It wasn’t so long ago that the announcement of an epic period love story starring Nicole Kidman and Clive Owen as war correspondent Martha Gellhorn and legendary novelist Ernest Hemingway, directed by Philip Kaufman, the man behind The Right Stuff, The Unbearable Lightness of Being and Henry & June, premiering at the Cannes […]

    Even as the scripted drama business on the broadcast networks subsides into increasing irrelevance, new players arise who want to take part.  Dramas may not be cost-effective in the way that they once were, but they’re still an unmatched vehicle for branding–just ask AMC–and Netflix, Amazon and Hulu are among the entities who […]

  It was perfectly appropriate to dread the news that an athlete was hosting SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE–the show’s history abounds with deadly sports hosts like Michael Phelps and Tom Brady.  And in case that wasn’t enough pressure for tonight’s host Eli Manning, one of the rare exceptions to the rule was his own brother Peyton, […]

  Mick Jagger isn’t exactly known for his comedy stylings.  But the man knows a little bit about performing, and he was an extremely game host for tonight’s 37th season finale of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE.  He didn’t have much to do, though, with the night’s highlights. The highest of those was the sweet, teary farewell […]

    THE NEW NORMAL:  Tuesdays 9:30PM on NBC   WHAT IT’S SAYING:  A new kind of family sitcom:  gay couple, surrogate mother, her daughter–and her bitchy, bigoted (but, you know, funny) grandmother.  Grandma’s practically Sue Sylvester!  And what a coincidence, Sue’s creator Ryan Murphy is behind this too.

    666 PARK AVENUE:  Sunday 10PM on ABC   WHAT IT’S SAYING:  The Devil’s Advocate, Rosemary’s Baby and The Shining in a stunning NY apartment, and fielding an all-star team of ABC veterans (Terry O’Quinn, Vanessa Williams, Dave Annable, Rachael Taylor).  

    THE GOODWIN GAMES:  Tuesday 9:30PM on FOX   WHAT IT’S SAYING:  From the guys who gave you How I Met Your Mother, another unexpected spin on sitcom convention:  this time, the Sibling Rivalry comedy.   WHAT IT’S REALLY SAYING:  Are there more to the “Games” than the customized Trivial Pursuits questions we see?  […]

          GUYS WITH KIDS:  Wednesday 8:30PM on NBC   WHAT IT’S SAYING:  Everyone loves Judd Apatow movies, right?  Irreverent guys who hang out together and give each other crap?   Because this is totally Apatow-esque–with cute babies! WHAT IT’S REALLY SAYING:  The last show that tried to imitate Judd Apatow was Work […]