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TV Development Watch

Feb 18, 2002  •  Post A Comment

Comedy
8 SIMPLE RULES
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Gamble, Tracy (EP/W pilot); Shadyac, Tom (EP-N/W); Suarez, Flody (EP-N/W); Cameron, W. Bruce (author). Logline: A comedy series based on W. Bruce Cameron’s book “8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter … And Other Tips From a Beleaguered Father (Not That Any of Them Work).” The book includes such tips as these: “The following places are not appropriate for a date with my daughter: places where there are beds, sofas or anything softer than a wooden stool; places lacking parents, policemen, or nuns … places where the ambient temperature is warm enough to wear shorts, tank tops, midriff T-shirts, or anything other than overalls, a sweater, and a goose-down parka zipped up to her chin.”
DEXTER PREP
Brad Grey Television pilot pickup. Auspices: Simms, Paul (EP/W pilot); Grey, Brad (EP-N/W); Burrows, James (D pilot). Logline: A comedy series about a group of young teachers in an all-boys boarding school in New Hampshire.
THE FUNKHOUSERS
Touchstone; Jersey pilot pickup plus three additional scripts ordered. Auspices: Oakley, Bill & Weinstein, Josh (EP/W pilot); Oz, Frank (D pilot); Landgraf, John (EP); DeVito, Danny (EP); Shamberg, Michael (EP); Sher, Stacy (EP). Logline: A single-camera comedy series centering on the exploits of a multigenerational, eccentric extended family. However odd they may be, they are governed by traditional family values.
BONNIE HUNT PROJECT
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Hunt, Bonnie (EP/W pilot); Lake, Don (EP/W pilot). Talent: Bonnie Hunt. Logline: A family comedy starring Bonnie Hunt as a woman working as a television host in her small town who must juggle her work with her family life.
THE GEORGE LOPEZ SHOW
Warner Bros. Television; Fortis Films; Mohawk Productions series pickup. Series premiere date: 3/27/02. Initial order: four episodes. Auspices: Helford, Bruce (EP/ W pilot); Bullock, Sandra (EP); Borden, Robert (EP); Oppenheimer, Deborah (EP); Kellman, Barnet (D pilot). Talent: George Lopez (George); Valente Rodrigue (Ernie); Masiella Lusha (Carmen); Luis Garcia (Max). Logline: A family comedy starring George Lopez, a Latino comedian from Los Angeles, as a father who manages a factory where his mother is an employee.
TERRI MINSKY PROJECT
Touchstone; Wass-Stein pilot pickup. Auspices: Minsky, Terri (EP/W pilot); Wass, Nina (EP); Stein, Gene (EP). Logline: A workplace comedy series about a woman best described as an “ugly duckling,” set in a newsroom.
REGULAR JOE
Touchstone Television; Wass-Stein pilot pickup. Auspices: Litt, David (EP/W pilot); Schiller, Rob (D pilot); Stein, Gene (EP-N/W); Wass, Nina (EP-N/W). Logline: A family comedy centering on a blue-collar guy who owns a hardware store in New York and whose 19-year-old daughter moves back home after an absence-with a baby.
JOHN RIDLEY PROJECT
Touchstone; Wass-Stein pilot pickup. Auspices: Ridley, John (EP/W pilot); Wass, Ted (D pilot); Wass, Nina (EP-N/W); Stein, Gene (EP-N/W). Logline: A comedy series described as an interracial “Mad About You.”
SCHERICK & RONN PROJECT
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Scherick, Jay & Ronn, David (W/EP); Rodrigue, Nena (EP). Talent: Danny Comden, James Lesure, Justina Machado. Logline: A single-camera comedy series a la a modern-day “The Rockford Files.”
SCHERICK & RONN PROJECT #2
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Scherick, Jay & Ronn, David (EP/W pilot). Logline: A comedy series about three couples who are in interlocking relationships.
THE DRAGANS OF NEW YORK
CBS Productions pilot presentation pickup. Auspices: Laurie, Hugh (EP/W pilot). Logline: A half-hour, single-camera comedy series about a husband-and-wife detective team.
McCALL & VARDALOS PROJECT
Brad Grey Television; Columbia TriStar; Playtone Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Grey, Brad (EP); Wilson, Rita (EP); McCall, Marsh (EP/W pilot); Vardalos, Nia (EP/W pilot). Talent: Nia Vardalos (Nia); Rita Moreno (Athena). Logline: A comedy series loosely based on Nia Vardalos’ film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” which chronicles her experiences as a Greek-American who marries a WASP.
Comedy
TWO FAMILIES
Warner Bros. pilot pickup. Auspices: Lorre, Chuck (EP/W pilot). Talent: Michael DeLuise (Todd); Alanna Ubach (Valerie); Branden Williams (Richie); Jackie Debatin (Wanda); Sam Jaeger (Philip). Logline: A romantic comedy about two middle-aged people who fall in love and try to have a relationship despite the meddling of their dysfunctional adult children.
LIFE ON PAROLE
Twentieth Television; Dreamworks Television pilot pickup. Auspices: Apatow, Judd (EP/W pilot); Forrester, Brent (EP/W pilot). Talent: Dave Herman. Logline: A comedy series starring Dave Herman as a parole officer whose best friend is a an ex-con.
NEXT
Twentieth pilot pickup. Auspices: Odenkirk, Bob (EP/W pilot); Brillstein, Bernie (EP). Talent: Bob Odenkirk; Jay Johnston; Jerry Minor; Jill Talley; Rasika Mathur; Susan Yeagley. Logline: A sketch comedy series in the vein of Odenkirk’s HBO series “Mr. Show.”
A.U.S.A.
Twentieth pilot pickup. Auspices: Appel, Richard (EP/W pilot). Logline: A single-camera comedy series set against the world of young United States prosecutors in a large metropolitan city. Also described as a legal version of NBC’s “Scrubs.”
CHEVY CHASE PROJECT
NBC Studios; Broadway Video pilot pickup. Auspices: Dresser, Rick (EP/W pilot); Leopold, Tom (EP/W pilot); Michaels, Lorne (EP-N/W). Talent: Chevy Chase. Logline: A family comedy starring Chevy Chase as a man with three daughters.
TIM DOYLE AND GREG GIRALDO PROJECT
NBC Studios; Conaco pilot pickup. Auspices: Doyle, Tim (EP/W pilot); O’Brien, Conan (EP-N/W); Morewitz, A.J. (EP-N/W). Talent: Greg Giraldo. Logline: A comedy series about an unmarried stand-up comedian who is raising his 2-year-old daughter with the help of his male best friend.
ELON GOLD AND MARK REISMAN PROJECT
Paramount Network Television; Grammnet Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Reisman, Mark (EP/W pilot); Grammer, Kelsey (EP-N/W); Fryman, Pamela (D pilot). Talent: Elon Gold; Dennis Farina. Logline: A comedy series centering on the uneasy relationship when a man marries the only daughter of an overprotective father.
GOOD MORNING, MIAMI
Warner Bros. pilot pickup plus 13-episode commitment. Auspices: Kohan, David & Mutchnick, Max (EP/W pilot). Logline: A comedy series that centers on an ambitious, driven man focused on a TV career who makes what might be the worst professional move of his life by taking over the lowest-rated morning show in the country as executive producer, a decision that turns out to be his salvation.
JONATHAN GROFF PROJECT
NBC Studios pilot pickup. Auspices: Groff, Jonathan (EP/W pilot); Kaplan, Vic (EP); Buckland, Marc (D pilot). Logline: A single-camera comedy series about a guy who leaves his high-paying, perk-ridden job to become a high school history teacher.
HIDDEN HILLS
NewCo pilot pickup. Auspices: Swartzlander, Ric (EP/W pilot); Segal, Pete (EP/D pilot); Daniels, Susanne (EP-N/W); Juergens, Kate (EP-N/W). Logline: A family comedy told from the point of view of a married man with three kids in the suburbs.
LEAVE ME ALONE
NBC Studios; Happy Madison pilot pickup. Auspices: Herlihy, Tim (EP/W pilot); Sandler, Adam (EP-N/W); Giarraputo, Jack (EP- N/W); Robertson, Doug (EP-N/W). Talent: Jon Lovitz; Norm Macdonald. Logline: A comedy series in which Jon Lovitz and Norm Macdonald star as “Odd Couple”-like roommates.
ROMEO FIRE
NBC Studios; Warner Bros. Television pilot pickup plus 13-episode commitment. Auspices: Malins, Greg (EP/ W pilot). Logline: A comedy series about small-town firefighters and their lives together in the firehouse.
BRAVE NEW WORLD
NewCo pilot pickup. Original commitment: script. Auspices: O’Keefe, Mark (EP/W pilot). Logline: A comedy series about a family that decides to send their kids to public school after years of home schooling them.
Comedy
AMANDA BYNES PROJECT
Warner Bros.; Tollin Robbins Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Schneider, Dan (EP/W pilot); Calhoun, Wil (EP/W pilot); Tollin, Mike
(EP-N/W); Robbins, Brian (EP-N/W); Davola, Joe (EP-N/W). Talent: Amanda Bynes. Logline: A comedy series told from the point of view of a teenage girl who moves in with her older and rather independent sister, who up until now has lived alone in the city. Series to star teen actress Amanda Bynes (Nickelodeon’s “The Amanda Show” and “All That”).
DO OVER
Paramount; The Littlefield Company pilot pickup. Auspices: Weiner, Rick & Schwartz, Kenny (EP/W pilot); Littlefield, Warren (EP). Logline: A comedy series in the vein of the movie “Big.” A man in his 30s is sent back to his high school years in the 1980s.
HORRID LITTLE GIRLS
Warner Bros., Tollin Robbins Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Murphy, Ryan (EP/W pilot); Tollin, Mike (EP-N/W); Robbins, Brian (EP-N/W); Davola, Joe (EP-N/W). Talent: Delta Burke. Logline: A comedy series featuring Delta Burke as a woman who is sentenced to community service at a well-to-do, private all-girls prep school.
HOUSE BLEND
Paramount pilot pickup. Auspices: Ranberg, Chuck & Flett-Giordano, Anne (EP/W pilot). Logline: A comedy series in the vein of “Kate & Allie” except with a man and a woman who each have kids and decide to platonically share the same household.
IN MY OPINION
NewCo pilot pickup. Auspices: Williams, Lona (EP/W pilot); Daniels, Susanne (EP-N/W); Juergens, Kate (EP-N/W). Logline: A workplace comedy set at a newspaper and centering on a group of people who become a surrogate family to one another.
LIVE IMPROV PROJECT
Warner Bros. pilot pickup. Auspices: Cohen, Rob (EP); Patterson, Dan (CO). Talent: Jeff B. Davis. Logline: A comedy series that mixes live and improvisational elements.
PREP
NewCo pilot pickup. Auspices: Fiveash, Chad (W pilot); Stotereaux, James (W pilot); Lynch, Tommy (EP). Logline: A comedy series set in a co-ed boarding school.
THIS TIME
NewCo pilot pickup. Auspices: Murietta, Peter (EP/W pilot); Klein, Howard (EP-N/W); Miner, David (EP-N/W). Logline: A comedy series about a family that is half Irish, half Latino.
Drama
ASTRONAUTS
Twentieth; Industry Entertainment pilot pickup. Auspices: Robinson, Todd (EP/W pilot); Caruso, D.J. (D pilot); Levisetti, Emile (EP-N/W); Wechsler, Nick (EP-N/W); Sander, Ian (EP-N/W); Moses, Kim (EP-N/W). Logline: A drama series focusing on the young astronauts of NASA.
CAPITAL CITY
DreamWorks Television; Touchstone Television pilot pickup. Auspices: Lurie, Rod (EP/W pilot/D pilot); Frydman, Marc (EP-N/W). Talent: David Paymer. Logline: A dramatic series set against on the political machinations in Congress. Lead character is a young female rookie congressional staffer.
E.I.S.
Touchstone Television; Wass-Stein pilot pickup. Auspices: Lemke, Darren (Co-EP/W pilot); Wass, Nina (EP-N/W); Stein, Gene (EP-N/W); Rodrigue, Nena (EP-N/W). Logline: A dramatic series set at the Epidemic Intelligence Service, or E.I.S, a branch of the Centers For Disease Control (CDC) specializing in investigating epidemics.
LARRY GELBART PROJECT
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Gelbart, Larry (EP/W pilot); Dinner, Michael (D pilot); Topolsky, Ken (EP). Logline: A corporate ensemble drama in the vein of Gelbart’s HBO telefilm “Barbarians at the Gate” revolving around a family business empire built on greed and an insatiable desire for power.
HOMEWARD BOUND
Studios USA pilot pickup. Auspices: Sachs, Gabe & Judah, Jeff (EP/W pilot); Brand, Josh (D pilot); Stokdyk, Danielle (P); Gwartz, Jennifer (P). Talent: Samm Levine. Logline: A dramatic series about a young woman fresh out of law school who loses her corporate job and moves home and takes a job as a public defender.
THE MAYOR
Brad Grey Television; Touchstone Television pilot pickup. Auspices: Randolph, Charles (EP/W pilot); Grey, Brad (EP). Logline: A dramatic series centering on the mayor of a large city.
MIRACLES
Touchstone; Spyglass pilot pickup. Auspices: Hatem, Richard (EP/W pilot); Birnbaum, Roger (EP); Reeves, Matt (D pilot). Logline: A dramatic series about a spiritually conflicted man who is charged with investigating miracles.
NANCY DREW
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Brown, Kevin (EP); Mann, Ami Canaan (W). Logline: A two-hour backdoor pilot for a potential series based on the Nancy Drew series of mystery novels, which feature a teen girl detective.
THE OATH
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Platt, Marc (EP); Tieche, Gary (EP/W pilot). Logline: An ensemble medical dramedy in the vein of “M*A*S*H.” set in a county teaching hospital in San Francisco.
Drama
PARANORMAL GIRL
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Brady, Pam (EP/W pilot); Fleming, Andy (EP/D pilot); Inch, Kevin (P pilot). Talent: Kevin Kilner; Stacey Travis; Terry Chen; Tyler Andrews; Eddie Jemison; Seth Adkins; Sasha Barrese; Angela Sarafyan. Logline: A dramatic series about a 14-year-old girl with paranormal abilities.
PUSH, NEVADA
Touchstone Television; LivePlanet pilot pickup plus five additional scripts. Auspices: Affleck, Ben (EP); Bailey, Sean (EP). Logline: A reality series described as a mystery/drama hybrid in which viewers will hunt for real treasure.
JOHN RIDLEY PROJECT
Touchstone pilot pickup. Auspices: Ridley, John (EP/W pilot); Mischer, Kevin (EP). Logline: A dramatic series about a dysfunctional family of martial arts experts.
THAT WAS THEN
Touchstone Television pilot pickup. Auspices: Cohn, Dan & Miller, Jeremy (EP/W pilot); O’Fallon, Peter (D pilot); Kline, Jeff (EP). Logline: A dramatic series about a 30-year-old man who gets a chance to go back to the pivotal week in his high school career that he believes determined the outcome of the rest of his life and hopefully correct his mistakes.
VERITAS
Touchstone; Wonderful World of Disney; Storyline Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Massett, Patrick (EP/W pilot); Zinman, John (EP/W pilot); Spicer, Brian (D pilot); Zadan, Craig (EP-N/W); Meron, Neil (EP-N/W). Logline: A two-hour backdoor pilot for a dramatic series about a 17-year-old boy and his father who discover the mysteries of life together, not unlike the classic animated series “Jonny Quest.”
JO
Spelling Television; CBS Productions; Third Millennium TV pilot pickup. Auspices: Newell, Mike (EP/D pilot); Son, Diana (W pilot); Jones, Cam (EP). Talent: Andie MacDowell. Logline: A dramatic series about a mother and daughter who are vets.
QUEENS SUPREME
Regency Television; Revolution Studios; Shoelace Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Fox, Kevin (EP/W pilot); Goldsmith-Thomas, Elaine (EP-N/W); Robbins, Tim (D pilot); Schindler, Deborah (EP-N/W); Roberts, Julia (EP-N/W). Logline: A dramatic series about a Supreme Court justice in Queens, NY.
R.U.S.H.
Studios USA pilot pickup. Auspices: Attanasio, Paul (EP/W pilot); Jacobs, Katie (EP); Fleder, Gary (D pilot). Talent: Danny Pino. Logline: A cop drama set in South Central Los Angeles.
VANISHED
Warner Bros.; Bruckheimer Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Bruckheimer, Jerry (EP); Steinberg, Hank (W pilot); Nutter, David (D pilot). Logline: A dramatic series that centers on the search for missing persons.
EASTWICK
Warner Bros. pilot presentation pickup. Auspices: Cowan, Jon & Rovner, Robert (EP/W pilot); Robin, Mike (D pilot). Logline: A dramatic series that imagines the 15-year-old son of John Updike’s “Witches of Eastwick” and his adventures with his devilish dad.
FAST LANE
Warner Bros. pilot pickup. Auspices: MacNamara, John (EP/W pilot); Joseph McGinty Mitchell a k a McG (EP/D pilot); Husman, Perry (P). Logline: A fast-paced police drama revolving around two undercover officers who work to prevent crime.
FIREFLY
Twentieth pilot pickup plus 13-episode commitment. Auspices: Whedon, Joss (EP/W pilot/D pilot). Talent: Nathan Fillion. Logline: A science-fiction drama that takes place 500 hundred years in the future and centers on the iconoclastic crew of a small spaceship.
JOHN DOE
Regency pilot pickup. Auspices: Camp, Brandon (EP/W pilot); Thompson, Mike (EP/W pilot); Leder, Mimi (EP/D pilot). Logline: A dramatic series described as the former NBC series “Pretender” meets the feature film “Unbreakable.”
KEE
N EDDIE
Paramount; The Littlefield Company pilot pickup. Auspices: Wyman, Joel (EP/W pilot); West, Simon (EP/D pilot); Littlefield, Warren (EP). Logline: A dramatic series about an American cop who goes to London to solve an international mystery that has destroyed his career and stays, becoming a private investigator.
SECRET SERVICE
Twentieth pilot Presentation pickup. Auspices: Rake, Jeff (EP/W pilot). Logline: An ensemble drama based on the Secret Service.
SAVE THE LAST DANCE
Paramount; Cort/Madden Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Cort, Bob (EP); Madden, David (EP); Pyne, Dan (EP); Johnson, Toni Ann (W pilot). Logline: A dramatic series based on the feature film about a white girl from a Midwestern suburb who dreams of becoming a ballerina. When she moves in with her father in a South Chicago ghetto following her mother’s death, her passion for life and dance are renewed when she falls in love with a young black boy in her high school. Bigotry ensues.
TIME TUNNEL
Twentieth Television; Regency Television pilot pickup. Auspices: Ravich, Rand (EP/W pilot); Holland, Todd (EP/D pilot). Logline: A dramatic series about two operatives, a man and a woman, who travel through time to prevent disasters.
Drama
ARTHUR
NBC Studios pilot pickup. Auspices: Aubuchon, Remi (EP/W pilot); Yost, Graham (EP). Logline: A dramatic series about the young King Arthur, given the treatment of the feature film “A Knight’s Tale.”
BOOMTOWN
NBC Studios pilot pickup. Auspices: Yost, Graham (EP/W pilot); Avnet, Jon (D pilot). Talent: Donnie Wahlberg. Logline: A dramatic series described as being evocative of the Akira Kurosawa film “Rashomon,” which explored a crime from the perspectives of four witnesses. This version applies this storytelling technique to the police.
ST. GEORGES
NBC Studios pilot pickup. Auspices: Lynch, Tom (EP/W pilot); Laneuville, Eric (D pilot). Logline: A family adventure drama focusing on veterinarians in Africa.
WAR STORIES
NBC Studios; Industry Entertainment pilot pickup. Auspices: Noah, Peter (EP/W pilot); Addis, Keith (EP-N/W); Wechsler, Nick (EP-N/W); Levisetti, Emile (EP-N/W). Talent: Jeff Goldblum. Logline: A dramatic series about war correspondents in Uzbekistan who use humor to get through the hard times.
ACES
Warner Bros.; Regency Television; Shephard Robin pilot presentation pickup. Auspices: Dick, Leonard (EP/W pilot); Shephard, Greer (EP-N/W); Robin, Michael (EP-N/W). Talent: Daniel Baldwin; Colleen Flynn. Logline: A dramatic series focusing on a boy in an elite private high school and his relationship with his father, who is a professional poker player.
BIRDS OF PREY
Warner Bros.; Tollin/Robbins Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Kalogridis, Laeta (W pilot); Tollin, Mike (EP-N/W); Robbins, Brian (EP/D pilot); Davola, Joe (EP-N/W). Talent: Rachel Skarsten (Dinah/Black Canary); Dina Meyer (Oracle); Ashley Scott (Huntress). Logline: A dramatic series based on a DC Comics offshoot of the Batman franchise in which three young women battle villains in Gotham City.
BLACK SASH
Warner Bros. Television; Tollin/Robbins Productions pilot pickup. Auspices: Kamen, Robert (EP/W pilot); Caruso, D.J. (D pilot); Sellers, Dylan (EP-N/W); Tollin, Mike (EP-N/W); Robbins, Brian (EP-N/W); Davola, Joe (EP-N/W). Logline: A drama series about an ex-undercover cop who was falsely convicted on drug charges and served seven years in prison. Now he has a martial arts school in San Francisco and, along with his students, works outside the system to bring the real criminals to justice.
BRATS
Spelling pilot pickup. Auspices: Hervey, Winifred (EP/W pilot); Spelling, Aaron (EP); Vincent, E. Duke (EP). Logline: A drama series revolving around the trials and tribulations of a military family.
EVERWOOD
Warner Bros. pilot pickup. Auspices: Berlanti, Greg (EP/W pilot); Piznarski, Mark (D pilot). Talent: Treat Williams; Gregory Smith; Tom Amandes; John Beasley; Debra Mooney. Logline: A medical series about a widowed doctor who moves with his family from New York City to a small town in Colorado. Show will be similar tonally to “Northern Exposure” and “Pickett Fences.”
IN MY LIFE
American Zoetrope pilot pickup. Auspices: Ungerleider, Ira (EP/W pilot); Coppola, Francis Ford (EP-N/W); Glatter, Lesli Linka (D pilot); Suro, Maira (EP-N/W). Logline: A family-oriented drama series set against the backdrop the civil rights movement in 1964 about a group of high school boys who come of age in Baton Rouge, La., and whose lives are changed by school integration.
THE LONE RANGER
NewCo pilot pickup. Auspices: Title, Stacy (EP/W pilot); Penner, Jonathan (EP/W pilot); Daniels, Susanne (EP-N/W); Juergens, Kate (EP-N/W); Ellenbogen, Eric (EP-N/W). Talent: Murray, Chad Michael (Luke); Nathaniel Arcand (Tonto). Logline: A two-hour backdoor pilot of a new take on the classic tale of the sole Texas Ranger to survive an ambush by vicious thieves in the Old West. With the help of a trusted Native American comrade, he sets out to avenge the deaths of his fellow Rangers.
LOST IN OZ
Warner Bros.; A Band Apart pilot pickup. Auspices: Hayter, David (EP/W pilot); Bender, Lawrence (EP-N/W); Brown, Kevin (EP-N/W); Smith, Joel (EP-N/W); Baum, Frank L. (author). Talent: Melissa George; Colin Egglesfield. Logline: A dramatic fantasy series based on the fictional world of Oz created by Frank L. Baum. In this version, the characters from the classic film are historical figures, with a 20-something woman as the principal character. A la Dorothy, she unexpectedly arrives in Oz. However, discontent with skipping down the Yellow Brick Road in search of the Wizard, she leads a revolt against the powers of Oz.