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What's in a name?

May 12, 2010 ι Jarett Wieselman

Anyone who has watched "Cougar Town" from the beginning would tell you that its initial focus -- the sex-ploits of a 40-something divorcee -- has given way in recent months to a much more enjoyable premise: the trials and tribulations of an increasingly ridiculous group of friends.

And now the Courtney Cox-led ensemble is toying with a title swap that would reflect this thematic shift. "I have never been on a show that changed so much creatively so quickly," creator Bill Lawrence tells HitFix.com. He then goes on to break down the three reasons ABC is also behind the re-titling:

1. "Partly as a result of common sense and partly from their research, they find too many instances of people saying they would never watch a show called 'Cougar Town' -- 'I don't want to see some show about a 40-year-old woman nailing younger guys' - and then they screen an episode, and people go, 'Oh, I would watch this show.'

2. You would be hard-pressed to watch the last three episodes of the show and ask anyone for titles - I doubt anyone would say 'Cougar Town.'

3. "In a world where ABC [is] looking to promote 'Modern Family' and capitalize on it to promote all their new shows next fall, anything you can do to create some kind of dialogue about your existing show is smart and savvy."

He's absolutely right on all accounts. I always believed the title was behind the judgemental look I received after telling friends, "you gotta watch this show, more often than not, it's funnier than 'Modern Family."

See, right there, you just judged me for saying that.

Has the title kept you from 'Cougar Town?'

Photo: ABC

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