‘3rd Rock’ and Race: Zany, Yes, but the Subject Is Serious

Dick Solomon, high commander of four space aliens on a mission to study Earth, is feeling alienated.

Solomon, as portrayed by Emmy-winner John Lithgow, is alienated from his assistant, Nina (Simba Khali), because she won’t let him accompany her to her black students meeting. Alienated from his students at the college where he teaches because they don’t understand his questions about racial identity. And really alienated by those strange people at that “white power” meeting.

In a season in which the four major broadcast networks are being criticized for the lack of cultural diversity on their new fall shows, the NBC comedy “3rd Rock From the Sun,” now in its fourth season, is putting a comedic spin on the issue in Tuesday’s episode. While taking a jab at the controversy, the show also uses the aliens to examine racial clashes and pride.

And while the installment is in the show’s usual vein of outrageous, over-the-top shenanigans, executive producers Bonnie and Terry Turner said they were more than aware that they were tackling a delicate subject that some viewers may find a little uncomfortable. There’s even a pointed reference to the dominance of white images on television that mirrors the point of view of those blasting the networks for the lack of diversity.

While the Turners are referring to the current controversy, the idea had been kicking around for a while.

“This is a show that we’ve wanted to do for a long time, but we really could not have done it before now,” said Bonnie Turner. “We wanted to celebrate the differences that make up the uniqueness of this country. But the innocence of the aliens first had to be established before we could do that. We don’t live in a society that allows you to come on strong on a subject like this.”

Added Terry Turner with a chuckle: “If we had our lead character joining a white supremacy group in our first season, it would have been kind of hard to go from there.”

The only other time that the series has dealt significantly with race was in its first season, when Dick questioned Nina’s cultural heritage after he saw her in an African headdress. The aliens decided they needed a cultural background too and discovered they were Jewish based on their last name, which they chose when they first arrived on Earth.

The current installment has made some NBC executives nervous. Some at the network said there was some uneasiness over the humor, particularly with the ongoing controversy.

“Yes, it is a risky and dangerous issue,” Lithgow said. “I can just imagine the reaction we’re going to get. We even went back and reshot some scenes to fine-tune it even more. But it works because it’s ‘3rd Rock,’ and the aliens are really like 4- to 5-year-old kids.”

During the course of the episode, Dick is pained to learn about injustices that whites have perpetuated against minorities. Meanwhile, the other aliens on the expedition--Sally (Kristen Johnson), Harry (French Stewart) and Tommy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt)--bring their own oddball perspectives about racism when they enter a kid’s poetry contest.

But, as usual, there is a happy ending, which takes place at a church. The Brookinaires Gospel Choir from the First AME Church in Los Angeles makes a special appearance.

Terry Turner said he was inspired to write the episode when his young daughter became distraught at school over how whites--and possibly her ancestors--had ravaged a civilization while colonizing the country. And Lithgow said his young daughter had a similar experience at school.

“They had Pride Day where the kids wore buttons about why there were proud,” Lithgow said. “One of my daughter’s friends wore a button that said ‘I am proud because I am black.’ So my daughter got a button that said, ‘I am proud because I am white.’ Naturally, she got all these startled, perplexed looks. It was a curious double standard. That’s just the kind of thing the aliens would do.”

Lithgow added: “The aliens are trying to figure out what makes people tick. And race is one of the most complex issues, and the most fascinating. It’s super-charged with emotion. And that’s what makes the best comedy.”

* “3rd Rock From the Sun” will air at a special time Tuesday at 9:30 p.m. on NBC. The network has rated it TV-PG (may be unsuitable for young children).

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