Memorial Day salute to McCain
Profile, tribute and premature obituary, “John McCain: For Whom the Bell Tolls” (8 p.m., HBO, TV-14) documents the sixterm Arizona senator’s life and career as well as his more recent struggle with inoperable brain cancer.
Even for a man who has run for president more than once, McCain’s life story is very well-known. An admiral’s son, a POW during the Vietnam War who faced torture and brutality during his six-year captivity and a senator who survived scandal to advocate for campaign finance reform, McCain maintains the bearing of a military man who puts honor and duty above all, describing it as “imperfect service to my country.”
“Bell” does not shy away from the kinds of stories most campaign biographies would avoid. We hear about McCain’s agony over the Keating scandal that besmirched his Senate career. It includes many clips of his first wife, Carol, whom he left for a younger woman some years after returning from Vietnam. His children from his first marriage also describe the pain of that divorce.
The film includes kind words from Senate colleagues and political friends and opponents from both parties, including Barack Obama, Joe Biden, former senator Joe Lieberman and former secretaries of state Henry Kissinger, Hillary Clinton and John Kerry.
Named after McCain’s favorite book, Ernest Hemingway’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” this film covers a great deal of recent history through the prism of the senator’s story. It also puts its subject in the somewhat awkward position of talking about himself and his life in the past tense (and in the third person). He only discusses his illness in the context of his long and eventful life, one that he recalls with gratitude, summing it up with, “You will never talk to anyone that is as fortunate as John McCain.”
VETERANS’ STORIES
To commemorate Memorial Day, “Independent Lens” (10 p.m., PBS) presents the documentary “Served Like a Girl,” following a group of female veterans transitioning to peacetime after tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
TRUE CRIME
The two-night true crime documentary “Dead North” (9 p.m., ID, TV-14) travels to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to follow Iron River Police Chief Laura Frizzo as she searches for a missing person and happens upon a suspected serial killer who leaves behind grim evidence of possible cannibalism.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
› Streaming today on Acorn are the 2008 PBS “Masterpiece Mystery!” presentation “Place of Execution” and the second season of “The Art Detectives.”
› The Vegas Golden Knights host the Washington Capitals in Game 1 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final (8 p.m., NBC).
› Fox serves up a two-hour helping of the just-canceled “Lucifer” (8 and 9 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
› Becca anticipates the arrival of her suitors on the 14th season premiere of “The Bachelorette” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
› The team unites to help Liv on the season finale of the recently renewed series “iZombie” (9 p.m., CW, TV-14).
› A severed head tops Holmes’ list of concerns on “Elementary” (10 p.m., CBS, TV-14).
› A grim discovery leads to a surprise arrest on “The Crossing” (10 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
› Directors discuss time travel on the finale of “James Cameron’s Story of Science Fiction” (10 p.m., AMC, TV-PG).
› Set in a SEAL team unit, “Six” (10 p.m., History, TV-MA) returns for a second season. Olivia Munn joins the cast.
› Former ABC correspondent Elizabeth Vargas (“20/20”) hosts the new series “A&E Investigates” (10 p.m., TV-14). First up: a look at cults and extreme beliefs.
› One day at a time on “Mom” (8 p.m., CBS, repeat, TV-14).
› A new secret about Krypton is revealed on “Supergirl” (8 p.m., CW, TV-14).
› A pastor drops the ball on “Man With a Plan” (8:30 p.m., CBS, repeat, TV-PG).
› Crescent City cliches abound on “NCIS: New Orleans” (9 p.m., CBS, repeat, TV-14).
Contact Kevin McDonough at kevin. tvguy@gmail.com.