How ABC can be a quality network once again

By Tom Jicha, South Florida Sun Sentinel

It has been awhile since ABC has done the right thing, about anything. That's one of several reasons why the Disney-owned network should reverse its cancellation of Once and Again.

That wouldn't make up for the disgraceful dangling in the wind of Nightline; the oafish handling of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire; the shameless Sipowicz-goes-to-Disney-World story line in NYPD Blue; or the lies network executives told TV writers in January about the producers of Once and Again knowing their season order had been scaled back as a precursor to cancellation.

But a reversal would be a start, a gesture that the network is interested in mending its ways. It also would be a statement by new Entertainment President Susan Lyne that she recognizes quality when she sees it -- and is willing to stand behind it.

Just before NBC ascended from last to first in the ratings in the mid-'80s, NBC President Grant Tinker adopted such a posture in a situation similar to what faces ABC. Hill Street Blues was one of the lowest rated series on TV its first season. Shows with appreciably higher ratings were canceled without a murmur of protest. But Hill Street Blues was generating something NBC wasn't used to, glowing press and word of mouth.

Tinker reasoned he could replace the groundbreaking cop drama with a new series but, given NBC's dismal record, it would probably fail, too, without bringing the network any goodwill. So NBC renewed Hill Street Blues. A year later, Tinker did the same with Cheers and Family Ties, both at the bottom of their freshmen class.

Instead of being mercilessly derided as "perennially third-place NBC" (The late Brandon Tartikoff, Tinker's entertainment president, joked that he thought this was his network's full name), the Peacock began being referred to as "the quality network." When Cosby came along a year after Cheers and Family Ties, "Must See TV" was born.

It would be foolish to predict that a renewal of Once and Again would do the same for ABC. But it would be a step toward repairing the network's tattered image, which was further soiled in pursuit of David Letterman. With one bold stroke, ABC could make a statement that it's not only about money.

This is not to say the bottom line couldn't be served. ABC's prime-time lineup is in shambles. Lyne has to come up with six or seven hours of new series for fall. She'll need at least another two hours at midseason when Monday Night Football goes away. ABC could have the most spectacular development season in the history of TV and there is still no way all these needs can be filled in one season.

Nothing is as costly to a network as a quick cancellation. New series get 13-episode commitments, so unused episodes are a total loss and there is no repeat value to the few that do air. Ergo, it makes economic sense to tender at least a 13-episode offer to Once and Again. It isn't as if Once and Again is a zero. Its ratings often were better than its lead-in or the shows previously in the time period. Its demos were even better. Besides, ABC gets a second dip into the audience pool with a quick replay on Lifetime.

There is no guarantee the producers and stars would accept half a loaf but if they have the affection for the series they claim, they would. If they knew going in they would have a curtailed schedule, they could arrange other projects around the series shooting. Moreover, a reason often cited for the brilliance of HBO's series is that they make only a dozen or so episodes, so each one can be fine-tuned to perfection.

Perhaps foremost among the reasons ABC should reconsider is the passion of the Once and Again audience. (For the record, I am only a casual viewer, so this is not a plea by a fan.) Few series, even the highest rated ones, inspire the devotion and evoke the identification with its characters that Once and Again does. In an era where audience fragmentation is the greatest threat to the medium as we know it, there is a substantial value to this.

If none of this is enough to move ABC, there is one final thought to ponder. The writers could always be coerced into sending the characters to Disney World. __ South Florida Sun-Sentinel (April 20, 2002)

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