Members leevo64 Posted March 12, 2009 Members Share Posted March 12, 2009 Gilmore Girls DOES have a bit of soapiness to it, but ABC Family's had it for years. I am interested in "Julia's Tango" and "Santa Monica." SoapNet's attempt at actual soap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Y&RWorldTurner Posted March 12, 2009 Members Share Posted March 12, 2009 Other than the first season of Night Shift, has any original SoapNet show ever been successful? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rhiannon Posted March 12, 2009 Members Share Posted March 12, 2009 Why do they call the stuff they import from Canada "Original Programming"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MarkH Posted March 12, 2009 Members Share Posted March 12, 2009 Me too. I never saw One Tree Hill or the OC before. And I find myself (shockingly, at my age and gender) especially liking OTH. Bingo. The programming on Soapnet changed NOT out of "malfeasance", but out a need to make money on the right demos. Ah, original scripted SERIAL programming on any network these days is a miracle. I hope these are great. I hope one of these is a "game changer", like Mad Men or Breaking Bad was for AMC. AMC, by the way, is one of many networks (like TVLand) that hand to break out of the old-people-nostalgia market TO SURVIVE. Nostalgia makes some of us feel good, but it does not pay the bills. Hallmark is bucking the trend. As a niche "old person's channel" (actually, "old woman's channel"), I wonder if the $$ will add up. Reading between the lines, I'm guessing Y&R Saturday Night marathons are DEAD. Dead, don't you think? Frons is saying the marathons do not perform. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members All My Shadows Posted March 12, 2009 Members Share Posted March 12, 2009 They've been in their current style for several years, and they're constantly pushing out original movies (with somewhat "big" names attached to most of them), so I don't think they're hurting for money. They are indeed Hallmark Channel, so I'm sure they're well taken care of. They tried to bring in some different type of programming with "Cheers" and "I Love Lucy" this year, but they both failed miserably and were buried in late night slots after maybe a week or two each. Golden Girls, on the other hand, has been a big hit, and it's actually taken over some of Cheers and Lucy's airings. GG fits perfectly on Hallmark...really, really, really, really, really well. If Lifetime hadn't held on to it so long, I'm sure they would have picked it up years ago. I don't know WTF they were thinking "Cheers." That fits on Hallmark as much as "Falcon Crest" would fit on MTV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members koos Posted March 12, 2009 Members Share Posted March 12, 2009 It continually sickens me how cable TV has mutated into something horrible and worthless. I can't name even one basic cable network that hasn't sold out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MarkH Posted March 12, 2009 Members Share Posted March 12, 2009 Yeah, but that's not CABLE'S fault. The many networks have become what viewers want to see -- at least in terms of trackable eyeballs in niche demographics. Cable has actually BROKEN the tyranny of the 18-49 woman. Cable is the one place where networks can program for very specific kinds of audiences (e.g., ESPN, BET, GSN, VS, etc.). What you see, then, is a reflection of what these different niches are most likely to tune into. The trick, I think, is to find the niche channel that pleases YOU. For some of us, there aren't so many of those out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JackPeyton Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 A lot of networks do this when they air the shows in America. The only example i can think of off the top of my head is The-N/teeNICK with shows like Degrassi and Instant Star. But i know there are more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bellcurve Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 Very few cable networks have any diversity anymore. And the cable channels aren't about uplifting the niche market they are targeting. I think it's funny that you mention that BET is a network for a specific kind of audience. Because it is...but it's not the kind of audience I would want to meet. Nor is it a network someone should be proud to say they watch, because it "reflects" them. God, if BET reflects the black community, then God help my people. If you would have said TVOne, maybe I could have gotten on that bandwagon. But very little on cable is niche. It's all about the demos, the money, and selling out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MarkH Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 I just discovered TVOne...not so bad. What do you (and koos) mean by "selling out"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rhiannon Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 That makes sense I guess. I love it that TVOne shows old episodes of Divorce Court with Judge Mablean..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members All My Shadows Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 Anytime a cable net claims to be the "network for...*insert race, gender, age*" I cringe. There will always be people in the group who don't watch the channel and there will be people who aren't in the group that do. We never acknowledged that Lifetime was "television for women" in our house. We all watched it if they had a good movie or show on. TVOne is beyond awesome! Everything's uncut and in the highest possible quality, visual-wise. The Jeffersons and Sanford & Son look brand new on there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vee Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 They make us pay extra for TVOne (and TCM, and G4, and SoapNet...) here in NYC and I can't have that. It kills me. I miss Roc. And TCM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bellcurve Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 I mean, a network that is very genre specific intentionally switching gears to appeal to a wider audience. i.e. -MTV, which once only played music videos, is now a wasteland for reality television. -VH1 Classic, which used to show an eclectic range of classic music videos from 60's, 70's, 80's and early 90's is now a Classic Rock station and VH1 reality show rerun station. -GSN went to an almost all-poker and casino game format, until it failed miserably. -TVLand, which used to be a network devoted to classic television shows, is now a dumping ground for original reality shows and at one time, Baywatch. -AMC, which used to feature classic movies, all day, now will sometimes feature more recent movies and even has an original television show on it's schedule(a critically acclaimed show, yes, but a television show nonetheless). -SOAPnet, which used to be geared towards soaps and soapy content, now focuses its attention on reality and programming that isn't soapy(i.e. Being Erica, Fashionista Diaries, Belles, etc.). I hope that answered your question. I know we've veered off-topic, but I just want to say that I saw an episode of Roc posted on YouTube(the 1992 Election Episode). Despite the actors minor flubs of the lines(which is understandable, considering each weekly show in Season 2 was live), Roc is probably one of the greatest, underrated sitcoms ever. I know it's hard to say that based on watching only one episode, but I just thought the show was terrific. I'll have to watch more at some point. That show and Herman's Head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members All My Shadows Posted March 13, 2009 Members Share Posted March 13, 2009 Baywatch was just for a weekend marathon a couple of years ago, and IMO, that wasn't too much of a bad thing. The show's coming up on its 20th anniversary, so I think it has a place on some rerun-based channel (WGN, perhaps? Pleeeease? I miss my Mitch/CJ/Matt/Stephanie/Summerho), but definitely not TVLand. But then again, TVLand does occasional marathons of "CSI" and its spin-offs now, and "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" is one of their regular shows. Ugh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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