‘OCEAN APART’ A COOPERATIVE EFFORT

Public television stations WNET here and KCET in Los Angeles have joined forces with the British Broadcasting Corp. to produce a documentary series on the history of U.S.-British relations. Plans call for the series, “An Ocean Apart,” to be broadcast in seven one-hour segments, beginning early next year.

“The story of this crucial relationship is a good one, but there are many nuances, and we wanted to be in a position to have editorial input into the series, rather than simply acquiring it,” WNET Vice President Robert Kotlowitz said in discussing the reasons behind the Anglo-American partnership. “They (the BBC) were going to make it anyway, so we thought we should take the opportunity to try to assure balance.”

Kotlowitz said that Blaine Baggett, KCET’s executive producer of national public-affairs programs, currently is in England overseeing the nearly completed project as its American producer.

The series will chronicle the off-again, on-again relations between the United States and Britain during this century. Specific shows will focus on the Americanization of Britain, the shift in world power from Britian to the United States and current conflicts between the two powers over such issues as U.S.-based missiles in Europe.

The participation of the two public-television stations also produced additional funding for the series, from a special public-broadcasting program fund and from a British Airways underwriting grant that was acquired by KCET. A spokeswoman for KCET said that the station still is seeking post-production and promotional funds for the series.