Martin Balsam, Arthur Hill, Wilford Brimley and Michael Ironside are starring in an unusual movie for Showtime. It's a mystery called "Murder in Space," about a series of fatalities aboard a spaceship carrying scientists from the United States, the Soviet Union and other countries. The twist is that while most of the film will be shown in July and August, the ending won't be shown until September. Viewers will have an opportunity to guess at the outcome and win prizes from the pay-cable network.
NBC News is preparing a new series for children, "Time Out." Eight hourlong episodes will air on a monthly basis next season on weekday afternoons. The magazine-format shows will be geared toward teen-agers.
China is the subject of several upcoming programs on KCET Channel 28. In addition to the ongoing Monday night series "The Heart of the Dragon," the station will be airing two specials June 25: "Adam Smith's Money World in China," about the country's economic system, and "The Yin and the Yankee," about a hot-air balloon trip that Malcolm Forbes took across China. Another documentary due June 30 is "China: The Year of the Counting," about the difficulties of conducting a census there.
And speaking of China, ABC Video Enterprises is helping to underwrite a major documentary series about China's 3,600-mile Yellow River, which, like the Nile in Egypt, played an important role in the development of civilization in that part of the world. "The Yellow River" is being produced by China Central Television and Japan Broadcasting Corp. and will run 10 to 12 hours. The series may air in the United States on public television and the Arts & Entertainment cable service, and portions of it could turn up on ABC in 1987.
