
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, January 22, 1994                   TAG: 9401220334
SECTION: SPECTATOR                    PAGE: S-17   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: N.F. MENDOZA LOS ANGELES TIMES
DATELINE: HOLLYWOOD                                LENGTH: Medium

STEVENSON CLASSIC MEETS LAS VEGAS

What if Robert Louis Stevenson had known in 1883, when he wrote "Treasure Island," that his book's treasure hunt would take place more than 100 years later in a casino hotel in a desert resort town called Las Vegas?

He probably would have gambled, as NBC has, that it would attract an audience. The network's hour-long adaptation airs Sunday with many of the swashbuckling characters intact.

Corey Carrier, who played Young Indy in ABC's "The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles," stars as 12-year-old Robbie (Jim Hawkins in the book) who, while on a vacation with his parents at the hotel, meets the legendary Long John Silver (Anthony Zerbe). After finding a magical treasure map, Robbie and Long John team up to find the loot before the bad pirates.

Because Treasure Island owner Steve Wynn is executive producer, some viewers may deem the adventure a long commercial for the elaborate resort. But producer-director Scot Garen, who previously directed Disney specials, including "Mickey's 60th Birthday," insists that Treasure Island was used "merely as a setting. We got to use literally $50 million worth of sets to convey our story."

Those "sets" include two full-scale 90-foot ships, the pirates' Hispaniola and the British frigate HMS Royal Brittania, both capable of ear-shattering cannon and musket volleys. The ships sail on Buccaneer Bay and Skull Point, which surround the hotel's 2-acre frontage. Last year's demolition of the Dunes Hotel - another Wynn project - is incorporated into the story line.

For Carrier, 13, it was the lure of swordplay that drew him to the telefilm. It's also what he thinks will appeal to most to his peers.

"It's got pirates," he says enthusiastically, "And it's in Las Vegas, which is as bright as it looks on television. The whole theme, though, is that if you can dream it, it can come true. The adventure and the sword fighting are what kids are going to like."

In addition to the swordplay, the underlying story focuses on Robbie's relationship with his father, Garen says.

"Basically, the arc of the story is where Robbie learns that the real treasure lies in your imagination," he says. "The child's spirit in his father is released and the two of them experience a new relationship by the story's end."

"Treasure Island: The Adventure Begins . . . " airs Sunday at 8 p.m. on WSLS-Channel 10. For ages 10 and up.

by CNB