Making Time For TV

Young adults somehow find a way to watch,
but what, why and when is a whole different program.

JULIE WEINGARDEN .
Special to The Jewish News

T

here's always one TV show
that grabs you in the gut.
For me it's "Party of Five."
Rarely do I get through an
episode without crying.
Many young Jewish adults first
tuned in to,shows merely to learn and
laugh. Maybe they started with
"Sesame Street" and eventually moved
on to "The Brady Bunch" or
"Charlie's Angels".
My pre-teen Saturday nights were
spent watching "Love Boat" and
"Fantasy Island." In high school I had
to catch "General Hospital" and
"Dynasty," but then I gravitated
toward dramas.
In college I was glued to
"Thirtysomething." I was not even in
my 20s yet, but something about
Michael's struggle to find his Jewish
identity when in reality he
was married to non-
Jewish Hope was
compelling.'

11/7
1997

82

Today, I tune in to see
how "Ally McBeal" func-
tions while working with
the love of her life, who is
now married to someone
else. I root for Carole and
Doug on "ER" and watch
Claudia try to hold her
family together on "Party of
Five" with no mother or
father to turn to. Although
I love to read, I admit it: I
watch TV.
Even those who claim
they don't "do" TV or don't
have the free hours to watch
it, probably log in some
boob tube time. For exam-
ple, Jillian Levitan, 23, of
Birmingham, insists that
people watch "Beverly Hills
90210."
"Everyone who says they
don't watch it lies. They
watch it. They know who Brandon
Walsh and Donna Martin are."
Levitan, who works at Detroit
Edison, says she is addicted to
it. "I don't mean to watch it.
It's just a thing in me. I got
addicted in college. Watching
it was an event, a party."
When she graduated, she
couldn't kick the habit.
It's amazing that young, edu-
cated adults are lured into
the soap opera storylines.
"I mean Kelly on
`90210' can't model any-
more because of the fire.
She had a miscarriage and
was addicted to cocaine ...
Brandon was going to go to
Seattle but couldn't because
his girlfriend had amnesia!
I'm going to be 30 and
I'm still watch-
ing this
show. I
have a
love/hate
relation-
ship with
it," says
Levitan.

TV influences young adults.
Whether personal grooming (think:
Jennifer Aniston's layers, George
Clooney's Caesar or Luke Perry's
sideburns) or personal style (Tori
Spelling's baby T-shirts, Heather
Locklear's short, short skirts and
Jeremy London's oversized suede
jacket).
"Ally McBeal" may be setting the
styles for this season with the lead
character's sexy suits, but she's not
completely believable. "I watch Ally
but it's not realistic," says Rachel
Bordman, a 25-year-old lawyer. "It's
not realistic because she goes to work
without pantyhose, spends all day
talking about her relationships and
doesn't worry about billings.
Bordman, who also watches "The
Nanny" for its Jewish humor, says her
guy friends like "The Simpsons."
Eric Bronstein, a 27-year-old
lawyer, says "The Simpsons" is the
funniest show on TV. "It has -little
gems of social commentary woven
into it." He adds that most of his
women friends watch "Melrose Place"
and "everyone — no matter their gen-
der — watches `Seinfeld.'"
It's no surprise that three of the
favorite shows viewed by young

"

Detroiters are on Fox — the network
that broke the mold and developed
hip shows for the MTV generation.
"Ally McBeal," "Party of Five" and
"90210" are the hot picks. All three
shows target women between the ages
of 18 and 49, according to Tom
Tyrer, vice president of corporate
communications for Fox
Broadcasting.
"Party of Five" is Fox's most
improved returning series this season,
with a 24 percent increase in total
viewers — 22 percent among adults
ages 18-49. It's hard to believe the
1996 Golden Globe winner for best
dramatic series was almost canceled
early in its life for lack of viewers.
Perhaps Fox underestimated the
taste of young men. Although "Party"
marks women as its main followers,
there are plenty of males loyal to the
show.
"I watch 'Party of Five,"' says Jeff
Greenfield, 24, who works in advertis-
ing. "It's a different scenario of
evening drama." The Waterford resi-
dent also tunes in to "Monday Night
Football," "Saturday Night Live" and
NBC's must see Thursday nights —
"Friends," "Seinfeld" and "ER."
In addition to "Monday Night