Each May, New York plays host to the TV upfronts, a week-long attempted courtship of advertisers and the media by the five television networks (NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, and, yes, the CW). The networks put on their best suits, haul out their brightest stars, serve their most shrimp-filled shrimp cocktails, and stage giant presentations, all in an effort to woo potential ad buyers to their upcoming fall schedules.
And if The TV Set is to be believed, there is also a high probability for giant ice sculptures.
This year, for the first time, I will be attending some (i.e., two) of the upfronts–so you don't have to! (Also, you can't, unless you're, say, a marketing guy from Colgate who wants to integrate your new whitening toothpaste into NBC's Bionic Woman.)
Yesterday I went to NBC's presentation at Radio City Music Hall. Overall, it was like a massive, slick Tony Robbins seminar, with the president of NBC Entertainment (Kevin Reilly) as Tony, many buzzwords (like "bulk-up," and "upscale") flashing on multiple screens, and at least one dramatic use of a smoke machine (when the cast of Heroes materialized on stage).
After the presentation there was a party in the middle of Rockefeller Center, and while there were no peacock ice sculptures in sight, there were areas called "Star Stations," or, more accurately, "TV star zoos," where people could stand around staring at and taking pictures of the cast of The Office or Heroes. Ah, the magic of television!
Anyway, here's a small sample of what I learned from all the flashing screens at the presentation:
—According to Reilly, NBC "has the class" and now they're "going for the mass." Translation: "We're going to get better ratings, I swear." But the "mass" part also refers to NBC's bulking up of popular shows: Reilly said that in the 2007-2008 season there would be "30 half-hours of The Office including 5 hour-long episodes," which means not only has NBC decided to give the public more Office, they've also figured out a way to bend the boundaries of time itself!