Stars on Screen
Such an honor: Near the end of every year, one of the greatest cultural honors in the United States is given to those who have spent their lives contributing to the rich vitality that is American culture. Since 1978, the Kennedy Center Honors have been bestowed upon deserving artists in late November or early December, and this year’s honorees couldn’t be any more deserving of the recognition.
Unlike many other big-ticket awards ceremonies, the Kennedy Center Honors are not broadcast live. Instead, the star-studded gala, which was held on Dec. 3, broadcasts Tuesday, Dec. 26, on CBS. It features other performers and artists recognizing the honorees through tributes and performances; the honorees themselves do not perform.
So just who are the national icons being recognized this year? For people who watch a lot of TV, LL Cool J, who’s starred in “NCIS: Los Angeles” since 2009, will be a familiar face, and he’s being honored for his contributions to hip-hop music, while five-time Grammy winner Lionel Richie is also being recognized for the contributions that he’s made to the music industry.
Norman Lear, the man behind some of the 20th century’s most enduring sitcoms, including “All in the Family,” “The Jeffersons” and “Sanford and Son,” is also being recognized, along with seven-time Grammy winner Gloria Estefan and dance icon Carmen de Lavallade.
The televised gala is just one part of an event-filled weekend for the honorees, including a State Department dinner and a special luncheon, but this year’s Kennedy Center Honors included one fewer event than usual. The president and first lady typically host a reception for the honorees at the White House, but due to ongoing political tensions, the White House declined to participate in this year’s events to help prevent politics from overshadowing the achievements of the five honorees.
The Kennedy Center Honors gala broadcasts Tuesday, Dec. 26, on CBS.
No ‘Fear’: There are some changes in store for the upcoming fourth season of “Fear the Walking Dead,” but have no fear: they’re mostly additions, with one new actor, another sort-of-new actor and two new showrunners all boarding the AMC series, which returns sometime in 2018.
First up is Garret Dillahunt, who joins the prequel to the monstrously popular “The Walking Dead.” The veteran actor has starred in a broad range of genres, from comedy (“The Mindy Project,” “Raising Hope”) to western (“Deadwood”) to science fiction (“Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chroni-
cles”), but for now, his “Fear the Walking Dead” role is being kept tightly under wraps.
Meanwhile, “The Walking Dead” actor Lennie James (“Jericho”) has departed from that series, but he’s far from done with the franchise. He’s joined the cast of the prequel series, where he’ll be stepping right back into Morgan’s shoes and exploring the character from an entirely different angle.
It isn’t just on the screen that “Fear the Walking Dead” has some new faces, though. Dave Erickson, who created the spinoff and has served as showrunner for all three seasons, left at the conclusion of the most recent season. Taking his place are industry veterans Andrew Chambliss and Ian B. Goldberg, both of Hot whom Springs have National worked Park, on ABC’s Arkansas “Once Upon a Time,” among other series.
That’s four new faces (so far) for a fourth season of “Fear the Walking Dead.” Watch for the hit AMC series to return later in 2018.
Nicky, Ricky and done: Two kids’ series have reached their final tracks. Nickelodeon has pulled the plug on both “School of Rock” and “Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn,” but while it may be the end of the line for both series, at least they aren’t finished quite yet.
While neither has been renewed for additional seasons, both will continue to air new episodes into 2018. In “Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn’s” case, the fourth season will premiere sometime in the new year (no date is yet announced as of press time), hopefully giving that show’s fans a satisfying conclusion.
As for “School of Rock,” the series based on the 2003 Jack Black film of the same name is currently in its third season and will conclude sometime in the new year with a special one-hour episode.
“School of Rock” stars Tony Cavalero (“Hart of Dixie”) as a middle school teacher who persuades some of his students to form their own band, teaching them some valuable life lessons along the way, while “Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn” follows quadruplets and their parents as they get into — and out of — some pretty hilarious situations.
For fans of the two series, their cancellations can’t be good news, but there is a silver lining. Many shows get pulled without a chance to wrap up plotlines in a satisfying way, but with the advance notice here, that hopefully won’t be the case for “School of Rock” and “Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn.”