Why wait? Although the Olympics opening ceremonies won’t take place until tomorrow, NBC is getting a head start with qualifying trials for the men’s and women’s freestyle skiing moguls, the men’s short program and several figure skating events ( 7 p.m.).
Due to time differences, viewers will have to set their alarm clocks to follow the opening ceremonies in Beijing live (5:30 a.m., Friday).
The show will air live on NBC and the Peacock streaming platform and will also be repeated in prime time on Friday.
• Casual fans of “serious” or classical music can cite many composers. But how many of them are women? The 2020 documentary “Sisters With Transistors” (5:30 p.m., Showtime, TV-PG) explores the intersection of technology, new music and women’s liberation in the second half of the 20th century.
Narrated by Laurie Anderson and directed by Lisa Rovner, “Sisters” shows how developments in analog tape technology and digital synthesizers have allowed female composers to bring the sounds in their heads into the world, with enormous and unprecedented effect on the recording studio and film music. , to say the least.
Electronic music was often seen as austere and experimental, but “Sisters” profiles several composers whose work has become widely known. Bebe Barron (1925-2008) and her husband, Louis, pioneered electronic tape music and composed the score for the 1956 science fiction fantasy “Forbidden Planet”, considered the first all-electronic film music . British experimentalist Delia Derbyshire (1937-2001) also used analogue tape to create the fascinating 1963 theme to “Doctor Who”, music still used for this series.
Derbyshire was featured in the ‘Watch the Sound with Mark Ronson’ series, which aired on Apple TV+.
• ABC News enters Black History Month with two documentaries: “Soul of a Nation: Screen Queens Rising” (7 pm) explores the role of Hollywood representation in both reflecting and inspiring progress. Long considered the most overlooked demographic in Hollywood and society, the past few decades have seen black women win Oscars and take on leadership roles in front of and behind the camera.
“Soul of a Nation Presents: X/onerated: The Murder of Malcolm X and 55 Years to Justice” (8 p.m., ABC), profiles Muhammad Abdul Aziz, recently cleared of charges of participating in the murder of the Muslim leader noir . His conviction, overturned in November last year, was fraught with overlooked evidence and ignored testimony. Now 84, Aziz has spent more than half a century behind bars.
• Created by Ridley Scott, the series “Raised by Wolves” begins its second season on HBO Max. “Wolves” follows two androids tasked with raising human children on an uncharted planet. As more settlers arrive, the nascent human society is threatened by religious conflict. Episodes can be streamed for free on hbomax.com/watch-free until February 15.
• A bullied boy befriends a monster in horror movie ‘Slapface’, now streaming on Shudder.
TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
• Mateo has explosive stories to tell on “Promised Land” (9 p.m., ABC, r, TV-14).
• Men from different backgrounds and regions bond over their shared devotion to their classic cars on “United We Drive” (9 p.m., FYI, TV-PG).
CULT CHOICE
A dissatisfied middle-aged husband (Kevin Spacey) develops an obsession with his daughter’s friend (Mena Suvari) in the 1999 satire “American Beauty” (7 p.m., Showcase). Written by Alan Ball, who would later create “Six Feet Under” for HBO.
SERIES TICKETS
Running away from home on “Young Sheldon” (7 p.m., CBS, r, TV-PG) … “Joe Millionaire: For Richer or Poorer” (7 p.m., Fox, TV-14) … Micki didn’t not miss a beat for mourning on “Walker” (7 p.m., CW, r, TV-PG) … A nightly tradition of mischief on “Ghosts” (7:30 p.m., CBS, r, TV-PG) … Semi -the famous scenes closed for the cameras on “Big Brother: Celebrity Edition” (8 p.m., CBS, TV-PG) … Kat encourages Max’s creativity on “Call Me Kat” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14) . .. Hope plays a dangerous game on “Legacies” (8 p.m., CW, r, TV-14) … A favorite show remembered on “Pivoting” (8:30 p.m., Fox, TV-14) … Not without my daughter in “Bull” (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
LATE AT NIGHT
Dua Lipa and 2 Chainz are booked on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (10:35 p.m., CBS) … Josh Gad, Anna Chlumsky and the Weather Station appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (10:35 p.m., ABC) … Kenneth Branagh, Lily James and Nicki Minaj appear on “The Late Late Show With James Corden” (11:37 p.m., CBS) … “The Tonight Show” and “Late Night With Seth Meyers” are preempted for coverage of the Olympics.
“Okay, that was weird. The least anticipated story of the week was the scandal involving Felicity Huffman (“Desperate Housewives”) and “When Calls the Heart” star Lori Loughlin (7 p.m. Sunday, Hallmark, TV-G), in a bribery plot / cheating to get their respective daughters into elite universities.
This is obviously an ongoing case, and all parties must have their say, or one day, in court. But the motivation at the center of this story is worth discussing. It implies an overwhelming need to do anything to get children into elite schools. As if something “less” was unthinkable.
Television plays a significant role in this insecurity. I can’t remember how many times I’ve had to describe an ABC legal drama where every character hails from the most exclusive Ivy and spends most of the pilot bragging about it.
There was a time, not too long ago, when John Grisham wrote best-selling books about barely accredited young lawyers from anonymous institutions who took on impossible cases against huge corporations and ultimately won. And I got the girl, to boot.
Thus, the neurotic obsession of our present age with elitism and inequality is hardly entrenched.
If anything stands out from this sordid affair, it’s an appreciation that shoddy efforts at snobbery are still essentially pathetic. Or on classic TV, comedy. Watching “Gilligan’s Island,” we identified with Mary Ann and the Skipper, and felt sorry for the millionaire and his wife.
— CNN debuts the four-hour documentary “Tricky Dick” (8 p.m., Sunday), chronicling the life and times of Richard Nixon’s public career, which spanned decades from the dawn of the Cold War to the Clinton years.
SATURDAY HIGHLIGHTS
— An anxious new mother joins a solidarity and support group, only to find he has darker plans on his agenda in shock 2019 “Mommy Group Murder” (7 p.m., Lifetime, TV-14).
– The Thunder and Warriors meet in NBA action (7:30 p.m., ABC).
— A former kidnapper returns to form on “Ransom” (8 p.m., CBS, TV-14).
SUNDAY HIGHLIGHTS
— Program on “60 Minutes” (6 p.m., CBS): embassy employees in China and Cuba complain of mysterious ailments; AOL founder Steve Case and his plans to invest in the future of neglected small towns in America; a visit to Monaco.
— The duels begin on “World of Dance” (7 p.m., NBC, TV-PG).
— Auditions continue on “American Idol” (7 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
– Lex Luthor is free on “Supergirl” (7 p.m., CW, TV-PG).
— Mr. Wednesday prepares for battle on “American Gods” (7 p.m., Starz, TV-MA).
— After discovering her royal lineage, an adopted 10-year-old girl becomes a little bully in the 2019 clash “Mommy’s Little Princess” (7 p.m., Lifetime, TV-14).
— A secret room harbors dangers on “Charmed” (8 p.m., CW, TV-14).
— Hidden secrets revealed in “The Walking Dead” (8 p.m., AMC, TV-MA).
— A new trial continues on “The Case Against Adnan Syed” (8 p.m., HBO, TV-14).
– Ax is determined to destroy Taylor in the fourth-season premiere of “Billions” (8 p.m., Showtime, TV-MA).
– Ulysses pursues a conspiracy theory on “Now Apocalypse” (8 p.m., Starz, TV-MA).
— “Unsung” (8 p.m., TVONE) portrays the Jets.
— Peaceful openings on “Madame la secretary” (9 p.m., CBS, TV-PG).
— The tension mounts on “Good Girls” (9 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
— Mo’s past is revealed on “Black Monday” (9 p.m., Showtime, TV-MA).
CULT CHOICE
— St. Patrick’s Day inspires many traditions. Syfy offers a marathon of “Leprechaun” movies, from “Leprechaun 5: In the Hood” (Saturday 4 p.m., TV-14) to “Leprechaun 2” (8 p.m.). TCM takes the traditional approach, ladling the Technicolor blarney from director John Ford’s 1952 romance “The Quiet Man” (7 p.m. Sunday, TV-PG).
SATURDAY SERIES
“Dateline” (7 p.m., NBC, TV-PG)… “NBA Countdown” (7 p.m., ABC)… The kids are fine on “MasterChef” (8 p.m., Fox, r, TV-PG)…” 48 Hours” (9 p.m., CBS) … A vintage portion of “Saturday Night Live” (9 p.m., NBC, r, TV-14).
SUNDAY SERIES
A visit from an old friend inspires Miles in “God Friended Me” (7 p.m., CBS, TV-PG)… Homer can’t leave Bart’s virtual kingdom in “The Simpsons” (7 p.m., Fox, TV-14 ) … Empathy for all things on “Bob’s Burgers” (7:30 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
A walk down the aisle on “NCIS: Los Angeles” (8 p.m., CBS, TV-14)… On two episodes of “Family Guy” (Fox, TV-14), Meg’s Winter Olympics ( 8 p.m.), the fights on a dowager (8:30 p.m., r)… Aches on “Shark Tank” (9 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
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