Fox's medical marvel stays on top: 'House' reaches its 100th episode

By Diane Werts,Variety
January 29,2009

Imagine a blend of TV heroes Dr. Kildare, Ironside and Gil Grissom. Now throw in Monty Python and Mick Jagger.

"You can't always get what you want," runs the Rolling Stones riff heard in the pilot of "House," but in this mad mix of a medical mystery series, Fox executives got more than they needed or even dreamed. One hundred episodes later, "House" remains a network mainstay.

"This is one of our crown jewels," says Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly. "It's the fall linchpin that I'm building the schedule around" until "American Idol" relaunches each winter.

Not only did "House" finish the 2007-08 season as one of primetime's most-watched dramas, but its ascendance since its November 2004 debut sped Fox's evolution from insurgent youth to steady maturity.

"'House,' along with '24,' really established (Fox Broadcasting Co.) as a place for high-quality dramas," says Peter Liguori, who rose alongside "House" from his position as programming president 2004-2007 to Fox Entertainment chairman. "It allowed us to become a home for the creative community to come to for episodic character-driven shows."

And all Fox wanted back in 2004 was a reliable procedural, recalls series creator and executive producer David Shore.

Fox's medical marvel stays on top