Day: February 28, 2024

Stories

It’s a fresh burst of British eccentricity

When it comes to comedy, Americans have mastered the middle ground.
We’re the land of Jerry Seinfeld, Neil Simon and Carol Burnett, of “Friends” and “Big Bang” and all the late-night comics. Our huor is quick, slick and consistent.
And what about our former overlords? “In England, there is definitely a distinct sense of humor,” Noel Fielding (shown here) said. “And it’s quite eccentric.”
The latest example is his “The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin,” which debuts Friday (March 1) on Apple TV+. Most people will agree that it’s eccentric; some will feel it’s also funny, in a bizarre, British kind of way. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 28, 2024
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for March 1: adventures, silly and serious

1) “The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin” opener, Apple TV+. The real Turpin grew up as a butcher, then became a poacher, horse thief and highway robber; later, he was elevated by fiction and myth. Now we get a fresh take, rippling with odd fun in the Monty Python/Rowan Atkiinson style. This wonderfully self-centered Turpin (left, in disguise) stirs lots of laughs, some of them just silly. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 28, 2024
Stories

Before his death at 42, Canto savored a mobile life

Adan Canto had a richly mobile life.
As a boy, he walked from Mexico to the United States – daily. As a young man, he lived in Mexico City, San Antonio, Manhattan and Los Angeles; he starred in Spanish roles and then in English, including – until his recent death – the male lead (shown here) in “The Cleaning Lady,” which starts its season at 8 p.m. Tuesday (March 5) on Fox.
Canto’s life was so mobile that even this seems logical: His death, Jan. 8, was at his home in … Clear Lake, Iowa. His memorial service was in the same Clear Lake ballroom where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper had their final concert. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 28, 2024