Commentary : WHY WON’T WE SIT STILL FOR AN HOUR OF DRAMA?

How long is an hour?

Too long these days, it seems.

At least when it comes to TV fiction. Prime time’s hour slots are getting eaten up by newsmags, with 10 of ‘em on the networks now and more to come. What does this mean for the future of television drama?

“The Marcus-Nelson Murders” got me thinking about this. The 1973 TV movie got a recent network repeat (NBC), in a move of rare class and/or crass penny-pinching. Not only is “Marcus-Nelson” one of the medium’s finest moments--a thoughtful and gritty story of a crusading New York cop, written by Abby Mann--but it’s also the vehicle that introduced us to Telly Savalas’ Theo Kojak, who in his subsequent CBS series evolved into one of TV’s true icons.

But where is the “Kojak” series today, should you wish to peruse the lieutenant’s continued handiwork? Well, Kojak is mostly marooned in satellite limbo, filling time on cable feeds of superstations whenever federal syndicated exclusivity rules require that competitive fare such as “Arsenio” be blacked out in distant markets.

This is not exactly showcase treatment for a TV classic. Dramas such as “Kojak” ought to be coddled in a loving home, like Nick at Nite--but that TV Land preserve quickly stopped accepting hour residents after early experiments with “I Spy” and “Route 66” failed to flourish. Cable’s Nostalgia TV shows several weeknight dramas (“Family,” “Combat,” “Ben Casey”), and we’re grateful for their presence. But it’s heartbreaking to see how most of TV Land treats these treasures of our TV heritage.

Where are “77 Sunset Strip” and “The Defenders,” “Mission: Impossible” and “Cagney & Lacey,” “Miami Vice” and “Wiseguy”? If “F Troop” can have a home, why can’t “Mannix”?

The obvious answer: Because most viewers won’t sit still for it. We’re barely in one place long enough to absorb the 22 minutes of “Married ... With Children,” which asks absolutely nothing of our brain cells anyway. To sit down, and to pay attention? For two whole half-hours?

It’s been 10 years since dramas were near the top of the ratings, and those were airhead offerings: “Dallas,” “Dynasty” and “The A-Team.” Only “NYPD Blue” gets any kind of a drama audience today, and it’s sad to say that bare butts probably got most of those viewers in the tent to begin with.

Even “Hill Street Blues” never cracked Nielsen’s Top 20. The networks’ current experiment with family dramas offering “heart”--”The Road Home” and “The Byrds of Paradise”--isn’t setting any records, either. “Dr. Quinn” may prove to be the fluke rather than the forerunner.

But maybe one reason dramas aren’t cutting it today is that we don’t really know anymore how it’s done. Comedy creators can soak up all the “I Love Lucy” and “Mary Tyler Moore” episodes they want. The greats are available to learn from. Not so with drama classics.

But some folks are starting to show the right respect. TNT is turning its attention to hour TV shows, adding “Kung Fu” and “The Wild Wild West.” Other cable channels run drama classics at obscure times--but at least they’re on the air.

Hours will never die out, of course. The industry doesn’t have the depth or the money to fill network schedules completely with sitcoms. And we viewers really do need the occasional change of pace. But hour drama is evolving. “Northern Exposure” is really a 60-minute comedy. And for that matter, “Roseanne” sometimes behaves like a 30-minute drama with lots of laughs. The show often ends not on a joke but on a contemplative note.

So maybe half-hour drama is the way for the genre to go. The Nostalgia Channel runs a sterling example of this: the late ‘60s cop chronicle “N.Y.P.D.” And then there’s “Peter Gunn,” and “Have Gun, Will Travel,” and “Room 222.”

And, lest we forget: Rod Serling’s “Twilight Zone.” Some of television’s greatest dramatic writing was wrapped up in 30 minutes.