Day: July 26, 2020

News and Quick Comments

TV this fall? PBS plans music, drama, zombies

As TV networks’ fall plans sputter, there’s a counterpoint:
PBS still has big plans for the season. That includes concerts (including Lea Salonga, shown here), dramas, politics, nature and whimsy.
Well, not a lot of whimsy. (This is PBS, after all.) But it will air “History of Zombies” on the eve of Halloween and visit “Santa’s Wild Home” before Christmas; it will also have a jazz tribute to “Sesame Street,” visit tropical islands and board the queen’s plane. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / July 26, 2020
Stories

Conspiracy theories swirl through internet

Conspiracy theories have long been lurking out there, stirring our emotions.
We’ve seen the Kennedy-assassination ideas of Oliver Stone and others; we’ve had UFO tales, billed as fiction (“X-Files”) or fact. Earlier, Joe McCarthy insisted he held the names of 205 Communist conspirators in the U.S. government.
Often, those views are nudged aside. But now, some viewers will have seen two major documentaries in five days: On Friday (July 24), CNN’s Fareed Zakaria presented “Donald Trump’s Conspiracy Theories”; at 10 p.m. Tuesday (July 28), PBS’ “Frontline” has “United States of Conspiracy,” focusing on Alex Jones (shown here). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / July 26, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for July 28: “Story,” Regis, news, more

1) “Tell Me a Story,” 9 p.m., CW. After two years on CBS All Access, this gets a shot at a broadcast audience. It’s a good one, even if it doesn’t do what it claims – putting a modern twist on three fairy tales. That link is weak, but all three stories slowly seize our attention. One – with the always-terrific James Wolk (shown here) nudging his girlfriend toward marriage and family – ends the hour powerfully. The others have talented newcomers Danielle Campbell and Davi Santos in troubled lives. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / July 26, 2020