Best Television Shows

Archive for August, 2009

Welcome back Gasmii! It turns out that Jeff’s newest clients like to work the same way I do — in PJs. With a stripper. Eating tacos. So grab your puppy pajamas and check out this week’s flip.

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You should be reading Classic Television Showbiz, a really fun blog that often showcases video of old and/or obscure TV shows. This week he has a video of the short-lived game show Pitfall, which Alex Trebek hosted.

Not only did the company that produced the show run out of money, they ran out of money while the show was still on the air. So they couldn’t pay some of the later contestants and Trebek didn’t get paid either! He still has the check framed in his office. Video below (quality isn’t great, but it’s interesting).

Continue reading Pitfall: one of the “great tragedies” of Alex Trebek’s life

Filed under: Reality-Free

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Jenna Hager, the daughter of former President George W. Bush, will be joining the Today show as a part-time correspondent on issues such as education. Hopefully this won’t interfere with her other job as a schoolteacher in Maryland. Since the job is only slated for about once a month, I don’t think her second job will interfere with her day job quite as much as my second job as a freelance writer interferes with mine.

I just wonder if Jenna’s lineage has anything to do with this new part-time job of hers. Granted she’s authored two books by the age of 27, but I have to ask if anybody with a little more experience could have taken the Today show job.

Of course this could turn into a full-time gig for her which means she would have to quit her teaching job and kiss her tenure goodbye (unless she returned to teaching later on and started all over again). How would she survive if that happened? Oh yeah, she’s a Bush.

Filed under: OpEd, Celebrities, Reality-Free

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If Disney was still not sure what their next super-series was going to be once Hannah Montana goes to bed after next season, they know now. The Wizards of Waverly Place movie just nailed down the highest cable ratings of the year. This in a summer full of ratings records on cable. Only High School Musical 2 has bested it on Disney, and we know what a phenomenon that franchise became.

Even more outstanding, the movie stands a decent chance of being the highest rated show on television this past week, including the broadcast networks. Tuesday’s America’s Got Talent, the summer leader, had 11.2 million viewers per the overnight ratings. Wizards of Waverly Place got 11.4 million.

Maybe it’s time to combine the viewership numbers for cable shows and the broadcast networks. I think the cable channels have proven they can compete with select shows, so why not show it? While there are comprehensive, albeit flawed, ratings numbers from Nielsen for the broadcast networks, the consumer gets far less information about cable ratings. It’s all television, right?

Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Children, Ratings, Reality-Free

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• A 7, NBC has a new Dateline, then Pre-Season Football, the Bears vs. the Broncos.
• At 8, CBS has a new Big Brother, followed by a new There Goes The Neighborhood.
• The CW has the Daytime Emmy Awards at 8.
• Food Network has a new Challenge at 8, followed by a new Iron Chef America.
• At 9, ABC has a new Shark Tank, then a new Defying Gravity.
• PBS has a new Masterpiece Mystery! at 9.
• Comedy Central has Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder at 9.
• There’s a new Drop Dead Diva on Lifetime at 8, then a new Army Wives.
• National Geographic Channel has the series premiere of The Human Family Tree at 9.
• HBO has a new True Blood at 9, followed by new episodes of Hung and Entourage.
• Also at 9: Syfy has the movie High Plains Invaders.
• At 10, AMC has a new Mad Men.
• HGTV has a new Design Star at 10.
• History Channel has two new episodes of Pawn Stars at 10.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has a new Robot Chicken.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Filed under: Programming, What To Watch Tonight, Reality-Free

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I’ve been hearing about an awesome new show on FX since it aired last year, and finally got around to watching season one of Sons of Anarchy this week for Jane After Dark. Being a motorcycle babe myself, I love any show where bikes or gangs are the central focus.

But even if you’ve never mounted a bad chopper, there are plenty of reasons to love this badass show about the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Originals (SAMCRO). They run a legal automotive business while dealing arms, battling rival gangs, and working with the cops (sometimes) to keep their town of Charming, California a pleasant place to live. You can see all the irony at work here.

Continue reading Jane After Dark: Sons of Anarchy – bikes, guns, sex and Katey Sagal

Filed under: TV on DVD, OpEd, Reality-Free, Jane After Dark

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I love Andy Richter, but he seems awfully stiff every time I watch him on The Tonight Show. I prefer to remember the guy from his early days on Late Night, his short-lived show Andy Richter Controls the Universe, and his other short-lived show, the hilarious Andy Barker, P.I.

Like Danny reported back in May, Andy Barker, P.I. is finally coming to DVD. Shout! Factory will release the entire series on Nov. 17. The two-disc set will include all six episodes, some with commentary by Richter and producer Conan O’Brien, plus a retrospective feature and a doc about the show’s amazing writers, including Jonathan Groff (How I Met Your Mother), Josh Bycel (Psych), and Jane Espenson (Buffy, BSG). Click through for a better look at the DVD cover art.

Continue reading DVD cover art and release date for Andy Barker, P.I.

Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, TV on DVD, Reality-Free

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I think we all can agree that musical episodes are a bit passé these days, but if there’s one show that can still pull it off, it’s gotta be Eureka.

Syfy’s quirky series already has that whimsical tone and vivid color palette we’re used to seeing in Hollywood musicals; so it comes as no shock that Eureka will feature a two-part musical episode next season.

Eureka’s Deputy Lupo, Eric Cerra, dropped the news in a recent interview with Sci Wire about the show’s upcoming fourth season. Cerra complimented the singing voices of co-stars Joe Morton, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, and Colin Ferguson, but admitted that she has some trouble carrying a tune herself. “… I don’t sing. I can’t, and I don’t, so I’m going to have to take some singing lessons. I’m a little nervous,” she said.

Cerra also confirmed what our own Jason Hughes reported last month, Eureka’s fourth season will be its longest yet with 22 episodes. Season three concludes Friday, Sept. 18.

Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Celebrities, Reality-Free

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You wouldn’t know that Fox football was ready for prime time based on the lame broadcast of the Tampa Bay Buccaneer-Miami Dolphin game the other night. The number one team in the booth — Joe Buck and Troy Aikman — seemed ill-prepared for the game. It was embarrassing to watch them call the game.

Listen, I know it’s only pre-season and everyone — including the networks — are working out the kinks, but I expect Buck and Aikman to be on top of their game. They usually are, so I guess I was surprised by the sloppy effort.

Continue reading Fox preseason football flops big-time

Filed under: Sports, OpEd, Reality-Free

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The season five finale of Weeds, “All About My Mom,” is coming up Monday night at 10 PM ET/PT on Showtime. Kevin Nealon will be hosting the finale to promote his upcoming comedy special, Kevin Nealon: Now Hear Me Out, which airs Friday, Sept. 4, at 9:30 PM ET/PT on Showtime. Get a sneak peek here.

While I haven’t been all that crazy about this season of Weeds, there have been a few standout episodes, and I’ll miss the show. Something about the crazy life of Nancy Botwin and her clan continues to draw me in, even during what I consider the weaker seasons.

Throughout season five, TV Squad readers have been debating whether the show is still good, or whether it should take its final bow. After “Ducks & Tigers,” Collin said, “It is time to cancel this disaster. Whoever thinks this is a comedy should have their head examined.” After “Distinctive Horn,” however, Matthew Fleigle noted, “So far this has been one of the best seasons of Weeds.”

Continue reading Preview of the Weeds finale – Is it time for the series to end?

Filed under: Programming, OpEd, Video, Weeds, Reality-Free

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