Five & Dime Productions
Quite a few new series premiered this week over the last four decades, with three of them adapted from popular motion pictures … two of which never attained the classic status of those films with both series airing just five episodes (even though one of them filmed six). A third ended after one season, but was revived four years later and lasted three more seasons. One series was born out of a highly rated TV mini-series but failed to live up to its popularity. 2003 saw the Rugrats grow up, gave us a completely re-tooled Japanese game show, and produced a series many consider a precursor to Empire … and was almost titled Empire. 2013 gave us 14 new series, with eight of them lasting more than one season, and nine of them being reality series. There was also one game show, a talk show, a fictionalized account of a historical figure, and a sci-fi series. Want to know more? Read on and tell us if any of your favorites are celebrating anniversaries this week!
1953
- No new series debuted this week in 1953.
1963
- No new series debuted this week in 1963.
1973
- No new series debuted this week in 1973.
1983
- April 10 – Casablanca (NBC, One season, 5 episodes)
- April 15 – Bare Essence (NBC, One season, 11 episodes)
- April 15 – The Paper Chase (Showtime, Three seasons, 37 episodes)
Casablanca was pulled from NBC’s schedule after the third episode, with the final two episodes not broadcast until August 27 and September 3. Even though the character of Major Strasser is killed in the classic 1942 feature film, the character is very much alive in the TV series.
Bare Essence originated as a four-hour mini-series on CBS in 1982, and was based on the novel of the same name by Meredith Rich. Despite excellent ratings, CBS passed on picking up the series. By the time it went into production for NBC, Genie Francis, Susan French, Jonathan Frakes and John Dehner were the only original cast members to return. Unfortunately, the series was not as well-received as the mini-series and was cancelled with unresolved cliffhangers. NBC even kept the series off the schedule for the important May sweeps period, not airing the final two episodes until June 13, 1983.
The Paper Chase was based on the novel of the same name and its 1973 film adaptation. John Houseman reprised his film role for the TV series. Showtime’s three seasons actually consisted of the series second-fourth seasons. CBS aired a single 22-episode season during the 1978-1979 season. Houseman, James Stephens, Tom Fitzsimmons, James Keane and Betty Harford are the only cast members to appear in all four seasons.
1993
Parkway Productions
- April 10 – A League of Their Own (CBS, One season, 6 episodes, 1 unaired)
A League of Their Own was based on the 1992 film of the same name, with Megan Cavanagh, Tracy Reiner, Garry Marshall, and Freddie Simpson reprising their roles for the series.
2003
American Zoetrope
- April 12 – All Grown Up! (Nickelodeon, Five seasons, 55 episodes)
- April 13 – MXC (Spike, Five seasons, 81 episodes)
- April 14 – Platinum (UPN, One season, 6 episodes)
All Grown Up! is a sequel to the animated series Rugrats. The idea for the series originated in ‘All Growed Up’, a television special which aired in 2001 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Rugrats and portrayed the original characters 10 years into the future.
Most Extreme Elimination Challenge (or MXC) re-purposed and re-edited footage from the Japanese game show Takeshi’s Castle, which originally aired in Japan from 1986 to 1990, creating a completely new premise, storyline, and characters.
Platinum was co-created by Sofia Coppola, and her father Francis Ford Coppola was an executive producer. Before being picked up by UPN, the series struggled to find a network for three years with deals at HBO and Fox falling through. The show’s original title was Empire, but the producers could not secure the rights to the name. Sofia left the showrunning duties to John Ridley after she left to make the film Lost in Translation. Despite the critical praise, low ratings and high production costs doomed the show to a single season.
2013
Phantom Four Films
- April 9 – The Kandi Factory (Bravo, One season, 8 episodes)
- April 9 – Ready For Love (NBC, One season, 9 episodes)
- April 9 – Find Me My Man (Oxygen, One season, 8 episodes)
- April 10 – Deep South Paranormal (Syfy, One season, 6 episodes)
- April 11 – The Moment (USA Network, One season, 9 episodes)
- April 12 – Da Vinci’s Demons (Starz, Three seasons, 28 episodes)
- April 13 – Life with La Toya (OWN, Two seasons, 23 episodes)
- April 13 – Bet on Your Baby (ABC, Two seasons, 16 episodes)
- April 14 – Fashion Queens (Bravo, Three seasons, 66 episodes)
- April 14 – Naked Castaway (Discovery, Three seasons, 19 episodes)
- April 14 – Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown (CNN, Twelve seasons, 104 episodes)
- April 15 – Defiance (Syfy, Three seasons, 38 episodes)
- April 15 – Burger Land (Travel Channel, One season, 11 episodes, 2 specials)
- April 15 – Henry Hugglemonster (Disney Junior, Two seasons, 49 episodes)
The Kandi Factory, the second Real Housewives of Atlanta spin-off, began as a one-time only special but viewer interest pushed Bravo to commission a full season.
Despite following The Voice on Tuesdays, Ready for Love (which was originally to serve as a lead-in for The Apprentice on Sundays, was pulled from NBC’s schedule after the third episode. The remaining six episodes were released weekly on NBC’s website and On Demand service, Hulu, and iTunes and Amazon for purchase. Casting for a second season of The Moment took place before the series debuted, but a decline in viewership episode-to-episode caused USA Network to move the series to Fridays at 11:00 PM, which led to its cancellation.
Though Starz cancelled Da Vinci’s Demons after its third season, creator David S. Goyer has stated the door is always open for a mini-series return. The show was the first collaboration between Starz and BBC Worldwide. A scene in episode five depicting a kiss between Leonardo and Jacopo Saltarelli was filmed in secret as Goyer feared network interference. The series won two of its three first season Emmy nominations for Main Title Design and Main Title Theme Music, but lost Visual Effects to Banshee.
Fashion Queens officially premiered as a series on April 14, 2013, but had started with a three-week trial run that began on March 17. Naked Castaway originally premiered in the UK on March 10, 2013 with the title Ed Stafford: Naked and Marooned. Apparently Stafford was only naked for the first season. Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown won twelve Primetime Emmy Awards out of 31 nominations, as well as a 2013 Peabody Award. Sadly, Bourdain committed suicide in France while in production on the 12th season on June 8, 2018. Only the first episode had been fully completed and aired on September 23, 2018. The next four episodes were completed with interviews with guests on the episodes and additional footage and aired consecutive weeks beginning September 30. The last two episodes that had been filmed served as retrospectives on the show’s production and tributes to Bourdain’s life. The episode he was filming in France with Éric Ripert was never completed or aired.
Defiance was produced in connection with a videogame, and when the series was cancelled after the third season, the game was updated to serve as a fourth season. Burger Land originally aired as a two-episode special on September 2, 2012. Henry Hugglemonster is based on the 2005 book I’m a Happy Hugglewug written and illustrated by Niamh Sharkey.
Share this post
