Black Writers Sell Reality Show Concept on eBay
Date: Tuesday, January 20, 2004
Author: Sherrel Wheeler Stewart
“Fear Factor,” “Survivor,” “The Apprentice.” All of those reality shows are drawing huge television audiences. Now two black writers are looking to join the growing list of creators of reality hits with a new show called “Heist.”
Lawrence Ross, author of “The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities,” and his partner, Andre Gaines, an advertising copywriter, aren’t taking the traditional route however. On Monday, they began marketing their idea on eBay, in hopes of getting a producer who will buy it and take to the tube.
The show will be posted on the Internet site for 10 days.
Though eBay sells and auctions everything from rare coins to expensive sports cars, a listing for a reality show concept is sure to stand out among the usual fare.
“We tried the usual approach, then decided to think outside the box,” Ross told BlackAmericaWeb.com. “And we're just arrogant enough to believe that this will work.”
Ross, 37, has made a name for himself as an author, selling almost 100,000 copies of "The Divine Nine." And his latest book, “The Ways of Black Folk: A Year in the Life of a People” has been getting strong reviews.
Ross and Gaines, 24, tried to pitch their show idea to producers of already successful reality shows and came up empty. Ross said the producers of “Fear Factor” showed some initial interest, but decided to pass on it.
"Our idea is better than the reality shows we see out there right now," said Ross. They’ve set up a Web site at
www.heisttv.com to give a sneak preview of the action and concept of the show, which they say combines the excitement of video games with the strategy of “capture the flag.”
Here’s the gist of it.
A large amount of money from a bank robbery is hidden in an abandoned building. Three teams of contestants armed with paintball guns have to battle each other, overcome obstacles and meet challenges to find the money. There will even be some celebrity villains attempting to thwart the progress of the contestants.
While the concept will be listed on eBay, Ross and Gaines still will have to provide the complete information so potential buyers will know how to finalize it for television.
Calls to eBay were not returned, but Ross and Gaines believe that this is the first time a concept for a television show has been auctioned on the site.
By putting it out for bid on eBay, Ross said he and Gaines can expand their potential for attracting producers. “What’s to say that an English or Dutch producer might not see it and decide to try it?” said Ross, a University of California at Berkeley graduate. “The Heist is not a black show, and it’s not a white show,” explained Gaines. "We did not want a race-specific show."
The writing team has developed other projects, Ross said. “We have mix of shows that are reality-based, African-American and a variety of other genres,” he said.
The two are looking to get more opportunities for writing shows in a Hollywood that is dominated by other races. "In Hollywood it’s easy to get pigeonholed into one niche,” said Ross. “We don’t want to do that."
"If you are known to write shows about white people in New York, when producers have a need for writers of those shows, they will go with who they know. We want to be known as writers who can do a variety of work."
Ross and Gaines had their sights set on becoming writers, and when they met a few months ago, they learned that they could blend their talents and come up with good ideas.
They are both members of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. When Gaines was pledging Alpha at Northwestern University where he studied journalism, he was required to read Ross’ book.
Later, when he moved to California, he saw a message on an Alpha e-mail discussion group inviting fraternity brothers who were away from their homes for Thanksgiving to share the holiday with Ross and his family.
Gaines responded and the two clicked. They discovered they both had ideas about television shows and last summer began working on “Heist.”