rabal
Mar 28, 2006 @ 5:49 pm
I guess this is the place for this:
FOX will launch My Network TV, a new primetime program network scheduled to debut this fall. Fox Television Stations, Inc., and Twentieth Television will operate the new venture.
Upon launching on Tuesday, September 5th, 2006, My Network TV will feature quality primetime programming from 8:00-10:00pm (EST/PST) Monday through Saturday, totaling 12 hours of original content per week.
Twentieth Television's new hour-long scripted dramas Desire and Secrets will inaugurate My Network TV. Structured in a 65-episode story arc stripped Monday through Friday for 13 weeks, Desire and Secrets are based on the worldwide success of the telenovela format. Desire chronicles the destruction of a family and the bonds of brotherhood take center stage when two brothers on the run from the mafia find themselves in a heated battle of passion, betrayal, deceit and murder over the woman they both love. Secrets goes deep behind-the-scenes to focus on the glamorous, yet sometimes brutally ruthless fashion industry, in which greed, lust and blind ambition surround a violent corporate takeover of the business' hottest company. Principal photography on the dramas will commence early March.
Here are
Cast Pictures.
Questions:
1 Do you think these will translate well to the U.S. market?
2 Soccer (football) and dance music - like telenovelas - are much more popular in other countries around the world than in the U.S. Are there aspects of American culture that hinder telenovelas potential for success here?
3 Will these be any better than current U.S. daytime serials?
4 Do you think these shows will be any good, or will the public (including TWoPers) laugh at and trash them?
Here's another link to information about MyNetwork's line-up.I'm really curious to see how the public takes to these. These represent the first U.S.-produced and targeted novelas, no? They have the potential to become mildly successful guilty pleasures or big, corny jokes resulting in failure. I'll watch initially to assess the writing, acting, production value, etc.
LOS ANGELES, March 28, 2006 -- Iconic actress and internationally renowned sex symbol Bo Derek has joined the cast of "Secret Obsessions," the highly anticipated primetime drama set to launch September 5, 2006, at 9:00pm (Eastern/Pacific)/8:00pm (Central) on the new primetime television network MyNetworkTV
Ugh. I can't stand Bo Derek.
edited to move posts from Telenovela thread
jellyeggs
Mar 28, 2006 @ 7:00 pm
Ugh. I can't stand Bo Derek.
Any particular reason? :-)
rabal
Mar 29, 2006 @ 6:35 pm
Ugh. I can't stand Bo Derek.
Any particular reason? :-)
She seems deluded and arrogant. Plus she's grossly overrated. I'm sure she can be a nice gal though.
jellyeggs
Mar 29, 2006 @ 9:19 pm
Well, i`ll probably check out the show, it seems so..........fast food, with too much greasy stuff (Bo Derek does still provide the visual ketchup though:-), this sounds like a "telenovela" version of B&B ("Bold & Beautiful") to me, it can`t be too bad in that case I guess?
rabal
Jun 4, 2006 @ 12:57 pm
I've been reading sides from this show on NowCasting. I don't know what to think. Looks like it could be a guilty pleasure, but so far I'm seeing corniness, triteness, stereotypes, lack of originality (yes it seems like B&B), etc. Perhaps I can blame whatever novela this series is adapted from, but you would think TPTB would punch it up some so that it would have a decent shot at success in U.S. primetime. Also, there were an unbelievable number of typos and grammatical errors on the sides, which potentially doesn't reflect well on the quality of the show overall. IOW, it all starts with the writing, and if the writers don't know the difference between "your" and "you're" ... well let's just say I've lowered my expectations.
Bill C
Jun 4, 2006 @ 6:50 pm
Just saying...we might want to get the thread title changed to
Desire/Secret Obsessions, since for whatever stupid damn reason they split this franchise-to-be up into two groups.
For those who just saw this thread and have no idea what the heck it is:
Secret Obsessions is an umbrella series of adaptations of
telenovelas (Spanish-language soap operas) that the forthcoming
My Network TV will air beginning September 5. The umbrella show (along with its sister project
Desire) will be comprised of four separate 65-episode series, each series running five nights a week with no known plans for repeats (though there will be a weekly recap show for each series during its run).
Each
Secret Obsessions series will run at 9pm EST Monday through Friday, with a weekly recap show airing in the same timeslot on Saturdays. Below are the snark-free series lists and brief descriptions, in apparent airing order.
ETA: edited out
Desire-specific information.
Secret Obsessions:
Fashion House (the aforementioned Bo Derek
B&B ripo--er, homage)
Set in the competitive fashion world, former “10” Bo Derek plays a powerful fashion icon who will stop at nothing to destroy the woman (Natalie Martinez) who tries to romance her son (Taylor Kinney).
Watch Over Me (with Dayanara Torres and Casper Van Dien)
Julia (Dayannara Torres) and her fiancé Sebastian were meant to have a perfect marriage, but the dangerous world they inhabit makes it necessary for a third party to enter their relationship--Jack, a bodyguard hired to protect them. Unfortunately, Jack's arrival is the catalyst for an intense love triangle that may destroy them all.
A Dangerous Love (with Maria Conchita Alonso)
Two very different families – the Olivera and the Mazzoni clans – struggle with a bitter feud that has plagued them for years.
To Love & DieAfter a plane crash, an heiress falls in love with the pilot against the wishes of her family.
rabal
Jun 5, 2006 @ 12:50 pm
Just saying...we might want to get the thread title changed to Desire/Secret Obsessions, since for whatever stupid damn reason they split this franchise-to-be up into two groups.
Actually I was thinking the same thing when I posted the other day. I tried to change the title then but couldn't figure out how. Help!
I also think this should be broken out of the Telenovelas thread as MyNetwork is not promoting these as telenovelas and I guess technically these shows are not. Perhaps that term should be reserved for serials produced for and/or in the Latin American/Spanish-language market. Yeah I'm guilty of starting that discussion, but I didn't know better back then.
BTW, can these titles be any more cliche? I keep wanting to call one of the shows "Secret Desires". There's only so much difference between a desire and an obsession.
As for the cliche factor...To Love & Die. Even if it apparently is a literal translation
Wait, you mean somebody actually
dies in To Love & Die?? Shouldn't that title be spoiler tagged? Maaaan ... ;)
Bill C
Jun 5, 2006 @ 1:18 pm
Oh, ITA...at this point, D/SO probably needs its own umbrella thread. A little early, perhaps, but hey.
As for the cliche factor...To Love & Die. Even if it apparently is a literal translation...'nuff said.
twotrey
Jun 6, 2006 @ 12:37 am
Maria Conchita Alonso was on Good Day L.A. last week promoting her Secret Obsessions cycle (actually, stars from both Desire and Secret Obsessions cycles have been making promo appearances on that show the last few weeks), and she had with her a promo reel for A Dangerous Love, and I must say... it looks like they put some money into this. Actually she was the best person possible to do the promo rounds for this, she being a veteran of telenovelas, and she was quick to point up that while the format is essentially the same, it will be distinct from their Spanish-language forebears in terms of production and pace. There looks to be some live location work, not to mention the whole thing is shot on film--so none of that scuzzy daytime videotape. Also, the pace will be a lot faster, what with the 65-episode runs; the little reel she had had tons of the two crucial "S"'s of soap: sex and slapping. But of course she didn't deny the whole thing being a guilty, trashy pleasure thing. So color me even more curious.
I think a separate thread should be started for Desire considering they will be two completely different shows running concurrently.
Bill C
Jun 6, 2006 @ 1:31 am
You do make a good point...we are dealing with two similar yet separate umbrella series here. It admittedly means one more thread to keep up with, though. I can go ahead and make a Desire thread and move the relevant info out of this thread as necessary, but I'll let everybody sleep on it. :)
rabal
Jun 24, 2006 @ 1:29 pm
There's a web
page up for My Secret Desire & Obsession. Wait, I mean Desire and
Secret Obsession on
MyNetwork. Bo
tox Derek actually looks nice (except for the wrinkly neck).
Bill C
Jun 24, 2006 @ 2:00 pm
Bo looks creepily like an older, slightly dowdy Kelly Ripa.
Bill C
Jul 1, 2006 @ 11:29 am
Well, damn.
Morgan (&*#*(&!! Fairchild has signed on for Fashion House--as Maria Zianni's (Bo Derek) adversary, one Sophia Blakely. Not sure of the context for "adversary," though--possibly a business rival...?
twotrey
Jul 9, 2006 @ 1:36 pm
Fashion House promos have been airing pretty frequently now, and they're *hilarious*--obviously intentionally so. The one I see all the time has Bo pulling up in a car, getting out, then Morgan, dressed in some lacy thing, comes up to her, they start arguing, and then they proceed to bitch slap each other. If the show delivers on that every episode, those 65 episodes will go by quickly...
Bill C
Jul 9, 2006 @ 3:26 pm
Apparently my local My Network TV affiliate-to-be is a no-name UHF station right now, so I'll have to start watching that to try to catch these spots...
rabal
Jul 10, 2006 @ 11:08 pm
Fashion House promos have been airing pretty frequently now
I'll have to start watching that to try to catch these spots...
YouTube to the rescue!
Bill C
Jul 11, 2006 @ 12:29 am
"Owwwww!"
Okay...this might at least be fun cheese. And damn, Morgan Fairchild is aging really well...
rabal
Jul 11, 2006 @ 11:26 pm
Full length preview now available at MyNetworkTV.comPretty good production value. This trailer doesn't make the series look as interesting as the Morgan vs. Bo bitchslap clip did. And yet I'll watch on 9-5-06
Bill C
Jul 12, 2006 @ 7:47 am
A couple of shots of Morgan Fairchild in the
FH trailer--considering the show is being shot on film, I imagine this is probably more accurate than anything else--probably would have helped it out immensely. As it is, it just looks like some generic drama or Lifetime movie-of-the-week (at least the
Desire: Table For Three trailer made it look like a B-movie).
And I can't help but continue to think: Maria Zianni, you are no Stephanie Forrester.
ETA: I take that back. In one of the
FH spots (apparently someone has been industrious enough to put most if not all of them up on
YouTube), Maria slips her own son a roofie.
twotrey
Jul 12, 2006 @ 11:56 pm
I'm confused by the MyNetworkTV site. So is Fashion House not going to be under the Secret Obsessions umbrella title anymore?
Bill C
Jul 13, 2006 @ 12:28 pm
They're being weird about both franchises equally...on the site and in the TV spots, they refer to Desire: Table For Three as just Desire (though in the full trailer it's called Table For Three), and for whatever weird reason they haven't specifically used the Secret Obsessions name at all when referring to Fashion House. I think they're just going with whatever sounds cooler...
twotrey
Jul 20, 2006 @ 2:43 pm
Since MyNetworkTV seems to be officially doing away with the umbrella titles (as I noted in the Desire thread, I guess this thread should be retitled to Fashion House?
Bill C
Jul 20, 2006 @ 4:02 pm
I still think they're ultimately going with whatever sounds cooler, though the umbrella titles may well still be used in some form or another. Maybe on stationery... <shrug>
rabal
Jul 21, 2006 @ 11:10 am
Bill C
Jul 21, 2006 @ 11:15 am
I totally admit it: I have no idea who any of these people are other than Ms. Derek and Ms. Fairchild. Though Donna Feldman and Chiuti Tiu are really, really hot.
twotrey
Jul 21, 2006 @ 1:23 pm
Well, I've met James Black a couple of times through mutual friends, but, yeah, aside from him, the two grande dames, and two Desire players (Tomy Dunster, who played the forgettable Juan Pablo on AMC a couple of years back; and Sofia Milos), no idea who anyone is either. But, like you said, there are some really hot women here...
Stinger97
Jul 21, 2006 @ 4:54 pm
It's disappointing to me to see MY basically shun the male audience. I realise that men can and do watch soap operas, but I can't help but feel like the channel is making a run for the female demographic and leaving me out. Fashion House does look quite interesting, and I may tune in for the premiere, but I can't say that I'll tell any of my friends. Embarrassing.
rabal
Jul 21, 2006 @ 8:12 pm
I suppose Desire (despite its name) has more stereotypical male appeal: explosions, fist fights, gun play, etc.
eta: MyNetowrk's indecisiveness regarding how to identify these series has jacked up our thread title. That is, if "Secret Obsessions" will no longer be used, this thread title is meaningless. * sigh *
Bill C
Jul 21, 2006 @ 9:18 pm
Aaaah, let's stick with it. It's still the umbrella project name, even if in the end it's never used publicly. Besides, then we'd have to have threads for each and every show under both umbrellas, and that would just get weird (-er).
rabal
Jul 28, 2006 @ 9:36 pm
Bill C
Jul 29, 2006 @ 7:46 am
And the promo machine begins in earnest...looks like we have some unique new FH promos, the site is definitely hyping the telenovela aspects, and we finally have castlists...
harlowe
Jul 30, 2006 @ 12:33 am
My prediction is that Fashion House will be much better than Desire. FH has more experienced actors and they have Morgan Fairchild. I am sure she will make a great over the top villian.
rabal
Aug 7, 2006 @ 11:40 pm
Has anyone been watching the
"Prequel" clips that have been added daily to the
network website? At first I thought those were a good idea, but after a while they get kinda dull. After about clip 15, 16 it all sounds like "blah, blah, blah, blah". I dunno. I still like the idea but maybe they should make the dialogue more interesting, suspenseful, shocking, sexy ... something.
Bill C
Aug 8, 2006 @ 12:09 am
The early ones actually did a decent job of introducing everybody and setting up the landscape, so to speak, in broad strokes. But yeah--after that, it went to blah.
Flip side: my God, Donna Feldman (Gloria) is gorgeous.
jellyeggs
Aug 30, 2006 @ 9:38 pm
Perhaps this thread should be renamed "Fashion House" since My's now referring to this show as that, not "Secret Obsessions" ? Anyhow, here`s an AP story on FH, M. Fairchild & Bo Derek slapping the hell out of each other, & the new wave of "telenovelas" in general
http://tv.yahoo.com/news/ap/20060830/115697430000.html
Bill C
Aug 30, 2006 @ 11:21 pm
Ideally, we probably would need threads for every single show under both umbrella titles...but the titles are still being used internally by MNTV, so at the very least this one and the Desire thread will survive the first 13 weeks.
That newsbite, though (thanks for pointing it out, jellyeggs), did give us one interesting tidbit: Casper Van Dien (perhaps best known as Mr. Catherine Oxenberg, or from Starship Troopers) has a part in Watch Over Me, the second SO series.
harlowe
Aug 31, 2006 @ 8:26 pm
From
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews...nt/15405201.htmThe first two telenovelas -- ``Desire'' (two brothers fight for one woman) and ``Fashion House'' (Bo Derek and Morgan Fairchild cat fight) -- have cost just $200,000 an episode. The average network hourlong drama starts at $2 million an episode and often goes higher.
And where a network hour normally takes seven or eight days to film, the episodes of ``Desire'' and ``Fashion House'' have often been shot in a day.
Another cost-saver: The dramas are all based on shows that have already aired in other countries, and there is no original writing per se. (The show's writers are called ``adapters.'')
The result, based on early episodes of ``Desire'' (9 p.m. Tuesday, Ch. 4) and ``Fashion House'' (10 p.m. Tuesday, Ch. 4), is a television equivalent of Grade C movies that go straight to Blockbuster. Actually, they look so cheaply made that calling them ``straight-to-video'' would be unfair . . . to most straight-to-video films.
A better review at
http://www.suntimes.com/output/elfman/cst-ftr-elf31.html. I am surprised that Desire got the better review.
But
http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/artic...tworktv_1006896News Corp has been able to attract less than half the $50 million in upfront ad sales that it expected for next Tuesday's launch of MyNetworkTV, its English-language "telenovela" (limited-run soap opera) network, the Los Angeles Times reported today (Thursday), citing two unnamed company executives. One media buyer told the newspaper that she is standing on the sidelines, waiting to see whether the network is able to attract an audience. Laura Caraccioli-Davis, director of Starcom Entertainment, said, "Everyone is curious to see how this will play out. ... It defies all of the conventions that make network television work." Only two shows will air on the network, Desire and Fashion House. Each will run five nights a week for 13 weeks and will then be replaced by two new shows. "A lot is riding on these first two shows," Shari Anne Brill, of the ad-buying firm Carat told the Times. "The next three months will be crucial."
Full LA Times article
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-myne...rack=crosspromo
Bill C
Aug 31, 2006 @ 10:47 pm
That's very interesting indeed. Not entirely surprising, I suppose...the gamble aspect of MNTV's starting out of the gate with two hour-long soaps hasn't exactly been played up press-wise until now...
Elementalist
Sep 1, 2006 @ 4:12 am
Who are the 2 gay supporting characters in FH?
Bill C
Sep 1, 2006 @ 6:20 pm
IIRC, they're just some designers for (Maria) Gianni.
You folks might want to check your local MNTV listings: apparently, as the lead-in to Tuesday's premiere of Fashion House, they're airing some sort of promo show called Fashion House Revealed at least a few times between tonight and Monday night.
Stinger97
Sep 2, 2006 @ 11:22 pm
Each will run five nights a week for 13 weeks and will then be replaced by two new shows. "A lot is riding on these first two shows," Shari Anne Brill, of the ad-buying firm Carat told the Times. "The next three months will be crucial."
My question is, what happens if both shows fail? I'm sure the network isn't expecting huge numbers, but I would assume that they hope to attract at least a CW-sized audience. If the shows do fail, does MNTV close up shop and call it a day?
Lyle Lyle
Sep 5, 2006 @ 12:15 am
My question is, what happens if both shows fail? I'm sure the network isn't expecting huge numbers, but I would assume that they hope to attract at least a CW-sized audience. If the shows do fail, does MNTV close up shop and call it a day?
Realistically, I'd expect UPN-in-reruns numbers but, since MNTV is much more focused on the local I suspect a much bigger factor is going to be how the individual stations feel about the numbers... all stuff we'll only hear about if it does well enough to justify a press release.
I think they've got the right plan by (oublically, at least) comitting to the format for a full year. Introducing telenovelas to an english-only audience will be a challenge, these shows are really going to depend on WOM... and that takes time. I think fall is important for creating the right first impression, but the real opportunity lies in the summer when network original programming tends to be pretty blah. Univision's been winning the ratings for the past two summers that way, I suspect MNTV has their eye on that prize.
So, for the most part, I think sucess will be judged like cable -- audience trends (if it can build over time... most likely measured by the premiere vs. the finale since they're not expecting people to watch five times each week) over winning time slots.
SpicyWildflower
Sep 5, 2006 @ 8:07 pm
Went looking for the Fashion House thread and wanted to weep when I didn't find one. Love the previewed bitchslapping goodness.
Wow this was actually pretty good. Much better than Desire and I actually can't wait for tomorrow. Psycho husband, blackmailing sexpartners, bitchy model rivals and hot inflatable assistants. It's like Christmas in September.
Bill C
Sep 5, 2006 @ 10:07 pm
Shallow though it is, I just might watch this show to the end just for the walking heart attack that is Donna Feldman's Gloria. Even if she is boinking the designated skank for Fashion House (okay, I'll probably watch just to see his hypocritical control-freak ass get hit by a bus).
As for the rest of the show...it's definitely further into guilty-pleasure territory than Desire is. And perhaps more importantly it doesn't put on airs about it. Sex, skin, sarcasm, and the guy who's now pulling Maria Gianni's strings...okay, we need to know more about him, but everything else was illustrated pretty well.
SpicyWildflower
Sep 5, 2006 @ 10:25 pm
Is it wrong that I like the guy pulling Mama Gianni's strings? And that I'd like to see him keep pulling them? He's bad in a good way, not that smarmy way that makes you squirm. I get the vibe that he might actually like her and is just getting her however he can because he knows he probably couldn't get her any other way.
jjfc
Sep 5, 2006 @ 10:31 pm
I have a couple problems with Fashion House. First, the husband (is it Vance or Lance?) dare I say it he's too realistic as a soap villain. I am just wanting him to get his comeuppance rather than loving to hate him. And the fact that he cheated was revealed too quickly.
Second, if Bo's son has been given two art shows majorly funded, and hasn't gotten off the ground, he's prolly a no talent hack. But of course the climactic third show will make him. Also, he's not quite cute enough to be the hot guy. (Hey, it's a soap himbo. I can have high standards.)
Bill C
Sep 5, 2006 @ 10:55 pm
I'm pretty sure the asshole's name is Lance,
jjfc. And yeah...he gets outed in the first episode? (Though they didn't explain where the pictures came from.) The only benefit, I suppose, is that it clears the way for Michelle to be with whatshisface...Maria's kid, the starving artist. (And feud with Globes, er, Gloria.)
SpicyWildflower:
Is it wrong that I like the guy pulling Mama Gianni's strings? And that I'd like to see him keep pulling them? He's bad in a good way, not that smarmy way that makes you squirm.
There may be a little smarm, but not much. He (William Chandler, IIRC) seems to be the designated bad boy of the show, and we know nothing about him but his name...
Knots Landing
Sep 6, 2006 @ 2:14 am
I'm shocked at how much Fashion House worked! I've been very depressed and drinking over the cancellation of Footballers Wives, but I think I have found my new (extremely) guilty pleasure! As far as trashy glamorous soaps go, this is a keeper!
This had better pacing and a more interesting story than Desire. Plus the cast is a million times better. Bo Derek is amazing to watch and the supporting cast is very charming. Loving Nikki, the desperate housewife and her husband, the son is cute and I love love love the gays!
It's a shame this will be airing after Desire, because it has a bigger chance of success. Hopefully Desire didn't disappoint too much and people stick around to watch this. It's very disappointing seeing how great this show is and knowing it'll only be 13 weeks! I know I would love to see this continue, hopefully they'll consider bringing it back in the future.
Now I just need to figure out a way to watch this five days a week! I don't know how I'm going to fit it in with all the new and returning shows I plan on watching. I still haven't looked over the new schedule, but I'm going to do that now. *Must* get my daily Fashion House fix!
jellyeggs
Sep 6, 2006 @ 11:11 am
Last night, My Network TV debuted slowly (ok, very slowly) in "overnight" ratings
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_di...t_id=1003117335 this`ll obviously take some time to grow! I`m with
Knots on enjoying the "desperate" housewife (I assume no gardeners`ll come into play?), the "gay guys" comic relief & Bo, but i`m really with
Bill C on gorgeous Gloria, talk about "sex on a stick". Ok, i`m done drooling, until 9PM.:-)
Charlie Baker
Sep 6, 2006 @ 3:54 pm
Can't believe that the first topic I'm starting here is for THIS show! (I don't know if I feel shame or guilt or what.) Pretty comparable with DESIRE--very uneven acting, lots of eye candy, over-the-top cartoony action, and a slick production. Has Bo Derek taken some acting lessons? Not that she's a threat to Meryl Streep, or Joan Collins for that matter, but she actually played the part.
Only demerit: they didn't use La Fairchild in the first episode.
I imagine I will keep half an eye on this, particularly until my faves start new seasons. Don't know if I'll ever post about it again, though.
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