Some Lame Rerunning

by Dick Adler
Los Angeles Times - January 9, 1976, Part IV, p. 23

A funny thing happened to Space: 1999 on its way to becoming an off-network smash here in Los Angeles- it developed double vision about six weeks ago. Eight new shows were aired, each a fine example of the medium's technical capabilities and the science fiction form's ability to grow, and then bang- a rerun, in the middle of November.

OK, the show's fans figured; maybe the print for the new episode didn't arrive in time. That has been known to happen in the hectic world of syndication. Then came another rerun and then another, until there were five repeats in a row. Is this any way to build series loyalty, that fragile bond between viewer and program which producers, advertisers and networks talk about with such reverence?

According to Lionel Schaen, general manager of KHJ-TV which has been airing Space: 1999 at 7 p.m. on Saturdays, the station has received no complaints from viewers about the sudden appearance of reruns just as the series was getting into its swing. Also according to Schaen, the show's ratings have been good and have remained so during the reruns.

This turns out not to be the case.

During the month of October, with new programs, Space: 1999 appears to have earned an average 9.4 rating in the local Nielsen survey- about twice what its predecessor (My Partner, the Ghost) managed to run up last season. A 9.4 is a respectable if not spectacular score for an independent station, especially in a market as crowded as this one.

In November, Space: 1999 averaged an 8.7 rating. Then the reruns began, and the scores started to plummet- a 6.2 on Nov. 29, a 6.1 on Dec. 6, a 6.2 on Dec. 13 and a dismal 4.0 on Dec. 20. Viewers might not have called Channel 9 to complain, but they were obviously making their anger felt where it really mattered- at the channel selector.

KEEPING THEIR RATINGS UP

In contrast to this is the performance of Space: 1999 in other cities which have chosen not to load the first 13 weeks with reruns. According to the show's producers, Independent Television Corp., most of the 155 stations which carry it elected to air just two or three repeats during the holiday period, and generally kept their ratings up. WPIX in New York averaged a 9.5 over the past two months; the Cleveland UHF station which carries Space: 1999 at 7 p.m. on Saturdays showed little fall-off from the amazing ratings it had been getting. The Chicago independent station was still racking up a 12 rating.

KHJ-TV says that it scheduled Space; 1999 in this manner to make its 24 episodes go further. "If we showed all 24 in a row, we'd have to go into reruns in March," says Schaen. "This way we can offer new programs a few weeks longer." He contends that most viewers don't expect new programs over the holidays, and will gladly watch reruns. The 8.7 rating posted by last week's rerun might just bear out his thesis- although a cynic could say that a new program might have busted through into the 11's, 12's or even 15's had it come after a careful mixture of two or three reruns.

The point of this exercise really is to point out to possibly disgruntled Space: 1999 addicts that Saturday's show is a new one, and one of the best so far. It's called "Matter of Life and Death," and presents the wandering Moonbase Alpha with what appears to be a perfect new home- a lovely planet called Terra Nova, with all the comforts and none of the drawbacks of the original.

Then the script (by Art Wallace and Johnny Bryne- they deserve an Emmy nomination at least) takes an eerie and moving turn. Richard Johnson suddenly appears as Barbara Bain's supposedly long-dead husband to warn the wanders away from this apparent paradise. Under Charles Crichton's expert direction, all the actors reflect the stress and yearning of the predicament beautifully. Martin Landau, occasionally too tight-lipped for my taste, is just right here; Bain, Johnson, Barry Morse and the other regulars are equally fine.

THE REAL STARS

The real stars of Space: 1999, of course, are the designers and special effects people who- given full rein by producers Sylvia and Gerry Anderson and ITC's lavish budgets- bring Moonbase Alpha, its hardware and the space through which it travels to awesome reality. In Saturday's show, they all have a field day; the climactic scene in which all hell literally breaks loose in the Garden of Eden is really something to see- preferably in color, on the largest screen you can.

This new episode also helps to reinforce a little theory of mine that Space: 1999 is a much more hard-nosed and relevant reflection of our times than the very dated attitudes of Star Trek- which, incidentally, moves over to Channel 5 on Sunday at 6 p.m. with a two-hour special hosted by Leonard Nimoy. Where Star Trek seems to be almost completely a product of the optimistic, recklessly liberal 1960's, full of worries about America's role in the world, Space: 1999 is a wiser, more realistic look at the limited options for survival which now face us all.

Since this piece began on a negative note, happily it can end with some good news. ITC has decided to make 24 new episodes of Space: 1999 for next year, and KHJ-TV has landed the local rights to them. There will be a new American producer- Fred Freiberger, whose many credits include a stint on Star Trek; some new faces (to replace Barry Morse, who never had enough to do); and an extra $25,000 per episode for even more spectacular effects. Would it also be too much to ask that Channel 9 take a new look at its rerun policy?

Photo:

B&W photo of Koenig & Russell testing the water on Terra Nova.

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