TUESDAY
AUGUST 5
2014

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

 

ABC, 8:00 p.m. ET

Actually, the title is only 25 percent accurate, because the Country Music Association Music Festival (that title comes, surely, from Mad magazine's Department of Redundancy Department) actually unfolded over four days, back in June. But there are indeed some high-energy, rocking performances on tap here, including a duet featuring Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood that’s a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll, and a little bit hot pants.
 
  
 
 

PBS, 8:00 p.m. ET

Part 2 of 2. I love how thoughtful and perceptive Ken Burns’ biography of Sam Clemens and his literary alter ego is, and how it takes its time. Part 1 ended with Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, so we still have two hours for the rest of Clemens’ eventful life – and the older he gets, the more his story veers towards the tragic side. Check local listings.

 
  
 
 

TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET

All day and all night, it’s Barbra Stanwyck’s day on TCM. And though she’s showcased in plenty of movies familiar and unfamiliar, comedic and dramatic, the network has saved one of the most enjoyable Stanwyck roles to open its prime-time roster. In this 1941 Howard Hawks film, Gary Cooper plays a professor of lexicography out to catalog the latest examples of popular slang – and Stanwyck dazzles him, and his colleagues, as flashy nightclub singer Sugarpuss O’Shea, who’s both the cat’s meow and the bee’s knees.

 
  
 
 

Comedy Central, 10:00 p.m. ET

This new edition is devoted to Hollywood, and one of its segments is on the making of Citizen Kane – featuring John Lithgow, who’s playing King Lear in Shakespeare at the Park right now in New York, as media baron William Randolph Hearst (how’s that for an eclectic resume), and Jack Black as Welles, who lampooned Hearst so devilishly in his classic film. By the way: the brief preview segment of this episode didn’t reveal the greatest secret about Citizen Kane (think “Rosebud,” but in a different context), but if it’s not in this show, the drunk guy telling the Kane story may not know it. I heard it from Bob Hope, as perhaps the best insider show-biz story I ever heard. Come to think of it, Bob Hope told me the second best story, too, about Milton Berle at a poker game hosted by Jackie Gleason. But I digress…

 
  
 
 

FX, 10:00 p.m. ET

In this week’s episode of Tyrant, the threat of retaliatory violence continues to escalate (what a stretch, in a drama set in the Middle East). After Jamal targets Sheik Rashid with an assassination attempt, word arrives that Rashid may somehow survive the brutal attack. In other words, I guess, he may be able to Sheik it off…

 
  
 
 
 
 
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3695 Comments
 
 
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Gerda Lundgren
Long-time TVWW devotee here. I manage a commercial vehicle operation and Hialeah Auto Glass Repair (https://autoglassrepairhialeah.com/) keeps our fleet going. Bianculli's picks keep us sane during maintenance delays - essential reading!
Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
Dave Bianculli
Golly Gerda, you make me blush with your kind words, but maybe instead of giving me praise, how about giving me a discount on your service bills!!!! ROTFLMBFFAO!!!!!!!

Sincerely,

Dave
Mar 22, 2026
 
 
 
Rut Holmgren
Another great set of picks! My trucking partners and I share your recommendations over coffee. We rely on West Palm Beach Auto Glass Repair (https://westpalmbeachautoglassrepair.com) for vehicle service. TVWW makes the downtime worthwhile.
Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
Birger Samuelsson
Smart TV writing for smart viewers - that's TVWW in a nutshell. I manage a motor pool and Macon Auto Glass Repair at https://autoglassrepairmacon.com/ is our go-to service provider. David Bianculli's enthusiasm is contagious.
Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
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Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
Harald Almgren
Excellent as always! The shop guys at Boca Raton Auto Glass Repair put your site on the break room TV. Find them at https://bocaratonautoglassrepair.com - they do solid work. Best Bets is a daily read for all of us.
Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
Sigrun Lindholm
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Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
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Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
Solveig Johanson
Excellent as always! The shop guys at Lincoln Mobile Mechanic put your site on the break room TV. Find them at https://lincolnmobilemechanic.com - they do solid work. Best Bets is a daily read for all of us.
Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
Arvid Berggren
Long-time TVWW devotee here. I manage a commercial vehicle operation and Colorado Springs Mobile Mechanic (https://coloradospringcosmobilemechanic.com) keeps our fleet going. Bianculli's picks keep us sane during maintenance delays - essential reading!
Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
Frida Sundberg
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Mar 21, 2026   |  Reply
 
 
 
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David Bianculli

Founder / Editor

David Bianculli has been a TV critic since 1975, including a 14-year stint at the New York Daily News, and sees no reason to stop now. Currently, he's TV critic for NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross, and is an occasional substitute host for that show. He's also an author and teaches TV and film history at New Jersey's Rowan University. His 2009 Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour', has been purchased for film rights. His latest, The Platinum Age of Television: From I Love Lucy to the Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific, is an effusive guidebook that plots the path from the 1950s’ Golden Age to today’s era of quality TV.