User:Jamie jca/Hard Ball
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Hard Ball” | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Rock episode | |||||||
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 15 |
||||||
| Written by | Matt Hubbard | ||||||
| Directed by | Don Scardino | ||||||
| Guest stars | David Alan Basche as Alan Gregg Bello as The Daily Show producer Katrina Bowden as Cerie Xerox Kevin Brown as Dot Com Tucker Carlson as himself Grizz Chapman as Grizz Rachel Dratch as Martha Blanch Chris Matthews as himself Keith Powell as James "Toofer" Spurlock Lonny Ross as Josh Girard Gregory Wooddell as Mike |
||||||
| Production no. | 115 | ||||||
| Original airdate | February 22, 2007 | ||||||
|
|||||||
| List of 30 Rock episodes | |||||||
"Hard Ball" (also known as "Negotiation") is the fifteenth episode of the first season of the television series 30 Rock. It was first broadcast on February 22, 2007 on the NBC network, in the United States[1] and on January 24, 2008, in the United Kingdom.[2] The episode was written by Matt Hubbard and it was directed by Don Scardino. Guest stars in the episode were David Alan Basche, Gregg Bello, Katrina Bowden, Kevin Brown, Grizz Chapman, Rachel Dratch, Keith Powell, Lonny Ross and Gregory Wooddell. Tucker Carlson and Chris Matthews also appear as themselves in the episode.
The episode focuses on Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) appearing on Hardball with Chris Matthews after being misquoted in an interview for Maxim Magazine. Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) begins negotiations to Josh Gerard's (Lonny Ross) new contract. Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer) becomes the newest member of Tracy Jordan's (Tracy Morgan) entourage.[3]
Contents |
[edit] Plot
When Josh's contract is due for renewal, Jack enters negotiation mode. Jack is looking to save money with the negotiations outcome so, Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) warns Josh. Despite this, Josh meets with a producer for The Daily Show. Thinking Josh is ill, Liz goes to order some soup and sees Josh on her way. He is meeting with a producer from The Daily Show which angers her so she decides to help Jack negotiate. Meanwhile, Jenna gets into trouble after she is misquoted in Maxim Magazine she hates the troops, when she actually ment theater troupes. The resulting outrage prompts Jack to get her an interview on Hardball to clear up the confusion over her comments. During the interview, Jenna confuses Osama bin Laden and Barack Obama. A further attempt to clear Jenna's name backfires when swastikas are accidentilly brandished on the TGS stage.
Tracy allows Kenneth into his entourage, but in the process discovers that Grizz and Dot Com have been allowing him to win at things such as Halo, Trivial Pursuit, and basketball. Tracy fires Grizz and Dot Com, but the union between Tracy and Kenneth does not gel. The two come to the rescue after Tracy is surrounded by a mob outside the GE Building that had gathered to protest Jenna and the show.
[edit] Reception
[edit] Ratings
In the U.S., the episode remains the lowest rated episode of the series, in total viewers, although not in other categories. This episode was viewed by 4.6 million viewers and received a rating of 2.4/5 in the key adults 18-49 demographic according to the Nielsen Ratings system.[4] The 2.4 refares to 2.4% of all 18-49 years olds in the U.S. and the 5 refares to 5% of all 18-49 year olds watching television at the time of the broadcast, in the U.S. "Hard Ball" held 86% of 18-49 year old viewers who had viewed the Scrubs episode "My Therapeutic Month" which aired at 9:00PM EST, before "Hard Ball" at 9:30.[4]
[edit] Awards
"Hard Ball" was nominated for a total of two awards of which it both lost. Jeff Richmond was nominated for a Creative Arts Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music for his work on this episode.[5] Matt Hubbard, the writer of this episode, was also nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award in the category of Best Episodic Comedy.
Despite its loses, this episode was submited to voters for the Primetime Emmy Awards category Outstanding Comedy Series.[6][7] 30 Rock won the award.[8]
[edit] References
- ^ NBC Universal Media Village. "30 ROCK; HARD BALL; 02-22-2007 9:31PM". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-03-06.
- ^ Double trouble. DigiGuide (January 2008). Retrieved on 2008-03-11.
- ^ "Hard Ball". Writer(s): Matt Hubbard; Director: Don Scardino. 30 Rock. NBC Universal. NBC. 2007-02-22. No. 15, season 1.
- ^ a b Kissell, Rick (2007-02-23). Season high for 'Grey's'. Variety. Retrieved on 2008-03-11.
- ^ The 59th Primetime Emmy® Awards and Creative Arts Emmy® Awards Nominees are.... Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved on 2008-02-18.
- ^ O'Neil, Tom (2007-05-30). In Contention: Comedy. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2008-03-11.
- ^ Kubicek, John (2007-08-21). Comedy Series Emmy Episode Analysis. BuddyTV. Retrieved on 2008-03-11.
- ^ Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (2007-09-16). "Academy of Television Arts and Sciences 59th Primetime Emmy Awards" (PDF). Press release. Retrieved on 2008-02-18.
