Big Bad
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| #1 Posted on 1.5.03 1758.51 Reposted on: 1.5.10 1759.01 | From imdb.com
Variety reported Thursday afternoon that Emmy Award-winning writer Aaron Sorkin would be leaving The West Wing at the end of this season, its fourth. The driving creative force behind the White House staff drama and writer of most of its episodes, Sorkin had his hands full this past season, most notably with a decline in ratings for the hit show, which has won the Best Drama Series Emmy for the past three years. Wing also suffered the loss this year of one of its biggest stars, Rob Lowe, who reportedly decided to leave after a salary dispute that did not offer him as high a raise as his co-stars (Lowe was considered the show's lead when it launched, and thus was paid more). Longtime Sorkin collaborator Thomas Schlamme, a fellow executive producer and Emmy-winning director, was expected to announce his departure as well. Sorkin still has one year left on his contract with Warner Bros. TV.
Let me be the first to say that this is bullshit. Other reports have said that Sorkin is not just leaving, he's being FORCED out by NBC over the falling ratings. Keep in mind that WW is up against reality shows, and thus is drawing a totally different audience, but there we are.
Anyway, thanks for four years of a great show, Aaron Sorkin. Promote this thread! | | Mild Mannered Madman
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| #2 Posted on 1.5.03 2002.51 Reposted on: 1.5.10 2003.21 | 4 years of West Wing + 2 years of Sports Night.
I look forward to what Sorkin brings us next. | PeterStork
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| #3 Posted on 1.5.03 2117.01 Reposted on: 1.5.10 2121.12 |
Originally posted by Big Bad Other reports have said that Sorkin is not just leaving, he's being FORCED out by NBC over the falling ratings. Keep in mind that WW is up against reality shows, and thus is drawing a totally different audience, but there we are.
Sorkin clashed with Warner Bros, not NBC, since he didn't understand the concept of "staying within budget," and when you go over it's the studio not the network that suffers. It didn't help that his show fell in quality, and thus the ratings, right before WB was set to re-up with the Peacock, meaning the license fee increase wasn't as much as it would have been two years ago. The studio is lucky they inked a deal with Bravo several years ago, or they'd be looking at less money for the repeats that I believe start in September.
Admittedly, NBC wasn't happy with him either, and the show is still gold among high-income viewers and thus the money the network can charge is higher than a similar-rated show with an audience averaging less bread. But Sorkin got himself into this mess; the show is just less interesting than before. The Bachelor can't be totally blamed; it's sort of like the Monday Night Wars where WCW didn't steal from the WWF as much as they attracted different viewers when they launched Nitro. ABC did the same. | OlFuzzyBastard
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| #4 Posted on 1.5.03 2130.10 Reposted on: 1.5.10 2130.46 | There's no room for anything on television that's not crap anymore, is there?
Personally, I hope Sorkin spends a year working on the campaign of, say, John Kerry or Howard Dean and pumps some life into the Democratic party. It's so disheartening to realize that the best presidennial speeches in the last ten years have all come out of the mouth of Jebediah Bartlett. | ekedolphin
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| #5 Posted on 1.5.10 2308.14 | If only we knew then what we know now: That four years of amazing Aaron Sorkin-era West Wing would be followed by three years of bullshit from John Wells. | A Fan
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| #6 Posted on 1.5.03 2319.26 Reposted on: 1.5.10 2326.06 | Its sad that we have to look for television for anything that close to real political leadership. I would vote for Martin Sheen even if he is a bit more liberal than me.
With that said, I was actually enjoying West Wing of late. They seemed to cut out most of the non-usuable characters and just focused back in on the staff. The expection being Matthew Perry who was good as a guest star this week. I hate Friends. I just don't think the kidnapping thing is going to get fans in. They already had the big assassination plot and the President coming out on his MS. Unless they start a war, I don't see much in the way of anyting awe inspiring. I will say this Democratic Party has the balls were the real one doesn't. Faking the Berumada Triangle crash just to kill the bad guy was a stroke of brillance.
The Democratic Party just needs to wait out Bush. This attack a Middle East country a year thing will eventually wear out, I hope. Then the Dems can go after his huge ass spending on the war while the country's economy and education is in the toliet. Man, if Bartlett was around he would have KOed Bush right out of the gate. Of course, he has charisma while the real Democrates don't or don't know how to fake it.
A Fan- | PeterStork
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| #7 Posted on 2.5.03 0211.25 Reposted on: 2.5.10 0211.25 | Admittedly, Sorkin does often set up Republicans as wimpy straw men.
That doesn't mean I wouldn't vote for Bartlett in a HEARTBEAT if he was real, though. | Grimis
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| #8 Posted on 2.5.03 0606.03 Reposted on: 2.5.10 0607.22 | I rarely watch the West Wing because I don't like watching 60-minute DNC campaign commercials. I did, however, watch the resignation show the other day and it was completely flat. Boring. Not terribly interesting at all. Yikes... | The Thrill
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| #9 Posted on 2.5.03 0804.09 Reposted on: 2.5.10 0804.48 | What the hell are all of you doing in the west wing? The Beast specifically said when he took Belle prisoner in the castle that the west wing was forbidden.
*looks around*
Aw, sh*t...gotta stop watching so damn many Disney DVDs. | Bullitt
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| #10 Posted on 2.5.03 0810.48 Reposted on: 2.5.10 0811.05 | Clearly this frees up Sokin's time to concentrate on his 'shrooms.
| PeterStork
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| #11 Posted on 2.5.03 1314.36 Reposted on: 2.5.10 1315.13 | From Cynthia Turner's Cynopsis TV industry newsletter:
"All of this shouldn't be too much of a surprise to anyone since Sorkin himself said in an interview about a year ago on Today that this would be his last season of West Wing."
So apparently the departure has little to do with West Wing's troubles this year, unless Cynthia blew a gasket and is remembering incorrectly. | Cerebus
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| #12 Posted on 2.5.03 1644.45 Reposted on: 2.5.10 1645.07 | Originally posted by A Fan The expection being Matthew Perry who was good as a guest star this week.
I'm actually hoping that Perry can return after Friends goes off the air at the end of this season. (or is it next season now?)
...he has charisma while the real Democrats don't or don't know how to fake it.
I remember sitting there and watching Al Gore kiss that bitch cunt whore of a wife of his and thinking almost the same thing you just stated there...
(edited by Cerebus on 2.5.03 1451) | OlFuzzyBastard
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| #13 Posted on 7.5.03 2108.23 Reposted on: 7.5.10 2118.02 | After watching tonight's episode, this hits harder than ever. The first part of the season finale was one of the finest masterstrokes I've seen on television in quite some time. It's only half finished, and it already delivered more than the "Sopranos" season finale.
Not just the kidnapping, but they pulled together all the storylines they'd dropped or moved into the background throughout the season - the covert assassination of the Qumari president, Toby's ex-wife's pregnancy, Charlie's relationship with Zoey, Donna's infatuation with Josh...
It's the best dramatic ensamble on television, but I don't know if they can keep it together without Sorkin. | OlFuzzyBastard
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| #14 Posted on 12.5.10 1205.06 | Originally posted by ekedolphin If only we knew then what we know now: That four years of amazing Aaron Sorkin-era West Wing would be followed by three years of bullshit from John Wells.
A year and a half of bullshit. Followed by an amazing season and a half about Barack Obama getting elected President over John McCain which was somehow filmed in 2006. | ALL ORIGINAL POSTS IN THIS THREAD ARE NOW AVAILABLE |
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