CBS Paramount can't escape Fugitive burn

FROM VARIETY: Music of classic TV series removed for DVD

By John Burlingame of Variety -- Video Business, 6/24/2008

JUNE 24 | FROM VARIETY: CBS Paramount has gotten a taste of what can happen when you tinker with a classic TV series on DVD -- and, in the process, has put a new spin on the question of releasing old projects in new media.

This month's DVD release of the second season of David Janssen's 1960s skein The Fugitive caused a firestorm when fans of the show and many in the music industry discovered that the entire underscore had been replaced -- not just a song here or there (not uncommon in shows where music licensing is a factor) but all of the dramatic music. Only composer Pete Rugolo's title theme remained, and only under the main and end credits.

DVD releases of song-heavy shows like WKRP in Cincinnati and Northern Exposure saw the replacement of many tunes, but the Fugitive case appears to be the first instance of so-called background music being dumped wholesale.

Read the full story on Variety.com.

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