Category Archives: DVDs

Nov 17 2023
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Books, DVDs, Movies, Music, Pop Culture, Television

The Entertainment Forecast

Nov. 17 – Nov. 23

John Hamm is a bad hombre lawman in the new season of Fargo.

FRIDAY, Nov. 17
Please Don’t Destroy: The Legend of Foggy Mountain
Conan O’Brien and Bowen Yang make supporting appearances in this new Judd (Superbad) Apatow comedy romp about a trio of childhood friends fending off bears, a crazy cult leader and park rangers as they head into the wilderness in search of a fabled treasure (Peacock).

Maxine’s Baby: The Tyler Perry Story
Documentary follows the actor/director (above) and movie mogul as it recounts the mother’s enduring love at the roots of his climb to the top of an industry that didn’t always want to include him (Prime).

Dashing Through the Snow
Rapper Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Madison Skye Validum and Lil Rey Howery star in this holiday family comedy about an Atlanta social worker and his Christmas Eve journey with his estranged daughter that helps him find the joy and magic of the holidays (Disney+).

Monarch: A Legacy of Monsters
Kurt Russell and his actor son, Wyatt, star in this generation-spanning series (with both Russells playing the same character, decades apart) based on the movie’s “Monsterverse,” where creatures like Godzilla and King Kong roar and rule (above) (Apple TV+).

SATURDAY, Nov. 18
Christmas Plus One
Emily Alatalo and Corey Seiver star in this holiday flick about an unmarried sister looking for her soulmate and the magazine writer who helps her Christmas wish come true (9 p.m., Lifetime).

Kennedy
Peter Coyote narrates this eight-part documentary about our 35th U.S. president, timed to the 60th anniversary of his assassination and featuring more than 70 new interviews with people who knew him, worked with him and admired him (8 p.m., History).  

SUNDAY, Nov. 19
The Elf on the Shelf: Sweet Showdown
New competition series finds Santa and his Scout Elves joining cake master Duff Goldman to challenge teams of sweet-centric bakers to make edible showpieces that capture the season (8 p.m., Food Network).

The Cunninghams wish you a Merry Christmas!

A Very Merry MeTV
Beginning tonight and continuing (off and on) until Christmas, watch holiday-themed episodes of your favorite retro TV shows, including The Brady Bunch, The Waltons, All in the Family, Sanford and Son, The Twilight Zone, Gilligan’s Island, The Beverly Hillbillies, Happy Days (above) and more (begins 12 noon, MeTV). 

MONDAY, Nov. 20
Spellbound
New teen fantasy series follows a vivacious 15 year old girl (Hailey Melody Romain) who relocates from America to study at the Paris Opera School in France, where she discovers a book of spells that changes her life and illuminates her surprising true identity (Hulu).

Wisdom Gone Wild
A filmmaker collaborates with her elderly mother as they confront the “wisdom” gleaned from the creeping shadows of dementia, in this moving documentary (check listings, PBS).

TUESDAY, Nov. 21
Fargo
Jon Hamm, Juno Temple and Jennifer Jason Leigh are among the cast for the fifth installment of the juicy, award-winning progressive crime drama, this time set almost-contemporary Minnesota and the Dakotas. And tonight’s episode—and the whole new series, actually—has some cool “callbacks” to events in the iconic 1996 Coen Brothers movie that started it all (10 p.m., FX).

Leo
Adam Sandler, Jason Alexander, Cecily Strong, Bill Burr and other funny folks provide voices in this cute animated coming-of-age age tale (above) centered on a classroom pet, a 74-year-old lizard (Netflix).

Groundbreakers
Learn how Title IX—the game-changing legislation that guaranteed all people, regardless of gender, equal access to federally funded sports programs—shaped the lives of eight young woman who went on to excel in the fields of tennis, basketball, soccer, gymnastics and flag football (check local listings, PBS).

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 22
Good Burger 2
New sequel to the ‘90s hit (based on a Nickelodeon comedy series) stars Kenan Thompson, Jillian Bell, Lil Rel Howery and Kel Mitchell as employees at a fast-food chain (Paramount+).

Squid Game: The Challenge
New spinoff of the streaming hit series as new challengers enter the competition in hopes of a nearly $5 million reward that would change their lives—if the “Challenge” doesn’t end them (Netflix).

Genie
Melissa McCarthy stars in this holiday fantasy (above) about an ancient genie summoned for an unlikely mission—to help a man (Paapa Essiedu) who’s lost sight of his marriage and his family (Peacock).

THURSDAY, Nov. 23
The Naughty Nine
Danny Glover stars as Santa in this movie comedy about a group of youngsters planning a heist of Santa’s North Pole village to get the presents they think they deserve (Disney+).

The Thanksgiving Day Parade on CBS
Kick off the holiday with this annual network coverage of one of New York City’s iconic celebrations, a festive process down Sixth Avenue with jolly old St. Nick himself bringing up the rear (9 p.m., CBS).

NOW HEAR THIS

Is there anything she can’t do? Dolly Parton tears it up with some of rock ‘n’ roll’s legendary artists for her latest album, Rockstar, including Sting (on “Every Breath You Take”), Ann Wilson of Heart (“Magic Man”), Peter Frampton (“Baby I Love Your Way”), Deborah Harry of Blondie (“Heart of Glass”), Paul McCartney (“Let It Be”), Pat Benetar (“Heartbreaker”), members of Lynyrd Skynyrd (“Free Bird”) and more on this 30-song collection, that proves why, Dolly, we will always love you.

BRING IT HOME

Now you soar with season one of the Apple TV+ sci-fi drama series For All Mankind (Sony Home Entertainment)—with Joel Kinnaman, Casey Johnson and Shantel VanStanten among the big ensemble cast—as rocket scientists and astronauts push the boundaries of space exploration.

The highly acclaimed movie about the man who invented the atomic bomb and unleashed it into the world comes to Blu-ray and DVD with Oppenheimer (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), with more than three hours of special features.

READ ALL ABOUT IT

If you love Hollywood history, you’ll flip for George Hurrell’s Hollywood (Running Press), the newly updated edition of vintage Tinseltown portraits taken by the great Hollywood “glamour” photographer of the 1920s and ’30. Hurrell, who worked for many of the major studios, photo’d just about everyone across multiple decades, including icons like Bogart, Garbo, Rita Hayworth and Joan Crawford. Author Mark Viera ties some 400 eye-catching images together with words about Hurrell’s long-lasting influence and how his images shaped Hollywood’s visual history.

Christmas comes early for movie fans with Jeremy Arnold’s Christmas in the Movies (Running Press), a lavishly illustrated, freshly expanded examination of some of the most beloved holiday flicks of all time, including what makes them bona fide “Christmas movies.” You’ll love revisiting The Shop Around the Corner, It’s a Wonderful Life, White Christmas, Home Alone and—yes—Die Hard, among the 35 featured films.  

Nov 10 2023
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The Entertainment Forecast

Nov. 10 – Nov. 16

Emma Stone is cursed, NCIS goes Down Under & Blake ‘s ‘Barmageddon’ is back

THURSDAY, Nov. 10
The Curse
Emma Stone and Nathan Fielder (above) star in this new series with Rosemary’s Baby vibes about a newly married couple trying trying to conceive a child—and disturbed by something that sure feels like a curse (10 p.m., Paramount+ with Showtime).

For All Mankind
The acclaimed space-race drama blasts off tonight for season four, as a NASA flight director (Wrenn Schmidt, above) and other Mars colonists work on an asteroid mining operation that could change the future of everything on Earth (Apple TV+).

Salute to Service: A Veterans Day Celebration
Host Jon Stewart and the United States Army Field Band honor service members past and present alongside a star-studded lineup of musical guests, including country entertainer Mickey Guyton, singer/songwriter Amanda Shires and Broadway star Mandy Gonzalez (9 p.m., PBS).

SATURDAY, Nov. 11
Legends of the Fork
Celebrity baker, chef and entrepreneur Buddy Valestro (below) visits restaurants across America to find the secrets of their success (9 p.m., A&E).

Devil on My Doorstep
Jenna Dewan—one of Lifetime’s “stock players”—and Steve Kazee star in this thriller about a delivery dispatcher obsessed with a homeowner, who becomes obsessed too. Enough obsession for a new Lifetime movie (8 p.m., Lifetime).

SUNDAY, Nov. 12
Beacon 23
Sci-fi thriller love story set in the far reaches of the Milky Way involves a government agent (Lena Hedley, below) and an ex-military man (Stephan James) trapped together in a Beacon, a lighthouse for far-flung interplanetary travelers, with an AI whose motives aren’t initially clear (MGM+).

Good Cop, Bad Cop
New series recounts detectives pursing complicated murder cases with startling twists: The perps are fellow member of law enforcement (10 p.m., Investigation Discovery).

MONDAY, Nov. 13
NCIS: Sydney
Sit back and set sail for the first international edition of the hugely popular TV franchise, filmed on location Down Under and elsewhere as a new team of special agents is tasked with keeping criminal waves at low tide in one of the most contested region of ocean in the world. Starring Olivia Swann and Todd Lasance (10 p.m., CBS).

The Ladybird Diaries
New series tells the inside story of one of the most influential and least understood First Ladies in history, featuring audio from some 123 hours of personal and revealing diaries Lady Bird Johnson began recording after the assassination of JFK in 1963 and continuing through her husband’s turbulent administration (Hulu).

Barmageddon
Hosts Blake Shelton, Carson Daly and Nikki Garcia return for season two of the “bar games” fun (below) as celebrity guest compete in drunken axe throwing, air cannon cornhole, keg curling and more (11 p.m., USA Network).

TUESDAY, Nov. 14
A Murder at the End of the World
Murder series about a tech-savvy, Gen Z amateur sleuth (Emma Corwin) who becomes part of something deadly and sinister as a part of a group invited to a remote retreat by a reclusive billionaire (Clive Owen) (Hulu).

Chopped: Julia Child’s Kitchen
Chef competitors put their expertise to the test in this five-part TV tournament with the grand prize of a Julia Child-themed trip to France (8 p.m., Food Network).

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 15
CMT Smashing Glass
New musical special spotlights trailblazing and groundbreaking artists, including honorees Tanya Tucker and Patti LaBelle, with performances and tributes from many others (8 p.m., CMT).

The Battle to Beat Malaria
Oh, great: Something else to worry about—the return of this mosquito-borne mega-threat that continues to plague the globe (9 p.m., PBS). 

THURSDAY, Nov. 16
Best. Christmas. Ever!
Heather Graham, Brandy Norwood and Jason Biggs star in this new holiday movie (above) about a couple of old friends brought together again by fate in the Christmas season (Netflix).

Terror Lake Drive
The anthology series returns for season three as a new South Georgia family mysteriously inherits a luxury vacation home that lures them into the troubled lakeside grounds that so horrified other characters previously (ALLBLK). 

Julia
Eight-episode second season of the original dramatic series about the iconic food star as Julia Child grapples with her rising celebrity, host her own TV cooking show and returns home to France, to find that her success has changed everything (Max).

BRING IT HOME

Get some post-Halloween terror tingles early with The Nun II (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment), the sequel to the 2018 horror hit in the Conjuring universe, as a demon nun wrecks more horrifying havoc in 1956 France. Starring Taissa Farmiga.

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Dogs bark, birds chirp and cows moo. But only humans “talk,” and sometimes, well, we say a real mouthful!  Jason Travis Ott’s Grandiloquent Words (Countryman Press) presents a marvelous look at unusual verbiage, antiquated phrases and fancy-schmantzy, high-falootin’ argot that have festooned our language for centuries.

Find out all about one of the world’s most famous fashionistas in The World According to Yves Saint Laurent (Thames and Hudson), which corrals the visionary couture icon’s maxims and musings on style, elegance, women, models, color, accessories and much more. A fascinating first-person look into the French-born designer who ultimately launched an eponymous fashion empire.

NOW HEAR THIS!

Beatles fans will flip their wigs over the fantastic new reissue of the career-spanning “Red” and “Blue” anthhology albums, available in both CD and vinyl, with all the band’s singles and B-sides from 1962 to 1970, plus new tracks—and the supergroup’s “last” song, “Now and Then,” a John Lennon original given finishing touches by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison.

Nov 03 2023
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Books, DVDs, History, Movies, Photography, Pop Culture

The Entertainment Forecast

Nov. 3 – Nov. 10

Annette Bening’s in deep, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ushers in new members, saddle up with an historic Black lawman & Tim Allen ho-ho-ho-ho’s once more!

FRIDAY, Nov. 3
NYAD
Annette Bening (above) stars in the real-life story of athlete Diana Nyad, a world-class swimmer who gave up the water in exchange for a career as a sportscaster—but, at the age of 60, decides to compete again in a 110-mile swim from Cuba to Florida. Spurring her on: her coach, played played by two-time Oscar winner Jodie Foster. It’s a tale of tenacity, friendship and the triumph of the human spirit (Netflix).

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction 2023
Sheryl Crowe, Willie Nelson, Bernie Taupin, Link Wray and The Spinners are among the musical elite coming into rock music’s hallowed space, tonight, ushed in with tribute performances by Brandi Carlile, Elton John, Dave Matthews, H.E.R. and others (Disney+).

SATURDAY, Nov. 4
Mulan
Watch the 2020 live-action remake (below) of the 1998 animated Disney tale of an adventurous Chinese girl (Yifei Liu) who grows up to become a champion warrior in the Imperial Army. It was nominated for two Oscars (8:05 p.m., Freeform).

You’re Not Supposed to Be Here
New thriller drama flick stars Chrishell Stause and Diora Baird as a same-sex couple who don’t exactly feel welcome when they arrive at their getaway cabin in a remote mountain town (8 p.m., Lifetime).

SUNDAY, Nov. 5
JFK: One Day in America
Three-part documentary takes viewers through every moment of the assassination of John F. Kennedy, 60 years ago, with first-person accounts from those who were there (8 p.m., Nat Geo).

Lawmen: Bass Reeves
David Oyelowo (above) stars in this new streaming series about one of the most legendary lawmen of the Old West, who rose from enslavement to become the first Black U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi, arresting more than 3,000 outlaws. With Barry Pepper, Donald Sutherland and Dennis Quaid (Paramount+).

First Lady of BMF: Tonesa Welch Story
Michelle Mitchenor stars in this new series about a middle-class Detroit woman in the 1980s who launched a notorious drug empire (BET+).

Lost Women of Highway 20
Producer Octavia Spencer (above) explores the trail of missing and murdered women along a ghostly stretch of Oregon roadway in this true-crime docuseries (9 p.m., ID).

MONDAY, Nov. 6
3-Day Weekend
Take virtual tour—or learn what to see in person—in one the Southeast’s most lovely college towns, Chapel Hill, N.C. (9:30 p.m., ACC). 

Three Chaplains
Documentary about Muslim chaplains in the U.S. military, fighting to maintain a balanced devotion to Islam, the Constitution and the American military (10 p.m., PBS).

TUESDAY, Nov. 7
The Curse of Oak Island
The buried treasure hunt deepens in season 11, as the team of excavators continues to dig on the Nova Scotia island for clues to a 200-year-old mystery, encountering some surprising new evidence that confirms earlier rumors about its source (9 p.m., History).

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 8
The Buccaneers
Set in 1870s London, this new series follows a group of American girls who burst onto the tightly corseted scene, kicking off an Anglo-American culture clash and rattling stiff upper lips. Starring Kristine Frøseth, Alisha Boe and Josie Totah (Apple TV+).

The Santa Clauses
Tim Allen continues (above) in the role he launched back in 1994 with season two of this TV-series spinoff, in which his character’s plans to “retire” from saving Christmas are complicated when he can’t find a suitable successor for the job (Disney+).

THURSDAY, Nov. 9
Colin From Accounts
Hit Aussie comedy series starts streaming in the U.S., with stars Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall as two people brought together by a nipple flash, a car accident and an injured dog (Paramount+)

READ ALL ABOUT IT

How did streaming services gobble up eyeballs from “traditional” TV? Find out in Pandora’s Box (William Morrow), author Peter Biskind’s thoroughly engaging breakdown of the “revolution” by which TV supplanted movies as the leading format of entertainment, beginning with HBO’s The Sopranos.

What do “ancient” doodads have to do with the modern world’s colossal engineering feats? A lot! That’s what you’ll learn in Nuts and Bolts: Seven Small Inventions That Changed the World (WW Norton), by Roma Agrawal, an award-winning structural engineer notes how seven teeny-tiny things have been instrumental in the way we now work and live.

Long live the Queen! The royal legacy certainly lives on in Cecil Beaton: The Royal Portraits (Thames & Hudson), an illustrated examination of how the British photographer’s work with the royal family shaped the public face of the House of Windsor across five decades. 

NOW HEAR THIS

It’s not even Thanksgiving yet, but you can get in the mood for the holiday season with Chicago Christmas Complete (Rhino), which pulls from all three of the iconic rock band’s Yuletime albums of yore for this 3-CD collection of classics, including “My Favorite Things,” “O Christmas Tree,” “Here Comes Santa Claus” and “Wonderful Christmas Time,” which features Dolly Parton.

Have a very Cher Christmas (Warner Records) with the iconic pop diva’s first-ever holiday album, featuring some all-star guests (Stevie Wonder, Darlene Love, Cyndi Lauper, Michael Bublè) on a super slate of seasonal songs, including “Run Run Rudloph,” “Please Come Home for Christmas,” “Santa Baby” and four new originals.

BRING IT HOME

Now that the new season of Fargo is about to start (Nov. 11), you can revisit the movie that started it all. Fargo (Shout! Studios)—which was nominated for seven Oscars (and won two) after its release in 1996—is now available in a hi-def 4K edition, with loads of bonus features, including a rolled poster of original theatrical art, a limited edition glass snow globe, commentary by director of photography Roger Deakins, interviews with the Coen Brothers and their star, Frances McDormand, and more!  

Get in the holiday mood with the Lifetime 12-Movie Collection, Vol. 5 (Lionsgate), a ho-ho-ho-romantic roundup of a dozen of the network’s Christmas-themed romances, featuring such all-stars as Jodie Sweetin, Maria Menouos and Patti Labelle.

Hop in the hot rod for the new American Graffiti 50th Anniversary edition (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), which marks the cinematic milestone with its first release in 4K Ultra HD. The 1973 classic marked beginnings and breakthroughs of the movie careers of Ron Howard, Harrison Ford, Cindy Williams, Suzanne Somers and Richard Dreyfuss, plus director George Lucas, who would (of course!) go on to make Star Wars.

Break out the eggnog for The Office: Complete Christmas Collection (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), and ho-ho-ho along with Michael Scott (Steve Carrell) and the other Dunder Mifflin gang in seven holiday classics, including “A Benihaha Christmas,” in which an off-site lunch turns into seasonal shenanigans.

And you better watch out! In Violent Night (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), Santa Claus is coming to town, and he’s not taking any sh*t from anyone when he tumbles down the chimney and into a home that’s in the process of being invaded and robbed. David Harbour is terrific as a St. Nick with a few bones to pick—and break.

Oct 27 2023
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Books, DVDs, Movies, Music, Photography, Pop Culture, Television, TV, Uncategorized

The Entertainment Forecast

Oct. 27 – Nov. 2

Emily Blunt hustles pain, a marathon of ‘Beetlejuice,’ a killer kid & heavy metal Halloween

FRIDAY, Oct. 27
Pain Hustlers
Emily Blunt stars in this new twisty movie (coming off its limited theatrical run tonight and onto streaming) as a jobless blue-collar mom who finds a lifeline—and more drama than she bargained for—when she meets a pharma sales rep (Chris Evans) and his boss (Andy Garcia) and finds herself in middle of a dangerous racketeering scheme, below (Netflix).

Shorsey
Jared Kelso stars in this new comedy series about a Canadian hockey team determined to never lose again (Hulu).

SATURDAY, Oct. 28
Beetlejuice
In the spirit of Halloween fun and a gonzo performance by Michael Keaton, settle in for 24 hours of the 1998 horror comedy costarring Geena Davis, Winona Ryder and Alec Baldwin (3 p.m., TBS).

Would You Kill For Me? The Mary Bailey Story
Melissa Joan Hart stars in this movie (above) based on the true story of an 11-year-old girl coaxed into killing her abusive stepfather by her mother and grandmother (8 p.m., Lifetime).
Lifetime).

SUNDAY, Oct. 29
The Guilded Age
Season two begins of the ornate period drama from Downton Abbey’s Julian Fellowes, about high life in the late 1800s. Carrie Coon, Cynthia Nixon, Jack Gilpin, Nathan Lane and Audra McDonald are among the sprawling cast, above (Max).

Hocus Pocus
Thirty years ago, Sarah Jessica Parker, Bette Midler and Kathy Najimy starred in this now-classic Disney Halloween film as a trio of Salem witches who stir up a cauldron of trouble. Now you can re-watch it on its anniversary (8 p.m., ABC).

MONDAY, Oct. 30
Mayflies
British dramatic series about life, love, dying and the passage of time stars Martin Compston and Tony Curran, in a touching story adapted from a novel by Andrew O’Hagan (Acorn TV).

Hellhouse LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor
Horror flick about a group of young cold case investigators who dare to stay overnight at a place where a series of grisly and unsolved murders occurred in the 1980s (Shudder/AMC+).

TUESDAY, Oct. 31
Heavy Metal Halloween
In addition to other spooky-entertainment programming throughout the day, tonight brings a trio of musical rock docs all in the spirit of the season: Songs about the devil, songs about murder and songs about magic. Happy Halloween! (AXS TV).

Live With Kelly and Mark
The daytime hosts put on their creative costumes and usher in a bunch of celebrity guests for this Halloween special (syndicated, check local listings).

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 1
Ancient Earth: Humans
How did we get here? Using cutting-edge animation, this eye-opening new documentary traces the history, evolution and spread of the planets’s most advanced mammals, the upright humanoids (9 p.m, PBS) 

Black Cake
Based on a bestselling novel by Charmaine Wilkinson, this new streaming drama series follows about a pair of modern-day siblings as they discover the legacy of the mother, who disappeared off the coast of Jamaica in the 1960s under suspicion of murder (Hulu)

Ryan Ashley is a judge on the tattoo competition series ‘Ink Masters.’

Ink Master
New season of the tattoo competition series begins tonight with host Joel Madden, the lead singer of the band Good Charlotte, returning to host more epic ink battles (Paramount+).

THURSDAY, Nov. 2
All the Light We Cannot See
Mark Ruffalo, Ari Mia Loberti and Hugh Laurie lead the cast of this limited series (below), based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about a blind French girl and her father fleeing German-occupied Paris with a legendary diamond to keep it from falling into the hands of Nazis (Netflix).

Kingdom Business
Season two of the drama series further explores the lives of fictional gospel music characters in a state of chaos after lust, love and denial have created a rift in the “kingdom.” With Yolanda Adams, Michael Jai White, Loretta Devine, Louis Gossett Jr. and Michelle Williams (BET+).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

One of the most storied songwriters in all of music, Willie Nelson, tells all in Energy Follows Thought: The Stories Behind My Songs (William Morrow), in which the “Red Headed Stranger” digs into the details of 160 of his tunes, plus his superstar collaborators and friends, his extended musical “family” and the themes that have inspired him. It’s a must-have for Willie-philes!

BRING IT HOME

DC’s Blue Beetle, about a young man (Xolo Maridueña) gifted with extraordinary powers who decides to become a superhero, comes to DVD after its short theatrical run.

It’s bigger, fatter and Greek-er than ever. It’s My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, writer/director Nia Vardolos’ latest installment of her quasi-autobiographical romcom trilogy, which comes to DVD loaded with bonus content, including commentary and behind-the-scenes features about making the picture on location in (where else?) Greece.

NOW HEAR THIS

Beatles fans will groove to the super new 2023 editions of the band’s career-spanning albums, 1962-1966 and 1967-70 (known as the “Red” and “Blue” LPs), which contain all the hits—plus, now, one last Beatles song, “Now and Then,” written and sung by John Lennon with contributions from Paul McCarthy, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, and finally finished as a post-Beatles single, 40 years later, by McCarthy and Starr. The Apple Corps/Capitol/UME release is available on CD and vinyl.

Oct 20 2023
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The Entertainment Forecast

Oct. 20 – Oct. 26

Funny ‘Dads,’ serious ‘Bosch’ & a Wonder Woman two-fer

Bokeem Woodbine, Bobby Cannavale and Bill Burr are “Old Dads.”

FRIDAY, Oct. 20
Everyone Else Burns
Simon Bird and Kate O’Flynn star in this new British-based sitcom series about a puritanical family preparing for a big move—away from the woes of Earth, avoiding the fires of hell and basking in blissful eternity. Can they “save” themselves, and anyone else who’ll listen? (9:30 p.m., The CW).

Old Dads
Bill Burr, Bobby Canavale and Bookeem Woodbine star in this new comedy flick as a trio of guys who become fathers later in life and have a steep learning curve with school principals, millennial CEOs and a world that’s changed a bit since the 1980s (Netflix).

Bosch: Legacy
Titus Welliver returns (above) to the role of the former homicide detective, based on the lead character of crime novels by Michael Connelly, in season two of the hit procedural series as he seeks out a killer before he finds him first. With Mimi Rogers (Freevee).

SATURDAY, Oct. 21
NFL Icons
Season three of the pigskin docuseries profiles Pro Football Hall of Famers Jim Brown, Charles Woodson, Bill Cowher and Mike Singletary (MGM+).

Wonder Woman Day
Stretch out with your golden lasso and enjoy Gal Godot (above) in her two standalone films as the warrior princess, back to back in Wonder Woman and its sequel, Wonder Woman 1984 (12:45 p.m., TBS).

SUNDAY, Oct. 22
Fear the Walking Dead
In season eight, Madison (Kim Dickens) goes about making the old Stadium a safe haven, but it attracts some unwanted attention—of the walking dead kind! (9 p.m., AMC).

WB 100th Anniversary Movie Monster Marathon
Pick yous favorite monster and watch ‘em go in this all-day slate of three Godzillas, a Kong, one Meg and Dwayne Johnson’s Rampage (10:45 a.m., TNT)

Godzilla roars in three movies this Sunday.

AKA Mr. Chow
Find out how a lad from Shanghai would eventually triumph over childhood trauma, personal loss and systemic prejudice to forge a new identity and open the first of what would become his franchise of iconic Chinese restaurants (9 p.m., HBO)

MONDAY, Oct. 23
The Royals: A New Era
New documentary examines the state and future of the monarchy in the modern world a year after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, featuring interviews with palace confidants and royal experts (9 p.m, The CW).

Rembember Milli Vanilli (above)? Find out what happened to the lip-synching pop duo in a new documentary.

TUESDAY, Oct. 24
Milli Vanilli
Girl, you know it’s true. This documentary tells the story of Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan, two childhood friends who became superstars in the late-‘80s duo Milli Vanilli—before a career-ending lip-synching incident led to their downfall (Paramount+).

Help! I’m in a Secret Relationship!
Well, it won’t be secret much longer now that you’re disclosing it on season two of this reality show, in which people who think they’ve found the loves of their lives discover it’s really only a pack of lies (9 p.m., MTV).

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 25
Spy in the Ocean, A Nature Miniseries
Go deep into the seas and discover what it’s like to dive with sharks, leap high above the water with a dolphin or swim like an octopus in this new series, which uses high-tech cameras designed and disguised to look like marine animals (8 p.m., PBS).

Life on Our Planet
New documentary series shows the battle for adaptability and survival that has shaped our planet since the beginning of time (Netflix). 

THURSDAY, Oct. 26
American Horror Story
The bloody-good horror anthology returns for the fall with a four-episode “Huluween” event (Hulu). 

The Vanishing Triangle
New original psychological thriller series (above) is inspired by true events that shook Ireland in the 1990s, when several women disappeared, never to be seen again. With India Mullen and Allen Leech (Sundance Now).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Fans of ‘80s rock will groove to Police Diaries (Rocket88), drummer Stewart Copeland’s firsthand account of the early days of The Police, the British trio that took over the charts with “Every Breath You Take,” “Roxanne,” “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” and many more hits. Packed with photos from Copeland’s deep personal archive, “it’s a big, noisy book about one heckuva ride.”

It’s the fuel that keeps us going, but some of our food is disappearing. In Endangered Eating: America’s Vanishing Foods (WW Norton), food historian author Sarah Lohman points out the growing list of local comestibles in danger of extinction and the urgent efforts by farmers, shepherds and fishers to save them.

Afterlife is big business and a deep-set cultural touchstone, and author Greg Melville unearths the details in Over My Dead Body (Abrams), a colorful history of cemeteries, interment customs and other practices of saying our final goodbyes.

BRING IT HOME

You’re gonna need a MUCH bigger boat for Meg 2: The Trench (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment) in which Jason Statham returns to face an even bigger fin foe—and other monstrous creatures—from the deepest depths of the ocean.

Dracula hitches a ride on a merchant ship and makes his way from the Old World toward England in The Last Voyage of the Demeter (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), the latest bloody adventure of novelist Bram Stoker’s iconic blood-sucker. Features include an alternate opening, commentary, and a look in the filmmaking process of conjuring up a nautical nightmare for the screen.

Sep 29 2023
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Books, DVDs, Movies, Music, Pop Culture, Television, TV

The Entertainment Forecast

September 29 – October 5

Emma is ‘Cruella,’ Brits rock, ‘Family Guy’ turns 22 & Milla fights monsters!

Emma Stone stars in Cruella on Disney+.

FRIDAY, Sept. 29
Gen V
What happens at a college especially for young adults who want to become superheroes? Find out in this zingy new series (below) connected to The Boys and starring Jensen Ackles, Patrick Schwarznegger and Lizzie Broadway (Prime).

The New York Times Presents: How to Fix a Pageant
Investigative docuseries digs into the Miss USA and Miss Universe organizations, a recent scandal, and how the “beauty pageants” are struggling to remain successful, relevant and significant in the modern world (10 p.m., FX). 

Brits Rock!
Cool! This block of programming celebrates the music and legacies three iconic British rock artists: The Beatles, Adele and David Bowie (All Arts TV).

Reptile
Benicio del Toro, Justin Timberlake (above) and Alicia Siverstone star in this new network original movie about the brutal murder of a young real estate executive and a hardened detective who attempts to uncover the truth in a case where nothing is as it seems (Netflix).

Flora and Son
Eve Hewson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt star in this original drama about a mom, her rebellious teenage son (Orén Kinlan) and how the transformative power of music brings them together in newfound harmony (AppleTV+).

SATURDAY, Sept. 30
Hot Dish with Franco
World-class chef Franco Noriega puts his Peruvian and Italian roots down in the kitchen for some hot-stuff, flavorful dishes in this new culinary series (12 p.m., Food Network).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

It’s never too early to think about Christmas! The Christmas Book (Phaidon) is a treasure trove of the traditions, lore, rituals and spirituality of “the most wonderful time of the year” with photographs, paintings and other pop-cultural artifacts. Santa, Scrooge, snow, nutcrackers, silent nights, nativity scenes—it’s all here, and more!

Fans of ‘80s rock will groove to Police Diaries (Rocket88), drummer Stewart Copeland’s firsthand account of the early days of The Police, the British trio that took over the charts with “Every Breath You Take,” “Roxanne,” “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” and many more hits. Packed with photos from Copeland’s deep personal archive, “it’s a big, noisy book about one heckuva ride.”

We know the ocean is big, it’s deep and it’s the stuff of folklore and legend. But Helen Czerski’s The Blue Machine: How the Ocean Works (WW Norton) reminds us how the vast sea is a massive aquatic engine, constantly churning with energy, life and raw materials. Read it and marvel anew—and raise your awareness of how this ancient, gravity-defying feature of the Earth’s topography, now faces new, modern environmental threats.

Take an armchair trip to some of the world’s most scenic getaways in The Alps (Phaidon), with hundreds of photos of winter-playground places in France, Switzerland, Italy, AAustria and Germany. Here, you don’t have to be a celebrity—or a wealthy international traveler—to enjoy the views.

SUNDAY, Oct. 1
Family Guy
Seth McFarlane’s classic animated sitcom for grownups returns for season 22 tonight. Meg’s having a baby, Peter takes flight and Stewie gets his rock-star on! (9:30 p.m., Fox).

Jack Osborne’s Night of Terror
Ozzy’s son launches another season of spine-tingling paranormal investigations (below), kicking off with a trip to a haunted hotel in Santa Paula, Calif., accompanied by his mom, Sharon (10 p.m., Travel Channel).

MONDAY, Oct. 2
Spin’s 100 Greatest Rock Stars Since That Was a Thing
You wanna rock? Then tune in for this new docuseries, spotlighting all the greats—Elvis, Kurt Cobain, Jimmy Page, David Bowie, Grace Slick, and many more, with commentary from Dee Snider, Stewart Copeland, Carnie Wilson and other musical icons. Rock on! (8 p.m., AXS).

The Partridge Family
C’mon, get happy! All 96 episodes of the classic ‘70s TV musical sitcom series (below), about a peppy “family band” of rock musicians (led by Shirley Jones and David Cassidy), return to TV beginning today as part of the network’s new “Retro Binge,” which also includes The Monkees (9 p.m., AXS).

TUESDAY, Oct. 3
The Found
Shanola Hampton—she played Veronica Fisher in Shameless—now stars in this new weekly series as a foster care professional searching for a missing 14-year-old, but the case becomes much more complicated than she first imagined (10 p.m., NBC). 

Cruella
Emma Stone plays a young villainess-in-making (who’d grow up to be Cruella Deville of 101 Dalmatians) in this feisty, fab-fashion live-action 2021 remake of the Disney classic (7:50 p.m., Freeform).

BRING IT HOME

Get ready for Halloween with some of the greatest ghouls of all time: Universal Classic Monsters (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), the new eight-disc set of restored, 4K versions of The Invisible Man, The Mummy, Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, Phantom of the Opera and The Creature From the Black Lagoon. Plus, an accompanying book is filled with rare pix, and trivia.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 4
Monster Hunter
Not many people saw it when it was released theatrically in the early days of the COVID pandemic. Not you can watch it twice, back to back, as model-turned-sci-fi-actress Milla Jovovich kicks some serious monster butt in a futuristic, apocalyptic world, all based on a popular video game (7:20 p.m., FXM).

Quantum Leap
Season two of the sequel series to the 1989-93 TV drama stars Raymond Lee as a physicist who discovers many wrongs to right after his “unauthorized” leap into the past. Plus, he has a sweetie (Caitlin Bassett) he left behind (9 p.m., NBC).

THURSDAY, Oct. 5
Our Flag Means Death
Season two of the high-seas pirate comedy sets sail tonight, with filmmaker/actor Taika Waititi in the lead role of this swashbuckling tongue-in-cheek tale loosely based on real-life 18th century would-be buccaneer Stede Bonnet (Max).

Accused: Guilty of Innocent
What happens when someone is formally charged with a crime and sent to the courtroom? New season of the true-crime series picks up tonight with more inside stories of people facing the wheels of justice for serious crimes they are alleged to have committed. But did they?  (10 p.m., A&E).

Sep 01 2023
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Books, DVDs, Movies, Pop Culture, Sports, Television, TV

The Entertainment Forecast

Friday, Sept. 1 – Thursday, Sept. 7

‘The Little Mermaid,’ love in the Smoky Mountains & a sordid scouting scandal

Disney’s live-action ‘Little Mermaid’ comes ashore for streaming this week.

FRIDAY, Sept. 1
The Wheel of Time
Season two begins tonight, about a farm boy who may destroy the world and a group of sorceresses fighting his power and madness (below). With Rosamund Pike (Prime Video).

Power Book IV: Force
The hit franchise returns tonight, as Tommy Egan (Joseph Sikora) charts new territory, capitalizes on his competitors’ weaknesses and makes a play at becoming Chicago’s top drug dealer (8 p.m., Starz).

SATURDAY, Sept. 2
Unforgotten
No, it’s not the Clint Eastwood Western, which was Unforgiven—but rather season five of the British crime series in which London detectives solve a new variety of cold-case disappearances and murder (9 p.m., PBS)

SUNDAY, Sept. 3
Love in the Great Smoky Mountains
Arielle Kebbell and Zach Roerig (above) star as a pair of former sweethearts who rediscover romance while working together on a project in the nation’s most-visited national park (8 p.m., Hallmark).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

You’ll get the “feels” with Motherhood (Tate Publishing), a heartwarming collection of visual representations of motherhood as depicted by artists over the centuries.

A host of vocalist all-stars tell what it’s like to do what they do in The Singers Talk (Permuted Press), featuring more than 70 revealing, wide-ranging interviews, including Tony Bennett, Emmylou Harris, Lionel Richie, Bruce Springsteen, Dionne Warwick, Rod Stewart, Willie Nelson, Stevie Nicks, Ozzie Osborne and many more!

Fans of everything royal will delight at Queen Elizabeth II: A Photographic Portrait (Thames & Hudson), a splendid collection (and reflection) on the royal highness and her 70 years on the throne, from her first official baby portrait to her Platinum Jubilee last year. More than 200 images, from acclaimed photographers, trace her life and reign, with essays by bestselling historian and author Philip Ziegler.

MONDAY, Sept. 4
Secrets of Penthouse
Four-episode series tells the true story of the rise and fall of Bob Guccione, who made millions as the founder of Penthouse magazine, which challenged Playboy for the girlie-mag market—and pushed the envelope of adult publishing further than it had ever been before (9 p.m., A&E)

Ancient Empires
Three-night event explores the legacies of Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Cleopatra (8 p.m., History).

While We Watched
Strong-stuff documentary offers an unfiltered looks at NDTV, once the bastion of information within India’s TV networks, now spiraling downward in waves of fake news, financial setbacks, creeping nationalism and extremist attacks on truth. It’s a snapshot of a world in crisis, told through the microcosm of one television network that stands as a representative of modern journalism (10 p.m., PBS). 

TUESDAY, Sept. 5

BRING IT HOME

Worlds collide in the acclaimed Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment), in which multiple versions of the character intersect in a dazzling spectacle of animated adventure. With Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Velez, Jake Johnson, Jason Schwartzman, Issa Rae, Karan Soni, Daniel Kaluuya, Mahershala Ali and Oscar Isaac.

The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City
The reality series returns for a new season (below) with frigid family dynamics, red hot international travel and a shocking betrayal that none of the women saw coming (9 p.m., Bravo).

One Shot: Overtime Elite
Six-part sports documentary series follows the new generation of NBA top draft-pick rookies, led by Amen and Ausar Thompson, Jakhi Howard, Rob Dillingham and Eli Ellis (Prime).

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 6
Scouts Honor: The Secret Files of the Boy Scouts of America
How did the Scouts try to cover up one of history’s most horrific sexual abuse scandals? Find out in this documentary, which talks to whistleblowers, survivors and former BSA employees (Netflix).

The Little Mermaid
Disney’s recent live-action re-imagining of its “under the sea” music-filled classic comes today to streaming, with Halle Bailey as Ariel, Javier Bardem as King Triton and Melissa McCarthy as the evil Ursula (Disney+).

THURSDAY, Sept. 7
The Dead Files
Season three of the spooky reality series finds psychic medium Cindy Kaza and homicide detective Steve DiSchiavia teaming up again for more investigations of the paranormal (10 p.m., Travel).

Virgin River
Alexandra Breckinridge (above) returns as midwife “Mel” Monroe for season five of the romantic drama series as the characters face a shocking breakup, a wrenching court trial and a wildfire that threatens their northern California town (Netflix). 

Aug 25 2023
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The Entertainment Forecast

Aug. 25 – Aug. 31

Cinderella gets a new shine, life in Ireland, way-out crimes & Elvis’ Army days

FRIDAY, Aug. 25
Cinderella
Disney returns to its roots with this newly restored high-def version of its 1950 animated film classic. And didja know: A young Mike Douglas, who’d later become famous as a TV talk-show host, provided the singing voice of Prince Charming!  (Disney+).

The Escape of Carlos Ghosn
New docuseries details the true story of a CEO turned fugitive, his relentless climb to the top the corporate ladder in Japan, his shocking arrest and unbelievable escape to Lebanon (Apple TV+).

SATURDAY, Aug. 26
Napa Ever After
Above: After inheriting her grandmother’s winery in Napa Valley, a high-powered attorney (Denise Boutté) decides to renovate the property, with the help of a handsome local handyman (Colin Lawrence) (9 p.m., Hallmark).

Attenborough: Behind the Lens
Find out how the revered documentary filmmaker, who recently celebrated his 97th birthday, kept pushing for new ways to tell natural history for viewers using the latest technologies around the world, in every kind of climate (8 p.m., BBC America).

SUNDAY, Aug. 27
The $100,000 Pyramid
In tonight’s season finale, Wendi McLendon-Covey (from The Goldbergs) pits wits with Matt Walsh (Veep), and Amanda Kloots (host of The Talk) vies with Marcus Lemonis (The Profit) for a spot in the winner’s circle (8 p.m., ABC). 

MONDAY, Aug. 28
Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland
New series (above) takes you inside the country, and alongside the real people living in its ongoing conflict (check local listings, PBS).

Love Island
Above: Which of the beautiful couples/contestants will win the viewers’ votes will win the reality competition—set in a secluded villa where they are followed constantly (Big Brother style) with cameras and recorded by microphones—in its season 5 finale? Reality? Hardly! (Peacock).

TUESDAY, Aug. 29
A Murder at the End of the World
New murder mystery series stars Emma Corrin as an amateur sleuth trying to put the pieces of a horrific crime together inside the remote and isolated compound of a reclusive billionaire. With Clive Owen (Hulu).

Archer
The hip award-winning animated series returns tonight for its 14th and final season as Sterling Archer navigates the changing landscapes of the modern spy world (10 p.m., FXX)

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 30
Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zone
Travel the world with author Dan Buettner to discover five unique communities where residents live extraordinarily long and vibrant lives (Netflix).

My Strange Arrest
An in-depth looks at people who are arrested for (allegedly!) committing some really weird, way-out crimes (10 p.m., A&E).

BRING IT HOME

Far, far away from The Hunger Games, Jennifer Lawrence stars in the wildly raunchy comedy No Hard Feelings (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment) as a young woman hired to “make a man” of a wealthy couple’s son before he leaves for college. Yeah, that.

Learn all about the movies with The Complete Story of Film (MusicBox Films), the new box set of two acclaimed, immersive documentaries from director Mark Cousins with  definitive discourses on the development, innovations and themes of cinema around the world.

THURSDAY, Aug. 31
One Piece
A young man and his pirate crew explore a fantastical new world in search of treasure in this new adventure-filled live-action adaptation of a Japanese manga series (Netflix).

The Pact
It’s season two of the is edge-of-your-seat morality tale with lovable, complex characters under extreme pressure, navigating blood ties and divided loyalties while facing the ghosts of their past. Starring Rakie Ayola, Lloyd Everitt, Aaron Anthony and Mali Ann Rees (Sundance Now and AMC+).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

You’ve probably seen the G.I. days of Elvis referred to in documentaries and such, but usually as a passing chapter of his life before he came “home” to continue rockin’. Now in My Army Days with Elvis (Xulon Press), author Johnny Lang recalls his time as Presley’s Army buddy (in Germany, 1958-1960), where they trained, played football…and partied! It’s a rare, personal glimpse in the musical superstar during a period when he was serving his country, and from from the glare of the celebrity spotlight.

Aug 11 2023
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Books, DVDs, Movies, Television, TV

The Entertainment Forecast

Aug. 11 – Aug. 17

A double dose of Elvis, a search for barbecue & telemarketer whistle blowers

FRIDAY, Aug. 11
Men In Kilts: A Road Trip with Sam and Graham
Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish hit the road again (above) for a second season of adventures, this time exploring the Down Under world of New Zealand (9:30 p.m., Starz).

Red, White and Royal Blue
In this new feature film, the son of the U.S. president and a British prince find themselves in the middle of a tabloid frenzy, out of which a deeper relationship develops. With Uma Thurman and Clifton Collins Jr. (Peacock).

NOW HEAR THIS

Celebrate the milestone 50th anniversary of Elvis Aloha From Hawaii via Satellite with a deluxe reissue of the groundbreaking 1973 event and album, loaded with bonus content—three discs of remastered and enhanced material, including a dress rehearsal, plus a 28-page booklet and the first-ever Blu-ray release of the original broadcast. Groove to such Elvis classics “Burning Love,” “My Way,” “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” “Suspicious Minds” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” and a hunka-hunka lot more!

SATURDAY, Aug. 12
Hip Hop Treasures
Have you any hip hop treasures? You might, and LL Cool J and Ice T can let you know when they come to your door. They’re hosting this new series in which they track down down conic memorabilia from the musical era of hip hop, now celebrating the format’s 50th anniversary (10 p.m., A&E).

Kings of Barbecue
Black-ish star Anthony Anderson and comedian Cedric the Entertainer (above) travel across the country and fire up the grill in search of their one of their favorite foods, and the people who make it, in this new docuseries (9 p.m., A&E).

SUNDAY, Aug. 13
Telemarketers
Docuseries about two amateur sleuths in the early 2000s who set out to expose a crooked industry from within. It’s a madcap, sometimes witty odyssey stretching over 20 years into the dark side of American capitalism and the misuse of consumer trust (10 p.m., HBO).

Billions
The award-winning hit series (above), exploring a group of suit-and-tie money moguls embroiled in an escalating war driven by power, money and greed, returns for its seventh and final season, with Damian Lewis, Paul Giamatti, Corey Stoll and Maggie Siff (8 p.m., Showtime).

MONDAY, Aug. 14
Solar Opposites
Season four begins of the animated chaotic comedy series (below) about a group of space aliens who can’t decide if Earth is awesome, or awful. Voices by Dan Stevens, Thomas Middleditch, Mary Mack and Sean Giambrone (Hulu).

TUESDAY, Aug. 15
Re-Inventing Elvis: The ’68 Comeback
Documentary examines the dramatic creation of the groundbreaking hour-long TV event that triggered the comeback of Elvis Presley (Paramount+).

The Love Experiment
New dating-game twist features a relationship expert guiding three young women through a literal “hall” of eligible men, and coaching them on how to make the best choices (10 p.m., MTV).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Go deep into football’s past in Gridiron Legacy by Gregg Ficery (Gramarye Media/The Story Plant), which traces the sport’s origins all the way back to its muddy roots in the late 1800s. It’s a treasure trove of forgotten sports history and pics, long before the Super Bowl and millionaire superstar athletes were a thing.

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 16
Grown-ish
Oh, more college drama! Dean Miller recruits Aaron (Trevor Jackson) to convince Andre (Marcus Shribner) and the rest of their fraternity to cultivate a relationship with a problematic alum (10 p.m., Freeform).

THURSDAY, Aug. 17
The Wonder Years
The family embarks on a road trip to Austin College, the makes a stop at Disneyworld, where Bill (Dulè Hill) meets up with some old bandmates and reflects on his life choices (9:30 p.m., ABC).

Tracy Morgan: Takin’ It Too Far
The former SNL star goes on stage for this stand-up comedy special from the Wilbur Theater in Boston, where he takes on a variety of topics, including the 2014 car crash that left him with several broken bones and a brain injury (Max).

Aug 04 2023
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The Entertainment Forecast

Friday, Aug. 4 – Thursday, Aug. 10

Sigourney’s ‘Lost Flowers,’ a Boy in the Walls, Lovers Who Kill and Musical Stars Find their Superfans

FRIDAY, Aug. 4
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart
Sigourney Weaver (above) stars in this film adaptation of Holly Ringland’s internationally best-selling book, about a woman who learns troubling, decades-deep secrets about her family after a wrenching tragedy (Prime).

Women on Death Row
They are the rarest of criminals—women who have been found guilty of murder and sentenced to die. Each episode of this new series follows a harrowing trial and its proceedings that ultimately set the wheels turning for capital punishment—and shows how some of these women are facing their fates (9 p.m., A&E).

SATURDAY, Aug. 5
A Boy in the Walls
A family in rural Connecticut discover there’s someone secretly living in their home in this thriller (above) starring Ryan Michelle Bathe, Luke Camilleri and Cassandra Sawtell (8 p.m., Lifetime).

Great Chocolate Showdown
Ten top bakers complete tonight by building chocolate Tic-Tac-Toe boards and a diorama. And mom always told you not to play with your food! (8 p.m., The CW).

Debbie Reynolds and Frank Sinatra in ‘The Tender Trap.’

SUNDAY, Aug. 6
Celebrating Debbie Reynolds
Celebrate the singer, dancer and actress whose career spanned nearly 70 years—and who was the mom of Star Wars’ Carrie Fisher—in this daylong collection of some of her top movies, including The Affairs of Dobie Gillis, Bundle of Joy, The Unsinkable Molly Brown, Singing in the Rain, The Tender Trap and The Gazebo (Turner Classic Movies).

MONDAY, Aug. 7
Meet Marry Murder
Actress Helen Hunt returns as narrator for season two of this true-crime series about spouses who kill their partners. Yikes! (10 p.m., Lifetime).

BRING IT HOME

More fast cars, more spectacular crashes, more revenge, more crowd-pleasing, turbo-charged destruction. That’s Fast X (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), the latest full-throttle epic in the successful franchise, with a sprawling ensemble cast that includes Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, John Cena, Brie Larson and Helen Mirren. Vrooom, y’all!

TUESDAY, Aug. 8
Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the New York Jets
What’s it like to knock heads with a pro team on the football field. This documentary takes you inside the Jets’ training camp in Florida, where coach Robert Saleh puts newcomers and returning superstars (Aaron Rogers! C.J. Mosley) through their grueling paces (10 p.m., Max).

Only Murders in the Building
New season of the comedy whodunnit (above) starring Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez as three residents of an apartment complex where the mysteries—and murders—just keep piling up (Hulu).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Experts on all things Oz-ian can dig up the bricks in the Yellow Brick Road in The Characters of Oz (McFarland), a fascinating collection of academic essays on the characters and themes of L. Frank Baum classic that became a landmark movie. Two of my favorite parts of the book were a deeps analysis of the Winged Monkeys, and a new way of looking at the Cowardly Lion!

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 9
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series
How many colons can I used in this blurb: Maybe two or three: Maybe more. Tune in tonight to kick off the final season of the Emmy-nominated series based on the High School Musical movie franchise, about a group of high schoolers puttin’ on one last, blowout show (Disney+).

Superfan
Unscripted series—call it reality TV if you’d like—about six music-superstar acts (Kelsea Ballerini, Gloria Estefan, Little Big Town (above) , LL Cool J, Pitbull and Shania Twain—and their biggest fans (8 p.m., CBS).

THURSDAY, Aug. 10
Painkiller
Matthew Broderick (above), Taylor Kitsch and Uzo Aduba lead the cast in this new fictionalized series about America’s opioid crisis, its perpetrators and its victims, and a system of accountability that repeated failed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans. Hello, Emmy nominations (Netflix).

Rap Sh!t
Season two begins tonight of the Issa Rae-produced drama about a pair of high school friends (Aida Osman and KaMillion, above) who form a rap group but are challenged to conform to the demands of the music industry (Max).

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