TV & VIDEO - Nov. 16, 1988

Las Vegas hotelier-entertainer Wayne Newton and NBC are gearing up for a new trial in Newton’s libel suit against the network. Newton’s attorney, Morton Galane, urged U.S. District Judge Myron D. Crocker on Monday to limit the new trial, held in San Diego, to damages only, while NBC’s lawyers argued for a complete rerun of the original trial won by Newton. NBC attorney Floyd Abrams said the jury that gave Newton a record $19.2 million judgment in 1986 failed to pinpoint a reason for its action and that a new jury should hear the case. Galane, however, contended the issue of liability was decided fairly in the original trial, when the jury ruled that Newton was defamed by NBC during broadcasts in 1980 and 1981 that linked the singer to organized crime figures. Crocker, who presided over the first trial, reduced the initial jury award to $5.3 million last year and gave Newton the option of accepting the smaller award or going back to court. Newton rejected the smaller award.