Why
Netflix opens a “Fuller
House”
ABC special celebrates “The Happiest Place on Earth”
Chase Elliott
already “disagrees” with his team owner
Honoring the directing king of
sitcoms
PLUS
Kyle Busch
seeks success at the Daytona 500 folio Connect to these shows within this magazine!
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contents
What’s HOT this Week!
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YOURTVLINK
CELEBRITY
“FULLER HOUSE”
4 MARINA SQUERCIATI
Bure “just crying” over “Fuller” reunion
The uniform helps the actress on “Chicago P.D.”
5 CRAIG FERGUSON Tattoos tell his story
6 SAMANTHA BEE
Why the comedian couldn’t stop crying for weeks
8 AMANDA PEET
Also a writer now, the actress still enjoys “Togetherness”
“Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute to James Burrows” 1,000 sitcom episodes and still going strong
9 Alex Guarnaschelli “The Wonderful World of Disney: Disneyland 60” Han Solo parties with the Disney stars and Derek Hough hosts!
Getting to know “All-Star Academy” mentor
17
the story!
7 “Kocktails With Khloe” Kocktail, anyone?
SPORTS 18-19 Kyle Busch
2016 Daytona 500 Rookie racing!
seeks success at the Daytona 500
MOVIES
IN EVERY ISSUE
Review, Our top DVD pick, and Coming Soon on DVD.
suggested programs to watch this week!
20-21 Featuring: Theatrical
FOOD
22-23 Featuring: Our top
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REALITY 16 “Big Data”
Big Brother and ‘Big Data’
Editor's choice
STORY
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rookie
A takes over for a legend at Daytona Chase Elliott competes in the 2016 Daytona 500 Sunday on Fox.
Click or tap on icon for more! By George Dickie If you’re looking for someone who could be the next face of NASCAR’s Sprint Cup for the next decade or so, you might not want to look much further than Chase Elliott. Indeed, the 20-year-old Georgia native and son of NASCAR Hall-of-Famer Bill Elliott has shown the potential to be a star, winning the Xfinity Series Rookie of the Year Award in 2014, the series championship the following year and Most Popular Driver honors twice in his first two years in the series. Now, he steps up to Sprint Cup and into the ride of another driver who was once the Cup’s wunderkind, four-time series champion Jeff Gordon, when he pilots Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 24 Chevrolet in the 2016 Daytona 500, airing Sunday, Feb. 21, on Fox, from what NASCAR is calling its “reimagined” Daytona International Speedway and its $400 million in improvements. “It’s a great honor overall,” Elliott says of driving Gordon’s car, “and I think it just brings an unbelievable opportunity for me and one that I couldn’t really have ever dreamed of when I first started racing, and just something that I’m very, very thankful for ... . So I’m going to give it my best effort and try to do the best job that I can and try to learn things as quickly as possible and hope that we can get going well.” One area in which Elliott says he has something to learn is restrictor plate racing. A restrictor plate is a device that restricts the flow of air into a stock car’s engine and thus limits its power and speed, a safety measure adopted by NASCAR at tracks such as Daytona and Talladega, where
speeds can get very high. The result is cars running in tight packs at over 200 mph, conditions that can make for challenging passing and frazzled drivers. “The racing itself has a different feel and it does bring challenges and I certainly have not got that figured out ...,” Elliott says. “It’s a lot of positioning yourself ... and trying to be smart about your moves and where you want to be and when you want to be there, and obviously that’s a lot easier said than done. So it’s one thing to say it and think it, it’s another thing to actually do it and execute it and do it correctly.” Though he descends from racing royalty, Elliott is a humble young man. In fact, team owner Rick Hendrick in interviews has praised Elliott’s maturity, mental toughness and the fact that he hasn’t let his early success go to his head. He has also said Elliott surpasses Gordon in some areas at the same point in their careers. “I’m going to respectfully disagree with him ...,” Elliott says. “I don’t see that at all. Jeff has obviously had a phenomenal career and I definitely don’t put myself ahead of him when he started out because he had an awful lot of success at a young age and I would say much more than myself. “So I look at the person Jeff is today and how great of a guy he is on and off the track. I think the respect that he’s earned away from the racetrack says an awful lot about his character and his work ethic and how he goes about his business. So it’s been great to work with him but like I said, I certainly don’t agree with Mr. Hendrick on that one.”
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CELEBRITY Jay Bobbin’s Q&A
Marina
Squerciati of ‘Chicago P.D.’ Wednesday on NBC What was your training like in preparing to play police officer Kim Burgess on “Chicago P.D.”? I’d never held or touched or seen a gun, really ... and that was something to learn, that sort of power and that responsibility that you have when you hold it and you carry it every day. When I put on the uniform, it just transforms everything from the way I walk to the way I just approach a scene, so that sort of helps. It is a real costume. Coming from theater, that allows me entree into that role wherever I am. That’s sort of an easy “light switch” for me, I guess. It seems like Burgess has gone through a lot during her tenure on the show. Do also you see it that way? Oh, yes. I’ve been shot. I’ve been engaged. I’m breaking up. There’s nothing that hasn’t been thrown at Burgess. I think that’s exactly right. All of us have this sort of inner turmoil and outer turmoil, and every day, we have to face our jobs. It’s that human element that Dick (executive producer Dick Wolf) brings to his shows that makes these heroes real as well. They’re facing very real challenges as well as very unreal things that we would never experience, like running into a fire or running after someone who’s shooting a gun at you, so I think that makes it sort of just very human.
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How is it to be out filming on location during a Chicago winter? I will say that it does require me as an actor to sort of double down on that day’s scene because ... just every synapse freezes. Every artistic notion freezes, and you’re just kind of going on instinct. I like to know those lines just a little bit better, so I can focus a little less on the cold.
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CELEBRITY George Dickie’s Q&A
Craig Ferguson
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of ‘Join or Die With Craig Ferguson’ Thursday on Histor y
Is it true the ‘Join or Die’ tattoo on your forearm was meant as an expression of your patriotism when you became a U.S. citizen?
Is it true the ‘Join or Die’ tattoo on your forearm was meant as an expression of your patriotism when you became a U.S. citizen? Absolutely. Tattoos, and I’ve got a bunch of them, they’re the end result, they’re kind of like a scar. Like I go through a process and I end it (claps hands) with a tattoo. Like, my children are born, I get a tattoo. I get married, I get a tattoo. It wasn’t in that order, by the way. You know, my father died, I got a tattoo. My mother died, I got a tattoo. So there is a process which I had gone through in order to get it. So this one fit with what we were talking about. It had a personal historical significance and an actual historical significance. So it seemed like a good name and a good visual, arresting image and kind of a rallying cry for the show.
Absolutely. Tattoos, and I’ve got a bunch of them, they’re the end result, they’re kind of like a scar. Like I go through a process and I end it (claps hands) with a tattoo. Like, my children are born, I get a tattoo. I get married, I get a tattoo. It wasn’t in that order, by the way. You know, my father died, I got a tattoo. My mother died, I got a tattoo. So there is a process which I had gone through in order to get it. So this one fit with what we were talking about. It had a personal historical significance and an actual historical significance. So it seemed like a good name and a good visual, arresting image and kind of a rallying cry for the show.
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CELEBRITY George Dickie’s Q&A
Samantha Bee of ‘Full Frontal W ith Samantha Bee’ Monday on TBS
Was there a mission statement or guiding principle that Jon had for the show? I wouldn’t say that ... . I mean, the one thing that he did always say was, “explore your passions.” Like, if you want to explore something, he gave us a lot of space to do the kinds of stories that we wanted to do. And especially me toward the end. Everybody knew the kinds of stories that I really like to do.
A lot of viewers had a lump in their throat watching your farewell episode on “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart.” I did too. I cried and cried. Because it was so formative. It was incredibly meaningful to me and I so didn’t want them to do a goodbye for me ... like I’m that person who goes out of a party, who just tries to disappear from a party. And I cried for weeks. Even though I knew I was leaving and I knew why I was leaving and I didn’t regret leaving and it was a good decision, I just needed to cry it out for a long time, just to feel that sense of moving on. It was really tough; that part was really tough. It was super emotional. Page 6 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote February 21 - 27, 2016
Such as? He always was very helpful and really steered us in the right direction for convention coverage, which was really important, and he gave us so much freedom to go and cover those things that we just spent days and days and days on the convention room floor, and he was appreciative of that and we had a lot of freedom to do that. And sort of toward the end, I explored a lot of pieces that had content that was very challenging ... . What was the typical reaction you would get at political conventions? They didn’t love us (laughs). It wasn’t pleasurable. Nobody really liked talking to us, but they did still talk to us. Those were not pleasure cruises. That wasn’t like a laugh a minute for people.
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FOOD George Dickie’s What's for Dinner
Ditching a finance career for
F
‘Kocktails W ith Khloe’
In the category of people who chucked a career in high finance for one in food prep, there is Sharone Hakman. The 34-year-old Los Angeles native and chef in residence on FYI’s Wednesday dinner party series “Kocktails With Khloe” was a financial planner at the end of the last decade when the meltdown of 2008-09 hit. Whatever passion he had left for his work was wiped out just like so many portfolios. “I just had no love for the banks and financial institutions I spent my life working for and with and was recommending to my clients. So I could not get behind it anymore,” the self-taught chef explains. “And food was something that I always loved to do. It was something that I was always very passionate about. It was just so pure and simple in its way. Click or It’s just good food. If you make good food, you’re going to put a smile on someone’s face and there’s something beautiful about it and there’s something just magical about food putting people together and making people happy.”
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fyi
Which is exactly what he’s doing these days on “Khloe.” As the chef on the hourlong series, he’s charged with designing and preparing the food and drink that in turn fuels much of the candid conversation among host Khloe Kardashian, her guests and at times Hakman himself. But while all guests are driven to the show’s Los Angeles set, Hakman reports that some are nonetheless leery of taking a drink while the cameras roll. “At first, they’re quite reluctant,” he says, “and sort of perplexed by the fact that there is actually a real cocktail in front of them and they’re encouraged to drink it and have a good time. And so it’s always really funny to me because we’re a few episodes in and I see their immediate reactions. At first it’s like, ‘I don’t know if I really want to be doing this.’ And then 20 minutes later, they’ve had a couple and they’re having a great time and they’re like, ‘Oh s..., this is great!’ And that’s exactly what I signed up for.”
What book are you currently reading? “It’s ‘The Meaning of Human Existence.’ ... I literally started it last month, got into a chapter and then put it down and have not had a chance to get back in.”
What did you have for dinner last night? “I made the kids dinner and I was going to make myself something different, and I got lazy and I ended up eating their dinner, which was pappardelle with like a kale pesto that I made with pine nuts and some sausage.”
What is your next project? “I’ve got a line of salad dressings that is launching next month. That’s already pretty much done, locked and loaded. And then around Q2-Q3 of this year, we’re coming out with a line of ready-to-go, cooked proteins that you basically tear out of a bag and they’re ready to go. And they’re all grass-fed, very clean.”
When was the last vacation you took, where and why? “I actually just got back from one last month for the new year. I went to New York with my kids for a couple of days, which was awesome, my wife and kids, and we had a blast. ... And from there we spent a week – I rented a house on the beach in St. Maarten in the Caribbean and we just spent the week on the beach just relaxing.”
February 21 - 27, 2016 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote Page 7
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CELEBRITY Jay Bobbin’s Celebrity ScooP
Amanda Peet
She’s a writer herself now, but Amanda Peet still doesn’t mind putting herself in the creative hands of others when she’s playing a role. Familiar from many films including “Something’s Gotta Give” and “2012,” she begins her second season as the fiercely funny, edgy and independent Tina – “a tragic trainwreck,” as another character describes her, who finds shelter and near-constant acceptance with her married sister Michelle (Melanie Lynskey) – when brothers Mark and Jay Duplass’ HBO comedy series “Togetherness” starts its second season Sunday, Feb. 21. “As a whole, the movie-star thing has passed me by,” the goodhumored Peet reflects, “so for me to be working with people who are so talented, and whose style of working is so well-matched to mine, I feel like I won the lottery. Honestly. “To me, (Tina) was very strong on the page and very delineated (by the Duplasses, with Mark also a star of the show), but they love improv. Even if we are begging them to go back to the scripts, they still want us to go ‘off the rails,’ as they say. It’s very exciting, we have a lot of fun, and it’s incredibly collaborative.” Having written a play (“The Commons of Pensacola”) and a children’s book (“Dear Santa, Love, Rachel Rosenstein”) in recent years, Peet reasons that pursuit “better articulates” who she is, “both intellectually and creatively. It’s been satisfying in a much deeper and broader way than acting has been for me.” That said, Peet adds she “very much” enjoys playing the “Togetherness” writing of the Duplass siblings, “letting go and letting them steer ... but when I’m writing, it’s really fun to switch positions.” Peet allows that now that she’s also writing, it generates interesting moments at home: She’s married to David Benioff, a creator (for television), writer and executive producer of HBO’s hugely popular “Game of Thrones.” She got considerable attention last year for claiming – jokingly, presumably – that she’d divorce him if he killed off the character Jon Snow, but she notes Benioff is “so prolific, he doesn’t really respond to the idea of writer’s block. He always has told me over the years that what makes the difference between a writer and a non-writer is finishing. And you know what my response is? ‘F... you.’ ” Page 8 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote February 21 - 27, 2016
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CELEBRITY CelebritY profile
Alex Guarnaschelli
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- She is the daughter of esteemed cookbook editor Maria Guarnaschelli and John, an Italian and Chinese cooking enthusiast.
- In 1991, she graduated from Barnard College with a B.A. in art history. - She knew she wanted to become a chef after working in a kitchen for about six months after college. Having made the decision to pursue that as a career, she moved to Burgundy, France for a work study program at a culinary school called La Verne. - After school and traveling throughout France, she moved to Paris to begin a four day stage at the Michelin three-star restaurant Guy Savoy. Four days turned into four years with Guarnaschelli rapidly being promoted to sous chef at La Butte Chaillot, another Savoy establishment.
Alex Guarnaschelli is a celebrity chef and TV personality who can currently be seen as a mentor in “All-Star Academy” on Food Network. - After seven successful years in France, she returned stateside and worked both in New York City and Los Angeles. - In 2003, she became the executive chef at Butter Restaurant, where she creates her own eclectic American and green market-inspired menu. - In 2007, she gave birth to her daughter Ava. - In 2012, she bested nine rival chefs to win “The Next Iron Chef: Redemption” and joined the ranks of Kitchen Stadium Iron Chefs. - In 2013, she released her premiere cookbook, “Old-School Comfort Food: The Way I Learned to Cook.” - She is a Food Network staple and has been a recurring judge on the popular primetime series “Chopped” and “Iron Chef America,” a mentor on “All-Star Academy” and has been featured on her own shows, “The Cooking Loft” and “Alex’s Day Off,” to name a few.
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CELEBRITY
“Everybody acts like – I love this – ‘Well, maybe the announcers can hold the audience.’ Listen, you know and I know that is so not true. Nobody’s a bigger fan than me. I’m not going to hang onto a telecast, ‘Oh, I’m going to hang in here in this 35-0 game to hear what they’re going to say.’ It’s over. So I might keep watching but it’s not going to be because of the announcer.” – Phil Simms, seen recently on CBS’ coverage of Super Bowl 50, on calling a blowout
“I had to start on an ambulance, and then, I got to do some ridealongs on a fire truck. That was pretty cool. We also got a firsthand look at what these guys do, because we were literally standing to the side, watching them do their job … so it was really informative and helpful to draw from that.” – Monica Raymund, of “Chicago Fire” on NBC, about her initial prep to play firefighter Dawson
Page 10 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote February 21 - 27, 2016
“It’s hard to believe that it was over a year ago that I put out my first record. When I found out I was nominated, it reminded me of all the cool things that have happened. It’s hard to appreciate it at the time, but being nominated really helped me appreciate what it took to get to the point of being worthy of that.” – Sam Hunt, seen recently on The 58th Annual Grammy Awards on CBS, about his recent nominations for two of the honors
CELEBRITY
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ON DVRs
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Bobby Cannavale of “Vinyl” on HBO
‘Bordertown.’ I just started recording that because I knew I was going to be out here and I wasn’t going to be home so I didn’t want to miss any of that. And ‘Family Guy.’ And ‘Seinfeld.’ My lady loves ‘Seinfeld’ and I like to have it just in case we’re like, ‘let’s just watch something,’ and, boom, I’ve got ‘Seinfeld.’
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Megan Mullally of “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute to James Burrows” and “You, Me and the Apocalypse” on NBC “ ‘The Leftovers,’ ‘Transparent,’ ‘Master of None,’ ‘Fargo’ ... and ‘You, Me and the Apocalypse,’ of course. And I’ve been living for ‘The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.’ ”
Barbara Hershey of “Damien” on A&E Network “Of course, ‘Game of Thrones’ I’m crazy about, and ‘The Knick’ I’m crazy about. And ‘Ray Donovan.’ Those three I’m nuts for. But I’m sure there are others I would be if I saw them. I just haven’t.”
Amanda Peet of “Togetherness” on HBO “ ‘Game of Thrones’ (of which Peet’s husband, David Benioff, is a writer and executive producer), and we all watch ‘Adventure Time’ ... then ’Getting On,’ ‘Veep,’ ‘The Last Man on Earth,’ ‘Seinfeld,’ ‘The New Adventures of Old Christine,’ ‘PBS NewsHour,’ ‘Charlie Rose,’ ‘Transparent,’ and anything with Sarah Paulson.”
February 21 - 27, 2016 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote Page 11
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STORY
The “Full House” gang moves on in Netflix sequel series
John Stamos and Jodie Sweetin star in “Fuller House,” debuting Friday on Netflix. Story on next page
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STORY
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Netflix’s ‘Fuller House’ brings the Tanners back to television The sequel series “Fuller House” debuts Friday on Netflix.
Click or tap on icon for more! By Jay Bobbin The situation is the same, but the characters ... well, actually, they haven’t changed all that much. One of the most popular shows in ABC’s “TGIF” comedy lineup during its 1987-95 run, “Full House” gets the chance to maintain not only the same feel but the same day as Netflix brings back the Tanner family with all 13 first-season episodes of the sequel series “Fuller House” Friday, Feb. 26. While original stars John Stamos (also an executive producer), Bob Saget, Dave Coulier and Lori Loughlin will appear, the focus is on younger returnees: Candace Cameron Bure, Jodie Sweetin and Andrea Barber, whose D.J., Stephanie and Kimmy Gibbler unite to raise the newly widowed D.J.’s three sons – one of whom, in a definite nod to “Full House,” is played by twins (though Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen are absent from the new show). “Full House” creator Jeff Franklin wrote the “Fuller House” premiere and says he “wanted to create an episode that was for the fans ... in essence, almost the last episode of ‘Full House’ that we never got to do, and really something that was going to make the fans happy, that was going to be full of nostalgia. Those fans know the show inside and out, probably better than I do. They’ve watched 192 episodes over and over and over for over 25 years, so we wanted to combine that with setting up the new show.” Bure admits that reprising the role of D.J., who’s now a veterinarian, was “extremely overwhelming. I walked onto the sound stage with Jeff for the first time, and I had
to pause and stop and take more than a few moments, because the emotions really got to me. I was just crying because I was flooded with so many memories, but I also remember the first table reading when we sat down together as a cast with all of the producers and the writers, then heard the words come to life. It was just like we never skipped a beat, and I think that was a reassuring feeling because we were like, ‘OK. This is going to work.’ ” Another indication of “Fuller House’s” new-yet-familiar sensibility is a revision of the original theme song, “Everywhere You Look,” performed by Carly Rae Jepsen (following her recent stint in Fox’s “Grease: Live”) and Butch Walker. Returning executive producer Robert L. Boyett credits Nick at Nite repeats of “Full House” with helping to keep the show popular enough to generate a “Fuller House,” which also meets Netflix’s mandate to “double down” (per the streaming service’s content chief, Ted Sarandos) on original fare suitable for all ages. “I think there’s an appetite for family programming again,” Boyett reasons. “We went through that phase of families watching television together when they had one television in the home, and then when every kid had a television in their bedroom, things changed. Now, families are, I think, looking for an opportunity to spend time together. “This (cast) is a family of people that has stayed close all through the years, and that comes through on the screen,” adds Boyett. “If that were not there, I don’t think we would be doing the show.”
February 21 - 27, 2016 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote Page 13
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STORY
Megan Mullally talks about being spoiled by the veteran sitcom director
Megan Mullally participates in Sunday’s new NBC special “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute to James Burrows.”
Story on next page
Page 14 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote February 21 - 27, 2016
STORY
NBC special
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gives ‘All-Star’ salute to comedy-directing titan James Burrows By Jay Bobbin When it comes to the most popular comedies in television history, many roads lead to James Burrows. Widely regarded as the king among directors in the genre, the 10-time Emmy winner has put his imprint on such series as “Cheers,” “Taxi,” “Will & Grace,” “Friends,” “Frasier,” “Two and a Half Men” and “The Big Bang Theory.” Stars of many of the shows gather to honor him in the new, two-hour NBC special “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute to James Burrows” Sunday, Feb. 21. The salute’s title offers a nod to the slogan formerly used for the network’s Thursday-night lineup, when it was sitcomdriven and encompassed many Burrows-guided shows. “Will & Grace” was one of them for most of its eight-season run; also among its executive producers, Burrows directed all of its nearly 200 episodes. Someone who surely has benefited from his skills is Megan Mullally, who won two Emmy Awards as “Will’s” high-strung and literally high-pitched Karen Walker. She reunited with co-stars Eric McCormack and Sean Hayes at the event taped last month in Los Angeles (Debra Messing was unable to attend, due to that weekend’s East Coast snowstorm), and she says the evening was a delight because “we all love Jimmy so much. “They kept saying during the show that he’s everyone’s father figure, and it’s so true. I never thought of that in those exact terms, but that’s 100-percent what it is. And his speech at the end was just, ‘Get out your handkerchiefs.’ It was funny and incredibly moving. He’s a man who says what he means and means what he says, so any speech he gives is going to be great.” Mullally also enjoyed being among “the casts of the various shows. That was pretty cool. I was so into the ‘Taxi’ section; when they showed the clips from that show and those people all ambled up there, it made me want to go back and re-watch it. And I thought the ‘Friends’ cast was amazing.
The veteran sitcom director is honored in Sunday’s new NBC special “Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute to James Burrows.” They were up last, and they did a really beautiful, eloquent job of summing up and paying tribute to Jimmy.” The upcoming NBC show “Crowded” – starring Carrie Preston (“The Good Wife”) and Patrick Warburton (“Rules of Engagement”) – will mark the 1,000th sitcom episode Burrows has directed, part of the inspiration for the televised tribute to him. Currently co-starring in NBC’s “You, Me and the Apocalypse” (in a role that she says “tests all of my abilities as an actress”), Mullally reasons that she was “so spoiled” during her years under Burrows’ weekly guidance. “One of the things I loved,” she reflects of the special, “was that everybody said how consistent he’s been through the years in the manner he’s directed all these great shows. He’s extremely hands-off when it comes to directing people, if he’s got the right actors. He’ll just give you a word or two, then he trusts that you’ll take it, run with it and make it your own. He gives you the freedom to create the character and expand on it, and really allow it to breathe and change and grow. “After (‘Will & Grace’), I went on, and other directors would be bombarding me with notes ... and I’d be like, ‘Aw, man. Jimmy never gave me any notes.’ ”
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February 21 - 27, 2016 YOUR TV LINK Courtesy of Gracenote Page 15
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STORY
PBS documentary examines the pros and cons of ‘Big Data’ By George Dickie
Click or tap on icon for more! The new PBS documentary “The Human Face of Big Data,” about pervasive data collection and what that could mean for our lives and future, is alternately heartening and disturbing but always fascinating.
more effective treatments for disease or using the GPS locations of individual motorists to track traffic patterns and reroute cars to open roads, in essence turning your iPhone into an individual sensor in a global nervous system.
The hourlong film, premiering Wednesday, Feb. 24 (check local listings), examines the promises and perils of this unstoppable force that is sweeping through our lives.
But of course, that data can also be used for more nefarious purposes. An insurance company can deny coverage to a person with a high likelihood for developing diabetes later in life or a police department can issue a ticket to a driver whose GPS app indicated they were speeding.
Most everything we do and say these days is gathered and recorded, and it’s put out there mainly by two devices that most consider indispensable parts of their lives: cellphones and personal computers. So anything we search for on the Internet, any text message, email, place we go, item we buy or website we visit is recorded and stored somewhere. And that can be a good or a bad thing. “One of my big concerns right now,” executive producer Rick Smollen says, “is it seems like … it’s mostly governments and large corporations who see how unbelievably powerful this new ability to collect data about what’s happening in the world is going to be for controlling people, for selling people and for the worlds of business and politics. “So I think the average person is paying no attention at all and thinks this doesn’t really matter ... . No one is thinking about things that are being put in place that are going to affect generations of humanity. And I think right now is when we need to be actually figuring out how we want this all to work and who’s going to control it.” The film looks at some of the more virtuous uses of big data, such as the digitizing of the human genome to target
Yes, Big Brother is indeed watching and he’s remembering everything he sees. But there’s good news, the film asserts: We can be masters of our digital destiny. But there has to be rules. “One of the questions people have when I talk to them about big data is, ‘Isn’t this just like another iterative stage? It’s a nice, cool improvement but it’s not like earth-shaking, not like the invention of the microprocessor,’ ” Smollen says. “And my argument is this is actually much bigger. You sort of need to have the microprocessor to get the computer. You need the computer to have the Internet. You need the Internet to have big data. And you need all of these things to be in place. And it’s almost like we’re watching the planet evolve a nervous system. It’s really fascinating to think this is the way cities are coming alive. ...” “But this world of data and sensors as it’s becoming almost free and instant, is giving us a real-time feedback loop that hopefully will allow us to address some of these huge challenges that we’re facing.”
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STORY
Disneyland
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marks its 60th birthday in ABC special
Derek Hough hosts the new special “The Wonderful World of Disney: Disneyland 60” Sunday on ABC. By Jay Bobbin “The Happiest Place on Earth” is the reason Walt Disney got into television. When the family-entertainment mogul was seeking funding to develop his theme park Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., one of his methods of acquiring needed financing was to develop a series for ABC titled – of all things – “Disneyland.” The network became a co-owner of the site and broadcast the July 1955 opening ceremonies live, so it’s entirely fitting that ABC also will show a two-hour “Disneyland 60” anniversary special as a “Wonderful World of Disney” offering Sunday, Feb. 21. “Dancing With the Stars” dance pro Derek Hough will host the show, partially a celebration from Hollywood’s Dolby Theater featuring Sir Elton John (who composed songs for Disney’s “The Lion King”) among the musical performers. Other segments offer Harrison Ford previewing a “Star Wars”-related portion of the park, and Josh Gad (alias the voice of Olaf in the animated Disney feature “Frozen”) touring rarely seen areas of Disneyland ... like the private apartment Walt Disney had there. If the 60th anniversary gala seems a few months late, consider that Disneyland is continuing to mark the occasion this year through Labor Day, encompassing a “Paint the Night” Parade and a “Disneyland Forever” fireworks display. Technology plays a big role in the happenings at Disneyland, but in fact, it always has. Consider that Tomorrowland, the park section that inspired last year’s George Clooney-starring Disney movie, existed there from the start – and animatronic wonders certainly have fueled such attractions as
“Pirates of the Caribbean” and “The Haunted Mansion,” also the sources of Disney feature films. The “Disneyland 60” special is bound to be much slicker than the Ronald Reagan-co-hosted ABC telecast that showcased the park’s grand opening, which was marked by technical gaffes and crushing crowds. The situation prompted Disney to try a non-televised do-over the next day, and ever since, Disneyland has been one of America’s most popular destinations for family fun ... joined in later years by Florida’s Walt Disney World (plus other similar locations in Paris, Shanghai and Hong Kong). Long an NBC staple, the “Wonderful World of Disney” banner has been deployed by ABC only occasionally in recent years, a December telecast of “Mary Poppins” being the last time. Since Disneyland has been a giant part of that “wonderful world” for six decades, a salute to the place and the joy it has given millions of visitors surely is in order for the umbrella title’s latest use.
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SPORTS
Determined at Daytona Story on next page
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SPORTS
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By Dan Ladd Nothing would be more satisfying to Kyle Busch then to begin the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup season the way he ended 2015; in first place. Three months ago Busch won his first Sprint Cup Series championship and seeks to win NASCAR’s biggest race, the Daytona 500, which airs Sunday, Feb. 21 on Fox. Busch has two, top-ten finishes at the 500, including a fourth place finish in 2009. He also won the Coke Zero 400, a summer night race at Daytona, in 2006, so success hasn’t been entirely elusive. He would, however, like to forget the 2015 race which he missed due to an injury sustained the day prior in the Xfinity Series race. The injury caused Busch to miss the first eleven races of the Sprint Cup Series season. He came back strong at one point winning four out of five events, including three straight at Kentucky, New Hampshire and the Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis. This success, coupled with a number of top-ten finishes down the stretch, placed Busch in the final four and he not only visited Victory Lane on the last race of the season in Homestead, Florida but also hoisted the championship trophy.
Full Name: Kyle Thomas Busch Born: May 2, 1985 Birthplace: Las Vegas, Nevada Size: 6 foot 1 inches, 165-pounds Team: Joe Gibbs Racing No.: 18 Car: Toyota Camry
Honors and Acheivements: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion, 2015; Xfinity Series Champion, 2009; NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Rookie of the Year, 2005; Busch Series Rookie of the Year, 2004
Daytona International Speedway, meanwhile, has undergone some changes including an expansion which allows the “stadium” as it is now called to accommodate 125,000 spectators. Most of the track itself has been upgraded with SAFER (steel-and-foam energy reduction) barriers on both the inside and outside walls, something that track officials vowed to do in the wake of Busch’s crash.
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MOVIES JAY BOBBIN's Theatrical movie review
review
Agony of Keanu Reeves movie is
‘Exposed’ One thing that must be said about Keanu Reeves: He’s gotten quite good at zigging when you might think he’ll zag. The actor has made a lot of unpredictable moves in his career, often following hits with quirkier films that are anything but surefire audience bets. For every “Point Break,” “Speed” or “The Matrix,” he’s made a “47 Ronin,” “The Watcher” or “A Scanner Darkly.” To a degree, you have to admire him for going his own way despite what the box office would seem to dictate, and Reeves has done it again. After receiving some of his best reviews in a while for his image-busting thriller “Knock Knock,” he’s tackled another movie that it’s not easy to get your arms around. “Exposed” is a police thriller that starts out being on the order of other pictures Reeves has done, notably ‘Street Kings,’ but it ends up taking turns that can be considered either challenging or frustrating. He plays a police detective who seeks the killer of his partner ... which is about as straightforward and time-tested a cop plot as you can get, but that intersects with another story, and that’s where “Exposed” tests characters and viewers alike. A woman – played by Ana de Armas, reuniting with Reeves from the aforementioned “Knock Knock,” but to much less effect here – is convinced that she is being
watched over by angels, to the extent that she becomes pregnant after losing her soldier fiance. Enter Reeves. Could he be one of her guardian angels? Can she help him solve the crime he’s investigating? Will you have the patience to learn the answers to these and other not-so-burning questions? It’s not likely. Other good performers such as Mira Sorvino and Christopher McDonald turn up in the course of “Exposed,” but the result is a stunning mishmash ... and it’s little wonder, given its history. The film reportedly was taken out of the hands of its writer-director, who has disowned it, and re-edited by the studio to play up the Reeves story line more. That’s almost always a recipe for disaster. Pretty much the only reason “Exposed” didn’t go straight to home video is the marketability of Reeves’ name. There’s always the chance someone will pay to see anything he’s in – and those who pay to see “Exposed” have to be the most ardent Reeves fans around. For others? It could well be on video by the time you read the last word of this review.
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MOVIES
This Week’s Top New DVD Releases we couldn’t wait to share! THE
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MUST SEE LIST
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BY JAY BOBBIN
“SPOTLIGHT”
A superb ensemble cast delivers this Oscar-nominated drama which traces the investigation by several Boston Globe reporters that ultimately uncovered a longconcealed child-molestation scandal within the Catholic Church ... and reverberations that prove to be not just local, but global. (Rated R)
3“THE GOOD DINOSAUR”
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“SECRET IN THEIR EYES”
This melodrama teams Oscar winners Julia Roberts and Nicole Kidman as members of an investigation team whose mutual work ended tragically with the murder of the Roberts character’s daughter. (Rated PG-13)
This entertaining-for-all-ages Disney-Pixar feature is about the bond forged between a dinosaur and a youngster who end up saving each other, in both the literal and figurative senses ... and more than once with hearttugging moments and gentle history lessons. (Rated PG)
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“I SMILE BACK”
Sarah Silverman tackles a dramatic role of a troubled woman whose life is at loose ends, largely by her own doing, reaches a crisis point and has to decide whether she can straighten herself out enough to preserve her family. (Rated R)
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FAVORITE SHOWS
Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny star in “The X-Files”
Paget Brewster stars in “Grandfathered”
SUNDAY 8:30 p.m. on FOX Cooper Barrett’s Guide to Surviving Life Cooper (Jack Cutmore-Scott) and others fear that Barry’s (James Earl) new romance is moving too quickly in the new episode “How to Survive Your Roommate’s Girlfriend.” Josh (Justin Bartha) tries to look better than a co-worker in others’ eyes, but problems result. Meaghan Rath, Charlie Saxton and Liza Lapira also star. New
Gordon Ramsay hosts “Hell’s Kitchen”
MONDAY 8 p.m. on FOX The X-Files The limited-run revival of the series ends with “My Struggle II,” written and directed by the show’s creator, Chris Carter. When a mass illness befalls America and sets off a nationwide panic, Scully (Gillian Anderson) becomes the key to solving the crisis. Mulder (David Duchovny) pursues the person he believes to be behind it, but someone both sleuths know eventually resurfaces as a major factor. Annabeth Gish reprises her role from the first series. Season Finale New
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James Earl in “Cooper Barrett’s Guide to Surviving Life”
TUESDAY 8:30 p.m. on FOX Grandfathered Jimmy and Sara (John Stamos, Paget Brewster) reunite as a couple, supposedly in name only, in the new episode “The Boyfriend Experience.” He agrees to pose as her beau at another ex-flame’s party, where he realizes he still may have deeper feelings for her. Gerald and Vanessa (Josh Peck, Christina Milian) fear they aren’t equipped to handle Edie (Emelia and Layla Golfieri), who begins acting up. Michael Trucco (“Battlestar Galactica”) guest stars. New
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FAVORITE SHOWS WEDNESDAY 9:01 p.m. on FOX Hell’s Kitchen The series’ former sous chef, Andi Van Willigan, returns on a personal mission in the new episode “11 Chefs Compete.” She’s getting married, and the teams have to prepare six dishes for her wedding reception. The winners get to go zip-lining in Las Vegas and spend a lavish night at Caesars Palace, while the others have to deal with a lot of macaroni. The dinner service also is tied to Andi’s happy occasion, with her friends and relatives being catered to. Gordon Ramsay hosts. New
FRIDAY 8 p.m. on ABC Last Man Standing Patricia Richardson, formerly Tim Allen’s “wife” on “Home Improvement,” returns to reunite with him in the new episode “Tanks for the Memories.” Her widowed character is sought out by Mike (Allen) for her late husband’s collection of miniature tanks — and when he learns she’s sold it to someone else, he takes drastic measures to make it his anyway. Kristin and Ed (Amanda Fuller, Hector Elizondo) are dismayed by an incognito critic’s review of the restaurant. New
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SATURDAY 8:30 p.m. on ABC NBA Basketball A possible preview of the Western Conference Finals goes down tonight at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, where Kevin Durant and the Northwest-leading Thunder hope to come away with a win over Stephen Curry and the Pacific-leading Golden State Warriors in these teams’ second meeting of the year. The Thunder are incredibly dominant at home, losing there only five times in 29 games as of early February. The problem is the defending champion Warriors are dominant everywhere, losing only four times — total — all season.
THURSDAY 9:01 p.m. on CBS Mom The new episode “Sticky Hands and a Walk on the Wild Side” has a particularly literal title, since it involves Christy and Bonnie (Anna Faris, Allison Janney) getting their hands dirty as they try to transport a certain something over the Canadian border without attracting authorities’ attention. Jill and Wendy (Jaime Pressly, Beth Hall) try to help them in their quest. Mimi Kennedy also stars. New 10 p.m. on BBC Prey Former “Life on Mars” co-stars John Simm and Philip Glenister re-team for this new six-episode thriller that unfolds as two threepart police cases being investigated by Detective Sgt. Susan Reinhardt (Rosie Cavaliero, “A Young Doctor’s Notebook”). The first finds her on the trail of Detective Constable Marcus Farrow (Simm), who has been framed for the murder of his wife and son; the second, prison official Dave Murdoch (Glenister) who inexplicably helped an inmate escape. Series Premiere New
Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Golden State Warriors
Amanda Fuller stars in “Last Man Standing”
Anna Faris stars in “Mom”
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