Upfronts 2004: FOX
Dank FOX wird die Programmplan-Übersicht langsam wirklich zu einem Alptraum. Es gibt nicht nur einen, nein gleich drei unterschiedliche Line-Ups für die nächsten 52 Wochen, die auch durchgehend mit neuem Material gefüllt werden. Fast jeden Monat will FOX neue Serien starten – ironischerweise aber nicht im September, dem Monat, in dem alle anderen Networks ihre Shows starten. Begriffe wie „Midseason“ passen da nicht mehr. Insbesondere der Sonntag-Abend wird in den nächsten 12 Monaten kräftig durchgeschüttelt – „Malcom in the Middle“ wechselt alle drei Monate den Sendeplatz. Dementsprechend muss man dann auch einiges an neuen Serien vorbereiten – die Flut an neuen Shows ist beeindruckend.
Highlights: „Arrested Development“ kommt zurück, trotz schwacher Quoten. „Family Guy“ kommt auch nach mehrjähriger Abstinenz zurück auf den Schirm, dank den sehr guten DVD-Verkaufszahlen. Interessant auch, dass „Tru Calling“ ab Juni die ganzen 12 Monate auf dem neuen Sendeplatz am Donnerstag Abend vorgesehen ist, nur die Simpsons und die „70’s show“ haben auch noch den Vorteil eines so „stabilen“ Slots.
Ich versuche mal alles irgendwie zusammenzufassen:
Monday
8.00 pm: North Shore — ab Januar: Athens
9.00 pm: The Casino — ab November: The Swan — ab Januar: 24
Tuesday
8.00 pm: The Bernie Mac Show — ab November: The Billionaire — ab Januar: American Idol
8.30 pm: Method & Red (Wdh.) — ab November: The Billionaire — ab Januar: American Idol
9.00 pm: The Jury — ab November: The House
Wednesday
8.00 pm: That ’70s Show
8.30 pm: Quintuplets — ab Januar: Related by Family
9.00 pm: The Simple Life 2: Road Trip — ab November: The Bernie Mac Show — ab Januar: American Idol
9.30 pm: Method & Red — ab Januar: The Bernie Mac Show
Thursday
8.00 pm: North Shore (Wdh.) — ab November: The O.C.
9.00 pm: Tru Calling
Friday
8.00 pm: Totally Outrageous Behavior — ab November: The Next Great Champ — ab Januar: The Inside
8.30 pm: World’s Craziest Videos — ab November: The Next Great Champ — ab Januar: The Inside
9.00 pm:The Jury (Wdh.) — ab November: neue Folgen — ab Januar: Johnny Zero
Saturday
8.00 pm: Cops
8.30 pm: Cops
9.00 pm: America’s Most Wanted
11.00 pm: MAD TV
Sunday
7.00 pm: Oliver Beene — ab November: King of the Hill — ab Januar: The Sketch Show
7.30 pm: King of the Hill — ab November: Malcolm in the Middle — ab Januar: King of the Hill
8.00 pm: The Simpsons
8.30 pm: Arrested Development — ab Januar: Malcolm in the Middle
9 pm: Malcolm in the Middle — ab November: The Partner — ab Januar: Arrested Development
10pm: Quintuplets (Wdh.) — ab November: The Partner — ab Januar: American Dad — ab Juni 2005: Family Guy
Eine Auswahl der neuen Serien im erweiterten Eintrag:
Quintuplets
QUINTUPLETS (June 16): The QUINTUPLETS were adorable when they were first born, but now their overtaxed parents – BOB (ANDY RICHTER, „Andy Richter Controls the Universe“) and CAROL (REBECCA CRESKOFF, „Greetings from Tucson“) – have their hands full with five 15-year-olds in the house. PENNY (APRIL MATSON, „American Dreams“) is awkward and unpopular at school, while her beautiful sister PAIGE (SARAH WRIGHT, „Enchanted“) has enough self-esteem for both of them. Their brother PARKER (JAKE McDORMAN, „Run of the House“) has the looks and gets the girls, and he’s embarrassed at every turn by the oddball PEARCE (JOHNNY LEWIS, „Undressed“) and the short, girl-crazy PATTON (RYAN PINKSTON, „Punk’d,“ „Bad Santa“). MARK REISMAN („Frasier“) has created an ensemble comedy about a family pushed to its limits and beyond.
PRODUCTION COMPANY: 20th Century Fox Television and Imagine Television
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: David Nevins, Mark Reisman
WRITER: Mark Reisman
DIRECTOR: Andy Cadiff
CAST: Andy Richter as Bob, Rebecca Creskoff as Carol, April Matson as Penny, Ryan Pinkston as Patton, Johnny Lewis as Pearce, Jake McDorman as Parker, Sarah Wright as Paige
The Jury
THE JURY (June 8 ): Each week, 12 ordinary people will piece together a puzzle and then make the most important decision of someone else’s life. Academy Award-winning director BARRY LEVINSON („Rain Man,“ „The Natural,“ „Diner“), Emmy Award-winning writer TOM FONTANA („Oz,“ „Homicide: Life on the Street“), Peabody Award-winning writer JAMES YOSHIMURA („Homicide: Life on the Street“) and JIM FINNERTY („Oz“) team up on this intense new courtroom drama. Set in New York City, the series brings the viewer into the jury room to watch the deliberators try to answer the many questions posed during a trial. As facts are exposed through flashbacks of testimony and crime footage, viewers will form their own opinions about the guilt or innocence of the defendant. Following each verdict, a final flashback will let viewers see the crime as it actually happened and reveal whether or not the jury made the right decision.
PRODUCTION COMPANY: 20th Century Fox Television
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Tom Fontana, James Yoshimura, Barry Levinson, Jim Finnerty
WRITERS: Tom Fontana, James Yoshimura
DIRECTOR: Barry Levinson
CAST: Billy Burke as John Ranguso, Shalom Harlow as Melissa Greenfield Anna Friel as Megan Delaney,Jeff Hephner, as Keenan O’Brien, Cote de Pablo as Maugerite Cisneros, Adam Busch as Steve Dixon, Barry Levinson as Judge Hawthorne, Patrice Oneal as Adam Walker
North Shore
NORTH SHORE (June 14): NORTH SHORE is a lush drama that captures the passion, intrigue and heart of Hawaii. This 20-something ensemble series is set at the Grand Waimea, a luxury hotel, where JASON MATTHEWS (KRISTOFFER POLAHA, „America’s Prince: The John F. Kennedy Jr. Story“) is the popular general manager and his ex-girlfriend NICOLE (BROOKE BURNS, „Shallow Hal,“ „Dog Eat Dog“) is the newly hired head of guest relations, having left her father’s hotel empire to make her own way in the business – and in life. Working side by side causes much tension between them, but their romantic relationship may be far from over. Surrounding them in paradise is the rest of the hotel staff, who have dramatic lives of their own. NORTH SHORE delves into relationships among the recurring characters, with the added intrigue of stories about the hotel’s affluent and powerful guests.
PRODUCTION COMPANY: 20th Century Fox Television
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Kevin Falls, Peyton Reed, Chris Brancato & Bert Salke
WRITER: Peter Elkoff
DIRECTOR: Michael Dinner
CAST: Kristoffer Polaha as Jason, Brooke Burns as Nicole, James Remar as Vincent, Corey Sevier as Gabriel, Nikki Deloach as MJ, Jason Momoa as Frankie, Jay Kenneth Johnson as Christopher