WGN goes retro

Superstation WGN is rebranding itself, calling itself WGN America and introducing a creepy new logo which it unfortunately insists on plastering on its programming.

The logo is the bad news. The good news is that as part of the revamp, the network apparently is willing to move away every now and then from its lineup of "Nash Bridges" and "America's Funniest Videos." Most exciting to me is its experimentation with "Outta Sight Retro Nights."

A few weeks ago, WGN presented 1970s week, with each night's primetime lineup featuring a 4-episode mini-marathon of a different sitcom. Casey Kasem did voice-over duties as the week's host, and little trivia tidbits popped up every now and then. Overall, it was a fun week, with the presentation surprisingly unobnoxious. Those trivia tidbits weren't too meddlesome, and the commercial interruption wasn't excessive by today's standards. Of course, I'm used to TV Land, which has become insufferable in its treatment of its reruns, so just about anything might resemble paradise by comparison.

I hope the stunt scored decent ratings because it would be cool to see shows like "Taxi" return to WGN in the future. Even as an occasional feature, it's a refreshing change in a television environment increasingly inclined to shun the older stuff. Even TV Land is phasing out older stuff and imposing "modern classics" like "Just Shoot Me."

Perhaps even better, every Sunday night, WGN goes retro with a lineup of "WKRP," "Newhart," and my all-time favorite show, "The Honeymooners." That's right, a national cable television outlet is putting on a black and white show in prime time. Bravo, WGN. I have the 'Mooners on DVD, and part of me would like to see shows not on home video, but I'll never complain when the series gets this kind of exposure. And though I'm lucky enough to get American Life, which has been showing "WKRP" and "Newhart" for months, most people are not, and since only the first seasons of those sitcoms are out on DVD so far, this will be a great chance for a lot of fans to revisit those classics.

It's a small step and by no means the beginning of that alternative to TV Land for which classic TV lovers yearn, but it's something. I look forward to seeing where WGN goes with this, and I hope enough Nielsen families support these retro nights to encourage more of them.