Subbing channels

Noticed a thread on Matt Ottinger's board that wandered into a discussion of digital subchannels. Matt himself wished for a game show rarity, the Bill Cullen version of $25,000 Pyramid, on one of those proliferating channels.

Stranger things have happened, but I wouldn't bet on Bill's return. After all, game shows have never seemed like a priority for the longer-established cable nostalgia nets. Maybe they've just conceded the territory to GSN. Or maybe they think game shows are too narrow a niche compared to the usual dramas and sitcoms.

So far the digital subchannels have shown the same lack of interest in our little genre. Matt mentions MeTV and AntennaTV, but neither carries any game shows now. Instead they follow the usual nostalgia formula. "Classic TV sitcoms and dramas including M*A*S*H, Cheers, Hogan's Heroes, I Love Lucy, Star Trek, The Dick Van Dyke Show and Perry Mason" is how the linked story describes MeTV's offerings.

To be honest, the wish for old game shows on these subchannels may be just another pipe dream of the older-is-better game show internets. They can only complain for so long about GSN not running enough oldies. So now it's time to fantasize about other possible outlets for the ancient stuff.