Lookwell
Lookwell was a television pilot written and produced by Conan O'Brien and Robert Smigel, the latter of whom would become a primary creative voice for O'Brien's late night show. It starred Adam West. Despite being a "personal favorite" of NBC chairman Brandon Tartikoff (who had left that position by the time the pilot aired and was replaced by Warren Littlefield), the pilot was not picked up as a series. It was broadcast on NBC on July 28, 1991, in a summer weekend timeslot reserved for burning off pilots which the network had passed on. The pilot has since  become a cult classic. Plot. A washed-up TV action hero—who at the peak of his career was ceremonially deputized by local law enforcement—falsely believes he can solve crimes in real life. His student Jason (played by Todd Field) becomes his sidekick. Production. Development. The pilot was filmed as a single-camera comedy, which was uncommon for the time it was being developed. Writer Robert Smigel later expressed doubt that the project could sustain itself as a full-fledged television series, questioning if "viewers would really want to view that every week? I'm not so sure they  would have." Smigel recollects main star Adam West being enthusiastic for the role, despite poking fun at his acting style: Initial reception. The pilot was scrapped, despite NBC chairman Brandon Tartikoff taking interest in developing the pilot. O'Brien jokingly stated that when the pilot aired, it "was the second-lowest rated television show of all time. It’s tied with a test pattern they show in Nova Scotia." Nielsen rated it 92nd out of 92 shows (2.3 million homes) for the week July 22–28. Smigel expressed his opinion on pitching for television in an interview with "The A.V. Club", in  that a "pitfall that you always face when you do any project for television, or in movies ... [is that] if it takes any amount of time to develop, there's a good chance that the person who put it in motion is going to get fired, or quit, and the next person isn't going to want to do it." West expressed disappointment with the network's decision, and would bring up resurrecting the pilot over the years. In an interview with "Seattle Post-Intelligencer", West said that he has done "like 12 pilots, and "Lookwell" is really my favorite  ... It’s the funniest pilot that never got sold." Cult status. The episode has been described as having an "underground following" over the years, and was popular on eBay for a time before being made available as a video file, due in part to the resurgence of cult popularity for Adam West. The version in general circulation on the Internet is not the original as-aired episode. It comes from a later showing on Trio (a cable station) which, for unknown reasons, has a few cuts and a few alternate jokes/takes inserted. One major difference may be due to  music rights issues. A version of the original episode as aired on NBC was known to be circulated by tape traders. However, due to the age, high-quality copies are difficult to find. Comedian Bill Maher has also expressed how much he liked "Lookwell". According to "The A.V. Club", ""Lookwell" has since earned a reputation in comedy circles as one of the all-time great failed pilots, a brilliant premise too damn weird to ever make it to series." Live screenings. Smigel's preferred version of "Lookwell" (with Adam West busting through the police tape at the beginning) has also  screened at The Other Network, a festival of un-aired TV pilots, featuring live and taped intros by Smigel and an extended interview with O'Brien, produced by Un-Cabaret.