TV Executives Running out of new ideas

[The Voice of Reason]

We are witnessing the "return of retreads."

One example is V(istors), which made its debut on ABC this week.

For those of you who think this is a brand new program, V aired on NBC back in 1984 to 1985. Yet ABC canceled “Defying Gravity" after just three episodes because of the cost, but the network will spend money on a show with a similar plot that aired on a different network two decades ago.

CBS featured a return of "The Fugitive" in 2000, which didn't last one season, compared to the four-year run the original series had on ABC from 1963-1967.

Now we have "The Prisoner". The original "Prisoner" was on TV during 1967-1968. This series not only starred but was created by late actor Patrick McGoohan. The new "Prisoner" is the guy who played Jesus Christ in that Mel Gibson movie.

Let's get really creative here and bring back Kojak. Oh wait some network tried that already and it was canceled.

Okay what about Superman? Oops forgot about Smallville. (Apparently so did most of that show's audience since its debut 9 years ago, according to the ratings).

In my personal opinion the only good remade TV show was Battlestar Galactica.

[landtuna]

A disturbing situation in both radio and TV is the copycat mentality of the suits.  Seems a show comes along which is just enough different to gather an audience and immediately there are at least two similar programs.  Radio has its 'consultants' to thank for turning variety into vanilla.

The suits make a ton o cash.  They should have to come up with original ideas or be returned to the french fryer from whence they came.

[MarcB]

NBC's America's Got Talent more or less is a rip-off of Star Search.

There's not much difference between ABC's Dancin' with the Stars and FOX's So You Think you can dance.

CMT has a Red-neck version of FOX's Don't Forget the Lyrics. CMT's red-neck version is hosted by Melissa Peterman who played BJ on The WB's REBA.

There's not much difference between The CW's America's Next Top Model and Lifetime's Project Runway.

What's the difference between NBC's MERCY and CBS's 3 Rivers? Both take place at hospitals.

And I realize it was a spin-off of the original FOX's Cleveland Show is an unfunny rip-off of Family Guy with different characters.

[dhett]

I'm holding out for a remake of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.  But we will know that the end is near when they remake My Mother, the Car.

[dustintv]

How long before Search For Tomorrow gets remade as a prime time show

[justpassingthough]

Even with all of the rip-offs, we have to keep something in perspective.  There are infinitely more channels now than in the days of 3 broadcast networks and a handful of independents in each market.

The amount of original programming today would have baffled minds 40, 30, even 20 years ago.  There is more diversity in programming now than almost ever before, too.

[Prais]

TV Executives Running out of new ideas

I thought that was a thread from 1961.

[Mark]

Yeah TV is always a rehash. Remember when "Friends" came out. Then you had "These Friends of Mine" (Later called "Ellen"), then you "Drew Carey," and a whole bunch of other copies of "Friends," which of course, everyone forgets is in itself a copy of "Seinfeld."

You had "Laverne And Shirley" which is about two ladies doing a lot of physical comedy, which was the same as "The Lucy Show," with two ladies doing a lot of physical comedy.

Which also had elements of Lucy Ricardo, which is a direct copy of Liz Cooper from radio's "My Favourite Husband," which also has elements of an even older radio show "Irma"

I do think it appears frustrating because today people get paid so much to be so uncreative. I go to YouTube and find lots of very interesting yet low budget junk that is a lot better than the stuff people get a lot of money to write.

But I guess one man's trash...

[azumanga]

NBC's America's Got Talent more or less is a rip-off of Star Search.

...as well, in a way, as "The Gong Show" -- both feature panelists that can "vote" bad acts off the stage.

How long before Search For Tomorrow gets remade as a prime time show

As soon as "Peyton Place" returns to TV in a new series.

[mrschimpf]

CMT has a Red-neck version of FOX's Don't Forget the Lyrics. CMT's red-neck version is hosted by Melissa Peterman who played BJ on The WB's REBA.

Actually Fox greenlighted DFTL just weeks after NBC announced The Singing Bee, which began in August 2007 as a general music show hosted by Joey Fatone. NBC didn't pick up the series further and then the program producers sold it to CMT, who reconfigured it into a country/southern music show hosted by Petermann. So in that case, DFTL is the copycat, though it lasted much longer than the original NBC version.