NFL '99: G'BYE GIFF, HELLO INTERNET : ABC.

Byline: Tom Hoffarth

Next month, the 60th anniversary of the first pro football telecast comes around. On Oct. 22, 1939, New York had about 1,000 TV sets using experimental station W2XBS, owned by NBC. They saw the Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Eagles 23-14 at Ebbets Field before 13,057.

The problem was that TV cameras weren't that advanced. They needed a lot of light. So every time a cloud passed over the field, the TV picture went dark and as the day got cloudier, fans were only able to follow the game through the announcers.

And what legacy has that brought us?

No, Pat Summerall didn't call the game. For the record, it was Allan ``Skip'' Walz.

But as we reach the turn of the century, TV's impact on the game has been out of this world. If anything, it's the viewers left with their heads in the clouds, spinning from all the information thrown at them.

The only thing you need to know about the 1999 NFL television season is, like a lot of things, it's a little more retro. ``Monday Night Football'' has warped back to 6 p.m. kickoffs and no stupid pregame show. Two-man booths are coming back in vogue. And the Cleveland Browns will be on as much as possible.

Meanwhile, in L.A., blackouts are what happen to viewers who've been up at 7 a.m. for the first pregame show and try to make it to the end of the Sunday night ESPN fare.

Here's the gist of it, listed in alphabetical mayhem:

New look: For the second time in its 30-season run, ``Monday Night Football'' goes with only two guys talking. Al Michaels. Boomer Esiason. Once in a while, Leslie Visser shows off her hat collection. ``I think the two-man setup will work fabulous,'' Michaels said. ``It'll allow the telecast to breathe. These days, the way sports are done may be disconcerting. Viewers maybe are used to hearing constant chatter and if you don't say anything for four seconds it sounds like a minute. (With two broadcasters), you don't have to keep a constant line of chatter going.''

Old hook: The quick change from one year of 5:20 p.m. kickoffs back to 6 p.m. ``comes from the upper echelon of the company,'' said MNF producer Ken Wolfe. Eisner's call? Seems even he couldn't get to Moe's Tavern in time.

For openers: Miami at Denver, with John Elway's No. 7 retirement ceremony at halftime.

Did you know: ABC does this season's Super Bowl in January from Atlanta.

Do you care: No more pregame riff-raff, meaning Gifferoo has left the ESPN Zone for good.

Prediction: To boost ratings at midseason, Regis Philbin will be added as the third man in, screaming ``Who wants to be a millionaire?

'' during prolonged waits while instant replay is being reviewed.

CBS 

New look: In a quiet cry for help, Randy Cross, Craig James and Jerry Glanville - a.k.a. nuck, nuck and nuck - have been added to the pregame show for Year 2. Mild-mannered Marcus Allen has been banished to do interviews, Brent Jones shifts to game coverage and George Seifert stumbled into a better sideline deal.

Old hook: The electrifying Jim Nantz as host, counting down the days to the NCAA basketball tournament.

For openers: Oakland at Green Bay (Verne Lundquist and Dandy Dan Dierdorf), 10 a.m.

Did you know: Cross on pregame show hype: ``Sure, a lot is made about pregame shows, but if we can be as good as our conference (the AFC) we'll let the rest of it sort itself out.''

Do you care: Local clairvoyant proclaims the AFC will have 16 teams finish below .500 this season.

Predictions: 1) CBS' merger with Viacom opens the door for MTV's Daisy Fuentes as a sideline reporter; 2) Glanville sounds more and more like Granny from ``The Beverly Hillbillies'' and will wrest the title of ``Most Annoying NFL Commentator'' from Dierdorf.

ESPN

New look: Enhanced TV, the Internet side dish that'll allow playing along at home, is planned for mid-October.

Old hook: ``NFL Countdown'' continues to be the place for pregame info thanks to Chris Mortensen's hustle. And Chris Berman's performance on ``NFL Primetime'' continues to be a thing to behold.

For openers: The new Cleveland Browns host the same-old Pittsburgh Steelers (Mike Patrick, Joe Theismann and Paul Maguire) at 5 p.m.

Did you know: Stuart Scott has been added to the ``Gameday'' mix.

Do you care: The correct spelling: ``BOOH-yah.''

Prediction: Theismann took one for the team last year, but he implodes this season. First opportunity he has to misinterpret a Maguire barb aimed his way, he snaps the ex-punter's leg like a twig, a technique he learned from LT.

Fox

New look: They've added another NFL pregame show via cable (``NFL This Morning'' on Fox Sports West at 8 a.m.) that'll start at the same time as ESPN's ``NFL Countdown.''

Old hook: Terry, J.B., Howie and Cris. Summerall and Madden. And, of course, the ageless Dick Stockton.

For openers: Dallas at Washington (Stockton and Matt Millen) at 10 a.m.; Minnesota at Atlanta (Summerall and Madden) at 1 p.m.

Did you know: Fox will use the ``First & 10'' electronic yellow-line graphic during the games, started by ESPN, which now uses the news ticker on its ``Sports Center,'' started by ``Fox Sports News Primetime,'' which was started on ESPN2.

Do you care: TV theft is not a crime if everyone benefits.

Prediction: Bradshaw and Long find a way to crash Fox's Emmy Awards show Sunday night to plug the new primetime show, ``Get Real.''

Extra points: NBC's Sunday morning/afternoon programming? Stuff like ``Travel Cafe'' and ``Living Better with Carrie Wiatt,'' with gymnastics thrown in this weekend. Too bad the WNBA is done. . . .

Jim Hill and his ``Sports Central'' crew (sans Lisa Guerrero) continue their Sunday morning NFL pre-pregame show (Channel 2, 9 a.m.), and they're back on for an hour and a half at 4 p.m. with wrapup material. . . .

Channel 7's Bill Weir starts ``Monday Night Live'' at the beginning instead of the middle this year with a show that has a slightly new format, geared more toward his schtick than Todd Donoho's. . . .

The NFL's ``Sunday Ticket'' package, available on C-band dishes and DirecTV, is up to 800,000 subscribers nationwide, which includes 10,000 commercial establishments. The cost for the season is the same: $159. . . .

If info from the 23rd season of HBO's ``Inside the NFL'' isn't early enough - first runs are Thursday night at 11 p.m. - the Sunday fix should start with CNN's ``NFL Preview,'' hosted by Bob Lorenz, starting at 7 a.m.

SOUND BYTES

WHAT SMOKES

Keith Jackson's ``Rumble Like It's 1999'' revival tour starts with Saturday's Cal-Nebraska coverage - Channel 7, 12:30 p.m., and

Bob Griese riding shotgun. It's the warmup act for the UCLA-Ohio State game (with

Brad Nessler, Gary Danielsen and

Lynn Swann at 5 p.m.

CBS' luck with a

Venus and

Serena Williams potential final at the U.S. Open. Both play semifinal matches today starting at 9:30 a.m. on Channel 2. Saturday's women's final, however, is scheduled for after the two men's semifinals, which begin at 8 a.m. You know, a

Lindsay Davenport vs.

Martina Hingis finale wouldn't be a washout, either.

WHAT CHOKES

KTLA will show the Dodgers-Mets games tonight and Saturday in high definition television on its special KTLA-DT station. It's the first time a local sports event originated by an L.A. television station will be shown in the format. Why? This is like listening to a Quiet Riot song on a CD as opposed to vinyl record. What nuance of this Dodgers team are we going to pick up from an HDTV broadcast that we can't already get from a distorted, over-the-air feed?

Fox Sports West loses one of the nicest people in the business,

racepay

Kitty Cohen, who announced her resignation this week as vice president/general manager. She had been with the company since it was known as Prime Ticket in 1988.

WHAT SMOKED ON LOCAL TV

The top 10 Nielsen-rated sports events (with their share numbers) on L.A. television from Sept. 2-8:

Event Date Station Rt/Sh.

NCAA football: Notre Dame at Michigan 9/4 KABC  6.4/19

Tennis: U.S. Open 9/6 KCBS  4.5/13

Tennis: U.S. Open 9/4 KCBS 4.3/13

NFL exh.: Oakland at St. Louis 9/3 KCBS 4.3/8

MLB: Dodgers at Chicago 9/5 KTLA 3.4/10

NCAA football: Stanford at Texas 9/4 KABC 3.3/10

Tennis: U.S. Open 9/5 KCBS 3.1/10

MLB: Dodgers at Chicago 9/3 KTLA 2.8/9

Tennis: U.S. Open 9/8 USA 2.8/6

Note: The Dodgers-Cubs game on 9/3 was at noon on Friday.

One rating point equals 50,092 TV homes in Los Angeles; a share is the percentage of all the TV sets in use at that time.

CAPTION(S):

2 boxes

BOX: (1) Sound Bytes (see text)

(2) What Smoked on Local TV (see text)