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FX (short for Fox Extended Networks) is the name of a number of related subscription TV channels owned by News Corporation's Fox Entertainment Group. The network's most popular shows are the Emmy-nominated trio of The Shield, Nip/Tuck, and Rescue Me. Its newest hit show is The Riches starring Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver.
United StatesfX (1994-1997)Image:Originalfxlogo.gif fX logo, 1994–1997 The first fX channel was launched in the United States on June 1, 1994. Broadcasting from a large "apartment" in Manhattan, fX ushered in a new era of interactive television, but did not exist long enough to see the eventual success of such interactivity. The network centered around original programming, broadcast live every day from the "fX Apartment", and rebroadcasts of kitschy shows from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.
The network prided itself on its interactivity with viewers. fX, in 1994, was the first television network to openly embrace e-mail and the World Wide Web as methods of feedback. Most of the shows would feature instant responses to e-mailed questions, and one show (Backchat) was exclusively devoted to responding to viewer mail, whether e-mailed or mailed traditionally. Select viewers were allowed to spend a day at the "apartment" and take part in all of the network's shows. fX's viewer base was very loyal, but the budget was simply too high for the clearance the network was receiving. Ironically, the first incarnation of fX was not even available on the local cable system in New York City, where programming originated. During the time the network launched in the mid-1990s, cable systems around the United States were upgrading their infrastructures to increase channel capacity and were not regularly adding channels until these upgrades were complete. The same problem plagued Fox News Channel around its early 1996 launch. The live shows were cancelled one-by-one until only Personal fX remained. Breakfast Time was moved to the FOX network and renamed FOX After Breakfast in mid-1996. It never found a substantial audience and was cancelled less than a year later. Eventually, all live programming with the exception of Personal fX was dropped and the network focused entirely on its classic television shows until its relaunch in mid-1997. Personal fX remained on the refocused FX until May 1, 1998.
Live ProgrammingThe fX ApartmentThe fX Apartment was located on the second floor of a 3-story building leased by FX Networks that overlooked Madison Square Park in New York City. The first floor contained sales offices, and the third floor contained production offices. The second floor was home to all programming, and was made up to look like a large apartment. The apartment had several rooms. First was a large common room that contained the living room, dining room, and kitchen areas. Other rooms included a small library, a game room (complete with arcade and pinball machines) and a fully-functioning restroom. At the rear of the apartment was a large "ballroom" that served several purposes. A third-floor balcony lined the ballroom. The network's shows would often venture into Madison Square Park for some features, especially in the summer. FX's lease on the building expired on December 31, 1998. All furnishings were auctioned and the building has since been renovated. Live Programs
Some of the young talent discovered on the fX network that have moved on to larger, more successful projects include:
Selected Rebroadcasts
Before each show aired, and during commercial breaks, a "channel host" would appear and inform viewers about something upcoming within the episode. Some updates featured trivia about the current show, while some were merely observations. These can be compared to in-vision continuity announcers in Britain. fXMA spin-off network, fXM (fX Movies), was launched in 1994 and broadcast only classic movies from the 20th Century Fox catalog. It has since been renamed Fox Movie Channel. FX (1997-Present)fX was relaunched as FX: Fox Gone Cable in early 1997, targeting men aged 18 to 49. The network is known for original drama series and NASCAR programming. As of 2007, the channel was available in 90.6 million U.S. homes. During the first few years after its relaunch, FX was known for little else than airing reruns of such Fox shows as The X-Files and Married... with Children, as well as 20th Century Fox shows such as M*A*S*H and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Soon after its relaunch, the tagline "Fox Gone Cable" was dropped. Post-"Fox Gone Cable" YearsIn recent years, however, the network has emerged as a major force in original cable programming, gaining both acclaim and notoriety for edgy dramas. This began in 2002 with the release of its breakout hit, The Shield, a police drama that took viewers and critics by surprise with its extreme graphic content. This trend continued the following year with Nip/Tuck, which chronicles the world of plastic surgery, and the Denis Leary-helmed Rescue Me, about FDNY firemen and their lives. The network has often been compared to HBO[citation needed] in the sense that they, unlike many broadcast networks, are willing to take risks with their programming and push the envelope of what can be shown on television, having high, TV-MA ratings. While these shows draw attention due to their graphic content, some are also critically acclaimed for their strong storylines and characters. Capitalizing on the success of the hit documentary Super Size Me, creator Morgan Spurlock launched a new series, 30 Days, on FX in June 2005. The series puts its subjects in situations uncomfortable to them for 30 days, such as making millionaires work for minimum wage, and having Christians live in a Muslim community. In the summer of 2005, FX debuted two new comedy series, Starved, about the daily lives of four friends with eating disorders who live in New York, and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, about four people who own a bar in the titular city and somehow always wind up having comic misadventures, usually very un-PC. Both of these shows feature frank sexual dialogue and strong language, pitched as "The Dark Side of Comedy". While Starved gained low ratings and was derided by groups that sought to publicize eating disorders, being canceled after its first season, Sunny quickly became a critics' darling, consistently achieved high ratings and was picked up for a second season within days of its first season finale. An edited version of Sunny was aired by Fox for a three-episode run in the summer of 2006, in an effort to promote it on FX. In 2006, FX debuted two new series, the reality television show Black. White. and the drama Thief. FX continues to air dramatic original programming such as Dirt starring Courteney Cox and The Riches starring Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver. FX sportsFX has also aired selected NASCAR events from the NEXTEL Cup and Busch Series from February to June of each year as part of Fox's NASCAR television package. However, coverage ended after the June 30, 2006 Busch Series race at Daytona International Speedway. When NASCAR signed its new contract effective in 2007, FX was left out. However if a FOX broadcast Nextel Cup race does get rained out and is rescheduled to Monday then FX will likely take the race (This happened twice in 2006)
The channel also aired one game in the Major League Baseball postseason from 2001 to 2005, on the first Wednesday night of league championship series week when MLB schedules two games at the same time. On that night, Fox distributed one game to local affiliates based on a regional coverage map, and the other game aired on the corresponding cable affiliate of FX, the main DIRECTV or Dish Network channel, or an alternate channel on the satellite services. With a new MLB TV contract signed, again excluding FX, the last such broadcast was scheduled for October 11, 2006, but that night's NLCS game between the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets was rained out, making the Detroit Tigers-Oakland Athletics game in the ALCS a national broadcast; FX aired the movie Any Given Sunday instead. Both series were played on October 13, but Fox showed both games, with the ALCS during the day and the NLCS at night. Therefore, the Busch Series race, as mentioned above, is officially the last sports event telecast on FX, at least in the foreseeable future. (Future LCS games will be split between Fox and TBS.)
AustraliaIn 1995, fX launched in Australia, featuring classic TV series (often branded as "Golden Years of Television") including:
fXM was a nightly block of classic 20th Century Fox films, hosted by Bill Collins (often branded as "Bill Collin's Golden Years of Hollywood"). In late 1998 fX became FX, a channel aimed at women, featuring shows such as The View and Donny and Marie. In late 2000, FX was again rebranded, officially becoming "Australia's first TV channel for women". In 2004 it was renamed W as a way to make this focus more apparent. UK & IrelandIn 2004, Fox International Channels (UK) Ltd. launched an FX channel for the United Kingdom and Ireland on the Sky Digital (UK) satellite platform. The channel originally carried the ident "FX 289", referring to its Sky Digital EPG number, however, it was moved to 270 in May 2005, and dropped the 289 name. In 2005 FOX launched a two-hour timeshift channel on Sky Digital called FX+. FX (UK) is now also available on the Virgin Media cable network. Like the American channel, FX (UK) targets men, but the target ages will be those aged 25 to 44. This was the third Fox-branded channel for the UK, after Fox News and Fox Kids (later Jetix). Latin AmericaThe FX Network Latin America, launched for 22 countries, is intended almost entirely for the male audience, as a counterpart of Fox Life, created for the female viewers. ItalyFX launched a FX station in Spring of 2006 on SKY Italia satellite package and has reruns of TV shows such as CHiPs SingaporeFX was launched on StarHub Cable Vision's Channel 87, on first February 2007 at 06:00A.M. (Singapore Time). Other countriesIn autumn 2005 Fox International Channels (UK) Ltd applied for a broadcasting slot in the Swedish digital terrestrial television network for a service called "FX" [1]. This could hint a launch of the channel in Sweden or Scandinavia. When the recommendations were revealed in November 21, FX was not one of the ten recommended channels. As of November 2005, no further information has been revealed. Also in mid to late 2005, FX launched the channel "FX Brasil" in Brazil. Current Programing
Shows Airing In The Future
Formerly Broadcast
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