Back in August, Connie Sellecca quit (or was fired) as the star of ABC's new sitcom Baby Talk (7:30 p.m., Ch. 4).
The incident is still tied up in litigation, but Sellecca already appears to be the winner - she's no longer associated with this turkey.The current victim is Julia Duffy, who was wonderful as ditzy maid/heiress Stephanie Vanderkellen on "Newhart" for seven seasons. Here, she's stuck in a mess of bad writing, bad editing . . . bad, bad, bad.
This sitcom is based on the hit movie "Look Who's Talking." The basic concept is, gee, wouldn't it be funny if we could hear the thoughts of a precocious baby?
The idea couldn't even sustain itself in a second movie (the dreadful "Look Who's Talking Too") and doesn't come close to holding up for a series. (They've actually shot 13 episodes of this, unbelievably enough.)
In the TV version, Duffy plays single mother Maggie Campbell. George Clooney takes over the John Travolta role, but this time he's a contractor remodeling Maggie's apartment. He's accompanied by a pair of dimwitted assistants, one of whom is the subject of the most offensive alcoholic jokes seen on TV in quite some time.
But there's plenty of other things to be offended by - diaper jokes, an incredibly obnoxious laugh track, and an even more incredibly obnoxious Tony Danza as the voice of baby Mickey. (Bruce Willis he isn't.)
Bad "Baby." Bad, bad "Baby."
- ELSEWHERE ON THE TUBE: The Jazz try to keep their road winning streak alive when they visit the Bulls in NBA basketball (6:30 p.m., Ch. 13 and WGN); the WAC basketball tournament continues to shake up Ch. 2's schedule. The first semifinal (which may feature BYU) is set for 7 p.m. and the second (which may feature Utah) for 9:30 p.m. In between, you can see KUTV News at 9 p.m. (And don't worry, "Dark Shadows" fans - that show will be aired Saturday at 10:35 p.m.) The kids' real father - who's a real lowlife - shows up on The Guns of Paradise (7 p.m., Ch. 5); KXIV broadcasts the wonderful old movie Arsenic and Old Lace (7 p.m., Ch. 14); Bobby returns from California a changed man on the 350th episode of Dallas (8 p.m., Ch. 5); and Mel Torme hosts Frank Sinatra: Voice of Our Time (8 p.m., Ch. 7).
- LOOKING TOWARD SATURDAY: The Jazz road trip continues as the team visits the Knicks in NBA basketball (5 p.m., PSN); two of the college basketball post-season tournaments of local interest conclude - the WAC title game (6 p.m., ESPN) is first, followed by the Big Sky title game (8 p.m., ESPN); Randy Travis appears as himself on Down Home (7:30 p.m., Ch. 2); Yearbook (7:30 p.m., Ch. 13) moves to its regular time slot; and you've got your choice of three good movie reruns at 8 p.m. - Beverly Hills Cop (Ch. 4), La Bamba (Ch. 5) and 2001: A Space Odyssey (Ch. 7).