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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 5, 2018)
December 5, 2018 The Skanner Portland & Seattle Page 7 Arts & Entertainment TV Holiday Joy Means ‘Wonderful Life,’ Reba, Romance, Santa By Lynn Elber AP Television Writer LOS ANGELES — In need of a jolt of holiday joy? Or a comforting spot of romance or silliness or spirituality? Television has you cov- ered. There are classic old movies (“It’s a Won- derful Life”) and a sleigh full of new wannabes; Christmas carols galore; the majesty of the Mor- mon Tabernacle Choir; and, for New Year’s Eve homebodies, Manhat- tan’s Times Square ball drop among the possibil- ities. Here are some of the highlights to consider (all times EST): MOVIES: “The Christmas Chron- icles,” streaming now on Netflix. A scheme by a sister and brother (Dar- by Camp, Judah Lewis) to get videotape of Santa (Kurt Russell) in action turns into a wild Christ- mas Eve. Oliver Hud- son and Kimberly Wil- liams-Paisley also star. “Christmas at Pember- ley Manor,” 10 p.m. Sat- urday, Dec. 8, Hallmark. New York party planner Elizabeth Bennett (Jes- sica Lowndes) finds her plans for a small town’s holiday festival threat- ened by a billionaire (Mi- chael Rady) lacking good cheer. But, shades of Jane Austen, love may save the day. “Holiday Inn,” 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8, Turn- er Classic Movies. Fred Astaire and Bing Crosby star in this 1942 classic as entertainers who com- pete in romance. “Santa’s Boots,” 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8, Life- time. Holly (Megan Hilty) is trying to rescue her family’s department store and solve the mys- tery of the handsome Santa (Noah Mills) who bolted, leaving only a boot. “It’s a Wonderful Life,” 8 p.m. Monday, Dec. 24, NBC. Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed star in Frank Capra’s 1947 fa- ble about appreciating one’s life, whatever path it takes. Lionel Barry- more’s Mr. Potter and Henry Travers’ Clarence the angel are part of the journey. STOCKING STUFFERS “Great Performances: Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn — The Broadway Musical,” 8:30 p.m. Fri- day, Nov. 30, PBS. A stage Film cont’d from pg 6 edged driver in the face of their racial and class differences. The movie represents a bit of a de- parture for director Pe- ter Farrelly, whose name has long been associated with lowbrow comedies like Dumb and Dumber, Shallow Hal and There’s Something about Mary. The relatively-sophis- ticated “Green Book” proves to be far more reminiscent of “Driving Miss Daisy” (1989) than of Farrelly’s earlier bot- tom-feeding fare. In fact, ‘Green Book’ the palpable chemistry generated by co-stars Mahershala Ali and Vig- go Mortensen will not be forgotten by the Acade- my come Oscar season. A touching biopic with a timely universal mes- sage about brotherhood and tolerance. Excellent HHHH Rated PG-13 for vio- lence, mature themes, profanity, racial slurs, smoking and suggestive material only 6 shows left - tickets are going fast! dec. 7, 8, 9 & dec. 14, 15, 16 DISNEY CHANNEL/GUY D’ALEMA Stations and streaming services line up old favorites alongside new fare This image released by Freeform shows Francia Raisa, left, and Tyra Banks in a scene from “Life-Siz 2: A Christmas Eve,” airing on Sunday, Dec. 2, at 9:00 - 11:00 p.m. EST/PST on Freeform. adaptation of the 1942 movie features “White Christmas” and more of Berlin’s score. “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 6, ABC. Charles M. Schulz’s timeless crew is back in the 1965 special that finds Charlie Brown confronting the materi- alism of Christmas with the help of Linus and, less successfully, Lucy. “Ken Jeong Cracks Christmas,” Wednes- day, Dec. 12, BuzzFeed’s YouTube channel. The self-labeled holiday fa- natic explores holiday pop-culture myths and more with guests Angela Kinsey, Joel McHale and Harry Schum Jr. “Lidia Celebrates America: A Heartland Holiday Feast,” 9 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 18, PBS (check local listings). Re- nowned chef Lidia Bas- tianich hits the road to seek holiday inspiration from different cultures and regions. “A Home for the Holi- days: The 20th Anniver- sary,” 8 p.m., Friday, Dec. 21, CBS. The spotlight is again on adoptions of children in foster care, with families sharing their stories and mu- sic stars providing the soundtrack. “A Christmas Story Live!” 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 20, Fox. Maya Ru- dolph, Matthew Broder- ick and Jane Krakowski star in this repeat airing of the 2017 TV musical in- spired by the 1983 movie and a Broadway produc- tion. Andy Walken plays BB-gun loving Ralphie. SOUNDS OF THE SEASON “CMA Country Christ- mas,” 8 p.m. Monday, Dec. 10, ABC. Host Reba See TV on page 8
