Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, May 29, 1993 TAG: 9305290719
SECTION: SPECTATOR PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JACKIE HYMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
What you have is - excuse me? Did someone say a situation comedy?
Well, yes. Emmy-winning writer Jay Tarses has created a different sort of series, which he describes as "a romantic comedy mystery." He adds, in case anyone missed the point: "It's tongue in cheek."
The 13-part series, which begins with two back-to-back episodes Saturday (at 10 p.m. on WSLS-Channel 10), will continue on Saturday nights on NBC.
Kate Capshaw, best known for the films "Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom" and "Black Rain," makes her television series debut as the passionate wife of a sportswear catalog mogul, played by Christopher Cody.
She lusts after detective Dave Brodsky (Bradley Whitford), whom she hires to follow Cody. Her husband lusts after one of his catalog models, Alison Elliott, and schedules a tryst in a hotel room.
Enter one body - and one husband in big trouble.
"I'm proud of the work," said Tarses, who won an Emmy for his writing on "The Carol Burnett Show" and was nominated twice for his writing on "The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd," which he created.
"I think it's some of the best work I've ever done," he said.
Tarses wrote and directed some episodes of "Black Tie Affair," which he said evolved from a comedy about moneyed people to a mystery involving a wealthy San Francisco couple whose marriage is on the rocks.
He didn't think of Capshaw for the lead, he said, because she's been associated with feature films. But her agent showed her a script and she liked it.
"We talked, we had a wonderful meeting," Tarses said. "She's so cooperative, just the best, and she's funny and she's good-looking and she's a nice person.
"It makes the environment special when everyone's considerate of each other. And the chemistry between Kate and Bradley Whitford, who plays Brodsky, was terrific."
Tarses' other credits include creating and producing "The Tony Randall Show," "Buffalo Bill" and "We've Got Each Other," and writing and producing "The Bob Newhart Show." He's also known for strong women's roles such as Molly Dodd, played by Blair Brown.
"I don't know why people say I write good women," he said. "If they were men, I'd write the same way. I think they feel the same things. I just think you have to have logical dialogue."
Despite his reputation for high-quality writing, Tarses' shows usually haven't done well in the ratings.
"My history in television has been mostly shows that are critically acclaimed and get canceled very early," he said.
The course of "Black Tie Affair" already has been rocky.
After delivering the series to NBC last October, Tarses waited for it to be placed on the schedule. And waited. And waited.
"They knew what it was going to be like. They saw dailies and they saw scripts," he said. "The word from there was that they liked it, so I guess the thing to do with something you like is to sit on it."
Meanwhile, he kept busy with a New York production of his play "Man in his Underwear," which he described as "a comedy with pain."
"I've tried to move on," he said. "All the other people (involved with `Affair') have moved on. But it might work and if it works, we have to get all these people back together again."
He's discouraged that the network has scheduled the show to premiere late Saturday on Memorial Day weekend, when the audience is likely to be small.
"I think we've got a good show here," he said. "I think they should get behind the show."
But he hasn't lost hope. "The history of television is just littered with shows that people discovered if the network stays with them," Tarses said, "shows that were supposed to die a long time ago - `Cheers,' `All in the Family.' . . .
"This could zoom through the roof and I could feel badly because I said all these things and they were smart to put it on at 10 o'clock on May 29."
As for the future, Tarses said, "I would like to write long-form things. If I had something to say, I would write more plays, I would write more books, I would write more screenplays."
Despite his battles with ratings and scheduling, he has no regrets about the choices he's made.
"I wouldn't have done anything differently," he said.
After a moment's thought, he added, "I might not have bought Nehru suits."
by CNB