The 2014 FIFA World Cup is looking good... The host country, Brazil, as expected, won its opening match against Croatia. But the winners stateside included ESPN, which scored with a viewership of 4.4 million, a 55 percent increase over the 2010 South Africa opening match...

2014

Jun

2014 WORLD CUP By David Bianculli

So far, the 2014 World Cup is two days old, and already has served up one newsworthy game per day. Thursday, it was Brazil’s all but mandatory opening-game defeat of Croatia, a game that began with an embarrassing own goal by Brazil and a very questionable call. Friday, it was a replay of the 2010 championship game, with defending champion Spain once again facing the Netherlands – but this time with the Netherlands stunning Spain, and anyone watching worldwide, with a 5-1 rout, featu

2014

Jun

2014 U.S. OPEN GOLF By David Bianculli

Down at Pinehurst 2, German golfer Martin Kaymer is making his own kind of history. After two rounds at the U.S. Open, he’s shot 11 birdies, only one bogey, and shot back-to-back scores of 65. How good is that? Good enough for 10 under par, the lowest 36-hole score in U.S. Open history, and a comfy lead over the rest of the field. But comfy, in golf, can vanish after a few bad breaks, so there’s more reason than ever to watch Kaymer to see if his unflappable play continues, or if it

2014

Jun

AFI LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: A TRIBUTE TO JANE FONDA By David Bianculli

Jane Fonda, daughter of a cinematic icon, has become one herself, and this AFI tribute gives her a Life Achievement Award when her professional life is still going strong – as a regular supporting player on HBO’s The Newsroom, just to name one impressive current credit. The two-time Oscar-winner, for 1978’s Coming Home and 1971’s Klute, deserves to be remembered for many, many memorable achievements, including the deliciously sexy, and funny, Barbarella. But those of you

2014

Jun

ORPHAN BLACK By David Bianculli

This is the penultimate episode of Season 2, and Cosima (played by Tatiana Maslany, as are so many other characters on this show) continues to weaken. Her best hope for a recovery? It could well be Kira (Skyler Wexler), the biological daughter of Sarah, the only clone, apparently, capable of giving birth.

2014

Jun

THE GRAHAM NORTON SHOW By David Bianculli

This week’s new episode features Normal Heart star Mark Ruffalo, Masters of Sex star Michael Sheen, British TV personality Amanda Holden and musician Ed Sheeran. Only one of them, though, is persuaded by Norton to show off a childhood skill and ride a unicycle.

2014

Jun

CAN DISNEY’S BELLE SAVE FELLOW HEROINE BO, FROM NBC’S ‘BELIEVE’? BELIEVE IT OR NOT, SHE’S TRYING… By David Bianculli

The final episode of NBC’s Believe airs Sunday… unless you believe. That series, and its inspirational young heroine, are the object of a rescue mission by another famous heroine: Belle, from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast…

2014

Jun

2014 U.S. OPEN GOLF By David Bianculli

The dreaded Pinehurst 2 course turned out to be a lot softer, and easier, than anticipated yesterday, because of all the rain, and is expected to play a bit softer today as well. That means more below pars than expected, and Martin Kaymer leading the field by being almost unshakeable with both his putter and his tee shots. Coverage moves to NBC at 3 p.m. ET, then returns to ESPN at 5 p.m. ET.

2014

Jun

2014 WORLD CUP By David Bianculli

One day into the World Cup, and only one game, and already we have an egregious error, a controversial call, a star performance and a dramatic victory, as host country Brazil bounced back from an own-goal deficit to beat Croatia 3-1. Today there are three games in as many cities. In Natal, Mexico faces Cameroon, televised at 11:30 a.m. ET on ESPN2. At 3 p.m. ET, ESPN switches from golf to soccer and presents Spain vs. Netherlands, live from Salvador. And the day’s final game, presented on

2014

Jun

THE STING By David Bianculli

This 1973 caper movie is what I consider a perfect film in its genre: charming, surprising, inventive and stylish. It’s got great heroes (Paul Newman and Robert Redford, after Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid), a magnificent villain (Robert Shaw, before Jaws), and enough con-men card tricks, and other kinds of tricks, to fill an inside straight. If you’ve never seen it, you must. If you have, it’s always worth revisiting. All that, and all those fabulous Scott Joplin rags, to

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