VH1 Scraps 'Liza and David'

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Current News - Homefront Preparations : One Thread

[I know y'all are deeply disappointed. . .]

Wed, Oct 30, 2002 04:15 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - VH1 has dropped its planned reality series "Liza and David," reportedly because David wasn't allowing camera crews enough access to Liza.

Liza and David are singer-actress Liza Minnelli and her producer husband, David Gest. They were set to star in an "Osbournes" -like series about their lives on VH1 starting in December. Gest, however, tried to exert so much control over the production that VH1 decided the show would be more trouble than it's worth.

"We've made the decision not to move forward with the 'Liza and David' show," Rob Weiss, VH1's East Coast programming chief, tells the New York Post. "Although we continue to believe that Liza is an amazing talent, we were not given the cooperation that we were promised."

Gest repeatedly blocked camera crews' access to Minnelli, according to the paper, going so far as to station a bodyguard outside their New York apartment at one point. He was also a "neat freak," one source says, requiring crews to wear surgical booties in the apartment and asking a VH1 staffer to stand by with a handheld vacuum when a hole was drilled in a wall.

The producer, who worked on Michael Jackson's 30th anniversary concert special last year, also tried to set the agenda for the one episode that did get filmed -- an October dinner party the couple threw for guests including Sandra Bernhard, Kelly Rowland of Destiny's Child, Ray Charles, author Dominick Dunne and designer Isaac Mizrahi, among others.

The result was the cancellation of the series, as indicated in a letter from VH1's legal team to Gest's lawyers this week. "In light of your inability to cure these breaches [of contract], it is with great regret and sorrow that we must notify you that we have no choice but to terminate the agreement," the letter says.

-- Anonymous, October 30, 2002

Answers

Maybe VH1 realized it would be Must Miss TV

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2002

VH1? is that still around?

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2002

Moderation questions? read the FAQ