TV & VIDEO - Jan. 4, 1989

Actor David Keith will take on the role of the ultimate Marine--Oliver North--in a TV miniseries scheduled to start next week. Keith, who has played military-minded characters in “The Lords of Discipline” and “An Officer and a Gentleman,” had to convince producers that he could lose his Tennessee accent to get the part. The miniseries is based on the biography “Guts and Glory” by Boston Globe reporter Ben Bradlee Jr. It follows North from his training at the Naval Academy until his retirement last year in the midst the Iran-Contra affair. North goes on trial Jan. 31 for his role in the scandal. And how does Keith view North? “A brave man, a real cowboy,” says the actor.