1) “Oklahoma City Bombing,” 8-11 p.m., National Geographic. As the 30th anniversary (April 19) nears, here’s a compelling look at the bombing (shown here) that took 168 lives. We meet a woman who was pinned for six hours, another who lost two young sons, a man who fought his way out. We see the coverage, the capture, the quietly taut emotions of Oklahoma people. Read more…
(This is the latest chapter of the book-in-progress, “TV, and How It Got That Way.” To read the overall book, in order, scroll down under “News and Quick Comments.” There, this is the 10th chapter of 12, so far.)
For decades, few people tried to create a fourth network. Then, oddly, everyone wanted to be No. 5.
There was WB and UPN and Pax – each grasping for a small slice of the audience. It was a race to the bottom that, oddly, everyone lost.
Well, not everyone. Viewers won. These mini-networks gave us Buffy (shown here) and Felicity and Dawson and the Gilmore girls, plus two “Star Trek” series, “Everybody Hates Chris” and Jane the pregnant virgin.
They brought variety to a sometimes-bland TV world. Then they crumbled. Read more…
1) “Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story” (2024), 9-11 p.m., PBS. A fascinating life is recounted in this film, which was a hit in New York movie theaters. Liza Minnelli (shown here), 78, has soared (an Oscar, an Emmy, three Tonys an honorary Grammy) and crashed (four divorces, alcoholism, drugs). She recounts it all with optimism, amid a flurry of clips Read more…
