Network chiefs are used to hearing complaints when they cancel even their least-watched shows, but HBO chairman Chris Albrecht is still reeling from the outpouring that followed the axing of "Carnivale."

"It is so over-the-top, not just in terms of the number, but in terms of the things they are saying -- and threatening," he said.

And that was even before the show scored eight Emmy nominations yesterday.

One thing Albrecht does want to make clear was that it was never his idea to leave the audience without an ending.

"When [producers] pitched us this season" it was originally going to end up in a place "where I felt you didn't have to go on," Albrecht said, noting that producers later changed their minds and introduced a "little bit of a cliffhanger."

So any second thoughts?

"Honestly, if 'Carnivale' were a $2 million-an-episode show, we'd keep going with it," he said. "But a period piece, shot all on location, a huge cast...by the third season of a show like that," they had to ask whether they might not be able to spend the money better, he said.