The Breakfast Time Videos

Breakfast Time: America's Forgotten Morning Show

Announcement at release:

I know this isn't a game show, but I really thought the story behind Breakfast Time is interesting, and as I watched through the show, I found it to be extremely entertaining (which only makes its ultimate fate that much more disappointing). I also really enjoyed poking around the history of fX. It was a really unique concept for a TV network, and though I understand why it didn't work out long-term, I think the ambition is worth remembering.

This project wasn't as thorough or intense as some of the other stuff I've tackled, so I hope you find the story interesting and get a kick out of some of the highlights I've included here. And I encourage you to go out and watch full episodes of the show. There's so much more that I didn't have time to touch on here. I think it's a really great show, and I feel like it deserves more attention.

Notes:

• The response I got on this video was absolutely astounding. Within a few days of upload, I had received personal messages from Tom Bergeron and Laurie Gelman expressing their appreciation for this project. I had never even imagined that that they would even see the video, let alone feel compelled to reach out to me in appreciation.

• Additionally, Phil Keoghan (!!) left a comment on the video, a few other Breakfast Time staff members left comments, Craig Byrne left a comment (his fX fan website was featured toward the end of the video - he now runs TV news site ksitetv.com), and numerous fans of the show left comments. All the comments were wonderful, and only reinforce my contention that the community surrounding this show was something special.

• There were a few things I cut from this video for time, or because I couldn't find conclusive information. I'll mention some of them here.

  • • While most of fX's lineup was made up of syndicated reruns, it attempted to thread its "TV Made Fresh Daily" image into those reruns by running live interstitials from the fX apartment during commercial breaks. An fX personality, broadcasting live, would drop in with a fun fact about the show, or something related to the show, or they'd read a fax – just something small to keep the live-TV gimmick going throughout the broadcast day.

    • For part of Breakfast Time's run (not sure the exact timeline) there was a half-hour "warmup" that aired from the ballroom. It was hosted by Patricia Moreno, and was primarily an exercise show. I couldn't find much footage of it, and didn't really have much to say about it, but it's worth mentioning here.

• Tom Bergeron shared the video on his Twitter and Instagram, which left me just about speechless. The video, as of writing, is prominently featured on the homepage of tombergeron.com.

  • • (Had I known the video would get this much attention, I probably would have put a bit more work into it.)

Corrections:

• I was unaware of the connotation of the word "spastic" when I used it in this video. At the time, I believed it was a harmless synonym for "erratic." My apologies for the word choice. 

  • • And for that matter, I wouldn't include so much Rob Schneider if I had it to do all over. I had assumed that Laurie was in on his whole shower bit, but a commenter suggested that she looked slightly uncomfortable and might not have been. If that's the case, it's gross, and I regret including it.

• My comment about The Pet Department came off harsher than I ever intended. I personally still don't think the subject matter is especially interesting, but the host was likeable and I can see it being appealing to pet enthusiasts. I just think it would have been better suited for Animal Planet. But then again, Personal fX was probably better suited for the History Channel, Sound fX was probably better suited for MTV, and Under Scrutiny was probably better suited for CNN, so go figure.

  • • I actually think this might have been part of the reason fX's original format didn't last. I don't think the thread of "live production" was strong enough to guarantee crossover appeal for shows that otherwise have almost nothing to do with one another in way of genre or target audience. Was the network unique and ambitious? Absolutely. Strategic and cohesive? Not quite.

    • Steve Walker actually left a comment on the video. Luckily, he saw past my unkind words. I still feel bad.

The Tragedy of FOX After Breakfast (ft. Tom Bergeron and Laurie Gelman)

Notes:

• Out of everything I've made, I think this is the video I'm most proud of. I absolutely love the way this one turned out. It wouldn't have been possible without the contributions of Tom and Laurie, who were so generous with their time and so supportive of the channel. And, to my knowledge, this is the first time they've ever publicly discussed the show together since its cancellation.

• Three days after upload, I happened to run across this absolutely incredible archive of Breakfast Time episodes, along with various episodes of other fX shows. Among the included episodes are Breakfast Time's premiere (which I *never* thought would surface) and the entirety of its finale (which I had only been able to find a brief clip of during original research). It's unfortunate that I've only found these after both videos have been made, but it's still remarkable that they're available at all! (Most of the Breakfast Time & Fox AB episodes I included in this series came from a similarly impressive archive hosted by Rob St. Clair.)

Corrections:

• Justin from the Telehell Podcast left a comment that explains the inclusion of Fox After Breakfast's Wheel segment. To paraphrase: Peter Faiman had been involved with The Don Lane Show, an Australian talk show, earlier in his career, which featured a similar (much more successful) wheel segment. It's very likely that Faiman was trying to replicate that segment and its success for an American audience.