Mike Hughes

Stories

He’s an airborne TV star

If TV had an all-time commuter award, Kenan Thompsom(shown here) might be … well, a solid second place.
The top prize goes to David Frost, who did weekly commutes from London to New York – a jet across the Atlantic, then a helicopter to his office.
But Thompson comes close: He filmed his comedy – “Kenan,” which starts its second season at 8 and 8:30 p.m. Jan. 3 on NBC – in Los Angeles, then flew to New York for each “Saturday Night Live.”
In LA, the emphasis was on COVID safety, he said. “We were to ourselves, in our own little bubble.” But it’s not really a bubble if one guy keeps flying in packed planes; Thompson needed private ones. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 22, 2021
News and Quick Comments

TV has big plans for Jan. 6 anniversary

As the anniversary of the Jan. 6 riot nears, TV has major plans.
ABC has announced coverage that will start Jan. 2 and sprawl across the week. It will include a documentary on two streaming services – Hulu and ABC News Live.
That’s alongside other documentaries – a new one on PBS and a rerun on HBO – plus news coverage. Congressmen are talking about a Jan. 6 memorial event; Donald Trump has said he’ll have a press conference that day. Some of the TV plans include: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 22, 2021
Stories

Cooking shows rise (or sink) to a new level

As cooking shows fill our TV sets, they offer lots of sleek settings.
“The contestants are always working in these fabulous, million-dollar kitchens,” said Matt Cahoon, a creator of the new “Next Level Chef” on Fox. They have “the best equipment in the world, using the highest-end ingredients that money can buy. And that’s not real life.”
Now real life – or three variations of it – arrives. “Next Level Chef” debuts after football (at about 8 p.m. ET) on Jan. 2, then moves to Wednesdays. It instantly shows its extremes.
“We’ve got these three incredible kitchens, three stories high, 85,000 tons of steel,” said Gordon Ramsay, who produces the show with Cahoon and Lisa Edwards. (The structure is shown here, with Richard Blais, Ramsay and Nyesha Arrington.) Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 21, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 23: a ghastly good night for comedy

1) “Ghosts,” 8:31-11 p.m., CBS. In a rough season for comedies, “Ghosts” has done well. So CBS polled viewers and will rerun their five favorites here. First (shown here), Pete wants to see his wife, who’s still alive; at 9:01, Thorfinn wants a Viking funeral, now that his bones have been found; at 9:30, Samantha – the only living person who sees the ghosts – helps them play Dungeons & Dragons with her husband Jay. At 10, a music fan researches Alberta’s life; at 10:30, Hetty accidentally inhabits Jay’s body. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 21, 2021
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for Dec. 27: parties, parade, bowl games

1) “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” 8-11 p.m. Friday and 11:30 p.m. to 2:13 a.m., ABC. With COVID re-surging, the best way to party is in front of our TV sets. Ryan Seacrest will be in Times Square (shownhere in a previous year), with live performances from LL Cool J, Journey, Chloe and Karol G. The marathon also has Billy Porter in New Orleans, Daddy Yankee in Puerto Rico and a pre-taped Los Angele party with Ciara, Macklemore, Avril Lavine, Walker Hayes, OneRepublic, French Montana, Big Boi, Don Omar and many more. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 20, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 22: laughter and Wonder in the Kennedy Center

1) “Kennedy Center Honors,” 9-11 p.m., CBS. Each year, this celebrates the greats with smart films and potent performances. To honor Joni Mitchell, Bette Midler, Justino Diaz and Motown founder Berry Gordy, we get great songs from Andra Day, Kelli O’Hara, Billy Porter, Norah Jones and more, including a superb finale with Stevie Wonder (shown here in a previous performance. But the surprise is the tribute to “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels. From Steve Martin to three “Weekend Update” desks, it ripples with wit. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 20, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 21: Adele, Beebo and the final rose

1) “The Bachelorette” finale, 8 p.m., ABC, with “After the Rose” at 10. Michelle Young (shown here) started with 30 guys and has gradually shed 28 of them. (The 28th, last week, was Joe Coleman who, like her, is a Minnesotan and a former college basketball player.) Young, 28, is a 5th-grade teacher who once led the Bradley basketball team with 12 points per game. Her final two choices are Brandon Jones, 26, a traveling-nurse recruiter from Portland, Oregon, and Nayte Olukoya, 27, a sales guy from Winnipeg Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 19, 2021
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Dec. 20: lotsa music, good and Gaga great

1) “One Last Time: An Evening with Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga,” 8-9 p.m., CBS. Alzheimer’s has robbed Bennett of most of his memories, but he still does songs beautifully. On his 95th birthday, he did this gorgeous concert in Radio City Music Hall. Gaga opened the show, then introduced her friend (they’re shown here) and later joined him for duets. Backed by great musicians – her quartet, his quintet and an orchestra – they gave a triumphant show, which reruns here. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 18, 2021
News and Quick Comments

Christmas TV list: the final week

OK, we’re down to the final week before Christmas Eve. Here’s a shortened version of the Christmas TV mega-list, sticking strictly to Dec. 17-25:
CARTOONS: THE CLASSICS
– Dec. 18: “How the Grinch Stole Christmas, 7 and 9:30 p.m.,, TNT; also, 8 p.m. Dec. 25, NBC.
– Dec. 19: “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” (shown here), 6:45 p.m., Freeform; also, 5:15 p.m., Dec. 20; 9 p.m., Dec. 24; 5:40 p.m., Dec. 25. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 17, 2021
News and Quick Comments

“Ricardos”: masterful telling of a (semi-) true tale

Aaron Sorkin’s latest masterwork is ready to reach our TV sets.
“Being the Ricardos” (shown here with Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem) is already in theaters; it arrives Tuesday (Dec. 21) on Amazon’s Prime Video, which produced it. Like all things Sorkin, we cheer it … cautiously.
When working with pure fiction – including the “West Wing,” “Newsroom” and “Sports Night” TV series – Sorkin is the best, concocting wondrous twists.
And when adapting true events? He still concocts. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / December 17, 2021