WEEDS, EPISODES and More Return for Showtime's 2012 Summer Programming, Beg. 7/1

Showtime has just released its 2012 Summer Programming Overview, including original series Weeds, Episodes, Web Therapy, The Franchise, The Real L Word, comedy specials, documentary specials, and more. See full details below.

ORIGINAL SERIES

WEEDS (Season 8)
Premiere: Sunday, July 1st at 10:00 PM (ET/PT)
30 Minutes, 13 Episodes
Visit: http://www.sho.com/sho/weeds/home

It’s back to the ‘burbs” for the Botwins in Season 8 of WEEDS. The fallout from the shot heard round the Tri-State area will transform everyone for the better, at least initially. The tragedy has caused Nancy (Mary-Louise Parker in her Golden Globe® Award-winning role) to turn over a new (pot) leaf and return to her pre-dealing soccer mom ways. Meanwhile, Andy (Justin Kirk) finds some semblance of love with someone uncomfortably close to Nancy; and Doug (Kevin Nealon) uses his hedge-fund money in a surprisingly good way. But just as it was in Agrestic, nothing is as serene as it seems in Old Sandwich, Connecticut. Just how long before the Botwins return to their old ways and blow up this new neighborhood, literally and/or figuratively, will remain to be seen.

EPISODES (Season 2)
Premiere: Sunday, July 1st at 10:30 PM (ET/PT)
30 Minutes, 9 Episodes
Visit: http://www.sho.com/sho/episodes/home

MATT LEBLANC returns in his Golden Globe® Award-winning role, as a fictionalized version of himself, in Season Two of the Emmy® nominated comedy series, EPISODES – premiering July 1st at 10:30PM (ET/PT) on SHOWTIME®. Along with LeBlanc, the series also stars British actors Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig as “Sean and Beverly Lincoln,” the husband and wife writing/producing duo lured to Hollywood to remake their acclaimed British TV series. Season One left off with Beverly and Sean’s comedy, Lyman’s Boys, mangled beyond recognition by the Hollywood powers-that-be into Pucks!, a sitcom about a high-school hockey coach starring Matt LeBlanc. When Beverly sleeps with Matt in a moment of drunken madness, her marriage is left as battered as the state of their TV show. The second season picks up four months later with Sean and Beverly no longer living together, but forced into an awkward working relationship with Matt, as Pucks! goes from a pilot to full-blown series. As Beverly struggles to save her marriage, Matt is determined to save his “bromance” with Sean, and all of them are forced to try to save Pucks! as its ratings start to plummet and the pressure mounts. Created and executive produced by award-winning writing partners David Crane (Friends) and JEFFREY KLARIK (Mad About You),

EPISODES will consist of nine half-hour installments. JIMMY MULVILLE executive produces through his Hat Trick Production Company.

WEB THERAPY (Season 2)
Premiere: Monday, July 2nd at 11:00 PM (ET/PT)
30 Minutes, 11 Episodes
Visit: http://www.sho.com/sho/web-therapy/home

Season two of WEB THERAPY returns with Lisa Kudrow as “Fiona Wallice,” the self-professed and self-serving psychotherapist who treats patients in three minute sessions via webcam. Some of the biggest names in film and television will guest star in the new season, including Meryl Streep, Rosie O’Donnell, Conan O’Brien, Molly Shannon, Minnie Driver, Selma Blair and former “Friends” castmate David Schwimmer, who will appear in four episodes playing the son of a professor Fiona had a romantic encounter with in college. Lily Tomlin returns as Fiona’s judgmental mother; Dan Bucatinsky will reprise his role as Fiona's assistant-turned-ghost-writer; and Victor Garber returns as her husband Kip, whose double life proves quite challenging to Fiona. The eleven, half-hour episodes of season two find Fiona playing the woman-behind-the-man in Kip’s political campaign, while juggling her burgeoning career as an author and continuing to advise the hapless clients who have wandered into her web.

THE FRANCHISE (Season 2)
Premiere: Wednesday, July 11th at 10:00 PM (ET/PT)
1 Hour Premiere, followed by 7 - 30 Minute Episodes
Visit: http://sports.sho.com/#/baseball/specials/the-franchise

Season two of THE FRANCHISE will bring together the sexy, cosmopolitan vibe of the city of Miami with the intense and competitive world of America’s pastime as it follows one of Major League Baseball’s most talked-about teams – the Miami Marlins. The Marlins have a new look in 2012, with the hiring of Guillen, the acquisition of All-Stars Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle, Heath Bell and Carlos Zambrano, and the return of established young stars including Hanley Ramirez, Josh Johnson and Giancarlo Stanton. Behind team owner Jeffery Loria and president David Samson, both of whom are providing unprecedented access to their front office operation, the Marlins have launched an extensive re-branding of the club this off-season which has included a name change (from Florida to Miami), the construction of a new ballpark and the unveiling of dramatically different uniforms.

THE REAL L WORD™ (Season 3)
Premiere: Thursday, July 12th at 10:00 PM (ET/PT)
1 Hour, 9 Episodes
Visit: http://www.sho.com/sho/the-real-l-word/home

THE REAL L WORD blazes a bi-coastal trail, adding new cast members from the vibrant New York lesbian scene to the provocative, unscripted series. Premiering Thursday, July 12th at 10 p.m. ET/PT, the third season will also feature returning LA-based fan favorite cast members. Although the series straddles both coasts, it will continue to depict these ladies in their passionate (mis-)adventures, both at work and play. Fans of THE REAL L WORD can also expect some big surprises and special guest star appearances throughout the season. THE REAL L WORD is created and executive produced by Ilene Chaiken and fellow executive producers Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz of the Emmy®-winning Production Company Magical Elves (Fashion Star, Top Chef).

LAUGH OUT LOUD COMEDY SPECIALS

COREY HOLCOMB: YOUR WAY AIN’T WORKING
Premiere: Friday, July 6th at 10:30 PM (ET/PT)

Corey Holcomb is bringing laughs to the Las Vegas strip in this one-hour special, live from the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Often billing himself as the “Ghetto Dr. Phil,” Holcomb doles out some hilarious advice to women on dating and sex, while at the same time discussing his personal escapades on the dating scene.

D.L. HUGHLEY: RESET
Premiere: Saturday, July 14th at 9:00 PM (ET/PT)

Taped in front of a live audience in Rahway, New Jersey, D.L Hughley connects the long-lost values of the past to our contemporary issues – from the N-word, CEOs, politicians and priests, to negotiating with the Chinese.

Hughley is perhaps best known as the star of the ABC/UPN sitcom “The Hughleys,” and as one of the four comedians featured in the film “The Original Kings Of Comedy.” He’s starred in popular TV shows and movies such as “Inspector Gadget,” “Scrubs,” “Scary Movie 3,” “Soul Plane,” “Hawaii Five-O” and “Glory Daze.” He is a weekly contributor to the nationally syndicated program, “The Tom Joyner Morning Show.”

Kevin Nealon: WHELMED BUT NOT OVERLY
TBD (Planned for August)

Taped in front of a live audience at the Denver Comedy Works, Kevin Nealon brings his patented brand of comedy with a special about the things that impact the quality of our lives, like growing older, the presidential primaries, an irrational fear of sharks and chimps, and a favorite pastime: sleeping.

As one of the longest-running cast members on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” (1986-1995) Nealon is most recognized for the characters he created, including; ‘The Subliminal Man,’ ‘Hans and Franz,’ and anchoring ‘Weekend Update.’ Nealon plays Doug on Showtime’s, Golden Globe® Award-winning hit series, “Weeds.” Nealon has appeared in such popular movies as “You Don’t Mess With The Zohan,” “Aliens In The Attic” and “Anger Management.”

DOCUMENTARY SPECIALS

GOD BLESS OZZY OSBOURNE
Premiere: Friday, July 13th at 9:00 PM (ET/PT)

Ozzy Osbourne’s four-decade track record as a culturally relevant artist is unprecedented, but his personal struggles have been shrouded in secrecy - until now. This unique film brings Ozzy’s storied history to life through the eyes of his son, Jack, and captures one of music’s greatest icons in candid splendor. Featuring never before seen footage, including clips from Ozzy’s recent solo tour and interviews with Paul McCartney, Tommy Lee, Henry Rollins and others, God Bless Ozzy Osbourne is the first documentary to take viewers deep inside the complex mind of rock's great icon.

Carol Channing: LARGER THAN LIFE
Premiere: Monday, July 16th at 6:30 PM (ET/PT)

If Carol Channing didn't exist, no one could have made her up. One in a billion, her life is as colorful as the lipstick on her big, bright smile and at 91, she remains an unstoppable, megawatt dynamo. Archival Footage – television appearances, song and dance numbers, and stage performances – show Channing at her best. The film is both an intimate love story of the beloved icon and a rarefied journey inside Broadway's most glamorous era.

UNRAVELED
Premiere: TBD (Planned for August)

When it comes to Wall Street corruption, the worst criminals rarely grant interviews, but Unraveled marks an exception. Prominent attorney Marc Dreier committed fraud on a scale that made him second only to Bernie Madoff. While confined under house arrest, he opened his life to filmmaker and attorney Marc H. Simon (After Innocence, Nursery University), who once worked at Dreier’s firm. The film grants viewers an unprecedented window into the mind of a twisted genius and master of deception, who ultimately only fooled himself and now must face his judgment day.

SHAKESPEARE HIGH
Premiere: TBD (Planned for September)

At home, they may face poverty, gangs, drugs and a lack of role models, but in their high-school drama programs, a diverse group of teens finds a chance to create a better life. SHAKESPEARE HIGH follows several students as they prepare for and compete in the 90th Drama Teachers Association of Southern California Shakespeare Festival. This uplifting documentary voices the dramatic personal stories of a cross-section of youth from around the Los Angeles area who find redemption, camaraderie and a creative outlet on the stage and in the classroom.

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