Television |

Mary McCormack Joins as Co-Host for 30th Anniversary National Memorial Day Concert in DC

May 16, 2019 TRR News Television, Television News

PBS’ NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT announced today that Tony-nominated actress and star of TV’s THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT, Mary McCormack will be joining Tony Award-winner and long-time concert host Joe Mantegna to co-host the multi-award winning live show for its 30th-anniversary broadcast, Sunday, May 26th. Also added to the lineup, AMERICAN IDOL Season 17 finalist Alyssa Raghu joins the show for a special performance of the “National Anthem.”

Gender Inequality Just Met Its Match | The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Presents Desi Lydic: Abroad | Premieres May 13

May 8, 2019 TRR News Television, Television News

In her first one-hour special, The Daily Show’s Desi Lydic is setting out on a global expedition — exploring how and why the U.S. has fallen so far behind much of the world when it comes to women and education, economics, health and politics. The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Presents Desi Lydic: Abroad will premiere on Monday, May 13 at 11:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Justin Moore and Jaina Lee Ortiz with the National Symphony Orchestra - Dennis Haysbert, Alison Krauss, Christopher Jackson, Amber Riley, with General Colin Powell, Sam Elliott, Patti LaBelle, Gavin DeGraw, - All-Star Line-up Hosted by Joe Mantegna and Gary Sinise

All-Star Lineup for 30th Anniversary National Memorial Day Concert in DC

May 7, 2019 TRR News Television, Television News

PBS’s multi award-winning NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT returns live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol for a special 30th anniversary broadcast hosted by Tony Award-winner Joe Mantegna and Emmy Award-winner Gary Sinise. The 30th annual broadcast of the NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT airs live on PBS Sunday, May 26, 2019, from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m., before a concert audience of hundreds of thousands, millions more at home, as well as to our troops serving around the world on the American Forces Network.

Hulu's Shrill starring SNL's Aidy Bryant is a win for representation

Hulu’s Shrill should be Shouted from the Rooftops

March 17, 2019 Cortland Jacoby Television, Television Reviews

Fifteen seconds into Hulu’s new series Shrill and we are already seeing skin. The woman is not sexualized, but instead she is shown in her bra, trying to figure out what to wear to work. This mundane event might not even be shown in most shows, however, the moment stands out for one reason– this woman is fat.

"It's really about modeling what I needed to see when I was younger, which was someone whose body looks like mine."

A Conversation with Shrill’s Lindy West

March 15, 2019 Cortland Jacoby Interviews, Television

As a fat woman, you could say that I have been hungry for positive fat portrayals of women in media. Since movies and TV rarely showed any normal depictions of fat women, I often went to books to read what I couldn’t see. That’s where I first came across writer and activist Lindy West.

In 2016 Shrill, West’s comedic memoir on fat shaming and coming of age as a woman in a world that wasn’t made for you, was published to critical acclaim. Now, a TV show based on her life and the fat and female experiences, also called Shrill, is coming to Hulu Friday, starring SNL’s Aidy Bryant and produced by Elizabeth Banks and Lorne Michaels. A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to chat with Lindy by phone and talk about adapting her memoir, representation, fat people on TV and how comedy has grown in the last five years to include more diverse voices. Here’s our conversation:

Starts streaming Thursday, February 14 on Hulu

Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1 to make exclusive streaming debut on Hulu

February 13, 2019 TRR News Television, Television News

Hulu and Lionsgate today announce that UNBANNED: THE LEGEND OF AJ1, the powerful and inspiring true story of how Air Jordan 1 (AJ1) transcended sport to become a global phenomenon, will stream exclusively on Hulu. From first time filmmaker Dexton Deboree, the documentary interviews culture-defining titans, including NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan himself, Quincy Jones, Spike Lee, Lena Waithe, Carmelo Anthony, Chuck D, and Phil Knight among others, to explore how AJ1 was not just a sneaker, but a worldwide movement that broke through barriers of race, age, and gender to define the culture in which we now live. Lionsgate acquired the documentary which is set to make its exclusive streaming debut on Hulu on February 14.

Television Review: Hulu's Pen15

Hulu’s Pen15 Raises the Bar for the Coming of Age Comedy

February 8, 2019 Cortland Jacoby Television, Television Reviews

Bad haircuts. Questionable fashion choices. Changing bodies. Masturbation. Devastatingly awkward moments. I think it is safe to say that no one would voluntarily go back to middle school, but comedians Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle did revisit the most humbling time in a person’s life and infused all the age’s awkwardness and heart into the Hulu show Pen15. Premiering this Friday and produced by The Lonely Island, the show gives an honest depiction of 13-year-old girls trying to navigate the trials and tribulations of middle school and growing up. It’s just that the leads are played by 30 somethings.

Television Review: I Am the Night on TNT

TNT’s I Am the Night Fumbles in the Dark

January 28, 2019 Cortland Jacoby Television, Television Reviews

In this barren time of year, when all the Oscar movies have been out for a while and prime time tv shows are either gearing up or not back at all, very rarely does a show bare such star power. Starring Chris Pine and produced and partially directed by Wonder Woman’s Patty Jenkins and written by her husband, Sam Sheridan, TNT’s I Am the Night tries to combine that star power with an almost too wild to believe true story and a political message about disenfranchised voices. Sometimes it succeeds, sometimes it fails.

Exclusive Interview with "Worst Cooks in America" Contestant Antoinette Wills

Antoinette Wills Takes on the Challenge of Worst Cooks in America

January 10, 2019 Lauren Beverly Interviews, Television

(Contestant Antoinette Wills, as seen on Worst Cooks In America, Season 15. Courtesy of Food Network)

January 6^th saw the release of season 15 of “Worst Cooks in America” on The Food Network. This season, Washington, D.C. native Antoinette Wills appears as a contestant. I spoke with Antoinette recently, and we had a chance to talk about her appearance on the show and what motivated her to sign up for the show.

Exclusive Interview with Kids Baking Championship contestant Misha Jones

Misha Jones Bakes His Way to the Kids Baking Championship

January 3, 2019 Dean Rogers Interviews, Television

On the very first 2019 edition of INTERVUE, Annapolis native Misha Jones is one of a dozen kids to take part in the Sixth season of Kids Baking Championship this Monday, January 7th on The Food Network. Up for grabs is a feature in the Food Network Magazine, a grand prize of $25,000 and a year’s worth of bragging rights. For Misha, its an unique experience he’ll never forget!