After what has been a long time coming, NBC's new version of 'Parenthood' is finally premiering tomorrow night. And if the anticipation wasn't already high, TV Squad received an unexpected, very nice little invitation to tune in from Opie himself. Or Richie Cunningham if you prefer.

Yes, that's right, Ron Howard, the executive producer of 'Parenthood,' did a handful of shout-outs to the media and we were included. Aren't we special?



'Parenthood,' just so you know, debuts Tuesday, March 2, at 10 PM ET. Interestingly, NBC has slotted it for a later time period rather than eight o'clock, which seems more family hour. However, that's such an antiquated term that it hardly applies anymore. Still, it'll be curious to watch how it does against CBS's 'The Good Wife' and ABC's '20/20' (at least initially for the latter).

By the way, unlike the 1989 film that starred Steve Martin and Mary Steenburgen -- and was superb -- this 'Parenthood' isn't telling the story of that family. That was the Buckmans. The new NBC series is all about the Bravermans. There are four grown children, Lauren Graham, Peter Krause, Erika Christensen and Dax Shepard, who are all parents, as well as their parents, Craig T. Nelson and Bonnie Bedelia ... and all the kids, naturally.