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June 12, 2000 Interviews can be arranged by e-mailing michaelwiseman@icqmail.com 'NOW AND AGAIN' SUPPORTERS MAIL EGGS TO CBS TO PROTEST THE SHOW'S CANCELLATION Fans of the canceled television show "Now and Again" plan to send hundreds of eggs to CBS on June 17, one month after the network announced its fall line up. Eggs were the weapon of choice for the Eggman, a villain who appeared in four episodes of the critically acclaimed, award-winning show. "We're encouraging people to send eggs in every shape possible," said Amanda Ohlin, spokeswoman of the largest "Now and Again" mailing list on the Web. "Plastic eggs, wooden eggs, cardboard cutout eggs, cards with eggs on the front -- anything but real eggs. We want to show CBS that we truly miss this show without treating them as poorly as the fans of this show have been treated." The egg drop is the latest in a campaign to get the show returned to the air. When CBS announced its fall schedule, leaving out the freshman show, "Now and Again" fans started raising money for an advertisement that ran in the May 30 edition of The Hollywood Reporter. The group raised more than $1,200 in a little more than 48 hours. Fans have sent thousands of letters and postcards to the network, urging executives to bring back the show, which was canceled on May 17. Show supporters also have handed out hundreds of handbills urging people to protest the cancellation and established five Web sites have been established to promote the renewal efforts. "This is an award-winning show that has been garnered the support of critics everywhere," Ohlin said. "It recently took top honors at the Saturn awards and many critics have said they expect it to earn Emmy nominations. It's astounding to think that a network would cancel an outstanding show with a growing fan base." The unique show, which combines drama, comedy, action, romance and science fiction, was a favorite among critics, who agreed that it was innovative and one of the best new programs of the season. Bruce Fretts of Entertainment Weekly magazine wrote: "When `Now and Again' is at its best ... it's as good as anything on TV, including 'The Sopranos.' " "Now and Again" won top honors at the annual Saturn awards, taking the award for the best network television show. Margaret Colin also won the best actress award and Dennis Haysbert took the best supporting actor award. The Saturn awards are hosted by The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. "Quality television shows like this don't come along that often," Ohlin said. "Networks may not know this, but fans do. We're not about to let this good show go so easily." Even CBS had declared the show an early success. During the first months of the season, the network announced that "Now and Again" was its first drama to thrive on a Friday night since the late 1980s when "Beauty and the Beast" was on. After November sweeps, the network proclaimed the show a hit among 18- to 49-year-old males, considered a key demographic group by network executives and advertisers. "Now and Again" is produced by Glenn Gordon Caron, who is best known for creating "Moonlighting." It stars Eric Close as Michael Wiseman, a $3 billion, genetically engineered man with the transplanted brain of a middle-aged insurance salesman, and Dennis Haysbert as Dr. Theo Morris, the brilliant scientist who created him. It also stars Margaret Colin, Heather Matarazzo and Gerrit Graham. Save Our Show site: http://nacampaign.tripod.com E-mail list: http://www.egroups.com/group/now-and-again |