TELEVISION NOTEBOOK FOX EXECS TOUT FICTION, SUCCUMB TO REALITY.Byline: David Kronke and Valerie Kuklenski Staff Writers PASADENA - Fox network executives played up their new comedies and dramas Tuesday for television critics, sounding almost apologetic about reality shows such as ``Temptation Island 2.'' Sandy Grushow, chairman of Fox Television Entertainment Group, touted the improved ratings of the past season (Fox finished first in adults 18-34 and second in 18-49), a significant boost over the few years prior. ``Over the past year and a half, we've taken a network once characterized by aging hits, a dearth of comedies and I think an overreliance on reality and rebuilt it largely on the backs of scripted entertainment programming,'' Grushow said, citing holdovers ``Malcolm in the Middle Malcolm in the Middle is a seven-time Emmy-winning,[1] one-time Grammy-winning[1] and seven-time Golden Globe-nominated[1] American sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Network. ,'' ``Boston Public'' and ``Ally McBeal For the character, see . Ally McBeal is an award-winning American television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia. ,'' among others. ``It's proof positive we can still get audiences, advertisers and critics excited about a genre of programming that's always been this medium's bread and butter and I believe will remain so. ``And our success in replenishing our pipeline of scripted hits has allowed us to round out our schedule with another genre that's really swept viewers off their feet - unscripted un·script·ed adj. Not adhering to or in accordance with a script written beforehand: "his unscripted encounters with the press" Eleanor Clift. programming. ``Let's face it: No network can compete in today's marketplace without it,'' he said. ``Audiences have proven time and again that they have an enormous appetite for it, and even advertisers who were once resistant have begun to embrace a significant percentage of them. I'm sure we can all agree that no one's going to succeed by ignoring either one of those factors, let alone both.'' Grushow and Gail Berman Gail Berman (born August 17, 1956) is the former president of entertainment at Fox Broadcasting Company and the former president of Viacom's Paramount Pictures. She graduated from the University of Maryland in 1978. , president of entertainment for Fox Broadcasting Co., seemed to position ``Temptation Island 2,'' which puts committed couples in a tropical paradise with gorgeous men and women aiming to entice them into infidelity, as a necessary evil while talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to the Television Critics Association The Television Critics Association (or TCA) is a group of approximately 200 United States and Canadian journalists and columnists who cover television programming. They meet in the Los Angeles area twice a year, in January and July, in conferences known as Winter and Summer , which collectively lambasted the program's first season. ``In the long run, networks that use unscripted programming to mask their inability to create new scripted hits - they're going to fail,'' Grushow said. ``We know. It happened to Fox.'' The network is filling the gaps left by its early hits such as ``Melrose Place  This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling.You can assist by [ editing it] now. ,'' ``Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. 90210'' and ``Party of Five'' with a new prime time soap, ``Pasadena,'' as well as filmed comedies that dispense with studio audiences and laugh tracks. The most talked-about new program at the executive panel was ``24,'' a serialized thriller starring Kiefer Sutherland whose first season transpires in one full day, with one hour on the digital clock transpiring tran·spire v. tran·spired, tran·spir·ing, tran·spires v.tr. To give off (vapor containing waste products) through the pores of the skin or the stomata of plant tissue. v.intr. 1. per episode. Even while lauding its uniqueness, cast and production values Production values is a media term for "production cost." It refers to the professional look, or "polish," of a production. Factors that affect perceived production value may include video and audio quality, lighting, number of errors, and amount and quality of special effects. , Berman conceded that if viewers don't latch onto the show, ``24'' could conclude several hours short. She said 13 episodes have been ordered. Grushow said Fox is considering several options to hook viewers on the series, including quick repeats on another Fox-owned channel, such as FX, or repeats airing out of prime time on affiliates. Meanwhile, Chris Carter Chris Carter may refer to:
The creator and executive producer of the show has signed a new deal with 20th Century Fox TV to remain at the helm of the venerable Fox drama series next season. Carter had been wavering about whether to commit to running the show or to move into a consultant role. But after lengthy talks, Fox and Carter settled on a new one-season deal late last week. PAYING THE PRICE: HBO Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) A form of oxygen therapy in which the patient breathes oxygen in a pressurized chamber. Mentioned in: Ozone Therapy chairman Chris Albrecht Chris Albrecht was chairman and CEO of Home Box Office from July 2002 until May 2007. In the past, he was president of HBO Original Programming, 1995-2002, and president of HBO Independent Productions, 1990-1995. justified the $120 million price tag of the Tom Hanks/Steven Spielberg-produced World War II miniseries ``Band of Brothers,'' about a company of paratrooper soldiers. ``There really isn't any direct correlation Noun 1. direct correlation - a correlation in which large values of one variable are associated with large values of the other and small with small; the correlation coefficient is between 0 and +1 positive correlation between how much we spend on a show and how much we make,'' Albrecht explained. ``It's actually a very difficult conversation that we often have with the representatives of actors, producers, writers. ``We're very comfortable that having 'Band of Brothers' on HBO in September, having the opportunity to promote (other programming) around the show, having the (media coverage of the series), having the opportunity to have the audience see the kinds of projects that HBO stands for, speaks for the product itself, which is the network. And we believe that in the inexact in·ex·act adj. 1. Not strictly accurate or precise; not exact: an inexact quotation; an inexact description of what had taken place. 2. science of figuring out whether it makes money for us, that 'Band of Brothers' is well worth the investment.'' Albrecht added the network will also distribute the show overseas. Hanks said he came across the Stephen Ambrose book upon which the miniseries is based while researching his role for ``Saving Private Ryan.'' ``I thought that Mr. Ambrose had stumbled upon the perfect avenue in which to communicate the breadth of the European war from beginning to end,'' Hanks explained. The author himself was on hand to offer his perspective. ``These guys were everywhere - they started in Georgia, they ended up at Hitler's Eagle's Nest, and they covered everything in between,'' Ambrose noted. ``I told Steven that I thought we had something of a house on fire here,'' Hanks said. Asked why he thought there was a renewed interest in World War II in popular culture, Hanks cracked, ``I think my generation is much more interested in J.Lo's fashions.'' More seriously, he added, ``The reason why democracy is working right now is because democracy showed its finest moment back in this very altruistic time when American soldiers went ashore in France and in other parts of the world - not to conquer, not to plant the flag and not to keep it - but literally to liberate them from true forces of evil.'' CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Producer Tom Hanks, left, discusses his new World War II series for HBO, ``Band of Brothers,''. Veteran Clifford Carwood Lipton sits behind him, with author Stephen Ambrose looming via satellite. Kevork Djansezian/Associated Press |
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