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ABC, CBS and NBC Look to Remake Three Classic TV Series

Dec 28, 2009  •  Post A Comment

The networks may not have sufficiently learned the lesson from the failure of CBS’s “The Fugitive” remake in 2000 or many of the other attempts at reviving old series: The broadcast network development lineup is laden with familiar concepts, the New York Times reports.

NBC is eyeing bringing back “The Rockford Files,” while ABC is considering a new “Charlie’s Angels” and CBS has in development an updated “Hawaii Five-O.”

–Elizabeth Jensen

8 Comments

  1. Sure, you could compare it to a failed revival like The Fugitive – but with any kind of TV show, one has mostly failures. Remakes can also have success, and one can find a success more recently than The Fugitive in Battlestar Galactica. Admittedly, many of the successes started off-network (Star Trek) or had their success off-network (the syndicated Twilight Zone that followed the CBS run), but still, The New Gidget lasted more episodes than Gidget, the 1980s Leave It To Beaver follow-up ran more than 100 eps. I’m not saying that a new Rockford will be as easy to find as a new Doctor Who, but it’s legitimate to try.

  2. This is just the continuation of the lame actions of spineless executives who are afraid to green-light new original programming due to the “CYA Factor”. Our “so-called” development executives are so stifled by the the morons at the top, that they feel the need to justify their actions if the show they approve fails with “Well, it was really popular way the hell back when…?” Let’s just re-make ABC’s Caveman series again, what a colossal failure!!! Again, another stupid idea based on a so-called popular commercial – NOT! When will these bean counters learn to mind there own damn business and and stay out of the creative.

  3. Thomas Wolfe apparently had it all wrong. You *can* go home again.

  4. @TV EP,
    BAll those industry busybodies will mind their own business when everybody stops wanting a share of credit for a success and starts accepting some of the responsibility for a failure.
    Which will obviously be a cold day in hell.

  5. Remakes can make sense – the FUGITIVE was an idiotic remake because a) there’s no way anyone can stay a fugitive these days for 5-7 Tv seasons unless the show is about living in a forest – it’s unrealistic in this day and age where your SS# gets verified before you get emplyment … the movie worked because we believed he can stay out of the police clutches for a few weeks or a couple months … THE ROCKFORD FILES is iffy because its appeal was that he was a low rent PI always scraping by – a fun contrast to the other PI’s who were well funded or had high profile clients – Rockford was an ex con … that’s not to say they can’t really re-invent him but part of his and the show’s appeal was that he was unique at the time (not to mention James Garner was great in it) … the character was counter to all the other cop-PI shows but has that already been done to death already – for instance, the MOD SQUAD would make NO SENSE in today’s culture or SGT. BILKO … so like everything else, if you know what you are doing – it’s okay but don’t think you can just transplant the characters and people will watch.

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  7. Way to focus and straight to your point, i love it. Keep up the work people. Dont let anyone stop us bloggers.

  8. It appears even a pro like me can still learn a few things. Kudos for your post.

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