If......

[Big Unc]

And I would wine at a UK attempt at "The Cosby Show".

Whoops - correction - for "wine" read "wince" or "whine" - each equally applicable.

 

[codfanglers]

OK, two points here (since such topics are great discussion pieces for me).

A lot of you feel the American remakes of British shows don't go well. However, back to the question of what actors could do well in an American version of Summer Wine.

One thing I learned over time here is that Cheers is much respected among British Summer Wine fans. So allow me to challenge my Brit brethren with this one.....
George Wendt (Norm) is now 65
John Ratzenberger (Cliff) is now 66

That sounds like a good start to a Summer Wine show that could appeal to both sides of the pond.

Now my other point is a big "What if" and it is completely fictional. Regarding the theory of American versions of British shows not doing well, What if when the show cancelled in 2010, Roy Clarke would have taken his ideas to the US and continued his ideas with develop such a show here, is a quaint, rural area.

Now I think that could have worked.

 

[cciaffone]

Sorry, but ... having lived here in the good ol' US of A
for 70 years, I gotta say ... t'aint nothing we got that's
ever gonna look a bit like Yorkshire. You could never film
SW here, or anywhere else for that matter. It just would
not feel right. Sit there on Holme Moss and look down the
Valley. You'll not see it's like anywhere else.

 

[Compo]

Well I prefer to let things be and not do an American version. It would bring tears to every fans eyes. You can't replace the trio. Impossible. Plus the Americans would have to add a bit of glamour as they always do. No way!!!!

 

[Big Unc]

Now my other point is a big "What if" and it is completely fictional. Regarding the theory of American versions of British shows not doing well, What if when the show cancelled in 2010, Roy Clarke would have taken his ideas to the US and continued his ideas with develop such a show here, is a quaint, rural area.

Now I think that could have worked.

There is one element here with which one can concur - the idea of Roy Clarke writing it. Because there is one fundamental truth - Roy Clarke is LOTSW and without him it can never be LOTSW. But that also implies that a US version cannot work. Roy Clarke and his humour are fundamentally British. He cannot do comedy in the US genre. Just remember how the great Morecambe and Wise just bombed in the US. Folk there just did not understand them. And so it would be with Roy. I suppose in a way it is illustrated in fiction by how the US treat Lionel and Jean's story in "As Time Goes By".

 

[codfanglers]

Sorry, but ... having lived here in the good ol' US of A
for 70 years, I gotta say ... t'aint nothing we got that's
ever gonna look a bit like Yorkshire. You could never film
SW here, or anywhere else for that matter. It just would
not feel right. Sit there on Holme Moss and look down the
Valley. You'll not see it's like anywhere else.

As mentioned before in similar topics, I don't believe one should attempt to make an exact replica of Yorkshire. If the show would be copied, it would be copied loosely and not exactly.

There is one element here with which one can concur - the idea of Roy Clarke writing it. Because there is one fundamental truth - Roy Clarke is LOTSW and without him it can never be LOTSW. But that also implies that a US version cannot work. Roy Clarke and his humour are fundamentally British. He cannot do comedy in the US genre. Just remember how the great Morecambe and Wise just bombed in the US. Folk there just did not understand them. And so it would be with Roy. I suppose in a way it is illustrated in fiction by how the US treat Lionel and Jean's story in "As Time Goes By".

I got Big Unc to relatively agree with one of my statements! Wow! I am just having fun. Yes, Hollywood could really mess up the beautiful show. As for the general American audience not understanding things; keep in mind that Summer Wine (like Open All Hours, As Time Goes By, etc.) is aired on Public Television. Which is much different from major network programs. As Time Goes By had specials largely in order to serve the demand on American Public Telelvions. My big "What if" would involve Clarke working with Public Television.

Are my ideas realistic? Not at all. I am just having fun with this.

 

[cciaffone]

But you do have to realize and understand that one
of the absolute KEY characters in Summer Wine is
Yorkshire itself. Without the rolling hills, stone walls,
stone houses, rippling ground water, canals and streams,
sheep pastures, pine plantations, Gorse and Heather
hillsides, there would be no Summer Wine!

 

[codfanglers]

I agree.

 

[Sheree]

Absolutely!

 

[Sue]

Very much agree there. It is difficult, if not impossible, to think of any UK show which has been successfully translated across the pond.

Well, there is The Office. I believe the American version of the Office was quite good up unto the point where Jim and Pam got married. Then it took on the American characteristic of sitcoms and kept going and going way after its prime. Then again, Ricky Gervais is the producer. Having a Brit Producer might help make the Office an exception.


John Goodman would make a great Sid.

Jerry Stiller would make a good Compo (I have to add "in my Opinion" )

I disagree with the others, George, I think it is a good topic.

When I made my comment I was referring to UK Comedy that is worth copying. To my mind "The Office" is the typical, modern, snide, destructive drivel that the totally uncreative modern BBC is trying to pass off as comedy.

I never watched "Dear John", either UK or US. Looking at a synopsis I can see that it is of the genre which possibly both UK and US can manage. US using Judd Hirsch would have been a good move.

I could have equally made the comment about the reverse direction. I just cannot envisage a good UK version of "Cheers". About the nearest to it might be the sketches on the "Two Ronnies" Shows. And I would wine at a UK attempt at "The Cosby Show".

The Brit version of The Golden Girls was a complete failure as well.

 

[Pearl]

I didn't know they did one Sue, who was in it?

 

[codfanglers]

I didn't know they did one Sue, who was in it?

With shows like Summer Wine, Waiting for God, and the Old Guys, I don't think there ios any reason that British producres couldn't do a successful version of "Golden Girls".

 

[Big Unc]

With shows like Summer Wine, Waiting for God, and the Old Guys, I don't think there ios any reason that British producres couldn't do a successful version of "Golden Girls".

I do not think we have yet established what any UK version of "The Golden Girls" was called and who was in it. However, Wikipedia gives us the following information:

"United Kingdom: Brighton Belles: In 1993, ITV premiered Brighton Belles, a British version of the American sitcom. The show, starring Sheila Hancock, Wendy Craig, Sheila Gish, and Jean Boht was nearly identical to Girls except for character name changes and actor portrayals. The 10-episode series was canceled after six weeks due to low ratings, with the final four episodes airing more than a year later."

To me the concept is outwith the scope of the UK comedy genre. I am not sure of its prevalence in the US but cannot envisage a scenario of four elderly women living together in the UK.

 

[codfanglers]

With shows like Summer Wine, Waiting for God, and the Old Guys, I don't think there ios any reason that British producres couldn't do a successful version of "Golden Girls".

I do not think we have yet established what any UK version of "The Golden Girls" was called and who was in it. However, Wikipedia gives us the following information:

"United Kingdom: Brighton Belles: In 1993, ITV premiered Brighton Belles, a British version of the American sitcom. The show, starring Sheila Hancock, Wendy Craig, Sheila Gish, and Jean Boht was nearly identical to Girls except for character name changes and actor portrayals. The 10-episode series was canceled after six weeks due to low ratings, with the final four episodes airing more than a year later."

To me the concept is outwith the scope of the UK comedy genre. I am not sure of its prevalence in the US but cannot envisage a scenario of four elderly women living together in the UK.

Perhaps it could have been a dialogue-driven show around "ladies' coffe time"! Sounds like a familiar recipe for success.

 

[DJWCFC]

i suppose when you look at it the only successful show remade over in the UK based on a US show would be "The Upper Hand" which was based on a American show called "Who's the Boss", TUH was very popular in the 90's so it shows that american shows made over here do work occasionally