PBS Primetime Programming for the Week of November 11

In a few short weeks I'm going to no longer be in my twenties.  It's scary, but it's true.  I liked my twenties.  They were a good decade and provided me with much amusement.  Oh, sure, there were hard times and upset, but I persevered.  I fought through them and managed to succeed in Imagineer Quest 2007.  What more could one ask of a decade than that?

Sunday, November 11:

8:00 – 9:00PM

Nature – “The Cheetah Orphans.”   After two cheetahs are orphaned a documentary filmmaker just happens to adopt them.  He plans on returning them to the wild, but he will he or will he grow too attached?  Either way, he'll be able to make a film about it and pocket some change. 

9:00 – 10:00PM

Masterpiece Theatre – “The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard – Episode 4”.  I must tell you, I'm quite excited for this.  This show is all about Ros Pritchard (Jane Horrocks), some how or other this fine woman ends up running for Parliament and ends up winning.  What's more though is that her party ends up with a majority, and she becomes Prime Minister.  Oh yes, it's true (in a fictionalized sense).

10:00 – 11:00PM

Art in the Twenty-First Century – “Ecology”.  Did you know that Ursula von Rydingsvard works primarily with cedar to create large-scale structures?  Well, she does.  Other people do other things that deal with art and ecology.  This show explores Ursula von Rydingsvard and some of those others. 

Monday, November 12:

8:00 – 9:00PM

Antiques Roadshow – “Milwaukee (Hour Three).” Wow, Milwaukee.  This brand-spanking new episode has the show going to the land of beer.  I imagine that's what people bring in too, old beer that no one really wants to drink.  I promise you people, in at least one of these three episodes beer will come up.  Wanna bet? 

9:00 – 10:30PM

Billy Crystal:  the Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize.  I like that Billy Crystal guy.  He seems funny and nice.  Not all New Yorkers are nice, but that Billy seems quite nice.  Maybe that's why they're giving him an award.  You know what that means, I'll be next because I'm the other nice New Yorker.

10:30 – 11:00PM

Georgia Aquarium:  Keepers of the Deep.  Technically, this aquarium, which opened in 2005 is the largest in the world.  Sadly for them, unlike the aquarium I went to a couple of weeks ago, Star Trek IV didn't film there.  Thus, it will never be any better than number two in my heart.

Tuesday, November 13:

8:00 – 10:00PM

Nova – “Judgment Day:  Intelligent Design on Trial”.   In 2004, a mere 3 years ago, the school board in a town in eastern Pennsylvania (not even western Pennsylvania) ordered its science teachers to teach intelligent design.  This theory suggests that because we're so very complicated evolution must have had some help on its way.  Bad things happened.  This two hour extravaganza gives the low-down on exactly what happened.    

10:00 – 11:30PM

Independent Lens – “Miss Navajo".  It's, more or less, a beauty contest.  The main stipulation:  you need to be Navajo to win.  The documentary tonight looks at the contest and follows stuff like sheep slaughtering.    

Wednesday, November 14:

8:00 – 9:00PM

Wired Science – “Episode 107”.  This week the show goes to Vermont.  Vermont!  Wow.  I had no idea that Vermont had technology.  I kid, I kid, even though they went there to see sensors placed on a bridge so that the bridge wouldn't collapse.      

9:00PM – 11:30PM

The War – “A World Without War.” The sixth part of Ken Burns’s six-years-in-the-making, 14-hour documentary looking at World War Two and the stories of people from four different areas of the United States: Waterbury Connecticut; Mobile, Alabama; Sacramento, California; and Luverne, Minnesota.

Thursday, November 15:

8:00 – 9:00PM

The This Old House Hour – Episode TBA. It’s This Old House and Ask This Old House. It’s like maintenance… for your home. Wait, no, that’s exactly what it is. That doesn’t mean it’s not awesome though. Seriously, The This Old House Hour is one of the finest home improvement hours on PBS. No joke.

9:00 – 10:00PM

Antiques Roadshow – “Milwaukee (Hour Three).” Wow, Milwaukee.  This brand-spanking new episode has the show going to the land of beer.  I imagine that's what people bring in too, old beer that no one really wants to drink.  I promise you people, in at least one of these three episodes beer will come up.  Wanna bet? 

10:00 – 11:00PM

The Everlasting Stream.  Finally!  It's what I've always wanted, a full hour that explores, in depth, the trip to the bathroom that Tom Hanks took during A League of Their Own.  Or, in reality, Walt Harrington, his in-laws, and friends tell stories about rabbit hunts. 

Friday, November 16:

8:00 – 8:30PM

Washington Week with Gwen Ifill and National Journal #4720. Another whole week has gone by and good old Gwen Ifill and National Journal are here to fill us in. For the record, I like to pretend the National Journal is a sidekick, like Robin to Batman, Starsky to Hutch, or chocolate sauce to chocolate ice cream.

8:30 – 9:00PM

NOW #346.  It’s the Emmy award-winning weekly newsmagazine. It looks at issues facing our democracy. The show is hosted by David Brancaccio. And, even better, they still send me e-mails (I think that makes me cool and them nice). Thanks, Now, you guys are awesome!

9:00 – 10:00PM

Bill Moyers Journal #1132. It’s Bill Moyers. It’s his 1,132nd journal (not really, but I’m not going to explain to you the way in which TV shows are numbered at this point in time, maybe later if you’re nice). He’s a good journalist so I assume this will be good journalism (at least the odds are it will).

10:00PM – 11:00PM

Do You Speak American? – "Hour Two".  In this series, journalist Robert MacNeil goes across the country to explore how Americans use language.  I tend to think that more often that not we abuse it, but that's just one of the things that MacNeil will be looking at.   

Saturday, November 17:

9:00 – 10:00PM

Austin City Limits – "Paolo Nutini/Grupo Fantasma ".  The U.K. sensation and Austin's own Grupo Fantasma do their thing.  Their "thing" is playing music.  One plays soulful pop, the other high-energy Latin funk.  I don't want to spoil it and tell you who does what.      

I have come up with a genius way of spending my thirtieth birthday.  I don't want to give it away just yet, when the time comes I'll tell you all about it, but for now, just know that it's awesome and it's round about the best way I can imagine for anyone to spend such a monumental day.  Frankly, I'm a little worried because I don't know how to top it all ten years from now.  Ideas people, I need ideas.