Never say never.
The Golden Globes are returning to CBS some 42 years after the Tiffany network yanked them off the air.
CBS refused to air the Globes back in 1982 after it was revealed that members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association had been flown to Las Vegas by actress Pia Zadora’s mogul husband to see her show and screen the movie, “Butterfly.” Her husband, real estate tycoon Meshulam Riklis, was the financing behind the trashy film.
It didn’t help that “Butterfly” was universally panned. But it worked: Zadora won New Star Of The Year over many qualified actresses including Elizabeth McGovern in “Ragtime” and Kathleen Turner in “Body Heat.”
The Zadora incident came after the Globes had already had a shaky relationship with CBS over voting practices.
The result was a six year banishment from network TV. Then in 1988 Dick Clark Productions took over, securing the show on TBS. Eventually the Globes moved to NBC, where their run ended last year.
Now the Globes return to CBS, which likely paid little money for it according to insiders. The presumption is that the Globes, now owned by the publisher of Variety and the Hollywood Reporter, is “four walling” the show, hoping for big ratings. They might get it, as CBS will air the Globes following the Sunday NFL football game on January 7th. (Knowing CBS, they’re getting LL Cool J to host the program.)
Will viewers take the Globes seriously after years of scandal concerning lack of diversity and financial transparency? We will see on January 7th.
