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TheBuzz
Erika Engle
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Network television shows making a comeback against cable
THE BIG NEWS at the Hawaii Advertising Federation's Fall TV Preview yesterday was not just the new network shows rolling out on local affiliates, but that networks are competing better against cable.
Oh, and there's still no deal for Honolulu CBS affiliate KGMB. More on that in a few column inches.
The big new breakout show on HBO is "Lucky Louie," noted Mike Rosenberg, president and general manager of ABC-affiliate KITV, to an imperceptible response.
"I guess nobody's seen it, or you'd be laughing," he said.
HBO had been on a tear, stealing eyeballs from the networks with dramatic series such as "The Sopranos," "Deadwood" and "Six Feet Under."
"There's no question that television has improved dramatically," said Shannon Lange, general sales manager of NBC affiliate KHNL and My Network TV affiliate KFVE.
There is better drama, better writing, and "a major improvement in casting," Lange said, noting cases where big-screen stars including Jennifer Lopez, Alec Baldwin and Tom Selleck were recruited for series television.
Rick Blangiardi, senior vice president and general manager of KGMB, said that with constantly swirling and evolving rumors, one of the questions he's asked daily is whether there is a buyer for the station, which is being sold by Indiana-based Emmis Communications Corp. "We are nowhere on the sale," he said.
KHON President and General Manager Joe McNamara spoke proudly of the top-rated Fox affiliate, which he came to Hawaii to lead in January. Fox's new season is under way, with shows such as "Vanished," "Justice," and "Celebrity Duets" having aired premiere episodes.
Lange noted that NBC staggered the roll-out of its new season for KHNL, placing shows where the network felt they would have the best chance of winning, as opposed to considering the flow from one show to the next each night.
KFVE will lose shows from the WB and UPN due to the merger of the failing networks into the CW, which has yet to name a Hawaii affiliate.
KFVE signed up with startup My Network TV, which will air dramas patterned after telenovelas. Sort of like soap operas but they air six nights a week and are only 13 weeks long with a beginning, middle and an end.
It may be a stretch for Hawaii viewers to adopt such a different viewing habit, but the novela format is popular worldwide in Spanish-speaking countries, as well as across Europe and in Scandinavia, Lange said.
An additional challenge will be frequent pre-emption by UH sports. However, "there is an Internet component that will help (update viewers) and we will also program Sundays to help people catch up with the week," she said.
My Network TV plans 52 weeks a year of new programming, which Lange predicts will prove especially popular during summer reruns on other networks.
One of the most-watched telenovelas of all time inspired one of KITV's new shows. "Ugly Betty" is produced by film star and novela veteran Salma Hayek.
For details on this season's new shows, please pick up the Star-Bulletin this Sunday and pore through the Features section.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Call 529-4747, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached at:
eengle@starbulletin.com