"IF I suddenly have to hang up, I'm not being rude," Tina Fey whispered into the telephone from her New York home. "My baby is a little sick, and I'm the only one here."
Fey's 18-month-old daughter Alice has a cold. Her other baby, NBC's "30 Rock," which she created, executive produces, writes and stars in, also has an illness of sorts. Fey's freshman-year sitcom, which centers on the private and professional life of a head comedy writer for TV, is suffering from Nielsenitis, typically ranking in the bottom half of the weekly TV ratings.
Although the show has enjoyed wide critical acclaim, won a Golden Globe for costar Alec Baldwin and has quickly earned a reputation as one of the best comedies on television, "30 Rock" is nevertheless officially on the renewal bubble, proving again that quality and ratings don't necessarily correlate. Sources at NBC said late Tuesday afternoon that the network is expected to announce that the show will be picked up for another season.
Certainly, that decision would be good news in the increasingly competitive world of television, where the half-life of shows continues to shrink. But as the show returns Thursday to the network's highly publicized comedy block night, it still has a mighty task ahead -- drawing a much wider audience.
It won't be easy. "30 Rock" airs at 9 p.m., its third time slot since its fall debut and opposite two of the biggest shows on television, ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and CBS' "CSI." Finishing in 80th place with an anemic-sized audience of about 5 million has not been unusual this season.
"I honestly don't sweat the ratings too much," said Fey, 36, the first woman to become head writer for NBC's "Saturday Night Live" but best known for her sharp wit in delivering "Weekend Update." "There are so many things that relate to the show that I can control, so I can't worry about the things beyond my control."
Sitcoms, in general, are in decline on network television, with audiences apparently tiring of the same old formulaic contrivances.
"Comedy is in a fragile place in television," said Kevin Reilly, NBC Entertainment president. "30 Rock" "needs time to flourish and needs to be protected. This is the history of shows like 'Seinfeld,' 'Cheers,' and 'Everybody Loves Raymond'; they're all shows that started near the bottom and worked their way up to the top.
"There is zero creative concern about the show, but the question is can we put it in the right spot, so it can grow. Because it does need to grow."
