Best bets for May 17: Clooney in Catch-22 classic

1) “Catch-22,” any time, Hulu. After being a bombardier in World War II, Joseph Heller began his great war novel. Fortunately, he wrote it slowly; when it finally came out in 1961, it fit the emerging ’60s, Vietnam-influenced era. The first hour of this six-part series captures the book’s mix of horror and humor. Alongside the gore, there are hilarious diatribes by officers (George Clooney, shown here, who produced this, and Kyle Chandler). And the scene explaining the title ranks with the classic “Who’s on first?” Read more…

1) “Catch-22,” any time, Hulu. After being a bombardier in World War II, Joseph Heller began his great war novel. Fortunately, he wrote it slowly; when it finally came out in 1961, it fit the emerging ’60s, Vietnam-influenced era. The first hour of this six-part series captures the book’s mix of horror and humor. Alongside the gore, there are hilarious diatribes by officers (George Clooney, shown here, who produced this, and Kyle Chandler). And the scene explaining the title ranks with the classic “Who’s on first?”

2) “Meghan and Harry Plus One,” 8 p.m., CBS. Gayle King has been soaring lately. She’s become the center of CBS’ morning show, landed an $11 million contract, had a much-seen R. Kelley interview and now has a special about her friends, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan. That comes two days before their first anniversary and 11 days after the birth of their son. It’s followed at 9 by another CBS documentary, this one on a very American subject – traffic jams.

3) “The Blacklist,” 8 p.m., NBC. Here’s the season-finale for the show, which will be back in the fall. With the president’s schemes coming into focus, Liz and the team scramble to avert disaster. Also, Red meets with a man who has key information about his past.

4) “Live From Lincoln Center,” 9 p.m., PBS. On Broadway, Annaleigh Ashford has ranged from comedies to musicals to musical comedies. She won a Tony for the comedy “You Can’t Take It With You,” was nominated for “Kinky Boots,” has done “Hair” and “Wicked” and more. Now she offers a cabaret show; that’s followed at 10 be a rerun with Leslie Odom Jr., the “Hamilton” Tony-winner.

5) “Hawaii Five-0,” 10 p.m., CBS. Here’s another season-finale, with the team chasing evil hacker Aaron Wright before he can sell cyber-weapons. Joey Lawrence plays Wright, with Jimmy Buffett returning as Frank Bama, the eccentric chopper pilot.

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