Correction
On Saturday, April 22, a teaser appeared on the TV Barn Web site for a story I'd written for the Kansas City Star. The headline of the teaser read, "Sinclair bounces two more local exex" and the teaser copy also said that "the general manager (was) pushed out." In fact, as readers who clicked through to the story learned, only one of the two executives had been fired. The general manager announced her resignation.
The late debate
And I must correct myself again, somewhat. When I wrote in a recent column that "Law & Order" executive producer Dick Wolf had been keeping his piehole shut regarding the V-chip — a show-blocking technology he passionately opposes — it turns out he did recently speak out against it. Albeit he spoke out at 2 a.m. on "Later," the ultra-late-night talk show currently hosted by VH1's Cynthia Garrett.
Wolf and Los Angeles Times TV critic Howard Rosenberg had been invited onto the show to talk television. It was a bit of a departure for the normally celebrity-obsessed NBC talk show (and it really didn't help that Garrett kept referring to the half hour as a "three-way," a term with nothing but unpleasant connotations). But it was a worthwhile exchange between producer and critic. So if it takes a toothy 30-something to make possible an interesting chat between a couple of plus-50 white males on national TV — because the only other time that ever happens is when David Letterman has Tom Brokaw on his show — then I say let the three-ways continue.
Anyway, toward the end of the half hour, Wolf and Rosenberg got around to the V-chip, the one subject where the two men plainly didn't see eye-to-eye.
Wolf: "That little chip inside your TV — it's benign now, but under a different administration — if the country got more conservative — certain things could be programmed out ..."
Rosenberg: "That wasn't your argument before. You said the V-chip was censorship, which it's not ... Anything that gives parents more control over the TV, I'm all for ... You're talking about the imperfection of the ratings system, not the V-chip."
ALSO: Pols call for uniform entertainment ratings code
FOLLOWUP: Two readers wrote in after the above article appeared to dispute a claim made by Wolf. Anthony Foglia: "You quoted Dick Wolf saying, 'No one's ever fired a gun on our show (because) "Law & Order" deals with the effects of violence.' Hate to be picky, but weren't Logan's first two partners (played by George Dzunda and Paul Sorvino) both shot? I'm just being picky though, because the show did deal with the repurcussions of both, and neither were typical Hollywood police show shoot-outs." Ed Ingraffia: "As much as I enjoy 'Law & Order,' and as much as I tend to agree with Mr. Wolf's point-of-view regarding censorshop on television, I think it was rather irresponsible for Mr. Wolf to declare that no guns have ever been fired on his show."
EARLIER:
Pick To Click: As the "Creek" Turns
"Dawson's Creek" (8 p.m., WB) has seen its ratings plunge nearly 30 percent this season, a move some critics attribute to creator Kevin Williamson's ending his day-to-day involvement with the WB show for other projects (like that long-forgotten ABC series "Wasteland"). Tonight's episode hopes to reclaim that old spark by refocusing on the four main characters. The hour revolves around a gimmick, but it's not as crass as the sexy "dream sequences" that are a staple of other WB shows.
More than that I won't reveal, except that by the 20-minute mark or so, you'll start to have a strange sense of deja vu. It doesn't feel like trickery at all since it's put in the service of a genuine turning point in the show: the secret romance of Pacey (Joshua Jackson) and Joey (Katie Holmes).
The daily digest ... for May 3, 2000: Also overheard during the Dick Wolf-Howard Rosenberg exchange mentioned above: "'Law & Order' has had over 7,000 speaking roles. I think we've had very few turkeys (among the acting talent). But it's because of the writers ... No one's ever fired a gun on our show (because) 'Law & Order' deals with the effects of violence. It usually starts with a dead body" ... Regarding Nielsen ratings, Wolf is under the impression that there are still just "2,800 Nielsen families" out there. In fact, the number is closer to 24,000 Nielsen families: at least 400 households in each of the 48 "metered markets" who supply overnight household ratings that are used both locally and nationally; and the more than 4,000 families spread across the U.S., in all 211 Nielsen markets, who have "people meters" that measure demographic data ...
Pardon me while I pound this drum: USA Today mentions our piece on a local "Survivor" contestant in a feature story today ... And we have an answer to yesterday's question about David Duchovny's reckless play during Monday's celebrity "Millionaire." Duchovny apparently had the blessing of the director of The East Harlem School at Exodus House to go for broke. Each of the celebrities' charities is guaranteed $32,000, as alert viewer Yacov Freedman noticed while watching the show's closing credits.
Previously on TV Barn:
2 May: Time Warner and ABC make up ... for now
1 May: Time Warner, ABC go to war; the V-chip (II); Dave returns to England
28 April: Reader mail: Pets.com-troversy, Fox News vs. the others, TV Barn spam
27 April: What happened to the V-chip; more on puppets
26 April: Fox News Channel rocks; Scully directs "X-Files"
25 April: Pets.com sues over sock puppet
24 April: Earth Day on ABC; Elian on display
On this date... In 1979, the "Castaways on Gilligan's Island" get rescued again. (In 1978's "Rescue from Gilligan's Island," the gang made it off, but through a series of complications wound up trapped again on the same isle.) This time the crew escapes the island, but as they've gotten accustomed to island life, they decide to stick around and run a tropical resort, the better to (a) try and get make on the air as a regular series and (b) attract such "Love Boat"-quality guest stars as Marcia Wallace. -- Tom Heald
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