ABC Evening News - 1977-07-14

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:02] This is the ABC Evening News tonight

[0:05] with Barbara Walters, Peter Jennings,

[0:07] and Howard K Smith.

[0:10] >> Good evening from Washington.

[0:11] Harry is on his way to Korea, our top

[0:13] stories. President Carter calls for

[0:15] federal investigation of the massive

[0:17] power failure that devastated New York

[0:19] City.

[0:20] >> An investigation, Barbara, of what the

[0:22] power company here called an act of God,

[0:24] a series of lightning strikes which sent

[0:26] 10 million lives into darkness

[0:28] and sometimes worse.

[0:30] >> Also, three American soldiers are killed

[0:32] and one is captured when North Koreans

[0:34] shoot down their helicopter. And we'll

[0:36] hear from the wife of an American double

[0:38] agent who's been missing for 18 months.

[0:41] >> I'll have a comment on the blackout of

[0:43] '77, the blackout of '65, and the

[0:45] lessons we didn't learn. Peter?

[0:48] >> That cartoon, Howard, about New York

[0:50] City being closed came true last night.

[0:52] For more than 12 hours, virtually every

[0:54] facet of urban life here was crippled.

[0:57] No electricity meant no refrigeration,

[0:58] no air conditioning, and many cases no

[1:00] water, and of course, no light. It was a

[1:03] rigorous repeat of the performance of

[1:05] 1965 blackout. People trapped in

[1:08] elevators and subways. When first light

[1:10] broke over the area this morning, it was

[1:12] still not electric. Late today, there

[1:15] are still sections of the city which

[1:16] have not had services restored.

[1:18] The New Yorker seemed in many cases less

[1:20] inspired than last time. For one thing,

[1:23] it was hotter, 90° again today.

[1:26] The cost has been enormous for

[1:28] individuals and supermarkets, rotting

[1:30] food. For the stock market and most

[1:32] other businesses, well, they stayed

[1:34] closed as city officials urged people to

[1:37] stay at home. Not everyone did,

[1:39] especially in poorer sections of the

[1:41] city. Looting and vandalism have been

[1:44] disappointingly widespread. Many small

[1:47] businesses without adequate insurance

[1:49] may have been wiped out altogether.

[1:53] In short, this blackout, unlike 1965,

[1:56] brought out the worst in people as well

[1:58] as the best. James Walker explains what

[2:01] that meant last night.

[2:04] >> New York's clocks were frozen marking

[2:06] the time when the city's ugliest night

[2:08] began.

[2:13] >> And thousands of New Yorkers under cover

[2:15] of the blackout started looting.

[2:18] >> People took advantage of it right away.

[2:20] When they knew it starts to hit like a

[2:21] flying start, small things that they

[2:23] could carry. As you see they broke the

[2:25] windows. As soon as they broke the

[2:26] windows they went in. Everybody had a

[2:28] field day. Whatever they could carry

[2:29] they carried out.

[2:31] >> The ugliness increased by the hour.

[2:33] Looting gangs set fire throughout the

[2:35] ghettos in Brooklyn, the Harlem section

[2:37] of Manhattan and the Bronx. Firefighters

[2:39] battled 80° temperatures as they raced

[2:41] through the city's five boroughs. As

[2:44] firemen fought this Brooklyn fire behind

[2:46] the building, young men and women looted

[2:48] a toy store carrying off boxes of dolls,

[2:51] boats and planes. A few blocks away

[2:53] other people were stealing clothes and

[2:55] suits. And as the blackout and looting

[2:57] grew, so did the calls for help. Police

[3:00] department operators received over 5,000

[3:02] calls. Please for ambulances to assist

[3:05] and for emergency crews to free people

[3:07] stranded in elevators.

[3:09] Help also came from volunteers. Some who

[3:12] moved into the streets to keep traffic

[3:13] flowing.

[3:19] Others entertained like in this lobby

[3:21] while residents waited to get to their

[3:23] high-rise apartments. And help proved to

[3:25] be the exception as the window smashing,

[3:28] burning and stealing escalated leaving

[3:30] police outmanned, unable to keep up with

[3:33] the hit-and-run looters. About 80 police

[3:35] officers were injured during the night.

[3:37] Over 2,000 people were arrested for

[3:39] looting but police said thousands more

[3:42] got away.

[3:43] One person died but some hospital

[3:45] emergency rooms looked like a

[3:47] battleground. Hundreds of people were

[3:49] treated throughout the night exhausting

[3:51] doctors and nurses.

[3:53] >> We've had over 100, maybe 150 patients

[3:55] who've been either shot, lacerated,

[3:58] mugged in general in the darkness.

[4:01] As you can see now, there seems to be a

[4:02] lot of confusion in the emergency room,

[4:04] but basically we've seen the our way out

[4:06] of most of our problems now.

[4:09] >> It was, said one police officer, New

[4:10] York City's worst night. Hundreds

[4:13] injured, senseless damage and

[4:15] destruction.

[4:16] James Walker, ABC News, New York.

[4:20] >> The New Yorker, it often seems, is bred

[4:21] to cynicism, but for a long time he's

[4:23] believed that the chances of this

[4:24] happening a second time were pretty

[4:26] remote. He was assured, as recently as

[4:28] last weekend, by Charles Luce, the board

[4:31] chairman of New York's only power

[4:32] company.

[4:34] >> I can guarantee that the chances

[4:37] uh of a brownout or a blackout are less

[4:39] than they've been in the last 15 years,

[4:43] and that the chances are less here than

[4:45] in most other cities in the United

[4:46] States. I can't guarantee, however, that

[4:49] because we do use machines, and machines

[4:51] are run by human beings, that under no

[4:54] possible circumstances could it happen.

[4:55] But I don't think it's going to happen.

[4:57] >> But a massive blackout did happen again.

[5:00] This is Jules Bergman. It started around

[5:02] 8:30 last night when several bolts of

[5:05] lightning knocked out a major

[5:06] transmission line in northern

[5:08] Westchester County, a line that brings

[5:10] in extra power to New York for the hot,

[5:12] humid weather. At about the same time,

[5:15] another massive lightning bolt hit a

[5:16] transformer feeding power south from the

[5:19] Indian Point nuclear station to New York

[5:21] City. That cut more than 15% of the

[5:24] total power for the New York area.

[5:26] Warning alarms went off at Con Ed's

[5:28] energy control center in Manhattan.

[5:30] Power was swiftly reduced by first 5%

[5:33] and then 8%, but that didn't stop the

[5:35] developing failure. Power was then cut

[5:37] off in two towns in suburban

[5:39] Westchester. Now it was 9:30, and

[5:42] Ravenswood, the system's single biggest

[5:44] plant, began to fail, saying in effect,

[5:47] "I can't give it to you. I can't carry

[5:49] the entire load." That was it. New York

[5:52] City went dark. Smaller Con Ed plants

[5:54] elsewhere were useless after the two

[5:56] biggest units, the Indian Point Nuclear

[5:58] Station and Ravenswood, went out of

[6:00] action. Automatic protective devices

[6:03] aimed at cutting out up to 50% of the

[6:05] load, which in theory would have saved

[6:07] the city from total blackout, failed to

[6:08] work. It all happened so fast that the

[6:11] system shut itself down before Con Ed

[6:14] could act to prevent the blackout. Late

[6:16] today, the Federal Power Commission said

[6:18] that what happened here could happen

[6:20] anywhere. This is Jules Bergman, ABC

[6:22] News, New York.

[6:24] >> Despite the Federal Power Commission's

[6:25] belief that it could have happened

[6:27] anywhere, Con Ed had called it an act of

[6:29] God, the mayor of the city, Abraham

[6:31] Beame, running for re-election,

[6:33] unequivocally blamed the power company.

[6:36] >> We've seen our citizens subjected to

[6:38] violence, vandalism,

[6:40] theft, and discomfort.

[6:43] The blackout has threatened our safety

[6:45] and has seriously impacted our economy.

[6:49] We've been needlessly subjected to a

[6:52] night of terror

[6:54] in many communities that have been

[6:56] wantonly looted and burned.

[6:59] The cost, when finally tallied, will be

[7:02] enormous.

[7:04] >> President Carter today ordered the

[7:05] Federal Power Commission to investigate

[7:07] what went wrong, and that search will be

[7:09] underway tomorrow. You might well ask,

[7:11] "If it can happen in New York, what

[7:13] about my city?"

[7:14] Well, from the West and the Midwest

[7:16] tonight, an attempt to answer that

[7:17] question. Here's Ron Miller.

[7:20] >> This electric power control center near

[7:22] Chicago is the Midwest primary safeguard

[7:25] against a massive blackout. While

[7:26] Midwestern power company executives

[7:28] don't want to tempt fate and say

[7:30] there'll never be a New York style power

[7:32] outage here, it appears that such a

[7:33] blackout, particularly in Chicago, is a

[7:35] virtual impossibility. The reason, the

[7:38] Midwest has the nation's largest and

[7:40] best connected electric power reservoir.

[7:43] >> Unfortunately, they're on the East Coast

[7:45] and they have nobody to the east of

[7:47] them.

[7:48] And their interconnections are not as

[7:49] strong as we have in this part of the

[7:51] country. And our generating facilities

[7:53] are more concentrated and as a as a

[7:56] result, we think we have a much higher

[7:58] stability in this part of the country.

[8:01] >> Chicago commuters have an additional

[8:03] advantage, the Midwest largest suburban

[8:05] railroad, the Chicago Northwestern can

[8:07] run on an emergency power supply.

[8:10] Stephen Geer surveyed the blackout

[8:12] potential west of the Rocky Mountains.

[8:15] >> The power system from Denver west is

[8:17] designed to prevent major blackouts.

[8:19] Lower concentrations of population make

[8:22] the west less susceptible. These relays

[8:24] are designed to disconnect and prevent

[8:26] lengthy blackouts. The longest in

[8:28] Southern California was 9 minutes last

[8:30] September affecting a million 500,000

[8:32] people.

[8:34] Ronald Napps, systems manager for

[8:36] Southern California Edison is quite

[8:38] confident of avoiding what happened in

[8:40] New York.

[8:41] >> So, it's not going to happen here?

[8:43] >> I wouldn't say never. Never is a long

[8:45] time.

[8:46] >> In other words, it really isn't supposed

[8:47] to happen here. But nobody's perfect.

[8:50] And we couldn't help noticing that the

[8:52] pencils issued by Southern California

[8:54] Edison do have erasers. In fact, this

[8:57] one's pretty well worn out.

[8:59] Stephen Geer, ABC News in Los Angeles

[9:01] County.

[9:03] >> They understood our problems in Mexico

[9:04] City last night, the only other city in

[9:06] the world to have a blackout. It lasted

[9:08] 90 minutes and there was no panic.

[9:10] ABC News will have a special report on

[9:12] the blackout tonight at 9:30 Eastern and

[9:14] Pacific time, 8:30 Central time.

[9:23] >> I'm going to admit something that many

[9:25] women nowadays hesitate to admit.

[9:27] I'm a housewife.

[9:28] And I'm proud of it.

[9:30] Sure, I have my interests outside the

[9:32] home.

[9:33] But what's most important to me is

[9:34] knowing that my family is happy and

[9:36] healthy.

[9:37] And I know how important it is that I do

[9:39] the right things for my health.

[9:41] By taking Geritol every day.

[9:43] >> Geritol, to be sure you get enough iron

[9:46] and some very important vitamins.

[9:48] Take a look at what Geritol can do for

[9:50] you.

[9:51] >> Geritol every day.

[9:53] >> A Triscuit, a Triscuit, delicious whole

[9:56] wheat Triscuit.

[9:57] >> Hearty healthy's do good for you.

[10:00] >> They go with everything you like.

[10:02] >> Grandma, just get some grilled cheese.

[10:04] >> That's great.

[10:05] >> They're mighty satisfying.

[10:08] >> 100% natural whole wheat Triscuit

[10:10] wafers. So deliciously different, they

[10:13] serve any situation.

[10:14] >> A Triscuit, a Triscuit.

[10:16] >> Darling, these are marvelous.

[10:18] >> They don't leave bite of biscuit.

[10:24] >> US officials are blaming a simple

[10:26] mistake in navigation for the death of

[10:28] three American soldiers and the wounding

[10:30] and capture of a fourth in North Korea.

[10:32] The four men flying an unarmed cargo

[10:34] helicopter near the demilitarized zone

[10:37] wondered over North Korea by accident.

[10:39] South Koreans tried to warn the pilot by

[10:41] firing a few shots. The crew landed

[10:43] inside North Korea to inspect the

[10:44] damage, then took off. This time the

[10:47] North Koreans opened fire. The

[10:48] helicopter crashed killing three men.

[10:51] The fourth was wounded and captured.

[10:52] None has been identified. President

[10:54] Carter reacted quickly and cautiously.

[10:56] We have reports first White House

[10:58] correspondent Sam Donaldson.

[11:01] >> The president was attending after dinner

[11:03] entertainment at the White House for

[11:04] visiting German Chancellor Schmidt when

[11:06] word of the helicopter mishap reached

[11:08] him.

[11:09] He went to the situation room for a

[11:10] briefing, but soon returned for a

[11:12] planned late night chat with Schmidt and

[11:14] bed. Leaving it to his press secretary

[11:17] to read a statement that managed to

[11:18] sound both firm and non-belligerent.

[11:22] >> We are deeply concerned about this

[11:24] incident and we are requesting a prompt

[11:27] explanation from North Korean

[11:29] authorities.

[11:30] Any penetration of North Korean airspace

[11:34] that may have taken place would have

[11:35] been unintentional and regrettable.

[11:39] >> By 8:00 a.m. when the president saw some

[11:40] senators who had a previous appointment,

[11:42] there was no more ambiguity as to

[11:44] whether the helicopter had actually

[11:46] strayed into forbidden airspace. Mr.

[11:48] Carter was positively conciliatory.

[11:51] >> Nothing more than what we realized that

[11:52] a mistake was made by the crew in going

[11:54] to the demilitarized zone in North

[11:56] Korea.

[11:57] And having a

[11:59] which is not

[12:01] actually

[12:02] into a confrontation and also to account

[12:04] for the crew members. This is the most

[12:06] logical

[12:07] It was a routine flight from the west

[12:08] coast of South

[12:10] Korea to the east coast and

[12:12] in

[12:13] short line

[12:15] and

[12:16] apparently the helicopter was

[12:19] lost its navigation.

[12:20] >> The rest of the day has really been an

[12:22] anticlimax. The White House refining

[12:24] details of what happened, but continuing

[12:26] the general air of deliberate calmness.

[12:28] Spokesman telling reporters the

[12:30] president has not departed from his

[12:31] regular schedule and there has been no

[12:33] basic change in the readiness status of

[12:35] US forces in Korea.

[12:37] All this restraint, caution, timidity,

[12:40] call it what you will, seems to be based

[12:42] on a belief here that saber-rattling

[12:44] will do nothing to bring back the

[12:45] ill-fated helicopter crew, only make it

[12:48] more dangerous for everyone else there,

[12:50] increasing tensions.

[12:52] And at a time Mr. Carter is pushing

[12:54] ahead with his plan to withdraw American

[12:56] ground troops from Korea for good.

[13:00] Sam Donaldson, ABC News, the White

[13:01] House.

[13:02] >> This is Barry Dunsmore.

[13:04] It was ironic that the helicopter

[13:05] incident should take place on the very

[13:07] day that General George Brown was

[13:09] scheduled to testify on US troop

[13:11] withdrawal from South Korea.

[13:13] The Joint Chiefs are not crazy about the

[13:15] idea, but they have gone along with it.

[13:17] However, many of the committee members

[13:18] took the position that the incident

[13:20] demonstrated the bizarre nature of North

[13:22] Korean behavior. Doesn't it follow,

[13:24] Brown was asked repeatedly, that

[13:26] withdrawing troops would be an open

[13:27] invitation to the north to invade the

[13:29] south.

[13:30] No, said Brown, adding that the incident

[13:32] was entirely consistent with the pattern

[13:34] of North Korean behavior and did not

[13:36] require a reevaluation of the withdrawal

[13:39] policy.

[13:40] This was a position confirmed by the

[13:41] president and later repeated to

[13:43] reporters.

[13:44] >> They asked me if the

[13:46] planned withdrawal of US ground combat

[13:49] troops from Korea was being reevaluated

[13:52] in the light of this incident and I said

[13:54] no.

[13:55] Our planned withdrawal is going to

[13:56] stretch over a period of 4 to 5 years.

[13:59] It's a very uh

[14:01] involved and uh and uh major undertaking

[14:06] uh and I think this incident will have

[14:08] no impact on it.

[14:10] >> That remains to be seen.

[14:12] Congress have already demonstrated

[14:14] itself to be very cautious about the

[14:16] policy of withdrawing troops from Korea

[14:18] and this latest incident, at very least,

[14:21] adds to that sentiment.

[14:22] Actually, the Congress can't technically

[14:24] stop the commander-in-chief from

[14:26] withdrawing troops, but if it won't

[14:28] allocate funds to beef up South Korea's

[14:30] forces, then withdrawal is not a

[14:33] feasible policy.

[14:35] Barry Dunsmore, ABC News at the Capitol.

[14:38] >> This is Bill Chapman in Seoul, South

[14:40] Korea.

[14:42] This is Bill Chapman in overnight

[14:43] curfew. The incidents across the truce

[14:46] zone have been all too frequent in the

[14:48] 32 years since the Korean war stopped.

[14:50] It's Friday morning now here in Korea.

[14:52] Last night the American truce team

[14:54] delivered President Carter's

[14:55] conciliatory message to Panmunjom, but

[14:58] the North Koreans would not agree to

[15:00] meet. They asked for 2 days delay. The

[15:02] Americans said 1 day. Conciliatory or

[15:05] no, this argument over when to meet is

[15:07] generally the first stage after the

[15:09] truce has been broken.

[15:11] Ironically, the incident occurred as the

[15:13] smiling North Korean leader Kim Il Sung

[15:15] was appearing on Japanese television

[15:17] saying he'd like to have more contacts

[15:19] with the US government, but he's yet to

[15:21] hear from Washington on that subject. He

[15:23] enjoyed with an extra pair of eyeglasses

[15:25] as he spoke giving no hint of advancing

[15:28] age or ill health.

[15:30] Unless the North Koreans are determined

[15:32] to upset the US troop withdrawal

[15:34] schedule, the matter could be resolved

[15:36] in a series of meetings about the

[15:37] helicopter incident in the next 10 days

[15:40] or so. But in the past, the North

[15:42] Koreans did not give up captured

[15:43] Americans until months have gone by and

[15:46] they signed confessions of spying.

[15:49] This is Herb Kaplowitz, ABC News, Seoul,

[15:51] South Korea.

[15:52] >> Sam Donaldson also reports tonight that

[15:54] the helicopter was supposed to have a

[15:56] South Korean navigator aboard, but the

[15:58] crew couldn't find him and took off

[16:00] alone.

[16:01] Republican Senator John Tower said

[16:03] today's helicopter incident proves that

[16:05] American troops should not be withdrawn

[16:07] from Korea. Democrat George McGovern

[16:09] said it shows that they should be.

[16:10] Senate Republican leader Howard Baker

[16:12] called the president's statement

[16:13] restrained and responsible.

[16:52] >> Friday, a double feature presentation.

[16:56] The story of a legendary mountain man.

[16:58] >> I'll get us there and we'll be alive.

[17:00] >> Bridger, the man who saved the Oregon

[17:02] Territory. Then a different kind of gun

[17:04] fight.

[17:05] >> You think they wouldn't pay a lot to see

[17:07] us shoot it out?

[17:08] >> A gun fight for money.

[17:09] >> I'm never going to be beaten in a gun

[17:11] fight.

[17:12] >> There's nobody faster with a gun than

[17:13] me.

[17:14] >> Kirk Douglas and Johnny Cash in a gun

[17:16] fight right after Bridger. Tomorrow

[17:18] starting at 8:00, 7:00 Central and

[17:20] Mountain on ABC.

[17:24] >> Breakfast.

[17:27] American children really have a lot, but

[17:29] according to the US government, almost

[17:31] 50% of all the children in this country

[17:33] fail to get their recommended daily

[17:35] allowance of vitamin C.

[17:37] That's why I'm glad my children love the

[17:39] taste of Tang instant breakfast drink.

[17:41] Each glass contains a full day's supply

[17:43] of vitamin C.

[17:44] >> Sure tastes good after night in the

[17:46] wilderness, Mom.

[17:48] >> Look for Tang in the convenient new

[17:50] 9-quart canister.

[17:54] >> One of the first things a fruit and

[17:56] cereal lover learns is that when you run

[17:58] out of fruit, you're left with just

[18:00] plain cereal. That's why experienced

[18:03] fruit and cereal lovers eat Post Raisin

[18:05] Bran.

[18:06] You see, Post mixes wholesome bran

[18:08] flakes with so many sweet, chewy

[18:10] raisins, you can get fruit in spoonful

[18:12] after spoonful right down to the last

[18:15] spoonful. Next time, you'll know to ask

[18:17] for Post Raisin Bran, the fruit and

[18:20] cereal lover's cereal.

[18:23] >> A real-life spy story. Nicholas Shadrin

[18:26] was the classic double agent, a Russian

[18:28] defector to the United States. The

[18:30] Russians thought he was spying for them,

[18:32] but he was in reality spying for us.

[18:34] Then in 1975, he simply disappeared,

[18:37] kidnapped apparently by Russian agents.

[18:39] His wife now claims that the US

[18:41] government isn't trying very hard to get

[18:42] him back. Charles Gibson has more.

[18:46] >> Shadrin's wife has poured over the

[18:47] pictures of the church plaza in Vienna,

[18:49] Austria, where her husband was kidnapped

[18:51] in December 1975.

[18:53] FBI officials told her then the US

[18:55] government would get her husband home

[18:57] quickly. But Blanka Shadrin feels the

[18:59] government reneged.

[19:01] >> I do feel that he was abandoned by the

[19:03] government, United States government.

[19:06] Then I appealed to the

[19:08] to Mr. Brzezinski, to the to the

[19:11] President Carter,

[19:12] I was turned down.

[19:14] And we were told subsequently that the

[19:16] President Carter won't be involved.

[19:18] >> Why? Why do you think

[19:21] uh

[19:22] he's been abandoned?

[19:23] >> Well,

[19:24] probably decided to sacrifice him as a

[19:27] victim of the tone.

[19:28] >> Both the White House and the State

[19:30] Department today denied that.

[19:32] >> We have been and are trying

[19:35] uh through a number of channels

[19:37] to establish his whereabouts

[19:39] assuming he is alive and we are not

[19:41] certain about that.

[19:43] And uh having established that to to

[19:45] have him returned if he is alive uh

[19:47] safely to his family and to this

[19:49] country.

[19:50] >> Mrs. Shadrun hired a lawyer who has

[19:52] negotiated with an East German

[19:53] intermediary, a specialist in spy

[19:55] trades. He's as much as told her her

[19:57] husband is alive, but the spy swap has

[20:00] never quite worked.

[20:01] Mrs. Shadrun says after 18 months, she

[20:04] expects the man she married back in 1960

[20:06] has been broken by the Russians. Her

[20:08] last hope, she says, is to take her

[20:10] human rights story to the press, a move

[20:12] that she resisted in the past fearing it

[20:14] might cause her husband's death.

[20:16] >> I

[20:17] exhausted all the resources

[20:20] up to the last one. And the very last it

[20:23] was going to press hoping that through

[20:26] press

[20:28] because I couldn't do it otherwise, I

[20:30] can appeal to President Carter.

[20:32] >> Charles Gibson, ABC News, McLean,

[20:34] Virginia.

[20:35] >> The State Department has denied reports

[20:37] that the United States has been secretly

[20:39] selling arms to South Africa despite a

[20:41] UN embargo on such sales. It calls the

[20:43] reports as false and tendentious.

[20:55] >> Hey there. Maybe you needed NyQuil last

[20:58] night.

[21:01] Maybe you had trouble falling asleep.

[21:04] Well, that's what NyQuil's all about.

[21:07] On those occasional nights when you do

[21:09] have trouble, Nytol can help make you

[21:11] drowsy so you can fall asleep. Come on,

[21:14] America.

[21:16] Stop yawning. For occasional

[21:18] sleeplessness, remember Nytol.

[21:22] >> Good morning, America means people are

[21:24] charming host this Sandy Hill, news with

[21:27] Steve Bell,

[21:28] Rona Barrett in Hollywood, Jack Anderson

[21:30] in Washington, Howard Cosell, and

[21:33] humorist Erma Bombeck, the weather from

[21:35] John Coleman, Priscilla Presley Brown,

[21:37] John Lindsay, and our people reporter

[21:39] Geraldo Rivera. They make Good Morning,

[21:41] America a friendly awakening. And I'm

[21:44] David Hartman, your host. Join us

[21:45] weekday mornings on ABC.

[21:53] >> It's Julie Andrews as Thoroughly Modern

[21:55] Millie, a single girl living it up in

[21:57] the roaring '20s.

[21:58] >> What is your opinion of

[22:00] brute force, Miss Gray?

[22:02] >> Operator, you have obviously never been

[22:04] in a jail. YOU DON'T FEEL SAFE.

[22:06] >> FROM Mary Tyler Moore and Carol

[22:08] Channing.

[22:13] It's a thoroughly delightful, thoroughly

[22:16] modern Millie.

[22:18] Saturday at 8:00, 7:00 Central and

[22:19] Mountain on ABC.

[22:23] >> These men and women are about to battle

[22:25] for $6,000.

[22:27] They will do anything, even lie, to

[22:29] prove they are the better sex.

[22:31] >> Is this where friendships ceases?

[22:33] >> Sarah Purcell and Bill Anderson host as

[22:36] everyone gets into the act, even the

[22:38] audience, in the race for the big cash

[22:40] payoff.

[22:41] >> Correct answer is a brawl.

[22:43] >> No way.

[22:44] >> From the producers of Family Feud, it's

[22:47] The Better Sex. Premieres Monday at

[22:49] 12:00, 11:00 Central, 10:00 Mountain on

[22:51] ABC.

[22:55] >> In other news, the House Labor and

[22:56] Education Committee today approved a

[22:58] bill that would extend the mandatory

[23:00] retirement age to 70 in private

[23:02] industry. And the measure also would end

[23:04] mandatory retirement for federal workers

[23:06] at any age. Currently, forced retirement

[23:09] in the private sector is legal at 65 and

[23:12] at 70 for federal workers.

[23:15] The House Commerce Committee gave

[23:16] President Carter a narrow victory today.

[23:18] It defeated, but by only three votes, a

[23:20] move to deregulate the price of natural

[23:22] gas. Yesterday in Detroit, two Filipino

[23:26] nurses were convicted on charges of

[23:27] poisoning patients at a Veterans

[23:29] Administration Hospital. Today,

[23:31] supporters of the nurses rallied to

[23:32] their defense and Vince Wade has a

[23:34] report.

[23:36] >> Several hundred demonstrators paraded

[23:38] around the Detroit Federal Court

[23:39] Building in a rally protesting the

[23:41] guilty verdict. There is worry the

[23:42] verdict will generate widespread

[23:44] prejudice and fear against other

[23:45] Filipino nurses. The two convicted

[23:48] nurses, Leonora Perez and Filipina

[23:50] Narciso, were allowed remain free on

[23:52] bond.

[23:52] >> How do you feel about what happened?

[23:54] >> I'm a little bit depressed

[23:56] yesterday.

[23:58] >> Filipina, how do you feel about what

[23:59] happened in court?

[24:01] Filipina, how was your reaction to that

[24:02] verdict?

[24:03] >> I'm very shocked. I'm still shocked now.

[24:06] >> Mhm.

[24:06] >> I'm very grateful for all these people.

[24:09] >> Leonora,

[24:10] what happened in court today was very

[24:11] upsetting to you?

[24:13] >> I don't know. I'm still a victim of the

[24:14] system.

[24:16] >> Leonora, do you feel like you were

[24:17] victimized in this?

[24:18] >> Yes.

[24:19] >> Mhm.

[24:19] >> I don't have any faith in the American

[24:21] system.

[24:22] >> The two nurses will be sentenced in

[24:23] about a month. Their convictions in the

[24:25] poisoning case could get them life in

[24:27] prison. Vince Wade, ABC News, Detroit.

[24:31] >> A California grand jury acted today in

[24:34] the so-called trash bag murder case

[24:36] involving as many as 28 killings with

[24:38] homosexual overtones. The jury indicted

[24:40] Patrick Wayne Kearney on three murder

[24:42] charges, but the jury refused to indict

[24:44] Kearney's roommate, David Hill, because

[24:47] the district attorney said the case

[24:48] against Hill was too weak. Kearney and

[24:50] Hill, who are admitted homosexuals,

[24:52] turned themselves in to police at the

[24:53] urging of their families.

[24:55] Mrs. Jane Young, 55, wife of Democratic

[24:58] Congressman John Young of Texas, was

[25:00] found dead last night of an apparently

[25:02] self-inflicted gunshot wound in the

[25:03] temple. At the height of the Wayne

[25:05] Hays-Elizabeth Ray scandal, Young was

[25:07] accused by a former secretary of paying

[25:09] her a salary largely for sexual favors.

[25:12] Young denied it.

[25:14] ABC announced today Cassie Mackin will

[25:16] join our news staff as Washington

[25:18] correspondent starting September 1st.

[25:21] She's been a network correspondent at

[25:22] NBC since 1971.

[25:25] Welcome, Cassie.

[25:33] >> Hey, garage sale.

[25:34] >> Enjoy it.

[25:35] >> How much is this?

[25:36] >> And where's your bathroom?

[25:37] >> How much are those?

[25:38] >> How much IS THAT?

[25:40] >> LOOK AT MOM.

[25:41] >> WOAH.

[25:42] >> HOW MUCH IS THIS?

[25:43] >> NOT for sale.

[25:46] >> Even when you can't hold up any longer,

[25:48] your hair can with Final Net. It's not

[25:50] an aerosol hairspray. No aerosol

[25:52] propellant mixed in. Final Net's

[25:54] concentrated to hold your hair all day.

[25:57] Final Net holds up longer than you do.

[25:59] >> Mom, is that my basketball?

[26:02] >> Hi.

[26:03] I'm Pat O'Brien.

[26:05] The makers of Feen-A-Mint Gum have a new

[26:07] laxative that's proven effective with

[26:09] people our age.

[26:11] New dual formula Feen-A-Mint pills. It's

[26:14] today's gentle laxative formula that

[26:16] contains a mild stimulant combined with

[26:19] the softener most recommended by

[26:20] doctors.

[26:22] And that's something to think about. New

[26:24] dual formula Feen-A-Mint pills. It's

[26:27] today's gentle laxative formula that's

[26:29] proven effective with people our age.

[26:35] >> The great New York blackout leaves a

[26:37] queasy feeling. It makes you think, one

[26:39] man said, what a few terrorists with

[26:42] pliers could do.

[26:44] The worrisome thing is it happened

[26:46] before, and though something's been

[26:47] done, it's not enough. Too many

[26:49] airports, subways, hospitals, highways,

[26:52] commuter railways, fire alarms were

[26:54] without subsidiary power sources.

[26:57] Last time in 1965, Congressman Paul

[27:00] Rogers proposed for a city of that

[27:02] important not one but two or three

[27:05] backup systems. He apparently went

[27:07] unheeded.

[27:08] But more worrying was the spirit of the

[27:10] occasion. Last time, like London in the

[27:13] Blitz, people pulled together in high

[27:15] humor. Funny stories abounded like the

[27:17] one about the man and the woman stalled

[27:19] in the elevator. Police broke through

[27:21] and shouted, "Is there a pregnant woman

[27:23] in there?" "No," said the man, "we just

[27:26] met."

[27:27] Or the drunk who slept through it all

[27:29] and refused to believe anything had

[27:30] happened. Power returned in exactly 12

[27:33] hours and his restarted electric clock

[27:36] was running right on time. Or the

[27:38] littered automat with the sign, "Pardon

[27:41] our appearance, we were up all night."

[27:44] David Riesman, the sociologist, said at

[27:46] that time, "Being all in the same fix

[27:49] created a little era of good feeling."

[27:52] Well, there was some of that last night,

[27:53] but there was much more fear and crime.

[27:57] It may sound a little far-fetched, but

[27:59] the lesson remains. Like the New York

[28:01] power system, our cities are still

[28:03] troubled and badly need help they're not

[28:06] getting.

[28:07] Barbara?

[28:08] >> Thank you, Howard. And for Howard,

[28:10] Peter, and me, good evening.

[28:20] >> This has been the ABC Evening News with

[28:22] Harry Reasoner and Barbara Walters.

[28:25] ABC News brings you a special report

[28:28] tonight at 9:30 Eastern, 8:30 Central

[28:31] and Mountain on the New York blackout

[28:33] and the North Korean downing of an

[28:35] American helicopter.

[28:43] >> Here in Nashville, three persons are

[28:44] shot on a metro bus.

[28:46] >> And a retired fireman is accused of

[28:48] deliberately setting fire to a fire

[28:51] hall.

[28:51] >> American League All-Star pitchers have

[28:53] been named and Bill Battle is in the

[28:55] news again. We'll have these stories and

[28:57] more next on News Watch.

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