Banner Graphic, Volume 21, Number 138, Greencastle, Putnam County, 14 February 1991 — Page 17

Quaid teaching, learning in ‘Davis Rules’

By JERRY BUCK AP Television Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) Randy Quaid hopes his new show, ABC’s “Davis Rules,” helps correct the way teachers and school principals are usually depicted on TV. In his first prime-time series, Quaid plays a man who reluctantly gives up teaching to become a principal. Jonathan Winters co-stars as his eccentric father. “Television’s responsible for the image of teachers being a foil for students,” Quaid says. “Shows like ‘Ferris Bueller’ show students doing things to get around their responsibilities. Those shows put teachers in an unrealistic and bad light. It sends a signal to students that it’s OK to be lazy and cut class and see how much you can get away with.” BUT “DAVIS RULES” REPLACES one of the best school shows on the air, “Head of the Class.” In that series, a dedicated teacher, played first by Howard Hesscman and this season by Billy Connolly, inspires a class of gifted students.

There have been good shows set in schools, such as “Our Miss Brooks,” “Mr. Peepers,” “Mr. Novak” and “Room 222.” But many series, and movies too, have made teachers and principals into bumbling idiots easily outwitted by the students. The reason is that young audiences predominate at the theaters and in the early evening on television. “Dwight Davis is a science teacher, and that’s his first love,” Quaid says. “He believes in the quality of a good teacher in a student’s life. He tries to have an impact on all his students. When his fellow teachers select him to become principal, it’s a dilemma for him. He doesn’t want to give up what he loves best.

Nielsen numbers

NEW YORK (AP) Here are the prime-time television ratings as compiled by the A.C. Nielsen Co. for Feb. 4-10. Top 20 listings include the week’s ranking, with full season-to-date ranking in parentheses, rating for the week and total homes. An "X” in parentheses denotes one-time-only presentation. A rating measures the percentage of the nation’s 92.1 million TV homes. 1. (1) “Cheers,” NBC, 21.5 rating, 20.0 million homes. 2. (2) "60 Minutes,” CBS. 21.1, 19.6 million homes. 3. (7) “America’s Funniest Home Videos," ABC, 19.2, 17.9 million homes. 4. (12) “America’s Funniest People,” ABC, 18.8,17.5 million homes. 4. (3) “Roseanne,” ABC, 18.8, 17.5 million homes. 6. (11) “Muiphy Brown," CBS, 18.6, 17.3 million homes. 7. (10) “Designing Women,” CBS, 18.5, 17.2 million homes. 8. (18) “Family Matters," ABC, 18.3, 17.0 million homes. 8. (X) “Barbara Walters Special” ABC, 18.3,17.0 million homes. 10. (7) “Golden Girls," NBC, 18.0, 16.8 million homes. 11. (15) "Full House.” ABC, 17.5,16.3 million homes. 12. (4) “A Different World," NBC, 17.4, 16.2 million homes. 12. (7) "Empty Nest,” NBC, 17.4, 16.2 million homes. 14 (13) “Unsolved Mysteries,” NBC, 17.2, 16.0 million homes. 14. (13) “Murder, She Wrote," CBS, 17.2, 16.0 million homes. 16. (5) “The Cosby Show,” NBC, 16.8, 15.6 million homes. 17. (30) “CBS Sunday Movie Lucy and Desi: Before the Laughter,” CBS, 16.4, 15.3 million homes. 17. (19) “Coach,” ABC, 16.4, 15.3 million homes. 19. (15) “Matlock” NBC, 15.8, 14.7 million homes. 20. (24) “L.A Law,” NBC, 15.7, 14.6 million homes.

“He’s a good father. He’s conscientious about his family. He’s radical in the things he tries in his approach to his job as principal. One of the reasons I took the role is because I thought it would be an opportunity to focus on some educational issues. It’s kind of a pet project.” QUAID COMES TO THE series after three busy years of working only in theatrical movies. His only regular appearance on television was on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” in 1985-86. He has been in nearly a dozen TV movies, most recently as Lyndon B. Johnson in “LBJ: The Early Years” in 1987 and as a golf pro in “Dead Solid Perfect” in 1988. He made his motion-picture debut while still a student at the University of Houston as rich, goofy Lester Marlow in “The Last Picture Show” in 1971. “I’d always turned down the series offered me, but I’d done a lot of movies back to back,” Quaid says. “I liked the idea of working with Jonathan Winters and the producers, Carsey-Wemer. I was hesitant at first, but the producers were so enthusiastic about the show and the characters that it rubbed off on me. “It’s been everything that I hoped it would be so far. I don’t regret doing a series at all. Part of it, too, was working in front of an audience. You can rehearse, but when you do it before an audience your energy level really jumps.” QUAID WANTED TO WORK with Winters and his “wonderfully inventive mind.” He says he doubts that Winters ever says what’s in the script. “He was one of my inspirations when I started doing stand-up and impersonations as a kid,” he says. “I had all of his albums, and I’d try to do everything he did.”

21. (22) “Major Dad,” CBS, 15.5. 21. (39) "Perfect Strangers,” ABC, 15.5. 21.(56) “Wings,” NBC, 15.5. 24. (15) “In the Heat of the Night,” NBC, 15.2. 24. (32) “The Simpsons,” Fox, 15.2. 26. (34) “NBC Monday Movie The Marla Hanson Stoiy," NBC, 15.1. 27. (31) “Rescue: 911,” CBS, 15.0. 28. (35) “ABC Sunday Movie Big,” ABC, 14.8. 29. (37) “NBC Sunday Movie The Chase,” NBC, 14.6. 29. (24) “Anything But Love,” ABC, 14.6. 29. (19) “Doogie Howser M.D.," ABC, 14.6. 32. (41) “20/20.” ABC. 14.5. 33. (21) “Who’s The Boss," ABC. 14.3. 34. (22) “Growing Pains," ABC, 14.2. 35. (27) “Wonder Years," ABC, 14.1. 36. (35) "Carol & C 0.,” NBC. 13.6. 36. (58) “Night Court,” NBC, 13.6. 36. (54) “Going Places," ABC, 13.6. 39. (38) “Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” NBC 13 5 39.’(29) “Davis Rules,” ABC, 13.5. 41. (50) “Evening Shade,” CBS, 13.3. 42. (X) “Cher ... At the Mirage,” CBS, 12.8. 42. (45) “ABC Monday Movie Son of the Morning Star, Part 2,” ABC, 12.8. 44. (32) “Knots Landing,” CBS, 12.7. 45. (49) “MacGyver,” ABC, 12.3. 46. (47) “Blossom,” NBC, 12.2. 47. (40) “CBS Tuesday Movie Sea of Love,” CBS, 12.1. 47. (41) “Jake and the Fat Man,” CBS, 12.1. 49. (47) “Mamed ... With Children,” Fox, 11.7. 50. (50) “Dear John,” NBC, 11.6. 51. (45) “Law and Order,” NBC 11.4. 51. (56) “Dallas,” CBS, 11.4. 53. (66) “thirtysomething,” ABC, 11.2. 53. (62) "In Living Color,” Fox, 11.2. 55. (59) “Seinfeld,” NBC, 10.5. 55. (62) “Father Dowling Mysteries,” ABC, 10.5. 57. (62) “The Fanelli Boys,” NBC, 10.4.

ABC pioneer remembers tribulations and triumphs

By JAY SHARBUTT AP Television Writer NEW YORK (AP) Leonard Goldenson helped engineer the purchase of struggling ABC for the now-piddling sum of $25 million, it was considered a fourth network like today’s Fox. Were he young and starting out in 1991, he says he would still go the network route, even though many consider cable the wave of the present and future. “I think I’d go for the bundle, to get as wide an audience as I could get,” he says. “I’D PROBABLY DO what Fox is doing,” says the former ABC chairman, who had three rivals when he went to work on ABC CBS, NBC and the since-deceased DuMont Network. Fox Inc. chairman Barry Diller, an ABC graduate, “is going through the same kind of approach that we did” in building ABC into a full-fledged network, Goldenson says. “Matter of fact, I keep kidding him that he ought to pay us a royalty. He’s doing the same thing we did to start ABC.” At 85, Goldenson is the lone survivor of network television’s three top pioneers. The others are CBS’ William S. Paley, who died last year, and NBC’s David Samoff, who died in 1971. CHAIRMAN OF ABC until its $3.5 billion sale in 1986 to Capital Cities Communications, he now is chairman of the executive committee of the merged companies, Capital Cities-ABC Inc. He lives far from the network ramble these days, at Longboat Key, near Sarasota, Fla., and comes here once a month on business. But this month he is making stops across the United States to tout a new book his own. Entitled “Beating the Odds,” co-written by Marvin J. Wolf, it’s an account of his life and

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RANDY QUAID Presents positive image

times, particularly those at ABC, done through the device of interviews with about 100 friends and colleagues. Relatively unknown outside the industry, Goldenson is credited within it with helping raise ABC to Nielsen parity and ratings leadership in prime time from 1976 to 1980 after years of lean times. HIS SUCCESS RECORD, begun with “Cheyenne,” includes “Maverick,” “Happy Days,” “NFL Monday Night Football,” sports and, after a long struggle, news. A prime example of the last: “World News Tonight” which has been first in ratings for 56 of the last 57 weeks. Goldenson disputes the theory that Jan. 16, when the Gulf War began, was the night that network news died. The instrument of its alleged demise was CNN, with its all-out war coverage and live reporting from Baghdad. ‘I don’t think that’s right,” he says. “I think CNN did an excellent job, but it’s a headline type of service. “I THINK THE NETWORKS do the story a little more in depth, really, and that’s the distinction between them.” Nor does he think TV’s Big Three face extinction, despite lean economic times, cable’s increasing share of the audience, and fewer network viewers. The networks once had a combined 90 percent share of the audience. ONE MAJOR REGRET is that ABC’s plan to start an all-news cable rival to CNN a decade ago foundered for lack of funds. ABC was investing S4O million in ESPN, he said, and the all-news channel would have cost twice that “So I decided to pass,” he said. But now, in light of CNN’s global success, he wishes he’d pressed on with the ABC version. “Yes, I certainly do. I feel terrible about it. But you can’t do everything.”

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