cranston, "Breaking Bad," AMC. Actress, Drama Series: Kyra Sedgwick, "The Closer," TNT. Actor, Comedy Series: Jim Parsons, "The Big Bang Theory," CBS. Actress, Comedy Series: Edie Falco, "Nurse Jackie," Showtime....

ABC's Emmy-winning "Modern Family" and CBS' "Criminal Minds" both came back strong Wednesday night, attracting 12.6 million and 14 million viewers, respectively, according to the preliminary Nielsens. In the 18-49 demographic advertisers pay to reach, "Family" drew the most of any single show, though CBS won the overall evening. CBS had 12 million reasons to be happy with its new legal drama, "The Defenders," whose audience between 10 and 11 averaged more than twice the 4.9 million ABC drew for its own new lawyer show, "The Whole Truth.

BROADCAST PREMIERE week continues tonight with the debuts of four new series and the return of several others. What to watch? What to record? What to skip altogether?   8-9 p.m.   What's new: NBC's "Undercovers" (8 p.m., Channel 10) and ABC's "Better With You" (8:30 p.m., Channel 6) and at 8, the season premieres of Fox's "Hell's Kitchen" and ABC's "The Middle" (which has a very funny episode that briefly reunites Patricia Heaton with her "Everybody Loves Raymond" co-star Doris Roberts)

Here is an excerpt from Daily News TV writer Ellen Gray's online chat with Inquirer TV writer Jonathan Storm and readers. The two TV writers chat at noon on Thursdays at Reader: It's not a new show, but I just tuned into "Modern Family" for the first time last night, and it was so funny. I feel stupid for not buying the hype. J.S.: No hype, just fact. Funny, funny show. Glad you found it. E.G.: You should never feel stupid for not buying hype - there's so much of it and it often surrounds shows that aren't worthy.

Glee. Fox. Wednesdays, 9 p.m. Premiered Sept. 9. This effervescently edgy take on a high school show choir has more hooks than a tuna boat: music, dance, humor, pathos, cute kids, deliciously cynical adults. Matthew Morrison is the Spanish teacher, who, remembering trails of glory from his choir past, organizes a bunch of apparent losers and fools to try to revive a beloved tradition at McKinley High. They prove to have more talent and fortitude than meets the eye. If only Teach can get the quarterback, who's a secret vocal virtuoso, to join the group.

In Thursday's official press release announcing nominations for the 62nd annual Emmy Awards, the academy noted that nominees included "a cross-section of new faces and returning favorites . . . Among the freshman series nominees, 'Glee,' 'Modern Family' and 'The Good Wife' all secured multiple nominations while shows such as 'Lost' and 'The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien' celebrated nominations after ending their runs. " Ah, yes, NBC's "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. " Isn't that the one that ended when, after a long and confusing struggle between good and evil, the guy who was supposed to be the hero was killed and eventually moved on with his former companions to what they hoped would be a better place?

THERE ACTUALLY were upsets and first-time winners at the 62nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, but on a night when AMC?s ?Mad Men? won best drama for the third year in a row and ABC?s ?Modern Family? won for comedy, perhaps the biggest surprise was that the awards show itself was entertaining. The evening got off to a "Glee"-ful start, with a pretaped opening in which host Jimmy Fallon put together a pickup team of singers from the cast of the Fox hit series and from assorted other nominees - Jon Hamm ("Mad Men")

LOS ANGELES - An anti-profanity crusader asked ABC on Tuesday to pull this week's Modern Family episode, in which a toddler appears to use a bleeped curse word. "Our main goal is to stop this from happening," said McKay Hatch, an 18-year-old college student who founded the No Cussing Club in 2007. "If we don't, at least ABC knows that people all over the world don't want to have a 2-year-old saying the 'F-bomb' on TV. " "We hope they know better," said Hatch. He was asking his club's membership, which he said totaled 35,000 in the United States and about three dozen other countries, to complain to ABC. ABC had yet to respond, he said Tuesday.

The writers of ABC's new Last Man Standing know what's wrong with the show. In the first minute, the youngest of the three daughters makes a wisecrack about her mom and sisters. "It's not cute when your dad says it," responds mom, "and it's just confusing when you do it. " Except for the females' faces, there's absolutely nothing cute about Tim Allen's return to sitcomery, which premieres Tuesday at 8 p.m. It's flatter than a poor squirrel that got caught during rush hour on the Schuylkill Expressway.

What does family dinner look like at your house? The Cosby Show or Leave It to Beaver but with texting teens? A scene from Modern Family ? Or The Simpsons , but with better food? The ritual of gathering for a meal may look a bit like any of these. Or not. That's the beauty of family dinner: It may bring together a mom, dad, preteen, and toddler - or a trio of fresh-out-of-college roommates for pizza, or a quartet of friends for a potluck - sharing different stories and different foods.

LOS ANGELES - The Amazing Race has returned to the winner's podium at the Emmy Awards, reclaiming the crown for best reality-competition program. The CBS show had been a consistent winner until last year, when Top Chef stole away the award. In other honors Sunday, The Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons won his second Emmy in a row as best lead actor in a comedy. Melissa McCarthy of Mike & Molly won the award for lead actress. "Holy smokes. Wow, it's my first and best pageant ever," said a beaming McCarthy.

ABC's Modern Family, the show which has revived the family sitcom on TV, was the big winner Sunday night at the 63d annual Primetime Emmy Awards, grabbing five awards, including its second consecutive prize as outstanding comedy. "Downton Abbey," an entry on PBS's Masterpiece, won four, including the Emmy for best movie or mini-series. Proving the old saw that Emmy loves a winner, Mad Men - what else? - won its fourth straight Emmy, and its only award Sunday night, for outstanding drama.

SO MUCH television, so little time: ABC News anchor Diane Sawyer's "Primetime" interview with kidnapping victim Jaycee Lee Dugard wasn't just Sunday night's most-watched program, it was also a breath of fresh air after a week in which the image of motherhood took more than one very public beating. With an average viewership of nearly 14.8 million over two hours - peaking at nearly 15.7 million between 10 and 10:30 p.m., according to the preliminary Nielsens - the special was the first TV interview Dugard's given since she was freed and the most-watched summer newsmagazine telecast in more than seven years.

ABC WILL BE looking for a few more good men this fall. And to make sure they're not scared away by all the shows aimed at "affluent women" - a demo that ABC already overdelivers to advertisers, according to programming chief Paul Lee, who hopes to continue doing just that - it's making sure the guys won't have to stop and ask for directions. So on Tuesdays between 8 and 9, where the network that reinvigorated Wednesdays with "Modern Family" and "The Middle" is launching a "family comedy" block - two new sitcoms with "Man" in the title.

ANOTHER GROUP has stepped forward to claim victimization by TV. Peruvians. And the show they're mad at is the show no one is mad at - "Modern Family. " The offending dialogue came during a recent argument between Jay ( Ed O'Neill ), and his Colombian wife Gloria, ( Sofia Vergara ). "Now, maybe in Colombia . . . " Jay begins. "Ah, here we go," Gloria interrupts. "Because, in Colombia, we trip over goats and we kill people in the street. Do you know how offensive that is?

Here is an excerpt from Daily News TV writer Ellen Gray's online chat with Inquirer TV writer Jonathan Storm and readers. The two TV writers chat at noon on Thursdays at Reader: It's not a new show, but I just tuned into "Modern Family" for the first time last night, and it was so funny. I feel stupid for not buying the hype. J.S.: No hype, just fact. Funny, funny show. Glad you found it. E.G.: You should never feel stupid for not buying hype - there's so much of it and it often surrounds shows that aren't worthy.

ABC's Emmy-winning "Modern Family" and CBS' "Criminal Minds" both came back strong Wednesday night, attracting 12.6 million and 14 million viewers, respectively, according to the preliminary Nielsens. In the 18-49 demographic advertisers pay to reach, "Family" drew the most of any single show, though CBS won the overall evening. CBS had 12 million reasons to be happy with its new legal drama, "The Defenders," whose audience between 10 and 11 averaged more than twice the 4.9 million ABC drew for its own new lawyer show, "The Whole Truth.