Movies/TV category, Page 55
Bob Barker, dapper ‘Price Is Right’ and ‘Truth or Consequences’ host and animal advocate, dies at 99
Bob Barker, the enduring, dapper game show host who became a household name over a half century of hosting “Truth or Consequences” and “The Price Is Right,” has died. He was 99. Barker — also a longtime animal rights activist — died Saturday morning at his home in Los Angeles,...
TV Talk: Damar Hamlin gifts grandmother with ‘Secret Celebrity Renovation;’ WTAE hires reporter
Damar Hamlin soaked in his return to Pittsburgh last month but the former Central Catholic High School student, 2020 University of Pittsburgh grad and current Buffalo Bills safety made a quieter return in May to film an episode of CBS’s “Secret Celebrity Renovation” (8 p.m. Sept. 1, KDKA-TV) where he...
Hall of Fame hardcore wrestler Terry Funk dies at 79: ‘Unbelievably Fearless’Video
The enduring memory of iconic pro wrestler Terry Funk is of him in a Tokyo ring screaming “forever” over and over, his face stained with blood, sweat and tears. It was Aug. 31, 1983 — nearly 40 years ago — and he was announcing his retirement from wrestling in Japan....
TV Talk: Channel 19 to rebrand as KDKA+, change call letters
Pittsburgh’s CBS-owned WPCW-TV, Channel 19, will become a fully independent station when it disaffiliates from The CW at the end of the day on Aug. 31. Channel 19 will also get new call letters and branding. As expected, WPCW will become WPKD-TV with KDKA+ as the channel’s colloquial name in...
TV Talk: Where are these former Pittsburgh TV news personalities now?
Every now and then I like to check in with TV news folks who were once mainstays on local newscasts. This time I caught up with Jim Lokay, Sheila Hyland and Ellen Gamble. Jim Lokay A 1998 East Allegheny High School grad, Jim Lokay worked at KDKA-TV from 2005-11 as...
Judge clears the way for a civil case to proceed against Alec Baldwin and ‘Rust’ producers
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A New Mexico judge on Wednesday rejected a request by Alec Baldwin ‘s attorneys to dismiss a civil lawsuit by three “Rust” crew members who allege cost-cutting endangered the cast and crew as the actor-producer skipped his own safety training. Chief District Judge Bryan Biedscheid also declined...
TV Talk: The CW programming moves to WPNT-TV
Although it’s yet to be officially announced, as expected, WPNT-TV Channel 22.1 is poised to become Pittsburgh’s new CW affiliate. The station’s own online listings confirm the change in affiliation from My Network TV, a channel that airs reruns of broadcast network series (“Chicago Fire,” “Chicago P.D.,” “Law Order: SVU,”...
‘Their Stories’ documentary to explore lives of Sewickley’s early Black residents
Filmmaker Rueben Brock was taken by surprise when asked to direct a documentary about the early Black residents of Sewickley. “I said, ‘Wait a minute, there’s a Black community in Sewickley?’” he recalled. Those first Black settlers were important to the success of the community, and it’s high time their...
TV Q&A: Will KDKA-TV’s Erica Mokay be back at the anchor desk?
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: I would like to know what will happen to Erica Mokay since Lindsay Ward is back from maternity leave on KDKA-TV’s morning newscasts. Erica Mokay...
TV Talk: Mt. Lebanon native’s ‘Star Wars’ series ‘Ahsoka’ premieresVideo
Created by Mt. Lebanon native Dave Filoni and essentially a live-action sequel to Filoni’s animated “Star Wars” series “Rebels,” the two-episode premiere of “Ahsoka,” streaming tonight at 9 p.m. on Disney+, gets off to a slow start. Set in the post-“Return of the Jedi” part of the “Star Wars” timeline,...
‘Blue Beetle’ unseats ‘Barbie’ atop box office, ending four-week reign
NEW YORK — The DC superhero film “Blue Beetle” led weekend ticket sales with a modest $25.4 million opening, according to studio estimates Sunday, dethroning “Barbie” from the top spot after a record-setting run that left movie theaters colored pink for a month. The “Barbie” phenomenon is far from over....
Ron Cephas Jones, ‘This Is Us’ actor who won 2 Emmys, dies at 66
LOS ANGELES — Ron Cephas Jones, a veteran stage actor who won two Emmy Awards for his role as as a long-lost father who finds redemption on the NBC television drama series “This Is Us,” has died at age 66, a representative said Saturday. Jones’ manager, Dan Spilo, said in...
Amazon Prime Video cancels its renewal of ‘A League of their Own’
Amazon’s Prime Video reversed course today and canceled its renewal of “A League of their Own,” which filmed its first season in Pittsburgh. Although a filming location for season two had not been announced, “League” was expected to return to Pittsburgh. Variety reported the nonrenewal, noting it was the second...
TV Talk: Contestant from South Fayette reflects on his ‘Bachelorette’ journey
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. As ABC’s “The Bachelorette” comes to the end of its Charity Lawson- starring season Monday (8-11 p.m., WTAE-TV), South Fayette native Tanner Courtad is not in the running to become Lawson’s husband. He’s made peace with...
TV Talk: Strikes’ impact, ‘Suits’ surge, ‘Babylon 5’ returns
It’s time to take stock of the impact of the “hot labor summer” that engulfed the entertainment industry with dual writers’ and actors’ strikes. Across the country, including in Pittsburgh, cameras did not roll on productions from struck companies. That meant anticipated new seasons of “A League of Their Own”...
TV Q&A: Why don’t HGTV designers include TVs in their home makeovers?
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: I wonder why most designers on HGTV shows refuse to put the homeowners’ TVs back after they redesign the home. They usually put a painting...
Pittsburgh Pop podcast: Talking Bill Cowher documentary, ‘Oppenheimer,’ ‘Only Murders,’ ‘Strange New Worlds’
In this episode of the “Pittsburgh Pop” podcast, host Tim Benz and TV Talk columnist Rob Owen discuss Pittsburgh pop culture news of the moment, including a docu-series with an episode on former Steelers coach Bill Cowher. MGM+’s “NFL Icons” returns for its third season at 10 p.m. Oct. 21...
TV Talk: ‘Telemarketers’ pulls back the curtain on the phone calls everyone receives (and hates)
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. HBO documentaries come in all shapes and sizes, but “Telemarketers” (10 p.m. tonight) may be one of the most DIY homemade efforts yet. A shaggy, shambolic docu-series not without its charms, “Telemarketers” takes viewers behind...
Emmy Awards move to January, placing them firmly in Hollywood’s awards season
LOS ANGELES — The strike-delayed 75th Emmy Awards have a new date — one that places them squarely within Hollywood’s awards season, for a change. Fox announced Thursday that the Emmys will air Jan. 15 from the Peacock Theater at LA Live in downtown Los Angeles. The show will air...
Kuwait and Lebanon move to ban ‘Barbie’ over gender and sexuality themes ahead of Mideast release
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — “Barbie” is set to open across the Middle East on Thursday, but moves by Kuwait and Lebanon to ban the film over its themes about gender and sexuality have raised questions over how widely it will be released. Kuwait announced its ban late Wednesday, saying...
TV Talk: Netflix debuts its own ‘Dopesick’ with oxy drama ‘Painkiller’ from writers of Mister Rogers movieVideo
Netflix largely abandoned its HBO-wannabe roots, forsaking highbrow, quality shows for more middle-of-the-road fare with broader appeal. But every now and then Netflix still attempts higher caliber programming, most recently with 2021’s “Maid,” the story of a young woman who flees an abusive relationship and tries to build a new...
Pittsburgh native Billy Porter selling house, feeling financial strain of SAG and WGA strikes
The ongoing writers and actors strikes in Hollywood are starting to take a financial toll on entertainers fighting for fairer wages, from the rank and file to stars like actor Billy Porter. “I have to sell my house,” Porter said during a recent interview with Evening Standard. “Yeah! Because we’re...
Hollywood strike matches the 100-day mark of the last writers’ strike in 2007-2008
NEW YORK — The Hollywood writers strike reached the 100-day mark on Wednesday, matching the length of the landmark 2007-2008 strike. The milestone comes as the U.S. film and television industries remain paralyzed by dual strikes by its actors and screenwriters. There’s no foreseeable end — a negotiating session last...
TV Q&A: Is Edgar Snyder of TV lawyer ad fame going to retire?
Q: I wonder if Edgar Snyder the lawyer is going to retire? I keep seeing his commercials, and it seems like he is introducing more people that work for him. — Krissy, via Facebook Rob: While Snyder is not in the courtroom on a regular basis, the firm says he...
Bell Township real estate agent, client to be featured on HGTV’s ‘House Hunters’
In nearly 10 years of selling real estate, Lori Weig-Tamasy received a request she had never heard before from a client. “She told me she applied to be on HGTV’s ‘House Hunters’ and that she thinks she got accepted,” said Weig-Tamasy of Bell Township, a real estate agent for Century...
