Rob Owen stories, Page 53
TV Q & A: How is the daughter of KDKA-TV’s Pam Surano doing?
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: How is the daughter of KDKA-TV reporter Pam Surano doing after that scary trampoline accident? And how did Surano feel being on the other...
TV Talk: CBS sitcom ‘B Positive’ rates a C+
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. ^ The 2020-21 TV season’s first new scripted comedy, CBS’s “B Positive,” debuts this week and it’s very much a CBS comedy. Created by Marco Pennette (“Caroline in the City,” “Mom”) and executive produced by...
TV Talk: CBS’s ‘Mom’ returns next week with Pittsburgh native directing
When CBS’s “Mom” returns next week (9 p.m. Nov. 5, KDKA-TV) the show will have some big changes in store as star Anna Faris’ Christy departs off-screen. It’s a changing-of-the-guard “Mom” series director and Pittsburgh native Jamie Widdoes has overseen before on TV series. He was there when “8 Simple...
TV Q & A: What happened to ‘Pennsylvania’s icebox’ in TV weather forecasts?
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: Pittsburgh TV weather forecasters’ temperature maps always used to include what the late Joe DeNardo called Pennsylvania’s icebox, Bradford, Pa. Now none do. What caused...
TV Talk: ‘This is Us’ spotlights Pittsburgh’s Jonny Gammage
Please note: This article includes spoilers from the fifth-season premiere of “This is Us” that originally aired 9-11 p.m. ET on Oct. 27, 2020. NBC’s partially Pittsburgh-set “This is Us” often imports real-life Pittsburgh, whether it’s references to sports figures, locations, characters dressed in Steelers gear or a 1970s-era visit...
TV Talk: Netflix horror series ‘Archive 81’ to film in Pittsburgh
New Netflix supernatural horror series “Archive 81” begins filming in Pittsburgh next month. A production office is already open and hiring crew. Netflix confirmed the series comes from veteran horror director James Wan (“Saw,” “The Conjuring”) who executive produces “Archive 81” alongside showrunner Rebecca Sonnenshine (“The Boys,” “The Vampire Diaries”)....
TV Talk: ‘This is Us’ continues to live in Pittsburgh in its new season
“This is Us” creator Dan Fogelman has long talked about bringing some of the show’s cast to Pittsburgh where the show is partially set to film scenes. Although production on the series resumed with covid-19 safety protocols in place, the pandemic ruined any possibility for a trip from the show’s...
TV Talk: O’Hara native plots NBC’s new season of ‘Superstore’ as star America Ferrera exits
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. For the 2019-20 season of NBC’s “Superstore,” showrunners Gabe Miller and O’Hara Township native Jonathan Green expected their biggest challenge to be satisfactorily writing star America Ferrera out of the comedy series. And they almost...
TV Talk: Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant star in HBO’s ‘The Undoing’
It seems like all the stars of HBO’s hit “Big Little Lies” are getting their own wealthy-pretty-people-with-problems shows. Reese Witherspoon had her shot with Hulu’s “Little Fires Everywhere” and now it’s Nicole Kidman’s turn with HBO’s six-episode miniseries “The Undoing” (9 p.m. Sunday), which has already been dubbed “Big Little...
TV Q&A: Will ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’ air this year?
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 think ABC will actually skip showing “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” this year? — Jackson via Twitter Rob: I didn’t think that...
TV Talk: Netflix debuts trailer for Pittsburgh-filmed ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’
Netflix released the trailer for “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” its adaptation of the August Wilson play that was filmed in Pittsburgh in the summer of 2019. The movie arrives on Netflix on Dec. 18. “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” stars Viola Davis as blues singer Ma Rainey during a recording session...
TV Talk: ‘The Conners’ feel the effects of the pandemic in new season
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. ^ After the “Roseanne” revival imploded following star Roseanne Barr’s racist tweet, there was every reason to fear its sequel series, “The Conners,” would simply be a ratings grab. But as its third season premieres...
TV Talk: Jim Carrey’s Joe Biden pulls a Mister Rogers on ‘SNL’Video
It’s been a busy week for Latrobe native Fred Rogers in the pop-culture zeitgeist, beginning with social media reactions to a tweet Thursday night, which in turn inspired a scene in the cold open sketch on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” It all started Thursday night during dueling town halls between...
TV Talk: ‘Supermarket Sweep’ returns on ABC
Game show “Supermarket Sweep” has been a TV staple with versions popping up in the 1960s, 1990s, early 2000s and now again in 2020 as ABC resurrects the franchise at 8 p.m. Sunday with new host Leslie Jones (“Saturday Night Live”). The ‘90s version of the show gained cachet with...
TV Q&A: How did Hallmark Channel make Christmas movies in a pandemic?
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: How does Hallmark Channel make about 40 new Christmas movies during a pandemic? Were some movies made prior to March 2020? - Elaine via email...
TV Talk: Disney Channel hosts chat with Pittsburgh group’s co-founders
Two local teens will be featured in a recurring Disney Channel segment, “Kudos and Kudon’ts,” for their creation of the Pittsburgh organization Black, Young & Educated. Disney Channel’s Ariel Martin and Trevor Tordjman (“Zombies 2”) chat with B.Y.E. co-founders Nicholas Anglin and Treasure Palmer in the two-minute segment, which also...
TV Talk: McMurray native helps bring ‘Helpsters’ alive on Apple TV+
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. Western Pennsylvania native Stephanie D’Abruzzo has operated puppets on Broadway (“Avenue Q”) and in children’s programming (“Sesame Street”) and she’s appeared in prime time (“Scrubs”). She can trace a theme in her latest project, educational...
TV Talk: CMU grad Victoria Pedretti is haunted in Netflix’s ‘Bly Manor’
Actress Victoria Pedretti’s acting career took off just a few months after she graduated from Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Drama in 2017 when she was cast in a supporting role in Netflix’s “The Haunting of Hill House.” Form there she landed a major role in season two of Netflix’s...
TV Q&A: Will Pittsburgh-based ‘Restored by the Fords’ return to HGTV?
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: A few years back there was a home improvement TV show that featured a Pittsburgh woman. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the show name, her...
TV Talk: Verizon’s FiOS TV drops AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh
In the latest retransmission dispute impacting local viewers, Verzion’s FiOS TV dropped AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh. A Verizon spokesman said its agreement to carry AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh expired Sept. 30. Verizon released a statement saying, “AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh has demanded a significant increase to an already high rate so fans can...
TV Talk: Excellent ‘The Good Lord Bird’ premieres on Showtime
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. ^ Based on the National Book Award-winning novel by James McBride, Showtime’s adaptation of “The Good Lord Bird” (9 p.m. Sunday) proves to be as entertaining as it is tonally messy. But it’s acceptably messy...
TV Talk: 2 of ‘The Boys in the Band’ have Pittsburgh ties
It was a mini-Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama reunion for Matt Bomer (CMU class of 2000) and Green Tree native Zachary Quinto (CMU class of 1999) in the Netflix movie “The Boys in the Band,” directed by Joe Mantello and executive produced by Ryan Murphy (“Ratched”). A remake of...
TV Q&A: Is Discovery’s ‘Alaskan Bush People’ real?
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: Can you please clear something up for me: On Discovery Channel is the “Alaskan Bush People” for real or are they just actors who are...
TV Talk: Spy games lead to ‘The Salisbury Poisonings’ on AMC+
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. ^ Here’s something that is likely to happen more often as the entertainment business looks into the future and sees that it’s digital: There’s a show premiering this week on AMC+, a streaming service you...
TV Talk: ‘Fargo’ returns; ‘The Comey Rule’ and ‘Tamburitzans’ debut
Back for its fourth season, the important good news is this iteration of “Fargo” (9-11 p.m. Sunday, FX) is significantly better than the disappointing third season, though probably not as good as the near-perfect second season. Sunday’s two-episode premiere spends a lot of time grounding the show in backstory that’s...
