TV powerhouse Jerry Bruckheimer is behind a new comedy series to air on Citytv. Modern Men follows three childhood friends, Tim, Kyle and Doug and their clueless attempts at dating. They are helped by a life coach portrayed by Jane Seymour (Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman) and hindered by Tim’s dad played by Cheers’ George Wendt. Although the highly regarded Bruckheimer (CSI) exec produces, the creators include folks behind The Tom Green Show so who knows what to expect? Hoping for the best, the series airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Citytv Toronto and Vancouver; 7 p.m. CT on Citytv Winnipeg and 9 p.m. MT on Citytv Calgary and Edmonton, beginning March 21.

W Network has a slew of new series coming up in April. From renovating your love life to renovating your road, these shows run the gamut. Manhattan Matchmaker has a professional matchmaker providing tips on how to secure long-term relationships, premiering on Wednesday, April 19 at 9 p.m. Following at 9:30 is Single Girl Diaries, a six-parter that follows five very different women looking for love. The ethnic, moral and personal diversity of the protagonists highlights the series. Meanwhile, The Truth About the Sexes puts people into situations where they discover secrets about their own sexuality. Each test is based on a real scientific experiment. The show preems at 10 p.m., April 19, following Single Girls.

W also has a drama lined up. Beautiful People is a traditional fish-out-of-water story in which Melrose Place‘s Daphne Zuniga and her almost grown daughters leave small town New Mexico to embrace the challenges of life in NYC. It will air Saturdays, beginning April 15 at 11 a.m. and 8 p.m.
And finally, those décor doyennes have redecorated rooms and gutted houses. Now they’re taking it to the street in a British import called Streets Ahead. Host Sarah Beeny helps neighbours around the U.K. beautify their roads so no one will be able to say ‘Nice house. Shame about the neighbourhood.’ The work begins Sunday, April 16 at 9 p.m.

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia follows four pals as they struggle to keep their bar in biz, while finding humor in the usually somber topics of gun control, racism and abortion. The hour-long comedy series begins airing on Showcase on Wednesday, April 26 at 10 p.m.

MTV will be going live March 21 at 6 p.m. ET. Kicking off the new net is its flagship Canadian talk series MTV Live. MTV is a Canadian-led partnership between CTV and MTV. Taking a dynamic and interactive approach (pushing for cell phone content and downloadable programs on its website), MTV will emphasize lifestyle, talk and docs with 71% Canadian programming promised in prime. The net will be Canadian programmed and managed and combine locally produced fare with globally shared programming. MTV will make more content announcements shortly. CTV (MTV’s parent here) also plans to run MTV shows on its network.

Only half of the brands advertised during this Sunday’s Academy Awards telecast can expect much return on their hefty investments – an average of $1.7 million U.S. for a 30-second spot – according to a study conducted by Brand Keys (brandkeys.com), a New York City-based loyalty and engagement research consultancy. The national survey of adults 18 to 65 years of age sought to quantify the level of engagement created by the media environment and advertised brand, and the increase or decrease in equity resulting from placement in a show such as the Academy Awards. The findings are benchmarked at 100, with plus scores indicating increases in equity – and the higher the better. The results for the specific brands in the test are: American Express 110; CareerBuilder.com 102; Coke 105; Dyson 97; GM (Cadillac) 111; JCPenney 95; Kodak 109; L’Oreal 115; Mastercard 109; McDonald’s 100; Miller Brewing 104; and State Farm Insurance 93. Brand Keys says past research has found that an increase in brand equity always results in an increased engagement, which the company describes as creating an emotional bond between the product and viewer rather than simply just seeing or liking the spot.

And the dynasty continues. Degrassi: The Next Generation enters an exclusive group when it airs its 100th episode on March 20. The season finale, chronicling the requisite break-ups and make-ups as well as graduation day for six cast members, actually begins on Monday, March 13 at 8:30 p.m. Part two airs the following Monday, also at 8:30 p.m.

It’s been a dramatic season both on and off screen. Audiences increased 24% this year (Source: Nielsen Media Research, 2005-06 vs. 2004-05, Weeks 4-19) and the series broke the one million viewer mark for the first time (Ratings courtesy of Nielsen Media Research). CTV says Degrassi: TNG is Canada’s most-watched Canadian drama series.