1) “So You Think You Can Dance” finale, 8-10 p.m., Fox. As usual, this started with a rich blend of genres, from tap and ballroom to salsa and hip-hop. And as usual, contemporary dancers fill most of the final four. There are three – Sophie Pittman and Mariah Russell, from Tennessee, and Gino Cosculluela from Miami. The lone exception is Bailey Munoz, who’s a “b-boy” or breakdancer from Las Vegas. Read more…
This year’s Emmy telecast will have lots of hosts – smart, slick, funny ones.
It’s just that … well, none of them will be hosting. No one will.
Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers and Stephen Colbert have all been witty award-show hosts; Billy Porter (shown here) would be another good one. This time, alas, they’re merely presenters. Read more…
1) “Country Music,” 8 p.m., PBS, rerunning at 10. Over eight nights and 16-plus hours, Ken Burns’ brilliant documentary will watch country music transform, while scrambling to keep its roots. The later chapters will include lots of first-person stories and TV clips; this opener, however, settles for old photos, second-hand accounts and great narration. In 1927, a New York producer set up recording sessions in Bristol, Tenn; Jimmie Rodgers (shown here) and the Carter family came, giving country a great start. Read more…
1) “America’s Got Talent” finals, 8-10:01 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, NBC. The 10 finalists perform Tuesday and viewers vote; on Wednesday, the show will have its 14th champion. As usual, there are lots of singers – Kodi Lee, Emanne Beasha and Benicio Bryant, plus three groups, the Detroit Youth Choir, the Ndlovu Youth Choir and Voices of Service. They face comedian Ryan Niemiller, violinist Tyler Butler-Figuera and two dance groups, the acrobatic V.Unbeatable (shown here) and the Light Balance Kids. Read more…
1) “Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. John Mulaney (shown here was an “SNL” writer for five years, best-known for molding Bill Hader’s hilarious Stefon. He returned when Bill Hader hosted, to write more Stefon. Mulaney’s been busy lately with everything from acting to stand-up to (for a year) his own situation comedy. Here’s a rerun of his second turn as host, with Thomas Rhett as music guest. Read more…
To understand the big-tent view of Ken Burns’ “Country Music,” let’s step back 46 years
It’s May of 1973, at the Michigan State University Auditorium. The concert has the Eagles … and Gram Parsons (with Emmylou Harris) … and Lester Flatt (with Marty Stuart).
Really. The guy from the Byrds … and the band that would make “Life In the Fast Lane” … and the guy whose mandolin propelled “The Beverly Hillbillies.” Tickets ($7) included a second night, with Quicksilver, Canned Heat and REO Speedwagon.
It was, Stuart (shown here) said, “the first time I saw rock and roll and bluegrass and honky tonk and folk music and gospel music collide …. I remember thinking, ‘It can all exist under the umbrella of country music.’” Read more…
1) “American Masters,” 9 p.m., PBS. These days, people keep seeing (and re-seeing) Raul Julia in the two “Addams Family” (shown here) films. But that was just part of a wide-ranging career. Julia arrived from Puerto Rico at 24, ready for Shakespeare and Broadway and talk shows and more. Before his death (at 54, of a stroke after intestinal troubles) he also did passionate roles as Latino activists. Here’s a fond portrait. Read more…
As “BH90210” wraps its noisy little season, we’ll just shrug.
A great idea got so-so execution. The result was almost adequate by lowly, end-of-summer standards.
The finale is 9 p.m. Wednesday (Sept. 11) on Fox, promptly rerunning at 8 p.m. Friday. Like previous hours, its self-effacing humor is often quite good; its drama is more-often quite awful. Read more…
Raul Julia reached New York in 1964, a time when people made easy assumptions.
He was an actor from Puerto Rico; surely, that meant lots of street-smart roles. One talk-show host said she’d heard he didn’t speak English when he got there.
“Of course he spoke English,” theater director Oskar Eustis said. “He spoke beautiful English.”
Julia (shown here) – the subject of a PBS profile Friday — grew up around English-speaking teachers. He was college-educated, Shakespeare-trained. “He was very well-educated …. Latinos don’t (only) come under stressful conditions,” actor Esai Morales said. “We are not always struggling to survive.” Read more…
1) “Mr. Inbetween” season-opener, 10 p.m., FX, rerunning at 11. Ray is your average bloke — a caring father, a friend who will help you hide your porn or dispose of a body. He’s also a skilled hit man, which is important tonight (shown here), when he’s asked to check up on two less-skilled guys. There’s a droll feeling here that makes the show fun even when nothing happens; then … well, something happens. That’s followed by a rerun that reminds us to always check the trunk before stealing a car. Read more…
