Stories

NBC’s first century: a fun (but bumpy) ride

In a logical world, this Sunday would be a national holiday.
It’s the 100th birthday of NBC. More importantly, it’s the 100th anniversary of national (almost) broadcasting.
There were lots of local radio shows in 1926. But on Nov. 15, one show reached 21 cities, from New York to Kansas City. Over four-plus hours, people heard an orchestra, an opera singer, comedians and five bands.
It was hugely ambitious. Would NBC always be like this?
Not really. The next night, the new network included “Jolly Buckeye Bakers” and “Auction Bridge Lessons.” Twenty years later, when NBC’s TV network debuted, it had “Geographically Speaking,” “Esso Newsreel,” “Fight Film Filler” an “I Love to Eat.” In the years that followed, it would include a talking chimp, two talking cars and a guy who could transform into animals.
But that same network would give us “West Wing,” “Seinfeld,” “Friends,” “Hill Street Blues,” Johnny Carson and “Saturday Night Live” (shown here). All in all, it’s been a good century. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / November 9, 2026

Stories

These gilded lives see big-deal changes

By the end of the first “Gilded Age” season, Cynthia Nixon was neatly settled into her role.
She was Ada Brook (shown here, left), forever the younger and meeker one. She was living with her older sister, Agnes Brook van Rhijn (right), a widow with much money and many opinions. Ada’s just sort of went along.
Then one day, Nixon recalls, she was chatting with a director. “He started talking to me about who they were going to cast as my husband next season …. I could have fallen out of my chair.”
She was learning that “Gilded Age” isn’t one of those shows where things stay the same. That’s even more obvious, now that the fourth season (9 p.m. Sundays on HBO and HBO Max) has just begun. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / November 2, 2026

Stories

Holiday TV: Tabernacle in, “Honors” out (?)

In some ways, TV’s holiday season will feel different this year:
There will be two mega-concerts by the Tabernacle Choir (shown here), instead of one. And there might be no Kennedy Center Honors … at least none as a big-network show.
Those are two things gleaned from the arrival of CBS’ annual list of November and December specials. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 30, 2026

Stories

ABC’s holiday plans: return of a mini-classic

An overlooked gem will return to TV soon.
“Mickey’s Christmas Carol” (shown here) is a half-hour film from 1983, when the Disney movie studio was at a low point. It drew praise and an Oscar nomination, but was often ignored as the company grew.
Now it’s returning on Thanksgiving eve, as the start of the holiday rush from Disney-owned ABC. There will be other nods to the classics — “Mary Poppins” on Thanksgiving, “The Sound of Music” three days later — plus some newer bursts of music and animation. That includes: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 28, 2026

Stories

Arvid and Christy spark the new season

There’s a special place in the TV universe for side characters.
From Rev. Jim in “Taxi” to Kramer in “Seinfeld” and Stuart in “Big Bang,” they give comedies big laughs. From Gabby Hayes in westerns to Buntz in “Hill Street Blues,” they give dramas extra humanity.
And on new shows this fall? There’s a good one — Christy, in CBS’ “Cupertino” — and a great one: That’s Arvid, in NBC’s “Newlyweds” (shown here, center). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 24, 2026

Stories

Sunday showcase coming (Nov. 8) for best new show

TV’s best new show will soon get a Sunday-night boost.
“Cupertino” is usually confined to 10 p.m. Thursdays on CBS. But on Sunday, Nov. 8, it will air three hours — a new one (complete with traffic-jam jurisprudence, shown here) and then reruns of the first two episodes.
Those are the episodes that set things in motion: An evil law firm fired two people — Michael (Mike Colter, shown here with Renee Elise Goldsberry), an experienced pro, and Olivia (Rachel Keller), in her first year out of law school. They soon formed their own tiny firm, to take on the giants of Silicon Valley. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 23, 2026

Stories

A big-laugh comedy? Yes, that seems nostalgic

Somehow, television has reached this point:
Making a network comedy seems like a bold adventure to unearth an artifact.
“There are so few made now,” said Ignacio Diaz-Silverio (shown here, middle), a young co-star of “Newlyweds,” debuting at 8:30 p.m. Friday (Oct. 23) on NBC. “It feels nostalgic in the most positive way.”
At the peak, one network had 18 situation comedies. And now? This fall, there will only be eight on all of broadcast TV. And only three will be done in the traditional way — taped live in front of a studio audience. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 17, 2026

Stories

Some days, stardom is a bloody mess

It’s always unfortunate when a bag of blood bursts onto your face.
But when it happens several times in a row? You know you have a rough job.
That’s what happened to Linda Cardellini (shwon here) while filming “Crystal Lake,” which arrives Thursday (Oct. 15) on Peacock. “There were a lot of clean-ups and re-dos,” she said.
The blood — well, fake blood — was supposed to splatter just right, she said. “For it to really have its full impact on my face took a few takes.” Hey, when you sign up for a “Friday the 13th” prequel, you know it could get messy. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 13, 2026

Stories

Beware: Sinkholes are swallowing Hollywood

Right now, Hollywood minds seem to be filled with sinkholes. Consider:
— “Fire Country” (shown here) opens its season (9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9, on CBS) with a sudden sinkhole gobbling up people and cars during a downtown festival.
— Six days later (8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 15, on ABC), “9-1-1” opens its season with a bigger sinkhole, swallowing Los Angeles neighborhoods.
— While those two were being planned, real-life sinkholes appeared nearby. One, in July, was in West Hollywood; another, in September, was in Malibu, causing Nicolas Cage’s driveway to collapse. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 8, 2026

Stories

Method or not, this was intense acting

There are plenty of right-now, ripped-from-the-headlines stories.
And then there’s the “East of Eden” tale. “It is ancient,” said Joseph Zada, one of the stars of the seven-part mini-series now on Netflix.
Or semi-ancient. It’s known from a 1955 movie … it’s based on John Steinbeck’s 1952 novel … its story is set in the early 1900s … and its inspiration is Cane and Abel, which goes way back.
At the core of the final two episodes are twins who have been groping for the love of a physically absent mother and an emotionally absent father. Cal (shortened from Caleb) is played by Zada, 21; Aron is Joe Anders, 22. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / October 5, 2026