(originally written for ALARM Magazine in October 2005)
“7. Blow as deep as you want to blow”
- Jack Kerouac, Belief and Technique for Modern Prose
When I first found Kerouac’s list of 31 essential writing tips, the line, “Blow as deep as you want to blow,” hit me like a shot. It’s a call to be daring, to break new ground, and to harbor confidence in a bold artistic vision. If I were to give one piece of advice to the television industry, that’s what I would say.
I understand the pressure that network executives feel to make TV programs palatable to a mass audience. TV is a business, and its model demands that certain goals be reached. But groundbreaking, quality television was never made by playing it safe, and making a show you think the audience wants can itself be a recipe for failure. The greatest television shows of all time were made by those who created a show the audience didn’t even know they wanted. This is true from I Love Lucy to Seinfeld, from All in the Family to Arrested Development, from Dynasty to Desperate Housewives.
Lost is really the greatest example of this phenomenon on television right now. The heir apparent to Twin Peaks and The X-Files, Lost is one of the most daring television shows ever to hit a major network lineup. It’s hard to believe this show ever made it past the pitch (“There are these invisible monsters, and a French lady, and a polar bear...”). Who could guess that American audiences were looking for a soap opera version of Gilligan’s Island meets The Twilight Zone?
And that’s exactly the point. If the creators of Lost were just looking to give people more of what they already liked, they would have stuck with a tried and true formula like a procedural drama, a reality competition show, or a sitcom featuring a fat guy with a hot wife. Instead, the network gave some committed producers with a crazy idea a chance to realize their vision, and they slammed one out of the park.
This situation is unfortunately more rare in TV than it should be. HBO has exhibited an unflagging commitment to groundbreaking TV over the past decade; Fox birthed The Simpsons, The Family Guy, Arrested Development, and 24; ad supported cable gave us The Daily Show, The Shield, and Monk; the big three networks have even contributed the occasional NYPD Blue. But, for the most part it’s more of the same. By the time this article reaches print, a show called America’s Cutest Puppy will actually have hit the airwaves. I repeat, America’s Cutest Puppy.
In the days of dominance by the big three television networks, it was often the networks trailing in the ratings that were most likely to be daring. Networks tend to stay the course when they’re on top, resting on the laurels of high Nielsen shares and raking in the ad revenue. The trailing networks, those with less to lose, were consequently those most willing to take risks in the creation of groundbreaking new television.
I Love Lucy, the first true blockbuster sitcom, debuted in 1951 on CBS, a year when NBC aired the six highest rated programs on TV, all of which were variety shows. Lucy was number one the following year and held that spot for the next three seasons. In 1975, ABC virtually rose from the ashes to grab seven of the top ten shows with the likes Happy Days, Three’s Company, and The Six Million Dollar Man. CBS climbed back on top in the 80s with the success of the first hit primetime soaps in Dallas and Dynasty. Their reign was ended by NBC’s The Cosby Show, which held the number one spot for five seasons in an era when network executives had declared the family sitcom dead. ABC’s third place struggle throughout the 80s and 90s lead to insanely innovative shows like Moonlighting, and Twin Peaks, for which there was no precedent.
Although giving bold creators a chance to realize their vision is essential to quality television, it’s also necessary to give that vision a chance to find an audience and develop a rhythm. With few exceptions, the best shows in television history have taken a season or two to get rolling. In some of the greatest sitcoms ever, like Cheers and Seinfeld, the early seasons pale in comparison to later episodes when the tenets show became more fully realized. Then there’s the issue of finding the right audience – The Family Guy was off the air for four years before Fox realized they had dumped a hit. Syndication ratings grew, DVD sales soared, and in a rare do-over for the TV execs who weren’t patient enough to let the show find an audience the first time around, the show was back on the air.
Reality television also needs to blow deeper. There’s so much untapped potential there in a sea of shows that currently just, well, blow. Imagine for a moment, a reality show featuring the business dealings of real corporate giants. The world’s most powerful CEOs backstabbing, sandbagging, and snowballing each other in huge deals with empires at stake. Now, after seeing that, would it even be possible to watch Donald Trump coach a bunch of frat guys and sorority girls into hawking some water with his face on it? And this is just one example among dozens, where producers seem to forget reality TV’s greatest strength – that it’s supposed to be real.
In television, just like any other business, risk is a necessary element of success. Sometimes it’s hard to see that when so much of the financial focus is on the short term. But, television history shows that playing it safe when you’re on top is eventually a recipe for failure. A true commitment to artistic vision is a long term investment, and focusing on short term success will only hurt the business and deprive us all of great shows.
Blow deep, TV. I’ll be watching.
“7. Blow as deep as you want to blow”
- Jack Kerouac, Belief and Technique for Modern Prose
When I first found Kerouac’s list of 31 essential writing tips, the line, “Blow as deep as you want to blow,” hit me like a shot. It’s a call to be daring, to break new ground, and to harbor confidence in a bold artistic vision. If I were to give one piece of advice to the television industry, that’s what I would say.
I understand the pressure that network executives feel to make TV programs palatable to a mass audience. TV is a business, and its model demands that certain goals be reached. But groundbreaking, quality television was never made by playing it safe, and making a show you think the audience wants can itself be a recipe for failure. The greatest television shows of all time were made by those who created a show the audience didn’t even know they wanted. This is true from I Love Lucy to Seinfeld, from All in the Family to Arrested Development, from Dynasty to Desperate Housewives.
Lost is really the greatest example of this phenomenon on television right now. The heir apparent to Twin Peaks and The X-Files, Lost is one of the most daring television shows ever to hit a major network lineup. It’s hard to believe this show ever made it past the pitch (“There are these invisible monsters, and a French lady, and a polar bear...”). Who could guess that American audiences were looking for a soap opera version of Gilligan’s Island meets The Twilight Zone?
And that’s exactly the point. If the creators of Lost were just looking to give people more of what they already liked, they would have stuck with a tried and true formula like a procedural drama, a reality competition show, or a sitcom featuring a fat guy with a hot wife. Instead, the network gave some committed producers with a crazy idea a chance to realize their vision, and they slammed one out of the park.
This situation is unfortunately more rare in TV than it should be. HBO has exhibited an unflagging commitment to groundbreaking TV over the past decade; Fox birthed The Simpsons, The Family Guy, Arrested Development, and 24; ad supported cable gave us The Daily Show, The Shield, and Monk; the big three networks have even contributed the occasional NYPD Blue. But, for the most part it’s more of the same. By the time this article reaches print, a show called America’s Cutest Puppy will actually have hit the airwaves. I repeat, America’s Cutest Puppy.
In the days of dominance by the big three television networks, it was often the networks trailing in the ratings that were most likely to be daring. Networks tend to stay the course when they’re on top, resting on the laurels of high Nielsen shares and raking in the ad revenue. The trailing networks, those with less to lose, were consequently those most willing to take risks in the creation of groundbreaking new television.
I Love Lucy, the first true blockbuster sitcom, debuted in 1951 on CBS, a year when NBC aired the six highest rated programs on TV, all of which were variety shows. Lucy was number one the following year and held that spot for the next three seasons. In 1975, ABC virtually rose from the ashes to grab seven of the top ten shows with the likes Happy Days, Three’s Company, and The Six Million Dollar Man. CBS climbed back on top in the 80s with the success of the first hit primetime soaps in Dallas and Dynasty. Their reign was ended by NBC’s The Cosby Show, which held the number one spot for five seasons in an era when network executives had declared the family sitcom dead. ABC’s third place struggle throughout the 80s and 90s lead to insanely innovative shows like Moonlighting, and Twin Peaks, for which there was no precedent.
Although giving bold creators a chance to realize their vision is essential to quality television, it’s also necessary to give that vision a chance to find an audience and develop a rhythm. With few exceptions, the best shows in television history have taken a season or two to get rolling. In some of the greatest sitcoms ever, like Cheers and Seinfeld, the early seasons pale in comparison to later episodes when the tenets show became more fully realized. Then there’s the issue of finding the right audience – The Family Guy was off the air for four years before Fox realized they had dumped a hit. Syndication ratings grew, DVD sales soared, and in a rare do-over for the TV execs who weren’t patient enough to let the show find an audience the first time around, the show was back on the air.
Reality television also needs to blow deeper. There’s so much untapped potential there in a sea of shows that currently just, well, blow. Imagine for a moment, a reality show featuring the business dealings of real corporate giants. The world’s most powerful CEOs backstabbing, sandbagging, and snowballing each other in huge deals with empires at stake. Now, after seeing that, would it even be possible to watch Donald Trump coach a bunch of frat guys and sorority girls into hawking some water with his face on it? And this is just one example among dozens, where producers seem to forget reality TV’s greatest strength – that it’s supposed to be real.
In television, just like any other business, risk is a necessary element of success. Sometimes it’s hard to see that when so much of the financial focus is on the short term. But, television history shows that playing it safe when you’re on top is eventually a recipe for failure. A true commitment to artistic vision is a long term investment, and focusing on short term success will only hurt the business and deprive us all of great shows.
Blow deep, TV. I’ll be watching.
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