Shall we take up a collection?

[GS Warehouse]

In his Programming Insider column at mediaweek.com, Marc Berman reports that Byron Allen, former co-host of Real People, is seeking investors for his $2.2B bid to buy the Pax network.  If his bid is successful, he plans to relaunch it as a new broadcast network to target African-American viewers.  Just think...no more JD Roberto!  Any takers?

ObRealPeople: See another RP alumnus twice a day on GSN! :-)

[aaron sica]

[quote name=\'GS Warehouse\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 04:07 PM\']In his Programming Insider column at mediaweek.com, Marc Berman reports that Byron Allen, former co-host of Real People, is seeking investors for his $2.2B bid to buy the Pax network.  If his bid is successful, he plans to relaunch it as a new broadcast network to target African-American viewers.  Just think...no more JD Roberto!  Any takers?

ObRealPeople: See another RP alumnus twice a day on GSN! :-)

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That would be neat - I love my Fat Albert DVD's, but would love to see the show back on the air again. Perhaps it would find a home there, along with Diff'rent Strokes....

ObGameShows: Space for rent

[catkins522]

[quote name=\'GS Warehouse\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 03:07 PM\']In his Programming Insider column at mediaweek.com, Marc Berman reports that Byron Allen, former co-host of Real People, is seeking investors for his $2.2B bid to buy the Pax network.  If his bid is successful, he plans to relaunch it as a new broadcast network to target African-American viewers.  Just think...no more JD Roberto!  Any takers?
[/quote]

I think I saw another African-American network already...  Oh, that's right, it's BET.  Well, at least it's regular tv and not cable.

Charles

[TimK2003]

[quote name=\'catkins522\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 04:05 PM\']
I think I saw another African-American network already...  Oh, that's right, it's BET.  Well, at least it's regular tv and not cable.

Charles

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Make that 2 networks...TV-1 recently was added to the DirecTV lineup...Actually, TV-1 isn't that bad, I liken it to a TV Land for African-Americans -- there are a lot of good old reruns of shows that a family can sit down together & watch (Fresh Prince, Good Times, etc...) -- and the best part is that there are no rap video blocks!

But then again most any changes at PAX nowadays would be an improvement.  Even Balderdash would fit the new network, as many of their semi-regulars fit the demographic (Loni Love, Tim Meadows, and the one from MAD-TV).

[Matt Ottinger]

Am I the only one who finds the idea of Byron Allen operating a network aimed at African-Americans at least a little amusing?  Byron Allen, who reminds me of Wayne Brady only without the talent and the street cred?  Byron Allen, who on Real People was less hip that Skip Stephenson?  Byron Allen, who makes Bryant Gumbel look like Malcolm X?  THAT Byron Allen?

[tvrandywest]

[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 01:47 PM\']Am I the only one who finds the idea of Byron Allen operating a network aimed at African-Americans at least a little amusing?  Byron Allen, who reminds me of Wayne Brady only without the talent and the street cred?  Byron Allen, who on Real People was less hip that Skip Stephenson?  Byron Allen, who makes Bryant Gumbel look like Malcolm X?  THAT Byron Allen?

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Yes, THAT, Byron Allen, Matt. Although I would never have said what you said.   ;-)

PAX is hemorrhaging cash; as of September they were $991 million in debt. That's now over 1 BILLION dollars, kids. The programming and airtime sales deals with NBC have fallen apart. PAX is a distressed property, and I believe the FCC still actively favors minority ownership of stations (PAX owns about 60 stations). In game show vernacular: "It's a MATCH"... if Wall Street can get behind Byron.

Ancient Chinese curse: "May you live in interesting times"


Randy
tvrandywest.com

[tyshaun1]

[quote name=\'catkins522\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 05:05 PM\']I think I saw another African-American network already...  Oh, that's right, it's BET.  Well, at least it's regular tv and not cable.

Charles

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Calling BET an African-American network is like calling Oprah an African-American news show.

Tyshaun

ObGameShow: Bill Rafferty's CS, IMO, was much faster paced than Eubanks'.

[BrandonFG]

I've noticed Byron has a lot of syndicated shows that pop up in the middle of the night. There's EntertainmentStudios.com (I think it was "The Entertainers" at one point) and AutomotiveVision.tv. A bunch of low-budget stuff, but to air at 1:30 in the morning (in Norfolk at least). Then again, if that's your main timeslot across the country, do you really need a large budget. However, I've yet to see a current EntertainmentStudios ep.; I watched it the other nite, and they had a co-star from National Treasure, which was what, November?

I wish him the best, and maybe his production arm can put out some games. Memo to Michi-Matt, you've been watching too much Chappelle's Show. As long as you don't yell out "I'm Matt Ottinger, bitch!" all is well. ;-)

[Fedya]

[quote name=\'GS Warehouse\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 03:07 PM\']ObRealPeople: See another RP alumnus twice a day on GSN! :-)

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Since when did GSN start airing The Better Sex?  :-p

[Matt Ottinger]

[quote name=\'fostergray82\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 08:55 PM\']I wish him the best, and maybe his production arm can put out some games. Memo to Michi-Matt, you've been watching too much Chappelle's Show. As long as you don't yell out "I'm Matt Ottinger, bitch!" all is well. ;-)[/quote]
Would you prefer "Matt Ottinger's gonna have to choke a bitch?"

Yes, I'm into Chapelle's Show, which means that even I am hipper than Byron Allen.

Allen's EntertainmentStudios.com has got to be one of the more preposterous excuses for a television show that I've ever seen.  With rare exception, it's just a series of interviews with big stars that Allen gets by going to their press junkets whenever they've got a movie coming out.  In other words, he makes a big deal about how happy he is that they've come to be on his show, when in fact HE has gone to THEM.  I could make two phone calls and have precisely as much access to these stars as he does, and in fact many local reporters do just that.

Every once in a while he has what appears to be greater access to certain performers that he must have a closer relationship with, but other than that, his act of pretending to be pals to the stars he interviews, some of whom clearly have no idea who he is, is fascinating to watch in a train-wreck sort of way.

[tvrandywest]

As I stated, PAX is distressed and ripe for picking. But Byron will not be alone. Snipped from Friday's Hollywood Reporter:

> Hollywood talent agency The Firm has been in talks to purchase Paxson Communications Corp., which owns the PAX television network, The New York Post reported Friday. The Firm is backed by Bank of America Corp.,<<

And talk about full circle, 100 years ago Bank of America was one of the original lenders that facilitated the birth of the Hollywood studios.


Randy
tvrandywest.com

[uncamark]

Granted, Byron Allen's track record is not inspiring at all.  But I seem to remember that Ted Turner had a similarly lackluster record.  And I'm glad to see that an entrepeneur is going after Pax, not Disney, Viacom, News Corp., Time Warner or Clear Channel.  If he gets the money together, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

At least he won't be the only African-American sending money down a sinkhole in television (see Robert Townsend and Black Family Channel).

ObGameShow:  Townsend's production company is listed as producer of BFC's "Thousand Dollar Bee," cited before here as Exhibit A of how not to produce a game show.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' date=\'Apr 8 2005, 07:57 AM\']his act of pretending to be pals to the stars he interviews, some of whom clearly have no idea who he is, is fascinating to watch in a train-wreck sort of way.
[/quote]
"Yo! Will Smith! My man!"

"Hey, weren't you on "That's Incredible?""

"No, man. "Real People.""

"Oh, yeah. Hey, do you still talk to that kid who was in "A Christmas Story?" I love that movie!"

"No, not really."

<uncomfortable silence>

[Neumms]

[quote name=\'clemon79\' date=\'Apr 8 2005, 03:43 PM\']"Yo! Will Smith! My man!"

"Hey, weren't you on "That's Incredible?""

"No, man. "Real People.""

"Oh, yeah. Hey, do you still talk to that kid who was in "A Christmas Story?" I love that movie!"

"No, not really."

<uncomfortable silence>

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All they need to make it a great show is a Japanese fellow yelling, "Bet bet bet bet bet bet!" in between segments.

[StevensM]

[quote name=\'TimK2003\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 04:28 PM\'][quote name=\'catkins522\' date=\'Apr 7 2005, 04:05 PM\']
I think I saw another African-American network already...  Oh, that's right, it's BET.  Well, at least it's regular tv and not cable.

Charles

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Make that 2 networks...TV-1 recently was added to the DirecTV lineup

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Some areas also get Black Family Channel
http://www.mbcnetwork.com/