With all the hoo-ha about “Ellen” — the controversy, the cancellation, the unaired episodes — another ABC series seems to have been forgotten.
It, too, was controversial, canceled and left with several episodes unaired.
But while “Ellen” deterioriated as the season progressed, “Nothing Sacred,” co-created by Jesuit priest/writer Bill Cain and executive producer David Manson, remained creatively luminous.
I’ve now seen three of the five unaired programs, including the one about a gay priest with AIDS that had ABC so worried. They deserve to be broadcast.
Some background:
“Nothing Sacred” used the personalities and experiences of a thirtysomething Catholic priest (played by Kevin Anderson), his inner-city-parish colleagues (Ann Dowd, Bruce Altman, Brad Sullivan, Scott Michael Campbell) and their parishioners to explore vexing questions of faith, duty, honor and love. The drama was both emotional and intellectual, often humorous and ultimately affirming of the nobility of the human spirit.
Some, however, thought otherwise. Even before it premiered, the show was viciously condemned by a conservative lay group, the Catholic League. Praise from other groups and clergy seemed to get less attention.
Executive producer Manson, who helped turn elegantly written scripts into finely crafted programs, had mixed thoughts about the protests. “In terms of viewership, I don’t think it had any effect at all,” he said. With advertisers, though, “I think it was fairly effective. It doesn’t take much to scare them off. I think ABC took a bath on the show.”
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Low ratings killed the show, though, and 11 pre-emptions and three time slots didn’t help. “If we had had a 15 (percent) share (of the audience), we’d still be on the air,” Manson said. “I’m convinced now that controversy only helps (increase viewership) if it’s sexual. If it’s religious, forget it.”
Will the five remaining episodes see the light of day? An ABC spokesman wasn’t optimistic but noted that the summer schedule is not yet complete.
The episodes I’ve seen are beautiful, surprisingly diverse works of dramatic art. The one involving a gay priest with AIDS is actually mild — touching and funny. An episode about a false accusation of sexual assault against Father Leo (Sullivan) is more provocative, with political and social overtones that ring true.
The most interesting of the three shows, though, is one originally intended to air just before Easter. Boldly allegorical, it features perhaps the longest dream sequence in TV-series history.
This summer, ABC surely will air at least five hours that will be even lower-rated than previous episodes of “Nothing Sacred.” So why not allot those hours for the remaining (and already paid for) episodes of “Nothing Sacred”? At least ABC would be filling the time with quality drama of which it could rightly be proud.