ITV

Tag: David E. Kelley

  • NBC makes the summer a sweet reality

    NBC makes the summer a sweet reality

    MUMBAI: US broadcaster NBC gets real this Summer with four new reality shows.

    I Want To Be A Hilton is a fresh, humorous — and sometimes poignant ode to the glamour and style of New York as reflected by its host and mentor Kathy Hilton. She is matriarch of one of the most ubiquitous families in the world that owns a hotel chain. The unscripted series charts the foibles and flirtations encountered by 14 eccentric young contestants as they vie for the opportunity to live the glamorous caviar-and-champagne lifestyle. Immersing them in the New York society scene,

    Hilton educates the contestants in the do’s-and-don’ts of haute couture, etiquette and even how to handle an unforgiving press. At the conclusion of each episode, Hilton eliminates the candidates based on the results of weekly challenges. The finalist wins an extravagant prize package and the opportunity to live the high life, a la a Hilton, for a year. The series is produced by Endemol USA.

    The Law Firm from multiple Emmy Award-winning producer David E. Kelley The Practice features real lawyers competing against each other while trying actual court cases with in front of real judges and juries — resulting in outcomes that are final, legal and binding for the parties. Premier trial attorney and legal analyst Roy Black is the managing partner of The Law Firm.

    As managing partner, Black will decide which of the 12 “legal eagles” will be eliminated in each episode. Smart, strong-willed and fiercely competitive, the attorneys work together in different teams each week, battling tight deadlines, intense pressure and even each other as they strategise, prepare and try their cases. The compelling cases include First Amendment issues, wrongful death cases and neighbor disputes, among others. Distinguished judges will decide some of the cases, while a jury determines the others. In the end, the top attorney will win a prize of $250,000.

    Meet Mister Mom kicks off in August. Under-appreciated Moms are given a surprise luxury vacation while Dad is left to run the household and mind the kids for a week in the hilarious comedy reality show.This show is every Mom’s fantasy and every Mom’s revenge. Each episode showcases the comedy that ensues when two very busy families realize just how irreplaceable Mom is in their daily lives. Humorously told from the children’s perspectives, every episode will also include valuable information for families on how to better manage their lives together.

    Soon after the game begins, the Moms are whisked away to a spa for a week of exciting adventures and rejuvenation, leaving Dad and the kids to juggle the daily tasks of the household. The Dads from each family compete head-to-head to see who can best handle the pressure of keeping the family together despite a jam-packed schedule. All the while, the Moms are secretly watching the madness on closed-circuit TV.

    The Biggest Loser which also premieres in August is the first reality series in which everybody loses. The show offers severely overweight participants the opportunity to undergo a radical physical makeover without any kind of surgery. Caroline Rhea Sabrina, the Teenage Witch returns to host the second season of the series that challenges and encourages overweight contestants as they compete for a grand prize of $250,000 in a safe and recommended manner through comprehensive diet and exercise.

    The life-altering and one-hour reality series gathers contestants from across the country to face real life temptations while provided with approved weight-loss skills and resources to help them transform their bodies, health — and ultimately, their lives.

    A twist in how the competition is “weighted” this season will be the battle of the sexes created when the 14 hopeful yet strong-willed contestants discover themselves divided into the red team (women) and the blue team (men). Together they’ll face challenges, temptations, weigh-ins and eliminations — until the final contestant remains to claim the title of “the biggest loser.”

    All contestants work out under the supervision of physicians and nutritionists, in addition to the professional trainers Jillian Michael (red team) and Bob Harper (blue team) assigned to each team.

    The fourth new reality show is Tommy Lee Goes To College. The University of Nebraska at Lincoln ) welcomes a motley new student to its campus notorious rocker Tommy Lee. At 19, Lee formed the heavy metal band Motley Crue. Hits like Dr. Feelgood sent him on a meteoric rise to fame and fortune. He had no time for college as he was busy touring the world and living the fast life for two glorious decades.

    Cut to Tommy Lee today — twice divorced and a single father of two boys. Most men in their midlife crisis buy sports cars and date young women. Lee wants something different, something money can’t buy. He wants academic redemption. So he heads off to UNL, but it won’t be class as usual when the new student is Tommy Lee.

    Each of the six half-hour episodes will find Lee floundering in a new fish-out-of-water situation quintessential collegiate challenges such as finding his roommate Matt, trying out for the marching band and cramming for finals in true Tommy Lee fashion with his hot tutor, Natalie, in tow.

  • Star World to air ‘Boston Public’

    Star World to air ‘Boston Public’

    MUMBAI: The Boston Public will now become more familiar to Indian viewers as Star World brings in David E Kelley’s series from 25 April in the 10-pm slot.

    It will be an all-new season from David E Kelley, the Emmy Award-winning creator of Ally McBeal and The Practice.

    The show is a dramatic, sometimes comedic, behind-the-scenes look at the personal and professional lives of teachers working at a mid-size high school in Boston.

    Boston Public has never been shy about addressing tough issues, which exists in the education system. But it also never gets preachy or boring.

    That’s thanks largely to the hodge-podge of characters, which make up the teachers of Winslow High. There’s the firm but fair principal Steven Harper (Chi McBride), the protective teacher Marylin Sudor (Sharon Leal), the erratic and risky Marla Hendricks (Loretta Devine), and of course, the unforgettably nostalgic and comic Harvey Lipschultz (Emmy winner Fyvush Finkel), among others.

    Whatever their differences and idiosyncrasies, they all share one thing in common – their unwavering passion for teaching, a stock belief that they can make a difference, and that everyone can be human.

    And in this school, that philosophy holds especially true for the teachers – who send the rules to get things done and are never afraid to deal with the personal issue behind the a public face.

  • ‘The Practice’ producer David E. Kelley attempts reality the law way

    ‘The Practice’ producer David E. Kelley attempts reality the law way

    MUMBAI: After the successful sitcom Frasier came to a close US broadcaster NBC has started betting big on the reality genre.

    A few days ago it had announced plans for a reality show which will see a winner living a glamorous life in New York. Now it has announced another reality show featuring a pack of lawyers.

    The show is the brainchild of award winning producer David E. Kelley The Practice , Ally McBeal . He will serve as the executive producer. In India the two above mentioned shows air on Star World.

    This represents the producer’s first move away from traditional fare into the alternative arena. The eight-episode show will feature competitive legal eagles vying to propel their careers to the next level. Each week, the competition will be narrowed down until one person emerges victorious. The project has yet to be named.

    Interestingly Kelley used to practice law. He switched careers and his track record in American television of producing one hit show after another is said to be second to none. The Practice recently completed its eight year run in the US. This led to the spinoff Fleet Street with James Spader and William Shatner.

    NBC Universal Cable Entertainment president Jeff Gaspin had the following remarks to make about the initiative. “Having David Kelley on board on any series is a major get for any network. But to have him focus his immense talents on a reality series that is very close to his own experience is truly exciting.”

    Kelley added, “I remain fascinated by the law, and this will be another franchise set in that arena. This time however, the attorneys, clients and cases will be real. In success, we should be as enlightening as we are entertaining. In failure, we’ll stink.”

    The series is being produced by Renegade Productions and will be distributed by 20th Century Fox Television. This writer wouldn’t be surprised if the show came to Star World in the future.

    Fox however appears to have got a head start as far as innovating on the law genre is concerned. The broadcaster is debuting a new law series The Jury on 8 June in the US. What is unique is that the show will be interactive in nature.

    The audience can vote as to whether the party is guilty or not. Every week, as the episode unfolds, wireless subscribers can text-message their assessment: G for guilty or N for not guilty to the short code 36988 (FoxTV). The poll results will be revealed on air as the episode comes to a close. Shortly after that viewers will come to know as to whether they differed from or agreed with the jury’s scripted verdict. The final scene will reveal how the crime actually took place.