THEATRICAL TREASURE
Will ‘Schmigadoon!’ have encore season?
You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: It was such a disappointment to all of us musical theater fans that the wonderful “Schmigadoon!” was canceled by Apple TV+ before season three (which had all of its songs already written!) could be filmed. Any chance it will be picked up by another network? It’s truly a theatrical treasure.
A: It was indeed a treasure as it built its stories around classic Broadway musical styles for two seasons, with an array of musical pros (Ariana DeBose, Alan Cumming and Kristin Chenoweth among them) joining stars Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key. But it was not necessarily going to draw a wide audience, as creator Cinco Paul said in a social media post after the cancellation that “It’s a miracle we even got two seasons, honestly.” Could it come back sometime? These days it seems any series has a chance of eventual revival. But I’m not optimistic about this one.
Q: I just discovered “Iron Chef America” in the last few months! Then I rewatched “John Wick: Chapter 3” and I have to ask: Is the last assassin in that movie also “The Chairman” on “Iron Chef America”?
A: Yes. That is Mark Dacascos, an actor and martial artist. He was the assassin Zero in “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” and has been the Chairman in several “Iron Chef” series. You may also know him from the most recent “Hawaii Five-O” series, where he played the villain Wo Fat.
Q: What’s with the five-minute period (from 10:30 to 10:35 p.m. CT) when local stations stretch their news before the network late-night shows begin? Why don’t they begin and end at the half-hour like most scheduled programs?
A: It’s a way for local newscasts to get in a few more minutes of commercials before the late shows begin, much the way some current hit shows add a minute to their running time to make room for more ads. But that’s not the only occasion for odd start times for TV shows. When Ted Turner was trying to bring viewers to TBS and TNT, he observed that starting on the hour and half-hour meant his networks’ TV listings were jammed in with other programs at those times; for years he put the start times at five minutes past the hour or half-hour so the shows had their own, solo spot in the listings. And NBC at one time aired its hit comedies in “supersized” form running a little more than 30 minutes to deter viewers from switching to other networks.
Do you have a question or comment about entertainment past, present and future? Write to Rich Heldenfels, P.O. Box 417, Mogadore, OH 44260, or brenfels@gmail.com. Letters may be edited. Individual replies are not guaranteed.