In their latest burst of TV fame, the Estefans have familiar duties.
Gloria is out-front, doing most of the talking; she’s the people person, the fan favorite. Emilio says a little, then returns to the background.
It all seems natural, during PBS’ “Gershwin Prize” special. But in the old days, it was flip-flopped. Read more…
We can quit worrying now: Shannen Doherty has been added to Fox’s summer series, “BH90210.”
That’s the show that has the original “Beverly Hills, 90210” cast getting together, to plan a reboot. It’s scripted, with the actors playing exaggerated versions of themselves … something these producers (Mike Chessler and Chris Alberghini) did quite well with Tori Spelling’s “So NoTORIous.” Read more…
1) “The Show Must Go On,” 8-10 p.m., ABC. “American Idol” has vacated Mondays; now it’s Sundays-only. And tonight, its spot goes to one of its most famous losers: Nine years ago, Adam Lambert finished second to Kris Allen. He’s one of many – Katharine McPhee (2nd), Chris Daughtry (4th), Jennifer Hudson (7th) – who surpassed the winners. In 2014, Lambert started touring with Queen; they’ve drawn big crowds and even opened the Oscars telecast. This documentary traces their stories. Read more…
Maybe this was a fantasy for many of us:
The teacher expects us to parrot his or her theories about what some author – Shakespeare or such – meant. We wish we could grab Shakespeare and get a second opinion.
Nicole Fosse – a producer and consultant for the “Fosse/Verdon” mini-series — did that as a teen-ager. Read more…
1) “The Red Line” opener, 8 and 9 p.m., CBS. The CBS formula has worked well – lots of dramas in the “CSI/NCIS” mode, with a happy ending for each hour. But now comes a bold detour – a complex story, spread over eight hours on four Sundays. This starts with a tragic error and follows its impact on politics, race and humanity. There are flaws: The incident is too clear-cut; a key admission (late in the first hour) is unmotivated. Still, it’s beautifully done and Noah Wyle — shown here with Aliyah Royale, who plays his adopted daughter — delivers a deeply moving speech. Read more…
For decades, Bruce Campbell has been the master of the weird.
He’s done standard stuff, including years on “Burn Notice,” but is best known for the “Evil Dead” movies, the wild “Ash vs. Evil Dead” series and the sort of oddities that film-festival fans love. So this seems logical: Campbell will produce and host the rebooted “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” series, which starts June 9 on the Travel Channel. Read more…
1) “Billboard Music Awards,” 8-11 p.m. Wednesday, NBC. In one packed night, we get Madonna and Mariah and Maluma and more. Halsey sings “Without Me” and also links with BTS. Other combos have Tori Kelly with Dan + Shay and(shown here) Madonna with Maluma. Also performing are Kelly Clarkson, who hosts; Mariah Carey, who gets the Icon Award; and Paula Abul, with a medley, 30 years after her debut album had four No. 1 hits. Also: Jonas Brothers, Ciara, Khalid, Lauren Daigle and Panic! At the Disco. Read more…
1) “The Son” season-opener, 9 p.m. , AMC, rerunning at 10:05. Sprawling and ambitious, this hour leaps between Texas and Mexico … and between 1852, 1915 and even 1988. A young Eli (with his American Indian captors) leads their raid … An old Eli (Pierce Brosnan, shown here) searched for his son Peter, who rescued a neighbor when Eli attacked her home … And Peter’s daughter is a matriarch. All reflect the slow pace of a western – and the deadly intensity that seems to infect anyone in Eli’s life. Read more…
If you’d like to have eternal life, try to become a TV series on CW.
The network has just announced that it’s bringing back “All American,” which seemed to have an iffy future. Also returning for next season are two mid-season arrivals — “In the Dark” and “Roswell, New Mexico” — plus “The 100,” which is finally starting its season. Read more…
1) “BarkFest,” 8 p.m. ET , NatGeo Wild. Sure, cats rule the Internet. Now, however, dogs get their due. “Puppy Pals” is at 8, followed by an all-canine hour of “Animals Doing Things With Howie Mandel” (shown here, from a previous episode) at 9 and “Tail of the Dog” at 10. They repeat at 11, 12 and 1 ET, with another doggy day starting at noon Saturday. Read more…
