THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 24, 1994 TAG: 9407230024
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: LARRY BONKO
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines
IT WAS A DAY or two before they announced the Emmy nominations. That's always a big deal in this place where television shows roll off the assembly lines daily.
L.A. is one big factory town.
As the worker bees waited to hear who among them would be singled out for praise by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, ABC Entertainment president Ted Harbert was discussing ``NYPD Blue'' with a group of TV writers.
``I expect the series to win some nominations,'' Harbert said.
Some?
``NYPD Blue,'' the best series never seen in Hampton Roads, broke records when it received 26 nominations Thursday, including one for outstanding drama series. The show's stars, David Caruso and Dennis Franz, were nominated in the outstanding-lead-actor category.
The many actors, producers and network executives with whom I've spoken in the past few days say they can't believe that the ABC affiliate in Norfolk (WVEC) continues to pre-empt such an exceptional series as ``NYPD Blue,'' which airs almost everywhere else on Tuesday nights at 10. The station's management has decided that the true-to-life series drama about life in a Manhattan squad room is too hot for viewers in Hampton Roads to handle - no matter how many awards it wins.
``The viewers in Virginia should be allowed to decide for themselves if the show is worth watching,'' said producer Barney Rosenzweig, who appeared before the TV writers with his wife, Sharon Gless, to announce the return of her ``Cagney & Lacey'' series in the form of two-hour movies.
Harbert, as well as ABC Television Network president Robert A. Iger, admitted to the TV press that they are frustrated because some advertisers will not buy time on ``NYPD Blue,'' probably because of pressure from the religious right. Some people in this country, including many who have never watched the series, place ``NYPD Blue'' producer Steven Bochco in league with Satan.
If it were not for this pressure on advertisers from the religious right, the ABC executives believe ``NYPD Blue'' would be a primetime gold mine. This series, which is being sold at bargain-basement prices now, is reaching an elite audience, suggested Harbert. It's the rich, upscale, sophisticated viewership that advertisers love.
Now that the Emmy nominations have come rolling in, will Madison Avenue fully embrace the series? ``Will winning Emmys help in this situation? I don't know,'' said Harbert.
He also admitted that he has said, ``Please, pretty please, put the show on,'' to hard-nosed ABC affiliates such as WVEC. ``We asked them to re-examine their position on this, and a couple came on board.''
Harbert estimates that only a tiny part of ABC's viewership (3.5 percent) is now denied seeing ``NYPD Blue.'' Hampton Roads is in that tiny minority.
``I'm stunned that the Norfolk affiliate is denying the show to anyone,'' Rosenzweig said. ``The sensibilities in Norfolk may not be the same as in New York, and perhaps `NYPD Blue' will offend some Norfolk viewers.
``But they ought to be allowed the chance to tune in and decide on their own.''
The ABC execs admit privately that they can't understand why stations in Norfolk, Dallas and about six other markets still refuse to carry ``NYPD Blue.''
Said Harbert, ``Halfway through the season, the mail in opposition to `NYPD Blue' was reduced to a trickle. It was replaced by mail from viewers who were saying, `Keep up the fight. This is the best thing on television. Don't ever give up.'
``The advertisers are lagging behind the viewers in accepting `NYPD Blue.' I appreciate and understand why advertisers think their brands may be in jeopardy when they get those letters. But I just wish they would see it our way.''
And don't I wish WVEC would see it his way, too?
Come Sept. 11, the Emmy telecast will be carried by ABC. The ABC station in Norfolk, WVEC, will likely show a sweep of honors by ``NYPD Blue,'' and then will tell it's audience that it can't see this superior show.
That's not fair, said Rosenzweig. MEMO: Television columnist Larry Bonko is in Los Angeles for the
twice-yearly press tour. by CNB