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Time is of the essence for '24' creators
When Joel Surnow first suggested to his producing partner Robert Cochran that he had an idea for a TV show that would consist of 24 one-hour episodes, each representing one hour in a single day, Mr. Cochran was not exactly overcome with enthusiasm.
"He had no characters, no story, just that notion," Mr. Cochran recalled. "I didn't see how that would work or how we would sell a show like that."
"I agreed with him," Mr. Surnow said. "But it stayed in my head, and I said, `Let's think about it some more.' We didn't really know if it would work until the last episode finally ran."
"24," starring Keifer Sutherland as a heroic CIA agent trying to stop a political assassination, not only made the Fox lineup last fall but became one of the critical hits of the season.
"It was a challenge to figure out story lines because, with the concept, you had to...