'Tyler Perry's House of Payne' signs for distribution with TBS, FOX Station Group

(August 24, 2006) Debmar-Mercury, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lionsgate, have announced historic distribution deals with TBS and FOX for the original first-run syndicated sitcom "Tyler Perry's House of Payne." Beginning June 2007, TBS will have access to an unprecedented 100 fully produced episodes provided upfront. Broadcast syndication will follow in September of 2008, led by FOX-owned stations in New York, Dallas, Houston and Washington, D.C., and Weigel's WCIU-TV Chicago, who will air the series concurrently with TBS.

"Tyler Perry's House of Payne" was created by Tyler Perry, who has teamed with Lionsgate on the consecutive #1 theatrical hits, Diary of a Mad Black Woman and Madea’s Family Reunion. The series is the first television outing for Perry, expanding his relationship with the Lionsgate family as he partners with Debmar-Mercury to develop the show specifically for first-run syndication. Perry serves as director, producer, executive producer and writer on "Tyler Perry's House of Payne," which is distributed by Debmar-Mercury.

"The highly successful test run of 'Tyler Perry's House of Payne' this summer proved to broadcasters around the country that viewers will respond to this show. We are thrilled that TBS and FOX recognized the value of the series and the tremendous appeal of Tyler's sensibility, and have come on board with this ambitious launch strategy," said Debmar-Mercury co-president Mort Marcus.

"'Tyler Perry's House of Payne' is the first originally-produced syndicated comedy to launch with an unprecedented 100-episode order," continued Debmar-Mercury co-president Ira Bernstein. "Further, this proves that independent producers and distributors have a viable alternative to create and distribute entertainment properties successfully and profitably."

According to TBS's deal with Debmar-Mercury, TBS will begin airing episodes in primetime beginning in June of 2007, with the network having exclusive rights to the episodes before they become available to local stations through syndication in September 2008. TBS's deal was negotiated on the network's behalf by Jonathan Katz, senior vice president of program planning and acquisitions for Turner Broadcasting.

"Tyler Perry has proven himself to be not only an extremely talented individual, but along with distributor Debmar-Mercury, is also helping usher the industry into a new era with innovative distribution models," said Ken Schwab, senior vice president of programming for TBS and sister network TNT. "We had phenomenal success with our test run of 'Tyler Perry's House of Payne' on WTBS in the Atlanta market, and we're thrilled to be able to extend that success into an exclusive national run of new episodes on TBS."

FOX has picked up the series to air on WWOR-My9 New York, KTXH CH 20 Houston, KDFI-TV CH 27 Dallas, and WDCA-TV CH 20 Washington, D.C. The terms of the four-year deals with FOX and Weigel are cash plus barter, and will begin airing in September of 2008, concurrent with the TBS run, which will continue throughout the term.

"Congratulations to Tyler Perry and Debmar-Mercury for thinking outside the box on this one," said Frank Cicha, Senior Vice President of Programming for Fox Television Stations. "It was exciting to be part of the 'Tyler Perry's House of Payne' test, and we're very much looking forward to having the show as an integral part of our syndicated lineup on these key MyNetworkTV affiliates."

"For a creator, you couldn't ask for a better opportunity," said Tyler Perry. "With TBS and FOX committed to 100 episodes of my series, I can concentrate on telling great stories and producing the best series possible."

"This monumental and unprecedented deal is another building block to extending the Tyler Perry brand in all media," said the William Morris Agency's Mark Itkin and Charles King, who represent Perry and put together his distribution and production deal with Debmar-Mercury. Tyler is also represented by Ziffren, Brittenham, Branca, Fischer, Gilbert-Lurie, Stiffelman, Cook, Johnson, Lande & Wolf LLP.

"Tyler Perry's House of Payne" follows the comic situations that ensue when a multi-generational family lives under one roof. It stars Allen Payne as C.J. Payne, who is forced to move in with his parents (Lavan Davis as Curtis Payne and Cassi Davis as Ella Payne) after his house burns down. Joining the Payne household are C.J.'s two children, Malik (Larramie "Doc" Shaw) and Jazmin (China Anne McClain). "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" also stars Demetria McKinney as Janine, C.J.'s ex-wife; Rochelle Aytes as Nicole, C.J.'s new love interest; and Denise Burse as Claretha, the nosy and frisky next-door neighbor.


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