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  #1   Report Post  
Tom Watson
 
Posts: n/a
Default This Old Shelf?

This is reprinted from today's Philadelphia Inquirer

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted on Sun, May. 01, 2005


On the House | Hot off the shelf: Shows that hit home

By Al Heavens
Inquirer Columnist

Trading Spaces is in trouble as a result of overexposure, changing
tastes, and enough imitators to fill the stands at Citizens Bank Park.

Viewership is way down for the program, according to Dave Bauder, the
Associated Press TV writer, especially among younger demographics.
That means viewership is down, too, for the Learning Channel, also
known as "the life unscripted" network.

If you ask me, the problem is trying to do too much within the
confines of a half-hour or one-hour program. Each e-mail or call I get
from a reader involves a single question about some household problem.
You never ask me how to build a house - well, at least not all that
often.

I think things would be going much better for all concerned if the
Trading Spaces bunch spent the program on a single task, such as
installing a shelf.

So what do you think of these groundbreaking alternatives?

"This Old Shelf." On today's program, Tom Silva and Norm Abram put
host Kevin O'Connor through a thickness planer and molly-bolt him
crosswise on a living-room wall. O'Connor proves strong enough to hold
every tote bag PBS has offered since the 1968 beg-athon.

"Extreme Makeover: Shelf." In the next 24 hours, Ty Pennington and his
team of whining out-of-work actresses and bickering designers join 200
contractors to install a wooden shelf for a storage-challenged family
of four in Rancho Cucamungo.

Tomorrow, How'd They Do That Shelf reveals the behind-the-scenes
efforts of 200 workers to hang a single shelf while they referee
fights between the actresses and the designers.

"While You Were Out, We Hung a Shelf." Bill tells Rita that he has a
hankering for a ceiling fan, but Rita and the show's crew decide it
will be easier for everyone if they just hang a shelf. Bill comes
home, sees the shelf, moves to an apartment, files for divorce.

(The divorce itself can be seen at 10:30 a.m. May 12 on Court TV, with
reenactors left over from the Michael Jackson trial on E!)

"Men With Tool Belts Hang a Shelf." Today, Frank and Fred install a
shelf in Billy's bedroom while cracking every joke written since the
17th century about wood, anchors, levels, screws, plaster and drywall.
Example: "I haven't seen an anchor that bent out of shape since Dan
Rather left the CBS Evening News."

"Shelftime." On this episode, Dean and Robin install a shelf in the
middle of an open field in northern Minnesota, and then build a log
house around it.

"What Not to Wear: Shelving." Betty and Reba spend the first 15
minutes of the show making fun of Mary's bookshelf. Mary removes the
shelf from the wall and spends the last 15 minutes of the show hanging
the shelf on Betty and Reba.

Many of the unscripted shows on TLC started with the BBC. Trading
Spaces was Changing Rooms in England. What Not to Wear kept its title
when it crossed the Atlantic.

Unlike our TV executives, the British tend not to continue applying
the cricket bat to the pony after the poor blighter has expired. The
typical British television show is long-lived if it has more than 14
episodes in its entire run. After having lost an empire, the British
realize that everything, including TV programs, has a limited shelf
life.

Shelf life. Hmm, more material for Fred and Frank.

Some home-improvement shows are as boring to watch as paint drying.
Some are interesting and useful, but after a while they become as
pointless as the typical Saturday Night Live sketch, and go on just as
long.

Will our TV executives ever learn? As long as they have us as willing
victims, and an extensive list of British shows to copy, probably not.

Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it makes TV
pretty same-y - with or without Paige Davis as host.

And that's no joke.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"On the House" appears Sundays in The Inquirer. Contact Alan J.
Heavens at 215-854-2472 or . Read his recent
work at
http://go.philly.com/alheavens.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

© 2005 Philadelphia Inquirer and wire service sources. All Rights
Reserved.
http://www.philly.com



Tom Watson - WoodDorker
tjwatson1ATcomcastDOTnet (email)
http://home.comcast.net/~tjwatson1/ (website)
  #2   Report Post  
Bob Schmall
 
Posts: n/a
Default


"Tom Watson" wrote in message
...
This is reprinted from today's Philadelphia Inquirer

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted on Sun, May. 01, 2005


On the House | Hot off the shelf: Shows that hit home

By Al Heavens
Inquirer Columnist

Trading Spaces is in trouble as a result of overexposure, changing
tastes, and enough imitators to fill the stands at Citizens Bank Park.


(snip)

Thank you, Tommy. A great way to begin a Sunday.

Bob


  #3   Report Post  
John Emmons
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Hit the nail on the head for me, particularly the bit about letting a series
run too long. I work in television and that's one of the biggest problems in
the industry. No exit strategy.

John

"Tom Watson" wrote in message
...
This is reprinted from today's Philadelphia Inquirer

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

------

Posted on Sun, May. 01, 2005


On the House | Hot off the shelf: Shows that hit home

By Al Heavens
Inquirer Columnist

Trading Spaces is in trouble as a result of overexposure, changing
tastes, and enough imitators to fill the stands at Citizens Bank Park.

Viewership is way down for the program, according to Dave Bauder, the
Associated Press TV writer, especially among younger demographics.
That means viewership is down, too, for the Learning Channel, also
known as "the life unscripted" network.

If you ask me, the problem is trying to do too much within the
confines of a half-hour or one-hour program. Each e-mail or call I get
from a reader involves a single question about some household problem.
You never ask me how to build a house - well, at least not all that
often.

I think things would be going much better for all concerned if the
Trading Spaces bunch spent the program on a single task, such as
installing a shelf.

So what do you think of these groundbreaking alternatives?

"This Old Shelf." On today's program, Tom Silva and Norm Abram put
host Kevin O'Connor through a thickness planer and molly-bolt him
crosswise on a living-room wall. O'Connor proves strong enough to hold
every tote bag PBS has offered since the 1968 beg-athon.

"Extreme Makeover: Shelf." In the next 24 hours, Ty Pennington and his
team of whining out-of-work actresses and bickering designers join 200
contractors to install a wooden shelf for a storage-challenged family
of four in Rancho Cucamungo.

Tomorrow, How'd They Do That Shelf reveals the behind-the-scenes
efforts of 200 workers to hang a single shelf while they referee
fights between the actresses and the designers.

"While You Were Out, We Hung a Shelf." Bill tells Rita that he has a
hankering for a ceiling fan, but Rita and the show's crew decide it
will be easier for everyone if they just hang a shelf. Bill comes
home, sees the shelf, moves to an apartment, files for divorce.

(The divorce itself can be seen at 10:30 a.m. May 12 on Court TV, with
reenactors left over from the Michael Jackson trial on E!)

"Men With Tool Belts Hang a Shelf." Today, Frank and Fred install a
shelf in Billy's bedroom while cracking every joke written since the
17th century about wood, anchors, levels, screws, plaster and drywall.
Example: "I haven't seen an anchor that bent out of shape since Dan
Rather left the CBS Evening News."

"Shelftime." On this episode, Dean and Robin install a shelf in the
middle of an open field in northern Minnesota, and then build a log
house around it.

"What Not to Wear: Shelving." Betty and Reba spend the first 15
minutes of the show making fun of Mary's bookshelf. Mary removes the
shelf from the wall and spends the last 15 minutes of the show hanging
the shelf on Betty and Reba.

Many of the unscripted shows on TLC started with the BBC. Trading
Spaces was Changing Rooms in England. What Not to Wear kept its title
when it crossed the Atlantic.

Unlike our TV executives, the British tend not to continue applying
the cricket bat to the pony after the poor blighter has expired. The
typical British television show is long-lived if it has more than 14
episodes in its entire run. After having lost an empire, the British
realize that everything, including TV programs, has a limited shelf
life.

Shelf life. Hmm, more material for Fred and Frank.

Some home-improvement shows are as boring to watch as paint drying.
Some are interesting and useful, but after a while they become as
pointless as the typical Saturday Night Live sketch, and go on just as
long.

Will our TV executives ever learn? As long as they have us as willing
victims, and an extensive list of British shows to copy, probably not.

Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it makes TV
pretty same-y - with or without Paige Davis as host.

And that's no joke.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------

------
"On the House" appears Sundays in The Inquirer. Contact Alan J.
Heavens at 215-854-2472 or . Read his recent
work at
http://go.philly.com/alheavens.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

------

© 2005 Philadelphia Inquirer and wire service sources. All Rights
Reserved.
http://www.philly.com



Tom Watson - WoodDorker
tjwatson1ATcomcastDOTnet (email)
http://home.comcast.net/~tjwatson1/ (website)



  #4   Report Post  
Leuf
 
Posts: n/a
Default

On Sun, 01 May 2005 07:50:16 -0400, Tom Watson
wrote:

Trading Spaces is in trouble as a result of overexposure, changing
tastes, and enough imitators to fill the stands at Citizens Bank Park.

snip
If you ask me, the problem is trying to do too much within the
confines of a half-hour or one-hour program. Each e-mail or call I get
from a reader involves a single question about some household problem.
You never ask me how to build a house - well, at least not all that
often.


Well that is the problem with all of those shows. It's not about
showing you how to do anything. But still, if it inspires people to
try doing things that's a good thing.

It's easy to pick on Trading Spaces, but it's not that bad. Now that
they've ditched Paige and use two carpenters instead of one, they have
time to do a little better in the woodworking department. Faber in
particular does some nice stuff given the contraints of the show. You
aren't going to see very much of the actual construction, but even
with Norm I consider it to be more of a source of ideas than a how-to.

What might be interesting would be to have some spinoffs where they
focus on one aspect of the design. At 8 they show the normal show, at
9 you can see how they built the armoire or whatever, etc..

-Leuf
  #5   Report Post  
Pete Duncan
 
Posts: n/a
Default

On Sun, 01 May 2005 14:20:07 -0400, Leuf
wrote:

On Sun, 01 May 2005 07:50:16 -0400, Tom Watson
wrote:

Trading Spaces is in trouble as a result of overexposure, changing
tastes, and enough imitators to fill the stands at Citizens Bank Park.

snip

Well that is the problem with all of those shows. It's not about
showing you how to do anything. But still, if it inspires people to
try doing things that's a good thing.

-Leuf


I think Trading Spaces was a much better production before the
powers-that-be started trying to broaden their audience by fiddling
with the format. The DIY audience doesn't NEED drama and conflict.
When the producers have some hair-brained "decorator" slathering white
paint all over someone's "off limits" family heirloom piano, they've
gone too far.

I suspect they could keep a limited but loyal audience for
years to come if they stuck with a straightforward DIY format.
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