The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 49

I 10 Part IllFriday, September 5, 1986 GosAnflctcoSIimeo FOOTBALL '86 0 EQUIPMENT The Decline and Fall of Program's 17th Season Might Well Be Monday Night Football Its Last, If ABC Is Telling It Like It Is Date Game Tim Sept. 8 NV Giants at Dallas 6pm Thurs.Sept 11 New England at NY Jets 6pm Mon.Sept. IB Denver at Pittsburgh 6pm 18 Cincinnati at Cleveland 6 pm Mon.Sept. 22 Chicago at Green Bay 6 pm. Mon.Sept.

29 Dallas at St. Louis 6pm Mon.Oct. 6 San Diego at Seattle 6pm Mon.Oct 13 Pittsburgh at Cincinnati 6 m. Denver et New York Jets 6pm. Mon.Oct Washington at NY Giants 6 pm.

Mon, Nov. 3 LA Rams at Chicago 6pm 10 Miami at Cleveland 6 p.m. 17 San Fran, at Washington 6p.m. Thurs. Nov.

20 LA Raiders at San Diego 6pm New York Jets at Miami 6p.m. 1 NY Giants at San Fran. 6 p.m. Sun Dec. 7 Dallas at LA Rams 6 m.

Dec. 8 LA Raiders at Seattle 6 p.m. Dec. 15 Chicago at Detroit 6 p.m. Fri.Dec.

19 LA Rams at San Fran 6pm Dec. 22 New England at Miami 6 p.m. fcXfctfCISE EXERCISE EQUIPMENT Largest Inventory of New and Used Equipment in California Home Gym Units Benches Free Weights Treadmills Personalized in -home training Complete layout service for homeowners and architects Exercise Bikes Rowers Sun Tan Beds New Body Shaper HOME FITNESS CENTER SPECIAL $1 199 COMPARE OUR PRICES a. Wfoi I CBS or NBC. If an agreement can't be reached, we would then look toward other alternatives." What that means is cable television or syndication on independent commercial stations.

Roger Werner, ESPN executive vice president, announced at a convention in Los Angeles in lune that his network plans to make a serious bid to get NFL games. ESPN? Can the network known for televising such things as Australian Rules Football, Canadian football, Cal State Fullerton foot-oall, hydroplane racing and fly fishing afford NFL football? Werner and other ESPN executives say yes, with help from cable Dperators. If cable operators can expand their business by offering live, prime-time NFL football, it might be worth their while to lay out some money. It might even justify small rate increases. Say cable operators raised their monthly rate 40 cents a household for basic cable by offering NFL football on ESPN.

Since there are nearly 40 million ESPN households, that's about $16 million a month, or $192 million a year. This money, plus what ESPN could make on commercials, makes ESPN a serious bidder. Another possibility that has been talked about is HBO, a pay service, sharing prime-time football with ABC. HBO might take the five or so prime-time telecasts not on Monday nights and ABC would televise only Monday night games. One disadvantage of HBO is that it can't generate money from commercials, since it has none, but NFL football would figure to bring in more subscribers at about $10 a month.

There has also been talk about Fox Television stations, which includes Channel 11 in Los Angeles, making a bid for the prime-time package. Word is that Fox went so far as to talk to Cosell about working on a possible package, but he said no. mm Gifford, hired away from CBS, replaced Jackson. The Gifford-Co -sell-Meredith team, for better or worse, was unique. If nothing else, it drew attention.

"Monday Night Football" became so popular, it changed Americans' social habits. Suddenly, Monday nights were party nights. Business at sports bars flourished on Monday nights. Generally, that is no longer the case. "We used to do great business on Monday nights during the football season," said Ray Ortiz, longtime owner of the Stardust in Downey.

"We still give away hot dogs and salads on Monday nights, but we don't even do half the business we once did. We used to go through about 160 hots dogs on a Monday night. Now we're lucky if we give away 60." John Morris, co-owner along with the Rams' Dennis Harrah of Legends in Long Beach, said: "We still have packed houses on Monday nights, but we're a little different. We give away Raider and Ram tickets and souvenirs, and Dennis gets players and cheerleaders to come in. I know my competitors have been hurting on Monday nights in recent years." Since the record year of 1981, when "Monday Night Football" averaged a national Nielsen rating of 21.7, the average rating dropped to 20.5 in 1982, to 18.1 in '83 and to the low of 16.9 in '84.

Why the decline? There has been much speculation bad schedules, the proliferation of cable and VCRs, and the saturation of sports, particularly football, on television. The 1984 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court that opened the college football market meant that viewers could watch games nonstop on Saturdays. After pro football on Sundays, maybe viewers had had enough by Monday night. Cosell, in his book, "I Never Played the Game," offers another reason for the decline: his departure before the 1984 season: "I am sure that my absence had a negative effect on the ratings.

Without me, the nature of the telecasts was entirely altered. I had commanded attention. I had palpable impact on the show, giving it a sense of moment, and now it seemed no different from an ordinary Sunday afternoon telecast. If that sounds like ego, what can I say? I'm telling it like it is." For whatever reason, the decline in popularity of "Monday Night Football" plus the reluctance of sponsors to continue supporting the show has put it in jeopardy. Val Pinchbeck, the NFL's director of broadcasting, said: "Our first step is to try to work out a deal with ABC.

It has first negotiating rights. "Next, we would look toward CALL OUR HOTLINE MAXXUM By LARRY STEWART, Times Staff Writer "Monday Night Football," beginning its 17th season Monday, is television's second-longest-running prime-time show. Only "60 Minutes" has been around longer. But "Monday Night Football" might not make it to season No. 18.

What became an American institution in the 1970s and peaked in popularity in 1981, may be canceled after this season, if you are to believe what many television executives are saying. ABC has been singing the Monday night blues for the past several years. The network reportedly lost $16 million on its prime-time NFL football telecasts in 1985, even though ratings were up 17 over '84, when they hit an all-time low. The 1984 average Nielsen rating was 16.9. The '85 average was 19.7, boosted by a record 29.1 for a game in which the Miami Dolphins handed the Chicago Bears their only loss.

Otherwise, it was another bleak season. Said Dennis Swanson, the president of ABC sports: "Dropping 'Monday Night Football' is an extreme position, but we can't continue to lose money." Executives at both NBC and CBS have said their networks are not interested in a prime-time NFL package. The fate of "Monday Night Football" will not be determined until early next year when NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle sits down with the heads of the network sports divisions to negotiate a new contract. The current five-year, $2.1 -billion contract runs out this season. The three networks will pay $495 million to the NFL this season, up from last season's $450 million.

According to Broadcasting magazine, ABC pays the most, $175 million this season, followed by CBS at $165 million and NBC at $155 million. The networks say that at those prices, they can't make a profit in the current economic climate. "It's not an impossible scenario that ABC will no longer be in the 'Monday Night Football' business after this season," said Peter Lund, president of CBS sports. "I'm no authority on how much ABC will lose on the NFL this season, but together the three networks could lose as much as $120 million." The main problem, the television people say, is a soft advertising market, which has affected all televised sports. This has prompted the networks to consider making cutbacks.

Dropping a dog-sled race is one thing, though, and dropping "Monday Night Football" is quite another. Cynics say that ABC will never drop "Monday Night Football," that ABC, as well as NBC and CBS, are only poor-mouthing to position themselves better for next year's negotiations. Still, Chevrolet, a major sponsor of "Monday Night Football" the last five seasons, announced in June that it will no longer be a sponsor. The automobile company believes that there are better ways to spend its money, and lesser LOW COST-TOP VALUE COMPANY DENTAL PLAN For further information mail your business card to DENTAL COVERAGE CARESouthern Calif. P.O.

15217 L.A., CA 90015 or call (800) 252-9110 SUPER SPECIAL 310 LB. OLYMPIC SET $16995 714963-5591 18796 Brookhurst, Fountain Valley 1 mm South ot 405 Fwy. HOURS: Sat. 10-5, Sun. 11-4 FOB PRICES ONLY AUTOFOCUS SYSTEM With trade-in of the following cameras w50mm f1.4 lens: Minolta X-700, XD-11; Canon AE-1P, EF: Olympus 0M2S; WITH 1.8 ADD $20 00.

with trade-in of the following cameras w50mm f1.8 lens: Nikon F2, FE-2, i-m-z; uanon A-1; Olympus 0M-4; Pentax LX w50mm I 111.7. 99 ONLY with trade in of the following cameras w500mm f1.8 lens: Canon AE-1, FTb; Minolta XD-5, SRT-202; Konica FT-1. snappy AS-B 119" 8TD.KIT All-weather camera goes anywhere won underwater to a depth 33 leet! Floats if released water! Lightweight and compact, easy carry. to use with totally automatic Mm loading, advance and rewind Automatic DX Mm speed setting, aulo exposure plus built -tn flash jus) point and shoot! Terrific ctose-up pictures in or out ot the water when you add the Aqua Snappy ctose-up lens. SURESHQT 159" Automatic flash Fully lit pictures, no darkness Automatic focus Sharp pictures as close as 1 6 feet Automatic winding, rewinding and even film loading Automatic exposure with DX coding from ISO 50-1600 Comes complete with fitted case and lithium battery good tor up to five years -Jvfl i SPV-V.

Sjfcjjjr ONLY lug MINOLTA TRADE UP sponsors are saying the same thing. A 30-second commercial will cost $192,500 this season, based on a 19 rating. Another problem with "Monday Night Football" developed in June at the ABC affiliates' meeting in Los Angeles. Affiliates have always been compensated monetarily when their local programming mainly newscasts are preempted by a sporting event. But the network, now owned by cost-conscious Capital Cities Communications, said it was discontinuing the compensation.

Many affiliates in turn threatened to drop "Monday Night Football." The network came back and offered the affiliates a five-minute slot at halftime for local news and commercials. The network itself took another five minutes for national news and commercials, which doesn't leave much time, if any, for highlights from Sunday NFL games. It's a format that surely won't go over with hard-line sports fans, who would prefer seeing football highlights to news. Also different this year are the announcers. Al Michaels will do the play-by-play, Frank Gifford the analysis.

Michaels is one of the best all-around play-by-play men in the business, but early indications after a couple of exhibition telecasts are that he and Gifford are not a good match. Both play it fairly straight, probably too straight. Essentially, "Monday Night Football," with Michaels and Gifford, has become just another football telecast. It used to be different in the days of Howard Cosell and Don Meredith. For one thing, there were three announcers, a format that at times produced a cluttered telecast but set "Monday Night Football" apart.

So did Cosell, with his bombastic style, and the off-beat Meredith, singing and bantering with Cosell. The series started in 1970, with Keith Jackson, Cosell and Meredith in the booth. The next season, NOW OPEN IN LA HABRA ORIGINAL WORLD FAMOUS 'Word of Mouth" HAMBURGERS I. A. Bmrtr RampMI Ut HABRA 1315 Nhnar AM.

IURBANK 1311 hrnido ft ORANGE COUNTY In Mqntti ROWLAND HEIGHTS IB! Mem PICO RIVERA U01 E.WMjM. HUNTINGTON PARK Hma Strife SEf ULVEOA Rosen IDS TUJUNGH H06 FMM EAGLE DOCK 1)17 Uouck VAN NUTS 1601 VMay BM LONG (EACH Uli i. fartm unu ONLY LITE WT. COLOR iiirn focus $1000 zoom SYSTEM RCA VHS 300 a TO MAXXUM ALL TRADES IN GOOD CONDITION SUBJECT TO INSPECTION Features: World's only SLR with built-in Autofocus. Automatic Multi-Program Selection (AMPS).

Advanced Touch-Control Panel for ease of operation. Built-in Motorized-Film-Control System. Autofocus TTL Program Flash operation. World's easiest SLR system. MINOLTA USA 2-year limited warranty.

(tTIOTI Programmed automation, just focus Automatic film loading and built-in power winder Optional Canon Speediite 244T automatically sets best lens aperture -depending on ftash-tc-subject distance Uses more than SO Canon FO wide-angle, telepnoto and zoom lenses AUTOMATIC FkM TRANSPORT ifinalS i DAYS! 3 189" FIRST ROUND: Two wild card teams from each conference. Sunday, Dec. 28. DIVISIONAL GAMES: Division winners along with the two wild-card representatives. Saturday, Jan.

3 and Sunday, Jan. 4. CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS: Survivors of the divisional games in each conference. Sunday, Jan. 1 1 SUPER BOWL: Champion of the AFC vs.

champion of the NFC. Sunday, Jan. 25, at the Rose Bowl. PRO BOWL: AFC All-Stars vs. NFC All-Stars.

Sunday, Feb. 1, at Honolulu. Sate cans) rams GteurD SlEED MEN'S. WOMEN'S ATHLETIC BRAND NAMES PUENTE HILLS i7aea CoNme m. eieei0 228 Stonmr Crk Rd ANAHEIM 1622 Lincoln Aw (714)036 6633 637 E.

Second 714-623-25151 Pomona Mon Fri 9 9. Set 9 6. Sun 10 6 a Srr CAR PH0HES Agent for LA. Cellular Audio Vox $799 Motorola $799 Telephone Company Panasonic $899 Portable 8000 $1999 Sn QQWAS "'Lo" OK. $1099 I I II II I $1500 24 "i-0AC-A" prios PORTABLE lr lr CAR PHONES All phonn must Include a number registration lor LA, San Berdu.

or Cty PORTABLE VIDEO CAMERA Canon U.S.A., Inc. one-year limited card BOTH a Duin run All Other Sale Shoes REG. $1599 8 Event-14 day SPLPEP Record plybk. SAVE 26 Function remote Three programmed modes Standard, Tele. Wide Srurter-priority automation with Safety Shift'" Dual metering system FuMy automatic film transport system toads, advances and rewinds lilm 99 BODY ONLY Touch-button controls with bright LCD readout BEST BUY PENTAX PAY PENT, WZOOH ME Super Body 50mm 12.0A PENTAX COO REBATE Canon Canovision8 Canon mm VfOEO CAMERARECORDER 219 YOUSICn.99 Includes warrantyregistration CAMCORDERS 199" wSOmm I24A the already drastically reduced prices.

$89995 $124995 including CHILDREN'S TT 5 micro process- STEREO memory, stereo COA5Y FOOTWEAR SYSTEMS include installation. 8 10-6 11B FRWY. GE VHS SONY MINI 8 SATELLITE All Satellite Systems HOURS: 9 Instant Credit op to $1500 and other financing avattaefc. 3 10 SYSTEM REMOTE KIT- (818) 7700 complete LAKEWOOD 4BS2 Faculty 2t3)eo2-oe4a nmi to Cmu cr SOUTH COAST 3631 Brielol ru)6r oeee Smtmwmy C9ntmt SANTA MONICA 2016 Lincoln BM (213)382 6671 IBM So oco SAN 6503 N. (616) GABRIEL mi I lH 266-4371 II I I 988-7800 DENSMORE VAN NUYS viv-WPI bMITOIUriOMHUOl 9 1 Of II Extremely compact and lightweight only 4.4 tx We'll Beat W- super Ngh-borKJ Sotlcon tube lor high resolution color Canon-developed outo-focm tystem for thorp pictures Any LOCallV mSS? eooee'ed 'u 6X powef Ioom Advertised Price Record up to 2 hours wtth the P6-120 videotape By $10.00 lN POMONA FRHMAN's Open Daily 10 9.

Set 9 30 8. Sun 10 6.