United We Fall

Five weeks ago, the so-called United Network went on the TV screens in 106 U.S. cities with the Las Vegas Show, a two-hour club crawl of the "Strip." The program, promised United President Oliver Treyz, would be "the most exciting and dynamic variety show ever televised," and would by fall enable him to add six more hours of daily programing and news, and thus make United a full-fledged competing fourth network. Bold words--considering that they came from a modest headquarters over a Woolworth's store on Manhattan's East Side.

The Las Vegas Show was overbilled (TIME, May 12), and sponsor backing was overestimated. Last week, with another $450,000 due to cover its A.T. & T. cable costs for June, United, as one broadcaster put it, "simply couldn't pay its phone bill." So, 23 nights after it started, Ollie Treyz's "fourth network" went off the air.

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