MrRant 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 If you'd just suffered a huge family tragedy, would you want pesky David Spade to show up as a long-lost relative? ABC apparently thinks so. The acerbic comedian is the latest high-profile addition to the post- John Ritter cast of 8 Simple Rules, signing on to do a handful of episodes on the sitcom. Thursday, the Alphabet network confirmed the guest casting but said nothing was yet known about the exact character Spade would be playing, only he would be "a member of the Hennessy clan." The show has undergone radical changes following Ritter's sudden death in September. After ABC decided to continue the show sans the star, it shortened the title from 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter to, simply, 8 Simple Rules, and brought in TV vets James Garner (news) and Suzanne Pleshette (news) to play the estranged parents of Katey Sagal (news)'s widowed Kate Hennessy. Then, executive producer Flody Suarez, who helped develop 8 Simple Rules, was dumped from the show this week, according to Daily Variety, for "different managment opinions" with fellow producer Tom Shadyac. Shooting on the sitcom is currently on hiatus for the Thanksgiving holiday, but will resume in December. Garner--the sort of relative you would like to have in a crisis--is set to film at least two more episodes as the gruff but kindly granddad. It is not clear whether Pleshette will be returning as his trouble-making ex-wife Kate's mom. Spade, meanwhile, will likely shoot two or three episodes in mid-December for broadcast during February sweeps. An SNL graduate, Spade earned an Emmy nomination for playing snarky Dennis Finch on NBC's 1997-2002 sitcom Just Shoot Me. His recent big-screen credits include Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star and Joe Dirt. More than 20 million viewers tuned in for the first post-Ritter episode, a critically lauded episode in which the Hennessy brood dealt with the surprise death of their dad. Since then, as the mood has shifted from tragedy back to comedy, ratings have slipped for the Tuesday night program. This week's show, the third to air sans Ritter, averaged 11 million viewers and was actually beaten in its 8 p.m. slot by the first half-hour of CBS' Navy NCIS, which pulled in an average of 12.4 million fans. Still, 8 Simple Rules did win in the advertiser-important adults 18-49 demo, beating Navy NCIS by 56 percent and NBC's Whoopi by 27 percent, and its average of 11 million viewers this season is still a smidgen ahead of last year's 10.9 million. We'll just have to wait and see if drop-in Spade, whether uncle, cousin or step-nephew twice removed, can push the numbers up even more. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted November 21, 2003 The Kerry/Spade stuff will be good...I'm betting he plays Ritter's Younger Brother and he becomes a "demi-god" of sorts for Rory to be with... Expect Old Man/Young Man banter with Spade and Garner but I don't see Bridget and Mom working well with Spade. I still say they should stuck with the core family and Garner and leave it there. Having odd people like Spade coming in as "relatives" will hinder the show. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bruiser Chong 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 I doubt it'll help things that much, but I've always been a Spade fan and the show is in desperate need for someone who's actually funny, whether it be on his own or playing off people. Spade has his critics, but he was one of the best elements of Just Shoot Me and if used correctly, he could prove to be a boost for the show. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted November 21, 2003 The problem is Spade has always been the same character for the most part (Scarcastic yet intelligent)... Is this really the right environment? At least it's better then another Work Place show...I was fearing he show up on that Less than Perfect show and replace Andy Dick or something... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bruiser Chong 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 At this point in his career, he's basically been typecast, so while that's not a good thing per say, he's still good at the role, so I have no problem doing that. I don't think he'd be too good at more serious types of thing, anyway. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HollywoodSpikeJenkins 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 Just Shoot Me is over? Why didn't I know this? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest El Satanico Report post Posted November 21, 2003 Just Shoot Me is over? Why didn't I know this? Because you're a troll that lives under a bridge without access to TV? It's been gone for at least a year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HollywoodSpikeJenkins 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 Dude.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
justsoyouknow 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 How exactly did they explain Ritter's death on 8 Simple Rules? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Choken One Report post Posted November 21, 2003 He died when he collapsed in the store to get milk... They never said if he had a heart attack or What but They simply said he collapsed on Aisle Three (symbolic for dying on the 3rd show) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bruiser Chong 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 Just Shoot Me got cancelled in the late spring or early summer. The final few episodes were played during the summer months and it all went away quietly. The show had clearly hit its peak a while back. I never watched the last season until recently in syndication. Truly awful stuff, especially that character they added in there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Youth N Asia 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2003 I kinda want Tim Allen to join the cast as a new character. Maybe next year (if it's still around) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest FrigidSoul Report post Posted November 21, 2003 If they're having trouble going back from the sad mood to the comedic mood then David Spade will be a big help. Just keep him on for 3 eps at the most. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WrestlingDeacon 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 I think Tim Allen would be a good choice. He's naturally likable and funny. He also has experience in warm, family sitcoms. Here's how I would do it. You bring Allen in as a teacher at the kids' high school. Make him the consumate bachelor or divorced. You don't want him to be a widower too and you don't want him to have a kid. Katey Seagal goes in for a parent/teacher conference and they hit it off great. So he asks her out. Allen is like the cool science teacher that all the kids like. It's important for the kids to have reservations with who their mom starts seeing, but you don't want the dynamic of somebody they don't like. That would leave a bad taste in people's mouthes. Where you bring the real tension out is with Garner and Allen, who should have good chemistry together. You kind of get back to the basic prinicpal of the show where you have Garner as the dad looking out for his little girl. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tawren 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 I think Tim Allen would be a good choice. He's naturally likable and funny. He also has experience in warm, family sitcoms. Here's how I would do it. You bring Allen in as a teacher at the kids' high school. Make him the consumate bachelor or divorced. You don't want him to be a widower too and you don't want him to have a kid. Katey Seagal goes in for a parent/teacher conference and they hit it off great. So he asks her out. Allen is like the cool science teacher that all the kids like. It's important for the kids to have reservations with who their mom starts seeing, but you don't want the dynamic of somebody they don't like. That would leave a bad taste in people's mouthes. Where you bring the real tension out is with Garner and Allen, who should have good chemistry together. You kind of get back to the basic prinicpal of the show where you have Garner as the dad looking out for his little girl. Now THAT would work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DerangedHermit 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 Wow...that would sound awesome, Deacon. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steviekick 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 I like David Spade and all, but I hope they pull it off. When used correctly, he's great. When not, well... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lil' Bitch 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 I take it "Just Shoot Me" got canceled? *been out of the TV loop for a long time Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Youth N Asia 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 Making Allen a woodshop teacher would just be a little too close to Home Improvement, eh? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 Making Allen a woodshop teacher would just be a little too close to Home Improvement, eh? That's why he'd be their science teacher. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WrestlingDeacon 0 Report post Posted November 22, 2003 Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Science still lets him do crazy junk and mess stuff up, but it's not a direct copy of Home Improvement. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Steviekick 0 Report post Posted November 23, 2003 I take it "Just Shoot Me" got canceled? *been out of the TV loop for a long time Yeah, it was cancelled for this past season. However, they ordered extra episodes of it to be made so they would have new stuff to air over the summer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted November 23, 2003 Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Science still lets him do crazy junk and mess stuff up, but it's not a direct copy of Home Improvement. "Now class, when I put this block of sodium in the water, we should get saltwater...right, class?" (Na + H20 -----> NaOH + H2, as caustic gas fills the room and kids gag) "See? The answer was no!" Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
