European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 11, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse It. Reality of talk show life by Shari Roan los Angeles times Hildren who turn in their parents. Women who fall for their stalkers. Nude waitresses who serve hamburgers. Sound like anyone you know for the vast majority of americans the answer is no says Penn state University sociologist Vicki Abt. But to watch daytime to talk shows you would expect the answer to be yes. And that is just one of the Many things about these shows that is undermining America s collective psyche and social norms Abt says. In a blistering essay that has generated anger anxiety and a counterattack among talk show stars Abt and co author Mel see Sholtz of Penn state charge that Oprah Phil Sally and the rest Are so devoted to portraying deviant bizarre and unusual behaviour that their Mil Lions of daily View ers Are becoming numb to what is Normal and Abnor Mal right and wrong Public and private. Moreover says Abt whose paper appeared in the Oprah Winfrey summer Issue of the journal of popular culture the shows make a mockery of psychotherapy and exploit people who Are Down and out. Nudist families who Swap mates. Grandmothers who strip for fun " " odious Abt is forbidden anymore she says. Television emphasizes the deviant so that it becomes Normal if you really Are Normal no Abt s essay based on 60 hours of talk show viewing during the Winter of 1991-92, has been dismissed by a number of talk show producers but caught the Eye of the Queen of Day time chatter Oprah Winfrey. Winfrey has invited Abt to appear on her show scheduled to air this week in the United states i read Abt s paper and i thought Well she made some interesting Points about blur ring the line says Winfrey in a Telephone interview from her Chicago office. I questioned myself about whether we have Ever done that. If we have i feel guilty about it be cause i want to uplift and others too Are questioning the value of talk shows. Feeling increasingly uncomfortable about their roles Media psychologists spent hours at the annual american psycho logical association meeting last month in los Angeles planning tactics to encourage More responsible and helpful talk show Content. The shows create false illusions of caring Abt says a tactic that exploits vulnerable peo ple. These hosts act like your Best Friend. Well they Are not going to be your Best Friend. Oprah is not there to listen to your problems four Days after taping Michael Jackson wins Golden Otto award. Jackson a hit Green acres again Bobbitt on screen by Thomas Elias Scripps Howard news service Jackson still Golden lawsuits child molest ing charges arid marriage Don t Dent Singer Michael Jackson s popularity in Europe. He wins his fifth Golden Otto award for music voted by readers of the Bravo entertainment Magazine. Jackson also won in 1987-89 and in 1992, Green for acres movie rights to the hit 1960s Green acre skiing a six figure sum to estate of creator Jay Sommers. 20th Century Fox assigns comic Rita Rudner and husband Martin Bregman to script an updated full length version with production due to Start next summer. Griffin giving Merv Griffin becomes latest big name contributing property to the Ever growing Stock of Parkland in the Santa Monica mountains in and near . He gives the Santa Monica mountains conservancy 104 acres on the Edge of Beverly Hills beside an area where he plans to develop six estate Homes. Barbara Streisand and Jack Nicholson also donated land to the conservancy within the last year. Nype help Sharon Lawrence an assistant District attorney on Nype Blue bumps into Gil Gar Cetti the real life . Of los Angeles at a party says the encounter was i was trying to have a Normal conversation with the Man but at the same time i was watching All his moves and All his gestures says the emmy nominated actress. It was Homework for diff rent role onetime child Star Gary of frent strokes Coleman becomes a video Arcade operator. I m absolutely Loving it says Coleman of his game parlor in Marina Del Rey Calif. People Are coming Down in Small Coleman adds that he s developing a new sitcom in which hell Star As an Arcade owner. It s sort of like Art imitating life but bigger than life he tells a reporter. Short order comic actor Martin Short is named a member of the Royal order of Canada his native country s highest award. This is a tremendous Honor responds Short. I expect Only my Clos est friends to Call me sir script for Success de Begley or. Says it no longer matters to actors whether they work in big screen movies or on Small screen tvs no one cares about that anymore he tells a Friend. The Only thing that matters is Good direct approach Daniel Stern Long the off camera narrator of the won Der years and lately a co Star in the City slickers and Home alone movie series says hell split his future time Between acting and directing. Stern who directed Rookie of the year signs a directing contract with 20th Century Fox. Spotty polls comedian Richard Jeni on the accuracy of political polls they ask the average american what they think about the economic plan and 75 percent say they think it will be successful. What they Don t Tell you is that 56 percent think they be seen Elvis Down Jiffy Beatty s Island onetime Gilligan s Island Star Bob Denver says the show s cast sensed that Warren Beatty who played Rich kid Milton Armitage in the 60s series was not Long for episodic to one Beatty episode was memorable Denver says in his new Book Gilligan Maynarda me. Some one locked him in a dressing room onstage As a prank Denver recalls. He shouted a few times to be let out and then became silent. It was t until the Middle of the next take that we heard from him. He was singing opera at the top of his lungs. He was Only with the series for five or six episodes and then a year later he starred in splendor in the they re fab John Traina husband of Best sell ing author Danielle steel returns from a visit to a St. Petersburg Russia exhibit of Faberge eggs. He tells friends my Faberge collection is better than when Nora met Rob Nora sleepless in Seattle Ephron advises Young screenwriters to tailor scripts to directors they think might buy them. Find someone who thinks the script is about him she says. Mike Nichols thought he was Karen Silkwood. For when Harry met Sally i based an entire character on Rob invested him in the v tuned to Ted Castle Rock entertainment part Ner Alan Horn gives new Boss Ted Turner who bought the production House Early this year a Good initial review. He s mercurial Horn says of the Cable to Mogul. He s a bundle of Energy and i think he s a wonderful Guy i genuinely like diet at Disney Disney co. Chieftain Michael Eisner goes on the Pritikin diet. Switch to health food is a response to his summertime open heart surgery. Cosby Aid Bill Cosby and Quincy Jones get set to go political. Pair agrees to join forces for a Benefit concert later this month helping finance the inde pendent Senate Campaign of former Virginia gov. Doug Wilder. Casting Call Leslie Nielsen gets set to make1 another spoof. This time he s negotiating to Star in wrongfully accused a Takeoff on the fugitive in which he d play a musician accused of murder and running for his life. John Wayne Bobbitt gets his first movie gig will play himself in the adult movie John Wayne Bobbit uncensored. Actor Paul sovino replaces former . Police chief Daryl Gates As Host of behind bars syndicated reality series now in a test run on 22 to stations. Cree a different world summer joins cast of Sweet Justice an Abc to show also starring Melissa Gilbert and Cicely Tyson. James equal Justice Wilder is latest addition to cast of Fox to s models inc. Hell play a mysterious millionaire nightclub owner. September 11. 1994 sunday Page 11
