Usually I'm put off when the dialogue in a family sitcom is filled with movie and TV references. Do the writers think average Americans speak of nothing but Hollywood products? But the characters on this moderately promising series (starting a twice-weekly summer run on July 11) have an excuse for showbiz talk. The dad, Reese Hardin (Harry Hamlin), is a big star of action movies. The mom, Jacey Wyatt (Jennifer Grant), is a big star of serious movies. It's not surprising that their 13-year-old son (Zack Hopkins) wants to be a studio chief, though I refuse to believe their 6-year-old daughter (Rachel David) would quip precociously, "Cool wig, Mommy. Did you get it at Tina Turner's yard sale?"
In the pilot, the household expands to include Reese's wayward 16-year-old daughter (Marnette Patterson) from a prior marriage. But the funniest character by far is his jealous brother Todd (Mark Benninghofen), a struggling actor who finds comfort in the society of other over-shadowed siblings: Joey Travolta, Frank Stallone and Don Swayze (playing themselves). Speaking of family comparisons, Grant clearly did not inherit her late father Cary's comic touch.
Bottom Line: Occasionally amusing take on Hollywood home life
PBS (Tues., July 13, 8 p.m. ET)
Show of the week
Last year may have left you feeling a bit spaced-out, what with HBO's 12-hour miniseries From the Earth to the Moon and the flood of specials tied to John Glenn's oldest-astronaut trip. But get ready to orbit once more, because this two-hour Nova entry will rekindle your enthusiasm for what it calls "the great adventure" of lunar exploration.
There are plenty of choice anecdotes from astronauts, including Jim Lovell's and Frank Borman's recollections of close-quarters camaraderie on their two-week Gemini flight in 1965 and Tom Stafford and Gene Cernan's account of the latter's "hair-raising" space walk in '66. But Nova also spotlights scientists and engineers—from John Houbolt, who tirelessly pushed the landing plan that ultimately got Americans onto the moon, to Jack Schmitt, the geologist who joined Cernan on the last Apollo mission in 1972. Watching Cernan and Schmitt share the joy of discovery on the lunar surface, you'll fervently hope the adventure resumes in the new century.
Bottom Line: All systems go
PBS (Thurs., July 15, 8 p.m. ET)
Though optimistically titled Encore! Encore!, Nathan Lane's first TV series earned no ovations during its short life on NBC last season. The sitcom seemed like a serious waste of talent to those who've admired Lane's hilarious performances on the stage (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) and screen (The Birdcage). So it's nice to report that he puts his abundant gifts to good use in this guest shot on Evening at Pops. Exuding energy—and dripping perspiration—Lane joins the Boston Pops Orchestra for a mostly rollicking, sometimes tender tribute to musical-comedy great Danny Kaye. In one especially impressive segue, he crawls under a quilt to play a little boy fighting sleep in the song "Mommy, Gimme a Drinka Water," then slips into a smoking jacket (with bunny slippers, no less) to join two dancing lovelies in "Ballin' the Jack." Go ahead, shout "Encore!"
Bottom Line: Lotsa fun in the fast Lane
TNT (Sun., July 11, 8 p.m. ET)
The subject matter of this naval drama is so interesting—make that fascinating if you're a Civil War buff—that even a load of gratuitous melodrama can't sink it.
Armand Assante stars as Lt. George Dixon, the commander of a primitive submarine named the Hunley (after its inventor, Horace L. Hunley, who was killed in a test of the vessel). The sub was employed by the Confederacy in an unsuccessful attempt to break the 1864 Union blockade of Charleston, S.C. Sounding like a man with a mouthful of molasses, Assante drawls his way through stock training scenes ("Once you step into my submarine," he warns the crew, "you're mine") and strikes anguished poses while eerie black-and-white flashbacks establish Dixon as a widower with a death wish. Meantime, Donald Sutherland goes all supercilious in portraying Dixon's superior, Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard. But you won't be dwelling on these weak points when the Hunley, hand-propelled by Dixon's worthies, finally goes into action and tries to torpedo a Union warship. Some may call this a southern-fried Das Boot, but that old submarine-movie tension will have most viewers gasping for oxygen.
Bottom Line: Flawed but it floats
>Sunday, July 11 LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE NBC (9 p.m. ET) The twangy two-part story of Naomi and Wynonna Judd, first seen in 1995, concludes Monday at 8.
Monday, July 12 FATAL TWISTERS HBO (10 p.m. ET) Beware the funnel cloud: This documentary tracks the most destructive tornadoes of the decade.
Tuesday, July 13 BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER The WB (8 p.m. ET) Postponed in May after the Littleton incident, Part 2 of the violent season finale finally reaches the air.
Wednesday, July 14 DEAD MAN'S CURVE USA (9 p.m. ET) Felicity collegian Keri Russell has a role in this 1998 movie about a campus murder plot.
Thursday, July 15 BED OF ROSES ABC (8 p.m. ET) Florist Christian Slater woos Mary Stuart Masterson in this 1996 romance.
Friday, July 16 PROVIDENCE NBC (8 p.m. ET) In a rerun that takes it all off, Syd contemplates plastic surgery on a stripper.
Saturday, July 17 THE TRUMAN SHOW Showtime (8 p.m. ET) Jim Carrey stars in this superb 1998 film as a schnook unwittingly living a made-for-TV life.
>the cast of Seinfeld
What's the deal with the Seinfeld crew? A year after the show's final episode, we've heard nary a peep from Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, yada yada yada....So keep reading or else: no scoop for you!
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Elaine) Aside from voicing Princess Atta in A Bug's Life, Dreyfus, 38, has been busy raising sons Henry, 6, and Charles, 2. But she's returning to television (get out!) as the Blue Fairy in ABC's Geppetto, a musical version of Pinocchio (Drew Carey plays Geppetto) due next year.
Jason Alexander (George) Alexander, 39, has been double-dipping in film (directing the upcoming Just Looking and starring in next summer's The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle) and TV (as a guest on Star Trek: Voyager and Dilbert), recently admitting to Comedy Central, "I think we did one [season] too many."
Michael Richards (Kramer) Taking six months off to cope with Life After Kramer ("I really have to shed that whole Seinfeld experience," he told the L.A. Times), Richards, 49, giddyapped to Ireland to play Mr. Micawber in next year's TNT adaptation of David Copperfield.
Jerry Seinfeld (Jerry) After last summer's HBO special, Seinfeld, 45, settled in as master of his $4.35 million Upper West Side domain. He still does American Express ads and recently told PEOPLE, "Anything else I'd do would be on a much smaller scale."
- Contributors:
- Jason Lynch.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
