Wednesday, June 18, 2003
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Wednesday, June 18, 2003 |
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More Mike on T.V. By MICHAEL BOYLAN Every now and then I discuss the world of television in this column and since there are a few programs and television-related issues I would like to weigh in on, here we go: Spike TV was set to launch Monday but it is being held up by the handlers of the Spike Jones estate. Jones was best known to Americans in the first part of the 20th century for his "Silly Songbook" and work with his band of musicians and comedians known as "The City Slickers." Their most popular hit was "Yes, We have No Bananas" though other songs tickled the country's funny bones with their blend of zany sound effects in music. Marvin Leeraby, executor of the Jones estate, feels that this new television network is trying to cash in on his deceased client's notoriety and would only confuse viewers, many of whom are already befuddled enough. "People are going to see Spike TV and think that they will see performances of Spike Jones and The City Slickers,' said Leeraby. "What are they going to find instead, some cartoon crap called Ren and Stinky. Spike's probably rolling in his grave and using that clicker thing that makes it sound like your neck is twisting." Spike TV is to be an all-male network, almost like the Lifetime Network but without movies about mothers becoming women of the night, mothers taking to the streets to find their daughters who have become escorts or former call girls who go back to school, run for political office, have their past dragged out during a campaign and still win the hearts and votes of the public. The case is expected to be resolved in Spike TV's favor very soon but Leeraby and the Spike Jones estate plan on boycotting the channel and urge fans of satirical music to do the same. In other TV news, Fox apparently has sunk to even new lows, with the shows "Anything for Love" and "Outrageous Celebrity Look-Alike Behavior Caught on Tape," or what I have taken to calling "Lawsuits Waiting to Happen." "Anything For Love" lets people divulge their crushes, reunite with ex-lovers, propose to their lovers (or former lovers), go out on blind dates or just display their love and affection for someone. One woman takes out an ad on a bus and greets her former boyfriend on the street. The ad reads, "Marry Me Instead of Her," and the woman begs to be taken back, while the man expresses no interest and desperately wants to get out of there. One gets the feeling that this show will eventually lead to "Domestic Disturbances Caught on Tape." "Outrageous Celebrity Look-Alike Behavior Caught on Tape" features people dressed up to look like celebrities such as Mike Tyson, Tiger Woods, Ozzy Osbourne, Madonna and Anna Nicole Smith. It isn't enough that we have a waste of oxygen like Anna Nicole Smith clogging (and I do mean clogging) the airwaves, but now there's a celebrity impersonator making a buck off of looking like her. Anyway, the show has these impersonators acting like jerks. For instance, the Tiger Woods look-alike freaks out and throws golf clubs around before a crowd in public. I'm sure Tiger will love it. It is a really good plan to dress people up like millionaires and billionaires, act like morons and wait to get sued by these people who have the income and the staffs to get what they want. What really disturbs me about these shows is that Fox has (or had) at least three good shows that they could be offering up to the public and trying to find an audience. "Futurama" has found lots of fans, many of whom have been purchasing the show on DVD, and though Fox is running the show sometimes on Sunday nights, they rarely advertise and let anybody know about it. "Andy Richter Controls The Universe" was hilarious, as was "The Pitts," but if viewers didn't watch in the first four weeks, it was gone. I wonder what would have happened if the network had taken the same stance during the first season of "The X-Files". Unfortunately, shows like "Anything For Love" and "Stupid Behavior Caught on Tape" find an audience and cost little to make, so we're stuck with it. I, however, will join Mr. Leeraby and the executors of the Spike Jones estate, trying to get performances from the Silly Songbook back on the air.
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