NBC, I Told You So

In January I predicted that Jay Leno's return to The Tonight Show would be a disaster of catastrophic proportions.Indeed, in the early months of this year Leno became the most reviled person in television, surpassed perhaps only by NBC President Jeff Zucker and once legendary NBC executive Dick Ebersol. Those who favoured Jay Leno's return to The Tonight Show over NBC retaining Conan O'Brien seemed about as rare as the dodo bird. Quite simply, NBC seemed poised for a ratings disaster, while any repuations Zucker and Ebersol might have had for great programming decisions was ruined once and for all. Quite simply, they had made one of the great mistakes in television history.

NBC trumpeted Jay Leno's return to The Tonight Show as if he was Napoleon returning from Elba, all the while viewers and critics predicted his return would be closer akin to the introduction of New Coke. In truth it seems as if both NBC and its naysayers were wrong. Leno's ratings were not the triumph that NBC apparently thought it would be. At the same time, however, they were not as low as many of us thought they would be. In fact, even though Leno's ratings were lower than Conan O'Brien's ratings had been, he was still beating David Letterman and his ratings were hardly catastrophic. I am guessing NBC was disappointed that their beloved Jay had not proven to be the ratings giant they had thought he would be. I am also guessing that Conan's supporters and Leno's critics were disappointed that Jay's ratings were not the catastrophe they should have been (I know that I was). Now, however, it seems that those of us who predicted Leno's return to late night would be a catastrophe were right, it was simply our timing that was wrong.

It seems that in the second quarter of this year, the first full quarter on which Jay Leno has been hosting The Tonight Show, he posted his lowest ratings since 1993. Indeed, these ratings are actually lower than the ratings Conan O'Brien recieved during his all too short stint as the host of The Tonight Show. What is worse, ABC's Nightline, once a consistent third behind The Tonight Show and The Late Show with David Letterman, now regularly beats both The Tonight Show and The Late Show with David Letterman in the ratings. It would then seem that those of us who predicted Jay Leno's return to The Tonight Show would be a disaster were absolutely right.

This situation is made all the more worse for NBC in that the network is paying Jay Leno $30 million per year, nearly twice that they played Conan O'Brien, which was only $15 million per year. And while it is hard to believe for many of us given the quality of the show these days, Leno has a production staff larger than that Mr. O'Brien had, a fact which could actually mean The Tonight Show now loses more money than it takes in! Given that television networks exist primarily to make money, this is hardly an ideal situation for NBC.

The folly in NBC returning Jay Leno to The Tonight Show is even reflected in the Emmy nominations issued this morning. The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien was nominated for Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series. Neither The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (which won the award only once, in 1995) nor The Late Show with David Letterman (nominated several times and winning several times) were nominated. It would seem that it is not only viewers who prefer Mr. O'Brien to Leno, but the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences as well!

What makes all of this a greater folly on NBC's part is that they should have known better than to return Jay Leno to The Tonight Show. Jay Leno's primetime show was such a catastrophe that it not only drew extremely low ratings itself, but if torpedoed the ratings for the late night news programmes of NBC affiliates nationwide and even affected the ratings of The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien--that Mr. O'Brien did as well as he did in the ratings only proves just how loyal and large his following is. Even worse than Jay Leno's prime time disaster, the moment NBC he announced he would be returning to The Tonight Show, he became one of the most reviled figures in television history. In fact, the only people who still liked Leno seemed to be NBC and his fans, mostly middle aged to elderly women (hardly the 18-49 demographic for whom NBC and the other networks lust). In NBC deciding to go ahead and return Jay Leno amidst the numerous protests at this return was not only foolhardy, it was downright stupid. It would seem to be one of the greatest mistakes in programming history (alongside giving Jay Leno a primetime series to begin with).

Tragically for NBC, this could not have come at a worse time. NBC is about to be taken over by monolithic cable company Comcast in a $28 billion deal. I rather suspect that Comcast is not pleased by the fact that NBC returned Jay Leno to The Tonight Show when good sense dictated they keep Conan O'Brien. And they are probably even less pleased with the results of that decision, the fact that The Tonight Show is losing money hand over fist. If I were Jeff Zucker or Dick Ebersol, I would be very worried about my job. Indeed, I think both Jeff Zucker and Dick Ebersol, particularly Ebsersol (who not only appears to have lost all programming savvy, but appears to be an outright jerk as well), should issue an apology to both Conan O'Brien and television viewers. Most of all, I would ditch Jay Leno at the earliest opportunity. It is true he has a two year contract with NBC. It is true it would cost NBC a good deal of money to fire Leno now. That having been said, it might cost NBC less to send Leno packing than to keep him on the air!

What makes all of this utterly sad is that NBC has such an illustrious history. NBC is the oldest broadcast network in the United States and one of the oldest in the world (in fact, only the BBC may be older). In 1929 it was NBC who aired what may have been the first nationally broadcast sitcom (admittedly, it was Amos 'n' Andy). n 1939 NBC became the first network to air regularly scheduled television broadcasts. NBC was the first to offer an early morning news programme (The Today Show), the first to offer a late night programme (Broadway Open House), the first to broadcast a programme in colour in 1953, and the first to broadcast in stereo in 1984. NBC was the network which first broadcast such classic shows as Mr. Peepers, Dragnet, Peter Gunn, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Star Trek, and Crime Story. It does cause me a bit of pain to see how Jeff Zucker and Dick Ebersol drove the nation's oldest and one of its most esteemed networks to an all time low. I can only imagine company founder General David Sarnoff is spinning in his grave. I can only hope that the network comes to its senses and not only fires Jay Leno, but apologise to Conan O'Brien and their viewers for the mess they have made. Maybe then, and maybe only then, they could salvage something out of a catastrophe they created.

Movie Producer Elliott Kastner R.I.P.

Elliott Kastner, an executive producer on more than 70 movies, passed on June 30 at the age of 80.

Elliott Kastner was born on January 7, 1930 in New York City. He attended the University of Miami and also served in the United States Army. At some point, whether before or after his time in the Army, Mr. Kastner worked in the mail room at the William Morris Agency. In 1959 he moved to Los Angeles and went to work for MCA, then the most powerful agency in the United States. It was after MCA merged with Decca Records, which then owned Universal Pictures, that Lew Wasserman, the head of MCA, appointed Elliott Kastner vice president of production for Universal. Mr. Kastner remained with the studio for two years before going out on his own as an independent producer.

The first film Elliott Kastner produced was Bus Riley's Back in Town (1965). For the rest of the Sixties he produced such films as Harper (1966), Kaleidoscope (1966), the classic war film Where Eagles Dare (1968), and The Walking Stick (1970). In the Seventies he produced such films as When Eight Bells Toll (1971),11 Harrowhouse (1974), an adaptation of Raymond Chandler's Farewell, My Lovely, (1975), Swashbuckler (1976), The Big Sleep (1978), and Mr. Horn (1979). In the Eighties, Nineties, and Naughts he produced such films as Oxford Blues (1984), Heat (1986), Angel Heart (1987), Jack's Back (1988), Frank & Jesse (1995), and Sweet November (2001).

In Defence of "The Star Spangled Banner"

Before anything else, I wish my fellow Americans a happy "4th of July!" It is this day that brings me to this post, on a subject that has concerned me for literally years. For many years--in fact, ever since I was a child--there have been those who have argued that "America the Beautiful"  should replace "The Star Spangled Banner" as the national anthem of the United States of America. In fact, I am not exactly sure when the movement to make "America the Beautiful" our national anthem began. Regardless, it is something I oppose with nearly every fibre of my being.

To examine this issue, it might do well to know the history of the two songs. "The Star Spangled Banner" has its origins in a poem written by Francis Scott Key entitled "The Defence of Fort McHenry." Mr. Key wrote the poem after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by ships of the British Royal Navy during the War of 1812, seeing that the American flag was still flying over the fort afterwards (that flag is now enshrined in the Smithsonian). The poem's words were eventually set to the tune of "The Anacreontic Song," the official song of the Anacreontic Society in London, often attributed to John Stafford Smith and written in the 1760's. For some time during the 19th Century, "The Star Spangled Banner" competed with "My Country 'Tis of Thee (sung to the tune of "God Save the Queen") and "Hail, Columbia (now forgotten)" as the country's unofficial, national anthem. As the 19th Century passed, "The Star Spangled Banner" began to grow in popularity. It started being played at 4th of July celebrations and other public events. On July 27, 1889 then Secretary of the Navy enacted General Order #374, which made "The Star Spangled Banner" the official tune to which would the Navy would raise flags. As early as 1897 it was played on opening day of baseball season in Philadelphia. In 1898 it would be played for the first time at the Polo Grounds in New York City. It was in 1916 that President Woodrow Wilson issued the order that "The Star Spangled Banner" be played before military ceremonies and other important occasions. It was on March 3, 1931 that President Herbert Hoover signed the bill that made "The Star Spangled Banner" the official national anthem of the United States of America.

As to "America the Beautiful," its origins rest in the poem "America," written by Katherine Lee Bates. Miss Bates was inspired to write the poem after a train trip from Wellesy College in Massachusetts to Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1893. The poem was published under the title "America" in 1895 in The Congregationalist, a church publication. For many years it was sung to a variety of tunes, including "Auld Lang Syne." Its modern tune came about in 1910 Samuel A. Ward set the poem to the tune of the hymn "O Mother Dear, Jerusalem," at which point it was given its current title. Over the years it would prove rather popular, with notable versions, including ones by Ray Charles, Tennessee Earnie Ford, Judy Garland, and Elvis Presley.

There were those who argued for "America the Beautiful" as the national anthem even before the United States had a national anthem. As early as the 1920's there were those who argued for the adoption of "America the Beautiful" as our national anthem, although at that point there were many more who favoured "The Star Spangled Banner." At no point since then  has there not been at least a few people who have argued on behalf of "America the Beautiful" as the national anthem of the United States of America, but the idea would not really begin to pick up steam until the Eighties, when a majority of readers responding to a 1989 Parade magazine poll voted for "America the Beautiful" as our national anthem. The idea grew more popular in the Nineties, and reached a peak in the wake of the destruction of the World Trade Centre on September 11, 2001. The movement to make "America the Beautiful" our national anthem would lose some steam afterwards, although it remains quite popular to this day.

As to why anyone would want to change our national anthem from "The Star Spangled Banner" to "America the Beautiful," the song's proponents have presented various arguments over the years. One that is quite popular is that "The Star Spangled Banner" is simply difficult to sing. To properly sing "The Star Spangled Banner" it takes a vocal range of around an octave and a half, something most people do not possess. While I must admit it can be a difficult song to sing, to me this is not a valid argument for several reasons. The first is that if "The Star Spangled Banner" is hard to sing as it stands now, why don't we simply sing it in the original key of G minor in which the original tune was composed? This argument has been made by Garrison Kellor, who points out that this can be managed by the average singer with little problem. Second, the argument that "Star Spangled Banner" is hard to sing ignores the fact that "America the Beautiful" is even harder to sing. Indeed, the chorus of "America the Beautiful" is difficult for the average person to sing without sounding like he or she is shouting! Only a handful of singers have ever sung "America the Beautiful" properly, and many more (even professional singers) have not. Third, I do not think we should choose our national anthem according to how hard it is to sing. Human beings vary in their ability to sing, and there are some for whom even "The Star Spangled Banner" sung in G minor would be a stretch. If we were to choose our national anthem according to something every, single American could sing, then we would  have to ditch both "The Star Spangled Banner" and the even more difficult to sing  "America the Beautiful" in favour of a rap song or spoken poem.

Second, there are those who object to the imagery of war present in "The Star Spangled Banner." Indeed, the lyrics describe "bombs bursting in air" and "the rocket's red glare." This is natural, given that the lyrics are based on a real life incident that occurred in an actual war. Here it must be pointed out, however, that while "The Star Spangled Banner" describes a situation during a war, it in no way glorifies war. Indeed, what it is describing is the defence of American soil against an attack from an enemy and our victory against that enemy. The British attack on Fort McHenry was essentially an attempt to invade Baltimore--the fort lying in the city's harbour. Had we not won the battle, the British would have taken Baltimore. Many of my fellow Americans seem to forget the significance of the War of 1812. Not only was it the last time that another country invaded American soil, but it is quite possible that had the United States lost the war, it could have simply become a collection of British colonies again. While "The Star Spangled Banner" does reference war, then, it is describing a pivotal moment in our history when we were defending our nation in a battle on which the survival of that nation depended. I can think of nothing more inspiring than that.

While it seems to me that objections to "The Star Spangled Banner" as our national anthem simply are not valid, it seems to me that there are objections to making "America the Beautiful" our national anthem which are quite valid, beyond the fact that it is hard to sing. Indeed, I must point out that unlike "The Star Spangled Banner," "America the Beautiful" frequently mentions "God." Now here I must emphatically state that I am not against organised religion (in fact, I consider myself very religious), but the fact remains that in the United States we have these ideas of separation of church and state as well as freedom of religion. The use of the word "God" in a national anthem is then unacceptable. The fact is that not every American is Christian, Jewish, or Muslim. There are many who are atheists or agnostics, and many more who belong to other faiths who might have many gods or simply one god, whom they do not call "God." In using the word "God," then, "American the Beautiful" would then seem to favour Christianity, Islam and  Judaism over other faiths. For a country built upon both separation of church and state and freedom of religion , this is unacceptable.

Of course, other lyrics in the song are objectionable for similar reasons. Among its lines are "Oh, beautiful for pilgrim's feet." Now the Pilgrims were a religious sect which left Britain to practise their brand of Christianity without concerns from the Church of England. As a religious sect the Pilgrims hardly represent all Americans. Just as the Pilgrims left England so they could practise their religion as they saw fit, others left England for other reasons. My ancestors on my mother's side were Cavaliers fleeing the Cromwellian tyranny. Indeed, Jamestown was settled before the arrival of the Pilgrims on American shores. The reference to pilgrim's feet is then objectionable as it refers to a religious group (taking us back to the separation of church and state) and it hardly represents every one of the settlers in what would become the United States (the vast majority of us whose forebears did not come over on the Mayflower).

Beyond these objections, I have those of my own, which I must admit are subjective rather than objective. As I said earlier, I find "The Star Spangled Banner" very inspiring as it describes the defence of the United States against an enemy. Indeed, it includes the lines "land of the free and the home of the brave," invoking the ideal character of the country. While "The Star Spangled Banner" speaks to our character, however, all "America the Beautiful" mostly does is speak of the grandeur of the countryside itself. True, there are lines which speak of "a thoroughfare of freedom" and "thy liberty in law," but these seems to be lost amidst the references to "fruited plains" and "alabaster cities." While "The Star Spangled Banner" addresses the American soul, "America the Beautiful" simply addresses its landscape. It is little more than a travelogue of the United States as it existed in the 1890's. I do not find this particularly rousing myself (and here I must apologise to my Canadian friends, but I find "O Canada" uninspiring for the same reasons). It speaks to nothing of the idealised character of our country or even national pride.

To sum it up, "America the Beautiful" is difficult to sing. If made our national anthem it would violate the separation of church and state. And it says nothing of the character of our country or national pride. On the other hand, "The Star Spangled Banner" is easier to sing (especially in G minor), it does not violate the seperation of church and state, and it says a good deal about our national character and national pride. It is for that reason I do not understand why anyone would want to adopt "America the Beautiful" as our national anthem. I for one am not inspired by it. I feel no pride when I hear it. On the other hand, even if it was not custom to do so, I would rise to my feet for "The Star Spangled Banner." Not only is "The Star Spangled Banner" a more ideal national anthem than "America the Beautiful," to me it is a far superior song.

Ilene Woods, The Vocie of Disney's Cinderella, R,I.P.

Ilene Woods, who provided the voice for Cinderella in the Disney movie of the same name, passed on Thursday. The causes were linked to Alzheimer's Disease.

Ilene Woods was born May 5, 1929 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Although she wanted to be a teacher, her mother thought she belonged on the stage. Her mother saw to it that she had lessons in singing, music, and dance.She was only 11 years old when she received her own local, radio show. In 1944, when she was only 14 Miss Wood received her own show on The Blue Network (now ABC). During World War II she toured with the Air Force Orchestra.

Ilene Woods moved to Chicago to be a regular on the popular radio show The Breakfast Club. Afterwards she moved to Los Angeles where she became a regular on The Sealtest Village Store and made guest appearances on Jack Benny, Bing Crosby, and Bob Hope's radio shows. She was only 18 in 1948 when her friends, legendary songwriters Jerry Livingston and Mack David, asked a favour of her: recording a demo of a few songs they had written for a Disney animated feature film.

It was two days later that Walt Disney called Miss Woods. He asked if she would take the role of Cinderella. She had beaten out 200 other singers who had auditioned for the role. On and off for the next two years Miss Woods spent recording dialogue tracks and songs for Cinderella.

In the Fifties Ilene Woods would sing on various television shows. She was a regular on Garry Moore's daytime variety show. In 1963 she married Ed Shaughnessy, long the drummer for the band on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Miss Woods retired from show business in 1972.

Composer Allyn Ferguson R.I.P.

Allyn Ferguson, who composed the themes for Barney Miller, Charlie's Angels, and other TV series, passed on June 23, 2010. He was 85 years old.

Allyn Ferguson was born on October 18, 1924 in San Jose, California. As a child he was something of a musical prodigy. He took trumpet lessons when he was only 4 years old and began studying piano when he was only 7. During World War II he was trained as a P-38 pilot, but the war came to an end before he could see any combat. After the war he attended San Jose State University where he received bachelor and master's degrees in music. He studied with Nadia Boulanger in Paris and with Aaron Copland at Tanglewood in Massachusetts.

By the early Fifties Allyn Ferguson was attending Stafford University to earn a doctorate. It was at this time that he formed the Chamber Jazz Sextet, who would record three albums. It was in 1958 that he would move to Hollywood. His first work in film would be as the composer for the 1962 movie The Devil's Hand. He would score the films The Magic Tide (1962), Terror at Black Falls (1962), and Airborne (1965).  From 1966 to 1967 he would serve as a conductor on The Andy Williams Show. He would also score incidental music for episodes of the TV shows The Monkees and Bewitched.

By 1970 Allyn Ferguson had entered into a partnership with Jack Elliott, and together they would compose scores for TV shows and movies. The team of Messrs. Ferguson and Elliott composed the score for the movie Myra Breckinridge (1970). They went on to compose themes for the TV shows Lotsa Luck, Get Christie Love, Barney Miller, Charlie's Angels, Big Hawaii, A. E. S. Hudson Street, and Fish. Mr. Ferguson also served as a conductor on such TV movies as The Count of Monte Cristo, The Four Feathers, and The Man in the Iron Mask. In the Eighties and Nineties Mr. Ferguson composed scores for TV movies such as The Christmas Gift, The Last Days of Patton, Ironclads, Shadow of a Doubt, and High Noon. He also composed music for episodes of The Hallmark Hall of Fame, Murder She Wrote, and Diagnosis Murder.

There can be no doubt that Allyn Ferguson was one of the best composers to ever work in television. Indeed, with Jack Elliott he wrote two of the most memorable themes in the history of the medium, the themes to Barney Miller and Charlie's Angels. His work in TV movies and other TV shows was of an equally high quality, so much so that Mr. Ferguson was nominated several times for Emmy awards. He had talent that was matched by only a few other composers in the television industry.

Actor Corey Allen Passes On

Actor and television director Corey Allen, who played Buzz (who challenged James Dean's character to a chicken race) in A Rebel Without a Cause, passed on June 27 at the age of 75.

Corey Allen was born Alan Cohen on  June 29, 1934 in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1954 Mr. Allen graduated from the UCLA theatre department. It was that same year that he made his movie debut in the film A Time Out of War. In 1954 he also appeared in the film The Mad Magician in the uncredited role as Gus the Stagehand, and made his television debut in a guest appearance on Medic. He appeared in bit parts in the films The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1954) and The Night of the Hunter (1955) and guest starred on the TV shows Dragnet and Stories of the Century before his famous appearance in Rebel Without a Cause. In the film Corey Allen played the leather jacketed leader of a high school gang, Buzz, who challenges Jim Stark (James Dean) to a chicken race.

Despite his appearance in Rebel Without a Cause, much of Mr. Allen's career would be spent in television. In the late Fifties he guest starred on such shows as The Loretta Young Show, Casablanca, Studio 57, The Millionaire, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Relsteles Gun, Gunsmoke, Trackdown, Have Gun--Will Travel, Rawhide, and Dan Raven.  He also appeared in the films The Shadow on the Window (1957), The Big Caper (1957), Darby's Rangers (1958), Party Girl (1958),. and Key Witness (1960).

In the Sixties Corey Allen guest starred on such shows as Sea Hunt, The Rebel, Perry Mason, Bonanza, Dr. Kildare, Combat, and My Friend Tony. He also appeared in the films Sweet Bird of Youth (1962), and The Champion Report (1962). It was in 1969 that Mr. Allen moved into television direction, with an episode of The New People. Over the years he would direct episodes of Then Came Bronson, Mannix, The High Chapparal, Matt Lincoln, Ironside, Hawaii Five-O, Barnaby Jones, Police Story, Police Woman, Lou Grant, Quincy M.E., The Rockford Files, T. J. Hooker, Simon and Simon, Hill Street Blues, Murder She Wrote, Magnum P.I., Hunter, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and The Cosby Mysteries. He directed three  feature films: The Erotic Adventures of Pinocchio (1971), Thunder and Lightning (1977),  and Avalanche (1978).  Mr. Allen would appear in acting roles twice more, in the film The Works (2004) and as the voice of Mr. Eagle in Quarantined (2009).

Televison Series Backdoor Pilots

Television's tradition of producing pilots for series goes back to the days of radio. A pilot is essentially a dry run for a television show--an episode length film meant to represent what a typical episode of a TV series would be like. It is through television pilots that networks can then decide whether to pick up a series or not. Essentially being test runs for television shows, pilots are not necessary meant to be broadcast. The original pilot for Gilligan's Island  was never aired, although footage from it was used in a later episode that involved flashbacks to how the Castaways got on the island. When pilots are broadcast, they are not necessarily the first episode of a series. The second pilot produced for Star Trek, "Where No Man Has Gone Before," was aired as that series' third episode. The pilot for Law and Order, "Everybody's Favourite Bagman," was aired as the sixth episode of that show.

Pilots can often be expensive to produce. And if the prospective television series for which the pilot was made is not picked up, the costs for that pilot can never be recouped. It is the sheer expense of producing pilots that led to the development of what is known as the backdoor pilot. The Slanguage Dictionary of Variety defines a backdoor pilot as "...pilot episode filmed as a standalone movie, so it can be broadcast if it is not picked up as a series..." Here it must be pointed out that this definition is not entirely accurate. While many backdoor pilots are filmed as television movies, there have been many that have also been filmed as episodes of pre-existing television shows. In fact, the use of episodes of TV series already on the air as backdoor pilots for prospective shows may well have occurred much more often in the history of television than the use of television movies as backdoor pilots.

The production of backdoor pilots as television movies may have happened most often during the Seventies. An early example of a television movie that also served as a backdoor pilot was the telefilm Then Came Bronson. Airing on March 24, 1969, Then Came Bronson was the pilot for the series of the same name, which debuted on NBC on September 17, 1969. ABC aired several television movies as backdoor pilots on their ABC Movie of the Week, the title given to the time slot reserved for made for TV movies. The pilots for such ABC series as Alias Smith and Jones, Longstreet, Kung Fu, The Six Million Dollar Man, and Wonder Woman all aired under the heading of ABC Movie of the Week.

Indeed, in the Seventies it seemed as if the entirety of Gene Roddenberry's work in television was in the form of TV movies that also served as backdoor pilots. In fact, Roddenberry's prospective series Genesis II would have no less than two backdoor pilots. The first, entitled Genesis II, aired on March 23, 1973 on CBS. CBS ultimately did not pick up Genesis II, preferring to pick up the series Planet of the Apes, spun off from the popular movie series. Gene Roddenberry would then produce another pilot for Genesis II, which would air under the title Planet Earth on April 23, 1974 on ABC. ABC did not pick up the series either. Another prospective series created by Gene Roddenberry whose pilot aired as a television movie was The Questor Tapes. The television movie/backdoor pilot The Questor Tapes aired on NBC on January 23, 1974. NBC actually gave the series the go ahead, but the show never came to fruition due to conflicts between Gene Roddenberry and both Universal and NBC. Another backdoor pilot for a prospective series by Gene Roddenberry was Spectre, which aired on May 21, 1977 on NBC. NBC did not pick up Spectre as a series.

Several of the most famous shows of the Seventies had pilots which also aired as TV movies, in addition to the shows whose pilots aired on ABC Movie of the Week listed above. The pilot for The Rockford Files aired as a telefilm on NBC on March 27, 1974. The pilot for Little House on the Prairie also aired as a made for TV movie on NBC on March 30, 1970. The pilot for The Incredible Hulk aired as a television movie on CBS on November 4, 1977. Although it would beocme much less common, the practice of creating backdoor pilots through TV movies would continue nto the Eighties. The pilot for Airwolf aired as a two hour movie on CBS on January 22, 1984. While the practice of using TV movies as backdoor pilots would pretty much die out as the Eighties progressed, it still occurs from time time to this day. The pilot for the reinvisioning of the series Battlestar Galactica would air as a two part TV movie on the Sci-Fi Channel in December 2003 and on NBC as well.

Of course, while the use of television movies as backdoor pilots has not been extremely common since the Eighties, the practice of using episodes of TV shows already on the air is still rather commonplace. Indeed, it is a practice that was established relatively early in the history of television. In the Fifties, when a backdoor pilot was aired, it was usually as an episode of an anthology series. Perhaps the most famous example of this is the legendary series The Twilight Zone. The script for the original pilot for The Twlight Zone, "The Time Element," was turned down by CBS in 1957, who showed little interest in the prospective series. It was only after Bert Garnet, then producer of The Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse discovered the script in the vaults of CBS that "The Time Element" would see the light of day as an episode of The Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse. The episode proved so popular with viewers that it would lead to a second pilot for the series, "Where is Everybody," which would air as the first episode of The Twilight Zone.

In the Fifties it was not unusual that The Twilight Zone would get a lease on life as an episode of another anthology series already on the air. Indeed, Four Star Productions (founded by Charles Boyer, Ida Lupino, David Niven, and Dick Powell) would turn the use of backdoor pilots as episodes of their anthology series into an art form. In fact, many of Four Star Productions' Westerns originated as episodes of Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre. No less than six episodes of the Western anthology series would give birth to TV shows. The pilot for The Rifleman aired as the episode "The Sharpshooter." The pilot for Trackdown aired as the episode "Badge of Honour." The pilot for Johnny Ringo aired as the episode "Man Alone." Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre  was not the only Four Star Productions anthology series to feature backdoor pilots. The pilot for the detective series Richard Shayne aired as an episode of the anthology series Decision. Of course, not every show produced by Four Star Productions that featured an episode which was a backdoor pilot was necessarily an anthology series. An episode of  Trackdown, on which Robert Culp played Texas Ranger Toby Gilman, served as a backdoor pilot for the series Wanted: Dead or Alive starring Steve McQueen as bounty hunter Josh Randall.

Of course, Four Star Productions did not have a monopoly on using episodes of anthology series as backdoor pilots. The 1960-1961 sitcom Ichabod and Me originated as an episode of Robert Montgomery Presents aired during the 1956-1957 season ("Goodbye, Grey Flannel"). A full fledged, backdoor pilot, "Adams Apples," aired as an episode of another anthology series, G.E. True Theatre in 1960. The pilot for the series Run for Your Life aired as an episode of Kraft Suspense Theatre, "Rapture at Two-Forty," on April 15, 1965. In the Seventies episodes of the series Police Story would serve as backdoor pilots for Police Woman, Joe Forrester, and Man Undercover.

In the late Fifties anthology series would be supplanted by shows with continuing characters, until they would become rare in the Sixties and nearly extinct since that time. This would not prevent producers from using episodes of shows already on the air as backdoor pilots for prospective series. Indeed, as pointed out above, an episode of Trackdown served as the pilot for Wanted: Dead or Alive. This was hardly an isolated case in the Fifties, as there are several other instances in which episodes of pre-existing shows would be used as backdoor pilots for prospective shows. Perhaps the most famous example of a show whose pilot was also the episode of another show is The Andy Griffith Show. Its pilot was the episode "Danny meets Andy Griffith' on the series Make Room For Daddy, which aired in February 1960. In the episode Danny Williams (Danny Thomas) would be arrested for speeding in Mayberry  by Sheriff Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith). Of course, an episode of The Andy Griffith Show would in turn serve as a backdoor pilot for Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.

The use of episodes of show already on the air as backdoor pilots for prospective series has more or less continued unabated since the late Fifties. In the Sixties an episode of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. ("The Moonglow Affair") would serve as a backdoor pilot for The Girl From U.N.C.L.E. In the Seventies the pilot for Maude was also an episode of All in the Family. An episode of Happy Days would serve as a backdoor pilot for Laverne and Shirley. In the Eighties the pilot for A Different World was also an episode of The Cosby Show.

Using episodes of pre-existing shows as backdoor pilots is still relatively common today. In fact, the pilot for the most popular, hour long drama currently on broadcast network television, NCIS, was a two part episode of JAG ("Ice Queen" and "Meltdown"). In turn, the two part episode entitled "Legend" would serve as the backdoor pilot for the NCIS spin off NCIS: LA. An episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation would serve as the pilot for CSI: Miami, and an episode of CSI: Miami would serve as the pilot for CSI: New York.

Most viewers watching an episode of a show which is also a backdoor pilot can generally tell that it is a pilot for a new series. After all, such backdoor pilots are fairly obvious in that the episodes generally centre on a whole new set of characters rather than the regulars. This has led the web site TV Tropes & Idioms to term such pilot episodes as "Poorly Disguised Pilots." The experience of watching episodes of shows which were also backdoor pilots for other, prospective shows in reruns can be particularly strange when the prospective show was never picked up. The final two episodes of Green Acres would also be backdoor pilots for series that did not sell--the first centred on a hotel in Hawaii and the second on the ex-secretary of Oliver Douglas (Eddie Albert) and her new boss. The episode of The Brady Bunch, "Kelly's Kid's," which centred on an interracial family, was another backdoor pilot for a series which did not sell. The concept would later be reworked by Sherwood Schwartz as the short lived 1986 series Together We Stand.

Whether as a stand alone, made for television movie or an episode of a pre-existing show, backdoor pilots do have advantages over traditional pilots, not necessarily made for broadcast. Foremost among these is the fact that in airing the backdoor pilot, it can then recoup its costs. This is particularly true since the advent of DVDs, through which backdoor pilots of shows that did not even sell can make back some of their expenses. Another advantage of backdoor pilots is that can not only serve as a test run of a prospective series for network executives, but for viewers as well. By airing a backdoor pilot, network executives can then observe audience reactions to the pilot, decide if they want to pick up the prospective series, and even fine tune the prospective series to better suit viewers. Although most pilots are not backdoor pilots, it is perhaps because of these advantages that they have remained common throughout the history of American television.