Before ‘Accidental Tourist,’ Some Less Memorable Roles

Ex-model and actress Geena Davis has proved she’s a genuine movie star by winning an Oscar (“The Accidental Tourist”), being nominated for another (“Thelma & Louise”), having been married to more than one Hollywood celebrity (including Jeff Goldblum)--and by not doing TV series anymore.

After making her film debut in 1982’s “Tootsie”--as Dustin Hoffman’s dressing-room-mate (she’s in her underwear a lot), Davis quickly went on to “Buffalo Bill” (1983-84), a sitcom with Dabney Coleman (she even wrote an episode), and then got her own, highly touted series, “Sara” (1985). “Sara” lasted only a few months, but that’s OK.

“I’m much happier doing ‘Thelma & Louise’ than ‘Sara’ for the 10th year or whatever,” Davis once said in an interview.

During those TV days were some guest shots on shows that probably don’t crop up on her resume: “Knight Rider,” “Fantasy Island,” “Riptide” and two episodes of “Family Ties” from 1984 that can be seen on TBS this weekend.

In the episode “Help Wanted” (Saturday at 1:05 a.m.), Davis plays Karen Nicholson, the new housekeeper whom the Keatons love. The problem: Karen is a lousy housekeeper, but Steven (Michael Gross) has a hard time trying to get rid of her.

In “Karen II, Alex 0” (Sunday at 2:15 a.m.), which originally aired a week after “Help Wanted,” Alex (Michael J. Fox) needs a knockout date to a pledge dance so he can get in a snooty fraternity. Karen finally agrees to go but won’t tell Alex why she’s hesitant.

Less than two months after those episodes were broadcast, “Sara” premiered, with Davis as a single lawyer in San Francisco and Alfre Woodard as her best friend.

Later that year was a “Remington Steele” guest shot, a few specials and TV movies. It was also the same year that some of her early movies were released--”Fletch” and “Transylvania 6-5000.”

DETAILS, DETAILS: What current talk-show host played a sleazy lawyer on “Sara”? Answer next week. Answer to last week’s quiz (What Oscar-winning actress played Murray Slaughter’s daughter on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”?): Helen Hunt.

Set Your VCR

Peter Falk won his first Emmy for “The Price of Tomatoes,” a 1962 episode of the anthology program “The Dick Powell Show,” which TV Land is showing in its “Emmy Box Set” segment Sunday at 7 a.m. Falk plays Aristide Fresco, who has to rush a truckload of tomatoes to Ohio if he wants to make thousands of dollars. Slowing him down is a pregnant Romanian--played by Inger Stevens--who’s in the United States illegally but who’s determined that her baby be born an American.

In the premiere episode of “The Equalizer” (today at 7 a.m. and 1 p.m. on A&E;), McCall comes to the aid of a man who’s in danger when he discovers a blackmail plot involving a top government official. That was from 1985. Other first episodes: “Designing Women” (Friday at 4 p.m. on Lifetime), “Petticoat Junction” (Wednesday at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on TV Land), “Taxi” (Saturday at 12:30 a.m. on Nickelodeon) and “Happy Days” (Monday at 10 p.m. on Nickelodeon).

An amusing pairing of scheming lowlifes: Daniel Travanti and Charles Haid on a “Gunsmoke” from 1974 (Tuesday at 1 p.m. on KDOC Channel 56). Seven years later, they’d be together on the right side of the law, Travanti as Capt. Furillo and Haid as Officer Renko on “Hill Street Blues.”

Some extraterrestrials are skinny, big-headed green beings; some look like Danny Thomas. On the “Dick Van Dyke Show” episode “It May Look Like a Walnut” (Tuesday at 1:30 a.m. on Nickelodeon), they’re the Danny Thomas variety.