Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 27, 1994 TAG: 9404270058
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: NEW YORK LENGTH: Medium
"Every time I've done contract negotiations with this network, I've always asked for specials," Lunden said over breakfast the other day at the Plaza Hotel. "The last time, I got 'em."
The first special, "Behind Closed Doors With Joan Lunden," is set for tonight (at 8 on WSET-Channel 13).
And although ABC has committed to only three specials over a five-year period - not exactly a Diane Sawyer-size deal - Lunden is nevertheless highly enthusiastic.
As a matter of fact - or perhaps as a matter of policy - the 43-year-old Lunden rarely seems anything else.
"I'm in a real privileged job, let's face it," she said.
So when she comes back from assignments, she said, friends and acquaintances always want to know the behind-the-scenes details.
And because ABC asked her to come up with something more than another celebrity interview special, Lunden decided the "Behind Closed Doors" format - matched with her self-described "Plimpton-esque" sense of adventure - was just the ticket.
"Let's give people access to the places they can't go," was her thought. "But let's do more than that. ... Instead of just opening the door and letting you peek inside, let me take you by the hand and take you along for the ride."
"So, where are we going on our first trip?" a viewer might ask.
How about the oft-mentioned but very private Betty Ford Center?
Lunden spent two days and nights inside, getting a full dose of the center's drug and alcohol recovery program.
"There isn't a TV magazine that hasn't asked to come in here and shoot," Betty Ford told Lunden, who was "pretty astounded" by how candid the Fords were about the former first lady's battle with addiction.
But if you're a viewer looking for something with a little more action ...
How about a tour of duty on the aircraft carrier USS Eisenhower, where Lunden went into basic training with female fighter pilots on their way to becoming the first combat-qualified women in the Navy?
Lunden - dedicated, or driven, or both - was dunked, drenched, ejected, pressurized and made to swim for her life to get the story, although she said "as physically debilitating as the naval piece was - which was a killer, I mean, physically something to get through - I was even more drained after a day at the Betty Ford institute. It was so emotionally taxing to be in these group therapy sessions.
More traditional and, from the sound of it, more fun were the other two segments in the special - an on-the-road look at NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal and an on-the-set visit with the "sexiest man alive," Mel Gibson, star of the much-anticipated feature film "Maverick."
Lunden plans to stick with the "Behind Closed Doors" format for future specials, although she said she there was a lot of back and forth about the title.
"We argued and argued over that name because we were afraid that we would limit ourselves," she said, adding that with this kind of approach, "you have to work on 30 [possible stories] to get four."
by CNB