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[07/23/03 - 12:00 AM]
FX Wants to Give Viewers 'Friday Night Fix'
By Brian Ford Sullivan (TFC)

CHICAGO (thefutoncritic.com) -- FX is set to get on the reality bandwagon next week as the cable network will unveil its "Friday Night Fix" on Friday, August 1 at 10:00/9:00c. The two-hour block is composed of a rotating set of six series, the first batch of which includes a game show, a makeover series and a hidden-camera project.

Here's a breakdown of what to expect as part of the block:

-- "Driveshaft" (Fridays at 10:00/9:00c) is a new one-hour game show in which two contestants have their clunker cars transformed into racing machines. The two then compete to win their newly made-over vehicles. Thorn Beers ("Monster Garage") is executive producing the series in association with Fox TV Studios.

-- "Trash to Cash" (Fridays at 11:00/10:00c) features comedian John DiResta helping those on a budget makeover their homes with actual garbage. Sort of a blue-collar version of "Trading Spaces," the half-hour half-hour series is executive produced by Hallock & Healey ("Scare Tactics") along with DiResta.

-- "The Hitchhiker Chronicles" (Fridays at 11:30/10:30c) is a half-hour hidden-camera series in which viewers eavesdrop on unsuspecting hitchhikers in different parts of the country. Brass Ring Entertainment and Greystone Television are behind the "Taxicab Confessions"-esque project.

-- The trio will be joined by two to three minute segments of "Hurt Bert" and "The People's Champions" which will air throughout the block. "Bert" features comedian Bert Kreischer ("The X Show") spending the day literally in another person's shoes, whether it be an exterminator or an attack dog trainer. "Champions" tracks everyday people making up their own crazy records and breaking them. The pair are then set to become full fledged series in the block come fall.

-- Lastly, in addition to "Bert" and "Champions," viewers can look for "P.I." to join the block at a later date. The series, from Gavin Polone ("Curb Your Enthusiasm") and Ed Barnini, follows real-life private investigators as they solve crimes.

In total, FX has committed to 17 weeks of "Friday Night Fix." Specific episode orders for each individual series however were not released.





  [july 2003]  
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· CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM (HBO)
· DRIVESHAFT (FX)
· HITCHHIKER CHRONICLES, THE (FX)
· HURT BERT (FX)
· PEOPLE'S CHAMPIONS, THE (FX)
· PI (FX)
· SCARE TACTICS (SYFY)
· TRASH TO CASH WITH JOHN DIRESTA (FX)





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