Hollywood Reporter senior writer James Hibberd (you’ll remember him from the Moonlight fiasco) said the THR mailroom got 1,050 pounds of nuts Monday. They’re now good on nuts through the Fourth of July, much of the summer, heck probably until Christmas. All kidding aside, THR is looking for local outlets to donate the forty-two 25-lb. boxes of nuts to.

I can’t begin to predict how things with Jericho will turn out but I think it’s safe to say no entertainment reporter will ever forget the show or its fans.

Photo Credit: ©2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved

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Twenty-one of those came from a middle school in Boca Raton, Fla where a teacher challenged her kids to make a difference. Hey, if the next generation is both donating to our troops and watching Jericho, I think they’re going to be OK.

The article notes that Rangers have raised at least $32,000 in charitable efforts, although that number could be much higher. Great job, Rangers! One of the things I love most about sci-fi is the communities it creates and the people that join together for positive causes. Though some people will never understand, it’s about a lot more than a TV show.

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Image details: 2007 Summer TCA Tour – Day 10 served by picapp.com

The Save Jericho site has received more than 9,000 visits in less than two weeks with executive producers Carol Barbee and Jon Turteltaub being among the visitors. They called the fans’ campaign “brilliant” and gave supporters hope assuring them that talks to bring the twice canceled postapocalyptic drama back to TV continue.

Jericho Rangers raised $6,000 in less than a month to fund 10 days of advertising with Time Warner. That’s in addition to funding an ad in Variety and purchasing a billboard in downtown Los Angeles. The TV ad can also be viewed on YouTube. On the site, fans can also download Save Jericho postcards for the continued letter-writing campaign.

As you’ve probably noticed, Jericho Rangers have been quite active on our site as well, sparking some of the most passionate debate in SFUniverse history. Whatever happens, this has been one of the biggest stories of the year and you know we’ll keep you up to date. We have been unable to determine the truthfulness of the rumor that CBS is giving Jericho’s old timeslot to new show CSI:Survivor Island.

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For me the most damning thing about taking Jericho off the air was CBS’ replacement show – Secret Talents of the Stars. The current network landscape needs another half-baked, low-budget reality show like the Spears’ siblings need fertility treatments. CBS put that thing out of its misery after a single episode, a fate reserved for only the worst shows.

Photo Credit: ©2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved

There’s a lot of blame to go around. CBS could have done more promoting the show. Nielsen’s system needs to adapt and let’s be honest, random samplings are random samplings. TV numbers are no more reliable than political polls as there’s no feasible way to ask every single person’s opinion. That’s how we get Dewey Defeats Truman and Gore Could Still Win the Presidency. And yes, a lot of fans left and never came back. Hard to blame them. There’s nothing that sucks quite like investing 20 hours in a show and then having it yanked away in a rushed series conclusion. Placing the blame won’t bring the show back.

As we’ve discussed, six million is a horribly low number for a network show. In contrast, a show like Battlestar Galactica is considered a runaway hit by pulling slightly over two million on cable. So cable’s the clear way to go. I’d love to see Sci Fi Channel step up to the plate here. They picked up Sliders, for Pete’s sake. That might have worked had they not started casting the entire O’ Connell family.

But kidding aside, they’re losing a major anchor in Galactica. I know the prequel is in the pipeline but even as a BSG fan I’m skeptical. Quick, name me as many good prequels as you can. Star Wars Episodes I-III? Red Dragon? Yeah, you see my point. If Caprica tanks, Sci Fi should have some money burning a hole in its pocket. It if needs more, might I suggest pulling the plug on some of those horrible B-grade movies it makes? TV would be the better for it.

Sadly, I’m almost as certain that won’t happen as I am that Caprica won’t fly. Sci Fi’s going to the regular network model with as much cheaply produced stuff that draws a decent audience as it can find. Who’s ready for that new season of Scare Tactics?

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