What is this?

You probably came to this site for one of two reasons:

1) You heard about the upcoming release of the super-controversial and sexually risque new TV show called The Harry Situation, and wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

2) You read about some of the legal proceedings regarding the show, the cast, and the sponsor - and you're the kind of person who can't resist watching a trainwreck.

So first: is this site going to be exactly what you expected? No.



Will you still get to see the controversial show, backstage footage, interviews, AND get a front row seat for the trainwreck? Yes. You're damn right you will.

It just might come in a different package than you imagined. Whether the network and the sponsor like it or not, I own this URL, and I plan on telling the story my way.

So who am I? A former nice guy, and college professor named Todd Gruyere. I am also the accidental creator of The Harry Situation - the magical mystical minefield of misogyny that helped me lose my career, my family, my dignity; and earlier today, my attorneys, who strongly advised me not to publish this blog.

Screw them too.

So why am I so angry? Because my wife and I actually wrote a great show. The show was funny, smart, and took three hard years to write. It was going to air on the most critically credible cable network ever to air boxing and a mob show. Then this "prestigious" network backed out on all of their promises and unceremoniously dropped the show. They subsequently pawned it off on a low rent three-letter broadcast network named after an animal, which in turn secured a sponsor and proceeded to "develop" my show into something I can't even recognize as my own. It went from being a sex comedy for blue-state big brains into...well...ugh.

Judge for yourself. Here's the intro to their show. Ok, so it's kind of funny, or cute" as they say in the suburbs and the flyover states. But smart? No.



Originally, my wife and I wrote a very funny and smart show about a complicated character in the midst of a realistic and overwhelming sexual awakening.

So who the hell would ever want to change it into a show about a one-dimensional 'loser' who finally gets laid because he starts using hair gel?

Certainly not our sponsor. Especially since they agreed not to interfere with any creative decisions. They swore they would never insert their product into the show (or me).

So how did it come to this:







Can you believe it? From High Art to Hair Glue and Hooters. This was going to be the highlight of my professional career. But instead of doing something I believed in, I ended up creating the exact thing I was trying to avoid: an 'edgy' * comedy filled with sex jokes and tight bodies that would somehow score through the roof with 18-24 year old boys:

*Edgy is the mysterious, dark opposite of the word "cute" in the magical world of suburban crackers.



That's right - this thing could be a huge hit! It is also a huge leap backward for humanity. But the coveted 'target audience'? They love it. They laugh. Everyone who has seen this thing laughs. That this might end up being a successful show is a painful truth that I'll have to struggle with for the rest of my pathetic life.

The filming of this show undid my marriage, and left a wake of destruction and litigation that will not be settled for years to come.

You may have heard rumors, and think you know what happened. But you don't. Come with me, I'll be your cruise director on this boat trip through HELL.

And I was one of the lucky ones. My soul was crushed. Others barely escaped with their lives.



Ouch! More on that later. Whatever you've heard, though, the key phrase from me is: NOT GUILTY.

So put on your seatbelt. In the next 10 weeks you will see the story of The Harry Situation from its grand beginnings through to its miserable, agonizing, ongoing death.

Why 10 weeks? Because that will fulfill the remainder of my contract:



For the next 10 weeks, I plan to give you something much better than a vapid, offensive television program.

I will take you on a journey where a family man and humble artist is slowly and painfully corrupted by promises of fame and fortune - a simple trip where good intentions, nice people, and a great idea are ruined by Hollywood attorneys, advertising leeches, and New York shampoo shills. You will see a man, who formerly advocated concepts such as creative integrity and artistic vision, reduced to parroting advertising industry idiotisms like 'branded content' and 'product placement'. YES!

This has been the absolute worst experience of my life; I am financially broke and psychologically broken. But whaddayoucare? You were promised a comedy.

So enjoy the show.

And don't forget: This is all brought to by Garnier Fructis Style Bold It! Endurance Gel and Power Putty. (I didn't make up those names. They did.)

AND FINALLY AS FOR ME, TODD GRUYERE…

March 12th, 2008

I just sold the rights to this blog to a very reputable foreign producer for over one hundred rupee.

This Blog will soon be a hit musical! Bollywood, here I come!!

With its new international following, perhaps The Harry Situation has a good chance of being picked up for a back nine? If it went a full 22 episodes, then I would make enough money to satisfy all the exciting judgments againstme, and still have enough left over for a fantasy vacation in the tropics.

Oh, and one last thing…

I have a brilliant idea for a cutting edge graphically sexual documentary following the exploits of a failed television writer who is trying to pick up the pieces of his broken life and move on. It’ll need a huge budget because every episode ends with a decadent party complete with ice sculptures that pee vodka and naked dancing girls who parachute into an Olympic-sized Jacuzzi.

I would star.

And I’m looking for a sponsor. Since I’m a reasonable person, I’m not ruling out any reasonable offers.

Harry: Found

March 10th, 2008

I was shocked this morning when a loyal reader emailed me a link to a video.

Thank you. I believe this video may provide a hint as to where Harry Johnson is. If you have any further information, please let me know (MyBestFriendTodd@gmail.com).

Harry, that nudesuit is technically owned by the production. Please retrieve it from the police and send it to me so I can sell it.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

March 7th, 2008

With this post, I hereby fulfill my obligation to create content for distribution as described in my contract.

I’ve also fulfilled my desire to speak truth to power, and to get revenge on all of you who have turned me from this:

Before The Harry Situation…

to this:

After The Harry Situation…

I’ve told you about how I was going to make art on television, and how Garnier Fructis stepped in to ’save us’ by making my show into a commercial for Bold It!.

I’ve shared the secrets my success at being in a dying marriage:

…And the affair that broke its back:

I told you about poor Harry Johnson, and how he expected to be naked with Dawn Spangler, but was instead naked with Officer Friendly.

I told you about the one of a kind Dawn Spangler and her need for attention.

I told you of Carrie Harrison, the simple local girl who went from PA to lead actress when a light fixture mysteriously fell on the actress I was having an affair with.

Now that some time has passed, I’m starting to gain some perspective on the whole thing. And a lot of you have emailed questions. I’m going to ignore them all. Except the most pressing question:

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Carrie can’t get cast in anything because she’s awaiting a Grand Jury investigation into her role in Teri’s attempted murder.

Dawn has been cast as the lead in another pilot called, “Barbra Q.” (I hear they’re having problems).

Floyd Bellman is alive and well, and living in Paris.

He has been working with the French Government on a very sexy calendar highlighting the problems of alcohol abuse.

Nancy is dating the props guy from the show. Way to rebound, gorgeous.

And Garnier Fructis Style Bold It! Endurance Gel and Power Putty are now flying off the shelves at your local whatever.

If anyone knows the whereabouts of Harry Johnson. Please let me know (mybestfriendTodd@gmail.com). Or don’t. I don’t really care anymore. It’s just that my readers deserve closure.