St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 30

8C ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 1994 GAIL PENNINGTON ON TV Hospital Dramas Fight To Make Cut Eikenberry And Tucker Speak On Breast Cancer I if? ki JILL EIKENBERRY and her husband, Michael Tucker, who played husband and wife on TV's "L.A. Law," will speak at the AMC Cancer Research Center's Women's Event dinner Oct. 18 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Clayton. Eikenberry is a breast cancer survivor.

Kathy Pool, R.N., administrative coordinator for the Midwest Breast Care Center, will receive the fourth annual Illuminator Award, which recognizes outstanding efforts to focus public attention on breast cancer issues. In the last four years, Pool has addressed more than 12,000 women about breast cancer and the importance of self examination. She is co-founder of the St. Louis Breast Cancer Coalition, an advocacy group. Previous awards went to Laurie Brin Feldman, a breast cancer survivor and advocate; Ava Ehrlich, executive producer at KSDK; and posthumously Yi A i if 1 0.1 Plan-" -hLZjL iLl CRIME FIGHTER ABOVE: From left, Eriq LaSalle, George Clooney, Anthony Edwards, Sherry String-field and Noah Wyle in "ER." LEFT: Mandy Patinkin (left) and Adam Arkin in "Chicago Hope." 13-year-old boy is brought in with "five shots from an a 13-year-old girl has an ectopic pregnancy; a seductive college student has burned thighs; an old woman has a hangnail; a baby is abused.

can you treat your child like this? He's a little kid," Ross shouts at the mother in a much-promoed scene that's an example of the show's sometimes clunky writing.) For the second episode, "ER" goes out into Chicago, which looks great. But the main story line involves food poisoning German tourists throw up, then wedding guests throw up (to accordion accompaniment). I'm sure we already saw this on "St. Elsewhere." Nevertheless, "ER" has merit. It captures the comic-tragic roller coaster of emergency medicine, and its stories are probably more realistic than those on "Chicago Hope." The ensemble cast is talented: Edwards and Clooney are especially appealing (although aren't all these guys a bit too old still to be and Stringfield's story line perks up at the end of Episode 2.

"ER" is certainly the second-best medical drama on TV this fall. protected Protect Your Family Home! CRIME CRIME FIGHTER IAITLJ is popular with women. handsome," a patient says. "He knows it," a nurse responds.) There's also Dr. Peter Benton (Eriq LaSalle), a would-be surgeon with a bad attitude; Dr.

Susan Lewis (Sherry Stringfield, late of "NYPD a GP with a big heart; and Noah Wyle as John Carter, a third-year medical student just now learning to suture. Mark has a law-student wife who's on his back to quit the ER and get a real job. (Didn't Boomer's wife whine like this on "St. Elsewhere" just before they killed her?) In the premiere, he considers joining a ritzy clinic (and then what would the series do?) Meanwhile, a building collapses; a Quick, Some Hospital Stats FIGHTER $QQ WW INSTALLED OR The System includes: Two door contacts detect entry. Electronic motion detector helps detect movement inside your home and business.

Interior alarm helps alert you to an intrusion. Electronic keypad unit arms, disarms and controls your system. Window decals and yard sign warn intruders before they attempt a break-in. Central station monitoring provides 24-hour, 7-days-a-week protection at a cost of only $21 .95 a month with Master, VISA or Dis cover card payment. 'Monitoring required.

Free new system relocation if you move between 2 and 5 years. We will install an ADT Safewatch basic security package, free. (Monthly monitoring required.) NOT since 1961, when Ben Casey battled Dr. has the big story of a TV season been two competing medical dramas. This fall, the rivalry is more cutthroat than ever.

Scalpels drawn, "Chicago Hope" and "ER" will fight to the death for ownership of the 9 p.m. Thursday time slot. And it's a shame. These are good series, and lots of viewers will want to watch both. Until one is moved (or canceled), there's always the VCR, but I suspect many people won't go to that much trouble.

"Chicago Hope" is first into the operating room, airing its pilot episode at 7 p.m. Sunday on Channel 4 in the healthy Minutes" time slot. A second episode will be seen at 9 p.m. Thursday. "ER" arrives a day later but twice as long, premiering with a two-hour movie at 8 p.m.

Monday on Channel 5. A third hour will air at 9 p.m. Thursday. After a marathon viewing of all five hours set for this week, I now feel qualified to perform neurosurgery, or at least to deliver a baby in the hallway. I no longer gag at the sight of blood, although I'll never again make the mistake of eating pasta (in marin-ara sauce, no less) during one of these shows.

Of the two, "Chicago Hope" is my favorite. It is exciting and involving; its leads are charismatic; and most of all, it feels fresh. "Hope" is set in a wealthy Chicago teaching hospital to which patients from all over the country come for cutting edge (sorry) procedures. Dr. Jeffrey Geiger (Mandy Patinkin) is a brilliant cardio-thoracic surgeon who's inventing an implantable artificial heart in his spare time.

His best friend, Dr. Aaron Shutt (Adam Ar-kin), is an equally brilliant neurosurgeon. Hector Elizondo is the philosphical chief of medicine, and E.G. Marshall is a crusty elderly doctor who fears he's losing his touch. Also in the cast are Roxanne Hart as Aaron's estranged wife, Camille, who's also (oops!) the chief surgical nurse, and Roma Maffia as Angela, who lends patients a shoulder to cry on.

Creator David E. Kelley likes to draw stories from the headlines, so "Chicago Hope" begins with the case of joined twin girls brought to Geiger for separation. He's at first reluctant (his own son died in infancy) but then passion- TV'S MEDICAL SHOWS Television has seldom been without a medical series. Here's a chronology of network shows in which doctors and nurses were the focus: "City Hospital," CBS, 1952-53, Melville Ruick "The Doctor," ABC. 1952-53, Warner Anderson "Medic," NBC, 1954-58, Richard Boone "Ben Casey," ABC, 1961-66, Vince Edwards "Dr.

Kildare," NBC. 1 961 -66, Richard Chamberlain "Eleventh Hour," NBC, 1962-64. Wendell Corey "The Nurses," CBS, 1962-65, Zina Bethune "Marcus Welby, M.D.," ABC, 1969-78, Robert Young, James Brolin "Medical Center," CBS, 1969-76, Chad Everett "The New Doctors," NBC, 1969-73. E.G. Marshall "The Interns," CBS, 1970-71, Broderick Crawford "Emergency," NBC, 1972-77, Robert Fuller "MASH," CBS, 1972-83, Alan Alda CBS, 1983-84, Harry Morgan) "Doc Elliott," ABC, 1974.

James Franciscus "Doctors' Hospital," NBC, 1 975-76, George Peppard "Medical Story," NBC, 1975- 76, anthology "The Practice," NC. 1976- 77, Danny Thomas "Trapper John, M.D.," CBS, 1979-86, Pemell Roberts. Gregory Harrison "Doctors' Private Lives," ABC, 1979. Ed Nelson The Lazarus Syndrome," ABC, 1 979, Louis Gossett Jr. "Nurse," CBS, 1981-82, Michael Learned "SL Elsewhere," NBC.

1 982-88, Ed Flanders and ensemble "Cutter to Houston," CBS, 1983. Jim Metzler "Trauma Center," ABC, 1983, James Naughton "ER," CBS. 1984-85, Elliott Gould "Empty Nest," ABC, 1988-present, Richard Mulligan "Heartbeat," ABC. 1988. Kate Mulgrew "Island Son," 1989.

ABC. Richard Chamberlain "Nurses," NBC. 1991-93 "Doogie Howser, M.O" ABC. 1991-93 "The Human Factor," CBS, 1992. John Mahoney "Going to Extremes," ABC, 1992 "Dr.

Quinrt, Medicine Woman," CBS, 1992-present Jane Seymour "Chicago Hope" "ER" Big-name creator David E. Kelley Michael Crichton Credentials "Picket Fences" "Jurassic Park" Setting Chicago Chicago Hospital Chicago Hope County General Doctors' pay Mega-bucks $23,739 a week Top hunk Mandy Patinkin George Clooney Female factor Roxanne Hart Sherry Stringfield Ethnic balance Hector Elizondo Eriq LaSalle Gross-out quotient Surgery closeups Lots of vomiting Nuditysex Showers (upper body) Encounter in a closet Eikenberry and Tucker to Terry Hughes, a Post-Dispatch columnist who died of breast cancer. Tickets are $175, with proceeds going to breast cancer researcheducation. For tickets, call the St. Louis Regional Office of the AMC Center at 569-0500 between 9 a.m.

-5 p.m Monday-Friday. by imumwwffl FIRE DETECTION $199 4 METROPOLITAN ST. LOUIS INSTALLED Get all of the features included with our "Crime Fighter," Plus Fire Protection. Smoke Detector. Heat Detector installed near fur- nace.

Now get 24 hour monitoring against crime and fire at this great low price! Additional central monitoring fee. Special Limited Time Offer Expires 103194l For a free catalog: call our St Louis Center at 314-542-4222 KELLER GDL ATE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT I I I PS ate: "No one's dying in this room today." The meticulously choreographed operating room scene, beginning with the blue-garbed doctors and nurses as an army on the march, is gripping; the conclusion is sentimental, and I don't care it's extremely affecting. In Thursday's episode, Shutt takes on an HMO over a brain-tumor patient, and Geiger causes an ethical controversy when he implants his artificial heart in a recently deceased patient. We also learn more about Geiger's complicated and painful personal life as he seems close to a breakdown. Patinkin is the TV phenomenon of the season (if the camera dropped lower in his shower scene, I'd call him this year's David Caruso).

What's more, he sings in snatches in the OR and at the piano in Episode 2. What else could you want? Shaky hand-held camera work, maybe? Gritty stories of overworked medical residents in the emergency room of an understaffed hospital be-seiged by the tired, the poor, the huddled masses? If that's what you want, "ER" is the show for you. Created by Michael Crichton, who was a medical student years before he wrote "Jurassic Park," it's hospital drama in the "St. Elsewhere" mold but, so far, with less humor. The ensemble cast is headed by Anthony Edwards as Dr.

Mark Green, who just wants some sleep. Also assigned to the emergency room is Dr. Doug Ross (George Clooney), a pediatrician who drinks too much and DIAGNOSIS: CANCER If you or someone you care tor is diagnosed with cancer, then it's critically important to be fully informed. Tell us the type of cancer, and we'll compile a comprehensive report -using current data from leading research institutes that explains the latest methods of treatment. For more information, call the Cancer Research Project at 800-548-2120.

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