A Pre-Peacock Bravo

On Nov. 2, Cablevision Systems Corp. CEO Jim Dolan apparently took a timeout from negotiations on the sale of Bravo to NBC to take in the National Basketball Association's New York Knicks home opener, in his customary seat under the basket. The undersized, undermanned Knicks lost, falling to 0-3 at the time (1-4 at presstime), but there was one moment of good cheer.

During a break, a Madison Square Garden Network "update" popped onto the overhead scoreboard announcing that New York had been selected as the U.S. entrant in the sweepstakes to host the 2012 Summer Olympics. That drew a bigger cheer than the Knickerbockers could muster for most of the night.

MSG also aired a clip of Mayor Mike Bloomberg promising to attend future Knick games and asking attendees to look around: They may be in the same venue as Olympic basketball and other events. (Fans could be forgiven for wondering if the Knicks might field a winner before then.)

Your Moment of ABCNN

Now the Los Angeles Times
knows how The Wire feels when we tout something and it comes up empty.

An item in the Los Angeles daily Nov. 1 declared that on CNN's Newsnight With Aaron Brown
that evening, Ted Turner would show up and announce the merger of CNN and ABC News, a marriage Walt Disney Co. chief Michael Eisner claims has a "50-50" chance of reality. But at Newsnight's witching hour, there was no Turner or Brown — just one befuddled Anderson Cooper substituting in the anchor seat.

"The fact that I'm sitting here, by my lonesome, would seem to indicate that the rumor is not true," Cooper said to his viewers. "But don't get discouraged; we will do a segment tonight on the possible merger."

True to his word, Cooper laid out in the program's closing segment, in tongue-in-cheek fashion, how an ABC News and CNN marriage might work out.

"Sadly, some anchors are clearly going to have to go. The question is how to choose. I say the old-fashioned steel-cage death match. At the very least, it would be a ratings-winner," he said.

"I can see it now. Candy (Crowley) versus Cokie (Roberts). Lovable Lou Dobbs against battling Barbara Walters … What about 'Whose Headline Is It Anyway?' Audience members yell out hypothetical news stories, our anchors have to improvise. It would be fun. I'm telling you, this merger will put the sin in synergy."

Cooper's other question: "Does this mean I get to do The Mole
again?"

The Helen & Henry Show

Maybe Henry Schleiff is a good luck charm.

At Court TV's "women superstars breakfast" Nov. 7 — the morning after Women In Cable & Telecommunications' annual Washington, D.C., gala — the network honored longtime White House correspondent Helen Thomas, U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan, deputy assistant attorney general Alice Fisher and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms assistant director Kathleen Kiernan. Court TV CEO Schleiff introduced Thomas, pointing out she often is accorded the first question at presidential press conferences — but that President Bush hadn't held one since July.

Well, later that day, Bush did have a news conference — one at which he bantered with the press in a manner similar to Thomas' favorite president, John Kennedy, and sounded at times like the candidate Bush depicted in HBO's acclaimed new documentary Journeys with George.

Thomas didn't ask the first question, but she did pose one, plus a follow, about Iraq and North Korea.

By the way, Thomas' physical award, which looked glamorous and glassy from the back of the room, somehow broke in two, prompting Schleiff to joke it came "complete with a product liability lawsuit." He promised to get Thomas an intact replacement.

Of Beer and Whammy

Game Show Network has come up with an outrageous marketing ploy to lure college students to the Kennedy-hosted series Friend or Foe?
The channel tacked phony flyers in and around campuses in seven markets, including New York, Washington, D.C., Boston and Los Angeles. More than 1,500 students called the phone numbers on these flyers as of early last week, GSN spokeswoman Cindy Ronzoni said.

One flyer read, "Get Paid To Drink Beer," while another said, "You Can Be a Model," and a third said, "Don't Call This Number." But all noted somewhere, "This is not a real offer."

In a footnote, the beer flyer continued, "We're fresh out of beer, pal. You really thought you could get paid to get wasted? … You should watch Friend or Foe?
on GSN. It's all about the intricacies of human nature. Namely, why people do cruel things to people like you." Sounds like something Kennedy would say.

At least University of Southern California students have a way to get back at GSN Nov. 30 when their football Trojans wrap their season against Notre Dame. One lucky fan will play football toss with a costumed version of Whammy, the animated mascot of Whammy! The All-New Press Your Luck, for a stereo.

Remembering The Vets

National cable networks aren't the only ones saluting American veterans today, Thanksgiving weekend and beyond.

Comcast Corp.'s regional CN8 channel will kick off its new CN8 Extra
magazine show tonight at 8:30 p.m. with an in-depth look at various Veteran's Day topics, including the Veterans' History Project. CN8 is carried by cable operators in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

For its part, Pennsylvania Cable Network will offer World War II: In Their Own Words
primetime specials over the Thanksgiving and Christmas weekends. Unedited interviews with about 80 state veterans will be shown, half airing Nov. 28 through Dec. 1 and the rest due Dec. 26 to 29.

This video diary initially was to be a one-time special, but the response has been so strong that a third installment is planned for early 2003, said PCN programming vice president William Bova.

A live call-in show will follow the Dec. 1 presentation.