Whenever people are looking for the latest opinion on what is going on in college football and the SEC, in particular, they turn to Paul Finebaum and The Paul Finebaum Show. Before COVID-19 happened, his life almost turned into a sitcom for ABC.
Finebaum was a guest on The Tony Kornheiser Show on Monday, and he talked about how recording his show at Tony Kornheiser’s restaurant three years ago led to the opportunity.
“I was able to be at your restaurant and do the show live,” Finebaum told Kornheiser. “A month later, I get a call. A producer in Hollywood heard the podcast, he called another guy. Two years later, this thing goes into motion and it’s developed as a sitcom. It is sold to ABC.”
Jason Biggs, who is famous for starring in American Pie and for a supporting role in Netflix’s hit Orange is the New Black, was set to star as Finebaum.
“Then COVID happened,” said Finebaum to explain why the show is yet to see the light of day. “It was all because of that one morning. The guy heard me on The Tony Kornheiser Show. Whether it ever happens or not, it’s up in the air, but if I am standing up there in Hollywood one day holding an Emmy, I’ll pay homage to you.”
Kornheiser knows first-hand about shepherding a fictionalized life version of your own life to television. His columns were the basis for Listen Up, which aired on CBS in May 2005 and lasted for 22 episodes. Seinfeld’s Jason Alexander played the character based on Kornheiser.
Should Finebaum’s life ever be a sitcom, it would be interesting to see how it would rate and how his dedicated listeners and callers of his radio show that is simulcasted on the SEC Network would be represented.
