Vancouver Passed Off As Spokane
The blurb for the Showtime made-for-cable movie “Ronnie and Julie,” which airs tonight at 8, caught my attention.
This movie is a contemporary comic re-working of the “Romeo and Juliet” story, about two rival mayoral candidates who fall in love in 1997 Spokane.
Spokane?
Yeah, sure, except the whole thing was shot in Vancouver, B.C., according to the people at Showtime. The screenwriters just thought Spokane sounded good, apparently.
The February sweeps
The duel between KHQ-6 and KREM-2 remains tight at both 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., according to the February sweeps Nielsen ratings.
At 11 p.m, KHQ remains the most popular choice, while KXLY is the early riser’s newscast of choice.
Here are the February Nielsen ratings, for all households, with the rating number (percent of all households) followed by the share number (percent of households with TVs in use at the time):
6 a.m.
KXLY: 5 rating, 28.6 share.
KHQ: 3.8, 21.7.
KREM: 2.4, 13.5.
5 p.m.
KREM: 12.4, 26.3.
KHQ: 11.2, 23.8.
KXLY: 7.9, 16.7.
6 p.m.
KREM: 11.5, 21.2.
KHQ: 11.3, 20.8.
KXLY: 7.9, 14.6.
11 p.m.
KHQ: 7.2, 29.6.
KREM: 5.4, 22.2.
KXLY: 4.2, 17.2.
A few observations:
KHQ’s “11 at 11,” with highlights of the news, weather and sports in the first 11 minutes, is a big hit with viewers across the board. It also doesn’t hurt that KHQ has NBC’s strong prime-time lineup as a lead-in.
Conventional wisdom has always held that KREM wins 5 p.m. because of the strong “Oprah” lead-in. But it also wins at 6 p.m., so it can’t be all “Oprah.”
KXLY’s numbers don’t look strong overall, but don’t be deceived. It does very well with young and middle-aged viewers. KXLY is actually No. 1 with viewers aged 18-49 at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. The only catch is: The vast majority of news viewers are over 50.
Is it really the ‘Best’?
The Inlander’s “Best of the Inland Northwest” poll came out Wednesday, and it is fun reading, as always. However, this year some results were skewed by a major self-promotion campaign by the country station KNFR-FM (The Frog).
The station effectively stuffed the ballot box not just by begging for votes (other stations did that, too), but also by such means as faxing out dozens of ballots to people who turned around and faxed them directly back to the Inlander, according to Inlander editor Ted McGregor.
He said he threw out hundreds of ballots that were obviously part of an organized campaign (dozens of ballots with the same handwriting, or with only the radio categories filled out). But only the most blatant examples were thrown out.
No surprise, KNFR-FM was voted “Best Radio Station,” and its morning team was voted “Best DJ Team.”
I have two observations about this:
What’s the satisfaction in winning if you have to beg people to vote for you?
If everybody lobbies shamelessly for votes, the poll will soon turn into a mere “Best Self-Promotion” poll.
McGregor said he wasn’t too happy about the situation, but under the present rules, he said he had to allow most of the ballots.
“In a sense, they hijacked a couple of categories,” said McGregor, although he also said that he was impressed by the loyalty of the station’s listeners.
He plans on changing the rules next year. For one thing, faxed entries will probably not be allowed.
In general, he offers this plea to those who are out there organizing: “Let the people decide.”
Public TV pledge factoids
Here are a few fascinating facts from KSPS-7’s spring pledge drive, which ended Sunday:
The final tally was $509,000, far above the goal of $462,000 (yet short of the record of $550,000 raised during one of the “Three Tenors” years).
Only 22 percent of the pledges came from people with Spokane addresses. About 34 percent came from Calgary and Edmonton.
“Riverdance” and the similar show “Lord of the Dance” were this year’s blockbusters. About $112,000 came in during those shows alone (about 22 percent of the total pledges over the two-week drive).
“It’s almost unfathomable,” said Patty Starkey, KSPS development director, about the “Riverdance” phenomenon. “Who would have thought that people barely moving their upper bodies can do this? It’s something new and refreshing, and that’s what public TV does best.”
Spokane’s theater champs
Spokane placed one-two in the Washington state finals of the American Association of Community Theatre competition in Bremerton last weekend.
The Spokane Civic Theatre’s production of “Mama Drama” was the judge’s unanimous choice for first place. This ensemble drama, which explores the theme of motherhood from five perspectives, played the Studio Theatre in January. The director was Marilyn Langbehn.
Placing second was the Spokane Children’s Theatre’s production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” directed by Troy Nickerson.
Nine community theater groups from around the state participated in the competition.
“Mama Drama” will now move on to the regional finals in Spokane on April 27, in competition with the winners from Alaska and Oregon. The regional winner moves to the national finals in Grand Rapids, Mich., in June.
This is the seventh time in nine attempts that the Civic’s entry has been named best in state.
Thomas Hampson Web site
All of you Thomas Hampson fans will be happy to hear that Spokane’s most famous baritone now has his own official Web site.
Check out www.hampsong.com or www.thomashampson.com. You’ll see photos, discographies and a performance calendar. You’ll even get to read Hampson’s observations on that most provocative of topics, German lieder.
Calling all Silver Spurs
Are you a former Silver Spur or supporter?
The Silver Spurs International Folk Dance Youth Group is seeking people who have documents, group pictures or any historical keepsakes from the past 50 years (the group was founded in 1947). Please call 326-2793 if you can help.
, DataTimes MEMO: Spotlight is a column of news and commentary on arts and media. To leave a message on Jim Kershner’s voice-mail, call 459-5493. Or send e-mail to jimk@spokesman.com, or regular mail to Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210.