Television

Television Critic David Bianculli previews the eight-hour PBS series "Television." The series is composed of clips from vintage and recent television programs as well as interviews with the creative people behind some of the best news and entertainment shows.

Critic-at-Large Laurie Stone previews a 5-hour NBC miniseries on the 1913 hanging of a Jewish factory manager in Atlanta, Georgia following the murder a 13-year-old employee of the factory. The case hinged on racial hatred, in this case the prevailing enmity toward Jews, and Laurie praises the production's exploration of how racial divisions have been exploited for political effect. The miniseries is titled "The Murder of Mary Phagan."

Fresh Air's Television Critic David Bianculli. Bianculli has worked as television critic at several metropolitan papers, including The Akron Beacon Journal, The Fort Lauderdale News and The Philadelphia Inquirer. His writing has also appeared in The New York Times, Rolling Stone and the Washington Journalism Review. He is currently the television critic for The New York Post.

Actor Ray Sharkey. He starred last season in the television series "Wiseguy." His feature film credits include a fast-talking rock promoter in "The Idolmaker," a romantic dreamer in "Love and Money," and a sadistic killer in "Who'll Stop the Rain." Sharkey won the Golden Globe award as best actor in 1982 for his performance in "The Idolmaker."

Television Critic David Bianculli reviews "Strange Interlude," the first offering of American Playhouse's seventh season. The play was written by Eugene O'Neill. This production stars Glenda Jackson, David Dukes and Ken Howard.

Greg Ford and Terry Lennon, the writer and director of "The Duxorcist," the first "Looney Tune" to feature Daffy Duck since 1964. The cartoon will play before Warner Brother's theatrical releases. It comes on the 50th anniversary of Daffy Duck's debut.

Ron Reagan, Jr. He's a special correspondent on "Good Morning America" and is also a contributing editor at Playboy Magazine. He has a comedy special debuting soon on the Cinemax Comedy Experiment. It's titled "Ron Reagan is the President's Son."

Television critic David Bianculli reviews a new syndicated series featuring Mr. T. It's called "T & T," but Bianculli says it's not as dynamite as the title suggests.

Comic Dennis Miller. Miller does the Weekend Update segment on "Saturday Night Live." He's now working on an HBO special.

Fresh Air's language commentator Geoffrey Nunberg.

Television Critic David Bianculli reviews "EastEnders," a contemporary drama about the working class in London's East End. "EastEnders" is the most popular serial drama in Britain, and will air in America on PBS.

Television Critic David Bianculli reviews "The Singing Detective," the BBC miniseries that PBS will air in early January. The series was written by Dennis Potter, who wrote the 10-hour 1979 BBC series "Pennies From Heaven," starring Bob Hoskins.

Television Critic David Bianculli reviews a version of Harold Pinter's one-act play, "The Room", directed by Robert Altman. The cast includes Linda Hunt, Donald Pleasance, Julian Sands and Annie Lennox. It will air on ABC next Saturday.

Writer James Wolcott, who's now a regular columnist on culture for Vanity Fair.

J.J. Johnson, a pioneer of the modern jazz trombone. In 1970, he moved to Hollywood to work as a composer and arranger for television. He's toured the country recently, and a new CD of sessions he recorded in the 60s has just been reissued.

Television Critic David Bianculli reviews "Jack Paar is Alive and Well," NBC's look back at the first host of "The Tonight Show."

Video artist Bill Viola. His work draws on his extensive travel throughout Northern India, the Sahara, the American West and Europe and strives to establish video as an art independent of film and television. Viola has been working with video since 1970, including stints as an artist-in-residence at WNET's Artists' Television Laboratory, and as a Guggenheim Fellow.

Television Critic David Bianculli discusses the progress of the new shows and the history of how television's top programs fared in their first year.

Television Critic David Bianculli previews "The Morton Downey Jr. Show," a new talk show that's the equivalent of shock radio. Downey's guests range from representatives of Planned Parenthood to the Ku Klux Klan. But it's the frenzy of audience, and Downey's abuse of both guests and audience, that makes the show unique.

Stephen Davis, whose new book Say Kids! What Time is it? recounts the history of the "Howdy Doody Show," TV's first hit kid's show. The book looks at the early days of television in New York, and the cast that made up Doodyville - Buffalo Bob, Princess Summerfall Winterspring, Clarabell and Chief Thunderthud.