Too Much ‘Millionaire’? ABC Doesn’t Think So

ABC officials insisted Sunday that they are not “mortgaging our future” by relying so heavily on one franchise, “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” which will expand to a fourth night in the fall.

Addressing a group of TV critics and reporters at its twice-annual gathering in Pasadena, ABC stressed that the audience for “Millionaire” differs on each night, with 83 million people tuning in the quiz show during the course of a week and 70% of those viewers watching only one installment in that time span.

“There is no such thing as a ‘Millionaire’ addict,” said Larry Hyams, ABC’s vice president of audience analysis.

ABC offered additional gee-whiz statistics to bolster its case that the network isn’t running “Millionaire” into the ground and to dispel other myths about its popularity. These included the expectation that “Millionaire’s” ratings among younger adults--whose viewing of the show diminished during the spring--will rebound once the warm-weather months are over, as well as data showing the average household watching the program has an income of $54,000 and at least someone in the home has a college education.

Though the ratings successes of “Millionaire” and, more recently, the CBS summer “reality” series “Survivor” have spurred a rush to develop similar projects, ABC Entertainment Television Group Co-Chairman Lloyd Braun maintained there is little evidence TV viewers are clamoring for programs in either genre.

“What we’re talking about are two shows in ‘Millionaire’ and ‘Survivor’ that have done extraordinarily well and surprised everybody,” Braun said.

Although producers and writers have suggested ABC is squeezing out traditional sitcoms and dramas by allocating nearly one-fifth of its prime-time schedule to “Millionaire,” network executives contend that the strategy will actually allow them to better cultivate and launch series by focusing their promotional efforts. ABC will introduce just four new shows in the fall, the fewest of any broadcast network.

ABC executives reiterated the pledge that they are ordering series from a variety of sources, even though the vast majority of the network’s programming of late has come from its corporate parent, the Walt Disney Co.

ABC did announce plans for a two-hour World War II documentary to air Dec. 7--the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor--produced by Steven Spielberg and narrated by Tom Hanks, reuniting the “Saving Private Ryan” tandem. That happens to fit nicely with Disney’s “Pearl Harbor,” a big-budget feature film due for release next year. Despite the involvement of those Hollywood names, the project is being made under the aegis of ABC News.

That oversight is somewhat surprising, because news divisions are generally reluctant to deal with outside suppliers. Moreover, ABC came under criticism earlier this year for sending actor Leonardo DiCaprio to interview President Clinton as part of its “Earth Day” special. The maneuver caused bristling among ABC News staffers, who questioned the propriety of casting a star in the role of journalist.

Spielberg is also producing “Anne Frank: The Whole Story” for ABC, a made-for-TV movie based on a recent biography of the famed Holocaust victim. The project will be broadcast during the coming season.