Soccer Mom, Meet Nascar Dad

TO: Stephanie Smythe-Klein,
Programming Director, Lifetime
Biff Clancy, Programming
Director, ESPN

RE: Soccer Moms/ NASCAR Dads

As both of you know, the 2004 election "buzz" is all about that coveted demographic political strategists call NASCAR Dads—as sure as the last election was focused on winning the hearts and minds of Soccer Moms. This not only provides a unique opportunity for a "now" sitcom, but also one that could be run on both of your networks. It could even be listed under different names to attract your different audiences: Soccer Mom for your gal viewers, Steph; NASCAR Dad for your guys' eyeballs, Biff. In either case, if s a perfect way to get "down," using sports in a broad context that will bring lotsa laughs and, yes, some deep thoughts about our modern society, too, as these two (supposedly) opposite American types come together. It's The Brady Bunch meets The Odd Couple. Or, for our "oldsters" out there, an updated sports version of Abie's Irish Rose.

SUGGESTED LEADS: Gwyneth Paltrow and John Goodman

FALLBACK CASTING: Kelly Ripa and Howie Long

BACK STORY: Both Kimberly, our Soccer Mom, and Dusty, our NASCAR Dad, have lost their spouses. (We'll handle this tastefully with flashbacks in the first episode.) Kimberly's late husband was beaten to death by angry college wrestlers at a pro-Title LX rally, while Dusty's better half was, tragically, mistaken for a target at an NRA gun fair. The grieving widow and widower meet at that one place in American society where all our different types come together: a Dead concert. There, under a large photo of Jerry Garcia, as Bob Weir and Phil Lesh play Ripple, Kimberly and Dusty—wearing identical tie-dyes—spot each other and fall in love. Can a Soccer Mom and NASCAR Dad really make a "go" of it? As they say: "Stay tuned!"

Both Kimberly and Dusty have adorable 13-year-old daughters, Sarah and Brittany, respectively, and two mischievous (but also adorable) 11-year-old sons, Michael and DJ (for Dusty Junior). Imagine the "high jinks" when Kimberly and Dusty marry and the children have to get along as the new Ail-American family settles into their suburban home somewhere in mid- America.

SAMPLE EPISODES:

?Dusty takes Kimberly to her first NASCAR race. She is disturbed when fans scream, "Show us your t—!" but later Kimberly meets a brain surgeon, a nuclear physicist and a ballet dancer, all of whom are devoted NASCAR fans. This gets Kimberly thinking. Back home, Dusty goes to an office bachelor party. The next day, when Kimberly makes him go to Sarah's soccer game, guess who he sees there? Yes—one of the lap dancers from the party! She is a Soccer Mom, too. In the final scene Kimberly and Dusty talk to the children about these revelations, illustrating how we should not stereotype sports, that in America fans come from "all walks of life."

?Kimberly is thrilled that Dusty, Michael and DJ all agree to go see the women's tennis tournament when it comes to town. She gets furious, though, when she discovers that the males in the family only wanted to see Anna Kournikova. Kimberly's ire turns to chagrin, however, when she finds a Chippendales' calendar hidden in the girls' room. Everybody in the family enjoys a big laugh.