Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 30, 1991 TAG: 9103300414
SECTION: SPECTATOR PAGE: S-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DIANE JOY MOCA/ LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
CBS wants to change that monotony by introducing five new action-adventure series developed specifically for the late-night adult viewer.
Sounds like a simple strategy, but it's not an easy task when the competition is taken into account. These shows must challenge not only talk show host Johnny Carson, who has been the leader of late-night television for years, but also any young warrior, like Arsenio Hall, who hopes to dethrone the king.
Two years ago CBS decided to fight fire with fire by giving "Wheel of Fortune" host Pat Sajak his own late-night talk show. The network was thrown a curve by the success of "The Arsenio Hall Show," which had its premiere around the same time (on Jan. 3, 1989).
Rod Perth, vice president of CBS Late Night, remembered "nobody at CBS expected [Arsenio] to be as successful as he became." Sajak was ejected from the schedule one year ago.
"The reason Pat Sajak didn't work is because there's just a glut of talk, talk, talk that hour," he said."Viewers are underserved with action adventure in that time period. And they want to see that. [Action-adventure reruns] worked extremely well on CBS for years. Those beat Carson sometimes."
While new action-adventure series were being developed, CBS put reruns of "Wiseguy" in the timeslot, until the recent late-night news program, "America Tonight," sprang out of the Persian Gulf crisis.
The late-night news program anchored by Charles Kuralt and Lesley Stahl evolved from "Showdown in the Gulf," a series of news specials that kicked off in late August with Dan Rather's exclusive interview with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
Considered a temporary replacement program "by the entertainment division," according to Perth, the news division still hoped this could be the crown jewel CBS was looking for. "It was only intended to bridge our way to the five shows we already had planned" for a January debut, according to Perth.
That plan was interrupted by Operation Desert Storm. CBS indefinitely postponed the debut of these series in favor of continuing to run "America Tonight" in that timeslot.
Now that the Persian Gulf war is over and the news program has been cancelled, it's Round 2 for CBS.
Three months after its planned debut, CBS introduces "Crime Time After Prime Time," a line-up developed specifically for the late-night adult viewer. The network will have a preview of the five new action-adventure series Monday (at 12:05 a.m. on WDBJ-Channel 7 in the Roanoke viewing area), with the programs beginning Tuesday.
Such an undertaking is "far more [financially] ambitious than Pat Sajak or reruns," Perth said. In an era of cutbacks resulting from decreased ratings for all of the networks (due to cable and video), CBS arranged to film all the series in foreign countries and create co-ventures with international companies to make the project economically feasible.
Although the shows aren't costing CBS nearly as much as a prime-time series, CBS Entertainment president Jeff Sagansky pointed out in a press release that the shows represent "prime-time quality." He also said the series contain "a more adult bite because of the late hour."
Perth added, "It's the first time in history that all five nights of late-night shows have been written specifically for this sort of adult sensibility, written specifically for the time period."
Fred de Cordova, executive producer of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," disagreed. "Lots of people have tried it - like when `Mary Hartman' was on. It's not new at all," he said.
Perth said the series are more suited to a late-night adult audience because "these shows have a little more sexuality to them; they're a little more provocative - all within network standards. The hour allows us to push the envelope with regard to subject matter. I would expect that some of these might stir some controversy."
The new sexy action-adventure shows to premiere this week on CBS are:
"Sweating Bullets," filmed in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, follows a male DEA agent turned private investigator who develops a playful relationship with his new female partner, an ambitious former travel consultant. The Monday night series, starring Rob Stewart, Carolyn Dunn and John David Bland, has its premiere April 8 rather than this Monday because of the NCAA National Championship Game.
"The Exile" is set against the exotic backgrounds of Paris, France, where the series is filmed. It stars Jeffrey Meek, Christian Burgess and Danny Montreau. The Tuesday night series follows a former double agent during the Cold War who no longer has an identity or a country.
"Scene of the Crime," filmed in Vancouver, Canada, is a mystery anthology series on Wednesday. It features thrillers introduced by creator Stephen J. Cannell and performed by a repertory company of six American, Canadian and French actors.
"Fly By Night" on Thursdays is about an enterprising young woman who runs a luxury security air charter with the help of a suspicious pilot and his co-pilot. It is filmed in Canada and France and stars Shannon Tweed, David Elliott and Francois Guetary.
"Dark Justice" is about a criminal court justice who adheres to the law by day and adopts a secret identity as a vigilante by night. Though the Friday night series is set in the United States, it is filmed in Barcelona, Spain. It stars Ramy Zada, Begona Plaza, Dick O'Neill and Clayton Prince.
by CNB