This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
On Saturday night, "20/20: In an Instant" (8 p.m., ABC/Ch. 4) recounts a deadly hostage-taking at Alta View Hospital that happened 25 years ago – an incident that, were it to happen today, we'd no doubt call it domestic terrorism.
On the night of Sept. 20, 1991, Richard "Rick" Worthington stormed into the hospital intent on killing Dr. Glade Curtis. Two years earlier, after Karen Worthington had given birth to the couple's eighth child, Curtis performed a tubal ligation on her — at Karen Worthington's request.
On this Friday night, Rick Worthington — violently angry because his wife had been sterilized — went ballistic. He arrived at the hospital with both guns and explosives and demanded to know where Curtis was. During the course of the 18-hour standoff, Richard Worthington killed nurse Karla Roth — shooting her in the back as she ran away after wrestling one of the two guns he was carrying away from him.
Worthington took nurses, newborns, expectant mothers and their family members hostage before eventually being talked into giving up. (He was eventually sentenced to 35 years in prison, but killed himself in 1993.)
Saturday's two-hour "20/20: In an Instant" combines interviews with survivors — including Curtis, chief negotiator Don Bell, nurses and mothers who were either themselves taken hostage or escaped but had to leave their infants behind — and dramatic re-creations of events.
I'm generally not a big fan of re-creations, which tend to come off as cheesy and of questionable accuracy. And there are some over-the-top elements in "In an Instant," although it's by no means excessive.
And it's told entirely through the recollections of people who were there — including Curtis, nurse Margie Wyler Decker, mothers Cindy Tovey and Jae Lowder, and Kaycee Kimmell, the daughter of murdered nurse Karla Roth.
It's considerably better than the rather workmanlike 1992 TV movie based on the incident — "Deliver Them from Evil: The Taking of Alta View — which starred Harry Hamlin and Teri Garr.
Friday on TV ...
• "The Ranch: Home of an American Sports Dynasty" (7 p.m., NBC/Ch. 5):
• "Masters of Illusion" (7 p.m., CW/Ch. 30): Magicians Mark Bennick, Bill Cook, Michael Grandinetti, Adam Wylie, The Shocker, Tom Burgoon and Chipper Lowell perform.
• "Outcast" (8 and 11 p.m., Cinemax): Anderson uncovers startling news about someone close to him.
• "Girl Meets World" (8:30 p.m., Disney): Maya's art teacher convinces her that her friendship with Riley is affecting her artist's voice.
Saturday on TV …
• Soccer — European Championships: Poland vs. Switzterland (7 a.m., ESPN); Northern Ireland vs. Wales (10 a.m., ESPN); Croatia vs. Portugal (1 p.m., ESPN)
• Soccer — Copa America (5 p.m, FX): Third-place match — USA vs. Colombia
• MLS (6 p.m., KMYU): Real Salt Lake at FC Dallas
• "School of Rock" (7 p.m., Nick): Summer and Tomika both want to be lead singer.
• "Outlander" (7 and 10 p.m., Starz): Jamie tries save the Jacobite army from impending slaughter.
• "Logo Trailblazer Honors 2016" (9 p.m., Logo & VH1): Harvey Fierstein and the The Advocate are honored at the third annual event, which celebrates LGBT heroes and allies.
• "Hell on Wheels" (10 p.m., AMC): Cullen conducts nitroglycerin experiments.
• "The West" (11:10 p.m., AMC): Allan Pinkerton is hired to hunt down Jesse James; settlers flock onto Sioux land to mine gold.
Sunday on TV …
• Soccer — European Championships: France vs. Ireland (7 a.m., ESPN); Germany vs. Slovakia (10 a.m., ESPN); Belgium vs. Hungary (1 p.m., ESPN)
• Soccer — Copa America (5 p.m., FS1): Final — Argentina vs. Chile
• "Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life" (6 p.m., Fox/Ch. 13): In the final episode of this canceled series — it's no loss — the gang throws Cooper a surprise party and things go wrong.
• "2016 BET Awards" (6 p.m., BET, MTV, Nick, Spike & VH1): Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross host.
• "Big Brother" (7 p.m., CBS/Ch. 2): Nominations for eviction are announced.
• "Celebrity Family Feud" (7 p.m., ABC/Ch. 4): Lance Bass and family vs. Kellie Pickler and family; Ernie Hudson and family vs. NeNe Leakes and family. (Season premiere)
• "The Last Ship" (7 p.m., TNT): Chandler scrambles to find answers in an Asian Dodge City.
• "$100,000 Pyramid" (8 p.m., ABC/Ch. 4): Michael Strahan hosts the revival of this classic game show. Sherri Shepherd, Anthony Anderson, Rosie O'Donnell and Kathy Najimy are the celebrity contestants.
• "Endeavor on Masterpiece" (8 and 10:30 p.m., PBS/Ch. 7): A artist dies in a house fire; a housewife dies from an apparent stomach virus.
• "Tiger Beach" (9 p.m., Discovery): Tiger sharks are tracked and examined in the Bahamas.
• "The Jim Gaffigan Show" (11 p.m., TV Land): Jim gets a great opportunity, but finds it a tough go.
• "Murder in the First" (8 p.m., TNT): A star quarterback is murdered in a crowded club. (Season premiere)
• "Match Game" (9 p.m., ABC/Ch. 4): Alec Baldwin hosts the revival of this classic game show.
• "Sister Wives" (9 p.m., TLC): The Browns answer questions on a wide range of topics, including their relationships, children and Meri's catfishing scandal.
• "The Girlfriend Experience" (9 p.m., Starz): When the smoke clears, Christine finds herself in control. (Season finale)
• "The Tunnel" (9:30 p.m., PBS/Ch. 7): The killer releases a video to explain his actions.
• "Preacher" (10 p.m., AMC): After his stunt with Quincannon, Jesse is Annville's newest rock star.
• "The Return of Monster Mako" (10 p.m., Discovery): Marine biologists follow a giant mako shark as it hunts large prey.
• "Hamilton" (10 p.m., History): A profile of Alexander Hamilton includes comments by Hamilton biographer Ron Chernow.
• "Game of Thrones" (10 p.m., HBO): Tyrion counsels Daenerys on the upcoming campaign; Jon and Sansa discuss their future; the trials begin in King's Landing — but this episode is titled "The Winds of Winter." Hmmm ... (Season finale)
• "Ray Donovan" (10 p.m., Showtime): Ray is in recovery mode in the aftermath of the shootou.(Season premiere)
• "Isle of Jaws" (11 p.m., Discovery): The mating rituals of white sharks,
• "Roadies" (11 p.m., Showtime): In this mediocre (at best) new series from Cameron Crowe ("Almost Famous"), a group of roadies tour with a rock band.
• "Ride with Norman Reedus" (11:02 p.m., AMC): Reedus travels from Atlanta to Asheville, N.C.
• "Silicon Valley" (11:15 p.m., HBO): Pied Piper's future is hazy, but Erlich's industry profile begins to rise. (Season finale)
• "Veep" (11:46 p.m., HBO): Inauguration Day arrives. (Season finale)