Monday, March 08, 1999
Network fill-ins
While regular programming takes a midseason break, alternativec series vie for survival
BY JOHN KIESEWETTER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
OK, you do the math:
• TV shows make 22 new episodes a year.
• Add in reruns, and you have 44 weeks of programming.
• Subtract that number from a 52-week year, and have:
Eights weeks to fill.
And that explains TV's March Madness, why some of your favorite shows are replaced with limited-run new series.
So say goodbye to NYPD Blue, and That '70s Show, and Walker, Texas Ranger and Two Guys, A Girl and a Pizza Place.
Get ready for 17 new series — including four inexpensive “reality” programs and three more prime-time cartoons, as networks experiment with alternative entertainment formats to reverse audience erosion to cable and cut costs.
Brace yourself for hype over the TV returns of Laurie Metcalf, John Larroquette, Norm Macdonald, Greg Evigan and Al Franken's under-appreciated Lateline.
And expect to see lots of promotion during the NCAA basketball tournament for Craig Kilborn's debut on The Late Late Show. (He replaces Tom Snyder March 30).
It's a Strange World starting tonight:
• Strange World (ABC): A Gulf War veteran (Tim Guinee) with a weird degenerative disease is temporarily cured by a mysterious Japanese woman (Vivian Wu), who urges him to work with a U.S. Army medical research team that punishes people who abuse science and technology. What's really strange is that ABC thinks we'd rather watch this than NYPD Blue reruns this month. Debuts 10 p.m. today on Channels 9 and 2, then moves to 10 p.m. tomorrow through March 30.
• RedHanded (UPN): Think of this as When People Attack. Erik Nelson, producer of Fox's When Animals Attack, created this hidden-camera series in which, UPN says, “a team of pranksters work with everyday people to teach their friends, family, lovers and office mates a lesson ... in the midst of committing one of the seven deadly sins.” Debuts 8:30 p.m. today on Channel 25; replaces DiResta.
• Family Rules (UPN): Greg Evigan goes from My Two Dads to my four girls, when he plays the widowed father of teens: Maggie Lawson (Pleasantville), Shawna Waldron (The American President), Andi Eystad (Bailey Kipper's P.O.V.) and Brooke Garrett (Kidsongs). Debuts 8:30 p.m. Tuesday on Channel 25; replaces Clueless.
• World's Most Amazing Videos (NBC): More of the World's Most Inexpensive Programming, as NBC replaces bad sitcoms (Encore! Encore!) with a 13-week reality series. Producer Bruce Nash (When Good Pets Go Bad) created this show which, NBC claims, “celebrates the triumphs of man's indomitable spirit and unconquerable will.” Second episode airs 9 p.m. Wednesday, Channels 5, 22.
• America's Greatest Pets (UPN): Animal expert Jules Sylvester and actress Ali Landry host this lighthearted series about when good pets don't go bad. Debuts 8 p.m. Friday, Channel 25; replaces Legacy.
• Sons of Thunder (CBS): Think of this as Junior Walker, Texas Ranger. Jimmy Wlcek stars as Trent Malloy, former martial arts student and protege of Texas Ranger Cordell Walker (Chuck Norris), in this Walker spin-off. Second episode airs 10 p.m. Saturday on Channels 12, 7; Walker returns April 24.
• Rescue 77 (WB): Backdraft screenwriter Gregory Widen tries to heat up WB's ratings with a 1970's style action series. Remember NBC's Emergency? Starring as Los Angeles paramedics are Colerain Township native Marjorie Monaghan (Space Rangers, Babylon 5, H.E.L.P.), Richard Roundtree (Shaft, 413 Hope St., Firehouse), Christian Kane (Fame L.A.) and Victor Browne (One Life to Live). (Debuts 9 p.m. March 15 on Channel 64; replaces Hyperion Bay.)
• Payne (CBS): John Larroquette's remake of Fawlty Towers, the British classic comedy, should be called Pain. You'll cringe watching this Emmy-winner (Night Court) bumble his way through bad slapstick comedy in a coastal California bed-and-breakfast. The misguided attempt at humor is as obvious as the name of Mr. Larroquette's character: Royal Payne. JoBeth Williams stars as his wife. Debuts 9:30 p.m. March 15 on Channels 12, 7. Moves to 8:30 p.m. March 17; replaces Maggie Winters.
• Lateline (NBC): Al Franken's Nightline spoof, NBC's best new comedy in the past year, gets its third (and final?) shot on the schedule. NBC programmers apparently don't get the topical jokes, recognize the cameos by Washington political and media figures, or appreciate the terrific cast (Miguel Ferrer, Megyn Price, Robert Foxworth, Catherine Lloyd Burns, Mr. Franken). NBC should throw Veronica in the closet and put Lateline in Thursday's “Must See TV” lineup. Returns 8:30 p.m. March 16 on Channels 5, 22; replaces NewsRadio.
• It's Like, You Know ... (ABC): You could call this ABC's Friends rip-off. But you should call this the best new spring comedy (that isn't a cartoon). Unknown Chris Eigeman stars as a die-hard New Yorker who moves to Los Angeles and hates it, despite the efforts of his friends played by Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing), A.J. Langer (My So-Called Life),Steven Eckholdt and Evan Handler. Debuts 8:30 p.m. March 24 on Channels 9, 2; replaces Two Guys, A Girl and a Pizza Place through April.
• Norm (ABC): Norm Macdonald, bounced from Saturday Night Live last year, rebounds in a sitcom as Norm Henderson, a dirty hockey player banned from the sport for gambling and tax evasion. Instead of incarceration, he opts for community service with a social worker (Emmy-winner Laurie Metcalf from Roseanne). Viewers may be shocked at Norm's crude humor on the Disney-owned network. Debuts 9:30 p.m. March 24 on Channels 9, 2; replaces Who's Line Is It Anyway?
• Futurama (Fox): If Matt Groening's new cartoon is only half as funny as his Simpsons, then Fox will have another hit. Set 1,000 years in the future, Futurama follows the exploits of three characters: Fry (Billy West), Bender (John DiMaggio) and the one-eyed Leela (Katey Sagal). Futurama airs 8:30 p.m. Sunday March 28 and April 4 on Channels 19, 45, then moves to 8:30 p.m. April 6. (The PJ's moves to 9 p.m. Tuesdays. Cris Collinsworth's Guinness World Records — Primetime moves to 8 p.m. Friday on March 19, replacing Brimstone.)
• The Big Moment (ABC): Brad Sherwood (Whose Line Is It Anyway?) hosts this new one-hour show from the creators of America's Funniest Home Videos. Randomly selected folks are offered up to $25,000 if they can master a mental or physical trick, then perform successfully in front of a studio audience. Debuts 8 p.m. April 3 on Channels 9, 2; replaces America's Funniest Home Videos.
• Everything's Relative (NBC): Unknown Kevin Rahm stars as a comedy writer who is driven crazy by his father (Jeffrey Tambor from The Larry Sanders Show) and mother (Jill Clayburgh from An Unmarried Woman, Starting Over). This is not to be confused with CBS' Everything's Relative,Jason Alexander's short-lived 1987 sitcom. Debuts 9:30 p.m. April 6 on Channels 5, 22; replaces Will & Grace, which bumps Jesse at 8:30 p.m. Thursdays on April 8.
• Family Guy (Fox): Fox's crude cartoon, which premiered following the Super Bowl Jan. 31, finally returns 10 weeks later in the slot behind The Simpsons. This Family from New England includes a talking dog and a diabolical baby named Stewie, who dreams of dominating the world. Airs 8:30 p.m. April 11 on Channels 19, 45.
• Home Movies (UPN): Paula Poundstone, Brendon Small and H. Jon Benjamin provide the voices — along with the improvised comedy — for this new UPN cartoon from the producers of Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist. Debuts 8:30 p.m. April 26 on Channel 25; replaces RedHanded.
• Movie Stars (WB): Movie stars are people too, according to this parenting comedy set in the Malibu beach house of film favorites Reese Hardin (Harry Hamlim from L.A. Law) and Jacey Wyatt (Jennifer Grant from Beverly Hills 90210). They'll win no prize for their roles raising 16-year-old Lori (Marnett Patterson), 13-year-old Apache (Zack Hopkins) and 6-year-old Moonglow (Rachel David). Debut date to be announced.
John Kiesewetter covers TV-radio.
John Kiesewetter is Enquirer TV/radio critic. Write him at 312 Elm St., Cincinnati, 45202.
