Will ‘Good Sports’ Soar in Battle With ‘Wings’?

TV or not TV. . . .

SHOOTOUT: There’s a key matchup Thursday when CBS’ new Farrah Fawcett-Ryan O’Neal sitcom, “Good Sports,” debuts against NBC’s cheerful weekly series “Wings.”

The main question is why CBS, in dire need of comedy hits, is tossing the high-profile “Good Sports” into the lion’s den--against NBC’s most potent night. “Wings,” for instance, has TV’s best lead-in: “Cheers,” the No. 1 network series.

On the other hand, if “Good Sports” shows staying power, it could be the second series--the other is Fox’s “The Simpsons”--that puts a dent in NBC’s billion-dollar Thursday lineup.

“Wings,” created by three former producer-writers for “Cheers,” stars Timothy Daly and Steven Weber as brothers who run a commuter airline out of Nantucket, Mass. Crystal Bernard, who runs the airport lunch counter, co-stars.

Against this entry, CBS is tossing Fawcett and O’Neal as “mismatched anchors at an all-sports cable network” who have a love-hate relationship. Playing the network founder is Lane Smith, who portrayed Richard Nixon in TV’s “The Final Days.”

“Wings” replaced the canceled “Grand” series in the coveted 9:30 p.m. Thursday slot. The industry consensus is that Paramount, which produces both “Cheers” and “Wings,” outmuscled Carsey-Werner Productions, which turns out “The Cosby Show” and wanted the time slot for “Grand,” another of its series.

CBS worked up a clever print advertisement for “Good Sports”: “That body. That hair. That smile. Those teeth. That’s right, Ryan O’Neal is back. And Farrah looks good, too.”

But “Good Sports” has almost no lead-in strength from “The Flash,” while “Wings,” paired with “Cheers,” drew a 29% audience share last week. “Cheers” had 37%.

“Good Sports” has a talented creator in Alan Zweibel (“It’s Garry Shandling’s Show”), and his two co-executive producers also have solid TV credits: Bernie Brillstein (“The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd,” the Shandling series and “Buffalo Bill”) and Brad Grey (Shandling and “The Dave Thomas Comedy Show”).

Over at “Wings,” meanwhile, co-creator David Angell, who devised the series with David Lee and Peter Casey, says, “If I had my druthers, I’d rather not be up against a show with two well-known performers like Farrah Fawcett and Ryan O’Neal. But having worked on ‘Cheers,’ our slot is the natural place to be.”

PUBLIC SERVICE: How generous our local TV stations are when it comes to children’s programming.

Take KCBS Channel 2. On Saturday, the station presents sixth-graders from Murchison Elementary in East Los Angeles taking on Eliot Middle School of Altadena in the championship finals of the “Kidquiz” series. Now all you have to do is get up at 6:30 a.m. to watch it.

Then, on Jan. 19--another Saturday--KNBC Channel 4 offers a “Young People’s Special” entitled “Grandma Didn’t Wave Back,” starring Molly Picon. It has a fine premise--an 11-year-old girl and her grandmother learn to cope with the aging process. And all you have to do to see this show is get up at 5:30 a.m.

Funny--Geraldo, “Wheel of Fortune” and “A Current Affair” never get these great time slots.

ALL POINTS BULLETIN: “Hard Copy” is conducting its “first annual search for the most beautiful woman in America,” and will devote an entire show to the winner. Is this sexism or what? How about a show for the best-looking guy too? I mean, if you’re going to do tough reporting, go all the way. Hard copy, indeed.

SNAKE EYES: It boggles the mind that CBS’ “Sons and Daughters” actually got on the air. “Crime and Punishment” would have been a more apt title.

COACH: George Allen was more fun to watch on the sidelines on TV than any of his players on the field.

ENCORE: OK, so the fat lady sang in the finale of “Cop Rock” on Dec. 26. Ah, but do you remember that a fat lady also sang in the finale of “St. Elsewhere” in May, 1988? Our readers did.

TRIBUTE: The Philadelphia Orchestra honors the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday with a live concert Monday on the Arts & Entertainment network--and guess who’ll read from composer Aaron Copland’s “A Lincoln Portrait”? None other than retired basketball great Julius Erving, still a class act.

CLOWN PRINCE: Big day for the Comedy Channel Jan. 20 when it launches “The Ernie Kovacs Show,” more than 130 half-hours of the late comedian’s TV programs. Kovacs died in a car accident 28 years ago this coming Sunday, at age 42.

SMACK: What a charming idea for a Valentine’s Day special--”Kisses,” an hour look at the most famous smooches in movie history, hosted by Lauren Bacall for TNT cable on Feb. 11.

JUST A THOUGHT: Is Deborah Norville, the embattled “Today” anchor, perhaps thinking of Judy Woodruff’s career move? On Feb. 3, Norville hosts a PBS special, “Tax Break ‘91: Increasing Your Tax IQ.” Woodruff quit NBC and her career blossomed at PBS on “Frontline.”

BUILDING BLOCKS: Estelle Getty guests as a family counselor on “The Fanelli Boys” Saturday--right before her regular series, “The Golden Girls”--in a smart NBC move to juice the new show.

BONER: American Movie Classics marks Victor Mature’s birthday with a triple feature Jan. 29, but how in the world could the channel omit his best performance--as Doc Holliday in “My Darling Clementine”?

BEING THERE: “For some people, small, beautiful events are what life is all about.”--Doctor Who in the “Doctor Who” series.

Say good night, Gracie. . . .