Something Old, Something New For TV Viewers

In honor of the holiday season I tried to offer something for everyone in my column this week. First up is some programming of interest to kids and families; next is information on an upcoming marathon of a classic crime drama; last, but certainly not least, is an intriguing documentary that blends sports and history.

First up, the kids. The folks over at THE DISNEY CHANNEL are presenting reruns of their best programming as voted by their viewers. Voting took place earlier this month on the ZoogDisney website (www.zoogdisney.com) and featured such categories as favorite concert, music video, series and movie.

Among the nominees for Best Concert were BRITNEY SPEARS AND JOEY MCINTYER IN CONCERT and BACKSTREET BOYS IN CONCERT. Favorites for original Disney movie include ZENON: GIRL OF THE 21ST CENTURY and THE THIRTEENTH YEAR.

The winners will be played on Friday, December 31st from 6:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on January 1st. The special is entitled, "DISNEY CHANNEL'S Z2K: ZOOGIN' NEW YEARZ EVE PARTY.

THE RETURN OF WISEGUY:Back in the 1980s CBS offered a brilliant and critically acclaimed crime drama entitled, WISEGUY. The series was created by Stephen J. Cannel (THE ROCKFORD FILES, THE A-TEAM) and told the story of life undercover as an agent of THE FEDERAL ORGANIZED CRIME BUREAU.

The series starred Ken Wahl as agent Vinnie Terranova and used multiple-episode story arcs. This allowed viewers to not only get an in-depth look at the lives of the heroes but to get a look at the villains as well. Things weren't always so black-and-white in this series either.

The series featured a variety of famous guest stars including Jerry Lewis, Kevin Spacey, Ron Silver and Mick Fleetwood, among others. Probably the most notable series of episodes involved an 11-episode story arc starring Spacey as mobster Sonny Steelgrave.

COURT TV is brining back the series in a 14-hour marathon of repeat episodes airing on January 2nd. The special is being co-hosted by series creator Stephen J. Cannell. On January 8th the network will air back-to-back episodes of the series on Saturdays and Sundays beginning at 8 p.m.

If you missed the series the first time around I urge you to check it out. Fans of the series will enjoy watching these reruns again as they are still better than most of the dramas now currently on television.

Sports and History Fans Take Note: Beginning January 3rd THE SHOWTIME NETWORK is offering KINGS OF THE RING: FOUR LEGENDS OF HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING. Produced, written and directed by noted Olympic film historian Bud Greenspan, the series looks at the lives and careers of four notable boxers.

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