Did A&E give up on Horatio?

use the horatio hornblower poll VOTE !~ a& E should listen to its viewers

I just finished the 3 books ending with "Flying Colors" and thought as I read through what absolutely perfect material this is for movies. Bush losing his foot, their escape down the river, the winter spent in the Chateau snuggling up to the daughter in law - as you say, a lot there for the ladies! There is also mention of Pellew occasionally throughout so I would think we could keep the wonderful Lindsay in for quite some time, maybe not on the line, but at least accessible to HH for counsel, etc. etc. "Dream on MacDuff" says I, but what a wealth of stories here going unused, pitiful........Julie

Glad I asked about the book count. I had been assuming 1 book per DVD. What you're saying sounds more like 1 book per series (yippie!).

Picked up the post cards. Now off to write something influential.

Great idea about the post cards. I'll be sending one to each producer tomorrow. I'm going to tell them how much I enjoyed the series to date, and then ask them to finish the last 3 (that's right isn't it, there's 3 books left?) as 1 final series. I figure we'll be extremely lucky if we manage to get Hornblower back on the open seas, so may as well go for the whole shot! Barring that I'm going to ask them to relinquish the productions rights.

This'll be the first time I've felt strongly enough to write to a television station about anything, so maybe I'll mention that too...

OK, I did a little searching and found that up to August 2004? Delia Fine was the Vice President of Film, Drama and Performing Arts at A&E Television Network.
I'm not sure how current this is, but I think she is the Executive Producer at A&E, but I might not have up to date info.

I guess there was a corporate shake up or restructuring sometime in 2004.

Remember that A&E is a subsidy of ABC/Disney.

From an former article when she was VP of Film...
"Delia Fine, A&E's VP of film, drama and performing arts, oversees many of these projects with her five-person department, and talks to her U.K. counterparts, be they at the BBC, Granada or Channel Four, early on. Discussions continue during development before A&E signs on. Fine also has her say on writers, cast and other talent.

"If you don't have a shared vision, it can all end in tears," says the net's 15-year vet.
Jane Tranter, head of drama at the BBC, has worked with A&E for five years, beginning with "Lorna Doone." Partnering with A&E has been crucial to the re-emergence of classic adaptations and not just for the financing that raises production values, she notes.
"We've been able to make them (classic adaptations) to a certain standard. It's critical to engage audiences. There is the shared desire of BBC and A&E to make classics accessible to audiences, books that most people wouldn't think of taking off shelves and reading."

And from an article 1999,

"From Variety 6/1999
Another player with possible Emmy contenders is A&E, which has, if occasional viewers haven't noticed, branched out beyond its regular ratings-grabber "Biography." And while that bio machine keeps chugging along, the net has provided serious challenges in other categories.
It's four-part presentation of C.S. Forester's "Horatio Hornblower" may have seemed like a risky move -- multi-episode, period dramas are a hard sell without advertising saturation -- but the move paid off with a solid cable-universe rating. More importantly, it symbolized the network's commitment to growth, as did its Oscar-nominated docu "The Farm: Angola, USA,' which won the 1998 Sundance Film Festival's Grand Jury top honors, and "Dash and Lilly."
"Our slate is a result of substantial competition," says Delia Fine, A&E's VP of film, drama and performing arts. "And, Emmy or not, that's always good for programming."


All I know is that as of Jan 8, 2004 Delia Fine served as the executive producer for A&E Network. Perhaps when her job was "Restructured" she was stripped of some power and influence as to programming suggestions (like making more HH!) as she had in her former position as VP of programming.

Your guess is as good as mine. All that I know, is that there is a lot more crap on A&E and less good quality programming that initially earned them emmy awards and the good reputation they are living off of today.

Maddy

It is a bummer if they have given up on HH...this quality programming is what kept me coming back...I will just have to settle for reading the books over and over again, and watching the DVD's... When A and E's mgmnt finally smell the coffee maybe they will wake up...Is it more important to go after a new client base at the risk of losing the ones you got... Bad Business Decision...
If you like this kind of adventure story.. I can recommend Alexander Kents "Bolitho Series" 26 novels and still writing... another series of great stories looking for a producer to turn them into movies... Check them out...

Thanks for the nice welcome. I have been on several boards over the years, mostly to do with basset hounds. A friend and I have been discussing this and we have come to the conclusion that without a doubt the Brits do the best quality shows. I know this is an A&E production, but is basically all British actors. The combination of American money and the British talent can't be beat. A&E is really going to the dogs if they intend to appease the lowest common denominator with those trashy reality shows. There is only one other production that ever affected me to such as extent and that was "Island at War" last winter with Philip Glenister (Hobbs in HH). He was magnificent as the German Commandant of the Channel Islands. But I have to say, Hornblower has eclipsed that. Does anyone know the title of the theme music in HH or was it specially arranged for this production? I find it very haunting...and lovely, and I can't get it out of my head most of the time :x Julie

To the Hornblower community:

Don't give up yet!!! Although A&E has decided to remove the "A" (art) from their programing, we do not need to stop telling them that we want more Hornblower.
YEs, the reality Crap is cheap and Hornblower isn't. But, it's quality and I am sorry but there is nothing quality about that disfunctional guy named Dog.
Keep sending messages, lots and lots of messages to this discussion board and remember it's the fans who brought back lots of other TV shows and mini series (FARSCAPE).

PS have you looked at what they have on the Arts and ENtertainment channel now days. It's really terrible.