Month: June 2019

Surrounded by teens, Kate tries the dating world

Kate Gosselin is heading into half-empty-nest turf
.Her twins are going to college; two of her sextuplets are living with her ex-husband. She’s just four teen-agers away from rattling around an empty house.
What’s next?“We’ve been nudging her to date for years,” said Mandy Gosselin, 18, one of the twins.
So that will be another TV show; “Kate Plus Date” has a six-episode summer run. Read more…

Best-bets for June 9: It’s Tony time

1) Tony Awards, 8-11 p.m., CBS. James Corden is back for his second time as host. His first, three years ago, had some great moments – Corden’s dazzling opening number (shown here), his clever monolog and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s passionate sonnet. This time, “Hadestown” leads with 14 nominations, two shy of the “Hamilton” record. It will do a number, as will the other best-musical nominees — “Tootsie,” “Beetlejuice,” “The Prom,” “Ain’t Too Proud” and the revivals of “Oklahoma” and “Kiss Me Kate.” There will also be numbers from “Choir Boy” and “The Cher Show,” plus a song  by past winner Cynthia Erivo. Read more…

Week’s top 10 for June 10: A scripted surge

1) “The Good Fight,” 9 and 10 p.m. Sunday, CBS. One of TV’s best shows has been semi-invisible. The first episode aired on CBS, but the others were on CBS All-Access; in the first season (of three, so far) shows were reaching less than 2 per cent of TV homes. Now that season gets a CBS summer run. First, Diane (Christine Baranski, shown here) of “Good Wife” loses her money and her job; with a young protege (whose dad drained the money), she goes to a mostly black law firm. It’s a strong start to a smart show. Read more…

Best-bets for June 8: Sandler’s warm tribute reruns

1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m, NBC. There was a long gap – 23 years long – between when Adam Sandler was fired by “SNL” and when he returned to host. Still, the wait was worth it; an OK show, rerunning tonight, was elevated each time Sandler sang. There was his opener, about being fired … and his hilarious “Weekend Update” bit as Opera Man. And, most of all, his musical tribute (shown here) to his late friend, Chris Farley. Both funny and moving, it was one of the TV season’s finest moments. Read more…

Best-bets for June 7: Jugglers and magicians and such

1) “The Big Stage” debut, 9 and 9:30 p.m., CW. Imagine “America’s Got Talent” without judges or singers. Each half-hour has a blitz of five odd, high-energy acts. Most are skilled (it’s not easy to juggle umbrellas); some are entertaining. The opening dancers are frantic and pointless, but a later dance duo is first-rate. Some acts are so-so, the hosts are awful (even by lame-host standards) … but the final act is terrific. That happens to be Terry Fator, the second “AGT” champ. Read more…

Best-bets for June 6: A long day of D-Day films

1) “The Longest Day” (1962), 8-11 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies; and “Saving Private Ryan” (1998), 7-11 p.m., AMC. On the 75th anniversary of D-Day, here are esteemed films, a generation apart. Both won Oscars for cinematography (black-and-white, for “Longest Day”) and were nominated for best picture. “Longest Day” required three directors and endless stars, from John Wayne to Richard Burton; “Private Ryan” (shown here) had Tom Hanks and the brilliant, Oscar-winning direction of Steven Spielberg. Read more…

New York cabbies are driven to ruin

Mohammed Hossain is your almost-typical working guy.
He says he drives his cab 14 hours a day, seven days a week for less than $25,000 a year. And that’s if you don’t count his loan payments. In a three-years stretch, he was supposed to pay $717,500.
“I know so many drivers, they kill themselves,” Hossain (shown here) says in the June 9 episode of “The Weekly,” the compelling cable series focusing on New York Times reporters. “But I love my family.”
That leaves the broader questions: Why would a guy below the poverty line borrow a fortune? And who would loan it to him? Read more…

Best-bets for June 5: Country glitz; handmaids’ despair

1) CMT Music Awards, 8 p.m., CMT, rerunning at 10:30. The show will have the most performances in its history, CMT insists. And these are A-list stars — Carrie Underwood (shown here), Luke Bryan, Keith Urban, Kelsea Ballerini and more. Two of this year’s nominations leaders, Maren Morris and the Zac Brown Band, will perform; so will the hosts, Little Big Town, plus Thomas Rhett, Tanya Tucker, Toby Keith, Cole Swindell and Kane Brown. For crossover, there’s Boyz II Men, Sheryl Crow, Brandi Carlile and Trombone Shorty. Read more…