USA: Launching Original Half-Hour Comedies

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Coverage: Upfronts 2013

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USA:

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STRATEGY: Use the off-network premiere of Modern Family to launch a first foray into original half-hour comedy with two series in 2014.

USA Networks programming family is getting a

little bigger come fall.

On Sept. 24, the Emmy-winning ABC sitcom Modern Family will premiere in

off-network syndication on USA, giving the network a long-desired launch pad to

break into the original halfhour comedy business.

At its upfront presentation on May 16, the network announced its first two

original comedy series -- Sirens from

Denis Leary (Rescue Me) and the female buddy comedy Playing House.

Both are single-camera shows, like Modern Family. Sirens follows

three Chicago EMTs who are skilled at their jobs but disastrous at

relationships. Playing House, inspired by the real-life friendship of

stars and cowriters Lennon Parham and Jessica St. Clair, looks at an expectant

mother who asks her single, career-driven best friend to return home from her

job overseas to help her raise the baby.

Though Modern Family will join the lineup in September, USA is targeting

the first quarter of 2014 to launch its first original comedy.

What we want to do is give Modern Family a chance to seed itself on the

air and give a chance for people to discover it on USA Network, network

copresident Chris McCumber told B&C. Then hopefully, in a perfect

world, well have a great platform to launch these two shows.

The plan is to sandwich the new series between episodes of Modern Family,

so that the first original comedy will likely complete its 10-to-13-episode run

before the second comedy premieres.

With the benefit of Modern Family as a lead-in and the lead-out, and

with the benefit of the cable structure, we dont really need to gang the shows

together, USA copresident Jeff Wachtel said. We can pick the best place for

each show to survive on its own.

McCumber described the auspices of Sirens and Playing House as great

names for us to be able to get in business with for its first foray into

original comedy. Were applying the same brand filter that we have to our

dramas -- its about characters first.

On the drama side, USA announced it has begun production on period project Horizon,

from The Walking Dead executive producer Gale Anne Hurd, about a female

FBI secretary during World War II who begins a secretive investigation into

mysterious files. Also under consideration is The Arrangement, about a

Colombian woman with a tragic past who enters into a marriage with an ambitious

Florida politician.

The eight total projects in development continue the evolution of USAs drama

brand that started with the legal drama Suits and moves forward this

summer with FBI drama Graceland both more serialized, with darker

shades though still character-based, and designed to bring a new audience to

the network.

USA has additionally ordered the comedy pilot Love Is Dead, about a

company that specializes in breaking up romantic relationships.

E-mail comments to amorabito@nbmedia.com and

follow her on Twitter: @andreamorabito

LINK:	http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/upfront-central/usa-launching-or...
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