Howard's Happy Days

What do you say to a jowly, gravel-voiced man of 76 who thinks he can become a star on TV? If his name is Howard Jarvis, co-author of California's Proposition 13, you don't say no. On Sept. 26, Jarvis takes his antitax crusade to national television with the goal of convincing millions of viewers that personal income taxes should be reduced by 25% and $100 billion should be axed from the federal budget.

During the half-hour political spectacular, Howlin' Howard will trade fiscal quips with Robert Reed, a leading actor in Roots and The Brady Bunch. Jarvis will also respond to questions from a live audience. Other members of the tax-cutting cast include former Secretary of the Treasury William Simon and U.C.L.A. Economist Neil Jacoby. As relief from all the rhetoric, an animated cartoon will trace the history of the oppressed taxpayer from caveman times to the present. "Most people are not tuned in to political broadcasts," admits Stewart Mollrich, the show's writer. "The idea is to keep it lively."

So far, 130 TV stations have bumped their usual programs to run the Jarvis special. The Jarvis Bunch is spending $500,000 for the show, including $100,000 for promotion. If it is a hit, it may become a series. Consider the impact if that earlier tax revolt, the Boston Tea Party, could have been televised.

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