Gord Rand (left), William Shatner and Eric Johnson star in the mini-series Everest.

We all have heard the cliche about climbing a mountain because it's there. But seriously -- why?

Early in the CBC mini-series Everest, which airs tonight and tomorrow, that very question is raised expansively during a poignant scene in an airport.

Everest, which stars Eric Johnson, William Shatner, Jason Priestley and Gord Rand, is based on the 1982 climb of the mountain by a Canadian contingent. The group is set to depart Canada when climber Dave Read, played by Michael Teigen, gets a public tongue-lashing from his wife Sally, played by Chantal Perron.

"You're a selfish bastard," Sally screams, drawing the attention of everyone in the vicinity.

"(It's a) communal death wish ... you're a bunch of adrenaline junkies ... it's not like you're feeding the hungry or bringing world peace ... if you get on that plane, I am filing for divorce."

Cue the inevitable stare-down. Dave says nothing and Sally knows what that means. She storms off.

There's a pregnant pause before Dave finally bellows, "Dibs on a window seat!"

Ha ha, very funny. But the situations the troupe faces on Mount Everest are less hilarious, and the production team has done a fine job capturing the element of always-imminent danger. It's a long way from the light-hearted vibe in that old Seinfeld episode, when neophyte rock-climber George Costanza got too obsessed with his delicious sandwiches.

To say Everest "stars" Shatner and Priestley is a stretch. Priestley's appearance is nothing more than a cameo, although he indicated while Everest was being filmed (in Alberta, British Columbia and Nepal) that he would have liked a bigger role had he not been previously committed.

Shatner's character is not a climber -- Captain Kirk isn't as young as he used to be -- but rather a reporter named Norman Kelly who is covering the Canadian excursion.

The real star of Everest is Johnson, who plays Laurie Skreslet. Johnson handles the role ably, and we must say, his blond hair always looks terrific, even during a mountainside blizzard. His backpack must be half-filled with shampoo.

Everest has been completed and in the can for a year or so, but the CBC's delay in giving it an air date could have something to do with the fact that mini-series have fallen out of style.

In the past three years CBC has aired a number of high-quality mini-series that, by the network's own admission, very few people watched. It's funny, because in this era of personal video recorders (PVRs), one might think mini-series would be more accessible to viewers.

Then again, the old magic of a mini-series had to do with presenting it as "event TV," and the only things that really count as "event TV" these days are live extravaganzas, such as the Olympics, Canadian Idol, Dancing with the Stars or the Academy Awards.

In other words, there's at least one similarity between attracting a big TV audience and climbing a mountain: Neither is easy.

bill.harris@sunmedia.ca