VIDEO: Swingtown's Grant Show (Interview)

Ex-Melrose Place hunk Grant Show whose horny pilot Thomas Dekker of porn-moustached species gets to do a bit of wife-swapping every Thursday night at 10pm (and not many CBS characters can say that!) recently sat down with TV Guide to talk about his adult summer drama "Swingtown". Plus my take on recent episodes.



The ratings for "Swingtown" keep on going south (the most recent episode lured only a little over 5.5 million viewers, down 3 million from the June 5 premiere), so I think it is safe to say that season 2 can now be ruled out. That is a shame because the show has actually become deeper and more compelling. Not to mention more entertaining.


Those who were shocked by the show's bold premise never watched. Those who expected Showtime-type shenanigans may have been disappointed. But the most recent episode (also the first post-strike episode, written and produced after that whole WGA chaos) may have been its best yet.


The characters have been given plenty of depth, especially the brilliant Miriam Shor's conservative housewife Janet Thompson, who came out of her rigid shell bonding with people we'd never thought she'd be able to relate to, while not compromising her own set of values. Also, is there another show where adults are rollicking fun and kids are a snoozefest? Oh... "Desperate Housewives"... Never mind...



Despite the drop in the ratings, "Swingtown" continues to deliver some of the best 18-49 demo ratings on a repeat-filled CBS summer schedule, so I do hope we at least get to enjoy this fun show in its entire albeit limited 13-episode run.

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"Swingtown" Creator's New Bisexual Drama

"Swingtown" creator Mike Kelley has just signed a new deal with CBS/Paramount to develop a new one-hour drama for Showtime titled "BiCoastal," about a man who lives with a wife and children in L.A. and falls in love with a man in New York. What will happen to "Swingtown," though?


CBS' adult drama which got off to a great start on Thursday nights in June, but ended up losing quite a bit of ratings muscle the following month, is about to end its 13-episode run tomorrow night.



CBS has yet to make a decision whether they will renew the series for a second season (it could again air in the summer when ratings expectations are more modest) or switch to sister network Showtime, known for its daring programming, which many thought would have been a more appropriate home for "Swingtown" in the first place.



The light erotic drama about 1970s partner-swapping couples in suburban Chicago caused outrage among conservative watchdogs, who demanded that CBS take the series off air and then salivated with glee over its dwindling ratings.

The CBS management is however said to really like and support the drama, and should a decision be made that it ends its run on CBS, a deal may be worked out to take the series to a cable network.



As for "BiCoastal," Kelley promised to give the series a "harder edge" and a "heightened sense of drama," or in other words - the producers will not be required to conform to uptight broadcast network standards, as they have on "Swingtown."

Should "Swingtown" migrate to Showtime, it will be great to finally see the full potential of the series as it continues to explore sexuality of its characters, cable TV style.

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