Circling the Drain: Newspaper sitcom pilot-ette...

...coming from Michael Eisner and some other Hollywood types...

http://www.deadline.com/2010/12/michael-eisner-enters-live-action-television-with-newspaper-comedy-presentation/

"Directed by Tucker Gates (Lost), stars Caprica alumna Alessandra Torresani as a 25-year-old reporter at the style section of a newspaper who loses her job and ends up on the obituary desk."

 

Is that even reasonable? Or, there's an obituary desk?

 

Mark sure you get those credit card numbers from the out-of-town funeral homes!

 

There's a style section?

 

There are still newspapers?

 

Writing obits is the worst job at a paper by a thousand miles. I'd rather clean toilets that won't flush in between taking prep agate and talking to angry prep parents than go anywhere near the obit desk.

 

Sounds sort of like a book I read once:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basket_Case_%28novel%29

Except the guy ends up solving a murder, but you know ...

 

I think the problem is that a lot of what we find funny about working at a newspaper likely would be lost on the general public. For this show to have mass appeal, it would have to be character-driven (i.e. The Office or WKRP).

Otherwise, they'd be better off developing a "new" show about a lazy husband's weekly efforts to trick his nagging wife out of helping out around the house.

 

That's like saying The Honeymooners proved the public wanted to see more shows about bus drivers.

 

I can see the drama now.
Will the story get a second read? Will the lead quote be moved up? Will the nutgraph be fact-checked?
Of course, hilarity ensues when we learn that the fact-checker was laid off years ago, it didn't even get a first read because the copy editors are on furlough and the paginator in the regional design center was too burnt-out to even backread the story before putting it on the page.

 

C'mon now ... the late-night jokes of the copy desk, the nerdy classic rock references throughout the newsroom, the running gag of everyone yelling "FUCK!" when the phone rings ...

That's comedy gold!

 

God, I miss the hell out of a real live newsroom.

Not that I don't love my job. I do. But it's 10-6 in the office, and I'm sitting around marketing folks and webmasters. It's not quite the same vibe.