The San Francisco Examiner from San Francisco, California • 227

jr. Television Producer Kemp has testy Burke under control for new sit-com the thousands hoping to be discovered in Nashville." The taping of the pilot for "Delta" came off without incident, Kemp said, and Burke's husband, McRaney, although present on the set most of the time, behaved himself. "I was amazed at how much he stood back. He knew she had to 4 Ji 1 i i 'ft Vl Ah A 'B cV manding on my time. But I did say I'd talk to Delta, and maybe I'd assume series maintenance help get it started and look after it as executive producer." At the time Kemp was well aware of the actress' rumored dif-ficultes in sit-com never-never land: the alleged temperamental outbursts on the set of "Designing the reported meddling in her career by her husband, Gerald McRaney, as chronicled by TV Guide and the supermarket tabloids; Burke's claims that the producers of "Women" had mistreated her; and the resulting in-fighting that had ended with Burke being let go from the series that she had helped make a CBS hit with her portrayal of Suzanne Su-garbaker (1986-91).

Kemp, suspect of tabloid hyperbole, was less interested in any one person's guilt or innocence in this internecine Hollywood warfare than in knowing if he and Burke could be compatible. "When we met, I simply told Delta that if it sounded like we could work together, we'd do business. I never enter a relationship if I think something is wrong. If I have a credo as a producer, it's that when you work with other creative people you're entering into a partnership that demands total respect and giving of talent. There can be no screaming matches on the stage, no antics, no game playing." Any fears Kemp may have had were immediately laid to rest when he met Burke.

"I told her it was important that we both have a voice in the show. Each has to give 110 percent of what we can do. And she agreed. She's a naturally funny lady; it's impossible not to like her within five minutes of BY JOHN STANLEY CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER ON THE WORLD of TV sit-coms, producers don't come with much more clout than Barry Kemp. Success after success as if he were living a real-life fairy tale has dogged his career as a writer and executive producer of hit series.

For four seasons, Kemp wrote scripts and worked as story consultant on "Taxi," garnering an Emmy nomination and two Writers Guild Award nominations. He created the soap parody "Fresno," "Newhart" (the second of Bob Newhart's comedies), "Coach" (for Craig T. Nelson) and now he's taking the reins for Delta Burke's new situation comedy. "Delta," which premieres day at 9:30 p.m. on Channels 7, 11 and 13, and then assumes its regular weekly time slot at 8 p.m.

Thursday, is a series that was especially created for the former star of "Designing Women." In person, Kemp is warm and relaxed, totally without pretentions about himself and his position in the upper echelons of the sit-com producing world. He explained that he was first approached a year ago by Universal (his home studio) and asked if he to develop a new series for Burke. "I didn't want to create the show," Kemp recalled while in town recently. "I was tusy preparing the next season of 'Coach' and developing some film properties at Universal, which were all very de- "Delta" premieres at Tuesday ana then drops into its weekly time slot at 8 p.m. Thursday on Channels 7, 11 and 13.

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BAYAMtA tXClUSIVt CARTER USJVl SAT. the VILLAGE PEOPLE 1031 Row Trade. Aawtrivi. I-BEAM A BASS I WtD. 16 MKI 'Delta' producer Barry Kemp was interested in knowing if he and Burke could be compatible find herself and that outside influences could have caused a Kemp believes that Burke, who has become a blonde for the new series, on which she also serves as co-executive producer, "has an amazing instinct for being able to listen to others and react accordingly.

Like all good comedians, she has a third eye. She knows what makes her look funny. She has the most wonderful expression. When you watch her, you see the wheels clicking and whirring, the whole mental process, like you used to see in Lucille Ball's face." Kemp's story is the American dream come true. He was born in Hannibal, and graduated from the University of Iowa In 1971 with a bachelor's degree in speech and dramatic arts.

"I'd studied writing in college and I wrote plays constantly, without letup," he recalled. "One time In 1976, Jerry Van Dyke came to Phoenix where Kemp was a Chamber of Commerce executive, and my wife goaded me into going backstage and giving him a sample of my writing. The next day Jerry told me he liked my stuff and put me under contract to write comedy for him. He also said he'd show my stuff around Hollywood." Eventually Kemp gave up his Job and moved his family to Hollywood. Meanwhile, Van Dyke had shown Kemp's sample scripts to James Brooks just when he was leaving "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" to start up 'Taxi." Kemp became a staff writer on that series and hasn't stopped writing andor producing since.

At 42, he feels "blessed. I'm doing all that I ever dreamed about doing only on a scale so much grander. I'm enjoying myself more, I've stopped treating it like it were a tortuous thing. On the other hand, I never take my success for granted. I diligently prepared myself and was inordinately ready when the opportunity arose." LAKE MERCED M1-2727 Delta Burke, above, with 'Delta' series co-star Earl Holliman, and producer Barry Kemp, right meeting her.

She's an original person and thinker." Kemp agreed to set up the show and supervise it. The concept for "Delta" budding country-and-western singer Delta Bishop leaves a bad marriage and settles in Nashville to break into the mu- KIM WATTS Present! AN EVENING WITH MICHAEL NESMITH THE TROPICAL CAMPFIRES TOUR PALACE OF FINE ARTS 3301 LYON ST. BAY SUNDAY, SEPT. 27, 7:30 PM FOR INFO: 415-552-5469 SUN 4-8 BLUES POWER SEPT 13 JOHNNY NITRO THE DOORStAMMERS SEPT 14 THE BACHELORS SEPT 15 LISA KINDRED SEPT 16 THE BLUEJEANS SEPT 17 BRUCE BREECE SEPT 18 DOUG JAY THE CHEVROLETS SAT 4-8 DAVE WORKMAN CATHY LEMONS SEPT 19 NICK GRAVENITES I ANIMAL MIND r' fits -f-- Wed 916 9 PM Comedy Reluriw to the Boallioiue LANK EARL SEAN MURPHY REBECCA WARD Record Release Partyl jlx GREG KIHN BAND FLAMES OF LOVE MRS. FLETCHER BAD CITY $3 WILL DURST mwit Pick Bright S.R.O.

am S.F. BLUES SUMMIT with tUvin Ruuall, Chris Cobb, Johnny Nitre, Brod Rwll Kenny DoU Johnson Qorth Wetwr THE RfiPlfnrORS s. 4 NQN BLONDES as a sic business sprang from an idea of a onetime secretary to Burke. "From that germ of an Idea, we developed a country-and-western wannabe who goes to live with her cousin Lavanne and her husband Buck and works as a waitress at the Green Lantern saloon run by Earl Holliman," Kemp said. "And on singers' amateur night she's hoping she'll be discovered out of.