The News and Observer from Raleigh, North Carolina • 17

UP APPROX POP The News and Observer Leople Hands-on show gets you ready for the future By KAREN FISHER Staff Writer and ocean home. URHAM television. watch You mines, the It's hop Once and news been aboard home, on a you're your long the ready day relax wristwatch to at monorail the get in you front of the three-dimensional image from the living room television and pop open a beer made from purified sea water and hops and barley grown without soil. If your three-day work week has you keyed up or if you're anxious because your spouse, like SO many others, doesn't have a job, a relaxation pill ought to do the trick. Your football game is interrupted for a message from the president.

She looks concerned. Tension has continued to rise since a Soviet-backed revolutionary group took over Saudi Arabia and cut off all oil to the West. Conflict in the Middle East has led experts to believe the Soviet Union is planning a nuclear attack; therefore, the United States has just launched a first strike. "What's frightening is these are not unlikely scenarios," said Dr. Thomas Krakauer, executive director of the N.C.

Museum of Life and Science. The scenarios are part of "Toward the 21st a traveling exhibit at the museum through Nov. 3. The exhibit was produced by the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry with advice from British science writer Nigel Calder. It looks toward life 20 years from now, as well as at predictions made in the past about the 1980s.

"It's very difficult to design a traveling exhibit that is as participatory as this," Krakauer said. "So we're really pleased to have one with as much computer involvement and hands-on things for people to work with." Visitors can do everything from playing Professor Pac Man, an educational version of the video game, to videotaping their own predictions for life in the 21st century. They can start by hearing taped predictions made by scholars 20 years ago, then rate them for accuracy on a computer. Forecasts from the past cover areas such as home computers, personal robots, sexuality and extraterrestrial life. For a 1936 view of the future, visitors can watch film clips from Charlie Chaplin's "'Modern Times." Moving on toward the future, the exhibit identifies five areas of change: genetic engineering, automation in the workplace, invasion of privacy using computers, limited Earth resources and the nuclear arms race.

Each area includes newspaper clippings of current trends, such as stories about recycling, ecology awareness and food shortages in the Earth resources area, then makes predictions about the future. See HANDS-ON, page 2B Staff photo by Gene Furr Dr. Thomas Krakauer takes a peek at future Section Friday, September 13, 1985 Raleigh, N.C. Beth Polson and Barbara Walters at work Producing on do put that if Ms. screen." I more Polson of produced the took real her When the show, she job Barbara I on asked told the Walters her what I condition I on would would she could overhaul it.

"I gave it a softer for Ms. style hair, edge," of Walters' she the makeup said. show and sense to She of give wardrobe changed humor. greater and Ms. Her altered exposure efforts Walters' the to paid off.

In addition to winning an Emmy, ratings for "'The Barbara Walters Special" that first Barbara year since The successes leaving Emmy increased that is her Ms. over only home one Polson, in previous of 38, many Corapeake has years. awards reaped just a and south of the Virginia border. She began her journalistic career in Norfolk, working for By JAMES CALLOWAY Ms. Walters have made three new specials both the Ledger Star and the Virginian-Pilot.

Staff Writer each television season. The program begins During her nine years at those papers, she its 10th season tonight at 9 and features won several Virginia Press Association he first meeting between Beth interviews with Princess Caroline of Monaco, awards for her reporting. When she decided Polson and Barbara Walters didn't Priscilla Presley and Barbra Streisand. to move on, she got three job offers, from exactly look like the beginning of a "Dick Wald, a vice president at ABC, had Women's Wear Daily, Time-Life and KNBC, beautiful friendship. called me up out of the blue I was working the NBC -owned television station in Burbank, "I think later Barbara said she in my garden when he called and offered Calif.

She opted for California. In her first had wanted to throw a pie in my face," Ms. me the job as her producer. I told him I didn't year at KNBC, her coverage of the 1976 Polson said in a telephone interview from her want to work with Barbara Walters. It was Chowchilla school-bus kidnapping earned her office in Hollywood.

"There she was, with a her show, and I wanted to do my own work. I an Emmy nomination. Two more very successful show, 'The Barbara Walters had seen her on television and thought she nominations followed, and in 1981 she won an and I was telling her what I thought was a pushy, tough, aggressive person, and I Emmy for investigative reporting on child was wrong with it." didn't want to deal with someone like that. He pornography for NBC. That was three years ago, and the meeting told me that Barbara had seen my work and "I thought, 'This is I became led not only to friendship but to a productive liked it, and he said that I really ought to talk addicted to television," she said.

"Even as a professional relationship. Ms. Polson, a to her before refusing. 'Do me a he newspaper writer, I think I was a frustrated native of Corapeake in Gates County, became said. 'Just come to New York and meet her, photographer, and it was wonderful to find a the producer of "'The Barbara Walters and if you still don't want to do it, you can tell way to combine writing with photography." Special" the person who decides how the her She since has branched out from news into show will be made and makes sure it happens "Well, the minute I walked in the door, I producing movies for television.

Her first that way and in her first effort led the found this woman I had never seen on such effort, "Not My Kid," based on her book program to win its only Emmy Awards, for television. She was feminine, pretty, warm, "Not My Kid A Parent's Guide to "best informational series" and "best witty. She had a great sense of humor. I said interview" in 1983. Since then, Ms.

Polson and to myself, 'Why have I never seen this person See PRODUCING, page 2B BBC films 'jolly interesting' North Carolina rockers hunter Landen grabbed the both rolling leaned into back hands microphone it, his in eyes and his in head and his brown mop of hair falling into his face as he intoned lyrics above the guitars and drums of his band, the Bad Checks. It was just another runaway show at the Brewery for the Durham-based band, a session of hard-and-fast rock 'n' roll for a crowd jamming the club's dance floor. Except this time, the British Broadcasting Corp. was the Bad Checks, and we do crazy Southern American music," Landen said into the BBC Raleigh's mothers have an Britain's In tune cords), Raleigh Charlotte. By Melanie Sill cameras, drawing a grin from British producer Trevor Dann as the band roared into "Look at That Moon." In late October, Britain will get a big dose of North Carolina rock 'n' roll music on "Whistle Test," a weekly BBC television show.

Five bands rocked for Dann, "Whistle Test" host Andy Kershaw, a camera crew and a wall-to-wall Brewery crowd Wednesday night. The Bad Checks said Kershaw, the 25- -old "Whistle Test" host. "The music is really good. I hope that the people 'round here are not taking it for granted. It's better than most of the stuff that we're getting in England." What appealed to Kershaw, who also hosts a rock 'n' roll show on the BBC's Radio One, was the spontaneity and originality of the "Comboland" bands.

He called the quality "soul" something he hears in music by his hero, the and country-rock performer who charmed Kershaw long ago. They headed to North Carolina in a rented car, visiting Maryland along the way (Kershaw saw his first praying, mantis on a hotel railing) stopping in Elizabeth City for crab cakes at Copeland's Restaurant. The U.S. visit came at the end of an eventful summer for Kershaw and Dann, part of the BBC team that presented the British portion of the global Live Aid concert July were followed by cassette tapes, a sampler of North late Hank Williams, and other 13. the Connells, the Other- Carolina rock 'n' roll.

He called bands from Georgia's R.E.M. to Kershaw arrived at Wembley from Greensboro (who the Spectator's not-for-sale com- blues and rhythm-and-blues per- Stadium in London that morning, album coming out on pilation "Comboland," and he former Robert Cray. climbed into a booth high in the Making Waves Re- invited the BBC to visit his home The BBC team started with a stadium and watched 75,000 peothe Accelerators from state to see how much music was New York interview with Billy ple fill the ground and bleachers. and Fetchin Bones from being made. Idol and traveled to Philadelphia He found himself talking to a "We thought it was jolly inter- to interview Neil Young, the rock television audience estimated at a Earlier in the day, the British visitors checked in at Mitch Easter's Drive-In Studio in WinstonSalem for an interview with musician and producer Don Dixon, whose album will be released by England's Demon Records in November.

Earlier this summer, Dann and Kershaw decided to make a trip to North Carolina after Spectator magazine writer Godfrey Cheshire visited their offices in London. Cheshire was. armed with three 1.5 billion, but the young host kept his cool and even took advantage of the chance to tell the world he is NOT related to British pop idol Nik Kershaw. "I lay on me bed at 6 in the morning, when it finally finished, and I thought, 'I just presented the largest TV show of all said Kershaw, who grew up near Manchester in northern England. "It was too big for it to be See BBC, page 2B.