Bottom of the Rock Treatment 10.21.2011

Created by Danielle Axman, Pat Bunting, Katherine McNicol, Rachel Smith, and Josh Windt

2 I. THE BASICS

TAG LINE: “From suit to stardom.”

LOG LINE: This half-hour sitcom about an NBC commissioned docu-series examining the East Coast Page Program follows the lives of five driven (albeit green) pages through the lens of a fictional reality TV camera as they struggle to make it to the top--despite the best efforts of seasoned reality producers, eccentric NBC talent, seemingly impossible assignments, unending stores of personal baggage and, occasionally, each other.

SUMMARY: The executives at NBC have decided that, since Kenneth the character was so well received on , they should shed some light on the prestigious program that is the NBC Page Program--especially as it approaches its 80th birthday on the East Coast. So, they contract the show out to a studio that specializes in reality TV production. The studio sends two of their best, and these producers pick five unique pages from diverse backgrounds to be the main focus of the show, as well as a number of auxiliary characters with whom the pages interact on a daily basis. As the series progresses, we learn more and more about the adventures of young twenty-somethings starting out in the entertainment industry, as well as what goes on behind the scenes of a reality TV show. It turns out the two were made for each other. Or were they...

Will the guardians of sacred NBC tradition be the masters of their own careers? Or will they falter at the hands of such seasoned manipulators?

And you thought your first job was tough...

3 II. THE CHARACTERS

NBC’S FINEST: THE PAGES

Danny, 25 Danny is a gay aspiring comedian who has been working the comic club circuit ever since his years as a student at NYU. Danny is just one of the guys when he is hanging out and only brings out what he calls his “inner gay” when he is performing his stand-up routine or warming up the audience of an NBC talk show. Before joining the page program, Danny worked as the Social Director at a local nursing home in his hometown of Witchita, Kansas.

Danny has a hard time finally introducing to the group his boyfriend. Without any help from his parents for all his living expenses in the city, he must seek out another job opportunity to help pay the bills in order to succeed and live out his dream.

Jim, 23 Jim’s real name is Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, however somewhere in the interview process for the page program Jim’s entire very privileged Hindu upbringing was scrapped for a rags to riches “Slumdog Millionaire” fabrication. Jim thinks he is sly enough to get away with anything, including his huge lie, and this attitude always seems to put him into great predicaments. Jim made a promise to his very successful parents that after a year in the page program he would look into attending law school, however, he has dreams of working in talent and music production for the network.

Jim first of all must slowly make people forget that he doesn’t actually come from an impoverished background and in fact comes from a very wealthy family. Also, he must fight the idea of having to go to law school and instead work on meeting big name musical acts in hopes of working in the music industry.

Landon, 22 Landon is the son of a top executive within NBC (or possibly someone famous, whether it be actor, athlete, etc...) who may come off as a guy who has had everything handed to him on a silver platter, but in reality, he’s worked really hard to get to where he is today. That’s a difficult stigma to shake, though, and he’s going to have to prove to the other pages that he has every right to his title. He could just as easily have started working for his mother/father (whoever we choose to be famous), but it’s in his nature to earn things rather than take them. It takes a couple episodes to realize who he is the son of but once the cat’s out of the bag, people start treating him differently. He insists on going about his life as a normal guy, working toward his ultimate goal of hosting his own late night show. And doing it on his terms.

4 Though it was difficult for them to accept his rejection of the family business early on, he maintains a close relationship with his mother and father. They completely respect the way he wants to live his life and fully support him.

Emma, 27 Emma is slightly older than the rest of the pages. Never had an A- in her life and two-time valedictorian (high school AND college), she spent two years an investment banker in Manhattan after graduation. All her life she’s tried really hard to get the approval of the people around her, particularly her superiors. When she’s unsuccessful in this particularly unforgiving endeavor, it hits her hard. But there’s no crying in the cutthroat world of finance, and she just couldn’t take it.

Now, she’s trying her hand as an NBC page, and she’s once again determined to be the best. For the rest of the pages, many of whom have dreamed of donning that Brooks Brothers suit for years, her presence is somewhat of an annoyance. They wonder whether she really deserves to be in the program. They also wonder if it’s really necessary for her pander so excessively to the needs of the NBC executives as she has taken to doing. People can’t help but talk behind her back, but for the most part are pleasant to her face. They’d love to hate her (collectively), but the problem is, she’s just too darn nice.

She doesn’t mean to act like an “over-achieving tyrant” (her colleagues words, not mine), but that’s just who she is. She is super nice all the time and just wants to think that everyone is her best friend. For the people around her, she can be a lot to handle. But the truth is, all the confidence and all her efforts are just the key components of a carefully constructed facade--one that, for all we know, might crumble at any minute.

Jordyn, Age 23 One parent was a first generation college student, the other was a child of a professor. The kid is Asian, black, and white. The father is half black half white (professor) and the mother is an Asian immigrant. Her parents met in college at an Ivy and moved to Northern California (where she spent her childhood) before she was born. They’ve always been really supportive, and she has the distinct air of someone who was well-cared for, even doted upon. She has an older brother who is a doctor on the East Coast, and her parents are now retired and traveling or living in the mountains somewhere.

5 Jordyn went to school in Los Angeles and hated it--mostly because of the weather (she liked to keep the air conditioning on 56˚ and put picture of a snowy landscape in the window between December and February to pretend she lived elsewhere). She studied political science and film in college and wants to be the producer of a live television show like the Today Show or . She loves Johnny Carson and refers to Jay Leno as “the guy with the chin.”

Because her family is so diverse, there are a lot of strange family traditions, particularly based around the holidays. This is when she’s forced to spend time with the extended family. She goes to Malaysia in the winter and Alabama in the summer. The two sides of the family BARELY get along, so that keeps things interesting. She constantly being torn between behaving one way and another based on which side she’s going to spend time with. Goes through a “transition” period in order to prepare herself for each holiday adventure (practices cultural phrases, assumes certain racial stereotypes, etc.) which is occasionally disruptive for her tour groups.

THE (MOSTLY) NON-PAGES

Page Director All her life, Debbie wanted to be a page. Alas, she never made the grade. Now, she’s the boss of the squad, and she’s determined to make sure that her young charges do their uniforms justice. When she’s not staring longingly at the photo- shopped picture of herself shaking Regis’s hand on her desk, she’s doing tour evaluations, pin inspections, and, as we’ll see all too often, damage control.

Show Producers Reality TV is anything but, and these guys know it. These successful producers who’ve made a living off of the American obsession with this complicated genre are at it again. They’re not exactly sinister...just a little manipulative. The pages certainly don’t trust them, but they definitely respect them for their mastery of their craft.

Security Guard A permanent fixture in the pages’ lives (and in the building), George knows just about everything that’s going on in 30 Rock at any given time. The disgruntled, sardonic, occasionally creepy elder statesman of the Rock Center’s security team, George has worked at NBC for decades and is the go-to for all of the latest gossip (though, he’s not always willing to give it up for free...). He converses

6 genially with janitors and on-air talent alike, and has been known to take pleasure in making tour guests extremely uncomfortable, just for the heck of it.

90-Year Old Page Nobody told her the page program was only supposed to last for a year. We have two words: Betty. White.

III. CONCEPT AND STORY

There are so many resources available to a show based on the world of NBC, simply because of the nature of its relationship to NBCUniversal, one of the largest media corporations in the world. NBC has a unique history and a impressive arsenal of American icons (in terms of both talent and programming), which will provide the show with an unending fount of material. Networks like Bravo and Oxygen (which focus on reality and unscripted programming), USA, Syfy, NBCU Sports Network, and a whole host of cable news channels, provide us with the opportunity to explore media as it pertains to almost every facet of human life. The number of episodes that can be created from NBC in general is countless, and that is what sets this sitcom apart from every single show out there today. Given the right writers and staff, we believe this show will be in it for the long haul.

When putting together the concepts for our episodes of Bottom of the Rock we wanted to incorporate everything that NBCUniversal has to offer but by no means "glamorize" pages. We feel that by infusing the great situational comedy of entry-level work with the self-depricating fun NBC shows always play with, we have created a concept that will do an excellent job of appealing to a youthful demographic, and, most importantly, geuninely make them laugh.

POTENTIAL SEASON ONE EPISODES:

Pilot The Producers of Bartleby Production Company sort through the interviews of all of the 70 picked NBC pages. They specifically gave special questions to ask in order to find the “perfect reality show stars.” Once ok’ed by NBC, they hold a meet and greet for the five NBC pages that will unknowingly participating in the first ever “comumentery” on television. After being forced to play icebreakers, the group learns that they couldn’t be more diverse. The group heads to meet with their fellow pages at orientation where jealousy stirs over the five being selected to be the “faces” of the page program.

9-1-Fun The pages head to the New York fire school to learn the safety rules and regulations of giving tours at 30 Rock. While the Jim and Landon get upset because Danny outperforms them in all of the fire related tasks, Emma struggles to adjust to her return to “physical labor,” and Jordyn is just a little too distracted by their firemen instructors.

7 Come Feel My Bubbies Jim is called down to provide a special tour to a group of Hindi speaking guests and must figure out how to give this group a tour without blowing his cover. Landon goes out to New Jersey to help with a reunion episode of The Real Housewives of New Jersey where a cast member comes on to him.

Starship 30 Rock It’s Halloween at 30 Rock and Landon dresses up as one of the characters of NBC’s primetime science fiction show, which, coincidentally, is filmed in the building. But, trouble brews when he is mistaken for the actor. Jordyn decides that she is going to make her and Juliet’s costumes for the company Halloween party and proceeds to tie- dye their page uniforms.

The Queen’s a Fool Emma is asked to work a Healthy is NBCU event with Al Roker but gets in trouble when she is caught not practicing what she preaches. Jordyn brings Danny home to meet her parents in hopes that they think she has finally found a boyfriend, but even Danny’s “manly” side may not get him through the ringer.

22 and Wish I Wasn’t Counting (1-hour long Thanksgiving episode) Emma and Jordyn are brought to the Today Show studio to find out that they will be in charge of taking care of the annoying active Duggar Children while their mother gets a morning of pampering before her interview. Jim and Landon are asked to set up a promotional booth in Time Square where they get into a handout war with the characters of many of the Broadway shows.

The Not So Tiny Dancer Danny is chosen to be the only page to participate in a flash mob on the skating rink in Rockefeller Plaza with the Radio City Rockettes, only to discover that the flash mob was moved to Wollman rink when it’s already too late. The Company flies Jim’s mom in for the Christmas party where he is being honored with the Applaud for “Greatest Employee Success Story.”

The Simplexiest Valentine’s Emma volunteers to be on a Valentine’s Day “Questions You Don’t Want to Ask” on Dr. Oz only to be embarrassed when all the pages and America find out that she’s the one behind some particularly...er, um...thought-provoking questions. Jordyn is given the chance to guest star on a daytime soap and gets to kiss the man star. It’s a dream come true. Almost. The only problem is? His giant cold sore.

What Do You Think You’re Wearing, Ms. NBCUniversal? Danny unwittingly makes fun of the CEO of NBCUniversal’s elderly mother, while warming up the audience at a morning talk show and spends the day running around

8 the city apologizing. Jim is flown out to the Middle East to help the crew of the Today Show with news coverage of an international terrorist’s murder in his “supposed” home country.

The Stand-Up Scandal Landon and Juliet are working in the control room for an NBC news program when a producer for the reality show turns on the microphone in the room embarrassing the two pages. The gang goes to see Danny do his stand-up routine at Caroline’s, only to watch awkwardness ensue when he comes on right after an older comedian’s very homophobic rant.

Page-cation The Pages are flown out to the National Cable Show in Chicago where during set-up a war begins between the pages and the assistants of the other media companies. While everyone is down for the pranks Emma seems to have found a friend in one of the assistants. At the NBC wrap-up party the gang is having a good time until Danny is overheard gossiping about one of the stars of one of Oxygen's reality shows.

The Pilates Hotties Jordyn's sister comes in from California for and all of the male pages are trying to take her out. Landon decides that he needs to get into better shape in hopes of landing some hotter girls and enlists the help of Danny who brings him to his female-oriented classes at the gym. George invites the group over to his apartment for his themed birthday party.

Season Finale It’s that time of the year again--the PAGE PROM! Everyone is on edge about who is going to ask whom, and time is running out. As the prom approaches, an asking frenzy ensues and some of the pages end up in situations they were NOT expecting. The group ends the season reminiscing the crazy year they had together.

IV. SOME THOUGHTS FROM THE CREATORS

WHY NBC NEEDS IT:

We have to remind people what sets NBC apart. We have to remind people that we’re not just another network. We’re THE network: the original network. We’ve been there since the beginning. From Herbert Morrison to Brian Williams, from Bonanza to The Cosby Show, from I Dream of Jeannie to 30 Rock, we’re the network people have been connecting with for generations. NBC is an American institution and as such, they tell truly American stories--in news and narrative--as they evolve. We believe this show will do just that.

9 RESPONSES TO POTENTIAL QUESTIONS/CONCERNS:

The page program is only a year? What happens after the first season? This will be an asset to the show, rather than a detriment to it. Some of our favorite television series have started out in this same way. Take, for example, Grey’s Anatomy. These characters all began as interns at Seattle Grace, and while they move-up, become residents, and move from department to department, the fact that they are tied to a single physical space and their relationships keep the story (...stories) intertwined. Though the page program is only a year long, 70% of NBC pages end up with jobs in other parts of the company, and many of them remain in 30 Rock. Our main characters will find jobs within the company and we will continue to follow them as they take on new entry-level full time positions and begin their upwards climb within the company. Additionally, we will bring in new classes of pages every year. These pages will interact with our original main characters through assignments in their respective departments. That way, we will be able to build relationships with new pages via their relationships to the original five, presenting us with a cycle that will keep the show feeling fresh, but always familiar.

NBC typically caters to an older demographic. How are you going to make sure the we’re attracting the full 18-49 range? NBC has a rich history, which is part of the reason it remains connected to older demographics. By drawing in talent from other parts of the business (news--Brian Williams, sports--Bob Costas, etc.) we’ll be able to reach the audiences of NBC’s other programming as well. Additionally, the Page Program is steeped in the rich history of the companies. Frequent reference to and exploration of some of NBCU’s most historic content--film and television shows-- will draw in audiences nostalgic for golden ages of TV and film, in which NBC and Universal have played incredible roles. Finally, our pages don’t operate in silos. They’ll have every opportunity to interact with the people who keep NBCUniversal running on a daily basis. Many of our auxiliary characters will provide us with the opportunity to utilize older talent, particularly in terms of such storylines as the 90-year-old page, as well as explorations of the pages’ personal histories (families, etc.).

What sets the show apart? Never has a show melded traditional scripted television with reality TV this way. It goes a step further than the ever-popular “mock-u-mentary” by involving the reality producers into the show’s narrative. This creates ample opportunity for a kind of exploration of the state of the television industry today. Individuals within the industry will enjoy the self-reflexivity, as well as the sense of reflection on what it was like to start out in entertainment. Audiences will enjoy the

10 commentary on the number one genre of television they love to hate, but also its relatability--first jobs, frenemies, family, and the ever-threatened but ne’re forgotten pursuit of lifelong dreams.

How will it hold up against competition? Why? Our show is unlike any other show on television today--it’s a fresh and innovative take on the sitcom. The cancellation of Free Agents and Playboy Club leaves a huge gap the NBC primetime line-up. Our show, however, will help to fill that void. It isn’t news to anyone that the shows on our competing networks--New Girl, Glee, Big Bang Theory--seem to have an unshakable hold on the most desirable demographic. Bottom of the Rock will reach out to the younger audiences (those of New Girl and Glee) through its relatability, plot, and youthful cast, while appealing to the more mature audiences with a sense of nostalgia and scenarios that welcome and inform exceptional, comedic and thoughtful writing. NBC seems to be stuck on that one hit show that can market to everyone, and we believe this is that show.

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