I am still shocked at how badly Unsolved Mysteries was treated by Cosgrove/Muerer - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JannTosh · 02-03-2016, 01:19 AM

in recent years. I still don't understand why they just took the old Stack episodes and replacing Stack and adding a bunch of fancy graphics was a good idea. I mean seriously, if they weren't going to do any more new stories, why didn't they just re air the Stack episodes? I bet plenty of channels would have agreed to air them and probably still air them to this day. A&E, Reelz Channel, Tru TV etc.

And why did they not think it was a good idea to produce new episodes using mysteries from 2003 and forward? Fans would have definitely been open to that idea even with a new narrator or even style.

now Unsolved Mysteries still has no stories from 2002 and onward and now all the Stack episodes that people loved are probably gone forever since any re runs or streaming releases will be the newer version!

I know this has been talked about before but I am still in utter shock at the bad decisions that were made here.

James T · 02-03-2016, 01:58 AM

Probably Spike offered them a decent amount just to use the rights & they had little to nothing to do with the new versions. Spike wanted to 'update' them for the new era/their style of programming & any show from the 1980's/1990's is going to look somewhat dated nowadays-even more so on a testosterone filled men's channel.

Drown Soda · 02-03-2016, 06:37 AM

I was happy to see that it was being re-aired, but I sorely missed the original segments. The way they updated the format but just recycled footage from the '80s and '90s was tacky and pointless. They basically repackaged the show for no reason, and Farina's presence was wasted.

The best thing they could have done was simply re-aired the original segments as they were shown in the '80s and '90s, and applied contemporary updates to those cases that had been solved. If they want to continue the series, I definitely think it could have an audience if they went about it right, but that would mean finding a fitting host, reintroducing the original musical theme (I honestly felt like the new theme on the Farina airings was the greatest injustice of all), and seek contemporary stories.

The thing about a series like this is that there is always new material at no cost to the producers—people go missing every day, and strange and unexplained things happen all the time. It's just a matter of finding the stories, getting permission/cooperation from family & those involved (which I think many families are willing to do for the sake of exposure), and then the actual production of the segment. From 2002 to 2016, there have been SO many publicized stories that would have been prime material for UM (Maura Murray, Natalee Hollaway, Ray Gricar, Patrick McDermott, etc., etc.). Some series such as Disappeared took the torch in giving these cases a televised platform like UM did, but UM's presence is still sorely missed in my opinion.

I would love a UM revival, as I think most of us would. I hope they'll do it someday. I don't have television, but when I was home for Christmas last month, I was up late one night at my mom's house browsing local channels, and was surprised when I stumbled on two of the Farina episodes around 1am. I of course watched them, but it just reminded how much of a missed opportunity they were.

Cori aka ChrisSCrush · 02-03-2016, 06:54 AM

When it first returned I watched a little of a few episodes on Spike but couldn't stand the way it was hacked up and never watched again. I have never seen Farina host.

James T · 02-03-2016, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drown Soda

I was happy to see that it was being re-aired, but I sorely missed the original segments. The way they updated the format but just recycled footage from the '80s and '90s was tacky and pointless. They basically repackaged the show for no reason, and Farina's presence was wasted.

The best thing they could have done was simply re-aired the original segments as they were shown in the '80s and '90s, and applied contemporary updates to those cases that had been solved. If they want to continue the series, I definitely think it could have an audience if they went about it right, but that would mean finding a fitting host, reintroducing the original musical theme (I honestly felt like the new theme on the Farina airings was the greatest injustice of all), and seek contemporary stories.

The thing about a series like this is that there is always new material at no cost to the producers—people go missing every day, and strange and unexplained things happen all the time. It's just a matter of finding the stories, getting permission/cooperation from family & those involved (which I think many families are willing to do for the sake of exposure), and then the actual production of the segment. From 2002 to 2016, there have been SO many publicized stories that would have been prime material for UM (Maura Murray, Natalee Hollaway, Ray Gricar, Patrick McDermott, etc., etc.). Some series such as Disappeared took the torch in giving these cases a televised platform like UM did, but UM's presence is still sorely missed in my opinion.

I would love a UM revival, as I think most of us would. I hope they'll do it someday. I don't have television, but when I was home for Christmas last month, I was up late one night at my mom's house browsing local channels, and was surprised when I stumbled on two of the Farina episodes around 1am. I of course watched them, but it just reminded how much of a missed opportunity they were.

That was never going to happen-simply shows with the slow storytelling/suspense/drama etc don't exist now & haven't for a long time. Spike is an adrenaline/guy channel, they were obviously looking for a cheap filler show & cut a deal to get the original episodes, cut them up & put funky music etc over the top narrated by the Crime Story guy.

It basically stripped it of the emotion/atmosphere that made it the show we all love & turned it into a show for drunks & people with no attention spans like most television these days. There was zero interest in paying anything for research or liaising with families etc or creating anything new.

Kane · 02-03-2016, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cori aka ChrisSCrush

When it first returned I watched a little of a few episodes on Spike but couldn't stand the way it was hacked up and never watched again.

That is understandable. Besides, it goes without saying that UM has been trivialized. They refurbished UM to make it look like a different show in order to attract a new audience and what happened? The show was met with both apathy and antipathy. It makes an MSNBC show look like a big hit.

jjmcgr · 02-03-2016, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cori aka ChrisSCrush

When it first returned I watched a little of a few episodes on Spike but couldn't stand the way it was hacked up and never watched again. I have never seen Farina host.

My favorite thing was how the new Google Earth version of the show never used dates, making it seem like you were watching a recent crime. Then at the end they'd update with stuff like "killer Joe was convicted, served 30 years and was paroled and died of old age..."

tarheelslim · 02-03-2016, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James T

Probably Spike offered them a decent amount just to use the rights & they had little to nothing to do with the new versions. Spike wanted to 'update' them for the new era/their style of programming & any show from the 1980's/1990's is going to look somewhat dated nowadays-even more so on a testosterone filled men's channel.

HBO hooked up with CM to redo UM after the Lifetime contract expired. Then they shopped it around to the networks.

I'm surprised that HBO went so low-budge with it. They must've spent their entire budget on Farina.

Drown Soda · 02-03-2016, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kane

That is understandable. Besides, it goes without saying that UM has been trivialized. They refurbished UM to make it look like a different show in order to attract a new audience and what happened? The show was met with both apathy and antipathy. It makes an MSNBC show look like a big hit.

Absolutely. It's the old adage of "don't fix what isn't broken." There was no need to redress this series up to make it look like something else. If they had actually worked on NEW episodes and at least attempted to stay in the vein of the original, it would've been totally different.

All they did was repackage the older stories, port over footage from the eighties, and put Dennis Farina's face on it. I can't wrap my head around what kind of purpose they had in doing this. I'd honestly like to pretend it never even happened.

mtaylor72 · 02-03-2016, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjmcgr

My favorite thing was how the new Google Earth version of the show never used dates, making it seem like you were watching a recent crime. Then at the end they'd update with stuff like "killer Joe was convicted, served 30 years and was paroled and died of old age..."

That has always annoyed me even to this day. They really went out of their way to obscure the dates, too. Just yesterday I was watching one of the Farina episodes on Lifetime, and they showed the story about the girl who could produce gold leaf out of her pores. They were showing some home video clips and they blurred out the dates. How tacky!

I've noticed that the only time they used dates was if the case happened prior to 1971. I never could understand their logic.

Sean DePue · 02-08-2016, 02:48 AM

I'm also in the same boat as you guys. Despite that, I still tune on to the Mondays-Fridays' marathons on Lifetime. Even though I don't really look up, I'll listen to it especially if they are showing the more memorable cases.

Victoria81 · 02-08-2016, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sean DePue

I'm also in the same boat as you guys. Despite that, I still tune on to the Mondays-Fridays' marathons on Lifetime. Even though I don't really look up, I'll listen to it especially if they are showing the more memorable cases.

Same here. DVR is set and I watch as I do my work. Once or twice a week, I see a case that I haven't in years. I was on FB and swore whoever runs the site said they are looking for a channel to take the show. I don't know if they meant more reruns or a new show!

Bluejay · 02-09-2016, 02:20 PM

I just want to say that I completely agree with everybody here. The show was bastardized to pander to a rubber stamp stereotype of men or rather guys or bros as decided upon in a boardroom. Even a viewer poll would be better.

With the diversity of channels the way there is now, I suspect there is a home for the real Unsolved Mysteries someplace on TV. Bring it back as it was, show the old Stack segments in full, and put Richard Belzer or Peter Coyote in charge of new episodes.

Kane · 02-10-2016, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bluejay

I just want to say that I completely agree with everybody here. The show was bastardized to pander to a rubber stamp stereotype of men or rather guys or bros as decided upon in a boardroom.

"Bastardized" is a legitimate word to describe it, as well as "trivialized" (my description). And yes, I agree with the pandering part. Sadly, this is not uncommon. They changed the look and feel of the show to accommodate certain stereotypes or demographics. It demonstrates that appealing to any given demographics is a double-edged sword: it will work either to your advantage or to your disadvantage.

We knew ahead of time that the Spike version of UM wasn't going to be recognized as the same UM as before, because it was acknowledged in articles. Needless to say, the misgivings about were justified. When a show (or any product for that matter) is brought back looking different, it should always be looked upon with apprehension.

Quote:

With the diversity of channels the way there is now, I suspect there is a home for the real Unsolved Mysteries someplace on TV.

I couldn't agree more, especially since cable is more grown up now than it was thirty years ago. It's just a matter of finding the right buyer, one that is interested in the show and would treat it with respect.

dynoguy88 · 02-10-2016, 03:23 PM

Cosgrove/Muerer has more issues than just allowing the horrible revamp of the show to happen. That, of course, is a tragedy.

But the bigger tragedy is their insistence, stubbornness and downright bullying nature over having any of their Robert Stack era episode content posted online, whether it's YouTube, Vimeo, Crackle or any other video related website.

They don't lose anything by having those episodes available online. And only good can come from having unsolved cold cases available for viewing because it keeps the important names out there. Online content is how the majority of people hear about any kind of news story old or new these days. Cosgrove/Muerer does not seem to care at all about that. They have been obsessively removing any of their content since the birth of YouTube.

A few years ago, I had three different YouTube accounts; One for Unsolved Mysteries, one for my favorite sports teams and one for miscellaneous stuff. And because Cosgrove/Muerer got their panties in a twist over UM being online, they reported me and as a result, all three accounts got deleted since they were all tied to the same email address. There was nothing I could do to get the content of my other two channels back.

During the brief months I had all that UM content online, I heard from several loved ones of memorable cases; the sister of Joyce McLain, the sister of Kathy Hobbs and a classmate of Norman Ladner just to name a few. All of them were extremely thankful to have these videos online. They told me themselves. Decades have gone by and they still live every day with no answers and no closure. Now I realize even with C/M's permission, some of these cold cases are a long shot to be solved but like I said before, there is nothing to lose by keeping them available online. And for them to pretty much give the middle finger to all those loved ones of victims is rather sickening.

02-03-2016, 01:19 AM	#1
JannTosh Member Forum Regular Join Date: Feb 28, 2011 Location: Michigan Posts: 586	I am still shocked at how badly Unsolved Mysteries was treated by Cosgrove/Muerer in recent years. I still don't understand why they just took the old Stack episodes and replacing Stack and adding a bunch of fancy graphics was a good idea. I mean seriously, if they weren't going to do any more new stories, why didn't they just re air the Stack episodes? I bet plenty of channels would have agreed to air them and probably still air them to this day. A&E, Reelz Channel, Tru TV etc. And why did they not think it was a good idea to produce new episodes using mysteries from 2003 and forward? Fans would have definitely been open to that idea even with a new narrator or even style. now Unsolved Mysteries still has no stories from 2002 and onward and now all the Stack episodes that people loved are probably gone forever since any re runs or streaming releases will be the newer version! I know this has been talked about before but I am still in utter shock at the bad decisions that were made here.

02-09-2016, 02:20 PM	#13
Bluejay Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 18, 2003 Location: California Posts: 137	I just want to say that I completely agree with everybody here. The show was bastardized to pander to a rubber stamp stereotype of men or rather guys or bros as decided upon in a boardroom. Even a viewer poll would be better. With the diversity of channels the way there is now, I suspect there is a home for the real Unsolved Mysteries someplace on TV. Bring it back as it was, show the old Stack segments in full, and put Richard Belzer or Peter Coyote in charge of new episodes.
	__________________ For every mystery there is someone, somewhere who knows the truth. Perhaps... it's you!

02-03-2016, 01:58 AM	#2
James T Member Senior Member Join Date: Apr 23, 2006 Location: England Posts: 1,571	Probably Spike offered them a decent amount just to use the rights & they had little to nothing to do with the new versions. Spike wanted to 'update' them for the new era/their style of programming & any show from the 1980's/1990's is going to look somewhat dated nowadays-even more so on a testosterone filled men's channel.

02-03-2016, 06:37 AM	#3
Drown Soda Superstitious cinephile Frequent Poster Join Date: Feb 02, 2016 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 103	I was happy to see that it was being re-aired, but I sorely missed the original segments. The way they updated the format but just recycled footage from the '80s and '90s was tacky and pointless. They basically repackaged the show for no reason, and Farina's presence was wasted. The best thing they could have done was simply re-aired the original segments as they were shown in the '80s and '90s, and applied contemporary updates to those cases that had been solved. If they want to continue the series, I definitely think it could have an audience if they went about it right, but that would mean finding a fitting host, reintroducing the original musical theme (I honestly felt like the new theme on the Farina airings was the greatest injustice of all), and seek contemporary stories. The thing about a series like this is that there is always new material at no cost to the producers—people go missing every day, and strange and unexplained things happen all the time. It's just a matter of finding the stories, getting permission/cooperation from family & those involved (which I think many families are willing to do for the sake of exposure), and then the actual production of the segment. From 2002 to 2016, there have been SO many publicized stories that would have been prime material for UM (Maura Murray, Natalee Hollaway, Ray Gricar, Patrick McDermott, etc., etc.). Some series such as Disappeared took the torch in giving these cases a televised platform like UM did, but UM's presence is still sorely missed in my opinion. I would love a UM revival, as I think most of us would. I hope they'll do it someday. I don't have television, but when I was home for Christmas last month, I was up late one night at my mom's house browsing local channels, and was surprised when I stumbled on two of the Farina episodes around 1am. I of course watched them, but it just reminded how much of a missed opportunity they were.

02-03-2016, 06:54 AM	#4
Cori aka ChrisSCrush Member Senior Member Join Date: Dec 30, 2001 Location: USA and still trying to be proud of it! Posts: 2,071	When it first returned I watched a little of a few episodes on Spike but couldn't stand the way it was hacked up and never watched again. I have never seen Farina host.

02-08-2016, 02:48 AM	#11
Sean DePue Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Feb 08, 2016 Posts: 7	I'm also in the same boat as you guys. Despite that, I still tune on to the Mondays-Fridays' marathons on Lifetime. Even though I don't really look up, I'll listen to it especially if they are showing the more memorable cases.

02-10-2016, 03:23 PM	#15
dynoguy88 Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 01, 2000 Location: Michigan, USA Posts: 3,675	Cosgrove/Muerer has more issues than just allowing the horrible revamp of the show to happen. That, of course, is a tragedy. But the bigger tragedy is their insistence, stubbornness and downright bullying nature over having any of their Robert Stack era episode content posted online, whether it's YouTube, Vimeo, Crackle or any other video related website. They don't lose anything by having those episodes available online. And only good can come from having unsolved cold cases available for viewing because it keeps the important names out there. Online content is how the majority of people hear about any kind of news story old or new these days. Cosgrove/Muerer does not seem to care at all about that. They have been obsessively removing any of their content since the birth of YouTube. A few years ago, I had three different YouTube accounts; One for Unsolved Mysteries, one for my favorite sports teams and one for miscellaneous stuff. And because Cosgrove/Muerer got their panties in a twist over UM being online, they reported me and as a result, all three accounts got deleted since they were all tied to the same email address. There was nothing I could do to get the content of my other two channels back. During the brief months I had all that UM content online, I heard from several loved ones of memorable cases; the sister of Joyce McLain, the sister of Kathy Hobbs and a classmate of Norman Ladner just to name a few. All of them were extremely thankful to have these videos online. They told me themselves. Decades have gone by and they still live every day with no answers and no closure. Now I realize even with C/M's permission, some of these cold cases are a long shot to be solved but like I said before, there is nothing to lose by keeping them available online. And for them to pretty much give the middle finger to all those loved ones of victims is rather sickening.