HBO’s Disappointing ‘Vinyl’ Launch is the Latest in a String of Woes for the Pay Cable Network

Norman Weiss February 24, 2016, 1:55 pm

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HBO’s disappointing Vinyl launch is the latest in a string of woes for the pay cable network

HBO spent about $30 million on the two-hour Vinyl pilot that only 1.1 million watched (counting three days of DVR viewing) and $100 million for the entire first season. “HBO is in a period of challenge,” explains The Hollywood Reporter’s Kim Masters. “It hasn’t had a breakout drama hit since Game of Thrones launched in 2011, and in recent months, it has seen several troubled shows go expensively into and then out of production.” They include the troubled J.J. Abrams-produced Westworld, which was halted in December, and as Masters writes, “two shows from David Fincher, a limited series from Steve McQueen and another on Lewis and Clark from producers Brad Pitt and Tom Hanks.” In fact, Masters reports that McQueen’s series, Codes of Conduct, has been scrapped after shooting a pilot with Paul Dano, Helena Bonham Carter and Rebecca Hall.

Khloe Kardashian on The People v. O.J.: “They’re sort of sensationalizing the Kardashian name in it” to get young people to watch

Khloe appeared on The Late Late Show last night, where she confirmed that O.J. Simpson tried to kill himself in her bedroom — not in Kim Kardashian’s room, as depicted on the FX miniseries. “They’re sort of sensationalizing the Kardashian name in it, I think, to bring a younger audience in,” she said. Khloe added that she called Kim after the scene where she and her siblings were shown chanting the Kardashian name to confirm that it didn’t actually happen. PLUS: Connie Britton talks Faye Resnick, how accurate was last night’s episode?, and Tony Soprano’s dad is playing Ron Goldman’s dad.

Elisabeth Shue joins Fox baseball pilot Pitch

The CSI vet will play the personal guru and protector for the first female player in Major League Baseball.

Anthony Edwards to play Nancy Drew’s dad on CBS

The ER alum is the first person cast in CBS’ 30-something modern take on the iconic detective.

Judd Apatow has been vocal against Bill Cosby, so why did he put accused sex offender Andy Dick on Love?

The appearance of Dick on the Netflix series is confounding considering his many alleged sexual offenses.

New Game of Thrones posters showcases the faces of the “dead”

Joffrey, Jon Snow and Melisandre are among those featured in new posters.

Hillary Clinton responded to Stephen Colbert’s joke about her trustworthiness

At last night’s CNN town hall, Chris Cuomo played a clip of Colbert mocking Clinton’s comments that “she didn’t believe she ever lied.” Colbert also said: “How can you be this bad at it? Just say no! You’re running for president of the United States! Even Richard Nixon knew to say, ‘I am not a crook.’”