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« Roush Dispatch
NBC at TCA: Meet the New Guy
The Singing Bee's Joey Fatone with The Honey Bees by Trae Patton/NBC Photo
He dropped names as diverse as Norman Lear, Uri Geller, Isaiah Washington and Jerry Seinfeld. He teased an all-celebrity version of The Apprentice (with a half-joking promise to extend an invitation to Rosie O’Donnell). In describing his vision for NBC's immediate and long-term future, the network’s boyish new co-chair Ben Silverman showed his affinity for both packaging and programming TV in an enthusiastic debut performance in front of the nation’s TV critics on Monday morning.
Though he took the stage alongside the relatively subdued co-chair Marc Graboff, whose expertise is on the business side, this was Silverman’s show all the way, and he wasted no time in announcing some surprising programming deals and a few aggressive scheduling changes, including turning Monday into an all-fantasy night and shifting Friday Night Lights an hour earlier on Fridays, so it’s now cozily hammocked between the strong franchises of a relocated Deal or No Deal and Las Vegas, which he feels will be re-energized with the addition of Tom Selleck to the cast. Both of these moves make sense to me.
“This was what I always wanted to do. I love television, and I have grown up watching television,” says the former agent who evolved from being a master packager of foreign TV formats to executive producer of breakthroughs like The Office and Ugly Betty. “I have had an opportunity to represent incredible creative people and the opportunity to produce wonderful television, and I believe that the place I would have the greatest opportunities to make decisions about television shows and enable creativity and have opportunities to find ideas and bring them to market quickest was going to be at a network.”
How quickly Silverman can move is demonstrated by his embrace of last week’s instant summer hit The Singing Bee, which now has been scheduled to follow a 90-minute version of The Biggest Loser on Tuesdays, forming a two-hour reality block from 8-10 pm/ET. The promising action-comedy Chuck, originally set for Tuesdays, moves to Mondays at 8 pm/ET, leading into last year’s Heroes and the time-traveling Journeyman. That’s an awful lot of high concept for one night, but for those who still believe in the notion of audience flow, why not? Silverman sees it as a “big night” that can be further helped by promotion during Sunday’s football franchise.
As for Friday Night Lights, which many fear may suffer without championing from former programming chief Kevin Reilly, Silverman is hopeful that some Emmy attention later this week, along with its critical acclaim and a few strategic partnerships (possibly with a car and soft-drink company) to help with the bottom line, will ensure the future of a show he describes as “a very efficient show to produce.” (In other words, it’s a lot cheaper to make than Heroes.)
No reason to lose sleep over that one just yet, I suppose, even though some of Silverman’s other programming ideas might give a critic pause. In particular: Phenomenon, a live reality competition fronted by Uri Geller and Criss Angel based on a hit format from Israel that’s described as “an intensive search for the next great mentalist.” Hmmm, I’m getting a vision of myself changing the channel. But that’s just me. And while the prospect of another go-round of The Apprentice sounds like pure desperation, the notion of an all-star edition, involving celebs from sports, entertainment and fashion who’ve set up their own businesses, could inject some juice into the long-fading franchise. Silverman says that Trump personally asked him to extend an invite to his nemesis Rosie O’Donnell, and it may be foolish to hope that wiser heads will prevail. (That Silverman and NBC want to be in business with Rosie in some way is very clear.)
More promising is a deal with legendary producer Norman Lear to supervise production of an hourlong comedy “focused on a mother who reenters the work force and is pitted against her late husband’s ruthless partner in a money-charged battle of the sexes on Wall Street.” Speaking like a true TV devotee, Silverman talked of striking up a friendship with Lear, who “inspired me to go into television,” and listening avidly to Lear’s stories of his battles to get All in the Family on the air.
Among Silverman’s other announcements: the addition of Grey’s Anatomy pariah Isaiah Washington to the first episodes of the new Bionic Woman, a smart publicity stunt to be sure; and getting Jerry Seinfeld (who already had a deal to produce “minisodes” for NBC to promote his Bee Movie feature) to appear as himself in the season premiere of the ratings-challenged 30 Rock.
All in all, an impressive first bow to announce that Ben Silverman is going to have quite an impact on the Peacock network at an especially challenging time for the network.
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Jul 16, 2007 3:24 PM
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Great news Matt - and I have to say that I like the placement of Friday Night Lights. Being on Fridays will lower the expectations but with a lead-in of the successful Deal Or No Deal it should give it a chance to improve in the ratings. I also like how the show is described as being efficient and I would welcome some creative product placement if it would allow Friday Night Lights to remain on the air for a second or even third season.
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Jul 16, 2007 4:24 PM
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I can't wait for 30 rock to come back. I really do love that show. And I love the reruns as much as I loved them the first time, maybe even more, since I catch more stuff the second time around.
I am really bummed about IW joining Bionic Woman, hopefully it's ONLY for the announced 5 episodes and then he'll be gone.
I'm confused though, wouldn't they have already shot some of the first episodes? Are they going to have to reshoot them?
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Jul 16, 2007 6:50 PM
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This is very encouraging to me. I am starting to have more faith in NBC.
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Jul 16, 2007 11:01 PM
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I am from Germany and was so lucky to watch the 1rst Season of FRIDAY NIGHT LIGTHS. I now know that this is one of the best TV shows ever produced in the US ... and we Germans are not really into footbal. So wake up America and support it by watching this brilliant written, dirrected and played show!
Friederike
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Jul 17, 2007 3:39 AM
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I love FNL and hope this move will encourage more viewer audience but I do NOT like IW coming to Bionic Woman and will probably not even give this show a chance.
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Jul 17, 2007 12:17 PM
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I was looking forward to checking out The Bionic Woman but absolutely refuse to watch anything that Isaiah Washington is associated with after his "gay remarks turned racial" ridiculousness - I don't care how good it may or may not be! Go FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS - love, love, love this show!!
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Jul 17, 2007 4:42 PM
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If Friday Night Lights continues to get the support and backing it so richly deserves, I might even tune in to Isaiah Washington on "Bionic Woman" just to show my gratitude to Mr. Silverman. (Though maybe I'll be better off supporting "Chuck" or even the Washington-free "Apprentice." In any case, I'm so happy FNL is gettin' some lovin'!
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Jul 17, 2007 7:45 PM
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