Rivera plans last-minute Prop. 187 spec

GOOD MORNING: It was supposed to just be a schmooze and wraparty for Geraldo Rivera and his local KCBS and N.Y. key crew at Mortons Thursday night after hed completed four shows here and was heading back to N.Y. But mid-meal, Bill Applegate, the stations VP/general manager, told Rivera the campaign on Californias Prop. 187,

GOOD MORNING: It was supposed to just be a “schmooze and wraparty” for Geraldo Rivera and his local KCBS and N.Y. key crew at Morton’s Thursday night after he’d completed four shows here and was heading back to N.Y. But mid-meal, Bill Applegate, the station’s VP/general manager, told Rivera the campaign on California’s Prop. 187, barring illegal residents from schools and health care, is heading to an explosive finale. He said Rivera should stay here and do a special on the initiative today, the eve of the election. Rivera immediately agreed and portable phones suddenly appeared at their table as calls went out to rebuild his set on Stage 36 at CBS TV City — it had already been struck. They then recalled N.Y. crew members who were en route to the airport. And calls went out to potentially controversial candidates to talk about the proposition on the Rivera special today, 3-4 p.m. It will also air on stations in San Diego and SanFran, replacing a skedded program. Exec producer Marty Berman, among those on the phone at Morton’s, quickly set the show to be simulcast in Spanish. And Friday ayem, Rivera took off for the border to tape interviews. He told me “I hope this program will separate the hype from the hypocrisy”… Nearby all this telephonic activity at Morton’s were Paola and Mickey Schulhof, having just arrived from Sony meets in Japan and dining with Peter Guber. Schulhof was continuing to N.Y.; He enthused about the Nov. 16 private preem party for Sony’s Imax theater in the 12-screen Sony theater complex there. Following the opening of the 3D Imax pix “Into the Deep” and “The Last Buffalo” comes the spring preem of Sony Classics’ first dramatic feature for Imax in 3D, “Wings of Courage.” Schulhof praised the Jean-Jacques Annaud-directed film, which stars Val Kilmer, Tom Hulce and Elizabeth McGovern. It’s a true drama about the first airmail service in the Andes. Imax also is readying its second dramatic feature, “Across the Sea of Time”… Another interesting duo at Morton’s: Amblin TV’s topper Tony Thomopoulos and recently-returned-to-L.A. Gary Lieberthal — just renewing old friendships, they said. Gary’s already resettled in a home in Bel Air.

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