People: Mar. 11, 1985

The screen was silver in her day, and she gave it unforgettable polish and shine. Now Ava Gardner, 62, is bringing her glow to the phosphors of the TV screen for the first time. In three weeks Gardner will star on NBC's A.D., a Christians vs. lions mini-series in which she plays Agrippina, Nero's manipulative mother. Last week brought the start of her seven-episode stint on Knots Landing, in which she portrays the wealthy Ruth Sumner, another manipulative mother and one of those prime-time soap characters like J.R. and Alexis who manage to drub everyone the wrong way. "It's a whole new way of working," says Gardner. "I can't seem to calm down." She took to the tube "mainly for the money," she admits, and expects to return to her home in London as soon as her Landing shooting schedule is finished in Hollywood. "Oh television," sighs Gardner. "It's awfully small, isn't it?" But she is welcome in any size.