THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, June 3, 1996 TAG: 9606010050
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Larry Bonko
LENGTH: 93 lines
WHO SAYS it's hard to make it in Hollywood? Look at actress Christine Elise. Her career's been a breeze.
First, she did some guest spots on ``In the Heat of the Night,'' ``China Beach'' and ``Northern Exposure.'' Then she lands a role on ``Beverly Hills 90210'' with, no doubt, a little help from boyfriend Jason Priestley. Then comes the part of medical student Harper Trace on ``ER.''
Tonight at 9 on Fox, Elise heads up the cast of ``L.A. Firefighters.'' Now she's a star. Tori Spelling's career moved higher and faster, but her pop owns Hollywood.
One look at Elise in her sweaty fire-house underwear and it's obvious she has been pumping iron. Biceps! I don't know if she was pushed or she jumped from the cast of ``ER,'' but Elise sure isn't among the TV elite any longer in ``L.A. Firefighters.''
It's a very long 60 minutes full of phony dialogue - ``You always have to be the hero'' - and a plot line ripped off from the old ``Emergency'' series you can see on cable.
Even as bad as it is, ``L.A. Firefighters'' isn't the worst thing on Fox tonight.
``The Last Frontier'' is.
The sitcom, which airs at 8:30, has been on the shelf for months. It was created when producers were scrambling to imitate the success of ``Friends,'' and here we have four friends - three horny single guys and a stunning blonde - sharing the same digs in Anchorage.
They really do the ``Friends'' thing, playing the NBC series' theme on the jukebox and clap-clap-clapping their hands to the music. It's the best moment of ``The Last Frontier.''
Fox and CBS this week have the same theme going: June isn't just for reruns.
CBS in June puts on the four episodes of ``Picket Fences'' which were to air before the series was canceled, but never did. What a nice break from the reruns.
In addition to tonight's two new shows - ``L.A. Firefighters'' gets a limited six-week run now before joining the fall schedule - Fox in June will also show new episodes of ``Sliders'' on Friday night at 8 and ``New York Daze,'' which flopped when the sitcom was called ``Too Something.'' It's on Sunday night at 8:30.
CBS has some trash in the basement it wants to burn, too, and that is why ``Central Park West'' is back on the schedule two nights a week - Wednesday and Friday at 10. The show that was going to bring viewers 18-to-49 to CBS by the millions crashed and burned last year, and now is back as ``CPW.''
Raquel Welch and Gerald McRaney have been added to the cast, playing husband and wife. The producers fired Mariel Hemingway because she wasn't bitchy enough. Welch comes aboard as both rich and bitchy.
``We've all but created a new show here,'' says producer Darren Star in talking about the makeover of ``Central Park West.'' If ``CPW'' clicks, it could make CBS's schedule as a mid-season replacement. Trouble is, McRaney has already agreed to do another show, ``Home of the Brave,'' for the network.
With three of its franchise series - ``Melrose Place,'' ``Beverly Hills 90210'' and ``Married With Children'' - most likely ending their run in the 1996-97 season, Fox is desperate for new hits. That's why it's giving ``L.A. Firefighters'' such a push here in June.
The idea is to get you hooked now on life inside and out the Company 132 firehouse. And when September comes around, and the show moves to Sunday at 7 p.m., you'll skip ``60 Minutes'' and ``America's Funniest Home Videos'' to spend more time with firefighters Coffey (Elise), Malloy, Baker, Rizzo, Grimes and Rose.
``Emergency,'' which aired on NBC in the 1970s, is a better show. Fox stole its opening - bright red fire engines crashing out of the station to answer a call. Stars Kevin Tighe and Randolph Mantooth knew enough to keep ``Emergency'' moving.
Elise and her mates talk, talk, talk when they should be rescuing people and pets. Elise gives little speeches hurrying to fires and crashes, speeches such as, ``What's the last thing the victims see? It's us, banging on their chests, telling them to breathe.''
Oh, brother.
Tighe and Mantooth wouldn't be caught dead delivering such lousy dialogue.
And one more thing. ``L.A. Firefighters'' is sexist and racist. The white male smoke eaters say they liked it better when they had the station all to themselves. This could be the first show pulled off the fall schedule before fall arrives.
As for ``The Last Frontier,'' it'll be on the feminists' hit list in no time. Jessica Tuck has the unfortunate role as the one woman among the three perpetual adolescents who treat her with the same respect they show a Playboy centerfold.
``Don't misunderstand,'' said executive producer David Zuckerman when he met TV writers. ``We're making fun of the men. Not the woman.'' Really?
People find it easier to laugh at men, he said. If only there were some laughs in ``The Last Frontier.''
The good news this week is that there are a few new shows on TV as the summer reruns kick in. The bad news is that except for ``Picket Fences,'' you'd best stick with re-runs. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Christine Elise by CNB