Muncie's most recent claim to fame was canceled by CBS but picked up by VH1.
A VH1 representative said a press release came out on Monday announcing "Armed & Famous" would be aired on their station instead of CBS, which showed it for three weeks.
Producers planned seven episodes of "Armed & Famous," but only aired four. During the first week two episodes were shown. At least one unaired episode will show Feb. 10 on VH1.
The show was broadcast on Wednesday nights opposite Fox's top-rated "American Idol." "Armed & Famous" was 44th in the TV ratings its first week when two episodes aired, but fell to 70th for its Jan. 17 episode, according to Nielsen Media Research.
"It came down to ratings," CBS spokesman Chris Ender said. "Going up against 'American Idol' was a tall task for the show."
Some Ball State University students said they only watched it because it was taped in Muncie.
Junior Brandon Stogsdill said he didn't really care the show was canceled because it didn't affect him. He said he watched the first two episodes and then stopped.
Sophomore Kayla Marsh said she was excited about the show after she met Jason "Wee-man" Acu+â-¦a, but she wasn't surprised the show was canceled.
"If you didn't live in Muncie, it wouldn't appeal to you," she said.
Police Chief Joe Winkle said he and the department thought the show would be aired on Thursdays. When he found out it was going to be shown on Wednesdays, he knew it would be tough for to compete with "American Idol."
"That's just part of the show business." Winkle said. "We found out quickly that our show wasn't good enough to compete with 'American Idol.'"
Mayor Dan Canan said he was also aware of the competition between the shows because he and his family are American Idol fans. On Wednesday nights, they compromised by watching all of "Armed & Famous" and parts of "American Idol."
"We flipped back and forth between commercials and once it was over we went back to "American Idol,'" he said.
Muncie resident Chasity Dillman said she was disappointed to hear the show was canceled. She enjoyed the show because it was taped in Muncie, she said.
"I thought it was the 'bomb dot com,'" she said.
Canan said he thought the producers did a good job filming the city and the officers. He said the department looked professional and the city looked larger.
"I'm just pleased with how the city was portrayed and how the department was portrayed," Canan said.
Winkle said on Friday one of the show's producers warned him it would probably be cancelled. However, they were unsure of what would happen to the it in the long term.
"I was told that CBS liked the show," he said. "They just wanted to see what was the best way for the show to be seen."
VHI has six episodes scheduled to air between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Saturday, Feb 10, according to the VHI Web site, which means two new ones could be shown, if they are completed.
Winkle said he enjoyed the show and never missed an episode, even though he had to tape the fourth episode so he could go to a Pacers game. Winkle and Canan said they would watch the unaired episode on VH1.
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