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Yahoo!'s Picks of the Week (10-5-98)


1998 Fall Television Highlights

Sister Wendy's Story of Wine
Thursdays - 10:00pm - PBS Channel 9

She's back, and she's picked up a nasty habit. The wimpled art critic has been consumed by a new passion: wine. Each week, everyone's favorite British nun explores the origins and ancient history of wine, in a "toast to the mind, body, spirit, imagination, and bottle." Watch as Sister Wendy "gets into it" with researchers after drinking more than her fair share of "chateau hajji firuz," which dates back to the Neolithic Period. Laugh along as she and the crew demolish a hotel room after a particularly rousing look at Egyptian wine from the Early Dynastic Period. Stay tuned for the unfortunate final episode, when the police pull over Sister Wendy as she "takes off" with the last of the Mesopotamian Merlot. Warning: some adult language.

Swedish Arctic Rangers!
Thursdays - 9:00pm - Channel 9

The Swedish Army's crack team of frigid fighters returns for another season of sub-zero shenanigans. Stefan, the rookie from Stockholm, sparks a near-riot when he turns off the Abba tape during target practice. During an especially bleak snowstorm, Gunter (the toehead vegetarian from Huskvarna) is forced to eat his first reindeer. Bjorn, the flinty colonel, tries to encourage the lads while fighting his own personal battle with Filipstad Firewater. Watch the hijinks unfold as Bjorn and the boys get sent to the Sahara on a UN peacekeeping mission.

The Late Show: Live from Ghana
Weeknights - 11:30pm - CBS Channel 5

It's sweeps time again, and everyone's favorite late-night talk show hits the road in style. After last season's well-received "Late Show: Live from Ulaanbaatar, Capital of the Mongolian People's Republic," Dave heads for Kakum National Park, Ghana, on Africa's east coast. Tune in each night for a thorough exploration of the African continent. Learn more about the people, places, animals, and parks of Africa, where it is generally believed that human life began. Watch as Dave throws various breakable objects off of Mount Kilimanjaro. Don't miss the stupid zebra tricks performed by game rangers of Malawi's Nyika National Park. It's a tour of 57 prominent African cities, and you're invited.

I Say, Has Anyone Seen My Ozone Layer?
Tuesdays - 6:00pm - Channel 2

Those loveable Brits are at it again. The Antarctic Survey Team at Ice Station Churchill are snuggled in for another six months of uninterrupted sunshine, lukewarm Earl Grey tea, and plunging ozone measurements. Team captain Felicity Weatherspoon discovers an unwelcome visitor in the form of "a bloody great big Polar bear in the lavatory." Giles, the soft-spoken geophysicist from Hull, continues to miss his mummy. Meanwhile Reginald (Rowan Atkinson as a hilarious atmospherist from Surrey) still can't seem to locate that elusive Ozone Layer. "God Save the Gamma Rays."

Elderly Ballplayer Jeopardy
Weekdays - 7:30pm - Channel 6

Join host Elmer Whipple (Cincinnati Redstockings, '09-'14) as he quizzes wiley old-timers in a daily half-hour cagematch of turn-of-the-century trivia buffs. Watch as Tris Speaker matches wits with Cy Young on subjects such as the Horseless Carriage, Name that Railroad, Chaos Theory, and Spats n' Garters. The contestant roster is made up of players from dozens of different teams and leagues, from Birmingham's Carlton Molesworth to our defending champion, Roanoke's Shag Shaughnessy.

That 1968 Show
Sundays - 9:00pm - Channel 4

Following hot on the heels of "That Seventies Show," this feelgood sitcom follows a diverse group of "survivors" of 1968. By conducting painstaking research, the show's creators hope to deal accurately with the all the tough issues, from the Civil Rights movement to Vietnam. You won't want to miss the series premiere, which follows President Lyndon B. Johnson (Ricky Schroeder) as he "experiments" with body-painting and the music of Jefferson Airplane.

Quincy: The Early Years
Fridays - 8:00pm - Channel 20

The success of recent retreads like "The New Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island" has paved the way for this hour-long drama. Chronicling the med-school struggles of everyone's favorite coroner, the show offers a near-encyclopedic primer on forensic science. Jack Klugman stars as the young pathologist's mentor, Dr. Wharton Bosch, while teen heartthrob Jonathan Taylor Thomas takes on the title role. Tie-ins will include action figures and a custom version of Milton-Bradley's "Operation!" (now called "Autopsy!").

VH1 Storytellers: The Shaggs
Friday - 9:00pm - Channel 7

Bonnie Raitt says "The Shaggs are like castaways on their own musical island." The New York Times says their 1969 debut "Philosophy of the World" may be "the best worst rock album ever made." Frank Zappa called them "better than the Beatles." Now, for the first time, the Wiggins Sisters tell their story. From their domineering father Austin Wiggins, Jr. to their fateful single-day recording session, the Shaggs come clean. Take their stories, take their songs, take your pick(s).


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Previous Weeks Picks: [ Sep 28, 1998 | Sep 21, 1998 | Sep 14, 1998 | Sep 7, 1998 ]


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