| |
Terri Schiavo Inspires New Fox Reality Show
As if to prove that something good truly does come out of every tragedy, Fox has announced plans for a new reality show inspired by Terri Schiavo's medical woes and the madcap legal battles over her existence.
The program's executive producer claims the show will provide viewers with a better understanding of life with a spouse in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) - the "gut-wrenching drama" and "the lighter moments" that accompany it.
The program, tentatively titled "Veggin' Out," will follow the lives of Gary Ulcer and his PVS wife Melanie, as well as Melanie's parents. Ulcer wants to keep his wife alive, while her parents seek to have their daughter removed from life support.
"It's really the ultimate competition," says executive producer Todd Wifflemeyer. "These people are battling for the very existence of their loved one, and America will have a front row seat."
Wifflemeyer is quick to note that while the program will deal with the larger legal and ethical issues that surround the right of a severely brain damaged person to live or die, viewers can also expect some fun. "Hey, this is Fox, not some medical ethics class! We want people to see that there's a lighter side to all of this," Wifflemeyer said.
Among the highlights of the show's "lighter side" include a scene in the premiere episode in which Gary arranges to have his wife "dolled up" for a very special evening. "I want to stay faithful to my wife," Gary Ulcer explains, "but I also have needs.
"It's what Melanie would have wanted," Ulcer said. "But I guess it had been a little too long and I was a little too enthusiastic." Ulcer's enthusiasm resulted in Melanie falling from the bed head first. "It's just a good thing there's not a whole lot of brain activity up there," he said.
In still other episodes, Ulcer and his in-laws will engage in a series of competitions, such as a cabbage-eating contest and a feeding-tube bungee jump.
Viewers will vote to determine whether Melanie Ulcer will be removed from life support in the program's finale.
|
|
