That’s right, Grease is the word that you heard. 
 
 Fox is getting into the live musical game with a live three-hour version of the Broadway high-school classic. The network’s Grease Live special is billed as the first-ever live broadcast TV production of the 1971 musical from Warren Casey and Jim Jacobs, which also inspired the 1978 hit film starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. 
 
 “From Broadway to film, and across generations, Grease is one of the most beloved musical stories ever told – and we can’t wait to bring it to our air in a spectacular live event,” said Shana C. Waterman, senior VP of event series for Fox. “Its iconic characters and addictive songs make it the perfect fit for Fox, and we’re going to give it the kind of star power and production quality to make every Sandy, Danny, Rizzo and Kenickie out there want to get up and sing along.” 
 
 The move is sure to inspire cries of “copycat!” from industry observers and the folks at NBC, which kicked off the live musical event special last fall with A Sound of Music Live. NBC’s venture racked up nearly 22 million viewers when including DVR playback. Some predicted the network’s next live project would be Grease, but the Peacock opted for Peter Pan, which is expected to air Dec. 4. Now here comes Fox with arguably the most coveted Broadway title for a live TV adaptation. But Fox would likely point out that its own 2009 series Glee really brought musicals back into modern prime-time, a show that NBC was accused of copying with its far less successful Smash. And then you could bring all of this full circle and say Glee is essentially a modern-day Grease. 
 
 Also, NBC has explored Grease in prime-time before. In 2007, Fox’s rival aired a short-lived reality effort titled Grease: You’re the One That I Want, where contestants competed for the lead roles in a Broadway revival. Fox also previously tapped Grease, with a fourth-season episode of Glee titled “Glease.” 
 
 Fox plans to air Grease Live, produced by Paramount Television, sometime next year (presumably on a Sunday, since the network only programs two hours a night on weeknights, but Fox could get special permission from its affiliates for a three-hour telecast). 
 
 What do you think of Fox doing Grease Live? Take our poll: ||||| Fox is taking a page from NBC's The Sound of Music Live. 
 
 The network has ordered a three-hour live broadcast of Grease set to air during 2015, Fox announced Monday. 
 
 The live event will feature a young ensemble cast and be based on the 1971 Broadway musical of the same name, with the book, lyrics and music by the team of Warren Casey and Jim Jacobs and the 1978 hit feature film that starred Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta. The film has grossed nearly $400 million worldwide, ranking as the highest-grossing movie musical ever. Grease Live hails from Paramount Television production, with the cast and production partners to be announced at a later date. 
 
 PHOTOS: Broadway Musicals That Have Sung Their Way to the Big Screen 
 
 "From Broadway to film, and across generations, Grease is one of the most beloved musical stories ever told -- and we can't wait to bring it to our air in a spectacular live event," said Shana C. Waterman, senior vp event series at Fox. "Its iconic characters and addictive songs make it the perfect fit for Fox, and we’re going to give it the kind of star power and production quality to make every Sandy, Danny, Rizzo and Kenickie out there want to get up and sing along." 
 
 Fox's move to adapt Grease for live TV comes after NBC collected massive ratings returns for its Sound of Music Live broadcast in December. That event, which when factoring in DVR viewing, collected about 22 million total viewers and a 5.6 rating among the advertiser-coveted adults 18-49 demographic. NBC will follow Sound of Music -- which also performed well during a rebroadcast shortly after its original debut -- with a live performance of Peter Pan set for Dec. 4, reteaming with Sound of Music Live and Oscar producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron. 
 
 
 
 STORY: 'Peter Pan' Set as NBC's Live 'Sound of Music' Follow-Up 
 
 "It’s incredibly exciting to have one of our first major network productions be based on this universally celebrated Paramount title, and we’re thrilled to be partnering with Kevin [Reilly], Joe [Early] and Shana [Waterman] on this epic television event,” Paramount TV president Amy Powell said. "Fox's passion for engaging audiences with bold storytelling and live musical formats make it a perfect home for this special broadcast." 
 
 The live space has become increasingly popular among broadcast and cable networks as overall viewership continues to sag in the DVR-viewing era. The live format helps draw eyeballs and awards-season cachet in an increasingly competitive landscape and DVR era. 
 
 
 
 For its part, NBC monetized its Sound of Music Live with a soundtrack and DVD as well as the likelihood of repeat broadcasts over the holidays. 
 
 For Fox, the live performance of Grease comes as the network has found tremendous success with musical dramedy Glee, with music from the series helping to inject a nice revenue stream into the network's coffers. 
 
 The live Grease broadcast will mark the second time Fox has featured the iconic film after the network devoted multiple episodes to the movie during an arc on Glee. 
 
 Email: Lesley.Goldberg@THR.com 
 
 Twitter: @Snoodit ||||| We hope Fox kept the receipt. 
 
 The network’s attempt at turning the 1983 beloved holiday classic A Christmas Story into a live TV musical was bashed by viewers on social media Sunday evening. And it turns out the ratings were pretty terrible — the three-hour telecast was seen by 4.5 million viewers and delivered a 1.5 rating among adults 18-49. 
 
 Compare that to Fox’s production of Grease Live last year which had 12.2 million viewers and a 4.3 rating. Heck, even NBC’s notorious Peter Pan Live from 2014 did better (9.2 million, 2.4). Based on these early numbers, A Christmas Story looks like the lowest-rated live TV musical since NBC revived the genre with its surprise smash A Sound of Music Live in 2013 (22 million, 5.6). 
 
 EW’s review of the small screen adaptation of the Broadway production was somewhat positive (we gave it a B-), while others were less so (USA Today gave it 1.5 stars and snarked that the show “shot its own eye out”). Naturally, any attempt to remake a nostalgic title that’s considered a nearly perfect piece of entertainment will result in some fandom backlash, but Twitter was pretty brutal — slamming the production as “a dumpster fire” and “the worst thing to ever air on television,” among other jabs: 
 
 They managed to ruin 'A Christmas Story'. — Ross (@indyrallen) December 18, 2017 
 
 #AChristmasStoryLive Just watched the live version of Christmas Story and all I can say was it was awful, Fox took a beloved Christmas story and drug it through the dirt. The story was bad, the acting was worse and the fact they tried to make it a make it a musical makes me sick — Bobby Abernathy (@BobbyAbernathy6) December 18, 2017 
 
 I'm gonna have to watch the entire 24hr marathon of A Christmas Story to forget this dumpster fire called #AChristmasStoryLive 👎🏼🤦🏻‍♂️😵 — pdxproud (@pfaffpdx) December 18, 2017 
 
 No. Just no. I’m as big a #ChristmasStory fan there is and I was really looking forward to this “Live” version on Fox, but this is an abomination. A Christmas Story is about the farthest thing from a musical there is. — Mr. Wolf (@GHSMrWolf) December 18, 2017 
 
 This live “A Christmas Story” is the worst thing that has ever been on TV, and I’m including “After M.A.S.H” — Jason Riley (@JasonRileyWDRB) December 18, 2017 
 
 The ‘live’ production of A Christmas Story is unwatchable. — Karen Short (@_ShortKare) December 18, 2017 
 
 I'm with you. #ChristmasStoryLive 
 
 wasn't horrible because it was a musical. It was horrible because it was a bad musical which butchered a Christmas classic made worse by the fact that talent like Broderick and Rudolph participated in such a crime against humanity. — Mountain Man (@JaredECaldwell) December 18, 2017 
 
 Congrats to Fox for completely ruining the classic, A Christmas Story. #killedchristmasstory — John R. Beilby, Jr. (@johnbeilbywfmj) December 18, 2017 
 
 OMG!!!! I watched A Christmas Story "Live" on Fox last night from 6 to 9pm. I'd say that those were the 3 longest hours of my life but after the 1st 45mins, once I realized in no way it was getting any better anytime soon. I just had to throw in the towel. Why mess w/a classic? — Heather Marie Penar (@MariePenar) December 18, 2017 
 
 They redid a bunch of classic films the past few years. The original is alwayz best! Just as we all know books are always better than the movies. But this monstrosity Christmas Story Live was over produced and under imagined. In my opinion it was a complete disaster. — Heather Marie Penar (@MariePenar) December 18, 2017 
 
 So was A Christmas Story Live a complete fudge-up? Were there any nice reactions? Sure! Some … 
 
 @WCIA3Alex @WCIA3Anthony I actually liked the Christmas Story Live show! Though I partly enjoy watching them to see if anyone will screw up 🤣🤣 — Leia Flure, MS, RD (@moderationmaven) December 18, 2017 
 
 "A Christmas Story" was absolutely amazing. Probably the best of the live TV events so far. — steve fogle (@stevefogle1) December 18, 2017 
 
 i didn't love christmas story, i didn't think it was executed as well as some other live musicals, but it was fun and everyone in it was talented, especially the kids. it was more enjoyable than the mediocre movie so….. — suzy 👑 (@bwaypoe) December 18, 2017
– Fox is following NBC into the live musical game with a three-hour adaption of Grease set to air some time next year. The event will feature a young ensemble cast and will be based on the 1971 Broadway musical, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The musical's "iconic characters and addictive songs make it the perfect fit for Fox, and we’re going to give it the kind of star power and production quality to make every Sandy, Danny, Rizzo, and Kenickie out there want to get up and sing along," gushes a network exec. NBC may cry "copycat" after the huge success of its live version of The Sound of Music last year, though Fox could counter that its own Glee series brought musicals back to prime time, notes Entertainment Weekly. In other TV news, Yahoo announced last night that indeed it will enter the world of original video, reports the New York Times. The company has commissioned two comedy series that will be aired exclusively on its website and apps. A spokeswoman says the company plans to at least break even on the venture, which will cost up to $1 million per episode.