Programming: Stimuli of Experiment

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As originally conceived, "Experiment" was to present nine original dramas each season. Tom McAvity, 61, general program executive of the series, soon discovered it was not possible to round up that many good plays, so nondramatic fare was added. He and his team work within the confines of a low budget, some $400,000 a season, or less than what each network spends for one night's programming. He must also be careful not to infringe on the jealous domain of NBC News.

Within these limits, McAvity has done an extraordinary job. Of the 23 shows performed during the past three seasons, not one has been a total clinker, and most were impressive. The shows included Four Days to Omaha, in which the posthumous son of an American soldier tries to piece together his father's last days before death in Normandy; Color Me German, an examination of a Mischling, or the child of a black G.I. and a German girl; Passport to Prague, a moving love story about an American girl and a Czech designer.

For budget reasons, many "Experiment" shows are filmed abroad; all of them are fully controlled by the individual producers or directors. McAvity does not deliberately seek out name actors or authors. "A name wouldn't add a nickel to our rating," he says. Estimates of the TV audience run from 10 to 15 million, compared with 50 million for Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In. McAvity says, "A good bowling match will kick hell out of us." The series has developed an odd byproduct: many advertising agencies have asked for screenings of some of the shows. What they wanted to see was not their content, but their technique—to decide if they were applicable to TV commercials.