Month: June 2023

Stories

Her restaurant life? It’s “crazy and wonderful”

If you watch any restaurant show – especially “The Bear,” the acclaimed drama-comedy that returns to Hulu on June 22 – there are two logical reactions:
1) I would never want to work in a restaurant. People fret, fail, shout, rage, agonize; they also have bad hours and are prone to addiction and alcoholism.
2) I’d really like to work in a restaurant. It looks like fun.
Courtney “Coco” Storer (shown here), the inspiration and “culinary producer” for “The Bear,” occasionally leans toward the first one. “I always ask myself, ‘Why am I doing this? Are you insane?’” she said.
But mostly, she’s with the second. “I love it,” she told the Television Critics Association. “I don’t think I’ll ever leave the hospitality world. As crazy as it is, I think it’s equal parts crazy as it is wonderful.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 19, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for June 20: “Superman” survives; Luthor lurks

1) “Superman & Lois,” 8 p.m., CW. We’re one week away from the season-finale … but not, it turns out, the series-finale. Under new ownership, the CW has been dumping its superhero shows, but recently reversed itself on this one: There will be 10 episodes next season. Tonight, Lex Luthor (Michael Cudlitz, shown here, of “Walking Dead”) emerges from prison; next week, he makes his move. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 18, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for June 19: festive holiday and more

1) “Juneteenth: A Global Celebration for Freedom,” 8-11 p.m. ET, CNN and OWN. Juneteenth has been around for 157 years, celebrating the final, post-war freeing of slaves. But this is only its third year as a national holiday and it keeps growing. Now it gets a mega-concet, including a Tina Turner tribute from Chloe Bailey. Also performing: Kirk Franklin (shown here), Nelly, Jodeci, Miguel, Charlie Wilson, SWV, Davido, Coi Leray and Mike Phillips. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 17, 2023
Stories

Two passions — birds and Black-rights — merged

Like most people, Christian Cooper (shown here) didn’t expect to have the world’s attention.
But when he did, he was ready. “If all these people are going to shove microphones and cameras in my face, I’m going to use it to say what I think (is) important,” he told the Television Critics Association.
At the top of that list are … well, birds and race relations.
The two merged one day in Central Park, indirectly leading to “Extraordinary Birder with Christian Cooper.” The show debuts at 10 p.m. Saturday (June 17) on the Nat Geo Wild cable channel, then reaches Disney+ on Wednesday (June 21). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 16, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for June 18: Mysteries and zombie tale begin

1) “Endeavour” season-opener, 9-11 p.m., PBS. It’s been a long run – eight seasons of “Inspector Morse” … nine of the “Inspector Lewis” sequel … and now the ninth and final one of this prequel (shown here). Like Ridley (see next paragraph), Endeavour Morse (left) is somber; his one romance (with his colleague’s daughter) crumbled and he’s back from alcohol rehab. But unlike Ridley, his movie-length stories air in one night. This first one, involving a famous orchestra, is excellent. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 16, 2023
Stories

Juneteenth is packed with music, movies, more

As a very old – and very new – holiday, Juneteenth is becoming a TV event.
Hit your remote Monday (June 19) and you’ll find documentaries, movies (LOTS of movies) and a mega-concert.
The concert, simulcast by CNN and the Oprah Winfrey Network, will have rap, pop and R&B stars, old and new. It will also have a Tina Turner tribute by Chloe Bailey (shown here), who’s best known for teaming with her sister (Halle Bailey, the “Little Mermaid” star) in Chloe + Halle.
It’s set for 8-11 p.m. ET … which crosses over lots of other events, including music documentaries on E (8 p.m.) and ABC (10). Then there are all those movies, ranging from the classics (“In the Heat of the Night,” “Do the Right Thing”) to the more-recent “Black Panther,” “Till” and “Respect.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 16, 2023
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for June 19: Celebrate firefighters and Black music

1) “LA Fire & Rescue” debut, 8 p.m. Wednesday, NBC. The sprawling Los Angeles County ranges from a desert to an ocean; one firehouse is in the tough Compton area, at another, there’s talk of Kardashians or a Schwarzenegger. Producer Dick Wolf (“Chicago Fire”) offers a non-fiction view. (The photo here is of an L.A. firefighters, but not the ones in this show.) We get personal stories – this week, a cancer survivor – plus action. Most of it is medical, but the opener closes with a giant blaze that continues next week. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 15, 2023
News and Quick Comments

Blige’s songs, with love and pain, guide two movies

For an actor, it can be imposing to step inside a Mary J. Blige production … and inside a Blige song.
“It reminds me of my mom,” Ajioba Alexus said. “Because we would dance to Mary J. Blige’s songs in the kitchen.” Now she stars in two Lifetime movies (shown here, with co-star Da’Vinchi), produced by Blige, that use titles of those songs
— “Real Love” was Blige’s first hit back in 1992 – four years before Alexus was born. It was No. 7 on Billboard’s overall chart and No. 1 on its rhythm & bluyes chart. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 14, 2023