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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Friday, November 9, 2007 Strike or no strike, viewers have options By Julie Muhlstein Herald Writer A few weeks ago I was wandering through an Everett drugstore and bumped into someone I'd just seen on television. It wasn't a star of "Grey's Anatomy," the top-rated drama set in a fictional Seattle hospital. It wasn't Steve Carell, lead actor on "The Office." Production on that comedy was shut down this week after members of the Writers Guild of America went on strike. It wasn't Jay Leno, David Letterman or Conan O'Brien, the guys whose late-night gags have been silenced by striking writers. It was Paula Welly, an Everett High School student involved with the Everett Rowing Association. In the drugstore with her mom, Linda Welly, Paula said I wasn't the only one who'd seen her recent appearance on Everett TV, Channel 21. She was interviewed about the rowing group by Kate Reardon, a city spokeswoman and Everett TV regular. Not yet a week old, the strike is already affecting the broadcast networks. "The Office" will be out of new episodes after next week, according to the Associated Press. I'm not one of those high-minded people who can truthfully say, "I never watch TV." What I am, as my drugstore encounter proves, is a viewer of everything but prime-time network television. I have seen "Grey's Anatomy," thanks to my daughter visiting and getting me to tune in. Although I've never seen it, I'm convinced "The Office" is funny because I trust the people who tell me so. As for other Nielsen ratings giants, I'm clueless. That has less to do with TV snobbery than with a schedule that doesn't allow for prime-time viewing. After work comes dinner and dishes, then homework, bath and bedtime for my boy. By the time I get to channel surfing, the best thing on the TV can easily be the "Mayor's Monthly Update" or a City Council meeting on Everett TV. Writers on strike? I wish them well, but except for seeing news reports about their issues I'm not likely to notice. These days, my favorite show is a Sunday night offering on the College Channel, at my house Channel 28. Its leading lady is Vicki Artimovich, not an actress but a Bellevue Community College art history instructor. Her "History of Western Art" telecourse -- I just watch it, I'm not in it for credit -- is wonderful. It's a rerun of a 1994 production, but who cares? Her sweaters look dated, but Artimovich spent an hour the other night explaining every detail of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel ceiling at the Vatican. Did you know that Edvard Munch, the Norwegian painter known for "The Scream," suffered from severe depression? Thanks to insomnia and Artimovich, I know more than I ever would from catching "Desperate Housewives" on Sunday nights. My viewing habits aren't all cerebral. If our TV could talk, it might tattle about my Friday night guilty pleasure, TLC's catty fashion-advice show "What Not to Wear." At Everett Community College on Thursday, I didn't find many people who care about network programming. Cheryl Schneider, 44, prefers watching old episodes of "Leave It to Beaver," "The Andy Griffith Show" and "Murder She Wrote" on satellite TV. For April Stair, 17, of Marysville, TV's top draw is the funny superstar chef Alton Brown on The Food Network. Eighteen-year-old Josh Coxon of Arlington doesn't have much time for TV, but he likes Charlie Sheen on "Two and a Half Men." A CBS hit, the show is among those that have stopped production since the strike started. With writers concerned about pay from DVDs and shows available on the Internet, TV viewers see both sides of the issue. "I think they went into the job knowing how much they'd be paid," said Brandon Pasowicz, an 18-year-old EvCC student who likes NBC's "Heroes." Kai Kitchner, 16, a fan of "House" on the Fox Network, is sympathetic to the writers. "For the large part they play in the shows, definitely they should be paid more," the Stanwood teen said. Whichever way the strike ends -- and however long it takes -- viewers will no doubt find plenty to watch and do without the big networks' shows. "I don't watch those shows," said Jeremy Ridge, 19, of Camano Island. "I do homework. And I sleep, that's my hobby." Columnist Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460 and muhlstein@heraldnet.com.

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