Article: NBC debuts third 'Law & Order'; 'Criminal Intent': Producer sees show's spinoffs as 'brand extension'

NEW YORK (AP) - And then there were three.

First came "Law & Order," which premiered Sept. 13, 1990. In 1999, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" made its bow. Now NBC is trying again with "Law & Order: Criminal Intent." It debuts Sunday at 8 p.m. CDT.

Unprecedented for prime-time drama (other than the soap "Peyton Place," which ABC aired thrice weekly for a few months in the mid- 1960s), "Law & Order" in one form or another hits the street nearly every other night.

The logic of this product line seems self-evident to Dick Wolf, its producer-auteur. A former advertising man ("You can't beat Crest for fighting cavities") he sees "Law & Order" as a flourishing brand: "A brand extension is ...

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