Category Archives: TV

Feb 16 2024
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Movies, Pop Culture, Television, TV

The Entertainment Forecast

Feb. 16 – Feb. 22

Dolly goes to the dogs, a classic flick gets musical & J-Lo reveals her love life

Musical icon Dolly Parton presents a parade of pets Wednesday night on CBS.

All times Eastern.

FRIDAY, Feb.16
This is Me…Now: The Film
Jennifer Lopez takes center stage (below) in this highly visual “reimaging” of her highly scrutinized love life, which includes seven boyfriends and husbands before her (current) beau, actor Ben Affleck (Prime).

The Color Purple
It was mostly snubbed for major Oscar nominations, but the musical remake of The Color Purple (below) is nonetheless an exhilarating, emotional experience, with a heart-tugging story and standout performances by an all-star cast (Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Halle Berry, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, Ciara, and H.E.R.). Watch it streaming today (Max).

SATURDAY, Feb. 17
An American in Austen
A librarian (Eliza Bennett, below) who thinks no one can live up to Mr. Darcy suddenly finds herself inside her favorite Jane Austen novel, Pride & Prejudice, where the famous author offers advice on her love life (8 p.m., Hallmark Channel).

SUNDAY, Feb. 18
American idol
New season premieres tonight as judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Ryan Seacrest seek the cream of the crop of American’s new singing talent (8 p.m., ABC).

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
The Emmy-winning late-night satirical news show kicks off its 11th season (11 p.m., HBO).

MONDAY, Feb. 19
James Brown: Say It Loud
Two-night documentary event examines the legacy of the King of Soul as a creative force, cultural ambassador and internationally famous Black changemaker, with interviews from Mick Jagger, LL Cool J, the Rev. Al Sharpton, and many more (8 p.m., A&E).

The Madame Blanc Mysteries
Season three premieres about the respected antiques dealer (Sally Lindsay), whose expertise with “relics” comes in handy solving a series of murders in a lovely French village (AcornTV).

TUESDAY, Feb. 20
Ready to Sell Out
Comedian/actor Mike Epps takes the stage for his fourth Netflix standup special, with zing-y twists on where all his money’s gone, his love life, and more (Netflix).

Crime Nation
Dive into riveting true crime stories with expert analysis, exclusive reporting and interviews with people at the center of the investigations—including crime enthusiasts, digital detectives and social media sleuths who have sometimes helped solve cases (The CW).

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 21
Constellation
Eight-part psychological thriller stars Noomi Rapice (below) and Jonathan Banks in a wild tale of an astronaut who returns to Earth after a disaster in space…only to discover that key pieces of her life are missing (Apple TV+).

Hunt for the Oldest DNA
Scientists decipher ancient genetic blueprints to reveal amazing new facts about creatures that once thrived in the once-lush Arctic (9 p.m., PBS).

Dolly Parton’s Pet Gala
The country superstar goes to the dogs (and other critters) in this star-studded runway show featuring celebs and the best in canine fashion from Parton’s pet line…and appearances by Young Sheldon’s Iain Armitage, Neil Patrick Harris, Jane Lynch, Jessica Simpson and more (9 p.m., CBS).

THURSDAY, Feb. 22
Avatar: The Last Airbender New animated spinoff of the hit blockbuster franchise furthers the adventures in the water, on the land, and in the air (Netflix).

Jan 26 2024
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Books, DVDs, Movies, Television, TV

The Entertainment Forecast

Jan. 26 – Feb. 2

Nicole K’s in the Far East, Tom Hanks puts flyboys in the air, & the inside story of the ’80s biggest global anthem

All times Eastern.

Nicole Kidman stars in ‘Expat.’

FRIDAY, Jan. 26
Expats
Nicole Kidman stars in this new series (above) based on the internationally best-selling novel about three women in Hong Kong whose lives fatefully intersect after a family tragedy (Prime Video).

Masters of the Air
Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman—the producers of Band of Brothers and The Pacific—now turn their wartime storytelling mojo to this action-packed series (below) that presents the true story of an American bomber group in World War I. Starring Austin (Elvis) Butler and Barry (Saltburn) Keoghan (Apple TV+).

SATURDAY, Jan. 27
Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero
Rock doc follows the Grammy-winning rapper as he embarks on his first-ever headlining U.S. tour (8 p.m., Max)

SUNDAY, Jan. 28
The Many Lives of Martha Stewart
You might think you know her, but this docuseries sheds new light on the barrier-breaking former stockbroker who became a self-made billionaire and media mogul…then a prison inmate (9 p.m., CNN).

MONDAY, Jan. 29
The Greatest Night in Pop
Remember the ‘80s event that was “We Are The World”? This new doc (above) tells the story of how dozens of the biggest names in music (Michael Jackson! Bruce Springsteen! Dionne Warwick! Huey Lewis!) came together in 1985 to record an anthem for charity that would alter global pop culture forever (Netflix).

TUESDAY, Jan. 30
Quantum Leap
The revamped sci-fi series, starring Raymond Lee as a physicist who can “leap” through time, leaps itself into a new weeknight slot…tonight(10 p.m., NBC).

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 31
FEUD: Capote Vs. The Swans
The second juicy installment of creator Ryan Murphy’s anthology (above) centers on iconic author Truman Capote and a group of high society women whom he befriended—and then betrayed, leading to his downfall in a spiral of self-destruction. Starring Tom Hollander, Noami Watts, Demi Moore, Molly Ringwald, Calista Flockhart and Diane Lane (10. p.m., FX).

Choir
Six-part original series (below) follows kids of the Detroit Youth Choir (which appeared on America’s Got Talent in 2019) as they prepare for an important performance that will put them back in the national spotlight (Disney+)

THURSDAY, Feb. 1
Genius: MLK/X
New installment of the anthology series will focus on Dr. Martin Luther King (played by Kelvin Harrison Jr.) and Malcolm X (Aaron Pierre), exploring the two men’s formative years as they are molded by strong fathers and traumatic injustices (9 p.m., National Geographic).

Farmer Wants a Wife
It’s a hit in some 32 countries and has resulted in more than 200 marriages and 514 children. What is it? It’s this series (above) about “farmer” dudes finding love outside the city, hosted by country singer/actor Jennifer Nettles, and its new U.S. season begins tonight (9 p.m., Fox).

BRING IT HOME

Patrick Dempsey and Gina Gershon star in Thanksgiving, director Eli Roth’s creatively terrifying tale of a serial killer terrorizing Turkey Day in the New England town where the holiday first took place. Hey, is that blood, or just juice from the leftover cranberry sauce? (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)

READ ALL ABOUT IT

You want your mummy, you say? Well, Mummy Movies (MacFarland) is for you! Author Bryan Senn’s comprehensive rundown unravels the cinematic history of mummies from 1932 (and The Mummy, starring Boris Karloff) onward, throughout the world and in an array of genres. Even Scooby-Do, Tom Cruise and Abbott & Costello met “their” mummies, and so did hundreds of other actors, in both no-budgets romps and Hollywood blockbusters. It’s a must for movie-monster fans!

Can creativity be copyrighted? In Who Owns This Sentence (wwnorton) authors David Bellos and Alexandre Montagu present an engaging exploration of history and concept of “copyright,” which arose in 1700s London and has today become a labyrinth of confusing legislation, now tackling such intangibles as jokes, ideas and other “intellectual property.”

Jan 19 2024
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DVDs, Movies, Pop Culture, TV

The Entertainment Forecast

Sofia Vergara’s a mob boss, Awkwafina bugs out & ‘The Bachelor’ gets down to business

Sofia Vergara stars in ‘Greselda’ on Netflix.

FRIDAY, Jan. 19
Relighting Candles: The Tim Sullivan Story
She’s best known for her comedy, but Melissa McCarthy (and husband Ben Falcone) produced this serious film about the homeless and drug crisis in Los Angeles, and a man offering to help people rebuild their lives—through candle making (Hulu).

Hustlers Gamblers Crooks
Enter the secretive world of high-stakes gamblers and thieves in this new docuseries (below) with true stories, told by those who lived them (9 p.m., Discovery).

SATURDAY, Jan. 20
Dying in Plain Sight
An overweight high school student (Raffa Virago) develops a compulsive eating disorder because of her inattentive “clean eating” mother (Nicola Correla-Damude) (9 p.m., Lifetime).

SUNDAY, Jan. 21
The Way Home
Andi McDowell (below right) returns in season two to the leading role in the multi-generational family drama about time-traveling and truth-seeking (9 p.m., Hallmark).

The Woman in the Wall
Twisty, six-episode drama series thriller stars Ruth Wilson as a woman in a small Irish town who wakes up one morning to find a corpse in her house…and no idea if she’s responsible (9 p.m., Showtime).

MONDAY, Jan. 22
The Bachelor
Tennis pro Joey Graziadei, a former contestant on The Bachelorette, begins his journey to find love—winnowing down the field of 32 females vying for his hand (and TV exposure) in tonight’s two-hour premiere (8 p.m., ABC).

TMZ Investigates
Get the scoop of celebrities and other juicy items about who did what with (or to) whom in this with this inside-dirt series produced by Harvey Levin, the host and founder of the TMZ celebrity news website and franchise (8 p.m., Fox).

Superhot: The Spicy World of Pepper People
Documentary series takes you into the zingy world of self-proclaimed chili heads in search of blistering mouthfuls of some of the world’s hottest peppers (Hulu).

TUESDAY, Jan. 23
Nazi Town USA
Think racism and fascism are relatively new threats? This probing documentary looks at the late 1930s, when swastikas and dire warnings about “Jewish controlled media” took root in many cities and small towns across America. Could it happen again? (9 p.m., PBS).

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 24
A Real Bug’s Life
The actress Awquafina narrates this real-life adventure into micro insect worlds around the planet, where forces of nature play out on a miniature scale and tiny creatures rely on amazing powers and extraordinary alliances. They may be small, but the stakes are high (Disney+).

Trafficked
In tonight’s episode, “Sextortion,” host Mariana Van Zeller explores the blackmail scam of using compromising photos to extort victims online (9 p.m., NatGeo).

THURSDAY, Jan. 25
In the Know
Adult comedy puppetry series (above) about NPR radio hosts with voices of creator Mike (Beavis & Butthead) Judge and Zach Woods (Peacock).

Griselda
Modern Family’s Sofia Vergara in this true story, now a six-episode series about the woman who created one of the most profitable drug cartels in history (Netflix).

Sexy Beast
New streaming series (above), a prequel to the 2000 film of the same title, stars James McArdle and Tamish Greig in the origin story of a couple descending into the seductive madness of London’s criminal underworld in the 1990s (Paramount+).

BRING IT HOME

Now you can own The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming (Kino Lorber Classics), the star-packed 1966 comedy about a Soviet sub that accidentally runs aground off the coast of New England, nearly starting World War III. Starring Alan Arkin, Carl Reiner, Eva Marie Saint and Jonathan Winters, newly released on Blu-ray with extras including audio commentary.

And there’s also the new Kino Lorber Classics Blu-ray release of Academy Award-winning drama Coming Home. Rediscover one of the best films ever made about the aftermath of the Vietnam war, with some incredible acting from Jane Fonda, Jon Voight and Bruce Dern, which brought the film two of its three Oscars in 1979.

Dec 29 2023
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Books, Movies, Pop Culture, TV

The Entertainment Forecast

Dec. 29 – Jan. 4

All about Burt, Rob Lowe has a new game, & Happy New Year!

All times Eastern.

FRIDAY, Dec. 29
Prepare to Die
A young man trains in martial arts to seek vengeance on the corrupt landowner who murdered his family (Tubi).

SATURDAY, Dec. 30
Time Bomb Y2K
This darkly humorous tale, fashioned through archival footage, takes us back to the alarming days at the close of the 20th century and the widespread concerns that the world was facing the greatest technological disaster in the history of mankind (10 p.m., HBO).

I Am Burt Reynolds
Watch this acclaimed documentary about the late iconic movie Florida-born actor, who started in TV and went on to star in Smokey and the Bandit, Deliverance, The Longest Yard, Boogie Nights and Striptease (8 p.m., The CW).

The AFI Lifetime Achievement Award: 50th Anniversary
Host Ben Mankiewicz looks back at five decades of one of film’s highest honors and the cinematic achievements of a stellar list of actors and filmmakers, including Denzel Washington, Al Pacino, Warren Beatty, Meryl Streep, Barbra Streisand, Tom Hanks and Elizabeth Taylor (8 p.m., TCM).

SUNDAY, Dec. 31
The Simpsons
Kick off the new year with 24 hours—and 48 episodes—of the long-running primetime series (above) about Springfield’s first family of comedy (9 p.m., FXX).

Nashville’s Big Bash
Ring in the New Year with Thomas Rhett, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Lainey Wilson performing live in Music City (7:30 p.m., CBS).

Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest have art: NewJeans
Ring in the new with hosts Ryan Seacrest and Rita Ora live from Times Square in New York City, with superstar performers (including Post Malone and the K-pop sensation NewJeans), lots of pumped-up revelers and remotes from Hollywood with Jeannie Mae (8 p.m., ABC).

The Lasts on the Lasts
Say goodbye to 2023 with this marathon of finale “farewell” episodes from classic TV series including The Andy Griffith Show, The Brady Bunch, The Beverly Hillbillies, Leave It to Beaver and more (begins 12 noon, MeTV).

MONDAY, Jan. 1
America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League
New series spinoff features acts from across the global franchise competing for the $250,000 grand prize. Terry Crews hosts while Mel B., Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum and Howie Mandel return to the judges’ chairs (8 p.m., NBC).

The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: Natalia Speaks
The newest chapter in the twisted true-life saga of the little girl brought to America from a Ukrainian orphanage gives Natalia herself a chance to share her story and confront her adoptive parents—who claimed she was not really a child, but a homicidal adult with intentions to harm their family (9 p.m., ID Discovery).

TUESDAY, Jan. 2
The Floor
Actor Rob Lowe hosts this new game show (below), a trivia contest in which players compete for $250,000 on a gigantic playing field resembling a board game (check local listings, Fox).

Finding Your Roots
Singers Alanis Morissette and Ciara kick off the new season of the genealogy research series as host Henry Gates Jr. helps trace their (sometimes surprising) ancestry (8 p.m., PBS). 

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 3
We Are Family
Anthony Anderson and his mom, Doris, host this musical guessing-game show (below) featuring performances by celebs and their non-famous family members (9 p.m., Fox).

THURSDAY, Jan. 4
Society of the Snow
Based on a true story, this gripping movie shows what happened in 1972 after a Uruguayan Air Force Flight, which had been chartered to take a rugby team to Cuba, crashes in the heart of the Andes mountains (Netflix).

Sanctuary: A Witch’s Tale
Which witch? Those witches? There are certainly a bunch in this spooky new horror-drama streaming series (below), starring Elaine Cassidy and Helen Doup about a group of contemporary witches in modern-day England (Sundance Now).

General Hospital: 60 Years of Stars and Storytelling
Primetime special celebrates the iconic daytime soap with fan-favorite cast members sharing their favorite memories of the show and pulling back the TV curtain with bloopers and other surprises (10 p.m., ABC).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

In House Cat: Inspirational Interiors & The Elegant Felines Who Call Them Home (Thames & Hudson), with photographs by Paul Barbera, you’ll get a meow-ful look at some fancy abodes and their pampered resident top-cat felines. It’s like an Architectural Digest for kitties.

Dec 08 2023
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The Entertainment Forecast

Dec. 8 – Dec. 14

Monk cracks a new case, Julia Roberts meets the end of the world & Neil Patrick Harris collides with Dr. Who!

FRIDAY, Dec. 8
Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie
Tony Shalhoub returns to his fan-favorite TV role (above), 12 years later, in this feature-length film as his crime-solving OCD character returns to solve another case, this one involving his beloved stepdaughter, Molly (Melora Hardin), as she prepares for her wedding (Netflix).

Leave The World Behind
Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Mahershala Ali, Chris Evans and Kevin Bacon are among the all-star cast of this drama about a family vacation that turns into an apocalyptic nightmare after a cyberattack (Netflix).

It’s the end of the world, and Julia Roberts knows it.

A Very Demi Holiday Special
Pop star Demi Levato hosts this all-star Christmas party (below) with celebrity friends including Tiffany Haddish, Paris Hilton and Rich Eisen (Roku Channel).

SATURDAY, Dec. 9
Byron Allen Presents Funny You Should Ask
The primetime special presentation of the hit game show features four half-hour episodes with comedians Adam Corolla, Whitney Cummings, Billy Gardell, Natasha Leggero, Jon Lovitz and others (8 p.m., CBS).

Dr. Who: The Giggle
TV’s 14th doctor (David Tennant, below) comes face-to-face with his most terrifying villain, the Toymaker (played by Neil Patrick Harris) (Disney+).

SUNDAY, Dec. 10
A Grammy Salute to 50 Years of Hip Hop
Queen Latifah, Questlove, LL Cool J, Yo-Yo and many others help celebrate the milestone anniversary and the genre’s profound cultural impact in this two-hour tribute special (8 p.m., CBS).

Science Fair: The Series
Students work to solve the world’s most complex and pressing problems in this new docu-drama based on the most competitive science fair on the planet (National Geographic).

MONDAY, Dec. 11
How to Have an American Baby
An intimate look at an industry you likely didn’t even know about: “birth tourism” for Chinese women who want to have their babies born in the United States (check local listings, PBS).

The Billion Dollar Goal
How did soccer become such a big deal in America? This probing new docuseries traces the sport from its humble beginnings as an immigrants’ game to the historic moment in 1989 when an unforgettable goal ended a 40-year World Cup qualification drought, all against the backdrop of a nation that remained, for decades, skeptical about “European football” (Paramount+). 

TUESDAY, Dec. 12
Dark Harvest
In this horror thriller (above) directed by David Spade, teens confront a legendary supernatural specter that emerges from the cornfields of a small Midwest town every fall (8 p.m., MGM+).

Kevin Hart & Chris Rock: Headliners Only
New documentary follows the high-profile actor/comedians as they stir up new laughs together on a tour (Netflix).

Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town
It’s a holiday classic! Fred Astaire narrates this timeless 1970 animated tale about St. Nick (Mickey Rooney) as a young boy with an intense desire to do good things for others (8 p.m., ABC).

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 13
Bart Starr: America’s Quarterback
This latest installment of the SEC Storied franchise focuses on one of the greatest QBs in the history of the sport (above), who led the Green Bay Packers to five NFL championships then went on to coach them to victory in the first two Super Bowls (9 p.m., SEC network).

THURSDAY, Dec. 14
CMA Country Christmas
The 14th annual TV event, filmed in front of a live audience, features performances of Christmas classics by country stars including hosts Trisha Yearwood and Amy Grant, plus Lainey Wilson, Zach Williams, The War and Treaty and more (8 p.m., ABC).

The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: Rhony Legacy
Original “housewives” reunite for a new season and an epic adventure in the Caribbean (Peacock).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Spin (McFarland) by Bill Gruber takes a spin (get it?) through the world of things that spin—like the world, figure skaters, curve balls, drill bits, propellers, washing machines—and explains the engaging physics, science and philosophy behind them. It might even make your head spin!

BRING IT HOME

It’s a wild ride in Weird: The Weird Al Story (Shout! Factory), a “fictionalized” biopic of the zany song parodist and comedian starring Daniel Radcliffe, Evan Rachel Wood and Rainn Wilson. And a big part of the fun is the long list of all-star cameo appearances!

A grassroots movement of videogamers turns the table on stock-market fat cats in Dumb Money (Sony Home Entertainment), a modern-day David-and-Goliath tale based on a true story and real-life characters, played by Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Nick Offeman, Pete Davidson, Shalilene Woodley and others.

Nov 24 2023
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The Entertainment Forecast

Nov. 24 – Nov. 30

Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman reprise their 2008 roles in ‘Faraway Downs.’

FRIDAY, Nov. 24
The Greatest @HomeVideos
Laugh until…well, until you need to get another piece of pumpkin pie! Funnyman Cedric the Entertainer hosts this collection of holiday-themed mishaps and merriment, culled from around the globe (8 p.m., CBS).

Mickey’s Christmas Tales
Series of new stop-motion holiday shorts features beloved Disney characters (above) including Goofy, Donald and Daffy, Pluto…and, of course, Mickey House (Disney+).  

Elf
Jump in anywhere within a 24-hour period today and you’ll catch some of the marathon of the classic holiday comedy starring Will Ferrell as North Pole transplant Buddy the Elf (8 p.m., TBS).

SATURDAY, Nov. 25
Byron Allen Presents the Grio Awards
Sheryl Underwood from The Talk and comedian Roy Wood Jr. host this star-studded celebration of African American excellence in film, music, comedy, TV, sports, business, education and more, taped live at the Beverly Hilton in Hollywood (8 p.m., CBS).

SUNDAY, Nov. 26
Faraway Downs
Acclaimed Aussie director Baz Lehrmann’s six-part “reimagining” of his 2008 film Australia, this limited series reunites the stars (Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman) in a tale of a British aristocrat who travels halfway across the world to confront her wayward husband and unload a million-acre cattle ranch in the Australian Outback (Hulu).

The Wonderful World of Disney: Magical Holiday Celebration
The network holiday season staple returns for year eight with a spectacle of musical performances from Walt Disney World in Florida and Disney’s Aulani Resort and Spa in Hawaii (8 p.m., ABC).

MONDAY, Nov. 27
Steeltown Murders
New drama series follows the hunt for a killer in a working-class community of Wales, and how the mystery was solved nearly 30 years after the crime (Acorn TV).

Holiday: Santa in Space
Blast off for this cooking-competition special, in which bakers vie to make over-the-top cake creations around the theme of Old Saint Nick going intergalactic (11 p.m., Food Network).

TUESDAY, Nov. 28
Verified Stand-Up
If you can’t find anything to laugh about in this cavalcade of comedy from a host of stand-up pros (including Asif Ali, Nimesh Patel, Robby Hoffman and Sabrina Wu), well, you’re a true sourpuss (Netflix).

South to Black Power
New streaming documentary is based on Charles Blow’s provocative book, which calls for a “reverse migration” of African America from the North back to the South to reclaim the land, political representation and the culture they left behind (10 p.m., HBO).

READ ALL ABOUT IT

So-called “cancel culture” is nothing new, as author Kliph Nesteroff posits in Outrageous: A History of Showbiz and the Culture Wars (Abrams), which examines pushbacks through censorship, protests and advocacy across the years on the ongoing battlefield of popular culture. Turns out, somebody has been objecting to something in entertainment for almost two hundred years!

One of the Big Apple’s most acclaimed photogs gets a spotlight in Saul Leiter: The Centennial Retrospective (Thames & Hudson), an oversized look-book of his lifelong work as a photographer and painter known for his “street scenes” of life in New York City, his 1960s fashion work for Harper’s Bazaar, and (ahem) his “intimate” portraits of people at home, in various states of undress.

Why do we like listening to music, and how do we do it? Learn all about the fascinating world of sound and our relationship to the world through music in Michael Faber’s insightful and engaging Listen: On Music, Sound and Us (Harper Collins).

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 29

The Artful Dodger
Find out about the “double life” of one of Charles Dickens’ famous prince-of-thieves pickpocket in this new series (above) from Australia starring David Thewlis, Thomas Brodie-Sangster and Mia Mitchell (Hulu).

Pretty Hard Cases
Tune in tonight for the third and final season of the drama series about a pair of female detectives (Meredith MacNeill and Kelly Duff) return for even more investigations the test both their professional relationship and their personal lives (Amazon Freevee).

Sex Sells
It’s a new season of AI sex toys, smutty costumes, surrogate partners, intimacy coaches, celebrity sex tapes and more in this series in which “sex positivity advocate” Weezy explores sex-related businesses and their impacts on people’s lives (10 p.m, Fuse).

THURSDAY, Nov. 30
Selena + Chef: Home for the Holidays
Selena Gomez, the Only Murders in the Building star, joins culinary pros including Alex Guarnaschelli and Claudette Zepeda to whip up holiday dishes in her home kitchen (8 p.m., Food Network).

Family Switch
Jennifer Garner, Ed Helms and Rita Morena star in this new comedy (above) about a family mixup—when a rare astrological event causes a “body switch” between the parents and their kids. Wild, way out, 13-Going-on-30 fun, compounded into more than one body! (Netflix).

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.

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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.

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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.

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+).

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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!

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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.

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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 25 2023
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Movie Reviews, Movies, TV

Dirty Work

Michael Fassbender stars in this cold stare into the void of a hired assassin

The Killer
Starring Michael Fassbender
Directed by David Fincher
Rated R

In limited theatrical release Oct. 27, on Netflix Nov. 10

He travels the world, loves British rock band The Smiths, meticulously tracks his heart rate and limbers up every day with yoga. And he makes his living killing people—with rifles, pistols, nail guns, bombs, poison or whatever other means necessary. Michael Fassbender plays the unnamed professional assassin-for-hire in this stylishly chilling neo-noir drama from director David Fincher, who has plumbed the dark, cold depths of bleak nihilism before in movies like Seven, Zodiac, Fight Club, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Gone Girl. It’s another stone-cold stare into the void as we watch “the killer” go about his work with icy, expressionless, amoral precision, purging himself of empathy and laser-focused on his job—until an assignment in Paris hits a snag, his bullet misses its target, and the hunter suddenly becomes the hunted. It’s a gripping riff on a fatalistic job and a guy who does it, with an aloof “procedural” tone that takes an abrupt shift into revenge-survival mode as Fassbender’s character tries to find out—and rub out—the parties assigned to clean up the loose ends of his botched hit. The grim goings-on are deadly serious, but there are a few glimpses of dark humor as the killer uses aliases (we never know his real name) from classic TV shows, employs a cheese grater in a brutally bruising fight scene, and has a fateful encounter with a rival (Tilda Swinton) who tells a fearlessly funny existential joke about a bear in the woods. We never get to know much about the killer, and that’s the way he wants it, going about his work in the shadows, an anonymous figure leaving a path of destruction on a career track where people want other people dead. A finely tooled exercise in dirty work, this is a lean, mean descent into a deadly “professional” underworld with dozens of ways to die—especially if you cross paths with The Killer.

—Neil Pond

Oct 20 2023
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Books, DVDs, Humor, Movies, Pop Culture, Television, TV

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).

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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.

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