television

By TERRY MORROW
Scripps Howard News Service
Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Many of your favorite television shows are about to wrap up their seasons _ and, for some, their entire runs. Here's a look at when the finales run, and what you can expect:

_ "Smallville" (May 17). In what could be the shortest marriage since Britney Spears wed husband No. 1, Lex and Lana call it quits. Surely Lex will take the news well. No?

_ "Ugly Betty" (May 17). Betty and her beau take their relationship to the next level, although she's in another country trying to save her soon-to-be deported daddy.

_ "The Office" (May 17). A job opens at corporate headquarters, and Jim, Michael and Karen become rivals for it.

_ "CSI" (May 17). The mini-killer's identity is revealed, and we finally learn the extent of the relationship between Grissom and Sara.

_ "Grey's Anatomy" (May 17). Addison has some decisions to make, which may prompt her to have her own series next fall, tentatively titled "Private Practice."

_ "Desperate Housewives" (May 20). Gaby will be a bride, and Susan may be, too. But look who's coming to town: Lynette's troubled mom (Polly Bergen).

_ "Heroes" (May 21). Will Peter finally blow up already?

_ "Dancing with the Stars" (May 22). Who won't be surprised if Laila Ali doesn't make it to the final two?

_ "American Idol" (May 23). A new Idol is crowned. But we know that Melinda from Nashville will win, don't we?

_ "Lost" (May 23). They may tease that they are getting off the island, but we know that ain't happening until at least 2010.

_ "The Sopranos" (June 3). Tony and his gang will close the lid on the series once and for all.

By ROB OWEN
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Wednesday, May 09, 2007

"The Price Is Right" host Bob Barker disproves the conventional wisdom about how to draw young viewers. Despite his white hair and his show airing in daytime -- largely the viewing province of the elderly -- Barker has been attracting college students to tapings of "The Price Is Right" for years.

Admittedly, he may have gained some youth cred by punching out Adam Sandler in "Happy Gilmore," but Barker insists his game show has never bowed to the latest and greatest bells and whistles.

"We are an old-fashioned game show," Barker said during a January CBS press conference. "And this old-fashioned game show is a phenomenal success. And why? Because it's a people show."

As for his skills as a host, Barker credits one trait in particular.

"One thing at which I excel is listening," he said. "I listen to what the person I'm talking with is saying. Some hosts are so concerned about what they're going to say next or how they're going to top this contestant, that they're not really listening."

Barker's tenure as host of "The Price Is Right" -- which stretches back to 1972 -- will end later this year (a date for his final episode had not been set at press time, nor had his successor been announced), with its final episodes taping early next month. This week CBS honors Barker's 50 years in show business with two specials.

At 8 p.m. EDT/PDT Wednesday (May 16), "The Price Is Right Million Dollar Spectacular" gives contestants an opportunity to win bigger prizes and a chance to spin the wheel to win $1 million.

At 8 p.m. Thursday (May 17), "Bob Barker: A Celebration of 50 Years on Television" will feature the host's reminiscences about his career and his favorite games from "Price Is Right."

"There are none that I don't like or they wouldn't be on the show," Barker said in January. "But, in general, I like the games that give me an opportunity to have fun with the contestant, to interact with the contestant."

Well, he likes that interaction up to a point. One of his most memorable moments turned out to be the first in a series.

"I had a Samoan woman pick me up as if I were a child and just throw me around," Barker said. "And frankly, I was terrified."

A year later, another Samoan came on down to Contestant's Row, Barker said, and again he was picked up. Another year later, a third Samoan was on the show.

"This time I had her raise her right hand and swear that if she got on-stage, she would not lay a hand on me," Barker said. "And she swore. And she got up on-stage, she won a car and picked me up higher than either one of the other two had picked me up.

"I don't know what it is about me and Samoans, but I'm never going to Samoa."

Barker got into broadcasting after a stint in the Navy and then college. He first worked in radio, including an audience-participation show. Barker's late wife, Dorothy Jo, heard the program and said that was what Barker should be doing full-time.

In 1956, producer Ralph Edwards hired Barker to host "Truth or Consequences." Barker even remembers exactly when he learned of his new job: Dec. 21 at five minutes past noon.

"That is the most important thing that had ever happened to me professionally or will ever happen to me professionally because it changed my life," Barker said.

The only real blemishes in Barker's "Price" tenure are several lawsuits brought by female employees. All were settled out of court, which Barker said was not his choice; the show's production company chose to settle.

"They were distortions, exaggerations or outright falsehoods, and we could prove that in court," Barker said. "But it's good business to settle when you can settle for far less than the lawsuit would cost."

Barker said he's heard one question most often since announcing his retirement, and the 83-year-old has crafted a succinct response: "I want to retire while I'm still young."

(Rob Owen can be reached at rowen(at) post-gazette.com.)

By ROB OWEN
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Now we come to the curious case of ABC's "Traveler" (10 p.m., ET/PT, Thursday). The network announced the drama as a midseason replacement series a full year ago this month, but since then the show has languished. The network didn't bother to present "Traveler" stars and producers to critics at the midseason TV critics press tour in January. Never a good sign.

Yet the pilot, written by series creator David DiGilio and directed by David Nutter (he also helmed the pilots for "Smallville," "Supernatural" and "Jack & Bobby"), begins as an action-packed adrenaline rush.

Grad school buddies plan one last juvenile lark in a New York City museum before setting off together on a cross-country road trip. Will Traveler (Aaron Stanford) videotapes friends Jay (Matthew Bomer) and Tyler (Logan Marshall-Green) as they in-line skate through the museum. (Parents may groan at the notion of their children getting bad ideas watching these guys skate down stairs and across slick marble floors, but it does make for some cool visual flourishes.) The fun ends when alarms blare, visitors rush out of the museum and security guards pursue Jay and Tyler. After they skate out of the museum, Jay's phone rings. Will asks if they made it out of the museum, and when Jay assents, Will adds, "I'm sorry I had to do this." Then the building explodes.

From here, the FBI labels Jay and Tyler suspects. There's some murky back story about the government investigating Tyler's wealthy father; Jay's dad committed suicide after being court-martialed for a friendly-fire incident in Iraq, but he's not bitter.

"My father died because someone in the government betrayed him. That didn't make me hate my government, that made me want to fix it," Jay says. And he means it, making him the widest-eyed, most optimistic character on TV all season.

After the bomb blast, ABC's apparent lack of faith in "Traveler" becomes more understandable. The show is a serial with a dark theme, exactly like the many shows that flopped in the fall ("The Nine," "Vanished," "Kidnapped"). It's another excellent premise that might work well as a one-shot movie but feels like it may be grasping in its attempts to make it as an ongoing series.

On top of that, there's a labyrinth-like conspiracy grafted onto a game of cat-and-mouse as Jay and Tyler attempt to elude capture while trying to figure out why Will detonated that bomb.

Viewers also have to keep in mind that network executives have seen future episodes and it's possible the quality of the series tanks in subsequent installments, which won't be seen until the show moves into its regular time period -- 10 p.m. Wednesday -- on May 30.

(Rob Owen can be reached at rowen(at)post-gazette.com)

By SAM McMANIS
Sacramento Bee
Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Silly me. I thought cable TV news was beyond mocking. After all, once you've watched Nancy Grace in action, parody and satire don't seem to stand a chance.

But then along comes The Onion to prove that theory wrong. Those masters of subtle snark, who made their mark a decade ago by aping the inanities of newspapers and last year sent up radio news with a hilarious podcast, now are taking aim at CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC.

Easy targets, for sure.

"The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" got there first, of course, and scores of Internet sites and YouTubers have tried their hand at faux newscasts since.

The difference: The "Onion News Network" does it best _ by a long shot.

In the month since "ONN" videos were added to The Onion's Web site (www.theonion.com/content), there hasn't been a flop yet. Then again, creators aren't flooding the site with one-joke bits. They've posted just nine videos, each "report" about two minutes in duration.

It's a wise move. Truly funny satire takes time and just the right subject matter. Plus, the verisimilitude of the set, the anchor banter, the graphics and news crawl must be exacting. That's why the "live reports" from "The Daily Show" correspondents are sometimes hit-and-miss, saved only by the studio-audience response.

The Onion has no such safety net or laugh track. But it doesn't need one. That's because big laughs, while always welcome, aren't the only goal. Implicit in each report is a commentary _ check that, an indictment _ on the state of the media.

Take, for instance, the recent report, "Breaking News: Something Happening in Haiti." A better swipe at the knee-jerk reaction of cable-news stations to "developing stories" has yet to be produced.

The video opens with high-cheekboned, elegantly coiffed anchor Lane Everett telling viewers that there is "breaking news" from Haiti, with reporter Don Abrams on the "sat phone" from Port-au-Prince. Immediately, we see a map of Haiti with a bull's-eye on it and the photo of the correspondent doing the talking.

Abrams tells Everett the streets are "clogged with people" gathered "by the presidential palace." Everett (making a statement, not a question): "So it's a protest of some kind."

In seconds, the graphic changes to "Protest in Haiti."

Then Abrams tells her that "people are chanting, 'He is great.' "

Symbols crash and music starts. Everett, brow furrowed, says, "Election results ... a historic day for the people of Haiti."

But wait. Abrams tells Everett the crowd is "hoisting a soccer player" in celebration. Cut to Everett: "Amazing soccer victory in Haiti," followed by a "Sports Update" graphic.

And on and on it goes, with Everett changing stories as soon as Abrams says something contradictory. At one point, he uploads video from a cell phone, showing people milling about. Everett calls it "an out-of-control riot ...."

It gets even more absurd when the studio briefly loses contact with Abrams, and the folks in graphics, assuming he's dead, put up his tombstone _ "Don Abrams: 1968-2007."

By the end of the report, neither Abrams nor Everett can decide what is going on. Could be a coup. Could be a party. Everett signs off by saying, "Thank you very much, Don Abrams. Stay safe or enjoy the festival."

Some of the other cable-news staples that ONN has turned on their heads: A pundit show featuring absurd topics, such as "Do you remember life before the Segway?" and a bogus medical report, "70 percent of all praise sarcastic."

The genius is in the details. The set, replete with flashing TV monitors and sleek furniture, screams cable-news pomposity. The graphics, whooshing sound effects and over-the-top theme music add to the aesthetic.

And The Onion leaves no cable-news convention unexploited. The news crawls are hilarious. One offering: "New federal law forbids people convicted of bestiality to live within 2,000 feet of a zoo."

Gee, you know, I think I may have actually seen that last story on Nancy Grace's show.

(Contact Sam McManis at smcmanis(at)sacbee.com.)

By DAVE MASON
Scripps Howard News Service
Friday, May 04, 2007

It was the age of Nirvana, Pearl Jam _ and Opera Man.

Adam Sandler sang lyrics poking fun at the big names of the time on "Weekend Update," but the scene that stands out in "Saturday Night Live in the '90s: Pop Culture Nation" involves the late, talented Chris Farley.

There Farley is, stripped to his waist, dancing his heart out for a Chippendales audition. And an amazed and much slender dancer, Patrick Swayze of "Dirty Dancing," can't keep up.

It was hard for anyone to keep up with Farley as he played characters such as a loud motivational speaker who got right in other people's faces. The best part of the "SNL" special, which airs at 9 p.m. EDT Sunday on NBC as part of May sweeps, is seeing other "SNL" actors unable to keep a straight face as Farley and others went over the top and straight into our hearts.

That's why Sunday's special is worth watching.

"Saturday Night Live in the '90s" features Will Ferrell and Cheri Oteri as cheerleaders; Molly Shannon as Mary Katherine Gallagher, who falls into everything; and the actors playing presidents and the candidates running against them. In the 1990s, "SNL" had its classic debate in which Dana Carvey, through the magic of editing, played both President George H.W. Bush and third-party opponent Ross Perot. Carvey talks Sunday about Bush's good-natured reaction to his portrayal of him.

And there's a clip showing Darrell Hammond as President Bill Clinton jogging.

He jogs into a fast-food restaurant.

Carvey and Mike Myers are featured in their "Wayne's World" sketches. Julia Sweeney is shown as her character Pat _ no one knows if Pat's a woman or a man. And Chris Rock, Tim Meadows, Tracy Morgan and many other stars talk about those good old days.

But Sunday's special isn't only a fun look at the past. It's also a serious look at the tragedies and controversies related to "SNL." There's the sadness over the loss of Phil Hartman, who was shot to death in 1998, and Farley, who died in 1997 from a heroin (opiate) and cocaine overdose. Interviews feature comments comparing Farley to the late John Belushi.

The special also covers the firing of cast members, including popular "Weekend Update" anchor Norm Macdonald. Those segments involve a look at how NBC made decisions that Lorne Michaels, the executive producer and creator of "SNL," had to carry out.

And the stars discuss how well _ or poorly _ "SNL" used its black actors.

Clips show the actors making a point about that in a sketch. "SNL" has a history of poking fun at its flaws.

It wasn't for controversial reasons, but the 1990s marked the time that Al Franken, who had been a writer and actor on "SNL" since its beginning in 1975, finally left the show. Franken talks about that.

Unfortunately, the two-hour special leaves out a lot, and it should have featured more of Franken because he's smart enough, he's good enough and, gosh darn it, people like him. Franken's Stuart Smalley, the expert on self-affirmation, stands out as one of his final characters.

Among the missing is one of the best sketches in "SNL" history.

In Hartman's final scene in 1994 as part of the cast, he and other stars performed a full-fledged, hilarious musical tribute to him.

It was a showstopper.

(Dave Mason of the Ventura County Star in California can be reached at dmason@VenturaCountyStar.com.)

By DAVE MASON
Scripps Howard News Service
Friday, May 04, 2007

Callie is getting a new heart literally and figuratively.

Samantha Mathis, who stars as Callie in "A Stranger's Heart," said the young woman felt isolated from the world because her mother died in a car accident when she was a young girl. Worse, Callie had a weak heart that led her to live a life too cautious for love.

"She channels all her energy into her work" as a magazine writer, said Mathis, 36, during a phone interview.

"A Stranger's Heart" shows Callie becoming reconnected with the world and forming a new relationship as she waits for a new heart. The movie, which also stars Peter Dobson, premieres at 9 p.m. Saturday (May 5) on the Hallmark Channel.

Callie is a fictional character, but she represents the real-life challenges faced by heart patients. Mathis said she tried to show those aspects in her character's physicality.

"There are subtle things like the extremely dry lips, how much energy it takes to walk and to talk," Mathis said. "Your heart is not functioning properly." The film shows the long wait for a donated heart and the patients' health challenges after they get a new heart.

But "A Stranger's Heart" also shows the positive side. Heart transplant recipients get a second chance to live life to the fullest.

"She begins to see how precious life is and that it's important to spend time with people who make you happy," Mathis said.

"A Stranger's Heart" also shows that the world needs Callie, and with her new heart, she gets a new perspective about herself.

Mathis' films have varied from "How to Make An American Quilt" (1995) to "American Psycho" (2000) and "Believe in Me" (2006). Another of her movies, "The American President" (1995), will air at 2:30 p.m. Sunday (May 6) on Showtime.

Mathis talked about her 1996 film "Broken Arrow," which was about terrorists stealing nuclear warheads from the U.S. military.

"I enjoyed it for myriad reasons working with the director (John Woo), working with Christian Slater and working with John Travolta," she said. "I had seen "Grease" 20 times; to be in a film with him was a dream come true." She got to act with Travolta again in "The Punisher" (2004).

Mathis, a Brooklyn native and the daughter of the late longtime actress Bibi Besch, began her career early. "I was in commercials when I was 6 months old," she said. "But I didn't become an actress until I was 16.

"I grew up around the business. I spent my adolescence visiting sets," Mathis said. "I fell in love with performing.

Besch, who had many TV and film roles throughout her career, died at age 56 in 1996 from breast cancer. Her lessons have lived on with her daughter.

"She taught me a lot about how to be a decent person," Mathis said.

By TERRY MORROW
Scripps Howard News Service
Thursday, May 03, 2007

Oh, the Joy of "Earl."

She's a deliciously written, wildly over-the-top hellion who adds the right kind of spunk to a sleepy kind of sitcom like "My Name Is Earl." Even when Joy Hickey Turner (Jaime Pressly) isn't in a scene, she looms large, which is a sign of a great character.

As the second season ends (8 p.m. Thursday, May 10, NBC), it's apparent just how essential Joy is, and how the show would not be quite the same with her.

In fact, "Earl" is better when the focus is on Joy more than Earl.

So it's a delight to see the season finale wrapped up around Joy as her long-overdue trial on a third-strike charge begins. (She stole a truck earlier in the season, a plot device needed to limit a pregnant Pressly's appearances for most of this year).

Oddly in this finale, Joy isn't in as many scenes as you'd think, but her presence wafts through every scene.

Of course, Earl (Jason Lee) won't let his vixen of an ex-wife go the Big House easily. He wants to see her avert jail time and go back to her family in the trailer park.

Earl must be a saint to want to save Joy. As he combs through the community to find character witnesses on her behalf, he rediscovers just what a whirlwind Joy can be.

Her minister can't bring himself to say anything nice (recalling to Earl the time Joy came to church wearing a denim tube top).

Let's just say Joy's not exactly a people person.

Is "Earl" purely dependent on Joy for the bulk of its best comedy? No, but it's apparent, especially in this season finale, that the show would be sorely lacking with her.

Maybe, if you look at it that way, we can all understand why Earl still loves Joy despite her overwhelming flaws.

If "Earl" had more Joy _ or even more characters so vividly written as her _ it would truly live up to its potential.

Other highlights for the week of May 6-12, all times Eastern. (Listings subject to change; check local listings):

SUNDAY, May 6

_ "Cold Case" (9 p.m. CBS). The entire team is held hostage during a case. Well, it is a season finale. Those actors better be on their best behavior this summer.

_ "Reno 911!" (10:30 p.m., Comedy Central). Dangle visits his ex-wife and her new husband on their anniversary. Yes, Dangle was married. To a woman.

TUESDAY, May 8

_ "Gilmore Girls" (8 p.m. CW). One girl becomes a woman. Rory (Alexis Bledel) gets her college degree.

_ "The Unit" (8 p.m. CBS). The team comes back from a mission and learns they are under a secret investigation. Well, it's not so much a secret anymore.

WEDNESDAY, May 9

_ "Jericho" (8 p.m. CBS). Just when the town thought they were the only ones left, they meet others. Or, if this were "Lost," that would be Others.

_ "CSI: NY" (10 p.m. CBS). Oh no! There's two John McEnroes! Isn't one enough?

_ "Halfway Home" (10:30 p.m. Comedy Central). Minimum wage jobs vex the residents.

THURSDAY, May 10

_ "Supernatural" (9 p.m. CW). "Grey's Anatomy's" Jeffrey Dean Morgan does double duty in the season finale.

_ "Without A Trace" (10 p.m. CBS). Jack tries to keep Elena safe when a legal case of hers gets messy.