television
In Chicago, Anthony Bourdain enjoys donuts and (oops) a Cadillac
LORI RACKL: The final season of “The Layover with Anthony Bourdain” starts Monday on the Travel Channel with an episode devoted to Chicago, a city Bourdain visits behind the wheel of a Cadillac — the car at the center of a big beef Bourdain has with the cable network he once called home.
Ken Burns’ ‘Dust Bowl’ film absorbing, if a little dry
LORI RACKL: His latest PBS documentary takes an intriguing look at the worst manmade ecological disaster in U.S. history.
Monday’s talk shows
“Windy City Live” (9 a.m., Channel 7): Actor Alec Baldwin.
“Live With Kelly and Michael” (9 a.m., Channel 9): Actress Katie Holmes; animal expert Dave Salmoni.
“The View” (10 a.m., Channel 7): Reality TV stars Lisa Vanderpump, Kyle Richards and Brandi Glanville; musician Phillip Phillips. …
Pat Finn, the newest dad on Nickelodeon, stays close to L.A.’s Chicago crowd
During the early 1990s, while Pat Finn was understudying on Second City’s mainstage and living in Old Town, he and a comedic cohort named Stephen Colbert attended mass at nearby St. Michael’s church. They made a special effort to go on the feast day of …
Synergy gets Zeppelin songs on ‘Revolution’
LOS ANGELES — What tunes fit a post-apocalyptic society? For NBC’s freshman drama “Revolution,” the answer is Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” and “Since I’ve Been Loving You.” The songs will be featured in Monday’s episode of “Revolution,” on the same day that Led Zeppelin’s “Celebration Day” …
‘30 Rock’ heroine Liz Lemon to wed this month
NEW YORK — Liz Lemon is getting married and you’re invited. Fans of “30 Rock” might have reasonably assumed that Lemon, the harried TV producer played by Tina Fey, would ride out the series’ seventh and final season as a perennial bachelorette unlucky in love. …
Thursday’s talk shows
“Live With Kelly and Michael” (9 a.m., Channel 9):Comedian Chris Tucker; actress Ashley Greene; musician Bridgit Mendler. “The View” (10 a.m., Channel 7):Dr. Phil McGraw. “The Talk” (1 p.m., Channel 2):Actress Chandra Wilson; magician Jason Latimer. “Anderson Live” (1 p.m., Channel 32):Guest co-host Nicole “Snooki” …
Chrissy Camba is lone Chicago toque on new ‘Top Chef’
Bravo serves up its 10th installment of “Top Chef” Wednesday, with 21 hopefuls trying to impress the judges for the chance to become official contestants this season in Seattle. Only one of the would-be top toques hails from a Chicago kitchen: Chrissy Camba, 31, a Hoffman Estates native who lives in Lincoln Square. It’s a far cry from last season, when an unprecedented six chef-testants represented the city.
David Hasselhoff busy with TV, stage projects
NEW YORK — David Hasselhoff still feels a connection with the younger generation, even though his popular TV series “Baywatch” has been off the air for more than a decade. “When Justin Bieber comes up and goes, ‘Hoff!’ and then Selena Gomez says, ‘It’s so …
‘Reality’ satire rife with Chicagoans
Reality shows aren’t real. That’s because people behave differently when they know that they are being filmed. But what if a family didn’t know it was the subject of a reality show? That’s the premise behind Oak Park native Adam Rifkin’s TV miniseries, “Reality Show.” …
‘Today’ show making big change
NEW YORK — NBC is changing the backstage leadership at its struggling “Today” show, which has consistently been behind ABC’s “Good Morning America” in the ratings since replacing Ann Curry as an anchor this summer. An NBC executive who spoke to The Associated Press on …
Chicago pops up on broadcast TV’s funniest sitcom, ‘Happy Endings’
LORI RACKL: The show about friends in the Windy City actually is shot in California, but its Glencoe-raised creator like to drop in the occasional reference to Garrett popcorn or the Cubs.
Directing for YouTube thrills Betty Thomas
The independence director Betty Thomas enjoyed making “Audrey” for the WIGS YouTube channel came with its own challenges, including limited resources for the half-dozen episodes that are seven to eight minutes long.
5 questions for Jason Gedrick of ‘Iron Eagle’ and ‘Dexter’
As a kid growing up in Chicago, Jason Gedrick got the tip of a lifetime. A job in a sandwich shop led to meeting a theater choreographer who “talked him into” auditioning for “Bad Boys,” and then “Risky Business.” “I was the guy at the …
Friday’s talk shows
“Windy City Live” (9 a.m., Channel 7): Musician Cyndi Lauper.
“Live With Kelly and Michael” (9 a.m., Channel 9): Actor Taylor Lautner.
“The View” (10 a.m., Channel 7): Journalists Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski.
“The Talk” (1 p.m., Channel 2): Comedian Steve Harvey; actress Sarah …
Biden to appear on NBC’s ‘Parks and Recreation’
WASHINGTON — Fresh off re-election, Vice President Joe Biden will appear on the NBC sitcom “Parks and Recreation” next Thursday. The vice president’s office said Biden taped a cameo appearance back in July. He said Thursday on Twitter that “my whole family loves the show, …
