A Youthful Means to Lynch Success

TV writer-producer Tom Lynch walked through the chic suburban living room set of his new series “100 Deeds of Eddie McDowd” talking up his talking dog.

“It’s a commentary on good and bad,” Lynch said of the show about a neighborhood bully morphed into a canine who must perform the requisite toll of good turns before regaining human form. “Eddie’s a bad kid who’s not too sure what good is.”

The dog’s no joke to Lynch and his partner-brother John.

The Lynches are poised to become the No. 1 supplier of live-action programming for cable network Nickelodeon by telling wacko stories ideally suited for the pre-pubescent mind. Last year Santa Monica-based Lynch Entertainment grossed $50 million churning out about 90 episodes for four series. And as Hollywood producers sweat out network orders this week, Lynch is sitting pretty with two series renewed and two more likely to be re-upped.

With Tom, 44, writing shows and John, 41, making deals, the company is quickly building a TV empire.

“Tommy is prolific,” said Nickelodeon film and TV President Albie Hecht. “I’ve never had a meeting with Tommy where he has not pitched me a new idea and a great one. He’s usually standing on a table while doing it. Last time he was here he got a movie development deal, a TV movie and a pilot.”

“Eddie McDowd” debuted in October on Nickelodeon and draws an average of 1.4 million viewers ages 2 to 11. Lynch’s other new show scored even higher for Nick. “Caitlin’s Way” (a big-city delinquent is replanted in Montana), bowed last month, and now is reaching an average of 1.9 million kids.

That compares well with perennial kids-demo prime-time series leader “The Simpsons,” which this season is averaging 2.2 million kid viewers on Fox. And that network reaches a third more households.

The Lynches are branching out. On Disney Channel, they have a first-year series, “The Jersey” (kids turn into sports heroes by donning an enchanted football shirt). On Discovery Channel, they are launching “Kendall’s Safari” (a teenager inherits an African game preserve).

The Lynch formula is simple: Give the old-fashioned morality tales that parents love a hip sensibility that kids can’t resist. “Tommy can project himself into the head space of a 14-year-old pretty quickly,” said Disney Channel Executive Vice President Gary Marsh.

“All the ideas [for our shows] are pieces of my life,” recalled Lynch, who grew up with seven brothers and sisters in the West Hollywood household of a nuclear scientist. “I was a troubled kid.”

“Caitlin” broke ground as Nick’s first dramatic series. Network executives held their breath until it debuted to an audience of 3.1 million 2- to 11-year-old viewers, making it the highest rated series premiere in Nickelodeon history.

“Caitlin is dealing with issues like peer pressure and fitting in that kids want to see reflected on the air. She struck a real chord,” Hecht said. “I don’t think in any other hands it would have worked.”

The Lynches’ Nickelodeon breakthrough came six years ago with “The Secret World of Alex Mack” (a girl’s encounter with toxic waste gives her mysterious powers). With a million viewers, the reruns still win the time period against all cable and broadcast competitors among kids 2 to 11. Another early Lynch hit, “Journey of Allen Strange” (a teenage space alien is stranded in suburbia) is in its third season.

A variety of relationships finances each show. “The Jersey” is produced for a fee and owned by Disney. Nickelodeon owns “Allen Strange.” “Alex Mack” is a co-production of Lynch, Hallmark and Nick.

To launch “Eddie” and “Caitlin,” the Lynches partnered with Toronto-based Fireworks Entertainment. Nickelodeon advanced less than half of the $400,000-per-episode production cost. The partners make up the difference with foreign pre-sales.

“The genius of Lynch Entertainment is their flexibility,” said Disney Channel’s Marsh. “What John and Tom can do is be malleable for whomever their partner is.”

A key to keeping costs down has been moving production to Canada, said John Lynch, who believes “Caitlin” budgets would soar to $600,000 per episode if they were made in Hollywood. Higher costs are part of the reason. The big savings, however, is a 20% Canadian government-financed subsidy.

Back on the set, Tom Lynch watched as the lead character in “Eddie McDowd,” Rowdy, an Australian shepherd, waited for a hot dog after filming. It wasn’t easy, Lynch said straight-faced, to find a dog that didn’t act like a dog.