[S1E25 - 'Monkey Business' - Mar. 19, 2013]
Hello, and welcome to today's 'Monkey Business.' This is 'Monkey Business' for March 19, 2013.
And, in today's Afternoon Coffee newser, we have...
Aircraft manufacturer Boeing (BA) has had an interesting series of ups and downs to start off the new year; more on
Boeing in the episodes shown, if you'd like to catch up.
[Boeing episodes thus far, in season one [S1] of 'Monkey Business': S1E25 (this episode), Boeing's Ryanair order | S1E23, Boeing orders | S1E17, Boeing earnings | S1E12, Fleets grounded | S1E8, Job cuts]
The latest news is an order placed by Ryanair [Ryanair Holdings plc] (NASDAQ: RYAAY) [ADR] in an agreement worth $15.6 billion [U.S. dollars] at list prices.
The budget airline is ordering 175 next-generation 737-800s for the airline's [Ryanair] planned fleet expansion.
When finalized, the purchase would be Boeing’s [The Boeing Company (BA)] largest deal to date in 2013, and the largest-ever aircraft order from a European airline.
And, in a recent episode, we covered the Liberty Global (LBTYA)-Virgin Media (VMED) deal, that clip here. [S1E19]
Well, Liberty chairman John Malone is at it again, this time in an agreement including Apollo Management, Oaktree Capital Management and Crestview Partners,
to take a stake in Charter Communications (CHTR), for about $2.6 [$2.617 billion] [U.S. dollars].
Charter Communications (CHTR) is the fourth-largest cable provider in the U.S.
For more details on the deal, just check the link in the infobox.
And, now, over to Marcel, for Nearly News.
Take it away, Marcel.
(Marcel) What's your favorite show? And how far would you go to see a brand-new episode of that show?
There are a lot of shows out there with a cult following, like 'Arrested Development,' 'Farscape,' 'MacGyver,'
and 'Red Dwarf'; even including commercial heavies like 'Twin Peaks' or 'The X-Files.’
And the fans of a few shows have been waiting for ages, campaigning and letter-writing, to see a major motion
picture, or even a handful of new episodes, featuring their favorite characters.
Fans of 'Arrested Development' finally get their wish - they're getting 14 new episodes of the show in May 2013,
to be streamed on movie site Netflix (NFLX).
Netflix is starting to produce its own original programming, as well. [Shown: Trailer clips, Netflix original programming, 'Hemlock Grove' and 'House of Cards']
And now it's time for the revival of another TV show with a cult following, courtesy of the show fans, and crowdfunding site Kickstarter.
We've talked about Kickstarter in a few episodes, and here they are, somewhere - just look. [Shown: S1E9  (Kickstarter Stats), S1E8 (A High-Tech Pebble)]
So, who's up next? 'Veronica Mars.' The show creator, Rob Thomas, gave up trying to find a studio willing to pick up
the tab for a proposed film, and simply - took it to the fans. And the fans answered loud and clear.
[Marcel looks over the side of his biplane.] Hmm. Time for lunch, I think. Just flying off the coast of California, in the U.S.
Shall we have a little pit stop? Yes, let's do that.
[Marcel is shown standing on a San Diego, California [U.S.] university campus - one of the shooting locations for the 'Veronica Mars' series.] And here I am, on a film set.
Not THE 'Veronica Mars' film set, because they don't even know where they're shooting yet. The producer's Kickstarter proposal [link in infobox] suggests LA (Los Angeles), San Diego, Baton Rouge, Vancouver, all with little question marks.
So, it's not - the - film set. No one knows where that’s even going to be. But it's - a - film set.
And here I am, so let's film something. I'm ready for my closeup.
Actually, the set just shows the campus of San Diego State University in San Diego, California [U.S.], through a colored lens.
The scenery doesn't actually look that color, unless maybe you're an  alien, flying by in a space pod,
or looking through a rainbow.
The university campus was one of the filming locations for the 'Veronica Mars' series.
Here's the promo for the 'Veronica Mars' film project, voilà. [Shown: Clip, 'Veronica Mars' film project, Kickstarter campaign]
What's odd about the film is that it's not an indie project by a struggling filmmaker; high-profile studio Warner Bros. - owned by Time Warner (TWX) -
will own and distribute the film, so it really does make you a little curious why a Hollywood studio doesn't just cough up the cash to fund its own show.
Strange, eh?
I know they say there’s no free lunch in Hollywood; I didn’t know there was - no - lunch.
‘Do you want to take a lunch meeting?’ ‘Well, no, not really.’
‘Why not?’
‘Because there’s no…lunch.’
[Back to discussing the 'Veronica Mars' campaign.] Controversial, yes, to some extent. Not everyone is happy about it, and you can read an op-ed on just that topic, in the infobox.
On the other hand, it gives sort of an evolving definition to video on demand - [an updated definition could be applied to projects] with fans chipping in to make a project happen that they want to see, that wouldn't be made any other way.
Whether crowdfunding becomes a viable source of funding for new shows remains to be seen, but it's given fans
and creators an outlet, in this case, for choosing what they want to see made, simply by paying for their entertainment in advance.
And...action!
Instead of writing letters to a studio to bring back the show, for example, a fan of the 'Veronica Mars' show could instead
pledge thirty-five [U.S.] dollars, and receive a copy of the film during its theatrical release.
The show creator [Rob Thomas] initially set the [project] goal at two million [U.S.] dollars.
In less than five days, some 56,000 fans pledged a collective $3.6 million [U.S.] dollars,
close to double the initial goal [of $2 million U.S. dollars], and the project is a go.  [Update to Mar. 19, 2013 broadcast - As of Mar. 25, 2013, pledge amount for the project stood at USD 3.86M]
Funded, not by a studio, but by the show's own audience.
It's not a major sea change in business as usual, but it's certainly interesting.
If you're one of the project backers behind the 'Veronica Mars' movie, or if you're just interested in the topic, feel free to leave a comment, if you like - would you rather back indie projects,
or new shows, or a show you already love? Does it vex you that a Hollywood studio is getting more or less a free ride for production costs,
or does it simply not matter, as long as you get to see your favorite characters onscreen one more time?
And, of course - if a crowdfunding buy-in could bring back one show you love for a new series or a new film,
which one would you bring back?
(Jack) Cult TV, huh? Hmm.
Well, I don't know, Marcel. There are a lot of shows out there that could probably be classified as cult
TV, but it's hard to think of some of them offhand - [and] a few series
have already had films or new episodes made, based on the original series, like 'Dark Shadows,' 'The Lone Ranger,'
'The Avengers,' and 'Starsky and Hutch' [styled 'Starsky & Hutch'].
There's also 'The Sweeney,' 'Battlestar Galactica,' and, of course, 'Star Trek.'
Maybe a few series skirting the edge of fantasy or sci-fi, like 'Children of the Stones' or 'The Voyagers,'
'Rentaghost,' 'Sliders' or 'Time Slip.'
Or 'Space: 1999.'
You could also probably consider a 1960s spy series, like 'The Prisoner' or 'Danger Man';
[There'd be] 1970s crime series like 'Kojak,'
'The Rockford Files,' or 'Amy Prentiss' [to consider];
or even 1990s sci-fi or crime series, like British crime dramas 'Cracker' or 'Wycliffe,'
or sci-fi series, 'The Outer Limits,' which was itself based on a 1960s series [also called 'The Outer Limits'];
or a blend of both crime and sci-fi, like 'Crime Traveller.'
Maybe some titles from the 1950s, but those would be more likely to be cult films, not cult TV.
Anything with a swamp, a lagoon, or something from Mars is likely to be a good candidate there [many early horror films were creature features], I guess.
So, maybe not that many from the 1950s, but the others seem to show up regularly as cult TV.
Let me just ask if anyone has any more [cult series titles] to add.
[Jack, to newsroom crew offscreen.] Hey, anyone have something to toss in, here?
Cult TV?
[Jack, to newsroom crew offscreen.] What? 'The A-Team'? Oh, right.
[Jack, to newsroom crew offscreen.] There was actually a show called 'Bring Back "The A-Team"'?
I guess some people want to bring back 'The A-Team.'
So, okay, then - we've got the newsroom vote, what about 'The A-Team.'
(Marcel) 'The A-Team' - what's that.
It's one of the slate of shows from the - 1980s or 1990s, I think.
[Jack, to someone offscreen] What, 1980s?
[Back to Marcel/viewer] 1980s. It's on DVD, and not as obscure as some of the others. Although maybe it's not in the running,
if we're talking about shows that haven't already gotten the cinematic touch - that one's already had a movie ['The A-Team' (2010)] based on the series, I think.
(Marcel) Have you seen it?
(Jack) No, just trying to think of likely cult TV shows that people might back in a Kickstarter campaign, either for a new series or a film version.
So, most of these shows have dedicated followers out there, whether or not the show was popular at the time, or became popular later on, after a quick run and cancellation.
But, 'The A-Team'; yes, have heard of it. It's an action-adventure show fom the U.S. They'd rescue people and drive jeeps and have gun fights and so on, and generally...blow things up.
(Marcel) Eh, they sound very busy.
(Jack) You might have a point, there.
(Marcel) That's too much effort for me.
There can be an A-Team, as long as I get to be on the B-Team.
You know, [where] the A-Team stands for, 'All of you just go, and I'll be there later.'
Maybe.
If it doesn't interrupt my lunch.
There can be an A-Team, as long as I don't have to be on it.
Eh, bien, the A-Team, you know...
...don't call me.
There are some lists in the infobox featuring profiles of several cult shows.
Are any of your [favorite shows] on the list? Because, eh bien, you never know... [Onscreen question for viewers: Which show would you bring back?]
[Show sign-off] (Jack) 
And that's today's 'Monkey Business.' Take care, folks, it's crowdfunding and cult TV chaos out there.
Have fun, Marcel.
(Marcel) And...action!
(Marcel) [Bemused] I mean...lunch! What am I even saying. Pfff. 'Action.'
