The Akron Beacon Journal from Akron, Ohio • Page 50

Page 6, Sunday, December 14, 1997 The Beacon Journal Commentary 1-take 'Mad About You' builds tension breaking if it wants to. Undoubtedly the one-take environment raised the level of intensity on the set and the result on the screen. And the absence of intruding commercials is nice, although it's not much to brag about in a society wired with cable and hooked into VCRs. No, it's special Or maybe we can just say. good.

an inch in one year," Paul tells Jamie about his loss of height In a matter of years, he goes on "I'll be able to sleep in your By the end of the episode, the Buchmans have come to a conclusion that is inevitable, frightening, profound and obvious. But there's no getting around it The Conversation is a very special episode. NBC can pitch it as ground so she knows he's there. Jamie is adamant As Mabel wails and the Buchmans wait for the minutes to tick by, they begin, naturally, to examine their compatibility as parents. "Your parents probably went in your room if someone else's kid was crying," Jamie says, taking one of several stress-related shots at her husband.

"We disagree on everything," she says, her body as uncomfort ably twisted as rope. As the crying continues, both parents wonder whether they can ever know which way is best and it is in these moments that The Conversation is distinctive because they are honest. "That's the worst sound I've ever heard in my life," says Paul as Mabel's sobs build. So the Buchmans try to talk about other things: Jamie has won a somewhat bizarre prize, and Paul reveals that he's shrinking. (We should probably add, considering the subject matter here, that Paul doesn't have some sort of debilitating disease and that this part of The Conversation serves as humor, not as a "special" additive.

"Half fit Episode uninterrupted by commercials features touching performances by stars Reiser and Hunt By James Endrst Hartford Courant Can you tell the difference between a "very special episode" and a "groundbreaking If you're a regular viewer of prime-time television, you probably can. A very special episode is young Charlie Salinger discovering he has cancer on Fox Broadcasting's Party of Five. Very special means tears, sometimes for joy, but mostly not Usually, there are social issues involved, from alcoholism and child abuse to AIDS. "Groundbreaking" can also be "very special." Take the coming-out of Ellen DeGeneres on ABC's Ellen. It was a first for prime-time network television: an openly gay woman as lead character in a series, not to mention that DeGeneres was, herself, coming out at the same time.

But in the case of the Mad About You episode NBC will air Tuesday, "groundbreaking" the word the network uses to describe the half-hour is more about execution. Shot in one take, with a single camera, the show will be uninterrupted by commercials, which will be bunched at the beginning and the end of the program. Not quite the derring-do of NBC's ER, which opened this season with a live performance (one for each coast). Many viewers, though intrigued, weren't overwhelmed by the performances, though there's got to be an Emmy in there somewhere anyway. The Conversation, which is the title of this week's Mad About You Hill Top Research is looking for female volunteers to participate in an investigational medical research study.

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f330J 628-0034 HILLTOP RESEARCH, INC. 754 S. Cleveland Suite 200 pharmaceuticalcunicalthialsdivision M1480t416 NBC file photo Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt will confront a parental issue Tuesday, episode, is in its own quiet way, a to the test. The idea: Let the baby greater success. cry; comfort her, but not physically, in predetermined and ever-increasing intervals to wean the child away from the need for constant, maternal solace.

Then, the idea seems to be, everyone can sleep and the baby won't stay a baby forever. Paul has problems with it As usual, he's a little nervous. "I don't see the long run," he tells his wife, who wears a determined and grim face we've seen before. "It's one night of bad, for, you know, I think a lifetime of good." Meanwhile, the baby cries. And the pressure builds.

Paul, desperately, wants to go in, to touch and hug his daughter Stars Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt turn in touching and, under the TV circumstances, nearly flawless performances in the 22-minute episode, directed by Hunt's father, Gordon Hunt The plot, a painful but well-intended exercise in child-rearing, goes straight to the heart, a discussion between two caring parents who, like billions before them, have few definitive answers to some basic questions. In this case, Paul and Jamie Buchman are camping outside infant daughter Mabel's room (their room, too, as Paul points out), putting a popular parental philosophy 311 Mil Different yule perspective Am "Mom's the one with Alzheimer's, but we're the ones who feel helpless." How often do you have to tell her what day it is? How often does she forget her name? Or where she is? Or who you are? We understand the anguish that caring for someone with Alzheimer's can put you through. That's why we developed Arcadia, a Special Care Unit in our nursing centers for people with Alzheimer's or related memory impairments. In this secure, uncomplicated environment, your mother will receive the 24-hour care she needs. And she'll take part in a full daily schedule of activities designed to maintain awareness, encourage independence, and ease the the problems and situations that faced black Americans against the backdrop of Christmas.

They were written to engage the reader of the time about the social problems they faced." So The Christmas Eve Story, written in 1880 by Fanny Jackson Coppin, tells how a childless old woman's life is forever changed with the Christmas Eve arrival of two poor orphans. But it is more than that It was the author's way of telling of a community's need to address the poverty experienced by so many black children. "Again, another message that's relevant today," Collier-Thomas says. The stories, gleaned from black journals, newspapers and religious publications give a glimpse of the issues that faced black Americans between 1880 and 1915. The Christmas stories have the ring of familiarity like a conversation picked up after some time has past Almost all of them have a message; indeed, the point of the authors was to engage black Americans to find ways to improve their lot Collier-Thomas says.

"So you have a story (Two Christmas Days: A Holiday Story where a strong, educated black woman sends a would-be suitor Books' stories look at the meaning of Christmas for African-Americans By Lucia Herndon Knigld-Hidiier Newspapers The titles of the short stories and essays in a recently released holiday book conjure up Christmas cheer Elsie's Christmas, The Children's Christmas. But A Treasury of African-American Christmas Stories (Henry Holt $20), compiled and edited by Temple history professor Bettye Collier-Thomas, has no mention of the jolly old elf, mistletoe or stockings hung by the fire with care. "We've made assumptions about what a Christmas story should be," says Collier-Thomas. "We've been deluged with stories that focus on American culture from the white perspective. But these stories are an eye-opener on African-American culture that has been obscured." Christmas is the unifying theme that ties all the stories together.

"The stories look at the meaning of Christmas for black Americans," Collier-Thomas says. "It's Call 1-800-459-CARE (2273) Nanit c3 Address packing because he drank," Collier-Thomas says. "Temperance was a big issue for blacks because (drinking) was seen as a detriment to the community. It is one of the issues that still confront African-Americans." Mob violence, miscegenation and poverty are taken up in the 10 stories. But the mood is not a dark one; it's more an emotional, moving one.

One of the most affecting pieces is The Christmas Reunion Down at Martinsville, a poem written in 1894 by Augustus Michael Hughes. Its narrator, Uncle Joe Moore, tells his family, gathered for Christmas, how he and his wife, Sallie, met as slaves and triumphed over separation when Joe's master sells him, and how they endured the Civil War and racism to raise a family. The compilation is a testament to Collier-Thomas' research skills. She discovered her first story years ago as a graduate student studying the black community in Baltimore. While researching the history of black women in the church, she found more stories -in black newspapers and church publications.

"A friend suggested I get them out of my files and compile them," she says. Her husband also encouraged her to have the stories collected and published. "He convinced me that people need to be able to find these stories stories of our history, rich in flavor, speech and culture before they are lost again," she says. "He even typed them all." trauma of confusion. We will also extend our care to you, with family support groups and educational seminars to make this difficult time a little easier for everyone.

For a free copy of At The Heart of Alzheimer's, a complete guidebook to caring for someone with Alzheimer's, call or send in the coupon. State Zip City ABJ Phime Number PO. Box 308 Budd Lake, NJ 07828 Visit our web site at http:www.manorcare.com PEOPLE ManorCare Health Services'" 1211 W. Market Street, Akron Other services available in the Akron area: Nursing and Rehab Continued from Page Dl passing. "What's the Gates of Heaven?" he asked.

"A cemetery in New Jersey," she replied. This day in music mwmmmmmmtmmihmmmtmBmmfmmj MARIO'S that sleazy magazine." Puppy love Washington is all over itself trying to name President Clinton's doggie. Web sites and news organizations are soliciting candidates for the 3-month-old chocolate-colored Labrador retriever Clinton decided to keep after he the pooch, not the prez passed a half-hour tryout on the South Lawn. Apparently Mr. Bill has been experiencing severe empty-nest syndrome since Chelsea left for Stanford and he wanted something to pet and snuggle up with.

ABC, the Washington Post and the New York Post are prodding readers to weigh in. (Among the New York Post's nominees: Bar-kansas, Pup-arazzi and 101 Donations.) A stunning 54 million people have hit the White House switchboard and name-that-doggie Internet sites with names like Mr. President, Waffle, George Washington, NAFTA, Subpoena, Whitewater, Bubba, Fido and Hershey. The final word An American engineer for a San Diego-based company was arrested in Russia and charged with spying for the United States. Russian authorities say he was caught attempting to smuggle out their secret formula for alcoholism, despair and bad haircuts.

Norm Macdonald Edited by Mickey Porter from Beacon Journal wire services. INTERNATIONAL SPA is open and can help you with that last-minute gift for that someone special or a "get-a-way-from-it-al treat for yourself. Located in Akron General's Health Wellness Center, Mario's offers a full range of the most current spa treatments including paraffin dip, reflexology, facials, a full-service salon with manicures and pedicures, spa soak and mineral bath, herbal wraps and much more 1970 No. 1 Billboard hit: The Tears of a Clown, Smokey Robinson the Miracles. The sporting news A statistic from Golf Digest: 128 ball speed of a shot hit by the average male golfer in mph.

177 ball speed of a Tiger Woods shot in mph. Flatfoot Irish dance card Michael Flat-ley has been named Esquire mag's 1997 Dubious Man of the Year, nudging out Marv Albert, Frank Gilford and Eddie Mur-Phy. The self-aggrandizing lad, who calls himself Lord of the Dance, claims his ego is but a wee one: "I'm not an egomaniac like a lot of people say. But I am the world's best dancer, that's for sure." So ask him again! Revelers at this year's Penthouse Christmas party recalled that Marv Albert had once turned down an invitation to host "Pet of the Year" festivities because he "didn't want to be associated with Call 665-MSPA (6772) for an appointment or bring in this ad for your holiday discount when you purchase a gift certificate. Mario's International Spa 4125 Medina Road in west Akron (corner of Route 18 Cristal Lake Road) DP' AT AKRON GENERAL'S HEALTH WELLNESS CENTER nn.