If you owned a TV station

[Harvey]

I'd program old shows that aren't available on DVD and/or streaming. Chief among them would be the award-winning legal drama, The Defenders ('61).

If I was really wealthy, I'd commission new HD transfers of old shows that wouldn't otherwise receive them, and broadcast those.

 

[C.E. Evans]

I'd probably have an Action-Adventure network showcasing various themed TV shows and movies from yesterday and today. There would be a Friday night anime block, a Saturday night sci-fi block, and a Sunday night horror block. There would also be original scripted dramas, entertainment news programs (featuring behind-the-scenes of various movies and TV shows in-production), as well as documentaries about classic action-adventure TV shows, movies, and the notable people involved with them. The daily lineup would rotate every so often with a mix of different action-adventure shows from various genres, including classic westerns.

I wouldn't rule out a wrestling show as it would be part of the format, as well as sports like Mixed Martial Arts, but no reality shows about people just living together and whatever. There would be some extreme competition shows, but they'd be imported from Japan and elsewhere.

Between 2 AM and 4 AM, there'd also be a "No Kids Allowed" block that would feature some uncensored fare a bit too hot for daytime or primetime.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Cartoon blocks from 6am to noon every saturday and sunday. Thundarr, B:TAS, Scooby-doo, Johnny Quest, etc. With some of the live action stuff thrown in like Space Academy, H.R. Puff and stuff, Sid and Marty Krofft Super show, all that stuff.

Sadly, I don't know if that's even possible anymore. I think those cartoons are all owned by Turner/Time Warner. So if Cartoon Network or a sister station doesn't air them no one does. Spoken as someone who has at times been envious of not getting the Boomerang channel.

 

[Captain Shaw]

My channel would only have two types of shows, sci fi and costume dramas.

 

[sojourner]

Cartoon blocks from 6am to noon every saturday and sunday. Thundarr, B:TAS, Scooby-doo, Johnny Quest, etc. With some of the live action stuff thrown in like Space Academy, H.R. Puff and stuff, Sid and Marty Krofft Super show, all that stuff.

Sadly, I don't know if that's even possible anymore. I think those cartoons are all owned by Turner/Time Warner. So if Cartoon Network or a sister station doesn't air them no one does. Spoken as someone who has at times been envious of not getting the Boomerang channel.

The same could be said for most of the shows mentioned in this thread. This is all wish fulfillment anyways. The sky is the limit.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

^ Point taken.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I'd probably have some cartoons on my network but none of that Hanna Barbara laugh track garbage.

I love that Futurama parody. "What's that weird laughing? It doesn't correspond to anything funny happening."

The thing about variety shows is that the sort of shows associated with the genre are extremely cheesy. The only sort that can thrive without coming off as cheesy is the sketch comedy show. Though, the role once taken up by variety shows is now taken up by stuff like Celebrity Game Night.

The main focus of my network would be stuff with high quality of writing.

 

[sojourner]

Old episodes of The Carol Burnett show.

 

[bigdaddy]

I'd have different theme nights, like the "My TV" networks that used to be UPN and WB in the USA.

One night would be Veronica Mars and Gilmore Girls, a night of Law and Order, a comedy night or two with Mash, Will and Grace, Sports Night, Whose Line?, Murphy Brown, just a big range, then a sci-fi night with Farscape and Star Trek and SG-1.

And cartoons every morning like when I grew up and not stupid shit like "Don't eat cookies for breakfast! Have an apple!", but classic cartoons.

And game shows, I'd have Hollywood Squares, Match Game, Card Sharks and other currently not in play gameshows after the cartoons.

 

[tomalak301]

There are some genres of TV that I wish would make a comeback, and the Variety show, Sci Fi (space based) show, and the game shows are three of those genres.

About the three mentioned:

*Game shows still exist (Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, Let's Make A Deal, The Price Is Right) and they're syndicated and on network TV respectively, with most new game shows on GSN

That's true. Still, there are some I would bring back and re-invent, like Scrabble, Match Game (admitting it won't be as good as Gene Rayburn's version) or those type of games. Heck, I just found out today that a very underrated game show called Shop Till You Drop is back on TV, on GSN. Also, I would reinvigorate 90s Nick, maybe bringing back Double Dare and Legends of the Hidden Temple. Or I could just play them as reruns.

*Variety shows still exist in Europe and other countries but would be hard to bring back in North America generally for a lot of reasons, as mentioned
here.

Isn't that the point of this thread though, to bring things back or run a network as you see fit with all the money in the world?

*Space sci-fi could be brought back, but it requires a shitload of money to make (the Star Trek shows of the Berman-Rodenberry-Piller era had costs in the millions alone) and is beyond the costs of a single TV station to bankroll even if you are wealthy (you'd burn through your fortune in two years and go bankrupt if the show couldn't get any buyers or ad revenue.) A better idea on that part would be to bankroll an animated space sci-fi show instead (find a local animation studio and get them to work on it.)

Again, money isn't an issue.

 

[Timewalker]

Am I so rich that I don't have to worry about making the network profitable? That would affect my decision.

The premise is you're independently wealthy, it's your own station, you're not affiliated with any network, and the only people you have to answer to are the FCC. If nobody wants to advertise on your station, you don't care because you're rich.

Basically every show and movie I ever liked, and since this is just a wish-fulfillment thread, I'd find a way to have closure for series that got prematurely canceled. Therefore, we'd KNOW what happened after Shelly jumps off the bridge in the Land of the Dead in The Crow: Stairway to Heaven. And there'd be more seasons of Space Island One.

My favorite novels would all be made into movies or TV series (whichever would do them the most justice). So that would run the gamut from Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators, to SF novels, to historical novels, to remaking some that have already been done, but doing them right.

Money's no object, so I'd make the CBC an offer they'd be certifiably insane to refuse and I'd get The Beachcombers and the old Irish Rovers episodes back on TV.

And there'd be only the best science documentaries - lots and lots of different kinds of science, archaeology, history, travel shows like the "Fat Man on a Bicycle" series, a remake of "The Story of English" (fantastic documentary about the history of the English language), an updated version of James Burke's "Connections/The Day the Universe Changed", the original Cosmos, and so many others.

As for music, there'd be lots of Celtic, classical, and New Age.

My channel would only have two types of shows, sci fi and costume dramas.

Sounds good to me.

 

[Forbin]

Laugh-In, Carol Burnett, Dean Martin, Sonny & Cher, Andy Williams...

Dick Van Dyke, Hogan's Heroes, F-Troop, Get Smart...

 

[DarthTom]

Laugh-In, Carol Burnett, Dean Martin, Sonny & Cher, Andy Williams...

Dick Van Dyke, Hogan's Heroes, F-Troop, Get Smart...

Your TV station already exists at least here in ATL - pretty much. ME Tv

 

[Admiral2]

I have four great loves: Science Fiction, Military Fiction, Mystery and Horror.

So, the schedule would shake out like this:

Daytime: Round Robins of sci-fi series with heavy military combat themes. SG-1, Space: Above and Beyond, both Galacticas, and DS9 just to get a Trek in there.

Primetime: Weeknights are sci-fi war nights, reserved for the movie version of the daytime theme ranging from the badass (Star Wars) to the ...not-so-badass (Wing Commander. Hey, if it's sci-fi and there's shootin' it gets aired.)

Saturday: WAR day, where we celebrate the War Movie/Series! We start with a couple episodes of Victory At Sea (The GREATEST WWII documentary ever!) in the morning, followed by shows like Black Sheep Squadron, Rat Patrol, BBC's Warship and Australia's Sea Patrol (because my own country is incapable of producing a real-life navy ship series worth watching!) capped off at night by a rockin' real-world war movie!

Sunday: alternates horror and mystery, started off in the morning with appropriate Twilight Zone eps depending on the day's programming.

Overnight: infomercials. I don't care if I'm rich. I want more profit.

I'd get noon and eleven o'clock news from another local affiliate.

 

[Shaka Zulu]

Overnight: infomercials. I don't care if I'm rich. I want more profit.

Then you should shut your station off for the night like the industry used to.

As for the news thing; TBS and WGN don't have that, so why should your station have to? Treat it as a superstation.

 

[Admiral2]

Overnight: infomercials. I don't care if I'm rich. I want more profit.

Then you should shut your station off for the night like the industry used to.

Um...why do that when I could have a six or seven hour block of television the producers of which pay me to show? What part of the word profit do you not get?

As for the news thing. TBS and WGN don't have that, so why should your station have to? Treat it as a superstation.

This I can agree with.

 

[Shaka Zulu]

Um...why do that when I could have a six or seven hour block of television the producers of which pay me to show? What part of the word profit do you not get?

Check out what I said about the superstation part. TBS doesn't have any infomercials the last time I checked, and they do fine. Put on something else like a movie or music videos, or even old cartoon shorts! Think about it; if you're rich as Croesus, then you really don't need to show infomercials for anything.

 

[Admiral2]

Um...why do that when I could have a six or seven hour block of television the producers of which pay me to show? What part of the word profit do you not get?

Check out what I said about the superstation part. TBS doesn't have any infomercials the last time I checked, and they do fine. Put on something else like a movie or music videos, or even old cartoon shorts! Think about it; if you're rich as Croesus, then you really don't need to show infomercials for anything.

It's not about need. The fun part about having wealth is increasing it.

 

[BillJ]

Just Star Trek. Around the clock.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Um...why do that when I could have a six or seven hour block of television the producers of which pay me to show? What part of the word profit do you not get?

Check out what I said about the superstation part. TBS doesn't have any infomercials the last time I checked, and they do fine. Put on something else like a movie or music videos, or even old cartoon shorts! Think about it; if you're rich as Croesus, then you really don't need to show infomercials for anything.

It's not about need. The fun part about having wealth is increasing it.

If increasing wealth is your primary goal why did you start a local TV station? Sell it an invest the money in more profitable ventures, then pay a senator to create a law that effectively makes it impossible to compete with you.