BEST OF THE WEEKEND.TELEVISION SUNKEN TREASURE: You have to feel sorry for the makers of ``Submerged,'' NBC's Sunday night Sunday Night, later named Michelob Presents Night Music, was an NBC late-night television show which aired for two seasons between 1988 and 1990 as a showcase for jazz and eclectic musical artists. movie. After a season of stuff that pretty much qualifies as garbage, NBC NBC in full National Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. commercial broadcasting company. It was formed in 1926 by RCA Corp., General Electric Co. (GE), and Westinghouse and was the first U.S. company to operate a broadcast network. manages to uncork a serviceably taut, inspirational adventure yarn, based on a true story, about a miraculous submarine rescue. The bad news: It comes a mere six days after the network has more or less disavowed the made-for-TV movie (as NBC Entertainment president Jeff Zucker said Monday, ``This genre is over''). On top of that, ``Submerged'' has to compete with high-profile movies (``Anne Frank'' and ``Like Mother, Like Son'' on ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. and CBS (Cell Broadcast Service) See cell broadcast. , respectively - both to be reviewed on Sunday), not to mention the season finales of ``The Sopranos'' and ``The X-Files.'' ``Submerged'' tells the story of the U.S.S. Squalus, which plummeted to the ocean's floor after a routine test run in May 1939. Sam Neill (``Jurassic Park'') stars as Swede swede: see turnip. Momsen, an eccentric Navy colonel (who developed the progenitor pro·gen·i·tor n. 1. A direct ancestor. 2. An originator of a line of descent. progenitor ancestor, including parent. progenitor cell stem cells. to modern scuba equipment) who led the perilous and unprecedented rescue mission. Emily Procter (``The West Wing'') plays the wife of the imperiled sub's captain, who must rally the spirits of the wives and girlfriends of the trapped men. Old-fashioned storytelling celebrating old-fashioned heroism somehow never seems to go out of style. It airs at 9 p.m. Sunday on Channel 4. - David Kronke 'MALCOLM' AT THE END: After focusing on the antics of the kids for a pretty satisfying season and a half, ``Malcolm in the Middle'' offers up a season finale for the parents in the audience. It focuses on Lois (Jane Kaczmarek, who with this episode locks up another Emmy nomination) and Hal (Bryan Cranston, uproarious in his own right), who contend with the possibility of having another child, inspiring memories of the births of each of their sons. Troubled-child Francis, it's revealed, was born just seconds after the couple married (Lois, hilariously, can barely stand up straight for the ceremony). Reese's sadism began at the fetal stage - Lois shrieks, ``I swear to God, he's biting my kidney'' - and the origins of Malcolm's genius and Dewey's goofiness are likewise explicated. There's a terrific visual gag parents should appreciate, as Hal and Lois' chic, all-white home decor becomes increasingly filthy as the family evolves. But for all the screaming and manic humor, ``Malcolm'' still manages a sweet grace note as the season closes, as Mom and Pop Mom and Pop An adjective denoting a small-scale and family-like atmosphere, often used to describe these types of businesses and investors. Notes: A mom-and-pop business is typically a small family-run business. list the things they still love about one another - Lois swoons, ``I love how you still suck in your gut when I come in the room.'' ``Malcolm'' airs at 8:30 p.m. Sunday. - D.K. FESTIVAL A VINE TIME: Tarzan will be greeting the public in his namesake town during Tarzana's second annual street fair, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Sponsored by the Tarzana Chamber of Commerce, the event will include live entertainment, kids' activities, arts and crafts arts and crafts, term for that general field of applied design in which hand fabrication is dominant. The term was coined in England in the late 19th cent. as a label for the then-current movement directed toward the revivifying of the decorative arts. booths and a food court. Free admission and parking. Ventura Boulevard will be closed between Reseda Boulevard and Crebs Avenue. Call (818) 343-3687 or (818) 881-4900. - H.A. MUSIC FATHER OF BRITISH BLUES: John Mayall, whose Bluesbreakers helped launch the careers of Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Mick Taylor and Jack Bruce, is on the road again. The grizzled griz·zled adj. 1. Partly gray or streaked with gray: a grizzled beard. 2. Having fur or hair streaked or tipped with gray. Englishman, dubbed ``the father of British blues,'' appears tonight at the Canyon in Agoura Hills, Saturday at the Ventura Theatre and Sunday at the Doheny Blues Festival. Mayall has a sharp eye for talent, so expect fretboard fret·board n. A fingerboard that is fitted with frets. fireworks fireworks: see pyrotechnics. fireworks Explosives or combustibles used for display. Of ancient Chinese origin, fireworks evidently developed out of military rockets and explosive missiles and accompanied the spread of military explosives westward to from guitarist Buddy Whittington. The Canyon is at 28912 Roadside Drive, Agoura Hills. Show time is 9 p.m. and tickets are $18. Information: (818) 879-5016. The Ventura Theatre is at 26 S. Chestnut St., Ventura. Show time is 7 p.m. and tickets are $20 to $30. Information: (805) 653-0721. The Blues Festival takes place at Doheny State Beach Doheny State Beach, protected as part of the California Department of Parks and Recreation, is a beach on the Pacific coast of Orange County, in Southern California. It includes a day use surfing beach at the northern end, as well as campgrounds in its southern area. , Dana Point Harbor Drive, Dana Point. Event starts at 10:30 a.m. and tickets are $30 to $70. Information: (213) 480-3232. - Fred Shuster NEW WEST TO PERFORM MAHLER: The New West Symphony closes its sixth season with two performances of Mahler's dramatic Second Symphony, popularly known as ``Resurrection.'' The concerts take place tonight at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center A performing arts center, often abbreviated PAC, is a multi-use performance space that can be adapted for use by various types of the performing arts, including dance, music and theatre. and Saturday at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza The Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza is a performing arts and administrative center located in Thousand Oaks, California. It was built in 1994 on the former site of "Jungleland" at a cost of $63.8 million. . Local resident Jessica Rivera will be the soprano soloist and Janice Taylor will sing the alto solos. The combined master chorales of Los Robles Robles is a common surname in the Spanish language meaning oaks, and may refer to:
The Oxnard Arts Center is at 800 Hobson Way, Oxnard. Show time is 8 p.m. and tickets are $8 to $42. The Thousand Oaks Civic is at 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. Show time is 8 p.m. and tickets are $8 to $67. Information for both events: (800) 639-9378. Complete program notes are available at: www.newwestsymphony.org. - F.S. MUSIC OF THE NIGHT: Broadway star Michael Maguire will perform at the Cinegrill in Hollywood at 8 tonight through Sunday night. Directed by Clifford Bell, ``Michael Maguire in Concert'' is a 60-minute show featuring music from ``Les Miserables,'' `'The Phantom of the Opera,'' ``The Hunchback hunchback, abnormal outward curvature of the spine in the thoracic region. It is also known as kyphosis and humpback, and in its severe form a noticeable hump is evident on the back. of Notre Dame'' and ``The Music Man.'' The Tony Award-winning star of ``Les Miserables'' last appeared locally in the Reprise re·prise n. 1. Music a. A repetition of a phrase or verse. b. A return to an original theme. 2. A recurrence or resumption of an action. tr.v. ! production of Gershwin's `'Strike Up the Band!'' He has also appeared in the movies ``Where the Day Takes You,'' ``The Deep End of the Ocean'' and ``Go Fish.'' Tickets are $20 with a $10 food and drink minimum. The Cinegrill is in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, 7000 Hollywood Blvd. Call (323) 466-7000. - Evan Henerson MODE-US OPERANDI: Dave Gahan and the rest of Depeche Mode are preparing for five months of sheer excitement across 20 countries. In fact, they're calling this whirlwind outing the ``Exciter'' tour. Stopping at the Staples Center on Aug. 14, the tour supports Depeche Mode's new album, titled - naturally - ``Exciter ex·cit·er n. 1. One that excites: an exciter of animosity. 2. An auxiliary generator used to provide field current for a larger generator or alternator. 3. .'' The album was released Tuesday. Tickets can be purchased at all Ticketmaster locations, or at the Web site (www.ticketmaster.com), or by calling (213) 480-3232. - Sandra Barrera FIDDLING AROUND: Toe-tapping bluegrass music, folk songs and country-style dancing will be featured at the 61st annual Topanga Banjo-Fiddle Contest and Folk Festival from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Instrumental and singing contests, folk-art booths, cowboy poetry and food will also be a part of the festival. Admission $9, $5 for seniors 65 and up and children 10-17, free for under 10. Free parking and shuttle bus. Blankets or low-backed chairs are recommended for seating. To reach the Paramount Ranch, near Agoura, take the Ventura Freeway (101), exit at Kanan Road, follow the signs to Cornell Road, turn left on Cornell and continue 2 1/2 miles to the entrance. (818) 382-4819. Or www.topangabanjofiddle.org on the Web. - Holly Andres STAGE BEAN STALKINGS: Here's a tale that should be full of beans. ``Beanstalk! A Tall Tale,'' a children's play written by Lori Marshall and directed by Kathleen Marshall, will open Saturday and play through July 8 at the Falcon Theater, 4252 Riverside Drive in Burbank. Starring Marcia Strassman of ``Welcome Back, Kotter'' and ``Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,'' and featuring the voice of former ``Partridge Family'' kid and current L.A. morning radio personality Danny Bonaduce as ``the bird,'' the play is a twist on the ``Jack and the Beanstalk'' story. In this version, however, we have a pizza delivery boy who is afraid of heights, a basketball-playing giant as well as stilt-walking, acrobatics acrobatics Art of jumping, tumbling, and balancing. The art is of ancient origin; acrobats performed leaps, somersaults, and vaults at Egyptian and Greek events. Acrobatic feats were featured in the commedia dell'arte theatre in Europe and in jingxi (“Peking and zany theatrics the·at·rics n. 1. (used with a sing. verb) The art of the theater. 2. (used with a pl. verb) Theatrical effects or mannerisms; histrionics. . Performances are at 1 and 3 p.m. Saturdays and 1 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are $10. Call (818) 955-8101. - E.H. < FILM WILD ABOUT 'HARRY': ``With a Friend Like Harry ...'' might be called the model French psychological thriller. It suggestively builds a sense of dread out of seemingly everyday occurrences, and finally shifts into satisfying - if somewhat implausible - hysteria for a gut-churning final act. Marrying a premise from Hitchcock's ``Strangers on a Train'' to the keenly observed domestic dysfunctions associated with the work of Claude Chabrol, Dominik Moll's suspenser is, at its twisted heart, a poisoned Valentine to family values. Michel (Laurent Lucas) plays a young married man with a nice enough wife, three young daughters, domineering dom·i·neer·ing adj. Tending to domineer; overbearing. dom  i·neer parents and less money
than he needs.
When a wealthy, barely remembered friend from high school (Sergi Lopez in the title role) insinuates himself into the family's rustic summer vacation, Michel starts to seriously question his less-than-ideal life. When the infatuated in·fat·u·at·ed adj. Possessed by an unreasoning passion or attraction. in·fat  u·at Harry starts bumping off those
he considers impediments to his friend's happiness, Michel is
forced to figure out what he really values. As wickedly funny as it is
disturbing, ``Harry'' may not be the sharpest of Gallic
thrillers, but it is among the more entertaining.
- Bob Strauss CAPTION(S): 7 photos Photo: (1) No caption (television show ``Submerged'') (2) Jan Kaczmarek and Bryan Cranston in the flashback flash·back n. 1. An unexpected recurrence of the effects of a hallucinogenic drug long after its original use. 2. A recurring, intensely vivid mental image of a past traumatic experience. season finale of ``Malcolm.'' (3) MAYALL (4) RIVERA (5) MAGUIRE (6) Sergi Lopez plays the title character in the French psychological thriller With a Friend Like Harry...'' (7) No caption (Marcia Strassman) |
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