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One of the producers of NBC’s The Contender says that FOX blatantly ripped off his idea when they created their own boxing show: “I’ve been working on the idea for ‘The Contender’ for close to five years. I can tell you that Fox never had this idea,” Jeff Wald told the New York Daily News. Even more damningly, he says, “I was told by Fox that they would do everything they could to hurt (‘The Contender’) because they didn’t get it. They said, ‘We’ll do a version of your show and we’ll beat you.’” A FOX VP says “Wald’s statements are both outrageous and false.” Mike Darnell justifies his copycat actions to the New York Times—but not his frightening Tarzan-like photograph that the Times uses—by asking, “Calling reality ideas original is always suspect. You have so many guys coming in with ideas. What is original?” All that matters to him is being first, as he will be with his boxing series and with other carbon-copy shows: “I think being first with your concept is extremely important.”
The Contender
Contender producer says “Fox never had this idea”; exec asks, “What is original?”
link to this story + posted Jun. 29, 2004 at 8:00 AM by Andy Dehnart
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