For them to simply not air the episodes came across to us as malicious," said Angela Mitchell, a 36-year-old publicist in Hollywood, Florida, who helped organize the "Save 'Miracles' " campaign. "I felt like someone wanted to kill the show."

Many fans have taken to bootlegging the lost installments, making copies from foreign-market broadcasts and sharing tapes through the mail.

And for once, piracy has the support of a producer.

"Since there aren't aggressive efforts to make a profit from the show, the loss is pretty minor," Hatem said. "I'm never going to see another dime off 'Miracles,' but if people are watching and enjoying it, I'm more than happy."