Quote from Zac Hanson on March 19, 2008 taken from the Hanson.net forums:
hear is the deal. A&E has asked us to do a show, and we are trying it out... it may or may-not happen depending on how willing they are to do what we want... hahahahahah (we are controlling). we would like people to see what real bands do. how hard bands work, and how hard it is to be successful in this business. whether we are able to make a show that fulfills those goals.... I am still unsure.
By the way i hate reality TV also, but i loved making strong enough to break and Taking The Walk. i would like to suggest that we call this a docu series, under investigation. and that is the scoopDon't be confused, folks. He said "hear" but he meant "here", so you don't have to listen for anything. Anywho, I've learned a lot about how TV works in the past couple of years, and I bet you any amount of money this is close to if not exactly what is happening: A&E came to Hanson with an idea for a reality show about their family that would be in "situation set-up" mode, and they didn't like that even though A&E offered them a whole big chunk of money. Then, they came to A&E and said "Lets have it be about the MUSIC! Yay!" and A&E was like, "Or, it could be about your FAMILY! Yay! Plus here's an extra million!" and now this is going to go back and forth for awhile until A.) Hanson gives in to what A&E wants or B.) A&E quits. I really don't think that A&E is going to give into Hanson wants, because A&E is doesn't think that average viewers are very interested in the process of how Hanson makes music.
Because they're not. I wish people were, but they aren't. Hanson has a huge number of fans that would watch this show, but that number is not high when it comes to a ratings count.
Another third possibility which seems plausible is that they will come to a middle ground. Show some family moments, talk about the family, but also show some studio time. A&E will edit the footage together and show five minutes (tops) studio time and 15 minutes family stuff. Hanson will be annoyed and will not return for more episodes. More tricky things can occur, for instance, A&E runs a show called "The Two Coreys" starring Corey Haim, Corey Feldman, and his wife Susie Feldman. Corey and Susie have a son who is like 4, but he is not a part of the show or even mentioned because Corey and Susie (very wisely) are choosing to keep cameras out of his face. I think too many people know that Hanson has children by now for them to do this, but still,
A&E is notorious within the entertainment business for having reality shows that are 90% fabricated.Mostly all celeb reality shows are set ups, but are not completely fake. Some of these shows include: Hogan Knows Best, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, My Fair Brady, etc. The producers come up with a situation to put these celebrities in and then how the celebrities actually react and deal with the situation is the "real" part. A&E usually goes a bit too far with this technique which is clear on most of their reality shows (which are partly scripted).
That all said,
I really hope Hanson does not do this. They are gambling with the most precious thing in the world. There is not an existing amount of money you could offer me that I would take in exchange for having a reality show about my family broadcast on air that featured my little cousins. There is no price in the world worth that, ever. The children are not the ones that chose to be famous, and they don't deserve to be gossiped about on blogs and television shows all over the world. It's just not worth it.
I would bet that Taylor is the one with the biggest problem with this simply because he seems to be the most private when it comes to his family. Even the most private superstar celebs talk about how their spouse and children are their lives and they were reborn after their child was born, etc but Taylor keeps it all to himself. I would think he'd have a real problem with one million viewers tuning in to watch his children play. Then again, I have to remind myself that
I do not know him. I just mentioned in a comment on a friend's journal about how loving Hanson is a more intimate fan experience than loving any other band or public figure, and it makes us feel like we know them. It's hard sometimes to remember that we totally don't.
So after i've said all that, I have to state that I have said for years that if Hanson did a reality show all about their family, they could again reach the status they were during the Middle of Nowhere days. I have no doubt in my mind AT ALL about this. If you follow that family around, all those kids, the three wives (i'm sure the editors would pick one as the dumb one) set them up in situations... and throw it up on VH1 once a week, featuring some new music clips of the guys:
instant fame. INSTANT. However, like I said, it is flat out NOT WORTH IT.
Who knows, I could be completely wrong and A&E could air a show about Hanson making records and there could be no sight of the family. Anything can happen, i'm just saying I doubt it will. All of this is just my opinion, but I believe in it enough. I just love Hanson and I experience everyday them getting slayed because of people who think they are silly boys who look like girls who make shitty music. I do not want to see their family ridiculed next. I know in my heart that they'd survive it no matter what though, which is why I can never really be worried about anything they do. I just don't want to see this happen and go in a very negative direction.
~*~**~**~*~*~*~*~*~**~~and oh, the shit Zac was spewing about Easter and religion and such made me DIE LAUGHING. OMG. He knows about 50% of what he is trying to have a stance on and is bullshitting his way through the rest. Someone who knows what they're fucking talking about should give him a call. I still love him though and can't wait to seeee him! But Taylor more. Obviously.
UMM LIKE A MONTH UNTIL IT ALLLLLL HAPPENS!