NBC: Back on Track with a Traditional Upfront Presentation and Several Hot New Shows

After two years during which NBC told us everything about the way it did business simply had to change especially the development of costly scripted programming the network pulled a complete 180 this week putting together one of its most traditional fall schedules in years amp8211 and also one of its most promising in recent memoryNBC has also since 2007 been determined to discontinue its annual Upfront week presentation but there it was on Monday revealing its 201011 season plans to a room full of advertising executives and journalists just like it did in the old days Granted a ballroom on the third floor of the Hilton Hotel wasn39t as lavish a setting as Radio City Music Hall home to so many previous NBC Upfront events but it seemed a perfect locale for a network that is trying to put the multiple misfires of recent years behind it to explain its programming and scheduling strategies It reminded me of those muchmissed relatively intimate Upfront presentations at the Sheraton Hotel by The WB but without the Dean ampamp Deluca coffee and all those pretty young starsRead Jack Myers Media Business Report exclusive Upfront Coverage by Ed Martin and Simon Applebaum available to corporate subscribersamp160Redistribution in any form except among approved individuals within your company is prohibitedAfter a memorably hilarious pretaped opening by Alec Baldwin in character as NBC39s pompous Vice President of East Coast Television and Microwave Programming Jack Donaghy from 30 Rock the network39s presentation was all about clips from its new shows and toward that end the network did an excellent job of showcasing its product and generating much positive buzz in the process Introductions and other remarks by Jeff Gaspin Chairman NBC Universal Television Entertainment and Angela Bromstad President Primetime Entertainment NBC and Universal Media Studios were brief the clips were generous and the presentation hummed right along slowing down only when Late Night host Jimmy Fallon took the stage to improvise silly songs about advertisers39 clients that were neither funny or clever When it comes to Upfront entertainment he39s no Jimmy KimmelThe presentation was otherwise very short on star power but producers and stars from most of NBC39s new and returning shows including Baldwin were on hand to meet and greet the crowd during a casual luncheon that followed in an adjacent hallCollectively NBC39s efforts resulted in much positive buzz about several of its new fall and midseason scripted series including two that are already the most talked about new shows on any network The Event a serialized thriller about an ordinary guy unwittingly caught up in a global conspiracy and the biggest coverup in the history of the United States and UnderCovers a sexy actionpacked drama about married former CIA spies who are happily running a successful catering business when they are thrust back into the world of espionage from hitmaker JJ Abrams and Josh Reims Clips from both shows thrilled the audienceI had concerns about the viability of a series like The Event given the failure of so many similarly structured series in recent years especially those about global threats and conspiracies but Jason Ritter the ingratiating star of the show assured me that series creator Nick Wauters has been working on the show39s bible for many years and has plotted compelling storylines for several seasons Here39s hopingI also had concerns about UnderCovers because the clips we saw seemed extremely reminiscent of another Abrams spythriller Alias which wore out its welcome at least two seasons before it ended But Abrams told me that fans of his other shows might be surprised by the overall tone of this one which will be much lighter and far less edgy than his earlier efforts quotIt39s like Hart to Hartquot he saidWhile much of the buzz at the luncheon centered on those two shows the other 11 new fall and midseason series NBC showcased were also largely well received That is to say there didn39t appear to be a flatout loser in the bunch and I couldn39t find anyone who truly disliked anything they had seenSomeone at NBC has obviously paid attention to Fox39s reliably exciting Upfront events of recent years especially its outdoor marketing and promotion Fox had cows on 55th Street when it introduced Fringe two years ago and cheerleaders and utilized giant hot air balloons last year to promote Glee generating thousands of impressions from passersby while impressing advertisers as well NBC on Monday had a fleet of rainbow colored taxi cabs lined up on 53rd Street outside the Hilton each adorned with the NBC logo and its marketing phrase of the moment quotmore colorfulquotI have no proof of this amp8211 I only know what I saw amp8211 but it appeared to me that the newly frisky folks at NBC decided to maximize their investment in painted cabs by sending them north after their event to 74th Street and Broadway the location of the Beacon Theater home this year to Fox39s Upfront presentation Fox had several people positioned in the immediate area holding those giant eyecatching balloons they brought out last year for Glee each one now featuring the logo of a different Fox show But they had to compete for impressions with those NBC cabs as they drove back and forth just a few feet awayClick for NBC39s 20102011 Fall Schedule

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NBC: Back on Track with a Traditional Upfront Presentation and Several Hot New Shows

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NBC: Back on Track with a Traditional Upfront Presentation and Several Hot New Shows

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