'Roswell' That Ends Well?
Want to persuade a network to renew a show? Try condiments.
Rabid fans of Roswell have barraged The WB with bottles of
Tabasco sauce (the series' alien kids can't get enough of the
stuff) in an attempt to keep the freshman alive. A save-the-show
campaign (via e-mail) has also been launched for Felicity. Both
shows could use the help: After a rosy start, Roswell faltered
because producers couldn't decide whether it was a love story or
science fiction; and after a bang-up first season, Felicity lost
viewers when it moved to Sunday nights. So they'll remain on the
renewal bubble, unless they show promise in their new time slots
(Roswell moved to 9 p.m. Mondays and Felicity to 9 p.m.
Wednesdays). ''The shows are in question because of ratings,''
admits exec VP of programming Jordan Levin. ''We want to bring
them back. But we also want to make a case to advertisers that
these shows are growing, not declining.'' Perhaps fans should
forgo Tabasco for a little Miracle-Gro.
Female Troubles
The decision by ABC TV Network prez Pat Fili-Krushel to resign
and join an Internet company does more than just open up another
executive slot at the Alphabet — it further decimates the ranks
of high-level women in TV. CBS Entertainment prez Nancy Tellem
now stands as the most powerful woman in broadcast TV, followed
by Susanne Daniels, entertainment prez at The WB, but their
responsibilities don't compare with Fili-Krushel's, whose turf
included daytime, prime time, news, sports, marketing, and
affiliates. Just a few years back, the TV landscape was more
estrogen heavy: Lucie Salhany reigned as CEO of UPN, Kay
Koplovitz founded and chaired USA Networks, Margaret Loesch was
the vice chair at Fox Kids Worldwide, and Jamie Tarses was ABC's
entertainment president. All preceded Fili-Krushel in leaving
their posts, yet none were replaced by women. But Tellem expects
it to get more crowded at the top shortly: ''With all of the
changes in the industry, the chances are much greater that we'll
see women in those ranks,'' she says. We'll see.
On the Ball
Though American Beauty's Alan Ball called his Oscar win a
''karmic payback for four hellish years in television'' (he used
to write for Cybill), the scribe isn't done with TV just yet.
He's penning an HBO series about a family that runs a funeral
home. ''It's dark, funny, and similar in tone to American
Beauty,'' says Ball, who plans to direct the pilot. ''The one note
I got from HBO was, 'Could it be more f---ed up?' I thought,
thank you, God.''
(Additional reporting by Jessica Shaw)
And So On...
E! True Hollywood Story is prepping a July 9
episode on the Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? fiasco.
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