Oscar weekend gets a kickstart with The Independent Spirit Awards (IFC, 10 p.m.), a decidedly more casual affair honoring many films you may not have heard of, but could be worth putting in our film queue (keep a pen handy to jot titles down). “The Artist” is tied for most nominations, but with “Take Shelter,” […]
Monthly Archives: February 2012
Friday TV: Broadway’s ‘Memphis,’ All Star Weekend Begins
As a singing, dancing extravaganza, the 2010 Tony Award-Winning “Memphis” has a lot more going for it than most Broadway musicals. But as a guide to the development of music in southwest Tennessee, it’s pretty misleading. There’s a trove of great blues and r&B and even country and rockabilly that came from the crossing musical […]
Posted in What's On TV
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‘Idol’ Makes Way for Boys
Guys already dominate the 2012 “American Idol” as the judges picked their Top 24 and made way to make it 25 to accommodate a 13th male. As the female candidates seem more generic and identical than past seasons, it was the group of males, with their unusual names and varied look that stood out. As […]
Posted in Reality Bites
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Thursday TV: Chasing Dreams on Track and in Song
From all the reality competition shows, it’s all about following your dream, no matter what. Despite the proliferation of singing shows, though, some kids dream of actually doing something different. “Racing Dreams,” as it name may suggest, follows three tweens whose dream is to become NASCAR drivers. Too young for a drivers’ license they cut […]
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Wednesday TV: ‘American Weed,’ ‘Raising Renee,’ Another Debate
The rise of medical marijuana dispensaries has been a natural subject for TV series, from reality (“Weed Wars”) to fiction (“Weeds”). Now there’s a new entry in the field that has been growing like a, well, you know. “American Weed” (National Geographic Channel, 10 p.m.) looks into the rise of the commercial pot centers in […]
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Good Blues at the White House for Once
I love the fact that just down a couple miles down street from my house tonight, Mick Jagger will be jamming with B.B. King, Booker T. Jones, Jeff Beck, Keb Mo and Trombone Shorty. Gary Clark Jr., Shemekia Copeland, Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks will also be there. And with any luck, Barak Obama will […]
Posted in Music, Politics, Television
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Tuesday TV: Fat Tuesday and Clinton Too
Just like the rabid press and his Republican foes at the time, the makers of the bloated four-hour “Clinton” on “American Experience” (PBS, 8 p.m., check local listings) can’t resist the Oval office dalliances of Bill Clinton and let it outweigh everything else in his administration. After the outrageous investigations of a special prosecutor fishing […]
Posted in General
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Colbert Explains His Absence, Sort Of
Even before he let loose with his regular theme, Stephen Colbert spent a few minutes Monday debunking the rumors that had cropped up since his show’s sudden absence last week. “As the hub around which the republic turns, I can understand why the machinery of this great nation ground to a halt last week when […]
Posted in Television
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Why the Scandal Dominates ‘Clinton’
If you wrote a book about Bill Clinton and his presidency, would you spend fully a fourth of it discussing his affair with a White House intern? That’s what happens in “Clinton,” the two night presentation on “American Experince” that uses one of its four hours dealing with the fallout. Filmmaker Barak Goodman defended the […]
Posted in Politics, Television
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Monday TV: Long Look at Clintons, ‘Bachelor’ Home Visits
It’s been 20 years since he was first running for president but Bill and Hillary Clinton are still so much with us that it seems odd now to look back at their accomplishments on “American Experience” (PBS, 9 p.m., check local listings). It’s a fascinating story, of course, that begins with the Lewinsky scandal and […]
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