The new ‘Knives Out,’ celebrating Dick Van Dyke and Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
FRIDAY, Dec. 12 Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Adventure Det. Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) “goes to church” for his most baffling case yet in the third Knives Out murder mystery, with a cast that also includes Glenn Close, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washinton, Cailee Spaeny and Thomas Haden Church (Netflix).
Starring Dick Van Dyke Celebrate the life and career of legendary actor—known for films like Bye Bye Birdie, Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, TV ‘s Diagnosis Murder and his classic CBS sitcom—on his 100th birthday (9 p.m., PBS).
One More Shot A woman (Emily Browning) finds a bottle of tequila that lets her time-travel to try to win back her old flame (Sean Keenan) in this time-loop comedy (check streaming listings).
SATURDAY, Dec. 13 The Family Film and TV Awards Who says they’re nothing worthwhile about movies or TV? Tonight’s 28th annual ceremony, hosted by Julie Chen Moonves, will honor excellence in family-oriented programming. Jeff Probst, the host of Survivor, and magicians Penn & Teller will receive special honors (8 p.m., CBS and Paramount+).
A Charlie Brown Christmas Lucy recruits Charlie Brown to direct the gang’s holiday play. Can he find the perfect tree, and discover the true meaning of Christmas? (Apple TV+).
The Heisman Trophy Ceremony Who’ll be the 2025 honoree as college football’s top player? Tune in tonight to find out in the live ceremony hosted by Sunday Night Football play-by-play announcer Chris Fowler (7 p.m., ABC).
SUNDAY, Dec. 14 Best Elf Marathon Back-to-back showings of Elf, Fred Claus and The Polar Express (begins 4:30 p.m., AMC).
Avatar: The Way of Water The 2022 sci-fi action epic, about human-like creatures who are quite at home on a moon called Pandora. Until, that is, they’re threatened again by humans (7 p.m., ABC).
MONDAY, Dec. 15 Hope of the Season: Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir The world-renowned choir’s new holiday spectacular is packed with classic carols and holiday favorites for a 90-minute concert featuring songs and stories of hope for audiences of all ages (8 p.m., PBS).
The FBI As the holidays approach, the team finds three slain sex workers inside a brownstone and uncover the murderer has a larger plan in place that they must rush to stop (8 p.m., CBS).
TUESDAY, Dec. 16 Great Performances: Nutcracker from English National Ballet For many, it wouldn’t be Christmastime with this classic stage portrayal of Tchaikovsky’s beloved holiday musical featuring some 100 dancers and musicians (8 p.m., PBS).
The Secrets We Bury A Long Island family unearths a decades-old mystery around their father’s disappearance (9 p.m., ID).
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 17 IHeart Jingle Ball 2025 The season’s iconic holiday music event features the year’s top artist performances and star-studded appearances to ring in holiday cheer (8 p.m., ABC).
THURSDAY, Dec. 18 The Wolf Wars Docuseries details Europe’s most expensive wildlife battle—the killing of wolves—and uncovers a tale of threats, harassment and secret networks where money, power and high-stake politics reign (Viaplay).
Jimmy Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning Spectacular The late-night host searches for the holiday spirit in New York, corralling Meghan Trainor, Cara Delevingne, Dolly Parton, the Jonas Brothers, Justin Timberlake, The Roots, LL Cool J and “Weird Al” Yankovic into the holiday spirit (9 p.m., NBC).
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Comic books ain’t what they used to be. Case in point: Fantastic Adventures in the Comics (McFarland), in which author William Schoell looks back (fondly) at the genre from the 1940s into the ’80s, when pulpy pioneers were venturing boldly into the unknown, particularly outer space, where all sorts of strange creatures thrived, “space babes” were welcome aboard any mission, and imaginations were free to run wild.
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Laugh again to ‘toondom’s classic cat and mouse with Tom and Jerry: The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958), a roundup of more than 100 theatrical shorts starring the acclaimed, Oscar-winning Hanna-Barbera duo that became global icons for gags, chases and slapstick violence. This special edition also includes a booklet and commentary.
Clooney is ‘Jay Kelly,’ Melissa McCarthy stays up late & Shaq has a dunk-athon
FRIDAY, Dec. 5 Jay Kelly George Clooney teams with Adam Sandler for this heart-tugging comedy (above) about an actor confronting his past, which also features Billy Crudup, Riley Keough, Laura Dern, Isla Fisher, Greta Gerwig, Stacy Keach and Patrick Wilson among its sprawling cast (Netflix).
Spartacus: House of Ashur The gladiator drama kicks off with two back-to-back episodes about arena fighters, nobles, villains, champions and backstabbers in ancient Rome (Starz).
The Family McMullen Connie Britton, Tracee Ellis Ross and Edward Burns (who also directed) star in this followup to Burns’ acclaimed ‘90s indee The Brothers McMullen (HBO Max).
SATURDAY, Dec. 6 Reindeer in Here Based on the award-winning Christmas book, you’ll be charmed by the heartwarming story of how a young reindeer and his friends band together to save the future of Christmas (8 p.m., CBS).
Dinner & a Movie Tonight hosts Jason Biggs and Jenny Mollen swoon over Reese Witherspoon’s 2002 romcom movie Sweet Home Alabama (8 p.m., PBS).
Saturday Night Live Melissa McCarthy returns tonight to host the iconic late-night show for the sixth time (11:30 p.m., NBC).
SUNDAY, Dec. 7 The Wonderful World of Disney: The Santa Claus Tim Allen takes over for Santa in this 1994 Christmas comedy featuring Judge Reinhold (9 p.m., ABC).
MONDAY, Dec. 8 Predators Dive deep into an unnerving investigation of Dateline’s to Catch a Predator, pulling back the curtain on the show’s complicated legacy (Paramount+).
Password Holiday Special Keke Palmer host a special holiday-themed episode of the classic game show, with Jimmy Fallon and Jonathan Groff as celebrity guests (8 p.m., NBC).
TUESDAY, Dec. 9 Fixer Upper: Colorado Mountain House Three-part series finds Chip and Joanna Gaines remodeling a 1960s mountain property into a family retreat nestled in the Rockies (9 p.m., Magnolia).
A Motown Christmas Smokey Robinson and Halle Bailey host this two-hour special of music from Motown legends and today’s hottest stars celebrating iconic Hitsville USA classics and holiday favorites (9 p.m., NBC).
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 10 Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season two begins in the YA fantasy series (above) based on The Sea of Monsters, the second book in the best-selling series by Rick Riordan (Disney+).
Merv When their beloved dog Merv loses his spark after their split, Anna (Zooey Deschanel) and Russ (Charlie Cox) are forced into an awkward co-parenting arrangement (Amazon Prime).
THURSDAY, Dec. 11 Little Disasters Four new moms (Diane Kruger, Jo Joyner, Shelly Conn and Emily Taafe) become entangled in a web of circumstances that threatens to destroy their friendship and their families, above (Paramount+).
Dunkman Shaquille O’Neal rounds up 40 of the world’s greatest dunkers to compete for the coveted title of Dunkman (7 p.m., TNT).
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You can rock and roll all night, and long after that, with the new remastered 50th anniversary set of the landmark KISS album Alive! Released in both CD and LP formats, it’s a deluxe box set loaded with 120 tracks, 88 of them previously unreleased, and including rehearsals. Re-live the sonic boom of “Strutter,” “Deuce,” a Peter Criss drum solo…and, of course, “Rock And Roll All Night.” Plus a reprint of a 1975 press kit, pics, a T-shirt iron-on and much more!
A ‘Christmas Vacation’ marathon, Hallmark goes country & the Grinch steals Christmas…again!
Beverly D’Angelo & Chevy Chase in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.’
FRIDAY, Nov. 28 Left-Handed Girl A conservative Taiwanese grandfather forbids his young left-handed granddaughter from using her “devil hand,” unraveling generations of family secrets (Netflix).
The Baltimorons Director Jay Duplass’s tale of a couple (Michael Strassner and Liz Larson) on a wild Christmastime adventure through Baltimore (Sundance Now and AMC+)
SATURDAY, Nov. 29 National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation Marathon It wouldn’t be Christmas season without this 1989 Chevy Chase comedy, and you can watch a full 24 hours of it. Didya know this is the only film in the Vacation franchise to NOT feature the Lindsey Buckingham song “Holiday Road”? ( 8 p.m., TNT).
A Grand Ole Opry Christmas TV movie about a young woman confronting her past when Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry invites her to honor her late country star dad at their Christmas celebration. Watch for real-world Opry stars Pam Tillis, Bill Anderson, Riders in the Sky and Brad Paisley (Hallmark).
SUNDAY, Nov. 30 Words + Music New musical performance spotlight series (above) kicks off tonight with John Legend, with following episodes to feature fellow Grammy winners Elvis Costello, Sheryl Crow and Alanis Morissette (MGM+).
Savvy Sheldon Feels Good as Hell Glee’s Amber Riley stars in this tale (adapted from a Harlequin novel) about a woman who loves to cook…and a kitchen re-modeler who may become the missing ingredient needed to heat up her love life (8 p.m., The CW).
MONDAY, Dec. 1 Troll 2 When a dangerous new troll is awakened, unleashing devastation across Norway, adventurers Nora (Ine Marie Wilmann), Andreas (Kim Falck) and Captain Kris (Mads Sjøgård Pettersen) are thrust into their most perilous mission yet (Netflix).
The Merchants of Joy Heartwarming doc (above) about Christmas tree merchants in New York City who turn local streets into jolly holiday outposts every year (Prime).
TUESDAY, Dec. 2 CMA Country Christmas Lauren Daigle and Jordan Davis host this musical holiday spectacular, with performances by Riley Green, Lady A, Little Big Town, Parker McCollom and many others (9:01 p.m., ABC).
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 3 My Secret Santa A vivacious single mom (Alexandra Brekenridge) in need of a job decides to disguise herself as a man to get get a gig as the seasonal Santa at a luxury ski resort. With Ryan Eggold and Tia Mowery (Netflix).
Oh. What. Fun A star-studded cast (Michelle Pfeiffer, Felicity Jones, Denis Leary, Chloë Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, Eva Longoria) play members of a loving but dysfunctional family in this heartwarming comedy about the unsung heroes of any holiday season: the moms! (Prime Video).
Christmas at Rockefeller Center Reba McEntire hosts the holiday celebration from the iconic plaza in Midtown Manhattan, with performances by Halle Bailey, New Edition, Gwen Stefani and more (8 p.m., NBC and Peacock).
THURSDAY, Dec. 4 Next Level Baker Carla Hall and Candice Nelson join Gordon Ramsey as mentors in this all-new three-week event challenging top-tier bakers to create eye-popping holiday delights as the triple-decker set is transformed into a winter wonderland (9 p.m., Fox).
Do You Fear What I Fear It’s no friendly game of “Secret Santa” when a young woman discovers Christmas decorations disappearing in her home, accompanied by anonymous notes. Starring Cianna Hanna and Josh Henderson (8 p.m., LMN).
How the Grinch Stole Christmas / Frosty the Snowman Tune for these two back-to-back, half-hour animated classics, friendly TV “ghosts” of Christmas past (8 p.m., NBC).
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Saddle up for Yellowstone: The Complete Series, the new DVD set of the modern-day western that launched five TV spinoffs. All five seasons (with a sprawling cast including Kevin Costner, Kelly Reilly, Luke Grimes and many others) are here, plus a wagon-load of special features and behind-the-scenes moments.
June Squibb stars in the acclaimed Eleanor The Great (AV Entertainment) as a retired woman who tells a tale that takes on a life of its own—and makes a new friend, a young college student (Erin Kellyman) working to become a journalist. It’s a cross-generational delight. (Purchase at https://www.moviezyng.com/eleanor-the-great-dvd-june-squibb/043396646841)
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The music of so many movies is so important to how we absorb what we’re seeing. Case in point: The new Jaws soundtrack (Universal), newly released with scene-setting “mood music” from Oscar-winning John Williams, all newly remastered for the movie’s recent 50th anniversary. You may not be able to hum them, but you’ll certainly recognized the movie moments that go with “Chrissie’s Death,” “The Indianapolis Story,” “Preparing the Cage” and—of course—the “Main Title/Theme.” Duh-dum, duh-dum, duh-dum, duh-dum…
A ‘Raymond’ reunion, a great escape & Chris Hemsworth’s memorable ‘Road Trip’
Former castmates remember “Everybody Loves Raymond” Monday night.
FRIDAY, Nov. 21 Train Dreams Drama about Robert Grainier (Joel Edgerton), a logger and railroad worker who leads a life of surprising depth and beauty in the rapidly changing America of the early 20th century (Netflix).
Friendsgiving Marathon What are Friends fans thankful for? That today, they can watch episode after episode of their favorite ‘90s sitcom (11 a.m., TBS).
SATURDAY, Nov. 22 Toronto Airport Uncovered Documentary goes for the first time behind the scenes at Canada’s biggest and busiest airport, revealing how they keep millions of passengers and thousands of planes moving, even in record-breaking snowstorms (8 p.m., National Geographic).
SUNDAY, Nov. 23 The Great Escaper Michael Caine stars as real-life Bernard Jordan, who made global headlines in 2014 by staging a “great escape” from his care home to join fellow war veterans on a beach in Normandy to commemorate their fallen comrades at the D-Day Landings 70th anniversary (9 p.m., PBS).
A Road Trip to Remember Actor Chris Hemsworth turns the spotlight on his father, Craig, who was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, as they embark on a road trip to revisit places from their past and explore the powers of social connections (8 p.m., National Geographic).
MONDAY, Nov. 24 Bel-Air Tonight begins the fourth and final season of the reimagined high-school sitcom based on Will Smith’s hit ‘90s TV series, starring Jabari Banks, Adrian Holmes and Cassandra Freeman—and guest starring Tyra Banks (Peacock).
Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion Ray Romano hosts this celebration of the popular sitcom, which ran for nine seasons, with cast members including Brad Garrett, Patricia Heaton, Monica Horan and Sullivan Sweeten, with tributes to departed Doris Roberts and Peter Boyle (8 p.m., CBS)
TUESDAY, Nov. 25 The Ugly Stepsister Darker version of the Cinderella story about a young girl (Lea Myren) who battles her gorgeous stepsister, resorting to extreme measures to captivate the prince (Isac Calmoth) in a ruthless competition for physical perfection (Hulu).
Sidelined 2: Intercepted Noah Beck and Siena Agudong star in this YA drama about a freshman star QB suffering a setback and a dancer who begins to question the future she thought she wanted (Tubi).
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 26 Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age The award-winning natural history series (above) turns back the cosmic clock millions of years, to the dramatic emergence of new prehistoric life after dinosaurs became extinct. Tonight it begins with the playful sloths of the Pleistocene. Actor Tom Hiddleston narrates the five-part series (Apple TV+).
Stranger Things Fifth and final season (at least that’s what they say) of the smash sci-fi series stars Millie Bobby Brown, Wynona Ryder, Maya Hawke, Finn Wolfhard and Noah Schnapp, leading to a grand finale on New Year’s Eve (Netflix).
Louvre Heist: Minute by Minute How did those thieves brazenly rob more than $100 million of the world’s greatest treasures—and get away with it, at least for a while? Find out in this hour-long special (10 p.m., Discovery).
THURSDAY, Nov. 27 The Artist An eccentric and failing tycoon (Mandy Patinkin) hosts celebrities of the Gilded Age (including Thomas Edison and Edgar Degas) in this two-part drama series…and the truth about a shocking murder comes out. With Janet McTear, Danny Houston and Hank Azara (The Network).
Classic TV Thanksgiving Settle in before getting a bellyful of turkey with T’giving-themed episodes of The Waltons and Everybody Loves Raymond, plus some classic toons (starts 7 a.m., MeTV).
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A family fights for survival in the Hollywood Hills, caught between a raging wildfire and a pack of savage coyotes. Justin Long and Kate Bosworth star in the horror flick Coyotes. As if raging California wildfires aren’t scary enough, right?
Good evening, as the legendary “Master of Suspense” would say in the intro to his groundbreaking ‘50s and ‘60s series. Now you can own all 263 episodes with Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Legacy Collection (AV Entertainment), featuring some of the most recognizable actors of the era, including Robert Redford, Clint Eastwood, Steve McQueen, Walter Matthau, Peter Falk, Teresa Wright and Leslie Nielsen. (Available for purchase at https://zyng.us/UFFI4P
A beloved franchise gets a fond farewell in Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment), ending 15 years of TV and big-screen drama about Britain’s Crawley family and their staffers as they enter the 1930s in financial trouble and dealing with a scandal. Starring Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern and Paul Giamatti.
Disney’s Freakier Friday updates the original 2003 body-swap comedy with this new romp, reuniting original stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan in a new family misadventure. Bonus features reveal the fun and laughs that went on behind the camera, and the connections between the two tales.
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If you’re a Beatles fan, you’ll flip your wig over The Beatles’ AnthologyCollection, a massive 12 LP set newly restored and expanded. It includes the three groundbreaking Anthology double albums from the mid-1990s, plus a new compilation, Anthology 4. With 191 tracks (including 26 never before released on vinyl), studio outtakes, live performances, broadcasts and demos that reveal the musical development of The Beatles from 1958 to the band’s final single, “Now And Then,” released in 2023.
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Music lovers will love Land of a Thousand Sessions: The Complete Muscle Shoals Story 1951-1985, author Rob Bowman’s insightful, encyclopedic 750-page account of how a teeny Alabama hamlet became a top recording hot spot beginning in the 1950s, eventually attracting superstars like Aretha Franklin, The Rolling Stones, Leon Russell, Joe Cocker, The Osmonds, Willie Nelson and hundreds more.
A new John Lennon doc, a JoBros Christmas, Ken Burns’ Revolutionary War and Charlie Brown’s T’Giving TV tradition
FRIDAY, Nov. 14 One on One Documentary offers a rare inside at the first year of former Beatle John Lennon and wife Yoko Ono living in New York City in the early 1970s, when the city was rocked by an explosion of creativity and political activism (8 p.m., HBO).
A Very Jonas Christmas The Jonas Brothers usher in the holidays with this lively movie in which they face a series of escalating problems as they try to make it from London to New York for Christmas. Watch for guests Billie Lourd, Laverne Cox, Andrea Martin, Kenny G, Randal Park…and Jessie Tyler Ferguson as Santa! (Disney+).
SATURDAY, Nov. 15 A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving It’s over 50 years old, but this Peanuts classic never gets old as Peppermint Patty invites the gang to Charlie Brown’s house for Thanksgiving, and Snoopy decides to cook his own feast with some help from his friends (Apple TV+).
SUNDAY, Nov. 16 Landman Taylor Sheridan’s series about oilmen in the boomtowns of West Texas begins season two tonight, with Billy Bob Thornton, Demi Moore, Andy Garcia and Ali Larter returning to their roles (Paramount+)
The American Revolution Peter Coyote narrates director Ken Burns‘ new docuseries, a sprawling, six-part, 12-hour examination of America’s war for independence. The all-star cast also features Kenneth Branagh, Josh Brolin, Morgan Freeman, Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep and Samuel L. Jackson (PBS).
MONDAY, Nov. 17 Gingerbread Land: The Biggest Little Holiday Competition Top bakers face off in the “biggest little gingerbread competition” ever, building edible worlds from scratch. Hosted by Oliver Hudson (9 p.m., Food Network).
June Farms New original unscripted series about June Farms, in West Sand Lake, N.Y., and its staffers during the hustle-bustle wedding season (Prime).
TUESDAY, Nov. 18 Smurfs When Papa Smurf (John Goodman) is taken by a pair of evil wizards, the Smurfettes lead a mission into the real world to rescue him. Other voices in the new animated adventure include Rihanna, Nick Offerman, James Corden, Dan Levy, Amy Sedaris, Nick Kroll, Hannah Waddingham and Alex Winter (8 p.m., MGM+).
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 19 The 59th Annual CMA Awards Morgan Wallen and Laney Wilson (above, also the night’s host) lead the pack of nominees—with five nods each, including Entertainer of the Year—for the live ceremony honoring the best in country music, with performances by BigXthaPlug, Luke Combs, Ella Langley, Megan Moroney, Shaboozey and more (8 p.m., ABC)
Champagne Problems Minka Kelley stars as an ambitious M&A executive who travels to France to secure the acquisition of a world-renowned Champagne brand, but her plans are upended when she falls into a whirlwind romance with a charming Parisian—who turns out to be the founder’s son (Netflix).
Man on the Inside Season two finds Charles (Ted Danson, above) going undercover at a college to become a “mole” in a PI’s secret investigation. Mary Steenburgen, Max Greenfield, Stephanie Beatriz and more make guest appearances (Netflix).
THURSDAY, Nov. 20 Ghosts Sam and Pete get on each other’s nerves during a book tour road trip, when an air strike threatens their ability to get home in time for Thanksgiving (8:30 p.m., CBS).
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In Splitsville, two couples discover the farcical downside to open marriage. Starring Adrina Arjona, Kyle Marvin, Dakota Johnson and Michael Angelo Covino (who also directed).
In the bonkers true tale of Secret Mall Apartment (Music Box Films), a group of young artists build a habitable place for themselves inside, yes, a shopping mall—and live there for four years, while filming it all. But their squirreled-away apartment wasn’t a prank, they say. Instead, it was a living art project, one with a meaning and message about community.
The first two seasons of the Emmy-winning The Morning Show, about the turbulent highs and lows of a fictitious New York news network—with an ensemble cast led by Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Anison and Billy Crudup—now comes to DVD and Blu-ray. Time to catch up on all the scandal, rivalry, loyalty, power grabs and more!
A college quarterback with his eye on prize of going pro meets his NFL idol…and a hella lot of weirdness. Marlon Wayans and Tyriq Withers star in Him, a grueling gridiron-centric horror show. (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment).
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For young readers (and Swifties!) in your realm, consider giving them What Are Taylor Swift’s Eras (Penguin Young Readers), with all the deets about her record-setting Eras Tour, which spanned five continents and included more than 150 shows. See the outfits! Re-live the albums and the songs! All all hail, Taylor Swift!
Learn about the long history of what we surround ourselves with inside the places we live, in The Story of the Interior (Thames & Hudson), which explores the social, cultural and technological history of interior design from prehistory into the modern era. And how what we live “in” shapes how we live, work, learn and play.
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Frank Sinatra’s “melancholy masterpiece” album of lost love and heartbreak, In the Wee Small Hours (Blue Note), celebrates its 70th anniversary with a newly remastered vinyl release. Tracks include “Mood Indigo,” “Ill Wind,” “Dancing on the Ceiling” and “This Love of Mine,” with tunes from the songbooks of Cole Porter, Richard Rogers, Duke Ellington, Hoagy Carmichael and others.
Fans of classic rock will dig Bold as Love, the newly released and freshly remixed box set commemorating the 1967 album from The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Sony). It’s four discs of guitar-god goovery, with tracks in both stereo and mono, rarities, rehearsals, live cuts and TV and radio promo appearances. Plus a 44-page book, and Hendrix’s version of another band’s hit song of the day, “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.”
The 25th anniversary reissue of Brian Wilson: Live at the Roxy Theatre (Oglio Records) shows the genus co-founder of The Beach Boys on stage in Hollywood performing the magic of his music. Available in a variety of formats (single CD, an expanded version, digital and LPs), it includes performances of Beach Boys classics including “California Girls,” “I Get Around,” “Good Vibrations” and more, plus other songs.
Paul McCartney’s post-Beatlesband, Wings, is the subject of the new hit-filled musical anthology available in multiple formats (LPs, CDs and Blu-ray discs). It charts the band through its course of becoming one of the biggest-selling acts of all time, and it’s packed with songs including “Band on the Run,” “Listen to What the Man Said,” “With a Little Luck,” “Junior’s Farm,” “Live and Let Die,” “Helen Wheels,” “Silly Love Songs” and much more (Umusic).
Get your ya-ya’s out with the new Super Deluxe Edition of Black and Blue (Interscope/Ume), an colossolly expanded remix collection of The Rolling Stones’ groundbreaking 1976 album. Available as 5 LPS or 4 CDs, it contains all the hits—“Hot Stuff,” “Fool to Cry,” “Hand of Fate”—plus a gollywhopping amount of extras, including a Blu-ray of a live Stones concert, a 100-page book, outtakes and jams. I know: It’s only rock ‘n’ roll. But I like it!
Reba’s ‘Happy’ again, a $200 million-dollar picture & oh, those minx-y ‘Morman Wives’
FRIDAY, Nov. 7 Happy’s Place Reba McEntire (above) kicks off season two of her hit workplace sitcom with two back-to-back episodes as her character inherits her father’s tavern and discovers a new business partner—the half-sister she never knew she had (8 p.m., NBC).
Pluribus New series from the creative team that brought us Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad is also set in Albuquerque, and stars Rhea Seehorn, Karolina Wydra and Carlos Manuel (Apple TV+).
Frankenstein Director Guillermo del Toro’s bold new take on author Mary Shelley’s iconic horror classic stars Oscar Issac, Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz and Euphoria’s Jacob Elordi as the monster (Netflix).
SATURDAY, Nov. 8 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Tune in to watch Bad Company, Chubby Checker (above), Joe Cocker, Cyndi Lauper, Outkast, Soundgarden and The White Stripes receive rock’s highest honor and be lauded in all-star tribute performances (8 p.m., Disney+).
Terry McMillan Presents: Preach, Pray, Love After her release from prison, a former rap star (Karrueche Tran) finds a romantic soulmate in a charismatic young minister (Mark J.P. Hood) (8 p.m., Lifetime).
SUNDAY, Nov. 9 Killer Grannies Oscar-nominated actress June Squibb hosts this new true-crime series about senior citizens who kill (8 p.m., Oxygen).
The Critics Choice Documentary Awards Find out which films were voted by critics as the best documentary productions this year, with nominees including Orwell: 2+2 = 5, The Alabama Solution, Pee-Wee as Himself and The Perfect Neighbor (streaming on Facebook, YouTube and X).
MONDAY, Nov. 10 The Warfighters: Battle Stories Two-hour documentary spotlights America’s elite Special Operations Forces and its war on terror fought by Army Rangers, Navy SEALS, Green Berets and Marines (8 p.m., History).
A Salute to Service 2025 Country star Trace Adkins (above) is featured in this program featuring rousing musical performances by the U.S. Army Field Band and others, plus profiles of veterans across the generations (9 p.m., PBS).
TUESDAY, Nov. 11 The Great War and the Great Gatsby Carnegie Hall hosts this musical production—a concert with suspense and drama—exploring the experiences of World War I (8 p.m., PBS).
Mysteries Unearthed with Danny Trejo Actor Trejo returns to host season two of this exploration of mysteries and buried treasures…like the remnants of a killer asteroid twice the size of the Superdome and a 1938 comic book worth a cool quarter of a million dollars (10 p.m., History)
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 12| Picturing Shakespeare There are only two accepted portraits of William Shakespeare that are considered “official,” but one that’s been hanging over a mantlepiece for the last 50 years could be the third. It could be worth as much as $200 million…if it is genuine (10 p.m., PBS).
Palm Royale Kristen Wiig returns for season two of the comedy series set in the tony circles of Palm Beach high society. With Laura Dern, Carol Burnette, Allison Janney, Mindy Cohn and Ricky Martin (Apple TV+).
THURSDAY, Nov. 13 The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Season three of the Emmy-nominated series (above) brings more drama as friendship loyalties shift, trust is tested and a war over morality begins between #Momtok and #Dadtok groups (Hulu).
Tiffany Haddish Goes Off Six-episode docuseries follows the Emmy award-winning comedian/actress on a journey to Africa on a girls’ trip with three childhood friends (Peacock).
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You probably knew some monumental creativity came from Italy, but you had no idea just how deep artistamazoic roots went down over the centuries. Find out in Italy: In the Footsteps of Great Artists (Thames & Hudson), author Nick Trend’s fascinating guided tour of more than 20 great artists who lived, worked and created timeless masterpieces in Florence, Bologna, Naples, Milan and other places on the Italian peninsula.
How did the universe begin? In First Light: Switching on the Stars at the Dawn of Time (Bloomsbury), British astrophysical expert Emma Chapman lays out the science of tracing the history of the cosmos and the very beginnings of the Cosmic Dawn, when the first stars burst into light. If you’re interested in what’s up there and how it all went down, it’s very enlightening!
Find out the full story about how a book by British author P.L. Travers made it to the screen in Making Mary Poppins (W.W. Norton), author Todd James Pearce’s wide-ranging, deep-digging tale of Walt Disney, the songwriting Sherman brothers (who wrote the iconic music for the 1964 film), and how the movie became a pop-cultural milestone. A must-read for Disney buffs!
The beat goes on in Backbeats: A History of Rock and Roll in Fifteen Drummers (Simon and Schuster). Music-historian author John Lingan unspools six decades of musical history through profiles of its backline timekeepers—the drummers—and their contributions to some of rock’s greatest hits. The guest list includes Ringo Starr, Hal Blaine, Dave Grohl and more. Totally dig-able.
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A ’70s classic now available for the first time in 4K and Blu-ray, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest stars Jack Nicholson in his first Oscar-winning role, as a patent in a mental facility who inspires his fellow patients to assert themselves. Louise Fletcher also got an Oscar for her role as the icy Nurse Rached.
It’s classic yuks galore with Laurel & Hardy: The Definitive Restorations Vol. 2, with newly remastered versions of eight “shorts” (from the late 1920s and ‘30s), plus a load of bonus content, including a 1936 promotional film, Galaxy of Stars, and This is Your Life: Laurel & Hardy, from 1954.
You’re never too old to rock ‘n’ roll! Or to get a giddy thrill watching Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, as David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel and Derek Smalls (Michael McKeen, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer) reunite for one final concert…with a couple of VERY special guests stopping by.
Get ready to laugh, ’cause The Naked Gun is back! The new hilarious remake of the 1988 cop-comedy stars Liam Neeson as the son of the investigator played by Leslie Nielsen in the original, putting his own spin on his role as a bumbling police lieutenant out to save the world from an evil genius. With Pamela Anderson and Danny Huston.
One of the year’s best horror flicks comes to DVD with Together (Neon), starring Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a couple who encounter a mysterious malevolent force that threatens to infect their lives, their love and their flesh in ways, that, well…make your skin crawl. It’s “body horror” in a twistedly original way.
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Just ahead of its milestone 100th anniversary, the venerable Grand Ole Opry is releasing Opry 100: Country’s Greatest Songs (Virgin Music Group), a hand-picked selection of 20 classic tunes (like “Your Cheatin’ Heart,” “El Paso,” “Crazy” and “Ring of Fire”) pulled from Opry broadcast archives of live performances by original artists (Hank Williams, Marty Robbins, Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash and more) as well as “next-gen” Opry members, like Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Combs and The Old Crow Medicine Show.
A ‘Halloween’ marathon, the return of Robin Hood & how Harry Chapin’s ‘Cat’s in the Cradle‘ touched just about everyone
FRIDAY, Oct. 31 Halloween on Halloween Happy Halloween! How better to celebrate than with this marathon of Halloween movies, starting with the original and continuing through its five sequels! (Begins 6:30, AMC).
The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Marathon Tune in for a full day (well, 17 hours) of spook-tacular stuff in this 11th annual event featuring the characters from TV’s longest running comedy series—and a parade of alien invasions, horror film parodies and frights bigger than Homer’s donut cravings (starts 7 a.m., FXX).
SATURDAY, Nov. 1 Oktoberfest: Beer and Blood In 1900s Munich, an ambitious brewer uses brutal tactics to build a beer hall that will dominate the city’s lucrative Oktoberfest event (Netflix).
SUNDAY, Nov. 2 Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking Actors James and Oliver Phelps (who played Fred and George Weasley) return for season two of the six-episode competition built around the enduring fantasy franchise, with appearances by other cast members sharing their memories about working on the films (8p.m., Food Network).
Robin Hood Welcome to Sherwood! The new reimagined 10-episode series—based on the classic tale of the roguish outlaw hero who stole from the rich and gave to the poor—stars Jack Patten, Lauren McQueen, Sean Bean and Connie Nielsen (MGM+).
MONDAY, Nov. 3 Malice Jack Whitehall and David Duchovny star in this new twisty psychological revenge thriller about an extended family vacation in Greece that takes a very wrong turn (Prime Video).
Life After Film investigates assisted dying when death seems like the only option (10 p.m., PBS)
Crutch This new comedy series set in the world of CBS’ The Neighborhood stars Tracy Morgan as a Harlem shop owner whose life gets tossed a curve ball when his son and daughter move back home (Paramount+).
TUESDAY, Nov. 4 All’s Fair Watch the first three episodes of this new series (above) about a team of female divorce attorneys who leave their male-dominated firm to open their own powerhouse practice. Starring Kim Kardashian, Naomi Watts, Niecy Nash-Betts, Sarah Paulson and Glenn Close (Hulu).
Cat’s in the Cradle is a fine music doc about Harry Chapin’s heart-wrenching ode to parenthood and how it impacted an entire generation of music makers who heard it, including Pat Benatar, Billy Joel and Dee Snider of Twisted Sister (check streaming services).
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 5 Operation Space Station Celebrate the 25th anniversary of the continuous human presence in space with this doc all about the International Space Station—an object the size of a football field orbiting the Earth at 17,000 mpg—and the technology and people power that made it possible (9 p.m., PBS).
Finding Joy An unlucky-in-love New York fashion designer (Shannon Thornton) finds her romantic life is change with some Colorado holiday magic (Prime Video).
THURSDAY, Nov. 6 Wicked: One Wonderful Night Ahead of the much-anticipated theatrical part two of the smash film musical on Nov. 21, you can gear up with this two-hour special featuring stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, joined by their costars and other guests as they perform songs from the first movie…and throw in some bewitching surprises (8 p.m., NBC).
All Her Fault Sarah Snook stars in this new drama (above) about a mom who experiences every parent’s worst nightmare in a play-date mix-up with her son. The ensemble cast features Jake Lacy, Dakota Fanning and Michael Peña (Peacock).
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It’s beginning to look—and sound—a lot like Christmas! Especially with the Classic Holiday Singles Box Set (Universal Music), which corrals 28 holiday tunes from classic crooners (Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Brenda Lee, Elvis and The Beach Boys, to cite a handful) on 14 color vinyl 7” 45s. Settle in for some spins of this retro Yule treat!
Vroom! The Cars celebrate the 40th anniversary of one of their biggest, quadruple-platinum albums with Heartbeat City (Deluxe Edition), a 4-CD/1 LP set that contains hits like “Magic,” “Drive,” “YouMight Think” and “Hello Again,” plus rare cuts and a complete 1984 concert. As The Cars themselves once told us in song, “Let’s go!” (Rhino).
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How much do you know about the Japanese animation form known as anime? Well, you’ll know a lot more after reading Ultimate Anime: 100 Essential Films and Series (Thames & Hudson). Author Joe O’Connell breaks down the format with wide-ranging explorations on its creators, genres and cultural influence, in this visually rich spotlight.
Rock fans, you’ll dig The Royal We (Akashic Books), the memoir from Roddy Bottum—who co-founded the bands Faith No More and Imperial Teens—about his early career in the freewheeling punk scene of San Francisco to his mainstream breakthrough as an outwardly queer man in a homophobic hard rock scene. Plus, his intersections with Courtney Love and Robert Plant, and opening for Metallica.
In The Far Edges of the Known World (W.W. Norton), author Owen Rees takes us down a time tunnel, centuries ago, to when dwellers all over the ancient world thought the edges of their cultures marked the harsh boundaries between civilization and a realm of monsters, heathens and myths. It’s a fascinating journey across the globe—and a chance to get to know the people who actually called the distant hinterlands home.
You’ll be humming “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and a lot of other tunes too, when you read The Music of Baseball (McFarland), author George Boziwick’s spritely look at how the soundtrack of “America’s Pastime” has evolved throughout a century of wars, social upheaval, racial integration and a move to the west Coast.
Dig into the history behind some of Hollywood’s most iconic horror and sci-fi classics in Creature Feature Creators (McFarland), author Tom Weaver’s wide-ranging spotlight on filmmakers, actors, special-effects artists and other who worked on all sorts of scary movies from the 1940s through the ‘70s.
Read—or read again—the only full story of the Beatles, as told and written by the Beatles, in this splendid 25th anniversary edition of The Beatles Anthology, which traces the lives of the lads from Liverpool through childhood through their superstar career paths. And it’s loaded with rare pics, handwritten notes, set lists and more. It’s a Beatles bonanza! (Chronicle Books).
Paul McCartney himself (and a bunch of his friends!) tell how they became one of the world’s most successful bands in Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run (Liveright, W.W. Norton). It’s a first-person record of the record-setting group, their treks across America and their success across the decades, with insights from Linda McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, producer George Martin and many more—like supermodel Twiggy, actor Dustin Hoffman and Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde.
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The critically hailed East of Wall (Sony Pictures Classic) is now available on DVD. It’s about a young, rebellious horse trader (Tabitha Zimiga) in South Dakota struggling after the death of her husband with grief and financial insecurity, all while caring for a group of wayward teens on her broken-down Badlands ranch.
What to watch, and more! Week of Oct. 24 – Oct. 30
A classic reimagined, a house of dynamite & Stephen King’s ‘It’ makes a comeback
Tessa Thompson stars in a new, modern version of ‘Hedda.’
FRIDAY, Oct. 24 A House of Dynamite When a missile is fired at the United States, the gut-wrenching race begins for who to blame and how to respond. Timely drama is directed by Katheryn (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty) Bigelow, and stars Iris Elba as the U.S. President (Netflix).
Stiller & Meara: Nothing is Lost Documentary looks at the family of comedy icons Jerry Stiller and wife Anne Meara, whose son—actor and director Ben Stiller—also directed the doc (Apple TV+).
SATURDAY, Oct. 25 Merry Christmas, Ted Cooper! It wouldn’t be Christmas season without a(nother) Hallmark movie, and this one has Robert Buckley and Kimberley Sustand in a tale of a Yuletide reunion with an old classmate (8 p.m., Hallmark).
Mayor of Kingstown Jeremy Renner and Edie Falco return to their roles for season four’s kickoff tonight, as new players compete to fill the power vacuum left in the Russians’ wake (Paramount+).
SUNDAY, Oct. 26 Anne Rice’s Talamasca: The Secret Order The latest series based on a novel by the literary author-queen of the undead stars Delainey Hayles, Jennifer Ehle and Ella Ballentine in another fangs-n-all tale of a secretive society trying to contain all the witches, vampires and other creatures lurking around the world (9 p.m., AMC)
Witches: Truth Behind the Trials Learn what really happened at the infamous Salem witch trials and other incidents where people (mostly poor women, elderly, indigenous or disabled) were accused, and executed, for witchcraft (6 p.m., National Geographic).
It: Welcome to Derry Just in time for Halloween, this spinoff drama set in the world of Stephen King’s killer-clown universe expands the story set down in the two It theatrical films (9 p.m., HBO).
MONDAY, Oct. 27 Kissinger Two-part, three-hour film explores the enigmatic power broker Henry Kissenger, who served in the topmost echelons of American foreign policy under six presidents, Democrats and Republicans, with equal dedication (9 p.m., PBS).
TUESDAY, Oct. 28 Don’t Date Brandon True-crime docuseries follows a modern online romance that spirals into a dangerous game of deception, lies and secrets exposed on a podcast (Paramount+).
Hunted by My Husband: The Untold Story of the DC Sniper Aligned with Domestic Awareness Month, this drama reveals the story of the man known as the D.C. Sniper—and the horrific domestic drama that preceded his murderous rampage (9 p.m., ID).
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 29 Hedda Reimagining of Henrick Ibsen’s classic play stars Tessa Thompson as a woman torn between the lingering ache of a past love and the quiet suffocation of her present life. But all that changes during one long, charged night as hidden desires erupt in spiral of manipulation, passion and betrayal (Prime Video).
Down Cemetery Road New thriller series stars Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson (above) in a tale of a conspiracy that reveals people long believed dead back among the living, and the living fast joining the dead (Apple TV+).
Ballad of a Small Player When his past and his debts start to catch up with him, a high-stakes gambler laying low encounters a kindred spirit who might just hold the key to his salvation (below). Starring Colin Farrell (below), Fala Chen and Tilda Swinton (Netflix).
THURSDAY, Oct. 30 Sorry, Baby Something bad happens to Agnes (Eva Victor, who also wrote and directed). But life goes on…for everyone around her, at least. How can she move forward? (8 p.m., HBO).
Jurassic World Rebirth The latest in the Jurassic movie franchise stars Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali and Jonathan Bailey in a tale of a team on a mission to extract dino DNA from a long-abandoned island research facility…now overrun with dinos! (Peacock).
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Bon Jovi gathered a bunch of friends for the band’s new Forever (Legendary Edition) album, a “reimaging” of its 2024 studio album with a big load o’ guest stars for vocal collaborations on its 14 tracks—including Bruce Springsteen, Jason Isbell, Lainey Wilson, Avril Lavigne and Robbie Williams. But the kickoff tune, “Red, White and Jersey,” is all Bon Jovi, appropriately enough for the band now spanning three decades, still flying its New Jersey flag high and proud.
Let’s hear it for Vince Gill, who just signed a lifetime recording contact with MCA Records, his longtime label home, and his plans to release a new EP of music every month for a year. The first, 50 Years From Home: I Gave You Everything I Had, includes six all-new songs plus his classic ode to peaceful afterlife “Go Rest High on That Mountain,” recently certified double Platinum for sales of two million. Way to go, Vinny! (Digital only)
A rock ‘n’ roll classic turns the big 5-0 with the new re-release of Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, Elton John‘s smash-hit breakthrough 1975 album that he wrote while taking a leisurely cruise. Newly released on CD and LP, with bonus live-performance tracks, it’s a concept album about how Elton (Captain Fantastic) and musical collaborator Bernie Taupin (the Brown Dirt Cowboy) struggled in their early years, and features the hit ballad “Someone Saved My Life Tonight.”
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Remember the ‘90s? Author Henry Carroll sure does, in The 1990s: A Visual History of the Decade (Thames & Hudson), a collection of the culture, it’s people and its impact, from reality TV to the O.J. trial, crop circles, conspiracy theories, hip-hop, the Spice Girls and supermodels, the beginning of the Internet. As they used to say back then, it’s rad, phat, dope and righteous!
How did football get to be the sports juggernaut it is today? You’ll find out in Every Day is Sunday (Grand Central Publishing) by NFL reporter Ken Gelson, about how over the past three decades, Jerry Jones, as president of the Dallas Cowboys, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodall and Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, reshaped the game into much, much more than just a game.
If you loved his songs (and a lot of folks did), you’ll enjoy curling up with Living in the Present with John Prine (W.W. Norton), author Tom Piazza’s touching and insightful first-person account—which sprouted from an assignment Piazza was doing for Oxford American magazine and blossomed into several story-filled cross-country road trips. Enjoy this vivid snapshot of the last two years in the life of the pop-cultural icon whose musical musings gave us “Angel From Montgomery,” “Sam Stone,” “Paradise” and “Hello,” among many other gems.
We may think of “criminal profiling” as something modern and new-ish, but in The Monsters We Make (W.W. Norton), author Rachel Corbett traces the practice—of studying the people behind heinous crimes and what makes them tick—back to the Victorian Period. Then she takes us on a true-crime narrative across the centuries, from Jack the Ripper to Adolph Hitler, Ted Bundy and many more case where psychologists tried to unravel crimes…from inside the minds of the perpetrators.
Laugh again—and learn things you didn’t know—with The Pink Panther: A Complete History. Author Howard Maxford puts together the story of the iconic Peter Sellers franchise, which stretched across 11 films, with interviews from director Blake Edwards, co-stars and others. And learn about the darker side of the leading man, and what led Sellers and director Edwards to agree they’d never work together again.
BRING IT HOME
Fly back to the ‘70s with Airport: The Complete 4-Film Collection (Kino Larber), with all four of the star-packed “disaster” movies of the air, starting with the 1970 original and continuing through three big-screen sequels. How popular were these flicks back in the day? Well, almost all of Hollywood wanted a seat on these imperiled flights. You’ll see Burt Lancaster, Dean Martin, Helen Hayes, James Stewart, Christopher Lee, George Kennedy, Susan Blakley, Eddie Albert, Charo and many, many more.
A heartwarming flick about a group of miscreant kids who turn out be perfectly in tune with the true spirit of the season, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (Lionsgate) stars Judy Greer, Pete Holmes and Lauren Graham.
You’ll laugh until you turn blue with Smurfs (Alliance Home Entertainment), a family-friendly romp as Papa Smurf is taken away by a couple of evil wizards and Smurfette (voiced by pop star Rihanna) heads out to save him. Other voices by James Corden, Nick Offerman, Daniel Levy, Nick Kroll and many others.
Riz Ahmed, Sam Worthington and Lily James star in Relay (Alliance Home Entertainment), about the repercussions when a corporate whistle-blower changes her mind about exposing some big-business secrets. If you missed it last year in the theater, catch it on Blu-ray. It’s from director David McKenzie, who also gave us the excellent Hell or High Water.
Miley Cyrus, Sidney Sweeney and Paul Walter Hauser star in Americana ( Lionsgate), a modern-day Western drama about a group of characters in a small South Dakota town who clash over possession of a rare Native American artifact. And then things get really messy.
Oh, the horror! The special 3-disc collector’s edition of A24’s The X-Trilogy has all three of director Ty West‘s “tributes” to ’70s slasher films. X, Pearl and Maxxxine all starred Mia Goth as a female serial killer—who leaves the slasher life behind (or so she thinks) to become a Hollywood porn performer. The set also includes a 64-page booklet, more than 90 minutes of extras, and crew commentary on all three movies. It’s terrifyingly good.
A new ‘Sheriff’ comes to town, country music hits ‘The Road’ and Charlie Brown re-discovers the Great Pumpkin!
Morena Baccarin stars in ‘Sheriff Country.’
FRIDAY, Oct. 17 Mr. Scorsese Documentary explores the life, career and movie masterpieces of the acclaimed filmmaker, whose decade-spanning works include Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Cape Fear and The Last Temptation of Christ (Apple TV+).
Sheriff Country Fire Country spinoff stars Morena Baccarin as a straight-shootin’ sheriff in California balancing crime fighting, competition for her job and motherhood (9 p.m., CBS).
SATURDAY, Oct. 18 It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown It’s time again for the timeless adventure as Charlie Brown preps for a party, Snoopy sets his sights on the Red Baron and Linus awaits a pumpkin patch miracle (Apple TV+).
Anything But Gray| New Southern-fried series follows designer Gray Benko as she transforms homes in Charleston, S.C., to bring out their character through color, whimsy and imaginative touches (1 p.m., Magnolia Network).
SUNDAY, Oct. 19 The Road New singing competition is hosted by country stars Keith Urban, Blake Shelton and Gretchen Wilson (9 p.m., CBS).
Hal & Carter Lili Reinhart, Betty Gilpin and Mark Ruffalo star in this drama about siblings whose closeness is both a blessing and a curse of co-dependence (Mubi).
MONDAY, Oct. 20 Ratified Explore the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) through Virginia’s pivotal ratification battle led by Black women and a multi-racial, multi-generational coalition, which enshrined gender equality in America nearly a century after it was proposed (10 p.m., PBS).
Summertide Drama about a marine biologist (Frank Rautenbach) who loses his wife to tragedy and moves with his rebellious teens back to his childhood home to begin again. But can the calm coastal waters hide the painful secrets roiling just beneath their surface? (Acorn TV).
TUESDAY, Oct. 21 Armed Only With a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud Documentary about the first American journalist to die while reporting on the war in Ukraine, and how the Arkansas native covered some of the world’s most dangerous conflicts (9 p.m., HBO).
The Rise of RFK Jr. Learn about the dramatic and controversial rise of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and how this son of a storied dynasty broke with the Democratic party and his family, stoked conspiracy theories and is now reshaping government and public health as the U.S. secretary of health (10 p.m., PBS).
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 22 Riot Women Joana Scanlan, Rosalie Craig and Tamsin Greig star in this episodic drama about menopausal British women who form a punk band to enter a talent contest, but then find out they have a lot more to shout about than they imagined (BritBox).
Lazarus Sam Clafin and Bill Nighy star in this new series about a man who becomes entangled in the mysteries surrounding the deaths of two family members (Prime).
THURSDAY, Oct. 23 Nobody Wants This Season two begins of the romcom about a gentile podcaster (Kristen Bell) who falls in love with a Jewish rabbi (Adam Brody) (Netflix).
The Red King New series about a police sergeant (Anjli Mohindra) reassigned to an isolated island with an eerie past, strange rituals and unexplained deaths (AMC+).
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You know her as lead singer of The Pretenders. Now Chrissy Hyde is singing a new tune, and she’s got a bunch of musical friends with her. On Duets Special (Rhino), her fourth album under her own name, she’s harmonizing with k.d. lang, Blondie’s Deborah Harry, Julian Lennon, Lucinda Williams, Rufus Wainwright and more in 13 stripped-down arrangements with minimal instrumentation on tunes like “(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration,” “It’s Only Love,” “Always on my Mind” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love.”
How kool is this? Re-live all the smooth funky groovery of Kool & The Gang on the new reissue of the band’s Greatest Hits (Umusic), available on limited-edition vinyl as well as CD. You’ll get “Jungle Boogie,” “Hollywood Swinging,” “Ladies Night,” “Too Hot,” “Celebration,” “Get Down On It” and more!
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Find out all sorts of inventive do-ers in Lives of the Great Makers (Thames & Hudson), with 40 biographies of people like furniture magnate Thomas Chippendale, painters and glass artists, goldsmiths, sculptors, designers and many more men and women who’ve made our world a better place through the craftiness of their hands. It’s a testament to the creativity and artistry all around us.
How do Bob Dylan’s song lyrics reveal his story? If the answer, my friend, isn’t “Blowin’ in the Wind,” you may find it in Bob Dylan: Things Have Changed (Melville House). Read as former Village Voice reporter Ron Rosenbaum takes an intriguing dive into the life of the enigmatic, shape-shifting Nobel-Prize-winning music-maker via the words of his songs, tracing his trajectory from hippie folkster to Greenwich Village cultural revolutionary, countrified crooner and proselytizing Christian.
In Wild Ocean, acclaimed wildlife photogs Peter and Beverly Pickford highlight the eye-popping, pristine beauties of our planet’s seas, inhabitants and coastal areas, at a time when overfishing, pollution and global warming have plunged their futures into question. (Thames & Hudson)
Named Vogue Living‘s Designer of the Year in 2024 and recognized by Architectural Digest (Germany) as one of the world’s true design influencers, author Fiona Lynch is renowned for her mastery of mood. Her bold style and intuitive ideas are on full display in Material Wonder (Thames & Hudson), a stunningly illustrated book in which she explores new materials and techniques for her brand of “spirited minimalism” to make spaces look like…well, like they should be in a book!
Curb Your Enthusiasm fans will love No Lessons Learned (Black Dog & Leventhal), with first-person interviews from cast members (Larry David, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin, Richard Lewis and many more), directors, producers and others (guests like Jerry Seinfeld, Richard Kind and Ben Stiller) who helped make it a huge hit on its HBO run, all the way back to 2000. Plus it’s packed with plot outlines, scripts, sketches, quotes and gads of never-before-seen behind-the-scenes pics.
Can you name the Black family who founded one of the country’s most durable construction dynasties? You’ll find the answer in The Black Family Who Built America (Black Privilege Publishing), about Moses McKissak, a former slave who became an exceptional craftsman and launched a family business now its fifth generation. It’s written by Cheryl MicKissack, a fifth-generation descendant of Moses who now leads the company.
Perfect bedtime reading the Halloween season, The Screen Chills Companion (McFarland) by Chris Fellner is a treasure trove for fans of scary movies during Hollywood’s “second wave” of horror in the 1940s, when monsters (Frankenstein, the Invisible Man, Dracula, the Wolf Man and more) were spawning all sorts of movie sequels.
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Re-bask in the opulence and intrigue of a bygone New York in The Guilded Age: The Complete Third Season (Warner Bros. Discovery), with all eight episodes of the HBO period drama starring Carrie Coon, Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Nathan Lane and Andrea Martin.
If you’re of an, ahem, certain age, you might remember Shari Lewis, the Peabody Award-winning ventriloquist, puppeteer and TV show host. Shari and Lamb Chop (kinolarber.com) tells her wide-ranging story—and how she created a puppet, Lamb Chop, for TV’s Captain Kangaroo in the mid-1950s, then parlayed that into success as a well-known children’s-TV icon through the decades to come.
Tom Cruise is back, baby, in Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning (Paramount), starring again as special agent Ethan Hunt in all kinds of perilous spy stuff, including escaping from a sunken submarine and hanging outside a biplane. Oh yeah, and trying to save the world! All in a day’s work!
Why we love John Candy, the horrors of John Wayne Gacy & a whole night of ‘NCIS’
FRIDAY, Oct. 10 John Candy: I Like Me Heartfelt documentary tribute to the legendary and much-loved Canadian comedy icon, with stories and memories from Candy’s family, friends, collaborators and admirers—including Tom Hanks, whose son, Colin, directed (Prime Video).
Vicious Dakota Fanning stars as a young woman who receives a mysterious gift from a late-night visitor, drawing her into a waking nightmare (Paramount+).
The Woman in Cabin 10 While on a luxury yacht for a travel assignment, a journalist (Kiera Knightly) witnesses a passenger thrown overboard, only to be told it didn’t happen. With Guy Pearce and Hannah Waddington (Netflix).
SATURDAY, Oct. 11 Monster in the Family: The Stacy Kananen Story Based on a true story, this drama follows a young woman (Elisha Cuthbert) who finds herself entangled in a web of buried bodies and manipulation (8 p.m., Lifetime).
SUNDAY, Oct. 12 Matlock In tonight’s “sneak peek” of season two, Kathy Bates returns to the TV role of lawyer Madeline Matlock (above) for the revived series that gender-flipped the 1980s original, which starred Andy Griffith (8:30 p.m., CBS).
The Chair Company New comedy series debut about a man who finds himself investigating a far-reaching conspiracy after witnessing an embarrassing incident at work. Starring Tim Robinson, Lake Bell and Sophia Lillis (10 p.m., HBO Max).
MONDAY, Oct. 13 DMV New workplace comedy starring Harriet Dyer and Tim Meadows, about a crew of lovable misfits (above) tackling bureaucracy, bad attitudes and busted printers—with minimum wage and maximum sarcasm (8:30 p.m., CBS).
Solar Opposites Sixth and final season of the animated series about space aliens trying to live on a budget. Dan Stevens and Thomas Middleditch provide voices (Hulu).
TUESDAY, Oct. 14 NCIS Night It’s all NCIS, all night, with season premieres of the flagship drama’s 23rd season, plus spinoffs NCIS: Origins and NCIS: Sydney (begins 8 p.m., CBS).
Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore An intimate look at the life of the actress, the first deaf performer to win an Academy Award, as she shares her story in her native America Sign Language (9. p.m., PBS).
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 15 From Rails to Trails Documentary narrated by actor Edward Norton about the movement, which began 60 years ago, to convert abandoned railroad trackways to public trails for cycling and walking (check local listings, PBS).
Murdaugh: Death in the Family Series based on the real-life family drama of Maggie and Alex Murdaugh and the murder of the fourth-generation scion of a local legal dynasty. Starring Jason Clarke and Patricia Arquette (Hulu).
THURSDAY, Oct. 16 Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy Limited series (above) dramatizes the evils of the notorious Gacy, who was convicted of kidnapping and murdering 33 young men in the 1970s. Starring Michael Chernus (from Severance), Gabriel Luna (The Last of Us) and James Dale Badge (1923) (Peacock).
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The political New York City activism of John Lennon and wife Yoko One is celebrated in Power to the People (Capitol/UME), a 12-disc boxed set with more than 100 tracks, a new remix of Lennon’s only full-length concert appearances after the Beatles, outtakes, home recordings, jam sessions and much more. Son Sean Lennon produced the project.
Get a big dose of downhome Texas Blues with The Last Real Texas Blues Album (Antone’s Records), part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the iconic Austin nightclub Antone’s. Fittingly, the album is filled with artists who’ve performed there, including The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Jimmie Vaughn, Charlie Sexton, Lil’ Ed Wilson and McKinley James, performing classics like “You’ll Lose a Good Thing,” “The Sky is Crying,” “Flip, Flop and Fly” and “Going Down.” Put it on, turn it up, and dig it.
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Fans of the British supergroup led by brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher will dig Oasis: Trying to Find a Way Out of Nowhere (Thames & Hudson), a photo-packed visual chronicle by acclaimed rock photog Jill Furmanovsky—who was given unparalleled access to countless worldwide performances, recording sessions and offstage moments, beginning in the band’s early ‘90s heyday. With written commentary and insights by Noel about the wild ride of being in one of the top-selling groups of all time.
Wanna look like a million bucks? Author Natalie Hammond tells (and shows) you how in Style Codes: Cher (Abrams), a guide to looking your best based on the singing star’s own “reinvention” to become an icon of class, glamor, success sand style. From gowns to jackets, boots, bell bottoms and hairstyles, you’ll find out what worked for Cher, and how to find inspiration for your own assets.
Look! Up in the sky! No, it’s not superman, but rather Aviary: The Bird in Contemporary Photography (Thames & Hudson), a stunning look at how more than 50 modern photographers artistically “captured” winged splendor, illustrating not only the eye-popping spectrum of color and “design” in the aerial world, but also the ways it’s always inspired us down here on the ground.
How do borders define our world? In Atlas of Borders (Thames & Hudson), geopolitical experts Delphine Papin and Bruno Tertrais reflect on the world through the lens of the seen and unseen things that split it up and separate it. Filled with maps and infographics, it’s a fascinating crash course in the ways, and the whys, the Earth has been subdivided and sliced up, leading to walls, migrations and wars.
As foodies know, there’s something special about good ol’ Southern cookin’. Author and food historian Michael J. Twitty’s Recipes From the American South (Phaidon) is a lip-smackin’ guide to more than 260 yummies of all sorts from our country’s Southland, from bread and biscuits, stews, sauces, sweets to main courses like chicken and dumplings, red-eye gravy and mint julips.
Do you believe in magic? Well, you might, after reading podcaster Pam Grossman’s Magic Maker (Penguin Random House), about how magic and spiritualism have been long associated with creativity—and how you can make the most of those same “supernatural” vibes. It’s trippy and cool and a combination of guidebook and history of spells, magic and witchery, and how they’ve been channeled for centuries to fuel creative arts of all kinds.
What’s in a word? In Unabridged: The Thrill of (and Threat to) the Modern Dictionary (Grove Atlantic), author Stefan Fatsis dives into the exotic world of America’s most famous publisher of dictionaries, Merriam-Webster, at a time when words are changing in many ways, including how we create, define, use and consume language. It’s a vibrant, colorful history of dictionaries and the company that made them household items, how spoken language makes winds its way into our lexicon, and who decides what those words mean. Word up!
Michael Jackson insiders reveal the high-stakes battle to revive the superstar’s reputation and sales mojo in the mid-‘90s after tabloids had started calling him “Wacko Jacko” and his personal life was widely known for its eccentricities. You’ve Got Michael (Trouser Press) avoids the controversies but goes right for the nuts ‘n’ bolts of keeping an outsized supersized career alive, as told by author Dan Beck, the Epic Records exec who worked for five years with the troubled superstar.
It’s been a while for most of us, likely, since we unfolded a paper map and used it for navigation. But such orienteering tools used to be the language essential to exploring and getting around—and they often had to be redrawn and rejiggered, as civilization advanced the geography morphed. The Library of Lost Maps (Bloomsbury) by geographer James Cheshire offers a scholarly tour, across the 19th and 20th centuries, of how maps remind us of our past…and provide gateways to the future for an ever-changing world in progress.
Dig into The Maya Myths: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes and Ancestors (Thames & Hudson), in which author Mallory E. Matsumoto presents a richly detailed look at the legends, beliefs and culture that over previous centuries built a thriving, complex society in what is now Mexico and Central America—before mysteriously collapsing and vanishing.
A spinoff of the popular TikTok series, F*cked Up Fairy Tales (W.W. Norton) by Liz Gotauco offers “grown-up” tellings of classic folktales from around the world, with gritty details that the “Disney-fied versions” conveniently omitted—of homicidal royals, cursed commoners, carnal couplings and all manner of beasts…and beastly behavior. For anyone who likes their mythology refreshingly bawdy, dig in!
Don’t ever tell anybody they’re “irreplaceable,” especially after you read Mary Roach’s ReplaceableYou (W.W. Norton), a sprightly exploration of the human body. You’ll better understand the many ways science and technology have risen to the challenges of altering (or outright replacing) our skin, our hair, our organs, our breasts and bones and teeth and just about everything else. (W.W. Norton)
BRING IT HOME
Ready for a good scare? Weapons, one of the year’s best supernatural horror flicks, depicts an unsettling scenario about a town in a panic when all the children from a classroom mysteriously disappear—all, that is, except one. Starring Josh Brolin and Julia Garner. Bonus features take you inside the making of the flick (Warner Bros. Discovery).
Joaquin Phoenix, Austin Butler, Emma Stone and Pedro Pascal star in director Ari Aster’s Eddington (A24), a dark comedy set in a small town during the COVID-19 pandemic where disagreements cause political and social turmoil.
The Media Tourist 