‘SEAL’ move to streaming is a trend
You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: I enjoy watching “SEAL Team,” so I was disappointed that while they began the season on regular TV, they quickly left for Paramount+. I refuse to pay to watch (don’t enjoy the show enough to pay) but I feel like I’m being held hostage. Do you think more shows are heading that direction?
A: Yes. We have already seen several series migrate from broadcast or cable to streaming. CBS moved both “SEAL Team” and “Evil” from broadcast to Paramount+, which is also the home of the “Good Wife” spinoff “The Good Fight” and several successors to “Star Trek.” NBC had “A.P. Bio” for two seasons before it was moved to the streamer Peacock. Some shows get rescued by streaming services, as when Netflix commissioned extra episodes of ABC’s “Designated Survivor” after the network dropped it. The recently canceled “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” will be back with a Christmas special on the Roku Channel on Dec. 1. “Leverage,” after running on TNT from 2008 to 2012, returned this year as “Leverage: Redemption” on IMDbTV.
But this is all a case of old strategy/new venues. Broadcast shows moved from one network to another going back decades; for example, “Father Knows Best” went from CBS to ABC, “My Three Sons” from ABC to CBS, “Diff ’rent Strokes” from NBC to ABC. The same thing has happened with broadcast and cable, with one recent case being the announcement that CBS’s “All Rise” is making new episodes for OWN, Oprah Winfrey’s network. In short, if the telecaster of a show no longer finds it useful, another entity still might — delighting fans, bringing them to the new viewing home and assuring that the studio behind the show can make more money. With streaming, there are many more places for shows to go.
Q: I was wondering about “The Amazing Race.” Have they filmed a new season yet?
A: They have completed a new season after a long, COVID-related delay. Telecasts will begin with a twohour premiere on Jan. 5.
Q: What happened to the new “Fantasy Island?” I rather liked it, and the girl who assisted Ms. Roarke left “The Bold and the Beautiful” to take a part.
A: Fox has renewed the summer series for a second season. It will also have a two-hour holiday episode on Dec. 21, and the previous season’s telecasts can be found on Hulu and On
Demand.
The network also notes that you can find the original “Fantasy Island” streaming on Tubi, along with the short-lived 1998 revival. The current version stars Roslyn Sanchez (“Devious Maids”) as Elena Roarke and Kiara Barnes (whom you remember from “The Bold and the Beautiful” as Roarke’s associate Ruby Akuda. The original starred Ricardo Montalban as Mr. Roarke, and the 1998 version had Malcolm McDowell in that role.
Q: Years ago, there was a family show with adorable Kellie Martin as sister to a young man with Down syndrome. Do you know the name of the show and did the young man continue acting?
A: The show was called “Life Goes On” and aired on ABC from 1989 to 1993. It involved the Thatcher family, with parents Drew (Bill Smitrovich) and Libby (Patti LuPone) and children including Becca (Kellie Martin) and Corky (Christopher Burke, who, like his character, has Down syndrome). Burke, now 56, continued acting for about a decade after “Life Goes On” ended. He has also worked in music and has had a decadeslong association with the National Down Syndrome Society, including as a Goodwill Ambassador and on the society staff. By the way, there were reports not long ago that a reboot of “Life Goes On” is in the works with Martin as a star and producer.
Q: Are ABC News’ Ian Pannell and James Longman related? The resemblance is amazing. Father and son?
A: They have some professional similarities; both worked for the BBC, have extensive international experience and joined ABC in 2017. But from what I can find, they are not related.
Do you have a question or comment about entertainment past, present and future? Write to Rich Heldenfels, Box 417, Mogadore, OH 44260, or brenfels@gmail.com. Letters may be edited. Individual replies are not guaranteed.