SHOWTIME OFFERS FIGHT FANS
FREE PREVIEW WEEKEND
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SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING and EliteXC To Air on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007
NEW YORK (Sept. 25, 2007) – From Friday, Sept. 28 through Monday, Oct. 1, SHOWTIME will host Free Preview Weekend, when the premium network will be available in a record 54 million homes nationwide. Free Preview Weekend on SHOWTIME affords an opportunity for many non-subscribers to experience all of the hard-hitting sports and acclaimed original programming on the network as the signal is opened up by select television service providers free of charge.
On Saturday, Sept. 29, fight fans coast-to-coast will have the opportunity to experience some of the most explosive sports programming on television when SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING, the network’s 21-year-old fistic series, and the phenomenal mixed martial arts franchise EliteXC are prominently featured.
SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING
Saturday, Sept. 29, live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast)
Don King in association with Maloof Sports & Entertainment will present two world championship fights on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING, live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) from ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif. In the main event WBC Light Heavyweight Champion “Bad” Chad Dawson will make his second title defense when he goes toe-to-toe with Colombian knockout artist Epifanio “Diamante” Mendoza. Dawson (24-0, 16 KOs), a 25-year-old southpaw from New Haven, Conn., is one of the most versatile and skilled pound-for-pound fighters in the game today. He possesses the same WBC 175-pound belt Roy Jones Jr. held from 1997 to 2004. The rugged Mendoza (28-4-1, 24 KO’s) is on a four-fight winning streak and looking to capitalize on his world title opportunity. The co-featured bout is just as fierce with two of the lighter weight divisions’ toughest sluggers squaring off. IBF Bantamweight champion Luis “El Demoledor” Perez (25-1, 21 KO’s) will meet Joseph “King Kong” Agbeko (24-1, 21 KO’s).
EliteXC: Uprising
Saturday, Sept. 29, at 2 p.m. ET/PT
EliteXC is the first and only MMA organization to air on a premium television network in the U.S. The most recent installment, EliteXC: Uprising, aired live from Honolulu on Saturday, Sept. 15 and represented the biggest and most collaborative MMA event ever to take place on the Hawaiian Islands, a hotbed for the new and wildly popular sport.
EliteXC: Uprising, which will replay on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET/PT, features five electrifying MMA fights including significant wins by phenom Nick Diaz, welterweight star Jake Shields and “the face of women’s MMA” Gina Carano. The night was punctuated by a devastating KO victory when brawler “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler dropped Brazilian Jiu Jitsu specialist Murilo “Ninja” Rua for the EliteXC Middleweight title.
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SHOWTIME OFFERS FIGHT FANS FREE PREVIEW WEEKEND
SHOWTIME Original Programming
Mulitchannel News declared, “It’s Go Time for Showtime…Hits in hand, premium TV’s second player stakes claim to leadership position.” During the Free Preview Weekend viewers will be able to sample what audiences and critics alike have been raving about. Weeds, Californication, Dexter and Brotherhood are just some of the original programming that will be available to viewers.
· WEEDS
Mondays at 10 p.m. ET/PT
In its first two seasons, WEEDS has emerged as a critical sensation for its cutting-edge, unapologetic and daring portrayal of complex characters whose choices are not always sympathetic and never stereotypical. Produced by Lionsgate in association with Tilted Productions, the show and its acclaimed cast have earned multiple Golden Globe®, Emmy® and SAG Award nominations, a Golden Globe® Award for Mary-Louise Parker for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy, and a Writers Guild Award for creator/executive producer Jenji Kohan. The third season of WEEDS airs Mondays at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
· CALIFORNICATION
Mondays at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT
Months later, when his celebrated best-seller “God Hates Us All” is turned into a crappy romantic comedy (“Tom & Katie” star in A Crazy Little Thing Called Love), the fall-out has caused his writing mojo to shrink smaller than his manhood after a dip in the Pacific. His woman then ditches him for that (rich) guy – a tool bearing promises of a stable life in the Beverly Hills flats, while his 12-year-old daughter is getting felt up at school. What’s a guy to do?
If you’re Hank Moody (David Duchovny), you take all those shriveled life lemons, hand a few to the bartender, order a citron martini for you and that hot chick who just shimmied in the door, and tickle her fancy just long enough until she agrees to takes you home. CALIFORNICATION airs Mondays at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT.
· DEXTER
Season 2 Premiere – Sunday, Sept. 30 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
The demise of the infamous “Ice Truck Killer” culminated a riveting roller-coaster ride during the first season of the acclaimed SHOWTIME drama series DEXTER™. Throughout Season One, series star MICHAEL C. HALL brought to life one of television’s most complex and talked-about characters, turning the unusual crime drama into a bona fide hit. Along with the show appearing on more than 30 ‘Best of 2006’ and ‘Top 10’ lists, Hall’s portrayal of “Dexter Morgan” earned him a Golden Globe® nomination for ‘Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama.’ He was also nominated for a 2007 Screen Actors Guild® Award for ‘Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series.’ Additionally, DEXTER was named one the American Film Institute’s (AFI) ‘Top 10 Television Programs of 2006.’ The twelve new episodes of Season Two premiere on Sunday, September 30th at 9 PM ET/PT.
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SHOWTIME OFFERS FIGHT FANS FREE PREVIEW WEEKEND
· BROTHERHOOD
Season 2 Premiere – Sunday, September 30 at 10 p.m. ET/PT
Did Michael Caffee survive the vicious beating he suffered at the hands of Declan? Will Tommy Caffee’s duplicitous political dealings come back to haunt him? How will he handle Eileen’s infidelity? The critically acclaimed SHOWTIME series BROTHERHOOD® came to an explosive finale last season, leaving viewers on the edge of their seats with many unanswered questions about the fate of the Caffee family. In its first season, this intense, blue-collar drama set in Providence, Rhode Island, created a layered tapestry of family, crime, politics and morality that made it one of the best reviewed shows of 2006. Season Two premieres on Sunday, September 30 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
Coming Up From SHOWTIME Sports Programming
· SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING
Saturday, Oct. 6, live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast)
The Mecca of boxing, Madison Square Garden will host WBC No. 1-ranked Samuel “The Nigerian Nightmare” Peter and heavyweight challenger Jameel McCline when they fight for the WBC Interim Heavyweight Championship. Opportunity knocked for McCline after WBC titlist Oleg Maskaev injured his back in training last week. McCline, who had been preparing for a bout against Vitali Klitschko (slated for Sept. 22, but scraped due to Klitschko injury), is ready, willing and able to make the most of his world title shot.
Saturday, Nov. 3, live at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast)
Boxing fans were left disappointed by the announcement that the WBC super featherweight title bout between Juan Manuel Marquez and Rocky Juarez was called off due to an injury, but thanks to some quick work by Golden Boy Promotions and SHOWTIME, this event, which was originally slated for pay-per-view, was quickly rescheduled – along with the IBF featherweight title bout between Robert Guerrero and Martin Honorio – airing live at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME from a site to be announced.
· ShoBox: The New Generation
This acclaimed series has been pitting young, talented fighters against one another since its inception in 2001. Fans can witness boxing stars on the rise in make or break performances on the following dates:
Friday, Oct. 5, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT from Corona, Calif.
Friday, Oct. 19, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT from Raley Field, Sacramento, Calif.
Friday, Nov. 2, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT (venue to be determined)
Friday, Nov. 16, live at 11 p.m. ET/PT from the eastern Caribbean island of St. Lucia.
(all live listings above delayed on the West Coast)
· EliteXC
In less than seven months, EliteXC, has gained the reputation for delivering consistently competitive, thrilling and memorable live Mixed Martial Arts events that showcase the world’s top MMA fighters, live on SHOWTIME.
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SHOWTIME OFFERS FIGHT FANS FREE PREVIEW WEEKEND
· EliteXC (continued)
Under the watchful eye of Live Events President, Gary Shaw, EliteXC has already produced many remarkable accomplishments and has made MMA history on a couple of occasions; the most noteworthy of which: EliteXC is the first and only MMA organization on premium television.
On Saturday, Nov. 10, EliteXC returns to SHOWTIME. Full fight card details to be announced soon.
· ShoXC
Modeled after the popular boxing series ShoBox, ShoXC showcases up and coming MMA standouts as they vie for recognition on a national stage.
On Friday, Oct. 26, ShoXC returns to SHOWTIME. Full fight card details to be announced.
About Showtime Networks Inc.
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME® TOO™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILYZONE® and TMC XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD™, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND™ and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND™. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI is also an owner and manager of SUNDANCE CHANNEL® , a venture of NBC Universal, Robert Redford and SNI. In addition, SNI manages and is the principal owner of Smithsonian Networks™, a venture with the Smithsonian Institution, which was formed to create networks showcasing scientific, cultural and historical programming. SNI is also the principal owner of On Broadband Networks LLC, a broadband game service provider, and OurChart.com LLC, provider of OurChart.com™, a social networking website featuring elements from the SHOWTIME hit series “The L Word®”. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME® PPV and is an equity investor in ProElite Inc., a Mixed Martial Arts event promotion company