NBC has canceled the "Playboy Club" and ordered full seasons of the comedies "Up All Night" and "Whitney." The cancellation is the first of the new fall season.
The bunny drama, which had only a 1.2 rating in its third airing Monday, will be replaced by Brian Williams' "Rock Center" on Oct. 31. Until then, repeats of the new drama "Prime Suspect" will air in its timeslot, Mondays at 10 p.m. There are no plans to air any remaining "Playboy" episodes, NBC said.
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The show, starring Amber Heard and Eddie Cibrian, was targeted by Gloria Steinem and the Parents Television Council, which sought to have it canceled. A Salt Lake City NBC affiliate refused to air it, but another station decided it would instead.
Steinem, who went undercover to write an expose about Playboy clubs in 1963, said they were "the tackiest place on earth." She has the last laugh: Monday's final episode focused on another, fictionalized writer who went undercover to write an expose about the club.
"Up All Night" and "Whitney" are the second and third shows of the fall season to be renewed, following Fox's "The New Girl" last week.
Williams will anchor "Rock Center" and serve as its managing editor. Its roster of correspondents will include Harry Smith, Meredith Vieira, Richard Engel, Matt Lauer and Anny Curry.
"Brian Williams already anchors America’s most watched, honored and respected nightly news broadcast,” Capus said. “‘Rock Center’ now gives him, and our all-star cast of journalists an opportunity to take viewers on a weekly journey of discovery.”
More to come…