Best-bets for Aug. 11: murder, Muppets and Olympic finale

1) Olympics finale. Women’s basketball wraps ups, with the bronze-medal game at 5:30 a.m. ET on the USA Network and gold at 9:30 a.m. on NBC. Then comes NBC’s overall recap at 11 a.m. and the closing ceremony at noon, with Paris (shown here) trying to match the grandeur of the opening ceremony;. Both will repeat, from 7-11 p Read more…

1) Olympics finale. Women’s basketball wraps ups, with the bronze-medal game at 5:30 a.m. ET on the USA Network and gold at 9:30 a.m. on NBC. Then comes NBC’s overall recap at 11 a.m. and the closing ceremony at noon, with Paris (shown here) trying to match the grandeur of its opening, Both will repeat, from 7-11 p.m.

2) “Jim Henson, Idea Man,” 8:33 p.m., ABC. Two terrific talents link. Ron Howard, an Oscar-winning director of scripted movies, has switched lately to documentaries. Now he profiles the late Henson, whose wonderfully offbeat humor has propelled “Sesame Street” and lots of Muppets movies and series.

3) More documentaries. Two more films debut, with major subjects. History has “American Godfathers” from 9-11 p.m. on three straight days, with Michael Imperioli (“Sopranos”) producing and narrating a look at the five Mafia families. MGM+ has “Hollywood Black” at 10 p.m. on four Sundays, viewing Blacks in movies.

4) “Magpie Murders,” 9 and 10 p.m., PBS. Over three Sundays, PBS will rerun one of the best “Masterpiece Mystery” tales. A mystery novelist is killed and his book’s final chapter is missing. Susan (Lesley Manville) tackles two mysteries (one real, one fictional) and imagines conversations with the book’s detective.

5) “Industry” season-opener, 9 p.m., PBS. The first two seasons focused heavily on two young women, trying to get a foothold in an upscale London bank. Now both are at turning points … and we get a view from the top. Kit Harington (Jon Snow in “Game of Thrones”) arrives as a rich CEO with a troubled past.
— Mike Hughes, TV America

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