Year: 2020

Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for June 8: Tough times in modern and frontier eras

1) “Twilight: Los Angeles,” 10 p.m., PBS (check local listings). Back in 1992, another crisis raised sharp questions about police and race. The verdict in the Rodney King case brought protests and violence; in the aftermath, Anna Deveare Smith(shown here) created a one-woman play in which she portrayed the people – black and white, male and female – on both sides. Director Marc Levin added news footage and interviews. That’s one of many new and old specials that PBS has quickly added. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 6, 2020
Stories

CW adds “Pixels” now, “Devils” later

The CW network has added a summer show, indirectly. It has also solidified its makeshift fall line-up.
The network bought “Devils,” a 10-part Italian-French mini-series (involving murder and high-finance) that includes Patrick Dempsey. That will air in the fall, sliding the quirky “Dead Pixels” (show here) to a spot sometime this summer.
Any summer addition is important, at a time when COVID shutdowns have left networks with short supplies. Several summer shows – CBS’ “Amazing Race,” Fox’s “Filthy Rich” and “NeXt,” CW’s “Pandora” and “The Outpost” – were diverted to the fall; others (ABC’s “Bachelorette” and “Bachelor in Paradise,” Fox’s “So You Think You Can Dance”) are on hold. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 5, 2020
News and Quick Comments

Oprah sets two-night special on racial crisis

Oprah Winfrey (shown here) is entering the national discussion of racial issues, just when she’s needed the most.
Winfrey’s special – “Where Do We Go From Here?” – will sprawl over two nights and 19 cable networks. It will be 9 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday (June 9-10) on her own Oprah Winfrey Network and others (including Discovery, HGTV, TLC, ID and Food) in the Discovery system. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 5, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for June 7: A Tonyless (but fun) night

1) No Tonys, CBS. This was supposed to be the night CBS had the Tony awards, filled with song and dance and fun. Alas, COVID put Broadway (and the Tonys) on hold. If you still want a musical, there are choices: CBS has John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in “Grease” (1978, shown here) at 8:30 p.m., complete with singalong lyrics onscreen; FX has Hugh Jackman as “The Greatest Showman” (2017) at 8 and 10 p.m. Both have so-so stories, salvaged by vibrant music. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 5, 2020
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for June 8: Two shows leave, five arrive

1) “Man With a Plan” series finale, 8:30 p.m. Thursday, CBS. When Matt LeBlanc’s “Friends” ended its 10-year run, it was a big deal. When his “Plan” ends a four-year run … well, it’s worth noting. This is a consistently adequate comedy, with LeBlanc in the cliched TV role of a semi-bumbling husband and dad. In the finale, he and his wife (played by Liza Snyder; they’re shown here) near their 20th anniversary. That’s in a week that mostly has debuts, season-openers and a mid-season return. We’ll look at those shows next. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 5, 2020
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for June 6: War molds classic films

1) “D-Day: The Sixth of June” (1956), 6 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies. On this sixth of June, we can watch a film about the attack – 76 years earlier – that changed the course of World War II. That’s entwined with a story of two officers (one British, one American) in love with the same woman. Two other movies have true stories with war as a backdrop: At 8 p.m. ET, TCM has the epic “Lawrence of Arabia” (1962, shown here with Peter O’Toole and Omar Sharif); at 8, AMC has Bradley Cooper in the subtly moving “American Sniper” (2014). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 4, 2020
Stories

Sunday TV: No Tonys, less fun

(This was the original Tony-night story, complicated by a late change: FX dumped “Greatest Showman” — it’s now set for June 19 — and replaced it with “Selma.”)
Once a year, TV viewers get a window into Broadway.
Usually, it’s fresh and fun and frothy; this year, the window is closed. Instead, we’re supposed to watch Hugh Jackma being Barnum (shown here) or John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John being cute.  Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 3, 2020
News and Quick Comments

PBS sets flurry of race-themed shows

PBS – already known for its coverage of racial issues – has set a fresh emphasis for this month.
On Wednesday (June 3), it announced a flurry of new shows and reruns, including a play (“Twilight Los Angeles: 1992, shown here) and many documentaries. That requires cooperation, because some will be on days (Thursdays through Saturdays) when stations have their own line-ups. The plan includes:
– Thursday (June 4): “The Talk – Race in America,” 9 p.m. It’s a 2017 documentary about black families telling their children how to react if stopped by police. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / June 3, 2020