LOS ANGELES, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- HBO has begun pitching "The Sopranos" for rerun on basic cable, with a price tag of $1.8 million per episode, Daily Variety said Monday.
The paper said A&E, FX, Lifetime, Spike, TNT and USA are among cable channels expected to show the most interest in bidding for rights to air the show in syndication. Although no one at HBO or any of the potential suitors for "The Sopranos" was speaking for the record, Variety said HBO is offering all 78 episodes of the show for availability in fall 2006.
Just as it did with the long-running comedy "Sex and the City," HBO has prepared a somewhat sanitized version of the crime family drama -- which has featured graphic violence, nudity and foul language in its five-year run. Producers are currently writing scripts for the show's sixth and final season on HBO.
Variety said "The Sopranos" could become the highest-priced off-network hour in TV history. The current record-holder is "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" -- with Bravo and USA combining to pay $1.92 million per episode for reruns of the hit NBC drama.
