ABC Announces Fall Lineup May 13, 2008
- Rock and Pop
By Ann Donahue, L.A.
ABC is getting a little Bowie this fall.
The network announced its primetime fall programming schedule Tuesday morning, including "Life on Mars," a remake of the BBC's time-traveling cop show. In the American version, Jason O'Mara (a frequent guest on ABC shows "Grey's Anatomy" and "Men in Trees") will play a detective who jumps back to 1972 after he is hit by a car and winds up fighting crime in the past.
The show gives plenty of opportunity for period music to be incorporated into the action; however, it's too early to detail exactly what artists could be featured. Steve McPherson, president of ABC Entertainment, says that there will be some cast and production changes to "Mars" as the pilot is re-shot over the summer; writer/ executive producer David E. Kelley, who helped bring the show to the U.S. and worked on the pilot, will now concentrate on writing the final season of the network's "Boston Legal."
In the British version of the show, David Bowie's "Life on Mars" is used as the theme song; the song was incorporated into the preview shown to the press Tuesday morning.
"Mars" will receive a prime timeslot this fall: Thursdays at 10 p.m., after network stalwarts "Ugly Betty" and "Grey's Anatomy."
For the most part, however, ABC is sticking to the shows it has seen success with in the past. Besides "Grey's," synch-friendly shows like "Private Practice," "Eli Stone" and "Dancing With the Stars," which regularly features live performances from bands, are back on the schedule.
New to ABC - but with a built-in fan base and of musical interest - is "Scrubs," which the network picked up after NBC jettisoned the series. "It's a great add for us," McPherson says, noting that while NBC kept moving the show - "it's been in 17 time periods" - that it is still a recognizable comedy brand.
In 2007, the sixth season of "Scrubs" featured an episode done as a musical starring "Avenue Q's" Stephanie D'Abruzzo. With a book written by Deb Fordham; music and lyrics by Jeff Marx, Robert Lopez, Fordham, Paul Perry, and Doug Besterman; and music by Jan Stevens, the episode received five Emmy nominations.
However, one show that routinely received placements, the Anne Heche-starring "Men in Trees," was canceled by the network due to ratings, McPherson says. Despite trying out the show in several timeslots, including a usually-golden Thursday night position, "it couldn't get traction."
On the advertising side, ABC announced that it is developing an "emerging media and advertising research lab" in order to better understand audience behavior and reactions to advertising. It will test different advertising schemes - such as interactivity, split screen, sponsorships and brand integration - to form quantitative measures of how viewers react.
"By coupling Disney Media Networks' top-quality content with advanced new research practices, we have an important opportunity to further explore the connection that viewers of all ages have with our entertainment, news and sports programming," says Anne Sweeney, president Disney-ABC Television Group and co-chair, Disney Media Networks.
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