Posted on 05/30/2012 5:38:14 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
There's nothing like a backwoods blood feud to excite television viewers on Memorial Day.
The first part of the History network's miniseries "Hatfields & McCoys" was seen by 13.9 million viewers on Monday night, more than 17 million when the immediate repeat was added in, the Nielsen company said. The numbers held up for part two on Tuesday, which was watched by 13.1 million, Nielsen said.
Those are huge numbers in the cable television world. No scripted series on the broadcast networks last week came close. By contrast, Fox's series finale of "House" last week reached 8.7 million people.
"Hatfields & McCoys" had a couple of big-name stars in Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton and is airing over three nights in two-hour chunks. Broadcast television was dominated by competition shows again last week, led by the 21.5 million people who watched the "American Idol" finale on Fox. "Dancing With the Stars" and "America's Got Talent" also did well.
Perhaps crowded by the marketplace, ABC's "Duets" finished a modest No. 23 in the ratings, with 6.8 million viewers. Fox's summer series "So You Think You Can Dance" also came out of the gate slowly, with 6.3 million viewers.
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
I too have been hot and cold on Costner. However given the paucity of talent in Hollywood today, there are few male leads who can convincingly portray a cowboy, Costner is one of them.
Yep - good show. Watching part 3 now (had to check in).
I remember staying at the Fairmount Chateau Lake Louise ten years ago and was eating dining where you had a tie and jacket at all times. Costner came in without a tie and was denied entry into the dining area. Rather than making a fuss, he said okay and ate at the bar instead.
Seems like they took a lot of autistic license.
Thanks for the link.
Still trying to figure out the 11th dead, was it the kid who Anse wouldn’t let go on the New Year’s raid and in the last raid in the open field I can’t find any reference to that got shot after he shot an adult?
“1888 January 18: Bill Dempsey killed by Jeff McCoy and Frank Phillips”
On Jan. 18, 1888 the cauldron of tension finally erupted into the largest, open gunfight of the feud. Frank Phillips and a party of eighteen men met a Hatfield party of thirteen at Grapevine Creek, a West Virginia tributary of the Tug. In the ensuing gunfight, a number of injuries were sustained. Young Bill Dempsey, fighting for the Hatfields, suffered a gunshot to the leg and hid himself in the underbrush for safety. He too met his fate when the gun of Frank Phillips answered his cries for help.Old Free Republic thread
Perfect thanks! They didn’t exactly portray that in this version.
Also wondered how Frank Phillips dies by the hand of his own deputy when they had a “?” for the date of his death.
Like I said, they took some autistic license.
I feel the same about Costner. You should try pushing yourself away from Fox News and not waiting to be pulled, it’s healthier.
That is true. It was one of those made-for-TV ninety-minute "ABC Movies of the Week." Palance played Devil Anse and it aired in 1975. I remember it well. I've been trying to find it online but so far I can't.
Ninety minutes vs. six hours, though . . . not much competition there.
I'm gratified that people even in "new age," post-modern, urban, multicultural America are interested in "hillbillies." I would not have thought so.
I can't answer for the historical accuracy, but I know it was extremely violent and bloody and contained a you-know-what load of bad language. I watched it till the end, though I was getting kind of sickened and depressed by it.
It was also nice to see actual history on the "History Channel" instead of their usual "look and laugh at the funny rednecks" reality shows.
Now there’s a version Wiki and The History Channel should have read however biased Sam Hill may have been for the McCoy’s. Six hours with commercials Kevin Costner and The History Channel should have devoted more time to the facts instead of so much fluff.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.