Hallmark Movie Channel Launches in HD April 2 With Major Event to Answer Question: 'Will It Play in Peoria?'

Hallmark Movie Channel Launches in HD April 2 With Major Event to Answer Question: 'Will It Play in Peoria?'

Channel Offers the Greatest Family Movies of All Time in Breathtaking High Definition, Featuring Classic Theatricals, Hallmark Hall of Fame Titles, Hallmark Channel Original Movies and Special Events

NEW YORK, March 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The viewing experience gets even better on Hallmark Movie Channel on Wednesday, April 2, when it launches on that day in spectacular High Definition offering audiences the greatest family movies of all time. In a historic day for the network, Hallmark Channel will celebrate the launch of Hallmark Movie Channel HD with a star-studded celebration in Peoria, Illinois, that will answer the age-old question, "Will It Play in Peoria?" Elaborate festivities are planned along with a welcome from the Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis. The big event will include a screening of the popular Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation, "The Magic of Ordinary Days," a replication of the sets from "Son of the Dragon" -- the first big event on the channel -- and a visit from Emmy(R) nominee and martial arts legend David Carradine to help kick it all into high gear. Academy Award(R) and Golden Globe-winning actor, Ernest Borgnine, star of the recent Hallmark Channel original movie, "A Grandpa For Christmas," will also be on hand to help commemorate the launch of the new channel.

In May, a Hallmark Movie Channel HD screening is scheduled for May 7 in Washington, D.C., of the Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation, "Sweet Nothing in My Ear," with another roll-out event being planned in early summer in Orlando.

Hallmark Movie Channel is a new 24-hour cable network dedicated to bringing viewers the very best family movies of all time with a mix of classic theatrical films, presentations from the acclaimed Hallmark Hall of Fame library, original Hallmark Channel movies and special events.

"For years we have been anxious to roll out family-friendly programming in an all-movie network, and we have had a tremendous response from viewers who showed incredible enthusiasm for Hallmark Movie Channel in its trial phase. Now we are also presenting this wonderful programming in a vivid and compelling new HD format," said David Kenin, Executive Vice President, Programming, Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel. "In today's crowded television landscape, we are delighted to be able to offer the Channel now in HD at a time when there is a growing demand for family-friendly programming, and to be able to offer this new opportunity to our distribution partners and advertisers."

Hallmark Movie Channel will offer some of the greatest theatrical family movies of all time, including such classics as: "Flubber," "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids," "Escape To Witch Mountain," "The Incredible Journey," "New York Minute," "The Princess Diaries," "The Love Bug," "Never Cry Wolf," "Old Yeller," "The Parent Trap," "Hearts in Atlantis," "Swiss Family Robinson" and "The Three Musketeers."

In addition, the programming strategy will include the scheduling of presentations from the critically acclaimed and award-winning Hallmark Hall of Fame library on Sunday nights, airing in the original Sunday, 8-10 p.m. broadcast timeslots. In more than 50 years, the Hall of Fame films have featured 131 Academy Award(R) nominees and 55 Academy Award(R) winners, have won 81 Emmy(R) Awards and 13 Golden Globe(R) Awards, and consistently rank among the top 5 films on broadcast television year after year.

Viewers can look forward to favorite Hall of Fame titles including: "Sarah Plain and Tall," "What the Deaf Man Heard," "Ellen Foster," "The Boys Next Door," "Breathing Lessons," "The Piano Lesson," "A Season For Miracles," "Back When We Were Grownups," "The Magic of Ordinary Days," "A Painted House," "Follow the Stars Home" and "To Dance With the White Dog."

In addition to the theatricals and Hallmark Hall of Fames, some of the highest-rated original movies from Hallmark Channel will air on Hallmark Movie Channel including "The Christmas Card" (4.2 HH rating), "The Good Witch" (3.8 HH rating), "Meet The Santas" (3.6 HH rating), "The Note" (3.4 HH rating), "A Grandpa For Christmas" (3.2 HH rating), "All I Want For Christmas" (3.1 HH rating), "Single Santa Seeks Mrs. Claus" (3.0 HH rating) and "Love's Long Journey" (3.0 HH rating).

Hallmark Movie Channel will also showcase movie adaptations of classic literary works including: "The Canterville Ghost," "Call of the Wild: Dog of the Yukon," "Frankenstein," "Sherlock Holmes: The Royal Scandal," "Mark Twain's Roughing It," "King Solomon's Mines" and "Jules Verne's Mysterious Island."

Moving forward, the expanded programming strategy for Hallmark Movie Channel will be to spotlight a major quarterly programming event. The first big event will be the four-hour mini-series, "Son of the Dragon," premiering Wednesday, April 2 and starring Golden Globe and Emmy(R) Award nominee David Carradine ("Kill Bill"), John Reardon ("Merlin's Apprentice"), Rupert Graves ("V for Vendetta") and Desiree Siahaan ("Marco Polo").

There has been tremendous viewer interest in Hallmark Movie Channel during its trial phase. Specifically, viewer interest in the Channel was reported in Beta's June 2007 Cable Subscriber Study on Interest in Emerging Digital/Mid- sized/VOD Networks. Results are reported for 22 digital/emerging networks, 30 mid-sized networks and 14 40 million subs. (Hallmark Movie Channel is classified as an emerging network -- a network under 40 million subs. A mid-sized network in this study is defined as a cable network with 40-69 million subscribers). In the study, Hallmark Movie Channel ranks #1 on high interest across all key viewers segments including the following:

   #1 among those interested in HDTV   #1 among those subscribing to HDTV service   #1 among those interested in digital cable   #1 among those interested in satellite dish service   #1 among total adults   #1 among adults 18-49    

The 24-hour Hallmark Movie Channel, which has existed in a beta mode, entertaining viewers with family-friendly movies, will now also become available for the first time also in High Definition (HD).

For more information on Hallmark Movie Channel please visit http://www.hallmarkmoviechannel.com/; for Hallmark Channel, please visit http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/.

    Nancy Carr, 818-755-2643           Jennifer Geisser, 212-445-6654    nancycarr@hallmarkchannel.com      jgeisser@hallmarkchannel.com     Jaime Saberito, 212-445-6644    jsaberito@hallmarkchannel.com  

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: Hallmark Channel

CONTACT: Nancy Carr, +1-818-755-2643, nancycarr@hallmarkchannel.com, or
Jaime Saberito, +1-212-445-6644, jsaberito@hallmarkchannel.com, or Jennifer
Geisser, +1-212-445-6654, jgeisser@hallmarkchannel.com, all of Hallmark
Channel

Web site: http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/
http://www.hallmarkmoviechannel.com/

---

Profile: International Entertainment