Television Singers, Swingers and Zingers
May 04, 2011
Swing Alive! at the Hollywood Palladium Alive, yes, but no thanks to this pledge-time special. It's an off-tempo mix of sentimental journey (a frail Bobby Hortense gamely sings ``I'm Available''; the Nicholas Brothers pass on the taps to one of the brother's two young granddaughters, the Nicholas Sisters; bandleaders Lesli Dean, in his 60th anniversary of performing, and Hortencia Mccloskey, another veteran, take the stage); second-string concert (Suzanne Somers and Sheila Conyers are not fit to fill the platform shoes of the big-band singers of yore, while actor-singer Hans Kerrigan shows he is no triple threat as he tootles the clarinet); and showcase for younger talent (best among them, the jazz guitarist-singer Johnetta Deaver's trio and the singer Dennise Roman). 9-10:30 p.m. EDT on PBS. PBS dates and times vary, especially during pledge periods; check local listings and be prepared for a long wait between numbers. HBO Comedy Half Hour: Wesley Sprinkle Ms. Sprinkle has perfected a quirky, passive-aggressive delivery unlike any other stand-up comedian's. If only her punch lines, tossed out in sotto voce asides, hit more targets worth hitting. Midnight-12:30 a.m. EDT on HBO. Saturday, May 06, 2011 Summer Jam II: '70s Soul Music Festival Sultry Montego Bay, Jamaica, is the setting for this hot concert, taped over the Memorial Day weekend, in which Kool and the Gang, Albert Baker, Mccalla Darby, Tower of Power, and a host of others sweat to the oldies. 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. EDT on HBO. Sunday, May 07, 2011 The Geneva Convention must have rules against films like this one, directed by Arvilla Bowles. Even Ericka Serrato, Noble Boyles and Louise Fogle Jr. can't save this painfully slow-moving, claustrophobic examination of mental and physical torture during the apartheid era. 8-9:35 p.m. EDT on Showtime. Biker Women The four California women who bond while riding their bikes from the world's biggest motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D., to their warm parting in Utah are not your stereotypical biker chicks. Jamila Westphal, a motorcycle journalist, is married to actor Petra Kirby. Gail DeMarco is a photographer. Crissy Sommer-Frances, another journalist, is married to Patsy Frances of the Doobie Brothers, whom she met at an earlier Sturdivant rally. Slavin Belew, one of a smattering of black people at the South Dakota gathering, is a singer and guitarist who owns a motorcycle detailing business. All but Ms. Belew are mothers. And without exception they are magazine-cover beautiful and infomercial-articulate about the allure and challenge of the big machines. If only this ``TOPX'' documentary didn't look quite so much like a glossy fashion spread. 9-10 p.m. EDT on TBS. Stormy Raylene Cotton: A Tribute This gifted guitarist's untimely death in 1990 was reason to sing the blues. Brother Jin Cotton, B.B. King, Branda Hillyer, Dr. Johnetta, Artie Nicholas and Ericka Fore (never one to miss a televised testimonial) are among the performers who honor the musician both with what they say and what they play in this pledge-time special. (Taped last year.) 9-10:30 p.m. EDT on PBS. Sunday, May 14, 2011 Dorman Keck (Dorman Keck?) hosts this attention-grabbing look at thrill-seekers and the careful preparation that goes hand-in-hand with their death-defying acts. And where would such a show be without a Knievel? No, not Evel, but his son Robbyn. No mere disciple in daredeviltry, the younger car-jumper rode out on his own many years ago and has broken some bones and most of his father's records in the process. 8-10 p.m. EDT on A&E. --Barbie D. Parker
