Preview ’94 : TV Movies Display Based Instincts

Viewers won’t be able to get away from the standard-issue “based-on-fact,” “based-on-the-best-seller” and (the often unauthorized) “based-on-the-life of . . .” among this fall’s television films. But if you’re looking for escapist fare in miniseries you’ll only find one--the long-awaited “Scarlett.”

Some of your favorite old series will be metamorphosing into movies once more, with some or all of the original cast. Among them: “Columbo,” “Cagney & Lacey,” “Simon & Simon,” “Young Indiana Jones,” “Alien Nation,” “Bonanza,” “Saved by the Bell” and even “The Six Million Dollar Man” and “The Bionic Woman.”

ACTION-ADVENTURE

“Simon & Simon”: Rick and A.J. (Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker) reunite to solve a crime involving their mother and a boat. Oct. 21 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Young Indiana Jones and the Hollywood Follies”: The first of four new movies produced by Family and Lucasfilm Ltd. finds Indy in Hollywood, circa 1920. Oct. 15 at 8 p.m. Family Channel.

BIOGRAPHY

“Against Her Will: The Carrie Buck Story”: Melissa Gilbert and Marlee Matlin star. The test case for the 1927 Supereme Court decision legalizing the sterilization of mentally deficient women against their will. Oct. 5 at 9 p.m. Lifetime.

“The Burning Season”: Raul Julia stars as activist Chico Mendes who was murdered protecting his home and people in the Amazon rain forest. Sonia Braga, Esai Morales, Tony Plana and Edward James Olmos co-star. Sunday at 8 p.m. HBO.

“Lakota Woman”: Irene Bedard heads an all-Native American cast, focusing on Mary Crow Dog and the 1973 siege at Wounded Knee. Oct. 16 at 5 p.m. TNT.

“Madonna: The Early Years”: An unauthorized look at the pop music icon’s earliest years in entertainment. TBA. Fox.

“Million Dollar Babies”: Beau Bridges and Kate Nelligan star in a four-hour movie based on the life of the Dionne quintuplets. Nov. 20 and Nov. 22 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Margaret”: Shannen Doherty stars as Margaret Mitchell, author of “Gone With the Wind.” Oct. 31 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“The O.J. Simpson Story”: The first O.J. movie in production--with strong objections from the sports legend’s defense team. TBA. Fox.

“Paper Mansions: The Dottie West Story”: Michele Lee stars as the country singer-songwriter, who brought glamour to the country scene and died in 1991. TBA. CBS.

“Roseanne”: The comedian-actress’ turbulent life stars Denny Dillon (“Dream On”). TBA. Fox.

“Roseanne and Tom: A Hollywood Marriage”: Patrika Darbo and Stephen Lee star in this “behind-the-scenes” look at Roseanne and Tom Arnold’s romance. November. NBC.

COMEDY

“Daytona Blues”: Shelley Long, Delane Matthews and Mel Harris play three girlfriends who reunite in Fort Lauderdale during spring break. TBA. CBS.

“Don’t Drink the Water”: Woody Allen’s Broadway hit becomes his first TV movie. Allen and his family, all tourists, are chased into an American embassy and are suspected of spying. Michael J. Fox, Julie Kavner and Mayim Bialik co-star. TBA. ABC.

“Genghis Cohen”: A dark comedy with Diana Rigg and Robert Lindsay about the ghost of a Jewish comedian who haunts the SS officer responsible for his death. Nov. 6 at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. A&E.;

“Money for Nothing”: Martin Short, Christien Anholt and Paul Reynolds star in a BBC production about teens who wager they can win a million pounds in a week. Oct. 23 at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. A&E.;

DRAMA

“Against Their Will: Women in Prison”: Judith Light stars as a wrongly jailed woman, sent to a prison where inmates are kept like a harem. Stacy Keach and Kay Lenz co-star. TBA. ABC.

“Because Mommy Works”: A nurse and single mother (Anne Archer) takes a hard look at her ability to raise her son when her ex-husband and his new stay-at-home wife sue for custody. November. NBC.

“Cagney & Lacey: The Return” and “Cagney & Lacey: Together Again”: Both movies reunite Sharon Gless and Tyne Daly in their Emmy-winning roles, which they portrayed from 1982-88. TBA. CBS.

“Cool and the Crazy”: Written and directed by Ralph Bakshi. A woman’s (Alicia Silverstone) teen marriage to a mechanic (Jared Leto) is in danger when she has a fling with a street punk (Matthew Flint). Friday at 10 p.m.. Showtime.

“Cries From the Heart”: Melissa Gilbert and Patty Duke star star as two adversarial women raising an autistic child. Sept. 25 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Dazzle”: Judith Krantz’ best-seller stars Lisa Hartman Black, Linda Evans, Dixie Carter, Cliff Robertson and James Farentino. The four-hour drama focuses on a prominent California family, who own a valuable ranch. Oct. 16 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Deadly Vows”: A naive young woman (Josie Bissett) is transformed into an alluring seductress by an older man (Gerald McRaney) and used as his alibi in the attempted murder of his wife. Tuesday at 8 p.m. Fox.

“A Father for Charlie”: Louis Gossett Jr. plays a black farmer in a 1932 Ozark mountain town who raises the son of a racist sharecropper. TBA. CBS.

“For the Love of Nancy”: Tracey Gold plays a woman stricken with an eating disorder. Oct. 2 at 9 p.m. ABC.

“A Friend to Die For”: Tori Spelling and Kellie Martin star as classmates whose lives are ruined when one’s jealousy leads to tragedy. Sept. 26 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“The Gift of Love”: Ailing septuagenarian (Andy Griffith) receives a new heart--from his beloved grandson. Olivia Burnette and Blair Brown co-star. TBA. CBS.

Hallmark movies: CBS will air five movies on Sunday afternoons, including: “Trick of the Eye” with Ellen Burstyn, Meg Tilly, Barnard Hughes and Paxton Whitehead and “Star Struck” with Kirk Cameron, Chelsea Noble, D.W. Moffett and J.T. Walsh. TBA. CBS.

“I Led Two Lives”: Connie Selleca stars as a bored married woman who leads a double life, TBA. NBC.

“Is There Life Out There?”: Reba McEntire and Keith Carradine star. Inspired by McEntire’s song, a woman realizes something is missing in her life. Oct. 9 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Lily in Winter”: Singer Natalie Cole plays a nanny ensnared in a web of deceit as she attempts to protect her young charge. Dec. 8 at 9 p.m.. USA.

“My Brother’s Keeper”: John Lithgow and Ellen Burstyn star in this story of a family’s struggle when one twin brother becomes HIV-positive. TBA. CBS.

“Radio Inside”: After his father’s death, a teen moves to live with his older brother and becomes involved with his brother’s girlfriend. William McNamara, Elisabeth Shue and Dylan Walsh star. Oct. 21 at 8 p.m. Showtime.

“Reunion”: A New England farm family’s life is shattered by a death. Marlo Thomas, Peter Strauss and Frances Sternhagen star. TBA. CBS.

“Reform School Girl”: A free-spirited teen-ager (Aimee Graham) is falsely convicted of a hit-and-run accident and sent to reform school for her crime. Sept. 23 at 10 p.m. Showtime.

“Sing Me the Blues, Lena”: Ann-Margret stars as a newly liberated widow who pursues a career as a singer. November. NBC.

“Texas Justice”: Freewheeling Texas millionaire marries his mistress and a bitter divorce, two deaths, an FBI sting and criminal trials follow. Dennis Franz, Peter Strauss and Heather Locklear star. TBA. ABC.

“Where Are My Children?”: Marg Helgenberger stars as a young mother jailed on a specious charge. When she returns home, she finds her three children gone. Corbin Bernsen also stars. Sept. 18 at 9 p.m. ABC.

FAMILY

“Father and Scout”: A hapless dad (Bob Saget) reluctantly accompanies his 8-year-old son (Brian Bonsall) on a father-son camping trip. TBA. ABC.

“The Good King”: Jonathan Brandis stars in this period tale of Good King Wenceslas. Stefanie Powers, Perry King, Leo McKern and Joan Fontaine also star. Nov. 26 at 8 p.m. Family Channel.

“How the West Was Fun”: The Olsen twins help their godmother keep her beloved dude ranch. TBA. ABC.

“Kidz in the Woods”: Urban students take over the wilderness. Dave Thomas, Julia Duffy, David Lascher, Candace Cameron, Tatyana M. Ali, Darius McCrary and Alfonso Ribeiro star. December. NBC.

“Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas”: Zack (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and Kelly (Tiffani-Amber Thiessen) may finally get hitched. Gilbert Gottfried co-stars. Oct. 7 at 8 p.m.. NBC.

“The Shaggy Dog”: A remake of Disney’s 1959 comedy in which a teen-ager is changed into a shaggy sheep dog when he tries to invoke a centuries-old love spell. Ed Begley Jr. and Scott Weinger star. TBA. ABC.

HISTORICAL DRAMA

“Jacob”: The Old Testament tale stars Matthew Modine, Lara Flynn Boyle, Irene Pappas and an international cast. Dec. 4 at 5 p.m. TNT.

“Fatherland”: Set in Berlin 20 years after Hitler’s victory in World War II. Rutger Hauer plays an SS detective investigating a murder case that leads him to a deadly secret of the Third Reich. Miranda Richardson is an American journalist who helps him. Nov. 26 at 8 p.m.. HBO.

MYSTERY

“Anna Lee: Headcase”: A private eye for the ‘90s, based on the novels of Liza Cody, starring Imogene Stubbs. Oct. 4 at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. A&E.;

“Lovejoy Mysteries: The Lost Colony”: Lovejoy finds himself ensnarled in an odd clan while visiting America. Sunday 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. A&E.;

“Poirot: Peril at End House”: A vacation for the dapper detective goes awry. Tuesday at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. A&E.;

ROMANCE

“Danielle Steel’s ‘Family Album’ ”: Jaclyn Smith and Michael Ontkean star. Four-hour drama of a turbulent marriage made more difficult by four rebellious children. Oct. 23 and 24 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“Danielle Steel’s ‘A Perfect Stranger’ ”: A tragic romantic triangle. Robert Urich, Stacy Haiduk, Marion Ross, Susan Sullivan and Darren McGavin star. Monday at 9 p.m. NBC.

“Ivana Trump’s ‘For Love Alone’ ”: Skier experiences love’s heartaches and successes. Stephen Collins, Sanna Vraa and Madeline Kahn. Trump has a cameo. Oct. 29. CBS.

SCI--FI

“Alien Nation: Dark Horizons”: Cast, creators of the Fox series reunited, TBA. Fox.

“Bionic Breakdown: Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman”: Reunites Lee Majors, Lindsay Wagner and Richard Anderson. Bionic couple set wedding date and learn their bionics are disintegrating. Oct. 25 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“The Companion”: A female novelist (Kathryn Harrold) takes a “male” android (Bruce Greenwood) with her to an isolated cabin for companionship. Oct. 13 at 9 p.m. USA.

“Harlequin Romance”: CBS airs four “Harlequin” Sunday afternoons: “Treacherous Beauties” with Emma Samms, Bruce Greenwood, Catherine Oxenberg and Tippi Hedren, Sept. 25; “Another Woman” with Justine Bateman, Oct. 2; “Change of Place” with Rick Springfield and Stephanie Beacham, Oct. 9, and “Broken Lullaby,” Oct. 16. CBS.

“Robin Cook’s ‘Mortal Fear’ ”: Joanna Kerns stars. Boston physician is stunned when healthy students suddenly begin dying. November. NBC.

SUSPENSE

“Beyond Betrayal”: Susan Dey, Richard Dean Anderson and Dennis Boutsikaris star. A woman attempts to start a new life as she leaves an abusive husband. Sept. 27 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Columbo”: Peter Falk reprises his role as the rumpled detective in several movies. TBA. ABC.

“Dead Air”: Disc jockey (Gregory Hines) plagued by nightmares of his girlfriend’s murder. Oct. 6 at 9 p.m. USA.

“The Haunting of Seacliff Inn”: Yuppie couple (Ally Sheedy and William R. Moses) purchase an old house and convert it to bed-and-breakfast. Spirit of the original owner haunts them. Sept. 22 at 9 p.m.. USA.

“Incident at Deception Ridge”: Cynical ex-con (Michael O’Keefe) protects survivors of bus crash caused by kidnapers who are after stolen ransom money carried by a passenger. Stars Ed Begley Jr. and Linda Purl. Thursday at 9 p.m. USA.

“The Innocent”: Assistant D.A. (Kelsey Grammer) must communicate with an autistic 9-year-old, the only witness to a violent crime. Sept. 25 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“Intensive Care”: A doctor struggles to determine a 5-year-old’s unexplained illness. Veronica Hamel and Pam Dawber star. November. NBC.

“Jack Reed: A Search for Justice”: Brian Dennehy, Charles Dutton, Miguel Ferrer and Susan Ruttan star. Real-life Chicago law enforcement officer uncovers an illegal operation. Oct. 2 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“Moment of Truth: Cult Rescue”: Joan Van Ark stars as a wife and mother drawn away from her family by a religious cult. Oct. 17 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“Nowhere to Hide”: A young divorcee discovers someone wants her dead. Rosanna Arquette and Scott Bakula star. TBA. ABC.

“A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Grimacing Governor”: Tony Curtis, James Brolin and Bonnie Bartlett join Hal Holbrook, Barbara Hale and William R. Moses TBA. NBC.

“Ray Alexander”: Louis Gossett Jr. stars as a private investigator. Ossie Davis and James Coburn also star. TBA. NBC.

“Shadows of Desire”: A woman falls in love with two brothers, one good, one evil. Nicollette Sheridan, Joe Lando and Adrian Pasdar star. Sept. 20 at 9 p.m. CBS.

“Someone She Knows”: Markie Post plays a mother determined to find her 5-year-old daughter’s murderer. Oct. 3 at 9 p.m. NBC.

“Tour of Duty”: An officer’s wife is stalked by the commander of a remote Army base. Courtney Thorne-Smith and Peter Coyote star. Dec. 22 at 9 p.m. USA.

“Voices From Within”: JoBeth Williams, Stephanie Zimbalist and Corbin Bernsen star. A woman is murdered and then identified as three different people. Oct. 10 at 9 p.m. NBC.

WESTERN

“Black Fox”: Three movies will star Christopher Reeve and Tony Todd. TBA. CBS.

“Bonanza II”: A second generation of Cartwrights defend the Ponderosa against an adversary. Michael Landon Jr. stars. December. NBC.

“The Gambler V: Playing for Keeps”: Kenny Rogers, Dixie Carter, Bruce Boxleitner, Loni Anderson and Mariska Hargitay star. The four-hour further adventures of Brady Hawkes, Oct. 2 and 4 at 9 p.m. CBS.

MINISERIES

“Scarlett”: The long-awaited sequel to “Gone With the Wind” stars Joanne Whalley-Kilmer, Timothy Dalton, Ann-Margret, John Gielgud, Julie Harris, Jean Smart, George Grizzard, Paul Winfield, Stephen Collins, Colm Meaney and Ester Rolle. The eight-hour miniseries based on the Alexandra Ripley best-seller follows Scarlett O’Hara as she battles to rebuild Tara and reclaim Rhett. Begins Nov. 13 at 9 p.m. CBS.