Question: I recently read in TVGuide.com's "Entertainment News" that NBC had trimmed its 13-episode order of The Book of Daniel to seven. I have been eagerly awaiting this new Susanna Thompson series and was not pleased to hear this latest development. Do you know if NBC plans to air this series at all? I thought once one of their new shows bit the dust this fall that BOD would take its place, since NBC had seemed to be so high on the show. What's your take on this? Do you think BOD will ever see the light of day, or will it be like Susanna's last venture (Still Life), which Fox filmed and never bothered to air?
Answer: To be honest, I think NBC is scared of this show. Not so much entertainment president Kevin Reilly, who came to NBC from FX, because The Book of Daniel is a show that reflects that sensibility: risk taking, exciting, controversial, original, extremely well acted and written. But his bosses, I'm sure, are worried about the show's commercial potential, in part because it
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Question: What do you think of the major changes WB has made to its schedule? Moving Related to the post-7th Heaven slot makes sense, but what are they thinking when they show reruns after One Tree Hill? It seems like that would make a bad situation worse. I'm also confused by the changes on Fridays. I understand trying to find an audience for Twins by moving it after Reba, but why chuck Living with Fran and show a repeat of What I Like About You? As much as I enjoy What I Like About You, it is the network's lowest-rated comedy, and I don't see how showing it twice would help anything at all. Please help me make sense of all of this.
Answer: Thanks for reminding me that What I Like About You is still on the air. Who knew? And when it comes to WB's double-runs, you left out Supernatural repeats airing after Charmed on Sundays (replacing Blue Collar TV). The reason for most of these changes is simply a matter of cutting their losses until it's time for another try come mid-season. When a
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Question: I think you missed the boat on 7th Heaven when you called it "comfort food." Sure, there's the obligatory "feel good" message in a lot of episodes, but this show has as much soapy melodrama and misguided teen/young adult sexuality as any other Aaron Spelling production — it's just alluded to more than portrayed. Maybe it's only been since you stopped watching, but Simon went on a sexual frenzy; Martin got a girl pregnant; Mary abandoned her family; and Ruthie is throwing around words like "sexy" and "hot." I've been watching the show for about three years now, and I've always seen it as a devious vehicle for Spelling to portray the same youthful recklessness as his other shows while hiding it behind the goody-goody facade of a minister's family, with some excessively cheesy messages thrown in now and then to make it seem like family-friendly entertainment. But the subject matter is often not at all appropriate for the entire family.
Answer: Kind of like how Cecil B. deMille
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Question: What the heck is going on with the new season of 7th Heaven? Ruthie's a sullen brat, Lucy (the most selfish character on TV) is a minister and Simon's a complete idiot! Not to mention the two interchangeable girls in Simon's and Martin's lives: the bitchy and needy Rose and the just needy Sandy. Back in the day Annie Camden would have read Rose the riot act for her obnoxious behavior. And
Sandy
is obviously not in her right mind, expecting Martin to marry her — he's a high-school student, for crying out loud. Please tell us that this show will be getting back on track sometime soon!
Answer: Who says this column doesn't have range? (Nip/Tuck to 7th Heaven anybody get whiplash?) Tell you what: If the show gets good again, feel free to be the first to let me know. I bailed on this one a while ago. As the kids grew older, I found them all to be insufferable. I'm still glad there are shows like this for viewers looking for comfort food; I just wish this one were a little tastier ...
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After last week's episode with the reality crew, I was about toss this show into the muck, but this week's renewed my faith like a pair of pocket aces. It epitomized what this show is all about — a bizarre mix of celebs who have good senses of humor and gambling. If I just wanted to watch people playing cards, I'd tune in to the World Series of Poker — OK, I do spend my weekends watching that, too. Anyway the rowdy all-guy crew was made up of Stephen Collins (aka the dad from 7th Heaven), Bryan Cranston (aka the dad from Malcolm in the Middle), Howie Mandel (who is being a Public Nuisance), Peter Dinklage (the star of The Station Agent and that new Threshold series) and Meat Loaf (who is, well, Meat Loaf), and they just call him Meat which cracked me up. Aside from Howie, they all seemed to know how to play the game and could tell when they had a straight or a flush, unlike som
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Question: In your Aug. 15 column, you commented that you didn't understand the market for edited R-rated movies on broadcast and basic-cable television. I was a little surprised by that remark, because it was somewhat insensitive for you. The market for edited-for-TV movies exists because there are many people who really want to see Titanic (yes, I know it's PG-13) but don't necessarily want an extended view of Kate Winslet's breasts. It exists because there are people who want to see an inspirational story like The Shawshank Redemption, but don't necessarily want the F-word hurtled at them numerous times. These are the same people who would probably enjoy Deadwood or The Sopranos were it not for HBO inserting as much profanity as possible just because they can (a topic you have also addressed). The fact is that many people avoid R-rated movies in theaters because of moral or religious objections. With the "offending" material cut from TV airings, at least these people can experience ...
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Question: Could you please tell me what year and network Get Christie Love was on and who was its star? How long did it last on television? Thanks!
Answer: Get Christie Love, which sought to play off the renown of such tough blaxploitation cookies as Cleopatra Jones and the legendary Pam Grier's Coffy, debuted on ABC in September 1974, starring the late Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In bikini girl Teresa Graves as the titular undercover cop.
The big problem is that the genre's popularity stemmed from watching a slick, beautiful, street-savvy woman dispatch bad guys with brutal violence — and Graves was a devout Jehovah's Witness. Christie beat down evildo
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Love him or loathe him, no-nonsense advice dispenser Dr. Phil is here to stay. Oprah's former shrink has extended his talk-show deal for another five years, through the 2013-2014 TV season. The pact all but guarantees that the tough-loving doc will be around to help America cope with the death of 7th Heaven.
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Question: The show that you said you liked, The Book of Daniel, is saved! What is it about exactly and when do you think it will debut?
Answer: The Book of Daniel will premiere on NBC sometime midseason, but the real questions will be on what night and at what time. The show will need to be protected, which may be tough for NBC if the network continues to slip this fall, which is entirely possible. For instance, it would be disastrous if it were scheduled Fridays at 10 pm/ET, replacing the unbearable new drama Inconceivable. This show needs to air where people might actually find it. Daniel is a darkly comic drama starring Aidan Quinn as an Episcopal minister juggling domestic and professional problems, with scandals erupting at every turn and a skeptical bishop (Ellen Burstyn) watching his every move. The cast in the pilot includes Once and Again's terrific Susanna Thompson as his wife, Christian Campbell as his gay son, and as Jesus — who appears to Daniel frequently — Garret Dillahunt
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7th Heaven just started its 10th season, which will include lots of surprises for its loyal fans — some good, some bad. For starters, troubled actor Jeremy London won't be returning to the WB family drama, nor will Ashlee Simpson or Rachel Blanchard. However, original cast members Barry Watson and David Gallagher are back as the prodigal Camden sons, Matt and Simon.
"We're focusing on our core family again," says creator/executive producer Brenda Hampton. "As the show gets older, you want to give people as much as you can of the thing that they watched it for. And in this case, it's the Camden family."
Watson and Gallagher both return for 11 episodes, so we'll have the opportunity to see the boys dealing with some more adult situations. In fact, Simon "will be the first Camden to have sex outside of marriage." Pretty risqué for the son of a preacher man!
The big story this season will
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