1) Stephen Colbert farewell, 11:35 p.m. Thursday, CBS. After floundering in late-night for decades, CBS scored big — 22 years of David Letterman and 11 of Colbert. The show often drew big ratings, always had smart comedy. Now it’s been canceled; CBS says that’s to save money, others say it was to appease Donald Trump. Either way, Letterman will be on the finale. Read more…
1) “Family Guy” and “Bob’s Burgers” season-finales, 8 and 9:30 p.m., Fox. For “Guy,” it’s a comic version of epic events — the French Revolution (shown here), Civil War and World War II. And for “Burgers” (which also has an 8:30 episode), the crisis is closer to home: Dead fish are washing ashore, just as the town prepares for a festival. Bob must save the day. Read more…
For public-TV, America’s 250th-birthday celebration has added a key step.
Now it will be a “weekend celebration.”
Previously scheduled on PBS was the tentatively titled “America Made in Virginia: 250 Years Together,” on Saturday, July 4. Now the night before has “A Capitol Fourth” (shown here in a previous year) including a new song (“American Made”) from Trace Adkins and fireworks above George Washington’s Mount Vernon home.
Yes, that means this “Fourth” event will actually be on the third, but that’s nothing new: Through its 37 years, “The National Memorial Day Concert” has been on the eve of the holiday; now “Capitol Fourth,” from the same producers, will do the same.
Those two events help bookend the public-TV celebration: Read more…
1) “Saturday Night Live” season-finale, 11:29 p.m.,, NBC. The 51st season ends big, with two familiar guys. Will Ferrell was a regular for seven seasons, many of them as the show’s main star (shown here). Here’s his sixth turn as host, with Paul McCartney’s sixth as music guest. Both men have also popped into “SNL” specials, including the 50th-anniversary one. Read more…
