Laurel’s TV Picks

Season finale of Joan of Arcadia (CBS, 7pm)
The 31st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards (NBC, 8pm - 10pm)
Jennifer Esposito, Barry Pepper, Stephen Dorff, Luis Guzman, and Jon Favreau on Dinner For Five (IFC, 9pm and midnight)
Kate Hudson, John McEnroe, Alanis Morissette on On The Record with Bob Costas (HBO, 10pm)
Ellen DeGeneres, the Strokes on The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS, 10:35pm)

The Fall 2004 Schedule Grid is complete now and also now I’ve got all the new series titles linked to official sites or pages about the shows. I hope you find the page useful. Also includes a list of series that won’t be returning.

There’s still time to order some cool TV DVDs that are due out this Tuesday including: Season 6 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 3 of Cheers, Season 3 of Frasier, and (at long last) Season 1 of Northern Exposure. [ More TV on DVD ] Remember when you buy via my links here, you help keep this site online and support my work. I really appreciate it.

Check TV Tattle and the TV Barn Ticker for more coverage of the schedule announcements (among other things).

Sci-Fi mini-marathon du jour: Battlestar Galactica (Sci-Fi, 10am - 3pm).

Baseball: St. Louis Cardinals at Chicago Cubs (WGN, 2pm).

Prince and Brittany Murphy on a very cool rerun of The Ellen DeGeneres Show (syndicated, check your local listings).

George Lopez co-hosts with guests Anna Nicole Smith, Rosa Blasi (of Strong Medicine), Stryker on The Sharon Osbourne Show (syndicated, check your local listings; WGN, midnight).

Rocco DiSpirito, Simon Winthrop, Molly Parker, Groovaloos on The Wayne Brady Show (syndicated, check your local listings).

“Extreme Behaviors” on Dr. Phil (syndicated, check your local listings).

“Lionel Richie and Daughter Nicole on Fame, Drugs & Divorce” Oprah (syndicated, check your local listings).

“Tabula Rasa” and “Smashed” episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (FX, 3pm, 4pm).

“I Will Remember You” episode of Angel (TNT, 4pm). Buffy visits.

TV Land Moguls: The ’80s (TV Land, 4pm).

“Use Your Noodle 2″ (stuffed pasta) episode of Good Eats (Food Network, 6pm).

Inside the Actors Studio: Will and Grace Cast (Bravo, 6pm and 10pm).

Ice cream toppings Unwrapped (Food Network, 6:30pm).

Baseball: Los Angeles Dodgers at Atlanta Braves (TBS, 6:30pm).

Joan’s parents both have their own sortof supernatural encounters, and Joan ends up in the hospital doubting her beliefs on the season finale of Joan of Arcadia (CBS, 7pm). I’ve had a chance to see this episode and I like it quite a bit. Good stuff. Debra Mooney (a.k.a. “Feisty Nurse Edna” from Everwood) guest stars. Show will be back next season.

Rebroadcasts of the last (as in most recent) three episodes of Deadwood (HBO, 7pm, 8pm, 9pm). In case you missed them.

Rebroadcasts of the first two episodes of The WB’s Superstar USA (WB, 7pm, 8pm). It’s a joke, folks. The judges pick the worst singers, the fans cheer the worst; the good folks go home. But the whole time the performers who are winning and being cheered think it’s legit and believe the praise they’re getting. Yikes.

Special hour-long season finale of George Lopez (ABC, 7pm). Series will be back next year.

Expect a lot of life changing events and shocking announcements for the whole team on the season finale of JAG (CBS, 8pm). Show will be back next season.

Vanessa Marcil hosts The 31st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards (NBC, 8pm - 10pm). Awards for daytime TV (including soap operas, talk shows, children’s programming, home improvement shows, and more). I bet Ellen DeGeneres and her show win a lot of awards. As usual, I’ll be pulling for folks from As The World Turns and Guiding Light. They’re giving out 10 lifetime achievement awards this year (wow!), the recipients are: Rachel Ames (of General Hospital), John Clarke (of Days of Our Lives), Jeanne Cooper (of The Young and the Restless), Eileen Fulton (of As the World Turns), Don Hastings (of As the World Turns), Anna Lee (of General Hospital), Ray MacDonnell (of All My Children), Frances Reid (of Days of Our Lives), Helen Wagner (of As the World Turns), and Ruth Warrick (of All My Children).

A special two-hour edition of 20/20 (ABC, 8pm - 10pm) looks at relationships among siblings and birth order. Includes lots of interviews with famous people and their siblings. Families featured include those of Jessica (and Ashlee) Simpson, Star Jones, David Cassidy , Hillary and Haylie Duff, Michael Jordan, Aaron and Nick Carter.

More on the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal, plus Kathie Lee Gifford on Larry King Live (CNN, 8pm, 11pm, 2am).

NBA playoffs: L.A. Lakers at Minnesota Timberwolves (TNT, pregame at 8pm, game at 8:30pm).

I just learned, thanks to The View, that Patrick Stewart is a big fan of Beavis and Butthead (MTV2, 8pm - 10pm). Huh-huh. Cool!

Jennifer Esposito, Barry Pepper, Stephen Dorff, Luis Guzman, and Jon Favreau on Dinner For Five (IFC, 9pm and midnight).

Rerun of Monday’s new episode of Touching Evil (USA, 9pm and 11pm).

Rocked With Gina Gershon (IFC, 9:30pm and 12:30am).

Kate Hudson, John McEnroe, Alanis Morissette on On The Record with Bob Costas (HBO, 10pm).

A comedian’s death has similarities to a murder across town on a rerun of C.S.I. (Spike TV, 10pm).

Rerun of the most recent episode of The Shield (FX, 10pm). Directed by David Mamet.

Ellen DeGeneres, The Strokes on The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS, 10:35pm).

Maria Shriver, Steve-O & Chris Pontius, Montgomery Gentry on The Tonight Show (NBC, 10:35pm).

Darrell Hammond, Jeremy Suarez, Switchfoot on Late Night with Conan O’Brien (NBC, 11:35pm).

Rose Byrne, Ryan Seacrest, Finger Eleven on Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC, check your local listings).

Bill Walton, Brooke Burke, Camp Freddy on The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn (CBS, check your local listings).

Jerry O’Connell, Gabrielle Union, Liz Phair on Last Call with Carson Daly (NBC, check your local listings).

Green Acres marathon this weekend on TV Land (TV Land, 5am Saturday - 5am Monday).

I hope to have picks for Saturday online by 11pm Friday.

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