It’s nice to have a drinking pal
Even an esteemed historian might not want to spend all her time with dusty manuscripts. Read more…
Mike Hughes
Best-bets for Feb. 16: “Idol” leads new-show swarm
1) “American Idol” opener, 8-10 p.m., ABC. For almost a month, TV’s Sunday line-up has been in limbo. It was the Grammys … then the Super Bowl … then the Oscars. After waiting patiently, other shows now start their seasons. Leading the way is “Idol,” starting its 18th season overall and its third at ABC. Ryan Seacrest still hosts, with Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie and lots of eager people — including Nick Merico, shown here — auditioning. Tonight has auditions in Milwaukee, Savannah, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and Sunriiver, Oregon. Read more…
Washington: Big, bold and (sometimes) truthful
Doris Kearns Goodwin had been working her way through the presidents.
Her books had traced the lives of Kennedy, Johnson, Lincoln, Taft and two Roosevelts. They had brought her fame, a Pulitzer Prize and a couple of drinking sessions with Daniel Day Lewis.
What was missing was the first and best-known president. Now she’s produced “Washington” (shown here), the documentary mini-series airing Sunday, Monday (yes, Presidents Day) and Tuesday on the History Channel Read more…
Week’s top-10 for Feb. 17: A time for farewells
1) “America’s Got Talent: The Champions” finale, 8-10 p.m. today, NBC. It’s time to name what the shows calls its “world champion.” This started with 22 people who had done well on “America’s Got Talent,” plus 18 from other “Got Talent” shows globally. Last week, its top 10 – six of them from “AGT” – performed and viewers voted. There are three singers (including young Norwegian Angelina Jordan, shown here) and three dance groups (one adding acrobatics), plus acrobats, a trapeze act, a dog act and a violinist. Read more…
Best-bets for Feb. 15: Great movie, nice continent
1) “Casablanca” (1942), 8 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies. The Oscar season has concluded now, but not on TCM. Its “31 Days of Oscar” – continuing through March 2 – peaks with Humphrey Bogart (shown here) and Ingrid Bergman in this bittersweet, black-and-white wartime drama. It won Academy Awards for best picture winner, director Michael Curtiz and its script. The American Film Institute puts it at No. 3 all-time, behind only “Citizen Kane” and “The Godfather.” Read more…
Best-bets for Feb. 14: Charlie leads Valentine flurry
1) “Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown” and “A Charlie Brown Valentine,” 8 and 8:30 p.m., ABC. Valentine’s Day turns out to be a cartoon event. Holiday specials are scattered throughout the day on PBS Kids, then reach ABC at night. One is a 1975 classic with the usual crises – no cards for Charlie Brown, no love for Lucy, a mix-up involving Sally and Linus. “A Charlie Brown Valentine” was created in 2002, after Charles Schulz’s death. Charlie(shown here with Sally) finally dares to call the little red-haired girl. Read more…
“High Fidelity” has a high love for music
“High Fidelity” keeps marching across the media landscape.
It was a 1995 Nick Hornby novel … a 2000 John Cusack movie … and a 2006 Broadway musical. Now it’s a streaming series – a good one – arriving Friday(Feb.14) on Hulu.
In each version, we meet Rob, a young record-store owner who composes top-5 lists while facing romance setbacks.
Details change along the way. Rob was originally white and male; now the role is beautifully played by Zoe Kravitz (shown here), who is neither. Read more…
Best-bets for Feb. 13: Drama and comedy cohabit
1) “Grown-ish,” 8 p.m., Freeform. This well-crafted comedy-drama leans way to the drama side tonight. Nomi(Emily Arlook, at right with Yara Shahidi) takes the first ultrasound of her pregnancy; that’s followed by celebration … arguments … and life-changing questions. It’s a smart and serious episode, peppered by some comedy, with Sky in the midst of a serious debate: Is her new boyfriend black or white? Read more…
Cable celebrates a long and lustful life
The long life and wondrous career of Kirk Douglas will be celebrated on Turner Classic Movies
.That will be March 5, with some of the best-known films at nighttime. It will be “Lust for Life” (shown here, 1956) at 5:45 p.m., “Paths of Glory” (1958) at 8 and “Spartacus” at 9:45.
Douglas died Feb. 5, after a life that was extraordinary in its length (103 years), its impact and how far he had leaped. His first memoir illusttrated that leap with its title: “The Ragman’s Son.” Read more…
Indigenous actors — from different continents — find stardom
It was one of the quieter moments in a busy Academy Award ceremony.
There was Taika Waititi, accepting the Oscar for the screenplay of “Jojo Rabbit,” which he directed and co-starred in. “I dedicate this to all the indigenous kids in the world who want to do art,” he said.
Before the ceremony, much of the focus had been on other underutilized groups – blacks and women. By the end of the night, however, we were reminded just how big the world is … even on shows like “FBI: Most Wanted,” shown here. Read more…