The evening began with a lavish, four-hour variety show, complete with glittery set, tuxedoed host and a parade of guest stars. Singer Charles Aznavour cut a ribbon to mark the occasion, and Rudolf Nureyev, Sting and ABC Newsman Peter Jennings were among the celebrities who sent greetings from abroad. Then it was on to regular programming: an onslaught of game shows, movies and weekly series, interrupted regularly by -- mon Dieu! -- commercials.
To American viewers, it might have looked like a routine week of programming. But in France, the debut of La Cinq (Channel 5), the nation's first privately owned...
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