I don't mean Reege's game show. I'm talking about Sela Ward's Once and Again, the excellent family drama that has struggled in the ratings on Friday this season.

        Once and Again gets bumped from 9 p.m. Friday this week.Once and Again will return at 10 p.m. Monday, March 4, for the remaining five episodes this season.

        The next move could be off the schedule completely. Another season seems very unlikely, after listening to ABC executives address the Television Critics Association here.

        “It's a wonderful, wonderful television show, and I wish it were doing better,” says Lloyd Braun, ABC Entertainment co-chairman. Once and Again ranks No. 91 of 135 shows this season. ABC has canceled three shows with better ratings: Jason Alexander's Bob Patterson, No. 66; Joan Cusack's What About Joan, No. 71; and John Stamos' Thieves, No. 78.

        At his press conference, Mr. Braun told critics he had agreed with the producers to make only 17 episodes this season. But that was news to executive producers Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz, attending the ABC press party that night.

        Susan Lyne, appointed ABC Entertainment president last week, told critics her top priority is reaching the largest possible audience. “I look for programming that I think is great but that will also have mass appeal,” she says.

        To which Mr. Braun immediately added: “The truth is, we probably have more than our share of programs that a lot of you (TV critics) out there liked a lot, and just were not commercial enough. And what Susan is saying is we really believe we can do both. ... We're broadcasters, and ultimately (our shows) have to be broad. We really don't want one without the other.”

        Translation: We don't want high-quality programs with low ratings.

        Fans of the show have e-mailed TV critics about the move to 9 p.m. Friday. “The show is in imminent danger of cancellation,” the message says. Fans also are urged to express their support at www.oandafans.com.

        Millionaire update: Mr. Braun admits that telling critics in November that Who Wants to be a Millionaire might not be on the fall prime-time schedule was a mistake.

        “Clearly I miscalculated the effect of those statements, because it was then construed as a lack of confidence in Regis (host Regis Philbin) and the show. And quite honestly, nothing could be further from the truth,” he says.

        ABC's chief programmer stresses that Millionaire definitely will be on the air next fall — as a half-hour syndicated show airing sometime between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. weekdays. It also might remain a weekly ABC prime-time series or become a sweeps special event.

        “We expect it's going to have a presence on our network in one form or another for quite a while ... and you're going to see it with Regis Philbin,” Mr. Braun says.

        Ms. Lyne says Millionaire ratings dropped last fall in part because of all the celebrity and sports stars contestants. “It got away from what I think people loved about Millionaire, which is that anybody — any woman, any guy — could come on and win a million dollars,” she says.

        The prime-time Millionaire will “go back to basics” next season, Mr. Braun says.

        We're No. 1: CBS president and CEO Les Moonves says he, too, doesn't know why Cincinnati is the No. 1 Survivor market, but he's grateful.

        Told that Cincinnati drew a 25.3 rating and 35 percent audience share for the Survivor: Africa finale last week, Mr. Moonves pumped his fist in the air and exclaimed: “Yes! We love Cincinnati! Thank you, Cincinnati!”

        Cincinnati was 72 percent above the national Survivor average (14.7) last Thursday.

        Rounding out the top 10 Survivor markets: Pittsburgh (23.4); Portland, Ore. (21.9); San Diego (21.0); St. Louis (20.8), Louisville (19.6), Las Vegas (19.5), Fort Myers, Fla. (19.4), Dayton (19.3), Seattle and Nashville, Tenn. (19.1).

        More renewals: ABC has renewed Alias, According to Jim and My Wife and Kids for next fall.

        WB has ordered another season of Gilmore Girls, Reba and Smallville.

       
       TV critic John Kiesewetter is reporting from the Television Critics Association press tour. E-mail: jkiesewetter@enquirer.com.

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