Miller, Fouts to 'Monday Night Football' booth;
 By HOWARD FENDRICH
 AP Sports Writer
 June 22, 2000

          NEW YORK (AP) -- Comedian Dennis Miller and Hall of Fame
          quarterback Dan Fouts are joining the ``Monday Night Football'' broadcast booth.

          ABC's three-month search to replace Boomer Esiason and overhaul a
          program with declining ratings ended Thursday with two very different choices.

          Fouts, who has been calling college football games for ABC, will join
          play-by-play announcer Al Michaels in the broadcast booth. Eric
          Dickerson, another Hall of Fame player, and ESPN's Melissa Stark
          will be sideline reporters, replacing Lesley Visser.

          Housecleaning at ``Monday Night Football'' began in March, when
          Esiason was fired after two seasons in the booth, and Don Ohlmeyer,
          the show's producer in the 1970s, was brought back.

          Ohlmeyer vowed at the time to get viewers talking about the show the way
          they did when Howard Cosell and Don Meredith were on ABC' NFL team.

          In looking for Esiason's replacement, Ohlmeyer considered people with and without
          experience in the booth, including bombastic radio pig Rush Limbaugh.

          Miller was a regular on ``Saturday Night Live'' and now has a comedy show on HBO,
          while Fouts brings a smooth and reserved approach to broadcasting.