‘Seinfeld’ Splits. . .

NBC didn’t have any choice about whether “Seinfeld” came back for another season, but the network now finds itself sorting through a variety of options--and unsolicited advice--as to how to fill the void left by the comedy’s departure.

Indeed, CBS Television President Leslie Moonves has called trying to guess what the network will do “sort of the new sport in town.”

NBC won’t state its plans until May, when all the networks announce their prime-time lineups for next season. The delay is understandable: An informal survey of television insiders and pundits found no clear consensus as to how NBC should address the equivalent of having basketball’s Michael Jordan opt for early retirement--stripping a championship team of its star player.

Looking toward NBC’s bench, the assumption is that another veteran in the art of scoringNielsen points will get the call--most likely “Frasier” or “Friends.”

The most popular scenario, in fact, places “Friends” and “Frasier” at 8 and 9 p.m. Thursdays, respectively, keeping that night especially formidable.

“Clearly, a monster Thursday night and a strong Tuesday night will enable them to maintain their stranglehold on that No. 1 position,” said 20th Century Fox Television President Sandy Grushow.

Some combination of “Frasier,” “Friends,” “Mad About You” and “3rd Rock From the Sun” form the nexus of a still-powerful NBC lineup, providing tent poles at 8 and 9 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday to prop up the sitcoms sandwiched between them. NBC has also attached high hopes to “Just Shoot Me,” the comedy featuring Laura San Giacomo, which has exhibited promise following “Frasier.”

In short, NBC has no shortage of contenders. Yet most observers quickly add that relocating any successful series entails risk--and in this case a financial gamble, given the hundreds of millions of dollars in profits NBC has been annually wringing out of Thursday night.

According to Grushow, a former programming chief at the Fox network, NBC has “got to be thinking about playing [its] strongest card at 9 o’clock Thursday night while providing the least disruption to the schedule.”

Supplanting “Seinfeld” with “3rd Rock” would be least disruptive, but that series’ strength is questionable based on the beating it’s received Wednesdays opposite ABC’s “The Drew Carey Show.”

Though unlikely, perhaps the most interesting scenario came from former ABC Entertainment chief Brandon Stoddard, who launched “Roseanne” while running that network in the 1980s.

“The first goal has to be to maintain strength on Thursday night,” noted Stoddard, now an independent producer, who said he’d consider shifting “ER” to 9 p.m. Thursdays in order to introduce another drama series behind it--creating a possible new 10 p.m. hit that could “pay back some of the money you’ve spent on ‘ER.’ ” (NBC recently renewed the show into 2001 at a staggering $13 million per episode.)

Citing the difficulty in losing a series like “Seinfeld,” Stoddard added jokingly, “I guess the first thing you do is stop the bleeding--not from the schedule, but from your own wrists that you’ve just slit.”

Bud Grant, who was Stoddard’s counterpart at CBS, indicated he would seek to limit the number of time-period changes. For that reason, he might try “Veronica’s Closet”--the first-year Kirstie Alley series that currently follows “Seinfeld”--in the earlier 9 p.m. slot.

“I wouldn’t start juggling the entire schedule around, that’s for sure,” he said. “If ‘Friends’ and ‘Frasier’ are doing well [where they are], leave it alone, because what you could end up doing is damaging those shows.”

At least two talent agents sounded a similar note, saying NBC should situate “Friends” at 9 p.m. Thursdays, insert “3rd Rock” or “Just Shoot Me” at 8 p.m. and leave Tuesday unchanged.

By process of elimination, Chuck Bachrach--who evaluates prime-time programming for ad agency Rubin Postaer & Associates--said he would put “Mad About You” in “Seinfeld’s” berth, assuming that NBC hangs on to the show. (The stars have yet to decide whether they want to return for another year.)

“That time period needs an intelligent adult show,” Bachrach said. “ ‘Frasier’ would be your first choice, but that’s working [Tuesdays], so I’d probably leave it where it is.” Moving “Mad About You” might even prolong that program’s life, he noted, by giving the stars “a real home and a good time period.”

Industry sources note that NBC can withstand some shuffling, relying on its powerful marketing machinery to let viewers know where they can find their favorite shows.

In addition to “Frasier,” “Friends,” “3rd Rock,” “Caroline in the City,” “Veronica’s Closet,” “Just Shoot Me” and “Suddenly Susan” next season, a few slots for new programs have already been filled.

NBC is planning a series starring “The Birdcage’s” Nathan Lane and produced by the creative team behind “Frasier,” and has committed to another show from the producing trio responsible for “Friends” and “Veronica’s Closet.” A riskier proposition is a comedy-variety show being created by Paul Reubens, a.k.a. Pee-Wee Herman.

Even with “Seinfeld’s” departure, the other networks don’t appear to possess the ammunition to launch a frontal assault on NBC’s first-place status. CBS, ABC and Fox each have their own troubles to address, with CBS best positioned to challenge NBC for the lead in total viewers, while Fox and ABC present a minor threat in terms of the young-adult audiences that most directly translate into advertising revenue.

NBC may also be more conservative next fall. After spreading an unprecedented 18 comedies across five nights in September, executives recently admitted that saturation went “a bridge too far.” The network is now discussing a more concentrated approach, with 14 comedies on fewer nights.

Programs like “Seinfeld” come along perhaps once in a decade, so no one believes replacing it will be easy. Stoddard thus cited one last-ditch maneuver a savvy programming executive should always hold in reserve.

As a last resort, he said with a laugh, “you prepare a press release saying you would like to leave the network and spend more time with your family.”

The Contenders: Several shows are in the running to inherit “Seinfeld’s” coveted time slot on NBC’s most watched night.

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Going Out on Top

Some long-running shows that left at or near the top of the prime-time ratings:

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Series Last year on air Ranking Years on air “Seinfeld” 1998 No. 2* 8 “Cheers” 1993 No. 8 11 “MASH” 1983 No. 3 11 “The Andy Griffith Show” 1968 No. 1 8 “I Love Lucy” 1957 No. 1 6

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*Current standing

Source: Los Angeles Times