Stack
Nick at Nite is kicking its scripted business into high gear.
Nighttime net has greenlit production on the series pilot "Tim Stack's Family Vacation," a comedy starring writer-actor Timothy Stack as the patriarch of an RV-bound family going on a cross-country road trip.
Half-hour is the second to emerge at Nick at Nite, which last partnered with "Seinfeld" scribe Carol Leifer on the original sitcom pilot "Darlene Westgor" (
Daily Variety, April 19), a "Roseanne"-style laffer still up for contention at the cabler.
Nick at Nite/TV Land exec VP of programming Keith Cox, who jumped from the WB to the Viacom cablers in May, said the show falls square into Nick at Nite's development mantra: fun, family-friendly and familiar.
Stack is known for more grown-up fare -- he exec produced and starred in the FX laffer "Son of the Beach" -- but Cox said "Family Vacation" will appeal to families.
"The essence of the show is 'National Lampoon's Family Vacation,' " Cox said. Stack and fellow "Son of the Beach" producer David Morgasen will exec produce with reality vet George Verschoor ("Nashville Star").
Like successful cable comedies "Reno 911!" and "Lovespring Intl.," Stack's series will be both partially scripted and improvised.
"Everyone is trying for different takes at comedy, and this is a strong concept," said Cox, who noted that the hybrid format is one of several elements Nick at Nite will be testing in the half-hour space. "What sold us on the show and what we love about Tim is that he's a gifted comedic actor as well as an accomplished writer."
Stack is a consulting producer on NBC's "My Name Is Earl."
Shooting on "Family Vacation" is set to begin next month.
Should the project receive a series commitment, it will likely bow Tuesdays at 9, where Nick at Nite has bowed its previous original efforts, including animated series "Fatherhood" and hidden-camera show "Hi-Jinks."
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