The Long Cold Summer

In televisionland, summer comes a little earlier every year. Reruns that used to start appearing in June, now arrive practically in the shadow of the groundhog. Last week no fewer than six series, from CBS's Gunsmoke to NBC's Tuesday Night at the Movies, began their long cold summer of repeats. This week six more shows, including ABC's Garrison's Gorillas and CBS's The Lucy Show, break out the old film cans.

The explanation is financial, not seasonal. A heavy season of costly specials makes any curtailment of new production an attractive idea. As a result, a "year" for a typical series now lasts 26 weeks. Jackie Gleason, in fact, turned out only 22 in his "season." He went to reruns on Feb. 17.

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