So 'Joe Millionaire' Is Fox's Biggest Hit. It always seems so shocking that the Fox Network is able to pull out wins, even almost 20 years of existence. The Married with Children reunion made me realize that I've grown up seeing Fox evolve. It was wild and crazy in the early days, with A Current Affair and Tracey Ullman Show and Married with Children. And it was shocking when Fox decided to pit The Simpsons against NBC's Cosby Show on Thursdays at 8PM - everyone thought The Simpsons would die, but it was actually a brilliant counter-programming move, people were reminded of when CBS decided to move Survivor opposite Friends. What it did was bring more viewers to network viewing overall, with less cannibalization than thought, and forced the shows' creators to make their shows smarter. That strange mix of gutsiness, moxie, and smarts are why Fox is the quintessential challenger brand. Sure, they have Celebrity Boxing but they also have 24. The show that followed The Cosby Show on Thursday was Family Ties. That wily media mogul Barry Diller was the one who led Fox in the early days. Barry's other innovation: basically inventing the movie of the week concept while at ABC.

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