Greetings from the Hallmark Channel; H.G. Wells miniseries is a fine start for newly named family channel

It has had more name changes than Prince, more owners than a '78 Subaru and fewer viewers than a UPN rerun. It is the newly christened Hallmark Channel (Channel 61 on Time Warner Cable, Channel 75 on Comcast), which signs on Sunday in place of the Odyssey Network. Hallmark has completely changed the look and feel of the channel, including a new logo based on the familiar emblem of Kansas City-based Hallmark Cards. In fact, Hallmark has been running Odyssey for nearly three years; what viewers will see now is a long-overdue makeover. The channel gets off to a spectacular start with "The Infinite Worlds of H.G. Wells," based on short stories by the author many consider the father of modern science fiction. The three-night, six-hour, special effects-laden miniseries begins at 8 p.m. Sunday. It comes from the prolific studios of Hallmark Entertainment, which has adapted numerous classics for TV including "Gulliver's Travels" and "Animal Farm." (Hallmark Cards controls both Hallmark Entertainment and Crown Media Holdings, which owns Hallmark Channel.) In the coming months, Hallmark Channel will present a miniseries based on the stories of Hans Christian Andersen; an adaptation of "Roughing It," Mark Twain's tale of Western adventure; and "Stranded," a retelling of the "Swiss Family Robinson" classic. Hallmark Entertainment will produce those, too. The woman who runs Hallmark Channel, Margaret Loesch, says she wants programs that appeal to the whole family. In contrast to channels like Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, which are aimed at kids, Hallmark Channel is seeking primarily grown-up viewers. "Our mantra is story telling, primarily dramatic, that's targeted to adults - but you don't have to ask your child to leave the room," Loesch says. In the H.G. Wells miniseries, H.G. Well's and his companion Jane investigate weird phenomena such as a potion that can accelerate time or a mysterious object from outer space. Each of the six hours is devoted to one short story written by Wells. The miniseries contains mild profanity and some grown-up situations surrounding the romance of H.G. and Jane, who were married in real life. Still, Hallmark's H.G. seems like a Victorian prude compared with the actual Wells, who had numerous affairs during and after his marriage to Jane, fathered children out of wedlock and carried on a torrid 26-year relationship with birth control advocate Margaret Sanger. Needless to say, none of this comes up in the Hallmark version. The man credited with getting "The Infinite Worlds of H.G. Wells" on TV, Nick Willing, admits that the life of Wells "was indeed quite wayward," but he says the series is about Wells' short stories, not the man himself. "We used him as a character only because many of his stories were written in the first person," Willing says. "It's more about the creative process than a documentary about H.G. Wells. There have been so many of those." The road to Hallmark "H.G. Wells" is part of a $50 million effort this year to pump new life into a channel that has scarcely registered in the Nielsen ratings since it signed on in 1988 as the religious channel ACTS. A merger produced arguably the worst name in the history of cable TV - the VISN/ACTS Network - which was later changed to the Faith & Values Channel and then, in 1996, to Odyssey. In 1998 Hallmark and the Jim Henson Company bought a controlling interest in Odyssey. Episodes of Henson's classic "Muppet Show" were added, as were encore showings of Hallmark Entertainment epics and the "Hallmark Hall of Fame." As the name Hallmark Channel suggests, there won't be as much Henson in the schedule, though a new Henson series, "Telling Stories With Tomie dePaola," will air at 6:30 a.m. weekdays beginning Monday. (Loesch will only say that "the relationship with Henson is being changed.") Loesch plans to augment Hallmark Channel's heavy inventory of period pieces and reruns with new programs that tell more up-to-date stories. Hallmark Entertainment already has agreed to produce a reality series on adoption for the channel. But will families tune in? Hallmark Channel is carried in only a third of all U.S. homes with cable or satellite TV. The name change should help spur interest: A study conducted earlier this year for Hallmark Channel showed consumers giving the Hallmark brand high marks. In that same study, half of all adults questioned said they watch TV by themselves, yet most would rather be watching with others, especially their kids. Loesch thinks Hallmark Channel can make that possible. "We are doing the right thing at the right time," she says. THE HALLMARK CHANNEL SCHEDULE Mornings: "Inspirational" shows and parent-child fare ("Telling Stories With Tomie dePaola," "Donna's Day") Late mornings: Adventures in foreign TV, with family dramas "Snowy River" from Australia, "Avonlea" and "Wind at My Back" from Canada Afternoon: An early-bird's Nick at Nite, with back-to-back reruns of "My Three Sons," "Bewitched," "I Dream of Jeannie," "Happy Days" Prime time: "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" and a movie Late nights: Reality ("Rescue 911"), retro (the '80s series "Hart to Hart") and riflemen ("Young Riders," "Lonesome Dove" and the original "Rifleman") - To reach Aaron Barnhart, phone (816) 234-4790 or visit the TV Barn Web site at www.tvbarn.com @ART CAPTION:Katy Carmichael and Tom Ward star in Hallmark's three-part miniseries, "The Infinite Worlds of H.G. Wells." @ART CAPTION:Children's author Tomie dePaola will have his own series, "Telling Stories With Tomie dePaola." @ART CREDIT:Hallmark Channel @ART CAPTION:"Plaza Cow" @ART CREDIT:Highwood Properties office on the Plaza @ART:Photos (3, color)