2016 ATX Television Festival honors Norman Lear, Everybody Loves Raymond
Following up its first-ever sell-out (but hopefully not repeating the seating headaches caused in part by that sell-out), the ATX Television Festival has revealed the first round of programming for its fifth “season,” set to run June 9 to June 12, 2016. And because TV is a medium that rewards a good formula, the marquee events are in line with those of the festival’s most successful edition to date: Norman Lear succeeds fellow sitcom pioneer James L. Brooks as the recipient of ATX’s Achievement In Television Excellence Award, while the 20th anniversary of the world-conquering Everybody Loves Raymond prompts a gathering of cast, creator, and writers—much like the Gilmore Girls anniversary celebration held by ATX in 2015. Sure, Raymond doesn’t boast the type of passionate fanbase that knows the geography of Stars Hollow, Connecticut by heart, but the show’s finale was watched by 32.9 million people, surely some of whom are willing to brave the Texas heat to witness a Barone family reunion.