This One May Actually Make Sense

The production players are the same: Fox, Simon Fuller’s 19 Entertainment, the Idol format; but this time I may actually have some interest in actually seeing the performers, who already have some cultural heft to throw around:

Fox Broadcasting Co. and Simon Fuller’s 19 Entertainment are working on a variation on the “American Idol: The Search for a Superstar” theme revolving around former pop stars and one-hit wonders looking to resuscitate their careers.

Dubbed “Second Chance,” the show was dreamed up by Fox’s alternative programming guru, Mike Darnell.

“When ‘American Idol’ was over (in September), I started thinking about whether there was a bigger evolution to this on another level on top of just doing another edition of ‘Idol,’ ” Darnell said. “The music industry is a very tough business. The talent gets chewed up and spit out very quickly. Why not give them a second chance?”

But Fox won’t formally commit to the show until it has lined up the appropriate talent. Darnell emphasized that no formal overtures have been made, but the show is likely to target faded stars along the lines of such 1980s teen phenoms as Tiffany and Debbie Gibson.

What I like about this – beside the fact that the performers will have at least a modicum of talent – is that due to their pasts, the performers won’t be totally at the mercy of Simon and his minions, they’ll be able to push back a little. Give ’em hell, Debbie.