Movies/TV category, Page 113
TV Talk: Apple TV+’s ‘Schmigadoon!’ offers a joyful ode to and send-up of musicalsVideo
Fans of Broadway musicals and the TV series “Pushing Daisies” and “Galavant” unite: Apple TV+’s “Schmigadoon” is the musical comedy series you didn’t know you need. A joyfully silly fantasy, “Schmigadoon!” begins by showing viewers how two doctors, Melissa (a game Cecily Strong, “Saturday Night Live”) and Josh (the equally...
Ricki Wertz, star of WTAE-TV’s ‘Ricki and Copper,’ diesVideo
Ricki Wertz, one of the original stars of Pittsburgh TV as the host of WTAE-TV’s “Ricki and Copper” and “Junior High Quiz,” died Wednesday in Chicago. She was 86. The cause of death was not immediately available. A Wilkes-Barre native, Ruth Elizabeth Wertz Bordenkircher came to Pittsburgh to study acting....
Court orders shorter sentence for ‘Tiger King’ Joe Exotic
DENVER — A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that “Tiger King” Joe Exotic should get a shorter prison sentence for his role in a murder-for-hire plot and violating federal wildlife laws. Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, was sentenced in January 2020 to 22 years in federal prison...
Val Kilmer on a life in illusion and the new doc ‘Val’Video
CANNES, France — Val Kilmer was in movies he wasn’t in. The new documentary “Val,” bursting with footage Kilmer shot himself over his 61 years, includes home videos and backstage glimpses, as you might expect. But the most remarkable thing is seeing Kilmer’s own audition tapes of himself. It’s not...
TV Q&A: What happened to QVC and HSN over the air?
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 are QVC and HSN no longer on Channel 16.5 and 16.4 over the air? I don’t have cable. Is there somewhere else I can...
TV Talk: Susan Koeppen returns to anchor new WPXI-TV newscast
Because the ratings for “Ellen” have been terrible in Pittsburgh for several years, it was unsurprising this month when WTAE-TV announced a 4 p.m. newscast. Similarly, with original episodes of “Judge Judy” ending on broadcast TV — she’ll have a new, similar show on free, ad-supported streamer IMDbTV in late...
Paris Hilton to star on Netflix cooking show
Paris Hilton and Netflix are serving up a new cooking show. “Cooking With Paris” will star Hilton in what the streaming service says will not be a standard culinary program. “She’s not a trained chef and she’s not trying to be,” Netflix said about Hilton in a show announcement Monday....
‘Crown,’ ‘Mandalorian’ top Emmy nominations with 24 each
LOS ANGELES — “The Crown” tied with “The Mandalorian” for the most Emmy nominations Tuesday with 24 apiece, but the Marvel universe also got bragging rights with runner-up “WandaVision.” Emmy nominees with local ties include Pittsburgh native Billy Porter (lead actor in a drama) for “Pose,” which also received nominations...
Actor Drake Bell gets probation on child endangerment charge
Actor Drake Bell has been sentenced to two years’ probation on charges relating to a girl who met him online and attended one of his concerts in Ohio when she was 15. Jared “Drake” Bell, 35, was also sentenced to 200 hours of community service, all of it served in...
Cedric the Entertainer to host live Emmy Awards ceremony
Cedric the Entertainer will host the Emmy Awards in September as the ceremony returns to a live telecast after last year’s pandemic-forced virtual event. There will be a limited audience of nominees and guests at the Microsoft Theatre for the Sept. 19 show, CBS and the TV academy said Monday....
TV Talk: WPXI reporter Amy Hudak marries WTAE’s Jim Madalinsky
Pittsburgh TV stations are rivals in coverage and ratings but for two reporters at different local stations, it’s just a matter of doing similar work for different outlets. And given their respective beats, they don’t compete with one another on stories, which should make married life a bit easier. WPXI-TV...
‘Black Widow’ soars to pandemic box office record
Even with an option to watch “Black Widow” at home, audiences went to the movie theater in pandemic record numbers this weekend to catch the first Marvel movie released in two years. The Walt Disney Co. said Sunday the superhero pic generated an estimated $80 million in ticket sales in...
For McKeesport filmmaker, ’80s-style horror movie has happy endingVideo
It’s not often a horror movie helps someone get their head on straight, but it happened for Mark Cantu. The McKeesport-based indie filmmaker was considering giving up on his chosen career path when he was inspired to begin writing what would become “Massacre Academy,” set for a world premiere July...
TV Talk: Netflix releases trailer for Jason Momoa’s filmed-in-Pittsburgh thriller ‘Sweet Girl’Video
The Pittsburgh skyline gets a starring role in the trailer for Netflix’s filmed-in-Western Pennsylvania Jason Momoa thriller “Sweet Girl,” available on the streaming service Aug. 20, the same day filmed-in-Pittsburgh limited comedy series “The Chair” debuts on Netflix. Locations spotted in the movie’s trailer include PPG Place, PNC Park, McConnell’s...
Leechburg woman, local restaurants featured on HGTV’s ‘My Lottery Dream House’
Two Alle-Kiski Valley restaurants and a Leechburg woman were to be featured Friday on an episode of HGTV’s “My Lottery Dream Home.” The series follows its host, David Bromstad, as he helps lottery winners purchase luxury properties with their newfound winnings. Friday’s show was to feature a Leechburg woman, Charity...
Comedian Angelina Spicer brings ‘Postpartum Revolution Road Trip’ tour to Tull Family Theater
Comedian Angelina Spicer will be stopping in Sewickley as part of her multi-city tour, the “Postpartum Revolution Road Trip.” Her show, sponsored by Allegheny Health Network, will highlight her journey through postpartum depression and her time hospitalized because of the diagnosis — an experience she has turned into a punchline...
TV Talk: PBS’s ‘Odd Squad,’ from Fred Rogers Productions, evolves again in new episodes
Pittsburgh-based Fred Rogers Productions’ “Odd Squad,” the rare live-action, educational program for children, returns with the second half of its third season in a week of four new episodes beginning Monday (5 p.m. WQED-TV). The PBS Kids show continues to follow a quartet of child agents who investigate oddities that...
Review: ‘Loki’ takes several new forms as season finale nearsVideo
Editor’s note: “Loki” spoilers through Season 1, Episode 5. We all knew Marvel’s Phase 4 was going to get weird. But can you imagine if they’d gone with their original plan and made “Loki” the first original Marvel series on Disney+? Even with the reshuffled series, we still got plenty...
TV Talk: ‘Gossip Girl’ returns, ‘The White Lotus’ opens for business
With summer in full swing, TV networks and streaming services are premiering series after series with hopes for a buzzworthy smash. ‘Gossip Girl’ This latest reboot gets off to a stronger-than-expected start before it begins to deflate. Directed by Karena Evans (“Snowfall”) from a teleplay by showrunner Josh Safran, the...
Robert Downey Sr., filmmaker and actor and father of Robert Downey Jr., dead at 85
NEW YORK — Robert Downey Sr., iconic filmmaker of breakthrough anti-establishment classic films such as “Putney Swope” and “Greaser’s Palace,” died early Wednesday morning in his sleep at his home in New York City, his wife told the Daily News. Downey, who turned 85 last month and had been battling...
TV Q&A: Why can’t Pittsburgh TV stations keep young anchors?
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 do you suppose Pittsburgh’s TV stations simply can’t keep the young upstarts? WTAE-TV’s Chris Lovingood is the latest in a growing list of fine...
TV Talk: Unity girl makes ‘America’s Got Talent’ history, advances to live showsVideo
Victory Brinker, a 9-year-old opera singer from Unity Township, made “America’s Got Talent” history Tuesday night, becoming the first “AGT” competitor to earn a “Golden Buzzer” from all four judges, advancing her to this season’s live shows later this summer. In the episode that aired on Tuesday but taped in...
ESPN pulls Rachel Nichols as sideline reporter for NBA finals
Rachel Nichols is being replaced as sideline reporter for the NBA Finals amid a controversy surrounding comments she made about a colleague. According to multiple reports, ESPN announced Tuesday that reporter Malika Andrews will replace Nichols as sideline reporter for tonight’s Phoenix vs. Milwaukee Series,. Nichols will continue hosting her...
TV Talk: CMU grad is part of ‘Leverage’ sequel seriesVideo
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. The 2008-12 TNT drama “Leverage” returns Friday as sequel series “Leverage: Redemption” on free, ad-supported streaming service IMDb TV. The biggest change? Team leader Nathan Ford (Timothy Hutton) is dead and his grifter widow Sophie...
`Superman,’ `Lethal Weapon’ director Richard Donner dies
Filmmaker Richard Donner, who helped create the modern superhero blockbuster with 1978’s “Superman” and mastered the buddy comedy with the “Lethal Weapon” franchise, has died. He was 91. Lauren Shuler Donner, his wife and producing partner, told the Hollywood trade Deadline that Donner died Monday. Donner gained fame with his...
