CHEVY CHASE’S LATE-NIGHT CHAT GETS EARLY START

Chevy Chase fans alert: Fox’s latest foray into late-night talk shows, “The Chevy Chase Show,” will premiere on Sept. 7. Chase’s show will be telecast from 11 p.m. to midnight. That way, Chase will have the jump on some of the other late-night talk shows. Chase is looking forward to returning to TV, where he began his career as one of the resident comics on “Saturday Night Live.” Known for his spontaneity in comedy, fans of Chase could look forward to some wild goings-on when the show begins.

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MacGyver fans will be happy to note that ABC has completed filming two full-length features to air next season. The first is titled “MacGyver: Trail to Doomsday” and the second is “MacGyver: The Lost Treasure of Atlantis.” Both two-hour films allow MacGyver to embark on bigger adventures than were possible in the weekly TV series, which appealed to fans of the action genre. The new productions benefit from European locations and special effects. Of course, Richard Dean Anderson is continuing in the role of the dauntless hero MacGyver.

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Viewers who think that ESPN offers more coverage of motorsports should tune in TNN ... yes, The Nashville Network! TNN has more hours of motorsports programming than all other networks--basic, pay and broadcast--combined. In fact, for 1993 The Nashville Network has scheduled more than 800 hours of motorsports programming, and 100 of those hours are live coverage. Last month, TNN offered live coverage of the NASCAR Winston Cup’s all-star race from the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. Country singer Ricky Van Shelton joined TNN’s motorsports announcers covering the action at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

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Before Connie Chung joined Dan Rather as co-anchor of “CBS Evening News” last week, Dan Rather stated: “Connie Chung is a wonderful person, an experienced network correspondent and an outstanding anchor. She will help to make the CBS Evening News a better broadcast.” Connie was also very complimentary in speaking about her new co-anchor and old friend: “I am committed to upholding the standards that Dan has set for the past 12 years. We have known each other for more than 22 years, and I couldn’t be more excited about working with him in this new role.”