Documentary Archives - Page 31 of 63

Tornado Week returns to The Weather Channel for 2013

April 26, 2013 Jeff Pfeiffer

One of Discovery Channel’s biggest programming events of the year is its annual Shark Week, which recognizes the combination of fear and fascination many viewers have with sharks. Likewise, The Weather Channel has realized that there is a similar mix of dread and compelling interest that people have with another force of nature — tornadoes — and the network has tapped into that with what has become its own most popular programming event, Tornado Week, which will return in 2013 starting Monday, April 29. Tornado Week 2013 on The Weather Channel will include three new specials; new special episodes of […]

Dear Mom Love Cher: Cher honors her roots in a charming Lifetime special

April 25, 2013 Lori Acken

When I was a kid, I wanted to be Cher. Well into adulthood, I have yet to change my mind. From her early days as the exotic half of Sonny & Cher to her stunning reinvention as an award-winning movie star — and her poster-child status for women with independent hearts, lively love lives and bold fashion choices throughout — Cherilyn Sarkisian LaPiere Bono Allman has always been my kind of dame. Turns out, she comes from a long line of them. I talked with the entertainment icon for her can’t-miss Lifetime special Dear Mom, Love Cher and discovered a […]

Lots to learn from Naked Castaway on Discovery Channel

April 19, 2013 Barb Oates

Naked Castaway on Discovery Channel continues, as the 60 day countdown for explorer Ed Stafford, whose challenge to stay alive on an uninhabited island with no clothes, no food, no water and no survival tools, picks up with the second episode on Sunday, April 21 at 10pm ET/PT. Stafford is an ex-British Army captain who holds the honor of being the only person to walk the entire length of the Amazon River. Living for 60 days on the remote Pacific island of Olorua, located 200 miles from Fiji, is a massive challenge most people would never think of attempting, let […]

“MythBusters” returns May 1, celebrates 10th anniversary

April 18, 2013 Jeff Pfeiffer

When Discovery Channel’s popular series MythBusters returns with new episodes May 1 at 9pm ET/PT, the show will be celebrating 10 years on the network by revisiting the first myth that was ever tested 10 years ago: The team will attempt to find out if a rocket-propelled car can actually fly. Other highlights this season will include a Breaking Bad crossover episode; a collaboration with the Deadliest Catch captains; and an episode featuring Indycar driver Ryan Briscoe and Olympic runner Wallace Spearmon. Hosted by Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage, along with Tory Belleci, Kari Byron and Grant Imahara, MythBusters debuted […]

“Cycling High”: Inside the Lance Armstrong scandal

April 16, 2013 Ryan Berenz

Cycling High: Doping to Win on National Geographic Channel Sunday, April 21, at 7pm ET goes inside the doping scandal that brought down cyclist Lance Armstrong, looking at the science, eyewitness testimonies, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) Report and expert interviews to piece together the conspiracy and how it fell apart. From the National Geographic Channel press release: WINNING AT ANY COST!?! BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS. EPO. INJECTIONS. DECEPTION. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL GOES INSIDE THE STORY OF THE SCIENCE AND SCHEMING BEHIND LANCE ARMSTRONG’S EPIC FALL FROM GRACE Cycling High: Doping to Win Premieres on NGC Sunday, April 21, at 7PM ET/PT […]

Ken Burns takes new approach to powerful themes in “The Central Park Five”

April 15, 2013 Jeff Pfeiffer

Famed filmmaker Ken Burns may be most known for his documentary productions focused on various historical periods of America, but they often also touch on elements and themes that run throughout our nation’s history, including the present day. This ability to find the common issues that America has dealt — and continues to deal — with is one of the things that makes Burns’ films so compelling. So while his latest effort, The Central Park Five, may seem a departure for him — and it is, at least technically, not relying heavily on black-and-white photos from long-ago eras, or narration, […]

Kesha MTV reality show reveals “My Crazy Beautiful Life”

April 12, 2013 StayTuned Staff

Ke$ha: My Crazy Beautiful Life Tuesday, April 23 MTV, 11pm ET I’ll admit that when the publicists scheduled my interview with Ke$ha for 10:20am I wondered if maybe that meant she was on the other side of the world. Because hey, if you buy into her public persona, that would lead you to believe the hard-partying pop star would still be sleeping off the previous night’s activities, or perhaps brushing her teeth with a bottle of Jack. But no, she was stateside and decidedly coherent as she spoke with me about her upcoming MTV docu-series, Ke$ha: My Crazy Beautiful Life. […]

River Monsters Season 5 premiere does monster ratings for Animal Planet

April 11, 2013 Jeff Pfeiffer

Animal Planet says that last Sunday’s (April 7) two-hour River Monsters Season 5 premiere was the most-watched season debut in network history, reeling in 1.8 million viewers P2+. RELATED: RIVER MONSTERS SEASON 5 EPISODES That number also made the River Monsters Season 5 premiere the second-most-watched episode of River Monsters ever. The episode, “Face Ripper,” followed host Jeremy Wade as he investigated a horrific death in a Bolivian river where a man’s face was ripped to shreds. The River Monsters Season 5 premiere saw significant delivery increases among several key demos versus last year’s average, according to Animal Planet. This […]

HBO’s “VICE” goes where other newsmagazines won’t

April 4, 2013 Lori Acken

HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher has long been a panacea for grownups bored by traditional newscasts. Now the network reinvents the newsmagazine with VICE (premiering Friday, April 5, at 11pm ET), a no-holds-barred weekly series for a tech-saturated generation accustomed to having the world in its pocket. Created by the international youth-oriented media conglomerate also named VICE and executive-produced by Maher, VICE takes viewers on a harrowing — and sometimes hilarious — journey to the far corners of the globe, in search of jaw-dropping tales untouched by mainstream news outlets. The series is cohosted by VICE founder Shane Smith, […]

Investigation Discovery signs Jerry Springer to host new “Tabloid” series

April 4, 2013 Jeff Pfeiffer

“There really was no other choice for this series other than the king of daytime talk himself, Jerry Springer, to complement ID’s incredible stories of revenge, betrayal and real-life drama.” So said Henry Schleiff, president and general manager of Investigation Discovery, in today’s announcement of the network’s signing of Jerry Springer to host the new series Tabloid, expected to premiere on ID in First Quarter 2014. According to Investigation Discovery, Tabloid will peel back the curtain to go behind the scandalous headlines and surreal true-life stories you might read about in those tabloids that populate the supermarket checkout line. The […]