Abc Offers Updates On Once-Famous
Fame can be a fleeting thing. Ironically, however, people want to know whatever happened to those who were once household names.
That’s the basis for CBS’ “Where Are They Now?” a mildly entertaining special at 8.
The subjects are gymnast Mitch Gaylord, winner of a gold, a silver and two bronze medals at the 1984 Olympics; Kim Phuc, the napalmed Vietnamese girl captured in a 1972 Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph; the Von Trapp family, which inspired “The Sound of Music” (1965), and Imelda Marcos, wife of deposed Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos.
Their lives have changed.
Gaylord got into trouble with drugs. Phuc has a new life in America. The Von Trapps, who also started over in America, have grown up. And Marcos is back in the Philippines as a member of Congress.
The stories are well told, though overlong. Marcos not withstanding, they show how people can overcome the adversity that sometimes accompanies fame.
Frankly, however, this show’s hosts are more interesting.
Wayne Rogers (“MASH”); Olympic gold medalist Greg Louganis; Keshia Knight Pulliam (“The Cosby Show”); Fawn Hall, Oliver North’s former secretary; and actress Angela Cartwright (“Lost in Space”) introduce the segments.
Highlights
“The Faculty,” ABC at 8:30: Flynn (Meredith Baxter) is devastated when her daughter (Sharon Annett) would rather stay at college and party with her friends than come home and celebrate with mom.
“Picket Fences,” CBS at 9: Sheriff Brock gets bad news from his doctor. A spot on his liver could be cancer.
As he sweats out the wait for test results, he investigates the murder of a homeless man - an exercise that makes him even more aware of his mortality.
“Party of Five,” FOX at 9: In an emotional 1994 episode, Walter Alcott (John Rubinstein), the drunken driver responsible for the deaths of the Salinger parents, is released from prison. On the eve of Thanksgiving, he approaches the family asking for forgiveness, and each of the siblings responds differently.
“Guys Like Us,” ABC at 9:30: Failed pilot season begins. The guys are John Mendoza, Tom McTigue and Robert Hays (“Airplane!”). They play three buddies who become partners in a rental business with no clue as to what they’re doing.
ABC said no dice, and it will be evident why.
“Dateline NBC,” NBC at 9: Jane Pauley interviews Cher.
“Law & Order,” NBC at 10: Probably a dozen series had stories linked to the Internet this season. This was one of the better ones.
Briscoe and Curtis (Jerry Orbach, Benjamin Bratt) investigate the death of a college girl. They suspect a classmate with a taste for computer porn. Sandy Duncan guest-stars.
“PrimeTime Live,” ABC at 10: Chris Wallace interviews a former FBI informant who alleges that Qubilah Shabazz, daughter of the late Malcolm X, conspired to murder Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.
Cable Calls
“NBA Draft,” TNT at 4:30: Georgetown’s Allen Iverson and UMass star Marcus Camby are the top picks as NBA teams select players they hope will be their future stars. Live.
“The Crying Child” (1996), USA at 9: Mariel Hemingway stars as a woman who encounters the spirit of a young child in the attic of her family’s island cottage. It’s the ghost of a young boy locked away by his stepmother 150 years ago.
Now, he’s breaking out and raising hell.
The story turns on the heroine’s maternal instincts overriding her fear of the ghost. Unavailable for review.
“Sorry, Wrong Number” (1948), AMC at 7:15 and 11: Barbara Stanwyck stars in the original film adaptation of the classic radio play. (Loni Anderson slaughtered the role in a 1989 cable movie.) Stanwyck plays an invalid who overhears plans for her murder over the telephone. She makes a frantic effort to summon help.
Stanwyck won an Oscar nomination for her brilliant performance.
Talk Time
“Tonight,” NBC at 11:35: Actor Burt Reynolds and actress Kyra Sedgwick.
“Late Show With David Letterman,” CBS at 11:35: Jerry Van Dyke (“Coach”) and music group Fugees.
“Late Night With Conan O’Brien,” NBC at 12:35 a.m.: Actor Mickey Rooney.