News and Quick Comments

News and Quick Comments

Her two moms brought love, fun and a court case

Ry Russo-Young was a fairly successful director, making scripted movies about fictional people.
Still, she realized that one of the best stories involved real people – her and her two moms. The result is “Nuclear Family” (shown here), an HBO documentary with new episodes on Sundays, rerunning almost daily.
It’s a story that goes back 40 years, to a time before gay marriages and gay parents. Sandy Russo and Robin Young defied tradition: Using different male donors, each gave birth. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 26, 2021
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Hearst: life in the Trump-Murdoch-Kane lane

William Randolph Hearst lived a life of dizzying extremes.
It was part-Trump and part-Murdoch, with bits of the fictional Charles Foster Kane. It rippled with power, both symbolic (a castle, shown here, a movie-star lover) and real, with newspapers, magazines and more.
But there were also parts of Hearst that were surprisingly mellow. “People were expecting something as brash as his newspapers,” Victoria Kastner, a Hearst historian, told the Television Critics Association. “Actually, he was quite courtly and an elegant man with a sense of humor.”
astner – former official historian for Hearst’s San Simeon estate – is one of the commentators in a four-hour “American Experience” profile, from 9-11 p.m. Monday and Tuesday (Sept. 27-28) on PBS. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 24, 2021
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Here’s a one-stop overview of the new season

As the fall seaso starts, new stories keep nudging old ones aside.
Still, I wanted to keep the  fall season-preview package handy. So I’ve put all four stories together here, updating them slightly.
First is an overview; then are three lists rounding up the shows — the scripted ones on broadcast networks (includig “Ghosts,” shown here) … the unscripted broadcast ones … then a sampling of scripted cable shows. Here we go. . Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 22, 2021
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TCA awards get Smart and lasso Ted

Jean Smart’s career has reached a multi-universe: She’s being honored for her past AND her present.
Smart has won the Television Critics Association’s annual Career Achievement award. At the same time, she’s won the Individual Achievement in Comedy award, for her work in “Hacks” (shown here). The awards, announced at 2 p.m. ET today, were led by “Ted Lasso” for program of the year. 
This is the 37th year for the awards and the second straight in which the ceremony was canceled because of COVID concerns. However, Smart could still have her public moment: At the Emmy awards (8-11 p.m. Sunday, CBS), she’s nominated for lead actress in a comedy (“Hacks”) and supporting actress in a movie or mini-series (“Mare of Easttown”). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 15, 2021
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New shows this fall: Here’s a round-up

It’s a small, sturdy crop – this year’s group of new shows on the broadcast networks.
There are only 11 scripted ones at the start of the season, about half the usual total. Many are spin-offs or reboots; most have sent only a rough pilot film, not ready for review. Still, a few shows already stand out. We’ll list them first, then the rest; afterward, there’s a list of broadcast’s new, non-fiction shows; each list is chronological:
The best
– “The Big Leap,” 9 p.m., Mondays, Fox (starting Sept. 20). The fictional notion makes little sense: A national dance show focuses only on contestants from Detroit … concluding with “Swan Lake.” (A reality show, setting up a ballet?!?) Once you get past that, you’ll find deep characters. Scott Foley (shown here) plays the cynical producer; Teri Polo plays someone in mid-life crisis. Other roles go to relative newcomers (led by Simone Recasner as a young single mom); you’ll quickly root for them. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 14, 2021
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Oh Joy: We can spend more money

Here’s what we all need (maybe) … a new way to spend money via our TV sets.
On Oct. 14, cable’s USA Network will debut “America’s Big Deal,” produced by Joy Mangano (shown here), It’s a little bit like “Shark Tank,” except that the businesses will be trying to sell the products instantly to viewers. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 13, 2021
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“Al” will be back (and quite serious), plus more CBS news

For weeks, viewers have had a basic question: Whatever happened to “The United States of Al”?
Now CBS has an answer. “Al” (shown here) – suddenly shelved during the Afghanistan withdrawal – has been rewriting its second-season opener.
Producers have created “an entirely new episode to address the current situation,” said Kelly Kahl, the network’s entertainment president. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 9, 2021
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Good news (partially): Zoey gets a movie

“Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” has just received an extraordinary reprieve.
It’s only a partial one, though. The show remains cancelled, but will have a holiday movie this year on the Roku Channel … which will also show the 25 previous episodes this fall.
“Playlist” (shown here) tells of a young woman in a San Francisco tech company, who suddenly has a strange gift: She can hear people’s thoughts, expressed through pop songs. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / September 8, 2021