The box.
Let's get out of the fucking box, guys.
This is reality.
Every week these guys pick someone to give them a car.
And they give the cops the plate number and the coordinates.
This guy races around like crazy all around Moscow.
And if they do it for 35 minutes without getting caught, the car's his.
That's Russia and that is great TV.
- I like it. - You wanna do that here?
No. I want to go even bigger. Better.
That would work.
Alright, guys, what do we got?
- This is good. - Awesome.
Check this out. We got pitched this reality TV thing from the LAPD.
It's called Jail Bait.
And you should like that.
They take high school girls and put them through the police academy.
Six months later, they put em' on the force.
They're working the beach, in bikinis, trying to bust guys...
who are into underage girls.
You're gonna get athletes, you're gonna get lawyers.
Our competition is trying to crash a 747 live into the desert.
Half the shows being pitched have...
detectives catching unfaithful wives actually screwing on camera...
and you're bringing me warmed over cops?
What gives here, Davey?
Come on, shows like that? Please. There's no story, no drama.
There's nothing to sustain an audience for an hour.
- Dave. Do you read the trades? - Yeah.
Look what I have here. Idol, 32 share, 20 rating.
Survivor 45 share, 28 rating.
That's our competition.
I'm sure when those shows were being pitched...
there was some obstreperous dead weight in the room going "no way."
Davey, don't be that guy. You're smarted than that.
We just gotta find a way in. Get the same adrenaline rush.
That's what auto racing is about, after all.
The chance you'll see some poor suckers car roll over three times...
and then burst into flames. Please, you know you love it.
The ratings are great.
The potential to see people die is an unbelievable draw.
People would watch Russian Roulette if given the chance.
What?
What you just said.
It was a joke.
You're joking, right?
Wow. Could you imagine?
Could you imagine the numbers we'd get if people tuned in...
actually knowing somebody was going to die on air?
She's kidding.
The numbers would be good.
Katie. Katie, you can't do that.
Don.
Katie. Katie and entourage.
- Just a fast legal question. - The answer's no.
Kidding, what is it?
Without passing judgment, give me your opinion as a lawyer.
What if we could put on a show that would involve Russian Roulette?
Would that be legal?
The chances of us airing it would be zero.
Is that your legal opinion?
That's a common sense opinion.
When you get a legal opinion, call me.
Six people will get rich, and one will also get killed on the air.
You know, Katie, I don't think New York is gonna go for that.
New York? There's exactly one reason why New York hired me...
why you hired me. Numbers.
And this thing is a ratings monster.
Of course I'd like the ratings, but we have to serve our audience...
in a way that they'll respect us.
Tom, come on. Come on.
- Our sit-coms are getting creamed. - Not all of them.
Our so called dramas are pathetic...
and even our shitty re-runs are even doing better...
than the smarmy reality we're making.
What we have is old. It's dodgy and it doesn't work.
But now, we can change all that.
With Russian Roulette?
I didn't invent the game. I'm just making it hip again.
Listen, Katie...
Listen, would you give us five minutes alone?
When Katie gave me permission to film, I was promised full access.
I don't care, who gave you permission.
I'm president of the network.
Why don't you put your camera down? There's a Starbucks downstairs.
Just leave your stuff right here and grab a cappuccino.
That's fine. Hey, can you do me a favor?
Thank you.
What a pain in the ass. I can't believe you let him in here.
With the numbers we have, we need all the publicity we can get.
Good publicity.
Don't worry. I mean, please. I could manipulate him.
I wouldn't be so sure.
You and him. Hey, you know.
Oh, I'm-he's very cute, but no. No.
- You could do a lot worse. - I have.
Now, this idea, and all it's lunacy.
If anyone else had brought it to me, I'd dismiss it out of hand.
But Katie, you gotta admit, this crosses the line.
The line? What line? Look at any network, any night.
Carve up your face, stab your best buddy in the back...
and screw his girlfriend.
People wanna watch what they wanna watch...
and if we don't give it to them, we are history.
We still got standards and practices to worry about.
Please.
We still got those assholes at the FCC and the affiliates.
You think that the stations, ours in lowa are gonna like this?
I think, no, fuck that.
I know our station in Des Moines is getting sick of being...
creamed every night by CBS and NBC.
Back then, when somebody said they get killed on the air when you said that,
it gave me a hard-on.
Really.
Really?
I never got that before at a meeting.
Cool.
Do it.
What a day.
Why should I be up? Katie just pitched me her resignation letter.
After they heat about this, she's gone. Finito.
I want you to go surfing. Works for me.
Sorry, Dylan, the web.
Now go and, oh, go and find me examples to back this thing up.
Okay, what kind of examples?
People who refuse to accept conventional wisdom...
on what could or couldn't be done.
Magazine articles, papers.
Download me pictures too.
I wanna put this not as some piece of fluff, but as a historical event.
Not to be too skeptical, but it could take a while to find articles...
that are going to call putting Russian Roulette on TV a historical event.
If you have any pictures, I'll give you history. Go get em'.
From the Roman Coliseum where it was standing room only...
to watch the Christians be fed to the lions...
to the crowds in Paris who gathered to watch...
the guillotine lop the heads of Louie XIV and Marie Antoinette...
man has always been fascinated by death, right?
And more importantly, with witnessing death.
And we're another milestone in the great continuing world history.
- Dave. - What about this?
We have a set, like a game show...
have a host, his hot woman assistant and all that.
We find six people who'll be willing to risk it all a million...
and we bring them on, one a time.
That's good.
And how's this? During the show, the host interviews them...
so we can develop our favorites and cheer for them before they pull the trigger.
Defiantly. That would work.
Guys, we are gonna be pilloried if we put this on the air.
Of course we're gonna be pilloried.
But the more we get pilloried, the more publicity, and the more ratings...
when this thing goes live into America's living rooms.
Although, this is a new network for me...
it's wonderful to see so many familiar faces.
And I think it's fair to say...
that no one in our business respects advertisers like I do.
We stroke you back, Katy. But we got a problem...
"Live!".
At least we're in sync. If what the news is saying is true...
no company, in their right mind is gonna touch it.
I don't expect you to touch it. I expect you to embrace it.
To fight like hell to buy commercial time on it.
- You must be dreaming. - I'm not.
I'm not.
Guys, our house is on fire...
and instead of calling for the fire department, we're watching it burn.
But you know what?
Until recently, sports was in the exact same predicament.
If you'll let me, I'll show you something prepared by our sports gang.
It's sayonara Monday Night Football, hello X-games. Watch this.
That is the future of sports.
Let me tell you something. Right here! Right now!
I'm gonna give you the future of primetime
Unprecedented programming, unprecedented ratings.
And the only question you have to ask yourselves is...
are you in or are you out?
Well, that went as badly as it could be.
What is it?
Corporate stupid bullshit. What's going on?
It's pretty obvious, don't you think?
No lawyer's gonna kill my show.
No? Last time I checked, suicide is illegal in this country.
- That's my legal opinion. - This isn't suicide.
It's a game show. There's only the possibility of killing yourself.
I don't buy it. And neither will Standards and Practices and the FCC.
So, Katy, get real.
What's the difference between this...
and those freeway chopper chases on the news...
which end up with the guy getting shot by the cops or killing himself?
- That's news. - No, that's ratings.
And then you show it, everyone rushes to their TVs...
with this huge expectation that the guy's gonna blow his brains out.
But do you stop showing it? No, of course not.
You go ahead, then I'm gonna have to go to New York with this.
Don't you think they already know?
Knowing is one thing. But putting it on, is completely different.
Too late, we've announced. I have auditions on Friday.
Have your auditions. You just can't have the show.
Dylan!
Here ya go.
How's it look?
Heat's rising, thanks to you.
And no more being in last place pitched.
No more garbage?
Top shelf.
Tee em' up.
It's called "Sperm Count".
A very cool group of selected men compete to be the father...
with the hottest girl on either side of the Atlantic.
Once we've narrowed our field to our two finalists...
we put identifying dye on two globs of sperm...
and using a specially designed vag-cam...
we film the sperm racing forward to see which will reach the egg first.
The BBC love it.
Flat Lining. The name says it all.
We take contestants, we stop their hearts for an instant...
longer is we could get away with it.
"Tits and Ass". Basically "Extreme Makeover" with an edge.
Line-up of girls show us their breasts, just like they do over in Italy...
but only here we have to put on the slightest blur.
After that, a studio audience votes on which one deserves the boob job.
Then, we have an operation in front of the studio audience.
So, in one package, we have it all.
Tits, blood, heroic doctors and the big reveal.
Bad day?
Nah.
Normal day.
People always say they can't believe how bad what's on TV is.
You should see what's not on TV.
Tomorrow marks the big day for ABN's controversial new show "Live!".
And here to talk about it is Katy Courbet...
the newly appointed president of programming for the ABN.
A woman that shakes things up no matter where she goes.
Now first of all, Katy, just an hour ago...
we were told by sources high at the network...
that ABN has changed it's mind and plans to cancel the new show.
Plumy, we are absolutely going ahead.
Okay. Okay.
And if you don't mind, I have brought along some photos.
You know who this is, right?
Well, of course, but why don't you tell us about him.
This is Steve Jobs. And before he came along...
the idea of owning your own personal computer seemed completely crazy.
But Steve created the Apple computer and our world was changed forever.
And, of course, you know who this is.
Oh, well that's easy. That's John Glen.
Well, very very close. Buzz Aldren.
When Apollo 11 when up to the moon, many thought it wasn't going back.
But they made it, fulfilling one of mankind's most enduring dreams.
The Apollo 11 astronauts and Jobs all pushed the envelope...
and that's what we're doing with "Live!".
Sometimes life offers great opportunities.
If any of you want to be a part of one of the great historic events...
then please consider auditioning. We'd be honored by your presence.
Rex. Holy shit, this is for us.
Those are contestants.
Hello.
- Katy, Dylan, hello. - Hey Jim.
You are gonna love the list. I must admit I was skeptical as anyone.
But this list, my God. What a list.
- You ready? - Hit me.
Death. Staring it right in the Face and finally caving into it.
First, it started in my stomach...
and then the cancer spread to my lymph nodes...
and now it's in my lungs.
There's just no good wars anymore.
I can't put on a show with a bunch of suicidal types.
Where's the drama in that? Where's the fun in that?
- Want some? - No, thanks.
So what are you gonna do?
Something fast. Or I'm gonna be as pathetic as they are.
You and I will be in the same boat, though.
Yeah, how's that?
I won't have a show and you won't have a film.
It's great. A Fuji. It's really crunchy.
Well, I have a...
What?
Could you kill the camera, please?
- I have an idea. - You do? Okay.
Kill the camera. Seriously.
No, no, no, just go with it. You can always cut it out later.
When you offered a million dollars, look what happened.
It seemed like a lot to me,
I don't know, I look who you got.
What you really need is a crowd that would never kill themselves.
- What you need to do... - Raise the pay up.
Is probably, yeah, raise the pay up.
Like three or four million.
Or more.
- Or more. - Or more.
Listen to the prince of nobleness now.
It's not hard to be more noble than you.
Don't worry, we can manipulate him.
You filmed that?
I like that.
- You do? - Absolutely. And I like this idea.
Just got another idea.
Okay, we make the payoff huge, but we only pay the survivors.
And no spinning the barrel each time. One spin and everyone goes.
That's gonna get their attention.
You're good. You get it.
No, I'm just deserving.
Right.
Five million dollars each.
Right. Five million dollars and the family of the loser gets nothing.
- That just does not seem right. - Yeah, very unfair.
Now we're rocking. Okay, what do we do?
Do?
Yeah, what do we do?
We chat up the contestants for thirty seconds...
and then we hand them a gun? We're talking a very short program.
We could go with a half hour show.
Defiantly. That might work.
And write off half an hour of lucrative commercial time? Are you kidding?
How's this? Between each person going...
we do those things they do with the athletes at the Olympics...
like those up-close and personal biographies, like vignettes.
Yeah. Yeah.
- The backgrounds. - Bio-documents.
- Kinda brilliant there, Dave. - Thank you.
Kinda brilliant. Jeeze, welcome to the team, buddy.
Took you long enough. Good to have you home.
That's great. It's good huh?
And guess who we hire to do it?
You do the segments, you ask the questions.
- Best way to understand the subject. - I can't.
Why not?
I can't make your segments and be able to film at the same time.
Oh, please. You can do your little film and keep eating rice...
or you could burn some mid night oil, do my segments...
and finally have some steak.
If you think you have what it takes to make it in the majors...
and I know you do, here's your chance.
Amazing. And this is just LA. Imagine the regional auditions.
You think?
I know. Yeah.
Katy.
Yeah.
- We need to talk. - This afternoon.
No, no, now. And, alone.
No their fine. This is for the...
No, forget about it.
You're fucking me here.
I'm saving this network, and you're telling me I'm fucking you?
You are casting and funded some sort of close-up segment.
- Tell me that's not true. - I can't.
- With what money? - I found money.
What, with your credit cards? You think this is your call.
It's not. There is no green light.
Last I heard, we were still discussing.
No, no, we're not discussing it. If we go ahead with this...
the FCC is going to have me, have us for lunch.
Now listen to me, there is no show. Let me say that again. No show.
I got to get back to you on that one, Don.
Katy, this show is no where near green lit.
And tonight they're gonna slice and dice us on Counter Attack.
On Counter Attack? Tonight?
- Wait, what time? - How the fuck should I know?
National exposure for a show that's not officially scheduled. Yes.
Do you think that network should be allowed to televise this?
What do you think the most respected show on television is?
Anything you're on, Mara.
Well, thank you. I agree.
In all seriousness, darling, I think we agree, that it's Sixty Minutes.
And what did they televise? An assisted suicide by Dr. Kevorkian.
Where there's ratings, there's a reason.
I approve of Sixty Minutes doing this and I don't approve of it here.
It's not a question whether you approve or disapprove.
In this country we're allowed to exorcise our individual freedoms...
even if it's in a way that all of us would consider ill-advised.
Hollywood, a dream for millions. And nobody wanted that more than...
Jewel Jensen, from Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Ever since I was a little girl, I always wanted to become an actress.
I took tap and Jazz lessons, and in high school...
I was captain of the cheerleading squad. Go panthers.
I pretty much went as far as anyone could go in cheerleading.
Back at home, I was a kindergarten aide, which I just loved.
But one day, I packed my little beetle and decided to drive on out.
After being here about a week, I got my first job.
It was at the Hollywood Star Tours.
Just being so close to so many famous people was amazing to me.
Just the one thing that was wrong with the job...
I didn't have my days free to go on auditions.
So, I took another job.
And this is something that I never told anybody before.
I was sure I was going to be discovered at the club.
You know Quentin Tarantino? He goes to the gentlemen's clubs.
Sooner or later, he had to come to mine.
If he would have seen me dance, he would have called me.
You get that one part, you're on your way.
My parents still think I'm a guide to Hollywood, so...
It's good. It's good, it's just, there's a couple of things.
When you show her dancing, I saw a glimpse of a nipple. Take it out.
Yeah, she's a topless dancer.
They will kill me for that upstairs.
It's okay to have someone blow a hole in their head...
but we can't see a woman's nipple. You're serious?
Basically. We're not in France. There's one more thing.
What?
When she lied to her parents about still being a tour guide.
Makes her less than pathetic.
Everyone lies to their parents, right? That's the part of growing up.
I mean in the real world, but not, not in ours.
You watched Olympic profiles, right? Do you ever hear people say...
he may be a world class snowboarder...
but unfortunately he's served time for cocaine possession? Never.
Lying to your parents isn't the same thing as...
I got you. Look, you did a great job.
The dancer thing? Attracks every male between 14 and 94. The hook?
Former small town cheerleader, you know, trying to be a big star?
It's going to be huge. Huge. Yeah, and I love her.
And America will love her. Go to the next one.
Sorry to interrupt, I'm so sorry. I just cancelled a couple of shows.
What shows?
Yours for one.
You can't do that.
I can't cancel a show that ranks 90 or below every week?
This fucks up my whole season.
Pitch you my resignation letter? Not yet pal. Not yet.
In 6 weeks, I will be graduating from the university of California...
where, I had the time of my life.
No, for real, every single day just, just living my life to the max.
And now that's all gonna be finished soon, I gotta ask myself...
do I want to live the rest of my life in some working as a slave.
And, nah, hell no, man. Office hours?
This is my office.
Brad Prince has never been one to do anything half way.
At the age of nine, he was San Diego's leading goal scorer.
And at 12, he was the city's freestyle swimming champion.
And, when he grew older, he turned to other pursuits.
I don't want to reach 40 and say...
"Look how many pages of meaningless paper I pushed across my desk."
You know, no way.
This is my lady. This is Candy. Say hello.
Hi.
She's a little shy sometimes.
But I love you.
- You're with me on this, right baby? - Absolutely.
Am I lucky, or what?
Obviously, I know there's a risk involved in doing Live.
In taking that risk, I'm setting myself up with what I want to do.
I want to climb the highest mountain on every single continent.
I wanna check out the forbidden city...
and dive the Great Barrier Reef...
and hit the hottest freak'n beaches all over the world.
Cause to me, life is about living and I wanna live.
Trevor right?
- You're the numbers guy? - You got it.
For Live, what are our chances for crossing the half hour mark?
A network hour is 42:26, so a half is 21:13, you have, let's say...
a three-minute teaser, then you have 9 minutes for an intro, and a break.
Then you got three minutes of an up-close, then you got another break.
Then you got, 16.66% chance the first guy buying it.
- The bottom line? - Over an 80% chance.
Okay, that's all I need. Cool.
What if it only goes a half hour? There's a chance that someone...
The show can't. It won't.
And even if it does, we will have the most unbelievable clip.
One tiny piece of tape is worth a mint if it's the right tape.
Since we got together last time, there's lots of information out there.
And frankly, a lot of misinformation.
And what I'd like to do today is separate the truth from the lies.
There are people who will say our show is beneath the belly of a snake...
a freak show, un-American.
I'm here to assure you that is none of those things.
Please allow me to play for you a segment on one of our contestants.
And in after seeing it, you feel it's unworthy of your commercials...
then don't buy the advertising and you will be able to forget it.
This is the best soil in the world...
and no one is prouder to farm this land, than me.
My great grandfather came to this country from Sweden...
to make this farm and prairie.
Life was extremely tough back then, but he believed...
that America was the land of opportunity.
He worked this land and he made it the finest farm in the area.
We had a few bad weather years.
Harvest was less than it should have been...
and, I'm ashamed to say it now, but, the credit this farm once had, is gone.
And more than anything, I want to hold on to it.
Honey, come here.
Can I say something?
Yeah. Of course.
Everything my husband just said is, of course, true.
I don't think he's capable of not telling the truth.
But what he won't tell you is, after years of trying...
I finally became pregnant.
Unfortunately, our little boy, Ricky, was born prematurely.
Everyone thought he would die.
Everyone but us.
He needed the specialized care out HMO wouldn't pay for.
We had to take out a loan against this farm.
Our baby required three separate operations.
We just hope and pray that your little sweetheart is gonna come out okay.
And we had amazing doctors.
And we had our faith...
and most important of all, Ricky was such a fighter.
And nothing was better than the day he finally came home. I'm sorry.
Mommy, Daddy.
There he is right now. Hey sweetie.
We did what we had to do.
But, just as all the medical bills hit, we had the bad weather years.
So we have a mountain of bills, and a farm we can't afford to hold on too.
We know this is crazy...
but this land, worked by my grandfather, my great grandfather, my father.
I can't let them down.
Someday, Ricky here is gonna want this farm too...
and I want it to be here for him.
Ladies and gentlemen...
this is what our show is about. Let's all get behind Rick.
- Let's all do the right thing. - That was an actor, right?
No, it wasn't. That is a real man.
Sure, anybody...
Yeah, I got to go. I love you.
I hate to admit it, but nice job with the advertisers.
Well, desperation is a powerful motivator.
Without them, New York would have pulled the plug. And that's a fact.
I'm heartbroken. What'd you tell them?
I told them the show was never going to clear the FCC. It's un-airable.
- I have something for you. - I don't want any more bullshit.
No bullshit. You know what that is?
I know it. Constitutional law by Gunther and Sullivan. 12th edition.
15th, actually.
Whatever. Man, I practically memorized this book in school.
Don't tell me you're gonna give it all up and become a lawyer.
No, I was just reading through it and it's got interesting stuff.
I didn't know you read anything other than Nielson Ratings.
Hey, is this what I think it is?
I don't know. What do you think it is?
Is this a ticket to Woodstock? You were there?
My mom took me.
- So was my oldest step brother. - No shit.
- He talked about it all the time. - Well sure, it was unbelievable.
Yeah, him and his friends, they were going to change the world.
You can make a very good argument that his generation did.
There was war and misery and poverty, but there was also a lot of freedom.
Freedom. Absolutely. Freedom.
- And that's what this is all about. - I don't know. Don't go there.
- You know who's in that? - Everybody.
Everybody who's anybody in the law.
Clarence Darrel. Louie Brandeis, Thurgood Marshall.
There all in there and you know what they all did?
- They fought the status quo. - They didn't have the FCC.
Fuck the FCC. Sure they're gonna try to stop us...
but, Don, I'm asking you.
Do you want to be one of the Nay sayers or do you wanna push the envelope?
Do you want to be in the company directory or here, in the 16th edition?
"Say no to immorality". "Say no to immorality".
No it helps. Not hurts, helps.
No, there's no such thing as bad publicity.
What do you think the word means?
Are you kidding?
Okay, okay. Alright.
What's going on?
We have 50 screaming protesters outside her building.
And every station in town is running it. Everyone except us.
They just don't get it.
- Giving you a tough time. - You have no idea.
Networks run on fear.
Fear of the public, fear of the advertisers, fear of the FCC...
fear of absolutely everybody.
Funny, you wouldn't know if from the way they act, right?
Okay, turn off the camera. Let's go eat or something.
Well, I'm not hungry.
Seriously, come on. You know what, give me the camera.
- No. He's not going to. - Give me the camera.
- Yes, give me the camera, Jersey. - We don't have the time to do this.
How old are you?
Come on. Oh, wait, I can't ask you questions?
How old are you?
Twenty nine.
Where you from?
This is such a nice pool. Do you ever use your pool?
Never. Answer the question.
Boston. Just outside of Boston.
Where did you go to college?
Yale.
- East coast snob. - No way.
My father was a Boston cop.
Oh that explains the moral streak.
Okay, serious question. Girlfriend?
No, wait. You get to pummel me, but not the other way around?
No, wait, girlfriend or no?
- Not now. - Recent tragedy?
- Recent break up. - It happens to the best of us.
You know, I really like having this camera.
I think maybe I should do a film about you...
- and you should produce the show. - No, no, thanks.
Really, no? Money, power, it's all part of the deal.
It's not enough for me.
Not enough money and power? Jeeze, how much do you want?
I've been extremely lucky. Money was never a problem.
I've had the chance to travel frequently and best of all...
I received the love a child could ever want.
Ever since my parents began to read to me...
I wanted to be a writer.
And I've already written two novels.
And you want to know what I have to show for them?
Rejection slips.
No one is interested in what I have to say.
It's not like I have such a wealth of experience and I can't exactly play...
the I was raised around crimes and guns and poverty angle.
I went to Princeton.
Truly great writers have all had truly great experiences.
For instance, Walt Whitman was a nurse during the Civil War.
John Le Carre was actually a spy in East Germany.
And Mia Angelo, she was on the front lines of the civil rights movement.
My hero is Hemmingway.
When he was my age, he didn't hand out in the upper peninsula of Michigan.
He went to the Italian front in WWI to be an ambulance driver.
I mean, this was the most powerful time of his life...
and it ultimately lead to his first great work, "A Farewell To Arms".
And that's what this will do for me.
I'll finally be published...
and my career, as a writer, will be launched.
You know, my parents think I'm crazy, of course.
What's this?
Oh, this is the crew from the television show.
Young man, we'd much rather you were not here.
Well, this will only a few minutes and then I promise we'll leave.
This isn't about time. We prefer to be left alone.
My son made this insane choice, but please, leave us out of it.
Sir, is there anything you'd like to day?
No.
Yes. What troubles me is we live in this country...
where, unless you're on television, it somehow doesn't count.
I'm an orthopedic surgeon, when people break their bones, I help them.
It's not glamorous. It doesn't make the news, but it benefits society.
And no I got a son...
who think that thins life isn't good enough.
For validation everyone has to be on TV?
- Rex, this is a joke, right? - Joke? What do you mean?
The kid is great. But the parent stuff is too much.
Why?
The whole rant against the media, no, cut it out, cut it all out.
That's what's unique about the segment.
Rex, if you leave this, we'll look like idiots.
Will we? What are you saying? I don't know what you're talking.
Everyone feels this way about the media. Everyone.
No. People may say they hate it, but they really love it.
- Byron's parents don't love it. - Oh, please.
They don't.
This guy's so noble and humble. If Dateline came to his hospital...
and wanted to do a profile on him, he would do it in a second.
He would do whatever they wanted.
We're gonna be the best thing that ever happened to their kid.
Unless he dies, right? Unless he dies.
That's life. We all die.
Your show could cost him his life.
- Do you realize? - Try our show.
- Our show? - Oh yeah. Try our show.
Not me. This is your baby.
If "Live!" succeeds, guess what, it's gonna be everybody's baby.
Katy, look at this.
How great is that?
Unbelievable.
Yeah. Dylan here.
It's for you.
Katy here.
Hi, great. Okay. Thank you.
New York. In person, me.
The CEO and the CFO.
This is good.
Oh shit, or maybe not.
Alright, I gotta go. Uh, I gotta go.
Can we come?
No. I'm sorry but this one place, you're not coming.
I know that it's going to be hard for you to get them to allow access.
I understand where you're coming from. There's time and place for everything.
This is not the place for a camera. Get my bag, get my stuff.
The Supreme Court has held on several occasions...
that if programming is not obscene...
if defined by the standards of the community...
then it must be permitted to be broadcast.
Several polls indicate there will be substantial audience for this program.
If this show offended the community standards of decency...
this clearly would not be the case.
Further, new polls indicate...
67% of the American public favors televised executions.
And 21% would pay to watch them.
As Supreme Court Justice William O'Douglas said so 50 years ago...
"a function of free speech under our system is to invite dispute.
It may indeed best serve it's high purpose...
but it creates dissatisfaction or stirs people to anger."
Douglas, one of the court's greatest minds...
acknowledged that free speech could, often, be very challenging.
But free speech is the cornerstone, of our Republic.
And that is why we need to protect it.
That is why we must protect it.
Oi.
- Can't stay away? - You're lawyer killed today.
I just can't believe you're going to New York without us. It's not right.
For you. For me, it's fine.
But if you promise not to bring it up, come in. Have glass of wine.
Look, you gotta help me. The trick to making any great film...
is to find the place that's impossible to get access and then get in.
- All I want is a chance to... - I know what you want.
- You do? - I do.
The trick for both of is, to get to
close to what's really going on.
What I do, what we all do...
is give an audience what they want...
but we do it in a way that can some how justify it.
God knows it isn't here.
Go to the Metropolitan museum of art, look at the paintings.
What do you see?
One nude after the other.
Fantastic looking tits, all over the place.
The sexiest girls in wildly erotic situations.
And we look at it, and we get to say, that's art.
Not, that's getting me hot.
And that fills your museum.
Not much different than putting eyeballs in front of the tube.
So art, is only an excuse to legitimize sex?
It's all about wish fulfillment.
Those rich jerks buy the art, they don't give a shit about biblical allegory.
They wanted to fuck the amazing girl lying naked in the woods.
Cut to two centuries later, we're still selling the same thing.
What I got to do, is place the audience not where they are...
but where they want to be.
Starring in a movie.
Advising the president, recording a hit song.
We got you, baby. Your world is confused with our world.
And we could do with you, whatever we want.
Can I ask you one question?
One.
- What is it you really want? - Forty share.
No, for real.
I don't want to end up a three paragraph obituary in the Times.
She had a network she had some shows, she died.
I want to push the medium, reinvent it.
So, in the end, people know I was here.
More than anything, I don't want to be ordinary.
Are you mad at me?
Not at all.
Thank you.
Thanks so much.
Long way from Southwest.
I know. Don't get too used to it.
Gotta lot of work to do. Am I gonna love these?
Yeah, I hope so.
Listen to me. In this world, it's tough to be Mexican.
It's tough to be poor, and it's tough to be gay.
Try being all three. It's very hard.
He used to be a little girl, now he's got huervos.
Like I say, with friends like these-
Someone's sissy.
They may be cool now, but over there in the school yard...
that's where the same guys used to beat me up.
It's not the best place in America to grow up gay.
But I always knew in my heart.
One thing, and that was that someday, I was getting out.
This is my mamma.
My mamma, she always worked hard.
When me and my sister were kids...
no only did she sew every day at the factory, but she was always there for us.
With breakfast, dinner.
Making sure we went to school, did our homework...
went to music and dance class.
Oh, of course, Papa. Papa's a gardener.
You know, one of those guys with the leaf blowers on his back.
You know, people are thinking...
"who's this pain in the neck guy making all this horrible noise?"
Pablo.
Sorry mamma, people thought it.
Me, I saw him as a man who worked ten hours a day.
He would come home, have dinner, and then go do work at the gas station.
All for me and my sisters.
One of my sisters is now a dancer on Broadway...
my other's a secretary, and I was the one everyone had the greatest hopes for.
And see this lady? Rita Hayworth.
You know that wasn't her real name It was Margarita Carmen Cancino.
And she was the greatest dancer of the thirties.
And I wanted to be just like her. It's kinda embarrassing, I know.
But that was going to be my ticket out of there. And I was good.
Me and my sister won a bunch of contests and everything.
And a little after my 17th birthday, I was coming out of a party...
and three huge guys jumped me.
They smashed my knee with a tire iron, blew it out completely.
My only crime, being gay.
And I could not dance any more. It was the end of my world.
I tried. It's so, so hard to come back and I did, for a month...
and then I blew it out again and that was that.
Two month later my papa died and I was nowhere.
I felt like dying.
Sorry.
My mamma always says that this is the greatest country in the world.
And no matter how bad things get, the sun's gonna shine someday.
All my life, I've lived in the that.
All my life, my mamma has worked 11, 12 hours a day.
I go on the show and in five minutes I can take us both out of that. Forever.
Not bad.
- But? - But you're missing one big thing.
Which is what?
A mariachi band.
A mariachi band?
Absolutely. Doesn't this kid go anywhere they have mariachi bands?
That's the biggest cliché' ever.
Well, maybe for you, but, this is our riskiest piece.
The kid's great. He's good looking, he's got a mamma he loves.
American will love. That's the good news.
The bad news is he's a homo. Many are gonna hate him for that.
So give that crowd what they like. A mariachi band.
You give me my Mariachi's and the rest of the piece stays as is. Next.
Abalone is one of the worlds top super models.
Her face is on the covers of countless magazines.
I was living a fantasy.
I was making thousands of dollars a day hanging out with movie stars.
It was life straight out of my dreams...
and straight out of the dreams of girls across America.
That was the problem. I finally saw what complete garbage it was...
and what a tiny pawn I was in their exploitative game.
For over fifteen years my life is about one thing. Objectifying my body.
So at the Paris spring shows before I was about to walk out on the runway...
and I turn around and walk out the tent and I never turned back.
And that was it.
And now, Abalone has reinvented herself as a performance artist
This piece involves living in a cage for an entire month...
in order to empathize with the animals living in the zoo.
Yes, I still use my body to make my living...
but now it's about art.
This is how you do an art piece and raise money at the same time.
Now I know there are lots of you out there who just love to lick...
and all though you think all those licks you take in life are for free...
I'm here to tell you that they aren't.
You pay for them in heart, in joy, in degradation.
Well, tonight you're going to pay for them in greenbacks.
For the white, 50 a lick and for the red 100...
and for the blue just 3 notes but well worth it.
So, who's first?
Ladies and gentleman we raised over 22,000 dollars.
Very good.
Let me tell you this piece is nothing compared to my next work.
It will be the ultimate art piece...
when other performers step on stage they risk very little.
Maybe some bad reviews, a bruised ego...
but for this next piece I will be risking it all. Everything.
Art will never be the same.
Jersey, get the hardest man in show business.
Look at him.
Look, Jersey, monitor monitor. Rex, wake up, wake up.
Thanks Jim. I'm here with Don Helman.
The attorney who won this crucial case.
A big win for ABN, Don. Were you surprised?
Well, not at all. It's not really a victory for me or even ABN.
It's a victory for free speech.
I have enormous respect for the FCC and the courage they showed.
Tough, but an important decision.
It should also be pointed out that a critical component of this decision.
The FCC insisted that the program be aired at one am eastern time...
when it's presumed that few children will be watching.
It was the right thing to do.
I knew it.
That's awesome.
Spectacular.
Would you like a bagel? We're landing any minute, sleepy head.
Katy here.
Yeah. No, no problem at all.
Thank you.
Bastards.
They pushed my meeting 45 minutes.
That doesn't sound so bad.
They pushed me without extending my time. So, I have 15 minutes.
The shows history.
I was so close.
My career may be toast but you, you are getting a present.
The button cam is really sensitive.
So stay as still as you can. Are you ready?
Yeah. Work?
Yeah, looks great.
- You sure you want to do this? - Absolutely.
Mr. Wilkins.
Mr. Mayor.
Hello. Nice work with the FCC.
Oh it was a terrific piece of lawyering.
Evidently.
Well, it removed a problem but certainly not our biggest problem...
which is the shit for brains congressman...
who are gonna be on our asses if we air this show. It's not worth it.
Maybe not but maybe it is. You've seen the projected numbers.
We're estimating near super bowl ratings...
and commercials selling at over 2.6 million per thirty seconds.
The money's excellent, but right now the minuses far out way the pluses.
We still have a reputation.
We can't just piss that away for one television show.
That's the bottom line.
If I may, let me tell you the bottom line as I see it.
15 years ago the networks controlled 75% of the audience.
10 years ago it was 40%.
This year, if we're lucky it'll be 20%.
As bad as those numbers are...
when you look at the demo of kids below them it's even worse.
We are in a word, dying.
How did the show test with kids?
Through the roof.
I like the idea of appealing to kids. We do need that.
Well, if you want to win them back, here's your chance.
If we target kids, they're gonna tear us a new one.
The FCC has done our work for us already by making us air it so late...
which is also unbelievably cheap air time.
By tonight every kid in America will know the one thing...
they are forbidden to do is stay up late and watch our show.
Will they? I think they all know the answer to that.
So, you're telling us that this will get us back in the kids game?
Guaranteed.
Oh, this is risky.
If kids watch it, in any numbers...
shit-eating congressman are going to have our asses.
Let me tell you the little I know about congressman.
What do they care about most? Money.
And this show will make us an enormous amount of revenue...
That we could donate to those same congressman.
And what are they going to do with all that money?
They're gonna turn it around and buy commercials from us.
T's a double dip. It's legal and it's wonderful.
Screw em. It was fun while it lasted.
Welcome home boss.
The show.
Green light!
Sunday night five dreams fulfilled beyond their wildest expectations.
One dashed forever. Only on ABN.
The world will be watching, will you?
I will. That's great.
Who are you pulling for?
Brad, he's the man.
Rick, he stands for what's decent in America.
Abalone, definitely.
Jewel.
Rick, just because.
All of a sudden lots of people are embracing "Live!".
And instead of asking why, people are asking why not?
It may be unusual, it may be bloody, but if you ask me...
it's exciting and if this is history, you can count this reporter in.
Who're you rooting for?
Rick, hell I feel like sending that guy a donation.
Oh, Pablo. He's so cute.
I would have to say oyster, she I like.
Byron. You know that man. He's got everything man.
He's got heart, he's smart. You know what time it is man.
Everyone in our culture is rooting for Abalone. She's great, awesome.
Byron.
- You ma'am? - It's disgusting. Nobody.
- You're not watching? - Well, I didn't say that?
I'm a lot nervous. But I know, deep down in my heart...
that it's the right thing to do if I'm gonna make it as an actress.
Life is great.
All right folks, here we go. Everybody stand by.
Four, give me the audience. Two, give me the host.
Stand by Peter Pan, this is gonna be great.
In ten, nine, eight, two start your move.
Seven, six, five seconds here we go.
Four, three, two, one.
We are live, announce.
Welcome to the television program of the century...
where the contestants will play for stakes never before matched...
in the history of any televised competition.
And now our host for the evening star of film and television.
One of America's Favorite actors
Buck Conrad.
What a night, America.
And up on two.
Thank you for making us part of your plans.
"Live!" is a television show unlike any other...
based on the classic game of Russian Roulette.
Each of our contestants will put a loaded revolver to their heads...
and pull the trigger risking it all for five million dollars.
It's history, it's real and it's live.
Without further ado, I'd like to introduce a gentleman...
who will be of utmost importance in tonight's entertainment.
Tonight's show, not entertainment.
This jerks make 300,000 dollars for a nights work...
and he can't read the teleprompter?
Mr. Harry Feedler from the National Gun Association. Welcome sir.
Get us in tight.
Give me three, tight.
This ladies and gentleman is a.357 revolver.
One of the finest hand guns made in America today. How about it?
Without this, there is no show.
Fade up on three, music.
Let's meet our contestants.
Up first from San Francisco, Ca. Give it up for Abalone.
From America's heartland, Minnesota, Rick.
From Santa Cruz, California. Let's here it for Brad.
From Hoboken, New Jersey. Give it up for Byron.
From Los Angeles, California. We have Pablo.
Last but not least, from Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The lovely and talented, Jewel.
Aren't they the greatest?
These six people are some of the finest folks you'll ever meet.
Drawn across this great country of ours and before this evening is over...
Eight, eight.
We'll get to know all these wonderful folks a whole lot better.
These ladies and gentlemen are checks.
Checks made out for five million dollars but the names are not there. Why?
Because only 5 of these heroes will take them home. And who will it be?
Abalone, you're gonna do it.
You go Byron.
I love you Jewel.
Go Abalone.
Ready seven. Camera seven. Loading.
For every gun there must be a bullet.
Thank you Krista.
Our silver bullet.
And to assure our contestants have no idea where our silver bullet is...
all the other chambers in the hand gun are being filled with dummy rounds.
And now, the moment you've been waiting for.
The spin of fate.
And who will be our very first to go.
Each ball here holds the name of one of our contestants. Krista.
And who will our very first contestant be?
Our very first and extremely special contestant will be...
Jewel.
Good first, good first.
Before our lovely Jewel takes that fateful pull...
let's meet Miss Jewel Jenson from Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Hollywood, it's a dream for millions. And nobody wanted that more than...
Jewel Jensen, from Santa Fe, New Mexico.
First numbers.
Nineteen share, respectable.
Respectable?
We're gonna need a lot more than respectable.
My mother's respectable.
Soon. Oh yeah. All my life I wanted to be a famous actress...
and I'm gonna have as many people watching me as Michelle Pfeifer.
It's a dream come true.
Let's all give a big big round of applause for a very talented lady.
Are you ready?
You bet. Yeah.
Then let's begin. The gun please.
Please step inside the barrel.
Ready, five.
Tighter on Jewel.
God, Oh! My God!
Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God.
Oh my God! Thank you. Thank you, so much. Oh my God.
That was awesome. What a rush.
We have a show. We got ourselves a show.
Thank you.
Stand by for commercial. Queue announce.
We'll be right back with another of America's favorite, "Live!".
25 share and moving up.
Krista, will you?
Thank you darling.
Our very next, but just as special...
contestant will be Pablo.
Let's meet Mr. Pablo Rodriguez, up-close and personal.
Let me tell you something. In this world, it's tough to be Mexican.
It's tough to be poor, and it's tough to be gay. Try being all three.
Yo, what's up homey, you got it, dog.
He used to be a little girl, now he's got huervos.
All my life, my mamma has worked 11, 12 hours a day.
I go on the show and in 5 minutes I can take us out of the misery.
Pablo! Yes, sir!
Bye!
Ladies and gentlemen, America, I give you Mr. Pablo Rodriguez.
- Are you ready? - Yes, sir.
Any last thoughts you'd like to share?
I just want to say that you were the best mom and I love you.
The gun please.
Step inside the barrel, please.
Oh, God. Come on, Pablo.
Yes. Yes!
Mamma, we did it. Come here, man.
Camera 1, give me a close up of the mom. Camera 7, the college kids.
There's never been a show like this. Ever.
Yeah? 32 share. Kicking ass. We're kicking ass.
We're down to four contestants and one silver bullet.
Krista, will you? Thank you, sweetheart.
And next in the barrel is...
Abalone.
Stand by commercial and queue now.
We'll be right back with more of America's favorite, "Live!".
Yeah. Rocking. We are rocking. 41 share.
Really? Oh my God.
I will be risking it all. Art will never be the same.
Abalone.
- Are you ready? - Extremely.
Then let's begin. The gun please.
Thank you, America. For giving me this chance to come before you.
I'd like to dedicate this performance to all the vestal virgins and women...
sacrifice victims throughout history.
Whether in Mayan, Greek, or Roman Culture...
men have always persued their horrible desires for redemption...
by somehow believing they can become purified if they kill the dirty woman.
What's she talking about?
No idea. But she's hot.
Women have been sacrificed for thousands of years...
told that their lot in life was to die...
so that men could pacify the Gods.
That's right!
And for all those years, women were never given a choice.
But this woman was, and I cast my loss with them.
What the fuck? Somebody.
Sweet empowerment. Should I kill myself, or you?
What do we do?
She's gonna shoot him.
Rex, you hung out with her, what's she gonna do?
What a feeling.
Wait, she's a performance artist, so let's hang tight.
And now men, what we women have felt, for all these years.
She's gonna do it.
Holy shit.
In the name of all women sacrifice victims...
of centuries past, and centuries to come, I do this for you.
Are you okay?
Yes!
This is yours.
We'll be right back, with more "Live!".
What a fucking nut. What a nutcase.
We are defiantly live here.
Krista.
Thank you.
Up next, New Jersey's finest, Byron.
Let's meet Byron.
Five, camera one Yeah.
Thank you.
44 share.
It's incredible.
Give me Byron.
Stratosphere, here we come.
Deep down inside in my heart of hearts...
I believe there are no substitutes for real life experiences.
That's what this show will do for me.
I'll finally be published and my career as a writer will be launched.
Byron Boyd.
Are you ready sir?
I am.
Then let's begin.
Step inside the barrel, please.
Be brave, Byron!
Oh my God, I did it.
I did it.
Oh, my God.
This is everything I thought it would be. Oh my God.
Congratulations, Byron. Five million dollars.
- Thank you so much. - You're very welcome. Great job.
Mom and Dad, I did it.
And we'll be right back with more "Live!".
50 share? 50 share.
Half the homes in America are watching.
50 share feels good.
Music.
- Thank you, my dear. - You're welcome.
Our last and very, very special contestant will be...
Brad. Followed by Rick.
Let's meet Mr. Brad Prince.
In six weeks, I will be graduating from the university of California...
where I had the time of my life.
For real, every single day just living my life to the max.
59 share.
Defy the final Seinfeld.
Ratings defy just about every Super Bowl.
Part of history.
My life is gonna be about endless days of great waves and boards...
and nights to remember with my lady.
Let's all give a big round of applause for one incredible guy.
You ready, sir?
Absolutely, I'm ready.
Please, step inside the barrel.
Man.
Take nine.
After this, baby, surfing forever.
Cameras five, six, seven and eight. Audience shots. Music.
Keep shooting. We're live, we need these shots.
We're clear?
Hey look, hey look, look, Rick.
Two, give me Rick. Music.
And this sir, is yours.
What do you have to say about that?
Contestants, come on up.
Thank you America, and good night.
This has been a presentation of ABN, America's favorite network.
Thank you forjoining us.
Roll the crawl.
That was amazing. That was amazing.
Where's Katy? Where is she?
Inside.
You okay? You okay?
That kid had his whole life ahead of him.
He's dead. And for what?
Oh, God.
You didn't pull the trigger. He did. Right?
I wish is was that easy. It's not.
Katy, it was the show.
His choice, no one forced him to do it.
I handed him the gun. I handed him the gun.
Oh, Katy, no. He took the gun.
He made the call.
Katy, you did it. You did it. People watched in unbelievable numbers.
A show unlike any other, ever.
They did, didn't they?
Get out of this.
Walk away. - I can't. I can't.
- Why not? - There's a future.
Are you happy with the way things turned out, Katy? Over here.
Katy, will you shoot a whole family next time?
Katy! Dylan.
Katy? Hang in there sweetie.
Call nine one one.
Call an ambulance right now.
It's gonna be alright.
Just have a short statement. At four ten this morning...
Katy Courbet, president of programming for ABN died.
Our heartfelt condolences go out to her family and friends.
She was a giant in this industry and will be surely missed.
Anything on the kid who did it?
You'll have to check with the LAPD, but as far as we've been informed...
there is, as yet, no motive for the shooting.
What was it about the show that made him want to do this?
We're convinced, the show Katy produced...
and this senseless act of violence are not linked in any way.
All of us lost a wonderful and talented colleague...
and an extremely close friend and that's where our thought should be.
Welcome, to the television program of the century...
where the stakes are unmatched anywhere.
Oh, my God.
And now, our host for the evening.
One of America's best loved actresses. Jewel Jensen.
As Katy predicted...
"Live!" became the most successful program ever aired on American TV.
Television show, "Live!".
And it's now an annual special.
Katy's obituary took an entire page in the New York Times.
She was remembered as a trailblazer and a visionary.
And in the spirit of full disclosure, I should say that now...
I, too, work for the network.
Let's give it up for Katherine.
And last, but not least, Rodger!