Cable TV is struggling to find network sitcom hits it can use for reruns
“New Girl” is the only viable option for 2015, while “The Mindy Project” and “Last Man Standing” are the only comedies left for 2016 syndication. Yet all three aren”t big hits. “We're all getting starved,” says an FX executive. “For every elite show like 'Big Bang Theory', there is an awful lot of mediocrity out there that won't pull ratings.”
Early Critics Choice Television Award winners include “Fargo”s” Allison Tolman, “OITNB”s” Uzo Aduba
Matt Bomer also won for “The Normal Heart,” while Andre Braugher took home an award for “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.” UPDATE: “Orange is the New Black” wins best comedy series, “Fargo” nabs best miniseries, and Billy Bob Thornton and Matthew McConaughey also win awards.
Bill Clinton to introduce USA”s broadcast of “Philadelphia”
The former president will introduce the AIDS-themed 1993 film on Saturday at 7 m as part of Pride Month and National HIV Testing Day.
Bill Nye on a “Science Guy” reboot: “Does it make sense now”?
Bill Nye has been talking about bringing back “Bill Nye The Science Guy” for years, but he says “now there are millions, just literally millions of competitors (on YouTube). Certainly tens of thousands.”
Why “Fargo” isn”t all it was cracked up to be
The glaring problem was that the FX event series paled in comparison to the brilliance of the Coen brothers, however much it tried, says Matt Zoller Seitz. “As long as (creator Noah) Hawley's show is doing things that are different from, but as aesthetically and philosophically rich as, things that the Coens might do in their films, it's in fine fettle. The problem arises when the show does things that seem lazier or dumber or more retrograde than things the Coens would do. And unfortunately, the show had many such lapses.” PLUS: “Fargo” became the antidote to bloody “shock-ya” TV.
History channel enlists Dierks Bentley to pen the theme song for “Biker Battleground Phoenix”
The country singer, a motorcycle enthusiast, penned the song “Ride On.”
January Jones deletes an old modeling pic she posted to Instagram after it was called racist
The modeling pic shows the “Mad Men” starring wearing a trial-themed sweater while standing between two shirtless black boys.
“Rookie Blue” Season 5 picks up tonight exactly where Season 4 left off
“This,” says co-creator Tassie Cameron, “was more challenging because we're picking up moments after the finale of Season 4 and trying to remind everybody where you're at. And you're starting in this very intense, emotional place.”
Kerry Washington: I”d love to play Arya Stark on “Game of Thrones”
The “Scandal” star was asked, “If you could play another role on any other show, what would it be?” PLUS: What it”s like to be a man on “Scandal.”
“Teen Wolf”s” Bianca Lawson joins “Witches of East End”
She”ll play a mysterious character named Eva.
John Oliver gets some “Fresh Air”
The “Last Week Tonight” host tells NPR”s Terry Gross of his net neutrality viral video, “It took a week of sifting through almost paralyzingly dull footage to try and work out how to present it.”
Vienna gets the “House of Cards” treatment
A filmmaker in Austria recreated the Netflix series” opening credits using locations in Vienna.
Jill Duggar and her fiance”s Walmart wedding registry lists guns, ammo, cereal, duck tape
The TLC star is getting married on Saturday.
TCM Cruise to feature Richard Dreyfuss, Alex Trebek, Roger Corman
Shirley Jones will also be part of this year”s cruise, taking place Oct. 21-26.
“Rectify” is to drama what “Louie” is to comedy
The SundanceTV series returns for a 2nd season tonight, offering “an emotional marathon unmatched by anything else on television.” says Jason Lynch, adding: “It might sound clichéd to say that Rectify is unlike anything else on television, but it”s also entirely accurate. The show”s languid, deliberate pace is almost hypnotic.” PLUS: “Rectify” needs to get on with it, “Rectify's” slowness and care is even more distinctive and refreshing than they were a year ago, and creator Ray McKinnon on deciding to do a Season 2.
Syfy”s “Dominion” uses just about every fantasy/sci-fi trope
The TV series about angels based on the 2010 film “Legion,” says Diane Werts, “seems to have assembled elements of just about every fantasy/sci-fi trope — dystopic urban landscape, royal house-joinings, flying monsters, secret-message tattoos, 'religious theater” vs. “politics.” Not 10 minutes into the pilot comes a good old-fashioned penance whipping. There's even a subtitled angel language.” PLUS: It”s utterly familiar and predictable, “Dominion” may be the dumbest, worst-acted, most poorly written TV series ever.