Daily Best Bets
Best-bets for Nov. 20: country stars, nature’s star Best-bets for Nov. 20: country stars, nature’s star Best-bets for Nov. 19: Yes, TV still has comedies Best-bets for Nov. 19: Yes, TV still has comedies Best-bets for Nov. 18: surfers, vampires and da Vinci Best-bets for Nov. 18: surfers, vampires and da Vinci
Stories

In a comedy, it was her cross to bear

By Mike Hughes / November 17, 2024
Stories

Celebrating Cline, 61 years after her death

By Mike Hughes / November 17, 2024
Stories

Tortured genius? No, Leo was the life of the party

By Mike Hughes / November 15, 2024
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Stories

She left a comfy career … and found TV stardom

In the wobbly world of acting, Liza Lapira had found a balance.
She had a day job she liked (as a store manager) and a boss who let her leave for auditions. She did theater and had some TV roles, all while living in her home town of New York, near family and friends.
“I had a really great life,” she recalled by phone. “It felt a little safe and comfortable.” So she left.
These days, that move seems wise – especially if you watch CBS on Sundays. In December, she starred in “Must Love Christmas,” the best of the year’s holiday movies; now “The Equalizer” (shown here) – a ratings hit – is finally back in its 8 p.m. slot. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 17, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 19: “Idol” leads a packed night

1) “American Idol” opener, 8-10 p.m., ABC. The bad news is that this gets monotonous, as judges pour out cascades of praise; we almost wish for a Simon Cowell interlude. And the good news? The praise is well-deserved; the talent is amazing. Watch one little teen (shown here) sit at the piano and give a whole new vibe to a Billy Joel tune … and another give a warm vibe to her own creation. There are even guys who look like a young Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. It’s a strong start. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 17, 2023
Weekly Previews

Week’s top-10 for Feb. 20: Farewell to Meredith and “Mayfair”

1) “Grey’s Anatomy” return, 9 p.m. Thursday, ABC. Ellen Pompeo, shown here, is already a piece of TV history, playing the same character (Meredith Grey) for 19 seasons. Few people (Mariska Hargitay, Kelsey Grammer, James Arness) have topped that in prime time. Now – as the show returns from a 15-week break – it’s Meredith’s last day at the hospital. The doctors plan a surprise, Nick asks about the future and interns compete to be involved in key surgery. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 16, 2023
News and Quick Comments

Beautiful liars are splendid company

As a sleek drama debuts on ABC, it offers a concept that has spanned decades and continents.
“I was compelled at first by the idea of two professional liars who see one another’s truths,” said Julia Cohen, a producer of ABC’s “The Company You Keep.” These two (shown here) are smart, sexy and – they don’t realize – on opposite sides of the law.
That’s the notion that propelled the Korean series this is based on. It also was behind an American tale that writer Elmore Leonard created decades ago.
Now the “Company” opener gets a big push — 10 p.m. Sunday (Feb. 19), after the “American Idol” opener, then rerunning at 10 p.m. the following Thursday, after the return of “Grey’s Anatomy.” It also offers some starpower, with former “This Is Us” star Milo Ventimiglia. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 16, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 18: Re-savor “Heat,” “Magnum,” more

1) “In the Heat of the Night” (1967), 8 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies. Two of our greatest actors (shown here) collide, in a well-crafted mystery. Sidney Poitier plays a big-city homicide cop, reluctantly helping a small-town Mississippi sheriff. Rod Steiger won a well-deserved Oscar in the latter role; there were also wins for best picture and the script, score and editing. It’s a potent Black History Montgh film, followed at 10 by “To Sleep With Anger” (1990). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 16, 2023
News and Quick Comments

Good news: “Poker Face” is renewed

Here’s some good news for TV viewers: “Poker Face” will have a second season.
The show is still wrapping up its first season, with new episodes – terrific ones, mostly – each Thursday on Peacock, through March 9. It has received near-unanimous raves from critics.
That approval comes as no real surprise. The show pairs producer-director-writer Rian Johnson – who has Oscar nominations for both of his “Knives Out” scripts – and Natasha Lyonne (shown here), who seizes attention whenever she’s on the screen. It also revives the mystery-of-the-week format, with Charlie (Lyonne) solving crimes while she’s on the lam. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 15, 2023
News and Quick Comments

Picard ends a 35-year mission … maybe

By now, Patrick Stewart knows this “Star Trek” thing is more than a brief blip in his life.
It’s been, he said, “35 years since I first put on the captain’s uniform …. The world has changed and I have changed too.”
Or not. As “Star Trek: Picard” (shown here with Stewart and LeVar Burton) begins what it calls its final season (Thursdays on Paramount+, starting Feb. 16), he’s remained a potent performer of British classics. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 15, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 16: comedy, cooking and more

1) “Animal Control,” 9 p.m., Fox. This is a solid formulas for big laughs – frisky ostriches, a nasty weasel and Joel McHale. An ex-cop working animal-control, McHale’s character is a darkly acerbic soul, partnered with a cheerful ex-snowboarder. (They’re shown here.) His workplace includes a sexy single, a reluctant homebody (Ravi Patel), a charmingly clumsy clerk (Vella Lovell of “Mr. Mayor”) and more. The result is a fun blend of sharp dialog and big sight gags. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 14, 2023
Stories

Life is sunny again for “Magnum” fans

For a while, “Magnum P.I.” fans were perplexed.
Their show – seemingly a ratings success – was ending. And then it wasn’t.
Then again, the shows stars were also confused. “It was a shock that the show was going to go away in the first place,” Jay Hernandez said. “I was genuinely just confused as to why. (Then) I was surprised that it found another home.”
That’s on NBC, which has an all-Magnum night this Sunday (Feb. 19). Reruns from the CBS days are at 7 and 8 p.m., with new episodes at 9 (shown here) and 10. Eric Guggenheim, the producer, said he kind of knew the show would continue somewhere. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 13, 2023
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Nov. 20: country stars, nature’s star

By Mike Hughes / November 18, 2024
Stories

In a comedy, it was her cross to bear

By Mike Hughes / November 17, 2024
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Nov. 19: Yes, TV still has comedies

By Mike Hughes / November 17, 2024
Stories

Celebrating Cline, 61 years after her death

By Mike Hughes / November 17, 2024
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Nov. 18: surfers, vampires and da Vinci

By Mike Hughes / November 16, 2024