Documentary Archives - Page 20 of 63

Discovery Fit & Health airs night of Ebola documentaries

September 15, 2014 Jeff Pfeiffer

If you’re not scared of enough things in the world today, you may want to tune in for Discovery Fit & Health’s (DFH) “Ebola: Are We Next?” night on Sept. 18. The network is briefly breaking into its monthlong “Sextember” programming event (including the preemption of the special 100 Orgasms a Day) to present a few documentaries about the deadly Ebola virus. “Ebola: Are We Next?” is a block of programming dedicated to specials primarily about the dreaded Ebola virus, but also other outbreak-themed specials, too. At the heart of the block is the premiere special Ebola: Inside the Deadly […]

“The Roosevelts” is another winning documentary from Ken Burns

September 11, 2014 Jeff Pfeiffer

Ken Burns’ latest historical documentary (and certainly not the last; he said at a recent press conference that he is working on seven other films right now) is, according to Burns and collaborator Geoffrey C. Ward, the first project to intertwine the stories of Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt into one family history. The 14-hour film spans the years from 1858 (Teddy Roosevelt’s birth) to 1962 (Eleanor Roosevelt’s death), and airs seven consecutive nights. “Half [our] films have touched upon the Roosevelts, and for as long as we’ve worked together,” Burns told reporters, about how he and […]

PBS airing “Pioneers of Television” Robin Williams remembrance special

September 8, 2014 Jeff Pfeiffer

Tying in with its excellent Pioneers of Television series, PBS will be taking elements from that series to air a one-hour remembrance special of Robin Williams, including Williams’ last full-length television interview. The program, called Robin Williams Remembered: A Pioneers of Television Special, airs Sept. 9 at 9pm ET on PBS (check local listings). “We were fortunate to sit down with Robin Williams quite recently for the Pioneers of Television series,” said executive producer Steve Boettcher, in a release. “We wanted to share with PBS viewers the Robin that we saw – the very unassuming, caring, genuine and gentle man […]

Zachary Quinto and Chris Moore talk The Chair on Starz

September 5, 2014 Lori Acken

Billed as “an original filmmaking experiment,” Starz’s engrossing new docuseries The Chair, from Project Greenlight’s Chris Moore, examines what happens when two aspiring young filmmakers are each given the same shoestring budget, the same script and the same Pittsburgh location and asked to make wholly original theatrical releases. Mentored by the amiable Moore, his co-executive producer actor/producer Zachary Quinto and others, excitable YouTube superstar Shane Dawson and sensitive indie filmmaker/actor Anna Martemucci display fascinatingly disparate constitutions and sensibilities on their way to creating works that will, through multiplatform viewer voting after each film debuts, earn one a $250,000 prize. “What […]

9/11 anniversary TV programming 2014

September 5, 2014 Jeff Pfeiffer

Sept. 11, 2014, marks the 13th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Once again, a number of television specials will air around this time to remember the events of 9/11, and their lasting impact on the United States, and the world. 9/11 Anniversary TV Programming 2014 (All Times Eastern; Titles in ALL CAPS Indicate Premieres) Stopping the Second 9/11 — Sept. 7 at 12pm on National Geographic Channel. This real-life international drama recalls the summer of 2006, when as many as 18 conspirators planned to simultaneously blow up almost 10 airplanes by bringing hydrogen peroxide-injected soda bottles-turned-bombs onto […]

We talk Who Do You Think You Are? with EP Dan Bucatinsky

August 20, 2014 Lori Acken

On tonight’s all-new episode of TLC’s Who Do You Think You Are? beloved actor Kelsey Grammer explores his grandmother’s lineage in a deeply emotional journey that leads him westward across America. It’s the kind of episode the show’s co-executive producer Dan Bucatinsky says fascinates him most. “I love the episodes that touch on tent poles in history, stuff we studied in text books in school but didn’t have a personal connection with — like the Salem Witch Trials with Sarah Jessica Parker,” says Bucatinsky, the entertainment-industry multi-hyphenate who brought the addictive genealogy series to America with his longtime business partner Lisa Kudrow […]

ID brings back daytime “soap” block, featuring soap stars past and present

August 12, 2014 Jeff Pfeiffer

Once more trying to prove that reality can be more unbelievable than even the most ridiculous soap opera plotline, Investigation Discovery (ID) is tying the two themes together for the return of its “soap” block of programming. This daytime stunt will air 1-4pm ET daily for four weeks, beginning Aug. 25. Soap stars from past and present will host the programming blocks, which feature encore showings of ID series like Wives With Knives, My Dirty Little Secret and others. Things kick off Aug. 25-29 with Sinful Secrets Week, hosted by Lynn Herring (Lucy Coe on General Hospital) and Kin Shriner […]

Shark Week 2014 breaking viewership records for Discovery

August 12, 2014 Jeff Pfeiffer

Just a a day into its annual Shark Week event, Discovery Channel announced yesterday that Shark Week 2014 broke viewership records, pulling in the highest ratings in its 27-year history on Aug. 10, the day the weeklong event started. Discovery reports that on Aug. 10, Shark Week 2014 programming earned a historic 2.27 P25-54 rating, and delivered 3.64 million total viewers P2+, the highest-rated evening ever for Shark Week to date, and the network’s 13th highest-rated primetime evening ever. The network says that the biggest year over year gains came from Women 25-54, an increase of 18%. Looking specifically at […]

Nat Geo Wild’s Sharkfest returns to try to take a bite out of Shark Week

August 7, 2014 Jeff Pfeiffer

Last year, Nat Geo Wild must have looked at Discovery’s Shark Week ratings and decided to join the feeding frenzy among viewers to watch all things “shark,” as the network debuted the similarly themed Sharkfest. In 2014, Sharkfest is back for its second installment on Nat Geo Wild, beginning Aug. 10 (same day as Shark Week). One promising element of Sharkfest versus Shark Week is that, per Nat Geo Wild’s press release, they promise no mockumentaries: “… scare tactics and mockumentaries are best left to others,” the release states (a nice shot at Discovery, which received some flak last year […]

Hard Knocks 2014: HBO flies with the Atlanta Falcons

August 5, 2014 Ryan Berenz

The ninth edition of HBO’s Hard Knocks training camp docuseries focuses on the daily lives and routines of the Atlanta Falcons’ players and coaches as they prepare for the 2014 NFL season in Flowery Branch, Ga. The Hard Knocks 2014 season begins on HBO Aug. 5. ALSO SEE: 2014 NFL Preseason TV schedule Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Atlanta Falcons HBO’s Hard Knocks is back, and the NFL didn’t even have to force a team into doing it this year. The Atlanta Falcons, 4-12 last season, graciously volunteered to have an NFL Films crew stalking their training camp fields […]