FOX Re-Works Midseason Schedule

Fox has tweaked its strike-affected midseason schedule, giving two troubled series, "New Amsterdam" and "The Return of Jezebel James," coveted previews behind ratings juggernaut "American Idol," which returns January 15.

Fox was the first network to rejigger its midseason lineup on November 7, the third day of the Hollywood writers strike, and has made the most dramatic strike-related scheduling move, keeping the incomplete season of "24" on the shelf until next season. Now that the work stoppage is shaping up to be a long one, Fox executives have taken another look at their lineup.

"As we have new information on our needs, we thought it was time to adjust the schedule," said scheduling chief Preston Beckman. "We want to make sure we give all new shows every opportunity to find an audience because we may need them."

The March 10 launch for the supernatural detective drama "New Amsterdam" will follow two previews after "Idol" Tuesday, March 4 and Thursday, March 6. The Parker Posey comedy "Jezebel James" will get sampling after "Idol" on Wednesday, March 12, two days ahead of its premiere. ("Idol" will expand to three nights a week for three weeks, beginning February 21.)

The strike has boosted both shows' chances, since fresh episodes of any shows are in strong demand. In October, Fox shut down production on "New Amsterdam" with seven episodes in the can, and cut the order on "Jezebel James" to 7 from 13.

"New Amsterdam" stars Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as a New York City homicide detective who happens to be immortal, while "Jezebel James" stars Posey as a successful book editor who learns that she is unable to conceive.

Fox Business Channel takes on CNBC

Rupert Murdoch's Fox Business Network made its debut at 5 a.m. EDT on Monday, aiming to expand the audience for business news beyond Wall Street viewers and take on incumbent cable business news leader CNBC.

Big-name guests on the new network's first day include U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, in a taped interview, and British entrepreneur Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group.

FBN wasted no time tweaking the competition. In a dimly lit street across from CNBC's headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, Fox Business stocks editor Elizabeth MacDonald delivered morning business news updates.

"Who would've thought anyone could cover the stock markets out there -- but here we go," MacDonald quipped. "It's hunting season, and we hear that peacocks are in season."

A multicolored peacock is the corporate logo for CNBC and parent NBC Universal.

Some two years in the making, News Corp's Fox Business Network will air to a little over 30 million homes in the United States, or under a third of CNBC's reach, from studios at its New York headquarters.

Murdoch said he is considering launching versions in other countries and plans to invest $300 million over the next three years, by which time he hopes FBN will have beat CNBC in ratings, according to a Fortune report on Monday.

Playing David to the industry Goliath is a familiar role for Fox News President Roger Ailes, who oversees Fox Business.

Ailes ran CNBC until he was poached by Murdoch to launch Fox News in 1996. A staple of brash and opinionated talk shows made Fox News entertaining and helped it beat Time Warner Inc's CNN in ratings ever since its fourth year.

FBN kicked off its first programming day with "Fox Business Morning," hosted by former Forbes.com reporter Jenna Lee and ex-Bloomberg anchor Nicole Petallides.

They moderated discussions on fast-food chain stocks, such as McDonald's, interspersed with weather and sports updates.

Ahead of the launch, Fox Business said little about its lineup, citing competitive concerns. Just one day after CNBC announced a new segment on its "Fast Money" show that will take place inside a bar, Fox Business said it has been developing a show since July called "Happy Hour," which will also take place inside a bar. The news leaked after it began rehearsals.

What Fox Business has said is that it will seek to demystify Wall Street, helping regular viewers connect global business trends to ordinary people's lives.

"A lot of people who don't have a lot of money (will) appreciate the fact that we're not speaking over their heads," Neil Cavuto, the network's managing editor, told Reuters recently. "That's a way of ensuring going beyond the typical Wall Street crowd."

The network will have its own equities index, the FOX50, which includes large-cap stocks with a heavy consumer interest such as AT&T Inc, FedEx Corp, Johnson & Johnson and Microsoft Corp.

The launch is part of Murdoch's plan to dominate global business news coverage on air and in print, and follows News Corp's $5 billion deal to buy Dow Jones & Co Inc, publisher of The Wall Street Journal.

Even before the deal's anticipated closing in the next few weeks, Fox Business executives are already drawing comparisons.

"It's pretty analogous to The Wall Street Journal," Cavuto said, describing how business world developments will be connected to general news. "There's a column there for the latest business developments and there's a column for the latest news developments and they live fairly harmoniously together."

FBN reporters were heard saying on-air, "The Wall Street Journal tells Fox Business," when referring to stories they picked up from the paper.

What the channel won't have at launch is actual Wall Street Journal business reporters. A 15-year agreement between General Electric Co's CNBC and Dow Jones prevents Journal business reporters from appearing on Fox Business until the contract ends in 2012.

FOX Got J.J. Abrams' New Sci-fi Show 'Fringe'

FOX has given a series commitment to "Fringe," based on a sci-fi spec script by J.J. Abrams and regular collaborators Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci.

According to the industry trade papers, "Fringe" will now shoot a two-hour pilot budgeted in the $10-million range, a rather massive outlay putting it in the same neighborhood as the two-hour pilot for Abrams' "Lost."

The script was developed in the midst of pre-production on the Paramount reboot of the "Star Trek" franchise, which Abrams will direct from a script by Orci and Kurtzman. "Fringe" went out to networks early this week and FOX made a quick bid, which is also expected to include an episode license fee of around $2 million.

The show's main character is a young, female FBI agent (The Hollywood Reporter raises the possibility of Abrams' "Felicity" star Keri Russell as potential casting) who has to work with a brilliant research scientist and his estranged son as she explores unexplained phenomena.

The trade papers reference the quirky FOX landmark "The X-Files," early David Cronenberg films and Paddy Chayefsky's "Altered States" as major influences.

Abrams' Bad Robot shingle will produce through its deal with Warner Bros. TV. While Abrams and Bad Robot's recent offerings have included "Six Degrees" and "What About Brian," this would be his first pilot-writing credit since "Lost."

It was just announced yesterday that the Bad Robot script "Boundaries," from Jill Soloway, had received a put pilot commitment at ABC. Bad Robot is also developing a medical drama at HBO, with Abrams executive producing and possibly directing.

FBI help Fox on the case with drama series

The FBI is helping to develop a drama series about the crime-fighting agency, the first time it has cooperated on a new TV project in more than 40 years.

Tentatively titled "The FBI," the Fox series centers on an Iraq War vet who is appointed as the new head of the FBI's Critical Incidents Response Group -- a division involved in a range of cases, including kidnappings, hostage negotiations, hostage rescue and evidence collection.

"The FBI is one of those arenas that has been developed many times, but it hasn't been cracked in decades," said Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly.

It is the first TV series done with the agency's cooperation since the Efrem Zimbalist Jr.-starring drama "The F.B.I.," which ran on ABC from 1965-74.

The FBI, which has dramatically evolved since then, expanding into new areas such as terrorism and cyber crime, began looking for a primetime vehicle to reflect its new realities two years ago.

"We were looking to find someone that would do an FBI show based on real events, cases and characters that looked a little bit more like the real FBI than the shows that are on now, because reality is a lot more interesting than fiction," said John Miller, assistant director public affairs at the FBI and former ABC newsman.

There are several FBI-themed series on the air now, including CBS pair "Criminal Minds" and "Without a Trace" and Fox's "Bones."

The agency had been approached to get involved in TV projects before but always late in the development process.

"We sought to reverse-engineer the process -- to start with what the FBI really does as opposed to people coming up with an interesting television show and hammering us into it," Miller said.

He met with a number of producers until hitting it off with Imagine Television principal Brian Grazer, whose company is already partnered with Fox on the CIA drama "24." It became a pet project for Grazer, who personally pitched it to Reilly.

Unlike "24," "FBI" will not be serialized, Grazer said. "It will be strongly character driven, and the procedural part of it will be secondary to the characters," he said. "While '24' is heightened reality, this would be realistic series that would have the intensity and realism of a Ridley Scott movie."

Fox Announces Fall Premiere Dates

Fox’s 2007-08 fall season premiere dates:


Thursday, Aug. 30

Saturday, Sept. 8

8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT COPS

9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT AMERICA’S MOST WANTED: AMERICA


Thursday, Sept. 13

9:00-10:00 PM KITCHEN NIGHTMARES (New Series)


Friday, Sept. 14

9:00-10:00 PM NASHVILLE (New Series)


Saturday, Sept. 15

11:00 PM-Midnight MADtv

Midnight-12:30 AM TALKSHOW WITH SPIKE FERESTEN


Monday, Sept. 17

8:00-9:00 PM PRISON BREAK

9:00-10:00 PM K-VILLE (New Series)



Wednesday, Sept. 19

8:00-8:30 PM BACK TO YOU (New Series)

8:30-9:00 PM ’TIL DEATH

9:00-10:00 PM BONES



Sunday, Sept. 23

8:00-8:30 PM THE SIMPSONS

8:30-9:00 PM KING OF THE HILL

9:00-10:00 PM FAMILY GUY


Tuesday, Sept. 25

8:00-9:00 PM NEW AMSTERDAM (New Series)

9:00-10:00 PM HOUSE



Sunday, Sept. 30

9:00-9:30 PM FAMILY GUY (New Time Period)

9:30-10:00 PM AMERICAN DAD

Is '24' running out of time?

JACK BAUER, America's favorite counter-terrorism agent with the violent code of honor and the weird sadomasochistic bent, is squaring off against a stealthy and unforgiving new enemy.

His fans.

After peaking in the ratings last year, Fox's thriller "24" has been getting dumped on by seemingly everyone in this, its sixth season. Critics and fans alike are aiming tomatoes at the stage, carping about the soapy and repetitive plotlines that unspool Jack's unlikely familial past, tiresome romantic triangles in the security bureaucracy and endless bickering among Oval Office advisors.

Last week, with a fresh episode designed to lay the groundwork for what the creators promise will be a typically suspenseful finale next month, "24's" ratings in the key young-adult category swooned to their lowest level in more than three years, with a total audience of just 10.4 million, according to figures from Nielsen Media Research.

More than one-third of viewers have bailed since the special four-hour season premiere that aired over two consecutive nights back in January. And if that wasn't enough bad news for the series, last week "24" was one of the prime-time shows that the Federal Communications Commission singled out in urging Congress to curb TV violence.

The vox populi protests have not escaped the attention of the show's producers, who promise that some big changes are on the way for Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) and other regulars next season. There's also speculation that something else might be at work in accounting for viewers' tune-out this season, but more about that in a minute.

"It hurts to hear the criticism," said executive producer and writer Howard Gordon, who spoke with me last week by phone as the cast and crew crashed to finish shooting the season's final episode, set to air May 21.

"I don't dispute it's been a challenging season to write for us. But it's reinvigorated our determination to reinvent the show. This year could be seen to be the last iteration of it in its current state."

Oh, dear. Reinvention? That does sound ominous. But Gordon says not to worry, as Jack "won't be flipping burgers."

"It won't be a musical or a half-hour," he added. "I've got a couple ideas, none of which I could even begin to share responsibly."

So "24" — the TV institution, to say nothing of the show's ongoing narrative — has at last arrived at a crossroads, and what an odd trip it's been.

Premiering less than two months after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, "24" initially amounted to barely a blip on the pop-culture radar. The premise — each episode unfolding in real time over the course of a single day as Jack races to foil some dastardly conspiracy — sounded gimmicky. And given recent American history, Jack's missions against Middle Eastern bad guys could easily have struck too close to home. (As it is, the show has prompted plenty of complaints for propagating noxious ethnic and religious stereotypes; witness this season's major plot involving a diabolical terrorist overlord named Abu Fayed.)

But Fox stuck by the show, and, thanks in large part to the about-to-explode television DVD market, it steadily grew a fan base that finally made it blossom into true hit-level status sometime during the critically acclaimed and Emmy-winning fifth season.

I always loved "24's" willingness to work without a net, to go to crazy extremes in expanding the thriller format and somehow live to tell the tale — to outLudlum Robert Ludlum, as it were.

But two personal anecdotes brought the show's mass appeal home for me: My 70-something mother-in-law, a rock-ribbed Republican with narrow TV tastes outside of "The O'Reilly Factor," confessed that she never missed "24." And last year, while walking in downtown Burbank, I happened to observe a middle-age man take his female companion's hand and inquire, in a tone of voice at once soothing and conspiratorial, "What do you say we go home, build a fire and watch '24'?"

But the clock is ticking, for fans as well as for Jack Bauer. Longtime devotees are struggling to keep the faith during this trying season.

"The writers have recycled some plots this season that are glaringly obvious: a recording, an almost removed president, an assassination attempt on that president, an attack on a Middle Eastern country, an impending nuclear strike, a person close to Jack kidnapped, etc.," Victor Lana, a novelist who follows "24" for BlogCritics Magazine, wrote in an e-mail. But "the bottom line is that we still care about Jack Bauer."

Meanwhile, with apologies to my mother-in-law, "24's" audience is getting noticeably grayer, typically a sign that a show is losing its purchase on the windy crags of pop culture. According to Brad Adgate, senior vice president at the New York ad firm Horizon Media, the median age is 47.4 so far this season, compared with 45.1 last year and 42 in the 2003-04 season.

Those born with resistance to "24's" charms have noted that in the second and third seasons the show benefited from following "American Idol." Now, though, its scheduling is cutting the other way: In recent weeks the show's Monday lead-in was "Drive," a new cross-country caper that bombed and got yanked last week. (The network hastily replaced it with reruns of "House.")

"We had every hope that 'Drive' would be a good companion to '24' and successor to 'Prison Break.' We were wrong," Fox Entertainment President Peter Liguori told me, adding quickly that he nevertheless believed "24" would bounce back stronger next year.

But Gordon said he and his writing staff were wondering if something else was afoot besides the normal cycles of storytelling and network scheduling.

Could it be that the vague but gnawing post-9/11 fears that helped turn "24" into a hit are ebbing — the nightmares that envisioned great cities laid low by chemical weapons spilled into the water supply, say, or suitcase nukes wielded by shadowy assailants?

"It's something we talked about at the beginning of the season," Gordon said. "9/11 is becoming, quietly, a memory; the memory is starting to fade…. I do think that people are looking at the world differently, with less fear."

If so, that's probably good for America. And alas, that's probably bad for "24." Real-life political tension does wonders for creators of thriller fare. Look how kind the Cold War was to Ludlum and Tom Clancy.

Even so, Gordon sounds optimistic that "24" can recover from its annus horribilis and deliver the goods next season, no matter what changes are ultimately in store for the ever-suffering Jack Bauer.

"Certain tropes of the show will remain the same," Gordon said. "It'll keep its contract with the audience. We'll keep the adrenaline going."