Last week during what the television industry refers to as The Upfronts, the major broadcast networks announced which series were being picked up for the fall schedule. Of the shows ordered to pilot earlier this year, only six included significant gay content. Of those six, the fall schedule will include only three, none of them in any way ground breaking. In addition, the end of Will & Grace, which also happened to be during Upfront Week, also marked the end of any leading gay characters on network TV.

The best of the freshman shows is likely to be ABC's one-hour drama Brothers and Sisters with Jonathan LaPaglia (The District) playing the openly gay Bryan March. LaPaglia plays a US District attorney as well as a father, not exactly the stereotypical gay man seen on television. Created and written by the openly gay Jon Robin Baitz (The Substance of Fire), it seems probable that LaPaglia's character will be multidimensional and non-stereotypical.

On the downside, the cast of Brothers and Sisters is quite large and includes Calista Flockheart (Ally McBeal), Rachel Griffiths (Six Feet Under), Balthazar Getty (Alias), and Ron Rifkin (Alias). It's easy to see how the character of Bryan could get lost in the background.

CBS picked up The Class which offers both promise and peril with its two gay characters. Sean Maguire (Eve) plays Kyle, a twenty-something reunited with a group of classmates he last saw in the third grade. The casting of Maguire with his leading man looks as an openly gay man suggests his character won't be stereotypically gay. Indeed, the pilot script presented a relatively nuanced and refreshing character. Alas, the supporting character of Perry Pearl as a closeted, married gay man with “ fabulous” tastes appears to be another throwback. The name alone induces groans. On the plus side, the openly gay Sam Harris (In the Weeds) plays Perry. Hopefully, Harris will lend some dignity to the character.

The final show offers the least promise of all. ABC's Help Me Help You is a “wacky” sitcom starring the ubiquitous Ted Danson (Becker). Here the gay character is another closeted gay married man who is the only one who doesn't know he is gay. The pilot script portrayed him as fussy, uptight, and every other gay cliché imaginable, all wrapped up in a pink J. Crew blazer. One can only hope that Jim Rash (That 70's Show) will be able to salvage something from the role.

The biggest shock coming from last week's upfronts was the show that wasn't picked up: Elton John's Him and Us. Starring Anthony Stewart Head (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Kim Cattrall (Sex and the City), Him had generated a great deal of buzz. Loosely based on Elton John's life, the sitcom centered on an ageing openly gay rock star (Head) and his devoted inner circle. With the involvement of Cindy Chupack (Sex and the City) as executive producer and head writer along with David Edelstein (Desperate Housewives) Him seemed like a sure thing for pick-up. So far there has been no word on what caused the show's failure.

During the network 2005/2006 television season, there were fifteen reoccurring gay male characters on scripted broadcast television. That number presented a marked improvement after years of steady decline. However, unless something changes between now and next fall, that number will again plunge dramatically to only eight, and that is being generous with the definition of what constitutes a gay role. That total includes minor characters such as Kenny on My Name is Earl and Oscar on The Office. To put it in perspective, Kenny appeared as a supporting role in three episodes of Earl—not exactly high profile.

After a high of thirteen gay characters during the 1996/1997 season, the number of gay roles steadily declined to as few as seven during 2004/2005. Even last season's number of fifteen roles is misleading given the number of shows canceled after airing as few as a single episode. Among last season's quick casualties were Emily's Reasons Why Not, Love Monkey, The Book of Daniel, and Crumbs. With the loss of the gay characters on the now canceled Will & Grace, Half and Half, Twins, Inconceivable, Kitchen Confidential, and Commander in Chief things are looking bleak indeed.

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