When industry scribes gather in Pasadena, Calif., this week for the biannual Television Critics Association (TCA) Press Tour, cable networks will be touting some heavily hyped shows ? many of which first appeared on broadcast networks.
Reruns of CBS's crime hit CSI, for instance, will show up on its Viacom sister, TNN. ABC's NYPD Blue is headed to Court TV and TNT, while Law & Order: SVU will get a window on USA. No fewer than three Star Trek franchises are set for TNN. And Bravo will rerun episodes of NBC's West Wing.
?With so much more off-network product being gobbled up by the cable nets, original programming seems to be less of a priority for cable these days,? said one cable industry executive, who did not wish to be identified. ?That seems to be the underlying theme this year that no one will admit to.?
Even so, attendees at the cable portion of the tour this week ? in which four or five networks per day will make presentations to the gathered journalists (the four big broadcast networks will take up two days apiece later in the month) ? will still see plenty of original product, with various panels scheduled to include appearances by Tom Hanks, Britney Spears, Shannen Doherty, Debbie Reynolds, Malcolm McDowell, Ellen Burstyn, Laura Dern, Patti LuPone and Alan Alda.
First up on Tuesday is USA Network, which is plugging Combat Missions, a new weekly reality series from Survivor creator Mark Burnett and hosted by former Survivor contestant Rudy Boesch. There's also a made-for-cable movie, Another Day, with Doherty, and an original late-night game show strip, Smush, from Who Wants to Be a Millionaire producer Michael Davies.
?With more diversity in programming our priority, we feel that these projects will attract a solid base of young adult viewers,? said Doug Herzog, president of USA Network. ?Developing projects with behind-the-scenes talent like Mark Burnett and Michael Davies should tell you the direction this network is going in. Losing [WWF] wrestling is no longer a concern.?
Sci-Fi has the four-hour miniseries Firestarter: The Next Chapter and a Babylon 5 spin-off, B5: Legend of the Rangers, while The Disney Channel has the made-fors Halloweentown 2: Kalabar's Revenge and Twas the Night. Comedy Central is plugging the return of the British series Absolutely Fabulous, along with two new late-night series: The Chris Wylde Show and Insomniac with Dave Attell.
?Bringing back Absolutely Fabulous should be a solid maneuver, given the franchise is already proven,? said Brad Adgate, SVP-corporate research, Horizon Media. ?There is nothing like combining something new with something already established.?
Capping off the first day will be presentations from Lifetime Television, Rainbow Networks (with Naomi Judd appearing on behalf of WE: Women's Entertainment) and IFC.
On Wednesday morning, The History Channel will deliver documentary programming highlights followed by A&E, with the Rick Schroder made-for The Lost Battalion; the late-night talk-show experiment The Sandra Bernhard Experience; and the Michael Davies weekly reality series Ultimate Reality.
?Instead of any off-network product, we can better serve our audience by being an original programming network,? said Allen Sabinson, SVP-programming, A&E. ?And these are three projects targeted to our core 25 to 49 upscale and educated audience.?
Next up is Court TV, with the documentary Ghosts of Attica and the special Shots in the Dark. Other presentations slated for Wednesday include the documentary My Generation from Starz Encore; an overview of TBS from recently appointed chairman and CEO Jamie Kellner; and two original films each from TNT (Monday Night Mayhem and Call Me Claus) and TBS (Dead in a Heartbeat and Invincible).
On Thursday, MTV president of programming Brian Graden will open the morning with programming news from the soon-to-be 20-year-old network, followed by a five-part VH1 documentary series, Say It Loud: Black Music in America; a retrospective look at the ten-year anniversary of Nickelodeon's Rugrats; Pop Up Brady and the off-network addition of Family Ties on Nick at Night; and the 50th-anniversary salute of I Love Lucy on TV Land.
?With Lucy on our line-up we've really come full circle,? said TV Land EVP and general manager Larry W. Jones.
Discovery Networks (Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Travel Channel, Discovery Health Channel) begins the sessions Friday morning, followed by ESPN and HBO (featuring the ten-part miniseries Band of Brothers from executive producer Hanks, Spears in concert, the new comedy series The Mind of the Married Man; and the Andie MacDowell/Dennis Quaid made-for Dinner with Friends).
Saturday, the final day of the cable TCA, will wrap up with The Hallmark Channel, BBC America, E! Entertainment, HGTV/Food Network, Oxygen and the Fox Cable Networks Group (which includes Fox Family Channel, FX and The National Geographic Channel).
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