TV Nation (1994–1995)

Micheal Moore presents a humorous newsmagazine that focuses primarily on wrongdoing by big business, privileged society and right-wing politicians.

Stars:

Michael Moore, Bruce Brown, Louis Theroux

Won 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Michael Moore	...	Himself - Host (17 episodes, 1994-1995)
Bruce Brown	...	Weekly Announcer (15 episodes, 1994-1995)
Louis Theroux	...	Himself - Correspondent (10 episodes, 1994-1995)

Storyline

Summer show that poked fun at TV's news magazine shows like "60 Minutes." Some of the interviews consisted of happy dogs on Prozac, following an Avon Lady through the Amazon, etc.

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Plot Keywords:

newsmagazine | civil rights | politics | protest | satire | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Comedy | News

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Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

19 July 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

Michael Moorella on asiaa

Filming Locations:

Appleton, Minnesota, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Dog Eat Dog Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Michael Moore, he was censored more on his stint at Fox than he was at NBC. Moore wanted to do a bit referencing the show's move from NBC to Fox. It would show Moore being rescued from NBC headquarters by helicopter and brought to Fox headquarters. Fox turned down the idea because they were afraid of offending NBC. Moore also wanted to do a segment in which a Civil War reenactment group would reenact the bombing of Hiroshima, the Fall of Saigon and the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Fox turned it down stating it was "a downer".

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Connections

Edited into TV Nation: Volume Two (1997)

User Reviews

Moore at his best IMHO

Even though he is now much more renowned for his movie docs("Roger and Me","Bowling for Columbine" and the incendiary "Fahrenheit 9/11"),to me,Michael Moore was probably at his best at the helm of this sharp,dryly(perhaps bitterly)funny and relentless hour show which lasted all of two years on NBC(1st season)and FOX(2nd season).

I say he was at the best on this show because it allowed him and a veritable crew of confederates(Janeane GArofolo,Jeff Stilson,Louis Theroux,Rusty Cundieff among others)to pierce through the veil of respectability that large corporations and conservative media barons and talking pieces(at the time,that would've been primarily the likes of Rush Limabugh,with probably Bob Grant,PAt Buchanan,Ken Hamblen and Oliver North somewhere behind him in terms of popularity)would happily put on and much of the popular,everyday so-called liberal media would gladly accept without hardly more than a low yelp of criticism(I mean,if Larry King is your best voice for opposition of conservative talk radio or TV,that's not saying much). The segments had more humor in them,a real sense of daring and a much more matter-of-fact sense of contrarism that seems to be missing in his now much more confrontational,direct polemics that he's known for now. Some more notable segments were profiling a gun club for Congressional wives,an attempt to try to sell off the infamous barge of garbage that circled the western hemisphere for much of the early nineties,an in-depth interview(And tour of his farm and shooting range)of Conservative rocker Ted Nugent and a mascot chicken that went to various corporations and awarded them for their cowardice in dealing with various malfeasance(naturally,there are several confrontations with first floor security that are priceless).

I suppose that a show like "TV NAtion" was probably WAY too subversive to be a network stalwart,hence its short lifespan. I only wish Mr. Moore had pressed this show onto cable,and didn't instead try to re-con-fig this into an even shorter-lived series called "The Awful Truth"(which I haven't seen,will need to out of curiosity,even though I've read at least one review say it wasn't as good as "Nation").Nevertheless,I truly appreciated this series,and when I ran across this again on a video tape I had made of it from years before(of course),it didn't take me long to realize how much I liked this show and its spirit. While I think as a political firebrand and troublemaker Moore had probably "jumped the shark",I still think he should keep on keeping' on,and another show like "TV Nation" would be just the thing to do it with.in my humble opinion.