Other TV shows I’ve watched lately
Here are some shows that I’ve seen a few episodes of, vacation edition. The previous iteration of this list is here.
Finding Your Roots
Celebrities, and sometimes non-celebrities, find out about their ancestors on this show. I found it enthralling. The guests are presented with copies of significant documents like newspaper clippings and birth certificates. All families went through hardships, often during the time they’re coming from somewhere else to the US. But if you’re black and your family has been in the US for several generations, your ancestors may have been slaves at some point. The host Henry Louis Gates, Jr. asks the guests how they feel about the revelations.
Let’s Make a Deal
Wayne Brady, from Whose Line is it Anyway?, hosts this wacky show that used to be hosted by Monty Hall. Jonathan Mangum is his sidekick, and they are friends so they have some fun together. People in the audience dress up as something silly in order to get Brady to pick them to make a deal. Typically he’ll give them a choice between two items, like what’s behind curtain #1 or what’s in this small box. Sometimes they choose wisely and sometimes they don’t. At the end is the “big deal” when someone who won before can decide to give up what they won in order to try to win something like a car or a trip. It’s already in its 13th season.
Orangutan Jungle School
Filmed in Borneo, this is a real-life show about orangutans who have been rescued and are being trained to go back to the wild. The trainers are kind but firm when they need to be. The orangutans are divided into classes, based on their skill level. The orangutans must learn how to feed themselves and how to travel through the jungle. The story of these animals is gripping, and you’ll be very happy to see the graduates released into the wild. There have been 2 seasons and a 3rd is forthcoming.
Wheel of Fortune
Pat Sajak hosts, and Vanna White turns over the letters. This is one show where you will be yelling at the TV. Will they spin, buy a vowel, or solve the puzzle? You’ll be astonished at how some people can solve puzzles with so few letters. Sajak and White are obviously friends and they have small moments of joking around. It’s already in its 39th season.
You Bet Your Life
This was a quiz show hosted by Groucho Marx in the old days. It’s been brought back with Jay Leno as host, along with his old friend Kevin Eubanks. It’s a fairly simple show — two contestants try to win some money by answering questions in a random category. The one thing that’s different is the contestants have never met before, and they’re working together. They do find some contestants who are interesting people.
Young Sheldon
This is the spinoff of The Big Bang Theory. It might not be quite as brilliant as that show, but it’s certainly worth watching. It takes place when Sheldon was young, as the title suggests. They found a perfect child actor to play Sheldon, Iain Armitage. Zoey Perry, who happens to be Laurie Metcalf’s daughter, plays his mother. Annie Potts plays Meemaw, Wallace Shawn plays a physics professor, and Mckenna Grace occasionally plays Sheldon’s rival Paige. It’s already in its 5th season.