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TV ClubHouse: Archive: The Family (ABC): General Conversation
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Archive through June 02, 2003 25   08/14 06:23am
Archive through August 26, 2003 25   08/28 09:53am
Archive through September 03, 2003 25   09/04 12:47pm
Archive through September 11, 2003 25   09/11 09:21am
Archive through September 12, 2003 25   09/13 06:39pm

Curlyq

Friday, September 12, 2003 - 09:16 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Could one of you dear, sweet people who get the Family Channel post the highlights of the family commentary when it airs...pretty, pretty please? :) Our cable system doesn't carry that channel here.

Pamy

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 07:33 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Good idea Curly!!! I am going to Pasadena to meet Christy from Survivor today and I will miss it too!!

Reader234

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 11:30 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Just got back from soccer, and forgot about the family channel!! I saw where Aunt Donna and Anthony are commenting on the show, Donna thought it was funny when she saw for the first time Anthony running around trying to find out who painted his toenails while he slept, Aunt Donna said she was there, but didnt here Anthony, or see him - they commented on how he blamed Dawn Marie, very bland stuff... then they showed the sexy trainer, Anthony said mom you were jealous, no I wasnt... very calm, very boring. I think as time goes on they will have 2 other family members make comments. Very tame stuff... I cant watch, we have another committment, but if I see anything else, I'll try and remember to post!!

Pamy

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 02:10 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Donna and ANthony talking, kinda joking together about the trainer. Donner looks pretty good!!! Anthony looking sexy!
I have to say this is even more fun watching the 2 nd time! I love these people they always make me laugh!!

Jbfrommi

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 02:31 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
OMG, I love this show!!!! I could watch it again, and again, and again! It's even better with the family there, listening to their comments :)

Pamy

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 03:13 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Michael/jill are together for their interviews. Anthony and Donner are together for theirs. Melinda and Robert together for theirs. Appears the 3 couples are at different locations. It said watch what they say as they see the show for the VERY FIRST TIME!

It doesn't appear like they are seeing it for the first time to me. I would think they would comment more on stuff the others said to the cameras.

I wonder where the rest of family is???

I agree Jb!!

Pamy

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 05:52 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
When Donner was sent to the board, the comments after were funny. Mike was rolling they called her the Queen bee and has been calling her that ever since in his interviews! LOL
Donner was not to happy, she said she had nothing to say about them(the BOT) hahah...Anthony said I have nothing to say, they said everything!!! with his mom sitting right there hahahhahahah!!!!!

I forgot how funny the opening is! I love how Dynasty it is! lol

I also forgot how much Robert won, he actually is the big winner of this show! Even with DOnner and Mike having the 200 grand, I think after taxes Robert still comes out with more because I dont think he pays taxes on the car lease for a year

Jbfrommi

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 06:08 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
This was posted over at the fort by one of the producers of the show. Somebody was questioning whether the show was real, Anthonys speech and all.

As one of the Supervising Producers of THE FAMILY, I can assure you that none of the game-related events
were fixed in any way. We sometimes heighten the reality with music and editing techniques, but we never
change the context of the main events...as the show is in effect a gameshow, it would be not merely unethical,
but illegal as well.

As for the ending, we lucked out big-time! None of us had any idea who the Board of Trustees would choose as
their champion. And many of the production staff thought that Dawn Marie would be the board's pick. And as far
as the family's own pick...we were shocked when Dawn Marie received no votes...and Robert only one.

As for the show-down between Mike and Anthony, who on earth could have predicted that? Mike was way
ahead from the beginning, and after winning part 1 of the competition, he had a 2 out of 3 chance of winning
the million!

As for the money in the safe, all production personnel were cleared from the room before the money was placed
in the safe so that no one on the crew could give it away with the slightest eye gesture. Only the field
Supervising Producer and Executive Producers knew where the money was....and believe me, our entire show
team was shocked when Mike lost.

Still, Anthony's speech (which he wrote entirely on his own, as he stayed up all night sick from the gourmet
delicacies he had scarfed down in the competition) was the biggest surprise of all. We all expected Anthony to
keep the money at least within his immediate family, if not entirely for himself. But it couldn't have ended any
better, and I cry whenever I watch the final moments of that show.

The only tears we were suspicious of were George Hamilton's, as he is a trained actor and capable of crying on
cue...but after watching the footage many times, the editors and I absolutely believe that George, like the rest
of us, was truly touched by Anthony's speech.

I only hope that I'll once again have an opportunity to work on a show as real and meaningful as THE FAMILY.

Thank you for watching!

John Platt
Supervising Producer
The Family

Pamy

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 06:33 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
How cool!!! Thank you so much for posting that!!!
WOW! really makes me like Anthony, I thought that the producers totally helped with that letter!!!

Jbfrommi

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 06:39 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
You're welcome.
So did I!
That show was 10 times better than Big Brother!

Cherrylynn

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 07:40 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
It's over and I will terribly miss getting to look at cousin Mike each week. Does anyone know if there are any fan sites?

Scorpiomoon

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 08:41 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Jbfrommi: Thank you so much for posting that letter. It almost sounds as though working on the show was as much a pleasure as watching it.

You know what I love about "the family"? As quirky as they were, at the end of the day, they were good, decent people. I don't know if you can say that for many reality show contestants.

I think this show was 100 times better than this year's BB!

Why hasn't there been more press? It doesn't seem as though no one has done any interviews with mainstream media or any of the Web sites. What's up with that?

Scorpiomoon

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 08:44 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Cherrylynn: I just did a quick Google search and couldn't come up with any fan site. Crap.

Curlyq

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 09:50 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Thank you Reader234, Pamy, and Jbfrommi for the reactions and updates.

I totally agree about the lack of promotion. After the first Bachelor tanked ABC did an excellent job of getting the second edition promoted on every Access Hollywood/ET/Extra-type show on television, giving the illusion that the show was already a hit before it even started. Then of course oodles of people tuned in so they wouldn't be the only ones missing out. I wonder why The Family or even Big Brother didn't get this treatment. The fastest way to make these shows a hit is to give the viewer the impression they already are and they're missing out.

Scorpiomoon

Saturday, September 13, 2003 - 11:46 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Curlyq: I agree! I don't get it. I don't know the ins and outs of the TV industry, but it seems strange that a network would choose to air a show--invest in it--and then not get behind it. It's like either the network doesn't care and seemingly wants it to fail.

Re: BB: I remember at the beginning of the summer Less Moones (sp?) the president of CBS made some insulting comment about the show. But BB has done well in the ratings. What else do they want?

And since I'm venting, to me, the worst offender of this is NBC. One of my favorite shows, "Third Watch" has done well over the past four years but NBC refuses to promote it. It pisses me off.

Sampatsfan

Sunday, September 14, 2003 - 12:52 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I think this show was so much better than this years big brother also. I watched some of it again today too. I think the ratings were poor when this show started. Of course if they don't promote it, its pretty hard for the reality fans to even know it exists. I remember starting to watch the family long before bb4 started and then suddenly it was gone and I thought I had heard it was due to poor ratings. I was so glad when I found out (on tv clubhouse of course) that it was coming back. I couldn't find any fan sites either and I searched A LOT when the show disappeared. Anyway just wanted to add my .02

Pamy

Sunday, September 14, 2003 - 08:43 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I wish it was on again today!! I enjoyed watching it the 2nd time just as much as the first time.
The last line has to be the best ever! I think that was the longest beep I ever heard!! LOL

Saggkl

Sunday, September 14, 2003 - 09:57 am EditMoveDeleteIP
When is it coming back. I totally missed the ending and I am so mad at myself for not thinking to tape it. Was it on today? (Sunday). Missed it again if it was.

Crazydog

Monday, September 15, 2003 - 07:45 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Saggkl, unfortunately right now I don't think it looks like it is re-airing. The Family marathon on ABC Family seems like it was only a one-shot deal. Perhaps they will re-air each episode a week at a time. Keep checking the listings or write to them.

I made it through five and a half hours of the marathon before going out to dinner. I haven't had a chance to watch the tape to see what Anthony said of his decision to split the money and his mother's reaction. But I thought the comments from all six of them were great. Even Aunt Donna for the most part was great. And I thought Anthony was very charming and not the jerk the show portrayed him as.

We didn't get comments from Uncle Michael, Ed, Maria or Dawn Marie. Not sure why - I guess they wanted to pair people up with natural good relationships, like the brother/sister Rob and Melinda, Donna and Anthony, and Jill and her cousin Mike. I would have loved to have heard from Dawn Marie - by the end she was my favorite.