Boston's Alternative Source!
 
Feedback


[Hot Dots]

by Clif Garboden

THURSDAY

7:30 (2) Once upon a Sleigh Ride. A profile of Cambridge-born composer (and, in his own peculiar way, a true innovator) Leroy Anderson, who gave the world the typewriter song, "Sleigh Ride," "The Syncopated Clock," "Bugler’s Holiday," "Blue Tango," and more ditties from the depths of novelty. To be repeated on Wednesday at 1 p.m. on Channel 44. (Until 9 p.m.)

7:30 (38) Hockey. The Bruins versus the Philadelphia Flyers.

9:00 (2) Mythodea. New-age composer Vangelis (like Yanni, but no Yanni) performs his theme music for NASA’s Mission: 2001 Mars Odyssey, whatever that is, in the Temple of Zeus in Athens. We’re promised that Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman will "join him on stage." No mention of whether they’ll be participating. (Until 10:30 p.m.)

FRIDAY

7:30 (2) The Wrinkle Cure with Dr. Nicholas Perricone. So this is the new direction of public broadcasting. Dr. Perricone doesn’t have to stoop to running infomercials on cable when Channel 2 gives him a hour and a half to demonstrate the results of his 15 years of research into why old skin doesn’t look like young skin. Now we’re not suggesting that this special is going to include a testimonial from Victoria Principal, or that Dr. Nick is actually selling some product. It’s enough that he’s selling himself, and it’s a shame that the keepers of what long ago was called "educational television" think it’s okay to take something so stupidly trivial seriously. What’s next? Frontline on tan lines? This Old House on miracle cleaning products? Nova on the joys of cubic zirconium? The Antiques Roadshow knives, sports-cards, and Beanie Babies special edition? Should we be expecting Oil of Olay gift sets as fundraising premiums? And what could this guy have done with Mother Teresa’s complexion? Or Sister Wendy’s, for that matter? Or John McLaughlin’s? Apparently the ’GBH folks expect this to be a popular program (all lined up to be a "viewers’ choice") because they’re repeating it several times this week. We won’t go into details about that. Let’s just hope we can wipe out liver spots in our lifetime. (Until 11 p.m.)

8:00 (25) The Sound of Music (movie). No, no, no, no, no. (Until 11 p.m.)

9:00 (2) Recording The Producers: A Musical Romp with Mel Brooks. Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, and the entire cast of the Producers revival gather for a one-day cast-album recording session. And we — along with Mel Brooks and director Susan Stroman — get to watch. (Until 11 p.m.)

SATURDAY

11:00 a.m. (4) Football. Army versus Navy.

1:00 (2) A Century of Quilts: America in Cloth. A celebration of quilting in the 20th century. (Until 2:30 p.m.)

1:00 (5) Football. Miami versus Virginia Tech.

2:30 (2) Rock, Rhythm, and Doo-Wop. Repeated from last week. Frankie Valli hosts more than 200 pop-music legends — including Little Richard, Little Anthony, and even bigger stars. To be repeated on Tuesday at 9 p.m. and on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. on Channel 44. (Until 5:30 p.m.)

4:30 (4) Football. Tennessee versus Florida.

4:30 (5) Football. Oregon State versus Oregon.

5:30 (2) Martha Stewart in the Holiday Spirit. See Friday at 7:30 p.m. for our screed on the slippery slope. It’s one thing for PBS to create cultural superstars — Julia Child, for example — and quite another for PBS to borrow them from the commercial arena. Martha gets out the ornaments and decks her halls for company. Perhaps Oprah will drop in for cocoa. (Until 7 p.m.)

6:00 (7) Basketball. The Orlando Magic versus the Washington Jordans — er, Wizards.

7:00 (2) Amazing Grace with Bill Moyers. The annual documentary that has Bill chasing down dozens of covers of the popular hymn. With Jessye Norman, Judy Collins, Johnny Cash, Jean Ritchie, and the Boys Choir of Harlem. (Until 9 p.m.)

8:00 (5) Football. Colorado versus Texas for the Big 12 championship.

8:44 (7) Stripes (movie). In the mood for a war? Wanna kick some Arab ass? Well, forget that. This 1981 Bill Murray/Harold Ramis comedy in uniform is remarkably negative about military values. Thank you. With Warren Oates and P.J. Soles. (Until 11 p.m.)

9:00 (2) Wheel of Life. Never heard of these guys, but that’s our fault, not theirs. The Shaolin Monks of China’s Henan Province have been around for 1500 years. Apparently they’re fighting monks known for their "elite fighting skills" and "ability to perform feats of astonishing physical prowess." It’s an acrobatic act with a kung fu undercurrent. To be repeated on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. and on Thursday at 9 p.m. on Channel 44. (Until 11 p.m.)

11:00 (2) The Firesign Theatre: Weirdly Cool. A reunion of those improv wags from the late ’60s, featuring Phil Proctor, Peter Bergman, Phil Austin, and David Ossman re-creating "Don’t Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers" and other material that maybe made more sense if you were stoned. With clips from the troupe’s spaced-out past and guest appearances by Robin Williams, George Carlin, Chevy Chase, and John Goodman. To be repeated on Sunday at 9:30 p.m. on Channel 44. (Until 12:30 a.m.)

11:00 (44) In the Life. This month’s edition of this gay/lesbian/bi/whatever magazine-format show serves up a profile of NYC Fire Department chaplain Mychal Judge, who died in the September 11 terrorist attacks; a look at the boom in gay parenting (including an interview with columnist/author Dan Savage and his partner, Terry Miller); a feature on hearing-impaired gays and lesbians; excerpts from the documentary Straight from the Heart, which has straight talk (no pun intended) from the parents of gays and lesbians; a visit to the Catch One disco in South Central LA, where Jewel and Rue Thais-Williams operate a daytime community center; and a visit with the San Francisco organization COLAGE, which stands for Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere. (Until midnight.)

SUNDAY

10:30 a.m. (44) Wheel of Life. Repeated from Saturday at 9 p.m.

1:00 (25) Football. The Minnesota Vikings versus the Pittsburgh Steelers.

2:30 (2) Now That’s Funny. An "unforgettable night of laughs" featuring Freddie Roman, Charlie Callas, John Byner, Jack Carter, Dick Capri, Bill Dana, and Irwin Corey. Hosted by Paul Reiser. (Until 4 p.m.)

4:00 (25) Football. The Dallas Cowboys versus the Washington Redskins.

6:00 (5) Boston Common Tree Lighting. Okay, they’re not pine trees, but we Yankees make do. (Until 7 p.m.)

6:00 (44) Peter, Paul and Mary Holiday Concert. Another seasonal inevitable. We keep getting program-change updates from WGBH (a good thing — thank you, Chris), and the folks there seem to be bouncing this concert special around a bit. So maybe it’ll be on. (Some of the late-breaking program changes apply to shows that apparently were never scheduled, so we’re not counting on anything.) (Until 8 p.m.)

7:00 (2) The Art of Violin. Or "of the violin," if you must. Lots of old footage featuring the great violinists of the 20th century — Jascha Heifetz, Fritz Kreisler, David Oistrakh, and Isaac Stern. (Until 10 p.m.)

7:00 (5) Brian’s Song (movie). A 2001 remake of the classic 1971 TV-movie about the death (by cancer) of Chicago Bear Brian Piccolo and his last-days relationship with teammate Gale Sayers. This version stars Mekhi Phifer and Sean Maher in the roles made famous by James Caan and Billy Dee Williams. (Until 9 p.m.)

7:00 (7) The Prince of Egypt (movie). The 1998 animated telling of the Exodus saga, with some groundbreaking cartooning and the voices of Val Kilmer, Ralph Fiennes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sandra Bullock, Jeff Goldblum, Danny Glover, Patrick Stewart, Helen Mirren, Steve Martin, and Martin Short. (Until 9 p.m.)

9:00 (4) Jim Henson’s Jack and the Beanstalk, the Real Story. Matthew Modine stars as the direct descendant of the original Jack. He’s a billionaire. Somehow that "plot" is going to stretch over four hours. What Jim Henson has to do with it is another mystery. Vanessa Redgrave, Mia Sara, Jon Voight, Daryl Hannah, and Richard Attenborough help out somehow. Concludes on Tuesday, same time, same station. (Until 11 p.m.)

9:30 (44) The Firesign Theatre: Weirdly Cool. Repeated from Saturday at 11 p.m.

10:00 (2) The French Impressionists. Mostly an excuse to show us paintings in HDTV, but also an excursion into the world of groundbreaking artists who rejected formalism and embraced what was for the time something very weird. Featuring Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Cézanne, Gauguin, Manet, and more. (Until 11:30 p.m.)

MONDAY

7:30 (44) Islam: Empire of Faith. Ben Kingsley narrates this documentary on the history of Islam, a religion that built an empire that covered a lot of territory — from Spain to India. Re-enactments plus a lot of art portray the birth of Mohammad through the Ottoman Empire and beyond. (Until 11 p.m.)

9:00 (5) Football. The Green Bay Packers versus the Jacksonville Jaguars.

TUESDAY

7:30 (2) Visions of Italy: Southern Style. Just for show. Aerial footage of Southern Italy presented to the strains of Neapolitan classics and Italian folk songs. Sounds kinda sweet, but then we’re told that it features Dean Martin and Michael Amante. Go figure. (Until 9 p.m.)

8:00 (25) The 2001 Billboard Music Awards. Comedian Bernie Mac hosts this year’s edition, which airs from Las Vegas; scheduled performers include Britney (in "I’m a Slave 4 U"), ’N Sync, Tim McGraw, No Doubt, Alicia Keys, Shaggy, and Incubus. (Until 10 p.m.)

9:00 (2) Rock, Rhythm, and Doo-Wop. Repeated from Saturday at 2:30 p.m.

9:00 (4) Jim Henson’s Jack and the Beanstalk, the Real Story. The thrilling conclusion. (Until 11 p.m.)

WEDNESDAY

1:00 (44) Once upon a Sleigh Ride. Repeated from Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

7:30 (44) Rock, Rhythm, and Doo-Wop. Repeated from Saturday at 2:30 p.m.

8:00 (2) American Dream: Andrea Bocelli’s Statue of Liberty Concert. Bocelli gets patriotic in this concert from Liberty State Park, which was taped before September 11 — which means that in addition to Ellis Island, the backdrop will include the World Trade Center (which will actually make the thing even harder to watch). Note: there isn’t really a patriotic angle here; Bocelli will be singing arias and Italian folk songs. (Until 11 p.m.)

THURSDAY

7:30 (2) Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth with Bill Moyers. A 15-year-anniversary airing of the mythic Moyers documentary. The entire series. (Until 11 p.m.)

8:00 (5) A Charlie Brown Christmas. Just be careful who you send out to get your tree; you may have to settle for the TMOC (True Meaning of Christmas). (Until 9 p.m.)

9:00 (44) Wheel of Life. Repeated from Saturday at 9 p.m.

Issue Date: November 29 - December 6, 2001

Back to the Arts table of contents.