Jump to content

The Pilot Thread


Paul Raven

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 72
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • 1 month later...
  • Members

Death and Taxes, intended for NBC in 1993. Starring Teri Garr and Craig Bierko, with a supporting cast including Cynthia Harris, Iqbal Theba, Patrick Warbuton, and Dakin Matthews and guest star Wallace Shawn. Watch it on YouTube for co-creator Darrell Vickers' candid commentary.

ETA: Are Teri and Craig in the living room from Family Matters?

Please register in order to view this content

 

And, courtesy of Variety, a rundown of NBC's 1993 pilots slate.

https://variety.com/1993/tv/news/nbc-seeks-young-and-the-rest-105297/

Edited by Franko
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Thanks. Never heard of this or seen it. Teri had some bad breaks on TV. 

Patrick really was all over TV in these years. A very unique presence.

They also have a pilot up for the attempt at revamping It Had To Be You, and a blog post about their struggles.

Please register in order to view this content

FAYE DUNAWAY (PART NINE) | Nicholls and Vickers

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

@Franko I forgot they helped Lois & Clark run aground. They later wrote for Supernatural, and fans always derided their episodes. An infamous one had poor Mishael Morgan as a dog on a leash, and while in human form, was the servant/sex partner of a white warlock (played by ever-handsome Christian Campbell).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Faye Dunaway in a sitcom.  It's a memory I'll never be able to repress.

They also co-created and show-ran "Scarecrow & Mrs. King" before Kate Jackson - another "difficult" actor - forced them out after the first 10 episodes.

Fun fact: Eugenie Ross-Leming, a Second City veteran, was in the "Park Moms" scene in the movie "Baby Boom" with Diane Keaton, Dori Brenner and Jane Elliot (yes, THAT Jane Elliot).  Ross-Leming is the brunette who's kvetching with the other Upper East Side NYC moms about making sure their toddlers get into the right pre-schools that will set them up for life.

"Death & Taxes" sounds like a show about a tax auditor who also runs a funeral parlor.

You're probably not wrong.  The last season of DW was pretty [!@#$%^&*] awful.

Edited by Khan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I'd have to agree with "the suits": Twiggy, whom Faye Dunaway replaced, can't carry a series.  Moreover, Terence Knox, who was cast as the male lead before Robert Urich, is too just intense to be on a sitcom.  Anyone who watched "All is Forgiven," as I did (for Bess Armstrong), could tell you that, lol.

John Steven Owen (RIP) was onto something when he created IHTBY as a Tracy/Hepburn-style romance for the '90's.  (Remember, IHTBY premiered the same season as "Frasier," when intelligent, witty, character-driven comedy still had a place on network TV.)  In order for Tracy/Hepburn-like romances to work, however, I think the couple has to have something in common, or something that keeps them in each other's orbit, or else it makes no sense for them to still be together after a certain point.

For example, Sam and Diane had Cheers.  David and Maddie ("Moonlighting") had the Blue Moon Detective Agency. Tony was Angela's live-in housekeeper on "Who's the Boss?".  Even George and Katherine had little Webster!  But what did Mitch Quinn have in common with Laura Scofield beyond renovating her office or whatever?  And is THAT going to be the engine that keeps the series going long enough to go into syndication?

Then, you add in the fact that Mitch was a widower with not one, not two, but THREE kids (and all boys).  Sure, you could argue that a lot of humor could be gotten from someone like Laura, who's never been around kids, now having to adjust to being with a man with kids literally crawling over him, but THREE KIDS??  That's veering into Miller/Boyett territory; and that's also blending two styles of television comedy - specifically, romantic comedy and domestic/family comedy - that target different audiences with different sensibilities.  When you do THAT, you're creating an identity crisis for your show, because just who exactly are we writing and producing this show FOR?  ("Who's the Boss?" suffered from the same problem, IMO.  Angela had the baggage of being a single mom when Tony as the single parent would have sufficed).

At best, Mitch could've had just ONE kid, and maybe an older father figure in his household - his own father, or maybe his father-in-law - to serve as his sounding board as he navigates his relationship with Laura.  Again, that doesn't really solve the series' central problem - what business do a book editor and a carpenter have being with each other? - but it does help to focus more on the rom-com aspects and, God willing, keep the second-act hug-and-learns with the overly precocious kids at bay.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.



  • Recent Posts

    • Please register in order to view this content

       
    • Haha that scarf thing did go on a bit too long, very odd. And what a young Rick!  I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I just never got the physical appeal of Grant Aleksander, but he's definitely a great actor. Who is the older lady around the 8:30 mark, and also ends the episode, alone and in pain? She seems like a really interesting character. I love the smoky voice and sultry, snaky vibe she seems to have.
    • I can't remember exactly but I think she lives in or is part of the cottage story with Carrie. Carrie poisons her in this episode.  I forgot Teresa was on the show. (I see that AI is insisting she wasn't - well they're wrong) Poor Maeve. I can how even she had her limits. 
    • It pisses me off that the other Duprees are making this incident all about them as well. They are playing a family of victims, acting as if Ted cheated on all of them. They should be supportive, but not like this. I have a family that makes anything that happens to me personally all about them, and seeing the same thing on TV is rage-inducing.
    • There are the makings of good Emmy reels in these past couple of episodes, but the industry is still going to favor even the most mediocre stories and performances on the older soaps. And with the pressure from the government over race I can see the academy shutting out Beyond The Gates to avoid criticism from the administration and the far right media.
    • oh, definitely! It's too bad she hit the start of a rough transition period for the show. She shines, but she's stuck with bad story and some (if not exactly bad) not great co-stars.  Uh, who did Maureen O'Sullivan play? (Sigh--and only if I'd understood exactly who and how wonderful Teresa Wright was in '86) God, the summer of '84 was literally one event after another. Kim's outfit alone must've been worth a small fortune. And poor Maeve. She looks so uncomfortable. Rebecca Hollen told a story on Locher Room where Maeve dropped the f-bomb during the shooting of it. For some reason, she wasn't being listened to, and had just had enough. As a producer, I would've been holding my breath as my pregnant actress kept walking around strange and undoubtably uneven sets in that long skirt.
    • Thanks. I'm glad we have some fan memories of these years as this is such a typically snide take on the genre. It's also poorly written and reminds me a great deal of the tedious "snark" recaps that became popular in the '90s. The end in particular. The 1979/80 stuff I have seen is much more polished than a number of soaps at the time. It was very easy to watch and not too bogged down in past story.  Margo is played by Ann Williams, who was on what seemed like every soap. I think she said Margo was her favorite role.  These episodes aren't consecutive, but if you ever have time, they are worth a watch. They are bits and pieces from January and April of 1979 - April in and out of prison, her past calling to her via her psychic powers (and the suicide of Miles' wife Denise, who had murder framing in mind). April 1979 has the end of Winter Austen (such a fantastic soap name).  I don't want to drop a ton of links but you can find playlists on Youtube.
    • And the rating 'wars' continue...hehe.
    • Well, it was fun while it lasted for Rebecca Herbst. Le sigh.    
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy