+News Media | 577 days ago

Remembering Larry King – Radio Titan

By micahernst

TIME’s Richard Zoglin remembers the fine career of Larry King: The tributes may be pouring in, but the truth is that Larry King became something of a punch line in the past few years, at least among the media intelligentsia: dismissed for his softball questions, his lack of preparation (he took it as a point [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 577 days ago

You Are the Emmys Week: Best Actress, Comedy

By James Poniewozik

Today, my picks (preferences, not predictions) for the comedy-actress nominations at the Emmys next week. My spiel again: For my personal picks, I’ve mainly (but not exclusively) stuck to those actors and actresses nominated by their own shows, and mainly (but not exclusively) assigned them to the categories they were submitted in, be it lead [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 577 days ago

The Morning After: Robo-Edition

By James Poniewozik

This is Robo-James. While Flesh-James is absent, I invite you to use this open thread to discuss and analyze the previous night’s transmissions on the television-receptor device. Though I assume that the logic of your analyses will inevitably be corrupted by human emotion and subjectivity. I shall distract myself by singing quietly to myself in [...]

+News Media | 577 days ago

Larry King Resigns: What's in Store for 9 p.m.?

By Steven James Snyder

Talk about an ironic sign of the times: Ninety minutes before he was to go on the air Tuesday night, 76-year-old Larry King chose to announce his primetime resignation via Twitter. Yes, after thousands of shows spanning 25 years, after millions of words heard through car radios and television screens, it all came down to [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 578 days ago

You Are the Emmys Week: Best Actor, Drama

By James Poniewozik

Yesterday, I shared some of my picks–preferences, not predictions–for the Emmy drama-actress categories. Today, it’s the fellas’ turn. To repeat from yesterday: For my personal picks, I’ve mainly (but not exclusively) stuck to those actors and actresses nominated by their own shows, and mainly (but not exclusively) assigned them to the categories they were submitted [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 578 days ago

The Morning After: Robo-Edition

By James Poniewozik

This is Robo-James. While Flesh-James is absent, I invite you to use this open thread to discuss and analyze the previous night’s transmissions on the television-receptor device. Though I assume that the logic of your analyses will inevitably be corrupted by human emotion and subjectivity. I shall distract myself by singing quietly to myself in [...]

+578 days ago

Michael Scott Resigns From Dunder Mifflin, Gives 'The Office' A Future

By Steven James Snyder

For anyone who has stuck by the American version of The Office since the very beginning – or maybe I should specify the beginning of the far superior second season  – the anticlimactic news that broke Monday about Steve Carell leaving the show was a bittersweet development. He’s been talking for months about stepping away [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 579 days ago

You Are the Emmys Week: Best Actress, Drama

By James Poniewozik

As you read this post, I am currently secluded in the tony vacation getaway known as southeastern Michigan. While I’m out, I’ve directed Robo-James to serve up a series of daily posts asking you whom you’d nominate for this year’s Emmys—whose nominees are announced next week—and sharing some of my own picks. For my personal [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 579 days ago

The Morning After: Robo-Edition

By James Poniewozik

This is Robo-James. While Flesh-James is absent, I invite you to use this open thread to discuss and analyze the previous night’s transmissions on the television-receptor device. Though I assume that the logic of your analyses will inevitably be corrupted by human emotion and subjectivity. I shall distract myself by singing quietly to myself in [...]

+TV Networks | 579 days ago

David is Now Goliath: Entourage's Urgent Quest to Remain Relevant

By Steven James Snyder

Entourage returned Sunday night – a fact that, in previous years, would have been cause for jubilation around my house. But over the last few seasons, what used to be a witty, cutting, edgy observational drama about four young friends navigating the halls of Hollywood power has instead become a sort of male-oriented Sex and [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 581 days ago

Programming Note

By James Poniewozik

I’m going to be away for the next week, exploring the exotic and humid climes of southeastern Michigan. (I probably won’t be able to keep myself off Twitter, so as always you can find me there.) So I regret to inform you that Tuned In will be temporarily improving in my absence, with not one [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 582 days ago

TV Next Week: Big People on Huge, Big Laughs on Louie

By James Poniewozik

I’m on vacation next week (but Tuned In will still be kicking, thanks to the cyborg duo of Robo-James and Steven James Snyder; more on that later). While I’m out, here are a couple debuts I won’t have time to write up at greater length, but are worth some attention: ABC Family’s Huge and FX’s [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 582 days ago

Peter Jackson Reportedly to Direct The Hobbit; But Can He Top Rankin-Bass?

By James Poniewozik

The big-screen adaptation of The Hobbit is reportedly close to solving its directing dilemma, with Peter Jackson himself, according to The Hollywood Reporter, in talks to direct the Lord of the Rings prequels. No, this isn’t a TV story, but the Tolkien books are dear enough to me to make me notice. And to get [...]

+582 days ago

Anything You'd Like to Know About Don Draper?

By Steven James Snyder

We’re only a couple weeks away from the July 25 return of Mad Men, so what better time to get back into the rhythm of debating the actions, motivations and true lies of Don Draper. TIME is just about to interview Jon Hamm about the show’s new season. Is there anything you want to know? [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+582 days ago

TV Weekend: Hung and Hangin' on HBO

By James Poniewozik

This Sunday, HBO returns the second season of Hung and the seventh of Entourage, two series that I continue to follow despite their considerable challenges, but for very different reasons. With Hung, the story of a Detroit-area male prostitute (Thomas Jane) and his pimp (Jane Adams), I feel that there’s a really good dark comedy [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+583 days ago

TV Tonight: Futurama

By James Poniewozik

After seven years in cryogenic suspended animation—well, with a few wake-up breaks for TV movies—Futurama comes back to life tonight as a weekly animated series on Comedy Central with a one-hour, two-episode premiere. And appropriately enough, the comedy about the future crew of a Planet Express delivery ship comes back from the dead with a [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 583 days ago

The Morning After: Still Hot for Cleveland?

By James Poniewozik

Ignoring the mandate of Universal Approbation for Betty White Projects in the year 2010, I gave Hot in Cleveland a mostly negative review last week, finding the show stale and clichéd despite a strong performance by White and not-terrible ones by her sitcom-alumnae costars. America responded by tuning in five million strong to the debut, [...]

Tuned In
Tuned In+Uncategorized | 583 days ago

See Bristol Palin's Acting Debut

By James Poniewozik

The Palin Family’s domination of American television proceeds this summer, as Bristol Palin makes a guest appearance July 5 on ABC Family’s The Secret Life of the American Teenager—a teen-pregnancy-themed show that fits with Palin’s teen-pregnancy-themed public career. And now you can watch for yourself a clip from Palin’s acting—or maybe the proper term would [...]