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DAVID BIANCULLI

Founder / Editor

Bianculli's Blog

ERIC GOULD

Associate Editor

The Cold Light Reader

LINDA DONOVAN

Assistant Editor

Dateline Donovan
Contributors

DAVID HINCKLEY

All Along the Watchtower

ED BARK

Uncle Barky's Bytes

ALEX STRACHAN

TV That Matters

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Open Mike

ED MARTIN

Ed Martin's TV Mix

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Aerial View

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MNtv

BILL BRIOUX

TV Feeds My Family

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TV Eye

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Must-Click TV

TOM BRINKMOELLER

Raised On MTM

GERALD JORDAN

Crossing Jordan

NOEL HOLSTON

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TVWW ARCHIVE

Contributors Archive
 
 
2020
May
25
GRANT By David Bianculli
 
 
MINISERIES PREMIERE: Today through Wednesday, the History channel presents Grant, a three-night, six-hour examination of Ulysses S. Grant, who led the Union Army during the Civil War and afterward became the 18th President of the United States in 1869. Grant is a combination of standard documentary elements and reenactments, with British actor Justin Salinger portraying the hard-driving, hard-drinking general – and with the executive producers behind the project in
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
25
'GRANT' RELATES THE STORY OF A SUCCESSFUL GENERAL AND RELUCTANT PRESIDENT By David Hinckley
 
 
Restoring the reputation of Ulysses S. Grant may not sit high on your history priority list. Even if it doesn’t, the three-night miniseries Grant...makes for a compelling watch and a surprisingly interesting story...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
25
KNOWING THE MEANING OF 'BARKSKINS' IS JUST THE BEGINNING OF THIS FASCINATING DRAMA By David Hinckley
 
 
If you want a clue to where a new series called Barkskins is going, it helps first to figure out what “barkskins” means...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
25
1988: SNOW FALLS ON 'ST. ELSEWHERE,' CREATING A FINALE TO REMEMBER By TV WW
 
 
On this day in 1988, TV viewers saw one of the most famous — and perhaps the most debated — series finales in TV history...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
24
1999: THE END OF 'MELROSE PLACE' By David Bianculli
 
 
Melrose Place ended its seven-season run on this day in 1999...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
24
WAR MOVIE MARATHON By David Bianculli
 
 
All day today, and tomorrow, TCM’s war movies marathon continues – and there are films worth catching today. My favorite, though, arrives after midnight tonight. Specifically, at 12:30 a.m. ET, when the 1927 film Wings is shown – a silent war movie that won the first Best Picture Oscar, and that is amazing because of its aerial photography. Oh, and also because of co-star Clara Bow (pictured), who really was luminous here.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
24
2020 NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT By David Bianculli
 
 
For the first time, and for obvious reasons, this annual concert tribute to the military and its veterans is being held not on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol, but as a virtual celebration. The bad news: This circumstance allows for a lot less pomp. The good news: It allows for a bigger roster of celebrity attendees, which now is scheduled to include George Clooney, Gwyneth Paltrow and others. Joe Mantegna and Gary Sinise, who hosted last year’s in-person concert, do the same for this virt
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
24
KILLING EVE By David Bianculli
 
 
Another great episode last week, which ended with Villanelle wounded, Eve’s husband unexpectedly still alive (!), and Eve… bowling. We’re fast approaching the end of this season, so hang on as if astride a bucking bronco. We’re in for a bumpy ride.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
24
I KNOW THIS MUCH IS TRUE By David Bianculli
 
 
Last week’s episode of this miniseries stayed almost exclusively with the saner side of the family tree, with the uninstitutionalized half of the twins portrayed so touchingly by Mark Ruffalo. It also introduced two new characters, played by Rosie O’Donnell and Archie Panjabi. Every supporting player thus far has contributed mightily to this drama, and they were no exception. At its center, though, is Ruffalo, whose character’s pain last week was all but palpable. I Know T
 
 
 
  
 
 
2020
May
24
BILLIONS By David Bianculli
 
 
Last week’s episode of this miniseries stayed almost exclusively with the saner side of the family tree, with the uninstitutionalized half of the twins portrayed so touchingly by Mark Ruffalo. It also introduced two new characters, played by Rosie O’Donnell and Archie Panjabi. Every supporting player thus far has contributed mightily to this drama, and they were no exception. At its center, though, is Ruffalo, whose character’s pain last week was all but palpable. I Know T
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
New From TVWW

PBS' 'Frontline’ Examines Pension Promises and — Spoiler Alert — Finds the Math Doesn’t Add Up
By Alex Strachan
 
 
 
 
The Decadence of ‘Versailles’ Comes to Ovation
By David Hinckley
 
 
 
 
Prescribing Mamie Gummer in 'Emily Owens, M.D.'
By Ed Bark
 
 
 
 
Looking for a Free Ride? HBO Can Deliver
By Christy Slewinski
 
 
 
 
'Pass the Biscuits' Part of the Hatfield-McCoy Pop-Culture Legacy
By Noel Holston
 
 
 
 

Dispatches From TVWW

'Extinction: The Facts' is a Sobering Call to Action
By David Hinckley
 
 
 
 
How 'Mayans' Has Been Influenced by the Show's Creator Elgin James
By Mike Hughes
 
 
 
 
For Whom the Bell Tolls: Ken Burns and Lynn Novick Take on Ernest Hemingway, the Man and the Myth
By Alex Strachan
 
 
 
 
In the Final Season, Sutton Foster's Liza is Now the Genuine Version of Her 'Younger' Self
By Monique Nazareth
 
 
 
 
Season 2 of 'City on a Hill' Returns with Kevin Bacon, Aldis Hodge, and Boston Corruption
By David Hinckley