In what ABC says will be a...

In what ABC says will be a topical, provocative drama unlike any other since “The Day After,” it is producing a TV movie about the dangers of toxic waste. Called “Acceptable Risks,” the movie will show how a community reacts when confronted with an accidental spill at a chemical plant. Among the stars are Cicely Tyson, Brian Dennehy, Kenneth McMillan, Beah Richards, Christine Ebersole and Richard Gilliland.

Bob Hope was going to make his TV-movie acting debut in a biography of Walter Winchell a few years back, but the project never came to fruition. So the comedian’s TV-movie premiere will come in “A Nice, Pleasant, Deadly Weekend,” a film for NBC in which he is paired with Don Ameche. Hope is a detective who must enlist the aid of Ameche’s retired thief to solve a string of crimes. It’s due to air later this month.

Michael Landon’s character on “Highway to Heaven” spends most of his time helping out Earthlings, but in an upcoming episode he’ll help a fellow angel. Ed Asner will guest star as the other angel, who’s in danger of not earning his wings because his efforts to do good deeds always seem to backfire.

Morgan Brittany and Michael Young will host the fourth annual “Miss Teen USA” pageant, which CBS will broadcast Jan. 21 from the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Fla. Entertainment on the two-hour show will be provided by the Commodores, Frankie Avalon, Fabian, Bobby Rydell and the Solid Gold Dancers.