Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Fresh Chuck Of Bel-Air


People love a good rags to riches story. From Little Orphan Annie to Different Strokes, and all the Brewster's Millions in between, people love hearing about a downtrodden ragamuffins suddenly being lifted out of the gutter and put on a pedestal. Pretty Woman, King Ralph, Cinderella, and the list goes on.

Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air was a rags to riches story, and a huge hit show, and when Will Smith went back to the well with Pursuit of Happyness, it was an even bigger hit.

I feel like I am beating a dead horse, but I want to make sure we are all on the same page. You get it, right?

Here is the idea. Fresh Chuck Of Bel-Air: a reality show about me being adopted by a super rich family and going to live with them in their mansion, being taught how to be rich etc.





I know what you are thinking, "Chuck, you are a grown ass man. You look like you are homeless. You probably have bad breath. Why would anyone want to adopt you?"

First of all, I don't have bad breath. My oral hygiene is impeccable. Second of all, being a grown ass man has nothing to do with it. People love to see people of all ages stumble into fame and fortune. Third of all, me looking like a homeless person can only help make this show a hit. Just look at My Fair Lady, and don't be so careless as to forget Down And Out In Beverly Hills.

Still not convinced?

Really? Why not?

What you talkin' 'bout Willis?!

Fine! I'll try EVEN harder to see the stars from the gutter.


Look. Almost all reality shows center around this concept already. American Idol, The Apprentice (before they started hiring celebrities), Project Runway, Jersey Shore, all these shows are about getting plucked out of obscurity and being placed on a pedestal and or getting punched in the face. You know what I am saying.

Fresh Chuck Of Bel-Air would be Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air meets Down And Out In Beverly Hills meets Strangers With Candy. I wasn't a teen runaway and I have never really done hard drugs, but it would be funny like that, the part about me being adopted.

Take this show idea and run with it. Find me a rich family, and make it a big hit! Don't forget to give me some of the money you make off of me. I know I will be part of a rich family by then, but they will probably appreciate me pulling my weight none the less.

P.S. Subscribing to Ideas By Chuck has not, not been proven to cure blindness. Subscribe now HERE.

P.S.S. Dear Kardashian Family, this is your chance to have yet another TV show. Don't pass it up!

P.S.S.S. I am on Twitter... yes... still. @ideasbychuck

P.S.S.S.S. Feel free to tell your friend's mom about my blog. I know she might not be a big internet user, but if she has a computer and can get on the internet at all, she can probably figure out how to subscribe to my blog. Maybe you could help her out. Think about it.

Monday, July 12, 2010

Robot Wars 2.0: LEAGUE NET

Do you remember Robot Wars? Do you remember Gyromite? Do you like video games? Do you know anything about the Predator Drone? Have you read Ender's Game? If you answered yes to all of these questions, you might already have an idea as to where I am going with this. If you answered no to all of these questions, you might not be interested in this idea at all. Stop reading!

Are you still there? Fine... I'll try to recap and explain everything, so that you will see that this idea is not only brilliant and doable, but every part has been done before. What I am telling you is that this idea... this idea is kind of like putting peanut butter and chocolate together.

Robot Wars was created by George Lucas henchman, Marc Thorpe and basically consisted of moderately crappy remote control robots with pick axes and circular saws going at each other in an arena full of obstacles designed to make the battles more interesting. They turned the live event into a TV show. If you never saw it, imagine a crappy RC robot version of the movie Gladiator. It was fairly entertaining, but the cool factor wore off pretty quickly. The fact that these robots were being made in people's garages and the basements of college science buildings was part of the appeal, but also part of the downfall. Okay it's a remote controlled shop vacuum. Big deal. Furthermore, if my memory is at all accurate, the crappiest, simplest, and most boring robots always seemed to win.


Speaking of crappy robots, Gyromite was one of two crappy Nintendo games designed to be played with a crappy robot named ROB. You had to guide the crappy robot through tasks using your Nintendo controller. Like I said, the game was crappy, but the concept of controlling a robot with your video game system is key to this idea.

Remote controlling robots has been taken to the next level with devices like the Predator Drone, unmanned, remote control aircraft that the U.S. Military has been using for several years now to spy on and take out our enemies. These drones are controlled by soldiers sitting behind desks, nice and safe back at the base, just like the kids in Ender's Game, a sci-fi book series about kids in the future remote controlling fighter ships to destroy an alien race.

Man, that was a lot of nerd to unleash on you... Are you okay? Can you go on? Should we rest?

Did you catch any World Cup games? Me neither. I don't have cable, and I couldn't seem to get up early enough... Oh you want to keep going? Okay.





So, here is the idea: Team up with one of the big video game system companies, like Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft to create a video game called Robot Wars 2.0: League Net - a robot fighting game that could be played online like so many other games these days. Sony would probably be best company to team up with, because the robots in the game need to simulations of real robots. Yeah, the robots in the game would be exactly like real life robots. You see where this is going?

I'm sure that with the backing of the Sony robotics division, you can come up with some better robots than the rest of us Homer Simpsons in our garages. These robots need to be cool and customizable- different weapons, colors, decals, wheels, etc.

Players will battle it out online every week in the virtual world with their customized robots, winning points, buying add ons, repairing damages, and having fun. At the end of the week, the players with the highest scores get a chance to battle it out live on TV (maybe G4 Network would be a good fit), controlling real life versions of their robots, right down to the decals. This would be a full on event with sponsors and prizes, but the contestants would control their robots right from their living rooms, using their familiar video game system controllers just like in the virtual world.

What have I just handed you? A hit video game and a hit TV show with a built in audience and out of control marketing and licensing opportunities. I didn't even say anything about possible government funding... Yeah... you heard me. Think about it... Plus, once you have this under your belt, and robotics advances just a little further, you will be perfectly positioned to bring the world the Robot Pillow Fighting League.

Please, please, please, when this makes you the richest person in the world, can you please remember to give me enough money to make me like the 1000th richest person in the world? Please. I promise not to park my yacht in your spot.

P.S. Subscribing to Ideas By Chuck has been called a good idea in its self. Click here.

P.P.S. I still need a job. Most companies seem to have a hard time believing that I am smart.

P.P.P.S. I am on Twitter. @ideasbychuck

P.P.P.P.S. If you know anyone that might want to hire me, send them here.