With Mad Men back soon, could Robin Williams pilot be another adland hit?
If you can't beat Mad Men, join them! CBS is the latest US network tempted by the idea of a series set in the world of advertising. Central character in a new pilot show, Crazy Ones, is Robin Williams .
Robin Williams: adland star?
The Tiffany network has ordered the pilot, says AdAge, a half-hour comedy from David E. Kelley about a father ( Williams) and his daughter who run an ad agency.
Of course a pilot is "just a test" and the proposed show "may never make it to the screen," says the magazine. But the very fact that CBS is interested "only underscores the ongoing fascination TV outlets have with shows about the ad world."
Of course AMC's drama Mad Men, the Golden Globes winner, is the show everyone talks about today. Season 6 starring Jon Hamm premieres in the US on April 7.
Fans looking to catch up can watch the fifth season on AMC On Demand beginning Feb. 11, with season five episodes rolling out each week up to the premiere . AMC's reality show The Pitch, spawned by Mad Men also returns for a second series in the spring.
In the past Tom Hanks and Peter Scolari played cross-dressing ad execs on ABC's Bosom Buddies. And who can forget the fabled ad firm of McMann and Tate in Bewitched?
Some ad shows, of course, simply don't make it. AdAge singles out Time Warner's Trust Me, about a creative/art team at an ad firm ,starring Eric McCormack from Will & Grace."It didn't last long."
The AdAge verdict: "We suspect The Crazy Ones will nod to advertising, perhaps about as much as Just Shoot Me," set at the fictional fashion magazine Blush, reflected publishing.
"But this is CBS, home to "The Big Bang Theory" and "2 Broke Girls," so you might expect to see more of the network's trademark raunchy humour than anything else."