Steve Israel: Coming Soon to Cable TV

By Jason Dick

Posted February 10, 2015 at 2:08pm

It’s too soon to tell whether Rep. Steve Israel will be successful in his role coordinating House Democrats’ messaging . But one that is certain is the New York Democrat’s novel-writing skills continue to pay dividends.

Late last year, Israel’s “The Global War on Morris” was published to critical acclaim . Now the rights to the comedic take on a sad-sack Long Islander who is mistakenly targeted by anti-terrorism authorities have been acquired by Rob Reiner and Andrew Lenchewski for development as a cable series, Deadline reports . The fit looks to be a good one. If anyone understands satire, it’s Reiner, the director of “This is Spinal Tap,” the mockumentary of an over-the-top metal band. If anyone gets Long Island, it’s Lenchewski, the executive producer of USA Network’s “Royal Pains” about a befuddled doctor in the Hamptons.

Early comments on Deadline’s story indicate the Internet is muddled.

“NICE! Great idea for a series,” commented “Russ.”

Not so fast, said “Hey Now!” who said, “Not a good idea for a series.”

An anonymous commenter saw nothing to laugh at: “No really, terrorism is funny! Just check out the ISIS videos! Horrible timing, guys.”

Now if you’ll excuse Israel, he’s busy trying to figure out what to do with Israel (more specifically, Bibi Netanyahu’s traveling show next month .)