James Lipton’s guest in this new edition is Jessica Chastain, now starring in Miss Sloane. She broke out as Celia in 2011’s The Help, but has been acting for a while before that, including small guest roles in 2004 on ER and Veronica Mars.

2016

Dec

THE TIMELINE: "FOG BOWL" By David Bianculli

Here’s a new special that revisits a very old, and extremely weird, football game: the 1988 playoff game between the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles. The first half of the game, played the afternoon of Dec. 31 that year, was clear and sunny, but by the second half, an increasingly dense fog settled upon Chicago’s Soldier Field, making it all but impossible for the viewers, the commentators, and even the players on the field to see what was going on. Here’s your chance to

2016

Dec

STAR By David Bianculli

REPEAT: Here’s one more sneak preview of the new musical drama series, coming next month, from the creators of Empire. It’s one long cliché – but as a mash-up of Dreamgirls and Rock Follies, it’s got promise, and the scene in which the young ladies in the aspiring vocal trio strut their stuff comes off quite well.

2016

Dec

OLD YELLER By David Bianculli

Tonight’s another night of Treasures from the Disney Vault on TCM. Leonard Maltin, the perfect host for this recurring feature, provides the perspective for the evening’s offerings, which begin at 8 p.m. with the 1957 Disney-fied nature documentary Perry, a squirrel’s-eye-view of life in the wild. The other treats include two shorts beginning at 12:45 a.m. ET, 1939’s The Ugly Duckling and 1935’s The Tortoise and the Hare, followed at 1:15 a.m. ET by the tacky 1966 l

2016

Dec

GAME CHANGERS WITH ROBIN ROBERTS By David Bianculli

Robin Roberts does her version of Barbara Walters’ old end-of-year celebrity Fascinating People specials, mixing everyday people (such as Mona Hanna-Attisha, a key whistleblower in the Flint, MI contaminated water case) with influential celebrities and artists (such as Hamilton creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda).

2016

Dec

SURPRISE! INSTANT XMAS CAROL! By David Bianculli

SPECIAL: I’m a little disturbed that this TBS special actually uses Xmas in its title, rather than Christmas – but I’m guessing, and hoping, the holiday irreverence is merely a reflection of the show’s content and approach. Surprise! sends celebrities, many of them affiliated with TBS shows, out to unsuspecting people and places, to sing holiday carols, some of them very bad, or very badly. The go-to, to-go carolers include Conan O’Brien, Rashida Jones, Charles Bark

2016

Dec

BENJAMIN BRATT GOES AGAINST TYPE IN 'STAR' By David Hinckley

When you’re hired for a TV show to play the guy who created the show, you’d think it might be a tough gig... Benjamin Bratt says no, that playing a struggling talent manager who lucks into representing a female trio is something he’s been quite enjoying...

2016

Dec

TERRY CREWS SAVES CHRISTMAS By David Bianculli

SPECIAL: And not just tonight. Like that one line about old comics, he’s here all week. And he’s descending upon various families, and bringing with him an instant celebration. It’s part reality show and part Christmas special – and Crews is just likable enough, perhaps, to pull this off, and to not wear out his welcome as the days go on.

2016

Dec

THE WHITE HOUSE: INSIDE STORY By David Bianculli

This repeat telecast, from earlier this summer, features President Barack Obama offering remarks on the two-century history of the White House, from its inner workings to its many changes and renovations over the year. Watch it again now, before the next occupant arrives with all gilt and no guilt. Check local listings.

2016

Dec

TONY BENNETT CELEBRATES 90: THE BEST IS YET TO COME By David Bianculli

Taped at Radio City Music Hall, this two-hour special features tributes from a long conga line of artists, including Lady Gaga, Elton John, Billy Joel, Diana Krall, k.d. lang, Stevie Wonder, Rufus Wainwright, Leslie Odom Jr., and more. It also features appearances by Robert De Niro, Kevin Spacey, John McEnroe – and Alec Baldwin, whose most famous Saturday Night Live impersonation of the moment is Donald Trump, but who for years did a wicked Tony Bennett on SNL. Here, he does his impersonat

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