Because the only thing I like more than watching RTV is complaining about, er, discussing RTV, let's check in on what's going on with my local Retro TV outlet.
This info goes in the "unconfirmed" category because I get it solely by scanning the upcoming listings through my on-screen programming guide, which isn't always reliable. But as of Monday, September 27, an "old favorite" gets two new half-hour time slots in the late night portion of the lineup, while a few shows get the boot.
I'll unveil that "old favorite" (sorry to lean on the quotation marks so much, but it's hard to convey sarcasm in print) momentarily, but first check out the 5:30 P.M. weekday slot, where "Peter Gunn" is leaving. I loved seeing "Gunn" on RTV until it quickly burned through its episodes; when the limited assortment started rerunning, I fell out of the habit of watching the show. I've read that RTV added new episodes to the mix, but I won't get to see them unless the show survives its weekday booting with its weekend slot intact.
Replacing "Gunn" is the 1950s "Adventures of Robin Hood," which seems a decent 5:00 show. This isn't an out-of-the blue addition to the lineup, as it's been running for months on many other affiliates. I'm almost always down for a new black-and-white series on RTV, so this is not a bad move, though something besides "Gunn" should have been axed (*cough* "Kate and Allie"*cough*).
The big change is late nights, where currently we get "Daniel Boone" at 11:00, followed by "The Rifleman" and "The Cisco Kid" from midnight to 1:00 A.M. I don't mind these shows (and love "Rifleman") but I think they're better suited for morning/early afternoon time slots, so I'm not dismayed to find "Daniel Boone" and "Cisco" missing. Rifleman stays at midnight, preceded by "The Bill Cosby Show" at 11:30. I'm really enjoying second season episodes of Biff Cosby on Saturdays, but this show only has two seasons, so it's not a great candidate for a 5-times-a-week spot.
Sharp readers will note that there are two half-hour slots open at 11:00 P.M. and 12:30 A.M., and, folks, here is where that "old favorite" expands its presence on the RTV schedule. You see, beginning Monday, September 27, the local Retro outlet fills those slots with...
PAID PROGRAMMING.
Aargh! The dreaded paid programming robs us of an hour of RTV goodness. I hope this is just an error in the program listings because this is a real setback if true. We need less infomercials, not more, to say nothing about the aggravating placement of one of the infernal things in between actual shows. Moving "Rifleman" to 11:30 and calling it a night at midnight would be irksome enough, but somehow WJLA found a way to be an even bigger nuisance.
There are promising services on the horizon like Tribune's Antenna TV, scheduled to launch next year with a heavy slate of classic Sony programs. RTV has made strides in boosting its overall professionalism, but it and its affiliates have a way to go. It can't count on cornering the market on those reverse mortgage and Hoveround ads forever.
The upcoming Saturday morning cartoon block (which I believe comes in October) is a good idea, even if the execution leaves much to be desired in terms of the shows selected. The sprinkling in of some oddball "independent" shows like "Gunn" and "Robin Hood" is nice. But the Universal library, at least the way RTV has handled it, may be about played out. I wouldn't mind finally getting "Kojak" around here, but everyone who wants to see these shows has had a pretty good chance so far, and I'd like to see RTV, if not drop the Universal deal, increase the variety with programs from more sources. Sony may now be off limits, and I thought I read rumblings about Paramount doing something with its library for another outlet, but I have to think RTV has plenty of options out there.
I want to see RTV freshen things up, and adding installments of the most prolific show on cable TV, "Paid Programming," is not the way to do it.
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