The usual suspects gather for pledge drive

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• Publication: The Evening Sun (Baltimore)
• Date: 1990-03-02
• Author: Steve McKerrow
• Page: B7
• Language: English

How do you know when it's pledge time again on public television? Peter, Paul and Mary pop up in lengthy musical specials. There must be something about their timeless harmony that shakes money loose.

The trio can be seen and heard in a 90-minute songfest at 9 p.m. tomorrow on Maryland Public Television (channels 22 and 67), and they are preceded by 70 minutes of another pledge perennial, Joan Baez. Yep, the annual March pledge drive has begun, and tonight's airing (at 9 o'clock) of "The Music Man" is part of the same tradition of providing timeless programming to provide time for begging breaks.

The spring drive will continue through March 17. MPT has rounded up all the usual suspects as on-air hosts — Rhea Feiken, Stu Kerr, Charlotte Nichols and Ken Menelas — but also has a few new tactics.

For the first time, viewers can pledge their support automatically via "Express 900," calling a special 900 area code number to pick from a couple of donation amounts which will be tacked onto the caller's telephone bill.

And members pledging $30 or more will have access beginning in April to a new 24-hour MPT "audio-text" service. A call to a special telephone number will produce taped information about viewing highlights and other MPT information.

Other pledge premiums are tied to the MPT One World Program Fund, which designates funds above the usual $30 membership level for the acquisition of environmentally oriented programming.

Frequently in past MPT drives, the show that has drawn the heaviest pledges is the weekly Saturday airing (beginning at 11 p.m.) of the sci-fi series "Dr. Who." And this drive offers "Whovians" a treat in recognition of that: on-camera appearances on Saturday, March 17, by Tom Baker (the fourth "Dr. Who") and Sophia Aldred (the companion of "Dr. Who" number seven, Sylvester McCoy).

Spelling correction: Sophie Aldred

Disclaimer: These citations are created on-the-fly using primitive parsing techniques. You should double-check all citations. Send feedback to whovian@cuttingsarchive.org

• APA 6th ed.: McKerrow, Steve (1990-03-02). The usual suspects gather for pledge drive. The Evening Sun (Baltimore) p. B7.
• MLA 7th ed.: McKerrow, Steve. "The usual suspects gather for pledge drive." The Evening Sun (Baltimore) [add city] 1990-03-02, B7. Print.
• Chicago 15th ed.: McKerrow, Steve. "The usual suspects gather for pledge drive." The Evening Sun (Baltimore), edition, sec., 1990-03-02
• Turabian: McKerrow, Steve. "The usual suspects gather for pledge drive." The Evening Sun (Baltimore), 1990-03-02, section, B7 edition.
• Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=The usual suspects gather for pledge drive | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/The_usual_suspects_gather_for_pledge_drive | work=The Evening Sun (Baltimore) | pages=B7 | date=1990-03-02 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=16 April 2025 }}</ref>
• Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=The usual suspects gather for pledge drive | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/The_usual_suspects_gather_for_pledge_drive | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=16 April 2025}}</ref>