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Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 1/15/23 — 1/21/23

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Again, this was another week that was, for the most part, dedicated to watching movies.  Here’s a few thoughts on the television that I did watch.

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

This week was not only an Ava episode but it also featured a cat so you know I enjoyed it!

The Brady Bunch Hour (YouTube)

I watched and reviewed the first episode of The Brady Bunch Hour!  I’ve got 8 more episodes to review and, to be honest, I’m kind of feeling like I’m going to regret this decision.  The pilot was amusing because it was so corny and …. well, bad.  Unfortunately, corny and bad can only be entertaining for so long.  I know I’m probably going to get bored with this show after the 4th episode but, at the same time, I also know that it’s something that I need to watch and get out of my system.  I guess it’s better to suffer than to always wonder.

Football Game: Bengals vs Ravens (Sunday Night, NBC)

Jeff and I watched a football game on Sunday night.  Jeff’s from Baltimore so we were rooting for the Ravens but they lost to the other team and they also lost their chance to go to the Super Bowl.  That seems kind of unfair, to be honest, but I guess you only get one chance to win a game in football.  What I find strange about football is that each quarter is only 15 minutes long but each game seems to last a little over four hours.  If I was in charge of the NFL, I would get the clocks in the stadiums checked out because I think they’re running slow.

One thing I really hate about football is when the losing players start crying at the end of the game.  That always breaks my heart.  It’s just a game, I want to tell them.  You all still have so much living to look forward to!

The Cowboys are playing tomorrow and I hope they win because, if they don’t, everyone down here is going to be whining about it for the next nine months.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

The black jackets have been handed out.  It seems kind of obvious that Alex is going to win this season so there’s really not much suspense.  That said, it’s always nice to see Chef Ramsay actually being nice and encouraging for once.

The Mary Tyler Moore Show (Hulu)

I watched a few episodes on Tuesday.  I actually lost track of how many I watched but the one that I remember was about a clown getting stepped on by an elephant.  It made me laugh!  I might have to binge this show later.  I wonder why I didn’t review this show instead of the Brady Bunch Hour.  Oh well!  Hindsight is 20/20.

Night Court (Tuesday Night, NBC)

I watched the first two episodes of this new reboot series on Tuesday.  They didn’t really do much for me, though I do like Melissa Rauch so I hope the show can settle on a consistent tone over the next few episodes.  I was glad that Dan at least trimmed his beard but he really needs to just shave the whole thing off.  I don’t know what it is with older actors and their need to grow big, Santa Claus-style beards.

Project Greenlight (YouTube)

I watched the last two episodes of season three on Thursday.  John Gulager finished filming Feast and, unlike other Greenlight winners, his film actually looked like a real movie.  It’s a bit weird to watch a show like Project Greenlight now and listen to everyone talk about how much they respect the opinions of Harvey and Bob Weinstein.  I can also see why Chris Moore declined to return for the fourth season reboot because I doubt it was fun to be continually portrayed as being the angriest boss in Hollywood.

Retro Television Reviews: California Dreams 3.10 “Daddy’s Girl” and 3.11 “Family Tree”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Saturdays, I will be reviewing California Dreams, which ran on NBC from 1992 to 1996.  The entire show is currently streaming on YouTube!

This week, California Dreams is all about family.

Episode 3.10 “Daddy’s Girl”

(Dir by Patrick Maloney, originally aired on November 19th, 1994)

Tiffani is worried that her father (Rod Arrantis) is lonely being a single man who spends all of his time studying humpback whales.  So, she decides to set him up with Ariel (Kristine Sutherland), who is also a humpback enthusiast.  (Wait, that sounds weird….)  Somewhat distractingly, Ariel is played by the same actress who played Zack Morris’s mother on Saved By The Bell so it’s easy to spend this entire episode wondering if maybe she divorced Derek Morris after Zack graduated from high school and Tiffani and Zack are about to become stepsiblings.

Anyway, things are great at first but then Tiffani gets jealous and tries to break up her father’s relationship by revealing the Ariel has a police record.  Unfortunately, Tiffani doesn’t actually bother to take a look at the record before barging in on her father’s date and it turns out that Ariel only has two unpaid parking tickets.  Today, of course, Ariel would be thrown in prison for the tickets and locked up while the FBI, CIA, and NSA searched her twitter account for any negative remarks about the government’s COVID policies.  However, 1994 was a more libertarian time and everyone on the show understood that parking tickets were no big deal.

After her father ends his relationship to keep Tiffani happy, Tiffani realizes that she was in the wrong.  That means that it’s time to save the relationship by singing a song!

The thing that bothers me about this episode is that Tiffani is a hundred times brattier than Lorena was when they all visited Lorena’s father’s ski resort and yet nobody accuses Tiffani of being spoiled.  That’s a bit of double standard.  That said, there was one funny scene in which a horrified Tony realized that there was nothing that Mr. Smith enjoyed talking about more than humpback whales.  “I’ve got to get back to work,” Tony said.  “I’ll just tell you about them while you work,” Mr. Smith replies (or words to that effect).  It made me laugh.

Episode 3.11 “Family Tree”

(Dir by Patrick Maloney, originally aired on November 26th, 1994)

For history class, the Dreams are investigating their family trees.  Jake reveals that his grandparents were refugees from Eastern Europe.  Sam reveals that her ancestors built the Great Wall of China.  Lorena turns out to be related to both Benito Juarez and Mario Lopez.  Tiffani is forced to research both the Smiths and the Joneses.  Amazingly, it appears the genealogical research is so easy that all you have to do is check out a few books from the library.

Tony is upset to discover that his earliest known ancestor was a slave so he makes up a story about being descended from an emperor.  Everyone is really impressed.  “That’s wonderful, Tony,” the very white teacher announces, “especially since most African-American can’t find anything before the Civil War.”  She said it in such a cheerful and condescending manner that it immediately made me think of the incredibly awkward episode of The Love Boat in which Captain Stubing took it upon himself to explain black history to Isaac.

Eventually, Tony is visited by the ghost of one of his ancestors and he finally decides to be honest about his background.  This episode was well-intentioned and nowhere near as bad as the infamous Running Zack episode of Saved By The Bell.  A bit of the humor was a bit awkward.  For a show that was ground-breaking in the diversity of its cast (at least as far as TNBC shows were concerned), a lot of the humor is still based on stereotypes and the same studio audience that cheered Tony for embracing his identity also laughed whenever Lorena spoke Spanish.  For the most part, though, this episode worked and it gave William James Jones a chance to do something more than just be the goofy comedic relief.

(Incidentally, I love family tree projects.  I’m Irish on my father’s side and Italian/Spanish on my mother’s side.)

Next week, it’s a double dose of Jake as he takes up smoking and considers losing his cool!

Retro Television Review: The Brady Bunch Hour 1.1 “The Brady Bunch Variety Hour”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a new feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Fridays, I will be reviewing The Brady Bunch Hour, which ran on ABC from 1976 to 1977.  All nine episodes can be found on YouTube!

The year was 1976 and cocaine was very popular.

Well, seriously, how else do you explain the existence of The Brady Bunch Hour?  Produced by Sid and Marty Kroft, The Brady Bunch Hour imagined a world in which the Bradys got their own variety show.  Now, this could have made sense if the show had been hosted by “the stars of the Brady Bunch” but instead, in this show, Mike Brady specifically abandoned his job as an architect so he and the family could move to Hollywood and star on a variety show.

Almost all of the Bradys returned to do the show.  Eve Plumb balked at signing a five-year contract and, as a result, Geri Reischl was cast as Jan Brady.  Barry Williams, who was starring on Broadway in Pippin, returned to play Greg “Music is My Life” Brady.  Maureen “Marcia” McCormick was also excited to get a chance to dance and sing.  Susan “Cindy” Olsen was excited over the prospect of appearing in skits.  (She was told that the skits would be SNL-style skits.)  Both Christopher “Peter” Knight and Mike “Bobby” Lookinland were aware of their own musical limitations.  Knight eventually agreed to return when he was told that he wouldn’t have to do much dancing or singing.  Lookinland tried to get out of appearing in the show by demanding a lot of money.  To his surprise, the producers not only paid him what he asked for but his demands led to everyone else getting a bigger paycheck as well.  Ann B. Davis had left acting to work for a church but she appeared on the show as a “guest star.”  Florence Henderson, who had the most singing and dancing experience of anyone in the original cast, was not enthusiastic about The Brady Bunch Hour but she agreed to give it a shot for the fans and the kids.

Actually, the most enthusiastic member of the cast was Robert Reed.  Reed, who rarely had a good word to say about his time on The Brady Bunch (though he did get along with the rest of the cast), was surprisingly enthusiastic about getting to dance and sing despite not being very good at either one of those things.  Alone amongst the cast, he reportedly never lost his enthusiasm for the Brady Bunch Hour.

But enough background!  Let’s take a look at this bizarre, only in the 70s type show!

Episode 1.1 “The Brady Bunch Variety Hour” 

(Dir by Art Fisher, originally aired on November 28th, 1976)

We open with a line of dancers doing kicks in a front of a swimming pool.  On the screen behind the dancers, the faces of the Brady Bunch are projected.  We immediately notice that Jan is now played by Geri Reischl and she’s the only one of the kids who appears to be sincerely happy to be there.  While the other members of the Bunch are obviously struggling to smile, Fake Jan can’t wait to get out on stage and perform.  And she quickly gets that opportunity when the family comes out to perform Baby Face.  While the Bunch sings an off-key rendition of the song, the dancers dive into the pool.  The audience goes crazy as the announcer says, “Ladies and gentleman, the Brady Bunch!”

This performance only lasts for two minutes but it’s hard not to notice that all of the members of the Bunch appear to be totally exhausted by the time it’s over.  Robert Reed especially looks like he’s on the verge of fainting.

With the performance over, the Bradys argue over who will be the first to speak.  Carol reveals that the Bradys are each assigned a number, like at the DMV, and the Bradys are now serving “Number 27!”  “Who has number 27!?” Mike demands.  “Mike, check your number,” Carol says.  Yes, you guessed it!  Mike is 27 and he explains that he’s an architect but his family is forcing him to star on a variety show.  “I didn’t want to do this,” Mike tells us.  “We’re all very excited!” Carol shouts.

(Again. in real life, Robert Reed was the only member of the Bunch who wanted to do the show, despite the fact that he could neither dance or sing.)

Carol introduces the members of the Bunch.  Greg says music is his life.  The audience goes crazy for Marcia.  Peter flirts with dancer.  Jan complains, though the naturally cheerful Geri Reischl is a bit less convincing when it comes to playing bitter as Eve Plumb was.  Bobby announces that he grew 2 and a half inches this year.  Cindy announces she grew 3 inches.  Carol explains that Mike is the first architect to have his own variety show.  Maybe there’s a reason why architects are not typically given this opportunity.

Suddenly, everyone starts singing Baby Face again.  Mike falls in the pool.  The audience loves it.

After a commercial break, we find the Bradys (sans Mike) at the family’s new Hollywood home.  The kids agree that Mike has to be dumped from the show because, as Greg puts it, “he’s not very good.”  Carol tells them that Mike is their father and that he will always be a part of the act.  Carol points out that Mike doesn’t enjoy wearing tights and that he’s only doing the show for his ungrateful children.  Carol has a point.  These kids suck.

The doorbell rings and Tony Randall, looking like he’s already realizes this is a mistake, steps into the living room.  He says that he needs a script.  Bobby calls him “Tony.”  Randall replies, “You can call me Mr. Randall.”  Bobby suggests that Tony Randall could be the family’s new father.  Mike comes down the stairs, just in time to hear his family begging Tony Randall to become their new father.  AWKWARD!  Anyway, Tony refuses to steal Mike’s role.  To me, it seems like the kid owe Mike an apology but he doesn’t get one.  However, everyone does eventually agree that they love him.  Then Bobby suggests Burt Reynolds could be their father.

We then cut to the Brady Bunch performing One from A Chorus Line.  Mike takes center stage for this performance, wearing a glittery white suit and a hat.  The viewer gets the feeling that this was all done to show that Robert Reed really could perform and dance but it has the opposite effect for both him and the entire family.

At the Brady Bunch home, Greg plays his guitar.  Marcia comes in and wonders if Mike and Carol were ever young.  This leads to a flashback to the 1950s, with young Mike and his gang (played by the Brady boys) hanging out at the roller rink and hitting on four girls, played by Carol and the Brady Daughters.

Now, you may think that things couldn’t possibly get worse than the Brady Bunch paying tribute to Grease.  (Actually, Grease wouldn’t come out for another two years so I’m not really sure what the point of this skit was.)  Well, it does get worse because Donnie and Marie Osmond roll up on a motorcycle and everyone sings Splish Splash.  It’s not so much that the Bradys (with the exception of Fake Jan and Florence Henderson) can’t dance or sing.  It’s that the audience applauds every little thing that they do, in much the same way that parents give out pity applause at a talent show at an elementary school.

Once the flashbacks ends, Greg welcomes the audience to the second half of the show.  Peter pushes Greg into the pool.  Greg grabs Peter and throws him in the pool.  The audience loves it but, judging from the way their bodies hit the water, it’s obvious that neither Greg nor Peter were trained stuntmen and they were both risking injury for a joke that wasn’t really that funny.  Oh well, no matter!  It’s time for the show’s dancer to put on clown makeup and do an aquatic dance number.

Cut to the Brady Bunch’s Hollywood home, where Mike is playing Risk with the kids and bitching about how he “always lands on Yugoslavia.”  You know, I felt bad for Mike when the kids were trying to replace him with Tony Randall but now I see that the kids had a point and that Mike is always whining about something.

Meanwhile, Marcia is talking on the landline about how much she loved The Boy In The Plastic Bubble.  “Barbarino in a bubble!”  Excuse me, Marcia …. his name is Travolta!

Continuing to play the game, Mike announces, “I just landed on East Germany and your mother already owns it!”  “With three hotels,” Carol says.  Uhmmm …. okay, are we playing Risk or Monopoly?  WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?

Peter, meanwhile, call his girlfriend and breaks their date because “My Dad is being held prisoner in East Germany.”  It turns out that Peter is interested in another girl, which leads to Mike and Carol reprimanding him and teaching him an important lesson about honesty.  This skit goes on forever.  It’s almost bad enough to make me wish for another musical number….

Be careful what you wish for because this skit is followed by Cindy and Bobby introducing “our big brother,” and saying that they think he’s very talented.  As if to specifically humiliate them, Greg comes out on stage and oversings Corner of the Sky.  (Corner of the Sky comes from Pippin, a show that Greg left so that he could co-star on the Brady Bunch Hour.)  Perhaps the most interesting thing about this sequence is that Bobby and Cindy both appear to have joined a cult.

This is followed by a skit in which a disgruntled Mike and Bobby show up on stage dressed as a rabbit and a chicken.  They are soon joined by Greg, who is dressed as a bear, and Tony Randall, who is dressed as himself.  Tony announces that he’s going to sing a song about animals but he doesn’t want any of the Bradys to be involved.  (Considering that he was the show’s “special guest star,” it’s interesting that Tony Randall only appears twice on the show and, both times, he makes it clear that he holds the Brady Bunch in complete and utter disdain.)

After Tony does his song, Alice the Maid (Anne B. Davis) appears and says that she watched the Bradys grow up.  This leads to a montage of old Brady Bunch clips and Florence Henderson singing The Way We Were and, believe it or not, it actually works.  For once thing, Florence Henderson could actually sing and The Way We Were is exactly the right song for her performance style.  I mean, make no mistake.  It’s silly and schmaltzy but it’s also kind of touching.

Finally, it’s time for the big finale!  The Bradys are on stage, dressed in white, but they can’t decide what medley they want to perform.  Greg wants to do music from “that Rocky Horror show!”  “This is a family show!” Mike yells.  Carol suggests something from The Sound of Music.  The kids don’t want to do old stuff.  “We’re young and we want to do young music,” Marcia says.  Alice runs on to the stage and tells them to just sing something.

Greg takes her words to heart and performs Attitude Dancing, while wearing an outfit that makes it look like he’s about to jump a motorcycle over a line of school buses.

Mike and Carol sing Cheek to Cheek and then the kids sing Dance With Me.  Carol responds by singing I Could Have Danced All Night, which is another good song for her.  Unfortunately, the kids start to sing Do The Hustle and eventually segue into Shake Your Booty.  All the Bradys dance, including an embarrassed-looking Alice.  Fake Jan gets a solo and proves that, unlike the other Brady kids, she actually has a pretty good voice.

In the final comments, Carol thanks the audience.  “Without you, there would be Brady Bunch,” she says.  “I think I had something to do with it,” Mike says, which …. I mean, I know it’s awkward to point this out but Mike can really only take credit for half of the kids.  So, really, Mike didn’t have much to do with it beyond the fact that he quickly moved on from his first wife’s death.  (Or is Mike the one who got divorced?  I can never keep track of who was divorced and who was widowed.)

Anyway, on that cheery note, the show ends.

Wow, that was exhausting.  My main impression of the pilot of The Brady Bunch Hour is that it wasn’t good but it was impossible to look away.  It was fun to watch but I can already tell that the show’s corny humor and badly-choreographed musical numbers are going to get tiresome pretty quickly.  Fortunately, this thing only ran for 9 episodes so this is only going to cost me nine weeks of my life.  Yay!

Retro Television Reviews: City Guys 3.15 “Funny Business” and 3.16 “Get Your Vote On”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Thursdays, I will be reviewing City Guys, which ran on NBC from 1997 to 2001.  The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi!

Hello Manny High!  When last we checked in with the City Guys, they were starring on a reality show.  Let’s see what happens this week….

Episode 3.15 “Funny Business”

(Dir by Frank Bonner, originally aired on November 6th, 1999)

Oh hey, I guess the whole reality show thing is over.  In this episode, there’s no mention of Reality House or the Loft.  There’s no cameramen chasing Jamal and Chris.  In fact, no one mentions anything about ever having appeared on reality television.  I guess this is one of those things, like the video yearbook, where they’ll explain what actually happened two seasons from now.

In this episode, Rebecca (Lisa Pepper), a Manny High graduate, returns to her former school so that she can offer three internships at her architectural firm.  Of course, Dawn volunteers.  And then Ms. Nobel randomly draws two names out of a bag for the other two spots and, of course, she draws Chris and Jamal!  I have a feeling that every piece of paper in that bag had either Chris or Jamal’s name written on it.

Chris really enjoys the internship until Rebecca orders him to be her love slave.  After Chris says that’s not appropriate workplace behavior, Rebecca threatens to flunk him unless he become her boy toy.  Chris, Jamal, and Dawn secretly record Rebecca threatening Chris and Rebecca gets fired.

Every show produced by Peter Engel did at least one episode dealing with sexual harassment but I think City Guys was the only one to feature a guy being harassed by a woman.  The episode is a bit heavy-handed and, over the past two and a half seasons, Chris has basically tried to get in the pants of every woman that he’s met so it seems like a little out-of-character that he would turn down the first woman who has actually shown any interest in him.  I mean, if we’re going to be honest, Chris is a serial harasser who apparently can’t handle having the tables turned on him.  This episode says more about Chris than it does Rebecca.

Episode 3.16 “Get Your Vote On”

(Dir by Frank Bonner, originally aired on November 13th, 1999)

Chris has two tickets to the Taxi, Taxi, “the hottest Broadway show.”  Both Cassidy and Dawn volunteer to be his date.

“Two girls, one ticket,” Al says, “you in trouble!”

Well, Al, let’s think about it.  First off, Chris has been trying to date Cassidy since this season began and now, she’s begging to go on a date with him.  Plus, Al — YOU’RE DATING DAWN!  Remember that!?  I’m going to guess this episode was actually filmed before the episode in which Al and Dawn got together and NBC, as they often did, showed the episodes out of order.  As I’ve said before and will probably say again …. NBC just didn’t care.

The Broadway thing is only the B-plot.  The A-plot features L-Train running for reelection as Student Council president.  Jamal decides to run against him because he feels that L-Train hasn’t done enough for the radio station.

While Jamal campaigns for the presidency, Dawn and Cassidy beg Chris to pick one of them to take to the Broadway show.  “You in a player’s paradise!” Al tells Chris before reminding him that Chris has all the power over Dawn and Cassidy.  Al …. DAWN IS YOUR GIRLFRIEND, YOU WEIRDO!

As for the election, Jamal makes a lot of promises that he can’t keep and is elected over L-Train.  After Ms. Nobel informs him that the student council has no money and he’ll have to hold a fund raiser to keep all of his promises, Jamal decides to have a carnival on the roof of the school.  I have to admit that I’m kind of amazed at how strong that roof is.  I mean, they do everything on that roof!

For some reason, Jamal decides to bring a pig to the carnival.  L-Train, looking for revenge, plots to set the pig on the loose but, after Jamal offers to make him vice president, L-Train abandons his evil plan.  Unfortunately, the pig is already on the loose.  (There’s something I never thought I’d write.)  The carnival is a disaster.

“Jamal must go!” the students chant, until L-Train explains that he’s responsible for the pig getting loose.

While this is going on, Cassidy and Dawn get revenge on Al and Chris by having Cassidy’s uncle pretend to be a cop in the anti-scalping division.  After Chris tries to sell the tickets, the fake cop arrests Chris and Al and orders them to hand the tickets over to Cassidy and Dawn.  Ha!  Take that, Chris and Al!

Jamal and L-Train make up and then Jamal resigns so L-Train can become president again.  So, everything’s back to normal.  Yay! 

This episode wasn’t that bad, if you can overlook the plot.  Steven Daniel had some good moments as L-Train.  And the pig getting loose on the roof was a genuinely well-done moment.  Plus, Dawn and Cassidy got to see Taxi Taxi!

Next week …. well, who knows?  I’m sure it’ll be crazy whatever it is.

Retro Television Review: Love Boat 1.21 “Taking Sides/Going By The Book/A Friendly Little Game”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Wednesdays, I will be reviewing the original Love Boat, which aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986!  The series can be streamed on Paramount Plus!

It’s time to once again experience the magic of The Love Boat!

Episode 1.21 “Taking Sides/Going By The Book/A Friendly Little Game”

(Dir by Richard Kinon, originally aired on February 18th, 1978)

This week’s episode begins with the extremely nerdy Howard Wilson (Harvey Jason) preparing to board the ship.  Before he does so, he’s approached by his best friend, Bernie (Paul Sylvan).  Bernie gives Howard a book on how to talk to women.  Apparently, this is something that Howard’s not good at but Bernie swears that the book will change his life.  There’s a Roy Lichtenstein-style picture of a man and a woman kissing on the cover of the book so Howard decides that Bernie knows what he’s talking about.

On the boat, Howard immediately notices Sheila Lawrence (Georgia Engel).  However, Sheila’s overprotective father (Herb Voland) has specifically asked Captain Stubing to make sure that no one seduces his daughter.  The captain assigns Doc Bricker (Bernie Kopell) to keep an eye on her, which makes absolutely no sense.  Over the course of the last twenty episodes, Doc has yet to meet a woman who he has not hit on.  Doc is a walking HR nightmare and quite frankly, I would be kind of uncomfortable going to him for a medical examination.  He seems like he would be a little bit handsy, if you get my drift.

Anyway, Doc turns out to be pretty bad at his job because Howard still manages to hit on Sheila.  Of course, Howard’s just doing what the book tells him to do.  Eventually, though, he realizes that he doesn’t need the book and Shelia realizes that she needs to spend more time on her own happiness and stop worry about what her father wants.  Yay!  It’s another Love Boat success story,

Meanwhile, Scott (Robert Urich) and Ellen (Diana Canova) are newlyweds who seem to be totally in love until they make the mistake of having dinner with an old married couple, Max (Robert Mandan) and Gladys (Audrey Meadows).  Listening to Max and Gladys bicker soon leads to Scott and Ellen bickering and it looks like their marriage might be over.  But again, the magic of The Love Boat leads to everyone realizing that bickering is a part of marriage and that you can still love someone even if you disagree with them.  Yay!  Robert Urich and Diana Canova were such a cute couple.  They just looked like they belonged together.

Finally, poor old Wendell Snead (Harry Morgan) is taking his wife on a cruise that he can’t really afford.  In fact, he secretly took out a mortgage on their house in order to buy the tickets.  Wendell has plan, though!  He has a set of marked playing cards and he beats Gopher at several games of gin rummy.  When the crew discovers that he’s been cheating, their initial reaction is to cheat back.  But when they learn why he’s been cheating, they give him all the money from the ship’s emergency fund.  Awwwwww!

This was a sweet episode.  Yes, the stuff with the book and the overprotective father was pretty stupid but the other two stories were entertaining.  Harry Morgan’s melancholy performance was the episode’s stand-out.  The fact that the crew gave him money instead of calling the cops brought tears to my mismatched eyes.  Nicely done, Love Boat.

What will happen next week?  We’ll find out in seven days!

Retro Television Reviews: Fantasy Island 2.5 “I Want To Get Married/The Jewel Thief”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Tuesdays, I will be reviewing the original Fantasy Island, which ran on ABC from 1977 to 1986.  The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi!

We learn a little bit more about Fantasy Island in this week’s episode.  It’s a strange place!

Episode 2.5 “I Want To Get Married/The Jewel Thief”

(Dir by George McGowan, originally aired on October 21st, 1978)

You know what the best thing about Fantasy Island is?

The Disco Dancing!

Cindy Barker (Meredith McRae) is a big fan of the disco dancing.  That’s because her fantasy is to come to the island and meet the man that she’s going to marry.  In fact, she wants to marry the guy at the end of the weekend and she’s already spent $20,000 to reserve the island for her wedding.  (Tattoo is excited about that.)

Of course, one possible problem with Cindy’s fantasy is that she already has a boyfriend.  She’s been dating Eddie (Ken Berry) for a while now.  However, Eddie refuses to get married.  Every time that they schedule a wedding ceremony, Eddie finds an excuse to cancel.  He can’t even say the word “married” without sneezing.  Still, Eddie is in love with Cindy and he comes to the Island to try to convince her to give him another chance.  He also tells all of her potential suitors that Cindy is actually a prostitute.  

Now, to be honest, that’s not the sort of thing that I could forgive.  I don’t care who you are or how much you love me, that’s just not something that I’m going to be able to overlook.  However, this somehow convinces Cindy that Eddie really does love her so she decides to teach him a lesson by putting on a slit leather skirt and hanging out on a street corner in Fantasy Island’s red light district.

At this point, I said to myself, “Since when has Fantasy Island had a red light district?”  Seriously, last week revealed that the island has a desert where the Egyptians buried their pharaohs.  This week, we learn that the island has a red light district.  Fantasy Island is a strange place.  Stranger still, Eddie lying about Cindy and then Cindy pretending to be a prostitute leads to Eddie and Cindy getting married.  

While that’s going on, Jordan Montgomery (Steve Forrest) is living out his fantasy of being an international jewel thief and …. wait, what?  What type of fantasy is this?  You can commit crimes in your fantasies?  This island gets stranger and stranger!  Anyway, Jordan steals a necklace from Leslie Tarleton (Leigh Taylor-Young), just to discover that the necklace didn’t actually belong to her and his thievery is going to cause her to lose her job.  When Jordan attempts to retrieve the necklace so that he can return it, he discovers that it’s been stolen yet again!  This time, crime lord Carl Dekker (Peter Mark Richman) has stolen the necklace and is keeping it on his boat, which is heavily guarded and which is also floating off the coast of the island.  

So, for those keeping track, Fantasy Island has a desert, a pharaoh’s tomb, a red light district, and a Mafia.  It seems like the island’s kind of gone downhill since the end of season one!

Anyway, this was actually a fun episode.  Neither story was particularly deep but the action moved quickly and Steve Forrest made for a properly dashing jewel thief.  I still don’t think that Cindy should have forgiven Eddie, let alone married him.  But it was 1978 and I guess times were different back then.

Finally, Tattoo tried to start his own greeting card company.  He was looking to corner the market on sarcastic and downbeat greeting  cards.  He was just a few decades too early!

Retro Television Reviews: Hang Time 3.11 “The Hustlers” and 3.12 “Fuller’s Rival”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Mondays, I will be reviewing Hang Time, which ran on NBC from 1995 to 2000.  The entire show is currently streaming on YouTube!

The trip to California continues!

Episode 3.11 “The Hustlers”

(Directed by Patrick Maloney, originally aired on October 18th, 1997)

This episode reminds us that it originally aired in 1997 by featuring an entire subplot that revolves around how much the members of the Tornadoes love Mel Gibson.

The Tornadoes are still in California, preparing for their big tournament.  (Coach Fuller mentions that they’ve been at the hotel for a week, which sounds like a really long time to be out of school but whatever.  Maybe they’re on Spring Break.)  When Vince comes across a wallet in the hotel lobby, everyone is excited to discover that it belongs to Mel Gibson.  They’re so excited that they don’t even notice Dustin Diamond standing behind them, providing a painfully unfunny cameo as Saved By The Bell‘s Screech Powers.

(Speaking of Saved By The Bell, remember when Mary Beth made out with a character from that show over the summer, while they were both at Space Camp?  It’s odd that no one brings Ryan up while they’re all in California and apparently close to Bayside High.  It’s almost as if the show’s writers didn’t really pay much attention to what they were writing.)

Danny, Michael, Mary Beth, and Kristy pretend to be members of the cleaning staff and they break into Mel Gibson’s room.  When they step into the room, Mary Beth calls out in an exaggerated Spanish accent to see if Mel’s around because she’s pretending to be a maid.  Those who have been reading my reviews for a while know that I rarely get offended but I have to say that, speaking as both someone who is a fourth Spanish and whose mother took the occasional cleaning job in order to provide a good life for her four daughters, that actually did offend me a little.

Anyway, the group never does find Mel, though they do crash an exclusive Hollywood party that just happens to be taking place at the exact same hotel where they’re staying.  Hopefully, someone did eventually get Mel’s wallet back to him.

The majority of show dealt with Teddy and Julie getting conned by some basketball hustlers.  I didn’t even know that basketball hustlers were a thing but apparently, they were a huge problem in 1997.  After Teddy and Julie get conned out of a hundred dollars, Michael plays with Teddy and Julie to help them win back their money.  Unfortunately, Michael sprains his wrist (what is the deal with Michael constantly spraining stuff?) so Coach Fuller offers to play in Michael’s place.  When the hustlers say that they’ll only play against teenagers, Kobe Bryant suddenly enters the gym.  (According to Wikipedia, Kobe was 19 when he appeared in this episode.)  Being a teenager (assuming that you accept 19 as being a teen as opposed to a young adult), Kobe helps Julie and Teddy defeat the hustlers.  Julie and Teddy get their money back.  But, to be honest, if they really needed money, they could have just borrowed some from Mel Gibson’s wallet and saved everyone a lot of trouble.

Eh.  Between the racist humor and the Screech cameo, I don’t want to talk about this episode anymore.  Let’s move on.

Episode 3.12 “Fuller’s Rival”

(Directed by Patrick Maloney, originally aired on October 18th, 1997)

Finally, it’s time for the tournament!  Deering makes it to the final game against New York.  (New York High School?  I’m not sure how these tournaments work.  Are they representing a state or a school?)  New York is coached by Fuller’s former rival, B.B. Byrnes (Barry Wiggins).  B.B. taunts Fuller to such an extent that Fuller loses his cool and gets kicked out of the game.  Then Michael gets upset and also gets kicked out of the game.  And then the Tornadoes lose!

Fuller apologizes to the team and tells them that good sportsmanship is important.  Then, at the award banquet, Danny smashes a cake in B.B.’s face so I guess the lesson wasn’t learned.  Oh well.

This episode, especially compared to the previous one, was actually pretty good.  Reggie Theus, who could be a bit of a stiff actor, really gets into tearing up the gym when he loses his temper and, for that matter, Adam Frost (who played Michael) finally gets to show a little emotion as well.  Plus, this show often tended to portray the Tornadoes as being unstoppable.  I always appreciate the episodes where they learn a lesson from losing a game as opposed to the ones where they magically pulling off a last-minute victory.

The California story arc may have been uneven but it ended on a good note.  Next week, I assume we’ll be back in Indiana.

Here Are The 2022 Winners of the Critics Choice Awards!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Critics Choice Awards were handed out tonight.  The show aired on the CW and it was hosted by Chelsea Handler, so I’m sure it was a classy affair.  I wouldn’t know for sure because I didn’t watch them but seriously, when has the CW been anything other than classy?

(Dear CW: DAMN YOU FOR CANCELING DYNASTY!)

Anyway, here are the winners.  It’s pretty much everyone you would expect to see.  The Critics Choice Awards are not known for their upsets.  At this point, I think everyone’s used to Everything Everywhere All At Once winning the critical accolades.  I’ll be more curious to see if the Guilds follow suit.

Best Picture

“Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

  •  “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)
  • “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • “Elvis” (Warner Bros.)
  • “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
  • “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix)
  • “RRR” (Variance Films)
  • “Tár” (Focus Features)
  • “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)
  • “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)

Best Actress

Cate Blanchett – “Tár” (Focus Features)

  • Viola Davis – “The Woman King” (Sony Pictures)
  • Danielle Deadwyler – “Till” (Orion/United Artists Releasing)
  • Margot Robbie – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • Michelle Williams – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
  • Michelle Yeoh – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

Best Actor

Brendan Fraser – “The Whale” (A24)

  • Austin Butler – “Elvis” (Warner Bros.)
  • Tom Cruise – “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)
  • Colin Farrell – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Paul Mescal – “Aftersun” (A24)
  • Bill Nighy – “Living” (Sony Pictures Classics)

Best Director

Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

  • James Cameron – “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)
  • Damien Chazelle – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • Todd Field – “Tár” (Focus Features)
  • Baz Luhrmann – “Elvis” (Warner Bros.)
  • Martin McDonagh – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Sarah Polley – “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
  • Gina Prince-Bythewood – “The Woman King” (Sony Pictures)
  • S.S. Rajamouli – “RRR” (Variance Films)
  • Steven Spielberg – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)

Best Limited Series

“The Dropout” (Hulu)

  • “Gaslit” (Starz)
  • “The Girl from Plainville” (Hulu)
  • “The Offer” (Paramount+)
  • “Pam & Tommy” (Hulu)
  • “Station Eleven” (HBO Max)
  • “This Is Going to Hurt” (AMC+)
  • “Under the Banner of Heaven” (FX)

Best Drama Series

“Better Call Saul” (AMC)

  • “Andor” (Disney+)
  • “Bad Sisters” (Apple TV+)
  • “The Crown” (Netflix)
  • “Euphoria” (HBO)
  • “The Good Fight” (Paramount+)
  • “House of the Dragon” (HBO)
  • “Severance” (Apple TV+)
  • “Yellowstone” (Paramount Network)

Best Young Actor/Actress

Gabriel LaBelle – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)

  • Frankie Corio – “Aftersun” (A24)
  • Jalyn Hall – “Till” (Orion/United Artists Releasing)
  • Bella Ramsey – “Catherine Called Birdy” (Amazon Studios)
  • Banks Repeta – “Armageddon Time” (Focus Features)
  • Sadie Sink – “The Whale” (A24)

Best Comedy

“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix)

  • “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • “Bros” (Universal Pictures)
  • “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • “Triangle of Sadness” (Neon)
  • “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” (Lionsgate)

Best Acting Ensemble

“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix)

  • “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
  • “The Woman King” (Sony Pictures)
  • “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)

Best Talk Show

“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (HBO)

  • “The Amber Ruffin Show” (Peacock)
  • “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” (TBS)
  • “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (Syndicated)
  • “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC)
  • “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen” (Bravo)

Best Comedy Special

“Norm Macdonald: Nothing Special” (Netflix)

  • “Fortune Feimster: Good Fortune” (Netflix)
  • “Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel” (HBO)
  • “Joel Kim Booster: Psychosexual” (Netflix)
  • “Nikki Glaser: Good Clean Filth” (HBO)
  • “Would It Kill You to Laugh? Starring Kate Berlant & John Early” (Peacock)

Best Foreign Language Series

“Pachinko” (Apple TV+)

  • “1899” (Netflix)
  • “Borgen” (Netflix)
  • “Extraordinary Attorney Woo” (Netflix)
  • “Garcia!” (HBO Max)
  • “The Kingdom Exodus” (MUBI)
  • “Kleo” (Netflix)
  • “My Brilliant Friend” (HBO)
  • “Tehran” (Apple TV+)

Best Animated Series

“Harley Quinn” (HBO Max)

  • “Bluey” (Disney+)
  • “Bob’s Burgers” (Fox)
  • “Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal” (Adult Swim)
  • “Star Trek: Lower Decks” (Paramount+)
  • “Undone” (Prime Video)

Best Movie Made for Television

“Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” (The Roku Channel)

  • “Fresh” (Hulu)
  • “Prey” (Hulu)
  • “Ray Donovan: The Movie” (Showtime)
  • “The Survivor” (HBO)
  • “Three Months” (Paramount+)

Best Actress in a Drama Series

Zendaya – “Euphoria” (HBO)

  • Christine Baranski – “The Good Fight” (Paramount+)
  • Sharon Horgan – “Bad Sisters” (Apple TV+)
  • Laura Linney – “Ozark” (Netflix)
  • Mandy Moore – “This Is Us” (NBC)
  • Kelly Reilly – “Yellowstone” (Paramount Network)

Best Actor in a Drama Series

Bob Odenkirk – “Better Call Saul” (AMC)

  • Jeff Bridges – “The Old Man” (FX)
  • Sterling K. Brown – “This Is Us” (NBC)
  • Diego Luna – “Andor” (Disney+)
  • Adam Scott – “Severance” (Apple TV+)
  • Antony Starr – “The Boys” (Prime Video)

Best Hair and Makeup

“Elvis” (Warner Bros.)

  • “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • “The Batman” (Warner Bros.)
  • “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
  • “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • “The Whale” (A24)

Best Visual Effects

“Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)

  • “The Batman” (Warner Bros.)
  • “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
  • “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • “RRR” (Variance Films)
  • “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)

Best Editing

Paul Rogers – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

  • Stephen Rivkin, David Brenner, John Refoua, James Cameron – “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)
  • Tom Cross – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • Matt Villa, Jonathan Redmond – “Elvis” (Warner Bros.)
  • Monika Willi – “Tár” (Focus Features)
  • Eddie Hamilton – “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)

Best Production Design 

Florencia Martin, Anthony Carlino – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)

  • Dylan Cole, Ben Procter, Vanessa Cole – “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)
  • Hannah Beachler, Lisa K. Sessions – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
  • Catherine Martin, Karen Murphy, Bev Dunn – “Elvis” (Warner Bros.)
  • Jason Kisvarday, Kelsi Ephraim – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • Rick Carter, Karen O’Hara – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)

Best Cinematography

Claudio Miranda – “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)

  • Russell Carpenter – “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)
  • Linus Sandgren – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • Roger Deakins – “Empire of Light” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Janusz Kaminski – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
  • Florian Hoffmeister – “Tár” (Focus Features)

Best Comedy Series

“Abbott Elementary” (ABC)

  • “Barry” (HBO)
  • “The Bear” (FX)
  • “Better Things” (FX)
  • “Ghosts” (CBS)
  • “Hacks” (HBO Max)
  • “Reboot” (Hulu)
  • “Reservation Dogs” (FX)

Best Actress in a Comedy Series

Jean Smart – “Hacks” (HBO Max)

  • Christina Applegate – “Dead to Me” (Netflix)
  • Quinta Brunson – “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
  • Kaley Cuoco – “The Flight Attendant” (HBO Max)
  • Renée Elise Goldsberry – “Girls5eva” (Peacock)
  • Devery Jacobs – “Reservation Dogs” (FX)

Best Actor in a Comedy Series

Jeremy Allen White – “The Bear” (FX)

  • Matt Berry – “What We Do in the Shadows” (FX)
  • Bill Hader – “Barry” (HBO)
  • Keegan-Michael Key – “Reboot” (Hulu)
  • Steve Martin – “Only Murders in the Building” (Hulu)
  • D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai – “Reservation Dogs” (FX)

#SeeHer Award

Janelle Monáe

Lifetime Achievement Award

Jeff Bridges

Best Animated Feature

“Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix)

  • “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On” (A24)
  • “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” (DreamWorks Animation)
  • “Turning Red” (Pixar)
  • “Wendell & Wild” (Netflix)

Best Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television

Daniel Radcliffe – “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” (The Roku Channel)

  • Ben Foster – “The Survivor” (HBO)
  • Andrew Garfield – “Under the Banner of Heaven” (FX)
  • Samuel L. Jackson – “The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey” (Apple TV+)
  • Sebastian Stan – “Pam & Tommy” (Hulu)
  • Ben Whishaw – “This is Going to Hurt” (AMC+)

Best Costume Design

Ruth E. Carter – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)

  • Mary Zophres – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • Catherine Martin – “Elvis” (Warner Bros.)
  • Shirley Kurata – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • Jenny Eagan – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix)
  • Gersha Phillips – “The Woman King” (Sony Pictures)

Best Song

“Naatu Naatu” – “RRR” (Variance Films)

  • “Lift Me Up” – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)
  • “Ciao Papa” – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix)
  • “Hold My Hand” – “Top Gun: Maverick” (Paramount Pictures)
  • “Carolina” – “Where the Crawdads Sing” (Sony Pictures)
  • “New Body Rhumba” – “White Noise” (Netflix)

Best Score

Hildur Guðnadóttir – “Tár” (Focus Features)

  • Michael Giacchino – “The Batman” (Warner Bros.)
  • Justin Hurwitz – “Babylon” (Paramount Pictures)
  • John Williams – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
  • Alexandre Desplat – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (Netflix)
  • Hildur Guðnadóttir – “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)

Best Original Screenplay

Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

  • Charlotte Wells – “Aftersun” (A24)
  • Martin McDonagh – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Steven Spielberg, Tony Kushner – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
  • Todd Field – “Tár” (Focus Features)

Best Adapted Screenplay

Sarah Polley – “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)

  • Rian Johnson – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix)
  • Kazuo Ishiguro – “Living” (Sony Pictures Classics)
  • Rebecca Lenkiewicz – “She Said” (Universal Pictures)
  • Samuel D. Hunter – “The Whale” (A24)

Best Supporting Actress

Angela Bassett – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (Marvel Studios)

  • Jessie Buckley – “Women Talking” (MGM/United Artists Releasing)
  • Kerry Condon – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Jamie Lee Curtis – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • Stephanie Hsu – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)
  • Janelle Monáe – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (Netflix)

Best Supporting Actor

Ke Huy Quan – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)

  • Paul Dano – “The Fabelmans” (Universal Pictures)
  • Brendan Gleeson – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Judd Hirsch – “The Fabelmans” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Barry Keoghan – “The Banshees of Inisherin” (Searchlight Pictures)
  • Brian Tyree Henry – “Causeway” (A24/Apple Original Films)

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Henry Winkler – “Barry” (HBO)

  • Brandon Scott Jones – “Ghosts” (CBS)
  • Leslie Jordan – “Call Me Kat” (Fox)
  • James Marsden – “Dead to Me” (Netflix)
  • Chris Perfetti – “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
  • Tyler James Williams – “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Sheryl Lee Ralph – “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)

  • Paulina Alexis – “Reservation Dogs” (FX)
  • Ayo Edebiri – “The Bear” (FX)
  • Marcia Gay Harden – “Uncoupled” (Netflix)
  • Janelle James – “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
  • Annie Potts – “Young Sheldon” (CBS)

Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television

Paul Walter Hauser – “Black Bird” (Apple TV+)

  • Murray Bartlett – “Welcome to Chippendales” (Hulu)
  • Domhnall Gleeson – “The Patient” (FX)
  • Matthew Goode – “The Offer” (Paramount+)
  • Ray Liotta – “Black Bird” (Apple TV+)
  • Shea Whigham – “Gaslit” (Starz)

Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television

Niecy Nash-Betts – “Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” (Netflix)

  • Claire Danes – “Fleishman Is in Trouble” (FX)
  • Dominique Fishback – “The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey” (Apple TV+)
  • Betty Gilpin – “Gaslit” (Starz)
  • Melanie Lynskey – “Candy” (Hulu)
  • Juno Temple – “The Offer” (Paramount+)

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Giancarlo Esposito – “Better Call Saul” (AMC)

  • Andre Braugher – “The Good Fight” (Paramount+)
  • Ismael Cruz Córdova – “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” (Prime Video)
  • Michael Emerson – “Evil” (Paramount+)
  • John Lithgow – “The Old Man” (FX)
  • Matt Smith – “House of the Dragon” (HBO)

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Jennifer Coolidge – “The White Lotus” (HBO)

  • Milly Alcock – “House of the Dragon” (HBO)
  • Carol Burnett – “Better Call Saul” (AMC)
  • Julia Garner – “Ozark” (Netflix)
  • Audra McDonald – “The Good Fight” (Paramount+)
  • Rhea Seehorn – “Better Call Saul” (AMC)

Best Foreign Language Film

“RRR” (Variance Films)

  • “All Quiet on the Western Front” (Netflix)
  • “Argentina, 1985” (Amazon Studios)
  • “Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths” (Netflix)
  • “Close” (A24)
  • “Decision to Leave” (Mubi)

Best Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made For Television

Amanda Seyfried – The Dropout (Hulu)

  • Julia Garner – “Inventing Anna” (Netflix)
  • Lily James – “Pam & Tommy” (Hulu)
  • Amber Midthunder – “Prey” (Hulu)
  • Julia Roberts – “Gaslit” (Starz)
  • Michelle Pfeiffer – “The First Lady” (Showtime)

Here Are The 2022 Nominees For The NAACP Image Awards!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

On the 12th, the nominees for the 2022 NAACP Image Awards were announced.  The winners will be announced on February 26th and the nominees can be seen below!

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR NOMINEES

Angela Bassett
Mary J. Blige
Quinta Brunson
Viola Davis
Zendaya

MOTION PICTURE CATEGORIES

Outstanding Motion Picture
A Jazzman’s Blues (Netflix)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)
Emancipation (Apple TV)
The Woman King (Sony Pictures Releasing)
TILL (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)

Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture
Daniel Kaluuya – Nope (Universal Pictures)
Jonathan Majors – Devotion (Sony Pictures Entertainment)
Joshua Boone – A Jazzman’s Blues (Netflix)
Sterling K. Brown – Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul (Focus Features)
Will Smith – Emancipation (Apple)

Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture
Danielle Deadwyler – TILL (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)
Keke Palmer – Alice (Vertical Entertainment)
Letitia Wright – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)
Regina Hall – Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul (Focus Features)
Viola Davis – The Woman King (Sony Pictures Releasing)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture
Aldis Hodge – Black Adam (Warner Bros. Pictures / New Line Cinema)
Cliff “Method Man” Smith – On The Come Up (Paramount Pictures)
Jalyn Hall – TILL (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)
John Boyega – The Woman King (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Tenoch Huerta – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
Angela Bassett – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)
Danai Gurira – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)
Janelle Monáe – Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Netflix)
Lashana Lynch – The Woman King (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Lupita Nyong’o – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)

Outstanding Independent Motion Picture
Breaking (Bleecker Street)
Causeway (Apple TV)
Mr. Malcolm’s List (Bleecker Street)
Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story (Hulu)
The Inspection (A24)

Outstanding International Motion Picture
Athena (Netflix)
Bantú Mama (ARRAY)
Broker (NEON)
Learn to Swim (ARRAY)
The Silent Twins (Focus Features)

Outstanding Breakthrough Performance in a Motion Picture
Jalyn Hall – TILL (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)
Joshua Boone – A Jazzman’s Blues (Netflix)
Ledisi – Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story (Hulu)
Y’lan Noel – A Lot of Nothing (RLJE)
Yola – Elvis (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture
A Jazzman’s Blues (Netflix)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)
Emancipation (Apple TV)
The Woman King (Sony Pictures Entertainment)
TILL (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)

Outstanding Animated Motion Picture
DC League of Super-Pets (Warner Bros. Pictures / WAG / DC)
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (Netflix)
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (Universal Pictures)
Turning Red (Pixar Animation Studios)
Wendell & Wild (Netflix)

Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance – Motion Picture
Angela Bassett – Wendell & Wild (Netflix)
Keke Palmer – Lightyear (Walt Disney Studios)
Kevin Hart – DC League of Super-Pets (Warner Bros. Pictures / WAG / DC)
Lyric Ross – Wendell & Wild (Netflix)
Taraji P. Henson – Minions: The Rise of Gru (Universal Pictures)

Outstanding Short-Form (Live Action)
Dear Mama… (Film Independent)
Fannie (Chromatic Black)
Fathead (University of Southern California)
Incomplete (20th Century Digital, Hulu)
Pens & Pencils (Wavelength Productions/Black TV & Film Collective)

Outstanding Short-Form (Animated)
I Knew Superman (Houghtonville Animation)
More Than I Want To Remember (MTV Entertainment Studios)
Supercilious (York Cinemas)
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (Apple Studios)
We Are Here (271 Films)

Outstanding Breakthrough Creative (Motion Picture)
Elvis Mitchell – Is That Black Enough For You?!? (Netflix)
Ericka Nicole Malone – Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story (Hulu)
Krystin Ver Linden – Alice (Vertical Entertainment)
Mo McRae – A Lot of Nothing (RLJE)
Stephen Adetumbi, Jarrett Roseborough – This Is My Black (Campus of Pine Forge Academy)

TELEVISION + STREAMING CATEGORIES

Outstanding Comedy Series
Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Atlanta (FX)
black-ish (ABC)
Rap Sh!t (HBO Max)
The Wonder Years (ABC)

Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series
Anthony Anderson – black-ish (ABC)
Cedric The Entertainer – The Neighborhood (CBS)
Donald Glover – Atlanta (FX)
Dulé Hill – The Wonder Years (ABC)
Mike Epps – The Upshaws (Netflix)

Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series
Loretta Devine – Family Reunion (Netflix)
Maya Rudolph – Loot (Apple TV+)
Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Tichina Arnold – The Neighborhood (CBS)
Tracee Ellis Ross – black-ish (ABC)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Brian Tyree Henry – Atlanta (FX)
Deon Cole – black-ish (ABC)
Kenan Thompson – Saturday Night Live (NBC)
Tyler James Williams – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
William Stanford Davis – Abbott Elementary (ABC)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Janelle James – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Jenifer Lewis – black-ish (ABC)
Marsai Martin – black-ish (ABC)
Sheryl Lee Ralph – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Wanda Sykes – The Upshaws (Netflix)

Outstanding Drama Series
Bel-Air (Peacock)
Bridgerton (Netflix)
Euphoria (HBO Max)
P-Valley (Starz)
Queen Sugar (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)

Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series
Damson Idris – Snowfall (FX)
Jabari Banks – Bel-Air (Peacock)
Kofi Siriboe – Queen Sugar (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
Nicco Annan – P-Valley (Starz)
Sterling K. Brown – This Is Us (NBC)

Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
Angela Bassett – 9-1-1 (FOX)
Brandee Evans – P-Valley (Starz)
Queen Latifah – The Equalizer (CBS)
Rutina Wesley – Queen Sugar (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
Zendaya – Euphoria (HBO Max)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Adrian Holmes – Bel-Air (Peacock)
Amin Joseph – Snowfall (FX)
Caleb McLaughlin – Stranger Things (Netflix)
Cliff “Method Man” Smith – Power Book II: Ghost (Starz)
J. Alphonse Nicholson – P-Valley (Starz)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Adjoa Andoh – Bridgerton (Netflix)
Bianca Lawson – Queen Sugar (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
Loretta Devine – P-Valley (Starz)
Susan Kelechi Watson – This Is Us (NBC)
Tina Lifford – Queen Sugar (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)

Outstanding Television Movie, Limited-Series or Dramatic Special
Carl Weber’s The Black Hamptons (BET Networks)
From Scratch (Netflix)
The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)
The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey (Apple TV+)
Women of the Movement (ABC)

Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Limited-Series or Dramatic Special
Morris Chestnut – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)
Samuel L. Jackson – The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey (Apple TV+)
Terrence Howard – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)
Trevante Rhodes – Mike (Hulu)
Wendell Pierce – Don’t Hang Up (Bounce TV)

Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Limited-Series or Dramatic Special
Niecy Nash-Betts – Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (Netflix)
Regina Hall – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)
Sanaa Lathan – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)
Viola Davis – The First Lady (Showtime)
Zoe Saldaña – From Scratch (Netflix)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Television Movie, Limited-Series or Dramatic Special
Glynn Turman – Women of the Movement (ABC)
Keith David – From Scratch (Netflix)
Omar Benson Miller – The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey (Apple TV+)
Russell Hornsby – Mike (Hulu)
Terrence “TC” Carson – A Wesley Christmas (AMC)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Television Movie, Limited-Series or Dramatic Special
Alexis Floyd – Inventing Anna (Netflix)
Danielle Deadwyler – From Scratch (Netflix)
Melissa De Sousa – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)
Nia Long – The Best Man: The Final Chapters (Peacock)
Phylicia Rashad – Little America (Apple TV+)

Outstanding News/Information (Series or Special)
Roland Martin Unfiltered: Black Votes Matter Election Night 2022 Coverage (Black Star Network/YouTube)
ABC News 20/20 Michelle Obama: The Light We Carry, A Conversation with Robin Roberts (ABC)
Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (PBS)
OWN Spotlight: Viola Davis – The Woman King (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
The Hair Tales (Hulu)

Outstanding Talk Series
Hart to Heart (Peacock)
Red Table Talk (Facebook Watch)
Sherri (Syndicated)
Tamron Hall (ABC)
Uninterrupted: The Shop (YouTube)

Outstanding Reality Program, Reality Competition or Game Show (Series)
Legendary (HBO Max)
Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls (Amazon Studios)
Shark Tank (ABC)
Sweet Life: Los Angeles (HBO Max)
The Real Housewives of Atlanta (Bravo)

Outstanding Variety Show (Series or Special)
A Black Lady Sketch Show (HBO Max)
BET Awards 2022 (BET Networks)
Deon Cole: Charleen’s Boy (Netflix)
Martin: The Reunion (BET Networks)
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central)

Outstanding Children’s Program
Family Reunion (Netflix)
Raising Dion (Netflix)
Raven’s Home (Disney+)
Tab Time (YouTube Originals)
Waffles + Mochi’s Restaurant (Netflix)

Outstanding Performance by a Youth (Series, Special, Television Movie or Limited-Series)
Alaya “That Girl Lay Lay” High – That Girl Lay Lay (Nickelodeon)
Cameron J. Wright – Family Reunion (Netflix)
Elisha Williams – The Wonder Years (ABC)
Khali Spraggins – The Upshaws (Netflix)
Ja’Siah Young – Raising Dion (Netflix)

Outstanding Host in a Talk or News/Information (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble
Jada Pinkett-Smith, Adrienne Banfield-Norris, Willow Smith – Red Table Talk (Facebook Watch)
Jennifer Hudson – The Jennifer Hudson Show (Syndicated)
Kevin Hart – Hart to Heart (Peacock)
Lester Holt – NBC Nightly News (NBC)
Tracee Ellis Ross – The Hair Tales (Hulu)

Outstanding Host in a Reality/Reality Competition, Game Show or Variety (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble
Keke Palmer – Password (NBC)
Lizzo – Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls (Amazon Studios)
Tabitha Brown – Tab Time (YouTube Originals)
Taraji P. Henson – BET Awards 2022 (BET Networks)
Trevor Noah – The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central)

Outstanding Guest Performance
Amanda Gorman – Sesame Street (HBO Max)
Chance the Rapper – South Side (HBO Max)
Colman Domingo – Euphoria (HBO Max)
Glynn Turman – Queen Sugar (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
Gabourey Sidibe – American Horror Stories (FX)

Outstanding Animated Series
Central Park (Apple TV+)
Eureka! (Disney Junior)
Gracie’s Corner TV (YouTube)
The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (Disney+)
Zootopia+ (Disney+)

Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance (Television)
Billy Porter – The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (Disney+)
Cedric the Entertainer – The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (Disney+)
Chris Bridges – Karma’s World (Netflix)
Cree Summer – Rugrats (Nickelodeon)
Kyla Pratt – The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (Disney+)

Outstanding Short Form Series – Comedy or Drama
Between The Scenes – The Daily Show (Comedy Central)
Oh Hell No! With Marlon Wayans (Facebook Watch)
Rise Up, Sing Out (Disney+)
Sunday Dinner (Youtube)
Zootopia+ (Disney+)

Outstanding Short Form Series or Special – Reality/Nonfiction
Black Independent Films: A Brief History (Turner Classic Movies)
Daring Simone Biles (Snap)
Historian’s Take (PBS)
NFL 360 (NFL Network)
Omitted: The Black Cowboy (ESPN)

Outstanding Breakthrough Creative (Television)
Amy Wang – From Scratch (Netflix)
Branden Jacobs-Jenkins – Kindred (FX)
Hannah Cope – Karma’s World (Netflix)
Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Syreeta Singleton – Rap Sh!t (HBO Max)

RECORDING CATEGORIES

Outstanding New Artist
Adam Blackstone – Legacy (BASSic Black Entertainment Records/Anderson Music Group/Empire)
Armani White – Billie Eilish (Def Jam Recordings)
Coco Jones – ICU (Def Jam Recordings)
Fivio Foreign – B.I.B.L.E (Columbia Records)
Steve Lacy – Gemini Rights (RCA Records)

Outstanding Male Artist
Brent Faiyaz – Wasteland (Lost Kids)
Burna Boy – Love, Damini (Atlantic Records)
Chris Brown – Breezy (Deluxe) (RCA Records/Chris Brown Entertainment)
Drake – Honestly, Nevermind (OVO/Republic Records)
Kendrick Lamar – Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (pgLang/Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath/Interscope Records)

Outstanding Female Artist
Ari Lennox – age/sex/location (Dreamville/Interscope Records)
Beyoncé – Renaissance (Columbia Records/Parkwood Entertainment)
Chlöe – Surprise (Columbia Records/Parkwood Entertainment)
Jazmine Sullivan – Hurt Me So Good (RCA Records)
SZA – S.O.S. (RCA Records/Top Dawg Entertainment)

Outstanding Gospel/Christian Album
All Things New – Tye Tribbett (Motown Gospel)
Hymns – Tasha Cobbs Leonard (Motown Gospel)
Kingdom Book One – Maverick City Music & Kirk Franklin (Tribl Records, Fo Yo Soul Recordings and RCA Inspiration)
My Life – James Fortune (FIYA World/MNRK Music Group)
The Urban Hymnal – Tennessee State University (TSU/Tymple)

Outstanding International Song
Bad To Me – Wizkid (RCA Records/Starboy/Sony Music International)
Diana feat. Shenseea – Fireboy DML, Chris Brown, Shenseea (YBNL Nation / EMPIRE)
Last Last – Burna Boy (Atlantic Records)
No Woman No Cry – Tems (Def Jam Recordings)
Stand Strong – Davido feat. Sunday Service Choir (RCA Records/Sony Music UK)

Outstanding Music Video/Visual Album
About Damn Time – Lizzo (Atlantic Records)
Be Alive – Beyoncé (Columbia Records/ Parkwood Entertainment)
Lift Me Up – Rihanna (Def Jam Recordings)
LORD FORGIVE ME feat. FAT, Pharrell and OLU of EARTHGANG – TOBE NWIGWE (THE GOOD STEWARDS COLLECTIVE)
The Heart Part 5 – Kendrick Lamar (pgLang/Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath/Interscope Records)

Outstanding Album
age/sex/location – Ari Lennox (Dreamville/Interscope Records)
Breezy (Deluxe) – Chris Brown (RCA Records/Chris Brown Entertainment)
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers – Kendrick Lamar (pgLang/Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath/Interscope Records)
Renaissance – Beyoncé (Parkwood/Columbia Records)
Watch the Sun – PJ Morton (Morton Records)

Outstanding Soundtrack/Compilation Album
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Music From and Inspired By – Ryan Coogler, Ludwig Göransson, Archie Davis and Dave Jordan (Hollywood Records)
Bridgerton Season Two (Soundtrack from the Netflix Series) – Kris Bowers (Capitol Records)
Entergalactic – Kid Cudi (Republic Records)
P-Valley: Season 2 (Music From the Original TV Series) – Various Artists (Lions Gate Records)
The Woman King – Terence Blanchard (Milan Records)

Outstanding Gospel/Christian Song
All in Your Hands – Marvin Sapp (Elev8 Media & Entertainment LLC)
Fly (Y.M.M.F.) – Tennessee State University (TSU/Tymple)
Positive – Erica Campbell (My Block Inc.)
Whole World In His Hands – MAJOR. (MNRK Music Group)
Your World – Jonathan McReynolds (MNRK Music Group)

Outstanding Jazz Album – Instrumental
Detour – Boney James (Concord Records)
JID014 (Jazz is Dead) – Henry Franklin, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Adrian Younge
The Funk Will Prevail – Kaelin Ellis (NCH Music)
The Gospel According to Nikki Giovanni – Javon Jackson (Solid Jackson Records)
Thrill Ride – Ragan Whiteside (Randis Music)

Outstanding Jazz Album – Vocal
Legacy – Adam Blackstone (BASSic Black Entertainment Records / Anderson Music Group / Empire)
Linger Awhile – Samara Joy (Verve Records)
Love and the Catalyst – Aimée Allen (Azuline)
New Standards Vol. 1 – Terri Lyne Carrington (Candid Records)
The Evening : Live at Apparatus – The Baylor Project (Be A Light)

Outstanding Soul/R&B Song
About Damn Time – Lizzo (Atlantic Records)
Cuff It – Beyoncé (Columbia Record/Parkwood Entertainment)
Good Morning Gorgeous Remix feat. H.E.R. – Mary J. Blige (300)
Hurt Me So Good – Jazmine Sullivan (RCA Records)
Lift Me Up – Rihanna (Def Jam Recordings)

Outstanding Hip Hop/Rap Song
Billie Eilish – Armani White (Def Jam Recordings)
City of Gods – Fivio Foreign (Columbia Records)
Hotel Lobby – Quavo, Takeoff (Motown Records/Quality Control Music)
The Heart Part 5 – Kendrick Lamar (pgLang/Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath/Interscope Records)
Wait for U – Future feat. Drake and Tems (Epic Records)

Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration (Traditional)
Kendrick Lamar feat. Blxst & Amanda Reifer – Die Hard (pgLang/Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath/Interscope Records)
Mary J. Blige feat. H.E.R. – Good Morning Gorgeous Remix (300)
PJ Morton feat. Alex Isley and Jill Scott – Still Believe (Morton Records)
Silk Sonic – Love’s Train (Atlantic Records)
Summer Walker, Cardi B, and SZA – No Love (LVRN/Interscope Records)

Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration (Contemporary)
Beyoncé feat. Grace Jones and Tems – MOVE (Columbia Records/Parkwood Entertainment)
Chris Brown feat. Wizkid – Call Me Every Day (RCA Records/Chris Brown Entertainment)
City Girls feat. Usher – Good Love (Motown Records/Quality Control Music)
Future feat. Drake and Tems – Wait For U (Epic Records)
Latto feat. Mariah Carey and DJ Khaled – Big Energy (Remix) (RCA Records)

DOCUMENTARY CATEGORIES

Outstanding Documentary (Film)
Civil (Netflix)
Descendant (Netflix)
Is That Black Enough For You?!? (Netflix)
Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues (Apple TV+)
Sidney (Apple TV+)

Outstanding Documentary (Television)
Black Love (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
Everything’s Gonna be All White (Showtime)
Frontline (PBS)
Race: Bubba Wallace (Netflix)
Shaq (HBO Max)

WRITING CATEGORIES

Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series
Aisha Muharrar – Hacks – “Episode 206” (HBO Max)
Ayo Edebiri, Shana Gohd – What We do in the Shadows – “Episode 405” (FX)
Brittani Nichols – Abbott Elementary – “Student Transfer” (ABC)
Karen Joseph Adcock – The Bear – “Episode 105” (FX)
Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary – “Development Day” (ABC)

Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series
Aurin Squire – The Good Fight – “Episode 603” (Paramount+)
Branden Jacobs-Jenkins – Kindred – “Episode 101” (FX)
Davita Scarlett – The Good Fight – “Episode 604” (Paramount+)
Joshua Allen – From Scratch – “Episode 105” (Netflix)
Marissa Jo Cerar – Women of the Movement – “Episode 101” (ABC)

Outstanding Writing in a Television Movie or Special
Bree West – A Wesley Christmas (BET Networks)
Ian Edelman, Maurice Williams – Entergalactic (Netflix)
Jerrod Carmichael – Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel (HBO Max)
Lil Rel Howery – Lil Rel Howery: I said it. Y’all Thinking it (HBO Max)
Matt Lopez – Father of the Bride (HBO Max)

Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture
Charles Murray – The Devil You Know (Lionsgate)
Dana Stevens, Maria Bello – The Woman King (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Jordan Peele – Nope (Universal Pictures)
Krystin Ver Linden – Alice (Vertical Entertainment)
Ryan Coogler – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)

DIRECTING CATEGORIES

Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series
Angela Barnes – Atlanta – “The Homeliest Little Horse” (FX)
Bridget Stokes – A Black Lady Sketch Show – “Save My Edges, I’m a Donor!” (HBO Max)
Dee Rees – Upload – “Hamoodi” (Amazon Studios)
Iona Morris Jackson – black-ish – “If A Black Man Cries in the Woods” (ABC)
Pete Chatmon – The Flight Attendant – “Drowning Women” (HBO Max)

Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series
Debbie Allen – The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey – “Robyn” (Apple TV+)
Giancarlo Esposito – Better Call Saul – “Axe and Grind” (AMC)
Gina Prince-Bythewood – Women of the Movement – “Mother and Son” (ABC)
Hanelle Culpepper – The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey – “Sensia” (Apple TV+)
Kasi Lemmons – Women of the Movement – “Episode 106” (ABC)

Outstanding Directing in a Television Movie or Special
Anton Cropper – Fantasy Football (Paramount+)
Marta Cunningham – 61st Street (AMC)
Sujata Day – Definition Please (Netflix)
Tailiah Breon – Kirk Franklin’s The Night Before Christmas (Lifetime)
Tine Fields – Soul of a Nation: Screen Queens Rising (ABC)

Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture
Antoine Fuqua – Emancipation (Apple)
Chinonye Chukwu – TILL (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)
Gina Prince-Bythewood – The Woman King (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Kasi Lemmons – I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Ryan Coogler – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)

Outstanding Directing in a Documentary (Television or Motion Picture)
Nadia Hallgren – Civil (Netflix)
Reginald Hudlin – Sidney (Apple TV+)
Sacha Jenkins – Everything’s Gonna Be All White (Showtime)
Sacha Jenkins – Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues (Apple TV+)
W. Kamau Bell – We Need to Talk About Cosby (Showtime)

LITERARY CATEGORIES

Outstanding Literary Work – Fiction
Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction – Sheree Renée Thomas (Macmillan)
Light Skin Gone to Waste – Toni Ann Johnson (University of Georgia Press)
Take My Hand – Dolen Perkins-Valdez (Penguin Random House)
The Keeper – Tananarive Due, Steven Barnes (Abrams Books)
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty – Akwaeke Emezi (Simon & Schuster)

Outstanding Literary Work – Nonfiction
Finding Me – Viola Davis (HarperCollins Publishers)
Grace: President Obama and Ten Days in the Battle for America – Cody Keenan (HarperCollins Publishers)
Requiem for the Massacre – RJ Young (Counterpoint)
Under the Skin – Linda Villarosa (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group)
Who’s Black and Why? A Hidden Chapter from the Eighteenth-Century Invention of Race – Henry Louis Gates, Andrew S. Curran (The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press)

Outstanding Literary Work – Debut Author
America Made Me a Black Man – Boyah Farah (HarperCollins Publishers)
Illustrated Black History: Honoring the Iconic and the Unseen – George McCalman (HarperCollins)
Marriage Be Hard – Kevin Fredericks, Melissa Fredericks (Penguin Random House)
Truth’s Table: Black Women’s Musings on Life, Love, and Liberation – Ekemini Uwan, Christina Edmondson, Michelle Higgins (Penguin Randomhouse Convergent Imprint)
What the Fireflies Knew – Kai Harris (Penguin Random House)

Outstanding Literary Work – Biography/Autobiography
A Way Out of No Way: A Memoir of Truth, Transformation, and the New American Story – Raphael G. Warnock (Penguin Random House)
Scenes from My Life – Raphael G. Warnock (Penguin Random House)
The Light We Carry – Michelle Obama (Penguin Random House)
Walking In My Joy: In These Streets – Jenifer Lewis (HarperCollins Publishers)
You’ve Been Chosen – Cynt Marshall (Ballantine Books)

Outstanding Literary Work – Instructional
Black Joy: Stories of Resistance, Resilience, and Restoration – Tracey Lewis-Giggetts (Gallery/Simon and Schuster)
Cooking from the Spirit – Tabitha Brown (William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers)
Eat Plants, B*tch: 91 Vegan Recipes That Will Blow Your Meat-Loving Mind – Pinky Cole (Simon & Schuster)
Homecoming: Overcome Fear and Trauma to Reclaim Your Whole Authentic Self – Thema Bryant (Penguin Random House/TarcherPerigee)
The Five Principles: A Revolutionary Path to Health, Inner Wealth, and Knowledge of Self – Khnum Ibomu (Hachette Book Group)

Outstanding Literary Work – Poetry
Best Barbarian – Roger Reeves (Norton)
Bluest Nude – Ama Codjoe (Milkweed Editions)
Concentrate – Courtney Faye Taylor (Graywolf Press)
Muse Found in a Colonized Body – Yesenia Montilla (Four Way Books)
To the Realization of Perfect Helplessness – Robin Coste Lewis (Alfred A. Knopf)

Outstanding Literary Work – Children
Ablaze with Color: A Story of Painter Alma Thomas – Jeanne Walker Harvey, Loveis Wise (HarperCollins)
Black Gold – Laura Obuobi, London Ladd (HarperCollins)
Blue: A History of the Color as Deep as the Sea and as Wide as the Sky – Nana Brew-Hammond, Daniel Minter (Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers)
Stacey’s Remarkable Books – Stacey Abrams, Kitt Thomas (HarperCollins – Balzer + Bray)
The Year We Learned to Fly – Jacqueline Woodson, Rafael Lopez (Penguin Random House)

Outstanding Literary Work – Youth/Teens
Cookies & Milk – Shawn Amos (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Inheritance: A Visual Poem – Elizabeth Acevedo (HarperCollins – Quill Tree Books)
Maybe An Artist, A Graphic Memoir – Liz Montague (Random House Studio)
Me and White Supremacy: Young Readers’ Edition – Layla F. Saad (Sourcebooks)
Opening My Eyes Underwater: Essays on Hope, Humanity, and Our Hero Michelle Obama – Ashley Woodfolk (Feiwel & Friends, Macmillan)

PODCAST CATEGORIES

Outstanding News and Information Podcast
SundayCivics (LJW Community Strategies)
Beyond the Scenes – The Daily Show (Central Productions, LLC)
Black Tech Green Money (The Black Effect Podcast Network)
Holding Court with Eboni K. Williams (Interval Presents & Uppity Productions)
Into America with Trymaine Lee (MSNBC)

Outstanding Lifestyle/Self-Help Podcast
Chile, Please (Honey Chile)
GoOD Mornings with CurlyNikki (Walton Media, LLC)
Man to Man: A Black Love Wellness Series (Black Love Inc.)
Maejor Frequency (Audible)
Therapy for Black Girls (Therapy for Black Girls)

Outstanding Society and Culture Podcast
Comeback with Erica Cobb (Erica Cobb LLC/One Street Studios)
Higher Learning with Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay (Spotify & The Ringer)
Into America with Trymaine Lee (MSNBC)
LeVar Burton Reads (SiriusXM’s Stitcher Studios)
The Sum of Us (Higher Ground)

Outstanding Arts and Entertainment Podcast
Angie Martinez IRL (Media Noche Productions)
Black Girl Songbook (Spotify & The Ringer)
Jemele Hill is Unbothered (Unbothered Inc, Spotify, Lodge Freeway Media, Exit 39)
The Read (Loud Speakers Network)
Two Funny Mamas (Mocha Podcasts Network)

COSTUME DESIGN, MAKE-UP & HAIRSTYLING CATEGORIES

Outstanding Costume Design (Television or Film)
Francine Jamison-Tanchuck – Emancipation (Apple Studios)
Gersha Phillips, Carly Nicodemo, Heather Constable, Christina Cattle, Sheryl Willock, Becky MacKinnon – Star Trek: Discovery (Paramount+)
Gersha Phillips, Carly Nicodemo, Lieze Van Tonder, Lynn Paulsen, Tova Harrison – The Woman King (Tristar Pictures)
Ruth Carter – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)
Trayce Gigi Field – A League of Their Own (Prime Video)

Outstanding Make-up (Television or Film)
Angie Wells – Cheaper by the Dozen (Disney+)
Debi Young, Sandra Linn, Ngozi Olandu Young, Gina Bateman – We Own This City (HBO Max)
Michele Lewis – The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey (Apple Studios)
Ren Rohling, Teresa Vest, Megan Areford – Emergency (Amazon Studios)
Zabrina Matiru – Surface (Apple Studios)

Outstanding Hairstyling (Television or Film)
Camille Friend – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Marvel Studios)
Curtis Foreman, Ryan Randall – RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars (Paramount+)
Louisa V. Anthony, Deaundra Metzger, Maurice Beaman – TILL (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)
Mary Daniels, Kalin Spooner, Darrin Lyons, Eric Gonzalez – All American (The CW)
Tracey Moss, Jerome Allen, Tamika Dixon, Lawrence “Jigga” Simmons, Jason Simmons – Fantasy Football (Paramount+)

OUTSTANDING SOCIAL MEDIA PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR NOMINEES
@Theconsciousless- George Lee
@thechristishow – Christianee Porter
@earnyourleisure – Troy Millings & Rashad Bilal
@KevOnStage – Kevin Fredericks
@lynaevanee – Lynae Vanee (Lynae Bogues)

Lisa Marie’s Week In Television: 1/8/23 — 1/14/23

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week did not leave much time for television watching.  I had a doctor’s appointment on Wednesday.  I drove my father to and from a doctor’s appointment on Friday.  And I had a lot of movies to watch!

Here’s some notes on the five (yes, only five) television programs that I watched this week!

Abbott Elementary (Wednesday Night, ABC)

“FIGHT!”

What a wonderful episode, this was.  Sometimes, kid just don’t get along and there’s nothing you can do about it.

Hell’s Kitchen (Thursday Night, FOX)

It’s time for the blind taste test!  The blind taste test is an annual Hell’s Kitchen tradition but it’s hard for me to think of another season where the chefs failed quite as dramatically as they did during this season.  It was a bit odd because, for the most part, the chefs have been pretty strong this season.  Last night proved that anyone can have an off-day.

Brett was sent out of Hell’s Kitchen as the end of this week.  To be honest, I don’t think anyone was surprised, as it was obvious that Brett will be a great head chef once he gets more experience but he wasn’t quite ready just yet.  Still, it was kind of sad to see Brett go.  He was always entertaining and he definitely always seemed like he was doing his best to improve with each dinner service.  Brett also seems like the type who will be back whenever the show does another all-star season.

Law & Order (Thursday Night, NBC)

For the second week in a row, Samantha Maroun actually got to do something more than just gaze lovingly Price.  This week, she led the prosecution of a rich teenager who was arrested for beating an ex-con to death.  The teenager’s defense was that he had been driven temporarily mad by super-strong marijuana.  (Yes, I can hear everyone rolling their eyes.  Look, I’m just reviewing.  I didn’t write the episode.)  Maroun was determined to get a murder conviction until Price told her that she was taking the case personally and that she needed to set aside her personal feelings and her own guilt about the death of her sister.

To which I have to say, really?  Like, who is Price to tell anyone not to take a case personally?  Price takes every case personally.  Price put a pharmaceutical CEO in prison because Price has never gotten over the death of his junkie brother.  Price may have been correct about Maroun but it still feels a bit hypocritical on his part.  That said, I think the writers may have figured out that having two prosecutors who take everything personally doesn’t always work dramatically.  Ever since the show returned from its holiday break, Price has suddenly been a lot more pragmatic.

There’s a lot of people online who, after last night’s episode, are convinced that Price and Maroun are in love with each other.  They’re probably right.  McCoy’s not in any position to forbid it, either.  (It’s kind of funny how McCoy has gone from being a self-destructive, alcoholic womanizer to being the voice of wisdom.)

Night Flight (Night Flight Plus)

This week, we finished up watching Night Flight’s 1982 New Year’s Eve special.  Most of it was made up of footage of Grace Jones performing and being interviewed.  It was weird but entertaining.  Apparently, 1983 got off to a very trippy start.

Project Greenlight (YouTube)

On Wednesday night, I watched three episodes of the third season of Project Greenlight.  This is the season that aired on Bravo and which detailed John Gulager’s efforts to direct Feast.  No one had any faith in Gulager but he did a pretty good job with Feast and he’s the only one of the Project Greenlight winners to go on to have a notable career.  The episodes that I watched deal with the casting of the film and it was once again infuriating to watch as the film’s casting director went out of her way to undercut Gulager and cast her best friend in the film.  The third season of Project Greenlight is the one that really makes the viewer hate Hollywood.