Weekend TV : New Series Will Premiere on Networks; Pledge Drive Starts

Now that sweeps hysteria has subsided for at least a few months and spring training is swinging into full gear, TV programmers have chosen the first weekend of March to premiere some of their prime-time pinch-hitters eager to earn a spot in the networks’ regular starting lineup.

Hoping to capitalize on the patriotic fervor that made “Top Gun” a box-office smash, ABC will debut “Supercarrier” Sunday at 8 p.m. Filmed aboard the USS Kennedy in Florida, this action-packed series depicts life on a huge Navy aircraft carrier. Richard Jaeckel stars.

NBC counters with the pilot for its new series, “In the Heat of the Night,” Sunday at 9 p.m. Carroll O’Connor and Howard Rollins star as the Southern police chief and detective made famous by Rod Steiger and Sidney Poitier in the Oscar-winning movie of the same name.

“It’s Garry Shandling’s Show,” the offbeat cable comedy series, also makes its debut on commercial television Sunday at 9 p.m. on Fox (Channel 11 in Los Angeles). In the first episode, Shandling’s new house is robbed just before he goes on a nightmarish date with a sexy cable installer.

And for Sunday morning news junkies, public television premieres a new series on foreign affairs called “World Beat: Great Decisions in Foreign Policy,” at 9:30 a.m. on Channel 28. The first show addresses the U.S. trade deficit and the challenge presented by foreign competition on the global market.

Public television also begins its spring membership drive today. Channel 28 gets things rolling at 9:30 p.m. with “Shake, Rattle and Roll,” a presentation of performances by men and women from the early days of rock ‘n’ roll, including Chubby Checker, the Coasters, the Drifters, Ben E. King, Jerry Lee Lewis and Darlene Love.

Channel 50 will woo subscribers with such mellower fare as “Lawrence Welk” at 8 p.m. and “Benny Goodman: Let’s Dance” at 9:15 p.m.