In the mid-1980’s, all three networks changed
ownership. The large media corporations that ac-
quired the networks instituted cost-cutting measures
and examined the miniseries as a source of over-
spending, particularly in the light of a recent decline
in viewership. Two miniseries in the late 1980’s rep
resented the changing network attitudes about mini-
series.Lonesome Dovewas based on Larry McMurtry’s
Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Feature film actors Rob-
ert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones played “Gus” Mc-
Crae and Woodrow Call. The miniseries aired on
CBS over four nights in 1989 to critical acclaim and
high ratings. The network developed other Western
miniseries, trying to recapture the popularity of
Lonesome Dove. Throughout 1988-1989, ABC aired
the thirty-four-hourWar and Remembrance, the sequel
to 1983’sThe Winds of War. It took up much of the
network’s schedule and was estimated to cost $100
million. The number of viewers fell below the esti-
mate ABC had given to advertisers, and the network
lost $30-40 million as a result.
Impact In the wake of the networks’ new corporate
ownership, broadcast networks continued to pro-
gram miniseries as important events, but not as fre-
quently. They also began to limit each miniseries to
only four hours in length. Production costs were too
high for more frequent and longer miniseries, and
the networks were also concerned to attract younger
viewers with shorter attention spans. The miniseries
began to move to cable television channels that were
more hungry for special-event and “quality” pro-
gramming. Miniseries also affected book-publishing
strategies. Publishers recognized that a miniseries
based on a book generated renewed interest in a ti-
tle, and they developed tie-ins, placing paperback
editions of a book “soon to be a miniseries” at
grocery-store checkout counters.
Further Reading
Auletta, Ken.Three Blind Mice: How the TV Networks
Lost Their Way. New York: Random House, 1991.
Details the factors that led to the precipitous de-
cline of broadcast network viewership. Excellent
behind-the-scenes descriptions.
Marill, Alvin.Movies Made for Television: The Telefeature
and the Mini-series, 1964-1986. New York: New York
Zoetrope, 1987. Listing of television movies and
miniseries.
Roman, James.Love, Light, and a Dream: Television’s
Past, Present, and Future. Westport, Conn.: Praeger,
- Offers a useful perspective on different eras
of televison.
Vane, Edwin T., and Lynne S. Gross.Programming for
TV, Radio, and Cable. Boston: Focal Press, 1994.
Excellent information on ratings and networks.
Nancy Meyer
See also Advertising; Literature in the United
States; Ludlum, Robert; Sequels; Television.Minivans
Definition Compact motor vehicles designed for
transport of passengers and light cargo
Date Introduced in North America in 1983
Designed with emphasis upon practicality and conve-
nience, minivans were introduced in the early 1980’s and
by the end of the decade had become a popular choice of
transportation for American families.
The origins of the minivan can be traced to the com-
pact vans of the 1950’s and 1960’s, most notably the
Volkswagen “microbus,” and to the station wagons
popularized by American families of the post-World
War II era. Early minivans were distinguished from
conventional vans primarily by their use of under-
pinnings resembling a standard automobile chassis
as opposed to a larger, specialized van chassis, but
also differed from conventional vans by the pres-
ence of three rows of seats, sliding rear passenger
doors, and single rear doors hinged at the top in-
stead of at either side of the van’s tailgate. Many of
the characteristics of the minivan, such as rear hatches
and abundant seating, rendered it more akin to a
station wagon than to a conventional van.
The first vehicles to be labeled “minivans,” the
Toyota Van and the Dodge Caravan, were intro-
duced in North America in 1983. The Dodge Cara-
van, with its front wheels located in front of rather
than beneath the front doors of the vehicle, set a pre-
cedent for conventional minivan design. The Cara-
van was the brainchild of Chrysler Corporation chief
executive officer Lee Iacocca, who proposed it in the
late 1970’s as inexpensive family transportation to
replace the station wagon, which had become unap-
pealing to mainstream consumers because of its
association with blandness and conventionality. In
addition to the capacity of the station wagon for
transporting people and cargo, the minivan wouldThe Eighties in America Minivans 655