Danza’s up before the dawn

Media giants typically do an expert job of using their networks to promote top shows produced by their sister divisions.

So what’s “The Tony Danza Show” -- a production of Walt Disney Co.’s Buena Vista Entertainment premiering today -- doing on Disney’s KABC-Channel 7 at the ungodly hour of 2:09 a.m.?

The short answer: Local stations don’t have many free time slots. Between “Good Morning America” and the afternoon news, KABC is packed, leaving only the wee hours free -- in Danza’s case, after “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and a rebroadcast of “Oprah.” (In New York, Danza airs at 10 a.m.; the show has daytime slots in other markets too.)

“We are fully prepared to launch the show in late night on KABC and hopefully upgrade the show to daytime when the opportunity presents itself,” Buena Vista said in a statement.

Danza said the graveyard shift in the nation’s No. 2 media market was not exactly ideal. “It’s a bummer,” he said. “Would I like to be on at a better time? I can’t deny that.”

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-- Jonathan Taylor