CBS has taken its beef with ABC to the next level.
The network is suing ABC over its new show "Glass House," saying it's too similar to the CBS show "Big Brother." The ABC series premiered on June 18, despite CBS' efforts to stop the show from airing. "Glass House" ended up premiering to mediocre ratings.
On Wednesday, CBS tweeted that a "new show" called "Dancing On The Stars" was in the works. Sound familiar?
The tweet also included a link to a fake press release, describing "Dancing On The Stars" as a series in which "moderately famous and sort of well-known people you almost recognize" will compete by "dancing on the graves of some of Hollywood’s most iconic and well-beloved stars" at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
Fittingly, the final line includes the aphorism, "People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.”
Read the complete press release below:
Los Angeles, June 21, 2012 – Subsequent to recent developments in the creative and legal community, CBS Television today felt it was appropriate to reveal the upcoming launch of an exciting, ground-breaking and completely original new reality program for the CBS Television Network.
The dazzling new show, DANCING ON THE STARS, will be broadcast live from the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, and will feature moderately famous and sort of well-known people you almost recognize competing for big prizes by dancing on the graves of some of Hollywood’s most iconic and well-beloved stars of stage and screen.
The cemetery, the first in Hollywood, was founded in 1899 and now houses the remains of Andrew “Fatty” Arbuckle, producer Cecil B. DeMille, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Paul Muni, Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, George Harrison of the Beatles and Dee Dee Ramone of the Ramones, among many other great stars of stage, screen and the music business. The company noted that permission to broadcast from the location is pending, and that if efforts in that regard are unsuccessful, approaches will be made to Westwood Village Memorial Park, where equally scintillating luminaries are interred.
“This very creative enterprise will bring a new sense of energy and fun that’s totally unlike anything anywhere else, honest,” said a CBS spokesperson, who also revealed that the Company has been working with a secret team for several months on the creation of the series, which was completely developed by the people at CBS independent of any other programming on the air. “Given the current creative and legal environment in the reality programming business, we’re sure nobody will have any problem with this title or our upcoming half-hour comedy for primetime, POSTMODERN FAMILY.”
“After all,” the spokesperson added, “people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.”
Do you think CBS' move will help or hurt its case? Sound off in the comments.