‘Mars-Venus’ Offers Couples Earthly Help

Sat., Sept. 6, 1997

Faye Zuckerman New York Times Syndicate

Rather than reaching into its recycling bin and pulling up another teary woman-in-turmoil repeat, ABC is trying something different.

The network is giving you two hours of author John Gray espousing his philosophies about women, men and relationships.

He is considered an expert in interpersonal communications.

His book “Men Are from Mars, Women Are From Venus” certainly serves as proof. It has sold over 6 million copies in the United States and has been on best-seller lists for four years.

In ABC’s “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus - But We Have to Live on Earth” (Sunday at 9), you’ll meet six couples ABC executives chose from 400 who responded to ads in New York-area newspapers. All of the six couples were not familiar with Gray’s work and were willing to let cameras into their homes.

Much of the two hours is pat and voyeuristic. The couples, as you might expect initially, are depicted as bickering, complaining and whining.

And how much of their private lives do we really want to know?

But once Gray steps in to help these troubled pairs, improvement is immediate. He’s depicted as a marriage miracle worker.

The two hours feel like a long advertisement for the best-selling author’s books, but there is a subtext not to be ignored. Gray’s philosophies are practical.

Essentially he believes in a little compromise, consideration and communication.

Highlights

“Cops,” FOX tonight at 8: FOX continues its regular Saturday night diet of reality-based series with the kickoff of season No. 10 for “Cops” (8 and 8:30) and “America’s Most Wanted” at 9.

For the first of two “Cops,” you can travel to Las Vegas to check out a high-tech security system at a casino and watch several blues break up a domestic dispute between an elderly couple. At 8:30, cops in Seattle and Tacoma are featured.

“Most Wanted” profiles the murder of Colorado’s JonBenet Ramsey with a look at what went on inside the house the night of the crime. The segment examines if the police botched the investigation.

“A Father for Charlie” (1995), CBS Sunday at 9: Let’s give Louis Gossett Jr. a standing ovation for his portrayal of a Depression-era black farmer in this repeat, which painstakingly avoids melodrama.

The only reason Gossett’s Charles Osgood stays around his racist hometown (the blacks have been driven away by the Klan) is the hope his missing son will return.

After a fire destroys Osgood’s crop, his tenant runs off, leaving behind troubled son Charlie (Joseph Mazzello, “Jurassic Park”).

Through all the hardships, Osgood remains stoic and pensive and shows great restraint as he defends himself against racism. Gossett’s low-keyed performance allows the focus to be on the friendship between Osgood and Charlie.

Cable Calls

“First Time Felon,” HBO tonight at 9: Here’s an intense movie starring Omar Epps as a 23-year-old drug dealer who trades jail time for a rigorous boot-camp program. The program turns him around, but will society accept him back?

Movie Marquee

“Lethal Weapon 2” (1989), NBC Sunday at 8:30: Mel Gibson and Danny Glover reunite as Los Angeles detectives, and Joe Pesci joins the mix as a crooked accountant tied to a drug cartel. This is action-packed but not nearly with the original’s thrills.

xxxx DIANA FUNERAL The following schedule changes were made after the deadline for today’s TV grid: The four major networks offered live coverage of the funeral of Princess Diana early this morning. Coverage of the funeral also will run today on ABC until 8 a.m.; NBC, 7 to 11:05 a.m. (a rebroadcast of the funeral); and CBS from 8 to 9 p.m. (a special farewell to Princess Diana).

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