http://www.ratinghq.comRatinghq Category Comments Feed for TelevisionRatingHQ (http://www.ratinghq.com)enIn 1977, Alex Haley's groundbreaking mini-series Roots became one of the most watched programs in television history, telling the story of seven generations of the author's mother's family, from their capture in Africa and enslavement in the United States to their eventual emancipation more than a century later. With 1992's Queen, Haley, who passed away before completing the source material, presents the story of his father's family, focusing on his paternal grandmother, a mulato. Halle Berry stars as the title character, the daughter of a slave and a plantation owner. Amidst the Civil War and up through the turn of the century, Queen finds herself struggling to find acceptance from blacks as well as whites. With an all-star cast that also features Martin Sheen, Danny Glover, Dennis Haysbert, Ossie Davis, and Ann-Margret, Queen was directed by John Erman and originally aired in February of 1993.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-365/queen.html2008-05-17 07:59:17Chancer: Series 01http://www.ratinghq.com/5-366/chancer-series-01.html2008-05-17 11:44:17This award-winning six-part historical epic was one of the first examples of the miniseries format and one of the highest-rated television programs in broadcasting history. Based on the best-selling novel by author Alex Haley, Roots chronicles the progress of Haley's own family across many generations, from the kidnapping of an African warrior by American slave traders to eventual post-Civil War freedom. Kunta Kinte (LeVar Burton) is a young tribesman of coastal Africa who has passed the rituals marking his transition into manhood. Searching for wood to build a drum, he is set upon by slavers who sell him in the United States after a nightmarish Atlantic crossing. Defiant, Kunta refuses to consider himself a slave, despite some sage advice from his mentor, the more mature Fiddler (Louis Gossett Jr.). As the years pass, the aging Kunta (John Amos) is hobbled for his repeated escape attempts. Realizing he'll never return to Africa, Kunta settles down, becoming husband to Bell (Madge Sinclair) and father to Kizzy (Leslie Uggams), a girl infused with her father's independent spirit. Sold and then raped by her new master, Kizzy has a son, Chicken George (Ben Vereen), a happy go lucky cockfighting expert who uses his skills to buy his freedom. George paves the way for his children, the great-grandchildren of Kunta Kinte, who finally become free in the aftermath of the Civil War. Roots (1977) was followed by a sequel miniseries, Roots: The Next Generations (1979), and a made-for-television feature, Roots: The Gift (1988), as well as another telefilm based on the family history of the Haley clan, Queen (1993).http://www.ratinghq.com/5-367/roots.html2008-05-17 11:45:40This made-for-TV historical drama focuses on the sometimes uneasy alliances between three of the world's great leaders -- Franklin D. Roosevelt (John Lithgow), Winston Churchill (Bob Hoskins), and Joseph Stalin (Michael Caine) -- as they met in 1943 for the Tehran Conference, in which they discussed the Allied drive against Germany and the possible postwar relationship between the three nations. With all dialogue for the three principle characters drawn from transcripts and reporting of the event, Then There Were Giants was first aired as a two-part miniseries; it was later released on home video under the title World War II: When Lions Roared.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-368/world-war-ii-when-lions-roared.html2008-05-17 11:47:49This 50-minute video tells all about the life and enduring faith of Abraham. Learn why Christians, Jews and others revere the purity of Abraham's belief that God is always loving and would always stand by him. Scholars are interviewed who have spent their professional lives searching for proof that Abraham truly existed. They discuss what they have learned from the 1,500 cuneiform tablets discovered at the ancient city of Ebla. The narrator repeats the basic Old Testament story in which Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son. Viewers will hear many things that can help them decide whether they fully believe that it was Abraham's covenant with God that led to the birth of Israel. Also includes an informative visit to a number of historic and beautiful areas of Israel.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-369/mysteries-of-the-bible-abraham-one-man-one-god.html2008-05-17 11:51:32The astonishing success of The Beverly Hillbillies enabled producer Paul Henning to pitch another "rural" sitcom to a most receptive CBS. Debuting September 24, 1963, Petticoat Junction (original title: Whistle Stop) was, in its first few seasons, a vehicle for Bea Benaderet, an old friend and colleague of Henning's since The Burns and Allen Show, and most recently seen as Cousin Pearl on Beverly Hillbillies. Benaderet was cast as Kate Douglas, the widowed owner of the Shady Rest, the only traveler's hotel in the Illinois farming community of Hooterville. Edgar Buchanan co-starred as Kate's uncle Joe Bradley, self-appointed manager of the hotel, who, when not hatching his latest get-rich-quick scheme, was figuring out new methods to expend as little energy as possible. Kate was the mother of three beautiful, curvaceous daughters: Betty Jo (played through the series' run by Paul Henning's daughter Linda Kaye Henning), Billie Jo (played during the first two seasons by Jeannine Riley, during season three by Gunilla Hutton, and from season four onward by Meredith Mac Rae), and Bobbie Jo (played by Patricia Woodell in seasons one and two, and by Lori Saunders thereafter). The town and hotel were connected (more or less) to the outside world by the Hooterville Cannonball, the last and oldest steam engine in the C.F.&W. railroad line, run by engineers Charlie Pratt (Smiley Burnette) and Floyd Smoot (Rufe Davis). Other Hooterville residents over the years included storekeeper Sam Drucker (Frank Cady), town gossip Selma Plout (Virginia Sale, then Elvia Allman) and her gangly daughter Henrietta (Susan Walther, then Lynette Winter), barber Bert Smedley (Paul Hartman), and train conductor Wendell Gibbs (Byron Foulger). The most omnipresent of the recurring characters was Charles Lane as Homer Bedloe, the delightfully flint-hearted vice president of the C.F.&W., who never tired of hatching sinister schemes to put the antiquated Hooterville Cannonball out of business. After two black-and-white seasons, the series switched to color for season three in 1965, the same year that Petticoat Junction's spinoff series Green Acres made its CBS debut. Thereafter, the casts of the two series made innumerable crossover appearances, with Petticoat Junction's Frank Cady and Green Acres co-stars Tom Lester (as handyman Eb Lawson) and Kay E. Kuter (as farmer Newt Kiley) virtually becoming regulars on both shows. At the beginning of season four, Mike Minor joined the cast as Steve Elliott, a pilot whose plane had crashed just outside the Shady Rest. After a lengthy courtship, Steve married Kate's oldest daughter Betty Jo -- just as actors Mike Minor and Linda Kaye became husband and wife in real life. In addition to the aforementioned turnover in the actresses playing Billie Jo and Bobbie Jo, there were several other cast changes and dropouts during Petticoat Junction's eight seasons. Sadly, two of these were dictated by mortality: supporting player Smiley Burnette died in 1967, and series star Bea Benaderet passed away at the beginning of the 1968-1969 season (upon Kate Bradley's departure, Uncle Joe assumed ownership of the Shady Rest). In the course of the same season, June Lockhart joined the cast as lady doctor Janet Craig, who had arrived in Hooterville to replace retiring town physician Dr. Barton Stuart (Regis Toomey). The producers had hoped that same rapport which existed between Bea Benaderet and Edgar Buchanan would be replicated by Buchanan and Lockhart, but this was not to be. After 221 episodes, Petticoat Junction was canceled on September 12, 1970, the first casualty in CBS's drive to "de-ruralize" its network demographic and appeal to a more urban, sophisticated audience.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-370/petticoat-junction-tv-series-.html2008-05-17 11:53:19From the Mysteries of the Bible series comes this documentary about the events leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. You will hear from historians, both secular and religious, and archaeologists who give a detailed account of the last days of Christ, from His entrance into the Temple to the Last Supper to His death and His resurrection. These historical and scientific experts analyze all of the remaining evidence to try and determine the validity of Jesus' execution. Shot in Jerusalem and near Mount Zion, this documentary takes you right to the very place where Jesus is said to have lived over 2,000 years ago.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-371/the-execution-of-jesus.html2008-05-17 12:18:34Based on a novel by Carol Clewlow, the three-part British miniseries A Woman's Guide to Adultery chronicled the sexual interrelations between three married couples. Only Rose (Theresa Russell), the nominal heroine, abstained from extramarital hanky-panky. However, the siren song of Temptation proved strong indeed, and Rose's resistance was worn down bit by bit as those around her seemed to be having such a jolly good time. Remarkably frank in its dialogue and depiction of contemporary carnality, A Woman's Guide to Adultery first aired in 1993.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-372/a-woman-s-guide-to-adultery.html2008-05-17 12:20:17The British sitcom A Fine Romance aired for four seasons from 1981-1984 on London Weekend Television and has since been syndicated on PBS in the States. Judi Dench stars as Laura Dalton, a quirky independent woman who meets the equally eccentric Mike Selway, played by Dench's real-life husband Michael Williams. The mismatched pair is introduced by Laura's sister, Helen Dalton-Barker (Susan Penhaligon), and brother-in-law, Phil Barker (Richard Warwick). Laura and Mike humorously suffer through day-to-day turmoils, eventually finding romance. In 1984, Judi Dench won a BAFTA TV award for Best Light Entertainment Performance.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-373/a-fine-romance-tv-series-.html2008-05-17 12:21:49In this mystery, the intrepid Morse investigates the murder of an American tourist whose untimely death occurred shortly after she announced her plans to donate a fabulous jewel to a museum.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-374/inspector-morse-the-wolvercote-tongue.html2008-05-17 12:24:33The story which began with the mini-series V comes to a stunning conclusion in this made-for-TV sci-fi adventure. A race of reptilian creatures from another planet arrive on Earth, disguised as humanoids and claiming to come in peace in a search for needed water and food. However, their true motives soon become evident when they take control of the world and begin eating humans for sustenance. A ragtag army of Earthlings form an underground resistance army, leading to a final apocalyptic showdown between the humans and their new rulers. V: The Final Battle reunites most of the original cast of V, including Marc Singer, Robert Englund, Jane Badler, Andrew Pine, and Faye Grant. Followed by a short-lived weekly series.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-375/v-the-final-battle.html2008-05-17 12:26:11The made-for-television adaptation of Barbara Taylor Bradford's A Woman of Substance stars Jenny Seagrove as Emma Harte, a character who grows from maid to internationally feared and respected businesswoman. The all-star cast includes Liam Neeson, Deborah Kerr, and Barry Bostwick.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-376/a-woman-of-substance.html2008-05-17 12:28:35In this action adventure, author Bernard Cornwell's fictional Major Sharpe takes his men on a search for Aztec treasure.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-377/sharpe-s-gold.html2008-05-17 12:30:04In this action adventure, author Bernard Cornwell's fictional Major Sharpe goes undercover as a Spanish rebel and proves that, despite recent accusations to the contrary, he is indeed an honorable man.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-378/sharpe-s-honour.html2008-05-17 12:31:09In this war adventure a brave British GI saves the beautiful wife of a colonel from a group of AWOL soldiers. The plot is based on a Bernard Cornwell novel.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-379/sharpe-s-enemy.html2008-05-17 12:32:40Derek Jacobi stars in this 12th century drama as Brother Cadfael, a former soldier in the Crusades who has become a monk but occasionally pauses in doing the Lord's work to solve the occasional mystery. In this story, Oswin, a novice under Cadfael, confesses to the rape and murder of a young nun whose body is found in a nearby stream. Convinced Oswin is innocent, Cadfael begins investigating the crime and discovers the foul activities of a group of rouge soldiers from the Crusades, as well as a young squire who might be his son. Brother Cadfael: Virgin in the Ice was produced for British television and was first shown in America as part of the PBS series Mystery!http://www.ratinghq.com/5-380/cadfael-the-virgin-in-the-ice.html2008-05-17 12:34:31Fans of Chris Rock will enjoy this compilation of comedy sketches he performed during his stint on Saturday Night Live. Skits include his turn as an editorial commentator on the "Weekend Update" segments, and as radical talk show host "Nat X" donning a gigantic Afro wig.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-381/saturday-night-live-the-best-of-chris-rock.html2008-05-17 12:35:41Recorded in March 1967, this performance captures Hal Holbrook's amazing portrayal of one of America's greatest author's, Mark Twain. Holbrook, who memorized more than 14 hours of Twain's material, becomes the legendary character for 90 minutes with only a white suit, white hair and mustache, a lectern, and that signature cigar. One of the best television performances ever captured on film, this one-man show has lasted for over 40 years.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-382/mark-twain-tonight.html2008-05-17 12:37:31Blues-rock guitar hero Stevie Ray Vaughan made two appearances on the acclaimed PBS music showcase Austin City Limits before his tragic death in 1990, and this video collects highlights from each show. His 1983 appearance coincided with the release of his debut album, Texas Flood, and captures him in tough, rough-and-ready form. A later set from 1989, after Vaughan had kicked a life-threatening drug and alcohol habit, finds him in more studied and mature form, but sounding no less skillful or passionate.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-383/live-from-austin-tx-stevie-ray-vaughan-and-double-trouble-.html2008-05-17 12:39:25Eight seasons have passed since Married...With Children made its Fox network debut, but the Bundy family is just as boorish and decadent as ever -- if not more so. This season, shoe salesman Al Bundy (Ed O'Neill) loses sleep over the dread "Bundy Curse," endeavors to teach a high school graduate the facts of life, and establishes the all-male conclave "NO MA'AM"(National Organization of Men Against Amazonian Women). Lazy, oversexed housewife Peg Bundy (Katey Sagal) wins a chance at a 10,000-dollar contest during a basketball game, is exposed to public embarrassment (and admiration) when her picture is hung up outside a photo shop, and impersonates one of the Village People. Libidinous daughter Kelly (Christina Applegate) gets a steady job as a pest exterminator and displays a hitherto untapped prowess at sports; and opportunistic son Bud (David Faustino) generally hangs around the house, like always. Next door at the D'Arcys, unemployed Jefferson D'Arcy (Ted McGinley) reveals his past life as a secret agent, while wife Marcy (Amanda Bearse) embraces feminism and has an existential moment while delivering a speech. The season ends with the episode "Kelly Knows Something" -- quite a shocker for series fans who have resigned themselves to the "fact" that Kelly knows nothing.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-384/married-with-children-season-08.html2008-05-17 12:41:19Saturday Night Live: Season 02http://www.ratinghq.com/5-385/saturday-night-live-season-02.html2008-05-17 12:42:49The phenomenal success of the 1977 ABC miniseries Roots all but demanded a sequel to writer Alex Haley's epic story of his African and African-American forebears. Debuting February 18, 1979, Roots: The Next Generations picked up where its predecessor left off, with Haley's slave ancestors winning their freedom in the aftermath of the Civil War. Even so, life for black Americans was wrought with hardship and oppression thanks to the rise of the Ku Klux Klan, the staunch refusal of the white power structure to pass anti-lynching laws, and the formation of the dreaded Jim Crow laws which legalized racial segregation in the South (and much of the North). Covering the period from 1882 to the mid-1970s, the miniseries first focuses on blacksmith Tom Harvey (Georg Stanford Brown), great-grandson of Kunta Kinte (the protagonist of the original Roots), and his family. Meanwhile, reacting to the marriage of his son to a black woman, anal-retentive Southern colonel Warner (Henry Fonda) begins setting the legal wheels in motion to deny blacks like Tom the right to vote and to hold "white" jobs. A few decades later, Tom's son-in-law encourages his fellow blacks to stand firm against the KKK's reign of terror. His labors on behalf of his race are rewarded when his daughter Bertha (Irene Cara) becomes the first descendant of Kunta Kinte to receive a college education. It is Bertha Palmer who weds the equally ambitious Simon Haley (Dorian Harewood), who goes on to serve in WWI and to organize farmers and sharecroppers during the Depression. Simon's son Alex (played at various ages by Kristoff St. John, Damon Evans, and finally James Earl Jones) is just as determined to succeed in a white man's world as his father, and to that end becomes a professional writer after his own service stint in the Coast Guard during WWII. At the height of his professional success (largely due to his having ghost-written the autobiography of Muslim activist Malcolm X), Alex Haley pays a visit to his boyhood hometown -- where, almost by accident, he receives the first clue to his heritage, a clue that will lead him on an odyssey of self-discovery, arriving full circle at Kunta Kinte's birthplace in Africa. Although the miniseries' "money scene" was Haley's nervous interview with American Nazi Party leader George Lincoln Rockwell (Marlon Brando in a superb cameo turn), the climactic episode, in which Haley tearfully embraces the living African descendants of Kunta Kinte, is one of the most unforgettable moments in the history of network television. Running 12 episodes and 14 hours, Roots: The Next Generations concluded on February 25, 1979, playing to huge ratings all along the way and ultimately garnering several Emmy nominations (and one win).http://www.ratinghq.com/5-386/roots-the-next-generations.html2008-05-17 12:44:27As a means of freshening up Married...With Children during the series' seventh season, the producers decided to add a new regular: Seven Bundy (Shane Sweet), six-year-old son of one of Peg Bundy's hillbilly cousins, who is left in the care of Peg (Katey Sagal) and her husband, Al (Ed O'Neill), by Seven's irresponsible parents. Alas, Seven never caught on with the series' fans (some critics have compared him to the benighted "Oliver" on the final season of The Brady Bunch), so the character was abruptly dumped in mid-season, without comment or explanation. Elsewhere, things haven't changed much for the boorish Bundy family. Dad Al continues to be the archetypal male chauvinist pig, Peg persists in avoiding housework and indulging in sexual fantasies, daughter Kelly (Christina Applegate) puts her show-biz career on hold to work as a waitress, and son Bud (David Faustino) continues to seek out hot chicks and fast money. This is the season in which the entire cast appears as pirates and captured maidens in a dream sequence; Al is sued by a man who was robbing the Bundy house; Peg doodles a cartoon of Al which wins him about 15-and-a-half minutes of fame; Bud shows up as a contestant on The Dating Game; and Al's old girlfriend makes him an offer he can't refuse. Season seven closes with an offbeat special episode, "A Day in the Life," focusing on the backstage activities of series regulars Amanda Bearse (Marcy) and Ted McGinley (Jefferson).http://www.ratinghq.com/5-387/married-with-children-season-07.html2008-05-17 12:46:18Benson: Season 01http://www.ratinghq.com/5-388/benson-season-01.html2008-05-17 12:48:33With the exception of Marion Lorne, who passed away in the spring of 1968, the familiar cast members of the fantasy sitcom Bewitched are all back on the job as the series enters its fifth season. Heading the cast as always are Elizabeth Montgomery as attractive witch Samantha "Sam" Stephens; Dick York as her long-suffering mortal husband, ad executive Darrin Stephens; Agnes Moorehead as Sam's overbearing witch mother, Endora; and Erin Murphy (occasionally spelled by her twin sister Diane Murphy) as Sam and Darrin's daughter, Tabitha, who has obviously inherited her mom's special conjuring skills. Making more and more appearances during this season is Sam's funloving, hippie-like identical cousin, Serena, who is given a marvelous showcase in the two-part "Cousin Serena Strikes Again." As in previous seasons, the actress playing Serena is billed as "Pandora Spocks," though one would have to be extremely naïve or obtuse not to recognize her as Elizabeth Montgomery. Conversely, series co-star Dick York is noticeably absent from several episodes. The industry rumor at the time was that York was tired of playing Darrin Stephens, and was staying home to protest the sillier aspects of his character. The truth, which was carefully hidden from the public for many years, was that the actor was suffering from back injuries sustained years earlier while filming the theatrical feature They Came to Cordura. As it turned out, Dick York left Bewitched at the end of season five, paving the way for the legendary "Darrin Number Two," (aka Dick Sargent).http://www.ratinghq.com/5-389/bewitched-season-05.html2008-05-17 12:50:03Grey’s Anatomy is an Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning American primetime television medical drama. It debuted on ABC as a midseason replacement for Boston Legal on March 27, 2005, immediately following Desperate Housewives. The series revolves around Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), who began the show as a surgical intern at Seattle Grace Hospital in Seattle. The title of the show is a reference to the famous medical handbook Gray's Anatomy.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-626/grey-s-anatomy.html2008-07-15 11:14:48Supernanny is a British reality television programme that is about aiding parents with misbehaving children. The show features Jo Frost, a nanny who, in each episode, helps a family with children whose parents are unsuccessful at controlling their behavior or who are "naughty". Using a variety of methods, she helps to show parents ways of disciplining their children and maintaining order in their households. She is noted for emphasising praise and positive encouragement when dealing with children.http://www.ratinghq.com/5-628/supernanny.html2008-07-17 11:19:35