What You Know About July 4th Is Wrong

(By Valerie Strauss, Washington Post, 02 July 2014)

You learned in school about what happened in July 1776, and think you have a good handle on events surrounding American independence from Great Britain. Right?  Well, if you think that was the day that America’s independence was declared by the Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, you are wrong.  And if you think that that was the day that members of the Congress signed the new Declaration of Independence, as depicted in a famous canvas painting by John Trumbull, (which now hangs in the Rotunda of the Capitol of the United States), you are wrong.

And if you think that Thomas Jefferson alone wrote the Declaration of Independence, or the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia was made to ring to announce independence, or that Betsy Ross sewed the first American flag at the request of George Washington, you are wrong, wrong and wrong. And if you never learned about George Washington’s own declaration, that’s another gap in your historical knowledge.  Here, adapted from George Mason University’s History News Network as well as from some other sources, including Joseph J. Ellis’s book titled “Revolutionary Summer: The Birth of American Independence,” here are some truths about July 4th that may be news to you. (Note: I’ve published some of this before for July 4th).

American independence from Great Britain was not decided on July 4th.

Actually, the Continental Congress voted on July 2, 1776 to declare independence. On the night of July 2nd, the Pennsylvania Evening Post published the statement: “This day the Continental Congress declared the United Colonies Free and Independent States.” John Adams thought July 2 was going to be the day future Americans celebrated, or so he said in a letter to his wife, Abigail Adams:

The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.

In fact, Ellis makes the case that that Adams “liked to claim that the resolution of May 15 was the real declaration of independence and that Jefferson’s more famous declaration six weeks later was a merely ceremonial afterthought.” The resolution of May 15, which was actually approved on May 12, was a formal call for the colonies to write new state constitutions that would “replace the colonial constitutions. On May 15, Adams added a preface that placed the resolution in the context of the historical march to independence.

George Washington issued his own important declaration on July 2nd, Ellis wrote, without knowing what was happening in Philadelphia. In his General Orders on that day, he wrote:

“The time is now at hand which must probably determine, Whether Americans are to be, Freeman, or Slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their Houses and Farms are to be pillaged and destroyed, and they consigned to a State of Wretchedness from which no human efforts will probably deliver them. The fate of the unborn Millions will now depend, under God, on the conduct of this army…. Let us therefore animate and encourage each other, and show the whole world, that a Freeman contending for Liberty on his own ground is superior to any slavish mercenary on earth.”

So what happened on July 4th, 1776?

The Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence, which was mostly written by Thomas Jefferson but subject to edits by the other members of the five-man team appointed to come up with the document (Ben Franklin, Robert Livingston, John Adams and Roger Sherman) as well as the full Continental Congress. Franklin had first right of refusal to draft the document, and he took it; Adams also said he did not want to, so the job fell to Jefferson. He finished the first draft during the third week of June, Ellis wrote.

But Americans didn’t first celebrate independence until July 8, when Philadelphia threw a big party, including a parade and the firing of guns. The army under George Washington, then camped near New York City, heard the news July 9 and celebrated then. Georgia got the word August 10th. And the British in London found out on August 30th.  Though both Jefferson and Adams later claimed the signing ceremony took place on July 4th, David McCullough wrotes in his biography of John Adams:  “No such scene, with all the delegates present, ever occurred at Philadelphia.”  In fact, most delegates signed the document on August 2nd, when a clean copy was finally produced by Timothy Matlack, assistant to the secretary of Congress; some waited even later to sign, and the names on the document were made public only in January 1777.

The Liberty Bell did not ring in American Independence, despite the famous story about how a boy with blond hair and blue eyes was posted next to Independence Hall to give a signal to an old man in the bell tower when independence was declared. The story was concocted in the middle of the 19th century by writer George Lippard in a book intended for children. The book was aptly titled, “Legends of the American Revolution.” There was no pretense that the story was genuine.  In fact, the bell was not even named in honor of American independence. It received the moniker in the early 19th century when abolitionists used it as a symbol of the antislavery movement. And the famous crack? The bell cracked because it was badly designed.

It is also true that Betsy Ross did not in fact sew the first American flag despite the story that George Washington himself asked her to. It is not known who actually sewed the first flag, but it was designed by Francis Hopkinson, a signer of the Declaration. Records show that in May 1780 he sent a bill to the Board of Admiralty for designing the “flag of the United States.” A small group of descendants works hard to keep his name alive.  You may have learned that John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on the Fourth of July. They did, but the well-known story isn’t all true.  On July 4, 1826, Adams, the second president, and Jefferson, the third president, both died, exactly 50 years after the adoption of Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence. The country took it as a sign of American divinity.  But there is no proof to the long-told story that Adams, dying, uttered, “Jefferson survives,” which was said to be especially poignant, as Jefferson had died just hours before without Adams knowing it. Mark that as just another story we wished so hard were true we convinced ourselves it is.  By the way, James Monroe, our fifth president, died on July 4, 1831. And Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president, was born on July 4, 1872.  Have a Happy Fourth!

http://m.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2014/07/02/what-you-know-about-july-4th-is-wrong/

Yelp, Inc. – The Online Review Saga Continues

I found this summary of a local northern Virginia business suing Yelp for leaving up false and damaging user reviews to be fascinating and I would love to see what the outcome is.  It has big implications for the whole online review process.  I'd like to see "trolls" get their come-uppance.

Yelp, Inc. – The Online Review Saga Continues

(By Matthew A. Lafferman, Alexandria Chamber Of Commerce newsletter)

In our March issue, we reported on two recent Virginia court cases dealing with false and damaging online reviews. There has been an important development in one of these cases, as of the parties, the online review website Yelp, has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court of Virginia.

Hadeed’s Defamation Suit

In Yelp, Inc. v. Hadeed Carpet Cleaning Inc., a carpet cleaning business based in Alexandria, Virginia, Hadeed Carpet Cleaning (“Hadeed”), filed a defamation lawsuit against seven anonymous individuals who posted on Yelp negative reviews about Hadeed. A day after filing suit, Hadeed issued a subpoena to Yelp to require it to identify those persons who posted the allegedly false statements. After Yelp refused, the trial court ordered Yelp to identify the individuals.

Court of Appeals Decision

Subsequently, Yelp appealed the ruling to the Virginia Court of Appeals on the grounds that permitting subpoenas requesting the identity of anonymous online posters violated the free speech clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In January 2014, however, the appeals court upheld the trial court and ordered Yelp to identify the individuals to Hadeed. In doing so, the court explained that anonymous speech is not entitled to First Amendment protection when the speech is false or defamatory.  

Furthermore, the court of appeals found that Hadeed had met the standard for issuing the subpoena by showing it had a legitimate, good faith basis for believing that the reviews were false. The court relied upon the fact that Hadeed had submitted evidence to the court that the persons who had posted the reviews had not even been Hadeed’s customers. 

Appeal to Virginia Supreme Court 

Yelp has now filed a petition for appeal with the Supreme Court of Virginia, asking the Supreme Court to overturn the Court of Appeals’ order. Yelp contends that allowing the appellate court’s order to stand would allow a company to discover an anonymous online poster merely by telling a court that the business’ “critics are not customers.” Yelp further argues that in many other states where courts have considered the issue, the state courts have protected the identity of anonymous posters unless the party seeking the information can produce evidence that the online posting is false, which Hadeed has failed to satisfy.

In opposing Yelp’s appeal, Hadeed argues that Virginia law correctly balances the interests of anonymous speakers with the interests of a person or business responding to false online postings.  Requiring a party to prove falsity before learning the identity of those who posted the reviews, Hadeed argues, would give anonymous online posters a “license to defame.”

Impact of the Appeal
Either way, a Supreme Court decision will shape how businesses keep customer records and utilize online review platforms. If the Supreme Court overturns the Court of Appeals’ decision and requires greater proof of falsity before a business can learn the identity of online posters, many businesses may require more detailed information from customers in an effort to more effectively identify and respond to false reviews. On the other hand, if the court upholds the decision, some former customers may be discouraged from posting negative reviews on websites out of fear of potential lawsuits. This could substantially reduce the usefulness of these online review websites for businesses to promote their products and services. Accordingly, all Virginia businesses need to keep abreast of further developments in the case.

Matthew Lafferman is an associate attorney in the Alexandria law firm of DiMuroGinsberg, P.C. 

 

Book Quiz

Bookday Quiz Inspired By The Borough Press But With Major Alterations By Me

What book have you read that that fits each of these descriptions?

1.       Favorite Book From Childhood- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas.  Adventure, romance, intrigue, and swordfights.  What boy doesn’t love the Musketeers? 

2.       Favorite Series From Childhood- Tie: The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner, The Hardy Boys by Franklin W. Dixon, The Three Investigators by Robert Arthur, Jr.  Long before binge-TV-watching came long, there were binge-reading sessions and these are the top series that I did that with.

3.       Favorite Children’s or Young Adult Book/Series Read As An Adult- Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins.  I would have said Harry Potter but there were enough things that bugged me in that series that I can’t put it first.  I hated the death of Dumbledore, the overall lack of extended battle scenes and confrontations, how petulant Harry was at times and the excruciating first half of the “Order Of the Phoenix” book where Harry was a whiny teenager.  I think I was also influenced by how mediocre some of the Harry Potter movies were, while the first two Hunger Games movies have been very good.

4.       One With A Blue Cover- Tie: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins and A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L’Engle

5.       Least Favorite Book By A Favorite Author- Tie: Desperation or Tommyknockers by Stephen King

6.       The One I Always Give People To Read- On A Pale Horse by Piers Anthony.  Wildly inventive and emotional science fiction.

7.       It Changed My Way Of Thinking- A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving.  Self-sacrifice, compassion, humility, straight-forwardness and an absolute lack of cynicism.  Owen Meany is a much better person than I am and I should learn more from him.

8.       Own More Than One Edition- Every book in the Modesty Blaise series.  I got into this series way before e-Bay or Kindle, back when out of print books were hard to come by, so every time I saw a copy of a book in this series, I bought it.  Plus, I got to see different covers on the different editions and sometimes that along was worth the purchase.  I did the same thing with the James Bond series.

9.       Film Or TV Tie-In- Mr. Monk And The Two Assistants by Lee Goldberg.  While watching the Monk television series, I always wondered which assistant Monk would pick as his favorite and this book answered the question perfectly.

10.   Favorite Film Adapted From A Book- Nick And Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.  The movie is different enough that it’s almost like there are two versions of this story to enjoy. The movie not only did it right, they might even have done it better than the book.

11.   Reminds Me Of Someone I Love- A Taste For Death by Peter Collins.  Willie’s attitude toward Modesty Blaise is one that I sometimes feel for Julie.  I worship her at the same time as I try to be worthy of her.

12.   Second Hand Bookshop Gem- The Beatles Forever by Nicholas Schaffner.  I really got into the
Beatles in high school and read lots of Beatles books.  This was the most fascinating, informative one.

13.   I Pretend To Have Read It- The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand.  I’ll get to it one day but it isn’t high on my list. When people reference it, I don’t offer up that I haven’t read it.  I just nod knowingly.

14.   Couldn’t Make Myself Finish It- Crime And Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.  After my high school English teacher chewed out the entire class for not doing the reading assignment for that day (and we hadn’t), I just figured I might as well read the Cliff’s Notes instead and not bother with the book since I’d already got the stern lecture.  For a different reason, I also couldn’t finish The Bachman Books by Stephen King.  I loved the stories so much, I didn’t want the book to be over so 20 years ago I stopped halfway through reading the last story in the collection (“The Running Man”).

15.   Makes Me Laugh- Pure Drivel by Steve Martin

16.   Make Me Cry Every Time I Read It- Sisterhood Of The Travelling Pants by Ann Brashares.  There are four characters and four different storylines.  Some are fun fluff but then there’s the one that involves Bailey.  I think the more you like a character, the more they can affect you, and I really liked Bailey.

17.   It Inspires Me- Pure Drivel by Steve Martin.  Every story in this collection is clever, intelligent, funny and slightly absurd or offbeat.  It’s the way I think when I write even though I am nowhere close to matching the quality of Steve Martin’s writing.

18.   Favorite Fictional Father or Mother- Keith Mars in Veronica Mars: Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas.  Yes, this is a bit of a stretch but it is a book.  The author wrote it as a folowup to the Veronica Mars movie because he had more ideas to explore.  Since Keith Mars is one of my favorite television fathers, I picked him for the book version too.  Plus, I am at a loss to think of many more literary parents.  Most books seem to have either absent or despicable parents so I don’t have many options to sift through. 

19.   Can’t Believe More People Haven’t Read This- Where The Truth Lies by Rupert Holmes.  This is written by the same guy who wrote and performed the song “Escape (The Pina Colada Song)” and is every bit as intricate and touching as the song is.

20.   Future Classic- The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.  This is what my teen-hood was like.  It wasn’t “Sweet Valley High” or “Catcher In The Rye”.

21.   Bought On A Personal Recommendation- I don’t think I have ever bought something solely because it was recommended to me.  Also, there are not that many people I know who have similar enough taste to mine that I would buy a book “blind” just because they suggested it.  For example, John reads lots of “urban fiction”, i.e. vampire/werewolf characters and those mostly leave me cold.  If I want fantasy, I want it to be science fiction or alternate realm fantasy but not the kind where every person and locations has some ridiculous name and I have to spend the whole book keeping track of what’s what.  (Which is why I don’t think I’ll read any Games Of Thrones books.) The Thomas Covenant series or the Hobbit or the Childe Cycle are the types of books that appeal to me in that genre.  Now, back in junior high school, John did loan me Superfolks by Robert Mayer and I liked that.  It had superheroes and sex so that made it a perfect book for a junior high school kid.  Years later, the book came back into print and I bought it for the sake of nostalgia.

22.   Still Can’t Stop Talking About It- Pure Drivel by Steve Martin.  C’mon folks, this is genius work here.  I’ve never read a better collection of short works.

23.   Favorite Cover- Man Of Bronze by Kenneth Robeson.  The James Bama cover summed up everything that was awesome about the Doc Savage stories.

24.   Favorite Illustrated Edition- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, illustrated by Norman Price

25.   Current Summer Read- The Death Cure by James Dashner.  The third book in the Maze Runner trilogy.

26.   Favorite Love Story- Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.  It captures the frustration, torment, joy and  heartbreak that is possible when you find your true love and try to win her heart.

27.   Favorite Sexy Book-  Tie: Emmanuelle by Emmanuelle Arsan and The Coffee Tea Or Me Girls by Trudy Baker and Rachel Jones.  Serious, meaningful/meaningless sex balanced by lighthearted, mostly “off-camera” sex.  Both have their virtues.

28.   Unfortunately Out Of Print- Just Another Day In Paradise by A.E. Maxwell.  One of my favorite mystery series.  I’m so sad that the series is over even though the writer (Ann Maxwell / Elizabeth Lowell and her husband Evan) is still writing to this day.  This was a sort of hardboiled, sort of romantic, sort of thriller hybrid.

29.   Had To Read It At School- Least Favorite- Light In August by William Faulkner.  Ugh, I don’t care what it “means”.

30.   Had To Read It At School- Most Favorite- The Crying Of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon.  I want to know what it means but the author won’t tell me, not even after repeated readings.  Worse, that’s what he intended to do.

31.   Got Me To Start Reading- Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss.  My dad read this to me as a kid and I was hooked on books.  I wanted to hear stories for more than 15 minutes a night so I learned to read. 

32.   Want To Be One Of The Characters (& Which One)- Melrose Plant in The Old Silent by Martha Grimes.  He’s just so laid back, unknowingly charming and slightly sarcastic and he helps the main character solve mysteries in his free time.

33.   Favorite I Received As A Gift- Phil Gordon’s Little Green Book by Phil Gordon.  It’s a poker book that Mike gave me and several of the tips and lessons have been invaluable.  The rule of 4 and 2 have guided me through a countless number of deliberations when playing poker.

34.   The One I Have Re-Read Most Often- The Count Of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas.  Everything I said about The Three Musketeers has been magnified here.  This isn’t really about adventure and swashbuckling, it’s about life choices and the consequences of one’s actions.

35.   Would Save If My House Was Burning Down- Picture Of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde.  Because of how I acquired it and where it came from:  http://richardsrantingandramblings.blogspot.com/2008/12/no-fate-but-what-we-make.html

36.   Wished I Had Written It- The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. I enjoyed the story and I would be mega-rich if I was the author.  Plus, Brown had already written several books by then and wasn’t overwhelmed by the fame.  Unfortunately, he seems to have gotten into a rut.  His latest, Inferno, was a bit lame.  At least he is still rich.

37.   I Don’t Understand The Hype- 50 Shades Of Grey by E.L. James.  The protagonist is a sadistic, right?  The sex is steamy but there is no real love to be found, is there?  Why does everyone read this book?

38.   Traumatized Me As A Child- The Voyages Of Dr. Doolittle by Hugh Lofting.  When Dr. Doolittle travelled under the sea inside a giant snail’s shell and discussed with him the great flood that God sent down on earth, killing almost everyone on earth, I felt a massive existential angst.  I became aware of death and sorrow and helplessness in the face of the universe.  I couldn’t believe a kid’s book would put these ideas and feelings in my heart.  To this day, it still crushes me when I contemplate this storyline.

39.   Favorite Science Fiction Book- Adventures Of The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison.  Like the three Musketeers meets Star Wars but the protagonist is not virtuous.  He’s a thief and a rebel.  This is the “heist movie” of the book world.  Anarchy is the main subtext.

40.   Favorite Historical Fiction- Lincoln by Gore Vidal.  Shows why Lincoln is a titan in American history.

41.   Favorite Non-Fiction- Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer.  You are there and scared to death.

42.   Favorite Classic Book- Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen.  So much fun to read, unlike Art Of War by Sun Tzo or Cry, The Beloved Country by Alan Paton or Moby Dick by Herman Melville.  Now Dracula by Bram Stoker would make a good second choice.

43.   Favorite Modern Classic- Tie: High Fidelity by Nick Hornby and World According To Garp by John Irving,  Both will break your heart and put them back together again in an entirely new configuration.

44.   Book Written By Someone You Know- Pillow Stalk by Diane Vallere.  Someone I went to college with has written a mystery.  Several of them in fact, and they are all fun reads.  I picked this one because I was actually made into a minor character in the story.   

45.   Favorite Memoir/Autobiography- Tie: Life Is A Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield and Fargo Rock City by Chuck Klosterman.  They both show how music and love seem to go together so naturally.

46.   Favorite Non-Memoir Book By A Celebrity- Dating Dead Men by Harley Jane Kozak. 

47.   Your Recommendation That No One Appreciates- The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams by Laurence Block.  One person liked this book and read more in the series, one person never read it and a third gave me back the book I loaned them and said “I didn’t like it and stopped halfway through.” I give up.

48.   Favorite Collection Of Poetry- William Shakespeare’s Sonnets.  Everything poets try to say, Shakespeare already said hundreds of years ago.

49.   Favorite Genre Defying Book- A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L’Engle.  Young Adult?  Sci-fi?  Family drama?  Pseudo-religion?  I don’t know but it is so good that it doesn’t matter that it is unclassifiable.

50.   Favorite Collection Of Comic Strips Or Comics- The Essential Calvin & Hobbes by Bill Watterson.  The best comic strip ever created.

Local Transportation

Megabus Seat Reservations

(By Becky Krystal, Washington Post, May 24, 2014)

Bus riders may be familiar with the jockeying and nerves that go along with trying to secure the best seat or a seat next to your traveling companion. Starting May 28, Megabus will offer seat reservations on some of its routes, including New York City-Baltimore-Washington and Philadelphia-Washington (select trips). Only 10 seats per bus will be available for reserving, which will set you back an extra $3 to $7 depending on the seat. For more information, visit https://us.megabus.com/Default.aspx .

Clippers Owner Banned For Life

(Associated Press & AOL.com, 29 April 2014)

Issuing about the strongest rebuke that he could, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver banned Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling for life Tuesday for making racist comments in a recorded conversation, the first step toward forcing a sale of the club and permanently removing Sterling from the league.  Silver also fined Sterling $2.5 million, and again expressed outrage.  "I fully expect to get the support I need from the other NBA owners to remove him," Silver said.  Several owners immediately chimed in with support of Silver's decision. Sterling, the league's longest-tenured owner and someone with an estimated net worth of about $2 billion, did not offer any immediate comment.

The penalties, which were announced only three days after the scandal broke, are the harshest ever issued by the league and among the stiffest punishments ever given to an owner in professional sports. Silver said a league investigation found that Sterling was in fact the person on the audiotapes that were released over the weekend and immediately sent shock waves throughout the game.  "We stand together in condemning Mr. Sterling's views," Silver said. "They simply have no place in the NBA."

Sterling acknowledged he was the man on the tape, Silver said.  Sterling still owns the team, but going forward he is immediately barred from attending any NBA games or practices, being present at any Clippers office or facility, participating in any business or player personnel decisions involving the team, or being part of any league business.  It's unclear how Sterling will respond.

"This league is far bigger than any one owner, any one coach and any one player," said Silver, who as commissioner has broad powers under what's typically called the "best interest of the game" clause of the NBA constitution.  But Silver works for the owners, and he will need 75 percent of them - if all 30 teams vote, he'll need 23 on his side - to force Sterling out of the league completely.  The fine will be donated to organizations dedicated to anti-discrimination and tolerance efforts that will be jointly selected by the NBA and the Players Association, Silver said.  "This has all happened in three days, and so I am hopeful there will be no long-term damage to the league and to the Clippers organization," Silver said. "But as I said earlier, I'm outraged so I certainly understand other people's outrage. This will take some time and appropriate healing will be necessary."

After the announcement, the Clippers' website had a simple message: "We are one," it read.  "We wholeheartedly support and embrace the decision by the NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver today. Now the healing process begins," the Clippers added in a statement.  Sterling's comments were released over the weekend by TMZ and Deadspin, and numerous NBA owners and players have condemned them. Even President Barack Obama weighed in on the crisis, the first of Silver's brief tenure as commissioner.  "Commissioner Silver thank you for protecting our beautiful and powerful league!! Great leader!!," Miami Heat star LeBron James wrote on Twitter.

The league's investigation started Saturday and players immediately began expressing intense displeasure with the situation, even going so far as to ask Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson to get involved on behalf of the players' union.  "When one rotten apple does something, or if you see cancer, you've got to cut it out really quickly," Kevin Johnson said at a news conference in Los Angeles, flanked by NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and players like Steve Nash, Tyson Chandler, Luke Walton and Roger Mason Jr., among others. "And Commissioner Silver did that in real time. We're so proud and thankful for him."  The sanctions came a few hours before the Clippers were to play Golden State in Game 5 of a tied-up Western Conference first-round playoff series.  "When you get this many Lakers to stand up for the Clippers, you know something big is happening in L.A.," Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said. "We are a single team here today, a team not only speaking out for what we're against - racism, hatred, bigotry, intolerance - but what we're for. We're for great basketball."  Before Silver took the podium, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tweeted out a photo of the NBA Constitution, saying "It exists for a reason."

Several sponsors either terminated or suspended their business dealings with the team on Monday, though individual deals that some of those companies have with Clippers stars like Chris Paul and Blake Griffin will continue and were not affected. Still, it was a clear statement that companies, like just about everyone inside the league, were outraged.  "Commissioner Silver showed great leadership in banning LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling for life," Magic Johnson, who was referenced on the taped conversation involving Sterling, tweeted shortly after the league's decision was announced.  Johnson's role on the tape stemmed from Sterling's female companion apparently posting a photo of her and the Hall of Fame player on her Instagram account. That photo has since been deleted, but raised Sterling's ire nonetheless.  "It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you're associating with black people. Do you have to?" Sterling asks the woman on the tape.

The issues raised when the tapes were released over the weekend represent just another chapter in Sterling's long history of being at the center of controversy.  In the past, he's faced extensive federal charges of civil rights violations and racial discrimination in his business dealings, and some of his race-related statements would be described as shocking.  He has also been sued in the past for sexual harassment by former employees, and even the woman who goes by the name "V. Stiviano" - purportedly the female voice on the tapes at the center of this scandal - describes Sterling in court documents as a man "with a big toothy grin brandishing his sexual prowess in the faces of the Paparazzi and caring less what anyone else thought, the least of which, his own wife."  Stiviano is being sued by Rochelle Sterling, who is seeking to reclaim at least $1.8 million in cash and gifts that her husband allegedly provided the woman.

Silver said when he first heard the audio, he hoped it had been altered or was fake - but also said that from his 20-year relationship with Sterling, he suspected the voice was his.  "This has been a painful moment," Silver said, "for all members of the NBA family."

http://www.aol.com/article/2014/04/29/clippers-owner-donald-sterling-banned-for-life-by-the-nba/20877673/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D470059      

 

Television 2014

Critic's Notebook: The Network Upfronts

(By Matt Roush, TV Guide, May 16, 2014)

A curious rite of mid-May: Even as the broadcast networks are wrapping their regular seasons with a flurry of cliffhangers and finale events — farewell, Cristina Yang, and a toast to those soon-to-be-newlyweds Mitch and Cam — all eyes in the industry are already looking to the future, with a just-concluded Upfront Week of noisy presentations in New York in which new series and schedules are announced with a fanfare that probably beats the alternative: blowing taps for all the failed series announced last year at this time.  Superheroes are hot. So, refreshingly, is diversity, with more minority leads and casts than any time in recent memory. And now that we have a clear picture of how the nets, and the nights, are lining up, here are some very preliminary first impressions from having seen clips and sifting through the hype. How did the networks rate (in order of presentation)? NBC: Most derivative. Fox: Most unusual. ABC: Most daring. CBS: Most consistent. The CW: Most surprising.  Let's take it night by night:

MONDAY

When you've got it, flaunt it. Or clone it. NBC is back with another cycle of The Voice — not yet diminished by overexposure, but how long before the clock begins ticking? — featuring new coaches Pharrell Williams and Gwen Stefani in the revolving chairs (replacing Cee Lo Green and Christina Aguilera). For the first two months of the season, breakout hit The Blacklist will be back, soaking up that powerful Voice lead-in. The success of The Blacklist (and to varying degrees Scandal and pay-cable's Homeland) has inspired NBC to order a number of series involving international intrigue, espionage and conspiracy. Diminishing returns may set in soon, because the show replacing The Blacklist in November, State of Affairs, seems a blah fill-in, asking us to accept Katherine Heigl (dressed as if she's going to a cocktail soiree) as the top CIA analyst who prepares the daily briefing book for the president (the more intriguingly cast Alfre Woodard).

After a season of free fall on Mondays, CBS makes a bit of history by reducing its two-hour comedy block to a single hour for the first time since the mid-'80s. With Thursday Night Football taking up CBS's top-rated real estate on that night, The Big Bang Theory moves in to give the underrated Mom a powerful boost for eight weeks. That's going to take a bite out of The Voice (and Dancing With the Stars) at least through October. A new procedural, Scorpion, looks like a promising mix of humor and action, as a team of brilliant misfits unites to help Homeland Security (in the form of Robert Patrick) tackle high-tech security threats. Perfectly suited for CBS. And filling the recent ratings abyss of 10/9c, a transplanted NCIS: Los Angeles, which finally makes CBS competitive with Castle and Blacklist.

Adding to the competitive swirl, Fox hopes to capitalize on the surprise breakthrough of last season's wildly entertaining supernatural fantasy Sleepy Hollow by pairing it with Gotham. This dark and deluxe Batman prequel focuses on pre-Commissioner James Gordon (Ben McKenzie, resurfacing from the acclaimed Southland), back in his detective days, coping with the festering corruption and crime of Gotham City (which claims the life of young Bruce Wayne's parents), while providing origin stories of many of the Batman franchise's most memorable super-villains. This looks stunning.  And here's a surprise: The other new Monday show I'm most excited to see is from The CW: Jane the Virgin, a telenovela-inspired hourlong comedy in the Ugly Betty vein, about a virtuous girl from a strict Latino family whose chastity is besmirched when she is accidentally artificially inseminated. It's funnier than it sounds. In fact, it's kind of adorable.

TUESDAY

CBS will once again dominate with viewers in a procedural three-for-all led by the undying NCIS, its latest spin-off (NCIS: New Orleans) and the marvelously unconventional Person of Interest. NBC stresses stability with The Voice and Chicago Fire bookending the night, and pairing returning midseason charmer About a Boy with one of this season's way-too-many wacky yet generic rom-coms: Marry Me, from the creator of Happy Endings, featuring the appealing Casey Wilson and Ken Marino as a longtime couple with incredibly bad timing when it comes to big gestures like proposals. Not an exciting premise, but not nearly as annoying as ABC's Manhattan Love Story, a gimmicky misfire that lets us hear (through voice-over) every unguarded thought of a newly dating couple. You can't even tell them to shut up. They'd just think louder.  Next!

Would you believe a modern-day twist on My Fair Lady, reinvented for the age of social media? ABC's Selfie sitcom stars Karen Gillan (best known as Doctor Who's beloved Amy Pond) as narcissist Eliza Dooley, in need of a makeover after a viral Epic Fail, with marketing expert Henry Higgins (John Cho) to the rescue. Cute, different, but is it a self-starter on a tough night?  Avoiding a superhero showdown, ABC shifts Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which enjoyed a late-season creative surge, to the 9/8c hour, opening the field at 8/7c for The CW's spectacular looking The Flash, starring the likably boyish Grant Gustin as "meta human" speed freak Barry Allen, who stole Felicity's (and more than a few viewers') heart in several Arrow episodes this season. The Flash trailer is as impressive as Gotham's, and that's saying something.  Fox will likely struggle to keep its strange new reality concept, Utopia, from ratings limbo, as it follows a group of castaways building a civilization from scratch. Imagine the whiplash as the network shifts gears to its perilously low-rated quirk-coms New Girl and The Mindy Project. As a lead-in, Utopia could prove hellish. This is what we get for cheering when Fox canned The X Factor.

WEDNESDAY

I still wish ABC had tried airing Trophy Wife a few times on this night, but having failed that, it makes sense for The Goldbergs to take up residence between durable comedy tentpoles The Middle and Modern Family. The new Wednesday comedy, Black-ish, is one of ABC's bolder strokes, a family comedy about racial identity starring Anthony Anderson as an affluent dad who despairs when his kids refuse to embrace their heritage.  The night's riskiest new show? Unquestionably Fox's Red Band Society, a dramedy set in a hospital's pediatric ward, where a group of kids bond forever as patients, tended by nurse Octavia Spencer and doctor Dave Annable. (Not to mention executive producer Steven Spielberg.) Narrated by a boy in a coma, this could be either a maudlin train wreck or the next Party of Five feel-good tearjerker. At least it's different.

Which is more than you can say for NBC's The Mysteries of Laura, starring Debra Messing as a homicide cop who's better at nabbing criminals than wrangling her obnoxious twin boys and estranged husband on the home front. If Laura is too cute a procedural, CBS's Stalker (designed as a companion piece to the repulsive Criminal Minds) is too much, a weekly wallow in deranged voyeurism, with Nikita's Maggie Q and a cocky Dylan McDermott leading the charge against deadly stalkers. Clips featured one terrorized victim being torched inside her car. Made me want to attach a rape whistle to my remote.

THURSDAY

How Shonda-riffic! ABC goes all Shonda Rhimes all night long, with the power producer's ever-popular duo of Grey's Anatomy and Scandal each bumped an hour earlier — temporarily fixing the network's pesky 8/7c pm problem — with a new Rhimes show in the 10/9c hour, led by Oscar nominee Viola Davis as a badass leather-wearing criminal-law professor teaching her students How to Get Away With Murder. Sounds perfectly outrageous to me.  CBS makes waves on one of TV's most combative and lucrative nights, causing even more headaches for its rivals by scheduling eight weeks of Thursday Night Football at the start of the season. (The regular series lineup will resume Oct. 30 with one new addition: the Irish family comedy The McCarthys, which appears to be less shrill and silly than The Millers, but give it time. Tyler Ritter, yet another charming offspring of the late John Ritter, stars as the gay son, with Laurie Metcalf as the loudly outspoken mom.)

Fox counters with the nomadic, long-running Bones and what now seems a pointless remake of the brilliant British crime drama Broadchurch, here titled Gracepoint, a 10-episode whodunit featuring David Tennant (reprising his detective role from the original, albeit masking his Scottish brogue with a flat American affect) and Breaking Bad's Anna Gunn as his inexperienced partner. NBC more or less gives up, breaking up its comedy block by starting the night with The Biggest Loser, then airing two pointless new comedies: Bad Judge starring Kate Walsh in the self-explanatory debauched title role (no more amusing than CBS's Bad Teacher), and another rom-com, A to Z, starring Mad Men's Ben Feldman and How I Met Your Mother's poorly used Cristin Milioti as apparent soulmates.  At least NBC's Parenthood gets a proper send-off with a shortened final season, to be replaced at midseason by Allegiance, a spy drama that might sound fresh if FX's brilliant The Americans hadn't already mined this territory of deeply embedded Russian spies.

FRIDAY

ABC continues its diversity campaign with the Latino sitcom Cristela, about an ambitious law student living with her traditional family. Nothing groundbreaking here, but "T.G.I.F." is all about comfort-food TV, and the plucky star Cristela Alonzo could develop a following.  CBS moves The Amazing Race from Sundays, which might feel like marginalizing the Emmy-winning franchise, but at least fans won't have to endure those aggravating NFL overruns in much of the country. And good luck to Fox's Utopia on this purgatorial night, airing a second weekly installment opposite Friday's dominant reality player, ABC's Shark Tank.  NBC has found a nice niche for dark fantasy on Fridays, and may have developed a strong companion for Grimm with the DC Comics-inspired Constantine, based on the Hellblazer comics and starring Matt Ryan as a wry demon hunter confronting forces of evil on a weekly basis. As one does. (Of course, I'll be counting the weeks until the astonishing Hannibal presumably spells it at midseason.)

SATURDAY

(Crickets)

SUNDAY

Animation is no longer quite such a dominating factor on Fox's Sunday lineup, with the award-winning freshman police comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine separating The Simpsons and Family Guy, and another live-action sitcom, Mulaney, presenting affable stand-up and Saturday Night Live veteran writer John Mulaney in a Dick Van Dyke Show-like situation as he kowtows to an egomaniacal TV comic (Martin Short). Fox rather wishfully describes this as "a Seinfeld for a new generation," but I can't help but see it as more of a (Rob) Petrie dish.  CBS is taking the most risks on its highest-quality night, bridging 60 Minutes and the better-than-ever The Good Wife with a new drama, Madam Secretary, starring the alluring Téa Leoni as a newly installed Secretary of State. Depending on how this develops — I'm hoping the political White House skirmishes will take precedence over earnest international trouble-shooting — she and Alicia Florrick could make a winning combo. And the latest long-running procedural to inherit the precarious 10/9c time period that is particularly vulnerable to sports overruns: the original CSI, which when it finishes its 15th season will be replaced by new spinoff CSI: Cyber. Because that's how CBS rolls.

No real room to elaborate on the midseason offerings, but among the more intriguing teases: CBS's character-driven crime drama-with-humor Battle Creek, from Vince Gilligan and David Shore, feeling more Northern Exposure than Breaking Bad; Fox's sexy hip-hop family saga Empire, starring Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson; NBC's Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt from 30 Rock's Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, starring The Office gamine Ellie Kemper as an innocent on the loose in the Big Apple; The CW's whimsically high-concept iZombie, with a touch of Pushing Daisies as the undead heroine helps solve crimes after gaining insight from ingesting victims' brains; and a handful from ABC: an Asian-family sitcom about culture-shock assimilation, Fresh Off the Boat; the warped medieval musical Galavant; the racially charged American Crime (sending off a very cable vibe); and the creepy The Whispers, based on a Ray Bradbury story, about aliens using children to do their sinister bidding. Looking forward to checking out all of these.

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Critics-Notebook-Network-1081876.aspx?et=watchlist-notification<=news

Checking In On Fall’s New Shows: What’s Canceled, Renewed, In Limbo As Midseason Begins

(By Emily Yahr, Washington Post, 21 February 2014)

R.I.P. (probably) “Super Fun Night” (Nicole Wilder/ABC)

“Super Fun Night” came to an end Tuesday, but it’s okay if you barely noticed — less than 3 million people watched the freshman comedy’s finale. And to think, it was supposed to be ABC’s best hope for a new comedy, getting the glorious post-”Modern Family” spot. (And helped seal the fate of “Happy Endings.” No, we’re not still bitter.) 

But that was last fall — a mere six months ago, yet so far in the distant past, where Rebel Wilson leading her own comedy series without her native Australian accent seemed like a good idea. A whopping 27 new shows premiered on the broadcast networks. How many will live to see a second season? Now that we’re at the point where midseason is really kicking into high gear (and serve as the fall shows’ main competition when it’s time for execs to plan next season), here’s the slate of the 2013-2014 new broadcast shows and where they stand.

“The Goldbergs” (Craig Sjodin/ABC)

ABC (0/8 Already Renewed, 2 Canceled, 6 Pending)

“Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”: Still airing, status unknown. Seems to have the best shot at renewal.

“The Goldbergs”: Still airing, status unknown. Critics really like this one. (Not counting our own Hank Stuever.)

“Lucky 7”: Canceled after two episodes in October.

“Trophy Wife”: Still airing, status unknown. A critical favorite.

“Back in the Game”: Canceled in November, supposed to air all 13 episodes. (Aired 10 so far.)

“Betrayal”: Ended Jan. 19, status unknown. But people are surprised it lasted that long.

“Super Fun Night”: Ended Feb. 19, status unknown. Not great.

“Once Upon a Time in Wonderland”: Still airing, status unknown.

Fox (2/5 Already Renewed, 3 Pending)

“Sleepy Hollow”: Renewed for a second season.

“Dads”: Ended Feb. 11, status unknown. Critics hated it a tiny bit less at the end of its run, but still doesn’t look good.

“Brooklyn Nine Nine”: Still airing, status unknown. But with two “Golden Globe” wins and a post-Super Bowl slot, it looks all but certain to return.

“Masterchef Junior”: Renewed for a second season.

“Almost Human”: Finale March 3, status unknown. No one’s sure on this one.

“Brooklyn Nine Nine” (Eddy Chen/Fox)

NBC (1/6 Already Renewed, 4 Canceled, 1 Pending)

“The Blacklist”: Renewed for a second season.

“The Michael J. Fox Show”: Pulled off the schedule this month, effectively canceled.

“Ironside”: Canceled in October after four episodes.

“Welcome to the Family”: Canceled in October after three episodes.

“Sean Saves the World”: Canceled, production shut down in January.

“Dracula”: Ended Jan. 24, status unknown. Ratings were okay and NBC may need it for next year.

“Hostages” (Nicole Rivelli/CBS)

CBS (0/5 Already Renewed, 1 Canceled, 4 Pending)

“Hostages”: Ended Jan. 6. This was always billed as a “miniseries”; coupled with low ratings, this one is basically a goner.

“Mom”: Still airing, status unknown. It’s a Chuck Lorre show, and those never die.

“The Crazy Ones”: Still airing, status unknown. Robin Williams > Michael J. Fox this season.

“We Are Men”: Canceled in October after two episodes.

“The Millers”: Still airing, status unknown.

CW (2/3 Already Renewed, 1 Pending)

“The Originals”: Renewed for a second season.

“Reign”: Renewed for a second season.

“The Tomorrow People”: Still airing, status unknown. Depends on how CW’s midseason shows do.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/02/21/checking-in-on-last-falls-new-shows-whats-canceled-renewed-in-limbo-as-midseason-begins/

 

 

A Crowded Mid-Season: A Guide To What’s On TV This Winter And Spring

(By Hank Stuever, Washington Post, 03 January 2014)

If this year’s TV mid-season has anything going for it, it’s quantity. I’m not sure I’ve seen a more crowded field of new series and special presentations in January and February (and continuing on into March and April). Here’s my attempt to at least make some sense of the coming flood, which abates a bit during the Sochi Olympics.  I’ve included short reviews of some shows I’ve already watched (Fox’s “Rake,” starring Greg Kinnear and the CW’s “The 100,” about post-apocalyptic teens, are among the best so far), as well as dates for some annual events (Golden Globes, Super Bowl, Oscar night). Click here for a list of dates and times of all your favorite returning shows.

Sunday, JAN. 5

“Blood, Sweat and Heels” (Bravo at 9 p.m.) Follows a group of black women described as “movers and shakers” in the New York fashion, real estate and media scenes. The usual.

Tuesday, JAN. 7

“Intelligence” (CBS at 9 p.m.; moves to its regular time Monday, Jan. 13, at 10 p.m.) “Lost’s” Josh Holloway returns to series TV in this espionage drama as Gabriel, an intelligence agent who is the first human to have a supercomputer implanted in his brain. He can mentally sort through heaps of data with a wink-blink of his pretty eyes. “CSI’s” Marg Helgenberger stars as his boss at a clandestine government cybersecurity agency; Meghan Ory plays a tough Secret Service agent assigned to protect Gabriel from an array of foreign bad guys who want the billion-dollar science project inside his head. Complicating things is Gabriel’s heartsick obsession with his wife, who turned out to be a terrorist.

So there you have it. Holloway is pretty much his usual simmering self, as is Helgenberger. The technology in the show displays the very latest in what-the-. . .?, as far as TV’s hyperactive imagination goes. (If we’d had the Internet in 1974, this is what “The Six Million Dollar Man” might’ve looked like.) On the whole, “Intelligence” trafficks in the usual request to suspend your disbelief and then some, but it’s also mildly intriguing — especially in the idea that its macho lead character is also treated as a vulnerable prize who needs to be protected at all costs. Grade: C+

“Killer Women” (ABC at 10 p.m.) The show’s title and advertising seemed to suggest something much saucier and violent, but this lady-cop drama (co-produced by “Modern Family’s” Sofia Vergara) is a fairly straightforward and briskly perfunctory affair about a gutsy Texas Ranger named Molly (Tricia Helfer), who chases after criminals while trying to put her own life back together. She wants a divorce from her politician husband and she’s having secret trysts with a handsome DEA agent. (“Dangerously handsome,” the press release insists. Hmm, if you say so.)

Like all shows set in Texas, “Killer Women” is cooked through with too much yee-haw sauce and a whole lot of urban-cowgirl chic, but Helfer (“Battlestar Galactica”) ably carries off the assignment and keeps the momentum going. “Killer Women” is one belt notch tighter and better than some of ABC’s already-forgotten fall dramas. Grade: B-

“100 Days of Summer” (Bravo at 10 p.m.) A group of self-absorbed, 30-something Chicago strivers mate and grate during the city’s much-welcomed months of sunshine.

“American Experience: The Poisoner’s Handbook” (PBS, check local listings) A documentary about Charles Norris, who in 1918 became New York’s first official medical examiner and developed forensic techniques that sent otherwise-elusive criminals to the electric chair.

“Being Mary Jane” (BET at 10 p.m.) New series based on the TV movie starring Gabrielle Union as a busy news anchor who juggles family and work.

“Escaping the Prophet” (TLC at 10 p.m.) This six-part docu-series follows former Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints member Flora Jessop as she helps others break away from Warren Jeffs’s strict religious community.

Wednesday, JAN. 8

“Mind of a Man”(GSN at 8 p.m.) It may sound like the premise for an “SNL” sketch, but in this actual game show, two female contestants try to figure out the male thought process, aided by a panel of celebrities.

“The 40th Annual People’s Choice Awards” (CBS at 9 p.m.) Favorite movie, music and TV performances, as selected by those of you who voted online.

“Chasing Shackleton” (PBS, check local listings) Five adventure-seekers follow the treacherous 1914 Antarctic journey of Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew. A three-part docu-series.

“Chicago P.D.” (NBC at 10 p.m.) Creator Dick Wolf (“Law and Order”) spins off his “Chicago Fire” into a drama about an intelligence unit that investigates the Windy City’s biggest crimes, contrasted with the work of the uniformed beat officers in the same precinct.

Thursday, JAN. 9

“The Spoils of Babylon”(IFC at 10 p.m.) Tobey Maguire stars in this comedy spoof of those sprawling, 1970s miniseries based on tawdry bestselling novels about the rich and powerful — in this case, “The Spoils of Babylon,” written by one Eric Johnrosh (Will Ferrell), who exhumes the film reels of the never-aired series (the networks deemed it “too long”) that he directed himself.

So that’s the set-up. The cast includes a whole lot of familiar faces — Kristen Wiig, Molly Shannon, Michael Sheen, Tim Robbins, Haley Joel Osment, Val Kilmer, David Spade and so on. Though I admire the show’s commitment to form in satirizing an entire genre, something about “Babylon’s” overall shtick wears immediately thin. Part of the joke is that “The Spoils of Babylon” was utterly unwatchable, and that’s why the network never showed it; it seems they achieved that goal a little too well. Grade: D

Friday, JAN. 10

“Enlisted” (Fox at 9:30 p.m.) It’s a comedy about three Army brothers (Geoff Stults, Chris Lowell, Parker Young) stationed at a rear-detachment base in Florida. ”Enlisted” was originally scheduled to premiere in November; in The Post’s fall season guide, yours truly negatively compared the show to old “Beetle Bailey” comic strips and gave it a C+. But having seen some more episodes, I think they’ve charmed their way up to at least a Grade B-.

“$10 Million Bigfoot Bounty” (Spike at 10 p.m.) The sasquatch pursuit never ends. Actor Dean Cain hosts this weekly competition show in which hunters must deliver proof of the elusive creature.

“Helix” (Syfy at 10 p.m.) A team of researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention travels to the Arctic and finds something that could wipe out all of us. Billy Campbell (“The Killing”; “Once and Again”) stars in this drama/thriller.

Saturday, JAN. 11

“When Calls the Heart” (Hallmark at 9 p.m.) A new original series about a young teacher (Erin Krakow) who leaves big-city life to teach in a small frontier prairie town in the 19th century.

Sunday, JAN. 12

“The 71st Annual Golden Globe Awards” (NBC at 8 p.m.) Tina Fey and Amy Poehler return to host this loosey-goosey night of film and TV honors.

“True Detective” (HBO at 9 p.m.) Highly touted eight-episode crime drama stars Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey as Louisiana detectives investigating a macabre murder that has obsessed them for nearly two decades. The narrative hopscotches around from 2012 to 1995 to 2002.

Monday, JAN. 13

“Chozen” (FX at 10:30 p.m.) An animated comedy about a gay white rapper (voiced by “SNL’s” Bobby Moynihan) who goes by the name Chozen, fresh out of prison and now seeking another chance at fame.

“Don’t Trust Andrew Mayne” (A&E at 10 p.m.) In this goofy reality show, a magician uses his talent to assist people seeking revenge on others.

“Bitten” (Syfy at 10 p.m.) Based on Kelley Armstrong’s novels, in which a young woman leaves behind her werewolf pack (and the man who turned her into a howler) for a new life in the big city.

Tuesday, JAN. 14

“American Experience: 1964” (PBS, check local listings) Documentary (based on Jon Margolis’s book “The Last Innocent Year)” explores a pivotal 12 months in American politics and culture.

“Friday Night Tykes” (Esquire at 9 p.m.) A 10-part docu-series about the super-serious world of the Texas Youth Football Association, where the players are all 8- and 9-year-old boys.

“Building Wild” (National Geographic Channel at 9 p.m.) Two home-building experts tackle jobs from clients who want to build cabins in challenging locations.

“Inside Job” (TNT at 9 p.m.) Job-seeking execs live together and vie for a six-figure corporate position in this reality show — but one of them is a mole who is spying on the others’ behavior.

“Save Our Business” (TNT at 10 p.m.) Yet another show where a successful entrepreneur administers advice and tough love to struggling business owners.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 15

“Crazy Hearts: Nashville” (A&E at 11 p.m. ) Reality series follows a group of musicians trying to make it in country music. Moves to its regular slot at 10 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 16.

THURSDAY, JAN. 16

“Under the Gunn” (Lifetime at 9 p.m. ) Tim Gunn calls in former “Project Runway” winners to provide guidance to young designers in a new fashion competition.

“SWV Reunited” (WEtv at 10 p.m.) The ’90s R&B trio get its act together (after a tense breakup 15 years ago) in hopes of a comeback. Or maybe just getting a reality series will suffice?

“Tabloid” (Investigation Discovery at 10 p.m.) Jerry Springer hosts this look into some of the wildest stories and claims found in supermarket tabloids.

FRIDAY, JAN. 17

“The Square” (Netflix) From the filmmaker of “StartUp.com” and “The Control Room,” a documentary about Cairo’s Tahrir Square during the “Arab Spring” uprising.

“The Diamond Collar” (OWN at 10 p.m.) Reality series about James “Head” Guiliani, a former associate of Mafia man John Gotti who now runs a dog-grooming parlor in Brooklyn.

SATURDAY, JAN. 18

“June in January” (Hallmark at 7 p.m.) In this new movie, a busy bride-to-be (Brooke D’Orsay) has her ideal June wedding all planned out, but her husband is transferred and she has to move her special day to January.

“Flowers in the Attic” (Lifetime at 8 p.m.) A new movie version of V.C. Andrews’s popular mystery/horror novel, starring Heather Graham, Ellen Burstyn and Kiernan Shipka (“Mad Men’s” Sally Draper).

“My Gal Sunday” (Hallmark Movie Channel at 9 p.m.) Adventures of husband-wife crime solvers (Rachel Blanchard and Cameron Mathison), based on short stories by Mary Higgins Clark.

“HitRECord on TV” (Pivot at 10 p.m.) Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt brings his online project to TV, in which Web users collaborate on short films and videos around an assigned theme.

“Mom’s Got Game” (OWN at 10 p.m.) Reality series follows former WNBA basketball star Pamela McGee and her 25-year-old son, JaVale McGee, a center for the Denver Nuggets.

SUNDAY, JAN. 19

“#RichKids of Beverly Hills”(E! at 10 p.m.) This docu-series follows a clique of fancy kids who gain Internet notoriety by promoting their every action and thought on social media. You can only hope one of them is named Ja’mie, but probably not.

“Looking” (HBO at 10:30 p.m.) A new dramedy about three gay men in San Francisco who are at different stages of life and emotional issues.

MONDAY, JAN. 20

“The Powerpuff Girls: Dance Pantsed” (Cartoon Network at 7:30 p.m.) Fifteen years after their debut, the heroic Powerpuff Girls return with a new special and a new computer-generated animation style. Original characters/voices return to do battle with Mojo Jojo; Ringo Starr provides the voice of Townsville’s “flamboyant mathematician.”

“Klondike” (Discovery at 9 p.m.) Richard Madden (Robb Stark from “Game of Thrones”) stars as one of two adventurers who head for the Yukon in 1890 during the gold rush. It’s Discovery’s first original miniseries drama.

TUESDAY, JAN. 21

“American Masters: Salinger” (PBS, check local listings) Television premiere of Shane Salerno’s 2013 documentary about the reclusive author, with 15 minutes of new material included. (That might not be such great news: “While some of the stories are interesting, the film is much longer than it needs to be,” The Post’s Stephanie Merry said in her review when the film played in theaters last fall.)

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22

“Broad City” (Comedy Central at 10:30 p.m.) Upright Citizens Brigade alums Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer bring their critically acclaimed online series to Comedy Central.

“The Wahlburgers” (A&E at 10:30 p.m. ) Brothers Mark and Donnie Wahlberg head back to Boston to join forces with their brother Paul and open a hamburger restaurant.

“Treasure King” (Reelz at 10 p.m.) Accompanied by his comely “Gallery Girls,” globe-trotting collector Richie Marcello seeks to buy and sell pop-culture treasures and memorabilia that were thought to be lost.

THURSDAY, JAN. 23

“Rake” (Fox at 9 p.m.) Greg Kinnear happily and believably sinks his pearly whites into this amiably sharp drama (based on a hit Australian series) about a criminal defense attorney who finds trouble everywhere: He’s up to his ears in gambling and IRS debts, drinks way too much, lives in a ratty apartment above a restaurant and is hopelessly in love with the prostitute he pays for conversation and backgammon games. His therapist is also his ex-wife.

“House” comparisons will surely abound, but “Rake” is easily one of the more confident network dramas to come our way of late. It’s a procedural (in an episode shared with critics last year, Kinnear’s character — Keegan Deane — defends a cannibal against murder charges), but it’s just un­or­tho­dox enough to make me eager to see more. Grade: B+

FRIDAY, JAN. 24

“Mitt” (Netflix) Straight off the bill at the Sundance Film Festival, this documentary follows the unsuccessful Romney presidential campaign of 2012 and tries to get into the mind and personality of the man himself.

SATURDAY, JAN. 25

“Black Sails” (Starz at 9 p.m.) At first glance, this is a sprawling, big-budget pirate drama series that somehow manages to feel too cheap. “Black Sails” follows several bands of Caribbean-based pirates in 1715, “the golden age of pirating.” When the British Navy starts to crack down on these legendary criminals, the pirate Capt. Flint (Toby Stephens) allies with the daughter of New Providence Island’s crime kingpin to chase after the ultimate treasure.

There’s a whole lot else going on in just the first episode, with too many indistinguishable characters; at times “Black Sails” feels like it wants to be taken seriously as a complicated, premium cable drama (a la “Game of Thrones”). At other times, it feels more like cheesier, more niche material (a la “Spartacus”). I’ll watch a few more episodes, but walking the plank seems more tempting. Grade: C-

“Lizzie Borden Took an Ax” (Lifetime at 8 p.m.) Christina Ricci stars in this made-for-TV movie as the infamous woman charged with ax-murdering her parents in 1892.

SUNDAY, JAN. 26

“The 56th Annual Grammy Awards” (CBS at 8 p.m.) LL Cool J returns to host the music industry’s biggest awards night.

MONDAY, JAN. 27

“Herblock: The Black and the White” (HBO at 9 p.m.) Documentary about the prolific Washington Post editorial cartoonist.

“The 2014 Breakthrough Prizes” (Science Channel at 9 p.m.) An awards show for scientists in which six researchers each get $3 million grants as prizes. Hosted by Kevin Spacey.

TUESDAY, JAN. 28

“The Capones” (Reelz at 10 p.m. ) Docu-series about a “larger-than-life” family (translation: yells and fights with one another a lot) who run a pizzeria and claim to be distantly related to the famous mobster.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 29

“Hawking” (PBS, check local listings) A new one-hour documentary about the famed physicist.

“Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond” (BBC America at 10 p.m.) Four-part miniseries drama about the real-life inspiration for the 007 character — a sophisticated maverick whose life was upended by World War II.

SATURDAY, FEB. 1

“Oscar” (TCM at 8 p.m.) A documentary about the history of the Academy Awards.

SUNDAY, FEB. 2

“Super Bowl LXVIII” (Fox) Lots of Roman numerals, a Bruno Mars halftime show, the spendy Madison Avenue commercials and — oh, right —a professional football championship game. And don’t forget “Puppy Bowl” (Animal Planet at 3 p.m.) and, for some reason, “Kitten Bowl” (Hallmark at noon).

TUESDAY, FEB. 4

“American Experience: The Amish — Shunned” (PBS, check local listings): Documentary explores the worlds of women and men who found themselves banished from their Amish communities.

THURSDAY, FEB. 6

“The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” (NBC at 11:35) Jay says goodbye. (For the second time.)

FRIDAY, FEB. 7- SUNDAY, FEB. 23

“XXII Olympic Winter Games” (NBC) From Sochi, Russia. Will it be as grim as some people expect it to be?

SUNDAY, FEB. 9

“The Night That Changed America: A Grammy Salute to the Beatles” (CBS at 8 p.m.) All-star concert will commemorate 50 years (exactly) since the Fab Four appeared on Ed Sullivan’s show.

MONDAY, FEB. 17

“Star Crossed” (CW at 8 p.m.) Two Baton Rouge teens experience some angsty, sci-fi themed “Romeo and Juliet”-type issues because the boy (Matt Lanter) belongs to an alien race of refugees called the Atrians and the girl (Aimee Teegarden) is the daughter of the commander tasked with keeping the aliens in line.

As part of an integration effort, the gorgeous Atrian teens (who come with their own natural neck and face tattoos) are bused in every day to a local high school, where they try to fit in. “Star Crossed” hews hard to outsider themes and a nominally relevant exploration of civil rights history — amped up in CW’s instinctive flair for stylish (and predictable) teen melodrama. One imagines the screenplay being written in purple ink and very loopy handwriting, intercepted by the English teacher wearing the “Battlestar Galactica” T-shirt. Grade: C+

“The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC at 11:35) The affable host reboots his late-night talk show, now from New York instead of Burbank, Calif. (And the Roots are sticking with him.)

MONDAY, FEB. 24

“Late Night With Seth Meyers” (NBC at 12:35) The “Saturday Night Live” writer and “Weekend Update” anchor takes over Fallon’s old spot.

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 26

“Mixology” (ABC at 9:30 p.m.) This new comedy is set in a bar called the Mix, where 10 single people have random encounters and conversations in their unending quest for love. If I understand the concept correctly, the entire season (however long it lasts) takes place on a single night.

THURSDAY, FEB. 27

“Review” (Comedy Central at 10 p.m.): Andy Daly stars as a “life critic,” who reviews experiences instead of arts and culture.

SATURDAY, MARCH 1

“The 2014 Independent Spirit Awards” (IFC at 10 p.m.): The casual, Oscar-eve awards show for the cool movies that cool people liked. Hosted by Patton Oswalt.

SUNDAY, MARCH 2

“The 86th Annual Academy Awards” (ABC at 8 p.m.) It’s Oscar night! Get ahold of yourselves!

THURSDAY, MARCH 6

“Sirens” (USA at 10 p.m.) Denis Leary co-produces this new comedy about three EMT dudes in Chicago.

SUNDAY, MARCH 9

“Resurrection” (ABC at 9 p.m.) The residents of Arcadia, Mo., react to the fact that a young boy who died 32 years ago has returned — unchanged — from the dead. (Not to be confused with the excellent French miniseries “The Returned,” but it looks a little bit like it.)

TUESDAY, MARCH 11

“Mind Games” (ABC at 10 p.m.) Steve Zahn and Christian Slater star as Clark and Ross Edwards, two brothers who run an agency that helps clients fix their problems through psychological ma­nipu­la­tion and influence. (Zahn plays the goofy, genius one.)

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19

“The 100” (CW at 9 p.m.) A refreshingly taut and well-executed futuristic sci-fi series about a group of 100 jailed juvenile delinquents who are banished from an orbiting space-station colony and sent to live on Earth — 97 years after a nuclear apocalypse.

They’ve barely crash-landed when things get pretty “Lord of the Flies,” but a determined young woman (Eliza Taylor) tries her best to stick to the group’s real mission: Locate a mountain bunker and determine whether or not the rest of the humans on the dying space station above can join them on land. What they discover — along with mutant deer — is that Earth is not as depopulated as they were led to believe.

I realize that sounds like a lot to chew on, but “The 100” does an excellent job of launching a CW-style take on bigger-budgeted ad­ven­ture series like “Lost” or “Terra Nova” or “Revolution,” with a little “Hunger Games” thrown in. But unlike “Terra Nova” and “Revolution,” it’s got characters you can actually care about. Maybe I’ve been too eager for an addictive sci-fi series that doesn’t feel instantly dumb, but I raced through the first several episodes of “The 100” with pleasure. Grade: A-

TUESDAY, MARCH 25

“Story of the Jews” (PBS, check local listings) Author Simon Schama explores Jewish culture and history in this five-part (two-night) documentary series.

MONDAY, MARCH 31

“Friends With Better Lives” (CBS at 9 p.m.) A new sitcom about six pals, premiering after the one-hour “How I Met Your Mother” series finale. Takes over the 8:30 p.m. slot on April 7.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2

“TripTank” (Comedy Central at 10:30 p.m.) Yet another venue for edgy, animated shorts.

SUNDAY, APRIL 6

“The 49th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards” (CBS at 8 p.m.) Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan will return as hosts.

TUESDAY, APRIL 15

“The Address” (PBS, check local listings) Ken Burns’s film about a small boys school in Vermont where the students memorize, practice and recite the Gettysburg Address.

WAITING IN THE WINGS

These shows haven’t been given an air date as of press time, but they’re expected sometime before May . . .

“The Red Road” (Sundance Channel) Drama series about a small-town cop who also patrols a nearby Indian reservation.

“Game of Arms” (AMC) Reality series about competitive arm-wrestling.

“Turn”(AMC) Drama about spies in the Revolutionary War.

“Gang Related” (Fox) Cop drama. An elite LAPD officer has a past with Latino gangs.

“Surviving Jack” (Fox) Comedy set in the 1990s about a father and his teenage son.

“Us and Them” (Fox) Comedy starring Jason Ritter and Alexis Bledel as young lovers.

“Crisis” (NBC) Drama in which a bus carrying children of the D.C. elite — including the president’s son — is taken hostage. Gillian Anderson stars.

“The Night Shift” (NBC) Drama about the overnight staff at a San Antonio hospital.

“About a Boy” (NBC) Comedy based on Nick Hornby’s novel.

“Growing Up Fisher” (NBC) Jenna Elfman and J.K. Simmons star in this comedy about a family going through divorce.

“Penny Dreadful” (Showtime) Described as a “psychosexual” horror series about the origin of monsters (Dracula, Frankenstein) in Victorian England.

“Salem” (WGN) More witches.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/tv/a-crowded-midseason-a-guide-to-whats-on-tv-this-winter-and-spring/2014/01/02/a12df920-629d-11e3-aa81-e1dab1360323_print.html

 

When Are Your Favorite Mid-Season Shows Returning In 2014?

(By Hank Stuever and Emily Yahr, Washington Post, 03 January 2014)

Premiere dates for returning mid-season shows . . .

“@midnight” (Comedy Central at midnight) Monday, Jan. 6

“The Americans” (FX at 10) Wednesday, Feb. 26

“American Idol” (Fox at 8) Wednesday, Jan. 15

“Archer” (FX at 10) Monday, Jan. 13

“The Bachelor” (ABC at 8) Monday, Jan. 6

“Banshee” (Cinemax at 10) Friday, Jan. 10

“Bates Motel” (A&E at 9) Monday, March 3

“Being Human” (Syfy at 9) Monday, Jan. 13

“Billy on the Street” (Fuse at 11) Wednesday, March 12

“Californication” (Showtime) April, date to be announced

“Call the Midwife” (PBS at 8) Sunday, March 30

“Comic Book Men” (AMC at midnight) Sunday, Feb. 9

“Community” (NBC at 8) returned Jan. 2

“Cougar Town” (TBS at 10) Tuesday, Jan. 7

“Dallas” (TNT at 9) Monday, Feb. 24

“Downton Abbey” (PBS at 9) Sunday, Jan. 5

“Episodes” (Showtime at 10:30) Sunday, Jan. 12

“Face Off” (Syfy at 9) Tuesday, Jan. 14

“The Following” (Fox at 9) Sunday, Jan. 19

“Game of Thrones” (HBO) April, date to be announced

“Girls” (HBO at 10) Sunday, Jan. 12

“Hannibal” (NBC at 10) Friday, Feb. 28

“The Haves and the Have Nots” (OWN at 9) Tuesday, Jan. 7

“Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” (TLC at 9) Thursday, Jan. 16

“House of Cards” (Netflix, all episodes) Friday, Feb. 14

“House of Lies” (Showtime at 10) Sunday, Jan. 12

“Inside Amy Schumer” (Comedy Central at 10:30) Tuesday, April 1

“Inside Comedy” (Showtime at 11) Monday, Feb. 3

“Justified” (FX at 10) Tuesday, Jan. 7

“Kroll Show” (Comedy Central at 10:30) Tuesday, Jan. 14

“Lost Girl” (Syfy at 8) Monday, Jan. 13

“Love Thy Neighbor” (OWN at 9) Wednesday, Jan. 8

“Mad Men” (AMC) Scheduled for spring, date to be announced

“Men at Work” (TBS at 10) Wednesday, Jan. 15

“Nurse Jackie” (Showtime) April, date to be announced

“Mr. Selfridge” (PBS at 9) Sunday, March 30

“Orphan Black” (BBC America at 9) Saturday, April 19

“Perception” (TNT at 10) Tuesday, Feb. 25

“Portlandia” (IFC at 10) Thursday, Feb. 27

“Rectify” (Sundance Channel) Scheduled for spring, date to be announced

“Rizzoli and Isles” (TNT at 9) Tuesday, Feb. 25

“Shameless” (Showtime at 9) Sunday, Jan. 12

“Sherlock” (PBS at 10) Sunday, Jan. 19

“Suburgatory” (ABC at 8:30) Wednesday, Jan. 15

“Suits” (USA at 9): Thursday, March 6

“The Taste” (ABC at 8): returned Jan.2

“Teen Mom 2” (MTV at 10) Tuesday, Jan. 21

“Teen Wolf” (MTV at 10) Monday, Jan. 6

“Tosh.0” (Comedy Central at 10) Tuesday, Feb. 18

“Trailer Park: Welcome to Myrtle Manor” (TLC at 10) Thursday, Jan. 16

“Veep” (HBO) April, date to be announced

“Vikings” (History at 10) Thursday, Feb. 27

“The Walking Dead” (AMC at 9) Sunday, Feb. 9

“Workaholics” (Comedy Central at 10), Wednesday, Jan. 22

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/tv-when-are-your-favorite-mid-season-shows-returning-in-2014/2014/01/02/1d9b967a-629e-11e3-aa81-e1dab1360323_print.html