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The Name’s the Thing Masterpiece Theatre is (kind of) changing its name, but you can still watch it Sundays at 9 p.m. on PBS 45 & 49. Prime Suspect: The Final Act starring Helen Mirren airs Dec. 16 and 23, followed by Jane Eyre on Dec. 30 and Jan. 6.
Masterpiece Theatre is part of the American psyche, no? It is, after all, the longest running prime-time drama series on American television. Has it not been the recipient of dozens of prestigious awards? The subject of parody on Sesame Street and Saturday Night Live? The question to Jeopardy answers and the answer to Trivial Pursuit questions? The title that easily slips off the tongues of Americans everywhere when they are asked to name a public television show? It’s an icon, an institution, a symbol of television achievement. All of that brand equity, all of those years of experience and now it’s about to get a television facelift. PBS has decided to rid itself of the apparently wrinkly Theatre and just go with Masterpiece. I object. Yeah, yeah, “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” That’s fine for flowers. But in the case of Masterpiece Theatre, “the name’s the thing.” What does Masterpiece mean without Theatre? My first memorable encounter with PBS was Masterpiece Theatre. In 1972, my mother started to watch a miniseries on that strange fourth television network that I didn’t understand — the one that was so oddly quiet to my young ears accustomed to laugh tracks and noisy cartoons. I watched with her. The Masterpiece Theatre series was The Six Wives of Henry VIII, followed by — oh, a masterpiece of Masterpiece! — Elizabeth R. I was changed by that riveting television experience. I couldn’t learn enough about Elizabeth I. Every single school project I did the rest of that year was about some facet of Elizabeth or Tudor England (poor Mrs. Mormon). My adoration continues to this day; a funky Peter Max-like portrait of the great queen stands in my office. I won’t bore you with details about why she was so fascinating (please don’t use those Cate Blanchett movies as your measure), but keep in mind that there are only a few historical eras that bear the name of a person, let alone a woman, and the Elizabethan Age is one of them. Over the years Masterpiece Theatre has given us masterpieces — over 280 of them — and will continue to do so. (The Complete Jane Austen is coming in January!) But for a little while, it just won’t feel like Masterpiece without Theatre.
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