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These listings cover television programs up to Thursday, June
20th.
Greetings, TV viewers!
This week's MediaHour is "Red Badge of Courage", an
excellent movie based on an excellent book, which I imagine most of you in the U.S. will
or already have read for school.
Want some clams? Watch the show-of-the-week, then talk about them with me and other citizens (including other City Workers, if they're available) at the Greek Theater, over in City Hall. You'll find that the Theater makes discussions pretty easy, since City Workers are able to direct people's movement and behavior, when we need to, and keeps everyone's chat bubbles from overlapping too much. We meet for MediaHour on Wednesdays from 6:30pm and 7:30pm Whyville Time (that's the same as Eastern Daylight Time).
If you see the show, then come and really take part in the meeting, you'll get up to 50 clams from City Hall... you like that?
Everyone is welcome to write to me what you and your parents think:
Y-mail me, the MediaWiz of Whyville!
And now... the Media Menu!
Friday, June 13
"The Private Lives of Pompeii" (A&E Network, 9-11pm E/P, TV Rated PG)
Parents should view this documentary along with children 13 and under because some historical information shown about Roman resort-city life is disturbing
-- in the same way that modern daytime soap opera story-lines are. The Romans lived well before everything got buried in volcanic ash, but they were not always polite to one another in the midst of their luxury. Through dramatizations and computer graphics, this program offers a look at the people who lived and died in Pompeii, buried when Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. Fictionalized characters grounded in historical fact include an ambitious freed slave and the son of an aging aristocrat. The companion website is
http://www.channel4.co.uk/history/microsites/H/history/rome/pompeii4.html.
"Sound and Fury" (PBS, 10-11:00pm E/P -- check local listings) This documentary takes viewers inside the world of the deaf to witness a painful family struggle over the cochlear implant, a controversial medical device that can help deaf people regain hearing. Is this a medical miracle or a threat to deaf culture? At the companion website you can learn more about deaf culture and how to spell your name with sign language.
http://pbs.org/soundandfury/.
Saturday, June 14
"The Red Badge Of Courage" (TMC Network, 6-7:30pm ET, 3-4:30pm PT) This is a black and white movie version
of a classic Stephen Crane classic novel which is on every school reading list. The film's star, Audie Murphy, a real-life Medal Of Honor winner from WWII, plays a young Union soldier who fights to atone for a moment of cowardice during the Civil War. Many experts say this is the the best, most honest portrayal of civil war action
-- it captures the fear and dread of combat. If your side was not having a successful day, the usual way out was "skedaddling" or running like the wind. both sides did it. Not to give the story away, but the scene near the end of the movie where Audie Murphy is holding two flags will make you cry. The film is an excellent complement to the book. They should be sold together. For more info about Crane, who looked like, and lived like, a rock star and who wrote the book when he was only 22, book, log on to http://guweb2.gonzaga.edu/faculty/campbell/crane/.
"Mysteries of the Deep -- Last Voyage of the Lusitania" (National Geographic Channel, 10-11pm ET, 7-8pm PT) For decades, controversy has surrounded the May 7, 1915 sinking of the passenger ship Lusitania. The incident propelled the U.S. into the First World War. Robert Ballard, the oceanographer and explorer who discovered the Titanic, has
used the most advanced technology available to study the Lusitania in an attempt to solve a generations-old puzzle. Were there banned weapons on the ship?
"Martha Stewart: A Recipe For Ruin" (A&E, 10-11pm E/P) This is a documentary about business. The lesson is that there's an up-side and a down-side. Some people love Martha Stewart and some people hate her, but few can resist watching the spectacle of her being fingerprinted and "processed" like a criminal. After her recent indictment, can Martha Stewart, the very public, and the very private personality, survive the trial ahead? Bill Kurtis reports.
Sunday, June 15
"The Artists' Specials: Winslow Homer -- An American Original" (HBO, 10:30-11:30am E/P)
In this family-oriented dramatized special about art, reclusive American painter Winslow Homer has his solitude in the New England countryside broken by a pair of teenagers who work their way into his life and art.
"Why Build Pyramids?" (The Learning Channel, 9-10pm E/P) This documentary shows how pyramids served many purposes throughout history, from a gateway to heaven for Buddhists to a sacrificial altar for Mayans. Learn how the same structure that guarded Pharaoh's treasures in the afterlife served to honor the gods with human sacrifice.
Monday, June 16
"Legendary Actor Gregory Peck -- 11 Film Tribute" (TMC Network all day --
see specific times below) The passing of Academy Award-winning?? actor and
Hollywood legend Gregory Peck reminds us of how the portrayal of heroism in
American films has changed through the years. Quiet and strong is out. Loud and
violent is in. Ask your parents and grandparents to tell you which of the
following films you should look at. (All times given are Eastern Time, and all
are available on video.) 6am Man with a Million (1953), 7:30am The
Great Sinner (1949), 9:30am The Valley of Decision (1945), 11:30 am Designing
Woman (1957), 1:30pm Pork Chop Hill (1959), 3:30pm The Yearling
(1946), 6pm Moby Dick (1956), 8pm A Conversation with Gregory Peck
(1999), 10pm The Big Country (1958), 1am MacArthur (1977),
3:30am The Paradine Case (1947)
"Prince William At 21: A Reluctant Royal?" (BBC America Network, 9-10pm E/P) This documentary airs on a cable channel you may not be able to get, or you may never have noticed on your
TV dial. If you can't find the show on TV, log on to
http://www.bbcAmerica.com where there's lots of information about the subject of this documentary, the future King of England. Born on June 21, 1982, he moves into adulthood facing some major questions about his future. His desire for privacy, and dislike of the media
-- reinforced by his mother's death -- have led some to question whether he really wants the destiny that fate has dealt him, including a crucial question about the survival of the British Crown
-- does William want to be King? The film explores his childhood -- torn between his mother's household and his father's estate
-- suffering under the strain of the break-up of his parent's marriage. Before college he found living and working in Chile, alongside 'ordinary people', extremely liberating. He values a simple private life, and strongly rejects the adulation and celebrity that his good looks and Royal status have given him.
Tuesday, June 17
"Meet the Weasels" (Discovery Channel, 6-7pm E/P) I've mentioned this documentary before. I like it because it gives an under-appreciated animal a better reputation. One of the largest and most diverse families of predators to be found anywhere in the world, the weasel family includes the wolverine, the fisher, the mink, the river otter and the badger.
Wednesday, June 18
"The Century: America's Time" (History Channel, 2-7pm E/P) Here is an opportunity to tape and use as a reference source the episodes of an excellent history series covering events your parents live through
-- and you will probably have to know about for exam between middle school and college. You may even be able to use the summaries of each hour:
"Unpinned (1964-1969)" -- Protests, riots, venom, and violence reign as
the Vietnam War drags on and on, and civil rights activists grow more strident.
Can Americans ever heal the deep wounds left by such bitter and prolonged
discord? "Apocalypse Now (1969-1975)" -- The trauma of the Vietnam War
and the crisis of Watergate take their toll on Americans, leaving them
exhausted, embittered, and disgusted with politics and politicians. Will they
ever trust their government again? "Starting Over (1976-1981)" -- As
Americans try to chart a new course after Watergate, they find themselves mired
in the aftermath -- much of it unforeseen -- of the tumult of previous decades.
The civil rights movement leads to emotional confrontations over affirmative
action and bussing; women discover they can't have it all after all. And what
about disco? "A New World (1981-1989)" -- President Ronald Reagan terms
the Soviet Union the "evil empire" and arms build-up on both sides heats up the
Cold War. But when a new Soviet leader introduces Glasnost and frees Eastern
European states, communist regimes fall. Capitalism reigns in the greedy decade,
with many Americans agreeing that the pursuit of wealth is a duty. "Machine
Dreams Now and Then (The '90s)" -- The concluding episode examines major
events in the 1990s and places them in historical context -- the Gulf War,
Internet, Million Man March, Oklahoma City Bombing. We also look at the
celebrity craze, and see who has fascinated us over the years. Peter Jennings
hosts.
Thursday, June 19
"Public Schools, Inc." (PBS, 9-10pm E/P) Ten years after "edu-preneur" Chris Whittle first announced his plan to revolutionize U.S. education, his Edison Schools continue to be a lightning rod for the issue of for-profit, public education. This PBS/New York Times documentary investigates whether it's possible to create world-class schools that turn a profit, following The Edison Project from its first contract to manage schools in Wichita, Kansas, to the present day, visiting some of the most successful
-- and not so successful-sites. Students get a longer school day and school year, uniforms, and there's incentive pay for teachers and principals. Lots of information on the charismatic Mr. Whittle at
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/edison/.
Friday, June 20
"X Factor: Inside Microsoft's Xbox" (Discovery Channel, 8-9pm E/P) Here's a documentary look behind the scenes as three teams race to create the "next great
American video game"... and Microsoft battles to take over a $20 billion industry that's bigger than movies and records.
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