What About Late-Night Costas?

TV or not TV. . . .

THE THIRD MAN: OK, we know Jay Leno is staying at NBC and David Letterman is leaving for CBS in June--but what about Bob Costas?

The interview series “Later With Bob Costas,” which follows Leno and Letterman at 1:35 a.m., has helped NBC extend its dominance of late-night TV since its arrival in 1988.

But Costas, who branched out from sportscasting on the series, is trying to stand apart from the Leno-Letterman-NBC fireworks, even though he’s been part of the winning trio.

“I’m a very minor figure in all of this,” he says.

Maybe so. But his contract for his series runs out in September, and the last thing NBC needs is another defection from the only area of programming--late-night--in which it is the acknowledged leader.

Costas says his sports contract with NBC also expires at the end of the year.

Asked about continuing his late-night show, he says: “I don’t know what I’ll do. I’m not being coy. If I’m not back at some point down the road, it will not be for dissatisfaction with NBC, but for personal reasons only.

“I don’t want to do as much work as I’ve been doing. I want to spend more time at home with my wife and children, and we live in St. Louis. It’s part of the reason I’m giving up ‘NFL Live’ and restructuring what I’m doing professionally.”

NBC, of course, is already over a barrel these days, trying to come up with a new, one-hour entertainment series to follow Leno’s “Tonight Show.” But Costas maintains that he’s not pulling a negotiating ploy.

The network clearly thinks highly of his late-night series. On Saturday, he’s getting a one-hour, prime-time special that features interview clips from his shows with a wide variety of personalities.

There was some speculation that Costas might get the 12:35 a.m. Letterman spot or perhaps figure in it. But Costas says:

“I’m not a candidate for anything. I do not know yet exactly what I want to do. So at the moment I’m in no position to commit to anything, and it would be presumptuous of me to think that it would be offered. . . . I’m not an entertainer.

“I really don’t think that NBC is even thinking of me for the 12:30 spot. And I’m perfectly content to stay where I am for the time being.”

Would Costas have a different, more definite attitude about renewing his series with NBC if Letterman, his potent lead-in, weren’t leaving?

“No. My decision on this is almost unconnected to anything anybody else does. God bless them all, but they have their lives and I have mine.”

ON THE PROWL: Top-ranked CBS has turned quite aggressive in trying to swipe competition stars and shows as the network builds its ratings.

Not only did it grab Letterman and attempt to lure away ABC’s Peter Jennings for CBS’ “60 Minutes,” it also signed up two longtime NBC hits this season: “In the Heat of the Night” and “The Golden Girls,” now retitled “The Golden Palace.”

NIGHT GAMES: Another NBC series that got away, Andy Griffith’s “Matlock,” continues to do its stuff on ABC. In the national ratings released last week, “Matlock” and “PrimeTime Live” combined to make a potential new prime-time power out of ABC on Thursdays.

“Matlock,” which draws its strength from older viewers, ranked 16th among 99 shows, attracting 24% of the TV audience. “PrimeTime Live” also attracted 24%.

In just months after the departure of “The Cosby Show,” NBC has gone to pieces on Thursdays except for “Cheers” and “Wings.” And “Cheers” will wind up its run this year.

Fox’s “The Simpsons” helped break down the NBC-”Cosby” Thursday dominance, and now the night is up for grabs, as the surprisingly enduring “Matlock” has shown.

BATTLEGROUND: Terrific piece on the Letterman-NBC-CBS affair by Ken Auletta in the Feb. 1 New Yorker.

CENTRAL CASTING: That three-hour CBS version of “Gypsy,” starring Bette Midler, goes into rehearsal in March for broadcast next season. The network is modestly billing it as “possibly the most notable musical event for television since Mary Martin’s ‘Peter Pan.’ ”

It certainly seems the right vehicle for Midler. But you have to wonder why CBS didn’t round up Tyne Daly, who won four Emmys for the network in “Cagney & Lacey” and starred in “Gypsy” on the stage, to do the musical on television.

REEL LIFE: There’s kind of an extra little matter in Tom Arnold guest-starring on “Civil Wars” Feb. 16. Arnold’s series, “The Jackie Thomas Show,” precedes “Civil Wars” in the legal drama’s new Tuesday slot, and ABC is surely hoping his appearance builds some kind of a viewing bridge between the two programs, as vastly different as they are.

LOST WEEKEND: If you haven’t caught Rhonda Shear and Gilbert Gottfried yet in their loony hosting of those campy weekend movies on USA cable, give it a shot. Shear, a lesser-known comedian, puts a very sly and knowing twist on her blond-airhead appearance.

RETURN ENGAGEMENT: Angela Lansbury’s new deal to return for at least two more seasons in “Murder, She Wrote” means she’ll have a few more chances to win the Emmy that she’s never gotten for the role. Now in its ninth year, the show ranks No. 5 among all series this season.

BOOKINGS: Robert Culp does a guest turn on “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman” Feb. 13. And Jane Wyman also recently showed up as the visiting mother of the series’ star, Jane Seymour, in a role that seemed to leave the door open for further appearances.

OUT OF GAS?: “Empty Nest,” a longtime winner on Saturdays, seems yet another victim of NBC’s slump as the show’s ratings have settled into a mediocre pattern.

DRAWING BOARD: Mark it down: Feb. 7, 9-11 p.m. for NBC’s 25th anniversary “Laugh-In” special.

BEING THERE: “Don’t knock the wages of sin. They’re tax-free.”--”Laugh-In.”

Say good night, Gracie. . . .