Star Tribune from Minneapolis, Minnesota • Page 82

6G Sportscaster substitution: Ryther for Kurtz A Sfi news people in droves and its leap into the Iran story, arriving first and spending the most, may propel It even higher. ABC's weeknight Iran summaries, which follow the 10 p.m. "Eyewitness News," should help the network's struggle for legitimacy and expose its news staff to a wide audience. The programs have varied in quality, but they permit stories not urgent enough for nightly newscasts yet Important to understanding the daily moving flash cards called TV news reports. By providing broad information about events reshaping American public opinion, they make a case for the virtues of extended air time that lets long-term impact overcome any short-term liabilities imposed by days of little hard news.

Governor and Mrs. Quie invite you to be their special guest in an entertaining HOLIDAY TOUR OF THE GOVERNOR'S RESIDENCE Monday, December 24 at 6:30 p.m. on P.M. MAGAZINE WCCO Channel 4 perhaps because folks liked changes In talent and trimmings or because it kept viewers who tried it during the WCCO strike. Ch.

4 is continuing to build strength around Walter Cronkite, whose "CBS Evening News" is way ahead of its ABC and NBC competition. Although the "5 P.M. Report" is about even with the comedy reruns against it, "P.M. Magazine," which began in September, Is soundly thumping everything; that's not saying much because a lot of its 6:30 p.m. competition Is video drivel.

Ratings tell us about ourselves what we watch compared with what we say we want and they determine what we see. For example, if KSTP keeps getting clobbered at 6:30 p.m., "P.M. Magazine" may get a direct competitor the folks who run KSTP aren't the kind to take a licking, and It's no secret that Ch. 5 news people have been studying magazine-show ideas. Over-all, Arbitron and Nielsen showed that Ch.

9's entertainment programing ouldrew local news on Ch. 11. That's just what WTCN used to do to KMSP before the change of affiliations in March, but the sad patt is that WTCN has what KMSP lacked: a big-time news budget. There's evidence that people are turning dials to avoid Ch. 11 news: Arbitron said WTCN's average audience share for 9:30 to 10 p.m.

ranged from 15 to 24 percent; from 10:30 to 11, averages were 23 to 51 percent. Minneapolis Tribune Dec. 23, 1979 AtTheGirihrie. This modern minstrel of mime captures the essence of music, ballet, Chinese magic and the European circus, creating a fantasy world for zvwy toiler of mime. Yes, Michael Hennessy is back at The Guthrie now for only one exciting show of family entertainment.

January 13, at 8 PM. Tickets: $5.00, $6.50 $7.50 MAT Vouchers accepts). Tickets are available at The Guthrie Theater Box Office. 725 Vineland Place, (612) 377-2224 and all Dayton's. Bp Tom Ryther Is to replace Bob Kurtz as WTCN-s star sportscaster Dec.

31. The change, announced last week, replaces one man who wanted to return to Minnesota with another, and it's clearly prompted by ratings. Kurtz, hired with the news crew for Ch. 11 's March 5 NBC affiliation, is to "be with us for an indefinite period," said general manager Bob Fran-sen. "He'll be working in the sports department on other projects," Fran-sen said, but he couldn't specify on what or for how long.

He said he doubted Kurtz would remain after the mid-February anniversary of his contract. Ryther, KSTP's weeknight sportscaster for seven years, left about two years ago for NBC-owned WKYC in Cleveland. He wanted to return to Minnesota so badly, he told me, that he resigned before he had a deal with WTCN. Kurtz is the second Ch. 1 1 news star shot down by ratings.

Viewers haven't liked WTCN news, and they've voted with their dials. When a major station's ratings are lower for its newscasts than the shows before and after, the usual first conclusion is that viewers don't like the people delivering the news. Weeknight anchor Jim Dyer was the first to go, in favor of Stan Bohrman Aug 20. Kurtz, whose style was vivid and unusual, was the next obvious target. "I'm extremely disappointed, obviously, but I understand the way the business goes," said Kurtz, who came here from a sports seat on Denver's top-rated news station.

"I do not feel that nine months is a fair trial, but I feel the situation here has become desperate and they've been fair to me. I came here with a strong reputation to deliver, and when the high numbers aren't there I didn't deliver." Kurtz said he has no job offers and would like to stay in town, where he can be near his family and his wife's family. "This is more my home than Denver Is," said Kurtz, whose father is a clergyman in Norwood. "I really love the area; the people are abso lutely super my preference would be to go somewhere else in town." Meteorologist Keith Eichner's last show on Ch. 11 is to be New Year's Day.

He's met with Fransen, WTCN's general manager, and obtained a re lease from his contract, effective Tuning in Neal Gendler Tom Ryther about the end of the year. Eichner is looking for a job on the East Coast; he claims at least one good prospect but talks are not in final stages. Fransen wasn't ready last week to announce Eichner's replacement. The latest numbers supposedly telling us what we watch don't show much change In our preferences for the crown jewels of local telecasting, the news. Despite WTCN's spending, most of us still watch news on KSTP or WCCO, and much as we have for quite a while: At 10 p.m., Arbitron showed KSTP with 42 percent of the audience, WCCO with 32 and WTCN with 10, about what KMSP got with comedy.

At 6 p.m. Arbitron gave WCCO 31 percent and KSTP 29; Nielsen gave the 6 p.m. race similar numbers but with WCCO on top. WTCN had 8. Those numbers aren't much changed from May and July.

WTCN, fighting inertia of viewer habit, remains way behind, but it showed improvement ih kit "AND JUSTICE "HOT STUFF" 7.30-9oVr 30.PG tifcl II 1 tioolo T3t "NORTH DALLAS FORTY" 'Kramer v0 Kram David Bohrman, investigative unit-producer and science reporter for CBS-owned KNXT-TV in Los Angeles, accepted two local Radio Television Director's Association "Golden Mike" awards this month at a ceremony in Los Angeles. When the 25-year-old newsman who has a master's degree from Columbia University's school of journalism got the second, he said he wanted to thank his father for teaching him most of what he knows. Dad is WTCN's Stan Bohrman. "ARABIAN ADVENTURE" (G) 100-3 00 4A FORCE OF ONE" (PG) 'AND JUSTICE FOR All" (Rj 1 7 30-0-40 "10" (Rl 1 30 'ANIMAL HOUSE" (R) "1941" (PG) 30-9-50 'SLEEPING BEAUTY" (G) 15 "CUBA" (PG) 9 55 "ARABIAN ADV" (G) 1:003 00 "10" (R) 5.20-7:30 9,40 FREE MOVIES LAST SATURDAY OF EACH MONTH 10:004 11:30 AM. "Pinoecio In Outer Space" COMPLIMENTS OF THE Eden Pran ie Merchsnts Association mm WINNERS! Here are the winners of Cappy Dick's contest in the Tribune's Sunday color comics: December 2 CONTEST Ken Iverson, 12, Minneapolis, MN Sheila Holm, 9, Minneapolis, MN Jessamy Brown, 10, Minneapolis, MN Heidi Kopacek, 8, Minneapolis, MN Tom Ona, 12, Minneapolis, MN Tommy Rush, 7, Minneapolis, MN John Krakau, 9, Minneapolis, MN Romi Mann, 9, Minneapolis, MN Debbie Crouch, 9, New Hope, MN Lisa Borys, 8, Minneapolis, MN Work Cappy Dick puzzle the comics section and you could be a winner perhaps a national winner, too Cappy Dick is one ot many eciling lealures tound: tit I intj jlLI Minnedpofcs 'Tri Tribune STAMING lAJtMIAMtHfc bcrooples QPlavgiris va a jl rVl ollllunich ifflrMucing MCICHEI ROtBil KMFI H1NBUM sniu muiim pil 10TAUT NIIQt OANUBS FAUST THEATRE nm) i a voi i UtiivHtsii Avi' Si V77 1718 NEW YORK FILM CRITICS AWARD WINNER! "Best Picture" "Best Actor" "Best Supporting Actress" LOS ANGELES FILM CRITICS AWARD WINNER! "Best Picture" "Best Actor" "Best Director and Screenplay" "Best Supporting Actress" i Paid for by Minnesotam for Information: 451-1888 7 minutes east of airport, across the Mendota Bridge, on Hwy.

55 "BARBARA BROADCAST" plus "CHRISTY" "DEBBIE DOES DALLAS" plus "SEX WORLD" PARLEY'S ANGELS" phs- "WE'LL MEET AGAIN" "PRO-BALL CHEERLEADERS" USA DElFEUV Hustler All n- Uiffs ith dyfamic ro sffjf Johnny Ke K'lil'l it, A. 't v-i'j "FOR RICHER OR POORER" D'Titfl jfrj Vr' -I'r-Jy Ocrrjtd Donnono Starring GfOPGlNA SPflVIN one of it.e bflvt tor IV7V rjt tfi- fcrotir film ffstirjl "BABYLON PINK" Hustler Highest Haling1 100 An EioIk Mmte'piee Srrew Mayaine STARRING SAMANTHA JL GFORGINA K)X SfilVIN plus "HOT COOKIES" Starring SERENA and four ofhtr Playboy and Ptnthoui btoutitt "ALL ABOUT GLORIA LEONARD" Gloria Leonard, Publisher ol High Society, puts her 1 1 years of ballet training at Metropolitan Opera to strange ue in this MUST SEE porn flick! PIUS "SWEETHEART" Washington bureau reports If lOUTtG SALOON rTTTTI Between those solid numbers were newscast shares of only 7 to 1 1 percent while KSTP and WCCO gained viewers between 10 and 10:30. The November ratings began after WCCO's strike and suggest that the long interruption of journeyman news-gathering didn't hurt WCCO or help WTCN much, They also support the thesis that the affiliation change helped ABC and hurt NBC; NBC news has been dipping close to third place nationally, and locally, moving it from KSTP sank it like a stone. Arbitron said Cronkite brought WCCO 32 percent of the weekday 5:30 p.m. audience, compared with ABC's 20 percent on KSTP and NBC's 12 on WTCN.

Dick Van Dyke finished second to Uncle Walter with 28 percent an unsurprising figure for an hour in which lots of children's fingers supposedly are on the dials. ABC news, as expected, grew after moving to KSTP, where it precedes "Eyewitness News." I think ABC news still lacks the staff depth and maturity of its CBS and NBC competition, but ABC has lured veteran AVERY CORMAN PIC TUMI MOUSTHtfV MC IVtum er i i 1 COLUMBIA PICTURES PRESENTS A STANLEY JAFFE PRODUCTION DUSTIN HOFFMAN Skou, NVAIVICK VO. rxKMIVICK MERYL STREEP JANE ALEXANDER iOVr Director of Photography Based Upon the Novel by Produced by STANLEY R. JAFFE Written for the Screen and Directed by ROBERT BENTON PG PAfKNTAl GUIOANCl SUGffSTED Km KUrFNUU. MAV NOT 9UTSU '0 CMUMf NESTOR ALMENDROS New A Best Selling SEE INDIVIDUAL ADS FOR Signet Paperback.

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