THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 12, 1996 TAG: 9607120079
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E2 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Larry Bonko
LENGTH: 69 lines
TODAY'S LOCAL TV buzz:
Vincent and Catherine forever - It's been six years since the last new episode of ``Beauty and the Beast'' was seen on CBS, but the fantasy about a man-lion and his love still has people spellbound. About 400 Beasties will gather in Norfolk this weekend.
The local Beasties fan club, DreamSeekers, is sponsoring the 1996 international ``Beauty and the Beast'' convention at the Omni Waterside starting today. Convention co-chairperson Laurie Wittenberg is expecting ``Beast'' executive producer David Schwartz plus former cast members Jay Acavone and Caitlin O'Heaney to attend.
Why are fans still drawn to ``Beast''? Wittenberg said the series that starred Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman endures because it promotes this ideal: It pays to judge people by what they are like on the inside. (The show is seen Monday through Friday on the Sci-Fi Channel at 10 a.m.)
He's at 35,000 and still counting - After I grew up and left home, my mom tossed out all my baseball trading cards including Mickey Mantle's rookie card. Yikes! It's worth thousands today.
If Andrew McCormick's mother in Virginia Beach tried that today - and she wouldn't dare - Mrs. McCormick would need a lot of muscle. Her son's collection is humongous.
Eighth-grader McCormick stopped counting cards at 35,000, and that was a few years ago. He reckons that his collection today numbers 40,000, which is good enough to qualify Andrew for ``Collecting Across America.''
The locally produced show is seen nationwide on PBS stations including WHRO, which airs it Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. Look for Andrew's segment in August.
The Slater faithful check in - As I expected, the reaction to my column rating the local 6 p.m. anchor teams (four stars for the best) has been intense. Heard from more than 100 callers, many of whom asked why I left out Jane Gardner, Ed Hughes, Barbara Ciara and other familiar faces.
It's because they're working the 5 p.m. newscasts these days. Maybe I'll include them in another how-I-rate-the-anchors column. Also mentioned was Jim Hale, the No. 2 sports guy and outdoors reporter at WTKR whose contract was dropped just a few weeks after he got married.
Asks Rebecca Howard in Virginia Beach, ``How would you have rated Hale, who received such an unfortunate wedding gift from his station?''
Hale is the fourth on-air personality to be let go under Channel 3's new ownership. How would I rate Hale? I'd give him one and a half stars for a hunky presence with a delivery that needs work.
Callers to Infoline (640-5555, press 2486) were totally divided on WAVY weatherguy Don Slater.
From a Suffolk caller: ``His breathless delivery is highly annoying. It seems he has to take a deep breath every few seconds.'' From Cathy Wise in Chesapeake: ``Don deserves more stars than you gave him. We like and trust his forecasts. When he says not to get our pants in a bunch about bad weather, we don't get our pants in a bunch.''
Approximately 90 percent of the callers agreed with my ratings, the best of which was 3 1/2 stars for WVEC's Terry Zahn.
What's obvious to me after watching TV in this market for 43 years is that at the moment we don't have a dynamite, knock 'em dead, ratings-boosting anchorperson with a boundless future in TV news. The last was Nesita Kwan at Channel 13 who now works in Chicago.
Where have you gone, Harry and Paula? - Dean Tate in Virginia Beach is among callers asking what's become of Paula Zahn and Harry Smith of the ``CBS Morning News.'' They've been given new assignments at CBS, and come next month, the wake-up telecast will have new faces.
CBS plans to give more time to local stations during one hour of the new morning show. WTKR will take full advantage of that, said news director Barbara Hamm. by CNB