Give thanks for ‘Anne of Green Gables’

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — There’s always NBC’s coverage of “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade” (9 a.m. Thursday), but American TV networks also seem more inclined than in the recent past to put additional family programming on air over the four-day Thanksgiving holiday period.

PBS got on board in 2016 with a new version of “Anne of Green Gables,” which is followed next week by a new, second installment, “Anne of Green Gables – The Good Stars” (8 p.m. Thursday, WQED-TV). (A third film, “Anne of Green Gables – Fire & Dew,” will debut in 2018.)

In “The Good Stars,” Anne Shirley (Ella Ballentine) turns 13 and finds her friendship with Gilbert (Drew Haytaoglu) growing. Martin Sheen (”The West Wing”) also stars as Matthew Cuthbert who is raising the orphaned Anne with his sister, Marilla (Sara Botsford).

Mr. Sheen described making the “Anne” films as complete joy.

“I didn’t have to chase anything around except a wild pig, I think, in one episode, and didn’t have to kill anybody,” he said during a PBS press conference at the Television Critics Association summer press tour in July. “Didn’t even have to threaten anyone. I mean, I thoroughly enjoyed every moment working on this film.”

This version of “Anne” contrasts with a darker take on Netflix, “Anne with an E.” PBS’s new “Anne” is more in keeping with the tone of the version of the story PBS aired in the mid-1980s that starred Megan Follows as the title character.

“It’s one of the consummate PBS shows, and it’s part of the American tradition,” said PBS vice president of programming and development Bill Gardner. “So the version that we did kind of kept with that. And as we try to bring in families to view things together and have that role in their family, this is the version that we liked.”

Ms. Ballantine said while this “Anne” is not overly dark it also doesn’t shy away from Anne’s past.

“In the first film of this, you do have flashbacks of Anne in the orphanage and her different homes that she’s lived in,” she said. “So you definitely do get her past being very dark. But I think what’s really great about it is that you see how it’s shaped her, but it’s very true to the novel in the sense that it doesn’t damage her. It’s not traumatizing.”

Ms. Ballantine said Kate Macdonald Butler, the granddaughter of “Anne” author Lucy Maud Montgomery, served as a producer on the film series.

“She was on set all the time making sure that we were staying true to the novel,” Ms. Ballantine said.

Other family-friendly programming debuting over the next week includes “The National Dog Show Presented by Purina” (12 p.m. Thursday); “Big Hero 6” (8 p.m. Monday, Disney Channel), a one-hour movie based on the 2014 Disney film; “Hey Arnold!: The Jungle

Movie” (7 p.m. Nov. 24, Nickelodeon), a two-hour movie that picks up where the TV series ended in 2004 and “DreamWorks Trolls Holiday” (8:30 p.m. Nov. 24, NBC), featuring the voices of Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake and Zooey Deschanel, reprising their rolls from the 2016 “Trolls” movie.

Locally, the “37th Annual WPXI Holiday Parade” airs at 9-11 a.m. Nov. 25 with Chris Jamison (”The Voice”) among the performers.

‘Dog’ gone

Despite attempts to find a new home for the critically well-liked, filmed-in-Pittsburgh comedy “Downward Dog” after it was canceled by ABC just before its first season ended in June, “Dog” cocreator Michael Killen acknowledged those efforts were unsuccessful.

Executive producer and Pittsburgh native Jimmy Miller did not respond to inquiries seeking comment.

Of regional interest

This week USA gave a straight-to-series order to an adaptation of the Philipp Meyer book “American Rust,” set in a small, Pennsylvania rustbelt town as seen through the eyes of the town sheriff.

This year AMC debuted a series based on Mr. Meyer’s “The Son,” which was written for television by Lee Shipman and Western Pennsylvania native Brian McGreevy (”Hemlock Grove”), who also developed “American Rust” for TV with Mr. Meyer. A USA Network publicist did not confirm a filming location for “American Rust” but said “Pittsburgh is definitely part of the discussion.”