These bedraggled TV critics have to sit through hundreds of panel presentations of all the news shows and any other programming these 200 networks want to serve up.
I’ve been on these panels, pitching our wares, and I usually look out at a sea of bored faces.
But one of our panels proved to be a big hit.
It was 1995 and we were doing a panel for our new CBS show, ALMOST PERFECT. I was on the stage along with co-creators David Isaacs & Robin Schiff, and stars Nancy Travis & Kevin Kilner.
We gave the usual bullshit, they asked the usual questions – your typical uninspired session.
And then a critic asked Kevin what he did before he became an actor? He said he worked for a bank and one of his jobs was to audit a company that sold a popular brand of chicken to markets and restaurants. Yawn.
Then Kevin said, “Do you ever wonder how they slaughter those chickens?”
My first thought was, “Holy shit! This may go down as the worst new show presentation EVER.”
Kevin went on to explain in graphic detail how indeed they killed their chickens.
But suddenly I saw all the critics perk up. For the first time they were actually INTERESTED. The DID want to know how chickens met their demise. And then they had follow-up questions.
I’m sure for them it was just so refreshing to not be hearing “how our show is a reflection of the angst that young single people go through… bla bla bla.”
Within minutes we had won them over. And our session was one of the most talked about of the convention. Thank you, Kevin Kilner.
So if you’re a producer and your panel hasn’t gone up yet, you might want to Google “How to kill a chicken.” Especially if your show is about a cop who doesn’t go by the book or a married couple whose adult child moves back into the house.
from By Ken Levine
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