TV Talk: BroadwayHD debuts ‘Jaws’ play; Daniel Tiger visits Etna
Pittsburghers who flocked to Barebones Productions’ “The Shark Is Broken,” take note: The original British production, written by playwrights Ian Shaw and Joseph Nixon, was filmed during a tour of the United Kingdom earlier this year and will stream on BroadwayHD beginning Oct. 16. This comedic stage play is set...
TV Talk: Noah Wyle rides a motorcycle as ‘The Pitt’ filming begins in Pittsburgh
A production assistant shouts, “Background!” An extra playing a jogger immediately goes from standstill to running as an ambulance rushes up Cedar Avenue toward Allegheny General Hospital, otherwise known as Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center on “The Pitt.” Behind the ambulance, Emmy-winner Noah Wyle, playing Dr. Robby, rides a motorcycle as...
TV Q&A: Why hasn’t Suzie Cool been on ‘Nightly Sports Call’?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Why haven’t I seen Suzie Cool on KDKA-TV or KDKA+ as much recently? Is she still working for Channel 2? — Jim, via email Rob:...
TV Talk: Emmy-winning ‘The Pitt’ returns to Pittsburgh for filming
Coming off an Emmy win Sunday for best drama series, the cast and crew of HBO Max drama “The Pitt” will have something to celebrate when the series returns to Pittsburgh to film scenes for its second season this week. Allegheny Health Network’s Allegheny General Hospital on Pittsburgh’s North Side...
‘The Pitt’ wins big at Emmys
HBO Max’s Pittsburgh-set ER drama “The Pitt” won best drama, lead actor (Noah Wyle) and supporting actress (Katherine LaNasa) awards at the “77th Emmy Awards” Sunday night on CBS, besting Apple TV+’s frontrunner, “Severance.” In accepting his first-ever Emmy, Wyle thanked his fellow nominees, the show’s production crew, HBO Max...
TV Talk Fall Preview: Few new scripted shows as broadcasters rein in expensesVideo
Following the Emmy Awards (8 p.m. Sept. 14, CBS), the TV season begins its annual kickoff with a few premieres this week (Fox’s “Name that Tune” and “Weakest Link” on Monday; ABC’s “High Potential” on Tuesday), more new shows coming next week and most of CBS’s series deploying new episodes...
TV Talk: Deluge of new, returning scripted streaming/cable series on the wayVideo
Broadcast networks may be moving away from expensive scripted series, but streaming services, especially Netflix, show no sign of slowing down with dozens of new and returning shows planned to debut over the next three months, including: “Black Rabbit” (Sept. 18, Netflix): Brothers, played by Jude Law and Jason Bateman,...
TV Talk: Roberto Clemente’s son says new doc celebrates family’s legacyVideo
In addition to playing in multiple local theaters beginning Friday, at a screening followed by a filmmakers’ Q&A at the Byham Theater in Downtown Pittsburgh on Saturday and at a $15 per person ticketed showing at PNC Park Sunday, the new documentary “Clemente” will air on cable’s History Channel at...
TV Q&A: Did a Pittsburgh writer name ‘Star Trek’ planet after Primanti Bros.?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: In “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” season three, episode eight, a crew member returned from the planet “Primanti 3” with a sandwich that had fries...
TV Talk: New Ken Burns doc, ‘NOVA’ specials highlight PBS’s fallVideo
PBS’s fall shows were in the can before the federal government defunded all public broadcasting this summer, so the full effect of the defunding won’t be felt until 2026. The final episodes of at least one long-running series, “American Experience,” debut this fall (9 p.m. Sept. 30 and 9 p.m....
TV Talk: More awards for ‘The Pitt;’ Pittsburgh drag queens host WOW’s ‘Pillow Talk’Video
Pittsburgh-set ER drama “The Pitt” won two Emmys over the weekend at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards (airing 8 p.m. Sept. 13, FXX), including for drama casting and a best guest actor in a drama series award that went to Shawn Hatosy for his role as Dr. Jack Abbot. In...
TV Talk: ‘Mare of Easttown’ writer trades whodunnit for collision course in HBO’s ‘Task’Video
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. HBO’s “Task” isn’t a sequel to “Mare of Easttown,” but it is a worthy spiritual successor. Like “Mare,” the seven-episode “Task” (9 p.m. Sept. 7; streams on HBO Max) is set in eastern Pennsylvania, where...
TV Talk: ‘The Office’ spin-off ‘The Paper’ shows promiseVideo
Long-gestating mockumentary spin-off from “The Office,” “The Paper” streams its entire 10-episode first season Thursday on Peacock. There’s more of “The Office” in “The Paper” than one might expect, especially in the first episode. The same documentary crew that followed the shenanigans of the Dunder Mifflin gang is now at...
TV Q&A: Which local station will carry Steelers’ streaming/cable games?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every week at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Does anyone know which local station(s) will show the Steelers’ week three game (NFL Network) and the week seven game (Amazon’s Prime Video)? — Rick,...
TV Talk: ‘NCIS’ spins off into streaming with ‘Tony & Ziva’Video
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. “NCIS” fans were disappointed when Ziva David (2000 Carnegie Mellon University grad Cote de Pablo) exited the series in 2013, bereft when the show killed Ziva off-screen in absentia and surprised and relieved to see...
TV Talk: What’s new in fall daytime TV, including NBA games displacing ‘Wheel,’ ‘Jeopardy!’Video
The fall 2025 TV season brings with it few new daytime syndicated series, so perhaps what will be of most interest to viewers of the access hour, 7-8 p.m. weekdays, is what will become of “Wheel of Fortune” (7 p.m.) and “Jeopardy!” (7:30 p.m.) on WPXI when NBC starts airing...
TV Q&A: Why does a KDKA-TV forecaster skip some broadcasts?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Why does Mary Ours or Kristine Emery only do the 4 p.m. weather, then Ray Petelin starts at 5? He does the 5 and 6...
TV Talk: PBS’s ‘Clearing the Air’ shows how Western Pa. played a role in 20th-century smog crisesVideo
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. PBS’s “American Experience” explores bipartisan efforts to improve the quality of American air in the 20th century in “Clearing the Air: The War on Smog.” And Donora, Washington County, has a starring role in the...
TV Talk: ‘Masterpiece’ boss on PBS cuts; ‘The Pitt’ season 2 teaser debutsVideo
This weekend, as “Masterpiece” series “The Marlow Murder Club” (9 p.m. Sunday) and “Unforgotten” (10 p.m. Sunday, WQED-TV) return for new seasons, it seemed prudent to check in with “Masterpiece” executive producer Susanne Simpson on what impact the federal government defunding PBS will have on one of PBS’s most popular,...
TV Talk: ‘The Pitt’ wins most TCA Awards; Greensburg dog trainer on Prime Video series
The Television Critics Association announced the winners of its 2025 awards with Pittsburgh-set HBO Max ER drama “The Pitt” winning the most trophies — four — taking home honors for program of the year, best drama, best new show and individual achievement in drama for star/writer/executive producer Noah Wyle. Among...
TV Q&A: Stations darned if they do, darned if they don’t interrupt programming
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Horrible news out of Clairton on Aug. 11 with the explosion at the coke works. Think Channel 2 and Channel 11 know it happened? God...
TV Talk: ‘Twisted Tale’ revisits Amanda Knox story from all anglesVideo
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. Hulu’s “Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox,” streaming its first two episodes Wednesday, upends expectations for a true crime miniseries with an embrace of magical realism that’s hinted at in the show’s title. Knox, who executive...
TV Talk: Ben Folds talks crazy Pittsburgh cab ride, Apple’s ‘Snoopy’ summer musicalVideo
In addition to his role as music supervisor on Apple TV+’s “Snoopy Presents: A Summer Musical,” streaming Aug. 15, singer-songwriter Ben Folds has some unique Pittsburgh ties involving a former mayor, Mister Rogers’ company and a wild taxi ride. I’ll get to those shortly. But first, there’s this new, 40-minute...
TV Q&A: Are more changes coming to KDKA-TV newscasts?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Do you expect changes to the anchor format at KDKA-TV following the layoffs at the station? Will they go to a single anchor for most...
TV Talk: Dick’s Sporting Goods joins entertainment biz; WTAE hires Westmoreland reporterVideo
Coraopolis-based Dick’s Sporting Goods launched its own entertainment studio, announcing the venture Cookie Jar & a Dream Studios last week ahead of Tuesday’s premiere of the 51-minute “Big Dreams: The Little League World Series 2024”, chronicling last year’s competition in Williamsport, Lycoming County. (The film will repeat on ESPN at...
