What’s Next? Ode to Early ‘90s?

Are TV executives now getting their ideas from the L.A. club scene? Clubs dedicated to reliving the ‘70s have been a staple of local nightlife for years. There’s Groove, Superfly, Platform, Saturday Night Fever, 1970, and (as the Andrea True Connection sang) more, more, more.

Tuesday, NBC is presenting a two-hour special entitled “ ‘70s Summer Celebration: The Beat Is Back.” It will feature disco kings and queens such as Donna Summer, KC and the Sunshine Band and Sister Sledge performing at the Wiltern Theatre for a crowd of bell-bottomed, polyester-clad fans.

Though Buzz hasn’t seen the special, we are intrigued by the publicity materials. There are the Bee Gees, looking suspiciously like the aging Beach Boys. (“My hair’s not thinning; I just like wearing this cap.”) There’s the promise of Sonny Bono doing a reading. And, best of all, there are the Dukes of Hazzard and Lenny and Squiggy--together at last.

Our only questions: When will NBC discover the nascent ‘80s revival? Could it mean that the network will unite Culture Club, the A-Team and Ed Meese?

For All-Nighters

Looking for the ultimate in after-hours clubs? Do you still have happy feet when your favorite spot padlocks the door at 6 a.m.?

Well, then, you can kill a few hours over breakfast out and get over to Sketch Pad, a new club designed for those who have been clubbing all night on Saturday. Near Downtown, Sketch Pad opens at 1 p.m. on Sunday and continues until 10 Sunday night.

The tariff is only $6, and, as a tired-sounding voice on the club hot line warns, “There will be no in-and-outs after 7:30.”

Bits and Pieces

Overheard on the town lately:

As an overeager publicist nearly knocked down a photographer at a recent premiere, the lenswoman yelled after her, “Didn’t I see you on ‘American Gladiators’?”

From the invitation to the opening night of the musical “Ruthless”: “Be there or be bored.”

And this sad lament on the state of L.A. from an inveterate nightlife lover: “I can take the fires. I can take the crime. What I can’t take is Nickodell’s closing. I gotta get out of this place.”